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General Reference

Statistics

Statistical Abstract of the United States (Annual) Provides information on the population, government, and economy of the U.S.

CIA Factbook (Annual) Provides information on the geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for all countries in the world.

FedStats Provides access to statistical information from more than 100 U.S. Government agencies. Includes A-Z topic links that allow direct access to statistical data on topics of your choice.

NationaMaster NationMaster is a massive central data source that graphically compares nations in a variety of areas ranging from GDP to longevity to murder rate. NationMaster is a vast compilation of data from such sources as the CIA World Factbook, UN, and OECD.

STAT-USA STAT-USA/Internet, a service of the U.S. Department of Commerce, is a single point of access to authoritative business, trade, and economic information from across the Federal Government.

GeoHive Global Statistics The site provides geopolitical data, statistics on human population, economic data on wealth, and infrastructure, statistics on natural phenomena, and more. The site also provides links a wide range of international statistical organizations.

Dictionaries & Thesauri (see below for ESL dictionaries)

Acronym Finder With more than 590,000 definitions, Acronym Finder is the world's largest and most comprehensive dictionary of acronyms, abbreviations, and initialisms.

Cambridge Dictionaries Online Provides online access to the following six Cambridge dictionaries: Learner’s, American English, Phrasal Verbs, Idioms, French/English, and Spanish English.

Dictionary.com Enter a word and the site will display definitions from a number of online dictionaries.

Dictionary Link Provides links to 8 English dictionaries, 10 foreign language dictionaries, 7 encyclopedias, 6 thesauri, and 11+ word translators.

The Free Dictionary In addition to a dictionary, this website provides a thesaurus, medical dictionary, legal dictionary, financial dictionary, acronyms, and idioms. The site also offers a variety of vocabulary exercises including an audio spelling bee.

Merriam-Webster Online Provides online access to a English Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Spanish/English Dictionary.

Thesaurus.com Enter a word and the site will display entries from a number of online thesauri.

Encyclopedias & Almanacs

Columbia Encyclopedia The online version of this standard one-volume encyclopedia offers searching or browsing of the sixth edition, 2001.

Infoplease Site includes an almanac, atlas, encyclopedia, dictionary, and thesaurus.

Reference.com Enter a search term and the site will direct you to articles in free and premium online encyclopedias.

Wikipedia A free open-source encyclopedia with almost 1.5 million entries.

Atlases

Encarta World Atlas One of the best atlases on the web.

Newspapers

onlinenewspapers.com The site provides links to the websites of approximately 10,000s of newspapers around the world.

IPL Newspaper Collection The site provides links to the websites of 1,000s of newspapers around the world.

Online Full-Text Books

Bartelby.com – Great Books Online Classics of fiction, nonfiction, verse, and reference online.

Google Book Search Use to search for full-text of books available on the Internet.

Project Gutenberg The oldest digital library, it provides free access to over 17,000 online books searchable by author, title, and subject. You can also browse by author, title, most recently posted, or language.

The Online Book Page The University of Pennsylvania’s digital library contains about 10,000 e-texts searchable by author, title, and subject. Also includes partial archives for journals and magazines.

Poetry Archives Good, free source for the text of poems. The scope is "classical," but this includes the likes of Robert Frost, etc. You can search by author, title, and first line.

Wikisource An online library of free content publications.

Style Guides

APA Research Style Crib Sheet This page presents a summary of rules for using APA style.

APA Style Essentials A summary of the key elements of APA style.

The Elements of Style The full-text of the 1999 edition of William Strunk, Jr.’s classic style guide.

A Guide for Writing Research Papers Based on Modern Language Association (MLA) Documentation A guide to the use of MLA style in writing research papers in the humanities.

Online! Citation Style How to cite online sources using APA, MLA, and other styles.

Catalogs of Local Research, Academic, & Public Libraries

Library of Congress The Library of Congress, the national library of the United States and the research arm of the U.S. Congress, is the largest library in the world.

George Mason University A large university/research library located near VIU.

Northern Virginia University The NVCC online catalog allows you to search the collections of the libraries on all seven NVCC campuses. The Annandale Campus Library is located near VIU. Residents of Northern Virginia can borrow materials from the NVCC libraries.

Fairfax County Public Library System Fairfax County maintains a system of over 20 libraries. The Fairfax City Regional Library is located less than two miles from VIU. VIU students who are residents of Fairfax County or who have a library card from a nearby county or city are eligible for a Fairfax County library card.

Online Reference 'Libraries'

Library Spot A free virtual library resource center for educators and students, librarians, etc. It brings together the best library and in one user-friendly spot. Sites featured are hand-selected and reviewed by our editorial team for their exceptional quality, content and utility.

The Internet Public Library (IPL) IPL is run by the "IPL Consortium", a group of 15 colleges and is hosted by Drexel University's College of Information Science and Technology. IPL provides links to carefully chosen online information, reference, and research resources in a wide range of disciplines.

Librarians Internet Index Librarians' Internet Index (LII) is a publicly-funded website with links to over 20,000 entries organized into 14 main topics and nearly 300 related topics. Main topics include business, computers, ready reference and quick facts, law, government, media, and society and social sciences.

The WWW Virtual LibraryThe WWW Virtual Library (VL) is the oldest catalogue of the Web. Unlike commercial catalogues, it is run by volunteers, who compile pages of key links for particular areas in which they are expert. The VL pages are widely recognized as being amongst the highest-quality guides to particular sections of the Web. Among the many topics covered are business and economics and computing and computer science.

Business

Periodical Indices

All Business If you sign up for a free membership, this website provides a variety of business research tools, including access to selected full-text articles from a wide variety of business periodicals.

Look Smart Find Artilces Provides you free access to abstracts and bibliographic information, and in some cases the full-text, of millions of articles from thousands of top publications.

Business & Economic History

EH.Net Encyclopedia of Economic and Business HistoryProvides high quality reference articles in the field of business and economic history. Articles for the are written by experts, screened by a group of authorities, and carefully edited. A distinguished Advisory Board recommends entry topics, assists in the selection of authors, and defines the project's scope.

History of Economic Thought Created by the New School for Social Research, the site includes information on the major schools of economic thought and biographies of important economic theorists.

Newspapers

Financial Times The latest UK and international business, finance, economic and political news, comment and analysis.

Journal of Commerce Trade journal with a focus on transportation and logistics.

Washington Business Journal Local business news and information on local companies.

Journals

Asia Inc Online magazine devoted to Asian business.

Business Week Global business news.

The Economist International politics and business news and opinion.

Forbes Business and financial news and advice.

Fortune Business and financial news.

Management Issues Online journal addressing management and human resource issues.

News

CNN Money News, stock quotes, and financial market coverage.

Statistics

Bureau of Labor Statistics The site has U.S. consumer price index, employment, earnings, and economic information.

U.S. Census Bureau The site has demographic data on both consumers and business. Information is available for various geographic levels, including states, cities and census tracks.

U.S. Department of Commerce A good site for data on U.S. business, trade, economics, statistics and telecommunications.

World Bank High quality national and international statistics, and information and analysis on global trends in the world economy.

United Nations International economic and development statistics and analysis of global trends in these areas.

Case Studies

AsiaCase.com The site provides abstracts and some full-text case studies of Asian businesses.

The Times 100 A resource centre for business studies students and teachers. The materials available on the site, including a number of case studies, focus on well known businesses. The teacher resource centre has a variety of teaching materials including lesson plans, worksheets, practice exams and mark schemes.

Sites Offering copies of Case Studies FOR SALE

Following is a list of websites where you can purchase copies of a wide variety of business case studies. Cost per case study is typically $4 to $7.

Corporate Design Foundation:

Darden (School, Univ. of Virginia) Business Publishing:

Harvard Business School Cases:

Ivey Publishing:

Stock & Commodities Exchanges

Chicago Board of Trade Major U.S. commodities (futures and options) exchange.

Dow Jones Index (Current) The site provides the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Dow Jones Transportation Average, Dow Jones Utility Average, and other Dow indexes and information about their components.

The NASDAQ The site includes 15-minute time-delayed NASDAQ stock quotes, a chart that tracks a stock’s performance, a hyperlink from each stock to its 10Ks, etc., available on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s site, and a comprehensive glossary of stock-market technology.

Sites Providing Links to Business-Related Websites

EconData.Net Links to 1,000 socioeconomic data sources, arranged by subject and provider.

International Business Guide: World Supersite Free access and step-by-step commentary for 1,025 top business sites from 95 countries.

National Statistics Agencies Links to national and international statistical agencies and economic sites.

Newslink: Business News Links to 35 business magazines, newspapers, and other resources.

Simulations and Gaming

Business Strategy Game A completely online exercise where teams of students run an athletic footwear company in head-to-head competition against companies run by other class members.

Computer & Information Science

Dictionaries and Glossaries

BABEL : A Glossary of Computer Oriented Abbreviations and Acronyms Computer-related abbreviations and acronyms.

Free On-line Dictionary of Computing A searchable dictionary of acronyms, jargon, programming languages, tools, architecture, operating systems, networking, theory, conventions, standards, mathematics, telecoms, electronics, institutions, companies, projects, products, and history related to computing.

Webopedia Dictionary and search engine for computer and Internet technology definitions.

Encyclopedias

Whatis?.com An encyclopedia of information technology; it includes, for example, a comprehensive listing of every file format in the world.

Journals

Information Week Information technology news, especially as it relates to business.

Information World In-depth coverage and evaluation of information technology products.

Laptop News, product reviews, and buyer’s guides for users of laptops.

Linux Journal Linux operating system.

MacWorld Articles, reviews, news, software, and internet tips for users of Macintosh products.

Maximum PC Information on the latest PC technology, including news, interviews with industry leaders, techniques, and in-depth product reviews.

MSDN Magazine Online Microsoft journal for software developers.

Network Computing Information on business technology.

Network World Includes news on latest industry developments, results of independent product and service tests, in-depth profiles of network companies, and case studies.

PC Photo Digital photography.

PC World Information on buying and using PCs and related technology.

Windows IT Pro For IT workers using Windows NT, Windows 2000, .NET, and related applications and technologies.

Computer Science Profession

Computer Research Association Source for reports and other information on computer science/computer engineering student and faculty demographics, salaries, R&D, job opportunities, and the IT workforce.

History of the Computer

History of Computing A collection of materials intended to describe the history of computing to those interested in the 50th Anniversary of Computing in 1996.

IBM

IBM Computer Science Information about IBM-sponsored computer science research and computer science literature.

Internet

Living Internet A free, in-depth reference about the Internet that includes 700+ pages of information on its history, design, use, security, etc.

W3C World Wide Web Consortium W3C develops interoperable technologies (specifications, guidelines, software, and tools) to lead the Web to its full potential. The site offers W3C news, links to W3C technologies, and ways to get involved.

Finding Information on the Internet: A Tutorial The tutorial presents the substance of the Internet Workshops offered by the Teaching Library at the University of California at Berkeley.

Java

The Java Tutorials Practical guides for programmers who want to use the Java programming language to create applications. The tutorials include hundreds of complete, working examples, and dozens of lessons.

Bruce Eckel’s Mindview, Inc. Information about programming in Java and other languages. Include a newsletter and downloadable seminars, interviews, etc.

Java Technology IBM resources for Java developers.

Microsoft

Microsoft Research Homepage of Microsoft Research, an organization created by Microsoft Corp. dedicated to conducting both basic and applied research in computer science and software engineering. Includes access to publications, downloads, information on conferences, and online lectures.

Search Engines

Noodle Tools Helps you choose the best search engine for your information needs.

Software Development

Developer.com Information and resources for software developers.

Sun Microsystems

Technical Reports and Perspective Essay Series Contain Sun Microsystems Laboratories Technical Reports and Essays from the Perspectives Series.

Sites Providing Links to Computer Science-Related Websites

Google Computer Science Directory Links to thousands of computer science-related websites organized by category.

Librarians’ Internet Access: Websites You Can Trust Links to over 2,500 computer-related websites.

University Libraries, State University of New York at Albany Computer Science website. Extensive resources and links related to all areas of computer science.

Virtual Computer Library University of Texas site with links to a wide range of computer-related websites, including computer technology, conferences, documentation, internet information, journals and magazines, reference materials, user groups and associations, and vendors.

Yahoo Computer Science Directory Links to hundreds of computer science-related websites organized by category.

ESL

Dictionaries

Cambridge Dictionaries Online Provides online access to six Cambridge dictionaries three of which would be of particular interest to ESL students: Learner’s, Phrasal Verbs, and Idioms.

Greek and Latin Roots Many words or word parts in English are derived from Greek or Latin. This site includes a comprehensive list of Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes and their meaning.

The Idiom Connection A dictionary of idioms. Idioms can be searched for alphabetically or by category (e.g., animal idioms). Also explains idioms, phrasal verbs, and proverbs. Includes quizzes.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English An excellent dictionary for ESL students.

Newbury House Dictionary of American English Contains over 40,000 entries. With simple, clear definitions, this online tool provides a wealth of sample sentences and idioms.

VOYcabulary.com At this site, you can enter the website address of any page you want to read, and it will open that site and make every word on that site a link to an online dictionary.

Grammar

American Heritage Book of English Usage Provides a detailed look at grammar, style, diction, word formation, gender, social groups and scientific forms.

Guide to Grammar and Writing This site offers help on how to write effective paragraphs and essays in addition to extensive information on grammar. You can even submit a question about English grammar or usage. The site also offers a los of resources, including an online dictionary

Lessons, Learning Materials, Quizzes, Listenings, etc.

Accent Reduction / Understanding Reduced Speech The purpose of this site is to help students in three ways: 1) improve students' understanding of relaxed speech, 2) reduce their accent to improve comprehensibility, and 3) learn how relaxed speech is used with vocabulary and expressions in everyday language.

Breaking News English Free ready-to-use EFL / ESL lesson plans in Word and PDF format. The site offers graded news articles, listening, podcast, and communicative activities. Lessons are based on a variety of themes, including: business English, the environment, health, issues, lifestyle, famous people and gossip, technology, and world news.

English Language Learning Online A collection of over 1,000 listening activities that students can access free via the Internet. Most listening activities come with a downloadable MP3 audio file, transcript and interactive quiz.

About: English as a 2nd Language Offers a wide range of resources and links for ESL students, including quizzes, learning materials, and listenings.

Activities for ESL Students Includes grammar and vocabulary quizzes, crossword puzzles, ESL podcasts, and bilingual quizzes (English-and another language) in almost 40 languages.

BBC Learning English Includes learning tools, listenings, and quizzes on news English, business English, and grammar and vocabulary.

Dave’s ESL Cafe One of the most comprehensive ESL websites, as well as one the most directly practical and useful to everyone interested in ESL.

EnglishClub.com Online resources for grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Includes interactive pages such as forums, games, quizzes, chat, help and pen pals.

Englishpage.com Free online English lessons, including in-depth English tutorials featuring dozens of interactive exercises.

EZ Slang Excellent website for learning idioms and American slang. Students can listen to authentic passages and take short quizzes.

Focus on English Short dialogs featuring everyday and idiomatic expressions based on everyday conversation. Students can listen to the entire dialogs at once or listen to individual sentences. Primarily aimed at students at the elementary to intermediate levels.

OWL OWL at Purdue University has many different materials for English as a Second Language (ESL) students and teachers, including resource pages, handouts, and exercises. Printer-friendly and Adobe PDF versions of these handouts and exercises

Randall’s ESL Listening Lab Includes 20-minute audio vocabulary lessons, long interviews and conversations with video, language learning and life tips, and listening quizzes from the easy to advanced levels.

Repeat After Us Students can read and listen to poetry, nursery rhymes, fables and stories from around the world as they are read aloud by English speakers. Selections are categorized by level.

Sounds of EnglishA good site for basic pronunciation explanations. Students have an opportunity to listen to minimal pairs. Some selections include video which allow student s to mimic mouth shapes. Pronunciation teachers will find the activities and exercises page useful as a supplement to their class. Primarily aimed at students at the elementary to intermediate levels.

Sites Providing Links to ESL Websites

ESL Loop Links to ESL websites.

The Literacy List: ESOL/ESL/ELL Web Sites Links to ESL websites.

TESOL/ESL Resources Links to ESL websites.

WATESOL The website of the Washington Area Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, it includes links to a wide range of ESL resources in the areas of writing, reading and vocabulary, listening and speaking, and grammar.

Biology

Biology Dictionary

Life Science Dictionary

General

The Biology Project The University of Arizona's online interactive resource for learning biology. Topics covered on the site include biochemistry, cell biology, developmental biology, human biology, genetics, and molecular biology

Evolution

Understanding Evolution Understanding Evolution is an educational website about the science and history of evolutionary biology. It is maintained by the University of California at Berkley.

Online Textbooks

On-Line Biology Book A continuously updated online introductory- level college biology textbook.

Sites Providing Links to Biology Websites

Access Excellence Resource Center: Biology Websites Links to approximately 20 biology related websites.

Comparative Religion

Comparative Religion Encyclopedias

Comparative Religion A site is devoted to bringing to one place on the internet the key books and writings of human spiritual and religious thought. It covers the major religions of the world, alternative spiritual systems, and ancient mythologies. The site is a strictly neutral and non-commercial project, that seeks to properly and without bias represent the various religions of the world, for comparative analysis, religious study, and spiritual reading.

Encyclopedia Mythica A comprehensive internet encyclopedia of mythology, folklore, and religion.

Sites Providing Links to Comparative Religion Websites

Virtual Religion IndexThe Virtual Religion Index is designed to advance research in matters of religion. It analyzes and highlights important content of religion-related websites to speed research. Hyperlinks are provided not only to homepages but to major directories and documents within sites.

English Language & Literature

Online Full-Text Books (see also list of full-text sites under General Reference above)

Classic Short Stories Full-texts of short stories from over 50 authors ranging from Rudyard Kipling to James Joyce to Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Most, but not all, of the authors represented are American and British.

The Literature Network A searchable online literature database that currently offers over 1900 full books and over 3,000 short stories and poems by over 250 authors. The majority, but by no means all, of the writers represented are American and British. In addition to full books, the site provides author biographies as well as links to other sites about the authors. The site also includes a quotations database with over 8500 quotes.

Short Fiction The site offers classic and contemporary short fiction by approximately 140 authors. The site also provides brief biographies of the authors and links to related websites.

American Literature & Authors

American Authors on the Web Provides links to websites on over 750 American authors from Colonial times to the present. The General Resource page of the website offers links to about 100 additional literature websites.

Shakespeare

Absolute ShakespeareSite includes full text of all his plays and poems, including the 154 sonnets.

History

BBC History Though the site focuses on four areas: ancient history; the history of Britain; the world wars; and recent history. The site includes

Best of History Web Sites Best of History Web Sites is an award-winning portal that contains annotated links to over 1000 history web sites.

American History

Digital History An online American history textbook that presents an interactive, multimedia history of the United States from the Revolution to the present. The site was developed through a partnership of the University of Houston, the Chicago Historical Society, the National Park Service, and others.

History Matters: The U.S. Survey Course on the Web History Matters is a project of the American Social History Project/Center for Media and Learning of the City University of New York and the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. It is designed for high school and college teachers and students of U.S. history survey courses, this site serves as a gateway to web resources and offers unique teaching materials, first-person primary documents, and guides to analyzing historical evidence.

American Rhetoric The website provides audio recordings of notable 20th and 21st century speeches. It also provides the texts of many other notable speeches from antiquity to modern times. The majority of the recorded speeches available on the site were delivered by American speakers.

Mathematics

math.com - The World of Math Online Provides help to mathematics students at all levels from basic arithmetic to advanced topics such as Fourier series. Topics covered include algebra, trigonometry, calculus, geometry, and statistics.

Wolfram MathWorld: The Web's Most Extensive Mathematics Resource One of the web's most extensive mathematical resources provided as a free service to the world's mathematics and internet communities as part of a commitment to education and educational outreach by Wolfram Research, makers of Mathematica.

Math Archives Teaching materials, software, and links organized by Mathematical Topics.

Philosophy

Philosophy Encyclopedias

The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Contains entries for major philosophers, philosophies, philosophical questions, etc. Most of the articles in The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy are original contributions by specialized philosophers

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy A free online encyclopedia of philosophy maintained by Stanford University.

Psychology

Psychology Encyclopedias

Encyclopedia of Psychology Includes entries on over 1,000 topics in psychology.

Other Psychology Websites

PsychWeb Contains psychology-related information for students and teachers

American Psychological Association The official website of the American Psychological Association contains a glossary and articles and other resources on a wide range of topics in psychology.

Sociology

Online Journals

Electronic Journal of Sociology Electronic Journal of Sociolgy brings sociological knowledge to the public in an easily accessible format. EJS presents research papers on topical or critical issues of today that are both scholarly and accessible. The EJS is thus offered free of charge to individuals, libraries, academic and commercial organizations.

Other Sociology Websites

A Sociological Tour Through Cyberspace The website features commentary, data analyses, essays, and links to other websites. Subjects covered include 'Death and Dying' and 'Social Inequality'. The website also includes a useful guide for writing research papers.

The SocioWeb A guide to sociological resources on the Internet.

A Sociology Timeline from 1600 Important dates, people, publications, and theories in sociology since 1600.

American Sociological Society The website of the ASA, a non-profit membership association based in Washington, DC dedicated to advancing sociology as a scientific discipline and profession serving the public good. The website provides access to the American Sociological Review, the journal of the ASA, as well as well as other publications.

Sociosite The SocioSite is designed to provide access to information and resources which are relevant for sociologists and other social scientists. It has been designed from a global point of view - it gives access to the world wide scene of social sciences. The intention is to provide a comprehensive listing of all sociology resources on the Internet.