COM 215: General Resources

Search for background information on your topic by using Credo Reference or go directly to one of the electronic dictionaries or encyclopedias below:

Electronic Books

• ebrary - UHMC Library's subscription to more than 70,000 academic, full-text ebooks.

Print Book Collection

• One Search - UHMC's collection of reference and circulating books housed in the campus library. Mobile interface. For accesiblitiy on your mobile device download the library's app for iOS and Android. 

Here are a few databases that I'd recommend starting with:

Academic Search Complete

Provides access to more than 8,500 full-text periodicals from many academic disciplines including social sciences, humanities, education, language and linguistics, arts & literature, and ethnic studies. It is a good starting point for searching your topic across many disciplines.

CountryWatch

Features up-to-date news and information on each of the recognized countries of the world. It provides country-specific information and data on demographic, political, economic, business, cultural and environmental subject matter.

CQ Researcher

Includes reports and analysis on issues in the news. Each single-themed report is researched and written by a seasoned journalist and includes: an introductory overview; a background and chronology on the topic; an assessment of the current situation; tables and maps; a pro/con debate by representatives of opposing positions; and bibliographies of key sources.

JSTOR Archive: Arts & Sciences I

Provides full-text access to back issues of more than 100 scholarly journals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Issues are entered on-line after having been published for 2-5 years.

MasterFILE Complete

Provides full-text for more than 2,000 general reference publications dating as far back as 1922. Covering virtually every subject area of general interest, MasterFILE Complete also contains full-text for more than 1,000 reference books and over 164,400 primary source documents, as well as an Image Collection of over 502,000 photos, maps & flags. This database is updated daily via EBSCOhost.

World Geography & Culture Online

Provides current facts and statistics on more than 200 countries. It includes coverage on a wide variety of country information such as geography, people and culture, weather and climate, history, government, society, people in office, and more. 

World News Digest

Covers all major political, social, and economic events since November 1940. This archival record of domestic and international news is updated weekly.