These days in the Information Sciences community, we hear a lot of buzz surrounding the phrases open source, open information, and open access.
So, what exactly is… open… about these things? Continue reading
Category Archives: Reference & Government
Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) explained
There is a strong chance you have never heard of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP). The program was established by Congress to ensure the public has access to government information. How can the public get access to government information? Google? Social media? Yes, you can obtain a great deal of information online, including the Federal Digital System (FDsys), but the federal government has been publishing content since the 18th century. Not everything is online (what???). The answer to the question is through federal depository libraries.
The Debt Tsunami is coming!
It’s only October and already there are signs of the upcoming holidays showing up in the stores. Yes, that’s right the holidays are coming. The lights, the ornaments, the PRESENTS! It’s starting out as a trickle, but soon it will be coming at us as one big glittery shining tsunami of mass consumerism that sweeps so many of us up in an incredible euphoria of shopping. Family members come to us with lists in their hands and looks of happy anticipation on their faces and we go out and buy those items, because we don’t want to disappoint them. And all the while our credit cards are so often already being haunted by the ghosts of holidays past. We are in debt up to our eyeballs and this has become so …. Normal. Continue reading
Hoosier Women at Work
On March 26, 2016, the Indiana State Library and the Indiana Historical Bureau will host a conference “Hoosier Woman at Work. The conference held at the Indiana State Library and Historical Building will celebrate the many contributions of women’s work to Indiana history. Continue reading
Kitchens, Cookery, and a Touch of Scandal
You might not know it but the General Collection at the Indiana State Library has an incredible collection of books on food and cooking, or cookery in cataloging terms. There are books with recipes from different ethnic groups and geographic areas including Himalayan Mountain Cookery, The Art of Caribbean Cookery, and Rattlesnake Under Glass: a Roundup of Authentic Western Recipes, which contains this actual recipe for rattlesnake, yum!
If you are looking for healthy options, we have items such as the 1960 The Low Sodium, Fat-Controlled Cookbook, the 1979 Low Blood Sugar Cookbook, and the 1961 Cooking for Your Heart and Health. The United States Air Force Nutritional Medicine Service put out a book in 1987 called the Fat Controlled, Cholesterol Restricted, Calorie Restricted, Sodium Restricted Diet. I haven’t tried the recipes in this book, but from the title, I think I’d rather have the rattlesnake.
Not just your elementary school Encyclopedia
When you think Encyclopedia most of us immediately envision the 24 volume sets in our elementary school library with articles on everything from Aak (Korean Court Music) to Zoroastrianism (Ancient Iran religion) but encyclopedias can also be on a single subject. The Indiana State Library has several hundred topical encyclopedias.
The earliest encyclopedic work known is the Naturalis Historia written around 77 AD, it covered 37 subjects like natural history, medicine, and architecture. The library has a 1938 translation of this work. The State Library’s oldest encyclopedia is Navigantium atque itinerantium bibliotheca, Or, A complete collection of voyages and travels: consisting of above six hundred of the most authentic writers. This second edition published in London between 1744 and 1748 is a compilation of articles about early sea voyages.
If reading about sea voyages aren’t your passion, then what about the arts? We have encyclopedias on everything from opera to rock, and from film noir to graphic art and comic book heroes. If you are more of an sports fan, then the Indiana University Basketball Encyclopedia or The Notre Dame Football Encyclopedia might be for you.
For those interested in health and well-being we have a large selection of topics; aging, adolescence, stress, disability and rehabilitation or The Encyclopedia of Nutrition and Good Health. If you need information about science, we have encyclopedias on anthropology, astronomy, oceanography, space travel and more.
We even have some of the more quirky titles; Lyons’ Encyclopedia of Valves, Durations: the Encyclopedia of How Long Things Take, Encyclopedia of Knots and Fancy Rope Work and we even have encyclopedias for librarians on buying encyclopedias like Purchasing an Encyclopedia: 12 Points to Consider.
Whatever your pastime or pursuit the Indiana State Library probably has an encyclopedia filled with information on the subject.
This blog post was written by Marcia Caudell, Reference and Government Services Librarian, Indiana State Library. For more information, contact the Reference and Government Services at (317) 232-3678 or “Ask-A-Librarian” at http://www.in.gov/library/ask.htm.
Time for Adventure @ The Library
We’re all familiar with the adventures we take when reading a great piece of fiction from our local library. But what if the library could inspire an actual physical adventure? A real, live treasure hunt unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before?
Guess what? It can!
Libraries all over Indiana have known for years about a sport called geocaching (pronounced gee-oh-cashing). The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has a geocaching website to explain what it is and how to use it in Indiana parks. Geocaching can be done anywhere on the globe, but it needs to be organized first. Once you’ve decided what group you’d like to geocache with, you’re in for an adventure!
In 2013, the American Library Association’s magazine published a story called Libraries “Cache” in on Geocaching Treasure Hunts. It featured New York’s Liverpool Public Library and its summer programming that included all sorts of fun geocaching activities.
If you want to know more about this new sport, or about other libraries in Indiana which have already incorporated geocaching into their programming, look below!
- A Modern Day Treasure Hunt Indiana Insider Blog
- Geocaching at the Libraries Lake County Public Library
- Geocaching at Jasper County Public Library
- Geocaching: How to get started REI
#GID15 is Government Information Day
By now you’ve seen GID15; wonder what it means? GID15 is Government Information Day 2015!
Government Information Day (GID15) is a FREE, one day conference for librarians, library professionals, attorneys, legal professionals, and the general public to learn more about Government Information, access, and current trends about information dissemination, collection, and preservation. This year’s theme is E-access: The Changing Face of Government Information. GID15 is a collaborative planning effort with the Indiana State Library, Indiana University-Kokomo, Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana University Bloomington, Maurer School of Law, and the Indianapolis Public Library. We are pleased to have Davita Vance-Cooks, Director, of the Government Publishing Office (GPO) as this year’s keynote speaker. Government Information Day is filled with informative, engaging speakers and a variety of topics:
- Connie Rendfeld, Indiana State Library: Indiana Memory: Your Gateway to the History and Culture of Indiana
- Mellisica Flippen, Marion County Superior Court and Dana L. Luetzelschwab, Heartland Pro Bono Council: E-Access for the Unrepresented Civil Litigant
- Davita Vance Cooks, U.S. Government Publishing Office: Transformation of GPO as a 21st Century Publisher
- Perry Hammock, Indiana Bicentennial Commission: Indiana’s 2016 Bicentennial: How you and your Library can be Part of the Excitement
- Jennifer Morgan and Michelle Trumbo, Law Library. Indiana University Maurer School of Law: Gov Docs 101: The Judicial Branch (finding case opinions, dockets, court records, and briefs)
- Jane Kirtley, Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Minnesota Law School: The Digital Paradox: Practical Obscurity, the Right to be Forgotten, and Other Threats to Access to Government Information
- Andrew Weber, Law Library of Congress: Exploring Congress.gov
- Carol Rogers, Indiana Business Research Center: A Working Update on Indiana Data.
For more information and to register for GID15, please visit the Government Information Day page. We look forward to seeing you!
GID15 is Thursday, May 7th 9:00a.m.-5:00p.m
This blog post was written by Kimberly Brown-Harden, Federal Documents Coordinator, Indiana State Library. For more information, contact the Reference & Government Services desk at 317-232-3678, or go to www.library.in.gov.
Where are the Books in a Closed Stack?
The Indiana State Library is primarily a research library. Whether you are looking for United States Congressional hearings, researching the War of 1812, or looking for the latest information on environmental science, the material is probably in the closed stacks.
Like most research libraries, the Library of Congress, Chicago’s Newberry Library, and the William H. Smith Library at the Indiana Historical Society, the books and manuscript material are stored in areas that are not accessible to the public. The State Library and Historical Building first opened in 1934, and it featured the latest construction of the day with the main book stacks divided into seven-stories in this four-story building.
The latest in automatic electric elevators with pushbutton-control were installed, and the stacks were arranged as an integral part of the heating and ventilation system.
As the collections grew and the building was expanded more rooms were added and the new book stacks are now moveable, allowing for even greater use of space.
Whether the material is on open or closed stacks, our skilled librarians are happy to assist both the novice and professional researcher.
This blog post was written by Marcia Caudell, Reference Librarian, Indiana State Library. For more information, contact the Indiana State Library at (317)232-3678 or “Ask-A-Librarian” at http://www.in.gov/library/ask.htm.