TO BEGIN, be sure you have the following information:
The complete name of the person, spelled correctly.
The person's birth date and death date, if appropriate.
IF POSSIBLE, the following may help for people with common names:
The nationality of the person.
The nature of the accomplishment or profession for which the person is known.
Ask the Librarian at the Reference Desk if you need to find/verify any of the above.
Biography http://www.biography.com/
Select "Find" for a database of 15,000 historical names from the Cambridge Biographical Encyclopedia. Enter the name or select a letter of the alphabet. This is the site for the A&E television show Biography.
Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/chiefs/index.html
Select by country or choose a letter of the alphabet.
History of Science, Technology and Medicine: Biographical Dictionary
http://www.asap.unimelb.edu.au/bsparcs/bsparcshome.htm
Biographies of scientists; many include photos or portraits; searchable.
LEXIS/NEXIS — Biographical Information
You can access this site, by going to the Library Home Page, click on "Databases," click on "Lexis/Nexis," then click on "Reference" and select "Biographical Information." This database searches thousands of journal articles for full-text information about prominent people in the news.
Go to the Library Homepage (http://www.csupomona.edu/~library) and click on "Library Catalog". Select the "Subject Search" option, then type in the person's name. Write down the call number and locate the book.
The following print sources are located on the biography shelves in the reference area by the call numbers.
Who's Who in America Ref E663 .W5
Offers condensed information on prominent persons, especially those in the fields of business, politics and government. (Note: When a person listed in WWA dies and is considered of permanent note, the name and information are published in the next edition of Who Was Who in America Ref E663 .W54)
Current Biography Ref CT100 .C8
Features living, newsworthy persons from sports, education, and entertainment.
Newsmakers Ref CT120 .C663 (year)
Features colorful individuals recently in the news.
The following print sources are located on the regular Reference shelves by call numbers.
The McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Biography Ref CT103 .M27
Encyclopedia of world biography covering famous people of the 20th century.
Webster's New Biographical Dictionary Ref CT103 .W4
A biographical dictionary of names of noteworthy persons, with pronunciations and concise biographies.
Dictionary of world biography Ref CT104 .D54
A revision and reordering, with new entries added, of the material in the thirty vols. comprising the various subsets designated "series" published under the collective title: Great lives from history. 1987-1995. Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
International Who's Who Ref CT120 .I5
American Men and Women of Science Ref Q141 .A47
Provides information about living persons in all science areas -- physical sciences, natural sciences, and psychology.
Dictionary of Scientific Biography Ref Q141 .D5
Offers information on the professional lives of scientists in all fields from all historical periods.
American Jewish Biographies Ref E184 .J5 P625
Biographical Dictionary of Indians of the Americas Ref E89 .B56
Chicano Scholars and Writers E184 .M5 M385
Who's Who Among Black Americans Ref E185.96 .W52
BGMI (Biography & Genealogy Master Index) Web
The web version of BGMI has a searchable/comprehensive index to nearly 12 million biological sketches in more than 2700 volumes and editions of current and retrospective reference books, covering both contemporary and historical figures throughout the world. "NEW FEATURE: A complete list of sources indexed is now available by using the Extended Search." To use the web BGMI, go to the Library Homepage and click on "Databases."
Britannica Online Web
Includes Encyclopedia's latest article database with hundreds of articles not found in printed version. Links to websites are included. Go to Library home page and click on "Databases".
Go to the Library Catalog, select "Subject" and type the word "biography." Limit your search results to "where" books are located and enter "Reference." You will retrieve a list of over 80 biographical sources by profession, historical time period and newsmakers.
