3 tools for students to build knowledge on a topic

Happy back-to-school season, everyone! I hope this helps any students who aren't sure where to start or what tools to use when it comes to finding readings and managing what they've learned.
(Better captions coming soon)
✨LINKS✨
Intro to Obsidian/Zettelksten: • The FUN and EFFICIENT ...
Boolean search: library.acg.edu/how-to-guides...
Get Zotero: www.zotero.org/
@BryanJenks' zotero-obsidian workflow: • Obsidian Zotero Integr...
✨TIMESTAMPS✨
0:00 - intro
0:16 - overview of my process
1:18 - Google Scholar
4:55 - Zotero
8:12 - Obsidian
10:50 - summary
12:16 - oh, and also...

[@javed_akhtar5225]

8:55 There is a obsidian plugin called zotero integration. That can automatically pull the highlights in the obsidian. It also links to the section of pdf where the highlight is from.

[@theoriginal4ever7]

This was super helpful. A little shortcut for getting the full citation into Obsidian: instead of typing it out manually you can copy-paste it directly from zotero by opening or selecting any file in zotero and then go to Edit > Copy Bibliography (or Citation) > paste in Obsidian. Hope this helps!

[@tmbrwn]

Great shortcut. I do this with Readcube Papers or the cite feature on G Scholar.

[@user-cx9qs3sc5x]

Thank you! This is brilliant!

[@AndrewHeskett]

This is exactly what every student needs to watch as a foundation before beginning postgraduate study. Take a bow!

[@luamalem2617]

This is short, precise, and no BS content. Awesome!

[@morganeua]

I have so little time to make videos, so whenever I do, I like to get straight to the point 😝

[@BryanJenks]

Thanks for the shout out :) i definitely need to work towards simplifying and explaining a lot of this "wiring" and workflow between applications better 😅 might be time for another Zotero video

[@morganeua]

Thanks for the comment 🙂 I would definitely watch the heck out of all of those videos!

[@BernieAnderson]

My Public Library gives me access to academic journals. Worth checking out. Morgan -- your work is incredibly helpful. Thank you.

[@jasonk.segrest9172]

Great video, and thank you for sharing!

[@kimorourke9988]

As always your methods are so accessible, and so clearly presented! I'm forever rereading papers, which I find incredibly fatiguing, so this is very welcome.

[@twilson1240]

I so appreciate the simpler Zotero-to-Obsidian method; I'm usually pretty good at dealing with software stuff and I feel like I've followed all the directions, and I've NEVER been able to get any of the "fancier" ways to work.

[@FrankD90210]

Awesome video. Always so much good information. Thank you!!!!

[@hermetischism4671]

This is so actionable and helpful like so many of your videos. Thank you ✌

[@kristiharman2843]

Very helpful, thank you! I would LOVE to see a whole process thing like you mentioned at the end, like from finding the research through to writing the paper

[@tanusharma1699]

This was really helpful. Thank you so much ❤🙏

[@forlorn_nebula]

Thank you! This was very helpful!

[@pixiwix]

I've been doing everything for my MA essays and thesis in Google Docs. EVERYTHING. 🤦🏼‍♀️ Obviously, you're a life saver. Thank you!

[@nelsontienne]

TAKING A BOW!!!!!! Wonderful video!!!

[@ari8417]

I just started my literature degree and I already know your videos will be a huge help for my essays, I started my obsidian because of your videos as well😊

[@sohailshaikh786]

This is really helpful Morgan.

[@tmbrwn]

I want to thank you: I've been watching your vids for a while, and they are so helpful for us academics trying to figure out our workflows. I've run into a roadblock, though. I can't seem to get a zettelkasten started in Obsidian, because it I can't settle on an ontology - I can't decide which kinds of notes should exist, how they should be organized, and what should even go in them. It's hard to shake the feeling that I've spent time on a zettelkasten that I could've spent on a writing project directly. How does one shake this feeling?

[@twilson1240]

@tmbrown I struggled with a similar roadblock and the solution was to just start using it, and to let go of perfectionism. The thing about Obsidian is that it's really easy to alter one's way of using it mid-stream. If you watch more of @Morganeua's videos about atomic notes and just start doing it, you'll have content that won't get lost, which is the main idea. Paul Silvia's book "How to Write A Lot" also speaks to "just start doing it".

[@giepc8887]

Very usefull topic. Thank you Morgan from Poland!

[@pablohuaroc5319]

Lo máximo!! Gracias

[@anthonywarnecke8260]

This video has been so helpful, its made me understand how to organise academic reading for the first time and i've been using zotero for over a year now. Thank you so much!!!

[@morganeua]

Great! I'm still learning myself, so I'll keep posting as I find different workflows!

[@mikafaro]

Wow, I didn't know about google scholar. Immediately learning something new. Thanks =)

[@travisharrick7864]

i just started using Obsidian at the start of my second year of grad program and have been blown away by it. Zotero just equally rocked my world. I just downloaded and cannot wait to implement and also get all of my historic documents moved over. Thank you so much for doing these tutorials as they are teaching me ways to be an academic that brain has always wanted.

[@morganeua]

I'm so glad you're finding them valuable!

[@milos4779]

Thank you so much for introducing me Zotero, I was searching for program like this for months. Seems like I manifested it with my thoughts :D

[@morganeua]

No way! I am still learning to use it better and will have another video out soon about how to organize texts within zotero and how to cite with it!

[@timbushell8640]

And the boolean link above... just a nice point - most of that page's info works in normal google too, AND most app search systems too, even KZbin. : ))))

[@ZeinabeeM]

THANK YOU 😭 You have no idea how much I needed this. I was active-procrastinating from searching for my literature review by watching videos on how to do research, and I found this. You made the process seem so easy that I think I can just jump right in.

[@massaglia]

Same here!

[@morganeua]

Ah, yay! Simplicity is definitely key for me. If it's not easy, obvious, fast, and kind of fun, then, uh, I'm less likely to do it :P

[@user-tc6lt4mv8y]

Thanks for the great video! Your process is super similar to my one concerning Zotero, Obsidian, and the Canvas feature! I’m definitely going to use some more of the tips to make it more streamlined though! I’m curious about how you have been using Canvas to outline papers? I’m working on a big research paper right now, but my canvas outline is clunky and definitely has room for improvement.

[@massaglia]

Hey Morgan! Thanks for another outstanding video. I've been stuck-stuck starting Obsidian because of this very issue (references/citations). The connection of Zotero (love Zotero! btw) and Obsidian, as you mentioned, was/is complicated, and I just couldn't get it to work. To me, your method is so much approachable. V

[@yuehuang6859]

I have been using zotero but my efficiency just don't improve. Your video really helps me to rethink my work flaw, thank you so much!

[@alfme]

Thank you for the video, Morgan! Every time I get more tempted to switching to obsidian haha. Do you keep a list with all the things you want to read? I have a table on notion where I put every reference that I might want to read, then sort/filter using tags. Do you know if obsidian has a similar table feature?

[@zalibecquerel3463]

You're a darn genius! I wasted the last two hours on setting up, configuring Zotero to export to Obsidian with notes, messing with YAML and dodgy pseudocode templates ... and couldn't get it *quite* to my liking. Copying and pasting takes less than 5 seconds per file ... and futureproof! All these obscure non-maintained bits of middleware are going to stop working one day. Plain text is plain text!

[@fabiolemos1750]

Great, tks

[@withwordsispeak]

Cheers for this. Just finished my Masters and felt I needed something to organise all of my findings for my creative exegesis. Now to trial this for my next film project :)

[@morganeua]

I'll be super curious to hear what the note-taking process is like for a creative project rather than an academic one! Do you anticipate it being different?

[@timbushell8640]

But GScholar gives you the DOI... so why not use that in the Uni Lib. collections? (Old hand here, 'paper as in dead tree' citation indexes - quarterly and annually recompiled, etc.) This I found odd, especially as I have come from the ancient skills of 'paper' indexes, etc., you have a unique ID of the paper, so why not use it. Papers, not so much with books. But even with paper collections from conferences and similar, have paper DOIs - at least on the newer (like the last 23 years, etc.) published works. Other tools - like 'Elicit' and 'Research Rabbit' especially RR make 'wandering the stacks' so much easier... so have you tried these? Elicit finds stuff like GScholar, RR mostly finds linked papers from starting point paper - AND - links to Zot... and so uses the 'collection' metaphor for virtual clusters of papers. And Zotero can 'read' more than just PDFs and so can add e-books, URL articles (i.e. not papers), videos and pretty much any content, and so allow you to have in effect ONE workflow from content, to 'file & annotate/comment' and export to Obsidian. And yes, simple cut'n'paste works well enough. To then take that chunk and 'make atomic zettles' in your own words. Sure you could show the team your 'make a bib in Zot', and then how you move that to O or Word. And for my request... more on the massaging and linking major cut'n'paste into atomic and own words... You didn't cover using Zot to build collections - which are like virtual shelves for say particular questions or paper creation projects - and that higher level process you touched one at the end of the visual section - but just loved the voice comments at the end. So this is slightly longer in response.

[@CO-lk7gc]

Thanks so much @morganeua! How does your workflow continue from the canvas onwards? Do you draft within Obsidian? And are you using an automation for the reference list or is it "copy and paste"? Glad to learn from you!

[@willhunt6897]

I'm about to begin my next year at University and I'm really psyched to try this method out!

[@morganeua]

Have a great school year!

[@willhunt6897]

@@morganeua thanks Morgan!

[@Bumpy-Man]

Seeing a reference to Latour really piqued my interest! What is your dissertation on?

[@walter-sd4vi]

I love your videos

[@christian_en_yt2791]

thanks

[@anyaonpaper]

I'm just wondering, do boolean terms work on library databases given to you by universities aswell?

[@lynnmoore6304]

Thanks this is really helpful. Could you explain how you use canvas for your workflow?

[@morganeua]

Yes! I definitely have to make a video about that this Fall because it's been so helpful for my writing!

[@HiddenExp]

Hey Morgan! I wold like to know... why do you find exporting the annotations in md intimidating?

[@user-yp2xl4qo6c]

How do I make a pdf of just the annotations on the Zotero iPad app?

[@HM-lb9ww]

Hope this helps with the integration of your Zotero notes with obsidian: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXiqloCoqd6deKsfeature=shared

[@timbushell8640]

Yes Danny is good... Bryan's are totally geeky and are the ultimate of 'tweaked' methods, D's often like our dear Morgan here - just basic simple and work. For non-Zotero other items see also Nicole van de Hoeven's vids. Especially for the now fully release 1.4 up-grade changes.

[@jj-xm2kc]

i would love a video where you explain what you actually write about.

[@morganeua]

You mean, what my PhD is on? Like, my dissertation writing?

[@jj-xm2kc]

yes, it sounds really interesting but I never fully got what it‘s about

[@JoseCarlos-gb7el]

Isso foi muito útil. ty

[@dasrotrad]

I watched Brian Jenk's description of importing citations into Obsidian; I imported the plugins and templates. Obsidian refuses to find the template. Perhaps the copy paste method my be effective for me. yet, I remain about confused about the process you summarized. I am not fluent with Obsidian obviously. A bit more detail would be helpful; for example, using the Obsidian canvas which you demonstrated. Thank you.

[@morganeua]

Oh yes, I definitely still have to make a video about Obsidian Canvas, because I've been LOVING it

[@DP-wo6zd]

Here are some links to videos about Zotero-Obsidian integration: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXiqloCoqd6deKs , kzbin.info/www/bejne/qouapqd_i5qtpNk

[@morganeua]

Thank you!!

[@TALKmd]

what copypaste Tool you are using ? (in the end of the video you mentioned and i tried to look up the comments in your last video and didn't found any recommendation )

[@morganeua]

Note Refactor!

[@TALKmd]

@@morganeua ohh!! In obsidian! This is really a good one (: By the way great video! i will.need to use some workflow for this semester!

[@royfrady8219]

What Add-ons do you have installed for Zotero and Obsidian?

[@morganeua]

I don't have anything connecting the two specifically yet. I only have plug-ins unique to Obsidian, but they're not related to Zotero!

[@royfrady8219]

@@morganeua I have been using your workflow on some of my doctoral work, and while I am not skilled at it yet, it does streamline a lot of the process. Thanks

[@sandeepsiddharth1248]

what was the pdf are you using?

[@etterathe]

Will your thesis be open-accessed, when you finish it? You look cute in this haircut btw

[@morganeua]

Thanks! And yes! I believe all Canadian dissertations are available to read through "Theses Canada." I'm sort of toying with the idea of doing a live reading of my entire dissertation on KZbin to prepare for my defense... :P Does that sound interesting, or boring?

[@etterathe]

@@morganeua I'd love to watch it. After watching your video, I became curious about new materialism, so I googled it to see how it differs from dialectical materialism, because they seemed very similar to me when I first read about new materialism. The Anthropocene is also a hot topic, and with a circus involved, I'm sure your work must be interesting. Additionally, you communicate ideas very clearly in your videos, so it's a pleasure to learn about these concepts that way. I'm also curious about how the idea for your thesis originated :)

[@morganeua]

@@etterathe oh man, it's such a long story, but I have a lot of PhD videos I plan to make, but just haven't had time. How I chose my topic is a good one to add.

[@kamalahasanmoorthy2066]

"*God Bless Everyone Take Care All -Long Lives 100 years and above all*"

[@ba_samsoum]

Hi, sorry for being a drag but my bff died got really depressed and I think I have adhd I'm late in my thesis schedule by 2 years is there still hope to finish this degree?

[@morganeua]

I'm so sorry to hear this :( Is it a PhD? In Canada, at least, which is where I'm based, there is always hope. I am personally taking a while to finish my thesis, but I haven't given up hope. Everyone finishes at different times and needs to go through different experiences that affect their time to finish. I know people who have taken twice as long as is "normal" to finish their masters and their PhDs, but they still finished and in the end, that's all that matters. You still get the degree, no matter how long it takes. Other countries have more strict deadlines I think, though, so it might depend where you're based! Anyway, sorry you've had to go through this. A thesis is a long process and life is bound to get in the way. But if you want to finish it and your school lets you - then you can do it!

[@ba_samsoum]

@morganeua thank you. I needed to hear that. In my country, I can take an additional year. That's what I'm going to do, but I really hope my supervisor doesn't drop me. Sometimes, I'm too scared of even starting. But hearing from you that it's possible I feel reassured 🩷🌹

[@hughgeorgechannel]

How to ADHD: A Guide

[@qianqian_liu]

Thank you so much for sharing this. It’s so strange that Uni only provide academic support but never teach these hands-on skills of research. Really learned a lot from your videos 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

[@morganeua]

Yeah, I agree. That's a big reason why I'm making them. As an instructor, I don't have time during my course to teach research and writing skills, but students often don't have anywhere else to learn them!