Technology & Society in America
Biographical Information Sources

BIOGRAPHY RESOURCES

These online resources can be accessed from anywhere using a Penn State Access ID and password. Most include the full-text of articles. In other cases, use the Get It button to link to or order the full article.

• American National Biography Online offers portraits of more than 17,000 U.S. men and women from all eras and walks of life
• Gale Virtual Reference Library provides full-text access to hundreds of reference sources including Business Leader Profiles for Students and the Encyclopedia of World Biography.
• Oxford Dictionary of National Biography offers biographies of noteworthy men and women who shaped Britain's history, from the fourth century BC to the year 2000.
• Biography and Genealogy Master Index (BGMI) indexes reference books that include biographies of individuals. No full-text is available.
• ProQuest Direct can be a good source for contemporary biographical information.
  Tip: Use the Person search box.
• New York Times Historical (1851-2003) can be a good source of historical biographical information.
  Tip: NYT obituaries provide a good summary of a person's life achievements. Click More Search Options, and then change the document type to obituaries before searching for the name.
• JStor covers a wide variety of journals and includes the full-text for each article.

You may also want to consult University Libraries' subject guides for additional resources.

BOOKS

Start with The Cat to find books with biographical information. If no books are available in The Cat, try Worldcat.

• The Cat is Penn State's online catalog. Use the I Want It button to order books from other campuses.
  Tip: Search for a person's name as a subject by changing "Keywords Anywhere" to "LC Subj Heading."
• WorldCat covers over 28 million books and other items in libraries across the country. To order books online, click the title and then the Request Item via ILL link.
  Tip: Go to Advanced Search to search for the name as a subject.

REFERENCE BOOKS ON THE SHELVES

Titles listed below are located in the reference collection of the Penn State Lehigh Valley Library

• American Women in Science: 1950 to the Present REF Q141.B254 1998
• The Biographical Dictionary of Scientists REF Q141.B520 1994
• Current Biography REF CT100.C81. (1940-2000 index)
• McGraw-Hill Modern Men of Science REF Q141.M15
• Notable Twentieth Century Scientists REF Q141.N73 1995
• Science and Its Times: Understanding the Social Significance of Scientific Discovery REF Q175.46.S35 2000
• Science and Scientists REF Q180.55.D57 2006
  

For further information, please contact:

Judy Sandt - jsandt@psu.edu
Reference/Research Librarian
Penn State Lehigh Valley Library

last updated September 2008