Ready Reference - A selection of Web resources


	This selection of ready reference Web Sites, picked by the staff of Lakewood Public Library, is far from a complete list of sites for the various subject areas. However, we have tried to select sites which we have found to be useful, accurate and authoritative. Ready Reference uses a subject index based on Dewey Decimal Classification, a numerical classification scheme for breaking down fields of knowledge. We have kept our listing fairly broad by using the primary subdivisions.

000 General Works UFOs, Computers, Encyclopedias/Facts, Directories 100 Philosophy & Psychology Occult, Astrology 200 Religion Mythology 300 Social sciences Economics, Law, Government, True Crime, Education, Costume, Etiquette, Folklore 400 Language Grammar, English & Foreign Language Dictionaries 500 Natural sciences & Mathematics Physics, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Botany, Zoology 600 Technology & Applied Sciences Medicine, Diet & Fitness, Automobiles, Gardening, Cooking, Pets, Business, Home Improvement 700 Arts & Recreation Architecture, Landscaping, Art, Antiques & Collectibles, Crafts, Photography, Music, Entertainment, Sports 800 Literature Writing Guides 900 Geography & History Biography, Genealogy, Baby Names, Travel © Lakewood Public Library. All rights reserved. The Dewey Decimal Classification is © 1996-2001 OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Incorporated. DDC, Dewey Decimal Classification, and Dewey are registered trademarks of OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc. Used with Permission. Lakewood Public Library Lakewood, Ohio, USA		Dictionary of the History of Ideas "Studies of selected pivotal ideas." An interdisciplinary work that looks at the evolution of ideas and their influence on historical developments. The paper edition is out of print and replaced by the New Dictionary of the History of Ideas. Today-in-History Page of Scope Systems Lists the name and year of birth of people whose birthday falls on the current day, those who died on this day, as well as important events, holidays and religious observances. You can also see the results for Anyday or Selected Month/Year. dMarie Time Capsule This service from a site devoted to making scrapbooks creates a "this day in history" snapshot. You can do a basic search or use the advanced section to make a customized page. Data is available "for the years 1800 through 2001, although data for the years 1800-1875 is probably spotty." No sources listed for the data. Biographical Dictionary Contains brief biographical information about 28,000 people from ancient times to the present. Biography.com This is a searchable database of over 25,000 famous names from the past and the present. Many of the entries provide cross-links to related figures. Entries vary in length from basic facts to fairly detailed analysis. From the A&E Television Network. The Dead People Server This is a listing of celebrities, politicians and other famous dead people. Actually, being dead is not a prerequisite for inclusion on this site, but those who are dead have the date and cause of death listed. An interesting and useful site whose grim subject matter is often given a light hearted twist. Catholic Online Saints & Angels Biographies of saints, plus information about sainthood, feast days, patron saints and angels. NOM de GUERRE This is a lengthy listing of pseudonyms used by entertainers, athletes, writers, historical figures and various other individuals. A useful ready reference site. POTUS - Presidents of the United States Find here excellent information on all the presidents of the United States. This site supplies all the presidential election results, lists the members of all the cabinets, gives the main highlights of each presidency and supplies links to Internet biographies and historic documents. It also provides fast facts on each president along with listings of other relevant Internet resources. USA Citylink Tourism information for cities in the United States. Gazetteer of the U.S. This Census Bureau site provides maps and 1990 census information. Search by place name or zip code. See also the official repository of names: the USGS Geographic Names Information System, which contains almost 2 million physical and cultural geographic features. How Far Is It (U.S. Cities and Towns) Provided by Indo.com. Find the distance between two cities. You can also find the latitude and longitude, 1980 population and elevation. Also contains 500 foreign cities. Check your results against the distance calculated by MapCrow. Here the calculation is provided with coordinates and a Google map. Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection A wealth of information can be found about geography -- gazetteers, a distance calculator, time zones, a sun and moonrise calculator, tides, zip codes, map projections defined, bibliographies and electronic maps of both current and of general interest. Mapquest Mapquest allows the user to locate places anywhere in the world. The maps are extremely detailed for the United States but less so for the rest of the world. Also provides city to city driving directions for the U.S. as well as for parts of Canada and Mexico. Compare your results with Maps On Us from Switchboard.com, Rand McNally Maps & Directions, Yahoo! Maps, Google Maps. National Atlas of the United States In 1997 work began on a new, innovative update to the 1970 work of U.S. Geological Survey. The interactive approach allows you to make (and print) your own custom map. TopoZone A great source for U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps. Scaled 1:100,000, 1:63,360, 1:25,000, and 1:24,000. Easy search by place name or latitude/longitude coordinates. CIA World Fact Book Information can be found about the geography, people, government, economy, transportation, communication and defense of that country. Includes separate information on large islands and the oceans. U.S. Department of State Background Notes This is similar in content to the CIA World Fact Book (see above) but it also provides information about several international organizations including the United Nations and the European Community. Washington Post - Search The World This Washington Post service is a gold mine for information on countries around the world -- but, you must do the free registration thing. Here one can find recent articles on individual countries from the Washington Post itself and from the Associated Press. There are also links to the State Department and the World Fact Book for information on geography, people, history, government and economy. A final series of links will bring you to on-line publications and to various Internet sites for the country of your choice. BBC News: Country Profiles Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries. Atlapedia On-line For a quick overview of a particular country Atlapedia is a good site to visit. Summaries are provided for location and geography, climate, people, religion, languages and modern history. There is also brief information provided for such areas as major industries, area and population. aneki.com Country Informationthere are links to the CIA World Fact Book, and a nifty little World Almanac that pops up in a small new window. The major effort of the site is lists of country rankings for richest, most populous, largest, cleanest, and other topics in the catgories of economic, social, technological, environmental, academic, and more. Country Studies - from the Library of Congress If you have looked at any of the links above you will know that there is a lot of wonderful information about the countries of the world available on the Internet. Country Studies is another fabulous resource. It includes data on the history, society, people, education, religion, economy and government of the countries listed. Great for school reports or for more detailed study. This site is highly recommended. Travel.State.Gov - Warnings & Consular Information Sheets This site could literally be a real life saver! Travel warnings are issued by the State Department when it is recommended that travel to particular countries is to be avoided. Information sheets include all sorts of useful hints for the potential traveler. You might want to take a trip to this site before you take a trip to your travel agent! Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments Given the rapid changes in government personnel in countries all over the world, this site does a good job of keeping reasonably well up-to-date. World Statesmen This ambitious site attempts a "comprehensive and accurate list of the heads of state and heads of government ... for all countries and territories, going back to about 1700 or in some cases earlier." Entries include some subdivisions; most entries also include a historical timelie and links to flags, national anthems, and constitutions. World statesmen lists leaders of international, religious, and governmental organizations. There is helpful information on titles of nobility and an index of colonies. Flags of the World This is a comprehensive flag site. Information about the flags presented is brief, but useful. There are "more than 30,000 pages about flags and view more than 57,000 images of flags." Searchable by country, clickable by map. Offers black and white drawings in 3 sizes to print and hand color. Behind the Name: Etymology and History of First Names Dictionary with more than 10,000 first names compiled from strandard reference sources. Includes all sorts of collections by letter, length, popularity, nationality, and so on. Babynamer Search a database of 23,000 names for variants, origin and meaning. Additional features include popularity statistics and (teasing) nicknames. No luck? Try Baby Names.com, which lists 4,200 names or Baby Names from BabyCenter. For history and etymology, consult Behind the Names, online since 1996. For the last word on popularity, check the Social Security Popular Baby Names page. For a fun, graphic (java required) representation of popularity, visit The Baby Name Wizard: NameVoyager. Very cool applet. 2,000 Cat Names: Naming Your Kitten Likewise, 2,000 Dog Names: Naming Your Puppy. Encyclopedia of North American Indians (ARCHIVED) Houghton Mifflin's 1996 encyclopedia includes 447 entries for 100 tribes, individuals, languages, treaties, arts and traditions. "Nearly half the tribal entries...were prepared by tribal members." Includes maps. Alphabetical topic list. Internet Archive version.