Research Guides: SOC 224: Going Nuclear: Finding books in the library

Step 1: Determine which floor has the call number you need.

Call Number	Floor
A-D	Level 4
E-H	Level 3
J-PF	Level 2
PG-Z	Level 1
DVDs, CDs	Level 3

Note: This table is for the location of items in Sawyer stacks. There are other library locations (such as Sawyer DVD, Sawyer Reserve, and Sawyer Reference) that also use this call number system. See library maps for further information.

Step 2: Locate the book on the shelf

Unlike public and school libraries, most academic libraries use the Library of Congress Classification scheme to arrange books on the shelves.

Read call numbers line by line:

First line: arranged alphabetically
Second line: read as a whole number
Third and fourth lines: arranged alphabetically, then numerically, with the number treated as a decimal (e.g., .A627 comes before .A65)
Last line: shelved chronologically.