A citation...
- describes a book, journal article, website, or other item;
- enables the reader to retrieve the item you refer to,
- includes the author, title, source (publisher and place of publication or URL), and date,
- follows the desired style of the assignment, publication, or other venue for the project.
Why do we cite?
- Helps us keep track of our own ideas: Citing as you go creates a good trail for your research.
- Helps us give credit to the originator of an idea, thus preventing plagiarism.
- Helps us celebrate the original work of the originator of an idea, lifting up their work and ideas and making them more visible. The author(s) did a lot of work to create their book, journal article, or other item, and citing them not only gives them credit, but also kudos.
- Helps us connect others' ideas to one another.
How do we cite?
- In-text citations and footnotes: Quickly give credit and reference to others' words and ideas inside our writing.
- Bibliography/Reference list: List of our citations at the end of a paper, presentation, or other project. Helps readers find the full information for the sources we referenced when creating our own work.
- Annotated bibliography: Helps readers -- or ourselves -- know/remember what an article was about, and why it was good to use in our project, by providing a brief description of each work being cited, summarizing and/or assessing the source.
Failing to cite a source correctly is plagiarism. Plagiarism is an academic offense and could get you in serious trouble! But don't panic: as long as you follow the citation guidelines, you will be fine. And remember: when in doubt, cite. It is always better to include a citation that you don't need than to forget a citation that you do need.
Check out our Citing Sources Guide if you need more help!
AIP Style Manual
AIP Style Manual by Call Number: QC5.45 .A45 1990Located in Rose Library - Reserves (ask at the circulation desk)
- Find a downloadable AIP Style Manual here!AIP's featured resources for researchers has writing tips and a downloadable copy of the 4th ed. of the AIP Style Manual
- Physical ReviewGuide from the American Physical Society for Physical Review style. Journal abbreviations are provided at the end. Note the most effective way to familiarize yourself with this style will be to look at the reference lists of recent articles published in this journal.
- AIPFrom AIP's Author Resource Center. Instructions for references are towards the bottom of the page. Note the most effective way to familiarize yourself with this style will be to look at the reference lists of recent articles published in AIP journals (e.g., Applied Physics Letters, Applied Physics Reviews).
Citation Tools
Citation management tools are incredibly helpful. They can help you:
- Store and organize your sources
- Save and share articles found and your notes with collaborators
- Build citations to use in your writing and final bibliography
JMU provides additional storage space and help with questions about Zotero. Zotero is a free, open-source citation manager that you can use in a web browser or in a downloaded desktop app. It has browser connector plug-ins to make saving sources as you're researching easy. And it has plug-ins for writing with Microsoft Word and Google docs. Check out the following links for more on Zotero:
- Getting started with Zotero at JMUThis is the Libraries' page on how to get started with Zotero at JMU.
- ZoteroZotero is a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources
- ZoteroBibZoteroBib is a free service that helps you quickly create a bibliography in any citation style.
- Zotero Help Guide (U. of Arkansas)The University of Arkansas Library has created this help guide for Zotero users.
What is Zotero?
- ZoteroZotero is a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share research. Sign in through your JMU email, you now have access to unlimited storage. Upgrade to Zotero 6 to see how they’ve created a whole new way of managing PDFs and annotations. You can upgrade to Zotero 6 from within Zotero by going to Help → “Check for Updates.”
- Zotero ConnectorBrowser plug-in that allows you to save sources directly to Zotero from websites and databases.
Bibliography
Annotated bibliographies—Purdue owl®—Purdue university. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2024, from https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/annotated_bibliographies/index.html
Chenevey, L. (2023). Teaching the politics of citation: Challenging students’ perceptions. College & Research Libraries News, 84(5), 152. https://doi.org/10.5860/crln.84.5.152
Based on work from Alyssa Young.