Facts On File has announced the launch of World Geography and Culture Online, an online resource for studying the geography and cultures of the world. A new and improved version of Facts On File's World Atlas, this reference site takes a global approach to facilitate the study of countries, places, peoples, and geography concepts and skills. The online database makes it easy to study all aspects of a country or U.S. state-from its geography and physical features to its government, people, and society-providing both facts at a glance and in-depth coverage, the announcement states.

Features include:

* Country entries: descriptions of more than 200 countries, with information on geography, people and culture, weather and climate, history, government, and society; maps and flags; facts and figures; images; and news articles

* U.S. state profiles: descriptions of all 50 states and Washington, D.C., with political, outline, elevation, and locator maps; city and geographical features maps; flags; facts and figures; government information; biographies; timeline; and images

* Maps: more than 1,300 political, elevation, and outline maps; regional geographic and thematic maps; city, state, and physical features maps; and more

* Compare countries: a tool that compares up to 10 countries

* Compare U.S. states: a tool that compares up to 10 U.S. states

* Rank countries

* Rank U.S. state

* News articles, updated regularly, that are accessible from country records and can be filtered by date range or by topic

* Dynamic full citations in both MLA, 7th Edition and Chicago Manual of Style formats

* Gazetteer

* Geography concepts and principles

- Flags and images

- Geography glossary

* Conversion calculator

* "Did You Mean...?" search feature

* Link to "Most Viewed" records

* Site map

* Save-to-folder function

* Persistent record links.

Source: Fact On File, www.factsonfile.com