Changes to Document Delivery and BONUS+ services

Posted on by Sarah Lorien
book shelves in Fisher Library

The Library is making some changes to the way it supplies material that isn’t held in our collections.  From Monday 22 October 2018 access to the Bonus+ service will be phased out, and clients will be able to use the Document Delivery service for all future requests.

As part of this change the Document Delivery Services is being extended to undergraduate students for a trial period. From Monday 22 October 2018 undergraduates will have access to requesting 10 items per academic year from hundreds of member libraries across Australia within the Libraries Australia Document Delivery (LADD) service. Researchers and post graduate students will continue to use the service as normal.

Find out more about document delivery services on our Library website.

Tips for Productivity and Stress Management

Posted on by Sarah Lorien
students studying

We know exams are tough, so here’s some pro tips to help you through.

  1. Make a list of specific tasks you want (or need) to complete.
    Assign a timeframe and a deadline for these and map them out in a diary or calendar, planning for time to work on them. Still struggling to stay motivated? Come along to one of the Library’s Shut up & Study sessions.
  2. Multitasking doesn’t work – limit distractions.
    No checking of phones or social media! Your productivity depends on it. Focus.
  3. Stop occasionally to tidy up your desk or your surroundings.
    Psychological studies have found that a cluttered work environment impacts negatively on your psyche – if your work space is cluttered, so is your mind. Organise your environment and de-clutter. This has been shown to place you in a lighter and less “heavy-feeling” mental state.
  4. Take a nap. You’ve earned it!
    If you are feeling drained and tired, taking short naps can help refuel your energy. Studies have shown that 20 mins of nap time is optimum for quick recovery, without leaving you feeling drowsy. Feel free to try out the sleep pods in Fisher Library.
  5. Fuel your body with the right stuff.
    Healthy, low-GI food helps fuel your brain! Start your day off right with a free breakfast in Fisher Library. We’ll also be handing out free fruit and herbal tea across our libraries to keep you going.
  6. Just highlighting doesn’t work – get creative with your notes.
    This can help you process and make sense of the information you have taken note of during class time and during study. It allows you to form your own understanding of what you’re learning and summarise it in a way that makes sense to you. By the time you finish this process, it will mean that you have internalised, structured, and therefore learnt the content you are studying.
  7. Share some positivity with a friend or peer.
    What goes around comes around – give support and you will receive support in return. Send a kind message to a classmate or check out the positivity wall in the library and add a note to brighten a stranger’s day!
  8. Finally, schedule in time to take care of yourself.
    Go for a walk, breathe some fresh air, get some sunshine or head to one of the free yoga sessions running at Fisher Library. Regular exercise has been shown to increase serotonin and dopamine release (the “feel good” chemicals in your brain), which has proven to be the most effective “stress buster.” Head over to the Chill Out Zone in your nearest library for some games and craft to give your brain a break.

 

Combine these tips with some self-belief, a little determination and a good night’s sleep and you have yourself a solid approach to managing your stress and remaining productive.

We believe in you!

Check out all of the ways the library can support you this exam time.

 

students studying

Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Knowledges Seminar Series: Perspectives on Gender

Posted on by Sarah Lorien
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On Friday the 16th of November, we will be joined by three esteemed guests for our sixth and final seminar in the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Knowledges Seminar Series: Perspectives on Gender – Dr Sandy O’Sullivan, Laimena ‘Wilo’ Muwadda, and Darren Budda-Deen.

Dr Sandy O’Sullivan, an Aboriginal (Wiradjuri) woman, an Associate Professor in Creative Industries at the University of the Sunshine Coast, will speak about the ways that Queer First Nations’ Peoples are re/presented in museums of national significance, and will explore their roles in resisting and challenging reductive approaches to identity.

Wilo Muwadda, a Kalkatungu man (northwestern Queensland) and Alyawarr – Eastern Arrernte (Central Australia), will talk about the research for his recently completed Masters of Social Science at University of Sydney, which he has spent years discussing with elders from these regions to understand the on local lore in relation to perspectives on gender and sexuality.

Performing for over 35 years as Doreen Maganini in Melbourne and Sydney’s drag scene, Darren Budda-Deen will share his journey from small town boy to prominent entertainer within the LGBTI community. Darren’s Aboriginal descendants are the Kamilaroi tribe whose lands extend from North West NSW to Southern Queensland.

The Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Knowledges Seminar Series presents a wonderful opportunity for those wishing to learn more about the rich cultures of our First Nations peoples.
Attendance is open to all University staff and students. We encourage you to register early, as spaces are limited. Book your place here.

 

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Rare Bites: The Renaissance of Euclid’s Elements

Posted on by Dannielle Williams
Illustration from Euclid text

This talk is focused on the Preclarissimus liber elementorum Eulidis (1432), the earliest Latin edition of Euclid’s Elements printed in Europe. Through this work, Dr Kotevska will discuss the re-emergence of the Elements in the Renaissance after its long disappearance from European culture in the Middle Ages. Those who tasked themselves with restoring Euclid’s mathematical works in the Renaissance variously described their project as one of revival, restitution and instauration. Who were these restorers of ancient learning whose ambition it was to return the Elements to its place as a cornerstone of mathematical learning? And what, in their view, made Euclid so obvious a candidate for intellectual consideration?

When: 25 October 2018; 1-1.30pm

Where: Fisher Library, Level 2, Seminar Room (218)

Speaker: Dr Laura Kotevska

Register here

This talk will be presented by Dr Laura Kotevska, a lecturer at The University of Sydney, appointed in the Department of Philosophy and the Education Portfolio in the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor. Her research concerns the intersection of moral philosophy and mathematics in the early modern era.

Rare Bites is a series of informal and entertaining 30 minute lunchtime talks held monthly during semester. “The Renaissance of Euclid’s Elements” is the sixth talk in Rare Bites 2018 series. If you want to learn about some of the treasures and lesser-known gems within Rare Books & Special Collections at the University Library, this is your opportunity.

https://news.library.sydney.edu.au/rare-books-the-art-of-mathematics/

Big [digital] Day Out

Posted on by Sarah Lorien
post it notes on whiteboard

HDRs – On Monday 29 October, join us for a day of expert knowledge sharing, discussions, and some inter-activity. Sessions will focus on the use of tools for productivity, organisation and research, and how we can use these things to create a helpful digital flow. The day will be run in 3 segments:

  • How to HDR: Wrangling your Digital Workflow
    Time: 1pm – 3pm
    To kick the day’s festivities off, this How to HDR session will focus on ways that you can control your digital workflow so that you can stay on top of it and have it serve you – not the other way around. Of course, there will be our famous pizza to conclude. We did mention festivities, didn’t we? It would be rude for us not to deliver.
  • How to Work with Research Data
    Time: 3pm – 4pm
    Not sure what tools to use to manage your research data? Not sure who to contact? Come along and meet with research data support staff from the Digital Curation and Data Team and the Research Data Consulting (Sydney Informatics Hub). Learn about data support services available across the University as well as platforms and tools to help you effectively manage your research data.
  • QuickBites: How to Avoid Digital Chaos
    Live streamed in ThinkSpace
    Time: 4:15pm – 4:45pm
    We’ll discuss the ability to manage data and evidence to formulate a critical argument, identifying evidence and secondary material that supports independent research projects, management and using large amounts of secondary material, and how to distinguish vital evidence from large amounts of primary sources.

To join us in Thinkspace for our Big [digital] Day Out click here to register.

If you’re at home that day and would like to register for the Quick Bites webinar from 4:15-4:45pm click here to register.

 

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Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Knowledges Seminar Series: Health

Posted on by Sarah Lorien
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Aboriginal Leadership in Tackling Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: from grass roots communities to the United Nations

The Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Knowledges Seminar Series presents a wonderful opportunity for those wishing to learn more about the rich cultures of our First Nations peoples.

Our fifth seminar is on Friday the 19th of October and will be presented by Professor Elizabeth Elliott AM, Discipline of Child and Adolescent Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney and Professor Jane Latimer, School of Public Health, University of Sydney.

Alcohol use in pregnancy is common in Australia and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) a tragic consequence. Although FASD occurs throughout  society, Aboriginal women led the way in facing this taboo subject and taking measures to prevent alcohol use in pregnancy, diagnose FASD and support families and communities living with FASD.

The Lililwan project, which was instrumental in garnering wider community and political support to address FASD, was initiated by courageous women in the Fitzroy Valley WA. They invited clinicians and academics (today’s speakers) from the University to assist them in furthering their FASD strategy. This included conducting Australia’s first population-based prevalence study for FASD, providing education and developing clinical capacity.

The consultation process, study results and the film Tristan – made during the project and shown at the UN Permanent Forum for Indigenous Issues in NY – will be presented.

Attendance is open to all University staff and students.  We encourage you to register early, as spaces are limited. Register here.

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