Meriam Library News

Image by Luc Legay. Used under a Creative Commons license.

Stephen J. Dubner writes a fascinating post on one of the New York Times blogs, in which he poses the question

Has social networking technology... made us better or worse off as a society, either from an economic, psychological, or sociological perspective?

The Times gathered some views from different scholars who have examined social networks as part of their research agenda. Their responses offer some valuable insights into the transformative effects -- both good and bad -- that social networks have on the lives of many people.

Danah Boyd at UC, Berkley notes that social networking services are themselves neutral. She writes that "These sites are tools. They can and have been used for both positive and negative purposes." Steve Chazin, marketing officer at a .com company, writes that he "believe[s] social networking technology has changed our lives for the better, but at a cost," and goes on to weigh the ability to easily connect to ones friends at any time against the desire to occasionally disconnect. Comparing connections that social networkers make to their close friends to connections they may make to others they don't know as well (or don't know at all), Judith Donath at the M.I.T. Media Lab writes that social networks can "devalue the meaning of 'friend.'" While acknowledging that this devaluation is possible, Nicole Ellison of Michigan State University argues here that social networkers are able to distinguish between the two types of friend. Based upon research she and her colleagues have conducted, she writes that

"We've asked users in surveys and interviews about how many Facebook "Friends" they have and how many of these are "actual" friends. Our respondents can articulate how many of their "Facebook Friends" are "actual friends" - about one-third, on average. This suggests to me that... Facebook users are able to distinguish between the term used by Facebook to indicate one's contacts and "friendship" as traditionally conceived.

The other question that neither the Times blogger nor the responders addressed is what exactly they mean by "society" when asking if social networks have made society better or worse off. I'm not going to begin an extensive discussion of the ideas that go into the concept of "society," but instead simply point it out as an issue to consider when thinking about the NYT's question. Beyond that, I think the question of positive and negative effects of social networks is a good one, and I look forward to further discussion of the topic.

Contributed by Aaron Bowen

In the 19th century, newspaper readers could look forward to reading the latest installment of a novel in addition to the daily news. Charles Dickens is one of the best known authors whose works were originally published serially in newspapers and magazines.

DailyLit is a contemporary version of serial literature delivered to your email rather than the front porch. At DailyLit, readers can subscribe to receive installments of novels delivered on a daily schedule and at a time specified by you. Many "classic" novels that are out of copyright are available for free (and there's no registration or subscription fee.) Or you can choose from more current titles, which range in price from $5-$7. Each installment takes about 5 minutes to read, and if you want to read more you can request the next installment be sent immediately. Who knows, you may summon up the courage to tackle Crime and Punishment, or take up learning Spanish. Thanks to DailyLit I'll finally get to cross Theodore Dreiser's Sister Carrie off my "to read" list...

Contributed by Liz Colson

This video was made by Professor Michael Welsh and features the thoughts, views, and experiences of students in Intro to Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University. It's the latest in a series of well known (some would say famous, some would say infamous) YouTube videos on the nature of information in the 21st century, and how people interact with it and react to it.

What do you think? Does this video describe your life as a student? Or do you find it an inaccurate representation of contemporary students? We would love to have your thoughts below. You can also check out the Kansas State webpage dedicated to the project.

Contributed by Aaron Bowen

Katherine Mangan of the Chronicle of higher Ed writes that

"The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a preliminary decision that rejects all 44 claims Blackboard Inc. made regarding the controversial patent it was granted for an online-learning system. If upheld, the decision could have sweeping ramifications for Blackboard's competitors and universities that use course-management software.

"The "nonfinal" decision was made public on Friday, and both sides will have a chance to comment before a final order is issued. Blackboard can also appeal the final decision."

Contributed by Aaron Bowen

Would you like to keep up to date with journals and articles in your areas of interest?
The Meriam Library subscribes to a number of indexes and databases that offer electronic alert services. Many different types of alert services are available including:

Table of contents alerts: Table of contents alerts are email updates of the table of contents of the current issues of the journals you specify.

Saved search alerts: Saved search alerts are email or RSS notifications of new articles matching previously submitted searches.

Alert services vary between databases. To find out what databases offer alert services, consult our Guide To Journal Alert Services. For specific instructions on how to set up an alert within a particular database, go to the help pages within the database and follow the instructions for saving searches and/or setting up alerts and/or RSS feeds.

If you would like help setting up alerts, you can also contact your Subject Librarian.

Stay alert!

Contributed by Sarah Blakeslee

As a student or faculty member you've certainly had this experience at least once or twice. It's midnight, you're hard at work doing research for a paper, and not having much luck finding the right resources. Or, you've found that perfect article, and can't figure out whether or not the library has the journal it was published in. The library is closed and there's no one to ask for help.

Don't despair! From the Meriam Library home page, research help is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week just a mouse click away. The Click for Live Help button connects you to the 24/7 Reference Service, a nationwide service that enables you to chat online with a librarian any time, day or night. Librarians can help you construct a search strategy, choose a database, find information online, or figure out if the library owns a book you need. If your question involves "local" information (for example, "why can't I renew my books online?") the best answer you may get is a phone number or email address. The service works best for questions involving research strategies, how to find information on a topic, and "does the library have..." questions. So the next time you're stuck trying to think of a keyword to use in a search try chatting with a librarian. Any time!

Contributed by Liz Colson

Hensel, J. (2004). After the Wall: Confessions from an East German Childhood and the Life the Came Next. New York: Public Affairs.

Where were you when the Berlin Wall fell? How old were you? Do you remember people talking about it?

Jana Hensel was 13 on November 9, 1989, the day the Wall came down. She wrote After the Wall (on order for the library -- in the meantime you can get it through Interlibrary Loan) to describe a life in transition, from her life as a young citizen of East Germany to a teenager of a newly reunified Germany. As she puts it,

The Wall fell and left our world utterly confused. We were just becoming teenagers when suddenly everything started spinning around us. We were too young to understand what was happening, and too old not to understand that big changes were in the making (p. 163).

But she refrains from offering a formulaic interpretation of how good or bad life in East Germany was, or how good or bad things have been since then. Instead she offers a straightforward account of the changes she experienced. In so doing she adds new dimension to standard accounts of life in East Germany and later reunified Germany. She writes that

After the Wall, we soon forgot what everyday life in [East Germany] was like, with all its unheroic moments and ordinary days. We repressed our actual experiences and replaced them with a series of strange, larger than life anecdotes that didn't really have anything to do with what our lives had been like. The fact that we began exchanging such stories ourselves shows how much we had internalized the West German take on our history. We had forgotten how to tell our own life stories in our own way, instead adopting an alien tone and perspective (p. 25).

With stories that are frequently enjoyable, potentially disillusioning, and always enlightening, Hensel reclaims these accounts of life in East Germany from foreign reinterpretations, and offers an account of what life was like after the Wall was torn down.

Contributed by Aaron Bowen