Research starter

This list includes databases in which you can begin many research topics. It includes databases catering to all levels of user, not just undergraduates. Content of these databases can include reference sources like encyclopedias or dictionaries; articles that give an overview of a topic, issue, controversy, or recent event; or that provide broad coverage to assist in narrowing or refining a research topic. After you have used these databases for background research on your topic, you can move on to more subject-specific databases.

Agriculture, biology, and natural resources

This subject category includes databases covering the life sciences: agriculture, biology, and natural resources. Use these databases for research and courses in the colleges of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Natural Resources, Science, and Veterinary Medicine.

Architecture, art, and design

This subject category includes databases covering architecture, art, and design. Use these databases for research and courses in the colleges of Architecture and Urban Studies, Engineering, the School of Architecture and Design, and the School of Visual Arts.

Business and economics

This subject category includes databases covering business and economics. Use these databases for research and courses in the colleges of Business and Science and programs in urban and international affairs.

Engineering and physical sciences

This subject category includes databases covering engineering and the physical sciences: chemistry, geosciences, mathematics, physics, and statistics. Use these databases for research and courses in the colleges of Engineering and Sciences.

General interest

This subject category includes databases are either basic or broad in scope. They include resources that cover multiple subject areas, such as general purpose encyclopedias, large article indexing databases, or newspaper article indexing databases.

Health and medicine

This subject category includes databases covering the medical sciences, including nutrition, fitness, physiology, and psychiatry. Use these databases for research and courses in the colleges of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Veterinary Medicine, and the Carillion School of Medicine.

Humanities and performing arts

This subject category includes databases covering humanities and performing arts. Use these databases for research and courses in the college of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences and the School of Performing Arts.

Languages and literatures

This subject category includes databases covering languages, linguistics, and literatures in English, foreign languages (especially languages taught by the Foreign Language department), and classics (Greek and Latin).

Social sciences and education

This subject category includes databases covering social sciences and human sciences, including anthropology, communication, education, history, human development, international studies, law, military science, political science, psychology, public administration, and sociology. Use these databases for research and courses in the colleges of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, Architecture and Urban Studies, and the School of Education.

Databases are also listed by the type or format of the materials or resources they index. Examples included databases for conference proceedings, multimedia, newspaper articles, reviews, or statistics. For more focuses lists of databases, use the recommended databases listed on our subject guides or our detailed find by format pages.

Academic search engines

Broad searching across multiple disciplines and scholarly subscription databases or free web search engines

Broad searching across a family of databases with a common interface (federated searching)

Search results not restricted to a particular format

Article searching

Predominantly resources used to locate articles in published periodicals

Emphasis on scholarly research

Catalogs (about publications)

Bibliographic tools that give additional information about a resource

Some include analytical tools or reviews about resources

Chemical and physical properties

Predominantly covers resources that provide factual information about matter

Includes tables, formulas, chemical compounds and structures, etc.

Information about DNA, genes, and genomic maps

Conference papers, preprints, and working papers

Predominantly resources used to locate information not (yet) published in periodicals

"Gray literature"

Countries and cultures

Predominantly full text narrative resources with some tabular/statistical information on countries and cultures

Ebook packages

Search for full-text electronic books offered through various collections

Most offer full text searching capabilities, though some limit search terms to the title, author, table of contents and notes fields

Many of the individual ebooks will also be listed in Addison

Ejournal packages

Search for full-text journals offered through a publisher's platform

Most offer full text searching capabilities, though some limit results to ejournals included in VT's subscription

Not comprehensive searching on a topic as it only includes journals listed by the publisher in that search interface

Many of the individual ejournals will also be listed in the Journal Title Database

Encyclopedias, dictionaries, and almanacs

Encyclopedias, dictionaries,glossaries, almanacs, and other reference sources used to give researchers a starting point when in an unfamiliar area

Includes general and subject-specific sources

Freely accessible

This database has no access restrictions; it is freely accessible to anyone online.

Some databases provide free access to some content, but not all content; check the database description for details.

Funding opportunities

Student and faculty funding (grants, scholarships and research funding)

Get VText supported

This resource provides Get VText links to access full text

Governance

Sources, both indexes and full-text, documenting the operations of governments

Census resources are located in the Statistics and data sets category

Handbooks and manuals

Primarily for resources that are "how-to" guides

Subject specific and "library research" tutorials

Mobile interface

Mobile interface available for this database; see description for link

Multimedia

Predominantly resources where it only searches, or is possible to limit searches, to multimedia format types with a scholarly application

Scanned and electronically produced images of maps go here; GIS data appears in Statistics and data sets

Scanned images of music scores appear in Music Recordings and scores

Audio recordings of speeches, personal narratives and the like will be found in Narratives, diaries, and letters

Music recordings and scores

Scanned images of scores

Electronically produced scores (images, mp3, MIDI, etc)

Streaming music databases

Narratives, diaries, and letters

Personal narratives, diaries, letters, speeches, memoirs, autobiographies, and other personal correspondences

Indexes and full-text

Includes audio recordings

Newspapers and magazines

Does not include articles from trade journals

Indexes and full-text

Popular magazine articles

Patents and trademarks

U.S. and international patents and patent applications

Trademarks

Laws about patents and trademarks will be found in the Governance category

Poetry and short stories

Indexes and full-text collections of short format literature

Print reference materials

Print indexes to articles and other publications for which no online database exists or for time period not covered by a database

print encyclopedias and other reference sources

Call number and location should be indicated

Professional and trade literature

Literature for the profession

Gateways to trade journals

Indexes and full-text collections of articles from trade journals

Reports, standards, and financials

Technical standards

Official or formal record of the activities of a committee or corporate entity, a special investigation, or the proceedings of a governmental body

Publications that are a separately issued record of research results, research in progress, or other technical studies

White papers, technical reports, and periodically published in sources other than journals and magazines

Business assessments by third parties

Restricted to Virginia Tech users

This resources is restricted to current Virginia Tech students, faculty, and staff.

Off campus users should make use of Off Campus Sign In.

Reviews and critiques

Not limited to reviews of books and performances

Scholarly and non-scholarly

Reviews and critiques of books, articles, performances, artistic creations

Product reviews

Reviews of companies and industries will be in the Reports, standards, and financials category

Screencast tutorials available

Screencast tutorials available for this database. See description for link(s).

Statistics and data sets

Compiled statistics and collections of survey instruments and raw data

GIS

Census data

Public opinion polls

Summon includes contents of database

Contents of this database available in Summon.

Coverage varies among providers (percentage or date range)

Theses and dissertations

Indexes and collections

Print and electronic

Individual theses and dissertations published at Virginia Tech will also be listed in Addison/Summon

Virginia Tech related

Current and historical information

Includes information in all formats

VIVA, the Virtual Library of Virginia sponsored

Sponsored by VIVA, the Virtual Library of Virginia.