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General & Multidisciplinary Resource Guides — General/Multidisciplinary
General Reference Sources

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Subject Specific Databases

All That JAS: Journal Abbreviation Sources (http://www.abbreviations.com/jas.asp)
Registry of Web resources that list or provide access to the full title of journal abbreviations.

General Databases

Academic Search Complete [via EBSCO] (http://uclibs.org/PID/126936) [Restricted] VPN
The multi-disciplinary database Academic Search Complete (ASC) provides full-text access to more than 5,500 periodicals, including over 4,600 peer-reviewed journals, and indexing and abstracts for an additional 9,500 journals and 10,000 publications, including monographs, reports, conference proceedings, etc. This scholarly collection offers coverage of information in many areas of academic study including, but not limited to: animal science, anthropology, area studies, astronomy, biology, chemistry, civil engineering, electrical engineering, ethnic & multicultural studies, food science & technology, general science, geography, geology, law, materials science, mathematics, mechanical engineering, music, pharmaceutical sciences, physics, psychology, religion & theology, veterinary science, women's studies, zoology and many other fields. The database features PDF content going back as far as 1887, with the majority of full text titles in native (searchable) PDF format.
Coverage: 1887-present
Related:
American National Biography (ANB)
THE LIBRARY HAS CANCELED ITS SUBSCRIPTION TO THE ONLINE ANB. THE PAPER EDITION IS AVAILABLE IN THE HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES REFERENCE COLLECTION. This encyclopedia of historical biography contains scholarly articles on more than 18,000 Americans.
Location: H/SS/GIS Reference CT213 A68 1999
Associations Unlimited [via GaleNet]
Contains information for international and U.S. national, regional, state, and local nonprofit membership organizations in all fields. PLEASE NOTE: Due to budget constraints and the availability of much of this information in alternative sources, Associations Unlimited has been cancelled after February, 2006.
Related:
  • The Encyclopedia of Associations is the print equivalent of the Associations Unlimited database. Current edition available in Humanities/Social Sciences Reference, 2nd floor, Shields Library, HS17 .E5
Biography and Genealogy Master Index [via Galenet] (http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BGMI?locID=ucdavis) [Restricted] VPN
Indexes current, readily available reference sources, as well as the most important retrospective works that cover individuals, both living and deceased, from every field of activity and from all areas of the world.
CQ Electronic Library (http://www.library.cqpress.com/) [Restricted] VPN

Congressional Quarterly (CQ) Electronic Library includes many resources for the study of current and historical congressional and American government issues. The CQ Researcher is an invaluable source of background information on topical issues since 1991. The Global Researcher is similar to CQ Researcher but with an international orientation. CQ Weekly Report, available starting in 1983, reports in depth on congressional activities and political developments.

Search from the CQ Electronic Library home page, where you may register a user profile in order to save documents and search strategies, or search in each online edition separately. See similar entry "CQ Press Electronic Library" for individual titles as related listings.

Related:
Columbia Gazetteer of the World Online (http://uclibs.org/PID/23138) [Restricted] VPN
Geographic database of over 165,000 entries including place-names, physical characteristics and attributes, political properties, economic parameters, and natural and agricultural resources. Global in scope, updated monthly.
Dissertation Abstracts International / Dissertations & Theses [via ProQuest] (http://uclibs.org/PID/11984) [Restricted] VPN
Online access to citations and abstracts for every title in the UMI Dissertation Abstracts database; since 1997, provides full-text access to dissertations. Access is free to UC Campus dissertations.
Coverage: 1861-present
Related:
Expanded Academic ASAP [via Thomson/Gale] (http://find.galegroup.com/itx/start.do?prodId=EAIM&userGroupName=ucdavis) [Restricted] VPN
Licensed access to this multi disciplinary periodicals database ended June 30, 2008. Academic Search Complete [via EBSCO] replaces it.
Coverage: 1980-present
Related:
Global Books in Print (http://www.uclibs.org/PID/5814) [Restricted] VPN
THE CDL HAS CANCELLED THE SUBSCRIPTION TO GLOBAL BOOKS IN PRINT. WE NO LONGER HAVE ACCESS. Global Books in Print (GBIP) offers a comprehensive and authoritative bibliographic database with some 5 million titles; 165,000 records on publishers, distributors, wholesalers and book agents;information on award winners, bestsellers; and over 500,000 full-text reviews. GBIP replaces and expands Books in Print (BIP). New in 2006, a readers' advisory tool called Fiction Connection. Search or browse Fiction Connection to find book reviews, authors, or topics of interest.
Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com/)
Google Scholar searches for scholarly literature on the web, including "peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, preprints, abstracts and technical reports..from a variety of academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories and universities." Google Scholar also analyzes and extracts citations from online documents, so your search results may include citations to older works that are not online. Results are ordered by relevancy. Often articles cited in Google Scholar results are available to UC Davis users through electronic journal and database subscriptions that the Library has licensed and paid for. To assist you in locating print and electronic versions of cited content, the University of California has arranged UC-eLinks in Google Scholar. After setting up UC-eLinks, click on the linked "UC-elinks" phrase, which will open a window from which you can get the full-text, check the library catalog to see if we own a book or journal, or Request an article we don't own.
Related:
  • To see UCe-links from off campus, go to "Scholar Preferences" from the Google Scholar opening screen. Search for "University of California Davis" and then check "University of California, Davis (UC-eLinks)"
  • Online handout (http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/dept/instruc/files/googlescholar.pdf)PDF
  • Library VPN (http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/ul/services/connect/)
    When off campus, log into the VPN before using Google Scholar so that you will have access to our many electronic subscriptions.
Infoplease (http://www.infoplease.com/)
Access to the Information Please Almanac, Infoplease Atlas, Dictionary and Thesaurus, and Columbia Encyclopedia.
Internet Public Library (http://www.ipl.org/)
Presents an organized and evaluated selection of subject resources on the Internet, with links to ready reference sources. Developed by the University of Michigan School of Information.
Karlsruhe Virtual Catalogue KVK (http://www.ubka.uni-karlsruhe.de/hylib/en/kvk.html)
The Karlsruhe Virtual Catalogue KVK is a meta search interface which allows you to access library and book trade catalogues from many countries around the world. It lists more than 500 million titles.
LexisNexis Academic (http://www.lexisnexis.com/us/lnacademic) [Restricted] VPN
One of the largest web-based full-text databases for current news, business and legal information, supporting a broad range of interdisciplinary research, LexisNexis Academic provides full-text access to nearly 6,000 individual titles. Includes a wide range of U.S. and foreign newspapers, plus transcripts of television and radio news programs. Business resources include business articles, accounting literature, company financial information. Legal resources include state and federal laws and regulations, a full range of case law, and law review articles.
Librarian's Index to the Internet (http://lii.org/)
Provides a well-organized point of access for reliable, trustworthy, librarian-selected Internet resources.
O*net: the Occupational Information Network (http://online.onetcenter.org/)
O*net replaces the Department of Labor's Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) as a source of occupational information. It provides information on the knowledge, skills, abilities, interests, preparation, contexts, and tasks associated with more than 1100 occupations. Search by occupation or skills. A crosswalk allows searching by occupational classifications defined in other systems.
Oxford English Dictionary (http://www.oed.com/) [Restricted] VPN
(or OED) is an historical dictionary of English, covering the language from the earliest times to the present day. Entries contain detailed etymological analysis, illustrated by quotations from a wide range of sources.
Readers' Guide Retrospective (http://uclibs.org/PID/21386) [Restricted] VPN
An electronic version of the classic Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature. Readers' Guide Retrospective, produced by The H. W. Wilson Company, is a database containing comprehensive indexing of the most popular general-interest periodicals published in the United States and reflects the history of 20th century America.
Coverage: 1890-1982
Related:
  • The print version of the Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature (1890-present) is located in the Humanities/Social Sciences Department in Shields Library, AI3.R4
Ulrich's Periodicals Directory (http://www.ulrichsweb.com/) [Restricted] VPN
The standard source for information on virtually every active and ceased periodical, annual, irregular publication, and monographic series published throughout the world (plus thousands of newspapers). Indicates whether a publication is a refereed (peer-reviewed) title.
World Almanac [via FirstSearch/OCLC] (http://firstsearch.oclc.org/fsip?dbname=worldalmanac) [Restricted] VPN
Includes the contents of: The World Almanac and Book of Facts, the World Almanac of the U.S.A.; the World Almanac of U.S. Politics; the World Almanac for Kids, and Funk and Wagnalls New Encyclopedia.
Statistical Abstract of the U.S. (Proquest Online Edition) (http://search.proquest.com/statistical?landingpage=statab) [Restricted] VPN
The Statistical Abstract of the United States is a one-volume, comprehensive summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. Use the Abstract as a convenient volume for statistical reference, and as a guide to sources of more information both in print and on the Web. The government-published Statistical Abstract of the U.S. was discontinued following publication of the 2012 edition.
Related:
  • Statistical Abstract of the United States (http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/)
    The U.S. Census Bureau terminated the collection of data for the Statistical Compendia program effective October 1, 2011.
  • Quick Start: Statistical Abstract Online Guide (http://proquest.libguides.com/statistical_abstract)
    A libguide with search help and tips for searching the Proquest online edition. Quick Start: Statistical Abstract of the United States Online Edition has browsing, searching, emailing/printing help.

Guides to Electronic, Print, and Other Resources

Electronic Reference Resources Page [UC Davis Library] (http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/ul/research/subjects/?list=electronic)
Links to electronic almanacs, dictionaries, directories, weather sites, and other categories, such as Colleges and Universities, Grants and Scholarships, Jobs and Career Opportunities, and Test Preparation Materials

Encyclopedias & Dictionaries

Britannica Online , No Longer Available (http://www.uclibs.org/PID/12593) [Restricted] VPN
UC Davis no longer subscribes to the Encyclopedia Britannica online, Britannica Book of the Year, maps, and selected classic articles from earlier editions of the Encyclopedia. Also included is an Internet Directory of sites reviewed and rated by Britannica editors, and the online Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.
Acronym Finder (http://www.acronymfinder.com/)
Decipher acronymns and abbreviations. Includes reverse look-up.
Dictionary of Old English/Old English Corpus (http://tapor.library.utoronto.ca/doecorpus/) [Restricted] VPN
A complete record of surviving Old English except for some variant manuscripts of individual texts. A catalogue of the over 3000 texts included in the corpus is available in Angus Cameron's "A List of Old English Texts" in A Plan for the Dictionary of Old English, ed. R. Frank and A. Cameron (PE279.F7 Shields Library)
Related:
  • A Plan for the Dictionary of Old English, ed. R. Frank and A. Cameron
    Shields Library PE279 F7
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary [via Encyclopedia Britannica] (http://search.eb.com) [Restricted] VPN
Licensed online version of the Merriam-Webster''s Collegiate Dictionary.
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus [via Bartleby.com] (http://www.bartleby.com/62/)
Third edition, containing 35,000 synonyms and over 250,000 cross-references.
Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged [via Chadwyck-Healy] (http://uclibs.org/PID/16454) [Restricted] VPN
A dictionary of the English language containing 450,000 vocabulary entries. America's premier lexicographical work, one of the Individual Literature Collections in Chadwyck-Healy's Literature Online (LION),
Date: 1993 edition
Urban Dictionary (http://www.urbandictionary.com/)
The Urban Dictionary claims "3,446,841 definitions written since 1999". This wiki-style slang / profanity dictionary utilizes open contributions to capture contemporary prospectives on the unofficial vocabulary or phraseology of the "street". It is useful for those looking to read multiple interpretations on controversial terms.

Other Resources

APA Citations Quick Guide (.pdf) (http://www.cdlib.org/services/info_services/docs/UC_APA_CitationGuide_021810.pdf)PDF
Designed as a help sheet for those new to the American Psychological Society's Publishing Style, this site will give you the basics on citing resources the APA way, and point you to more substantial information.
MLA Style Guide [UC Davis Library] (http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/dept/hss/mla.php)
Guide to basic guidelines for using MLA Style in research papers, with link to printable PDF version of page.
Related:
  • For more information, consult the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (2nd floor Shields Library, H/SS Protected Reference, LB2369 .G53 2003; older editions in general stacks)
Print and Electronic Citation Guides [UC Davis Library] (http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/dept/instruc/research/cites.php)
Extensive listing of electronic and printed guides to citing printed and electronic works and preparing biblographies. Covers humanities, social sciences and sciences.