New resource trial: Modern Construction Online

The Library is hosting a short trial to Modern Construction Online.

Modern Construction Online logo

Modern Construction Online is a comprehensive resource that gives students, architects, engineers, and construction professionals the most relevant information on modern construction techniques and materials. By using this platform, practitioners and students keep up to date with current trends and improve their skills in designing and constructing of modern buildings. 

Modern Construction Online homepage showing keyword search function

Modern Construction Online consists of case studies, learning materials, articles, and entries on construction elements.

The search box situated in the middle of the screen enables a full-text search, making it easy to search for anything you are interested in. For example, a material (“stainless steel”), building parts (“ceiling”), a general search term (“humidity”, “daylight”).

Once you have conducted a search, you can use the filters on the left-hand side of the results page to support refining your results, as shown in the example search below for “glass rooflight”:

Results of a search for “glass rooflight”, showing options to filer results on the left-hand side

The Entry Type filter on the left hand side makes it easy to narrow down to articles or case studies or information about the type/use in relations to materials.

The Search Help page provided by Modern Construction Online provides guidance on making effective use of the database.

The Learning Resources provide you with an overview of key strategies, arrangements and analysis in modern construction design.

The resource is available to trial until Monday 31st March. Access Modern Construction Online via Library Search.

As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on this resource, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New resource trial: Orlando: Women’s Writing

The Library is currently running a short trial to Orlando: Women’s Writing, from Cambridge University Press.

Orland Women's Writing in the British Isles from the Beginnings to the Present logo

Orlando: Women’s Writing in the British Isles from the Beginnings to the Present is a highly dynamic and rich resource for researchers, students, and readers with an interest in literature, women’s writing, or cultural history more generally.

Orlando is not a text archive: it does not print the texts its subjects wrote. Instead, it provides new biographical and critical accounts of the lives and works of its subjects, together with contextual materials relevant to critical and historical readings. With about 8 million words of text and biographical and writing career profiles on over 1430 individuals, it is full of factual, critical, and interpreted material.

From the homepage, it is easy to keyword search for a specific person, author, work or event:

Orlando: Women's Writing homepage showing search of "Virginia Woolf"
Orlando: Women’s Writing homepage showing example keyword search of “Virginia Woolf”

Search results can be refined by fields such as historic period, genre, author nationality to support more specific retrieval. The browse functions allow researchers to explore author profiles, people, organisations, timelines, and the full bibliography of sources cited in Orlando: Women’s Writing. The Get Started guide provides extensive information on making effective use of the database.

Orlando’s content is also structured by a XML tagset, allowing researchers to conduct tag searching. More information on Tags is available here.

The resource is available to trial until Thursday 27th February. Access Orlando: Women’s Writing from Library Search here.

As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on this resource, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New resource trial: Policy Commons additional modules

Policy Commons logo

The Library is currently trialling additional modules within the Policy Commons platform.

We have already successfully acquired the Global Think Tanks module, however the present trial also unlocks access to the following additional modules:

  • Public Health and Social Care: Frontline health providers, hospital systems, foundations, patient groups, practitioner communities, governments, think tanks, and other organizations produce research, pilot projects, real-world evaluations, newsletters, and collaborative projects.
  • North American City Reports: Cities are on the front lines addressing climate change, immigration, racial equity, and other pressing issues. North American City Reports is the best source of current, detailed information about what happened, what was tried, and what worked. Rich in statistics and hard evidence, the reports document attitudes, actions, and outcomes—through surveys, budgets, case studies, training manuals, plans, and other records.
  • World Cities and Local Governments: Cities are on the front lines of today’s most pressing challenges and their publications document the ground truth.
  • World Governments: Governmental organsations publish debates, proceedings, reports, budgets, commissions, inquiries, audits, scientific findings, and other content. They spend billions of dollars annually on research.
  • World Cities: Cities around the world are grappling with urgent issues that transcend national boundaries—rapid urbanization, escalating climate change, pervasive inequality, and other challenges. City reports show how municipalities are tackling problems. But lack of discoverability and impermanence make these the hardest policy documents to find and cite.
  • Oceania: A major new initiative to collect, preserve, and disseminate critical research from Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands, Policy Commons: Oceania provides the region’s perspective on topics including climate change, indigenous rights, the economy, housing, healthcare, and ageing.

The resource is available to trial until Monday 31st March. Access Policy Commons from Library Search here.

As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on this resource, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New resource trial: The Subculture Archives

The Library are hosting a short trial to The Subculture Archives.

The Subculture Archives is an educational & cultural research resource of primary sources exploring 100 years of youth culture through the scenes, styles, and sounds that forged them. From Rave, Punk, Rockabilly to Grime. The resource is formed from the collections of the Museum of Youth Culture.

The resource is of interest to those exploring youth culture in the 20th century from a range of subjects, including Music, Fine Art, Sociology, and History.

The search function allows keyword searches across the collections on the platform, with the ability to narrow searches by item type:

Subculture Archives keyword search function
Subculture Archives keyword search function

Advanced Search is also available, with options to search for specific date ranges and persons, as well as media specifications. The Global Search allows for retrieval of resources within a certain defined geographical location of your choosing.

Browsing by collection, subculture, decade, photographer, and topic are all easy to achieve by selecting “Subcultures, Scenes, Decades and Trend Analysis” from the menu at the top of the dash:

Subcultures, Scenes, Decades and Trend Analysis
Subcultures, Scenes, Decades and Trend Analysis

The resource is available to trial until Friday 28th February. Access The Subculture Archives via Library Search, then select ‘Log in via your University or Institution’, scroll down to ‘Newcastle University’ and lastly click on ‘Select’.

As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary. Content is downloadable and accessible for internal educational use only, and be aware that copyright considerations apply.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on this resource, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New resource trial: Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing (PEP)

Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing logo

The Library is running a short trial to the database Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing (PEP).

PEP contains more than 139,000 articles covering over a million pages, full text of numerous journals and classic monographs, as well as full-text searchable videos, in the field of psychoanalysis. PEP has been designed to provide a powerful rapid search of the entire psychoanalytic literature in English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Romanian, Spanish and Turkish.

PEP provide a range of videos to help you access and make effective use of the database:

  • Quick Intro: This 8 minute introduction to the new PEP-Web platform covers the basics you need to explore the vast PEP-Web archive, including journals, books and videos, as well as how to efficiently find what you’re searching for.
  • Searching and Browsing: This 10 minute video will give you a detailed tutorial on searching and browsing on the new PEP-Web platform. This includes how to explore content, find something you already know, and browse like a physical library.
  • Browsing videos: This short video will show you how you can explore the video collection on PEP-Web.
  • Refining your Results: This 3 minute video will show you how to refine your search results. You can refine by decade, author, citation count, language, article type and more, making exploring content and finding what you want more efficient and effective.
  • Advanced Features: This 2 minute video takes you through some of the more advanced ways you can use PEP-Web, including keyboard shortcuts and advanced search methods. The tips covered in this video are documented here on the PEP Support website, so you can read through and refer to them at your own pace.

You can access PEP via Library Search here.  Some content has a 3-5 year embargo period; this is defined by the individual publication, rather than the database. 

Our trial access is valid until 30th November 2024. As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial will no longer work after the trial ends.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on the resource, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New resource trial: Overton

Overton logo, white text on orange background.

Library are running a short trial to the database Overton. Overton is the world’s largest collection of policy documents, parliamentary transcripts, government guidance and think tank research.

Introduction to Overton

You can restrict your searches to policy from specific regions, countries or source types. Other filters allow you to view policy that cites research from a particular university, think tank, or academic.

Overton also helps users measure their influence on government policy, both locally and internationally. If you fund, publish or produce research, Overton can show you where it has been cited in policy worldwide. 

Overton offer extensive help guides and videos to guide you in making the most of the database. Here are some of the key links and videos to get you started:

Search for policy documents that cite or mention your organisation
Search for names in Overton

Overton Engage (for policy engagement opportunities) is included in the trial, too – this includes the semantic search function

Access to Overton is provided here. You will be required to make an account to access the trial.

The trial ends on 22nd November 2024. 

As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on the specific collections, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New resource trial: AM digital collections (AM Explorer)

AM Explorer Arts and Humanities logo and text

The Library are currently hosting a trial to a range of digital primary source collections from from AM (Adam Matthews).

There’s a huge variety of collections that are available via the AM Explorer platform.

Access the AM Explorer platform here using your Newcastle University credentials, and then either keyword search the whole range of collections using the search bar on the homepage, or head to View Collections to browse the specific collections. Some collection highlights from AM Explorer include:

1980s Culture and Society

Amnesty International Archives

East India Company

India, Raj & Empire

Indigenous Histories and Cultures in North America

Popular Culture in Britain and America, 1950-1975

Poverty, Philanthropy and Social Conditions in Victorian Britain

 Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History

Women in The National Archives

The Search Guide provides support on how to best search the AM Explorer platform and collections.

The vast majority of the products are available to access via the AM Explorer platform, but some are available via direct links only:

The Olympic Movement: Sport, Global Politics and Identity

Mexico in History: Colonialism to Revolution

The Transformation of Shopping: Department Stores, Social Change and Consumerism 1830 – 1994

Women’s Voices and Life Writing, 1600-1968.

Our trial access is valid until 18th November 2024. As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on the specific collections, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New Resource Trial: MediaPlus

The Library is currently running a short trial to MediaPlus, a digital media resource offered by Alexander Street Press (ProQuest).

Alexander Street logo

MediaPlus consists of more than 100,000 videos, images, and sound recordings. The resource is ideal for students and researchers interested in 20th century British social, political and cultural history from a range of disciplines (particularly History, Media, and Politics).

You can use both the Search and Advanced Search functions to locate relevant sources. This video details how to make best use of the search functions in Alexander Street.

You can also browse by Title, Subject, and Sub-collection from the MediaPlus homepage, where you can then further refine results by date, publisher, or subject.

Content is drawn from a number of sources (Sub-collections):

  • Associated Press Archive (6,010 items)
  • Channel 4 News (6,508)
  • Gaumont British News (2,476)
  • Gaumont Graphic Newsreel (8,087)
  • Getty Moving images (8,163)
  • Getty Still images (11,732)
  • ITN (6,300)
  • ITV news (27,519)
  • Imperial War Museum – images (4,165)
  • Photographic Youth Music Culture Archive – PYMCA (6,421)
  • Reuters News (3,248)
  • Royal Geographical Society (6,448)
  • Royal Mail Film Classics (66)
  • The North Highland College – Johnston Collection (10,037)
  • Wellcome Library (710)

You can access MediaPlus via Library Search here.

The trial access to the resource is available until 15th November 2024. As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials.

Please note that MediaPlus content cannot be downloaded, and any embedded content or permalinks will not work after the trial ends.

We are keen to hear any feedback on this resource – please contact us by commenting below or by emailing your Liaison Librarian (libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk).

Global Communist and Socialist Movements

We are running a trial to this unique archive from Gale. It is a collection of first-hand narratives chronicling, socialist and far-left groups in terms of how figures saw themselves and the world around them during the major political and social events that occurred in the twentieth century.

The resource features primary sources from various different collections including:

Radical Left Political Movements and Social Issues: American Old Left
Source at the University of California, Davis

Senate House Library, University of London Collections

Rose Pastor Stokes Papers at Yale University

Anna Strunsky Walling Papers at Yale University

Papers of Walter Lippmann at Yale University

Alger Hiss Defense Collection at Harvard Law School Library

Alger Hiss Collection at New York University

Anti-Socialist Organisations in Britain at the British Library

FBI American Legion Contact Program at the Federal Bureau of Investigation

Archives of the Independent Labour Party

Socialist and Labour Thought in Britain Since 1884

FBI File on J. Robert Oppenheimer

Full details on the Gale website

There are approximately 868,000 pages made up of correspondence, periodicals, manuscripts, books, personal papers, organisational records, letters and newsletters, pamphlets dating from 1766-2004 (however most are dated between 1880-1950)

You can access this resource via Library Search. The trial will run until 18th April 2024.

We are keen to hear any feedback on this resource – please contact us by commenting below or by emailing your Liaison Librarian (libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk)

New Resource Trial: The Social History Archive

The Library is currently running a short trial to The Social History Archive.

The Social History Archive logo with illustrations of papers.
The Social History Archive logo. ©Findmypast.

The Social History Archive provides access to primary source material, from unique newspapers to census returns, crime reports and migration records. This platform is operated by FindMyPast and includes newspapers from the British Newspaper Archive.

The platform may be accessed here by selecting “Newcastle University” from the drop down menu. You will then be prompted to login using your Newcastle University credentials.

The platform has a number of search and browse functions. You can “Search all Records” or create an advanced search from the homepage (called the dashboard), however the “Search” drop-down menu provides options to search by record type, including newspapers and publications. If you need any assistance using the platform then please do not hesitate to get in touch.

The trial runs until Tuesday 5th March 2024. We are keen to hear any feedback on this resource – please contact us by commenting below or by emailing your Liaison Librarian (libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk).