Tip 11: Library Polices. Like any large organization the UA Libraries has a set of policies that govern library use. Policies provide guidance and even answer specific questions. A few examples: For how long can faculty check out a book? How does the Library Annex operate? How do I donate books to the library? How does interlibrary loan service work? What does the Code of Conduct say to users? What is acceptable use of computing resources?
Go to Polices.
Tip 10 Libraries’ Catalog (also known as Classic Catalog). Before Scout came along, faculty consulted Classic Catalog to find books and journals in the UA Libraries. Classic Catalog is still a useful tool. In particular, Classic Catalog offers a convenient way to find out what journals are in the UA Libraries, both the archival print journals and the newer electronic journals. Note, Classic Catalog is not used to find specific articles.
Go to Classic Catalog.
Tip 9: Research Guides. We have developed a series of simple and convenient guides to get faculty and students started when first using the library. They’re called LibGuides. Each guide is built to acquaint you with library resources which are available to support your work. We have a guide for every major subject area: geology, nursing, civil engineering, etc. The guides cover ways to find books, list important databases, identify research tools, and point to key Internet resources.
Go to LibGuides.
Tip 8: Instruction. Rodgers Library likes to share information about its services and collections and further help users achieve information competencies. We can prepare custom lectures or workshops focused on any topic of interest. If you choose, a librarian can come to one of your departmental meetings or a class which you teach to do a presentation. In addition, we often conduct instruction inside Rodgers Library on high-interest topics. If you have a request, please contact us or submit a request using this form.
Go to Instruction Request.
Tip 7: Print Books & E-books. Rodgers Library has a substantial assortment of print books and e-books. Since about 2010, we’ve acquired e-books only, unless a faculty member specifically requests a print edition of a particular title. Our print books are on the 2nd floor of the library and for older and less used print titles in the Annex. For 2015 we will get all Wiley and Springer e-books, as well as titles from other publishers, such as ACS. Scout is an excellent tool for finding books. In Scout, execute a word search. In step 2, under the heading “Refine Results,” in the left-hand column, choose Source Types and then limit search results to just “Books.”
Go to print and e-books search.
Tip 6: E-Journals and Print Journals. There are multiple pathways to finding journals at Rodgers Library. For a quick search for a specific e-journal, our e-journals page does the job. Remember that some older journals are still in print format only. To get complete results of Rodger Library journal holdings, both print journals and e-journals, do a look-up in Classic Catalog.
Go to Classic Catalog
Tip 5: Academic Software. Software plays a central role in learning and research. As such Rodgers Library offers both productivity and special software loaded on desktop computers. Examples include Adobe Creative Cloud, MATLAB, SAS, and Microsoft Project.
Go to academic software.
RODGERS LIBRARY FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
Join the Celebration
Rodgers Library 25th anniversary celebration is this Thursday, October 15, 2015. Rodgers Library will celebrate 25 years of service. In 1990, the all new Rodgers Library opened. The facility is a merger of two separate libraries, one for engineering (in H.M. Comer Hall) one for science (in Lloyd Hall). Much has happened over the past 25 years. Learn about our progress. Please come and celebrate with us. Location: Rodgers Library.
Program:
• 1:30 pm: music by professor Alan Lane (Chemical and Biological Engineering Department)
• 2:00 pm: brief remarks by Kevin Whitaker, Interim UA Provost
• Exhibits showing Rodgers timeline and progress
• Refreshments for all
• Giveaways
Tip 4: InterLibrary loan. Over the years Rodgers Library has acquired thousands of books and journals. But the literature is way too large for us to own or license everything that you may want. Fortunately the UA Libraries is a member of a national network of libraries and participates in RapidILL. So we can get what you need. If a book or a journal article not available from the UA Libraries, use ILLiad to make a request. If a book, it will be sent to us by a lending library and be available for you to pick up at the Circulation Desk in Gorgas Library when it arrives. If you request an article, the article will be scanned by the lending organization and sent to your ILLiad account. Some articles arrive in 24 hours.
Go to InterLibrary loan.
Tip 3: Databases. Databases offer a great way to find information on specific subjects. It’s often good advice to start a search using a database that matches with a particular discipline, such as the IEEE Digital Library (electrical engineering) or BIOSIS Previews (biology), for example. General purpose science databases such as the Web of Science or Scopus are great too. Each database has its own special interface. While searching a database, you can “click through” to full-text content when available.
Go to full list of databases.
Tip 2: The Annex. Beginning in 2003, we started to move books and bound journal volumes from Rodgers Library to the Annex. The Annex is closed stacks building located off 15th Street southwest of the Campus. To retrieve an item from the Annex while searching in Scout, go to Location bar near the bottom of the page and choose “Request this” and then click on “Place a hold, recall, or request for this item” If you are asking for a journal article, it will be scanned at the Annex and sent to your e-mail account.
Go to the Annex page.
Books are an important resource in science, engineering, and nursing. Both students and faculty can benefit from content in books. Books are a great source to learn about a topic or find information for a classroom activity. Books often have content suitable for research activities as well. Whatever the purpose, books are an essential tool for scholarship.
Annually, thousands of sci-tech and nursing books are published by professional associations and commercial publishers. Many of these books are acquired as print or e-books by Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering. We do not, however, acquire every title that’s published even if there’s a match with UA’s curriculum and research agendas. Still it’s important to remember that nearly all books are acquired by one or more academic libraries in North America.
The good news: Academic libraries in North America share collections and all of us are beneficiaries of this resource sharing. In essence you have access to most of the books owned by other academic libraries. WorldCat is the primary database used to make this happen. WorldCat contains both current and archival books on every subject. Go to WorldCat database.
EndNote, a citation management tool, is ready for all UA students and faculty. Here are some of the major characteristics of EndNote highlighted at a workshop offered by Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering on Friday:
• End Note is a citation management tool
• EndNote is a desktop application while RefWorks is a web-based application
• Start by creating a new EndNote library
• Most databases have an export function to EndNote (examples, SciFinder and Scopus)
• When you are ready to export choose RIS format
• With tabs on the far right side of your EndNote Library you can import citations, metadata, and articles in PDF format
• Simply highlight citations in your EndNote Library and then click on FIND FULL TEXT and it will import PDFs (if we have access to the resource)
• Existing articles on one’s hard drive can be imported to EndNote as well
• EndNote has many bibliographic styles to choose from and many more can be added
• Word has an EndNote Plug In for citing within text and preparing references at the end of documents
• If a citation is incorrect while in Word, make a change in EndNote and the Word document will update automatically
EndNote is a powerful piece of software. It streamlines and simplifies citation management. As an added bonus EndNote creates a fully searchable library for later use. EndNote information.
Submitted by Mary Ann Robbins
This summer the UA Libraries launched a new Web site. The new site is a gateway to all the services, collections, and facilities offered by Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering as well as Gorgas, Bruno, McLure and Hoole libraries. The new site features responsive design making Web pages easy to read and simple to navigate. The site is convenient for use on both desktop and mobile devices. Using the search box at the top of the homepage, users can find a wide range of resources. Other boxes on the homepage show library hours and lead to key services and resources, such as databases, interlibrary loan, e-journals, e-resources, Ask-A-Librarian, the libraries’ catalog, and Scout, as well as a library staff directory. Information on events and news are also displayed. At the bottom of the homepage, links lead to some specific collections, helpful resources, and individual libraries. Enjoy our new Web site.
From our experience at Rodgers Library, we know that students like a variety of study spaces and furniture to choose from. At present, standard study tables, some large, some small, are dispersed throughout the library. Computer workstations are another familiar arrangement in the library. Lounge chairs and casual seating are available as well. When some space in the library was repurposed a couple of years ago, two bistro-style tables were added to the first floor. This style of study table has been very popular with students. This summer additional new space became available on the west side of the second floor after a major overhaul of the journal stacks. In early May five (5) bistro-style tables will be installed in this area. Power is available in this area so all the new bistro-style tables will be wired and ready to accommodate users’ mobile devices. Enjoy!
This year Honda will put a new business jet airplane into service in the U.S., pending FAA approval. The aircraft is touted for the latest in airplane innovation, specifically the placement of the engines over the wings unlike conventional business jets with the engines near the tail. What does this development have to do with libraries? The connection is with books. According to a story in the Wall Street Journal, in 1986 Honda sent engineer Michimasa Fujino to Mississippi State University to design an experimental aircraft. While dong his research, he read a 1930’s book on aerodynamics, presumably found in a library. Fujino said that the principles of aerodynamics detailed in the book became the inspiration for the design of the new Honda jet. Reading engineering books, even some very old, can change minds and our technology. Great news for books and libraries!
The University Libraries provides access to more than 150 academic software packages to support a variety of academic disciplines and programs. Our Academic Technologies blog provides information about and resources to support the use of these software packages and other technologies that have a primary relationship to research and scholarship. For more information go to Academic Technologies blog.
Rodgers Library is sponsoring a series of lightning talks by preeminent UA science and engineering faculty on high-interest topics in science and engineering that are shaping the future of the world. The talks last about ten minutes and will take place in Rodgers Library during February and March, 2015.
Schedule of presentations:
Alan Lane, Chemical and Biological Engineering “Dude, where’s my fuel cell car?” Feb. 5, Thursday, 11:00 am;
Patrick Kung, Electrical and Computer Engineering “Let there be light: LED applications from lighting to killing pathogens” Feb. 19, Thursday, 2:00 pm;
Yuping Bao, Chemical and Biological Engineering “Nanotechnology explosion: what are the benefits and risks?”Feb. 26, Thursday, 2:00 pm;
Paul Rupar, Chemistry “The evolution of polymers: from rubber duckies to polymer based solar cells” Mar. 5, Thursday, 2:00 pm.
Join the fun and learn about science.
Contact: John Sandy, Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering. John.Sandy@UA.edu
Knowing how to prepare and deliver effective presentations is important for all students. Do you plan to give a talk in a class? Will you be asked to do a presentation at a job interview? Your future employer may have you give presentations to company employees and customers. “Winging it” is not enough to ensure success. With this in mind, Rodgers Library offers the right equipment and provides special spaces to help you prepare and practice presentations.
To begin, students can check out a video camera and tripod for use in the library. You can use the Yellowhammer Room to make a video recording of your live presentation.
With a video capture of your presentation in hand, you can view the results using a large-screen monitor in the Yellowhammer Room. You can use a library-owned laptop or your own device to connect with a large-screen mobile monitor. After viewing video of your presentation, you may decide that improvement is needed. If so, the recording process can be repeated multiple times until you reach the desired result.
Do you have a PowerPoint and just want to hone your delivery skills? We can help with this too. Rodgers Library has two Smart Boards. There is one Smart Board in the Nightingale Room and one Smart Board on the wall outside the Nightingale Room. At other times, you may want to give a talk using information from BlackBoard Learn or the web more generally. Whatever the approach, with a little practice, your presentation skills will improve.
Accessories (special pens, eraser, and cables) for the Smart Board in the Nightingale Room, are available for check out at the Circulation Desk.
The Smart Board on the wall near the entrance to the Nightingale Room is already set up with a desktop computer. To use this device, check out a wireless keyboard, mouse, special pens and an eraser at the Circulation Desk.
Students can check out a video camera and tripod at the Circulation Desk in Rodgers Library.
The hardware and spaces we offer are excellent for:
• Group projects
• Video recording a presentation
• Practice presentation
• Watch and learn by sharing information.
For guidance or training on how to use the library’s presentation equipment, please contact Rosanne Rumstay (348-2106) in Rodgers Library.
Most students in science and engineering bring their own laptops to Rodgers Library when working on class assignments or doing research. This works fine in most cases. But when assignments require a more robust computing environment, students can use desktop computers provided by the library. The desktop computers are hardwired to the Campus network. You can easily connect to Campus resources and the Internet.
The desktop computers are loaded with productivity software and many kinds of special academic software. Some desktops have double monitors for multitasking. Work space near the machines makes it convenient to collaborate or just spread out and get the job done. Our desktop computers are located on both the first and second floor. Enjoy!