Books added to the Library by students in GPS (Semester One 2020/21)

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is books-1245690_1280-1024x682.jpg

Our Recommend a Book service for students allows you to tell us about the books you need for your studies. If we don’t have the books you need, simply complete the web form and we’ll see if we can buy them. For books we already have in stock, if they are out on loan please make a reservation/hold request using Library Search.

Further information about Recommend a book.

In Semester One, academic year 2020/2021 we received 193 requests from 77 students totalling £13,529 worth of book orders. We bought the following items after requests from students in GPS:

Books added to the Library by students in SAPL (Semester One 2020/21)

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is books-1245690_1280-1024x682.jpg

Our Recommend a Book service for students allows you to tell us about the books you need for your studies. If we don’t have the books you need, simply complete the web form and we’ll see if we can buy them. For books we already have in stock, if they are out on loan please make a reservation/hold request using Library Search.

Further information about Recommend a book.

In Semester One, academic year 2020/2021 we received 263 requests from 97 students totalling £17,343 worth of book orders. We bought the following items after requests from students in SAPL:

Books added to the Library by students in ECLS (Semester One 2020/21)

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is books-1245690_1280-1024x682.jpg

Our Recommend a Book service for students allows you to tell us about the books you need for your studies. If we don’t have the books you need, simply complete the web form and we’ll see if we can buy them. For books we already have in stock, if they are out on loan please make a reservation/hold request using Library Search.

Further information about Recommend a book.

In Semester One, academic year 2020/2021 we received 91 requests from 48 students totalling £7,614 worth of book orders. We bought the following items after requests from students in ECLS:

Winter Craft-along Online: Part 1

For a few years now the Library has hosted Crafts at Christmas – a wonderful event that brings together staff and students into our Libraries for a time to unwind and focus our creative energies on some Winter crafts. Sadly this year we are unable to host our usual event, so instead we have created a series a blogs highlighting some excellent, but very simple, crafts that you can do in the comfort of you own home.

Our sustainability challenge

This time of year can be not only expensive but full of waste. So our challenge to you is to make these Winter crafts from as many materials that you have lying around the house as possible, such as old wrapping paper, last year’s Christmas cards, or old balls of wool lying around etc.. You’ll be amazed what beautiful crafts you can make out of the stuff you normally recycle or throw away.

3D paper snowflake

Last year I made these stunning 3D paper snowflakes out of the paper packing you get in your Amazon delivery! We make these snowflakes every year in our Crafts at Christmas events – they look really complicated, but are really easy. Why don’t you give them a go. All you need is paper, scissors, a stapler and sticky-tape…

Origami paper box

Another really simple paper craft, but instead of buying origami paper why don’t you make them out of old wrapping paper or even old, thin Christmas cards. These wee boxes are great for holding sweet treats for a loved one.

Recycled paperback folded Christmas tree

This is another super easy and very effective paper craft that you can do using an old book or magazine or catalogue. You don’t need any other materials other than the pages of the book, but you can decorate the tree afterwards if you like (I made origami lucky stars for the top of my tree):

Paper ball decorations

These are so pretty and all you need is string, glue and paper – we suggest using magazines and leaflets that you have had through the front door. Takeaway menus are great for it!

Share the Joy

We would love to see your crafts, so why don’t you share a photo and tag us in Twitter, Instagram or Facebook, and use the hashtag #NULWinterCrafts2020.

Look out for Part 2 and Part 3 with even more crafts for you to try.

Reading Lists: Make the most of your Library’s Resources

Are you at the beginning of your student journey? Do you maybe not know where to start reading for an elaborate assignment?

Or maybe you have been studying for a while? Did you get used to browsing our shelves and now things are changing? Do you need to go back to the basics?

Either way, you may think that you could use some guidance on how best to use your module Reading List and even go beyond these recommendations and explore the wider resource that the Library provides.

Seek no further! Please have a look at the Thinglink we have put together for this exact purpose!

Resource in Focus: Construction Information Services (CIS)

Screenshot of CIS homepage

Overview

CIS is produced jointly with the National Building Specification (NBS) especially for architects, civil and structural engineers, building control officers, building services engineers and other professionals in the construction industry. CIS provides fundamental industry information and legislation, as well as additional sector material. The extensive range of full-text documents cover all aspects of the building, engineering, design and construction process in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.

The Construction Information Service (CIS) is a comprehensive online collection of over 28,000 construction related standards, regulations, technical advice and articles from 500+ publishers. Content is updated weekly, neatly organised into topic based supplements and delivered through a function rich and easily accessible online portal.

This collection is an invaluable resource if you are studying:

  • Many of our Engineering courses
  • Architecture, Landscape and Planning
  • Geography

Subjects covered include:

  • Building regulations
  • Environmental/land Planning
  • Planning control
  • Urban planning
  • Waste/water management
  • Earthworks/foundations
  • Land drainage
  • Law/legislation
  • Transport facilities/planning
  • Tunnelling and underpinning
  • Engineering
  • Materials
  • Groundwater control
  • Roads
  • loads/stresses
  • …and much, much, much more!

Searching

Within the CIS search box you can enter your keywords or browse by subject in the left-hand menu. There is also an Advanced Search option. There is also plenty of help with how to use CIS under the Help option on the left-hand menu:

Screenshot of left-hand menu on CIS showing where to browse and where to get help with CIS.

Access

CIS is available through our catalogue, Library Search. If you are on campus no password is required. If you are off campus you will need to log in using your University campus ID and password. You can also find it under the Journals and Database tabs in our Subject Guides, and on our Standards Resource Guide.

Copyright

Every document in The Construction Information Service has copyright permission from the publisher. Some publishers do not allow use of their documents or will only give permission for certain titles. Publishers who do give permission can also place an embargo on certain documents, resulting in a delay between publication and inclusion in CIS.

Manchester University Press Hive: International Relations e-book collection

Manchester Hive banner logo

We now subscribe to the Manchester University Press Hive International Relations e-book collection. The collection provides 65 e-books written by leading names in the field covering key issues and debates on global issues such as foreign policy, gender, global ethics, environmental politics and terrorism..

Manchester International Relations aims to explore and analyse the critical approaches to the study of global issues – from authority; citizenship; foreign policy, gender, war and peace to global ethics; human rights; media; environmental politics and international law.

This online resource will help you understand contemporary international relations and the forces that are reshaping global politics in the 21st century by examining international political systems, international political theory, and developments in contemporary global politics throughout Europe, the USA, Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Resource in focus: L’Année philologique

l’Année philologique (Aph) is a bibliographic database, indexing journal articles and book chapters about the classical world, going back to 1924. It’s an excellent resource for researching topics related to Greek and Latin literature and linguistics, Greek and Roman history, art, archaeology, philosophy, religion and more.

Aph provides a range of search options:

Simple Search

In simple search you can choose between or combine a free search, where you can apply your own keywords, and a general thematic search, which allows you to access the Aph subject thesaurus via the Subject Tree or by using the auto-complete options that appear as you type in the search box. The Subject Tree is a hierarchically organized list of subject indexing terms; it highlights links between broader, narrower and related terms, helping you to select all of the keywords relevant to your topic.

Screen shot of the Aph subject tree.

Advanced Search

Advanced search provides additional search fields, including bibliographic search, which allows you to narrow your focus by author name, title, publication details or language. There are also further options for exploring the subject thesaurus with browse lists for all indexed terms and a specific thematic search.

As Aph is a bibliographic database, item records will not usually include access to Full Text articles. Instead you’ll find detailed bibliographic information that will help you locate a copy, alongside an abstract and descriptive keywords that you can use to see if the article is relevant for you.

The video below demonstrates how to find information in Aph, including how to use the Subject Tree and how to find Full Text copies of articles you need in Library Search and Google Scholar.

If you would like to learn more, the Help page on Aph provides an excellent, detailed guide to each of the databases’ features.

Digimap: Global and Society

Screen shot of Society Digimap.

Adding to our existing EDINA collection, we now have access to both Global and Society Digimap.

Society includes census and socio-economic data which can be layered across the map software to provide a picture and give an insight of society in a given area. For more information about how to use the Society data, watch this video from EDINA.

Whilst Global provides access to global datasets in cartographic styles and downloadable formats. It allows you to browse, annotate and print global maps and access to downloadable global datasets for use in GIS software.

To access these resources, click on the link to the Digimap collection via Library Search or our Maps Resources guide, log in with your university account and click on the Society or Global tab to access the data.  You will need to accept the license agreement the first time you use it.

Please explore and email us if you have any questions, or post it as a comment on this blog. For other map resources, check out our Maps Resources guide.

Resource in Focus: Fortune Magazine archive

We have recently subscribed to Fortune Magazine Archive – an extensive cover-to-cover collection of the long-running business magazine dating from its very first issue in February 1930 through December 2000.

Subjects Covered in this magazine:

  • American business
  • International business
  • Economics
  • Industry
  • Technology

Published monthly by Time Inc., Fortune Magazine sought to provide news and analysis of both American and, later, international business, economics, technology, and industry.  Each issue featured vivid color illustrations and photographs, as well as high-quality feature articles, published at a time when most business magazines were merely black and white compendiums of statistics and figures. 

Articles and cover pages are fully indexed and advertisements are individually identified, ensuring researchers and readers can quickly and accurately locate the information they seek. Fortune Magazine Archive is valuable to researchers of 20th-Century current events, politics and culture, as well as those interested in the history of business, advertising, and popular culture.