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EES1200 and EES1201: Environmental Science Research Resources

Google Search Strategies

Decoding Domains

Commonly recognized top-level domains:

  • .edu = educational site (usually a university or college)
  • .com = commercial business site
  • .gov = U.S. governmental/non-military site
  • .mil = U.S. military sites and agencies
  • .net = networks, internet service providers, organizations
  • .org = U.S. non-profit organizations and others

Examples of Internet country code top-level domains:

  • .ca = Canadian site
  • .uk = United Kingdom site

 

Evaluating Grey Literature

The AACODS checklist is a great tool to evaluate and critically appraise grey literature:

infographic of the six categories that make up the AACODS checklist

James Cook University Library. (n.d.). [PNG image of the six categories that make up the AACODS checklist]. Retrieved September 23, 2021, from https://libguides.jcu.edu.au/c.php?g=734404&p=6784313
 

RADAR (Rationale, Authority, Date, Accuracy, Relevance) is another helpful acronym to use when evaluating information: