In theory, authors cite an item because it is relevant to the topic of their own work. PubMed and SciFindern provide a means to easily trace both citing items (written after an article is published) and cited items (the bibliography or references list from the article itself).
Unfortunately, these features are not fully implemented for older articles. You may need to peruse an article to identify promising references, then manually enter each item into PubMed, SciFindern, and/or the BC Libraries catalog to access the text. The original and best-known database for citation searching is Web of Science.
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Tips:
Search for PMID 4045928 in PubMed. Click on the result, and click See all "Cited by" articles. How many articles, indexed by PubMed, cited this paper?
In Scifindern, use the pull-down menus in two Advanced Search boxes to search Author Name gallagher AND Title prejunctional. Find the reference to the same article. How many articles, indexed by Scifindern, cited this paper?
Errata, notices of correction, and retractions alert readers to problems with a previously published article. Problems may range from minor proofreading errors to serious ethical breaches like plagiarism or falsified data.
PubMed records include general notes about these problems and a citation to the published alert. In SciFindern it's difficult to find this information.
Examine the PubMed record for the Gallagher et al. article. Find the note about an erratum in this article. Examine the Scifindern record for the same article. What does Scifindern tell you about the error?
The error in the original publication by Gallagher et al. was omission of third author Charles A. Webster and his institutional affiliation of FMC Corporation. What were some potential consequences of this omission for Webster and/or his organization?
