Search
Loading

Purdue Libraries and School of Information Studies News

Get Help with Your Research and Writing in Hicks

February 4th, 2019

Research and Writing Help in Hicks - Purdue Libraries Hone your research and writing skills with help from personnel in Purdue Libraries and the Purdue Writing Lab! Purdue University students can now set up one-on-one consultations—conveniently located in the Hicks Undergraduate Library—with members of Purdue Libraries faculty and/or Purdue Writing Lab personnel.

Libraries faculty can work with you on a number of research and scholarly communication topics including: research questions, literature review sources, and poster design. Libraries faculty can also connect you with others to discuss research methods exploration, data storage, data ethics, and more.

Writing Lab staff can work with you on any aspect of writing, including getting started, focusing your topic, integrating your research, developing your argument, genre conventions, and more.

  • Where: Hicks Library (outside the G980D classroom)
  • When: 2-5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons
  • How: Sign up online, or drop in and go to the information desk at Hicks.

Sign up for research consultation at http://calendar.lib.purdue.edu/booking/researchconsult

Sign up for a writing consultation at https://cla.purdue.edu/wlschedule.

 


“What If AI Tools Punish the Poor?”; Spring Critical Data Studies Distinguished Lecture Set for Feb. 13

January 30th, 2019

Virginia Eubanks, associate professor of political science, University of Albany, the State University of New York (SUNY)
Virginia Eubanks, associate professor of political science, University of Albany, the State University of New York (SUNY)

Courtesy of Purdue News Service

In an increasingly automated world, what if artificial intelligence (AI) tools are harmful to poor people? They just might be.

Virginia Eubanks, associate professor of political science at the University of Albany, SUNY, will address this question in her lecture “What IF AI tools Punish the Poor?” She argues that government data and its abuses have worsened inequality and created a digital poorhouse by imposing a new regime of surveillance, profiling, punishment, containment and exclusion in our society.

The lecture, which is free and open to the public, is 4:30 p.m. Feb. 13 in Stewart Center’s Fowler Hall. It will be followed by a Q&A session.

For 20 years, Eubanks has worked in community technology and economic justice movements. She was a founding member of Our Data Bodies Project and was a fellow at New America.

The event is a part of Purdue’s Ideas Festival, the centerpiece of Purdue’s Giant Leaps Sesquicentennial Campaign, which is a series of events that connect world-renowned speakers and Purdue expertise in a conversation on the most critical problems facing the world. One of the Ideas Festival’s themes is artificial intelligence, algorithms and automation.

Eubanks is the author of “Automating Inequality: How High-Tech Tools Profile, Police and Punish the Poor” and “Digital Dead End: Fighting for Social Justice in the Information Age.” She also co-edited with Alethia Jones “Ain’t Nobody Turn Me Around: Forty Years of Movement Building with Barbara Smith.” Her writing about technology and social justice has appeared in Scientific American, The Nation, Harper’s and Wired.

This Spring Critical Data Studies Distinguished Lecture is sponsored by the Honors College. Eubanks’ visit also is co-sponsored by the AI Committee/Ideas Festival, American Studies Program, Black Cultural Center, Brian Lamb School of Communication, Center for Science of Information – NSF Science & Technology Center, Civic Engagement and Leadership Development, Critical Data Studies, The Data Mine, Department of History, Department of Political Science, Department of Sociology, Diversity Resource Office, Honors College, Purdue University Libraries – Seminar Committee, Purdue Graduate Student Government, and Purdue University Fort Wayne.


Vet Medical, Aviation Tech Libraries to Close at 5 p.m. Jan. 30

January 30th, 2019

Due to the wind chill emergency at Purdue University, the Veterinary Medical Library and the Aviation Technology Library will close at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 30.

Visit www.lib.purdue.edu/hoursList for Purdue Libraries’ hours.


Remembering the Fire, which Paved the Way for Future Giant Leaps

January 27th, 2019

On July 20, 1969, the world watched as Neil Armstrong took humankind’s first steps on the moon.

This giant leap instantly became the defining moment in space history. There were now American footprints on the moon, fulfilling the late President John F. Kennedy’s promise to do so by the end of the decade.

NASA’s accomplishment is all the more incredible in light of the tragedy that occurred just two-and-half years prior, when on January 27, 1967, Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee lost their lives in a fire during a launch pad test of the Apollo 1 spacecraft. The nation was in shock and NASA was forced to confront the mistakes that led to the avoidable deaths of its own astronauts.

 

Pad 34, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, looking west on the evening of January 27, 2017, fifty years to the day of the Apollo 1 fire. Several private memorials have been placed at the site over the decades. One reminds visitors: “Remember them not for how they died but for those ideals for which they lived.” (Photo by George Leopold)

 

In its haste to reach the moon by the end of the decade, NASA had pushed the flawed Apollo 1 craft to its limits. Though it was too late for the Apollo 1 astronauts, NASA ultimately realized that there was much that needed to be changed if they were to make it to the moon.

“One of the cruel ironies, the central paradox of the Space Race, was that a launch pad fire actually saved the Apollo program,” notes George Leopold, Gus Grissom’s biographer. “The reason was the evidence of what had been overlooked in Grissom’s ship—the faulty wiring, the leaking coolant, the lack of flame-retardant materials in the spacecraft, the clumsy, inward-opening hatch, and most important of all, NASA’s misguided engineering decision to use pure oxygen under pressure on the launch pad—all of it was there for the investigators to sift through.”

Tragedy struck, but NASA learned from it, and the groundwork was laid to successfully put humankind on the moon.

Armstrong was empowered to take that first giant leap on the surface of the moon because of those who did so before him on Earth, including Grissom, White, and Chaffee who took calculated risks to fulfill Kennedy’s promise.

NASA did not make it to the moon despite the failure of the mission; rather, NASA achieved their goal because of the contributions and the sacrifices of these astronauts, and the doors they opened for future giant leaps

As Purdue University celebrates 150 Years of Giant Leaps with its sesquicentennial celebration in 2019; as the world recognizes the fiftieth anniversary of Armstrong’s first steps on the moon in July of this year; we cast the spotlight, today, on the crew of Apollo 1 and in particular Purdue alumnus astronauts Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee, whose giant leaps and ultimate sacrifice moved humankind forward, to the moon and beyond.


The information in this post came from Grissom’s biography, Calculated Risk: The Supersonic Life and Times of Gus Grissom, Revised and Expanded and a previous Q&A with the author, George Leopold.


Possible Power Outage in Stewart Center, HSSE Library Jan. 25

January 25th, 2019

Due to some technical difficulties with an electrical project in Stewart Center, the building may experience a power outage Friday, Jan. 25. If this occurs, the outage will impact the Humanities, Social Science, and Humanities (HSSE) Library, and the library will be evacuated and closed until power is restored.


Explore “Text Analysis with R” in Purdue Libraries’ Digital Humanities Workshop Series This March

January 17th, 2019

In March, Purdue Libraries will offer a special Tinkering Humanist Workshop series focused on text analysis. Led by Purdue Libraries Assistant Professor of Digital Humanities Matt Hannah and Library Assistant Trevor Burrows, the series will explore how to incorporate such methodologies as sentiment analysis and stylometrics into humanities research using the programming language R. The workshop instructors will also consider some of the practical and theoretical questions particular to these approaches.

The series schedule is listed below. Registration for each workshop is required.

  • Introduction to Text Analysis with R
    1–4 p.m. Tuesday, March 5
    Please note: this session is required to attend the other two sessions.
  • Sentiment Analysis with R
    2–4 p.m., Tuesday, March 19
  • Stylistic Analysis with R
    2–4 p.m., Tuesday, March 26

Register online at https://goo.gl/forms/u6KdezbBE4jgyDpm2. No previous programming experience is necessary, but participants should be comfortable with basic computer operations.

All sessions will be held in D-VELoP (Data Visualization Experience Lab of Purdue), located in the Wilmeth Active Learning Center (WALC 3045).

For more information, contact Assistant Professor Hannah at hannah8@purdue.edu.


“Annotating the Humanities” Workshop Set for Feb. 13

January 17th, 2019

Digital Humanities - Purdue University Libraries
Purdue Libraries’ Tinkering Humanist workshops are presented by Matt Hannah, assistant professor of digital humanities in Purdue Libraries and are designed to help instructors and researchers explore and “tinker” with new tools and technologies to use in their scholarship and teaching.

Explore the power of annotation for your research and instruction in a new “Annotating the Humanities” workshop courtesy of the Purdue University Libraries’ Tinkering Humanist Digital Humanities (DH) Workshop Series.

“Annotating the Humanities” is set from 2-4 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 13, in the Data Visualization Experience Lab of Purdue (D-VELoP) in the Wilmeth Active Learning Center, room 3045. Registration is required.

According to Matthew Hannah, assistant professor of digital humanities in Purdue Libraries, the session will cover the challenges of building new digital tools with special guest Hongshan Li, graduate student in the Purdue University Department of Mathematics, who will share a new tool he built to annotate documents.

“These tools are perfect complements for courses because they require students to focus on texts and ‘mark up’ their reading. Hongshan will also share an exclusive first look at his annotation tool designed for classroom application,” Hannah explained. “In this session, we will also discuss the unique challenges of building DH tools.”

Register online at https://bit.ly/2Jja8m6. For more information, contact Assistant Professor Hannah at hannah8@purdue.edu.

 

 


HSSE Library to Close Early Jan. 22-24 Due to Stewart Center Power Shutdown

January 16th, 2019

Due to a scheduled power shut down to install new equipment, Stewart Center, which houses the Humanities, Social Science, and Education (HSSE) Library, will close at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22; Wednesday, Jan. 23; and Thursday, Jan. 24.

All individuals in Stewart Center and the HSSE Library will be required to exit the building at 10:45 p.m. before power to the building is shut off at 11 p.m.

January 22-24 the HSSE Library will re-open at the regularly scheduled time (8 a.m.).


Featured Database: Thomson One

January 15th, 2019

Parrish Library’s Featured Database will give you a very brief introduction to the basic features of one of our specialized subscription databases. This time we’re featuring Thomson One brought to you by Thomson Reuters.

Link: http://guides.lib.purdue.edu/az.php?s=71213 is the alphabetical list of the databases specially selected for those in a business program of study. Access the databases off-campus with your Purdue login and password.

Focus: Thomson One is a comprehensive database of public financial statistics that also contains investment analyst reports and mergers & acquisitions information. Please note that this database only works in Internet Explorer.

Tutorial: We have three different tutorials available related to Thomson One depending on the type of data you’re interested in: Finding Mergers and Acquisitions Data in Thomson One, Finding VentureXpert Data in Thomson One, and Finding Investext Investment Analyst Reports in Thomson One.

Start with this hint: Make sure you’re using Internet Explorer to access Thomson One. Where you begin, will be dependent on what type of data you’re looking for. See the tutorial links above for more detailed information.

Why you should know this database: Thomson One provides easy access to VentureXpert and Mergers and Acquisitions data that may not otherwise be easily accessible online.

Related Resources

Some other databases you might want to explore, are:

  • Mergent Online, financial statements, company news, industry analysis, historical information on M&A activity, and more.
  • PrivCo, contains business and financial data on over 30,000 major, non-publicly traded corporations.
  • S&P Net Advantage, investment information and analysis on companies, industries, stocks and bonds, mutual funds and dividends.

 


This Featured Database comes to you from the Roland G. Parrish Library of Management & Economics. If you would like more information about this database, or if you would like a demonstration of it for a class, contact parrlib@purdue.edu. Also let us know if you know of a colleague who would benefit from this, or future Featured Databases.

Since usage statistics are an important barometer when databases are up for renewal, tell us your favorite database, and we will gladly promote it. Send an email to parrlib@purdue.edu.


Purdue Archives New Exhibit Celebrates International Students’ Contributions to Purdue’s 150-Year History

January 14th, 2019

round the World in 150 Years: Purdue International Footprint

A new Purdue Archives and Special Collections exhibit that focuses on the experience of international students at Purdue University throughout the institution’s history is open!

“Around the World in 150 Years: Purdue International Footprint”
Items in the Purdue Archives and Special Collections exhibit “Around the World in 150 Years: Purdue’s International Footprint,” which runs through Friday, March 8.

“Around the World in 150 Years: Purdue’s International Footprint” highlights a variety of cultures, countries, activities, and time periods represented in the holdings of Archives and Special Collections, with a special focus on students who were among the first from their home countries to attend Purdue. Items on display include photographs, articles, and publications by or about international students, as well as artifacts given to the university by alumni groups from around the world.

According to Archivist for University History Adriana Harmeyer, the idea for the display came about as Purdue archivists have been considering the University’s Sesquicentennial, which is being commemorated through Homecoming 2019. She noted that a team of individuals in Purdue Archives helped curate the exhibit.

“As we mark Purdue’s 150th anniversary, we are looking back and celebrating the people who have made the University what it is today. The international student population has been a presence on campus for a longer period of time than many people realize, and international students have made amazing contributions to the academic and social life of campus,” she noted.

The exhibit includes materials from some of the earliest international student groups on campus, including the Cosmopolitan Club (established in 1909) and publications by the 1920s-era Chinese Students Association, including a “Chinese Students Year-Book” from 1927, Harmeyer added.

“Around the World in 150 Years: Purdue International Footprint” will run weekdays (Monday-Friday) from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. through Friday, March 8. The exhibit is on display in the Virginia Kelly Karnes Archives and Special Collections Research Center, located on the fourth floor of the Humanities, Social Science, and Education (HSSE) Library.

For more information, contact Harmeyer at aharmey@purdue.edu.