Guide to Library Research in Science

Lesson 3: Reference Sources

Reference sources, including encyclopedias, dictionaries, and handbooks, provide background information, terminology, and collections of data. These reference materials, often called secondary sources, integrate and improve access to the ever-increasing body of scientific information by organizing, repackaging, and compiling and editing information which originally appeared in the primary scientific journal literature. This lesson consists of documents that describe the various types of reference sources, as well as the specific resources available in the Timken Science Library.

• Descriptions of Secondary and Tertiary Literature Sources in Science
  These pages list descriptions of several types of secondary and tertiary sources that will be useful for science research. Types of reference sources include:

  Atlases	Handbooks
  Bibliographies	Reviews of the Literature
  Biographical Sources	Thesauri
  Dictionaries	Treatises
  Encyclopedias	Guides to the Literature

  
  
• Selected Bibliography of Science Reference Sources
  The search form at this site accesses a database of reference sources available in the Timken Science Library. Searching by title, author, broad subject area, or literature type retrieves an annotated list of relevant reference sources.


• Subject Guides
  Recommended reference sources, databases, Internet sites and other research tools are listed for each of the following broad subject areas.
  • Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Computer Science
  • Environmental Science
  • Geology
  • Mathematical Sciences
  • Medicine and Health
  • Physics