Welcome to your Paideia research guide!
In this guide, you will find a selection of resources as a place to get started with research on your section's topic. If you have questions or need help finding something, please ask at the library Circulation Desk or contact the librarian working with your section.
Return to Paideia 112 Research Guide
Image: The Writer, by Mary Bradish Titcomb c.1912 National Gallery of Art.
You're not on your own! We've already collected here several reference sources, databases, and other resources that contain information you may need for your research project. Some are available online, while others are available in physical formats at Preus Library. Click on the tabs below to view links to these resources:
A reference source summarizes facts and concepts on a topic and provides useful background information. Reference sources include dictionaries and encyclopedias. Reference sources are a great place to start when you're trying to choose or narrow a topic. They'll help you learn the language of the topic you're interested in, and help you gather:
Online Reference Databases:
A database is a collection of scholarly journals and articles that lets us search many potential sources at once. Databases can be general and cover many subjects, or be specific to one or several subjects.
Preus Library subscribes several databases in order to provide access to a large variety of newspapers and other news material.
For more information about setting up your special New York Times subscription, please view our guide.
Primary sources provide direct evidence or firsthand testimony about the period or subject you’re researching. Interviews, speeches, letters, photographs, and even novels can be primary sources. Learn more about primary sources here.
Ask your professor or a librarian if you have questions about identifying primary sources.