This guide lists a selection of online sources that you can use to complete research projects when you don't have a lot of time. Make sure that when you quote or paraphrase an author that you give that author credit by including him or her in your list of references/bibliography (see compiling bibliographies for research papers).

Reference Sources

Encyclopedias and Dictionaries

Britannica Online

Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online

Other Online Encyclopedias and Dictionaries

Grammar and Writing Style
The Elements of Style
The principal requirements of plain English style including the rules of usage and the principles of composition most commonly violated.

The American Heritage Book of English Usage
Information on grammar, style, diction, word formation, gender, social groups and scientific forms.

Compiling Bibliographies

These are examples of bibliographic references modeled on the styles usually suggested by professors. The books (style manuals) on which these examples are based are available at the Fondren Reference Desk.

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

Chicago Style
 
CSE (Council of Science Editors) Style

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

Turabian Style

Finding Books

WebCat
WebCat lists books held in Fondren Library. However, if you don't have time to consult the books in the library, try searching:

NetLibrary
NetLIbrary contains a selection of electronic books that can be browsed, "borrowed", and searched for references to a topic. You will be asked to create an ID and PW the first time you use it.

Finding Articles and Other Resources

Academic Search Complete
An index to journals in the humanities, sciences, and social sciences. Many articles are available full text. You can limit your search to full text only and/or to scholarly journals only.

LexisNexis Academic
Access to full-text news, government, legal (including cases, law, and regulations), business, medical, and geographically-specific information. A.U. is especially useful for searching newspaper articles.

Gale Literary Databases
Combines Contemporary Authors, Contemporary Literary Criticism, and Dictionary of Literary Biography and other resources. Full-text information on authors and their works.

JSTOR
JSTOR contains full-text scholarly journals in the humanities, social scienes, and sciences. You can search all JSTOR journals for a topic or "browse" for a specific journal title. You'll find back runs of journals up to three or four years ago.

Project Muse
Recent journals with an emphasis on the humanities. As with JSTOR, you can search all journals at once or look for a specific title.

A list of full text electronic journals available from the Fondren web site.