Submitted by Carrie Macfarlane
We won’t be offering LISterine workshops for the remainder of the summer, but don’t let that prevent you from freshening your professional perspective. Stay Fresh! Here’s how…
Posts Tagged ‘Research & Instruction’
Trial access to IMF statistical databases
May 8th, 2009 by Brenda EllisSubmitted by Brenda Ellis
Wonder how we get new library databases? Librarians are inundated by offers for new databases as well as offers to migrate existing resources to online versions or new platforms, which we investigate for relevancy to the curriculum, ease of use, cost, etc. The publishers often give us “trial” access for online resources so we can try before we buy. We currently get a number of statistical publications from the IMF (Int’l Monetary Fund) in print format and/or CD-Rom. We have trial access to the online versions until May 31st. (single user access to the online should cost about the same as what we currently pay for print/cd-roms). Try them out and see if you can figure out how to use them. Comments to me are welcome. Here are the databases:
International Financial Statistics
These are also on the Economics Subject Guide go/econguide and the new databases/trials page go/trials
NExpress Enhancements
May 8th, 2009 by Elin WaagenSubmitted by Elin Waagen
In collaboration with NExpress partner libraries, LIS has recently implemented a couple of very nice enhancements to the NExpress service we offer.
NExpress now offers a third renewal to accommodate research needs.
Midd now loans out DVD’s from the Browsing Collection – and we can now request DVD’s from NExpress partner libraries.
Books – 28 day loan
DVD’s – 7 day loan
Pass the Word!
Midd staff, faculty and students who will be living or traveling near our NExpress partner libraries during the summer can borrow directly from them – Colby, Bates, Bowdoin, Northeastern, Williams and Wellesley – with their Midd ID.
Back-up help available for Info Desk
April 24th, 2009 by Doreen BernierSubmitted by Jean Simmons
When you’re working at the Information Desk,
are you reluctant to interrupt another staff person
to get help with a question?
Remember Pidgin
One of Reference’s primary roles is to help people with their research. So it’s okay to interrupt—especially if a pidgin green light is on! To see who’s readily available, go to the start menu and then pidgin, to get phone numbers and to see who’s signed in. (Pidgin is also available on Circulation Desk computers.)
Even if there are no green lights, please don’t hesitate to refer a research question to someone in Reference. If it’s off hours, encourage the questioner to send queries electronically. (This mailbox is checked several times a day.)
http://blogs.middlebury.edu/libforms/2009/01/12/ask-a-librarian/
Handout for Inaugural LISterine Workshop
April 24th, 2009 by Carrie MacfarlaneSubmitted by Carrie Macfarlane
Thanks to Hans Raum for leading the inaugural LISterine Workshop on government information resources last week, and thanks to all who attended. In case you weren’t able to attend, you’ll find a link to a handout in the description of the workshop here: Government Information Resources.
Interesting use of video
March 16th, 2009 by Sheldon SaxSubmitted by Shel Sax
Dartmouth College has developed a short video to teach first year students about their library resources. The video is avaiable on youtube in the Dartmouth channel. You can access it at:
Spring Symposium
March 9th, 2009 by Carrie MacfarlaneAn information session for participants in this year’s Spring Symposium was held on Wednesday night, and I attended on behalf of LIS. I shared our new Resources for Presenters site, which outlines the support that LIS and the CTLR offer. LIS will provide workshops on making maps and posters, feedback on practice run-throughs of oral presentations, and assistance with PowerPoint. In addition, the CTLR will run two public speaking workshops. The Undergraduate Research Office is expecting about 130 students to participate in this year’s symposium, which is scheduled for Friday, April 17 from 1-6 pm in McCardell Bicentennial Hall. This is the third annual Spring Symposium, and participants from previous years consistently report that it was a significant and rewarding experience. All presentations are open to the public.
RefWorks for Peer Writing Tutors
March 2nd, 2009 by Carrie MacfarlaneLibrarians are offering RefWorks workshops to Peer Writing Tutors again this spring. We had good attendance in our fall sessions, and the PWTs requested repeat workshops this semester. Our first spring workshop was held this week. Twelve signed up in advance, and even more attended. (It must be thesis season!) A second workshop is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11.
Participate In Your Virtual Government
March 2nd, 2009 by Joseph AntonioliSubmitted by Joe Antonioli
The Terra Project is a virtual state simulation run by Professor Quinn Mecham of Middlebury College, hosted in the online virtual world Second Life. Citizens of the Terra Project log in to Second Life in order to run for office, vote, make and enforce policy, and perform other functions of government, all within a virtual environment. This simulation is currently in its second iteration as part of Professor Mecham’s Spring 09′ PSCI 0103 introductory course.
The Terra Project is now open to all interested members of the Middlebury college community! This issue was voted upon by the citizens of Terra during the fall term and was passed as part of the first ammendment to the constitution of Terra. For more information on the constitutional referendum and other pieces of legislature passed during the fall term please check out the Terra Project site.
Second Life users can find the Terra Project on Middlebury’s hosted land by following this SLurl (Second Life url).
Access to Congressional Research Service Reports
February 13th, 2009 by Hans RaumSubmitted by Hans Raum
Wikileaks recently released a comprehensive set of reports by the Congressional Research Service that had not previously been available to federal depository libraries or the general public. The highly regarded and non-partisan reports had been previously available only to members of Congress and Wired magazine called their concealment “The biggest Congressional scandal of the digital age.” Senator Patrick Leahy, who is a strong advocate of freedom of the press, has fought for years to make the reports public.
The Congressional Research Service is regarded as “Congress’s brain” and has a budget of over $100 million a year and the reports written by their experts cover a broad range of contentious issues, from the U. S. relationship with Israel to the financial collapse. Public access to these reports is now available at http://www.wikileaks.org/wiki/Change_you_can_download:_a_billion_in_secret_Congressional_reports
Well over 2,000 reports have been updated in the past year and the oldest report goes back to 1990. The recent release of these reports is an important milestone in the development of a more open and accountable government.
RefWorks for Atwater Commons
January 26th, 2009 by Carrie MacfarlaneCarrie Macfarlane and Bryan Carson led a RefWorks workshop at Atwater Commons last week. We invited students to bring laptops so that we could install the RefWorks plug-in called Write-n-Cite, which inserts footnotes in Word documents. Each student left the workshop ready to start saving references. One student provided this feedback on RefWorks: “I will [use RefWorks] because it’s a tool that can help you not only in college but outside school as well.”
Collection Management Policies for Reference and Music
January 26th, 2009 by Judy WattsSubmitted by Judy Watts
Carrie MacFarlane, Jean Simmons, Cynthia Watters, and I are currently hard at work pounding out guidelines that describe and define the Reference Collection. This hasn’t been done in some time. Changes in technologies, the shift to digital formats, new curricular developments, and the need to serve students and faculty in the libraries and around the globe, not to mention the budget, are forcing us to examine everything from what should be acquired, to formats, to deselection and retention policies. We expect to have a draft ready soon so that other Reference Librarians can go over it with a fine-tooth comb.
Joy Pile is going through the same process for the Music collection. In each case we must establish the purpose and scope of the collection to guide our acquisition decisions. Then, we must enumerate and define factors to apply to each title under consideration, e.g., anticipated use, authority, audience level, cost, alternative sources for the information, and platform stability for digital sources. Our policies also must inform selectors of the procedures to follow to place requests for new resources. Finally, we’ll look at how we assess the effectiveness of the collections, and describe the process for removing items from the collections.
Us vs. Them?
January 9th, 2009 by Michael LynchSubmitted by Mike Lynch
Stephen Abram has a nice post on his blog Stephen’s Lighthouse called Compare and Contrast. It links to two powerpoint presentations from Lee Rainie at the 2009 CES Consumer Electronics Show. One is Baby Boomers in the Digital Age and the other is Teens and the Internet.
University of South Carolina Library Degree Program
January 9th, 2009 by Doreen BernierSubmitted by Brenda Ellis
The University of South Carolina School of Library and Information Science plans to begin a Master’s program for a regional “cohort” of students in the New England region. This is an expansion of a program that was previously conducted in Maine. The program is proposed to begin in the fall semester of 2009; beginning students may also be admitted to the program in spring 2010 and fall 2010.
Classes will be presented as an interactive online program utilizing a variety of technologies. Attendance on the home campus of the University is not a required part of the program. Students admitted to the program will have several on site experiences at a location(s) in New England, including (but not limited to): a beginning orientation, portfolio preparation and state association meetings.
For more information, contact: Tilda Reeder, Admissions Coordinator, Student Services Office: tildareeder@scu.edu
The University of South Carolina is located in Columbia; phone number for the School lo Library and Information Science: 803-777-3858.
LISt News from Research & Instruction
December 12th, 2008 by Doreen BernierThe Undergraduate Research Office is gearing up again for its spring Student Research Symposium, which is scheduled for April 17, 2009. Students from all classes are invited to present their research, and LIS provides them with both research and technology support. Watch for updates and links to the Symposium web site and LIS support pages.
From Brenda: The end of the term brings the last push to finish papers. Many econ students have emailed, stopped in, or made appointments for help finding data. Usually they’ve already looked in the obvious places and crawled the web, so their questions aren’t easy. Sometimes a gov’t or international org. website has some of what they need, but they need earlier years, other countries, another variable, etc.
Then there are the usual students who are looking for books and articles for papers. They are appreciative of the help they get both from librarians helping them to identify resources and from the staff and students in ILL, who get all those resources we don’t have.
One of the highlights of the semester was participating in the Jane Austen Dinner and Dance held for Mary Ellen Bertolini’s FYSE1144 Austen and Film class. It’s held downstairs in the CFA. Brenda and Mack joined the students in the class for a catered dinner featuring foods mentioned in the Austen novels and then joined in the country dancing afterwards. We all had so much fun we didn’t want to stop dancing. See: https://segue.middlebury.edu/view/html/site/fyse1144a-f08
Kids’ Informal Learning with Digital Media: An Ethnographic Investigation of Innovative Knowledge Cultures
December 5th, 2008 by Sheldon SaxSubmitted by Shel Sax
This is a recently completed three-year collaborative project funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Carried out by researchers at the University of Southern California and University of California, Berkeley, the digital youth project explores how kids use digital media in their everyday lives.
Digital Youth Media has the complete report as a white paper and a two page summary in pdf format. If you’ve wondered how today’s youth are using digital media, It is interesting reading.
LIS Authors
December 5th, 2008 by Judy WattsSubmitted by Judy Watts
Geospatial Technology Support in Small Academic Libraries: Time to Jump on Board?, by Carrie M. Macfarlane and Christopher M. Rodgers, Middlebury College, has just appeared in the Fall 2008 issue of Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship. This article describes in some detail the work that Carrie did with GIS Interns Katie Clagett and Chris Rogers leading to the Google Earth and GIS support that is now offered by Digital Media Tutors in the Wilson Lab.
Congratulations to Carrie and Chris for producing a piece that is both entertaining and useful to other institutions attempting to find a way to offer support for geospatial technologies. What is described in the article represents a huge commitment by three very dedicated individuals – Carrie, Katie, and Chris – leading to the successful application of geospatial techniques across the curriculum. There were many challenges along the way, including rapidly developing technology and the end of funding for GIS interns, but the result is that students and faculty may now find a wide range of support to suit their needs. Kudos, too, to Joe Antonioli and the Digital Media tutors for stepping up to the challenge and adding yet more ways to help.
The Open Knowledge Initiative and a Network for Content and Curriculum
November 21st, 2008 by Alex ChapinSubmitted by Alex Chapin
Adam Franco and I attended meetings last week hosted by the MIT Office of Educational Innovation and Technology. Adam attended a meeting focused on OSID V3, the next version of the Open Knowledge Initiative open service interface definitions. Harmoni, our application framework, uses the OSIDs to provide services to Segue and Concerto. The latest version of the OSIDs solves some challenging obstacles to application interoperability. Adam will be collaborating with a developer from Sakai to create a prototype of an “enterprise service bus” that would demonstrate the power of OSIDs to allow multiple systems to share content. I pitched a similar idea in a brief presentation I did at Project Bamboo workshop earlier this month and in my contributions to discussions of a “services framework” on the the Bamboo wiki.
Concurrent with the OSID V3 meeting that Adam participated in was as another meeting I attended that focused on the idea of a “network for content and curriculum.” This is a logical extension of the Open Knowledge Initiative, exploring ways to make it easier for individuals and institutions to discover, access and re-mix educational resources. The meeting showcased the PERSEE project, a program at the University of Lumière Lyon II to digitize French scientific journals with the goal of provide interoperable access to this material.
The Vermont Collection Update
November 21st, 2008 by Doreen BernierSubmitted by Lynn Saunders
Last week I had the opportunity to participate in a focus group gathered to review some websites created by the Center for Rural Studies. As a Federal Depository we are affiliated with the Center for Rural Studies as a State Data affiliate. The first site we reviewed was Vermont Indicators Online. This site is very user friendly and a great resource for Census information for Vermonters. The Center has compiled much used Census information in an easy to use format. You can check it out at http://maps.vcgi.org/indicators/.
Next we reviewed their Vermont Housing Data site. Here they have compiled state and federal housing statistics. You can even check out what you might be able to afford for a house. You can find this housing website at http://www.housingdata.org/.
Our final website review was the Vermont Planning Information Center. Again CSR (Center for Rural Studies) has compiled a great deal of information for local and state planners. There are manuals, guides and laws online. The site is user friendly and provides a comprehensive list of resources. This planning site can be found at: http://www.vpic.info/ .
The focus groups all agreed that the websites were user friendly, provided a great deal of information, and were very useful. The focus group was small but diverse.
Brown Bag Web Tools Series
November 14th, 2008 by Elin WaagenSubmitted by Elin Waagen
Last week we held the 3rd in a series of Brown Bag Web 2.0 sessions.
If you missed it – be sure to put the next one on your calendar!
(Let us know if you want to share a tool you are using)
Many thanks to our presenters!
Here is summary of fun – and productive – tools LIS staff are currently using:
Jeff uses iGoogle to keep multiple resources in one easy to access place
Adam F uses Twitter to log his daily activity – and extracts a list when its time to write his PFDP
Mike uses FeedDemon for PC to easily track sites he is following
Adam F uses NetNewsWire – the Mac version – as his reader
Elin uses CommonCraft as a site for easy explanations of web 2.0 tools
Mary uses GoodReads to build her personal reading list and to see and share what others are reading
Mike uses ChaCha to settle bar bets
Mike uses RememberTheMilk to track everything he has to do
Mike uses Jott as a reminder service
Adam D uses GrandCentral to personalize and control his phone
Bryan uses Delicious to share and store his bookmarks
Joe A uses Facebook to remember birthdays and to connect with family
So…not only do you get to have fun, you can also win a prize!
The following people have won coffee mugs (with coffee card included):Steve Bertolino, Pij Slater, and Mike Lynch
Others have won silly toy prizes – for non-web fun: Rachel Manning, Mary Backus, Jean Simmons, Judy Watts, Mack Roark, Alex Chapin, Adam Franco and Carrie Macfarlane.
Do you have a fun web tool that you are using for work or play? Have you discovered a new tool still in beta?
Interested in sharing it with others in LIS?
Want to present? Presentations are casual and short – no lengthy preparation required.
Just want to share an idea that we can present for you?
If so, please contact Elin or Bryan.
Save the date and time!
The next Tasty Web Tidbits mealtime session is scheduled for Tuesday 11/25 at 6 pm in Lib 105. The idea is to get together, have some fun and share the web tools we are using. Presentations are about 10 minutes long max. Each session has 3 – 4 presenters with time for spur of the moment sharing. There is a prize drawing at each session. Attendance at all sessions increases the chance to win the grand prize in December.
Please bring your own bag meal – and enjoy a fun meal-time hour with co-workers.
Hope you can join us!