Kuo BIOL-1-Embedded Librarian-Hutte

Definition:

• Original research and/or new scientific discoveries
• Report of immediate results of research
• Often includes data analysis

Examples:

• Original research published as articles in peer-reviewed journals
• Technical reports reporting original research
• Conference proceedings reporting out original research

How to Identify: 

The follwing are commonly included sections of a primary research article:

• Abstract
• Introduction
• Methods or Materials and Methods 
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusions
• References

Adapted from ONU Library: Primary, Secondary & Tertiary Literature

Definition:

• Summarizes and synthesizes primary literature
• Usually broader than primary literature and less technical in language

Examples:

• Books
• Reviews, Literature Review and sometimes Systematic Review Articles
• News & Magazine Articles

Adapted from ONU Library: Primary, Secondary & Tertiary Literature

Definition:

• They index, abstract, organize, compile, or digest other sources. 
• Often their main purpose is to list, summarize or simply repackage ideas or other information.
• They may often not be credited to a specific author.

Examples:

• Dictionaries/encyclopedias (may also be secondary), almanacs, fact books
• Wikipedia
• Bibliographies (may also be secondary), directories, guidebooks, manuals, handbooks, and textbooks (may be secondary), indexing and abstracting sources

Adapted from University of Minnesota Crookston Library-Primary, Secondary & Tertiary Sources