research

Important Temporary Access to Digitized Versions of the Library’s Print Collections Available

The Northeastern University Library is a member of the HathiTrust Digital Library, a major international repository for the digital preservation of digitized versions of print library materials. Normally, there is no access to content which is still under copyright. During the current crisis, as many libraries have closed, HathiTrust took an important step and temporarily opened up copyrighted material in their digital library to member institutions with copies of those items in their physical collections. This means that any books available through HathiTrust which are also in Northeastern’s collections will be available to you while the library is closed. HathiTrust’s online collection contains approximately half of the Northeastern Library’s book collections.

We are working to add this temporary access to Scholar OneSearch. In the meantime, to take advantage of this resource:

  • Visit ​hathitrust.org​ and click the yellow “LOG IN” button.
  • Select “Northeastern University” and log in using your NU credentials.
  • Use the site to locate the item you wish to view.
  • Click on the Temporary Access link at the bottom of the record, if present, to Check Out the item through the Emergency Temporary Access Service.
  • You will have 60 minutes of access to the book during any session. If you remain active in the book at the end of the session, access time will automatically be extended, unless someone else has requested to read the book.
  • You will not be able to download the whole book, although you can download individual pages. You are mainly able to read it online in an active session while using HathiTrust. This is to protect the author’s rights.
  • You will be able to search within the full text of the book.

If you have questions about using this temporary service, please contact help@northeastern.libanswers.com.

Archives and Special Collections joins New England Regional Fellowship Consortium (NERFC)

Northeastern University’s Archives and Special Collections, housed in Snell Library, has joined the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium (NERFC). The NERFC is a collaboration of 30 cultural institutions and repositories across New England whose collections reflect the long and diverse history of the region.

The Archives and Special Collections will host stipended two-week residencies for NERFC fellows starting in 2020. Their research will make use of the University’s unique resources on Boston’s history of social justice activism, neighborhoods and public infrastructure, as well as records from individuals and organizations part of the city’s African American, Asian American, LGBTQA, Latinx and other communities.

The consortium’s fellowship program is designed to promote research across a variety of institutions and metropolitan areas in New England. To that end, the NERFC grants two dozen awards every year. Fellows receive a stipend of $5,000 with the requirement that they conduct their research in at least three of the participating institutions for periods of two weeks each.

The diverse group of institutions in the NERFC offer research opportunities in collections that span the region’s time period, from pre–European contact to the present day. Past awards have funded research on a wide array of topics conducted by scholars and independent researchers from across the US.

The Archives and Special Collections encourages researchers in the Northeastern community and beyond to apply to NERFC’s fellowship program by the February 1, 2020 deadline.

To learn more about the application requirements and other participating institutions, please visit the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium website.

3 Minute Thesis with GWISE: October 16th

Exciting news! We’ve been working with GWISE to bring the 3 Minute Thesis competition to Snell Library this year.

Infographic for Northeastern's 3 Minute Thesis competition on Tuesday, Oct. 16th, 11 am - 1 pm, 90 Snell Library  

3MT challenges graduate students to distill their work for a non-technical audience, using just 3 minutes and a single PowerPoint slide

Check out this video of competitor Maria Gibbs from Notre Dame to see an example of a winning 3MT talk.

Prizes this year include gift cards, a guest appearance on the What’s New podcast, and credit in the 3D Printing Studio – not to mention bragging rights!

The deadline to present has passed, but you can still attend and cheer on the presenters.  More details in the graphic above and at the RSVP link.

Data Fest is coming in February

Since Love Data Week and Endangered Data Week both happen in February, we thought we’d use this month to showcase some of the great data-related services and resources we have to offer here at Snell. We’re calling it Data Fest, and you’re invited!     Here’s a taste of what we have planned: Stop by and lend a hand at our Citizen Science: Health Hackathon Make friends with your command line at our Intro to the Unix Shell workshop Learn how to create impressive charts & data visualizations at our workshops on Tableau and free web-based tools   And more! Check out the full lineup and register here: http://bit.ly/snelldatafest18   

Interlibrary Loan: Getting Materials You Need From Across The Globe

  Have you ever found the absolutely perfect resource for your research, only to discover that it somehow falls outside of Snell Library’s collection of over half a million print- and e-books (each!) and hundred thousand e-journals? Found a title that Snell owns, but a classmate got to it first? Need a scanned chapter quickly, but not the whole book? Don’t worry, Interlibrary Loan has you covered! Currently enrolled students, faculty, and staff are able to borrow items free of charge from participating libraries across the country, including physical books, DVDs, music, and electronic copies of articles and book chapters. It’s as easy as identifying the item you need, either through the Snell’s own Scholar OneSearch, through WorldCat (the world’s largest online library catalog), or by manually entering your request through ILLiad, Interlibrary Loan’s management system. First time users will need to register an account, but the process only takes a few minutes. After submission, we’ll get to work finding the item, and patrons can track the status of their requests via their ILLiad account. Articles and book chapters generally arrive within 1-2 days, and while physical loan delivery times can vary (depending on availability and the lending institution’s location), titles typically arrive within 2-10 business days. Loan periods are generally 4-8 weeks. Check out our FAQ here, but do not hesitate to contact us at ill@northeastern.edu, or 617-373-8276. We look forward to helping you fulfill your research needs!