Getting Started

Finding Books

Finding Articles

Evaluating Sources

Selected Websites

Writing and Citing

Getting Started

Useful Reference Sources

Electronic Reference Tools:

Britannica Online ~ a good place to get started; check out the bibliographies at the end of entries
CIA World Factbook ~ Information--including data, maps, transnational issues, etc--on most world countries
Culturegrams ~ this resource is aimed mostly at kids, but it's not a bad place to start for general information
Encyclopedia of the European Union ~ this resource in xreferplus has lots of good information about countries and issues
Gale Virtual Reference Library ~ try searching in the Nation and World Section

Print Reference Tools:

A Dictionary of the European Union Reference R 341.750614 P572d
Encyclopedia of European Social History Reference R306.09403 E56
Encyclopedia of World Cultures Reference R306.097 E56
Encyclopedia of World Political Systems Reference R320.3 D427e
The European Union Encyclopedia and Directory Reference R 341.242203 E89ue
The Europa World Year Book Reference R341.184E89 
The World Almanac & Book of Facts  Reference R317.3W927 
WorldMark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life  4 vols.  Reference R305.8003 W927
World Encyclopedia of Political Systems and Parties, 3rd ed. Reference R324.203 W927

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Finding Articles

Useful Databases:

Academic Search Premier ~ articles from magazines, newspapers and journals.
CQResearcher ~ current and controversial issues from 1996-present. Provides summaries, analysis, and bibliographies
Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe ~ news sources from all over the world, also business news. You can also find broadcast news transcripts here.
Wilson Select Plus ~ Selected news sources and journals. Not as much full text, but still useful.

Topic-Related Databases: Depending on your topic, you may find some of these databases useful--if you would like help finding an appropriate topic-related database, just ask a librarian!

Military and Government Collection ~ Offers current news on all branches of the military and government, including a collection of academic journals, trade publications and newsweeklies
Business Source Elite ~ trade publications, academic journals and news sources on business related topics
ATLA Religion ~ International theological scholarship. You may find sources on social justice issues here.

We also have a subscription to the online version of The Economist--ask a librarian for the username and password.

Need help with determining if an article is from a scholarly source?

You can also search for specific journals using the Alphabetical List of Electronic Journals link.

If you find a citation to an article that we don't have access to, you can order a photocopy of an article.

If you have any questions about finding articles or using the databases, please ask a librarian!

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Evaluating Sources

A word about Google and Wikipedia.

Google and Wikipedia are 2 tools that are available to help you find information on the Internet. Google is an Internet search engine. It will find websites for you on the subject of American Presidents. Wikipedia is a collaborative encyclopedia.It contains lots of information about American Presidents. But you need to be careful when using these 2 tools. Google will just find sites for you. It will not tell you whether or not those sites are accurate, or unbiased, or current. Wikipedia can be useful to help you get started finding information. But because anybody can edit a Wikipedia page, you have to take information you find there with a grain of salt. Wikipedia is a fine source for some information--but always backup information you find there with another source.

 

Here are some resources to help you evaluate the information you find:

Critically Analyzing Information Sources from Cornell University
Evaluating Sources of Information from Purdue's OWL
Evaluating Web Sites from Lesley University
Looking for Articles in Journals and Magazines: Scholarly or Popular? from the University of Oregon

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