Facts and Data Search on the Web Sarah Aerni Special Projects Librarian University of Pittsburgh 13 April 2005

Overview of this Lecture Introduction to Indexes and tips for using them Information about some sources for datasets and facts Time for Questions

Important considerations when searching for information First you must identify and specify your topic as clearly as possible. It is important to think of keywords to describe this topic. Then you want to identify sources to consult with for information. Finally, you want to use the index or list of terms to match your keywords with those used in the source.

Indexes An index provides details about the topics included in the resource. It may also describe how the authors or editors classify topics. Check for indexes as you begin to use the resource, as they will help improve search efficiency.

More about Indexes Indexes are available in most online databases, and many printed publications. For online sources, often you won’t see an index until you try a search. Then terms will be recommended to you. These are the “index terms” used by the database.

More clues Indexes and information about searching can often be found under these headings: FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) Site Features and Tips Search Tips Article Index Index of Terms We will look for these tools on the resource pages that follow.

The following resources are just some that can provide you with data and facts on topics concerning Asia, Europe and America…

CIA Factbook http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/ or http://www.cia.gov Printed version provides a snapshot of the world as of 1 January of the most recent year (latest edition is as of 1 January 2004) The electronic version is periodically updated throughout the year.

The Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada http://www.asiapacific.ca/data/datasets.cfm An independent, non-profit think-tank that focuses on Canada’s relations with Asia. The focus is on social sciences. Publications include: Canada Asia Review, Asia Pacific Bulletin, Asian Business Associations Their statistics page seems particularly relevant.

World Bank Data and Statistics Wuhan University Library website: http://www.lib.whu.edu.cn/dzzy/index.asp#英文数据库 “Almost all of these datasets are derived, either directly or indirectly, from official statistical systems organized and financed by national governments.” Includes databases on “World Development Indicators” and “Global Development Finance” and International Comparisons.

More data and research from the World Bank Covers years 1960-2003 for 226 countries or groups. Information on fuel & energy (among many other industries) can be found here. Data can be downloaded in Excel or ASCII format for your use.

The Penn-World Tables http://pwt.econ.upenn.edu/php_site/pwt_index.php The Penn World Table provides purchasing power parity and national income accounts converted to international prices for 168 countries for some or all of the years 1950-2000. The European Union and OECD provide more detailed information about these things for their member countries.

An annotated list of resources about Asia and Southeast Asia http://newton.uor.edu/Departments&Programs/AsianStudiesDept/general-data.html A list of many resources that are available on the Internet about Asia. Resources are grouped by various political, social, cultural and economic categories.

Social Sciences Data Archives A very comprehensive list of datasets from all over the world. Created by sociologists in the Netherlands. http://www2.fmg.uva.nl/sociosite/databases.html This site looks useful, both from the information links and the way they broke out results by country.

BREAD – Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Developement http://chd.ucla.edu/dev_data/ This page is a list of many household surveys from various developing countries. A working paper archive holds “grey literature” from the institute. This type of material helps you get a sense of future research topics.

Other types of studies included at the BREAD site Fertility studies Demographic Studies Lifestyle (household) studies Living Standards Measurement Studies Doesn’t include as much information on China, but might be a useful source for data on other countries.

UN Statistics Service http://unstats.un.org/unsd/ This service compiles data from many national services and produces global updates and summaries. As they rely on data produced by other sources, there is much less control over the contents of the data tables. This makes it less reliable than going to the original source of the data.

American FactFinder http://factfinder.census.gov The best way to access United States Census data (a national census that is done once every 10 years). More information about the most recent census can be found here: http://www.census.gov/main/www/cen2000.html

Easy national comparisons A commercial site: http://www.your-nation.com/ provides an easy way to do simple country comparisons. It is fun to play around with. However, a note of caution: The “About” link is not clickable, and there is no information about where the data comes from!

Thanks for coming! The important thing to remember is that there are always people you can ask when you get stuck looking for something. Don’t be afraid to explore, and to ask others for help (even over email). Good luck with your research!