Brief Wikipedia-like overviews can:
But Wikipedia isn't a reliable source of information, so you don't want to use it in the bibliography of an academic paper.
Luckily the Library has thousands of scholarly, online encyclopedias & dictionaries where you can probably find a write up on your general topic.
Watch this short snip from our Background Information video to learn how to limit your Summon Library search results to these Reference Sources.
Books can often provide the detailed background and overview information about your topic that you won't be able to find in encyclopedias (too short) or journal articles (too focused on very specific research questions or ideas).
You can find both print and ebooks (as well as videos and reports) using the library catalogue box below.
Never searched the library catalogue? Watch this short video.
Here is a small sample of catalogue searches you might find of interest:
From our Ask Us page you can:
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