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World Book Encyclopedia

Encyclopedias provide factual articles on many subjects. An encyclopedia may be a book, a set of books, or an electronic resource (at the CSN Library web page click "Find Web Resources").

There are two types of encyclopedias: general and specialized.
The articles are usually arranged alphabetically by subject. General encyclopedias, for instance, World Book Encyclopedia or Britannica Online, provide overviews on a wide variety of topics. Specialized encyclopedias, for example Encyclopedia of Psychology, contain entries focusing on one field of study.

Use an Encyclopedia

  • when looking for background information on a topic

  • when trying to find key ideas, important dates, or concepts

Examples of Encyclopedias
  • Encyclopedia Britannica (29+ vols. on paper; Britannica Online at CSN Library web page—click on "Find Web Resources")

  • Encyclopedia of Crime and Justice (4 vols.)

  • Encyclopedia of Food and Culture (3 vols.)

  • Gale Virtual Reference Library (many reference titles at CSN Library web page)

  • Greenwood Encyclopedia of Women's Issues World Wide (6 vols.)

  • McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology (20 vols. or called Access Science at the CSN Library web page) 

  • New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (an encyclopedia - 29 vols. or Grove Music Online at the CSN web page)

  • Oxford Reference Online (100+ titles at CSN Library web page)

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