As Catherine pointed out in her last blog post, we’re not even close to everything being on the internet. However, because of the internet, we do have unprecedented access to books, journals, and a multitude of other information materials. Many of these resources we could never have seen or even found without the internet. Perhaps describing internet resources more specifically will help us to better evaluate and understand their usefulness for our research.

One way of classifying internet resources is by their accessibility. Internet resources may have open access, controlled access, or some form of limited access. A prime example of open access is our online catalog.

Anyone with internet access can see, manipulate and explore the SPST, Kansas City Cluster, and MOBIUS catalogs free of charge, 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. The cost of these catalogs is paid for by the member schools of the MOBIUS library consortium.

Another type of open access information is the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). This is a collection of 7437 journals (and growing) intentionally published online, and for which there is no charge. There are 81 journals dedicated specifically to religious studies. DOAJ is where you will find Methodist Review, Homiletic, and the Journal of Religion and Society. Only 1351 of the 7437 journals are published in the US. Many, if not most, of the journals are published in English as well as the source language. Of course, the scholarly practice of critical review that applies to all materials is important when evaluating open access materials. Just think of the breadth of new thought the internet is enabling us to reach! Take a look and explore how these journals might impact the quality of your research.

Stay tuned for more on controlled and limited access resources and their role in your research.

Kansas City at the turn of the 20^th century was an ugly place with stockyards, soap factories, rail yards, and other industries polluting the air and water in the prone-to-flood West Bottoms. Brambles and shanties covered the bluffs that rose to the east. The wealthy built on the high places surrounding themselves with parks and boulevards. But the poor lived in the poorly developed hollows that riddled Kansas City. Schirmer writes:

 … housing in the hollows was cheap … Unfortunately, it was also ramshackle. Landlords jammed flimsy frame structures onto the hollows’ unpaved streets and alleyways. Sanitation facilities were scant, and just a fifth of the buildings were connected to city water mains, so that householders often drew their water from contaminated cisterns or carried it home from nearby saloons. (Schirmer 2002, 37)

Belvidere Hollow in the North End was an enclave of mostly black households, whose residents had moved there to “escape the dreary West Bottoms” (ibid). In The Kansas City Deaconess of November 1909, a visit to Belvidere Hollow is described:

… we descend a flight of seventy steps and find ourselves in Belvidere Hollow, or the North End … We are not real sure about the street number, so by mistake go up the wrong street. At the last house we stop, thinking it to be the place we are to visit. We enter the house, going into the front room. The first thing we notice is that the plaster is mostly off; the windows no longer have glass, but old shades are nailed over them to keep out the cold. In this small room is a bed, an old cot, a small stove, a trunk, and a few old chairs. (November 1909, 4).

The story in The Kansas City Deaconess doesn’t do the scene justice. That would take a video and a scratch-and-sniff book. Two young women, dressed in long black dresses, walk down steep stairs into an overgrown, muddy, smelly hollow. They then find their way along unpaved, neglected roads, possibly through open sewers, to a desperately poor home. In the first home they don’t even know the people, but they go in and finding an old woman and her orphaned granddaughter, they set to work doing what they can to help. The woman’s son is at work, but they learn he has tuberculosis, so the deaconesses put contacting the local health nurse on their “to do list.” Leaving that home and retracing their steps, they find the house they were looking for, only to discover no one home. The return trip takes them back on the bad roads, but as they approach the flight of stairs, they see a couple on the stairs “drinking from a jug” (ibid) so they decide to go another way. After cutting across a yard, they go up another stairway out of the hollow.

The 1908 Class of KCNTS

Current projects in the Saint Paul library include applying for a grant to get The Kansas City Deaconess scanned and online.

With new classes beginning and library instruction in full swing, some of you may have had this thought yourselves: “Isn’t everything on the internet?” (Don’t worry, I’m not asking for a show of hands.)

The simple answer is that, no, it just isn’t. Nothing gets onto the internet by itself, and librarians are actually spending a lot of our time putting information up there. Digitization is expensive and digital storage is more staff-intensive than print storage (because it is less stable). And rather than the internet’s being immune from copyright restrictions, it actually makes sharing copyrighted materials trickier. Many of the best resources, such as ATLA’s databases, require subscription fees. Even most of the best free research sources, like the online Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit at the Israeli Museum, are institutionally supported.

But I think the real question people are asking is, “Why should I do time-consuming library research when the internet is so much faster?”

Using a search engine is a quick way to get an answer to a simple question like, “What is the phone number for my local pizza place?” But the theological questions that students are wrestling with in their classes here don’t have such easy answers. Deep down, you all know this or you wouldn’t be investing your time and money in education! You have to spend time finding the best resources, actually reading them, digesting the ideas you’ve found, and putting them back together with your thoughts and perspective. Your best papers are going to not only demonstrate that you understand the problem, but teach something about it, too.

Where does the library come in?

We evaluate, purchase, and organize some of the best resources that we can find so that you can more easily find and access them—whether online or in other formats. And then we use our expertise to help you build your own finding, evaluating, and organizing skills. The world of knowledge is vast and complicated, but we do everything we can to make your journey easier.

Good luck, and start your research early!

But first, in case you don’t know what I’m talking about, go to the SPST homepage, and select “Database Login”  under the gray “Library” dropdown menu. If you get a security warning, go ahead and do what they warn you not to do – proceed to this site that we know and trust. For the username, enter only your last name. For the password enter the 13-digit number below the barcode on the front of your SPST ID card. This should take you to the online database selection screen for Dana Dawson Library.

When you scan the list, you’ll notice a new item – “ebrary”. This is a continually expanding collection of over 70,000 scholarly electronic books – e-books.  You can search for materials directly in ebrary, or all of the titles are also in the SPST / WILO online catalog with direct links to the ebooks. Just click on the link for the SPST holding and you will be prompted to sign in using the Database Login procedure as outlined above.

If you venture into the EBSCOhost database you will see new databases listed on the initial EBSCO screen including:

• Biography Reference Center
• Science Reference Center
• Consumer Health Complete

When you go into the EBSCOhost “Choose Databases” section, look below the familiar ATLA and Academic Search Premier. Browse the descriptions of the databases, some never before available to SPST students, faculty, and staff including:

• Child Development & Adolescent Studies
• Humanities International Complete
• Bibliography of Native North Americans
• Violence & Abuse Abstracts
• ERIC (Education Resource Information Center)
• MEDLINE

If you encounter any problems accessing these resources, contact John Oyler in the library or at joyler@spst.edu. We will be offering general database overview training as well as training and helps for each of these specific resources. Let us know what you think!

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/king-james-bible.htm

Via Faith and Theology 

Ink Jar and Quills by studentofrhythm (Charles Stanford)

According to the University of Maryland – University College library (UMUC), an annotation is both descriptive and evaluative – noting a source’s usefulness or distinctiveness. More specifically, it discerns an author’s argument, and assesses the source’s applicability.

According to University of California – Santa Cruz, annotations serve several purposes:

• Demonstrating the scope and quality of one’s research
• Reviewing published literature on a topic
• Recording supplementary, illustrative or alternative sources
• Allowing a reader to identify sources consulted
• Illustrating the types of resources available
• Placing original research in an historical context

Generally, annotations include the following information (UMUC):

• Purpose of the work
• Summary of its contents
• Intended audience of the work
• Relevance to your topic
• Strengths, weaknesses or biases in the content

Your instructor may indicate other purposes as well, so clarify expected content.

Quill Array with Knife and Test Paper by studentofrhythm (Charles Stanford)

Annotations usually run between 100 and 200 words. Cornell University library presents a brief annotation (111 words), while Purdue University offers more lengthy examples (199 words). Again, consult with your instructor to define length.

Finally, if you are using Zotero, record an annotation under the “Notes” tab. Notes will print along with other information when you right click and select “Generate report from selected items….” From there copy and paste into your bibliography.

Storytelling has a long history in modern librarianship.  A big part of librarians’ jobs is promoting literacy, and storytelling hooks potential readers.  Most librarians who include storytelling in their work, however, are children’s librarians.  Here in the Saint Paul libraries, we know that deadlines are enough to keep our students and faculty reading.

But that doesn’t mean that storytelling has no place in the theological library!  Anyone involved in ministry knows the importance of narrative in preaching and in group communication–because adults need stories just as much as children do.  Stories are one of the best ways that we learn and understand.

To find information about incorporating storytelling in your preaching and ministry, do a keyword search in the library catalog or the ATLA database for storytelling.

To learn more about how the writers of the Bible used storytelling techniques, do a subject search for Narration in the Bible.

And if you really love stories, look up some materials on the theology of storytelling by doing a subject search for Narrative theology.

Keeping print photographs organized is a challenge, but then along came digital cameras.  We can take lots and lots of photos and save them on our computers. We no longer have the built-in limitations of being able to afford the film and the developing. However, organizing the hundreds of digital photos we can take organized is a chore!

I did some research and found some resources that are helpful for organizing personal photos. I’m old-fashioned enough to want print resources (book propped open, next to computer) but if you prefer watching a video, there’s one on the Digital Preservation website at the Library of Congress on archiving personal digital photos. That link is http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/you/content/photos.html. If you are a print person, check out the resources below.

Pogue, David.  David Pogue’s Digital Photography: The Missing Manual. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, Inc., 2009.

David Pogue is an author, photographer, and indexer. He writes a weekly technology column for the New York Times. Pogue is the creator of the Missing Manual series and has written for the For Dummies series. The first part of this book takes the novice through buying and using a digital camera. The second part is about what to do with the photos after you have taken them. Pogue gives instructions for using free software (either iPhoto for Macs or Picassa for PCs) to organize and edit your digital photos. The instructions in this book are very clear and understandable. It is a good source for the beginning digital photographer. In addition, by including instructions for free software, it presents an affordable way of organizing photographs.

Baldridge, Aimee. Organize Your Digital Life. Washington, DC: National Geographic Society, 2009.

Aimee Baldridge is “a freelance writer and photographer who specializes in technology. For six years she was a senior editor at CNET Networks, an online news and magazine website dedicated to photography and technology” (Andrus 2008). This book first talks the user through making an inventory of existing media: photos, movies, music, and important papers. Then Baldridge guides the user through prioritizing, planning, and executing the copying of analog media into digital. The chapter on photographs contains instructions on setting up the computer’s file system to provide an organizational backbone for digitized photos and for born-digital photos. The software emphasis is on the functions that are needed, rather than on a specific software package. There is a discussion of metadata, comparing it to sticky notes on a print photograph (the data). Baldridge assumes a much higher level of technical expertise of her audience than Pogue does. The home user will need to feel comfortable updating his or her hardware, operating system, software, and firmware.

Consumers Union of United States, Inc. “Organizing Images: Best Storage Strategies.” Consumers Reports (2005, July): 20-21.

Consumers Union is the largest independent testing and information organization in the world. They maintain their independence by not taking any advertising and or gifts, and buying all products they test. This article is addressed to three levels of home users: the casual (takes and saves few images), the serious (takes and saves a lot of images), and the advanced (takes, edits, and shares a lot of images). A simple chart shows the software, time, and features recommended for each level of user. For the casual user, they discuss iPhoto for Macs and Picassa for PCs, both available for free. For the serious user they recommend Photoshop Elements and ADCSee. The article also includes a rating of web-based photo-sharing and photofinishing sites. This respected organization gives useful, easy-to-read recommendations that serve all levels of home users in a summary form for those unwilling to wade through a book to get to the bottom line.

Resources

 Andrus, S. M., “Using a camera phone: Aimee Baldridge shows ‘How to Shoot Like a Pro’” [Review of the book The Camera Phone Book: How to Shoot Like a Pro]. Suite101.com. Retrieved July 26, 2009, from http://videofilmtechnology.suite101.com/article.cfm/using_a_camera_phone.

Zotero Homepage

Zotero allows you to edit collected records to correct errors, or standardize bibliographic format. You store records in logical files, relate items directly to one another, or group them via tagging. Insert notes about how you found the source, create abstracts, or comment on the item’s usefulness to other research opportunities.

You can output data in many formats including bibliographies, html code, lists, reports, and more. Zotero integrates fully and directly into Windows or OpenOffice so that footnotes and bibliographies are pre-formatted to the desired citation style.

Your data is available to you both on and offline with up to 100MB free server space. Your personal account login allows you to access, add to, update and edit your information with online synchronization from different locations and equipment. Collaborate and share resources openly or privately with others with similar research interests.

Zotero is developed by the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. It is sponsored by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Andrew W. Mellon and Alfred P. Sloan foundations.

See John at the Dana Dawson Library circulation desk for help in setting up and personalizing your Zotero account. It took me 15 minutes to install Zotero and enable all of the features listed above. How long does it take you to type footnotes and a bibliography for a 10-page paper? Oh, and did I mention it was free?!

In the first chapter, Severson talks about the relationship between morality and ethics. Morality is “the sense of conscience and right and wrong that we derive from our upbringing” (Severson, 7). Since everyone’s upbringing is different, the morality we gain varies vastly. It operates on an instinctual level, not requiring us to think about what we are doing. Severson goes on to say that “ethics brings the discipline of thinking to the moral life so we can figure out what to do when our instincts become overloaded” (Severson, 9). Unfortunately, in our society, we are so busy and so overwhelmed by stimuli that we take little time for reflection.

We also have lost civility, the “public manifestation of our private morality” that requires us to “be fair and charitable to those who disagree with us” (Severson, 12). One of the causes of this incivility Severson says is moral exclusiveness, thinking there is only one way to view things. I believe that one of the important things that leads to moral exclusiveness is an apparent need in humans to be right. When we invest ourselves in a belief system, whether it is a religion, a political system, or a lifestyle, we don’t want to think that we have wasted our lives. This leads us to be convinced that we are right, and if I am right, then you have to be wrong. Severson says that we have an “unfortunate habit of taking uncompromising moral positions” (Severson, 13). I would say that we have gone farther: we have made a virtue of being uncompromising. If you are right, and know you are right, why would you listen to others or change your mind? Why would you “waffle?” We have made pigheadedness a sign of strength and open-mindedness a sign of weakness.

 I particularly appreciated Severson’s methods of applying principled ethics to a situation (Severson, 17-25). Although his work specifically applies to information ethics, the method could be used with any set of ethics.

You can find The Principles of Information Ethics in the WILO catalog.