Science | General Science Resources The type of information you need dictates the types of resources appropriate for your search. Are you researching a person, place or thing, such as a topic in a particular subject or a person noted for work in that area? Do you need fact based, short answers or in depth coverage from many sources? Is your search academic in purpose or is it personal interest, or perhaps both? Below are brief descriptions of several types of science inclined, reference materials with some examples.

Almanacs Bibliographies Biographical Sources Dictionaries Directories Encyclopedias Geographical Sources Government and Statistical Handbooks Indexes and Abstracts Ready Reference Online Science Journals and Magazines Web Resources (Science) Yearbooks For Subject Resources/Guides Go to the Academic Subject Almanacs Reference books, usually published annually, composed of various lists, tables, and brief articles relating to a particular field or many general fields. One specific type is an annual publication including calendars with weather forecasts, astronomical information, tide tables, and other related tabular information. EXAMPLES: The World Almanac and Book of Facts | The Farmers Almanac (Astronomy) | Infoplease Almanac: Science and Health | Internet Public Library: Science and Technology Bibliographies A list of the works by a specific author or publisher, a list of writings relating to a given subject or a list of writings used or considered by an author in preparing a particular work. It is a description and identification of the editions, dates of issue, authorship, and typography of books or other written material. You may want to try a Google search for a bibliography in your area of interest in order to obtain resoruces on the topic. EXAMPLE: bibliography related to Tourmaline Chemistry Biographical Sources Sources such as Biographical Directories and Biographical Dictionaries. EXAMPLES: World of Scientific Biography | Biographies, Scientists Dictionaries A reference book containing an alphabetical list of words with their meaning, pronunciation and use. EXAMPLES: Chemistry Dictionary | MedBioWorld | Science Dictionaries | American Heritage Dictionary | Roget’s International Thesaurus. Directories An ordered list of topics providing information in brief format. Usually found in ready reference or in the reference stacks. EXAMPLES: Yahoo Science Directory | Open Directory - Science BACK to Top Encyclopedias A comprehensive reference work, often multi-volume, containing articles on a wide range of subjects or on numerous aspects of a particular field, usually arranged alphabetically. EXAMPLES: refdesk.com Science | Enviropedia | Britannica | Encarta | Columbia Geographical Sources Most often used to answer questions pertaining to location. EXAMPLES: Guide to U.S. Map Resources | U.S. Geological Survey | TopoZone | Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection | Earth Sciences and Map Library | refdesk.com Geography Maps Government and Statistical Materials published by the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) for a variety of purposes. EXAMPLES: Introduction to United States Government Information Sources | Catalog of United States Government Publications | U.S. Government Periodicals Index | Science.gov | USGS Science Topics | CIA World Factbook BACK to Top Handbooks A concise manual or reference book providing specific information or instruction about a subject or place. EXAMPLES: | Chicago Manual of Style Indexes and Abstracts Guide to material available about a particular topic, arranged serially or chronologically, usually arranged by author and/or subject. Indexes simply list materials while abstracts provide a brief summary of content. Ready Reference Online This is a category of convenience. There are several types of resources that fit here but the main point is to provide quick answers, from a number of resources, in one place. EXAMPLES: LibrarySpot | IPL Ready Reference | Chicago Public Library Periodicals (Science Journals and Magazines) One can find many Science Periodicals in electronic format. Some are available freely while others are found through restricted areas requiring Login and Password, such as the FLC Databases. One example is EBSCO Search, which has several science periodicals available. A simple way to see this is to click on the Publications Link in the main EBSCOhost Interface and enter science in the Browse Publications search window. A complete list of journals beginning with the term science will result. Another resource is the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) The following publications are available freely on the web. EurekAlert! | Natural Science | New Scientist | Science News Online | National Geographic | Scientific American Web Resources (General Science) Discover Magazine | Science Daily | New York Times Science | Time Magazine Science and Health | CNN Science and Space | Yahoo Science Directory Yearbooks Provide material similar to almanacs but do so specifically for a single year. EXAMPLES: Yearbook of Science and Technology | Yearbook of Science and the Future | Britannica Book of the Year BACK to Top