Re: Papers,Reports,etc(+ more)

["the Rieglers " <herricks@cin.net>]

This thread has really inspired me :) I work at the local puplic library,
which unfortunately only carries Science, usually a month or so after it
goes to print, since it is donated by a kindly patron. Thankfully we also
have back issues on microfiche, so i've managed to start a little
collection of papers. But I have been thinking, and I realized that our
town is only an hour or so from Chicago, thus I could probably
interlibrary-loan just about anything I was looking for. and its for free!
woo-hoo.
 On an unrelated note, is there anyway an interested teenager could get a
tour behind the scenes at a museum? As in into the preparation rooms or
what-have-you, I love the public displays but I would be interested in
seeing behind the scenes. Is this just a fantasy, or does this happen?
Thanks a bunch all.
                                                       Ben Riegler
                                                                 
                                                
----------
> From: chris brochu <cbrochu@fmppr.fmnh.org>
> To: dinosaur@usc.edu
> Subject: Re: Papers,Reports,etc
> Date: Sunday, November 15, 1998 2:55 PM
> 
> Conjoined responses here.
> 
> 
> 
> >In the old days, when the local library had 'special interest'
magazines, the
> >staff were popular.  Nowadays, with interlibrary loans, even books have
become
> >unavailable.  Oh, there are sightings occasionally, and a few calls will
find
> >someone who once held the book in their hands.  S/he is able to remember
the
> >experience pretty clearly, unless it was a different book with a similar
> >title.
> >I recommend used book stores; some professor has made any interesting
book
> >(often his/her own) required reading, and the available copies are
usually in
> >mint condition.  (Even the exceptions are worthwile because they show
why your
> >predecessor with the book did not do well in the course.  People who do
well
> >keep the book.)
> >Anyway, with a university library, a friendly staff member will let you
know
> >when the faculty is finished and you can intercept it.  Just don't let
other
> >students see you, or you will be befriended yourself.
> 
> 
> Generally, when what I need is gone, I politely ask if I can borrow it
long
> enough to copy what I want.  Such requests are almost always honored,
> provided (a) the borrower isn't in the middle of using it right then and
> there, and (b) you plan to go straight to the copier with it.  (I have no
> doubt that someone will respond with the memory of a negative experience
-
> Dr. X just wouldn't let me see it, no matter how much I begged on my
hands
> and knees.  There are greedy people in all walks of life, and academia is
> no exception.  But as a rule, when resources are limited and requests are
> not unreasonable, compromise is the rule and not the exception.)
> 
> This can be more difficult with books than with journal articles, but
I've
> usually been able to come up with a compromise when a real need arises.
> 
> Moreover, nearly all academic libraries have strict policies against
> letting new books and journals circulate outside the library, as long as
> they're on the new book shelf.  This period will vary from one library to
> the next.  This is why knowing the date of new journal addition is
valuable
> knowledge indeed.  And if more than one person wants a copy of the
article,
> we sometimes join forces and make multiple copies on the spot - saves
time.
> In this sense, "being befriended" is not a bad thing at all.
> 
> 
> 
> >Go to university library or museum library. And know what you want, or
you'll
> >waste time.
> 
> 
> I respectfully disagree.  Some of my most valuable discoveries have come
> from blindly flipping through journals in a library.
> 
> 
> chris
> 
> Christopher Brochu
> Department of Geology
> Field Museum of Natural History
> Roosevelt Road at Lake Shore Drive
> Chicago, IL 60605
> 
> 312-922-9410
>