Best Free Reference

The PEW Center on Climate Change was established in 1998 to provide credible and objective information on global climate change. It allows you to follow state, national, and international issues and policies related to climate change. Curious about the relationship between this winter's heavy snowfalls and global warming? This is the site for you.

This independent nongovernmental research institute and library at George Washington University collects and publishes declassified documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. Washington Journalism Review has called these publications a “state-of-the-art index to history.” Recent releases concern “Project Azorian: The Story of the Hughes Glomar Explorer,” about a plan to raise a sunken Soviet submarine in 1974; audiotapes about possible U.S. support for a military coup against South Vietnam's President Diem in 1963; and the creation of air force documentaries to rebut information in films like Dr. Strangelove.

If you work in a school system, plan for businesses or communities, or look after your family, flu.gov will make sure you “know what to do about the flu.” Follow research and global activities, download and reproduce flyers and brochures for specific audiences or in multiple languages, ask a flu expert, locate where vaccines are administered, learn about symptoms and prevention, and you, too, can be a “Flu Fighter.”

The USHMM maintains the world's leading online authority on the Holocaust. Search or browse the Holocaust Encyclopedia (multilingual) and be notified when articles are updated, search names and places for survivors and victims, read personal histories, use the bibliographies developed by the USHMM Library, and find material for classroom use. In the Genocide section, find information on today's crimes against humanity.

This site gathers a number of interrelated initiatives focused on global peace. Best known is the Global Peace Index (GPI) founded by Australian technology entrepreneur and philanthropist Steve Killelea. Since 2007, the GPI has ranked 144 independent states based on 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators such as level of military spending and respect for human rights. For example, in 2009 New Zealand supplanted Iceland as the most peaceful country on Earth. Also, it appears that the world was less peaceful in 2009 than in 2008.

This free service, launched in 2007 by Gerald Keown, prominent Texas wildlife photographer, is a regional repository of information about the snakes, lizards, turtles, crocodilians, and amphibians of the American Southwest. There's a herpetological dictionary and lists of state and federally protected species. Send in an image for a photo of the month or participate in a discussion forum. Not only can you see photos of the American alligator, you can hear an audio file of one, too.

Launched in 2002 and completely redesigned in 2009, the OAC provides free public access to detailed descriptions of primary resource collections at 150 contributing institutions including libraries, archives, historical societies, and museums throughout California and is a core component of the California Digital Library. It contains more than 170,000 digital images and documents, from a picture of Telegraph Hill burning in 1906 (Bancroft Library) to documents about Japanese internment held at California State University.

This Energy Information Administration site is data driven, providing current and historical statistics as well as analysis of energy production, demand, trade, and prices. Data are state and international in scope and can be used by researchers, educators, and consumers. Their Energy Explained is a helpful guide to understanding energy.

Since its launch on January 7, 2010, this initiative of the mayor of London to release all Greater London Authority data to the public free of charge has drawn international attention. Within the first month, 200 datasets had been made available, with information on everything from abandoned vehicles to sports participation rates (6.93 million adults in England do sports at least three times a week) to the prevalence of childhood obesity and teenage pregnancy. It's new, but we couldn't wait till next year.

The Sunlight Foundation is “making government transparent and accountable” by using technology and creating tools to access easily government and political information that empowers the public to engage in governance. Party Time follows congressional fundraising; Congrelate provides information about Members of Congress, their districts, and voting records; and LOUISdb allows searching across congressional and selected executive publications. A good site to know, particularly if you need to decide how to cast your ballot.

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A collaborative program to provide data and information about the wildlife biological resources of the United States, NBII is designed for use by students, scientists, and the general public. Search or browse by species, ecological topic, habitat, or geographic region. Learn how to identify bees or learn formulas to predict population variability.