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Dean’s Note: Welcome Back!
I am pleased to welcome all new and returning students to campus. This summer, following guidance from the state and the university, UC Libraries’ faculty and staff worked tirelessly to prepare for students to return. All 10 library locations reopened in time for the fall semester, a massive achievement for our small, but dedicated staff. The transition from virtual to in-person has been an extensive process. As dean, my priority is the safety of our faculty and staff and all library users. Library spaces needed to be evaluated to allow for social distancing under the university’s COVID-19 operation guidelines. Also over the summer we undertook a transformational project with the…
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Special Collections in the DAAP Library
The Robert A. Deshon and Karl J. Schlachter Library for Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) has growing special collections comprised of artists’ books, architectural drawings and archives, handmade and fragile pop-up books, rare elephant folios and Cincinnati urban planning materials. The artists’ books collection contains several hundred one-of-kind, limited-edition, rare and hand-crafted books and objects. Related to artists’ books is the entire limited-edition ten-year run of objects from “the Thing Quarterly,” a periodical in the form of objects designed by artists, writers, designers, filmmakers and musicians. There is a collection of Mail art – art sent through the mail meant to be participatory, democratic and with a purpose to…
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Staff Spotlight: Ben Kline, a poet among us
Ben Kline, assistant director of Research, Teaching and Services, is recognized by many students, faculty and staff who study and work in the Walter C. Langsam Library as he can often be found at The Desk@Langsam assisting users and his fellow library colleagues. What many of them don’t know, however, is that Ben is also an accomplished and published poet. Following is a interview about his work as a poet, including his influences, process and the importance of a good play list. In your role as assistant director of Research, Teaching and Services, what are your responsibilities?I could cut and paste the opening paragraph of my job description, but for…
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1800s Cincinnati Industrial Exposition Posters available online
For nearly 200 years, the College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS) has held strong ties to the industrial progress of Cincinnati and the region. The Ohio Mechanics Institute (OMI), founded in 1828, is one of CEAS’ source institutions and provided vital technical education during the early development of the city. In partnership with Cincinnati, OMI sponsored the famed Cincinnati Industrial Expositions in the mid to late 1800s. These “Expos” showcased technical innovation and artistic achievement from across the U.S. In 1879, Cincinnati’s famed Music Hall was built as a permanent home for the growing and popular Expos, which were promoted through large and richly illustrated posters. Recently, the posters were…
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How the UC Libraries Research & Data Services Unit is redefining library data services
By Tiffany Grant, Research Informationist, Research and Data Services Academic research institutions recognized the need to provide strong, persistent and effective research data services to meet the data needs of researchers within their respective communities. The competition for dwindling research dollars, combined with the requirements to better manage, share and archive research data, prompted a strong push to create or expand services to facilitate these processes. Academic research libraries across the globe responded to these needs by hiring and training employees to address the needs of researchers at their respective institutions. Formed nearly seven years ago as part of the UC Libraries Strategic Plan, the Research & Data Services (RDS)…
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The Illustrated Human: The Impact of Andreas Vesalius
Andreas Vesalius was a Renaissance anatomist and physician who revolutionized the study and practice of medicine through his careful description of the anatomy of the human body. Basing his observations on dissections he made himself, he authored the first comprehensive textbook of anatomy, “De humani corporis fabrica libri septem” (“On the Fabric of the Human Body in Seven Books”). Published in 1543, “Fabrica” was the most extensive and accurate description of the human body of its time. Most likely drawn by Vesalius colleague Jan Stephan a Calcar and Italian artist Titian, the “Fabrica” is widely known for its illustrations, where skeletons and bodies with muscular structures exposed pose in scenic, pastoral…
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Life of the Mind to celebrate UC’s artists, authors, editors & composers
Calling all UC Artists, Authors, Editors & Composers! The annual Life of the Mind, interdisciplinary conversations with University of Cincinnati faculty, is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Once again, the event will celebrate the published or performed creative and scholarly works of UC’s artists, authors, editors & composers with an exhibit and bibliography. To include creative and scholarly works, UC faculty and staff members are invited to self-submit via an online form. Include only those submitted works performed or published between Jan. 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021. Submissions are limited to three per category per artist, author, editor or composer. Categories may include: books, book chapters, journal…
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A new book published by the University of Cincinnati Press focuses on Equity and Inclusion in Higher Education
The University of Cincinnati Press, part of UC Libraries, has launched a new list in Higher Education. An expansion of their mission to publish social justice, academic-community partnership and regional studies books, the Higher Education list will address issues of equity and disparity on college campuses. The first book published in the list is Equity and Inclusion in Higher Education: Strategies for Teaching, edited by Rita Kumar, executive director of the UC Faculty Enrichment Center (FEC), and Brenda Refaei, co-director of the UC Blue Ash Learning + Teaching Center. The book’s timely release coincided with students and faculty return to campus in August and centers on ways faculty in higher education can…
