New foreign language library database!

The Library now provides online access to Powerspeak, an online foreign language learning program that supplements the study of Spanish, French, German, Mandarin, and Inglés (ESL). As noted by Choice:

"Powerspeak Languages is not a substitute for classroom learning, but it provides an excellent opportunity to dive into a language to prepare for a summer experience or a trip abroad. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower- and upper-level undergraduates, graduate students, professionals, and general audience." --CHOICE, January 2012

Powerspeak is available to anyone in the University Community via the Library's Databases A - Z page and related pages, or it can be accessed directly via this link: http://navigator-bloomu.passhe.edu/login?url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/pl1928?db=PWSP . For a tutorial on how to use, click here. If you have any questions, please contact your librarian liaison, the Database Coordinator, or the Research Center once the semester begins.

Meet Charlotte Droll, new Director of Library Services!

There is a new face in the Library--our new director, Charlotte Droll.  Charlotte comes to us from Colgate University where she served as the Chair of the Reference and Instruction Department.  Prior to that, she served for nine years as the Humanities Librarian at Wright State. She received her MA in Germanic Languages and Literatures and her MS in Library and Information Services from The University of Michigan.  She completed her undergraduate degree in History and German at Shippensburg University. Please stop by to welcome her when you get the chance!

Research Center closed during Intersession

The Research Center is closed during the Intersession and will reopen on Monday, August 27th.
If you need assistance, you may submit a question through the Need Help? box on our website.
If you need immediate assistance, call the Circulation Desk at 389-4205.

Using social media for research

Many people use social media -- Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, etc. -- to stay connected to their family and friends, and many companies have adopted social media to market their products and services. But researchers also are increasingly using social media to keep up in their fields and to participate in online communities of practice.

The International Centre for Guidance Studies has prepared an online guide titled Social media: A guide for researchers designed to help researchers learn more about using social media and select the best tools for them. They note:

One of the most important things that researchers do is to find, use and disseminate information, and social media offers a range of tools which can facilitate this... Social media can change the way in which you undertake research, and can also open up new forms of communication and dissemination.

When deciding which tools are best for you, first consider where people in your field "hang out." Do they use LinkedIn or Facebook for networking? Tumblr or Twitter for microblogging? Delicious or Diigo for bookmarking? Zotero or Mendeley for citation sharing? Or some other tool listed here?

What social media tools do researchers in your discipline use? Please comment!

Map collections

Maps and posters available in the library can now be checked out.  You can take them out for one month, the same as items in the Government Documents Collection and General Collection. To help keep the maps and posters in good condition, you also get to take a nice poster tube home with you.

Maps and posters are found on the second floor of the library. You can see our floor plans here.

Questions? Please contact Katie Yelinek, the Coordinator of Government Documents.

Library Manifesto

Need help with copyright?

Take a look at the library's new Copyright Guide.  This guide features:

• What is copyright?
• Copyright FAQ
• Copyright situations examples (answers YES or NO to what you can do with material in the classroom)
• Links to more info
• A "copyright in 5 minutes" video