Encyclopedias

Encyclopedias

Encyclopedias are useful sources to find background information and key concepts or dates related to your topic. Try searching in a general encyclopedia for a concise overview or a subject specific encyclopedia for a more in-depth article about your topic.

These lists represent a selection of some of the best starting points for doing research. You can find many more encyclopedias, in print or online, by searching the library catalogue.

General and Multidisciplinary

• Gale virtual reference library
  Search a full-text collection of major subject encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, and other reference sources covering a broad range of multidisciplinary areas.
• Oxford reference online premium
  A cross-searchable database of full-text reference books, which includes works in various subjects published by Oxford University Press.
• Taylor & Francis Reference Works
  Collection of online encyclopedias and other reference works.
• The Canadian Encyclopedia Online
  An authoritative source of information on all things Canadian, the Canadian Encyclopedia includes illustrations, photographs, artwork, maps, video and audio clips of Canadian history and culture.
• Wikipedia
  This web-based encyclopedia allows the public to add or update content. Use other encyclopedias or resources to verify information found in Wikipedia.

Business

• Encyclopedia of Business and Finance
  Covering five general areas: finance and banking, accounting, marketing, management, and information systems.
• Encyclopedia of Management
  Topics in management theories and applications, written by academics and business professionals.
• International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences
  Covers all areas of the social sciences including anthropology, archaeology, demography, economics, education, gender studies, law, linguistics, media studies, political science, psychology, sociology, urban studies, and many others.

Engineering & Computer science

• Encyclopedia of Applied Physics
  In-depth coverage of all technically pertinent areas of modern-day physics, coupled with technological applications from real life.
• Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology
  Facts on the properties, manufacturing, and uses of chemicals and materials, processes, and engineering principles. Includes current research, emerging technologies, economic aspects, environmental and health concerns.
• Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry
  Nearly 1,000 major articles, written by some 3,000 authors who are experts in their fields and affiliated to leading chemical companies or research institutes.
• Wiley Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Engineering
  The latest advances, findings, and important topics in computer science and engineering.

Fine Arts

• Garland Encyclopedia of World Music Online
  The first comprehensive online resource devoted to music research of all the world's peoples

Humanities

• Cambridge Companions Complete Collection
  Contains the full text of the Cambridge Companions to literature, philosophy, religion, classics and culture.
• Encyclopedia of Philosophy
  Wide-ranging philosophical subjects. For general readers, students and educators.
• Encyclopedia of the Bible and its Reception
  Comprehensively records the current knowledge of the origins and development of the Bible in its Jewish and Christian canonical forms and documents the history of the Bible’s reception in Judaism and Christianity and Islam.
• International Encyclopedia of Communication
  Spans the breadth of communication studies, including coverage of theories, media and communication phenomena, research methods, problems, concepts, and geographical areas within communication studies.
• Literature Resource Center
  Provides access to biographies, bibliographies, and critical analyses of authors from every age and literary discipline. Covers novelists, poets, essayists, journalists, and other writers.
• The Canadian Encyclopedia Online
  An authoritative source of information on all things Canadian, the Canadian Encyclopedia includes illustrations, photographs, artwork, maps, video and audio clips of Canadian history and culture.

Science and Medicine

• Encyclopedia of Applied Physics
  In-depth coverage of all technically pertinent areas of modern-day physics, coupled with technological applications from real life.
• Encyclopedia of Inorganic Chemistry
  Examines the six major areas of inorganic chemistry: physical and theoretical methods, organometallic chemistry, main group elements, solid state chemistry, transition metals and bioinorganic chemistry.
• Encyclopedia of Life Sciences
  Articles in the fields of biochemistry and physiology, cell biology, developmental biology,ecology, evolution, genetics, immunology, molecular biology, neuroscience, microbiology and virology, plant science, structural biology, and science and society.
• Encyclopedia of Statistical Sciences
  Extensive coverage of statistical theory, methods, and applications.
• Historical Encyclopedia of Natural and Mathematical Sciences
  This milestone extensive work combines the essentials of history – biography, chronology, political and economic background – with the observations, theories, principles, laws and equations that constitute the specifics of science.
• Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology
  Facts on the properties, manufacturing, and uses of chemicals and materials, processes, and engineering principles. Includes current research, emerging technologies, economic aspects, environmental and health concerns.
• MedlinePlus
  Read about symptoms, causes, treatment and prevention for over 800 diseases, illnesses, health conditions and wellness issues. MedlinePlus health topics are regularly reviewed, and links are updated daily.
• MedlinePlus
  Read about symptoms, causes, treatment and prevention for over 800 diseases, illnesses, health conditions and wellness issues. MedlinePlus health topics are regularly reviewed, and links are updated daily.
• The Gale encyclopedia of medicine
  Includes information on more than 1,600 medical disorders and concepts. Each article includes in-depth discussion of causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatments, procedures, and other related topics. Written for a general audience.
• Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry
  Nearly 1,000 major articles, written by some 3,000 authors who are experts in their fields and affiliated to leading chemical companies or research institutes.
• Wiley Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Engineering
  The latest advances, findings, and important topics in computer science and engineering.

Social Sciences

• Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology
   
• Encyclopedia of Educational Psychology
  Includes major topics in the field of educational psychology, such as human learning and development (across the life span), motivation, measurement and statistics, and curriculum and teaching.
• Encyclopedia of political science
  The study of politics and the intersections of politics with other disciplines. Western and non-Western, national and international. [e-book]
• Encyclopedia of Religion
  Presents a cross-cultural approach that emphasizes religion's role within everyday life and as a unique experience from culture to culture.
• Encyclopedia of the Bible and its Reception
  Comprehensively records the current knowledge of the origins and development of the Bible in its Jewish and Christian canonical forms and documents the history of the Bible’s reception in Judaism and Christianity and Islam.
• Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology
  Covers the entire spectrum of psychology, including: notable people, theories and terms; landmark case studies and experiments; applications of psychology in advertising, medicine and sports; and career information.
• International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences
  Covers all areas of the social sciences including anthropology, archaeology, demography, economics, education, gender studies, law, linguistics, media studies, political science, psychology, sociology, urban studies, and many others.