Wikipedia and Reference Universe: A powerful combination

A study of research habits among college students resulted in a research report accompanied by a YouTube video. Under the heading "Everyday Research," the video had a slide titled "Wikipedia: The Power of an Uncitable Source."

It seemed to me this phrase accurately captured how we ought to think about this controversial research tool. It is indeed powerful but not useful for every purpose. For example, Wikipedia isn't considered a scholarly research-appropriate source.

Academics rightly caution their students not to cite Wikipedia as a source in their research papers and - by the way - so do the creators of Wikipedia.

Ending the conversation there, though, is disingenuous. There are many purposes for which Wikipedia is perfectly suited. (I strongly suspect that even those academics who curse it use it themselves at times.)

So what's it good for? It is good for getting an overview of a subject, seeing what issues surround a subject, getting a grasp of significant terms associated with the subject, and finding references to "citable" sources (citable because they are created by single authors who are accountable for their work).

Rather than steering student researchers away from Wikipedia with a blunt instruction to avoid it all costs, I'd say let them use it for what it's good for -- to inform, to help focus a topic and to open up other research paths.

However, if the subject is one that a classical encyclopedia addresses well, then use those. The Richland Library owns the Encyclopedia Britannica Online and a large selection of print encyclopedias.

To get a good perspective on the depth and breadth of print and online subject encyclopedias, try using a librarian's secret weapon: Reference Universe.

Reference Universe is a little-known online master index to index terms and article titles contained in both electronic and print reference works. More than 20,000 reference works are now represented in the database, and many of these are owned within the district libraries or our library. 

Reference Universe can help you and your students find the best article topic in our own library and library website instead of the often taboo Wikipedia. 

To get to Reference Universe, visit http://www.dcccd.edu/databases, click on "R," and scroll down to find the database link. Questions on how to use it? Let us know at richlandlibrary@dcccd.edu. 

Students, instructors, faculty, and staff with a current DCCCD I.D. will be able to log on from remote locations.

Question of the week: Who’s Aurora Leigh and where is she?

Richland holdings of Aurora Leigh

How many times have you found yourself digging around looking for a copy of  Aurora Leigh by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, but you just couldn’t seem to find one? 

You’ve looked in the library catalog, but the Richland Library copies are checked out. Other district libraries have copies, but you don't have time to pick one up or to wait for a copy to come to Richland.

You could surf over to Amazon.com and purchase it for your Kindle, or you could search another library for a copy. You could go online to the Gutenberg Project to see if there is a copy there. You can Google it and find the University of Pennsylvania's digital library holding.

But...You will also need some literary criticism and maybe some biographical information about Elizabeth Barrett Browning, so just finding the digital version may not be enough. What if you easily could find a website that compiles multiple facets of literature and literary research?

Literature Online is one database that fits the bill. It is a web resource that contains full-text prose, full-text poetry, literary biographies, and literary criticism.

To get to Literature Online, follow this path: 

1. Go to the Richland library webpage at http://www.richlandcollege.edu/library.

2. Look for the green tabs in the middle of the home page and click on “Databases.

3. Click on the “L” on the A-Z list.

4. Scroll down and click on the “Literature Online” link.

5. Use the “Quick Search” box at the top left to find your work or author.

If you search Aurora Leigh, the database will give you results under the “Poetry,” “Criticism,” and “Reference” headings. For the poem, choose the first result under “Poetry.”

When you click on it, the title information looks like this:

Browning, Elizabeth Barrett, 1806-1861:  [from Poetical works (1897)]
Volume section
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett, 1806-1861 :
AURORA LEIGH.
A POEM IN NINE BOOKS. 1856. [from Poetical works (1897)]

Here, you can scroll through and start reading, click on the “Table of Contents” link to find the section you want, or you can print the 256 pages that comprise this selection. You may also click on the author page to find biographical information, bibliographies, and literary criticism.

Now, not only have you found Aurora Leigh, but you have also found a place where you can read all about her and her creator, Elizabeth Barrett Browning. 
 
Keep searching,
R.D. 

Here’s the durable link to  Aurora Leigh in Literature Online. Students, instructors, and staff with current DCCCD I.D. can log on with their I.D. information.

This is the first of several entries about finding literary works and related information and criticism.

Virtual Reference Shelf: Selected Web Resources Compiled by the Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world and serves as the research arm of Congress. The collection of more than 130 million items includes over 29 million cataloged books. The library also provides virtual programs and services to assist the general public. One such service is the Virtual Reference Shelf, a collection of selected websites compiled by reference specialists. The various resources are organized into about thirty categories.

The Virtual Reference Shelf contains the following reference tools:

Abbreviations Almanacs and Fast Facts Arts and Music Associations Awards/Prizes Books, Periodicals, and Publishing Business Calculators Calendars, Clocks/Times Children, Teachers & Parents

Consumer Information Current Events On the Web Dictionaries/Thesauri Directories Education Encyclopedias Genealogy, Biography and Archaeology Government Grant Resources Health/Medical

History (General) Language and Literature Law Libraries Maps/Driving Directions Political Science and Government Quotations Science, Technology and Engineering Statistics