Thursday Thirteen #4

Thirteen Ways the Library Can Help with a Research Paper

1) The library staff- always willing to answer questions. Not so willing to do the homework for you (high school- been there, done that, lost the t-shirt).

2) Card Catalog- helps you find anything in the library- books, cds, dvds, audiobooks- can be searched by author, title, series, subject, keyword.

3) Books, glorious books... lots and lots of books.

4) DVDs- movies- plays, tv shows, documentaries- all can be resources or topics for research papers.

5) Music- Classical music, popular music, even soundtracks and broadway music. All available for checkout.

6) Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, and Almanacs- oh my. Most can't be checked out, but with the handy dandy copier, you can still take the information home.

7) Our homepage- keeps you informed of upcoming programs and any closings in our future- for example, Easter.

8) Military & Intelligence Database- whose homepage is currently highlighting global warming, stem cell research, and animal rights (most of these articles are full text).

9) Mango Languages will help you learn the language if you are studying the culture of a country.

10) Literary Criticism Online- where you can find articles on such diverse authors as J.M. Barrie, Clive Barker, George Bernard Shaw, and Percy Bysshe Shelley. You won't find Christopher Marlowe or William Shakespeare, our subscription doesn't go back that far.

11) CultureGrams- provides a variety of fun facts and interesting information about countries and the American States, as well as the Provinces of Canada. It includes: flags, pictures, and even recipes.

12) Expanded Academic and EbscoHost- both excellent sources of full text periodicals and scholarly journals, add to the works cited page.

13) Word- So you can type it up, and even insert those pesky footnotes without too much angst and hairpulling (Endnotes are even better).