Server maintenance Saturday night

Scheduled backups on our Library catalog server will take place this Saturday, 25 Feb, starting at 11:00 pm.  The work will last till about 7:00 Sunday morning.  During that period, our Morton Library catalog will be offline.  All other electronic resources should be functioning normally.

Again, many thanks to our diligent systems librarian, Leland Deeds, who schedules this work for a time when it will minimize inconvenience to our users.  You're a star, Leland!

Paula

BibleWorks 9 is here !

We are happy to announce that the newest release of the popular BibleWorks program, Version 9, is now installed on the computers in the Reference Room of the Library.

BibleWorks is one of the most powerful concordance and morphological research tools available for biblical studies.  If you are using it already, you will be happy to learn that the new interface has been updated a little, but the basic functions will still be familiar to you.  For information about what's new in BW 9, click HERE.

If you are new to the program, we suggest that you read the two-page intro we have printed and placed next to each of the computers in the Ref Room.  It explains how to begin using the program.  Also, it tells you how to access the context-sensitive help files and instructional videos that are built into BW 9.

Paula

Carl Howie lectures tonight and tomorrow

Don't forget to attend the annual lectures sponsored by the Carl Howie Center for Science, Art and Theology.

This year's theme is "The Environment and Human Agency : Artistic, Theological and Ecological Perspectives."

Guest speakers tonight are Prof. Dornith Doherty (University of North Texas), photographer, with a response by UPSem professor Tom James.

Tuesday night, Prof. Norman Wirzba (Duke Divinity School) and Prof. Ted Hiebert (McCormick Seminary) will discuss creation and the natural world.

The lectures will be held at 7:00 pm in the Early Center.

Paula

MONDAY AM -- TWO HOUR DELAY

Due to inclement weather, the Union Presbyterian Seminary campus will open two hours late on Monday, 20 Feb 2012.

That means offices will open at 10:30 am, and I believe that includes the Library.

Paula

BibleWorks upgrade

On Friday, 17 Feb, our IT folks will be installing the new release of the popular BibleWorks program.  We will be leaping from Version 7 to Version 9.

The program will be unavailable while the installation work is going on.  So please be aware that you might not be able to access BibleWorks at the Library today.

Paula

New titles added to ATLAS

The ATLA Serials collection has just added five new full-text journals :

• Andover Newton Quarterly, by Andover Newton Theological School
• Andover Newton Review, by Andover Newton Theological School
• Impact: A Journal of Thought of Disciples of Christ on the Pacific Slope, by Disciples Seminary Foundation
• Religions of South Asia, by Equinox Publishing Ltd.
• Theology & Sexuality, by Equinox Publishing Ltd.

 The scholarly journals indexed by the ATLA Religion Database are continually being digitized -- not just current issues, but back through their entire print run.  This is a time-consuming process, so the growth is gradual.  But there are new titles added several times a year.

We try to call attention to this process here.

Paula

Why do catalog & database training in the OT II and NT II classes ?

I'd like to thank all of you again for being such good sports about our research training in the BIB 260/311 and BIB 270/321 classes.  I know this stuff is tedious to listen to (or even think about!), but the training is necessary.

Why?  Well, the first reason is that we are required by accreditation standards to provide basic information literacy instruction to all students.  But that only leads to another "Why?"

Helping you find the materials you need easily and make use of those scholarly sources effectively is our goal.  And every software program intended to search a collection is different from every other.  They have unique characteristics that can make them confusing and difficult to use, and quite pointless if you were unlucky enough to choose the wrong tool for your purpose to start with.  

We want to make sure that everyone has been briefed on the basics of the electronic research tools we offer.  And for many people, hearing it more than once is helpful -- especially if you weren't really ready to absorb it the first time.

Judging by the pre- and post-tests, you are better equipped now to deal with your coursework, research and writing.  Perfection is not attainable ... but if we have helped you to cope with these challenges a bit better, we are happy about that!

Paula

Dean's Forum this Thursday

The Dean's Forum on Faculty Research, featuring Katie Geneva Cannon, will take place on  Thursday, February 2, at 4:10 p.m. in Lake Chapel. Professor Cannon and the co-editors of the important new book Womanist Theological Ethics: A Reader will be discussing womanist liberation methodologies.

The Dean's Forum on Faculty Research is an annual opportunity to focus on a major recent publication by a member of the Union Presbyterian faculty.  A guest panel comments on the book and discusses its major ideas with the author.  All students, faculty and staff are encouraged to attend.  The event is free of charge and open to the public as well.

A reception in honor of Dr. Cannon will follow in the Early Center. 

Paula