When I started writing on this website in November I wrote an article about the Pros and Cons of Wikipedia (http://www.webupon.com/Web-Talk/Wikipedia-The-Pros-and-Cons.338957). I concluded that in general Wikipedia is not best used for research. I have decided to follow up that article, and share some great research resources. Whether you are a college student or just trying to find some reliable facts for your next Triond article, here are a few of my favorite research resources.

GoogleScholar

This has the convenience of Google, but cuts out the fat. It only brings up scholarly articles in the search results, so when you are researching your topic you will not be flooded with personal blogs, forums, and other things that may not be the most reliable resources.

Library

Get a library card. Spend an hour or two there. It is free!! Talk to the librarian. Some libraries offer access to a website that gives free access to journals, and other academic sites such as pro-quest, etc. The library, and the help of a friendly librarian is the best free resource out there.

NIH

Writing an article or paper about something pertaining to medical/mental health issues? The National Institute of Healths’ public website offers a large quantity of up to date, accredited, scientific information.

Highwire Press

Go to this website and create a free account. Once you give the correct information you will be given access to part of Stanford’s library with over 1,000,000 peer-reviewed full text articles for free.

Mathewson-IGT Knowledge center 

This website offers a listing of numerous journals, on numerous subjects which offer free access to archives of full text articles. An excellent resource.

FedStats 

This website is a database of government statistics. Be cautious though, statistical analysis is a tricky thing. Correlation does not always equate to cause. Remember this too when reading articles. Ask yourself what other factors may be involved?

These are my six favorite free research resources. They offer an excellent start for writing excellent articles. Even websites such as CNN, Fox news, and MSNBC are not the most reliable for research. They may offer good starting points, but it is best to take the extra time and look up any articles, studies, or scientific reviews they may reference. Always check it out for yourself. Even in journals it is good to look up other articles or case studies cited. This may be time consuming, but as writers it is our responsibility to deliver well written, well researched articles with as little bias as possible. Consider the influence of the audience, and deliver what has been lost in our times. Set aside pre-concieved notions, and deliver truth.

Image via Wikipedia