MIT Libraries News

If you regularly use the SciFinder client, you have probably noticed challenges in logging in. We have been dedicating fewer and fewer seats (of 11 total) for the client. All of the seats will be unavailable as of Monday, November 2.

If you have not yet registered to use the web version of SciFinder, please do so.

You will have to access SciFinder via the Libraries proxy server, which requires the use of the MIT Touchstone authentication system. Note that this is only available for MIT faculty, students, post-docs, other researchers and staff with certificates installed on their machines.

If you have any questions, please contact the Chemistry Librarian, Erja Kajosalo.

Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009
4-5pm
Killian Hall, Building 14

Veteran Astronaut and MIT Alumnus Dr. Mike Massimino (SM TPP 1988, Engineer ME 1990, PhD 1992) will come to MIT on Wednesday Oct. 28 to talk about his recent work servicing NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and to return a book to the MIT Libraries.

In May 2009 Massimino and six other astronauts boarded the space shuttle Atlantis for a journey that took them 5.3 million miles for a final servicing of the telescope.  Massimino and other STS-125 crewmembers conducted five spacewalks to upgrade the Hubble, enabling it to send back spectacular images of the universe well into the next decade.  While on the mission the crew captured photographs and video, and Massimino became the first astronaut to ‘Tweet’ from space—sending back updates on the mission through his Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/astro_mike), which has surpassed 1 million followers.

Accompanying Massimino on the mission was a rare book loaned from the MIT Libraries’ collections.  The book, a limited edition facsimile of Galileo’s landmark publication Sidereus Nuncius (Starry Messenger), was chosen to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s astronomical research, the first recorded planetary observations using a telescope.

In his talk, Massimino will discuss his work and show images and video from the mission.  He will also present the well-traveled book back to the MIT Community and the Libraries.

Sponsored by the MIT Libraries, the Technology and Policy Program (TPP)/ Engineering Systems Division (ESD), and Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Power Supply: Energy Resources in the MIT Libraries is a new exhibit in the Maihaugen Gallery that showcases “energy resources” in the Libraries that have supported and resulted from research and education throughout the Institute’s history. Included are books and articles from historical collections, examples of rich working collections, theses by MIT students, and video (below) highlighting MIT’s current efforts in energy research.

The MIT Community is invited to an opening reception on Friday, October 23, 1-3pm in the Maihaugen Gallery (14N-130). Check out the exhibit and enjoy refreshments with friends!

Learn how to manage your articles and cite your references more effectively in these hands-on workshops. No advance registration required.

All workshops will take place in the Digital Instruction Resource Center (DIRC), 14N-132.

EndNote Basics

EndNote is a “personal bibliographic software” package that allows you to create and manage a database of bibliographic references.

Attendees will create a personal database of cited literature by importing references from resources such as Barton, Web of Science, PubMed, & other sources of published literature. Your database can be used to automatically generate in-text citations and bibliographies in your manuscripts. It can also help you organize and manage your PDF files.

• Friday, 10/16: 12-1pm
• Tuesday, 10/20: 5-6pm

RefWorks Basics

RefWorks is a web-based resource designed to help you organize references and create a bibliography. RefWorks allows you to search, retrieve relevant citations, easily cite references as you write your paper, and build your bibliography. It allows users to create individual or group accounts.

• Thursday, 10/15: 5-6pm
• Wednesday, 10/21: 12-1pm

Managing Your References: Overview of EndNote, RefWorks, and Zotero

Using citation management software to create and maintain a collection of references is becoming more common and important in today’s academic world. These software packages allow users to search databases, retrieve relevant citations, and build a bibliography to be added to a paper or thesis or stored for future reference. But which software package should you use, and how do you get started?

This session will focus on EndNote, RefWorks, and Zotero, the three major options for citation software at MIT. We will include a discussion comparing and contrasting the three softwares, and we will introduce some of the basic concepts and functionality of each program.

• Wednesday, 10/14: 5-6pm
• Thursday, 10/22: 12-1pm

Can’t make the classes and need help?  Try our research guides for citation software help, or ask us!

MIT Libraries has obtained a license for the Human Gene Mutations Database (HGMD). HGMD represents a comprehensive collection of data available on germ-line mutations in nuclear genes underlying or associated with human inherited disease.

Search for newly identified gene lesions to determine whether or not they are novel; search by gene to get an overview of the known mutational spectrum for that gene; and search for a type of mutation in a specific location.

HGMD is integrated with other bioscience resources such as OMIM, Entrez Gene and the Human Gene Nomenclature Committee. The free version of HGMD only contains 3 year old data while the licensed version contains current data and a better search interface, so take advantage of this great resource!

To access HGMD, search for “HGMD” in MIT Libraries’ Vera. Click on “BIOBASE Knowledge Library-ExPlain and HGMD” and then “HGMD.”

Contact Courtney Crummett with any questions.

Photo © Liang-Wu Cai

The last day of service in the Lindgren Library (54-200) will be Friday, July 31, 2009. Lindgren’s collection of earth, atmospheric and planetary sciences’ books, journals, and CDs will begin to move to Hayden Library (14S-100) Monday, August 3.  The relocated materials are expected to be in place and accessible by the end of the week. If any Lindgren materials are needed during the move, please contact Joe Hankins (3.9325, jhankins@mit.edu) or Chris Sherratt (3-5648, gscherra@mit.edu). The Hayden Service Desk staff (3.5671) can also be of assistance.

Final arrangements for the future locations of maps and theses formerly housed in Lindgren will be completed during the upcoming weeks. Contact information for Joe Hankins and Chris Sherratt will remain the same.

Monday, July 20th marks the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, when heroic MIT graduate Buzz Aldrin took his historic steps on the lunar surface.

Institute Archives’ records reveal that it was an accomplishment he had only dreamed about as a graduate student.  In the dedication of his PhD thesis, Aldrin wrote, “In the hopes that this work may in some way contribute to their exploration of space this is dedicated to the crew members of this country’s present and future manned space programs. If only I could join them in their exciting endeavors!”

See Aldrin’s thesis in the current Fascination of Flight exhibit in the Libraries’ Maihaugen Gallery, or find it online in DSpace.

WHERE: 14N-132 (Digital Instruction Resource Center – DIRC)

WHEN: Friday, July 10, 12pm – 1pm

Endnote is a “personal bibliographic software” package which allows you to create and manage a database of bibliographic references. Learn how to find and use information more effectively in our hands-on workshops.

Contact Peter Cohn with any questions.

Full schedule of JulyAP 2009 workshops

WHERE: 14N-132 (Digital Instruction Resource Center – DIRC)

WHEN: Thursday, July 9, 1pm – 2pm

Learn about the organization of key NCBI databases, understand the database record structure, and work with the BLAST search tool.

Contact Howard Silver with any questions.

Full schedule of JulyAP 2009 workshops

WHERE: 14N-132 (Digital Instruction Resource Center – DIRC)

WHEN: Wednesday, July 8, 9am – 12pm

Learn how to use this gene expression tool licensed by MIT Libraries. Bring data!

Contact Courtney Crummett with any questions.

Full schedule of JulyAP 2009 workshops

Want to learn how to find an article database for your research? Or use bioinformatics databases? Or use the library catalog? Then try the Libraries video tutorials, now hosted on TechTV!

MIT TechTV is MIT’s free video posting and hosting service, specializing in science, engineering, and MIT-related videos. Feel free to comment on our videos or suggest other videos that the Libraries can produce.

Sample Video: Finding Articles, Part 2: Finding Journal Articles on a Specific Topic

The Broad Institute will transition from a department within MIT to a permanent non-profit organization on July 1, 2009. Broad employees who are affiliated with MIT as faculty or staff will continue to have borrowing privileges and access to the MIT Libraries’ collections, while all other Broad employees will no longer have the same access.

All Broad employees can use the new Broad Library for library services. Dave Richardson (617.714.7902), the Broad Librarian, can answer questions related to this transition. The Broad institute also has more information available on their intranet for employees.

Learn how to find and use information more effectively in these hands-on workshops. No advanced registration required. Light refreshments will be served at each session.

All workshops will take place in the Digital Instruction Resource Center (DIRC), 14N-132.

GeneGo Training
Wednesday, July 8, 9am – 12pm
Learn how to use this gene expression tool licensed by MIT Libraries. Bring data!
Contact: Courtney Crummett

Bioinformatics for Beginners
Thursday, July 9, 1pm – 2pm
Learn about the organization of key NCBI databases, understand the database record structure, and work with the BLAST search tool.
Contact: Howard Silver

EndNote Basics
Friday, July 10, 12pm – 1pm
Endnote is a “personal bibliographic software” package which allows you to create and manage a database of bibliographic references. Learn how to find and use information more effectively in our hands-on workshops.
Contact: Peter Cohn

OAG as a Travel Planner Tool
Monday, July 13, 12pm – 1pm
OAG Travel Planner Pro is the premier customizable online tool for business and professional travelers who need to make and manage complex travel plans.
Contact: Barbara Williams

RefWorks Basics
Friday, July 17, 12pm – 1pm
RefWorks is a web-based resource designed to help you organize references and create a bibliography. RefWorks allows you to search, retrieve relevant citations, easily cite references as you write your paper, and build your bibliography. It allows users to create individual or group accounts.
Contact: Anita Perkins

Accessing the Aero/Astro Collection
Monday, July 6 and Monday, July 20, 12pm – 1pm
Find out where Aero/Astro materials are now located. This session will highlight the various Aero/Astro collections and how to access them.
This session is limited to 25 participants. To register, contact Barbara Williams.

Sequence Alignment
Wednesday, July 22, 10am – 12pm
Explore sequence alignment algorithms and their practical applications. Session will include a hands-on algorithm exercise and practical usage information (Clustal, BLAST, BLAT, Maq).
Contact: Charlie Whittaker

DSpace@MIT for Research Collections
Friday, July 24 and Monday, July 27, 12pm – 1pm
DSpace@MIT archives and makes globally discoverable the research output of MIT faculty, researchers, and students. The session will highlight MIT Libraries’ initiatives for easy upload of complete technical report and working papers series’ and will demonstrate how individuals and research groups can establish and begin populating new collections of research materials.
Contact: Craig Thomas

BLAST
Wednesday, July 29, 11am – 12pm
Learn how to use NCBI resources and optimize your BLAST protein searches to get the most out of your results. Attendance at Bioinformatics for Beginners and familiarity with BLAST are recommended.
Contact: Amy Stout

Data Management 101
Friday, July 31, 12pm – 1pm
For researchers struggling to manage their data, basic strategies will be provided for best practices for retention and archiving, effective directory structures and naming conventions, good file formats for long-term access, data security and backup options, metadata, tagging, and citation and other relevant issues.
Contact: Anne Graham

Sponsored by the MIT Libraries.

Hayden Library — Humanities & Science — will stay open 24 hours a day during Finals

from Thursday May 14th at 8am to Friday, May 22nd at 7pm.

Overnight hours are for the MIT community only.

Need a break from your studies?

Enjoy free drinks & snacks at our two Food for Thought events this week:

• Barker Library (10-500) lobby, Tuesday May 12th, 2:30-4pm

• Hayden Library (14S-100) lobby, Thursday May 14th, 2:30-4pm

Come and hear attorney Sonia Guterman of Lawson & Wetzen discuss the distinctive aspects of patents that make them valuable, the role of patents in capital development, along with issues surrounding filing biotech patents. She will be assisted by Drew Lowery, who received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from MIT and is a member of Global Prior Art’s Life Science Team. Drew will discuss and demonstrate alternative ways to search biotech patent art and their suitability. At the end of the talk attendees will have the opportunity to do hands on searching.

WHERE: 14N-132 (Digital Instruction Resource Center – DIRC)

WHEN: Thursday, April 16, 12 – 1:30pm

Contact Darcy Duke for more information.

Check out the full listing of IAPril 2009 Libraries events!

The Bookmobile is coming! The Bookmobile is coming!

Save the date, spread the word: the Bookmobile is coming to Lobby 10 on Tuesday, April 14. Stock up for Patriots Day weekend! The staff of the Humanities, Science, and Lewis Music Libraries will be pulling together a selection of materials to tempt your mental palates, so come by and check out something to enjoy over the weekend. Choose from:

• Books, audio books, and movies from the Humanities Library Browsery
• Books from the Science Library’s new “Serendipity” Collection
• CDs and DVDs from the Lewis Music Library (which will be due on Tuesday, 4/21)

Date: Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Place: Lobby 10
Time: 11 am – 2 pm

Learn how to find and use information more effectively in our hands-on workshops. No advanced registration required.

**NOTE that different events will be happening throughout the month of April and early May.**

WHERE: 14N-132 (Digital Instruction Resource Center – DIRC)

WHEN: Friday, April 10, 12 – 1pm

Class attendees will learn about the organization of key NCBI databases, understand the database record structure, and work with the BLAST search tool. The session is a hands-on practicum and an excellent starting point for people who are new to, or curious about bioinformatics research tools.

Contact Howard Silver for more information.

Check out the full listing of IAPril 2009 Libraries events!

We are pleased to announce that the MIT Libraries now subscribe to all of the content available from the Optical Society of America through their OpticsInfoBase package.

The new package includes:

Partnered Journals:

All OSA Conference Papers (dates of coverage will vary by conference)

The URL above works on campus. As always, you can access this content off-campus through Vera or by using the Infobase shortcut.

* – Content from the old subscription

Learn how to find and use information more effectively in these hands-on workshops. No advanced registration required. Light refreshments will be served at each session.

WHERE: 14N-132 (Digital Instruction Resource Center – DIRC)

Endnote Basics
Friday, April 3rd, 12 – 1pm

EndNote is a “personal bibliographic software” package which allows you to create and manage a database of bibliographic references.
Contact: Peter Cohn

Researching Companies for the Job Hunt
Thursday, April 9, 3-4:30pm

The MIT Libraries subscribe to a number of databases that you can use to research companies and industries. Using these databases, you can:
-Target companies by industry and geography
-Conduct comprehensive company and industry research
We will discuss why this type of research is critical to the job and internship search process, and how to use these databases effectively.

Contact: Anita Perkins

Bioinformatics for Beginners
Friday, April 10th, 12 – 1pm

Class attendees will learn about the organization of key NCBI databases, understand the database record structure, and work with the BLAST search tool. The session is a hands-on practicum and an excellent starting point for people who are new to, or curious about bioinformatics research tools.
Contact: Howard Silver

Biotechnology Patent Fundamentals and Searching
Thursday, April 16, 12-1:30pm

Come and hear attorney Sonia Guterman of Lawson & Wetzen discuss the distinctive aspects of patents that make them valuable, the role of patents in capital development, along with issues surrounding filing biotech patents. She will be assisted by Drew Lowery, who received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from MIT and is a member of Global Prior Art’s Life Science Team. Drew will discuss and demonstrate alternative ways to search biotech patent art and their suitability. At the end of the talk attendees will have the opportunity to do hands on searching.

Contact: J. Darcy Duke

Managing Research Data 101
Thursday, April 23, 12-1pm

For researchers struggling to manage their data, basic strategies will be provided for
• best practices for retention and archiving
• effective directory structures and naming conventions
• good file formats for long-term access
• data security and backup options
• metadata, tagging, and citation
• other relevant issues

Contact: MacKenzie Smith

Introduction to Market Research Databases at MIT
Friday, May 1, 12-1pm

Market research abounds on the web, but usually with a hefty price tag. This session will familiarize participants with market research accessible through MIT. We will cover types of resources available, how to navigate them, and some basic tips for using these resources.

Contact: Maggie Bartley

Check out the full listing of IAPril 2009 Libraries events!