Reference Section

One can research and learn about virtually any topic imaginable by using the following resources:

Wikipedia

The older generation may remember scouring large bulky volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica for information and to gain knowledge on countless topics. This isn't that encyclopedia, but in some ways it comes close. Articles in Wikipedia are written by the people for the people. Some have had concerns about accuracy in this reference source, but there are checks and balances to ensure accuracy, and it has been found to be about as accurate as any other encyclopedia, including Britannica. It's a great place to go when you want to learn more about anything, anyone or any place.

TheFreeDictionary

Do you need to look up the definition or confirm the spelling of a word? You can do that at TheFreeDictionary. It also features an acronym and abbreviation finder, offers medical and legal dictionaries, foreign language dictionaries, a thesaurus, and a lot more. It can do much to help you to increase your vocabulary and knowledge of words.

Google Maps

Google Maps is an online road atlas, world atlas and geographical information resource. With Google Maps, you can get driving directions from your home to any place across town or across the USA and Canada. If you want to change your route, you can drag the current route to an alternate street or highway. Google Maps also offers road information and directions for many countries around the world. In many places, you can also find out how you can get to where you want to go by transit or by foot. Google Maps also features satellite views and street views of many locations.

Reference and outline maps of the United States at Nationalatlas.gov

Nationalatlas.gov provides various outline and reference maps of the United States. There are maps of the United States as a whole, and maps for each state. Outline maps are easily customizable for your own purposes. Reference maps include features such as boundaries, cities, counties, capitals, interstate and other major highways, rivers and lakes, and terrain. These maps are in the public domain and may be used for most any purpose. There is also a lot more to Nationalatlas.gov, including maps that tell stories of America's people, heritage, resources and trends of American life, so you may want to check out other pages of this website.

About.com

About.com is a community of experts that want to share their knowledge with you. These experts offer advice on topics such as health, cooking, travel, money, technology and so much more.

Library of Congress American Memory

The Library of Congress American Memory is a great resource for researchers and others interested in the history of America. You can find much in the way of digital books, text, photos, audio, music, maps and more. For example, one can find a library of Abraham Lincoln's letters, audio recordings of popular entertainment in the early 1900's, or a 1897 Thomas Edison film of 5th Avenue in Seattle, WA. However, this could not even begin to describe the extent of content in this resource.

GeoNames

GeoNames is an extensive geographical database covering cities, towns and places in all the countries of the world. Here you can look up information such as population, latitude and longitude, zip codes and elevation for a specific place.

WikiHow

WikiHow is a how to manual and a collaborative writing project that offers solutions to the problems of every day life. It has over 55,000 articles that cover subjects such as how to jump start a car, how to meet new people without being creepy and how to fix a dislocated shoulder. If you are trying to figure out how to do something, chances are that you can find out here.