LibGuides: Narrowing a research topic: Background work

Reference Tools - Get the Gist

Encyclopedia Britannica Online This link opens in a new window
Kick your topic in the teeth by consulting the venerable Encyclopedia Britannica. Articles tend to be more in-depth than what's available through Credo, and EB has long been the standard in trustable reference in English language. Watch out for colonialism, though.
Credo Reference This link opens in a new window
Credo is different from other databases in that is consists exclusively of different reference books. Encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases, and almanacs - over 1200 of them - are included in this searchable tool. Of note: aggregating topic pages that link out to multiple sources for key popular topics, and the Concept Map feature that provides a graphical index of article topics.

Scour the Stacks - Enterprise Catalog
Follow this here link to the Library's most centralized research resource hub - you'll get into our heads and expand your own if you come this way. Put more straightforwardly: you an find our physical collections AND our digital collections here. Come on in, my friend.

EBSCO E-book Collection This link opens in a new window
Look, there are a whole bunch of books in here. I don't even really know how many, that's a fact. I'm talking about books on all topics, of all sorts, and all of them are available electronically, right here.
E-books from Duke University Press This link opens in a new window
2600+ electronic books from the reknowned publisher of seminal texts in religious studies, language, the humanities, and more disciplines. All content is full text and peer-reviewed and guaranteed to stimulate the heck out of you.