From the Oxford English Dictionary: 7. b. Orig. and chiefly U.S. A source of information; (spec.) a book or work of reference. ... 1820 Medico-Chirurgical Rev. 1 Pref. iii, We have selected a mass of the most important facts..which cannot fail to provide..a valuable reference in the hurry and anxiety of actual practice.1 The term "reference" has many definitions, of course, but in our library, we use the term most often to describe a specific type of publication, and, by … [Read more...]
Gale Digital Studies Prize
March 25, 2014 By
In classes, seminars, and research projects, Davidson students are using, creating, contributing to, and adapting digital resources, methods, and tools. Last winter, I mentioned that the library and Gale would be sponsoring a new prize to recognize undergraduate achievements in the broad field of digital studies. This new award, the Gale Digital Studies Prize, is the product of a partnership between the library and Gale, a part of Cengage Learning and a leading publisher of research and … [Read more...]
Highly Cited
February 19, 2014 By
What are the most frequently-cited articles published by Davidson professors? Who has published the most articles and book reviews? Which journals have published the greatest number of articles by Davidson faculty and staff? Rankings are loved and loathed in higher education; we use them and criticize them in equal measure. Libraries are not exempt from this. Academic libraries compare budgets, collections, and services, and within individual libraries, we track usage, mark trends, and set … [Read more...]
Of Chemistry and Conversion
February 5, 2014 By
By now, most people know that the contents of the Chemistry Library were moved over to Little last summer in order to make room for a new faculty office in Martin. The move happened quickly -- really quickly! -- with little advance warning. We didn't have the space to shelve the materials in the regular collection, so we had to find -- and cobble together -- temporary shelves. The temporary shelves are just that, though: temporary. Our goal is to integrate the Chemistry Library materials … [Read more...]
References & Rewards
December 11, 2013 By
Earlier this semester, I wrote about the library’s new partnership with Gale and the launch of Artemis, an exciting new platform for Gale’s digital collections. Our partnership with Gale continues to develop, and I’m pleased to announce a new model for our largest and most popular online reference collection and a new prize for undergraduate work in digital studies. Next gen reference for generation Y Fifteen years ago, most reference sources were still in print format, lounging in separate … [Read more...]
