Database Trial – CEEOL (Central and Eastern European Online Library)

Our latest database trial is likely to be of great interest to social science, politics and world history students, the Central and Eastern European Online Library.

CEEOL is a leading provider of academic e-journals and e-books in the Humanities and Social Sciences from and about Central and Eastern Europe. In the rapidly changing digital sphere CEEOL is a reliable source of adjusting expertise trusted by scholars, publishers and librarians. Currently, over 600 publishers entrust CEEOL with their high-quality journals and e-books. CEEOL provides scholars, researchers and students with access to a wide range of academic content in a constantly growing, dynamic repository. Currently, CEEOL covers more than 1.100 journals and 350.000 articles.

To begin searching go to www.ceeol.com – access is via IP address and the trial runs to 17th November 2017.

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

Database Trial – Race Relations in America

This month we’re trialling Race Relations in America, an in-depth resource that should be of great interest to social scientists, historians and budding politicians.

Based at Fisk University from 1943-1970, the Race Relations Department and its annual Institute were set up by the American Missionary Association to investigate problem areas in race relations and develop methods for educating communities and preventing conflict.

Documenting three pivotal decades in the fight for civil rights, this resource showcases the speeches, reports, surveys and analyses produced by the Department’s staff and Institute participants, including Charles S. Johnson, Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., and Thurgood Marshall.

To begin searching go to http://www.racerelations.amdigital.co.uk – access is via IP address and the trial runs to 29th May 2017.

*Please note that PDF download options are not available during this  trial.

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

Database Trial – Archives of Sexuality & Gender, LGBTQ History and Culture Since 1940

galeSocial science students may find the latest database trial of considerable interest.

The Archives of Sexuality & Gender, LGBTQ History and Culture Since 1940 is the largest collection available in support of the study of gender and sexuality, enables scholars to make new connections in LGBTQ history and activism, cultural studies, psychology, health, political science, policy studies, and other related areas of research.

To access the archive go to – http://infotrac.galegroup.com/default/loughuni?db=AHSI – for off-campus access you will need your Athens username and password.

The trial will run until November 18th 2016.

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

Database Trial – Forbes Archive

logo_ehostThis month we are trialling a database containing the archives of one of America’s most popular business magazines, Forbes.

The Forbes Archive contains indexing, abstracting, and full text for the complete archive of Forbes, beginning with its first issue in 1917 and ending in December 2000.
To access the trial go to:

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=uid&user=s4589342&password=password&group=main&profile=ehost&defaultdb=fba

Please click the hyperlink below for the subject coverage, title coverage list and other information for the resource.

https://www.ebscohost.com/archives/magazine-archives/forbes

The trial runs until 28th October 2016, you have access to the full range of content that would be purchased through an annual subscription.

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

Database Trial – Slavery, Abolition and Social Justice

slavery agricultureThis 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.

Patently Useful…

trade mark by focht

As today marks the anniversary of the issue of the first US patent – way back in 1790, to a Mr Samuel Hopkins for his invention of a potash production technique, no less – what better time to remind people of our access to a broad range of useful online patent information available through our own Library Catalogue Plus?

As well as access to national databases including both the UK and US Patent Offices, you can also search more wide-ranging international patent databases such as Espacenet and Patbase.

Want to know a little more about what exactly a patent is, how the patenting process works – and how to go about using it to protect your own invention? Look no further than our comprehensive and very helpful interactive guide among our Study Skills section on Learn, Module LBA227 ‘Finding Patent Information’, written by our very own Ginny Franklin, which will fill in any gaps in your patent knowledge (please note you will need to login with your University username & password to access this resource).

Trademark image by Focht, reproduced under CC License from Flickr.

World Press Freedom Day

world press freedom day

Today is World Press Freedom Day, UNESCO’s annual awareness raising celebration of the fundamental importance of the freedom of the press and the right to freedom of expression as enshrined in the Universal Declation of Human Rights.

The event, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, is held on this date to mark the Declaration of Windhoek, a statement of press freedom principles compiled by African journalists in 1991 which is regarded as a landmark in the ongoing battle for global press freedom as both a fundamental human right and an essential cornerstone of democracy.

In the UK press freedom has come into much scrutiny in recent years following the findings of the Leveson Enquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press following the News International hacking scandal which first came to light in 2005, and that has resulted in the closure of the News of the World paper in 2011 after 168 years in print, and several on-going high-profile court cases. The government and the newspaper industry remain locked in a bitter dispute about how to implement press reforms in the light of it.

We have a copy of the Leveson Inquiry in our High Demand section on Level 3. We also have many books on the subject of press freedom among our collection, as well as access to vast fund of electronic newspaper archives among our newspaper databases on Library Catalogue Plus, including the Times Digital Archive, the Daily Mirror Archive, and of course Nexis UK, which offers comprehensive coverage of UK, European and US newspapers.

Database in Focus: Westlaw UK

The Library’s next Database in Focus session takes place on Wednesday 16th February from 2PM until 3.30PM in Library Training Room 1, and the database under the microscope on this occasion is Westlaw UK.

Although it may sound like a dodgy 1960’s TV western, Westlaw UK is in fact one of the best Law databases around. It provides access to full-text, up-to-date, UK, EU and international legislation, case-law and full-text journal articles, plus a current awareness section arranged by subject which is updated three times a day.

It also contains the Legal Journals Index, which is the most comprehensive index of UK legal journals (some of which are contained within Westlaw itself). You can access international legal materials, especially US case law, legislation and full-text journals and multi-national materials by clicking on the ‘Westlaw International’ link and then ‘Directory’ link and ‘All Westlaw databases’. You can browse and search hundreds of resources from here.

A representative from the company who hosts the database will be leading the session and will take you through how to get the best out of it.

To book to attend this session:

Staff – either through Staff Development’s booking system, or turn up on the day.

Students – no need to book, just turn up on the day.

Please note in order to access Westlaw UK you will need to know your Athens username and password.

See you there!