Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

July’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Sarah Rhodes, Subject Consultant for International Development, Forced Migration and African and Commonwealth Studies.

Sarah’s choice is Policy Commons.

Overview

It was chosen as a comprehensive source of grey literature that brings together in one site access to over 40 million reports from almost 50,000 different sources including Global Think Tanks and World Governments.

Where can you access the resource

This resource is available to access via SOLO. On searching for Policy Commons via SOLO you will see the links to the different modules available. Select the one of your choice and link through to the database.

Alternatively, click on any of the links and go through to the database homepage and then select ‘Modules’ from the top menu under the search bar:

A list of different modules will then display and you can select the one of your choice:

A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required to access this database remotely, as it is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month we choose an electronic resource which we feel will be of interest to you.

Our Resource of the Month for June is The Cold War: Global Perspectives on East-West Tensions, 1945-1991.

Resource Overview

During the Cold War America’s CIA ran the Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS), in order to collate, transcribe and translate news sources from countries seen to be hostile to the U.S. The FBIS enabled U.S. secret agents to follow events and discussions within the Soviet Union, for example, in addition to China, North Vietnam, Iran, and North Korea. The Cold War: Global Perspectives on East-West Tensions 1945 – 1991 offers English translations of key news sources from these countries, published throughout the Cold War.

Where can you access the resource

This resource can be accessed via SOLO. A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required to access the resource remotely, as access is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

May’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Jo Gardner, Bodleian Social Science Librarian and Subject Consultant for Politics and International Relations.

Jo’s choice is BBC Monitoring. It was chosen because it is updated daily and aims to cover the world’s media accurately, impartially and with clear sourcing.

Overview

BBC Monitoring tracks, translates, summarises and analyses local media sources around the world. Its stated specialisms include: Russia, Eastern Europe, Middle East and North Africa, Sub Saharan Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Disinformation.

(A separate archive of BBC Monitoring’s Summary of World Broadcasts is published by Readex as BBC Monitoring: Summary of World Broadcasts: Essential Global Media, 1939-2001.)

Where can you access the resource

BBC Monitoring is available to access via SOLO. Please note that you will need your Single-Sign On (SSO) to access this resource remotely. Note that this resource requires you to register before use and requires you to log in with your Oxford SSO again at the homepage.

To register or log in, please select Log In and enter your Oxford college or department email address (for example, @balliol.ox.ac.uk or @history.ox.ac.uk; not just @ox.ac.uk).

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

April’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Helen Worrell, Subject Consultant for Anthropology.

Helen’s choice is Ethnographic Video Online: Volumes 1-5.

Overview

Ethnographic Video Online gives access to a wide range of ethnographic films, from classics to contemporary ethnographies. It also highlights videos created by and for indigenous communities. Videos can be filtered by a range of options, such as keyword or language. Videos are also catalogued individually in SOLO to maximise discoverability.

Where can you access the resource

Ethnographic Video Online: Volumes 1-5 available to access via SOLO.

A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required to access this database remotely, as it is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

March’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Andy Kernot, Subject Consultant for Geography, Social Policy and Intervention, Public Policy, and Internet Studies.

Andy’s choice is Foreign Policy. It was chosen as an influential US news publication on global affairs, current events, and domestic and international policy. It produces content daily on its website, blending daily reporting with long-form analysis and commentary.

Overview

Foreign Policy reports and publishes:

• News and breaking developments in global politics and diplomacy.
• Analytical essays and commentary by journalists, scholars, and practitioners.
• Features on international security, trade, economics, energy, technology, and culture.
• Reports from conflicts and diplomatic negotiations worldwide.
• Its reach is both U.S. focused and global in perspective.

The publication is widely respected in policy, academic, and media communities. It has received multiple National Magazine Awards for both its print and online journalism, reflecting quality in reporting and analysis.

Where can you access the resource

This resource can be accessed via SOLO.

A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required to access this database remotely, as it is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

February’s Resource of the Month has been selected by John Southall, Bodleian Data Librarian and Subject Consultant for Economics and Sociology.

John’s choice is Web of Science API Expanded (WoS API Expanded)

Overview

WoS API Expanded Expanded offers a flexible and efficient way to work with large volumes of data, and avoids potential problems of applying TDM to a traditional Web of Science browser interface designed for smaller volume, non-programmatic manual searches.

Key benefits include:

• Programmatic access to trusted WoS data
  Researchers can retrieve large amounts of publication metadata, cited references, and citation counts directly from the Web of Science Core Collection.
• Support for large-scale and reproducible analyses
  The API enables automated data collection for systematic reviews, scientometric studies, network analyses, and longitudinal research assessment, supporting reproducibility and transparency.
• Integration with existing research workflows
  Data can be used with commonly used tools (e.g. Python, R).
• Enhanced interdisciplinary discovery
  By working at scale, researchers can explore citation patterns and connections across disciplines, helping to identify emerging areas of research.

Comparison with the Web of Science Starter API

The Starter (or Simple) API is still available as part of the Bodleian Libraries subscription. It is generally easier to use for straightforward requests such as basic metadata lookups (e.g., DOI or author checks) or linking Web of Science metadata into external applications with minimal coding. Both APIs are RESTful services requiring applications for API keys via Clarivate’s Developer Portal.

A Subject & Research Guide has been published to support this and other resources as well as outline the principles of Text and Data Mining.

Where can you access the resource

This resource can be accessed via SOLO.

A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required this database remotely, as it is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

January’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Sarah Rhodes, Subject Consultant for International Development, Forced Migration and African and Commonwealth Studies.

Sarah’s choice is Decolonization: Politics and Independence in former Colonial and Commonwealth territories

Overview

This resource brings together material from within former British colonies and Commonwealth nations, alongside some from former French and Portuguese territories, to provide valuable primary source material created during a period of enormous global change. It includes insights into the variety of systems and modes of national and international political thought that became prominent in the twentieth century, such as socialism and communism, anti-imperialism, regional independence movements, trade unionism, student activism and Pan-Africanism.

Where can you access the resource

This resource is available to access via SOLO.

A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required this database remotely, as it is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month we choose an electronic resource which we feel will be of interest to you.

Our Resource of the Month for December is Legislation of CIS Countries, or Zakonodatel’stvo stran SNG (Законодательство Стран СНГ). This Russian-language database gathers legislation from CIS countries into one searchable platform.

Resource Overview

Legislation from CIS Countries presents legislative documents – including законы, постановления and указы – from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, and the Eurasian Economic Commission. These countries produce officially sanctioned translations of their legislation into Russian, hence the breadth of coverage. The database is updated regularly, and contains easily identifiable hyperlinks to legislative amendments.

Where can you access the resource

This resource can be accessed via SOLO. A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required to access the resource remotely, as access is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

November’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Jo Gardner, Bodleian Social Science Librarian and Subject Consultant for Politics and International Relations.

Jo’s choice is BBC Monitoring: Summary of World Broadcasts 1939-2001. It was chosen because it is a recently acquired primary source collection.

Overview

BBC Monitoring was founded at the start of WWII, and continues to track, translate, summarise and analyse local media sources around the world. This online archive complements our existing subscription to BBC Monitoring which provides access to current content.

Where can you access the resource

BBC Monitoring: Summary of World Broadcasts 1939-2001 is available to access via SOLO. Please note that you will need your Single-Sign On (SSO) to access this resource remotely.

Each month, one of our Subject Librarians chooses an electronic resource which they feel will be of interest to you.

October’s Resource of the Month has been selected by Helen Worrell, Subject Consultant for Anthropology.

Helen’s choice is Black Studies Centre.

Overview

Black Studies Centre consists of scholarly journals, commissioned overview essays by top scholars in Black Studies, historic indexes, and The Chicago Defender newspaper from 1910-1975. At the heart of Black Studies Centre is Schomburg Studies on the Black Experience, consisting of essays that provide an introduction to major topics in Black Studies. Black Studies Centre provides the historical full-text of one of the most influential black newspapers in the United States, The Chicago Defender.  

Coverage: 1900 – current 

Where can you access the resource

Black Studies Centre available to access via SOLO.

A Single-Sign-On (SSO) is required to access this database remotely, as it is restricted to Oxford University students and staff members.