LIS521  Janes

 

Resource Set 2

Sources About Everything

Encyclopedias:  General, Audience-Specific (by Nation, Language, Age), Specialized/Subject, One-Volume, Foreign; Web Directories

 

Explore the following sources (and similar ones from the textbook or other sources), paying special attention to their intents, potential uses, how they are structured and searched.  Use the questions that follow as guides to your thinking about how each of these might be used for those questions, and consider potential sources for each question.  On this Catalyst tool, suggest the source you think might be the best, first place to begin; weÕll discuss these in class.

 

á      Encyclopedia Britannica in print, on Web (licensed, UW doesnÕt subscribe, SPL does, requires SPL card & PIN)

á      Encyclopedia Americana in print, on Web (licensed, UW doesnÕt subscribe, SPL does, requires SPL card & PIN)

á      Microsoft Encarta RIP Why?

á      World Book Encyclopedia in print, on Web (public/school libraries will have this)

á      a one-volume encyclopedia (Random House, Concise Columbia, etc)

á      Wikipedia

á      Encyclopedia of New York City  F128.3 E75

á      Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science Z1006.E57

á      McGraw Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology  Q121.M3

á      New Catholic Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia Judaica  BX841.N44

á      Encarta Africana  DT14 .A37435

á      Yahoo

á      About.com

á      UW Libraries page on encyclopedias

á      Citizendium  

á      Knol (RIP 2012; see also Wikipedia article on Knol and for that matter the Citizendium article on Wikipedia)

 

1.   WhatÕs the first known example of African art?

2.   I need a complete list of Canadian honors (like knighthoods, etc, from the government).

3.   Can you find me a good, brief, general history of Scandinavia?

4.   What are Cyrenaics?  And whatÕs their history?

5.   IÕm looking for an English version of the Code of Hammurabi, and a little context and background about it.

 

 

Then, read these:

 

Schiff, Stacy, ÒKnow It AllÓ, New Yorker, 7/31/06

Poe, Marshall, ÒThe HiveÓ, Atlantic, September 2006

Colon-Aguirre & Fleming-May, ÒÕYou Just Type in What You Are Looking ForÕ:  UndergraduatesÕ Use of Library Resources vs. WikipediaÓ, Journal of Academic Librarianship 38 (6), 391-399, 2012.

 

Diderot, an American Exemplar?  Bien Sžr!  New York Times 1/25/13

Simonite, Tom, ÒThe Decline of WikipediaÓ, MIT Technology Review October 22, 2013

Who Killed Wikipedia?  Pacific Standard 11/14

Auchter, Dorothy, ÒThe evolution of the Encyclopaedia Britannica: from the Macropaedia to Britannica OnlineÓ, Reference Services Review 27(3), 291-299, 1999.

 

And prepare to discuss these questions:

 

What are the basic premises of the ÒtraditionalÓ encyclopedia, and of the Wikipedia?  Which one is better?  When?  For whom?  Are there instances you would only or never use or recommend either?  What is an ÒencyclopediaÓ today?

 

Why does the Wikipedia fascinate and freak people out?

 

How would you go about evaluating the Wikipedia as a whole, and communicating that evaluation to the larger public?

 

What factors will most affect WikipediaÕs situation, position, etc., going forward?  What potential threats do they face in the longer term?