MIT Libraries News

Completely transformed over the course of winter break and IAP, Dewey Library’s 2nd floor is attractive, bright and welcoming. Highlights include:

• 9 new group study rooms, each equipped with LCD screen and whiteboard
• More than 40 newly-refinished carrels with power outlets
• New carpeting and cork flooring dramatically reduce noise
• Water-conserving fixtures in bathrooms
• Energy-efficient lighting automatically turns on when you enter the room

Renovation of the basement has now begun, and will be completed by the end of the spring semester. The first floor will be renovated over the summer. Dewey will continue to be open for business as usual throughout the project.

Tell us what you think either via email (ReDew@mit.edu) or by filling out a comment card at the library. See http://info-libraries.mit.edu/redew/ for more information.

MIT GIS Services will be offering a series of workshops to introduce the MIT community to Geographic Information Systems (GIS). All sessions will be held in the MIT GIS Lab, Rotch Library, 7-238. These workshops are restricted to the MIT community and will require an active kerberos account. No registration required – seats are available on a first come basis. MIT GIS Services are cooperatively supported by the MIT Libraries, OEIT, and IS&T.

• Introduction to GIS using ESRI ArcGIS Desktop and QGIS (FOSS)
  Friday, February 20, 2-4 pm
• Site Selection – Making Spatial Decisions Using a GIS
  Friday, February 27, 2-4 pm
• Using Elevation Data and Hydrographic Tools in a GIS
  Friday, March 6, 2-4 pm
• Model Builder and Python
  Friday, March 13, 2-4 pm

Rotch Library IAP Film Series:

When: 11:30 AM – 2:00 PM, Friday, January 30, 2009

Where: Rotch Library Conference Room, 7-238

Click the image above to view a trailer for the film.

Street Fight (2005)

Follows the bare-knuckles race for Mayor of Newark, N.J. between 32 year-old Cory Booker and four-term incumbent Sharpe James, the undisputed champion of New Jersey politics. Fought in Newark’s neighborhoods and housing projects, the battle pits the young challenger against an old style political machine that uses any means necessary, including harassment and police intimidation, to crush its opponents. (82 minutes)

This film is a part of the Rotch Library DVD collection.

Contact: Heather McCann, 7-238, x3-7098, <hmccann_at_mit.edu>

Sponsor: MIT Libraries hosted by Heather McCann, Allison Benedetti, Omar Khalidi, Jonah Jenkins

Enrollment: Seating is limited; first come, first served, limited to 20 participants.

Rotch Library IAP Film Series:

When: 11:30 AM – 2:00 PM, Thursday, January 29, 2009

Where: Rotch Library Conference Room, 7-238

Click the image above to view a trailer for the film.

Manufactured Landscapes (2007)

Follows photographer Edward Burtynsky, internationally acclaimed for his large-scale photographs of nature transformed by industry, as he travels through China photographing the effects of that country’s massive industrial revolution. (90 minutes)

This film is a part of the Rotch Library DVD collection.

Contact: Heather McCann, 7-238, x3-7098, <hmccann_at_mit.edu>

Sponsor: MIT Libraries hosted by Heather McCann, Allison Benedetti, Omar Khalidi, Jonah Jenkins

Enrollment: Seating is limited; first come, first served, limited to 20 participants.

The MIT Libraries were recently given 37 hand-colored lithographs from John James Audubon’sViviparous Quadrupeds of North America. The rare lithographs were generously donated by Mr. Ron Juster and family, in honor of Josh Juster, M. Eng. 2004. Several of the prints from the collection can be viewed in the Libraries’ Maihaugen Gallery where they are on display as part of the Celebration of Gifts exhibit.

The prints embody one of the 19th century’s most artistically successful attempts to catalog, illustrate, and promote understanding of the natural world. Following the monumental success of his publication Birds of America, naturalist and artist John James Audubon (1785-1851) attempted to produce accurate illustrations of every quadruped native to North America. In an effort to limit such a massive undertaking, he decided to include only viviparous animals (those that give birth to live young). The result was 150 paintings that are widely celebrated for both their scientific accuracy and their artistic beauty.

The Celebration of Gifts exhibit runs through February 19th in the Maihaugen Gallery, adjacent to the Institute Archives (14N-118). Gallery hours are Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.

Check out all of the MIT Libraries IAP events for the week covering Monday, January 26 through Friday, January 30. A complete listing for all of IAP is also available.

Practically Genomic

Introduction to Google Maps API

Using Elevation Data and Hydrographic Tools in a GIS

QUOSA Information Manager Demo: Retrieve and Organize Article PDFs

Going Beyond Google Scholar: Using the Web of Science and other citation searching resources to discover articles

Compost with Worms…in Your Apartment!!

Mapping and Using US Census Data

Fiddle-dee-dee during IAP

Managing Research Data 101

EndNote Basics

IAP @ Humanities Library Film Series: Special Effects at the Movies

Finding & Using Historical Newspapers

Model Builder

Biotechnology Patent Fundamentals and Searching

Make your Paper File Cabinets Searchable: How to Manage Paper and Electronic Documents Effectively

RefWorks Basics

Please note that some sessions have limited availability or may require advance sign-up requirements. If you have further questions, please see individual listings for appropriate contact information.

Rotch Library IAP Film Series:

When: 11:30 AM – 2:00 PM, Friday, January 23, 2009

Where: Rotch Library Conference Room, 7-238

Click the image above to view a trailer for the film.

Helvetica (2007)
A documentary about typography, graphic design and global visual culture, which looks at the proliferation of one typeface as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives. (80 minutes)

This film is a part of the Rotch Library DVD collection.

Contact: Heather McCann, 7-238, x3-7098, <hmccann_at_mit.edu>

Sponsor: MIT Libraries hosted by Heather McCann, Allison Benedetti, Omar Khalidi, Jonah Jenkins

Enrollment: Seating is limited; first come, first served, limited to 20 participants.

Check out all of the MIT Libraries IAP events for the week covering Monday, January 19 through Friday, January 23. A complete listing for all of IAP is also available.

Patent Searching Fundamentals

Introduction to GIS Using ESRI ArcGIS Desktop

Bioinformatics for Beginners

Using NCBI’s BLAST

Organic? All-natural? Grass-fed? What Does It All MEAN??

Tips and Tricks for Keeping Up With Information: Mechanical Engineering

Open Source and Free Mapping Tools

Managing Your References: Overview of EndNote, RefWorks and Zotero

BIOBASE ExPlain Training

RefWorks Basics

Patent Searching Fundamentals

Going Beyond Google Scholar: Using the Web of Science and Other Citation Searching Resources to Discover Articles

Introduction to GIS Using Free Software Tools and Data

Career Research: Targeting and Researching Employers

Site Selection – Making Spatial Decisions Using a GIS

EndNote Basics

Please note that some sessions have limited availability or may require advance sign-up requirements. If you have further questions, please see individual listings for appropriate contact information.

Check out all of the MIT Libraries IAP events for the week covering Monday, January 12 through Friday, January 16. A complete listing for all of IAP is also available.

Managing Your References: Overview of EndNote, RefWorks and Zotero

Tips and Tricks for Keeping Up With Information: Materials Science & Engineering

Japanese bookbinding

EndNote Basics

Finding Research Datasets: ICPSR and the Harvard-MIT Data Center

Bioinformatics for Beginners

Managing Research Data 101

Introduction to Company and Industry Research for Engineers and Scientists

Basics of Obtaining a Patent

RefWorks Basics

Introduction to SciFinder on the Web

Humanities and Music Library Bookmobile

Keeping Current: Using RSS Feeds to Stay Ahead in Your Research

Please note that some sessions have limited availability or may require advance sign-up requirements. If you have further questions, please see individual listings for appropriate contact information.

Researchers and students at MIT enjoy access to vast amounts of information from a variety of sources and in a variety of formats. Finding, manipulating, organizing and managing the fire-hose quantity of content that comes across your desktop can be a challenge. While we can’t offer you a ‘magic bullet’ solution for this challenge, the MIT Libraries are sponsoring a series of IAP sessions that showcase tools, training and techniques that can help you both find sources for data and to become better custodians of your own content. These sessions are organized into sub-thematic groups and are offered throughout the month. Contact the individual session sponsors if you have any questions.

CITATION MANAGEMENT

• EndNote Basics
• RefWorks Basics
• Managing Your References: Overview of EndNote, RefWorks and Zotero

DATA, DOCUMENT AND IMAGE MANAGEMENT

• Finding Research Datasets: ICPSR and the Harvard-MIT Data Center
• Make your Paper File Cabinets Searchable: How to Manage Paper and Electronic Documents Effectively
• Managing Research Data 101
• QUOSA Information Manager Demo: Retrieve and Organize Article PDFs

BIOINFORMATICS

• BIOBASE Knowledge Library and Explain Analysis System Training
• Bioinformatics for Beginners
• Practically Genomic
• Using NCBI’s BLAST

GIS

• Introduction to GIS Using ESRI ArcGIS Desktop
• Introduction to GIS Using Free Software Tools and Data
• Introduction to Google Maps API
• Mapping and Using US Census Data
• Model Builder
• Open Source and Free Mapping Tools
• Site Selection – Making Spatial Decisions Using a GIS
• Using Elevation Data and Hydrographic Tools in a GIS

Please note that some sessions have limited availability or may require advance sign-up requirements. If you have further questions, please see individual listings for appropriate contact information.

Also browse the entire gamut of offerings by the MIT Libraries.

Rotch Library IAP Film Series:

When: Thursday and Fridays during IAP; Thursday, January 8, 2009 – Friday, January 30, 2009

Where: Rotch Library Conference Room, 7-238

Did you know that the Rotch Library of Architecture and Planning maintains an impressive DVD collection, with new titles added regularly?

Join us as we explore the scope of the collection, from from how we eat and farm (King Corn) to African mud architecture (Future of Mud) to the way type affects our lives (Helvetica). We’ll be showing a different film or two each day. Bring your lunch, we’ll provide the entertainment!

More information about each showing will be posted on this blog, and on the Rotch Library website.

Contact: Heather McCann, 7-238, x3-7098, <hmccann_at_mit.edu>

Sponsor: MIT Libraries hosted by Heather McCann, Allison Benedetti, Omar Khalidi, Jonah Jenkins

Enrollment: Seating is limited; first come, first served, limited to 20 participants.

Need data to answer a research question? Interested in analyzing raw datasets with micro-level records about individual respondents?

This hands-on workshop will familiarize you with the resources of the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) and the Harvard-MIT Data Center, which provide access to datasets in the social sciences and related fields. Topics will include the structure of data files, finding and downloading datasets, and understanding data documentation.

NOTE: Advance sign-up is required. Registration due by January 13. This session is limited to 20 participants.

WHEN: Wednesday, January 14, 2 – 3:30pm

WHERE: DIRC, 14N-132

Contact Kate McNeill with any questions and/or to register.

Are you wondering what an RSS feed is and how it can help your research?

Want to learn more about using GIS, EndNote or RefWorks?

Need to find chemical information, social science data, or patents?

Want to learn Japanese book-binding, improve your photography, or how to compost with worms?

Look no further! Take a peek at all of the MIT Libraries IAP Activities offered in 2009.

ICPSR Summer Internship Program

The Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) now is accepting applications for its annual summer internship program for undergraduates that will take place from June 8-August 14, 2009.

• Gain experience using statistical programs such as Stata, SAS, and SPSS.
• Learn data processing skills to prepare social science data for archiving and distribution.
• Deadline for application is February 2, 2009.
• Stipend given.

For more information, see ICPSR’s page on the program or contact Katherine McNeill, Data Services and Economics Librarian, at mcneillh@mit.edu

ICPSR Undergraduate Research Paper Competitions

ICPSR is sponsoring two competitions to highlight the best undergraduate student research papers using quantitative data.

The objective is to encourage undergraduates to explore the social sciences by means of critical analysis of a topic supported by quantitative analysis of a dataset(s) held within the ICPSR archive and presented in written form.

• One competition covers any dataset(s) held within the ICPSR archive or any of its special topic archives. In the second competition, the paper must address issues relevant to underrepresented minorities in the United States and draw data from the Minority Data Resource Center.
• Up to three cash prizes will be awarded for each competition.  The winner will receive a monetary award of $1,000 (second place receives $750 and third place $500).
• Deadline for submission is May 31, 2009.

For details on the competition, see ICPSR’s page on the competition or contact Katherine McNeill, Data Services and Economics Librarian, at mcneillh@mit.edu.

Hayden Library — Humanities & Science — will stay open 24 hours a day during Finals

from Wednesday, Dec. 10th at 8am to Friday, Dec. 19th at 7pm.

Overnight hours are for the MIT community only.

Effective November 3rd, all Dewey Library materials with a 30-day loan item status will be given a due date of March 2, 2009.

In preparation for the upcoming renovation, 14,000 linear feet of books need to be removed from the second floor by December. We will move as many of these materials as possible to the first floor and basement. The rest will be temporarily in storage and will continue to be available by requesting an item in Barton.

In order to help us manage the collection during this period of reduced capacity, we are implementing the Dewey Renovation Extended Loan Period.

The due date on all materials already on loan prior to November 3rd will be changed automatically to reflect the new due date. Courtesy notices explaining this action will be sent to all affected patrons. The recall policy will continue to apply during this period.

You could win a $25 Amazon.com gift certificate…just for checking out books at Dewey Library! Now through November 30th, you can register to win every time you use the self-checkout machine at Dewey.

Just fill out the bottom of your self-check receipt and drop it in the box. Three winners will be drawn at the end of November and notified by email.

Good luck!

The following classes will be taught by the Harvard-MIT Data Center (HMDC) Statistical Consultant in fall 2008.

1. Introduction to Stata
Get an introduction to Stata, the statistical analysis software package commonly used at MIT. With hands-on exercises, learn how to import and manage datasets. Novices welcome!

When: two repeat sessions, attend either of the following:

• Tuesday, October 7th, 12-2pm or
• Wednesday, October 22nd, 12-2pm

2. Introduction to Regression Using Stata
This hands-on class will provide a comprehensive introduction to estimating the linear regression model using ordinary least squares in Stata. Prerequisites: General familiarity with Stata (such as taking the above Intro. workshop) and the linear regression model.

When: Friday, October 31st, 12-2pm

3. Introduction to R
Get an introduction to R, the open-source system for statistical computation and graphics available on Athena. With hands-on exercises, learn how to import and manage datasets, create R objects, and generate figures. Novices welcome!

When: Friday, October 10th, 12-2pm

Note: All Workshops Held In: E53-220

Space is limited. To register, contact: Katherine McNeill, mcneillh@mit.edu.

See also: Consulting: Interested in one-on-one help with statistical analysis and software? The Harvard-MIT Data Center (HMDC) Statistical Consultant can help you via email or an in-person consultation. Contact her via our email form.

Need real-time coverage of news, commentary, research, analysis, and data on global macroeconomic information?  Then try RGE Monitor, a new database from the MIT Libraries, that lets you track this information in an easy, centralized source.  Note: users may be asked to set up an account in order to access our subscription.

Access the database at http://libraries.mit.edu/get/rge.

Please join us for the final Town Meeting about the Dewey Library renovation on Tuesday, September 9th at 5:30 p.m. in E53-216. We will provide an overview of the project and hope to receive feedback from members of the MIT community on the plans. You bring the comments and we’ll bring the pizza!

More information about the project is available on our renovation website at:

http://info-libraries.mit.edu/redew/ .