The library has added two great new resources!  Our list of databases now includes Nineteenth Century British Library Newspapers and National Geographic Magazine Digital Archive, both from Gale.  Chances are you’re already familiar with a lot of great Gale databases.  From the major ones, Opposing Viewpoints and Biography in Context, to other mainstays like the Gale Virtual Reference Library, Health and Wellness Resource Center, and Literature Resource Center; their streamlined, easy-to-use interfaces offer articles, multimedia, and more on a host of topics.

The first new database, Nineteenth Century British Library Newspapers, is a great source for history topics, including popular subjects like Jack the Ripper, the Irish Potato Famine, or the Great Exhibition or 1851.  It includes over 15 million full text documents – the full runs of 48 newspapers.  If your assignment or paper is about Britain in the 1800s (or if you have a personal interest in the Victorian era), this is an invaluable tool for news research.

The other new database, National Geographic Magazine Digital Archive, brings you every page of every issue of the ubiquitous magazine, from the beginning through 1994.  While not as deep of coverage as hard science journals, the National Geographic is very friendly to the lay reader, and their stunning photography can help enliven your papers or presentations.  It includes both a text search and an image search to help you find what you need – from erupting volcanoes or the moon landing to exotic animals and pirates, the National Geographic has something for almost any research interest.  And it has a hidden benefit, too – the entire magazine has been digitized, not just the articles.  So if you have an assignment to analyze a commercial advertisement from a given time period, this database is perfect for you.

And remember, if you need help with these or any other databases, don’t hesitate to contact us at iueref@iue.edu!