Smethport Area Jr.-Sr. High School Library

Reference Desk

To have access to a reference librarian twenty-four hours a day seven days a week use Ask Here PA.

Just click on the link and ask your question.

The Reference Desk is a place to look for basic reference information that can be found in dictionaries, thesauri, the periodic table, calculators, government sites, travel sites, atlases, and more! This is a great place to start you research for basic background facts!

Reference Portals

University of Albany http://library.albany.edu/reference/

iTools http://www.iTools.com/

Bartleby.com http://www.bartleby.com/reference/

Library Spot http://www.libraryspot.com/

DeskRef http://ansernet.rcls.org/deskref/

Know Play http://www.kplay.cc/reference.html

High School Hub http://HighSchoolAce.com/hub/hub.cfm

Encarta Reference http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/reference.aspx

Atomic Integrated Information on Demand http://www.atomica.com/us/

bigchalk Homework Central http://www.bigchalk.com

Multnomah County Library’s Homework Center http://www.multcolib.org/homework/

Homework Spot http://homeworkspot.com

Library Spot http://libraryspot.com

New York Times Navigator http://www.nytimes.com/navigator

Dictionaries & Thesauri

YourDictionary.com http://yourdictionary.com

American Heritage Dictionary the English Language http://www.bartleby.com/61/ American Heritage Spanish Dictionary

Encarta World English Dictionary http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/Dictionary/DictionaryHome.aspx

Merriam-Webster’s Word Central http://www.wordcentral.com/

Merriam-Webster Online Language Center http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary.htm

Lycos Rhyme Zone http://rhyme.lycos.com/

Dictionary of Symbolism http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/

Write Express, Online Rhyming Dictionary http://www.rhymer.com/

Glossarist.com http://glossarist.com

Internet Picture Dictionary http://www.pdictionary.com/

Little Explorers Picture Dictionary http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Dictionary.html

Visual Thesaurus http://www.plumbdesign.com/thesaurus/

Free Translation.com http://www.freetranslation.com/

Internet Public Library’s A+ Research and Writing http://www.ipl.org/div/teen/aplus/toc.htm

Purdue University’s Online Writing Laboratory http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/index.html

Common Errors in English http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~brians/errors/

Almanacs

Infoplease http://www.infoplease.com/

Fact Monster http://www.factmonster.com

World Almanac for Kids Online http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/

Fast Facts http://www.freepint.com/gary/handbook.htm

U.S. Census site http://www.census.gov/index.html

Old Farmer's Almanac http://www.almanac.com/index.php

Afro-American Almanac http://www.toptags.com/aama/

Encyclopedia

Columbia (concise) Encyclopedia http://www.bartleby.com/65/

Britannica Concise http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/

Encarata Concise http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/home.aspx

World Book Encyclopedia (concise) See Catalogs and Databases for the full version http://www.worldbookonline.com/

EH.Net Encyclopedia (Encyclopedia of Economic and Business History) http://www.eh.net/encyclopedia/

Cambridge Encyclopedia of English and American Literature http://www.bartleby.com/cambridge/

Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/

Encyclopedia Mythica http://www.pantheon.org/mythica.html

Encyclopedia Smithsonian http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/start.htm

Free Internet Encyclopedia http://www.cam-info.net/enc.html

New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia http://www.newadvent.org/

Wikipedia (collaborative open content) http://www.wikipedia.org/

Atlases

Encarta Map Center http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/MapCenter/Map.aspx

Geography @About.com http://geography.about.com/

All the Worlds Maps http://www.embassyworld.com/maps/maps.html

Perry Casteñeda Map Collection http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/index.html

Historical Atlas of the Twentieth Century http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/20centry.htm

United Nations Cartographic Section http://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/english/

American Memory Maps Collections http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/gmdhome.html

Places in the News http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/plnews.html

National Atlas http://nationalatlas.gov/

National Geographic’s Map Machine http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/

Color Landform Atlas of the United States http://fermi.jhuapl.edu/states/states.html

TopoZone http://www.topozone.com/

MapQuest http://mapquest.com

MapBlast.com http://www.mapblast.com

Maporama http://www.maporama.com/share/

MultiMap.com http://uk2.multimap.com/

Biographical

Biographical Dictionary http://www.s9.com/biography/

Biography.com http://www.biography.com/

Lives, the Biography Resource http://amillionlives.com

PBS Biographies http://www.pbs.org/neighborhoods/history/#bio

Gale (free resources) http://www.galegroup.com/free_resources/

Who2? http://www.who2.com/

Grolier's American Presidency http://gi.grolier.com/presidents

POTUS http://www.ipl.org/ref/POTUS

President of the United States http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/index.html

Presidents of the United States http://www.presidentsusa.net/

Presidents Index http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/P/ offers profiles, as well as links to speeches, writings, and libraries.

Nations, States, Travel General Travel Sites http://mciu.org/~spjvweb/maps.html

Library of Congress Country Studies http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/

Library of Congress is Portals to the World http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html

State Department’s Background Notes http://www.state.gov/r/pa/bgn/

CIA World Factbook http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html

Atlapedia Online http://www.atlapedia.com/

World Statesmen.org http://www.worldstatesmen.org/

InfoNation (United Nations comparisons) http://www.cyberschoolbus.un.org/infonation/info.asp

NationMaster http://www.nationmaster.com

INCORE: Internet Conflict Data Service http://www.incore.ulst.ac.uk/cds/countries/index.html

Worldwide Gazeteer http://www.gazeteer.com/

Ethnologue (information about world languages) http://www.ethnologue.com/web.asp

Human Rights Watch http://www.hrw.org/hrw/

Internet Public Library’s Culturequest http://www.ipl.org/youth/cquest/

Country Reports.org http://www.countryreports.org/

Economist Country Briefings http://www.economist.com/countries/

Amnesty International http://www.amnesty.org/ailib/aireport/

Lonely Planet’s Destinations http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations

  The Fifty States

Internet Public Library’s Stately Knowledge http://www.ipl.org/youth/stateknow/skhome.html

50 States and Capitals http://www.50states.com/

ClassBrain.com State Reports http://classbrain.com/artstate/publish/

Stateline.org http://www.stateline.org

Government Information

FirstGov:Your First Click to U.S. Government http://www.firstgov.gov/

KidsGov http://www.kids.gov/

Ben’s Guide to U.S. Government for Kids http://bensguide.gpo.gov

U.S. History American Cultural History: The Twentieth Century http://www.nhmccd.edu/contracts/lrc/kc/decades.html

Primary Sources Pathfinder http://mciu.org/~spjvweb/primary.html

Social Issues

Multnomah County Library’s Social Issues Page http://www.multcolib.org/homework/sochc.html

Public Agenda Online http://www.publicagenda.org/

Public Education Network http://www.penpress.org/

See Issues Pathfinder http://mciu.org/~spjvweb/issuespath.html

About flags Flags of the World http://fotw.vexillum.com/flags/

World Flag Database http://www.flags.net

Guide to American Flags http://www.law.ou.edu/flags.html

Flags of All Countries http://www.theodora.com/flags.html

Calculators and Conversion Convert It! http://microimg.com/science/

Universal Currency Converter http://www.xe.com/ucc/

Calculator.com http://www.calculator.com/

Unit Conversion http://www.pdfconverter.com/unitconverter/

Convert Me http://www.convert-me.com/en/

About time: Calendars, Holidays, This Day in History Alterna Time (chronologies) http://www2.canisius.edu/~emeryg/time.html

Web Chronology Project http://campus.northpark.edu/history/WebChron/

This Day in History http://www.historychannel.com/thisday/

(On This Day http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/index.html

Today in History Archive http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/today/archive.html

Facts.com: What Happened That Day? (subscription) http://www.2facts.com/stories/mainmenu.asp

Information Please Day in History http://www.infoplease.com/cgi-bin/dayinhistory/

DMarie Time Capsule http://www.dmarie.com/timecap/

Calendar Home.com http://calendarhome.com/tyc/

KidLink Multicultural Calendar http://www.kidlink.org/KIDPROJ/MCC/

Quotations

Bartleby (combined quote index search) http://www.bartleby.com/quotations/

QuoteLand http://www.quoteland.com

Quoteworld http://quoteworld.org http://quoteworld.org http://quoteworld.org

Math Remedies

Discovery School Webmath http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/webmath/

SOS Mathematics http://www.sosmath.com/index.html

Periodic Tables Los Alamos National Laboratories http://pearl1.lanl.gov/periodic/default.htm

WebElements http://pearl1.lanl.gov/periodic/default.htm

Visual Elements http://www.chemsoc.org/viselements/