home Resources and Services Take A (Reading) Bite Out of Shark Week

Take A (Reading) Bite Out of Shark Week

It’s Shark Week! 🦈 And of course we have some books to celebrate!

 

The secret life of sharksThe secret lives of sharks: a leading marine biologist reveals the mysteries of shark behavior

Marine biologist Pete Klimley swims with the sharks. He was one of the first scientists to free-dive among sharks, and he has spent nearly thirty years studying shark behavior, sometimes swimming in schools of several hundred sharks. From his firsthand observations he has learned that sharks are not the vicious man-eaters that we imagine, but fascinating animals with complex behaviors.

 

Are You Smarter Than a Shark? : Learn How Sharks Survive in Their Watery World – 100+ Facts About Sharks!Are You Smarter Than a Shark

People once thought that sharks weren’t very smart. It turns out those people were WRONG! Wise-cracking sharks set the record straight in this funny, fact-filled book for young shark lovers. Sharks have their own way of thinking. And their way of thinking has made them one of the top predators in the ocean. Sharks can sniff out injured animals over great distances. As hunters, they use their special electro-sense to zero in on hidden prey. They have taste buds in their razor-sharp teeth. And, like people, sharks are playful and curious, and they can learn and remember. In Are You Smarter Than…A Shark?, discover what makes a shark a shark, and what makes them different from other fish.

 

Sharks: the perfect predatorsSharks the perfect predators

Fascinating, graceful, and powerful, sharks are the sea’s most feared predators, and this new guide sympathetically examines their physiological, anatomical, and behavioral adaptations. Stunning photographs complement the most complete and updated information on the diets and predatory tactics of these ferocious, misunderstood, and endangered animals. Answers are provided to a myriad of questions, such as What predatory tactics do sharks use to catch their prey? Why do some attack humans? and Which animals are especially vulnerable to shark predation?

 

surprising sharksSurprising sharks

Introduces many different species of sharks, pointing out such characteristics as the small size of the dwarf lantern shark and the physical characteristics and behavior that makes sharks killing machines.

 

 

Sharks The Animal Answer GuideSharks: the animal answer guide 

Do sharks lay eggs or give birth to live young? Do sharks sleep? How long do they live? How likely are shark attacks? This book answers your questions about some of nature’s most misunderstood animals.Answering every conceivable question about sharks, authors Gene Helfman and George H. Burgess describe the fascinating biology, behavior, diversity (there are more than 1,000 species worldwide), and cultural importance of sharks, their close relationship to skates and rays, and their critical role in healthy ecosystems.Helfman and Burgess take readers on a round-the-world tour of shark habitats, which include oceans as well as lakes and even rivers (as far up the Mississippi as St. Louis).

The Tiger Shark TheTiger Shark

A set of stripes and an insatiable appetite link the tiger shark to its earthbound namesake. The voracious fish will eat just about anything from sea turtles to trashed tires. Its unrestrained appetite puts it among the top three most dangerous sharks. Get up close and personal with one of the ocean’s most fearsome predators in this exciting book for growing readers.

 

 

The sharks of North AmericaSharks of North America

Which species of sharks live within 500 nautical miles of North American shores, and what do we know about them? Jose I. Castro’s The Sharks of North America is the first comprehensive book in sixty years to address these questions, and it does so with unrivaled authority and aesthetic detail. The 135 comprehensive species accounts summarize the present knowledge. Each begins with the etymology of a species’ common and scientific names, followed by the description, identifying characteristics, geographic range, biology, reproduction, location of nurseries, growth and longevity, and relation to humans. These accounts synthesize decades of research and first-hand examination of sharks collected in fisheries and research operations across the continent. They are thorough, current, and dispel many myths and misunderstandings found in the scientific and popular literature

 

Draw 50 sharks, whales, and other sea creaturesDraw 50 sharks whales, and other sea creature

Lee Ames, together with Warren Budd, present 50 inhabitants of the deep in step-by-step sketches. “Includes no less than 11 kinds of sharks and 13 animals of the whale family.”

 

 

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Taira Meadowcroft

Taira Meadowcroft is the Public Health and Community Engagement Librarian at the Health Sciences Library at the University of Missouri.

home Staff news Jennifer Thompson Hired as Associate University Librarian for Acquisitions, Collections and Technical Services

Jennifer Thompson Hired as Associate University Librarian for Acquisitions, Collections and Technical Services

In July, the University Libraries hired Jennifer Thompson as associate university librarian for Acquisitions, Collections and Technical Services. Jennifer has a Master of Library and Information Science from the University of South Carolina and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Virginia, where she studied religious studies and architectural history. She was inspired to become a librarian while studying the design of the Boston Public Library. The architects intended the design to reflect the importance of public spaces in a democratic society and the ability of learning to improve lives – two concepts with which Jennifer wholeheartedly aligns. Previously Jennifer served as electronic resources librarian for the University of Missouri System, technology and resource sharing consultant for the Missouri State Library, and library director at the American College of the Building Arts in Charleston, SC.

 

 

home Ellis Library, Resources and Services Fall Theses and Dissertations Now on MOspace

Fall Theses and Dissertations Now on MOspace

Fall 2022 theses and dissertations are now freely available to view on MOspace. MOspace is an online repository that permanently houses all theses and dissertations written by MU students. Feel free to explore the full collection, which highlights student research back to 1896.

The Fall 2022 batch adds 32 theses and 61 dissertations to our expanding collection of online MU scholarship, with an additional 47 items embargoed until December 2023.

View the full collection on MOspace.

home Resources and Services Books to Celebrate Pride

Books to Celebrate Pride

It’s officially Pride Month and to help celebrate this month of love and acceptance, we asked our Mizzou Librarians what stories they’d like to celebrate.

Below are just a few of the recommendations that tell stories of triumphs and struggles of the LGBTQ community, all of which are available to request. You can view the whole list of recommended reads here.

Be sure to search the library catalog to see what else we have.

Have book recommendation? Let us know here.

BirthdayBirthday by Meredith Russo

Eric and Morgan decided they were best friends for life. They’ve stuck by each other’s side as Morgan’s mom died, as he moved across town, as Eric joined the football team, as his parents started fighting. But Morgan feels trapped in a mixed-up body, in a wrong life, in Nowheresville, Tennessee, on repeat. With a dad who cares about his football team more than his son, and a best friend who can never know his biggest secret. Six years of birthdays reveal Eric and Morgan’s destiny as they come together, drift apart, fall in love, and discover who they’re meant to be– and if they’re meant to be together.

 

Golden Boy Golden boy a novel Abigail Tartellin.

The Walker family is good at keeping secrets from the world. They are even better at keeping them from each other. Max Walker is a golden boy, with a secret that the world may not be ready for. This novel is a riveting tale of a family in crisis, a fascinating exploration of identity, and a coming-of-age story like no other.

 

 

I am Your Sister: Collected and Unpublished Writings of Audre LordeI am your sister collected and unpublished writings of Audre Lorde

I Am Your Sister is a collection of Lorde’s non-fiction prose, written between 1976 and 1990, and it introduces new perspectives on the depth and range of Lorde’s intellectual interests and her commitments to progressive social change. Presented here, for the first time in print, is a major body of Lorde’s speeches and essays, along with the complete text of A Burst of Light and Lorde’s landmark prose works Sister Outsider and The Cancer Journals. Together, these writings reveal Lorde’s commitment to a radical course of thought and action, situating her works within the women’s, gay and lesbian, and African American Civil Rights movements.

 

Legends & LattesLegends lattes a novel of high fantasy and low stakes Travis Baldree.

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time. The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is. If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won’t be able to go it alone. But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

 

Out at the Movies: A history of Gay CinemaOut at the Movies A history of Gay Cinema

Over the decades, gay cinema has reflected the community’s journey from persecution to emancipation to acceptance. Politicised dramas like Victim in the 60s, The Naked Civil Servant in the 70s, and the AIDS cinema of the 80s have given way in recent years to films which celebrate a vast array of gay life-styles. Gay films have undergone a major shift, from the fringe to the mainstream and 2005s Academy Awards were dubbed the Gay Oscars with gongs going to Brokeback Mountain, Capote and Transamerica. Producers began clamouring to back gay-themed movies and the most high profile of these is Gus Van Sant’s MILK, starring Sean Penn as Harvey Milk, the first prominent American political figure to be elected to office on an openly gay ticket back in the 70s. The book also includes information on gay filmmakers and actors and their influence within the industry. Interspersed throughout the book are some of the most iconic scenes from gay cinema and the most memorable dialogue from key films.

 

Stella Brings the FamilyStella Brings the Family

Stella’s class is having a Mother’s Day celebration, but what’s a girl with two daddies to do? It’s not that she doesn’t have someone who helps her with her homework, or tucks her in at night. Stella has her Papa and Daddy who take care of her, and a whole gaggle of other loved ones who make her feel special and supported every day. She just doesn’t have a mom to invite to the party. Fortunately, Stella finds a unique solution to her party problem in this sweet story about love, acceptance, and the true meaning of family.

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Taira Meadowcroft

Taira Meadowcroft is the Public Health and Community Engagement Librarian at the Health Sciences Library at the University of Missouri.

home Special Collections and Archives, Support the Libraries Samir Husni Magazine Collection Donated to MU Libraries

Samir Husni Magazine Collection Donated to MU Libraries

Samir Husni, a leading expert on magazine publishing, has donated his archives to the University of Missouri Libraries Special Collections and Archives division. These wide-ranging research materials will be available to scholarship as the Samir Husni Magazine Collection.

Dubbed “the planet’s leading expert on new magazines” by the Chicago Tribune and “a world-renowned expert on print journalism” by CBS News, Samir “Mr. Magazine™” Husni, Ph.D., has studied magazine launches for over forty years. Husni received his undergraduate degree from Lebanese University in Beirut, where he was top of his class, earning a scholarship to work on advanced degrees in the United States. He went on to earn a master’s degree in journalism from the University of North Texas in 1980 and a Ph.D. in magazine journalism from the University of Missouri in 1983. He is the founder and director of the Magazine Innovation Center at the School of Journalism and New Media at The University of Mississippi, where he served as a professor of journalism from 1984 to 2021.

The Samir Husni Magazine Collection represents a lifetime of research in media history and magazine publishing. Husni’s yearly publication, Samir Husni’s Guide to New Magazines, was in print from 1985 to 2011, and is published electronically to date. The Guide documents more than 40,000 first issue magazines published in the United States in the twentieth century, all of which are contained in the collection. A significant percentage of first edition magazines in the U.S. never published a second issue, so much of the content of the collection is extremely rare. The collection also includes longer or near-complete runs of other periodical titles from the early twentieth century, as well as merchandise and marketing kits created by magazine publishers, and Husni’s professional papers. Taken as a whole, the Husni Collection provides a detailed view of the landscape of American periodical publishing for a large span of the 20th century.

Dr. Earnest Perry, associate dean of graduate studies and research at the Missouri School of Journalism said, “The collection is a history of our pop culture from the 20th century and beyond and a snapshot of what has happened in America from news, to war, to culture and entertainment, to science and beyond.”

The Special Collections and Archives Division is home to a diverse collection of rare, unique, and historic materials across many formats: manuscripts, papers, rare books, maps, posters, comic art, architectural plans, photographs, and film. The collections are a highly used resource that support a busy program of reference, instruction, and outreach to the University of Missouri community and beyond. More information about the Samir Husni Magazine Collection is available on the Special Collections website. Researchers are encouraged to contact Special Collections librarians with questions.

home Cycle of Success Using Government Research to Uncover the History of the Bicycle

Using Government Research to Uncover the History of the Bicycle

Every year since 1990, bicycle enthusiasts have converged from around the world for the International Cycle History Conference (ICHC), where papers are presented on all aspects of cycle history and culture.

Few controversies are more important to this group than that surrounding the invention of the “boneshaker,” that is, the original bicycle of the mid-19th century powered by cranks and rotary pedals attached to the front hub. Though it appears to have originated in Paris around 1863, exactly who was responsible for that breakthrough and the original Michaux bicycle company remains unclear.

Fortunately, new technologies in library research may help solve the mystery. In 2022, MU Government Information Librarian Marie Concannon presented a paper at the ICHC titled “How to use digital libraries for historical cycling research,” and spoke about advances which allow powerful full-text searching in millions of books and government records all at once.

One of the historians in attendance was David Herlihy, author of Bicycle: The History published by Yale University Press. After hearing Ms. Concannon’s presentation, he was intrigued by the possibility of using U.S. Patent & Trademark Office databases to answer a key question: in 1869, were the founders of the Michaux company trying to purchase the original bicycle patent granted by the U.S. Patent office in November, 1866 to Pierre Lallement of Paris, France? If so, that would provide strong evidence that they knew this was a valid patent. Mr. Herlihy hopes to analyze data generated by the newly retooled U.S. Patent database, together with 19th century intellectual property law, to make that case.

Ms. Concannon was able to assist with the patent database, but needed help with intellectual property law history. She asked MU Law Librarian colleagues Randy Diamond and Cindy Shearer for input, and was delighted to see all they uncovered — about a dozen articles providing exactly the sort of legal context Mr. Herlihy was seeking, including the steps a foreigner might have taken in the 1860s to either purchase or overturn an existing U.S. patent. Taking such actions could indirectly reveal that individual’s opinion of the bicycle’s rightful inventor.

For now it remains a mystery to us, while Mr. Herlihy works through all the materials sent by our team of librarians. We can’t wait to see his next ICHC paper!

home Support the Libraries Congratulations to the 2023 Undergraduate Research Contest Award Winners

Congratulations to the 2023 Undergraduate Research Contest Award Winners

Jared Rubenstein

The University Libraries Undergraduate Research Contest seeks to recognize and reward outstanding research conducted by undergraduate students at the University of Missouri.

This year the winner of the first place prize of a $500 scholarship is Jared Rubenstein, a junior studying journalism. His project, “Nazi Propaganda in American Universities from 1933 to 1938,” was written for Jerritt Frank’s History 1200 course.

Sasha Goodnow

The second-place winner and recipient of a $250 scholarship is Sasha Goodnow, a junior studying environmental science. Her project, “Missouri Statewide Lake Assessment Program,” was written for an environmental science internship with Dr. Rebecca North.

Jared and Sasha’s papers will be archived in MOspace, MU’s digital repository. You can see their projects, as well as past winners’ projects, here.

Special thanks to the Friends of the University of Missouri Libraries for their support of this award.

home Resources and Services Free Equipment Checkouts

Free Equipment Checkouts

Did you leave your laptop at home? Forgot your phone charger? Need a camera? The Circulation Desk at your library can help you out! Check out the available equipment here. All equipment is available with your student ID. Materials can be renewed in person at the desk. But be careful! There is a $2 fine for every hour it is returned late.

So, the next time you are studying all day at the library and your phone dies, don’t worry! Just head over to the Circulation Desk at your library.

LGBTQ Library Resources at Mizzou

It’s Pride Month at Mizzou! Make sure you check out the events happening this month: https://diversity.missouri.edu/2023/lgbtq-pride-month/

Our LGBTQ Resources guide provides useful resources for research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer issues, and for members, family, and friends of the LGBTQ community. Whether you are a student looking for help with your papers and projects, you are looking for reading recommendations, or you are looking for resources off campus, this guide is for you.

If you are interested in LGBTQ health resources, we have a guide that links to community and nationwide resources, as well as books & media recommendations in Mizzou Libraries and beyond.

Not everything on these guides are behind a paywall. If there is a resource you cannot access, we encourage you to look at your local and university library or local bookstore.

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Taira Meadowcroft

Taira Meadowcroft is the Public Health and Community Engagement Librarian at the Health Sciences Library at the University of Missouri.

Books for Celebration of Teaching

This year’s Celebration of Teaching is April 28-April 29th. You can still sign up for the conference here.

Mizzou Libraries has two books, we’ve recently purchased, that will help you teach at your best.

Have book recommendation? Let us know here.

 

Teaching at its Best: a Research-based Resource for College Instructors  

A complete, accessible, evidence-based guide to better teaching in higher education This higher education playbook provides a wealth of research-backed practices for nearly every aspect of effective teaching throughout higher education. It is filled with practical guidance and proven techniques designed to help you improve student learning, both face-to-face and online. Already a bestselling research-based toolbox written for college instructors of any experience level, Teaching at Its Best just got even better.

 

Online Teaching at its Best: Merging Instructional Design with Teaching and Learning Researchonline teaching at its best

Bring pedagogy and cognitive science to online learning environments Online Teaching at Its Best: Merging Instructional Design with Teaching and Learning Research, 2nd Edition, is the scholarly resource for online learning that faculty, instructional designers, and administrators have raved about. This book addresses course design, teaching, and student motivation across the continuum of online teaching modes–remote, hybrid, hyflex, and fully online–integrating these with pedagogical and cognitive science, and grounding its recommendations in the latest research. The book will help you design or redesign your courses to ensure strong course alignment and effective student learning in any of these teaching modes.

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Taira Meadowcroft

Taira Meadowcroft is the Public Health and Community Engagement Librarian at the Health Sciences Library at the University of Missouri.