LibGuides: CMST 220 Public Speaking (Reiser): Background Info: Reference

Online reference sources

Use the following online reference databases to find background information on a wide variety of topics. These articles are often created by known experts in their subject fields, and can be cited as reliable sources. You can also start with a general web search, or an online crowdsourced reference (like Wikipedia), but may not want to cite general sources without evaluating their credibility.

Great General Starting Point:

Gale eBooks This link opens in a new window
GVRL is a reference collection useful for social science research. Titles include: the American Decades social history series and Encyclopedias of Cybercrime; Religion; Philosophy; Criminal Justice; African American History and Culture; Latin American History and Culture; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered History in America, social Media; and more.

Current U.S.Topics:

CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window
Browse by topic or keyword to find information covering a broad range of important issues in health, social trends, criminal justice, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, and the economy. Weekly reports dating back to 1923.

Current Global Topics:

Global Issues in Context (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text articles featuring global viewpoints on international issues, country reports, primary source documents, statistics, videos, and more

People & Groups (Bands, etc.):

Biography in Context (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text reference entries, magazine and journal articles, primary sources, videos, podcasts, and images covering a vast array of people from historically significant figures to present-day news makers.

Country Information:

Global Road Warrior This link opens in a new window
Country information--basic facts, population, history, economics, society & culture, basic greetings. Includes maps and photographs.

World and US History

The library's World History in Context database is a great place to find historical information including timelines, overviews, and images. You can search by country name, event, person, or other keyword of significance from your thesis.

For background information, be sure to limit your search to Reference.

World History in Context (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text scholarly journal articles, primary sources, and reference books covering world history from antiquity to the present.

Keywords are any important words or phrases that you might use to search for more information on your topic.

Keywords can be single words, proper nouns, or short phrases ("time management"), but they should not be sentences or sentence fragments.

Think of the different words and phrases that people use when they discuss your topic.

Consider broader and narrower words, and synonyms (words that have the same meaning).
Identify keywords with a background search if you need to -find phrases that relate to your topic- or ask a librarian for help in finding words that connect to your topic.

Example Topic

"How to focus in an age of distraction?"

Mind Map (click on the image to expand):

Notice how the keywords below are individual words or short phrases (names of people, things, or events are OK!) We'll use these keywords to build our searches for more information on our "avoiding distractions" sample topic:

Keywords:

Technology detox
time management techniques
- Pomodomo technique
focus | distraction
- multitasking (and effects / benefits / problems)
- procrastination
- Internet blocking programs
social media
- Facebook
- Twitter

EXAMPLE - Reading a reference article

Use reference articles to understand the general view of what is happening with an issue, who is involved, and why there is debate over it.

You can use important words or ideas (see the highlighted words in the example below) as keywords to build more focused or related searches.