I've been working on putting together an annotated bibliography for my adviser over the past few days. I'm struck by how much work it is in terms of finding all of the articles, saving them, and then tracking backwards and forwards through citations to find related material. However as I've been doing this (and, in fact, each time I do any sort of review of the literature) I wonder what life was like before you had giant relational databases of material, not even counting things like writing up the report on a type writer. So, my question: if you've been in academia for a while, then what was life like before word processors / large relational databases of literature / instant collaboration and communication through email? And what sort of changes have you seen with the job as technology has advanced?
posted by codacorolla on May 24, 2013 - 16 answers

I'm not an academic, not trained in the art of research, and I could use some guidance. I need advice on how to identify and track down sources for a multi-year exploration of a topic. [more inside]
posted by croutonsupafreak on Dec 7, 2010 - 23 answers

Can you recommend a book chapter or article that summarizes the biological and/or psychological perspectives on gender without devolving into straw-man attacks or interdepartmental backbiting? [more inside]
posted by arcticwoman on Aug 8, 2010 - 20 answers

should a historian become an archivist? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Apr 24, 2010 - 5 answers

What are the best academic journals in each field? [more inside]
posted by ollyollyoxenfree on Jan 30, 2010 - 49 answers

When I was younger, I read a sociology textbook trying to find out why sociology was treated as a separate discipline and how it differs fundamentally from the other social sciences. I learned a lot about Weber and Durkheim, but I still don't get it. Can you help? [more inside]
posted by StrikeTheViol on Sep 11, 2007 - 12 answers

I always hear that blogging and YouTube are (and/or will be) revolutionary in American politics. Is this true? How so? Can you recommend recent books, academic articles, extended blog posts and other media that demonstrate (or argue against) the effects of blogging, citizen journalism, social networking web sites and YouTube on American politics? Differing viewpoints would be appreciated!
posted by eswusp86 on Aug 11, 2007 - 8 answers

I am a college sophomore who will be applying to graduate school in history from a somewhat mediocre university, and I need help with a course of action to follow in order to improve my chances of getting accepted. Much [more inside]
posted by nasreddin on Dec 1, 2006 - 20 answers