News from @umnlib

Want to get out of your reading element this summer? Looking for a way to celebrate the International Year of the Periodic Table? Take up our summer reading challenge for a chance to win prizes and find some new favorite books!

"The ABC of It: Why Children’s Books Matter" is an exhibit at the University of Minnesota Libraries, which runs through May 31.

Four 8th-graders from Salk Middle School in Elk River talk about their History Day projects and the importance of Wilson Library to their research. Hear from Abi Kotila, Emma McCauley, Ben Stout, Kayla Vang, Salk social studies teacher Ron Hustvedt, and Minitex librarian Elizabeth Staats as they prepare for History Day 2019. 

With finals approaching, consider these tips for effective studying: Make study plans, practice taking your exam, and find and reserve study spaces.

Teaching poetry while in prison, being present at an airport bomb explosion, and traveling internationally have shaped Jim Moore as a writer and pivotal figure on Minnesota’s poetry scene for more than four decades. Moore read from his works at the 2019 Pankake Poetry event, held April 3 at the University of Minnesota.

The University Libraries offer "distraction-free" studying for finals that includes extended hours in our buildings, as well as stress-reducing activities.Use our spaces, our computers and printers, our coffee shops, Chat 24/7 with a librarian and take a break with our awesome activities. Also learn more about study break activities, Exam Jam, and how to find support during stressful finals.

Professor Wendy Haight wants to improve the child welfare system for Indigenous families. So, she enlisted Librarian Scott Marsalis to get started on her research. Marsalis helped with the creation of a synthesizing review, intended to identify and evaluate all relevant research on Haight’s topic. But Marsalis provided so much more than assistance with searches: He ended up as co-author.

The Theorem of the Vector bested 31 other teams to capture the 2019 Science Quiz Bowl championship on Sunday, April 7. This friendly double-elimination tournament kicked off CSE Week 2019 and featured 130 students from CSE and other colleges. Players answered questions in all areas of science, with some pop culture and general knowledge questions thrown in for fun.

Record setting snowfalls in February, combined with heavy rains and quickly warming temperatures, have set the stage for major flooding in Minnesota this spring. We’re here to share trusted information compiled by librarians at the Bio-Medical Library and the National Library of Medicine to help prepare for flood events.

The University of California system made news recently when it broke off negotiations with Elsevier, one of the world’s largest scholarly journal publishers. UC's main goals are to secure universal open access publishing for UC research — so that anyone in the world can view it, free of charge — while curbing the rising costs of for-profit journals. Wendy Pradt Lougee, University Librarian and Dean of Libraries, writes about what's happening at the University of Minnesota regarding publishing and Open Access.

Four months after the 1984 presidential election, Geraldine Ferraro visited Minnesota where she was greeted by a large and receptive audience as the guest speaker for the Distinguished Carlson Lecture Series, sponsored by the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.  Interest was so great that after full capacity was reached in Northrop Auditorium, accommodations were made for a screening at Williams Arena on campus. The speech was also broadcast live on KUOM radio stations throughout the Twin Cities.

Duluth’s forecast called for a wintry mix the morning of January 7 - leading to a two hour weather delay at University of Minnesota Duluth. But bad weather did not stop a team of six librarians from the Twin Cities campus from traveling 160 miles to teach a half-day course on data management, nor did it stop a group of over thirty participants from trekking through snow and ice to attend the workshop.

The University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing Services is about to turn five years old. Compared to traditional academic publishers — some of which have been publishing for more than 100 years — the publisher is still a new kid on the block.That newness brings challenges, but it also brings a lot of opportunities — opportunities that drive Emma Molls in her multifaceted role of Publishing Services Librarian.

Student Jimmy Cooper hosts a zine workshop every-other Monday in the Walter Library Breakerspace. The Breakerspace provides the room and materials, and Cooper brings the content and atmosphere. It is a workshop where everyone can exercise their creative voice in a heartfelt, paperback format.

Come sit in the chair in a landmark Twin Cities exhibit at the March 2 Open House for the exhibit, "The ABC of It: Why Children's Books Matter." It will transport you back to your childhood with original artwork and manuscripts from over 200 children's classics. Enjoy three floors of photo opportunities including a life-sized Poky Little Puppy and an 18 foot replica of the Goodnight Moon bedroom perfect for reading a bedtime story.

The Performing Arts Archives recently received a treasure trove of new archival materials from the Minnesota Opera. These new acquisitions document the opera company’s more-than 50-year commitment to staging new works. Founded in 1964, the Minnesota Opera began as the Center Opera, an organization that operated under the aegis of the Walker Art Center.