The Albert B. Sabin Digitization Project: A Man after My Archivist Heart

Yesterday, my colleague Laura Laugle and I were discussing how to arrange archival collections, which reminded me of a letter (seen below) that I recently came across during the redaction process. I wanted to share this letter since I thought other archivists reading the blog would also appreciate it.

First page of letter from Dr. Sabin to Dr. Feldman, April 28, 1952

First, a little bit of explanation – one important task that archivists perform when they are processing a collection is referred to as “arrangement.” According to A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology by Richard Pearce-Moses, arrangement is “the process of organizing materials with respect to their provenance and original order, to protect their context and to achieve physical or intellectual control over the materials.”[1] I realize that definition contains a lot of archival jargon, such as “provenance” and “original order.” Provenance, according to the same glossary, essentially refers to the person or organization that created the collection of materials.[2] Original order is the “organization and sequence of records established by the creator of the records,” which hopefully provides perspective into how the record creator used the materials.[3] Continue reading

RESISTING ELEGY: ON GRIEF AND RECOVERY. Joel Peckham to Sign Copies of His New Book in the Winkler Center May 30

Joel Peckham, author and UC Clermont College associate professor of English, will read and sign copies of his new book Resisting Elegy: On Grief and Recovery on Wednesday, May 30, 2012, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Stanley J. Lucas, MD, Board Room of the Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions, which is located on the E Level of the Medical Sciences Building (MSB). Continue reading

The Albert B. Sabin Digitization Project at the Society of Ohio Archivists Annual Conference

Hello! I want to welcome our blog visitors from the Society of Ohio Archivists’ Annual Conference! Today, the University of Cincinnati Libraries’ Special Collections division is presenting during the 10:00am concurrent session:

We Look at Giants: The University of Cincinnati Archival Grant Projects
This session will look at two federal grant projects of University of Cincinnati special collections division, examining their implementation and the efforts at building diverse research audiences throughout the grant periods rather than at the conclusion of the projects. Important to the success of the grants is the concerted effort to develop outreach methods that effectively generate public support as the work progresses, and to clearly convey the national or international importance of the individuals whose papers were the subject of the grants. In this way, the sustainability of the projects and the preservation of the heritage they represent is strengthened for future research and pedagogical assignments from secondary through collegiate levels, as well as by professional scholars and journalists.
Continue reading

The Albert B. Sabin Digitization Project: The Sabin-Feldman Dye Test

Letter from Dr. Sabin to Dr. Hogan, December 1948

Recently, I have been working with letters in the Sabin collection about toxoplasmosis, a disease that Dr. Sabin and several of his colleagues researched for quite some time. Some of this correspondence contains health information, so I have been reading letters quite closely to make sure we protect the privacy of those mentioned.

Here is some background information: Toxoplasmosis is a disease caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii and generally has few symptoms for those with healthy immune systems. However, those who are pregnant or have compromised immune systems are at risk for serious health problems if they are infected with Toxoplasma.[1] Many of the letters in the collection discuss congenital toxoplasmosis, which is when an unborn baby is infected with the parasite during the pregnancy, including labor and delivery. This infection can cause premature birth, as well as hearing loss, low birth weight, vision problems, seizures, and mental retardation. As you can imagine, mothers whose children were born with these types of symptoms were concerned for the health of the child, as well as concerned for their future children. Continue reading

Cecil Striker Society for the History of Medicine Annual Lecture May 17

The Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions will present the third annual lecture of the Cecil Striker Society for the History of Medicine on Thursday, May 17 at 4:30 p.m. At the event, Frederic Krome, assistant professor of history at UC Clermont College and co-author of Jews of Cincinnati, will present A Tradition to Help the Sick and Needy – Jews and Medicine in Cincinnati, 1850 to 1970. Continue reading

Springer Protocols Handbooks Available

Springer Protocols Handbooks is an online series of protocols available to UC users through OhioLINK, the statewide consortium.   The handbooks included in the series are:

Search within the series or when you click on one of the titles, search or browse that title.

Access the protocols via the Health Sciences Library eBooks page where there are links to each protocol as well as the series.

 

Albert Sabin, MD, Among 2012 Class of Great Ohioans

Dr. Albert B. Sabin was one of six honorees named a 2012 "Great Ohioan."

This press release originally appeared on the UC Health News website on Thursday, April 19, 2012.

By: Richard Puff

CINCINNATI—Albert Sabin, MD, former distinguished service professor of pediatrics at the University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Medicine and researcher at Children’s Hospital (today known as Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center), was named as a Great Ohioan for his pioneering work in developing the oral, live polio vaccine that helped eliminate polio from most countries. Continue reading

The Albert B. Sabin Digitization Project: Interview with Vincent Racaniello

Program from the 1983 International Symposium on Poliomyelitis Control, where Dr. Racaniello met Dr. Sabin for the first time.

The Sabin digitization project has provided me with opportunities to connect with different people about Dr. Sabin and his collection. Last week, I had the chance to speak with Dr. Vincent Racaniello, whom I wrote about in a blog post called “An Influential Man” in February 2012. Dr. Racaniello has been studying viruses for over 30 years and is currently a Professor of Microbiology at Columbia University Medical Center. I thought I would share a little bit from the interview with you, especially since it was really interesting to talk to someone who has been studying virology (particularly polio) for such a long time and seems very passionate about teaching people about the subject. Continue reading