Sciences Library News

Mar 01 2019

Scientists Celebrate Earth Day at the Sciences Library!

Posted on March 1, 2019April 9, 2019 by Laurie Neuerburg

Join us at the Sciences Library on Friday, April 26^th from 2-5 pm as we celebrate Earth Day! Explore climate science through hands-on experiments with Dr. Stone’s chemistry research group, the Iowa City Science Booster Club, and Earth & Environmental scientists!

Did you ever wonder…

Why do some gases warm the atmosphere?
How do particles cool the earth?
How do clouds form?
Why are the oceans becoming more acidic?
What is albedo and how does it affect climate?
What lessens the heat island effect?

Activities for all ages. This is a free event. Bring your questions and join us for refreshments!

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1092145187640366/

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all University of Iowa-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, please contact Laurie Neuerburg in advance at 319-467-0216.

Image of Charles Darwin and the Beagle Adventure book cover

Feb 21 2019

Iowa City Darwin Day 2019

Posted on February 21, 2019 by Laurie Neuerburg

Iowa City Darwin Day celebrates science, evolution, and Darwin’s birthday this week! Sharon DeWitte and Ana Duggan will give talks about their research into epidemics and infectious diseases. Jeanne Serb will speak about the evolution of vision in animals, and Nicholas Strausfeld will present on the evolution of insect brains. There will be cake at Darwin’s birthday party on Saturday! The events will wrap up with a screening of the movie Contagion at FilmScene and a discussion led by Black Death expert Sharon DeWitte.

The UI Libraries offers numerous books, movies, and articles pertinent to Iowa City Darwin Day! We have the movie Contagion on DVD/Blu-ray, the Greatest Show on Earth and other works on evolution, the complete works of Charles Darwin and the graphic adaptation of On the Origin of Species, and much more in our Iowa City Darwin Day guide!

Feb 11 2019

Spring 2019 Workshops at the Sciences Library

Posted on February 11, 2019February 11, 2019 by Laurie Neuerburg

The following workshops are open to all students, faculty, and staff. There is no need to register in advance.

EndNote Workshop – Thursday, March 7, 2-3 PM, BB B20

In this workshop you will learn how to use EndNote to:

Collect references for articles, books, websites, and other sources using Google Scholar, InfoHawk+, and popular databases like Web of Science and Scopus;
Organize your references into groups and share your reference library with collaborators;
Use the Cite While You Write plugin for Microsoft Word to insert citations into your papers and format them into thousands of different styles.

EndNote Web is available for free to all members of the University of Iowa community. EndNote Desktop is available for free to all UI graduate students, faculty, and staff.

EndNote Workshop – Wednesday, April 10, 3:30-4:30 PM, CB W238

In this workshop you will learn how to use EndNote to:

Collect references for articles, books, websites, and other sources using Google Scholar, InfoHawk+, and popular databases like Web of Science and Scopus;
Organize your references into groups and share your reference library with collaborators;
Use the Cite While You Write plugin for Microsoft Word to insert citations into your papers and format them into thousands of different styles.

EndNote Web is available for free to all members of the University of Iowa community. EndNote Desktop is available for free to all UI graduate students, faculty, and staff.

If you’re interested, but unable to attend these workshops, private appointments and webinars can be arranged. If you have any questions or if you’d like to request a workshop for your class or group, please contact Laurie Neuerburg (319-467-0216 or laurie-neuerburg@uiowa.edu) for more information.

Jan 28 2019

Sciences Library closing at 5 PM on Jan 29 & closed on Jan 30

Posted on January 28, 2019January 29, 2019 by Laurie Neuerburg

The Sciences Library will be closing on Tuesday, January 29 at 5 PM due to extremely cold temperatures. We will remain closed all day on Wednesday, January 30. We will re-open at 8:30 AM on Thursday, January 31. Stay warm, everyone!

Dressing for Cold Weather — Image credit: weather.gov/cold

Image of ECS's The 90 natural elements that make up everything

Jan 23 2019

2019: The International Year of the Periodic Table

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Laurie Neuerburg

In 1869, chemist Dmitri Mendeleev discovered patterns among elements that led him to arrange elements according to their properties into the very first periodic table.

Several years later in 1885, the Periodische Gesetzmässigkeit der Elemente nach Mendeleiff was created, which was recently found at the University of St Andrews. This is thought to be the oldest surviving periodic table in the world!

Now, 150 years later after Mendeleev’s discovery, the UN and UNESCO have declared 2019 to be The International Year of the Periodic Table. Learn about each of the elements through IUPAC’s interactive Periodic Table!

Would you like to read more about the Periodic Table? Check out some of our books:

The Periodic Table and a Missed Nobel Prize

Facilitating Conceptual Change in Students’ Understanding of the Periodic Table

Periodic Table: A Very Short Introduction

Here is a version of the Periodic Table showing endangered elements:

Elements marked with gray are from conflict minerals, all of which are used in smartphones. Elements in red are the most at risk of running out. Would you miss any of these elements if they were gone? Is there more that we can do to recycle and reuse these naturally-occurring elements?

Here is the most up-to-date version of the Periodic Table:

Image of 2018 IUPAC Periodic Table of the Elements — Image credit: IUPAC. https://iupac.org/what-we-do/periodic-table-of-elements/

There are now 118 elements, and the newest elements are nihonium (Nh), moscovium (Mc), tennessine (Ts), and oganesson (Og). These four new elements were created synthetically.

Interested in a competing for a limited edition Periodic Table signed by a Chemistry Nobel Laureate? Take IUPAC’s Periodic Table Challenge and enter their Nobelium Contest for a chance to win!

Jan 15 2019

Welcome back, Hawkeyes!

Posted on January 15, 2019January 15, 2019 by Laurie Neuerburg

Welcome to the Spring 2019 Semester, Hawkeyes! Here are three tips to help you start your semester:

Check to see if your textbooks are on course reserve at the library

Visit the Sciences Library to study in a comfy bean bag chair, carrel, or table; to use our free scanner; and to enjoy free coffee and tea!

Need help with scientific literature databases such as arXiv, GeoRef, PubMed, or SciFinder? Make an appointment for a research consultation, or email us: laurie-neuerburg@uiowa.edu or leo-clougherty@uiowa.edu

Dec 13 2018

Snowflakes & Snow Exhibit

Posted on December 13, 2018December 31, 2018 by Laurie Neuerburg

It’s fun to catch snowflakes on your tongue, cut out paper snowflakes, and shovel snowflakes—oops, no. Starting again—it’s fun to catch snowflakes on your tongue, cut out paper snowflakes, and we’re featuring scientist snowflakes in our new exhibit!

Can you find the following scientists hidden in the snowflakes?

Marie Curie
Thomas Edison
Benjamin Franklin
Rosalind Franklin
Jane Goodall
Stephen Hawking
Katherine Johnson
Nikola Tesla
Dorothy Vaughan

If you would like to cut out your own scientist snowflakes, you can find the patterns from the Franklin Institute!

We have supplies on hand at the Sciences Library so you can add your own snowflake design to our service desk.

Brush up on snow ecology, building snow shelters, and the science of snow with Snow, Ice and Other Wonders of Water: A Tribute to the Hydrogen Bond & other books in our Snowflakes & Snow exhibit!

Chauncey shows an Erlenmeyer flask paper snowflake

Dec 07 2018

Finals Week Snacks & Snowflakes

Posted on December 7, 2018December 31, 2018 by Laurie Neuerburg

During Finals Week, Chauncey reviews his notes, gets enough sleep, and studies with friends at the Sciences Library. He creates his own study guides and asks himself questions that might be on his exams. When he gets tired, he finds it helpful to take short breaks.

Luckily, Chauncey discovered that the Sciences Library provides cookies, coffee, tea, and fun for short breaks! While he likes the Legos, K’Nex, and games, Chauncey’s favorite activity has been cutting out paper snowflakes. He had a lot of fun creating an Erlenmeyer flask snowflake! Join Chauncey at the Sciences Library to study for finals. He’ll show you where to find the cookies, coffee, and snowflake patterns!

Nov 28 2018

Red Planet Day 2018

Posted on November 28, 2018 by Laurie Neuerburg

On this day in 1964, the Mariner 4 spacecraft launched and completed the first Mars flyby, marking today as Red Planet Day. Mariner 4 took snapshots of the surface of Mars and gave us our first up-close view of the planet. While Mariner 4 was meant to capture data only for a few months, it stayed in orbit collecting solar wind data for several years.

Just two days ago, NASA landed the InSight spacecraft on Mars. InSight will go under the surface of Mars to learn more about its interior structure by measuring its temperature and seismic activity. Knowing more about the Mar’s interior structure will help us learn about its geological formation. As the geology and climate of Mars match most closely to Earth’s of all the planets, Mars stands out as the most promising planet for possible human settlements and the most likely place to search for signs of alien life!

Celebrate Red Planet Day with some of our books about Mars!

We have fun films too!

Hope you have a Happy Red Planet Day!

Photo of Mars — Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/USGS

Oct 19 2018

Mole Day at the Sciences Library

Posted on October 19, 2018 by Laurie Neuerburg

In celebration of Mole Day on Oct. 23 and National Chemistry Week, Chauncey invited all of his mole friends over to hang out at the Sciences Library. Now the moles have taken over the library! Find a mole hidden at the Sciences Library during National Chemistry Week (Oct. 22-26) and bring it to the Sciences Library service desk for a treat!