Bibliography Format Sheet

(Based on Modern Language Association Format)

Paper copies of this format sheet and live, personal help with writing bibliographies, are available in the school library!

 

WHAT IS A BIBLIOGRAPHY? It is a list of books and other sources used to write a research paper or report - Not necessarily every work that was examined, but those that were found useful.

 

A bibliography is located at the end of a report. The sources (books, etc...) are listed in alphabetical order by the author’s last name and are not numbered. A Works Cited list uses the same format as a bibliography but includes only those sources that were specifically cited in a report.

BASIC FORMAT FOR SOURCES IN PRINT :

Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of     

Publication.

If no author is given for a book or article, start with and alphabetize by the title.

Specific Examples:

BOOK WITH

ONE AUTHOR:    

 

Tillich, Paul.  Systematic Energy. Chicago: University of Chicago Press,1963.

 

BOOK WITH TWO AUTHORS:

 

Houghton, Walter E., and Sally Jeffreys. Energy-Water. Cambridge: Harvard    University Press, 1959.

 

BOOK WITH NO NAMED AUTHOR

 

 Energy-Wind. London: J. Watts, 1977.

Additional Examples:

SIGNED ENCYCLOPEDIA ARTICLE

 

Chambers, Ralph. "Energy-Thermal." The World Book Encyclopedia. 1979 ed.
UNSIGNED ENCYCLOPEDIA ARTICLE

 

"Solar Energy." Illustrated Science Encyclopedia. 1997 ed.
MAGAZINE OR NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

 

Johnson, Don. "Working with Solar Power." Time. 20 Nov. 2000: 70-71.

 

PAMPHLET New York State Energy Dept. A Guide To Solar Heating. New York: MLA, 1973.
PERSONAL & TELEPHONE INTERVIEWS

 

Jane, Patty. Telephone Interview. 7 May 1986.
SOUND RECORDING  U2. All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Interscope, 2000.
VIDEO RECORDING OR FILM Places in the Heart. Dir. Robert Benton. Perf. Sally Field, Danny Glover, Ed Harris, and John Malcovich.

Paramount, 1984.

BASIC FORMAT FOR ELECTRONIC SOURCES:

Author(s) Name. Name of Page. Date of Posting/Revision.  Name of Organization Associated with the site. Date of Access. <electronic address>

If no author is given for a web page or electronic source, start with and alphabetize by title.

Whenever the information is available you should list both the date material was posted or revised and the date you accessed the information. This information is often found at the bottom of a web page.

Specific examples:

WEB PAGE Felluga, Dino. High School Guide to Literary Theory. 17 Dec. 1999. Margaretville Central.

15 Nov. 2000. <http://mcs.org/theory.html>.

 

ARTICLE ON A WEB SITE

 

Underwood, Karen. "Wolves." Animal Diversity. 1999. University of Maine.       

12 Feb. 2001. <www.animaldiversity.com/wolves.html>.

 

ARTICLE IN ONLINE JOURNAL

 

Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks." Nursing. March 2000:5 pages. 5 May 2001

<http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol22.html>.

 

ARTICLE FROM CD-ROM

 

Lonecke, William. "The Civil War." Encarta. CD-ROM. Seattle: Microsoft, 2001.

 

E-MAIL Fiedler, Bill. "Re: Online Tutoring." E-mail to Barb Atkin. 1 Sep. 2001.

 

LISTSERV POSTING

 

Karper, Erin. "The Problem with Teachers." Online posting. 12 Sept. 2001. Kids complain listserv. 14

Sept. 2001 <http://mcskids.org>.

 

 If your article does not include a piece of information shown on this format sheet (i.e. the author or posting date) you should go on to the next piece of information, using the same order shown above.

More information on writing a bibliography may be found online.

"Using Modern Language Association Format." Online Writing Lab. 2001. Purdue University.   20June 2001. <http:/owl.English.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_mla.html>.

OR ask for help from the library staff!

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