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How to find background information on your topic using a more reliable source, like Gale Virtual Reference, that you can quote in your paper. | Time - 02:22 | Transcript

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How do I find background information on my topic?

[Image of encyclopedias]

Do you need background information on your paper or project topic, but you don't want to use Wikipedia because you can't cite it in your bibliography?

This tutorial will show you how to quickly find general information on a research topic from online resources that have more credibility and reliability than Wikipedia and that are worthy of citation in a research paper.

[Image of UW Libraries homepage, go to Find It]

To access these resources, start at the UW Libraries' homepage: www.lib.washington.edu.

Next, click on the "Find It" link. Be careful: just above the Find It link, there is a drop down menu also labeled Find It. If you click this drop down menu, you must select the last link labeled "more."

[Image of Quick Fact Resources then open Gale Virtual Reference basic search screen]

On this page, under the heading "Quick Fact Resources," you will see a list of databases. The top two databases, Britannica Online and Gale Virtual Reference, are online encyclopedias like Wikipedia, but the information is more reliable and credible, and you can cite them in your paper.

[Image of search for Leonardo Da Vinci. Highlight Off Campus Access Link]

So, for example, we will do a quick search in the Gale Virtual Reference database for general information on Leonardo Da Vinci. Notice this database is labeled UW-restricted. Remember: if you are off campus, you must click the "Off Campus Access Link" in the top right hand corner of your screen and then enter your UW NetID login name and password to access UW-restricted resources.

[Image of search results]

Once you are in the database, you can enter your topic into the search box in the center of the screen, or you can search by subject in the list of subjects just below the search box. In this example, I will type "Leonardo Da Vinci" into the search box. The first entry that was retrieved gives me general biographical information on Da Vinci.

[Click on first result]

Shown is the full-text of the encyclopedia article highlighting the word you used to search. The box on the right labeled "Tools" gives you options to print, email or download the article. At the bottom of the article, there is a bibliography you can use to access further readings as well as a citation for the encyclopedia entry. It also gives you links to related subjects that might be of interest to you on your topic.

[Image of UW Libraries home page, highlight ASK US]

As always, if you have further questions about this topic or about the UW libraries in general, you can click the Ask Us link on any UW Libraries web page.