Person:

Barr, Dorothy

There is general agreement among librarians today that we need to rethink our roles, find new ways to reach out to our patrons, and raise our library’s profile in the wider community. Showcasing library resources is an important way to demonstrate our relevance to our wider institutions. One way this has traditionally been done has been through exhibits. These have usually been within or right outside the library and have displayed treasures such as old books, manuscripts, prints or other objects from the collections, new books or ones written by faculty at the institution. Today, however, many science librarians find that with so much now available online, a substantial proportion of their patrons rarely if ever set foot in the physical library, making it important to find new ways to raise awareness of library resources and services. Creating exhibits outside the physical library and involving faculty and students in their creation is one way to make the library more visible. Adding an online component such as an accompanying LibGuide further enhances the library’s profile.

Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are among the most ubiquitous and successful creatures on earth. They are the subject of research by ant biologists worldwide, and with over 8,800 identified species, access to quality information is important for those researchers. AntWiki (http://www.antwiki.org/) was created originally as an online listing of all ant taxonomists and their papers, and librarians have assisted the project by finding, scanning and uploading articles and contributing to a page on Human Culture and Ants.

Paul Sereno is one of the better-known paleontologists of our time. His expeditions have taken him around the world, and he has discovered new dinosaurs – and other ancient creatures – in places as far-flung as Argentina, China, and various parts of Africa. He even uncovered a large Stone Age cemetery in the Sahara. In addition to his many publications in prestigious academic journals, he was a National Geographic Explorer in Residence, has received numerous awards, and has appeared in a number of documentaries.