HOW TO CONDUCT CHEMICAL RESEARCH: A BASIC GUIDE
The Fine Rules of Chemical Research [Lowenthal]
1. Retrospectivity.
Begin in the Present; Work Backward; Think Forward
Begin with the present literature and work backwards in time for prior
research.
2. Remain Open to Possibilities and Keep Notes
Keep aware of what you read, browse, and make notes.
Information discovered while doing research may turn up in cross-references
rather than the original citations. Serendipity in your research should
not be discounted. Remember, what you read along the way to the final destination
may be more valuable than the final answer.
3. Think Critically and Ask Questions
Know and also Suspect
Never accept that the research is complete as done. After arriving
at your desired information remember that other possibilities may occur:
a) the information may be inaccurate;
b) the information may be incomplete;
c) the information may be skewed to a perspective, while not inaccurate,
may not answer the question properly.
Inaccurate information is seldom a deliberate act. Peer review of
publications, editorial verification before publication, and a commitment
to good science should protect you from deliberate falsehood. However,
you should not trust the information without verifying its accuracy by
secondary sources or testing your hypothesis with similar sources.
Incomplete results are more likely the result of insufficient attention
to thoroughness, such as testing all variations of your original hypothesis.
Interpretation of research topics by personal ambition or a failure
to give appropriate credit for work produced by others.
Searching for a Compound, its Synthesis, Properties, and Other Information
** See "Chemistry Resources Sources for Information
on Chemical Compounds"
Additional Sources:
Patents
Understanding Chemical Patents: A Guide for the Inventor. 2nd
ed., 1991
T 211 M39 Chemistry Resources
American Chemical Society primer on understanding patents as an
information source, the patenting process, records keeping, infringement,
and terminology. With a glossary.
A Note on Patents
Chemical patents are covered thoroughly by Chemical Abstracts, which has
separate patent indexes. U.S. patents are on microfilm and paper in the
Middleton Government Documents and the CASSIS CD-ROM system there is a
good starting point for looking up U.S. patents on any topic. Foreign patents
and patent applications often found in Chemical Abstracts are more difficult
to get hold of, but are available through CA, Inter-Library Services, and
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and commercial vendors. Ask Library
reference staff for more information.
For more information and links to Patent sites, see LSU Libraries'
Patents and Trademarks page.
Sources Used in Creating This Guide:
H.J.E. Lowenthal. A Guide to the Perplexed Organic Experimentalist. Second Edition. (New York: John Wiley), 1992.
QD 261 L63 1992 Chemistry Resources
For questions or comments about this page, please contact
William Armstrong
Chemistry Resources
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