It's Academic

Connect & Communicate Series: IF I APPLY video ready

February 19, 2018

Thank you to everyone who attended our Zoom session, IF I APPLY, held on Friday, Feb 16, 2018. You will need a password to watch it. Session will be available for 30 days.

Video Link is here: IF I APPLY Zoom Session

Access Password: palacrd

Thank you Kat Phillips, Eryn Roles, and Sabrina Thomas for this excellent update to the CRAAP method for evaluating resources. Many of our attendees were excited to see and hear about this new method.

Thank you to Sara Pike for doing our closed captions, and Amanda Avery for moderating.

Kat, Eryn and Sabrina have kindly shared their PowerPoint: IF I APPLY Updated CRAAP Test for Evaluating Sources Webinar, handout:IF I APPLY SOURCE EVALUATION, and LibGuide.

If you participated in this session, please fill out the evaluation form here.

3D Printing in the Academic Library

February 15, 2018

by johnmeier1

Building off of yesterday’s post on iteration, today we are talking about 3D printing. Faculty in higher education and finding new and intriguing ways to use 3D printing and rapid prototyping for teaching and learning in a variety of disciplines. What started in engineering, has moved into almost all departments and majors on campus including English. Concepts of design thinking and using an iterative approach to projects can benefit all students and can be applied in the university environment to create experiential learning opportunities. Even faculty in the arts have embraced 3D printing including some innovative use of clay as a print material for sculpture.

Libraries need to find the optimal role in enabling and facilitating universal access to the software, hardware, and information resources to support 3D printing. In order to create a 3D printout, a computer model is needed first, a step often given little forethought. These can be created in computer aided design (CAD) software, which can range greatly in cost and complexity. Luckily there are also many free online tools for creating simple 3D models for most users. Models can also be created through the use of a 3D scanner however any 3D scan requires quite a bit of post-processing in software to print successfully. As information specialists, librarians can start by collecting information on software, tutorials and websites for CAD, and sources for models that can be reused for free.

Hardware may be the most difficult aspect of 3D printing, because it involves money, space, and the development of staff expertise. A best first step is to survey the environment to assess what 3D printing is already available to users paying attention to the following questions:

What type of printer is available? (material it uses to print, quality, speed)
How much does it cost? (free for certain users, paid by cash or budget lines)
Who is allowed to use it? (only a certain major, only faculty or staff, certain times of year)

Mapping out what is available, can help with planning for remaining user needs while also helping to direct current questions to the right solution. While the library may not be the home for 3D printing on campus, it can be the information center for all things 3D.

Once an assessment of user needs and current technology is finished, it is important to plan for the space and staff needs for 3D printing before investing in the hardware. In the spirit of Rapid Prototyping it is not very expensive to get a low-quality printer, but even the simplest device is not low-maintenance. Librarians and key stakeholders should identify who will have the ongoing skillset to fix the printer and to help users with failing print designs. Access to the 3D printer can be direct by users, mediated by staff, or even submitted online. Building a supportive environment for 3D printing is an iterative process, and can benefit users and librarians working collaboratively to build the future library.

John Meier is a Science Librarian at the Physical and Mathematical Sciences Library in the Pennsylvania State University Libraries at University Park. His responsibilities include instruction, collection development, reference, and investigating methods of delivering library information and services. He the liaison librarian to the departments of Mathematics and Statistics and also the Patent and Trademark Resource Center librarian for Penn State. John holds an MLIS from the University of Pittsburgh and MS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. His current research interests lie in using innovative technology to help library users and leadership in academic libraries.

Libraries Adjust to New Chapter

February 14, 2018

by Judith Koveleskie

Seton Hill Library Director, David H. Stanley, was interviewed last week for an article about the future of academic libraries, along with Jennifer Bates, president of the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association, Kornelia Tancheva, Director of the University of Pittsburgh Library System, and Keith Webster, Dean of Libraries at Carnegie-Mellon University. Check out this link to TribLive.com, the online version of the Tribune-Review: Libraries adjust to new chapter

Iteration in Public Spaces

February 14, 2018

by miskatoniclibrarian

Definition of iteration:

1: the action or a process of iterating or repeating: such as

a : a procedure in which repetition of a sequence of operations yields results successively closer to a desired result

b : the repetition of a sequence of computer instructions a specified number of times or until a condition is met — compare recursion

2: one execution of a sequence of operations or instructions in iteration

3: version, incarnation

· the latest iteration of the operating system

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iteration

3D printers give us an opportunity to exam intersectional librarianship and the concept of lifelong learning. Public libraries are viewed as early literacy centers and places to read the New York Times bestsellers; however, they are also advocates for lifelong learning, which can be academic in nature.

3D printers allow anyone to take an idea, turn it into a file, and then print it out in reality. At the first program where we encouraged patrons to create ornaments to 3D print for Christmas, I had an elementary school boy create a 3 x 3 inch city. It failed to print the first time, but he came back and revised it and this time it printed a glorious blob. Learning new skills involves a great degree of failure, and there are a limited number of places where people are allowed to fail. Robert Rodriguez said that consistently failing better is what taught him to be a director. Iteration is quintessential to the excelling process.

“The idea is speed. We build a concept, test it, try it out, make mistakes, do corrections, and are always pushing to go even faster.” Rick DeVos, senior consulting engineer at GE FirstBuild

The fast turn-around that 3D printing enables allows patrons to draft an idea and iterate multiple times in the same day until they generate a working prototype. Practical purposes include fixing dated appliances where replacement parts are hard to find, teaching basic mechanical principals and design, and creating functional and ornamental objects (https://lifehacker.com/5894289/replicate-broken-appliance-parts-with-a-3d-printer), but 3D printing goes beyond the basic and has disrupted exclusive industries such as prosthetics. Many public libraries use their 3D printers to make cheap and light-weight prosthetics for individuals who cannot afford the process (https://3dprint.nih.gov/collections/prosthetics).

“3D printing turns digital files into physical objects by building them up layer-by-layer… It gives everyday consumers the power of manufacturing.” Kyle Chayka

This is where academic learning intersects with public library patrons to create an environment of lifelong learning. Patrons gain the opportunity to learn and master high level engineering but go beyond scholarly pursuits by empowering blue collar work.

“Even when they progress beyond the initial ‘wow’ factor of the infinite creative potential these devices provide, they discover additional layers to learn.” Brad Smith, Mount Paran Christian School

Symposium on Democracy

February 6, 2018

by Judith Koveleskie

Washington & Jefferson College is holding its first Symposium on Democracy next week, February 12-16, 2018. The events are free and open to the public, so please share with faculty, staff, or students at your institution who might be interested in attending.

Please find below a list of the displays the U. Grant Miller Library is contributing to the Symposium on Democracy.

The Unknown American Revolution: The Unruly Birth of Democracy and the Struggle to Create America by Gary Nash
W&J Catalog | WorldCat

Jeffersonian Legacies by Peter Onuf
W&J Catalog | WorldCat

Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow
W&J Catalog | WorldCat

American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Joseph Ellis
W&J Catalog | WorldCat

American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph Ellis
W&J Catalog | WorldCat

Friends Divided: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson by Gordon Wood
W&J Catalog | WorldCat

If you’re coming and want to visit the library as well, contact Samantha Martin Research & Collections Librarian, U. Grant Miller Library. Her phone number is (724) 503-1001 x3127. They would love to have visitors. She is also available to answer any additional questions you might have.