Plan ahead to produce what you need: relevant evidence from reliable sources to develop and support your answer to your research question. Avoid two extremes — collecting everything or counting only on memory.
For advice on working with sources, see Ch. 31; for advice on integrating sources, see Ch. 34.
Use Time-Honored Methods for Depth. Selective copying (photocopying or saving to a file) helps you accumulate material, but copying whatever you find wastes time. Instead, take notes, annotate, highlight, quote, paraphrase, and summarize — all time-honored methods for absorbing, evaluating, and selecting information from a source. Such methods help you identify potentially useful materials and, later, integrate them smoothly into your paper.
Innovate for Efficiency. Develop efficient techniques such as these:
Many researchers use word-processing files with clearly separate entries, 4″ × 6″ card format, or color coding; some stick to traditional note cards (with one note on each). Both are more flexible than notebook pages. When the time comes to organize, it’s easy to reshuffle cards, print electronic notes, or sort them into a logical order.
For more on critical reading, see Ch. 2.
Read as a Skeptical Critic. Distinguish what’s significant for answering your research question and what’s only slightly related. If you wish, add your own ratings (*, +, !! or –, ??) at the top or in the margin.
Take Accurate and Thorough Notes. Read the entire article or section of a book before beginning to take notes. Then decide what — and how much — to record so you dig out the useful nuggets without distorting the meaning. Double-check all statistics and lists. Record enough notes and citations that, once they’re written, you are independent of the source.