Chemistry: Reference Materials

Need Help?

Ask us!

Why background?

Background sources  (encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, etc.) provide well established summary and factual information. Useful for:

  • basic concepts and established viewpoints
  • historical context and relationships to other topics
  • specialized terms and definitions
  • data, facts, formulas

Periodic Tables

Constants and Conversions

Online Dictionaries

Other Online Resources

Google Tips & Tricks

  1. Use the Advanced feature of Google to be more specific in your search
  2. Type "intitle:" to search only page titles.. Try intitle:digital divide (no space!)
  3. Type "inurl:" to search only the web address of a page. Try inurl:raynor
  4. Type "related:" to find pages that Google thinks are related in content. Try related:www.marquette.edu/library
  5. Type "search tips site:" to specify a site to search within. Try search tips site:www.usps.com international shipping
  6. Access Google Directory at directory.google.com
  7. Type "site:" to return results from a specific domain. Try site:.org library
  8. Type "intext" in Google News to pull terms from the body of the story
  9. Type "define:" to access the built-in dictionary
  10. No Calculator handy? Type 12*78 and hitting search will give you the answer
  11. The calculator also converts measurements and currency.  Try 200 pounds in euros
  12. Type weather and a location or zipcode to get a four day forecast.
  13. Include a  zipcode in your search for local results. Try subs 53233
  14. Type time and a name of place to find the time anywhere in the world
  15. Enter a statistics-based query like "population of Britain" and it will show you the answer on top of the results
  16. You can search foreign sites by clicking "language tools" on the right of the search box which allows you to choose what countries sites to translate your query to.