Accessible from home with a Downers Grove Public Library card
		In-library use only

• Astronomy

Eric Weisstein’s World of Astronomy

• Biography

Biography Resource Center
Biographical information on people from around the world and throughout history.
Contemporary Authors
Biographical information on writers including many full text articles.

Biography.Com
Short biographies from A&E.

• Biology

Biology Browser
Gateway to life science information on the web. Start here.
Biology Project from the University of Arizona
Entrez, The Life Sciences Search Engine
Search several life sciences databases at once. Includes text of books as well as journal articles.

• Books and Literary Criticism

Fiction Catalog
A recommended list of fiction books including a subject guide.
MagillOnLiterature Plus
Plot and character summaries, and critical analysis, of literary works.
NoveList K–8 Plus
Looking for a good kid’s book? Search by subject, plot summary, grade level, and more.
NoveList Plus
Looking for a good fiction or nonfiction book? Search by subject, plot summary, and more.

Internet Public Library
Find information by author, title or literary period.
NovelGuide.Com
“The premier free source for literary analysis on the web.” Addresses the classics.
Sparknotes
Free alternative to Cliff’s Notes. Requires free registration for detailed information. Also covers history and the sciences.

• Chemistry

Chemical Data Links
CheMystery
Virtual chemistry textbook and interactive guide for high school students.
Entrez, The Life Sciences Search Engine
Search several life sciences databases at once. Includes text of books as well as journal articles.
Eric Weisstein’s World of Chemistry
General Chemistry Online
Excellent resource for beginning chemistry students.
Jim Martindale’s Virtual Chemistry Center
Extensive collection of chemistry tables and links for the advanced student.

• Class Links for Downers Grove High Schools

Downers Grove North Class Links
Downers Grove South Classroom Connections

• Education

Education Research Complete
Full-text articles from 750 education journal on topics covering all levels of education (early childhood to higher education) and all educational specialities. Also includes full-text of 100 education books and monographs.
ERIC on FirstSearch
Extensive index of education articles for teachers and students.

Gateway to Educational Materials
From the US Department of Education.

• Encyclopedias and Subject Encyclopedias

World Book Encyclopedia
Access to the latest edition of the encyclopedia, an excellent source for general information on many topics.

Canadian Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia Astronautica
Covers all aspects of space travel.
Encyclopedia Mythica
Extensive coverage of mythology and folklore worldwide.
Encyclopedia of Chicago
This free new resource offers a wealth of information on Chicago’s past. It is the electronic version of the highly acclaimed book and is sponsored by the Chicago Historical Society, the Newberry Library, and Northwestern University.
Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
Physics Encyclopedia
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

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• Engineering and Technology

Bubl Link
From the UK, this is a catalog of links arranged according to the Dewey Decimal System. The multitude and variety of links may require some browsing.
Engineer’s Edge
Specifications, specialized calculators, data, equations and more for product designers and engineers.

• Finance and Economics

Concise Encyclopedia of Economics
FinWeb
Comprehensive, authoritative links to all aspects of economics and finance.

• General Research Websites

Gale Virtual Reference Library
One search locates information in more than 300 full-text reference books.

The following websites cover all areas of knowledge that offer links to reference resources arranged alphabetically by subject.

About.Com Homework Help
Digital Librarian
“A librarian’s choice of the best of the web.”
High School Ace
Internet Public Library
Library Spot
World Wide Web Virtual Library

• Geology

The Mineral and Gemstone Kingdom
Complete chemical definitions with excellent photographs.
Geology, Geography and Hydrology Information from the US Geological Survey
An attractive, comprehensive site with something for everyone.

• History

American Memory
American history from the Library of Congress. Offers a storehouse of information. Search the collections, go to the learning page or access the global gateway with links to cultures and additional resources.
Best of History Websites
A searchable portal to rated web sites.
Digital History
Comprehensive site for American History. Includes primary sources, online textbook and encyclopedia.
Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago
This free new resource offers a wealth of information on Chicago’s past. It is the electronic version of the highly acclaimed book and is sponsored by the Chicago Historical Society, the Newberry Library, and Northwestern University.
History Link 101
Many links to the history of ancient world cultures. Also covers the Middle Ages and World War II.
Timeline Index
Timelines of periods, events, places and people.

Finding Primary Sources
Books, magazines and websites containing first-hand accounts of historical events.

• Law

Legal Information Institute
Comprehensive site with links to federal laws as well as the statutes and codes for all states.
Emory School of Law Electronic Reference Desk

• Library Catalogs

I-Share
Database of materials held at 65 Illinois college libraries.
SWAN Online Catalog
Database of Downers Grove Public Library’s holdings and other SLS libraries’ holdings.
WorldCat
A worldwide catalog of library holdings including books, videos, audios and other materials.

• Magazines

ABI/Inform Select
A collection of many full text current articles on business topics.
ERIC on FirstSearch
Extensive index of education articles for teachers and students.
GreenFILE
Search for information on the connections between the environment and a variety of disciplines, such as agriculture, law, health and technology. Contains indexing and abstracts of general interest, government and scholarly titles, plus some full-text articles.
Infotrac
A subject index to hundreds of magazines including many articles which are full text.
Medline on FirstSearch
A collection of current articles on health topics, many of which are full text.
SIRS
Full text magazine and newspaper articles about topics of current social interest.
WilsonSelectPlus on FirstSearch
Full text magazine and journal articles on a wide variety of topics.

Google Scholar
Search for articles, papers and books on scholarly subjects.

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• Math

MathWorld
Math Archives
Links to advanced math topics which are also classified by education level from high school to post graduate work.
WebMath
Fill in the blanks and get step by step solutions to your math problems.

• Newspapers

Chicago Tribune
Full text Chicago Tribune newspaper articles from 1985 to the present. Use “Select Multiple Databases” link to search only the Chicago Tribune.
Chicago Tribune Historical Archive
Full text of complete newspaper 1849 – 1985.
New York Times
Full text New York Times newspaper from 1980 – present. Use “Select Multiple Databases” link to search only the New York Times.

• Philosophy


Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

• Physics

Best of Physics Web from the Institute of Physics
Wonderful portal to all aspects of physics
Eric Weisstein’s World of Physics
HyperPhysics
Physics Central Favorite Sites
Physics to Go
How Things Work

• Politics and Government

Project Vote Smart
Comprehensive coverage of the issues and the candidates nationwide.
Almanac of Policy Issues
Political Information.Com
A search engine for politics, policy and political news.
Public Agenda Online

• Psychology

Encyclopedia of Psychology
Lots of links, a good place to begin your research.
Psych Central
Psych Wurld
Includes a mega search engine and many useful links.
Psychology WWW Virtual Library
A portal to the entire academic field of psychology. All links have been evaluated.

• Quick Lookups

• Almanac
Information Please Almanac

• Calculators
Measure 4 Measure
Links to calculators for science, math, health, finance and more.
Martindale Online Center

• Dictionaries
OneLook
Find a definition from an index to over 960 dictionaries.

• Multiple Reference Sources
Bartleby.Com
Look here for the full text of many standard reference works such as Roget’s Thesaurus, Bartlett’s Quotations, the American Heritage Dictionary, Robert’s Rules of Order, the Columbia Encyclopedia and much more.

• Science

GreenFILE
Search for information on the connections between the environment and a variety of disciplines, such as agriculture, law, health and technology. Contains indexing and abstracts of general interest, government and scholarly titles, plus some full-text articles.

Entrez, The Life Sciences Search Engine
Search several life sciences databases at once. Includes text of books as well as journal articles.
Science.Gov
Links to many authoritative science pages provided by U. S. government agencies on topics such as food, the environment, weather and many more.

• Social Issues

GreenFILE
Search for information on the connections between the environment and a variety of disciplines, such as agriculture, law, health and technology. Contains indexing and abstracts of general interest, government and scholarly titles, plus some full-text articles.
SIRS Researcher
Full text magazine and newspaper articles about topics of current social interest.

Multnomah Public Library Homework Help

• Sociology

CultureGrams
Provides information on over 180 countries including daily life and culture, history, customs, and lifestyles of the world’s people. Recipes, maps, and flags are included.

Sociology Web Hawg
Links to many websites on sociology topics.

• Test Preparation

LearnATest
Online practice tests for many exams including the ACT, SAT, GED, and ASVAB.
Test Preparation E-Books
Study guides and test preparation e-books from Learning Express.

Test Prep Review
Free online practice that covers a variety of standard tests not found in LearnATest.

• Writing a Research Paper and Citing Sources

• Writing a Research Paper
A+ Research and Writing Step-by-Step
Practical help from the Internet Public Library.
Online Writing Lab
A step-by-step tutorial from Purdue University.

• Citing Sources
Citation Styles for MLA, APA, Turabian, Chicago and AMA
Examples of each format from Long Island University.
College of DuPage
Downers Grove North High School Citing Sources
Downers Grove South High School Citing Sources
How Do I Cite That Source?
NoodleTools
Fill in the blanks to get a citation in the MLA format.
Son of Citation Machine
Enter citation information to produce a MLA, APA or Chicago-formatted bibliographic reference and parenthetical citation.

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