Library News

Try It: Mergent WebReports

The library is now offering a chance to try Mergent WebReports through September 30, 2010.  After you’ve used it, let us know if you found it helpful. Mergent WebReports is an online database that allows you to access a vast archive of corporate and industry related documents. WebReports contains more than 180,000 documents covering over 100 countries and industries using an easy to navigate and reliable system. This database trial includes the Digital Corporate Manuals and the Digital Municipal & Government Manuals, going back to the early 1900s.

Cambridge Eviction Free Zone records available for historical research

We are pleased to announce that the historical records of the Cambridge Eviction Free Zone are now available in the NU Archives, located on the lower level of the Snell Library. This collection is part of the local history collections in the NU Libraries Archives and Special Collections. Many people do not realize that, in addition to collecting historical records of Northeastern, we also collect local history records and documents, focusing especially on Boston-area social justice organizations that serve under-represented communities. Founded in 1988, the Cambridge Eviction Free Zone (EFZ) was an independent, tenant-run community organization that worked for social and economic justice in the areas of housing and tenants’ rights, rent control, and immigrant voting rights. The collection includes meeting minutes, reports, newsletters, newspaper clippings, promotional materials such as flyers, photographs, signs, and memorabilia. View a guide to the collection and read a complete press release about the collection.

Some practical joke

Recently, we’ve been seeing signs posted around the library, possibly on every floor, that read: Club Snell Announces: 24/7 PARTY. Starting July 5th, 2010. All floors will be open as dance space to Students, Faculty and Staff with current Husky ID. Sorry, no BU students. Okay so…we can take the high road and admit that this is kind of funny. The signs are versions of the template that Krissy created in June to announce the 24/7 library service. It is not clear how somebody got a hold of the template for this sign and was able to print it. Judging from the fact that it’s in black and white, though, it must have been printed in the info commons. Still, if you see one of these signs, you can take it down and junk it. More detective work to follow, perhaps.

Listen to Online Science Lectures by Experts

The Libraries have a great new resource available for students and faculty: the Henry Stewart Talks, also called The Biomedical & Life Sciences Collection. Here’s a way to browse and view or listen to lectures by experts in the sciences, including Nobel Laureates. There are over one thousand seminar talks to choose from, on topics ranging from Antibiotic Resistance and The Blood-Brain Barrier to Health Economics and Using Bioinformatics in the Exploration of Genetic Diversity. Some are overviews, while others cover recent developments. Note the wide range of lectures on Cognitive Neuroscience. While the focus is on biomedicine, the seminars also are useful for those who focus on the social and administrative science aspects of medicine and life sciences. When this was a trial resource, we received many enthusiastic comments from the NU community, which helped to make this purchase possible. Remember that your comments on trial resources are always valuable to the staff and are considered when we make our collection decisions.