Information Sources

Source​: ​VirginiaTech Library

Books

INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES

Books cover virtually When looking
any topic, fact or for ​lots​ of information Encyclopedias,
fiction. For research on a topic Dictionaries,
purposes, you will
textbooks, Atlases,
probably be looking To put your topic in
for books that
Workbooks, etc
context with other
synthesize all the important issues
information on one
topic to support a To find historical
particular argument information
or thesis.
Libraries organize To find summaries of
and store their book research to support an
collections on shelves argument
called "stacks."

Encyclopedias
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
Encyclopedias are When looking for Subject
collections of short, background General
factual entries often information on a
written by different topic
contributors who are
knowledgeable about When trying to find
the topic. key ideas, important
dates or concepts
There are two types of
encyclopedias: general
and subject. General
encyclopedias provide
concise overviews on a
wide variety of topics.
Subject encyclopedias
contain in-depth entries
focusing on one field of
study
Academic Journals
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
A journal is a collection When doing
of articles usually scholarly research
written by scholars in
an academic or To find out what has
been studied on your
professional field.
topic
An editorial board
reviews articles to To find
decide whether they bibliographies that
should be accepted. point to other
relevant research
Articles in journals can
cover very specific
topics or narrow fields
of research.

Databases
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
A database contains When you want to EBSCOhost
citations of articles in find articles on your
magazines, journals, topic in magazines, Sabinet
and newspapers. They journals or
may also contain newspapers Emerald
citations to podcasts,
blogs, videos, and other Science Direct
media types. Some
databases contain Jstor
abstracts or brief
summaries of the
articles, while other
databases contain
complete, full-text
articles.
Magazines
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
A magazine is a To find information Drum
collection of articles and or opinions about
images about diverse popular culture You
topics of popular interest
To find up-to-date
and current events.
information about
Time
Usually these articles current events
are written by
journalists or scholars To find general
and are geared toward articles for people National
who are not Geographic
the average adult.
necessarily
Magazines may cover specialists about the
very "serious" material, topic
but to find consistent
scholarly information,
you should use journals.

Newspapers
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
A newspaper is a To find current Daily Dispatch
collection of articles information about
about current events international,
usually published daily. national and local Sunday Times
Since there is at least events
one in every city, it is a
great source for local To find editorials,
commentaries, Mail & Guardian
information.
expert or popular
opinions
City Press
Library Catalog
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
A library catalog is an To find out what
organized and items the library
searchable collection of owns on your topic
records of every item in
To find where a
a library and can be
found on the library specific item is
home page. The catalog located in the library
will point you to the
location of a particular
source, or group of
sources, that the library
owns on your topic.

Internet
TYPE INFORMATION USE EXAMPLES
The Web allows you to To find current
access most types of information Search Engines
information on the
Internet through a To find information www.google.com
about companies
browser. One of the Bing
main features of the To find information
Web is the ability to Yandex
from all levels of
quickly link to other government - federal CC Search
related information. The to local
Web contains Swisscows
information beyond To find both expert
and popular opinions DuckDuckGo
plain text, including
sounds, images, and
To find information
video.
about hobbies and
The important thing to personal interests
do when using
information on the
Internet is to know how
to evaluate it!
D​ICTIONARIES

Reference work​ containing brief explanatory ​entries​ for ​term​s and ​topic​s related to a specific
subject​ or ​field​ of inquiry, usually arranged ​alphabetical​ly.

T​HESAURUS
A type of dictionary that lists groups of synonyms.

A​TLAS
1. A book or bound collection of maps, sometimes with supplementary illustrations and graphic
analyses.

2. A volume of tables, charts, or plates that systematically illustrates a particular subject​.

​A​LMANACS
An ​annual​ ​complication ​of practical ​date​s, facts, and statistics, ​current​ and/or
retrospective​, often arranged in ​table​s to facilitate comparison.

D​IRECTORY
A book or database which lists the names and details of people or companies in a
specific geographical or subject area.
M​AGAZINE​ ​OR​ P​ERIODICAL
A regular weekly, monthly or quarterly publication containing articles, stories, photographs and
advertisements. Periodicals can be Professional, Industrial & trade or special interest in
content.
N​EWSPAPER
A daily or weekly publication consisting of a number of large sheets of folded cheap paper
containing printed news articles and pictures.

​A​RCHIVES
An archive is an accumulation of historical records or the physical place they are located.
Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an
individual or organization's lifetime, and are kept to show the function of that person or
organization.

M​USEUMS
A place or building where objects of historical, artistic, or scientific interest are exhibited,
preserved, or studied.