New acquisitions

New books purchased:

Animal cognition: the mental lives of animals, by Clive D. L. Wynne. Basingstoke: Plagrave Macmillan; 2001.  Balfour Library shelfmark: GFU (277iv).

Anthropoid origins: new visions, edited by Callum F. Ross and Richard F. Kay. New York, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers; 2004.  Balfour Library shelfmark: YW (40).

Applied urban ecology: a global framework, edited by Matthias Richter and Ulrike Weiland. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: GG (273).

Arthropod brains: evolution, functional elegance, and historical significance, by Nicholas James Strausfeld. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: P.5 (13i-iii).

Behavioral neurobiology: an integrative approach, 2nd ed., by Gunther K. H. Zupanc. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2010. Balfour Library shelfmark: GFU (341b).

Bioinformatics, 2nd ed., by T. Charlie Hodgman, Andrew French and David R. Westhead. Abingdon: Taylor & Francis; 2010. Balfour Library shelfmark: EPA (39b).

Biological oceanography, 2nd ed., by Charles B. Miller and Patricia A. Wheeler. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: GHN (175bi-iii).

Biomeasurement: a student's guide to biological statistics, 2nd ed., by Dawn Hawkins.  Balfour Library shelfmark: EBB (90b).

Biometry: the principles and practice of statistics in biological research, 4th ed., by Robert R. Sokal and F. James Rohlf. New Tork, NY: W. H. Freeman and Company; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: EBB (21di-iii).

Bird sense: what it's like to be a bird, by Tim Birkhead. London: bloomsbury Publishing; 2012.  Balfour Library shelfmark: K.7 (42ii-iii).

Dirt: the erosion of civilization, by David R. Montgomery. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press; 2007.  Balfour Library shelfmark: GHY (11ii-iii).

Earth before the dinosaurs, by Sebastian Steyer. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: UU.12 (6i-iii).

Epigenetics, edited by C. David Allis ... [et al.]. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; 2007. Balfour Library shelfmark: EN (187).

Evolution, by Nicholas H. Barton ... [et al.]. Cold Spring Harbor, NY: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; 2007.  Balfour Library shelfmark: EO (315iii).

The evolution of plants, by K. J. Wilis and J. C. McElwain. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2002.  Balfour Library shelfmark: FA (56ii).

Field guide to the micro moths of Great Britain & Ireland, general editor Phil Sterling, main contributor Mark Parsons. Illustrated by Richard Lewington. Gillingham, Dorset: British Wildlife Publishing; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: QNA (24).

From neuron to brain, 5th ed., by John G. Nicholls ... [et al.]. Balfour Library shelfmark: GF (90ei-iii).

Functional anatomy of the vertebrates: an evolutionary perspective, 3rd ed., by Karel F. Liem ... [et al.]. Belmont, CA: Brooks / Cole Cengage Learning; 2001. Balfour Library shelfmark: UU (29civ).

Gaining ground: the origin and evolution of tetrapods, 2nd ed., by Jennifer A. Clack. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: W.12 (3bi-iv).

A genetic switch: phage lambda revisited, 3rd ed., by Mark Ptashne. Cold Spring Harbor, NY: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; 2004. EN (145cii-iii).

Getting started with R: an introduction for biologists, by Andrew P. Beckerman and Owen L. Petchey. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: EBB (91).

Grasshoppers & crickets, by Ted Benton. London: Collins; 2012.  Balfour Library shelfmark: QF (18).

Guide to security considerations and practices for rare book, manuscript, and special collection libraries, edited by Everett C. Wilkie. Chicago, IL: Association of College & Research Libraries; 2011.  Balfour Library shelfmark: D.11 (60).

Miller's Anatomy of the dog, 4th ed., by Howard E. Evans and Alexander de Lahunta. St. Louis, Mo: Elsevier; 2013. Balfour Library shelfmark: qYOW.4 (1d).

Molecular biology, 4th ed., by Alexander McLennan ... [et al.]. New York, NY: Garland Science; 2013. Balfour Library shelfmark: EM (82di-ii).

Neurophysiology: a conceptual approach, 5th ed., bu Roger Carpenter and Benjamin Reddi. London: Hodder Arnold; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: GF (221ei-iii).

Phylogenetic trees made easy: a how-to manual, 4th ed., by Barry G. Hall. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates Inc.; 2011. Balfour Library shelfmark: GK (47d).

Principles of biochemistry, 4th ed., by Donald Voet, Judith G. voet and Charlotte W. Pratt. John Wiley & Sons; 2013. Balfour Library shelfmark: qEH (8di-iii).

Principles of brain evolution, by Georg F. Striedter. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, Inc.; 2005.  Balfour Library shelfmark: GFE (55ii-iii).

Principles of development, 4th ed., by Lewis Wolpert ... [et al.]. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2011.  Balfour Library shelfmark: qEEB (2div).

Raven biology of plants, 8th ed., by Ray F. Evert and Susan E. Eichorn. New York, NY: W. H. Freeman and Company; 2013. Balfour Library shelfmark: qFA (5hi-iii).

Rediscover grammar, 3rd ed., by David Crystal. Harlow: Pearson; 2004.  Balfour Library shelfmark: D.14 (36c).

Science research writing for non-native speakers of English, by Hilary Glasman-Deal. London: Imperial College Press; 2010. Balfour Library shelfmark: D.14 (33).

A scientist's guide to talking with the media: practical advice from the Union of Concerned Scientists, by Richard Hayes and Daniel Grossman. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press; 2006. Balfour Library shelfmark: D.14 (35).

The special collections handbook, by Alison Cullingford. London: Facet Publishing; 2011. Balfour Library shelfmark: D.11 (61).

Speciation, by Jerry A. Coyne and H. Allen Orr. Sunderland, MA: Sincauer Associates, Inc.: 2004.  Balfour Library shelfmark: EO (311ii-iii).

Spikes: exploring the neural code, by Fred Rieke ... [et al.]. Cambridge, MA: the MIT Press; 1997. GF (206ii).

Wild hope: on the front lines of conservation success, by Andrew Balmford. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: GGW (221i-iv).

A world without bees, by Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum. London: Guardian Books; 2009. Balfour Library shelfmark: QJG (40).

Writing science: how to write papers that get cited and proposals that get funded, by Joshua Schimel. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: D.14 (32).

Donations from Cambridge University Press:

Biodiversity and environmental philosophy: an introduction, by Sahotra Sarkar. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press; 2005. Balfour Library shelfmark: GGW (220).

Evolution and belief: confessions of a religious paleontologist, By Robert J. Asher. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2012. Insect species conservation, by T. R. New. Cambridge; Cambridge University Press; 2009. Balfour Library shelfmark: EO (366).

How to write and illustrate scientific papers, 2nd ed., by Bjorn Gustavii. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2008. Balfour Library shelfmark: D.14 (31b).

How to write and publish a scientific paper, 7th ed., by Robert A. Day and Barbara Gastel. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2008. Balfour Library shelfmark: D.14 (34g).

Insect species conservation, by T. R. New. Cambridge; Cambridge University Press; 2009. Balfour Library shelfmark: Q.8 (55).

Introduction to animal behaviour, 6th ed., by Aubrey Manning and Marian Stamp Dawkins. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: GFU (69fi-iii).

Book donations:

Field guide to the birds of East Africa. Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, by Terry Stevenson and John Fanshawe. London: Christopher Helm; 2002.  Balfour Library shelfmark: KZ.6 (77).

Gaining ground: the origin and evolution of tetrapods, 2nd ed., by Jennifer A. Clack. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: W.12 (3b).

The scientific results of the Oman Flora and Fauna Survey 1977 (Dhofar), by the Oman Government. Oman: Office of the Government Adviser for Conservation of the Environment: 1980.  Balfour Library shelfmark: qFY (10).

Wild hope: on the front lines of conservation success, by Andrew Balmford. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: GGW (221).

Theses:

Analysis of Kinesin-1 function in vivo, by Lucy Suzanne Williams. Cambridge; 2012. Balfour Library shelfmark: Thesis (517).

The evolution of colour, pattern and structure in avian eggs, by Mary Caswell Stoddard. Cambridge; 2012.  Balfour Library shelfmark:  Thesis (516).

Incorporating costs and processes into systematic conservation planning in a biodiversity hotspot, by Jonathan Michael Halsey Green. Cambridge; 2012.  Balfour Library shelfmark: Thesis (515).

Rare book on display

The rare book on display from our collection is: Vorstellung der Vögel Deutschlandes und beyläufig auch eigener Fremden; nach ihren Eigenschaften beschrieben von Johann Leonhard Frisch, in Kupfer gebracht, und nach ihren natürlichen Farben dargestellt von Ferdinand Helfreich Frisch. Berlin: Friedr. Wilhelm Birnstiel; 1763.

Balfour Library shelf mark: Folio (193).

The book is open at: Plate 1, Buchfink and Distelfink [chaffinch and goldfinch]. These beautifully detailed, hand coloured, copper engraved plates depict birds that are quite familiar to us so it is interesting to see how accurate the illustrations are. Brightly coloured pairs of male and female finches are described as ‘Er’ and ‘Sie’ (he and she). If you look closely you will see the skilled detail in the engravings and the individual brushstrokes that colour them.

This work is the first German bird book with excellent folio colour plates which feature European and exotic birds, including a number of parrots, drawn from the Frisch family collection of preserved specimens. There is clever use of a technique to make certain aspects of a bird “shine”, such as the combs on chickens, and the eyes of all of the birds consistently appear like this.

Johann Leonhard Frisch (1666-1743) was a theologian, naturalist, and philologist specialising in Slavic languages; he taught Leibnitz Russian, and the latter had him elected to the Berlin Academy of Sciences. He is credited with the discovery of Prussian blue, and also introducing sericulture to Germany; he planted mulberry trees around the walls of Berlin from which were produced a hundred pounds of silk.

The plates of Vorstellung der Vögel Deutschlandes und beyläufig auch eigener Fremden were drawn and engraved by the author’s sons Ferdinand Helfreich and Philipp Jakob; Johann. Christoph, the author’s grandson, executed the final 30 plates, and also engraved the portrait-frontispiece after a design by B. Rode. The original drawings are preserved in the Jacob Moyat collection in the Stadtbibliothek in Mainz.

A rare book bibliography (Anker) describes how “the birds are divided into 12 classes and the plates, which contain altogether 307 figures, are accompanied by a brief text divided according to the classes and sections, the subtitles of which open with the words ‘Kurtze Nachricht’ or ‘Fortsetzung einer kurtzen [kurzen] Nachricht’. After the death of J.L. Frisch the publication was continued by his sons, of whom Just Leopold Frisch prepared the text, assisted, chiefly at the end, by Baron Friedrich August von Zorn, who also compiled the comprehensive index”.

Sources:

J. Haffer. The development of ornithology in central Europe. J Ornithol. (2007) 148 (Suppl 1):S125–S153. DOI 10.1007/s10336-007-0160-2

International League of Antiquarian Booksellers http://www.ilab.org/index.php

Returning or renewing books at the end of the summer vacation

All books currently on loan to you from this library will be due for return on Tuesday 2nd October, which is the first day of term. You will receive an automatic reminder email about this beforehand.

Please note that this summer we implemented a new library security system and self-issue machine, that allows you to return books yourself.

However, if the books were on loan to you and therefore not in the library when all the books were tagged for the new system (in August), then you will not be able to return the books on the machine and library staff will have to do it manually (and place new tags in the books).

Therefore, you will only be able to return the books during library opening hours (8.30am-5.00pm Monday to Thursday, 8.30am-4.30pm Fridays).

If you wish to renew the book(s) then you can do this yourselves via Your Account on the library catalogue (see the link in the top right-hand corner of this page: http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/newton/). Alternatively, library staff can do this for you over the phone or send us an email to request it).

Many thanks for your cooperation.

New security system and self-issue machine in the library

Over the summer vacation the library implemented a new security system. It is an RFID (Radio Frequency ID) one from 3M. It is (almost) the same system as the one in operation in Cambridgeshire Libraries. 

A team of 6 people took 7 full working days to tag 18,000 books and 22,000 journal volumes with new RFID tags. Using two mobile workstations, they removed each item from the shelves, tagged them and linked them to library management system software, and then re-shelved them.

The new system will be more reliable, and should greatly improve the security of library stock and also the way you borrow books.

Borrowing books:

It is still a 24-hour self-issue system.

One useful change is that you will now be able to borrow up to four books simultaneously (subject to your borrowing entitlements). Borrowing should be much quicker and easier.

To borrow a book, simply select 'Borrow' on the touch screen and follow the instructions.

You can even get a print out showing the details of the books you have just borrowed, along with their due dates!

Returning books:

Simply press 'Returns' on the touch screen and follow the instructions (you have to return each book separately on the machine).

The most important change to remember is that you are now required to place your returned books on the shelf dedicated for this purpose, which is located to the right of the self-issue machine (where the New Books used to be shelved).

You can get a printed receipt showing that the books have been returned.

Another major benefit of the new system is that when you return a book it will actually be returned immediately on the library circulation system and you will now be able to borrow another one straight away (rather than having to wait until library staff processed the book the next day or after the weekend).

Library staff will re-shelve the books from the returns shelves at 11.00am each day but you are able to borrow any book from these shelves at any time..

The new detection system gates:

These work in much the same was as the previous system, in that an alarm will sound if you attempt to leave the library without borrowing a book properly first.

If you have borrowed a book using the self-issue machine then the alarm should not sound. If it does sound, and library staff are not available to assist you, simply move away from the gates and try again - if the problem persists please alert a member of library staff or if out of hours, let them know what happened the next day. Journals (issues and bound volumes) still cannot be borrowed.

Quarto sized (large sized) books move:

We have had to move the Quarto books that were shelved on either side of the security gates to the back of the Newton Room (the room where the photocopiers are located). This is because they have also been tagged and when removed from the shelves they would have kept triggering the alarms.

CCTV:

This is still watching you!

How to see what books you currently have on loan:

Unfortunately the self-issue machine will not be able to show you this, you will still have to check 'Your Account' on the library catalogue (see the link in the top right-hand corner of this page http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/newton/).

Find out more about RFID technology here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio-frequency_identification

If you have any problems with or concerns about the new system please let us know. We hope you find it to be a real enhancement to the way you borrow books from the Balfour Library.

Full text access to three JoVE titles now available

Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE) is a journal devoted to the publication of biological, medical, chemical and physical research in a video format. Articles are peer reviewed, and content is indexed by PubMed.

JoVE is published in 6 sections - you now have full text access to JoVE General, JoVE Immunology and Infection, and JoVE Neuroscience.

For access and more information please visit http://www.jove.com/

Access to other sections of JoVE from 2006-2012 is available via PubMedCentral http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/journals/637/

New e-journals available

I can confirm that, finally, the following new e-journals have now been subscribed to by the University:

• Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (1996-)
• Cell Cycle (2002-)
• Conservation Letters (2008-)
• Folia Primatologica (1998-2008, 2012-)

They are all available via e-journals@cambridge at: http://camsfx.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/cambridge/az

Thank you very much to those of you who proposed and then helped prioritise these titles for purchase.

New library security system will improve how you borrow books as well as their security

Photo by libraries@cambridge

The library is implementing a new security system during the summer vacation.

The new system will greatly improve the security of library stock and also the way you borrow books. It will still be a 24-hour self-issue system, but you will be able to borrow several books simultaneously (subject to your particular loan entitlements) so it will be much quicker and easier. When you return a book it will actually be returned immediately on the library circulation system and students will especially benefit from being able to borrow another one straight away (rather than having to wait until library staff process the book the next day or after the weekend). It will be similar to the system that is in place in Cambridgeshire public libraries, if you are familiar with that. Library staff will of course be on hand once the new system is in place to show you how to use it.

The first stage of the implementation is tagging each of the 30,000 books and journals! This will be undertaken by a ‘tag team’ from the security system supplier, 3M. They start next week and will be moving around the library with two mobile workstations, removing items from the shelves, tagging them and linking them to software, and then re-shelving them. This will obviously cause a bit of noise and reduce access to the stock wherever they are working.

The library will remain open to readers during this time. If you need something or wish to study in the area that the team is working in, please let me or Jane know and we can make a note of it and let you know as soon as it is available again. If the disruption proves too much however, I may need to close the library to readers until the work is completed, but I’d like to avoid this if possible.

The tagging process will take at least one week, probably longer.

The second stage will be to install the new security gates at the main library entrance / exit. This will probably take place in mid-September, and we will need to close the library to readers for one or two days while the work is taking place. I will let you know nearer the time. The new security system will then be live in time for the new academic year.

Apologies for the short notice and any inconvenience but the team was available sooner than expected. If you have any queries please contact us.

Thanks for your cooperation!

New e-books in zoology

The Balfour Library has purchased some new e-books!

They are available via the online library catalogue, LibrarySearch http://search.lib.cam.ac.uk/. Alternatively, I have provided direct URLs by the title of each book:

An introduction to behavioural ecology, 4th ed., by Nicholas B. Davies, John R. Krebs, and Stuart A. West.
http://search.lib.cam.ac.uk/?itemid=|eresources|70239

From DNA to diversity, 2nd ed., by Sean B. Carroll, Jennifer K. Grenier, and Scott D. Weatherbee.
http://search.lib.cam.ac.uk/?itemid=|eresources|70241

Reproductive skew in vertebrates, edited by Reinmar Hager and Clara B. Jones.
http://search.lib.cam.ac.uk/?itemid=|eresources|70242

The insects : an outline of entomology, 4th ed., by Penny J. Gullan and Peter S. Cranston.
http://search.lib.cam.ac.uk/?itemid=|eresources|70240

There is also a sticker on the front of the printed versions of the books to tell you that there is also an e-copy and how to access it - just like in the photo above!

Twitter for academic research

Interested in finding out how to use Twitter for academic research?

Have a look at these great prezis, articles, blog posts and guides by academics and library and information professionals from around the UK, as collated by staff at the Judge Institute Information & Library Services here at the University of Cambridge: http://cjbsinfo.posterous.com/twitter-for-academic-research

In particular there is this great guide produced by the LSE, 'Using Twitter in university
research, teaching and
impact activities': http://www2.lse.ac.uk/government/research/resgroups/LSEPublicPolicy/pdf/Twitter_Guide_Sept_2011.pdf. It's based in the social sciences but the main principles and practices apply to all disciplines.

Another really useful resource is the LSE's list of favourite academic tweeters, compiled following a survey. This is the list of STEM tweeters (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics): https://twitter.com/#!/LSEImpactBlog/stem-academic-tweeters/members

Give tweeting a go! You may think you don't have time for it but there are many handy ways of managing your tweets to save you time, and you may find you tap into a whole new world of information and contacts in your field.

SpringerImages Trial from 22 July until 21 August 2012

Trial access to SpringerImages has been set up by the University Library and will run from 22 July until 21 August 2012.

SpringerImages provides access to more than 3 million images, photos, graphs, histograms, tables and more covering all STM (Science, Technology, Medicine) disciplines.

Access to the trial on campus is at:
http://www.springerimages.com

Access to the trial off campus is via the URL:
http://ezproxy.lib.cam.ac.uk:2048/login?url=http://www.springerimages.com

Please send feedback on the trial to eresources@lib.cam.ac.uk by 21 August 2012.

According to Springer, SpringerImages is a collection of scientific images spanning the scientific, technical and medical fields, including high-quality clinical images from images.MD. There are currently over 3.4 million images, including photos, graphs, histograms, figures, and tables, available via a searchable online database. The SpringerImages interface enables users to search using captions, keywords, context and more, even jumping from the image to the source article. Users can create personalized image “sets,” and can export images for use in their own presentations or lectures.