Ilya Shabanov Profile picture
Jan 15, 2023 โ€ข 10 tweets โ€ข 10 min read โ€ข Read on X
How to start a literature review from a single keyword.

I tried about a dozen tools.

Conclusion: This effortless workflow with @OK_Maps and @paperpile

๐Ÿงต๐Ÿ‘‡

#AcademicChatter #ScienceTwitter #AcademicTwitter
@OK_Maps @paperpile 1. Start with a search term

Think of OKMaps as a better google for your very first step of lit research.

Simply type in a topic and see relevant papers sorted in groups.

Refine your results by date if you are looking for a specific period, or newest papers. Image
@OK_Maps @paperpile 2. See results

OKMaps will find a number of most relevant papers, arranged by category.

Each bubble contains papers of a single category.

On the right side you can refine your search textually or by date. Image
@OK_Maps @paperpile 3. Zooming into a category

Click on one of the bubbles to reveal the papers it is made up of.

All these papers will be semantically related and you might end up adding all of them to your initial review.

Click on the single papers, to reveal an abstract. Image
@OK_Maps @paperpile 4. Collect relevant papers

My favourite way to collect papers is @paperpile.

It's incredibly well integrated into my browser (Chrome) and smart.

Right Click on the DOI Link and select "Add to Paperpile". Image
@OK_Maps @paperpile 5. Paperpile UI

If you have ever used a Reference Manager, you will feel right at home.

Organise your references by label or folder.

It is really snappy, since I can just drag the labels from the left onto the paper. Image
@OK_Maps @paperpile Never heard of @paperpile?

It's a neat tool to collect academic papers, like Zotero or Mendeley.

Google "Paperpile Chrome Extension" to add the extension.

(Other browsers are supported as well.)

Price: 3$/month for academics + 30 day free trial Image
@OK_Maps @paperpile 6. Seed Collection

This initial collection is a "seed" for further digging.

Next tutorial will be on using @LitmapsApp to grow that small collection into a big set.

Follow @Artifexx if you don't want to miss it.

This is how I take notes while reading:
@OK_Maps @paperpile @LitmapsApp Summary

โ–บ Use @OK_Maps to go from search term โ†’ papers
โ–บ More convenient than google, as papers are sorted by category
โ–บ Add relevant papers to @paperpile using chrome extension (right clicking menu)
โ–บ Open Access PDFs will auto download (and sync to google drive)
@OK_Maps @paperpile @LitmapsApp This Tweet is part of a series on literature research. It covers only the very first step.

Want to know what AI tools I use for the next steps? Follow @Artifexx

Want to gear up your academic journey - consider joining my small workshop on Jan 28th.

effortlessacademic.carrd.co

โ€ข โ€ข โ€ข

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More from @Artifexx

Jun 19
Almost done with the slides for this upcoming webinar.

It will be aimed at note-taking and synthesis.

Here is a sneak peak:
๐Ÿ‘‡ Image
Note Taking

Most people take notes in the order they learn about the content.

This is wrong.

Conceptual notes are much more powerful.

Because you don't repeat yourself and use links instead.Image
Academic Note-taking

For academia, special rules apply.

You must protect yourself from plagiarism and always know where you learned what.

This is why you must use a source note template.Image
Image
Read 8 tweets
Jun 18
Everybody uses Google Docs.

But most don't install any of the 100+ extensions.

Unlock hidden features and save time with these 4 must-use extensions: ๐Ÿ‘‡
(I use them for scientific papers)
What are extensions?

Extensions add functionality that Google Docs does not have.

Each extension adds a sidebar where it can be configured and activated.

Google does not develop these extensions but they gain access to your content.

Be aware of privacy issues.
1. Cross Reference

Allows you to generate numbers for figures automatically.

If you rearrange the figures, just click a button and all names and mentions are updated.

Works equally well for tables or equations.

Irreplaceable for academic work.
Read 8 tweets
Jun 12
I thought I would spend days on this lit review.

It took me just 10 minutes (no joke)!

Here is how and what tool I used:
๐Ÿ‘‡Image
My Topic:

I am figuring out how forests react to climate change in New Zealand.

The big question: Who has done it before?
(A vast literature review question that can take hours)

Googling it, I found only a single paper: [Wardle 1992]
Really!?Image
To check if there is really only one paper, I searched for this paper [Wardle 1992] on @LitmapsApp ... Image
Read 11 tweets
Jun 10
Struggling with the discussion section?

Here is an unconventional strategy:

1. Lay out findings from papers on a canvas
2. Link each one to the PDF
3. Group by Topic
4. Summarize what you see as text
5. Flesh out and polish

Let's look at the details:
๐Ÿ‘‡
For this, I am using the @obsdmd Canvas feature. If you are unfamiliar, check out this thread:

1. Lay out the findings of others

Copy quotes from related papers and link to the paper.

(yellow links lead to PDFs, blue links to my note on the paper)

Link them together, here for example are two estimates of a number that are quite far apart - discussion material!Image
Read 10 tweets
Jun 7
Lost in your research?

Create a research map - it's easy.

Here's how to start and find that research gap:
๐Ÿ‘‡Image
1. Use @drawio

A free tool for building research maps.

Drag boxes from the left sidebar.

Customize it with the buttons on the right sidebar.
2. Define what each box means

Each box is an actor that can interact/be connected to others.

Here are some ideas for functional ecologists:Image
Read 10 tweets
Jun 3
Every academic wants to find meaningful research gaps.

โŒ Old way: Read 1000s of papers
โœ… New way: A step-by-step, visual strategy

Here's my workflow using Obsidian, Litmaps, Consensus and DrawIO:
(and a webinar on how to do this!)
๐Ÿ‘‡ Image
1. Start with finding research questions

Sometimes there are papers dedicated to identifying them.
This will make your literature review process ENJOYABLE, as you won't follow ideas that are irrelevant (but inspire you personally).

Here are two examples:
Image
Image
2. Next find key papers on this topic.

One of the fastest and easiest ways to get started, is to use @ConsensusNLP GPT.

Find it in the GPT store or just use their website.

Here I just copy and pasted question 8 from the previous image.

The first hit seems reasonable! Image
Read 13 tweets

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