Google Advanced Search
Use Advance Google Search to focus searches on specific file types, such as Excel, and Internet domains, such as .ca.gov for California government agencies or .edu for accredited education institutions in the USA. (For more on domains, see: https://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia/term/internet-domain-name.) Can also be entered directly into basic Google search box, for example (for latest Excel file format): pollution data site:.ca.gov filetype:xlsx | Note: just because a file is in Excel format does not mean the data is analyzable.
Eleven quick tips for finding research data
A 2018 article on finding research data, natural/physical science-centric but with some generally applicable advice
DataCite Commons This link opens in a new window
Search for works that have been issued a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) by DataCite. Narrow results to "Work Type: Dataset" to select only those from search results. Results can be hit-and-miss, but datasets on "niche" topics may be found here.
