Seeing Through the Eyes of Students: Participant Observation in an Academic Library

Participant observation of study spaces in the Killam Memorial Library at Dalhousie University revealed significant insight into the study behaviours of individual students and groups, the impact of building design on these behaviours, and the research methodology itself. The effect of unintentional panoptical design (on adherence to quiet study rules) and ambient noise (on productivity and popularity of spaces) were both observed, as were the blending of social and academic activities, and the choices of students to work individually and collaboratively within a community environment rather than solitude. As an ethnographic methodology, participant observation is rarely conducted in library spaces. This study proves the value of this methodology when students observe fellow students. Their complete membership in the culture under observation permits unobtrusive access and a richness of collected data that is enhanced by observer insight into student life

IM a Librarian: Extending Virtual Reference Services through Instant Messaging and Chat Widgets

This paper reports the findings of a study developed to evaluate the suitability and potential of Instant Messaging (IM) for the Novanet Live Help service. Both IM and the existing commercial Virtual Reference (VR) software were offered in tandem for one semester. The services were evaluated through a combination of statistical reports and survey data gathered from both the users and service providers. Comparison of statistics revealed a 44% increase in online sessions, with 22% more sessions received by the IM service. Although users displayed satisfaction with both of the online services, they preferred IM over the VR software. The IM chat widget was reported as the most preferred method for receiving library reference services overall, including face-to-face, telephone and email. Both undergraduate and graduate students preferred the IM service, while faculty and other patron groups did not have a significant enough response rate to assure an accurate measure. After the initial learning curve, service providers preferred delivering online reference by IM over the commercial VR platform. Based on these results, Novanet’s Live Help service will switch to a multi-protocol IM-based service with a chat widget in the fall of 2008

Aggregation of sodium alkylbenzenesulfonates in aqueous solution

The surfactant 6 phenyl C/sub 12/SNa forms small spherical micelles in aqueous solution, having an aggregation number of 20 to 30 and a fractional charge of 0.45. These micelles are hydrated to the extent of approximately 18 moles H/sub 2/O per moles of surfactant. A second larger aggregate is also present in 6 phenyl C/sub 12/SNa solutions; its importance increases with solution age. Addition of NaCl causes both aggregates to apparently increase modestly in size. The surfactant 8 phenyl C/sub 16/SNa also contains both aggregates in its solutions; the larger one is relatively more important here. The larger aggregate does not correspond to dispersed bits of a liquid crystalline mesophase

Chapitre 13. L’imprimerie et le livre matériel

L’industrie de l’imprimerie éric leroux Entre 1921 et 1961, l’industrie de l’imprimerie se situe au dixième rang de la production manufacturière canadienne (3,7 % de la production canadienne en 1960) et au huitième rang pour la création d’emplois, ce qui la place juste derrière l’alimentation, le bois, le fer et l’acier, et l’équipement de transport. À partir du milieu du siècle, les innovations technologiques modifient les façons de faire de cette industrie. Les développements dans la fabric..