Virtual Reference Desk
Almanacs • Biographies
• Country Information •
Data and Statistics •
Dictionaries and Thesauri • Encyclopedias
• General Reference Sites •
Legal Resources •
Libraries • Maps and
Atlases • Miscellaneous •
News • Quotations
•
U.S. Politics • Web
Search Engines • World
Politics • Writing
and Style Guides
KU Political Science Homepage
Information Please millions of useful and interesting facts on a wide range of topics online; also includes a dictionary, encyclopedia, almanac and atlas.
Daily Almanac from Refdesk.com
Biographical Dictionary brief entrires for more than 28,000 notable men and women from ancient times to the present day; can be searched by birth years, death years, positions held, professions, literary and artistic works, achievements, and other keywords.
Biography.com Search over 25,000 of the greatest lives, past and present.
Lives, the Biography Resource Links to thousands of biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, diaries, letters, narratives, oral histories of the famous, the infamous, and the not so famous (all posthumous).
Background Notes on countries from the U.S. State Department
CountryReports.org country information from around the world.
Portals to the World links to electronic resources from around the world from the Library of Congress
Country Studies from the Library of Congress; online version of studies published between 1988 and 1998.
CountryWatch.com up-to-date information and news on the countries of the world.
Country Information from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Governments on the Web info and links
Chiefs of State and State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments from the CIA
Embassy.org foreign embassies in Washington, D.C.
World Report 2002 from Human Rights Watch
U.S. State Department 2001 Human Rights Reports
World Development Indicators from the World Bank
Aneki.com country information, regional and world rankings
ArabNet information on Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa
Commanding Heights: The Struggle for the World Economy (from PBS)
Political Resources on the Net political sites sorted by country; links to governments, parties, organizations, media, and more.
LexisNexis searchable database; click on news, then world news (KU access only)
The International Data Base computerized data bank containing statistical tables of demographic, and socio-economic data for 227 countries and areas of the world (from the U.S. Census Bureau).
COW2 The Correlates of War 2 Project at Penn State University; downloadable datasets on nations, war and conflict, trade, etc.
International Economic Links from the Chinese University of Hong Kong
Constitutions from around the world
Eurostat key European statistics.
Foreign Government Data Sources from the University of Michigan Documents Center.
See also World Politics
Statistical Abstract of the United States online collection of political, social and economic statistics; (PDF--requires free Acrobat Reader)
FedStats gateway to statistics from over 100 U.S. Federal agencies
American FactFinder population, housing, economic and geographic data from the U.S. Census
MapStats statistical profiles of States, counties, Congressional Districts, and Federal judicial districts.
State Rankings from the U.S. Census Bureau
Metropolitan Area Rankings from the U.S. Census Bureau
State and County Quick Facts from the U.S. Census Bureau
State Politics and Policy Data Resource
U.S. Census Bureau homepage for extensive government data
CensusScope a portal to 2000 census data from the Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN)
Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) a vast archive of social science data for research and instruction.
Statistical Resources on the Web from the University of Michigan Documents Center
Social Science Data on the Internet browsable, searchable database featuring more than 800 sites with numeric social science statistical data, data catalogs, data libraries, social science gateways, addresses and more.
Search Systems over 5598 free searchable public record databases from Pacific Information Resources
Public Opinion Polls websites from polling organizations including searchable question banks with poll results
Policy Agendas Project uses archived sources to trace changes in the U.S. national policy agenda and their effects on public policy outcomes since the Second World War; includes three levels (two allow novices to answer basic questions and explore patterns, one for researchers)
The International Data Base computerized data bank containing statistical tables of demographic, and socio-economic data for 227 countries and areas of the world (from the U.S. Census Bureau).
UNESCO Institute for Statistics Global and internationally comparable statistics on education, science, technology, culture and communication.
COW2 The Correlates of War 2 Project at Penn State University; downloadable datasets on nations, war and conflict, trade, etc.
Foreign Government Data Sources from the University of Michigan Documents Center.
International Relations Data Site from Paul Hensel at Florida State University
Glossary of Statistical Terms from Rice University
Merriam Webster Online Dictionary and Thesaurus
OneLook Dictionaries over 750 dictionaries indexed for simultaneous search; includes foreign language definitions.
A Dictionary of Philosophical Terms and Names
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition
The Phrase Finder meaning and origin of over a thousand English language phrases and sayings
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy
the 6,900 entries in this major new reference work form the touchstone of what
it means to be not only
just a literate American but an active citizen in our multicultural democracy.
Alternative Dictionaries Project multilingual dictionary of slang
UrbanDictionary.com slang dictionary based on user provided definitions
Rap Dictionary hip hop slang
Columbia Encyclopedia from Bartelby.com
Encyclopedia.com composed of high-quality articles from the Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition.
Encarta online encyclopedia from Microsoft
Encylopedia Britannica excerpts from articles; complete articles require paid subscription
GLBTQ an encyclopedia of gay, lesbian, transgender and queer culture
Librarians' Index to the Internet (from the Library of California)
Infomine searchable guide to scholarly resources on the internet
THOR: The Virtual Reference Desk from Purdue University
Martindale's 'The Reference Desk'
Yahoo Reference dictionary, encyclopedia, quotations, and world facts.
RefDesk.com comprehensive source for facts on the internet.
Essential Reference Tools from Refdesk.com
FindLaw top-notch site for all manner of legal information and resources
Lexis-Nexis search full text federal, state & international legal materials.
The Oyez Project U.S. Supreme Court Multimedia Database from Northwestern University
Legal Information Institute legal resources from Cornell University Law School
Virtual Library - Law from Indiana University
CataLaw metaindex of law and government
Legal Dictionaries:
Law.com
Jurist
(the Legal Education Network)
1L
(Harvard Law School)
U.S. Courts homepage for the federal
judiciary, maintained by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts on behalf
of the U.S. Courts.
The purpose of this site is to function as a clearinghouse for information from
and about the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government.
U.S. Judicial Branch Resources from the Library of Congress
Constitutions from around the world
Constitutions, Statutes and Codes from the Legal Information Institute
Legal and General Information on U.S. States and territories from the Law Library of Congress
National Center for State Courts
National Criminal Justice Reference Service
Prison Activist Resource Center source for progressive and radical information on prisons and the criminal prosecution system.
Rohrbach Libary at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania
Virtual Information Desk an evening and weekend service to help students, faculty and staff of the 14 Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities with library research.
Net Library "The World's Largest Collection of Electronic Books"
Libweb currently lists over 6100 pages from libraries in over 100 countries (from the Berkeley Digital Library SunSITE).
Boston Public Library established in 1848; the first publicly supported municipal library in America, and the first public library to allow people to borrow books and materials, a truly revolutionary concept at the time.
New York Public Library includes guide to online resources and "ask librarians online."
National Geographic Map Machine
National Atlas of the United States
World Atlas: Maps and Geography of the World from about.com
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection at the University of Texas
Maps and Atlases Resources links to online map sites from the Internet Public Library
Maps in the News from the John R. Borchert Map Library at the University of Minnesota
MLA Interactive Language Map of the United States uses data from the 2000 United States census to display the locations and numbers of speakers of thirty languages and three groups of less commonly spoken languages in the United States.
Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative (ECAI) developed by University of Sydney TimeMap™ Project
One Stop Research map, fact, and photo finder from National Geographic
Journalism.org research, resources, and ideas to improve journalism
Voice of America Pronunciation Guide lists proper pronunciation for hundreds of names in the news, including many world leaders
Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Database An online index to over 60,000 historical and critical items about science fiction, fantasy and horror
CREAX creativity self-assessment
test
Best of History Websites
Gilbert Lehrmann Institute of American History
Freedom: A History of US (companion to the PBS series)
History Matters a gateway to web resources from George Mason University
Experiencing War: Stories from the Veteran's History Project
Face to Face: Stories from the Aftermath of Infamy explores what it means to be an American with the face of the enemy. These are real stories of fear, anger, hatred, loyalty and trust by Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor and by Arab and Muslim Americans after September 11, 2001 (requires Real Player).
Black
History Links
Women's History
Links
Today in History from 440 International
British Pathe Media Archive 3500 hour collection of footage from news, sport, social history and entertainment from 1896 to 1970.
Places OnLine access to the World's very best place-based Web sites; a service of the Association of American Geographers
The Smoking Gun weird site with documents like celebrity arrest and divorce records, Bin Laden training manuals, etc.
New York Times Books includes the complete Sunday Book Review, daily book related news and reviews, a searchable archive of over 50,000 New York Times Book Reviews, and more.
The New York Public Library Picture Collection Online 30,000 digitized, public domain images from books, magazines and newspapers as well as original photographs, prints and postcards, mostly created before 1923, consisting of images of New York City, Costume, Design, American History and other subjects
Links to American colleges and universities
Higher Eduation Institution Registry searchable database of colleges and universities worldwide
Higher Education Statistics Agency
National Debt Clock lists current U.S. debt, each citizen's share, and stories about the debt in the news
Emily Post.com etiquette tips
Official U.S. Time from the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Naval Observatory.
LexisNexis searchable database of today's news--or back 20 years ago (KU access only)
Virtual Newsroom links to leading English language news in the U.S. and around the world.
The Ultimate Collection of Newslinks
States News from the Council of State
Governments
Stateline news on U.S. states from the Pew Center on the States
Bartlett's Famous Quotations searchable collection of passages, phrases, and proverbs traced to their sources in ancient and modern literature
Quotations Page searchable database of over 20,000 quotations
Quotegeek.com quotations from literature, movies and television
Quotations for all occasions from Top Cassette Ltd., search by author or subject.
Federal Government
Government Information Virtual Reference Desk from the University of Virginia
Federal Government FAQ's "one of the single most useful government-related pages on the web" -- New York Times
Federal Citizen Information Center answers to frequently asked questions about federal programs, plus a toll free line for assistance
FedWorld gateway to government information managed by the National Technical Information Service and the U.S. Department of Commerce
The Federal Register the official daily publication for Rules, Proposed Rules, and Notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as Executive Orders and other Presidential Documents.
The Founders' Constitution documents included range from the early seventeenth century to the 1830s, from the reflections of philosophers to popular pamphlets, from public debates in ratifying conventions to the private correspondence of the leading political actors of the day.
Thomas All manner of info on the U.S. Congress
The U.S. House of Represenatives
Congressional Report Cards nonpartisan guide compares the position on legislation of members of the U.S. Congress with the position on legislation of over 60 advocacy groups
The Oyez Project U.S. Supreme Court Multimedia
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
Clinton White House homepage from the National Archives and Records Administration.
GovSpot.com non-partisan government information portal designed to simplify the search for the best and most relevant government information online.
Cases and Materials on American Federalism
State Government
Links to State Legislatures from the National Conference of State Legislatures; includes links to state statutes, constitutions, issue reports and press rooms
National Governor's Association
PoliticsPA.com "Pennsylvania's online political community"
Legal and General Information on U.S. States and territories from the Law Library of Congress
Party Affiliation and Primary Voting summary of requirements by state from the Federal Election Commission
Cases and Materials on American Federalism
Politics
Politics Glossary definitions of 100 key political terms from PBS's Democracy Project
Political Science Resources on the Web from the University of Michigan
Politics Navigator from the New York Times
Politics links from the Vanishing Voter project from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Politics1.com comprehensive guide to American politics
All Politics from CNN/Time
Political Information searches over 5,000 politics and policy related websites.
ThisNation.com comprehensive American government and politics site, including e-textbook and library of historical materials
Congressional Report Cards nonpartisan guide compares the position on legislation of members of the U.S. Congress with the position on legislation of over 60 advocacy groups
Campaigns and Elections
Public Opinion Polls websites from polling organizations including searchable question banks with poll results
Political Money Line campaign finance information and searchable databases of donors, candidates, parties, and groups
Open Secrets a guide to money in U.S. elections from the Center for Responsive Politics
Political Advertising links to archives and resources
Voting in America the history of voting in the U.S. from PBSDemocracy Project
Democracy in Action links and resources
About Elections and Voting from the Federal Election Commission; info on how to register and historical election statistics
Campaign 2000 Internet Archive national and state candidate, party, interest group and news sites from the 2000 election
Party Affiliation and Primary Voting summary of requirements by state from the Federal Election Commission
Economic and Domestic Policy
National Center for Policy Analysis nonprofit,
nonpartisan public policy research organization; promotes private alternatives
to
government regulation on topics such as health care, taxes, Social Security,
welfare, criminal justice, education and environmental regulation
Citizen Works non-profit non-partisan organization provides excellent collection of citizen activism links
Policy Library USA a social, economic and foreign policy resource - updated daily with the latest jobs, research, and events.
Town Hall conservative news and information on public policy
Moving Ideas progressive website sponsored by the American Prospect magazine draws from the research of a network of more than 100 member organizations, and provides timely information and leading ideas about the policies and politics that drive the nation's agenda
Heritage Foundation promotes conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities nonpartisan research on a range of government policies and programs, with an emphasis on those affecting low- and moderate-income people.
Cato Institute non-profit public policy research foundation seeks to broaden the parameters of public policy debate to allow consideration of the traditional American principles of limited government, individual liberty, free markets and peace
Brookings Institution nonpartisan think tank dedicated itself to improving the equity of the American democratic process, the performance of the economy, the health of society, the effectiveness of diplomacy and defense, the quality of public discourse, and the workings of institutions—public and private, domestic and international
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research dedicated to preserving and strengthening the foundations of freedom—limited government, private enterprise, vital cultural and political institutions, and a strong foreign policy and national defense
Urban Institute nonprofit nonpartisan policy research and educational organization established to examine the social, economic, and governance problems facing the nation
Joint Center for Housing Studies (Harvard University) information and research on housing in the United States
The Pulse of Capitalism a quarterly newsletter of economic indicators and analysis from the Commonwealth Institute
Political Advocacy Groups a directory to U.S. lobbyists and groups from California State University, Chico
The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that promotes public policies that enhance Americans' opportunities to pursue and achieve high-quality education and training beyond high school
Policy Agendas Project uses archived sources to trace changes in the U.S. national policy agenda and their effects on public policy outcomes since the Second World War; includes three levels (two allow novices to answer basic questions and explore patterns, one for researchers)
Foreign and Military Policy
War Report information on Iraq and Afghanistan from the Project on Defense Alternatives
Defense Strategy Review a "compendium of online analyses, background studies, official documents, and commentaries essential to understanding U.S. defense reviews and the formulation of national security strategy"
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) nonpartisan think tank focused on national and global security and governance
Center for Defense Information non-partisan, non-profit organization committed to independent research on the social, economic, environmental, political and military components of global security
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University; info on international security and other critical issues where science, technology, environmental policy, and international affairs intersect
Heritage Foundation promotes conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense
Brookings Institution nonpartisan think tank dedicated itself to improving the equity of the American democratic process, the performance of the economy, the health of society, the effectiveness of diplomacy and defense, the quality of public discourse, and the workings of institutions—public and private, domestic and international
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research dedicated to preserving and strengthening the foundations of freedom—limited government, private enterprise, vital cultural and political institutions, and a strong foreign policy and national defense
The National Security Archive a library and archive of declassified U.S. documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act
Resources
Great American Speeches from PBS; texts, background, some audio and video
AmericanRhetoric.com online speech bank includes over 5,000 speeches in a variety of formats
Links to political speeches websites from Wake Forest University
The Ultimate Political Science Links Page
Links to political science departments in North America
Political Humor Links from GovSpot.com
Social Science Information Gateway
Resource Discovery Network (RDN)
Search Engine Watch all kinds of info about internet searching including tips and ratings
Nationmaster.com create graphs comparing nations on more than 500 statistical categories
Interpol (International Criminal Police Organization; the second biggest organization after the United Nations, with 181 member countries)
NATO (North-Atlantic Treaty Organization)
G-8 Information Centre excellent collection of resources and links from the University of Toronto
Links to International Organizations
Links to European Parliaments
Links to televised legislatures around the world (from C-SPAN)
Diplomacy
Monitor provides access to the global output of communiqués, official
statements, press briefings, position papers, interview transcripts and news
releases from hundreds of diplomacy-related websites in near real-time and channel
it into a synthesized information stream for scholars,
diplomats, journalists, researchers, students and others interested in the interaction
among nations; from the St. Thomas University School of Law.
E-Democracy Resources links to e-resources for governments, elected officials, the media, political organizations, and citizen/voters worldwide
Terrorism links
Iraq links
Third World Network extensive resources on trade, technology, development, human rights, the environment and security
ArabNet information on Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions news and resources on labor, globalization and related issues
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing cooperation between nations; features news and an excellent selection of resources
Stockholm International Peace Institute conducts research on questions of conflict and cooperation of importance for international peace and security
Timeline to Global Governance key dates and extensive links relating to global governance
Bretton Woods Project excellent watchdog site for critical information and argumenation about the IMF and World Bank
United Nations Industrial Development Organization news, resources and databases
COW2 The Correlates of War 2 Project at Penn State University; downloadable datasets on nations, war and conflict, trade, etc.
United States Agency for International Development an independent federal government agency that provides foreign assistance and humanitarian aid to advance the political and economic interests of the United States
Inter-American Development Bank the oldest and largest regional multilateral development institution, established to help accelerate economic and social development in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Asian Development Bank multilateral development finance institution dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific
African Development Bank the premier financial development institution of Africa, dedicated to combating poverty and improving the lives of people of the continent and engaged in the task of mobilising resources towards the economic and social progress of its Regional Member Countries
Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment
See also Country Information
Elements of Style online version of William Strunk Jr's. classic work
American Heritage Book of English Usage a detailed look at grammar, style, diction, word formation, gender, social groups and scientific forms, this valuable reference work is ideal for students, writers, academicians and anybody concerned about proper writing style.
Guide to Grammar and Writing extensive guide to effective use of the English language.
Columbia Guide to Online Style citation instructions for online/electronic resources
APA format style guide from Purdue University
MLA format style guide from Purdue University
Indispensable Writing Resources a complete collection of writing essentials
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