New Resource – Global Digimap

Posted on October 1, 2018 by Steven Lake

We’ve recently added a new resource to the Digimap stable, our popular geographic database.

Global Digimap provides access to global datasets in cartographic styles and downloadable formats that are useful to you. The service provides the following:

An easy to use interface to allow you to browse, annotate and print global maps.
A data download facility to providing access to global datasets for use in GIS software.

Please note that as this is a new service and still in development it is subject to change and may be unavailable while Digimap works on it.

Visit https://digimap.edina.ac.uk/global to find out more.

Database Trial – The Cold War

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Steven Lake

Revisit one of the most turbulent periods of the 20th century with our latest database trial, as we explore the history of the Cold War.

From the end of World War II to the early 1990s, the Cold War was the central driving force in global politics. In addition to nuclear arms races and shifting military alliances, the Cold War years had a critical impact on many of today’s most intriguing research topics, from technology to terrorism, immigration to international politics. No other resource but The Cold War: Global Perspectives on East-West Tensions, 1945-1991, brings together primary source documents from around the world to shed new light on this crucial period in world history.

To begin searching go to http://infoweb.newsbank.com – access is via IP address and the trial runs to 21st July 2017.

We welcome feedback – good or bad – on this trial, please contact Steve Corn s.c.corn@lboro.ac.uk with your comments.

Digimap Downtime, Tuesday 16th May

Posted on May 6, 2017 by Steven Lake

Digimap will be unavailable between 08.30am and 12.30pm on Tuesday 16th May for necessary maintenance. The service providers apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

World Space Week 2016

Posted on October 3, 2016 by Steven Lake

This week is the start of World Space Week, the worldwide annual celebration of the marvels and mysteries of astronautics, astronomy and all things cosmic.

Launched specifically on 4th October by the UN General Assembly to mark the successful launch of Sputnik 1, the first man-made satellite, in 1957, and the signing of the ‘Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies’ on October 10th 1967, World Space Week has been held every year since 1999, and seeks primarily to educate people about the positives of space exploration and encourage better public understanding and support for space programmes.

This year’s theme is “Remote Sensing: Enabling Our Future,” an inward looking theme which celebrates Earth Observation from Space for the betterment of the human race, highlighting a host of classic Earth Observation missions such as the U.S. Landsat mission, the work of intergovernmental groups such as GEOSS Group on Earth Observations and emphasizes applications such as environment and agriculture monitoring, land use mapping and new uses such as location based services.

Fittingly, we have access to the National Geophysical Data Centre database, which provides the latest satellite geophysical data from the Sun to the Earth and Earth’s sea floor and solid earth environment, including Earth observations from space, and the NASA Scientific & Technical Information database, which includes up-to-date information about NASA’s satellite projects. We also hold a large number of books about satellite communications & navigation among our collection, along with a good selection of books about space & space exploration in general.

To find out more about World Space Week, visit their website here:

http://www.worldspaceweek.org/

Calling All Geographers and Civil Engineers!

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Steven Lake

If you’re studying in the fields of Geography and Civil Engineering, you’ll be certain of finding Geology Digimap extremely useful!

Geology Digimap – http://digimap.edina.ac.uk/ – can provide UK geology maps showing areas with indications of flooding, maps of soil texture, rock units, maximum and minimum permeability, soil strengths – from the very strong to the very weak – vital for physical geography, building and civil engineering.

Geology Digimap can also show what is below superficial and artificial deposits, underneath landscaped ground, the location of faults, fossil horizons, mineral veins and landforms.

Geological photos are available and you can draw on maps and annotate them, use software such as GIS or CAD, as well as save and export maps.

How to register for free – login to Digimap using your Athens username and Password. Complete the online registration and click on submit. An email will be sent to the email address you entered in the Enter Details screen containing a link to activate your account. The link will remain valid for 24 hours.

Why not take a look at the databases stablemates while you’re at it? Marine Digimap and Historical Digimap are also available at http://digimap.edina.ac.uk/

You also can find Digimap from the link in the Geography subject guide http://www.lboro.ac.uk/services/library/subjectguides/geography/ and from the Select Databases tab in Library Catalogue Plus http://lcp.lboro.ac.uk/

Or just ask your Academic Librarian – http://www.lboro.ac.uk/services/library/contact/academiclibrarians – for more information.

Database Trial – Slavery, Abolition and Social Justice

Posted on January 6, 2016 by Steven Lake

This February we’re trialling a historical database exploring the history and social implications of slavery and the slave trade.

Slavery, Abolition and Social Justice is designed as an important portal for slavery and abolition studies, bringing together documents and collections covering an extensive time period, between 1490 and 2007, from libraries and archives across the Atlantic world. Close attention is given to the varieties of slavery, the legacy of slavery, the social-justice perspective and the continued existence of slavery today.

To begin searching please go to: http://www.slavery.amdigital.co.uk/ – access is via IP address and the trial runs to 1st February 2016.

Please note that PDF download options are not available during trials.

We welcome feedback – good or bad – on this trial, please contact Steve Corn with your comments.

The Landgrabber at LU Arts

Posted on February 2, 2015 by Steven Lake

Loughborough University Arts in association with the Royal Geographic Society are hosting a special talk with an environmental theme at the LU Arts Project Space at the Edward Barnsley Building on Tuesday 10th February.

Land is suddenly a scarce resource. African plains, Asian paddy fields and South American jungles are being snapped up. In his lecture, Fred Pearce, journalist, author and environmental consultant at New Scientist, discusses who are the grabbers and who the victims.

Fred Pearce has reported on the environment, popular science and development issues from 64 countries over the past 20 years. He specialises in global environmental issues, including water and climate change, and is the author of popular books including ‘When the rivers run dry: what happens when our water runs out?’ and ‘The landgrabbers: the new fight over who owns the earth’, which will be the topic of his 10 February lecture.

The talk begins at 5.45pm and should be finished by 9.30pm. The event is free, but booking is necessary as space is limited. To do that, visit this link:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/fred-pearce-the-landgrabbers-tickets-14662003447

Follow the Lines in the Ice at the British Library

Posted on November 12, 2014 by Steven Lake

A new exhibition with a decidedly wintery theme begins at the British Library this week.

Lines in the Ice examines why Europeans are drawn to explore the Arctic and, in particular, the fabled Northwest Passage. Arctic exploration has influenced our culture, changed the societies of indigenous peoples, and had a powerful effect on the making of the modern world.

The exhibition displays early European maps of the Arctic, Inuit accounts of the coming of the explorers, writings from the search for Franklin, early Arctic photography and much more. It also unearths the history of the North Pole’s most famous resident – Santa!

On display in the British Library entrance hall, the exhibition runs until March 2015 and is free to visit. Further details can be found via the British Library website here.

Adam Matthew Databases on Trial this May

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Steven Lake

We have a variety of Adam Matthew archive databases on trial throughout May that may be of great interest to social scientists, geographers, historians and English literature students.

Mass Observation Online (www.massobservation.amdigital.co.uk)

Mass Observation Online provides integrated access to almost 400,000 digital images of material from the Mass Observation Archive (MOA). In addition, it functions as a finding aid for all material held on Adam Matthew Publications microfilm, and in the Mass Observation Archive. The Archive holds all the material generated by Mass Observation (MO) between 1937 and 1949, with a few later additions from the 1950s and 1960s.

Archives Direct (www.archivesdirect.amdigital.co.uk)

Archives Direct is a suite of collections sourced from The National Archives, Kew – the UK government’s official archive. With our new digital facility based at Kew, Adam Matthew Digital will be releasing major new content from this world famous archive of information over the coming years.

Archives Direct titles are self-contained collections, clustered in a portal for ease of cross-searching and browsing. Your search results will include both documents your institution has purchased, and documents available elsewhere within the Archives Direct portal, giving you access to a huge range of documents from the UK government’s archives.

Perdita Manuscripts (www.perditamanuscripts.amdigital.co.uk)

This resource is produced in association with the Perdita Project based at the University of Warwick and Nottingham Trent University. “Perdita” means “lost woman” and the quest of the Perdita Project has been to find early modern women authors who were “lost” because their writing exists only in manuscript form. Thanks to the endeavours of the Perdita Project the valuable work of these “lost” women is being rediscovered

Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History (www.travelwriting.amdigital.co.uk)

This resource brings together hundreds of accounts by women of their travels across the globe from the early 19th century to the late 20th century. Students and researchers will find sources covering a variety of topics including; architecture; art; the British Empire; climate; customs; exploration; family life; housing; industry; language; monuments; mountains; natural history; politics and diplomacy; race; religion; science; shopping; war. A wide variety of forms of travel writing are included, ranging from unique manuscripts, diaries and correspondence to drawings, guidebooks and photographs. The resource includes a slideshow with hundreds of items of visual material, including postcards, sketches and photographs

London Low Life (www.londonlowlife.amdigital.co.uk)

London Low Life is a full-text searchable resource, containing colour digital images of rare books, ephemera, maps and other materials relating to 18th, 19th and early 20th century London. It is designed for both teaching and study, from undergraduate to research students and beyond.

In addition to the digital documents, London Low Life contains a wealth of secondary resources, including a chronology, interactive maps, essays, online galleries and links to other useful websites.

All these databases are available until 27^th May, accessible via the following username & password:

Username: Lu228yt

Password: SC929aMP

Please note that download options are not available during trials.

We welcome feedback – good or bad – on these trials. Please contact Steve Corn s.c.corn@lboro.ac.uk with your comments.

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Category Archives: Geography