Quick Guide: LEXIS-NEXIS Academic Universe

Please rate this guide. See the bottom of this page.

1. Scope of the Database

Lexis-Nexis supplies primarily full-text articles from newspapers worldwide.

Also included are general, medical and business periodicals; company financial information; accounting, auditing, and tax information. The Legal Research section offers law reviews and news, case law, international law, patents, and the U.S. Code. The reference section covers biographical information, country profiles, polls and surveys, and quotations.

2. Accessing the Database

• You may find Lexis-Nexis by going:

  • To the ALADIN Research Portal (http://aladin.wrlc.org).
  • (If you are off campus, here is where you will be asked to log in. See NOTE, below.)
  • In middle column, click on Databases by Title.
  • On the next page, click on the letter 'L' in the horizontal alphabet.
  • In the full list of the Ls, locate Lexis-Nexis, and click on the database name to open it.

*NOTE: If you are logging in from a non-GW computer, you will have to log on to ALADIN to be allowed access to the ALADIN Databases. In the first box, type in your last name. In the Patron ID box, type in your GWID. For the Institution, select George Washington from the drop down box. Finish by clicking Continue.

3. How to find newspaper articles: Power Search

The first screen that opens is the Power Search screen. The search shown is for newspaper articles about campaign financing that mention either Clinton or Obama.

Remember:


• Select the right source -- Explore the 'Select Source' drop-down menu to make sure you are looking in the portion of the database appropriate to your topic. The selections range from newspapers to medical journals. A good starting place is All News (English, Full Text)
  
  
• Adjust the date range -- Explore the 'Specify date' drop-down menu. Be sure it covers enough ground for your research topic.
  
  
• If your search returns a message that your 'search has been interrupted because it will return more than 3000 results', see Too many results? Focus Your Search.

4. View Results

Click the blue underlined title of the publication to view (and print and e-mail) the full text of the article. Each full-text article must be printed or saved individually. See ,Printing, Downloading, or E-mailing below.

Browse the 'All Results' list to see all the different kinds of documents that your search retrieved.

5. Too many Results? Focus Your Search.

If your search returns a message that your 'search has been interrupted because it will return more than 3000 documents' you must find a way to focus it. Click the go button next to Edit Search located at the upper right hand corner of the results screen to modify your original search.

There are a number of things you can do to more precisely focus your search.

• Use a phrase instead of two separate words. For example, use the phrase 'immigration law', instead of the two words - immigration and law - separate and unconnected.
• Enter additional search words or phrases. Or try truncating your word with an exclamation mark(!) -- financ! -- to retrieve articles with various endings of the word, such as financing, financial, finance.)
• Restrict the search to just the Headline (or the 'Lead'), by clicking on the 'Show' button right below 'Search within Document Sections'.
• Shorten the date range by clicking on the date drop-down menu and selecting a smaller range. For example: 'Previous week'.
• Limit your search to one newspaper, such as the Washington Post. Click on the 'Find More Sources' button to do that.

6. Printing, Downloading, E-mailing, or Exporting

Check mark all the documents that you want to either print, download, e-mail, or export. Then click on whichever function is appropriate in the output toolbar ---->

This page is maintained by Janet Olsen.
If you require additional assistance in using Gelman's databases, please go to the Reference and Information Desk on the first floor of the library, or see the Ask A Librarian web page for more Help options, including telephone and e-mail.

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