News from 2021
See all upcoming Libraries events — including our featured events, workshops, and exhibits — on the UMN Twin Cities Events Calendar.
Towards Open Access at the University of Minnesota Libraries
The University of Minnesota Libraries is committed to an open and diverse scholarly publishing system. We prioritize initiatives and publishing models that enable the University’s research to be freely available as a public good.
Specimens of Cloth from Captain Cook’s Voyages and “The Mysterious Mr. Alexander H. Shaw”
In May, I wrote a blog post on sources for studying cloth in the collection of the Bell Library. I included in this piece one of my favorite items, A catalogue of the different specimens of cloth collected in the three voyages of Captain Cook, to the Southern Hemisphere : with a particular account of the manner of manufacturing the same in the various islands of the South Seas : partly extracted from Mr. Anderson and Reinhold Forster’s observations, and the verbal account of some of the most knowing of the navigators : with some anecdotes that happened to them among the natives. London: Now properly arrainged [sic] and printed for Alexander Shaw, No. 379, Strand, 1787. (Bell # 1787 Ca).
U Libraries receives $108,000 for Minnesota Landscapes
The University of Minnesota Libraries received a grant for $108,000 from the State of Minnesota through the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund of the Minnesota Historical Society for a year-long project to examine and describe archival collections related to Minnesota’s environmental history and climate.
New open access publications from the Libraries
We’re excited to share the latest set of open access publications from Libraries Publishing — everything from gardening to English music to a guide to good reasoning. Check them out below:
Opening up open access
There are clear benefits to open access — increased reach and impact, and that open access publications can be read for free by anyone with an internet connection. Yet publishers often require authors to pay article processing charges (APCs) to make their articles open access. And these fees, some of which exceed $5,000 per article, continue to increase.
Shoe Tree
The Shoe Tree refers to a tree on the West Bank of the Twin Cities Campus. It grows on the southwest side of the Washington Avenue bridge. The tree is known for the numerous pairs of shoes thrown from the bridge whose laces wrap around the branches and hang from the tree.
Options to remove or bar a president from office
After the insurrection at the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — with hundreds of Trump supporters swarming and entering the Capitol building in opposition to Trump’s presidential election loss — lawmakers are poised to remove Trump from office. The three primary ways we are seeing this unfold is through impeachment, the 14th Amendment, or the 25th Amendment.
Giving child development research away: Intentionally free, open, and accessible worldwide
Social Sciences Librarian Amy Riegelman is an enthusiastic proponent of open access publishing including research, publications, and presentations on green and gold open access. In one of her roles, she supports researchers in the Institute of Childhood Development in College of Education and Human Development, including Professor Gail Ferguson, Director of the Culture and Family Life Lab.