Freshman Writing: Library Research: Resources for Topic Selection

Reference books are classic places to look for the answers but they can also help the novice researcher determine if a research topic is going to work. Subject encyclopedias and handbooks, especially, can help you narrow a topic or give you a completely new topic you hadn't considered before. The ISU Library maintains a Print Reference collection [1st floor] but also has many online Reference books, as well as links to verified, reliable Internet resources.