Research Guides: WRI 130: Beyond Earth: 1)Background Information

Encyclopedias/Dictionaries

Encyclopedias are great ways to get background information and understand the terms used to describe topics.

AccessScience (McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 10th ed.) This link opens in a new window
Includes The McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology 10th edition, McGraw-Hill Yearbooks of Science & Technology, McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, and the Hutchinson Dictionary of Scientific Biography.

Ethics, science, technology, and engineering: A Global Resource
This work considers both the professional ethics of science and technology, and the ethical and political issues raised by science and technology in an increasingly complex and global society. This broad coverage supports the numerous courses in applied and professional ethics and policy related to the practice of science and technology in education, including new analytical and interpretive essays on events, scholarship, people, and legal decisions.
Encyclopedia of Science Fiction
Includes entries on science fiction authors, themes, media, and culture. Not a scholarly treatment, but makes helpful comparisons between related science fiction works and themes

Encyclopaedia Britannica Online This link opens in a new window
Academic version of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is no longer published in print format. For a list of all editions of the Britannica held by Princeton, see the History Resource Guide. Includes the Merriam Webster Dictionary. Antiquity+
OED Online (Oxford English Dictionary) This link opens in a new window
Considered the most authoritative and comprehensive English language dictionary in the world. Includes information on the English language, its history, and the social, cultural, and political influences that have shaped the language through the centuries.
Oxford Reference This link opens in a new window
Full-text of hundreds of dictionaries and other reference works in the humanities and social sciences, published by Oxford University Press.

Wikipedia
While it is not advisable to use this as a source in an academic paper, it can sometimes LEAD you to other great sources, especially on contemporary topics.