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Individual Evaluations / Encyclopedias
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Academic American Encyclopedia
McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology
Columbia Encyclopedia
online at www.bartleby.com/65
International Encyclopedia of the Social SciencesMcGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology
Britannica Online
World Book EncyclopediaAcademic American Encyclopedia
Citation
Academic American encyclopedia. (1986). Danbury, Conn: Grolier.
General Information
This encyclopedia in published by Grolier, Inc.
Scope
This encyclopedia encompasses 32,000 entries, comprised of over 9 million words with more than 16,000 illustrations.
Emphasis
This encyclopedia is geared toward upper elementary through adult, quite an expansive age span.
Authority
The Academic American was composed with contributions by 2,250 scholars and other authorities, 150 consultants, advisors, contributing editors, cartographers, illustrators and photographers. More than 75% of the entries have been signed and 90% were written by outside scholars.
Writing Style
The writing style is simple, clear and concise; obviously geared toward the middle school – high school reader. The intention is for the entries to be comprehensive but not exhaustive.
Recency
This seventh edition was published in 1986 and is revised annually using advanced technology. Yearbooks are published annually to supplement existing sets.
Viewpoint and Objectivity
The Academic American prides itself on its objectivity and invites the reader to evaluate the entry on abortion as an example of their focus to present opposing viewpoints and address ethical concerns. In addition, they have made an effort to remove sexist language and attitudes from the writing.
Arrangement and Entry
The articles are arranged alphabetically, not topically with generous cross-references. The entries are concise and to the point; more than half are fewer than 500 words with longer entries divided into subcategories. The wording is intentionally edited to be readable and technical terms are frequently defined in the same sentence.
Index
The index is contained in a separate volume and uses a letter-by-letter alphabetic arrangement.
Format
I looked at a print version. It contained 21 volumes including the index. There is also a CD-ROM version available through Grolier.
Cost
$730.00 for the 2009 print edition.
Columbia Encyclopedia | online at www.bartleby.com/65
Citation
www.bartleby.com/65
General Information
This URL takes you to Columbia Encyclopedia, sixth edition, 2001 - 07
Scope
This online version of the one volume Columbia Encyclopedia encompasses close to 51,000 entries with more than 80,000 hypertext cross-references.
Emphasis
This general encyclopedia is intended to provide a useful one-volume text to be used as a supplement to a dictionary and atlas. This is geared toward the generalist and seeks to “provide useful articles that are both reliable and readable: accurate, perceptive, concise”
Authority
Columbia University Press publishes the Columbia Encyclopedia.
Writing Style
The writing style is straightforward and easy to understand. Pronunciations are included where needed and 25% of the articles have bibliographies while many have maps, tables and diagrams.
Recency
This 2007 edition contains nearly 1,300 new entries, while 40% of the existing entries were updated and revised prior to publication.
Viewpoint and Objectivity
This reference source handles controversial topics with objectivity, without moral overtones. The entries on the capital punishment and abortion were reviewed and found to address all sides of the issue.
Arrangement and Entry
Articles are accessed from a search box on the homepage. There are two search options, full-text or entry word. There is not an advanced search option. The entries are in a clear, easily readable typeface with plenty of white space. The article is straightforward without additional graphic elements, and the sidebar areas are taken up by ads again. In this edition, longer articles are broken in to paragraphs with bold face headings for easier reading.
Index
There is a browseable index linked to the interface. The index has over 51,000 articles listed alphabetically in A – Z groupings. For the 17,000 + biographical entries, these are grouped in 140 categories.
Format
The Columbia Encyclopedia is online at Bartleby.com and in print.
Cost
While access to the site is free, the price you pay is in a multitude of ads; the homepage had five different ads covering close to half of the page. The print version is $225 for the 2007 edition.
International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences
Citation
Darity, W. A. (2008). International encyclopedia of the social sciences. Macmillan social
science library. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA.
General Information
Published by The Macmillan Company & The Free Press, New York, a well respected publishing house.
Scope
This encyclopedia is devoted to the social sciences and the concepts, theories and methods of anthropology, economics, geography, history, law, political science, psychiatry, psychology, sociology, and statistics. Guides and cross-references aid the reader in location articles, factual and biographical on each topical area. The 2nd edition
has over 3,000 new articles edited my many notable Nobel Prize winners in the social sciences.
Emphasis
This specialty encyclopedia is written for the purpose of encouraging the development of the social sciences and documenting the known information in the field.
Authority
Contributors for this encyclopedia come from 30 different countries and highly regarded scholars and experts in their respective fields. Many new contributors and editors are Nobel Prize winning scientists.
Writing Style
This is aimed for advanced high school and college students as well as scientists; therefore the writing style is scientific in nature and not easily accessible to the casual reader.
Recency
The version reviewed was published in 1968, but the 2nd edition was recently published in 2009.
Viewpoint and Objectivity
This is a scholarly publication which deals with issues in a factual manner, devoid of emotion or moralizing tone.
Arrangement and Entry
Entries are arranged word-by-word and are due to the interconnectedness of the disciplines, that multi-disciplinary approach is seen in the grouping of articles when appropriate. There is thorough cross-referencing throughout the volumes.
Index
There is a separate index volume, with listings word by word in addition to cross referencing.
Format
Print and eBook format.
Cost
$1080 for a 9 volume set.
McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology
Citation
McGraw-Hill encyclopedia of science & technology. (2007). New York: McGraw-Hill.
General Information
This encyclopedia is published by McGraw-Hill, a respected publishing house for reference materials.
Scope
This encyclopedia encompasses over 7,000 articles in100 fields of science. The new Tenth Edition features more than 1,700 new and updated articles, 12,000+ illustrations, and more than 5000 contributors - including 25 Nobel Prize winners. There is also a companion website that updates the Encyclopedia and provides graphics and illustrations.
Emphasis
This encyclopedia seeks to provide the widest range of articles that are understandable and useful to the lay reader with little technical knowledge.
Authority
This encyclopedia was written by over 5,000 leading international scientists and engineers, many of who are Nobel Prize laureates. All articles are decided by recommendations from their board of consulting editors.
Writing Style
The writing style is clear and concise; written in an understandable and authoritative style.
Recency
This tenth edition was published in 2007.
Viewpoint and Objectivity
Written by preeminent scientific scholars, this scientific encyclopedia is solely concerned with presenting the facts as they are known, as well as addressing controversial topics and ethical concerns.
Arrangement and Entry
The articles are arranged alphabetically, with more than 60,000 cross-references. The entries start with a definition and concise overview following a clear outline and conclude with a bibliography. There are 25,000 bibliographic entries, 12,000+ illustrations, photos, graphs, charts, maps and much more.
Index
The index is contained in a separate volume and uses a word-by-word arrangement. There is a 500 page analytical index, an extensive topic index, along with Study Guides, that aid the reader in finding information
.
Format
Available in print with a companion website.
Cost
$3495 for the 2007 print edition.
Britannica Online
Citation
Britannica.com Inc, & Merriam-Webster, Inc. (1994). Britannica.com. [Chicago, Ill.]:
Britannica.com. http://www.britannica.com/.
Authority
Encyclopaedia Britannica was founded in 1768 and is one of the most highly regarded publishers of encyclopedias.
Format
This evaluation is on the free, online version; a search and directory format.
Scope
Britannica.com includes the complete updated EB in addition to websites, magazines, and book citations. Encyclopedia Britannica prides itself in being in the ‘information business’. This free version is targeted for broad range of Internet users and includes links to more than 150,000 approved websites. This site is geared to intellectually curious users whose goal is to “provide reliable knowledge on every topic imaginable-from the origins of the universe to current events and everything in between”.
Accuracy
The information on this site is reliable and comprehensive, the goal being “to become the most trusted source of information, knowledge, and learning in digital media.”
Understandability
Entries on this site are written in a clear and concise manner, with entries from the student version displayed on the same page and the regular entry.
Comprehensiveness
This online encyclopedia encompasses the entire Encyclopedia in addition to 150,000 approved websites.
Currency
The site is updated on a regular basis ensuring that the information in the entries is accurate and up-to-date.
Value-added features
There are links to 150,000 approved websites, links to Merriam-Webster dictionary, and a sidebar on the right side of the page that details contributors, multimedia entries, and additional content.
Cost
Free, with various subscription versions.
World Book Encyclopedia
Citation
World Book, Inc. (1994). The World Book encyclopedia. Chicago: World Book.
General Information
Published by World Book, Inc., a leader in the field of reference tools.
Scope
The goal of World Book is to present the vast amount of human knowledge in an accessible and useable format. While World Book does not list the number of entries, it does list that there are over 29,000 illustrations, 24,000 of which are in color. There are also 2,300 color maps in this edition.
Emphasis
World Book is geared specifically to elementary, middle, and high school students as well as being a frequently referred to family reference tool. Librarians and teachers have relied on World Book for years to meet the research needs of their students.
Authority
World Book is one of the great industry standards in encyclopedias geared for the school and family demographic. Their Advisory Board and Consultant Committees are made up of national and international scholars and specialists. More than 3,000 scholars, and experts contributed to the oversight of this edition.
Writing Style
The writing style is straightforward and easy to understand. They have made every effort to word articles in an age-appropriate style. This is done article to article, with more sophisticated subjects such as nuclear energy written at a higher level than article that would appeal to a younger audience, such as many of the entries on animals.
Recency
Although the version reviewed here was published in 1994, the new editions of the World Book are published yearly in addition to a supplemental Annual update volume. The online site is updated daily during their regular evening maintenance hours.
Viewpoint and Objectivity
The World Book covers controversial topics thoroughly with objectivity, addressing ethical issues without moral overtones. The entries on the AIDS and abortion were reviewed and found to address all sides of the issue.
Arrangement and Entry
Entries are arranged word-by-word and are neither too wordy nor too concise. There are numerous cross-references both within the text and when an article is located in a different section.
Index
The index is contained in a separate volume and uses a letter-by-letter alphabetic arrangement. In addition, there are more than 200 study guides, and guides to improving writing, reading and speaking skills.
Format
The World Book reviewed was in print, although there is an online version in addition to the DVD, a bargain at $39.95.
Cost
The print version ranges between $999 and $1099 depending on the binding.