Situated at the center of the world’s largest museum complex, the Smithsonian Libraries is a vital part of the research, exhibition, and educational enterprise of the Institution. Each Smithsonian scholar engages in an individual voyage of discovery using the artifacts and specimens of the Smithsonian Institution in conjunction with the Libraries’ written and illustrated record of the past. The Libraries is uniquely positioned to help scholars understand the continuing vitality of this relationship, via exceptional research resources ranging from 13th-century manuscripts to electronic journals.
Author: Liz O'Brien
As the Manager for Preservation Services at the National Museum of American History, I oversee and direct the work of the Museum’s three conservation laboratories (Costume/Textiles, Objects, and Paper) and direct the preservation activities of the museum. This year, I was selected to participate in the Smithsonian Institution’s Palmer Leadership Development Program. As part of the program, I am required to work at another Smithsonian unit for 20 to 30 days while performing my normal duties. The program aims to expand my knowledge and abilities through performing new tasks as well as expanding my overall knowledge of the Smithsonian.
When asked about his summer research on the Ferris wheel, Resident Scholar Joseph Dimuro’s eyes gleamed like a child who had just ridden one for the first time. He replied, “Not just any Ferris wheel – the 1893 World’s Columbian Exhibition Ferris Wheel in Chicago: the major engineering feat and symbol of America at the end of the 19th Century.”
The Biodiversity Heritage Library has launched its first iBook, Every Week is Shark Week.
This past summer, intern Jennifer Himmelreich arrived at the Vine Deloria, Jr. Library at the National Museum of the American Indian from her home on the Navajo Nation in Beclabito, New Mexico. Her task: to organize the Native American artists’ files in the library – exhibition catalogs, postcards, slides, correspondence, CVs, and other ephemera – into an organized, succinct file system. Jennifer sorted through thousands of pieces of material, developing and editing a collection that will encourage study and research in the library for years to come. The internship, along with her current studies, has inspired Jennifer to think of ways to bring what she is learning back home.
The Smithsonian Libraries today launched three courses of selected content on iTunes U that focus on topics in early aviation and space history. This release increases exposure of Libraries material and is an innovative way to reach new audiences.
iTunes U is a dedicated area within iTunes that gives users public access to hundreds of thousands of free lectures, videos books, podcasts and courses from learning institutions all over the world. With the iTunes U app, users can download content directly onto their iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.
The Smithsonian Libraries, Smithsonian Institution Archives, and the Office of the Chief Information Officer present a new lecture series, The Open Access Future, to address the Institution on the future more »