Library News

Are we "Hard-Wired" for Google?

Emily Yoffe writing at Slate.com describes how our impulse to Google, Tweet and go on Facebook is rooted in our biological need to seek:

"For humans, this desire to search is not just about fulfilling our physical needs. Panksepp says that humans can get just as excited about abstract rewards as tangible ones. He says that when we get thrilled about the world of ideas, about making intellectual connections, about divining meaning, it is the seeking circuits that are firing...our constant Internet scrolling is remodeling our brains to make it nearly impossible for us to give sustained attention to a long piece of writing. Like the lab rats, we keep hitting "enter" to get our next fix...if humans are seeking machines, we've now created the perfect machines to allow us to seek endlessly."

This is one more reason why the traditional library -- composed of actual books and journals -- is more necessary than ever. Genuine contemplation and synthesis are best achieved through the sort of sustained, focused study that books have given us for centuries. Furthermore, the dedicated physical space of the library can foster this contemplation through the opportunity to collaborate with others, enabled by all the tools -- virtual and printed -- at the library's disposal.

Library Website Development Review

The Library is currently developing a new Website and recruiting volunteers (students, faculty, and staff) to review the site and provide their feedback.

We would greatly appreciate it if you would complete our recruitment survey. Volunteers will be contacted with more information shortly.

New : Atlas Database of Exhibits (Louvre)

Atlas is an English database of about 35,000 works of art exhibited in the Louvre. Along with an image of the artwork, basic information which is displayed on accompanying labels, together with authoritative commentary and analysis by the curators and staff may be accessed.

Database Update: NewspaperArchive.com

We regret to inform you that access to the Winnipeg Free Press archives in NewspaperArchive.com is no longer available. The Library is pursuing other possible subscriptions for this archive. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Database Trials: SocIndex

SocIndex provides subject-indexing and abstracts for over 1,200,000 "core" journals, dating back to 1895 for Sociology and related disciplines. Extensive indexing for books/monographs, conference papers, and other non-periodical content sources is included, and searchable cited references are provided.

Trial runs until August 20, 2009.

New Database: GeoRef

GeoRef is a comprehensive database for the geosciences and continues to grow by more than 100,000 references a year. It contains over 3 million references to geoscience journal articles, books, maps, conference papers, reports and theses.

Taylor & Francis Informaworld Downtime

Informaworld will not be available during the following period due to essential maintenance work:

Saturday, 1st August from 5am - 7am.

Sorry for any inconvenience.