Reed College Library: Environmental Science

There are many handbooks, dictionaries, and encyclopedias that describe environmental terms, names, data, etc. If you are not clear about your topic, try establishing its limits with a good definition and some introductory information.

Before you get started, you might want to take a look at The Evolution of Scientific Information, which maps out the scientific publication process (NOTE: this chart was taken from a book published in 1979. Notice anything missing?) There is also a resource from the UCLA libraries called the Flow of Information which might help you understand the process.

AccessScience
Covers all of science; much information related to earth and environmental sciences. Includes a scientific dictionary, images, and biographies of famous scientists. Also includes links to related websites.

Environmental Encyclopedia
Ref GE10 .E38 2003
Short articles on environmentally relevant terms, concepts, issues, movements, prominent people, geographic regions, etc. Brief bibliographies.

The Oxford Dictionary of Natural History
Ref QH13 .O9 1985
Definitions of terms ranging over the life, earth, and atmospheric sciences. Cross-references from common to scientific names.

Guides to the Literature

The Environmentalist's Bookshelf: A Guide to the Best Books
Ref GF41 .M47 1992
Based on a survey of noted environmentalists; a good source for identifying the "classics".

Information Sources in Environmental Protection
Ref GE30 I56 1997
Concise and well-organized, with slight British bias. Chapters on individual disciplines and sub-disciplines identify important books, core journals, and review publications.

Island Press Bibliography of Environmental Literature
Ref QH541 .I85 1993
Lists and describes books, journals, reports, etc., in a classified subject arrangement. Author/title and subject indexes. Compiled at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Review Publications

Review publications contain articles that review the research already done in a given area. A review article can give you a synthesis of a particular topic and provide you with an extensive bibliography. All of the following review publications are shelved by title with the science periodicals. Holdings can be found by searching the Print & Electronic Journals page.

To identify review articles, most databases allow you to search by article type (review) or limit your search to reviews. Reed Library also subscribes to annual reviews and review journals. You can browse the annual reviews by title, or you can search by topic. These resources are available to the Reed community only. Off campus access is available.

Databases

AGRICOLA (1970 - present)
Index of materials relating to all aspects of agriculture, especially USDA, USFWS, & USFS documents. Includes botany, chemistry, energy, entomology, forestry, life sciences, natural resources, and plant diseases.

BIOSIS Previews (1969 - present)
The most comprehensive biological database, covering a large range and number of bioscience journals and other publications.

Columbia Earthscape
Searchable fulltext library of environmental literature, including legislation, regional studies, international documents, white papers, journal articles, and online data sets.

Geobase (1980 - present)
Citations and abstracts to international literature in geology, geography and ecology. Includes books and conference proceedings as well as journal articles. Excellent for the policy, history and economics of environmental issues.

Lexis-Nexis Environmental
The most comprehensive biological database, covering a large range and number of bioscience journals and other publications.

Web of Science (1900 - present)
Web-based version of Science Citation Index. Provides keyword and citation access to over 5,700 major science journals.

Journals and Journal Collections

Once you identify a citation for an article using a database, or if you just want to browse a journal title, you must determine if the library subscribes to the journal. At this time, the best way to do so is to use the Print & Electronic Journals page. For help, try How Do I Find Journal Articles?.

If you haven't identified particular journals, but would like to see what Reed has access to, you can use the mostly complete subject lists available from the journal title list.

Earth Sciences

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences
Ref QE26.2 .C35 1981
Well-illustrated introduction to all aspects of geology, as well as paleontology, oceanography, and climatology.

Challinor's Dictionary of Geology
Ref QE5 .C45 1986
Comprehensive definitions of geologic and related terms, with etymologies and references.

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences
Includes over 6000 entries related to topics including climatology, economic geology, geochemistry, oceanography, paleontology, petrology, and volcanology. There are entries on planetary science, remote sensing, statistics, and sequence stratigraphy, wind strength scales, material, temporal, and chronostratigraphic units, geologic, lunar, and Martian time scales.

Encyclopedia of Earth System Science
Ref QE5 .E514 1991
Signed articles by researchers in the field cover all aspects of earth sciences - earth, water, atmosphere, etc. Articles include glossaries and bibliographies.

Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences
Ref QE5 .E5137 1996
Covers atmospheric sciences, hydrology, geology, oceanorgraphy, and planetary sciences.

The Oxford Companion to the Earth
QE5 .O94 2000
"Coverage of the Earth Sciences, from volcanoes to flood plains, diamonds to meteors, deserts to deep seas. All aspects of geology, including climatology, mineralogy, and oceanography, are covered. In addition, there are many eclectic entries, for example on dinosaur hunters, and fossils and folklore, as well as biographies of the key figures involved."

Regional Geology

Fire Mountains of the West: The Cascade and Mono Lake Volcanoes
QE524 .H18 2005
Highly readable account of major volcanoes of Oregon, Washington and Northern California.

Geology of the Pacific Northwest
QE79 .O77 2002
The Orrs are generally held to have written the sine qua non of Pacific NW geology.

Ecology & Environmental Sciences

AAAS Atlas of Population & Environment
Ref HB849.415 .H374 2000
Graphical representations of issues related to the population - environment relationship. Includes sections on natural resources, land use, atmosphere, waste, ecosystems, and biodiversity.

Beacham's Guide to Environmental Issues & Sources
Ref GE115 .B43 1993
Information collected from a variety of resources that overviews and assess current environmental issues and concerns/

Conservation and Environmentalism: An Encyclopedia
Ref GE10 .C68 1995
Brief, signed articles on topics from ecofeminism to ozone depletion, with short reading lists.

Dictionary of Ecology and Environment
Ref GE10 .D52 2001
Concise definitions. "Supplement" section includes a geological time scale, estimated human population growth, and recent major disasters (man-made and natural).

Encyclopedia of Global Change
Ref GE149 .E47 2002
Entries related to the changes "in the Earth's physical, chemical, and biological systems and resources." Also useful is Encyclopedia of Global Environmental Change (Ref GE149 .E443 2002) and The Atlas of Global Change (Ref Atlas GE149 .G4813 1998).

Encyclopedia of the Biosphere
Ref GF75 .B5613 1999
Comprehensive coverage of the earth's major biomes, their characteristics, and their operations. Each ecosystem is examined by plant and animal ecology, biosphere reserves, and human uses.

World Resources: A Report... (1990 - two years ago)
Ref HC10 .W827
Biennial assessment of global natural resources, environmental and health issues, and population; information from U.N. sources. Many statistical tables. Heavily referenced. Earlier editions in the stacks.

Biodiversity & Environmental Biology

Beacham's Guide to the Endangered Species of North America
Ref QH77.N56 B43 2000
Describes the over 1200 animals and plants identified by the U. S. Fisheries and Wildlife Service as endangered or threatened before April 2000. Also useful: Beacham's Guide to International Endangered Species (Ref QL82 .B435 1998).

Concise Oxford Dictionary of Ecology
Ref QH540.4 .C66 1994
Defines terms related to all aspects of ecology and environmental science (an exception being politics and law).

Encyclopedia of Biodiversity
Ref QH541.15.B56 E53 2001
Scholarly treatment of issues relating to "diversity in the natural world." Long entries written by scholars, usually with extensive bibliographies.

Encyclopedia of Environmental Biology (3 vols.)
Ref QH540.4 .E52 1995
Signed articles by specialists cover such topics as acid rain, population biology, and wastewater treatment, as well as many aspects of ecology, including specific ecosystems. Excellent bibliographies.

Global Biodiversity: Status of the Earth's Living Resources
Ref QH541 .G46 1992
Deals with systematics, species diversity, species loss, habitats and ecosystems, uses and values of biodiversity, conservation and management. Crammed with data and references.

Life on Earth
Ref QH541.15.B56 L54 2002
Shortish articles on topics related to biodiversity; essays defining biodiversity and human impact.

Pollution & Energy

Cooper's Comprehensive Environmental Desk Reference
Ref GE123 .C64 1996
Definitions of environmental terms, acronyms and abbreviations. Includes a sample site assessment, the HAPs list and environmental data conversion tables.

Encyclopedia of Energy Technology and the Environment
Ref TJ163.235 .E53 1995
Signed articles with bibliographies cover energy resources and technology, pollution, and alternative energy.

Macmillian Encyclopedia of Energy
"Covers the broad field of energy in over 250 illustrated articles written by academics and experts in the field. Includes biographies of people who made significant contributions to the science and technology of energy."

Water

Agrochemicals Desk Reference
Ref TD196 .A34 M66 1997
Profiles compounds commonly found in the groundwater environment (herbicides, insecticides, and fumigants, among others).

Freshwater Issues: A Reference Handbook
Ref TD345 .S65 2002
Basic treatment of issues surrounding freshwater management. Includes an overview of water supplies and management problems, a history and chronology of US water policy, and a directory of agencies and organizations.

Rivers of the World
Ref GB1201.4 .P46 2001
"A comprehensive treatment of the rivers of the world." Entries include physical information about each river.

The Water Encyclopedia
Ref TD351 .V36 1990
Everything you ever wanted to know about water - resources (surface and ground), usage, quality, law, management, and hydrology; worldwide data on climate and precipitation.

Water: Science and Issues
"Integrates key concepts, current issues, traditional and emerging research, and major legislation in three subject areas: fresh water, marine waters, and policy and management. These topics are complemented by historical overviews, biographical sketches, and career information. Includes color photographs and illustrations, sidebars, and a glossary."

Library

Research Guide for Ecology, Environmental & Earth Sciences

Contact: Linda Maddux , Science Librarian

Getting Started