Want $1000? April 4, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Duke researchers, Original research , 1 comment so far
Then enter your research paper or project into competition for the Libraries’ Durden Prize or Middlesworth Award.
Undergraduates who make exceptional use of library collections (databases count and e-journals count!) are eligible for the Durden Prize.
Undergraduates OR graduate students who incorporate materials from the Rare Books, Manuscript and Special Collections Library are invited to submit papers for consideration for the Middlesworth Award.
All winners will be recognized at a reception at Parents and Family Weekend 2008 and will receive $1000.
Submissions for both awards are due to the library by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 15.
Note: Both awards require a faculty member’s signature, and the Durden Prize requires a short essay on your research process, so you may not want to wait till May 15 to decide to apply!
How do I access databases from off-campus? March 21, 2008
Posted by Kathi in : Database Tip, Duke researchers, Question of the Week , 1 comment so farTo get to databases or e-journals from off-campus, be sure to go through the library website in order to be recognized as a Duke user. Going directly to a bookmarked e-resource will not work.
Try logging in using any one of these methods:
- Start at the database or e-journal interface, or follow a “GetIt@Duke” link. When you click on a link, a new window will pop up, and you just need to fill in your NetID and password to connect to EZProxy. You should be good to go until you end your browser session or log out!
- When entering the library website from off-campus, you might also notice that there is a Yellow box located to the right of the titled database link(s) saying “Your web browser is reporting an IP address that is not within range of authorized AP addresses”. Just click on the link for signing in with your Net ID/password. Once you’re signed in, you can access any number of databases.
- If you’re still not being recognized as a Duke user, download and install the Duke Virtual Private Network (VPN). Some resources exclusive to Law, Business, or Medical Center affiliates cannot be accessed via EZProxy. Make sure that the the VPN is open when you access the database or e-journal.
If you’re having any trouble Ask a Librarian, or check through some of the connection issues that might cause difficulties with the VPN.
Live @ the RefDesk February 12, 2008
Posted by Catherine in : Duke researchers, Librarians, Life in the library , 2commentsToday in Perkins we are testing some software for keeping Reference statistics. Why? It’s helpful to plan for staffing–how many questions, from which kinds of patrons, what types of questions (from staplerology to ‘jumpstart my thesis’).
But what I really want to get at is the human element. There is talk of the future irrelevance of a Reference Desk, if not the actual Reference librarians, whose minds presumably will be accessible in other modes and places. Here’s an excerpt from the TAIGA Forum Provocative Statements:
Within the next five years…There will no longer be reference desks or reference offices in the library. Instead, public services staff offices will be located outside the physical library.
Or, to expand on this line of reasoning:
If the truth be known, as a place to get help in finding information, the reference desk was never a good idea. A reference librarian standing behind a desk waiting for someone to say, “I can’t find what I’m looking for; can you help?” might be justifiable if, as is the case with other service professionals, that librarian was the reason the person came to the building to begin with. But reference librarians have not served so central a function. They have stood ready to help “just in case”-just in case navigating the building isn’t clear, just in case the catalog doesn’t produce wanted results, just in case the collections seem not to contain the desired material or information. In short, reference service-in particular point-of-need reference service-has been an afterthought, something to be considered after the building’s signage or the finding aids or the collections fail the user.
(Anne G. Lipow, “Point of Need Reference Service: no longer an afterthought,” in ALA-RUSA The Future of Reference Services Papers)
Do you come to the Reference Desk for f2f consultation with a librarian? Why or why not?
Perks for honors thesis writers October 29, 2007
Posted by Emily in : Duke researchers, Research Help , 1 comment so farFacing the exciting (albeit daunting) task of completing your honors thesis or project? To help make the process a bit easier, the library offers these perks to undergraduates planning to graduate with distinction:
- Lockers in Perkins/Bostock, perfect for stashing research materials and stacks of books (stop by the Perkins circulation desk for more info)
- Same check-out times as grad students and faculty (so you can keep books til May 2008!)
- Book and article delivery, or BARD (request that materials in any Duke library be delivered to the library of your choice!)
- One-on-one research consultations with subject and reference librarians
- Access to librarians’ weekly office hours in public policy and history
- Free pencils, pens, notepads (just ask at the Perkins reference desk)
What else can we do to make your months of writing and research easier? Post your suggestions, and we’ll try to make them happen.
IRB approval for research using interviews July 17, 2007
Posted by Catherine in : Duke researchers, Original research , 2commentsSarah Wallace has some interesting comments on the process of getting IRB approval for using (interviewing) human subjects for her Ukraine project. Here’s an excerpt:
All week, I’ve been working hard on my application for Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval of my project in Ukraine. …Procedures for protecting the rights and welfare of human subjects are the same, no matter who conducts the research; thus, student researchers like myself are held to the same standards as faculty researchers. If an undergraduate at Duke wants to conduct research that involves human subjects in any capacity, he or she must fill out a long, complicated application and send it to the Duke IRB before beginning the study.
..there is a chance that I won’t gain approval until after I arrive in Ukraine. …
Although the form took a lot of time and effort to complete, I’m very glad I did it. It really made me think through my research approach at a level of detail that I hadn’t before.
See her full post here, or check out her Notes from YkpaïHa feed on the right.
And here’s her update:
The Duke IRB liked my protocol a lot. Flattery aside, however, they had “a number” (read - “a million”) suggestions for ways to improve my consent forms and other documents.
..[I must] also prepare a separate consent protocol for the interviewees that are Ark workers/ICARR participants. As the IRB pointed out to me, these people shoulder the most risk by talking to me, so I must take extra precaution to ensure that their interviews are kept confidential.
