Reference Collection | Catalog
Indexes and Databases | Internet Resources | Interlibrary Loan | Citation Guides

Encyclopedias and other reference works provide background reading on your topic and related issues, bibliographies, names of authorities and important works in the field, and occasionally related websites.

The following list of references is arranged according to Library of Congress Classification.

General Encyclopedias and Dictionaries:

New Encyclopedia Britannica [on-line], and in paper,  32v. [RR AE5 .E56 2002] is a good general starting point to glean backgroud information.

OED Online (Oxford English Dictionary) -- "The OED covers words from across the English-speaking world, from North America to South Africa, from Australia and New Zealand to the Caribbean."

Specialized Encyclopedias and Dictionaries:

EDUCATION:

Encyclopedia of education 8v. [RR LB15 .E47 2003]

International higher education: an encyclopedia 2v. [RR LB15 .I59 1991]

PSYCHOLOGY:

Handbook of girls' and women's psychological health [RR HQ1206 .H23855 2006]

The Corsini encyclopedia of psychology and behavioral science 4v. [RR BF31 .E52 2001]

Baker encyclopedia of psychology & counseling [RR BF31 .B25 1999]

MEDICINE:

The mental health desk reference [RR RC466 .M464 2001]

Encyclopedia of health and behavior 2v. [RR R726.5 .E53 2004]

The Gale encyclopedia of medicine 5v. [RR RC41 .G35 1999]

The encyclopedia of cancer [RR RC262 .T86 2005]

Eating disorders and obesity: a comprehensive handbook [RR RC552.E18 E2825 2002]

The encyclopedia of genetic disorders and birth defects [RR RB155.5 .W96 2000]

Global Aids Crisis [RR RA643.8 .M36 2004]

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES:

Encyclopedia of environmental science and engineering 2v. [RR TD9 .E5 2006]

Pollution A to Z [RR TD173 .P65 2004]

The Wiley encyclopedia of environmental pollution and cleanup 2v. [RR TD173 .W55 1999]

Encyclopedia of environmental issues 3v. [RR GE10 .E52 2000]

RELIGION:

Encyclopedia of religion 15v. [RR BL31 .E46 2005]

MUSIC:

Grove Music Online -- This online version of the 2nd edition of the standard New Grove dictionary also includes the New Grove Dictionary of Opera and New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. It offers keyword searching of articles, biographies, bibliographies, and contributors.

SOCIAL SCIENCES (in general):

CQ Researcher [RR H35 .E35 1991-] Monthly reports by Congressional Quarterly on vast array of topics concerning social or policy issues. Use index in the most recent volume for guidance if you use the paper edition. Also available on-line through library subscription at CQ Researcher.

Catalog

Bridge catalogs resources available at St. Olaf and Carleton libraries. Use Bridge to search for books and journals, but not chapters within books or articles within journals.

• Use a Keyword search if you do not know the subject or you wish to combine more than one idea, e.g.["school* AND (computer* OR internet)] Use asterisk (*) to search various endings (e.g. "computer*" will retrieve "compuetr,computers,computerized" etc.)
• Once you have found a useful title, explore the subject by clicking on the subject link in the catalog.
• Use the limiting option to search for different types of material (e.g. videos, DVDs, government documents), or specific publication dates.

You may request materials housed at Carleton directly from Bridge by clicking on the "Request" button.

For help distinguishing between popular and trade magazines and academic journals, see the guide from Colorado State Univeristy Libraries at http://manta.library.colostate.edu/howto/poplr.html

General (Interdisciplinary):

Academic Search Premier
A multidisciplinary database with access to over 8040 scholarly and popular publications, many in full-text. Covers 1975 to present.

MasterFILE Premier
A general multidisciplinary database to mostly popular publications. Includes biographies, reference books, primary source documents, maps and photos. Covers 1975 to present

JSTOR --An index to and full text of select, academic journals.

Project Muse -- An index to and full text of journals published by Johns Hopkins University Press and other scholarly publishers.

Disciplinary (Subject-specific):

Education:

ERIC -- An index to education journals, plus curricular material and reports gathered by the US Department of Education.

Sociology/Political Science

PAIS: Public Affairs Information Service-- An index to public policy and public affairs articles, books, conference proceedings, government documents, book chapters, and statistical directories. Covers 1972 to the present.

Sociological Abstracts -- An index to 2600 sociology journals plus book abstracts and review citations. Covers 1963-present.

Worldwide Political Science Abstacts -- This database "provides citations, abstracts, and indexing of the international serials literature in political science and its complementary fields, including international relations, law, and public administration/policy."

Women's Studies:

Women's Studies International -- Covers the core disciplines in Women's Studies to the latest scholarship in feminist research. Coverage spans from 1972 and earlier to present.

Gender Watch -- A full-text collection of international journals, magazines, newsletters, regional publications, special reports and conference proceedings devoted to women's and gender issues.

Psychology/Medicine:

AIDS and Cancer Research Abstracts -- An index to books and articles related to AIDS, immunology, virology and cancer genetics.

MEDLINE 1989-present -- An index to 3,500 journals in all aspects of medicine: clinical, dentistry, administration, nursing, nutrition, pathology, psychiatry, toxicology, and veterinary medicine. Covers 1989-present.

PsycINFO -- Indexes over 1,300 psychology journals, plus books, technical reports, dissertations, and other material.

Environmental Studies:

Environmental Sciences & Pollution Management -- An index to literature on the environment from journals, books, proceedings, reports, and government documents.

History:

Historical Abstracts -- An index to history journals, books, and dissertations.

Religion:

ATLA Religion Database -- ATLA Religion Database is an index to religion journals, book reviews. Covers 1949 to the present.

Newspapers:

LexisNexis Academic
Excellent source for full-text articles in national and international newspapers. Provides access to a wide range of news, business, legal, and reference information.

ProQuest Newsstand Complete
Full-text and abstracted newspapers, including New York Times (1999-) and Wall Street Journal (1984- ).

New York Times (1851 - 2003) -- Offers "full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue."

Remember to evaluate each site critically for authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage.

Based on "Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask." UC Berkeley - Teaching Library Internet Workshops. 7Jan. 2005. 14 Feb. 2005. <http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html>, and "Evaluating Web Sites." The Ohio State Univeristy Libraries. 14 Feb. 2005. <http://gateway.lib.ohio-state.edu/tutor/>

A few good directories that evaluate web contents:

Librarians' Index to the Internet -- "A searchable, annotated subject directory of more than 14,000 Internet resources selected and evaluated by librarians for their usefulness to users of public libraries."

Infomine: Scholarly Internet Resource Collections -- "A virtual library of Internet resources relevant to faculty, students, and research staff."

The Scout Report Archives -- "A searchable and browseable database containing critical annotations of carefully selected Internet sites and mailing lists."

Use alexa.com service to glean more information about a Web site, including traffic ranking, statistics, and other pages that link to it.

Any item not owned by St. Olaf or Carleton may be ordered through Interlibrary Loan(ILL) provided you allow enough time (a week on average).