Zine Authors ’ Attitudes about Inclusion in Public and Academic Library Collections: A Survey- Based Study

Zine collections are becoming an increasingly popular addition to public and academic library holdings. Although academics have made strong arguments for the value of zines\u27 inclusion as part of our cultural heritage, current research does not focus on zine authors\u27 perspectives. How do the zine writers themselves feel about having their work--which is often highly personal--collected, shared, and sometimes circulated in the public and academic library sphere? This study will report the findings of a survey designed to uncover zine authors\u27 attitudes about having their works collected, shared, and circulated--in academic libraries, public libraries, and institutionally affiliated archival collections across the United States

Notes from the Editors

Editor\u27s note for Volume 23, Issue 1

Notes from the Editors

The editorial notes for this issue

Effect of an Acute Bout of Aerobic Exercise on Serum Dehydroepiadosterone Sulfate (DHEAS) Levels in Clinically Diagnosed Bipolar Patients

Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate (DHEAS) is thought to offset hypercortisolemia, which is found in individuals with bipolar disorder. While the cause of bipolar disorder remains unknown, previous studies have linked elevated cortisol levels with various mental health illnesses, including bipolar disorder. Previous studies suggest that exercise increases DHEAS levels in healthy subjects, however no studies have tested clinically diagnosed bipolar patients. It is hypothesized that the interaction between DHEAS and cortisol may be a contributing factor to the improvements in mood seen with exercise (McEwen 2002). PURPOSE: To determine the effect of an acute bout of aerobic exercise on DHEAS levels and perceptions of well-being in clinically diagnosed bipolar disorder patients. METHODS: Clinically diagnosed male (n=13) and female (n=13) bipolar patients (mean age 42.4 + 11.4 years) participated in this study. Ten ml of blood were drawn prior to the exercise session. Subjects walked on a treadmill for 20 min. at individualized intensities corresponding to 70% of age predicted maximum heart rate (APMHR). The exercise session finished with a 5 min. cool down. Within five min. post- completion of the cool down, a second blood draw, identical to the first, occured. Blood samples were spun and serum frozen until all samples could be collected and analyzed. A 7-point Likert questionnaire was administered pre and post exercise to assess perceptions of well-being. RESULTS: A two way ANOVA revealed a significant increase in DHEAS (p=0.01) after the acute bout of aerobic exercise. A dependant T-test also revealed a significant improvement in perception of global well-being following exercise (p<0.05). A non-significant (p=0.38) correlation of r=0.18 was found between DHEAS and perceptions of well-being. CONCLUSION: Treadmill exercise performed at of 70% of APMHR for 20 min. significantly increased DHEAS in clinically diagnosed bipolar subjects. Significant post exercise perceptions of well being improved. No relationship between well-being and DHEAS was revealed. Exercise appears to be responsible for an increase in DHEAS in bipolar patients; however, it appears that this increase may not be solely responsible for improvements in well-being

Fermi LAT Observations of Gamma-Ray Transients Near the Galactic Plane

The Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope provides unprecedented sensitivity for all-sky monitoring of gamma-ray activity from 20 MeV to >300 GeV. The observatory scans the entire sky every three hours and allows a general search for flaring activity on daily timescales. This search is conducted automatically as part of the ground processing and allows a fast response to transient events, typically less than a day. Most flares are spatially associated with known blazars, but in several cases during the first year of observations, gamma-ray flares occurring near the Galactic plane did not reveal any initially compelling counterparts. This prompted follow-up observations in X-ray, optical, and radio to attempt to identify the origin of the emission and probe the possible existence of a class of transient gamma-ray sources in the Galaxy. We will report on the details of these LAT events and the results of the multi-wavelength counterpart searches

Supporting postgraduate coursework students through their time of transition

Recent episodes of violence among Australian youth of African descent have been a concern for politicians, the police, policymakers and the African communities in the country. In Western Australia, the police and African communities have been searching for ways to reduce and prevent the recent spate of violence among Australian youth of African descent. This exploratory evaluative case study presents preliminary findings on the nature of violence committed by Australian youth of African descent and examines the impact of the ‘Stop the Violence Programme’, a pilot youth mentoring initiative for creating awareness among African youth in Western Australia about crime prevention. In Phase One of the programme, 18 young people were trained and resourced as local champions to mentor their peers on preventing antisocial behaviours. The study found three main forms of violence occurring among these youth: inter-African country violence, same-nationality ethnic conflicts and leave-my- territory fights. Post-training focus groups also revealed that many of the mentors have gained increased awareness of behaviours that constitute a crime in Australia. Initial findings suggest that prevention, rather than punishment, may prove a more successful approach to mitigating future violence, and that African youth can communicate positive conflict resolution to their communities

The Exclusive White World of Preservice Teachers’ Book Selection for the Classroom: Influences and Implications for Practice

This paper reports on a study of the children’s book preferences of 82 Preservice teachers (PSTs) at one Western Australian University. The study found PSTs preferred older books published during their own childhood or earlier. Further, representation of people of colour was limited to only 8 of 177 titles listed by PSTs. Key influences on their preferences were their personal favourite books and those used by mentor teachers during practicum experience. The outcomes of this study have implications for curriculum development and implementation of Initial Teacher Education courses, and in turn, for equitable outcomes of the future students of PSTs

A Collaborative Intervention: Measuring the Impact of a Flipped Classroom Approach on Library One-shots for the Composition Classroom

Instruction Librarians teaching one-shot information literacy (IL) sessions to freshman composition classes at academic universities across the U.S. experience a familiar set of issues. In response, librarians have produced a bounty of literature detailing flipped instruction approaches, collaborative case studies with outside departments, and critiques of the library one-shot, but there is little research describing attempts to combine these three approaches in one study. Both a case study and an impact-assessment study, this article describes a collaborative intervention between the Library Instruction team, the Writing Across the Curriculum program, and the English Department, with the purpose of studying the intervention’s impact on student learning. The study found that a flipped classroom approach in the form of a handout activity had a positive impact on student learning. Furthermore, the successful implementation of the study was dependent on effective collaboration between the Library, the English Department, and the Writing Across the Curriculum program

A Collaborative Intervention: Measuring the Impact of a Flipped Classroom Approach on Library One-shots for the Composition Classroom

Instruction Librarians teaching one-shot information literacy (IL) sessions to freshman composition classes at academic universities across the U.S. experience a familiar set of issues. In response, librarians have produced a bounty of literature detailing flipped instruction approaches, collaborative case studies with outside departments, and critiques of the library one-shot, but there is little research describing attempts to combine these three approaches in one study. Both a case study and an impact-assessment study, this article describes a collaborative intervention between the Library Instruction team, the Writing Across the Curriculum program, and the English Department, with the purpose of studying the intervention’s impact on student learning. The study found that a flipped classroom approach in the form of a handout activity had a positive impact on student learning. Furthermore, the successful implementation of the study was dependent on effective collaboration between the Library, the English Department, and the Writing Across the Curriculum program

A Question of Space: Surveying Student Usage of LGBTQ Resources in the LGBTQ Student Center Library and the Campus Library

This article explores how self-identified lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) students use the library located within a culture center on campus serving LGBTQ students, compared to the ways those students use the main campus library. In particular, this study asks how LGBTQ students’ needs of library collections may differ based on where those collections are located. While much has been written about pluralism, diversity, and multiculturalism in the library, there have been strikingly few studies by librarians attempting to work with minority student cultural centers on campus. Through an in-depth survey, this study directly asks LGBTQ students who frequent the LGBTQ Resource Center about their needs and usage habits in each library collection. By learning from the students directly, one can make claims about best practices for outreach, collection development, and information literacy practices specific to LGBTQ students who may have different needs for collections in different spaces