Georgia State University,
Atlanta, Georgia | |
| Salary: Starting at $48,000 | |
| Status:Full-time | |
| Posted:08/06/12 | |
| Deadline:09/07/12 | |
| Digital Initiatives Librarian | |
Georgia State University Library seeks an enthusiastic, collegial, self-starter to serve as the manager of theDigital Archive @ Georgia State University, the University’s institutional repository, which highlights the research and scholarly productivity of members of the University community. The University Library administers the archive to collect, organize, disseminate, and preserve the digital scholarly output of Georgia State University faculty, students and staff. The repository is hosted on the Digital Commons platform and currently includes ETDs, conference materials and journals.
The Digital Initiatives Librarian will be responsible for overseeing services related to the Library's institutional repository, including but not limited to:
This position reports to the Associate Dean for Collections.
Qualifications:
REQUIRED:
PREFERRED:
Salary and Rank
Minimum salary of $48,000 for 12 months. Salary is commensurate with the candidate’s education and experience. Appointment at a faculty rank, on a contract renewal basis.
Submit a cover letter addressing the above qualifications; resume; name, address and phone number of three references, including immediate supervisor. Review of materials will begin September 7, 2012 and continue until the position is filled. Send materials to:
Human Resources Coordinator
University Library
Georgia State University
100 Decatur Street, SE, Atlanta, GA 30303-3202
(404) 413-2700
Georgia State University is an equal opportunity educational institution/affirmative action employer strongly committed to cultural diversity.
| |
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Digital Initiatives Librarian at Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
Endpaper: When the book is a book
PRADEEP SEBASTIAN
The HinduOn the fortunes of the book: Jean-Claude Carriere (left) and Umberto Eco. Photos: S.S. Kumar and T. Singaravelou
Dips into a long, rambling conversation on the nature of the book by two artists: Umberto Eco and Jean Claude Carriere .
Umberto Eco and Jean Claude Carriere carried on a long, rambling conversation on the nature of the book over several sessions at their two homes. The conversation was ‘curated’ by editor Jean Philippe Tonnac and became a book. They called it This Is Not The End Of The Book; (and the semi colon is very much part of the title).
Disappointingly, there’s very little here, bibliographically speaking, about the printed book. And even less about the digital book, though the jacket blurb opens with how difficult it is these days to get away from discussions on whether the printed book will survive the digital revolution.
Unfamiliar with e-readers
The scriptwriter and the author surprisingly seem unfamiliar with newer e-readers; references to e-readers feel antiquated for a fairly recent conversation on the nature of the book: Eco speaks of how impractical it is to take the computer to read in bed. No one brings up the Kindle or the iPad.
We are living for the first time in an era, Eco says, where there are “so many beautiful, light-filled bookshops to wander in...” Their conversation turns interesting when they speak of book hunting in forgotten antiquarian bookshops, the times spent in old libraries, and the architectural beauty of the printed book. When they speak of the book in various cultures, the book as an idea, it is less interesting — and that’s most of the book. Though Carriere rambles more and Eco is more precise, Carriere is the more interesting for his wide ranging, multicultural references. Eco dully stays Euro-centric, referencing Greek-Latin and Spanish book history, while Carriere talks of Persian manuscripts, Sufi poets, the Mahabharata, the dance of Shiva and ancient African libraries (like the great ancient library in Timbuktu).
The argument of both these wonderful book artists is that “the book represents a sort of unsurpassable perfection in the realm of the imagination.” In a leisurely style, using personal stories, the two men meditate on the “good and bad fortunes of the book”. A perspective of the book that emerges is that it isn’t valuable in itself as an object because not all books are good or great or masterpieces. So why save what is mediocre or trashy? So, the book as an object isn’t meant to be sacred, and is not to be made a fetish. For Eco the book becomes a way of storing cultural information that one does not need to be burdened with; the book is ‘a fridge’.
Eco scores when he predicts that whatever forms the future book will take, it will have to look and feel like the traditional printed book. “The book is like the spoon. Once invented, it cannot be improved.” Electronic media formats are notoriously ephemeral, observe both writers. Eco recalls once hunting for an early version of Foucault’s Pendulum, which he had on floppy discs, but he couldn’t find them probably because they were thrown out. If it had been a typed manuscript, he points out, he would have found it somewhere in the house. After years of resisting having a film library of his own, Carriere gave in when the DVD came and began making his film collection and now the DVD is on its way out. But the tenacious incunabula, early printed books from the 15th century that both men collect, remain the same.
Passion for books
Eco admits that, though he speaks passionately of the printed book, if there was a fire in his house the first thing he would take with him is his 250 gigabyte hard drive. Both men are collectors of rare and expensive books; they reminisce about tracking down certain editions they were obsessed with and divulge their collecting criteria: Carriere’s is eclectic; one special focus is a collection of Persian books. Eco’s primary focus is collecting ancient, rare and antiquarian books on fakes.
Eco has 50,000 books, out of which 1,200 are very rare. Carriere has around 40,000 not counting his large collection of legends and fairly tales. The book he values most in his collection — the one he would grab if his library was on fire — is a 1490 volume with wonderful illustrations, plates and folded pages. Carriere would grab an “Alfred Jarry manuscript, as well as one by Andre Breton, and a book by Lewis Carroll that contains a letter he wrote.” Carriere shares an anecdote about a book scout he knew who rode in a moped carrying antiquarian treasures in a plastic bag on its handlebars!
The Gutenberg galaxy isn’t the only thing discussed; Eco and Carriere go further back and invoke parchments, scrolls, manuscripts. In ancient Rome, Eco tells us for instance, little shops sold scrolls. You dropped into one of them before heading into the library (or soon after) and asked for the latest bestseller. A week later something, say, by Virgil was copied just for you and kept ready to be picked up.
Eco also tells us that only now we know that old libraries — like those fabled monastic medieval libraries — did not hold thousands of volumes; perhaps around 400 to each library. The printed book, masterfully typeset, illustrated, bound and printed in its infancy, was expensive; 400 was a lot of copies to have in one collection.
Umberto is at his best when he speaks of books and his childhood. When he was five or six, his grandfather who had been a typographer and a bookbinder died and Eco discovered his bookshelves which held stacks of books waiting to be bound. They were all kinds of books from splendidly illustrated adventure books to science books to erotic books. They were in boxes in the cellar and Umberto would be sent down to collect coal to heat the house, and he would linger with these boxes.
Once, more recently, Eco was looking for a book in his library and his secretary suggested ordering the shelves but Eco protested; he wanted to roam and look and find it somewhere rather than go straight to it. Carriere speaks of sometimes just looking at his books. Not touching them or taking them out. Just standing and looking. And remembers coming upon Jean Luc Goddard more than once just staring at cans and cans of his film reels arranged on shelves!
Eco says keeping an old clock in your library wards off worms; the minute vibrations of the tick-tock of the clock through the night keeps the worms tucked into the woodwork. What would happen, asks Tonnac, to their books after their death? Eco hopes to leave it to libraries and not break it up; Carriere will let his wife and children and friends decide.
More News at : http://www.thehindu.com/arts/books/article3721965.ece
‘We provide e-books to about 200 universities’- Jagdish Arora
IN THIS AGE when knowledge and information is passing through technological changes, Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET), which is an autonomous Inter-University Centre (IUC) under the University Grant Commission (UGC), aims in providing all the Universities with academic resources. Jagdish Arora, Director of INFLIBNET tells Goter Gangkak about the organisation, the initiative that would help avoid plagiarism and the importance of e-books.
EDITED EXCERPTS
What is INFLIBNET? How did it all start?INFLIBNET was started out as a major programme by UGC under Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in 1991. It became an autonomous body in 1996. Since then INFLIBNET has been providing resources to universities all over India in the form of e-books and database.
How many universities or Institution comes under it? Is Delhi University also a part of it?
INFLIBNET provides educational resources to about 200 universities apart from more than 100 other institutions. Delhi University also comes under INFLIBNET but it lacks the basic infrastructure and sometimes faces the problem of excessive downloading.
INFLIBNET provides educational resources to about 200 universities apart from more than 100 other institutions. Delhi University also comes under INFLIBNET but it lacks the basic infrastructure and sometimes faces the problem of excessive downloading.
What about the universities and colleges in rural areas? What are the major challenges you face in such universities
Mostly private universities sign up for access but we do provide resources to colleges and institutions in rural areas. Rural universities usually lack proper infrastructure. We provide basic infrastructure like setting up computer systems and educating the students how to use them in such universities.
Mostly private universities sign up for access but we do provide resources to colleges and institutions in rural areas. Rural universities usually lack proper infrastructure. We provide basic infrastructure like setting up computer systems and educating the students how to use them in such universities.
Book sources say that e-books kill authenticity of print. Why do you support
e-books?
I believe an e-book is equivalent to print. If you compare the procedure that is required in creating an e-book, it is the same as print in terms of editing, proof reading and spell-check. Also, an e-book can help people with disability to read better in terms of visual elements.
e-books?
I believe an e-book is equivalent to print. If you compare the procedure that is required in creating an e-book, it is the same as print in terms of editing, proof reading and spell-check. Also, an e-book can help people with disability to read better in terms of visual elements.
What has INFLIBNET got in store for academicians?
We are working on a programme which will help academicians keep a check on plagiarism in their thesis and research works.
We are working on a programme which will help academicians keep a check on plagiarism in their thesis and research works.
More News at: http://www.tehelka.com/
In digital era, libraries turn tech-savvy
By- Akshat Khandelwal
Explaining how libraries have managed to stay on course on the fast-moving information highway, several library officials said technology has helped these age-old institutions extend their reach through online journals, digitised archives and e-books.
These range from JSTOR, a popular online service supplying journals to students and institutions worldwide, to Manopatra Online, a database for law students.
Delhi University Library spends around Rs 3 crore annually on electronic databases of journals, a sum “impossible for students to pay”, one of its officials said.
Jamia Library has rapidly increased the subscription of online journals from roughly 2,000 to 6,200 over the past six years.
The process is more vigorous in digitisation of books, theses and primary material (manuscripts).
JNU Library, for instance, is on the verge of digitising around 8,000 theses and 3,000 rare books, while Delhi Public Library plans to digitise its precious gramophone records.
The past decade has seen an explosion of electronic cataloguing for the city’s biggest libraries. JNU Library has done away with the time-consuming method of manually searching for books. It has electronically indexed more that 6,00,000 books and periodicals — which can now be located in seconds. Delhi University Library, too, is almost through with the process.
“It is far more convenient than the manual catalog,” said Uday, a 20-year-old Political Science student in Hindu College. “More importantly, it saves time,” he said.
REDUNDANT JOB?
Has technology made the librarian and his science redundant? Prof Makhdoomi, librarian in Jamia Millia Islamia, begged to differ. The advent of online cataloguing has made libraries more efficient, “but library science is not comparable to medicine or law”, said Makhdoomi, who has a PhD in the subject from the University of London. “As a specialised field, it has some scope,” he said.
Hindu College librarian Sanjiv Duttsharma said: “The essence of library science is the skill of organising information and books for readers. Technology will change, the basic principles will not. Instead of manual cataloguing, today we feed inputs to the database.”
There were libraries that have yet to fully embrace technological changes. A Hansraj College library assistant said it “still orders physical journals and has no online subscriptions”.
Technology has its limitations, too. Tarang, a student of History in Hindu College, said: “People still need the librarian’s knowledge and skills to locate a book or reference material from a particular report. Online catalogues are not enough.”
JURY IS OUT
Opinion is divided over the old ‘storehouse’ and online information. For some like Harpreet Sudan, a student of International Law, he rarely needs to go to a library because “most of the stuff I need is available online”.
“Our teachers give us all the necessary material bundled up in a large book. We don’t really need to use the library,” said Uday, a student at Hindu College. Others like Gopinath, professor of History in Jamia Millia Islamia, said the library would prevail because it “remains the reservoir for in-depth knowledge”.
“The Internet is good for background checks, but the conscientious student still uses the library,” he said.
Chime, a 23-year old International Studies student in JNU, agreed.
“Scholarly stuff is available only in a library,” he said.
“Google and Wikipedia provide a general overview. For anything more than that, one needs a library,” Renukeer, a JNU student, said.
JNU International Studies student Sanghamitra considered the library a worthy place to visit because of the “availability of online journals and primary sources”.
Another plus-point for libraries is the environment they provide. Faraaz, a 20-year-old student of History in Zakir Husain College, uses Delhi Public Library to “avoid Facebook and Gmail, and concentrate on his books (which he calls hard copies)”.
New Delhi When all information is available in an inch-thick mobile phone and news can be accessed with the click of a button, it looked like the humongous libraries could soon get converted into museums. On the contrary, the library has re-invented itself to keep pace with the times.
“Today’s library is not just a storehouse of information. In fact, it has no wall,” D Ramesh Gaur, librarian in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), said.
Like in the past, people still spend hours poring over books to extract nuggets of information in libraries. The number of transactions in Jamia Library of Jamia Millia Islamia has recorded a 58 per cent increase since 2003, while the membership of Delhi Public Library has gone up from approximately 35,000 in 2007 to 75,000 in 2012.Explaining how libraries have managed to stay on course on the fast-moving information highway, several library officials said technology has helped these age-old institutions extend their reach through online journals, digitised archives and e-books.
These range from JSTOR, a popular online service supplying journals to students and institutions worldwide, to Manopatra Online, a database for law students.
Delhi University Library spends around Rs 3 crore annually on electronic databases of journals, a sum “impossible for students to pay”, one of its officials said.
Jamia Library has rapidly increased the subscription of online journals from roughly 2,000 to 6,200 over the past six years.
The process is more vigorous in digitisation of books, theses and primary material (manuscripts).
JNU Library, for instance, is on the verge of digitising around 8,000 theses and 3,000 rare books, while Delhi Public Library plans to digitise its precious gramophone records.
The past decade has seen an explosion of electronic cataloguing for the city’s biggest libraries. JNU Library has done away with the time-consuming method of manually searching for books. It has electronically indexed more that 6,00,000 books and periodicals — which can now be located in seconds. Delhi University Library, too, is almost through with the process.
“It is far more convenient than the manual catalog,” said Uday, a 20-year-old Political Science student in Hindu College. “More importantly, it saves time,” he said.
REDUNDANT JOB?
Has technology made the librarian and his science redundant? Prof Makhdoomi, librarian in Jamia Millia Islamia, begged to differ. The advent of online cataloguing has made libraries more efficient, “but library science is not comparable to medicine or law”, said Makhdoomi, who has a PhD in the subject from the University of London. “As a specialised field, it has some scope,” he said.
Hindu College librarian Sanjiv Duttsharma said: “The essence of library science is the skill of organising information and books for readers. Technology will change, the basic principles will not. Instead of manual cataloguing, today we feed inputs to the database.”
There were libraries that have yet to fully embrace technological changes. A Hansraj College library assistant said it “still orders physical journals and has no online subscriptions”.
Technology has its limitations, too. Tarang, a student of History in Hindu College, said: “People still need the librarian’s knowledge and skills to locate a book or reference material from a particular report. Online catalogues are not enough.”
JURY IS OUT
Opinion is divided over the old ‘storehouse’ and online information. For some like Harpreet Sudan, a student of International Law, he rarely needs to go to a library because “most of the stuff I need is available online”.
“Our teachers give us all the necessary material bundled up in a large book. We don’t really need to use the library,” said Uday, a student at Hindu College. Others like Gopinath, professor of History in Jamia Millia Islamia, said the library would prevail because it “remains the reservoir for in-depth knowledge”.
“The Internet is good for background checks, but the conscientious student still uses the library,” he said.
Chime, a 23-year old International Studies student in JNU, agreed.
“Scholarly stuff is available only in a library,” he said.
“Google and Wikipedia provide a general overview. For anything more than that, one needs a library,” Renukeer, a JNU student, said.
JNU International Studies student Sanghamitra considered the library a worthy place to visit because of the “availability of online journals and primary sources”.
Another plus-point for libraries is the environment they provide. Faraaz, a 20-year-old student of History in Zakir Husain College, uses Delhi Public Library to “avoid Facebook and Gmail, and concentrate on his books (which he calls hard copies)”.
Anjali prefers the quiet inside Delhi Public Library to the “loneliness” of her room at home to prepare for her SSC exams. “You get the urge to study when you see others studying,” she said.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Junior Librarian and Library Attendant at ARMED FORCES TRIBUNAL, REGIONAL BENCH, Jaipur
Applications are invited for filling up of the following posts, which are lying vacant in the Armed Forces Tribunal, Regional Bench, Jaipur on ad-hoc deputation basis from amongst the serving Government Servants and/or re-employment on contract basis for a period of one year from suitable candidates who fulfill the eligibility conditions as shown below:-
Last Date:-28th August 2012
Juniour Librarian- 1(UR) 9300-34800 (PB-2) (GP-4200)
Eligibility conditions:
Deputation including short-term contract, (i) Persons holding analogous posts, in any Central or State Governments or High Courts and District Courts thereto or in lower posts with at least five years regular service in the scale of Rs 4000-100-6000(pre-revised) or equivalent and
(ii) possessing educational qualifications and experience as under
(ii) possessing educational qualifications and experience as under
Essential:
(a) Degree of a recognized University or equivalent.
(b) Diploma in Library Science of a recognized University or Institute.
(c) Two years experience in responsible capacity in a library of standing.
(d) Knowledge of computer operation
Desirable
(i) Master`s degree in Library Science from the recognized University or equivalent or degree in Law.
(ii) Experience of documentation work in a responsible capacity.
(a) Degree of a recognized University or equivalent.
(b) Diploma in Library Science of a recognized University or Institute.
(c) Two years experience in responsible capacity in a library of standing.
(d) Knowledge of computer operation
Desirable
(i) Master`s degree in Library Science from the recognized University or equivalent or degree in Law.
(ii) Experience of documentation work in a responsible capacity.
Note 1: The period of deputation including the period of deputation in another ex-cadre post held immediately preceding this appointment in the same or some other organization or department of the Central Government shall ordinarily not exceed three years.
Note 2: The maximum age limit for appointment by deputation shall be not exceeding 56 years as on the closing date of receipt of application.
Note 2: The maximum age limit for appointment by deputation shall be not exceeding 56 years as on the closing date of receipt of application.
Library Attendant Post- 01 5200- 20200 (PB-1) (GP- 1900)
Deputation including short-term contract – (i) from amongst Daftry`s or Jamadar`s in the Central Government or Armed Forces or State Governments, Supreme Court or High Courts and District Courts and Central Administrative Tribunal, who have rendered at least three years regular service in the capacity and having qualifications as under:-
(a) Middle School Standard passed from any recognized School.
(b) Experience of working at least one year in a library.
(a) Middle School Standard passed from any recognized School.
(b) Experience of working at least one year in a library.
More Information: http://www.aftjaipur.gov.in/Other/files/Vacancy_Circular_Jul-2012.pdf
Library Assistant Vacancy at Jalandhar
Post: Library Assistant
Salary: 12000/-
Qualification: B.Lib
Contact: ramoutsourcing@yahoo.com
Contact No: 98153-85928
Source: Punjab Keshari, Jalandhar Ed. Dated 02 August 2012, Page No. 04
Librarian at New Horizon Public School & Penguin Kids, Mumbai
New Horizon Public School & Penguin Kids
CBSE Affiliated Schools (Airoli, Panvel)
Invites applications from experienced faculty
Arts/ Music/ Computer/ Physical Education/ Library
Qualification: Masters or Bachelors Degree in Relevant Subjects.
Location: Mumbai (Bombay), Panvel
Salary: Salary will commensurate with qualification and experience
Only candidates possessing excellent language and interpersonal skills need to apply.
Send your applications within 7th August,2012.
Send your applications within 7th August,2012.
New Horizon Public School, Panvel
Sector-13, Khanda
Colony, New Panvel (W)
Tel: 022-27461567/ 68
New Horizon Public School, Airoli
Sector-19, Airoli, Navi Mumbai - 400708.
Tel: 27799328/ 27793904
Librarian at Southern Regional Centre of Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Bangalore
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
Southern Regional Centre
Applications are invited for the post of
Librarian
On temporary basis for a period of one year at IGNCA SRC, Bangalore
Technical Skills: Skill to operate Library software (Libsys, Virtua, AFW, etc.,) and establish a new library
Maximum Age Limite: 40 years
On temporary basis for a period of one year at IGNCA SRC, Bangalore
Technical Skills: Skill to operate Library software (Libsys, Virtua, AFW, etc.,) and establish a new library
Maximum Age Limite: 40 years
No. of Posts: 1
Qualification: Minimum MA. M.Lib
Experience: Minimum 3 years in reputed Library. Preference will be given for one who has worked in government/ Semi Government Organizations, Higher Educational Institutes.
Location: Bengaluru (Bangalore)
Last Date For Receipt of Application: 10-08-2012.
Candidates may apply with full CV, along with copies of relevant certificates to
The Director (Hon.)
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
Near Ambedkar Institute of Technology,
Mallathahalli, Jnanabharati Post,
Bangalore – 560056.
Library Assistant at VIKRAM SARABHAI SPACE CENTRE, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
 GOVERNMENT OF INDIADEPARTMENT OF SPACE VIKRAM SARABHAI SPACE CENTRE THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695022 |
Advertisement No. VSSC-276 dated 04.08.2012
Invites application for the FOLLOWING POSTs
NAME OF POST & GRADE : LIBRARY ASSISTANT-A ( ` 9300-34800/- + Grade Pay ` 4600/- )
| |||
Post No
|
No. of
post
|
Reserved for
| Requirements for the post |
1218
|
01
|
UR
| i. Graduation in First Class ii. First Class Master’s degree in Library Science/Library & Information Science or equivalent. |
UR - Un-reserved, SC-Scheduled Caste, OBC-Other Backward Class.
Note:
- The number of posts indicated above are provisional and may vary depending on the actual requirement.
- "Government strives to have a workforce which reflects gender balance and women candidates are encouraged to apply"
01. The posts are temporary, but likely to continue.
02. THOSE WHO POSSESS THE REQUIRED QUALIFICATION AS ON THE LAST DATE OF APPLICATION ONLY NEED APPLY.
03. Age limit: 35 years as on 20.08.2012, 38 years for OBC and 40 years for SC/ST candidates. Ex-Servicemen & Persons With Disability (PWD) are eligible for age relaxation as per rules.
Note :Children/family members of those who died in the riots of 1984 will be given preference in recruitment by giving necessary age relaxation as applicable.
04. As on date, approximate salary for the post in the pay band of ` 9300-34800/- + Grade Pay ` 4600/- is ` 31700/- per month.
05. For technical posts, the Organisation has a progressive HRD policy and provides an excellent growth potential for the right individual through its periodical merit based performance review system (called Merit Promotion Scheme) de-linked from availability of higher post, by which the staff can be evaluated for the advancement of their career in the Organisation.
06. The Organisation provides medical facilities (Contributory Health Service Scheme) for self and dependants, free transport facilities/transport allowance, subsidised canteen facilities, housing accommodation subject to availability, in addition to the facilities available to the other Central Government Staff.The Centre has a well-maintained Central School and a well-stocked Library that provides an excellent opportunity for professional development.
07. At present the place of posting is VSSC, Thiruvananthapuram, but the selected candidates are liable to be posted in any of the Units of the Indian Space Research Organisation/Department of Space situated anywhere in India as and when required.
08. Candidates will have to produce proof of the details furnished in their applications submitted on-line as and when required.
09. Candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC have to submit attested copies of latest caste/OBC (non-creamy layer) certificate issued by the Competent Authority in the prescribed format applicable for reservation in jobs under Government of India. In respect of OBC candidates, reservation will be available only to candidates, who do not fall in the Creamy Layer. OBC certificate must specifically include the clause regarding exclusion from Creamy Layer and should be updated/valid at the relevant point of time i.e. at the time of submission of application form for the above post. OBC candidates, must therefore, furnish valid and updated OBC certificate which should specifically include the clause regarding “Exclusion from Creamy Layer” in order to be considered against the posts reserved for OBC. In addition to submission of OBC certificate issued by the competent authority, the candidate seeking reservation as OBC should furnish a declaration in the following format:
Important Dates to Remember
1. Opening Date for Online Registration: August 06, 2012 10:00 Hrs
2. Closing Date for Online Registration: August 20, 2012 17:00 Hrs
3. Closing Date for Receiving Application by Speed-post: August 27, 2012 17:00 Hrs
New library plans for an ever-changing digital world: "Grapes of Wrath" in the "e" environment
CEDAR RAPIDS — The world of the printed word is changing almost as fast as construction crews can string electrical wire or hang and paint sheet rock.
As a result, deciding what to put in Cedar Rapids’s new $46-million public library downtown, now under construction and slated to open in a year, is far from a simple task.
After all, how many stacks of shelves does a bricks-and-mortar library need when the digital world delivers e-books on command to an e-reader such as the Kindle or Nook or iPad?
“You can make a brave new universe where everything is in ‘e’ and nothing is in any traditional paper format,” said Bob Pasicznyuk, Cedar Rapids’s library director. “I’ve gone round and round with that myself.”
Pasicznyuk and the city’s library board of trustees have been working for four years on the new library construction project — ever since water from the city’s flood of June 2008 ruined the city’s former library, across First Street SE from the Cedar River.
Since the flood, too, Barnes and Noble has brought out its Nook e-reader, Amazon.com has upgraded its Kindle reader and iPad has ushered in the electronic tablet era. In other words, the ground under the library’s plans has been shifting even as the plans were put in place and construction on the library across Fourth Avenue SE from Greene Square Park began this year.
“We’re in the middle of a transition,” says Cedar Rapids Public Library Director Bob Pasicznyuk, at the construction site for the new library. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
“I’d be highly surprised if the ‘e’ environment does nothing to us,” Pasicznyuk said. “That would be odd. I think it’s just untenable that it’s not going to affect our business.”
Equally hard to imagine, he noted, is that the traditional paper book will vanish from the scene.
“It’s not just going from one to the other and, like, next year there are no (paper) books and we’re on ‘e,’” he said. “We’re in the middle of a transition and, in life, I’ve always found the transitional to be particularly challenging.
“And that’s where we are.”
FLEXIBILITY
Pasicznyuk noted that the new library of 94,000 square feet is about 9,000 square feet larger than the flood-hit former site built in 1985. However, much of the additional space comes because of the new library’s larger, 200-plus-seat auditorium.
The new library’s space, he added, will be flexible so the library can modify its collection and equipment as the times and customers demand.
Before the 2008 flood, the downtown library had about 300,000 items, including movies, and about 40 computers in its physical collection in the downtown library and another 18,000 items and a few computers at its west-side branch.
A year from now, the library expects to house up to 225,000 items and 100 computers downtown and another 50,000 items and 20 computers in its west-side branch.
But Pasicznyuk cautioned against getting bogged down in the numbers. The new library is as much a “community center” as a warehouse with stacks of books, he emphasized.
Susan Craig, director of the Iowa City Public Library, called the idea of public library as community center “a very accurate” characterization. She added that it’s easy to know what most will fill up a new public library — “It’s people.”
Craig said the Iowa City library had more than 760,000 visits in the past year, not counting people who came to the library to attend the more than 2,000 public meetings in the library’s five meeting rooms.
“That says something about the need in the community for space for people to still get together face to face and have a meeting,” she said. “And I think that’s a very important community center role that public libraries continue to provide.”
Libraries, she said, also offer convenient access to technology for people who can’t afford it. Providing public use of computers is no different from allowing access to the encyclopedia 25 years ago for people who couldn’t afford one at home, she figured. In addition, libraries give people a chance to “browse and hang out” with other people, what Craig calls “a part of the culture of what we do today and how we live.”
“They might walk out the door with three books, they might walk out with a movie, they might leave with nothing,” she pointed out. “But they had a certain experience that’s important and pleasurable to them.
“And I think it’s good that public libraries provide that.”
Cedar Rapids’s Pasicznyuk noted that Cedar Rapids’s new library comes with more than a big auditorium. There’s also a 175-seat meeting room, which divides in two depending on use; 15 other civic spaces; and a large children’s programming room, which he calls “the parents’ first classroom with their child.”
“And all those have little to do with whether we have a physical collection (of library books) or not,” Pasicznyuk said.
STACKING THE SHELVES
The library’s Collection Management Team has been at work for months determining what content to house in the new library.
The library is working with a budget of $7.4 million, which is the amount awarded to the city by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for contents lost in the flood. About $4 million of the amount will be used to replace books and movies with most of the remainder going to replace furniture and equipment.
The new library’s stacks will include about 5,000 items saved from the 2008 flood and about half of the 110,000 items now at the city’s temporary library at Westdale Mall. The rest of the books currently at the mall site will move to the city’s new permanent west-side branch site in a part of a former Target store across Williams Boulevard SW from the mall.
The library director estimated that the library will spend another half-million dollars for “e” content — a dollar amount that will include 100 or so e-readers to loan out to library patrons.
Pasicznyuk said only a few big-city libraries as well as some university libraries, with giant amounts of storage space, can seek to be repositories of hundreds of millions of books. Most community libraries, he noted, aspire to house a well-rounded collection not unlike a well-rounded meal of starch and protein and fruits and vegetables.
In part, customers drive some of what goes into Cedar Rapids’s mix of books, he added.
“If science fiction is in demand, we carry relatively more of it,” Pasicznyuk explained. “Now, teenage books, vampire books are in high demand. We would have more of that.
“It doesn’t contradict the well-rounded piece. I’ve always thought that letting your customers drive you is never a bad thing.”
About 40 percent of the Cedar Rapids book collection is children’s books, he noted. And yes, there will be room for some of the classics. “The Grapes of Wrath” will be on the shelves, he assured.
He said the library also will have a good assortment of old and new books on Cedar Rapids and the city’s history, and ready access from other libraries to books on more obscure topics.
“For us to carry a 1934 book on mosquitoes for the next 20 years, when no one checks it out, is a huge cost maintaining it,” the library director explained. “If you come in, we can get it from Harvard.”
The library employed the equivalent of 48 full-time employees in early 2008 at the time of the flood at its downtown library and small west-side branch library — that’s the same number Pasicznyuk hopes to have working in total at the new downtown library and at what will be a larger west-side branch.
In the last year, the library has circulated 800,000 items, 200,000 of which have been movies, from its temporary home at Westdale Mall. In 2007, the library’s best year, it circulated 1.4 million items, a number Pasicznyuk expects to beat by 100,000 items or more once the new library opens.
The library also anticipates being able to stream movies in the library’s collection to library customers just as it now delivers e-books to them.
At the end of the day, Pasicznyuk said, his central concern is not whether libraries will remain “relevant.” Rather, he worries about the unwillingness of several large publishers to provide their e-books to libraries.
That, he said, means a youngster whose family can afford an e-reader can buy e-books denied to libraries while a low-income youngster without an e-reader will be denied access to the same content.
“What do we do with that?” he asked. “It starts a stratification of society that libraries have worked against for more than a century.”
The Hindu : Life & Style / Kids : A creative resource for the visually impaired
Visually impaired children now have a rich fund of accessible knowledge in the form of braille books, audio books, tactile books, made available by the Creative Resource Centre, housed within the Hippocampus Children’s Library in Chennai.
An initiative by the Karadi Cultural Alliance Trust in association with the Sir Ratan Tata Trust Fund, the CRC contains over a hundred Braille titles, including tactile books drawn from books published by popular children’s book houses. The centre also has a collection of famous folktales of India in the audio format and will house tactile kits and toys.
The pilot centre was set up for visually impaired children aged four to fourteen years. A specialised catalogue of content has also been acquired to be handed over to the respective libraries.
Need for the CRC
About 26 per cent of an estimated blind population of 15 million in India is below the age of 15. The specialised institutions, roughly 600 in number, that cater to the education of these children, barely serve 2 per cent of the blind children population.
The CRC is a service-oriented project that aims to stimulate the creative development of these children, instead of providing them with basic curricular materials alone. The aim is to enhance their emotional and intellectual growth.
Launch of the Pilot Centre
The pilot centre was launched in Chennai on August 3, 2012, by Dr. I. Arivanandam, Regional Director of the National Institute for the Visually Handicapped.
Dr. I. Arivanandam lauded the effort and emphasised the importance of Braille as a language of empowerment and inclusion. “A brave, unique and much-needed venture,” he said. “The CRC is the first library of its kind in India that celebrates integration of visually-impaired children with the mainstream.”
A children’s library for the blind
CHENNAI: Their excitement was palpable as they were handed a copy of 'The Hungry Caterpillar.' A Shaktivel of Class 6 eagerly ran his nimble fingers over the protruding Braille script on the leaves of the pages, mouthing the words, while his friend G Pradeep kept feeling the rough texture of a cloth caterpillar stitched across the page. S Shyam Kumar kept inserting his fingers wherever he could to get a feel of the pages.
The three St Louis School for Blind and Deaf in Adyar students, along with a few others from their school and from the Little Flower Convent Higher Secondary School for the Blind, were among 10 students gathered at Hippocampus Children's Centre in Adyar on Friday for the inauguration of a special section for the visually challenged. Possibly the first of its kind, the section provides easy accessibility for visually challenged children to story books in Braille, audio books and tactile toys.
"We do have story books at school, but I haven't really read any that have pictures that can be felt," said Shaktivel as he ran his fingers over an embellishment of a tortoise. "My favourites, however, are always those involving a mouse or a fox. Mice are so mischievous and foxes are cunning. Super-aa Irukkom (it will be super)."
A joint initiative of the Karadi Cultural Alliance Trust (KCAT) and Sir Ratan Tata Trust fund, the Creative Resource Centre (CRC) contains more than 100 Braille titles. The books are by popular children's book houses such as Karadi Tales, Scholastic, Tulika, Mango Books, Ekalavya Publishers and Tara. "We were looking for a space that would be easily accessible to both differently abled as well as regular children," said Shoba Vishwanath, a founder-trustee of KCAT.
MORE NEWS AT: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-08-04/news/33034643_1_audio-books-braille-script-story-books
Saturday, August 4, 2012
List of shortlisted candidates and date of interviews for various category of posts @ Indian Law Institute, New Delhi
List of shortlisted candidates and date of interviews for various category of posts @ Indian Law Institute, New Delhi
http://www.ilidelhi.org/Interview_notice.pdf
http://www.ilidelhi.org/Interview_notice.pdf
Friday, August 3, 2012
12 Ways To Help Your Child Love the Library
Whether you’re a kid or an adult, local libraries have always been an ideal place to savor a quiet moment with a good book. And today’s public libraries offer so much more. Increasingly, the stereotype of the library as a place where librarians frown and insist that patrons “shush!” is being replaced with images of libraries as places for fun and family-friendly programs.
Libraries have not wavered in their devotion to books. But librarians live in the real world and say they know that modern families also crave technology, music, and physical activity. Some libraries have introduced Lego centers—places where kids can build and design with the iconic plastic toys—while others stage puppet shows and musical performances. Many libraries today celebrate literary figures such as Curious George with crafts and storytelling, and pay homage to the likes of Beatrix Potter with gardening activities.
At your local branch, you might also find cooking classes, game nights, or book clubs devoted to a singular genre or theme such as science fiction or Harry Potter. A paleontologist might give a lesson on dinosaurs, and a children’s book author might give a special reading.
One aspect of the library that hasn’t changed? It’s still free. For families seeking bargains in entertainment and educational enrichment, the library is the best deal around.
“These are exciting times, with so many choices of materials and programs,” says Carolyn Brodie, president-elect of the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association. “You’ll find a welcoming, creative, and exciting place, comprised of free and open access to a variety of materials and programs, with appeal to all ages.”
Kathleen Fox, a former school librarian who has made it her mission to make libraries fun and accessible, says there is one key ingredient to a wonderful library experience: “Finding that magical children’s librarian.”
“They’re still around, and they can still hand you a great book. They can also help you get the most out of all the resources your library has to offer,” says Fox, author of Fun-brarian, a collection of library activities to engage even the most reluctant reader, and owner of the websiteLibraryGames.com.
“Children’s librarians help children develop a zest for learning and a lifelong love of reading. They also assist in finding answers to questions, and bring children and resources together,” Brodie adds.
Here are 12 tips on making the most of your public library:
1. Get your child a library card. Show your child the joy of checking out books from his local library. At some libraries, kids can also check out videos, educational games, and puzzles. Teach your child to take care of the books and other items he checks out and to make sure the items get returned on time.
2. Visit often. Make the library a routine place that you visit with your kids, like the park or a favorite pizza place. Become regulars—get to know your way around your library, and get to know the librarians.
3. Teach your child how to find books and media at the library. Though most libraries have moved to all-digital systems, some still use card catalogs. Others that have shifted away from the Dewey decimal classification system—a method of assigning numbers and letters for organizing books—now arrange books similar to bookstores, with certain subgenres organized and shelved together. Since most libraries generally evolve to meet the needs of their patrons, in many places kids can also learn to use the interlibrary lending system for libraries within a network and other book-finding procedures, giving them more options for how they use their local library.
4. Visit different branches. Every library branch has its own personality. “Try several branches and see which one you like,” Fox says. “It might be worth traveling a little farther to get to the branch that has the most to offer.”
5. Get a calendar of activities. Make it a habit to check your library’s event calendar each month. Some libraries host events off-site, such as a composting or gardening workshop at a local park.
6. Consider your child’s interests. It’s important to help your child choose the right books, especially if she is a reluctant reader. Start with a favorite movie and see what books and media would complement it, Fox says. For example, Dolphin Tale is a great family movie, and kids who like it might also enjoy reading about dolphins.
7. Like the movie? Love the book. If there’s a film your child loved, suggest that she might also enjoy the related DVD or audio book about the film, Brodie says. For example, if your middle schooler loved the film Tuck Everlasting so much that she was sorry to see the story end, check the library for the film’s audiobook or DVD. Then, check for other books by the same author.
8. Explore magazines. Kids who struggle with reading may be reluctant to pick up a chapter book. But they may love magazines, especially those about their favorite topics, such as sports or animals. Libraries often have a fantastic selection of magazines, Fox says.
9. Be a role model. Show your child how much you enjoy the library. Check out books for yourself and read them at home, in the car, and while waiting for your child at soccer practice. “Children follow the example of their parents and caregivers,” Brodie says. “Supporting and using public libraries as a source for lifelong learning can be one of the greatest gifts that parents give their children.”
10. Make suggestions for improvement. Suggest adding a few beanbag chairs in the children’s department to encourage young readers to settle in with a good book. If your library does not carry books by your child’s favorite author or in her preferred genre, let the librarian know of your interest. Finally, suggest local authors who might come for a visit or programs you think families would enjoy.
11. Be an advocate. Libraries must compete with other government services for increasingly shrinking resources. Let your elected officials know how much the library means to you, your children, and your community.
12. Make the library a family priority. Between sports, the arts, community groups, church, and other commitments, families have many activities tugging on their free time. Though it may be difficult to squeeze in visits to the library, by doing so you’re letting your child know that reading is important—and that libraries are, too.
Librarian at Sudha Rustagi College of Dental Sciences And Research,Faridabad
Job Description
1. Manage the Planing, administration, & budgetary functions of library and info services
2. Provide effective access to library collections & resources.
3.Perform other related duties etc
Industry: Medical, Healthcare, Hospitals
Keyskills:
Librarian With minimum five years experience, Minimum Qualification M.lib
Desired Candidate Profile
Education: (UG - Any Graduate - Any Specialization) AND
(PG - Any PG Course - Any Specialization)
Candidate must have M.lib degree with 5 years Experience. Dental or Medical College Experience will be preferred
Company Profile
Sudha Rustagi College of Dental Sciences And Research,Faridabad
Sudha Rustogi College of Dental Science & Research is estblshd in year 2002,Lcated in New Faridabad, on the southern border of Delhi,an renowned institute for BDS & MDS(in all Splts.) Rcognized by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,Govt of India,DCI
Contact Details
Recruiter Name:
Dr.Vishal Juneja
Contact Company:
Sudha Rustagi College of Dental Sciences And Resea
Email Address:
Telephone:
0129-2202951,2202958
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)