Researching- Where to Start

A day doesn’t go by when I don’t have to research something.  Maybe I need to look up how to fix the leaky pipe under my sink, or maybe I’m writing a research paper.  Sometimes I need to look up how to solve a particular math problem, and sometimes I do a deep dive into a new hobby.

The ability to research accurately and quickly can prevent a ton of frustration and save money and time

For a hobby

If you are starting a new hobby, you may want to look into everything you need for the hobby and Instructables.  

When looking for video how-tos, start with youtube.  They have millions of videos on just about every topic.  Find someone who does what you like in the hobby and follow them.  They will lead you to other like-minded vloggers and you will quickly find everything you need.  In my house, we use this method to improve our pottery throwing and drawing skills.

I recently took up soap making because my daughter was allergic to every children’s soap available.  Video Instructables made researching different recipes difficult.  

Sometimes video just isn’t optimal for learning a new hobby.  When that is the case, try Pinterest and Instagram or google the hobby you are looking for.  Pinterest and Instagram are visual search engines, and that can help narrow down what you are looking to achieve.

The best part about researching for a hobby is you can go as deep or shallow as you want.  Find what you were looking for and then keep going down the rabbit hole until you are satisfied.

Household Maintenance

There are so many household maintenance tasks the average person can do for themselves instead of hiring a professional.  Most just don’t know how to get started or what to do.  But every household maintenance task you can think of has an instructable on youtube.  Most even have it for each specific appliance, tool, or material.

Let’s say you have a leaky faucet.  Don’t just buy a replacement, look at the faucet and see if you can figure out the type, make, and model.  Often this is written on the faucet somewhere.

Take that information and type it into youtube with a description of what is wrong, ie- “dripping faucet American standard kitchen” and see what shows up.  Click on videos that look similar to your faucet and see what the people say.  

Often, the faucet won’t need replacing, it is just a seal or broken fitting.  In that case, the fix is fast and cheap.  If you do need to replace the faucet, buy one and look up the installation instructable on youtube.  They will walk you through step by step.

Recipes

It is helpful to pick a visual search engine and save recipes there.  Personally, I like Pinterest for recipes because I can save pins, add my own notes, and sort them into a digital cookbook.

I know people who prefer Instagram for recipes, and others that prefer youtube.  That is okay too. 

Some other helpful resources for recipes include:

Math and Science Problems

If you are struggling with your STEM homework, here are some good places to look for the solution:

• Google the exact problem and you might find a solution
• Check out services like Chegg
• Try Wolfram Alpha for straight forward problems
• Stack overflow or Quora may have similar worked solutions
• Try this article for more ideas

Finally, I cannot stress enough how useful an email to the professor or TA can be when you are stuck.  After all, they have the answer key….

For a big paper

Start with Wikipedia or google a broad term for the paper.  Then let Wikipedia or google take you down the rabbit hole to give a general feel for the topic.

Use the information learned in the preliminary search to look up specific keywords for more detailed information.  Once you are sure you have enough information to write your paper on, pick a topic.

Usually, I would recommend a quick jaunt to the library before writing to pick up books referenced in the online research.  But these days most libraries are closed and university libraries are increasingly putting things online to compensate.  So check your university’s online offerings and include anything you find there.  

Next outline your paper.  When outlining, it can be helpful to use comments in your word processor to match references to the outlined sections.  It is also useful to put the references in the professor specified format before writing your paper so you can cite them as you go.  

At this point, the only thing left to do is write your paper.  You should have gathered enough reference material, but you may have to find a few more references as you write to fill any citation holes.  

I typically plan to spend around half an hour of research per page of the final paper.  So if the professor sets a 30-page paper, I can expect to do at least 15 hours of research before I write.

Wrapping it all up

Researching anything takes time.  When working on a personal project, research can be fun.  Other times you need to be able to research really fast.  

Whatever you are working on, it pays to spend a little time researching before you start.

What are your favorite places to start when researching?  Let me know in the comments below!