Finding an Expert Opinion

If you are a member of the press or a business looking for expertise, there are several steps you can take while using SCHOLARS@FIU.EDU.

• Consider words you use in your search carefully. For example, different fields of expertise use various vocabularies. Searching for experts on Marijuana, for example, will lead to a different ordering of experts compared to a search using the word Cannabis. And if you misspell Cannabis with one "n" you will receive 0 hits. If you enter THC, you will find a narrower sub-set of biochemistry expertise; a broader return of experts if you use Cannabis and Biochemistry as key words together. In short, before beginning your search, it helps to think of, and consider using, various synonyms for the subject you are searching.


• When searching a subject, SCHOLARS@FIU. EDU is designed to list people, their photos and professional directory information first. However, beneath the list of people with expertise, you sometimes will see (when scrolling down) lists of citations for research not yet linked to a person. We call these records "orphan" records. In the near future, we will be establishing URI links between these records and our faculty (e.g. reuniting the "orphan" with the faculty member who wrote the article).


• When searching for a person, start with either their last name only, or their full first and last name: e.g. enter either Furton or Kenneth Furton -- and not an abbreviated name such as "Ken Furton."


• If you are unsure of the correct spelling, put ~ at the end of your search term -- e.g., stolsenburg~ finds Stolzenberg, Lisa (as well her articles on domestic crime and influencing factors).


• The directory information listed for people in SCHOLARS@FIU will, in the future, contain links directly to the web pages of the person held at their respective colleges, schools or departments. In the meantime, if the web page link does not work, a quick Google search can lead to the department web page.


• Generally speaking, keep it simple! Use short, single terms unless your searches are returning too many results.


• Use quotes to search for an entire phrase -- e.g., "remote sensing".


• Except for boolean operators, searches are not case-sensitive, so "Everglades" and "everglades" are equivalent