Need a little research boost? Remember the liaison librarians are here for you! If you’re in need of research assistance, just want to chat about how best to approach a project, or would like some help in managing all those citations, just check in with the ‘Librarian on Call’ or the liaison librarian for your department.
And don’t forget we’re here 24/7 with some great virtual services and resources:
For John Finney, compiling his alma mater’s family photo album has been a labor of love. Read more.
See more archived photos in A Sound Past.
We agree with the White House and support Free Access to Scientific Information.
Focus on Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
Interlibrary loan (ILL) supplements the library’s collection by obtaining material needed for teaching and learning that are not owned by the library or available through Summit. It continues to be an important service as users become aware of publications through an array of discovery tools, including Puget Sound WorldCat, licensed research databases, and Google Scholar. Skyrocketing journal prices, new publishing models, a modest operating budget, and an increase in publishing output have also contributed to the library’s reliance on interlibrary loan to fill gaps in the collection.
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Last year ILL staff processed 7,301 interlibrary loan transactions. Users borrowed a wide range of resources, from books and music scores to films and conference proceedings. However, two out of every three requests were articles. The most requested journals were Quartenary Science Reviews and Manual Therapy, tied at 12 requests for each title. Other journals with a high number of requests include: Journal of Spine Cord Medicine, Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, Biological Psychiatry, Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine, Aquatic Botany, Freshwater Biology, and Laryngoscope. About 95% of all articles are delivered electronically to the user’s ILLiad account.
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Students were the largest group of ILL users, representing 82% of the total number. Our overall fill rate for ILL was 66%. About 17% of the requests were cancelled because the library already owned the item and it was available. Other reasons for unfilled requests include: all possible sources were exhausted; the request could not be filled by the deadline; and the request was cancelled by the user.
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The bubble chart to the left shows a breakdown of interlibrary loan transactions by academic departments who submitted 200 or more requests last year. Submissions from faculty and students were included. By moving the mouse over a circle, you will see three numbers representing article requests, loans, and the total. For example, Psychology is the large blue circle on the chart. The department submitted 993 requests. Of those, 810 were articles and 183 were loans. The legend to the right of the chart lists the ranking of departments by number of requests. |
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Lending Libraries
This word cloud represents the 16 lending institutions from which we borrowed 50 or more items during the previous year. The University of Oregon tops the list with 333 filled requests. Rounding out the top five are Whitman College, Portland State University, University of Idaho, and Western Washington University. |
Cost
While largely invisible to the user, there are numerous costs associated with interlibrary loan. Staffing, software, equipment, supplies, and postage are needed to carry out daily operations. In addition, the library may incur costs from the lending library if there is no reciprocal borrowing agreement. Health Sciences libraries, large metropolitan public libraries, and research institutions typically charge fees. Last year the average cost was $14.00 per transaction for those libraries that charged fees. If an article is requested from the same journal five times within the last five years, the library also pays a copyright fee to the publisher. Fees vary by publisher and number of pages. In 2012 the library paid nearly $500.00 in copyright fees, ranging from $3.15 to $87.50.
–Lori Ricigliano, assisted by Jada Pelger
In honor of Valentine’s Day, the Crouch Fine Arts Library is highlighting books from its special collections that reflect the heart and things of the heart. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Welcome to Puget Sound Blogs Sites. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!
This week’s blog post about Black History Month highlights collections of images in the ARTstor Digital Library. Some of the excellent resources on the African American experience are documented by photographs, paintings, illustrations, cultural objects, sculpture, and prints from museums, archives, and private collections.
To commemorate the 1963 March on Washington, I have compiled a collection of 34 photographs from ARTstor. The powerful images show the faces of demonstrators who gathered at the Lincoln Memorial, and demanded civil rights and economic equality for African Americans. You can also get a sense of the size of the crowds which numbered some 250,000, one of the largest demonstrations in Washington, DC.
In addition, Wallace Weston has created a folder of 52 images by prominent African American artists. Among the works, you’ll find a painting by Jacob Lawrence, mixed media by Betye Saar, and a photograph by Gordon Parks.
–Lori Ricigliano, African American Studies Liaison Librarian
Puget Sound’s youngest readers were out in full force this past Saturday, Feb. 9, during our second Rocking Chair Room Reading Hour. Chelsea Pemberton read If You’ll Be My Valentine by Cynthia Rylant and our young “scholars” had the chance to sing and then make pop-up Valentine cards to mark the occasion. Our Rocking Room story hours are designed for Puget Sound families and members of our community and showcase our great collection of children’s literature.
This recent blog post on Salon.com, “Bring back shushing librarians,” pleads to bring back shushing librarians. Ah — what a concept! The grim-faced, dour librarian controlling and patrolling the learning environment for the sake of peace and quiet. The librarian who is unapproachable and generates a feeling that only the silent are welcome here. We have read the Pew Report as well and we understand.
Modern life is complicated; libraries and cultural organizations, particularly in the public realm, are struggling with ways to reach diverse populations. We think libraries can do both. The best in library design offers a combination of active, engaging and creative spaces — spaces that do promote social interaction where discussion (noise?) becomes part of the communication experience. These libraries may indeed prove to be training grounds for the real world, where most employers want individuals who can communicate, work in groups, and think creatively. But most libraries still have havens of refuge, contemplation and reflection, and it is important to offer both types of spaces.
Today’s librarians are more than just the gatekeepers of sacred books. Please, lose the shushing stereotype — and recognize the importance of reaching out to diverse users. We can be respective of private contemplative spaces and welcoming at the same time.
What is noise to your ears, just might be music to ours.
Check out this article from USA TODAY about a website helping readers find and buy books they like!
