A combined citation index that comprises several databases: Web of Science Core Collection, BIOSIS Citation Index, Current Contents Connect, Data Citation Index, Derwent Innovations Index, KCI-Korean Journal Database, MEDLINE®, SciELO Citation Index, and Zoological Record databases, which can be searched in the aggregate or singly.
Web of Science Core Collection contains several components: Science Citation Index, Social Sciences Citation Index, Arts & Humanities Citation Index, Conference Proceedings Index, Book Citation Index, Emerging Sources Citation Index, Current Chemical Reactions, and Index Chemicus. To search in a subset of the components, select the database then select the desired index or indices in the 'Editions' dropdown menu.
Annual Reviews is a collection of more than 50 annual review journals covering many science and social science disciplines. Each journal exclusively publish review articles which synthesize and summarize research within a field or discipline. This database includes full-text access to every historical article and issue within the collection as well as the most recent articles published.
The archive encapsulates the history and development of natural science, technology and modern biomedical sciences, and documents anti-intellectualist sentiments towards scientists. The archive includes chronicles of efforts by governments and corporations to influence research into the exploitation of natural resources, labor conditions, and the environmental and economic impacts of mining, drilling, industrial waste and pollution.
After authenticating, visit this link to the NYAS Archive in the same browser window.
This database from the National Library of Medicine offers over 37 million citations to biomedical and life sciences literature, plus links to full-text resources.
A citation and abstract database for peer-reviewed research literature, primarily in the sciences and social sciences.
You'll save time and get better results if you start with the best tool for any particular task. Here's a table that might help you choose.
What do you want to do? | The best place to start: | |
Search for references (keyword, author names, title, abstract, journal, etc. |
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Search for substances by drawing a structure or substructure. | SciFinder and Reaxys are both very strong here. SciFinder's Registry database of indexed substances is by far the largest such resource in the world, but is heavily sourced from patents. Reaxys has a smaller universe of structures (but still millions), and some people prefer its structure editor to SciFinder's. | |
Search for reactions. |
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Search by citations to past literature. | Web of Science is by far the best tool. Its citation index goes back to 1900. It has relatively powerful tools to analyze results. | |
Search for chemical spectra. |
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Search for crystallographic data. |
Reaxys contains numerous searchable crystallographic data fields for many organic and inorganic substances. SciFinder is the best place to do a literature search for this information published in journals, starting with a substance search. Access Structures is the CCDC’s and FIZ Karlsruhe’s free service to view and retrieve structures. |
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Search for physical and thermodynamic properties. |
If you need basic property information about a well known compound, starting with a good online handbook, like the CRC Handbook, is the easiest path. Reaxys has the largest number of property data fields for substances, dating back more than a century. Complex numeric queries can be created to narrow down results, in addition to searching by substance. SciFinder has added a substantial amount of property data to its Registry records, but is not nearly as thorough as Reaxys. However, it's the best place to do a literature search for reported properties using keywords and Registry Numbers. |
Adapted from "Choosing the Best Tool" by University of Texas Libraries, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic License.