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Phys 222: Medical Physics

The following resources may be helpful in completing research assignments for the course. Feel free to contact us for further help.

Neil Nero (781-283-3021) or Irene Laursen (781-283-3082).

Contents:

New!

Student Library Research Award

  • Maximum of two $300 awards for a paper or project of any length from a 100 or 200 level Wellesley College course
  • One $750 award for a paper or project of any length from a 300 level Wellesley College course, excluding 360s, and 370s

Deadline: April 1, 2008

Offcampus Access · Databases A-Z · Research Guides by Subject | by Course · Reference Books Online · Library Catalog

Find background

Quick lookups
AccessScience - scientific dictionary & encyclopedia
AIP Physics Desk Reference - Science Reference QC61 .A45 2003
BioTech Life Science Dictionary
Handbook of Physics - Harris et al - Science Reference QC61 .H37 2002
Oxford Reference Online - More than 100 dictionaries - Adjust pulldown menu of search field to 'Entry Heading'

Longer explanations
Encyclopedia of Sports Science - Science Reference q GV558 .E53 1997
Encyclopedia of Medical Devices and Instrumentation - Science Reference q R856.A3 E53 1988
Encyclopedia of the Neurological Sciences - search for imaging, neuroimaging, tomography, etc.
Encyclopedia of Spectroscopy and Spectrometry
- Science Reference q QC450.3 .E53 2000 - Online Trial Mar 17 - Apr 16, 2008; feedback welcome.
Physics in Medicine & Biology Encyclopedia - Science Reference R895 .A3 P47 1986

Chapter 14 - In-Vivo Whole-body Imaging of the Laboratory Mouse in The Mouse in Biomedical Research, 2nd ed. [online], 2007
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) in Encyclopedia of the Human Brain, 2003 [online].

Duke Encyclopedia of New Medicine: Conventional and Alternative Medicine for All Ages - Science Reference q R733 .D85 2006
Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine - 3rd ed - 2006 - disease / disorder profiles

Find books

Wellesley College Library Catalog

  • tip: in the library catalog, start with keyword > choose a useful book > Full Record tab - follow the subject links to find more on that topic
  • tip: to see the subscription details for a print journal or serial ['Lib has'] > Full Record tab.

Online textbooks:

Hornak, Joseph P. The Basics of MRI [online] - (c) 1996 - 2007 - Accessed 3/17/2008
Sprawls, Perry. Physical Principles of Medical Imaging Online - 2nd ed. - part of Medical Imaging website - Sprawls Foundation

Diagnostic Imaging - Medical Physics Publishing - publisher offers free sample chapter for download for many in this category

Find journal articles

The following databases provide either full-text articles or citations (information about when and where the peer-reviewed article was published).

  • Use the Find It! @ Wellesleylink from each citation to search one or more electronic or print sources or to search our Library Catalog.
  • If Wellesley College does not have the article in any format, use the 'Find It' link to Interlibrary Loan, which automatically links the requestor to a form to submit for either
    • NExpress (several nearby libraries, often arrives in 2-3 days) or
    • ILL (thousands of libraries worldwide, arrives in 2days - 2weeks).

Academic Search Premier - dates vary, from mid-1970s to within 6-12 months of present date
Web of Science - interdisciplinary database - keyword/title and citation searching - 1900-present
Pub Med - index to articles on all aspects of biomedicine, including military medicine - PubMed Basics - PubMed Help

INSPEC database - available for searching with Neil Nero or Irene Laursen
For individual help with your topic, please feel free to consult us.

Key web sites

Functional MRI - SimplyPhysics.com

How Nuclear Medicine Works - howstuffworks.com

PET / CT Basics - Univ of Virginia

fMRI for Newbies - useful links - Jody Culham - Univ of Western Ontario - Canada

Modern Miracle Medical Machines - Some Useful Links - US National Library of Medicine

Growing vocal chords - ScienceLinks.com

OpenCourseWare - MIT - course lectures
- Dept of Biological Engineering
- Health Sciences and Technology

IEEE Spectrum magazine - Bioengineering section - Special Report - Prosthetic Arms - limited free information

How to Evaluate and Cite Sources

**Remember, you must evaluate web resources that you find with a search engine the same way you would evaluate print sources**

General criteria
Accuracy: How factual is the web page? Are the facts well-documented?
Authority: What are the professional credentials of the authors? Can you recognize the difference between a webpage author and a webmaster?
Objectivity: Pros and cons? Are there conflicting interests? Is the page advocating a cause? Who is the intended audience?
Currency: Is the page being updated regularly? How current is it now?
Coverage: Does the page require special software to view it? Is there a fee to view it, or is it free? Is the information presented cited correctly?
Ease of Use: Is the page easy to navigate? Are directions straightforward? Is advertising clearly labeled?

More on Evaluation/Critical Thinking for Web Surfing

Citing sources
Sciences: Documenting Sources with CSE Style [Council of Science Editors]
tip: scroll down to the CSE reference list, use the pulldown menu to view examples of CSE-formatted citations

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Return to Research Guides by Subject


Wellesley College Library . WCIS . Created by Irene Laursen . last modified: March 17, 2008