WR 222 with Liz Smith: Books & Background sources
Background research
Background research can help you establish:
Definition of a key concept
Brief history or overview
Identifies major thinkers
Major shifts in understanding or events
- Access Science This link opens in a new windowAn online version of McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms. It contains nearly 9,000 online encyclopedia articles, terms, images and videos related to sciences and technology. The Study Center provides essay topics, study guides and bibliographies.
- CQ Researcher This link opens in a new windowTopical, full text reports on controversial issues. Each report features a summary, chronology, and bibliography. Updated weekly.
- Encyclopedias for Background Research This link opens in a new windowA selection of online encyclopedias that provides general overviews of topics across many subjects. Start here to get working definitions of key concepts and a big picture view of your topic.
Popular News Source
- US Major Dailies This link opens in a new windowFull text newspapers from five U.S. national and regional newspapers: New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and the Chicago Tribune
- The Atlantic Monthly MagazineLong form journalism on current issues.
- Science DailyBrings together recent research on a wide range of topics. Good for browsing!
Finding Books Using Subject Headings
Books are essential to researchers and often provide a strong overview of a topic. One way to find books on your topic is to use a keyword search to find relevant subjects.
For example, I searched the keyword phrase college study skills in the PCC Library search box. The first result seemed very relevant, a book called College study skills : becoming a strategic learner. I clicked on the linked title of the book, then scrolled to the Item Details heading to view the Subjects you see below. Clicking on a linked subject will get me quickly to more books on the same topic.
Looking for ebooks?
The PCC Library provides access to many ebooks. To find ebooks in the library:
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Enter a search in the main search box on the library homepage.
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On the results page, on the left-hand side of the page, find the Format section and check the eBooks box.
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Click the Apply Filters button.
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To access an ebook, click the Online Access link under the title information.
