Library Blogs

This month, I decided to try out a training module on data analysis with Python. While, overall, I think I may have a more conservative outlook on what “Big Data” can help us achieve than some of my peers in the School of Information, there’s no doubt that being conversant with data is becoming increasingly important for a diverse range of fields and tasks. By conversant with data, I mean being able to effectively retrieve, handle, manage, read, describe, understand, repair, process, transform, analyze, and store it, among other things. Being data-fluent is fast becoming an expectation for librarians, and will especially be necessary if I go on to work with research data as a career, as I am currently planning. Additionally, and most germane to the goals of the Shapiro Design Lab, handling and working with volunteer-collected data in varied forms is a key task (and some might say obstacle) of citizen science projects, particularly large scale ones. While a two-hour training module is not going to make anyone an expert on working with data, it’s not a bad place to get an introduction.

Have you ever wondered how does google 3D map work? Or, have you ever observed 3D objects in games or movies that look so real, it is impossible for you to believe that it was modeled and rendered artificially?

Well, the answer might be Photogrammetry. Photogrammetry is often defined as the science of taking measurements from photographs. In a simpler term, you can scan an object and create your own 3D model through a free software just by taking a few overlapping pictures of the model. Need fancy cameras? No. You can even use your cellphone camera and take some pictures by hand. Benefit of using photogrammetry over laser scanning is that photogrammetry can provide a vrml file format, that means that it would also include the surface colors of the scanned object. Whereas, laser scanning fails to capture the colors of the surfaces and can only provide an stl file with no color data.

This is the first is a trilogy of novels about the Empress Josephine, wife of Napoleon. Sandra Gulland tells her story in the form of fictional diary entries. This novel begins with Josephine's girlhood on Martinique and tells of her life in Paris during the French Revolution, her imprisonment during the Terror, when she narrowly escapes the guillotine, and ends with her marriage to Napoleon. The story continues in two other volumes.

Take a look at the 2019 Michigan Notable Book award winners.

February is Black History Month. The Shapiro Book Display will feature non-fiction books by black authors, in honor of past and current leaders, events, and movements. Be sure to stop by the lobby to see what's on display

Join us on Tuesday, 12 February for our next After Hours open house event! This month we'll explore the materiality of books and manuscripts. Come "read" these objects with us from 4-7 on the 6th floor of Hatcher!

In this post, the author describes how they used the assessments of a revised library curriculum for the College of Pharmacy to demonstrate the value of the sessions for students, and to stimulate the creation of a new learning object - a game - to improve student learning.

Paul Schaffner gives an introduction to batch editing metadata using tools that have worked well for him as part of his role in the Text Creation Unit (TCU) within the University of Michigan Library's Digital Content and Collections Department. The instructions and guidance provided, while originally aimed at cataloguers, can be utilized by anyone by following along with Paul's instructions and referring to the suggested resources and links within the article.

The Magic Circle is a mystery/adventure novel about a younger nuclear security expert, Ariel Behn, who, in 1989, inherits a pile of ancient manuscripts which hold the key to a powerful secret. She also discovers the history of her own very complex family and their activities in Europe between World Wars I and II.

The Special Collections Research Center is pleased to announce a new exhibit: What Are Little Books Made Of? Visit the Special Collections Exhibit Gallery in our 6th floor space (660J Hatcher South) to see children's books printed on cotton, linen, and linenette from February 5 - March 22, 2019.