St. Thomas Libraries Blog - News, Events and Musings from the UST Libraries - Page 20

St. Thomas Libraries Blog

Database Highlights & Trials, News & Events, Science

Database Trial: JoVE Science Education: Chemistry

During the month of October, the UST Libraries will be trialing the innovative video database JoVE Science Education: Chemistry.  JoVE Science Education: Chemistry is a database dedicated to providing simple, easy to understand videos that demonstrate key concepts and laboratory techniques. This trial includes access to the following six collections:

Please send your comments on this resource to Karen Brunner (brun4952@stthomas.edu).

October 2, 2018 by
Group study 321 in OSF featuring a SMART Board
O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library

SMART Boards among new technology in O’Shaughnessy-Frey group study rooms

Based on student feedback for “More STELAR-like spaces” and seeing students hanging around the STELAR (St. Thomas E-Learning and Resource) center on the lower level of O’Shaughnessy-Frey, the libraries partnered with ITS to upgrade some of its group study spaces. 

Six rooms were picked for upgrades. These upgrades include webcams, wireless keyboards, wireless mice and large wall mounted displays for group collaboration. Rooms 321 and 322 each received SMART Boards. Room 110, next to Stacks Café, received a computer for two large dual monitors. The three rooms opened for student use on Tuesday, September 12th. Rooms 312B, 421, and 422 will become available later in the week. These rooms will be compatible with webcams and will feature 60-inch screens in a conference room style layout.  

All the upgrades were inspired to better facilitate group work and student collaboration.  Students using large group rooms will no longer have to huddle around a small screen or be tied to a computer in the corner of the room. Students now can pass control around the table, enhancing participation and encourage new ideas. Now that the rooms are equipped with video capabilities, programs such as Zoom can be used when needed.   

Two group rooms in Keffer Library on Minneapolis campus have large screen and webcam technologies as well. This will bring a greater consistency to the collaborative student experience across the two campuses. 

Reserve a group study at any one of our locations today!

September 12, 2018 by
Libraries, News & Events, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library, Special Collections and Archives

Treasures from the Rare Book Collections – Ceremonies and Religious Customs of the Various Nations of the Known World

Quantecong a Chinese Deity

In the early decades of the 18th century, Bernard Picart and Jean Frederic Bernard collaborated on a project which became a “best-seller” of its time.   Picart, a noted engraver, and  Bernard, a Huguenot bookseller and publisher, created a text which captured the ritual and ceremonial life of all the known religions of the world.   The first volume of this monumental nine volume work was published as Ceremonies et Coutumes Religieues de tous les Peuples du Monde in 1723.

The authors’ aim was to present all religions (including those practiced by “idolatrous peoples”) as objectively as possible — highlighting what common between religions more than how the religions differed from one another.  Marriage and funeral customs, for example, are described in detail for nearly every religion.   Picart’s lavish illustrations accompany many of the most important rituals.

This work  was translated into French, German, English and Dutch and published in numerous editions over the next 100 years. The University of St. Thomas Libraries Rare Book collection holds two early versions of this influential title – one written in English and another written in French.

Adoration of Fire by the Natives of Virginia

For more information on the UST Libraries rare books and manuscripts collections see our website.

September 12, 2018 by
Database Highlights & Trials, Libraries, Media/Music Collections, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library, Political Science

By Land, Air, and Sea: WWII Documentaries

Visit Digitalia, one of many video streaming sites the Music and Media Collections offers!

Digitalia featrues Eric Brown: A Pilot’s Story (2014) a documentary from filmmaker Nicholas Jones about one of Britain’s greatest aviators in World War Two. This feature-length program centers on an interview with the then 95 year old Captain Brown. Brilliant archival footage and rare photographs from Brown’s personal library illustrate his extraordinary story.

There are many WWII-related DVDs in the Music and Media Collections. Here are two great selections!
Navajo Code Talkers is remarkable documentary detailing the extraordinary work by twenty-nine young men from government-run Navajo reservations in the 1940s. Fighting for the country that sought to annihilate their culture and existence, they used their native language to create a code that could not be broken by their Japanese enemies.
D 810 .C88 N3 2006 DVD

For a greater scope of World War Two check out WWII: 3-Film Collection produced by the History Chanel. This unique documentary series consists of perspectives on the war from the land, air and from space. With the use of original color footage and groundbreaking CGI satellite views, experience history like never before.
D 743 .W99 2013 disc 1-3 DVD
D 743 .W99 2013 disc 4-5 DVD

Please stop by the Music and Media Collections located on the first floor of the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library to the right of the Main Circulation Desk. Everyone is welcome!
By Sarah Pavey

September 11, 2018 by
Archbishop Ireland Library, Charles J. Keffer Library, Libraries, Media/Music Collections, News & Events, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library

Kanopy Changes

Kanopy changes. Unfortunately, we have to limit the access to Kanopy due to its high costs. We get charged $150 per title every three clicks on a film for 30 seconds or more, even if the film is not watched. For this reason, access will be limited to faculty use and student research only. In the future, if we are able to renegotiate a different price model we may be able to offer full access again.

Faculty: if you have used titles from Kanopy to show in class and cannot find them, please contact the Music & Media Collections, libmedia@stthomas.edu or 651-962-5447 for help.

In the meantime, I encourage you to use other excellent databases that have movies and documentaries. These include:

  • Swank
    Swank Digital Campus is a collection of more than 200 major motion pictures. Swank works best with Chrome or Firefox version 47 and up.
  • Digitalia Films
    Digitalia Film Library is a multilingual, multi-national collection of films and documentaries from Spain, France, other European countries, North America (Classic) and Latin America (especially Mexico, Cuba, Argentina and Brazil).
  • World Cinema
    The World Cinema Collection includes more than 350 movies from directors across the globe; it includes the silent era, American and European films from the mid-20th century, and award-winning contemporary films.
September 7, 2018 by
Libraries, Media/Music Collections, Music, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library

American Music Selections on Video

Acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns brings us Jazz, a ten episode series tracking the history of this uniquely American art form. From its roots in New Orleans to its competition with the sixties rock scene, experience the tumultuously and rich history of jazz steeped in the Civil Rights Movement and an ever-changing culture. This documentary is unmissable.
ML 3506 .J39 2000 DVD

A trip down a mellower road, pick up Blues Masters: The Essential History of Blues. This feature length documentary captures the birth of the Blues in the Mississippi Delta and showcases many performances by famous performers such as Bessie Smith, Ethel Waters, Buddy Guy, and the legend B. B. King.

Head to the first floor of the first floor of the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library and visit the Music and Media Collections today!

By Sarah Pavey

 

September 6, 2018 by
Database Highlights & Trials, Libraries, Services

EZ Proxy login page changing to use Single Sign On

You may have noticed that if you log into Canvas and then head over to CLICsearch or another St. Thomas resource you are already logged in. That is because the University of St. Thomas has been moving towards Single Sign On to combat login fatigue.

However, you may have also noticed that even if you are logged into Office 365, Canvas, and CLICsearch, EZ Proxy would still ask you to log in before accessing one of the library databases.

Beginning Wednesday, August 29, 2018, the repetitive EZ Proxy Login will be no more, it will now all be done through the already familiar St. Thomas login page we know and love.

What do you need to do? Nothing!

No links will change as EZ Proxy is just changing the login page it presents to users.

Here’s the schedule of events:

  1. Tonight around midnight we will make the switch temporarily as a final test and then revert back.
  2. Tomorrow around 9am we will permanently change the configuration.
  3. Technical staff will be around all day Wednesday and Thursday to make sure things go well.

Library staff will monitor the situation. From what we can tell there should be no impact on services as it is just replacing one login with another.

Let us know if you have any questions.

Have a safe and happy Launch Day!

August 28, 2018 by
Latin America, Media/Music Collections, Modern Languages, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library

Distant Lands on Video

Exciting places may be thousands of miles away but learning about them only takes one trip to the Music and Media Collections located on the first floor of the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library. Our extensive selection of travel-related DVDs covers all continents and all countries. For additional options, check out our films by country of origin.

Prepare to look at Machu Picchu in a whole new way with the PBS documentary Time Scanners. Using the latest 3D laser-scanning technology, structural engineer Steve Burrows and his team scan this sacred Incan city in the heart of the Peruvian Andes.
F 3429.1 .M3 M3 2016 DVD

Journey with famed travel expert Rick Steves to Greece and Turkey. His documentary takes you from vibrant Athens to the hauntingly beautiful Delphi in Greece. Lose yourself in the unique city of Istanbul, wander through the Grecian temples of the western region, and experience folk dancing in Central Turkey. Steves concludes this trip with Mount Ararat and Mount Nemrut in the East.
DF 728 .G74 2009 DVD

In need of a longer expedition? A History of Scotland is a ten-part series hosted by archeologist Neil Oliver that charts Scotland’s past through battles, religious conflicts, and political intrigue. This comprehensive documentary features remarkable, award-winning cinematography.
DA 757.5 .H57 2010 disc 1-2 DVD

By Sarah Pavey

 

July 18, 2018 by
Libraries, Media/Music Collections, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library, Science

Wild Animals on Video

Summer is a great time to learn about the lives of animals. Here are three selections you will find in the Music and Media Collections on the first floor of the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library.

Bat City USA is a short film by Laura Brooks documenting the struggle to save a Mexican Free-tailed bat colony in Austin, Texas. Merlin Tuttle, one of the world’s leading experts on bats, leads the charge, working tirelessly to save the colony from extermination.
Call #: QL 737 .C54 B3 2013 DVD

For a quick look at a slow-moving creature, watch Hanging with the Sloth. This 30-minute documentary gives an in-depth look at this unique and highly specialized mammal as well as its conservation.
Call #: QL 737 .E22 H3 2006 DVD

Cracking the Koala Code is an eye-opening documentary that dispels so many myths about this fascinating marsupial. Watch the koalas grapple with the urbanization of Brisbane, Australia, and learn about their communication and social structure.
Call #: QL 737 .M384 C7 2012 DVD

By Sarah Pavey

July 11, 2018 by
Media/Music Collections, O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library

Nollywood Babylon

Nollywood Babylon

You’ve heard of Hollywood and Bollywood; now get ready for Nollywood Babylon! Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal’s 2008 feature-length documentary profiles Nigeria’s successful Lagos-based movie industry. Actress Uche Jumbo says, “Nollywood is a child of circumstance, because Nigeria [crosses the bridge between the] Western World and [African] tradition. It’s basically Africans telling African stories.” In response to the domination of Western films from the US and Europe in Africa, Nigerian filmmakers bring powerful messages and African culture to the big screen. This documentary is a must-see. PN1997 A35 2009 DVD

In the Music and Media Collections, you’ll find Africa First, a collection of short films from independent and international up-and-coming voices from Africa. These four tales range from a young girl’s search for her father through 1980s Zimbabwe to a scientist’s quest to germinate seeds in post-apocalyptic Nairobi. Be sure to stop by the Music and Media Collections located on the first floor of the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library to check out this title and many more!

By Sarah Pavey

July 3, 2018 by