| Finding Resources for a Persuasive/Informative Speech or Essay |
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The Reference section of Cook Library has many useful books like subject encyclopedias, handbooks, dictionaries, and bibliographies that provide background information or overviews of a wide variety of topics. Increasingly, the Cook Library will be providing you with online access to encyclopedias. Currently, a number of these are listed alphabetically with the Research Databases or in the Subject Guides. Full text of over sixty encyclopedias, mostly in the Social Sciences, can be found in Sage eReference available through Research Databases. The library is beginning to add the words "electronic reference sources" to other items available online through the Cook Library Catalog so that you will be able to easily search for and/or identify online reference sources. These types of resources can be an excellent place to start your research. Ask a Librarian to suggest which books will be most useful for you in your research.
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Search this Web directory, created by
librarians, to find links to reliable Web sites on a variety of popular
topics. |
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Look for your topic in CQ Researcher, available online through the Cook Library Web site under Research Databases. [Access through Research Port from off campus.] This
magazine provides encyclopedic-like articles on current topics. Each
article, of about 20 pages in length, identifies major issues surrounding
a topic, and provides a chronology, statistics, charts & graphs, a debate
question, and a bibliography of additional articles from current
periodicals. |
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MedlinePlus Also try Merck Manuals, another good source of medical information. |
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For articles on current academic topics:
Use Academic Search [Ebsco], available through the Cook Library Web site under Research Databases. [Access through Research Port from off campus.] Some examples of academic topics might be: pollution; space shuttle; AIDS; eating disorders; suicide; and juvenile delinquency. For more extensive coverage of topics, use the subject-oriented databases such as SocINDEX, PsycINFO, Historical Absracts, and Medline. |
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For articles
on current popular topics:
Use MasterFILE [Ebsco], available through the Cook Library Web site under Research Databases. [Access through Research Port from off campus.] Some examples of popular topics might be: travel; haunted houses; pets; and movie stars. This database indexes more magazines and nonprofessional-type publications than Academic Search. |
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For articles
on medical topics:
Use Health Reference Center - Academic or Health Source: Consumer Edition, available through the Cook Library Web site under Research Databases. [Access through Research Port from off campus.] When searching in Health Reference Center - Academic, click on the Subject-Guide Search tab and type in the name of the medical condition that you are researching.
Some examples of medical topics might be: anorexia; Down's Syndrome; diabetes; and depression. These databases index a wider selection of medical publications than Academic Search. |
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For biographical information:
This database not only provides biographies that were originally published in books, but may also provide a select group of magazine articles about a person. |
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FedStats: One Stop Shopping for Federal Statistics
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Statistical
Resources on the Web (University
of Michigan)
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Once in Academic Search, type world almanac next to the box that is labeled Publications: and enter your keyword search in the search box. |
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Newspaper articles are a good source of quotes. Search for newspaper articles on your topic in the New York Times, available through the Cook Library Web site under Research Databases. [Access through Research Port from off campus.] |
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Librarian’s
Internet Index |
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The URL for this Web page is http://pages.towson.edu/sara/persuasive.html
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