A clever hook is commonly used to spark the reader's interest, therefore I hope organic farming can be interesting; for that was the subject assigned to me for this final essay that you are now reading. And with that introduction, let us prepare to dig deep into the process that I used to research my topic.
Before my research, I had a vague idea of what organic foods are. Within a few minutes, I discovered that organic foods are approved by the USDA based upon certain standards. The USDA consumer brochure gives a brief summary of these standards,
"Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation."
However, I conducted several searches in order to stumble upon what I learned. Searches always use some form of a strategy; even if a strategy is not intended. I began my search at the Haystac Catalog because it was the first on the list, and I rationalized that going down the list would save time; instead of blankly staring at the list in an effort to pick which one I should choose first. I used the subject heading option because, clearly, "organic farming" is a subject. Immediately, I found a book by the name of The Basic Book of Organically Grown Foods, which is authored by the staff of a publication by the name of Organic gardening and farming. The title was almost a sufficient evaluation of the text. The word "basic" indicates its angle, and the phrase "organically grown foods" indicates the topic relevance; search success.
After my initial success, I turned to Academic Search Premier. I used the search terms "organic" and (boolean operator) "farming." The results that I first received seemed to be lacking in relevance, so I narrowed my search (using a link provided on the left-hand side) by the subject "Organic farming." I soon found an article which contained a global view of organic farming, and past organic farming policies. I thought this would provide greater depth to my research; not did I have information on what it is, but I information on its history.
I then went to a disciplinary database. Agricola, an agriculture-based database was an obvious choice. This database categorized the results; I found a category that included consumer information, and in this category I found an online consumer brochure about organic farming. This article provides information that is most useful for the people who purchase organic products; if no one purchased organic products, then the industry would not exist. This article is clearly relevant.
Lastly, I approached the infamous Google. I used the search terms "organic farming" in quotes. The result that I fancied the most is from the USDA website, which led to a page with the title, Organic Agriculture. Once I reached the page, I noticed the words "Economic Research Service" in bold letters with the subtitle: The Economics of Food, Farming, Natural Resources, and Rural America. This page not only gave a brief overview of what organic agriculture is, but it introduces an economic element into the picture. At the bottom of the page, there are also several links to recommended readings, data, and related items. Not only did I get a result, but a result that leads to even more results; clearly it is a worthwhile result.
How did I come to the conclusion that these searches were good sources? I took into account topic relevance, angle and authority. Every result that I listed comes from a source with authority (unless you believe the USDA holds no authority). I then tried to include a circumspect arrangement of angles, which included: consumer/economic/global/historical/basic standpoints. One would suspect that many revisions had to take place to locate such a variety of results.
To my surprise, I did not have to revise any of my searches. However, technically you can say I had to do so for my search on Academic Search Premier; when I narrowed the search by subject. Although, that required a simply click of the mouse and could hardly be defined as a revision. I credit this absence of revision to my simple and specific search terms. In the game of research, topics tend to be highly complex, but search terms must be simple. I could easily continue my search using the search strategies.
A question that was raised by my search is, "What benefits does organic farming offer to society?" Another question I have is, "Is organic farming practical on a national scale?" Of course, Lexis Nexis and JSTOR are additional databases in which I could further explore my research subject.
Bibliographic citation:
1. The Basic book of organically grown foods, by the staff of Organic gardening and farming. Edited by M. C. Goldman and William H. Hylton 1. Publ. info. Emmaus, Pa., Rodale Press Book Division [1972] call number S605.5 B38
2. Explaining organic farming through past policies: comparing support policies of the EU, Austria and Finland. Author: Lesjak, Heli Annika Journal of Cleaner Production; Jan2008, Vol. 16 Issue 1, p1-11, 11p FULL TEXT: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VFX-4M04J1J-1&_user=521381&_coverDate=01%2F31%2F2008&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000059560&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=521381&md5=9bcf1c5e0ec0b0c666b4017e6bc709a5 and a just-in-case link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2006.06.005
3. Organic Food Standards and Labels : The Facts The National Organic Program Printed: April 2002 Updated: January 2007 http://desearch.nal.usda.gov/cgi-bin/dexpldcgi?qry2146737728;102
4. Organic agriculture Briefing Rooms http://www.ers.usda.gov/Briefing/Organic/ Updated date: November 27, 2007 USDA Economic Research Service
1 comment:
"Organic farming" may be a subject, but even when a word or phrase seems like a subject, that may not always be the case. In this case, you were right, but you may find that in future, you might have to start with a word search and find out the actual constructed subject heading at the bottom of one of your more relevant word search results.
You write: "In the game of research, topics tend to be highly complex, but search terms must be simple." Sometimes, but not always. It depends on the subject and the depth of your search. As you move through your college career, I think you'll find that searches will grow more complex and require more complex search strings.
Good job.
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