Libraries, databases, resources. They’re everywhere. And Mason offers access to ones that you otherwise would need a private or expensive membership to access.
In a presentation at the Library Resource room today, our talented class of online journalists learned how to access all these resources. More interestingly, however, we discovered some new and uncommon databases that make the research process exceedingly more intriguing.
ARTstor: This database houses over a million images spanning different cultures and time periods. Browse their collections to check out and use images that range from Byzantine iconography to collections from the Museum of Modern Art.
Icon of the Old Testament Trinity Prefiguring the Incarnation. Andrey Rublyov. Obtained from ARTstor
Clouds by Gerhard Richter. Obtained from ARTstor
Icon with the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. Byzantine 1400-1500. Obtained from ARTstor.
Social Explorer: Get access to US census data–current and past data that is. Even cooler? You can create your own maps and reports with this research tool to illustrate your findings and analyze “demography and social change.”
This last one is unrelated to research, but I still found it incredibly awesome…if you’re a musician, that is…
Library Music Source: Most musicians know sheet music costs money. With Mason’s subscription to this database, you can access “the largest collection of Western Classical sheet music ever assembled” for free. Cheers to studentdom!