ThatCamp Harvard 2014
Posted September 30, 2014 by Gemma Doyle
On Saturday I attended THATCamp at Harvard University. THATCamps are popping up all over the place these days – the name stands for The Humanities and Technology Camp, and they are meant to be a collaborative day between people working in the humanities and people working in technology. As the THATCamp website describes it, “an open, inexpensive meeting where humanists and technologists of all skill levels learn and build together in sessions proposed on the spot.” THATCamps are meant to be very informal and spontaneous, not at all like a regular conference. (Much better than a regular conference for promoting productive work, which is one of the goals behind THATCamps.) Sessions on Saturday ranged from Wikipedia and conversations about how to foster more collaboration to archival tools and discussions of using social media and ways to visualize music. Sessions were informal groups chatting; no lectures or hierarchies. Professors and students spoke as equals as they tried to solve problems. Most important of all: it was fun! It really was. (And you know I am not…
Is this meme making me a hypochondriac?
Posted September 29, 2014 by Alexandra Bernson
“The library is a hospital for the mind.” A friend shared this meme on Facebook this weekend and predictably tagged me, his library student friend, in the post (he also tags me in anything at all Game of Thrones related – I am okay with both of these habits of his). I thought the picture and quote had a nice general sentiment but didn’t dwell too much on the actual text – until the controversy started. Now, to be fair, I might be describing this with a touch more drama than what actually happened. By “controversy” I mean, “someone benevolently disagreed in a Facebook comment.” This responder offered the following instead: “[The library is] More like a buffet. I only go to the hospital when something is wrong, and I can’t choose my treatment. I eat every day and much like a library, the buffet has options for whatever I’m hungry for.” Perhaps it is because I am reading about the “service perspective” within library and information science in one of my current classes, but…
Don’t Censor Me
Posted September 28, 2014 by Alison Mitchell
I’ve become a little obsessed with the American Library Association’s Code of Ethics and Freedom to Read statement. The idea that anyone can access any kind of information at a public library is so egalitarian and so truly democratic, and really appeals to me. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and was a little taken aback the other day by an exchange at my local branch library. Some relevant information: the librarian working that day was not one of the regular librarians, all of whom know my family very well, so this was someone with no information about me or my kids. my older daughter reads and comprehends well above her grade level (3rd grade), and looks younger than her actual age (8). she selects her own books, and independently chooses to stop reading if the text or subject matter is too much for her. Back to the story. One of the books we were checking out was Wonder by R.J. Palacio (which turned out to be fabulous — I highly recommend it). I…
ASIS&T Trivia Night
Posted September 27, 2014 by Samantha Quiñon
There are so many student groups to get involved with at SLIS. If you have an interest or professional aspiration, chances are good you can find a group connected to it. (A list of student groups and their descriptions can be found here.) All SLIS students pay an activities fee each term. Part of the fee is given to LISSA (Library and Information Science Student Association), of which all students are automatically members. LISSA then disburses this money across all student organizations according to the budget each group has been allotted. This arrangement has many benefits. For one, you don’t have to pay dues to any of the SLIS student groups, and since your activity fee goes towards all of them, you are eligible to join any and as many as you’d like. Another fun part of this is that you can attend any event or meeting a student organization is having without having to be part of the group. For example, I’m going on a free guided tour of the Boston Museum of Fine…
A Brown Bag Special for Banned Books Week
Posted September 26, 2014 by kbryan
Even if you haven’t entered library school, you’ve probably noticed that us librarians like to get our geek on for different celebrations. Certain events in the library calendar are designed to unite library and informational professionals near and far, make us feel a little less alone in our geekiness, and get us thinking creatively about the larger purpose behind the event. If the ALA annual conference is like our Christmas, Hanukkah, or Festivus, then Banned Books Week is akin to a Fourth of July weekend, minus the raucous festivities. We mourn the inclusion of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and The Perks of Being a Wallflower on the ALA’s “Top Ten Challenged Books List.” And then we celebrate the qualities we cherish about these books, and the privilege of living in a country whose constitution protects our right to read freely. In the school library where I work, we’ve scoured our collection for the books the ALA says get people in a tizzy. We then covered those books with brown lunch bags…
Books I Can Afford
Posted September 25, 2014 by Hayley Botnen
Alright, friends, today I want to talk about the magic that is library book sales. Yes, you read that right. You can actually buy books from a place where you usually have to give the books back. Now, I feel sure that most people in the “book business” have adequate knowledge of used book stores (something that I’m still lacking in the Boston area–let me know if you have any suggestions please!!!), but for some reason, I feel like library book sales go largely under the radar. It doesn’t make much sense to me. If SLIS students are looking to work at libraries, we should be the most aware of the benefits libraries offer, but for some reason I’ve heard more people talking about Barnes & Nobles and Amazon than the glory of library book sales. Library book sales mean cheap books. Sure, they’re used. Occasionally, the condition isn’t great. But usually the Friends of the Library, the wonderful group of people who host this event, make sure books are in good condition–but good condition…
Taking Care of Business: Finding the Right Spot
Posted September 24, 2014 by L. Kelly Fitzpatrick
When it comes to homework, where we work can often determine if we work. Moving to a new city for a new job or academic program can mean setting your roots deep into some academic and professional goals – and sometimes that can mean finding the perfect place to sit down with your laptop and coffee, and get to work. Let’s be real – coursework can grow to become an influential part of our lives. As someone who needs to leave Netflix’s sphere of influence in order to put words on a page, I know that going somewhere new, even without the comforting embrace of a wifi connection, can make the difference when trying to wrangle all those assignments. After becoming a regular in Western Massachusetts hotspots during my time as an undergrad battling a sea of footnotes, moving to Cambridge with the start of my grad program meant scoping out places where I could extract myself from my cozy apartment to get things done. Now entering my third semester at SLIS, I’ll share my…
Librarians as Information Radicals
Posted September 23, 2014 by Gemma Doyle
Everyone knows the persistent stereotype of the shhhing librarians, enemies of noise and fun. As I noted a month ago, there’s even a shhhing librarian action figure. The reality, of course, is very different – as no doubt anyone who is attending or even seriously considering library school knows, and that’s not even the half of it. At least in some circles – circles in the know – librarians are painted as ninjas protecting the privacy rights of their patrons. And they’re not wrong. The ALA has supported patron privacy rights since 1939, affirming that confidentiality is crucial to freedom of inquiry in the Library Bill of Rights. It’s definitely true that if patrons believe that libraries share their information queries with any agency that asks, they won’t make the queries in the first place. Libraries often view privacy rights as basic human rights, and base their privacy policies on the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Of course, having the basic ideas in place is one thing, but actually acting on them when…
Hey You! Take a Break!
Posted September 22, 2014 by Alexandra Bernson
Even though we are barely a month into the semester, I’m starting to get a little overwhelmed. This post might be a bit premature for some of you reading this blog, but as an online student working full time and living on my own, it is very easy for me to feel inundated with everything that I have to do. For us online students, there isn’t a standard structure to our academic schedule – no set class times, no free afternoons, no opportunity to go to the 2PM free coffee hour on campus (seriously though – there never seems to be any student events in Boston that take place after 5PM!). I am still adjusting to building time for my schoolwork into my schedule, and so far I’m getting everything done on time. But then I remember that it is barely the end of September, and soon my mountains of reading and required discussion forum posts will be supplemented with 10-page research papers and group projects. I can’t help but log into Moodle and utter,…
Boston, you’re my home
Posted September 21, 2014 by Alison Mitchell
I’ve lived in Boston my whole life, and sometimes I take the city’s cultural attractions and goings-on for granted. (That could be because I have kids, and their idea of culture is the Grossology exhibit at the Science Museum.) Meeting my classmates, many of whom have moved to Boston just for this program, reminds me to slow down to appreciate all the area has to offer, even as I wonder when I will finish my reading and class assignments! So, last week I went to a lecture with a friend, and today I visited Drumlin Farm with my brother and one of my daughters. Super fun, and I still had time to finish the TOR! It’s important to balance school and fun. So, in no particular order, here are some of my favorite things to do in the greater Boston area. Whether you’re visiting Simmons, have just moved here for SLIS, or, like me, have lived here for many years, you’re bound to enjoy at least one of these adventures. The Greenway: The Big Dig,…