Literature Referencing Guide Environmental Sciences Introduction Science is the culmination of human ideas and investigation. Creative scientists pull together the ideas of previous scientists, so that new research can build on what is already known. Because ideas are so highly valued, every time you use another person’s ideas, whether they have been published or not, you must properly reference the source. The standardized method for scientific authors to credit the original words and ideas is to briefly give credit in the narrative (the text of the report), and fully give credit in a reference section at the end of the report. These references ensure that intellectual property rights are respected, and allow readers to easily verify the ideas you use in your report. Failure to recognize original ideas is plagiarism, and can result in serious consequences. There are various referencing styles, and often journals covering different disciplines require a specific format. The referencing style described in this document is similar to that found in many natural sciences journals. Because of the diversity of referencing styles, it is important to always identify and closely follow the specific referencing style required by the instructor, organization, or journal for which you are writing. In CO166 (and in the department of Environmental Sciences, unless otherwise directed by your instructor) we will always follow the referencing style described below.
Referencing Style Note: While most journals require abbreviations for journal titles, we use the full journal title in our reference section. For example, Can. J. Zool. is the abbreviation for the Canadian Journal of Zoology. CO166 requires an unabbreviated journal title, as seen below. Sterling, J.T., and R.R. Ream. 2004. At-sea behavior of juvenile male northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus). Canadian Journal of Zoology 82(10): 1621–1637.
Reference Citations To properly document your references so that a reader can rapidly locate the original source, you must provide the proper information both in the text and in the reference section of your report. When referencing an idea in the narrative you must indicate the name of the author and the year the work was published, either in your introductory remarks to the reference or in parentheses following the reference. This information will allow the reader to easily locate the full publication details of the source in the reference list at the end of your report. Note: Make sure that you have paraphrased the referenced material because direct quotes (and therefore quotation marks) are not used in most scientific journals. Failure to paraphrase is considered plagiarism.
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Guidelines 1.
If both the year and the author’s surname are given as part of the narrative (in the text), no parentheses are needed: Example: In 2001, Rose compared reaction times.
2.
If the surname of the author appears as part of the narrative, cite only the year of publication in parentheses: Example: Rose (2001) compared reaction times.
3.
If the surname of the author does not appear as part of the narrative, cite both the author’s surname and the year of publication in parentheses. This is the most common method of referencing in the Natural Sciences. Ensure you locate the reference in the appropriate location in the sentence to indicate which sentence topic is being referenced: Example: In a recent study of reaction times (Rose 2001), it was found that…
4.
When a work has two authors, always cite both surnames every time the reference occurs in the text. Example: In a recent report (Best and Scharansky 2007), it was found that…
5.
When a work has more than two authors, cite only the surname of the first author followed by “et al.” Et alli is a Latin expression for “and others”. Do not underline or enclose the et al. in quotation marks and only enter a period after al (not after et): Example: Williams et al. (2002) found… Example: … as found in the study of Labrador seal populations (Keller et al. 1999).
6.
The names of corporate authors will be spelled out each time they appear in a text citation: Example: (Canadian Wildlife Service 2008) Example: (The Nature Conservancy 2009)
7.
When information has no author it is not an acceptable reference for CO166.
8.
The order of the names is important – the first author is the primary author and responsible for the majority of the report. Ensure you have retained the same order for author names as presented in the primary source.
9.
If works by different authors are cited in the same parentheses, list them in alphabetical order by the first (primary) author’s surname. Separate the citations using semicolons: Example: Several studies (Dorow and O’Neal 1979; Mullancey 1978; Talpers 1981)…
10. Some citations may appear in parentheses: Example: (in Table 2 of Philips and Ross 2004)… 11. Secondary sources are references in another person’s report. For example, Beatty is a secondary source in: Johnson’s study (cited in Beatty 1982)… Secondary source referencing is not permitted in CO166 – you must find and understand the primary source if you want to reference it in your report. Environmental Sciences
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12. Citing unpublished data, e-mail, personal communication or interviews is done only in the body of the text, and is never included in the reference list. As a result, the citation in the text must include more information, including the author’s(s’) initials and the full date of the communication. Example: …. as one survey showed (E. Robbins, personal communication, 2006). Example: A. J. de Silva also claimed that many of her students had success with the Rangeland Ecology and Management style (unpublished data 2006).
Reference Section The reference section at the end of your paper provides the information necessary for a reader to identify and retrieve each source. References cited in the text of your paper must appear in the reference section and each entry in the reference section must be cited in your paper. It is not necessary to start the reference section on a new page. Just insert the heading References three blank lines below the last sentence of your report. What you should do: Use 1.5 line spacing, left justification and a hanging indent for each entry. Leave one (1) blank line between entries. Use a comma between multiple authors. Enter references in alphabetical order according to primary authors’ surnames. In the case of an anonymous work, the title is alphabetized; in the case of a government or corporate publication, the corporate author is alphabetized. Multiple entries with the same primary author are arranged chronologically. If there are two papers with the same first author, the paper with that author alone appears before his/her papers with multiple authors. If there is more than one multi-author paper with the same first author and year of publication, they are ordered alphabetically by the second and subsequent authors’ surname(s). If two papers have the same author(s) and year, then an “a” and “b” (and so on) may be added to the year to differentiate them in the text citation and in the reference section. Journal article titles will only have the first word and proper nouns capitalized. Journal names are always capitalized. A digital object identifier (DOI) should always be part of a full reference if it has been assigned to an article. Use italics for all scientific names when the genus and species names are provided. Underlining the scientific names is only acceptable in handwritten reports. References to non-refereed documents (e.g., environmental impact statements, contract reports) must include the address where they can be obtained. Ensure you follow guidelines provided for all punctuation in the reference. Don’t do this: Never change the order of authors as they appear on the document. Do not insert a space between initials when two initials are listed for an author.
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Examples of References The following bibliographic citations illustrate the punctuation, style, and format for references in the References section. All examples use the 1.5 line spacing, are left justified, and have a hanging indent. Always pay close attention to, and follow exactly, the punctuation used in references. Citations including URL or DOI A digital object identifier (DOI) is a secure location on the internet where an article will always be found. When a DOI is included on a journal article, it should always be included in the reference. Note: No period follows a DOI address. Example: Sterling, J.T., and R.R. Ream. 2004. At-sea behavior of juvenile male northern fur seals. Canadian Journal of Zoology 82(10): 1621–1637. doi: 10.1139/Z04-136
Rather than using a DOI, some articles use a stable URL. A stable URL, much like a DOI, will always take you to the specific article. The date of retrieval is not required unless it is a document that is likely to be updated (such as in government or organization webpages). Most scholarly journals appear on-line in their final form, so a retrieval date is not needed. Example: Baker, B.W., H.R. Peinetti, and M.B. Coughenour. 2005. Resilience of willow stems after release from intense elk browsing. Rangeland Ecology & Management 58(6): 575-581. Available from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3899807
Students often use websites as references. Government, organization, and educational institution websites are acceptable sources. Since websites are often subject to broken links and updating, it is necessary to include the URL and date of viewing. Example: Cooper, A. 2011. The Gulf oil spill: one year later. Available from Ducks Unlimited Canada: http://www.ducks.ca/conserve/issues/gulf-oil-spill/index.html [accessed 29 August 2011].
When citing information found on the internet, there is often no date associated with the document. If that is the case, replace the year with n.d. (no date). Example: Environment Canada. (n.d.) Canada’s 2006 greenhouse gas inventory: a summary of trends. Available from Environment Canada, Climate Change: http://www.ec.gc.ca/pdb /ghg/inventory_report/2006/som-sum_eng.cfm [accessed 12 November 2008].
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Journal article with two authors Webb, R.A., and K.G. Davey. 1976. The fine structure of the nervous tissue of the metacestode of Hymenolepis microstoma. Canadian Journal of Zoology 54(7): 1206–1222. Journal article with more than two authors Bârsan, N., V. Nedeff, E.F. Moşneguţu, and M. Panainte. 2012. Heat balance components of a small sequencing batch reactor applied for municipal wastewater treatment. Environmental Engineering and Management Journal 11(12): 2133-2140. Entire issue of journal Gordon, D.C. Jr., and A.S. Hourston [Editors]. 1983. Proceedings of the symposium on the dynamics of turbid coastal environments. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 40 (Suppl. 1). 88 p. Report Sanders, W.W. Jr., and H.A. Elleby. 1970. Distribution of wheel loads in highway bridges. National Cooperative Highway Research Program Report 83, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington, D.C. 78 p. Entire Book Williams, R.A. 1987. Communication systems analysis and design. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J. 543 p. Book in a series Scott, W.B., and E.J. Crossman. 1973. Freshwater fishes of Canada. Bulletin of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences Research Board of Canada. No. 184. 55 p. Part of book Healey, M.C. 1980. The ecology of juvenile salmon in Georgia Strait, British Columbia. In: Salmonid ecosystems of the North Pacific. W.J. McNeil and D.C. Himsworth [Eds.]. Oregon State University Press, Corvallis, Oregon p. 203–229. Paper in conference proceedings Whittaker, A.A., C.M. Uang, and V.F. Bertero. 1990. Experimental seismic response of steel dual systems. Proceedings of the 4th U.S. National Conference on Earthquake Engineering, Palm Springs, California. Vol.2: 655–664.
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Institutional publications and pamphlets Dzikowski, P.A., G. Kirby, G. Read, and W.G. Richards. 1984. The climate for agriculture in Atlantic Canada. Available from the Atlantic Advisory Committee on Agrometeorology, Halifax, N.S. Publ. ACA 84-2. Agdex No. 070. Corporate author [USEPA] United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2010. EPA Analysis of the LiebermanWarner Climate Security Act of 2008. Washington, DC, USA: 110th Congress. 193 p. Thesis Keller, C.P. 1987. The role of polysaccharidases in loosening of epidermal tissue from young Phaseolus vulgaris L. hypocotyls. M.Sc. thesis, Department of Botany, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. 99 p. Translation Koike, A., and B. Ogura. 1977. Selectivity of meshes and entrances of shrimp traps and crab traps. Journal of the Tokyo University Fisheries 64: 1–11. [Translated from Japanese by Canadian Translations of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 4950, 1983.] Statutes and Acts 1. If an entire statute was used, then use this format: Species at Risk Act. SC 2002, c. 29. Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act. RSA 2000, c. E-12. 2. If a particular section was used, then use this format: Species at Risk Act. SC 2002, c. 29, s. 57. 3. If multiple sections were used, then use this format: Species at Risk Act. SC 2002, c. 29, ss. 57-59. Regulations 1. If the entire regulation was used, then use this format: Activities Designation Regulation. AR 276/2003. 2. If a specific section and subsection was used, then use this format: Activities Designation Regulation. AR 276/2003, s. 6(1). 3. If multiple sections were used, then use this format: Activities Designation Regulation. AR 276/2003, ss. 6-8. Case Law R. v. Ferguson, 1993 AB QB 7268 (CanLII) R. v. Powley, 2001 ON CA 24181 (CanLII) Environmental Sciences
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