Database Updates!

With the new school year here, we wanted to give all Kohawks a brief introduction to some changes in our database list. Find these on our home page under "All Databases"


Check out Birds of North America whether you're an aspiring ornithologist or just simply interested in topics about birds. BNA has some great resources like videos, charts, audio clips, and images to help you get familiar with the friendly fowl around us. 

Find Birds of North America here or in our All Databases list

_________________________________________________________________________
We've got a handy resource from ProQuest that can assist you with starting assignments. It's called Research Companion, and it's compiled into a friendly interface that provides videos, tables, and blurbs about different topics, how to evaluate sources, citation, and more. 

Few videos are longer than a couple of minutes, so you'll be on your way to a great assignment in no time!



Find Research Companion here or in our All Databases list

A Few Research Tips for your Final Papers

Learn how to identify good websites:  If you are relying on and citing articles from about.com, FoxNews.com, MSNBC.com , Wikipedia, or similar websites, hit the brakes.  If the author or sponsoring organization isn't an unbiased, credentialed or recognized authority on the subject, then you probably shouldn't waste your time.

There are thousands of great websites which provide access to resources for college-level research.  Here are just a few:

• PubMed: a database of scholarly medical articles from the National Library of Medicine, 
• US Census Bureau: statistics on US population
• Library of Congress Digital Collections: amazing primary sources like interviews with veterans and digitized historic newspapers 
• TheConversation.com: academics writing about current issues related to their research. 

Don't stop with websites: You can save yourself a lot of time by using library databases to complete your.research, so take advantage of them!  The databases provide access to published resources including scholarly articles and books, as well as advanced search features which make sorting and filtering your results a breeze.  One bonus feature of databases is that they often provide pre-formatted citations which you can use in your reference list (always double-check it for accuracy).

Know when and how to cite: Don't forget that in addition to the list of references at the end of your paper, you also need to include citations in the text of your paper whenever you use someone else's words or ideas (even if you are paraphrasing or summarizing in your own words); these citations may be in the form of footnotes, in-text citations, or parenthetical references, depending on the publication style you are using.

If you need help evaluating or citing sources, selecting a database, or using any library tools or resources, stop by the reference desk or talk to a librarian.

*This information also appeared in today's Learning Commons Newsletter, LC News which was emailed to all students, faculty, and staff.

Hidden Nooks and Crannies of SML

While working in the library, I have come to know the building's secrets pretty well. I’ve learned that the top floor is kept at just above freezing practically year round, the Whipple sticker means that this book is brand new, and where to find the Grant Wood paintings. But what I have found most useful and interesting is the kept secret study areas found abundantly on each floor.

Working from the bottom up, the basement level holds not only a hidden space but a wonderful asset. The Archives are found down the main stairs and to the left. Here I have found not only some of the comfiest armchairs the library has to offer but an irreplaceable asset in Rob DeSpain, and his knowledge of Coe College and its past students. The next floor up contains the most abundant overlooked spaces. In the Joanne M. Pochobradsky Reading Room, located to the right of the main staircase when entering through the main doors, caters to both the groups and the individual. In this wing of the library there is both a medium-sized room for group meetings tucked behind the shelves of magazines, and a L-shaped couch positioned perfectly in front of a large window and is made complete with lamps to read by. Next time you go to the second floor seek out these other hidden study spaces, specifically the two smaller galleries found to the left and right of the Perrine Gallery. There are plenty of comfy leather armchairs, illuminating golden light to read by, and the doors can close so you can control the sound. The largest hidden secret of the library would have to be the illusive third floor. Few people realize that this top floor even exists because it can only be accessed by the side staircases. The noise level is kept at a chilling whisper and is the perfect spot if you need to hunker down, focus, and get stuff done.

So go out at explorer these mysterious niches the library has to offer and good luck with your studies! Katie K.

Zoho Chat: Another Way to get Answers

Welcome back to Coe for the spring semester (not that it feels much like springtime yet!)  As people settle back into the routine of studying, attending class, and all the other parts of a normal day, we wanted to make sure that the campus community is aware of all the different way that they can get help with research and get questions answered.  Although the reference desk staff is always willing to help, sometimes you're studying outside of the library and can't easily come ask a question; other times, you may just not feel like speaking to someone in person.  Although emailing the reference staff (either Katelyn or Harlene) can come in handy, there might be times when you would like a more immediate answer.  These situations are when Zoho comes in handy.

If you're unfamiliar with Zoho, it's a chat program that replaces Meebo, our previous chat widget embedded in the library's website.  We had to replace Meebo after it was purchased Google; after much research and evaluation, Zoho was found to be the optimal replacement option.  Zoho can be found on the library's main page, in essentially the same spot as Meebo; however, the main difference is that Zoho pops out into a new window in order to allow the user to send and receive messages.  Other than that, it operates much the same way that Meebo did.  Also, it's important that Zoho is only operating when the full-time staff is here (Monday-Friday, 8 AM-4:30 PM) and in the evening 8-10:30 PM Sunday-Wednesday.  If you have any issues using Zoho, feel free to let us know, either via email or in the library's virtual suggestion box located on the website's main page.  Zoho is just another way in which we hope to reach and help more of the Coe community, give it a try next time you have a question!

-Katelyn, Head of Reference

Notes from a Circ worker.....

I am a senior nursing student and Stewart Memorial Library has been my second home for the past couple years. Whether it is studying, researching, or working I am normally here in the library. Apart of the nursing program we are expected to learn and know how to find evidence based research, I often use the library web site to help guide me. Because we are expected to know evidence based research so well I have become very comfortable with the databases we have here at Coe. I prefer to use Pub Med or CINAHL. I can normally find good sources that pertain to my topic which helps to strengthen my papers. The staff in the Reference office have helped me many of times and are always willing to help if problems or issues ever occur. ~~Allie

What I did last summer.......

Over the summer I worked in the library archives developing a finding aid for part of the William Shirer Collection. Shirer, a journalist from Cedar Rapids popular for his memoirs of fascist Germany and Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, donated his entire collection of documents to the college archives near the end of his career. My job was to read through a collection of his personal correspondence from the year 1979 and create a document that summarized the collection and contained subject headings for important events and persons of note mentioned in the letters.

It was interesting to get a peek into the personal life of a famous author and journalist, as well as see the sorts of acquaintances Shirer had made throughout his life. Many of the letters Shirer received were from aspiring journalists and novelists hoping to get some advice about the writing process. Overall I enjoyed the experience, even if it did get a bit tedious sorting through his letters for the third time. ~~Eric

Interlibrary Loan: The ILList Office on Campus

What is ILL? According to the site Internet Slang, "ill" is "cool, tight, etc."  However, here at the library "ILL" means something totally different: Interlibrary Loan.

Need to borrow a specific book for your next big paper, but neither Stewart Memorial Library nor the fabulous public libraries here in Cedar Rapids seem to have it?  Interlibrary Loan to the rescue!  Students and faculty of Coe College have this great service that too many are unaware of.  Harlene Hansen (Reference Assistant) along with the student workers in the Reference Office work to help you find the book you are looking for at one of the various libraries Coe is in connection with and borrow it for you to use.  The best part is that this service is FREE to the Coe community.

Interlibrary Loan also works great for articles!  When searching through the databases on the library’s website, some articles are not readily available to view as internet or PDF files.  By clicking the “Request This Item Through Interlibrary Loan” button, your request is sent into a database where the reference workers search through a larger database to find you the article you need and a library that can supply an electronic or paper copy.

Don’t make yourself ill (and not the cool kind) over that paper that’s due in a few weeks!  Not sure if the library has a particular journal that you are looking for, or you’re not sure how to use the catalog to find out?  Stop into the reference office and Katelyn Handler and Harlene Hansen will be happy to help you out and to try and answer all of your questions.

Issue with JSTOR & PDFs while using Firefox

Hi folks.  The library staff was alerted to a problem that users were encountering when trying to open PDFs while using Firefox to search in the database JSTOR.  After looking into the technical aspects on the college's end, here's the update that was recently posted by JSTOR Technical Support that we wanted to share with the Coe community:

"With the release of Firefox 23 on August 16, users began to experience problems downloading JSTOR PDFs through the built-in PDF viewer in Firefox. The viewer does not display our PDFs optimally, which may result in slow loading times or download errors. Users report that downloading a PDF through the viewer results in an error message that the file is corrupted or damaged, which prevents users from opening or using the file.

We are aware of this issue and our technical team is currently investigating this problem. We intend to use this page to update users on this issue, and we appreciate your patience as we work to solve this problem as quickly as possible.

As a workaround, we recommend one of two options. You could try a different browser, such as Internet Explorer or Google Chrome. If this is not an option, open the PDF as you normally would. Then, right click anywhere on the page and select "Save Page As...". This will allow you to save the PDF to your computer and should allow for a faster, more successful download. You can then open the file with another PDF viewer (such as Adobe) and use the print controls to print the article.

We are very sorry for the inconvenience this issue may cause. Any questions you may have can be directed to JSTOR Support."

So, in this case, it's not us, it's them.  If you are in JSTOR and experiencing problems, please to refer to the workarounds listed above while doing your research.  Apologies for the inconvenience, here's hoping that JSTOR gets things figured out soon!

-Katelyn, Head of Reference

Super Study Days

Whenever my friends and I have a big project to work on, we'll commandeer a study room all day for Super Study Days. It helps us focus to be in the library and away from any noise or other distractions. We get a lot accomplished since we have such easy access to books, computers, and (thank goodness) the printer. The library sometimes also provides a nice curfew; since they kick us out at 1 AM, we know it's time to go to sleep. ~Angela

View from the Circ Desk

As a student at Coe there is a good chance thar you visit the library regularly, but do you really know what it has to offer you? I was recently given the privelege of working at the circulation desk, which gave me the opportunity to learn more about the library. I have learned that the people that work here are very willing to help you with anything that you may have a question on, but you have to be the one to take initiative. Right now I personally take full advantage of the AV department in using movies for class but also for pleasure. My most recent watch was A Beautiful Mind, which was for class but also a movie that I wanted to see but have never gotten the chance. I also am in the process of writing a research paper over Paris, and will most likely be asking the people who work at the reference desk to assist me in finding useful information over the topic. Also the library gives you many online options to use, one that I frequently use for my major is psYchARTICLES, which gives me a variety of scholarly articles to use for papers and projects. Overall we have many resources that you should take advantages of to help with your success in college.~Rachel

Useful Website

In a class I'm taking this semester called Fundamentals in Exercise and Nutrition, we came to the library to use the computers. Our class needed the computers to fill out a health assessment called the RealAge Test. The test asks questions regarding one's health, feelings, fitness, and diet. The results the test gives varies depending on your answers to the questions. For example, my current age is 19.6 but based on my answers to all the questions, my RealAge is 18.7. The assessment gives you your RealAge and then it breaks down all of your answers and tells you whether you need to make changes or if you need to maintain your current choices. For example, there was a question in the diet section about the amount of grains I consume each week. From my answer the test told me that I need to eat more grains. It was a great assessment that made it easy to evaluate my current health and identify any changes that need to be made.
~Nathan

Working in the library

There are many reasons that working for the Coe Library is an enjoyable job, the flexible hours, the ability to do some homework between tasks, and being able to say hi to your friends as they come in to print something out or to study. But there are two main reasons that I love it here; being able to help someone out when they need something and learning the layout of the library that I wouldn’t have known so well otherwise.
With the shelving, book searches, and shelf reading that I do for the circulation desk I have gotten to know where things are in the library. As a result of that it is pretty easy to help someone out if they are looking for a specific book or a subject in the library. Whether I am looking for books to read just for fun (the Whipple section) or looking for books for a class, working at the library has helped me have a better idea on where to start.
Ashley Kupka

Books!!!!

             My favorite thing about working at the library is seeing just what an extensive collection of books that it has to offer. Although I had spent time studying in the library last year (before I had a job at the circulation desk) I hadn’t taken advantage of using the books for various research products. I think one of the reasons why I didn’t do this is because I went to an extremely small high-school that didn’t have a very extensive collection of books. They had always encouraged us to use the library in high-school, but most of the time they just didn’t have enough books for me to find what I was looking for.

            So this year, after I got the job at the library and started doing tasks like shelving and inventory, I was amazed by the multitude of different book topics that the library housed. Even now, four months into the job I still get shocked that there are shelves and shelves of books on a single topic. So last month when I had a big research paper due for Chemistry, instead of only using online sources I checked the library database and was able to find tons of books about my topic. They were very helpful tools for my paper and I’m glad that I now go to a school that has a great library!~Bellamy, Circulation Student

Working from off-campus over the holiday break

With Thanksgiving and the break that accompanies it fast approaching, I wanted to remind everyone of a few things before they leave campus.

1) If you want to use the library's databases from home (or wherever you might be traveling),  make sure that you are first logging into My.Coe.  Once logged in to the site, you head to the "Campus Life" tab, from which you can access many of the college's most popular databases.  You cannot go to the library's website from home to access the databases; you have to be logged in and accessing through My.Coe so that the system can verify that you are a Coe student.  However, you can still browse the library's catalog from home if you are so inclined.

2) If you are currently in a class that using any database available through a campus trial at this time, be aware that these databases and their resources are only available from on-campus.

3) If you need research help, or have questions on ILL, remember that the reference department will be here and available on campus through the end of the day on Wednesday.  Feel free to call or email us with your questions.
Thanks, everyone, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!
Katelyn, Head of Reference

Time Lines for Music

A helpful resource for Music History buffs, is the timeline...

here are some website examples....

http://www.jazzinamerica.org/jazzresources/timeline

http://www.d-vista.com/OTHER/Liszttime.html

http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/51727

These are great aids in relating subject matter to what was going on in history at the time.  There are timelines available for all sorts of subjects, I just chose music to blog on today.

You can also find time line posters and charts as well as the online scrollable kind. It is a wonderful way to expand what you know, or find out more about what you want to know. Next time you google add "timeline" to your search.

Rich A.

The Case Against Wikipedia

When students come into the library for sessions on research, invariably we end up discussing Wikipedia for a moment or two.  As librarians and people who regularly work with students, we know it's often a place where students start their research or go for quick answers.  I'm constantly dissuading students as to why Wikipedia is not a desirable place for conducting real research, especially research that will be turned in for a grade, for the obvious reasons of the authority of the author/contributor and the lack of proper citation at times.  Following Hurricane Sandy, an excellent example of the first reason has been chronicled by the mainstream media.



His name is Ken Mampel, and he's currently the primary contributor to the Wikipedia article on Hurricane Sandy.  He is 56 years old, unemployed, and does not believe in climate change; hence the lack of the climate change mention as a possible factor in Hurricane Sandy's devastating impact despite several articles written up in recent days to the contrary.  Popular Science has done an excellent write up that you can take a look at here. This is an excellent example as to why one must always follow-up on one's sources, and why it's important not rely on a sole article/viewpoint when exploring a topic. It also serves a great point of emphasis why Wikipedia, although at times informative and entertaining, is not the most reputable place to turn for information. Coe's library has several different reference resources available online for our students and users, such as Credo Reference and Britannica Online, accessible via the library's website. Consider these resources the next time that you're thinking about clicking on a Wikipedia link.

-Katelyn, Head of Reference