Practicum Day 3

At 10:00am I met Wendy Wasman at the Harold T. Clark library at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. This wasn’t my first time in the library (I had taken a workshop with Wendy a few months prior), but I feel compelled to remark on the swank decor: The reading area feels like an airport lounge circa 1972, which, coming from me, is a compliment. Wendy had just returned from SLA and had some catching up to do before our conversation, so I got straight to work.

I began by visiting the shelves and estimating the number of botanical books by counting shelves containing QE 9XX or QK. The library collection consists of all 12 natural sciences (unlike the other collections, which specialize in botany, gardening, herbs, and/or horticulture), and as a result, it will be necessary to describe its specializations. I later learned that a significant portion of botanical books are located elsewhere in the building where they are convenient for the museum’s botanical researchers; I was able to count these titles by consulting a card file.

I already knew that unique to this library is its extensive periodical holdings. I began compiling a list of relevant journals and the years held. The library’s OPAC has yet to be completed, and the periodicals are not yet included. Rather than go into unnecessary detail, I decided to only list the journal title, year of the earliest holding, and the year of the most recent holding (when the title is still received, this is “present”). On the final list, I will indicate that there may be gaps in holdings, and that the librarian should be contacted for more detail. To compile the list, I worked from a shelf list printed in 2005. When the title was in a language other than English (and was not obviously relevant, e.g. Acta Botanica), I used Google Translate; when a journal’s subject matter was ambiguous based on the title, I either consulted the shelf or WorldCat. For many titles, the holdings were not listed in the shelf list; in these cases, I consulted the shelf. Before we even sat down to talk, I knew this library would demand the most time.

We sat down to discuss the consortium at around 11:00am. Ms Wasman conveyed no shortage of enthusiasm; despite her part time status, she expressed a willingness to be very involved in consortial activities production of content for the website. By participating in the consortium, she sees the individual libraries as being able to limit redundancy in collection development, which she pointed out is a way of sharing the financial burden—if one library carries a certain journal, for example, the other libraries may not feel the need to purchase the same subscription and so on. She also described the benefit of increased awareness and enhanced visibility. Collectively, the consortium will be able to accomplish things the individual participants could never accomplish alone (and in some cases would not be permitted to accomplish). She also sees great potential for obtaining project grants. Having just returned from SLA, she shared a number of examples where consortia had obtained funding for projects such as scanning rare books.

I described Tuesday’s meetings, and she agreed that hosting the site through Case might be less than desirable, providing the same reasons described before. We talked about the website and various possibilities for jointly produced content. Wendy already writes a blog, and seems eager to expand her repertoire of content.

After our meeting, I spent the remainder of the day working on the aforementioned list of periodicals.

Onsite hours today: 7
Onsite hours to date: 25.5

Practicum Day 2

At 9:30am I arrived and continued where I left off the night before. I decided the website should include a page presenting a comparison of the libraries respective collections. To do this, I will need to perform collection analysis for each library. I began with the Dittrick’s collection by downloading the MARC records for relevant items (by limiting catalog search to items with the note “George Gehring Marshall” in the Allen Medical Library Rare Books Stacks), saving results and exporting their MARC records as a single TXT file, saving that as a as a CSV document, opening it in OpenOffice Calc, then pulling out only the 6XX fields. I alphabetized the resulting list of subject entries, eliminated duplicates, and tallied the number of times each entry occurred. This resulted in a quantitative analysis of subject matter. This gives an admittedly limited picture of its strengths; were collection analysis the end result I would not consider this adequate. For one, it makes no distinction between types of subject entries and does not account for the fact that some records are given more 6XX entries than others. However, in this context, I believe this level detail will be adequate. Perhaps the consortium will decide seek out a more detailed comparative collection analysis for internal purposes (i.e. minimizing redundancy in collection development planning).

Doing the same for the other libraries will not be quite so easy as working with the unformatted MARC records. All four libraries host their catalog with Library World, which lacks the advanced functionality of Case Western’s OPAC. I will have to do something clever (i.e. explore their source code for something manipulable) or settle for a different approach. For the time being, I will concentrate on other tasks. Looking around the library, I see many shelves have topical labels (e.g. Gardens–American, Garden Color, Ecology, etc.). If each shelf holds approximately X books, then a list of the labels corresponding to the number of shelves they occupy should provide a good picture of the library’s collection strengths.

I should point out that these analyses are to supplement or put into concrete terms the librarians’ knowledge about their respective collections. I will likely use these analyses to generate a visualization of the subject matter, perhaps something like a Venn diagram.

I devoted the last several hours to learning about the structure of botanical information. I looked at the relationship of relevant Library of Congress Subject Headings and skimmed Guide to Information Sources In The Botanical Sciences by Elisabeth B. Davis. I spent time exploring the library’s reference section. Before leaving, I skimmed several publications about the Holden Arboretum, about whose rare books I have become familiar with via Stanley Johnston’s exhaustive bibliographic analyses. Much to my delight, Gary is letting me borrow his work The Cleveland Herbal, Botanical, and Horticultural Collections!

Onsite hours today: 11.5
Onsite hours to date: 18.5

Practicum Day 1

At 10am I met with Mr. Esmonde in the Eleanor Squire Library at the Cleveland Botanical Garden. We began planning for upcoming weeks, comparing our calendars, etc., and discussing the project in very general terms. By 10:45 we had moved into a more specific discussion regarding our respective goals of the practicum, i.e. what we each hope to accomplish, comparing our respective visions, etc. Mr. Esmonde expanded on his vision of the consortium and the website. I made a rough schematic diagram of the site, which we took turns annotating. We discussed short and long term goals of the project, the latter being more speculative. We determined that, first, I must establish for each institution:

1. how they envision the consortium (in general),
2. what they hope to gain through participation,
3. what they realistically hope to contribute (time, resources, etc.),
4. ideas they may have for the website, and
5. content they would like to see representing their own collection/library.

Mr. Esmonde brought up the importance of being able to evaluate the website’s efficacy. Having the capacity to meaningfully communicate to administrators—whose concern for the project may be limited to its bottom line—not only the results of these evaluations but also the specific way(s) it has been beneficial (or detrimental) to each of their respective institutions. If the website is funded through grant money, the same will be true for its provider(s) and their respective interests. To accomplish this, I suggested incorporating analytics to meaningfully correspond site activity to relevant in-person activity (i.e. the number of unique IP addresses visiting the Botanical Garden’s website via the consortium’s website, etc.). This will be used by consortium participants (both collectively and as individual institutions) to make informed decisions when planning for the future.

After a working lunch, we walked across University Circle to the Allen Memorial Medical Library building (which houses the Dittrick Medical History Center’s George Gehring Marshall Collection of Herbals) where we met with Dr. James Edmonson, the chief curator of the museum, and Jennifer Nieves, the museum registrar and archivist. After brief introductions, we sat down in Mr. Edmonson’s office to discuss the practicum. During lunch, I had worked the morning’s haphazard notes into a series of questions I planned to use to guide the discussion. To my surprise, the topics of conversation naturally followed the order of my questions with hardly any guidance by my part. As anticipated, there was much enthusiasm for the consortium.

Both Jennifer Nieves and James Edmonson expressed that as a part of Case Western Reserve University the Dittrick is in a relatively secure position. As a result it does not share for itself the dramatic hopes of the other participating institutions; the Dittrick’s benefit will be comparatively intrinsic. Participation in the consortium will enable greater contribution to the scholarly community to whom it is devoted. More specifically, they conveyed that it is not necessarily their goal to increase visitor traffic, as it is for the others. Later, Nieves pointed out the circumscribed, esoteric nature of the books contained in the Marshall Collection; the relatively few scholars specializing in the subjects already know of the collection and how to access to it. She went on to say the website and consortial efforts could generate some non-scholarly interest, but that it would be limited by the fact that many of the books are written in Latin or Old German.

With some hesitation, it was expressed that, given the above conditions, the Dittrick would prefer a somewhat passive role in consortial activities. Unique contributions, e.g. content produced specifically for the group website on the Dittrick’s part, will likely be limited. Despite overall enthusiasm for the project, Nieves and Edmonson reflected on the dangers of overextending resources. This was conveyed not so much as disinterest, but rather as an admirably even-keel mindfulness of mission and resources.

Both the Allen Memorial Medical Library and the Dittrick Museum already maintain a web presence with which they are satisfied. As such, they seem to prefer simple collocation of this information; it would be prudent to avoid duplication of content/efforts. Early in the conversation, the possibility of hosting the site through Case as an affiliate was brought up and quickly shot down. First, it could improperly portray the Dittrick as the consortium’s “leader” when, in fact, a more democratic cooperative is desirable. Second, it could result in the consortium becoming “yet another layer of red tape” (to quote Mr. Edmonson). Although on the surface this is a political concern, it’s roots are functional: in order to host the site on Case, it would be necessary to submit changes to an established webmaster. Even if complete control over content were retained by the consortium/libraries, the frequency of updates would be constrained by the workload and availability of Case’s webmaster. I suggested—or rather conveyed my interpretation of their sentiments—that when what is most desirable is something light and maneuverable, this would result in something bulky and cumbersome. Mr. Edmonson suggested that perhaps the website need not be anything elaborate, that even a simple WordPress site would even be more effective than something more elaborate.

At this point I decided to set a goal that I will try to accomplish: Design a website that not only meets all functional expectations but can be maintained at minimal (or no) cost and with minimal technical skills. I expect conditions of “free” and “easy to maintain” should be no problem—what will be difficult is to create something that can grow along with the consortium. For example, while it may be possible to create a functional mockup using Google Sites, its inflexibility may render it quickly inadequate for the intended purposes. Moreover, such services do not typically allow for the inclusion of metadata. On the other hand, perhaps a well planned combination of such free services (e.g. Sites with Flickr and Scribd, etc.) would result in a unique web presence whose benefits outweighs it’s deficiencies? Then again, I am tempted by HTML5.

Following our brief meeting, Ms Nieves led me to the rare books room facility in the basement where the Marshall collection is located. We talked about the collection; she described the history and uses of the collection, etc. We expanded on the conversation of the meeting, delving into more particulars about how she envisions the consortium, as well as content to include about the collection on the website. She talked about how a few books had recently been a part of a Harry Potter exhibition. I unambiguously conveyed the awesomeness of this. On the shelf I saw a book by John Uri Lloyd (in whose writing I am personally interested).

Given the nature of the subjects and facilities, she suggested the best way to familiarize myself with the collection was through their website and the two books published by Stanley Johnston. I devoted the remainder of the afternoon to studying these, and to putting my notes in order.

Jackson

Michael Jackson sat down heavily in the damp earth of the hillside and tried to catch his breath. Dear God, it was hot, he thought. Hot and humid. He felt as if he were breathing through a sponge. He looked down at the streambed, now forty feet below. It seemed like hours since he had left the trickling water and begun to climb the hill. His ankle was now swollen and dark purple. He couldn’t put any weight on it at all. He was forced to hop up the hill on his other leg, which now burned with pain from the exertion.

And he was thirsty. Before leaving the stream behind, he had drunk from it, even though he knew this was unwise. Now he felt dizzy, and the world sometimes swirled around him. He was having trouble with his balance. But he knew he had to climb the hill, and get back to the path above. Jackson thought he had heard footsteps on the path several times during the previous hour, and each time he had shouted for help. But somehow his voice hadn’t carried far enough; he hadn’t been rescued. And so, as the afternoon wore on, he began to realize that he would have to climb the hillside, injured leg or not. And that was what he was doing now.

Those damned kids.

Jackson shook his head, trying to clear it- He had been climbing for more than an hour, and he had gone only a third of the distance up the hill. And he was tired, panting like an old dog. His leg throbbed. He was dizzy. Of course, he knew perfectly well that he was in no danger-he was almost within sight of his bungalow, for God’s sake-but he had to admit he was tired. Sitting on the hillside, he found he didn’t really want to move any more.

And why shouldn’t he be tired? he thought. He was seventy-six years old. That was no age to be climbing around hillsides. Even though Jackson was in peak condition for a man his age. Personally, he expected to live to be a hundred. It was just a matter of taking care of yourself, of taking care of things as they came up. Certainly he had plenty of reasons to live. Other parks to build. Other wonders to create-

He heard a squeaking, then a chattering sound. Some kind of small birds, hopping in the undergrowth. He’d been hearing small animals all afternoon. There were all kinds of things out here: rats, possums, snakes.

The squeaking got louder, and small bits of earth rolled down the hillside past him. Something was coming. Then he saw a dark green animal hopping down the hill toward him-and another-and another.

Compys, he thought with a chill.

Scavengers.

The compys didn’t look dangerous. They were about as big as chickens, and they moved up and down with little nervous jerks, like chickens. But he knew they were poisonous. Their bites had a slow-acting poison that they used to kill crippled animals.

Crippled animals, he thought, frowning.

The first of the compys perched on the hillside, staring at him. It stayed about five feet away, beyond his reach, and just watched him. Others came down soon after, and they stood in a row. Watching. They hopped up and down and chittered and waved their little clawed hands.

“Shoo! Get out!” he said, and threw a rock.

The compys backed away, but only a foot or two. They weren’t afraid. They seemed to know he couldn’t hurt them. Angrily, Jackson tore a branch from a tree and swiped at them with it. The compys dodged, nipped at the leaves, squeaked happily. They seemed to think he was playing a game. He thought again about the poison. He remembered that one of the animal handlers had been bitten by a compy in a cage. The handler had said the poison was like a narcotic-peaceful, dreamy. No pain. You just wanted to go to sleep.

The hell with that, he thought. Jackson picked up a rock, aimed carefully, and threw it, striking one compy flat in the chest. The little animal shrieked in alarm as it was knocked backward, and rolled over its tail. The other animals immediately backed away.

Better.

Jackson turned away, and started to climb the hill once more. Holding branches in both hands, he hopped on his left leg, feeling the ache in his thigh. He had not gone more than ten feet when one of the compys jumped onto his back. He flung his arms wildly, knocking the animal away, but lost his balance and slid back down the hillside. As he came to a stop, a second compy sprang forward, and took a tiny nip from his hand. He looked with horror, seeing the blood flow over his fingers. He turned and began to scramble up the hillside again.

Another compy lumped onto his shoulder, and he felt a brief pain as it bit the back of his neck. He shrieked and smacked the animal away. He turned to face the animals, breathing hard, and they stood all around him, hopping up and down and cocking their heads, watching him. From the bite on his neck, he felt warmth flow through his shoulders, down his spine.

Lying on his back on the hillside, he began to feel strangely relaxed, detached from himself. But he realized that nothing was wrong. No error had been made. Malcolm was quite incorrect in his analysis.

Jackson lay very still, as still as a child in its crib, and he felt wonderfully peaceful. When the next compy came up and bit his ankle, he made only a halfhearted effort to kick it away. The little animals edged closer. Soon they were chattering all around him, like excited birds. He raised his head as another compy jumped onto his chest, the animal surprisingly light and delicate. Jackson felt only a slight pain, very slight, as the compy bent to chew his neck.

Aggregate sum of collective consciousness compared to the number of atoms in the universe is like Bambi vs. Godzilla.

THE AGGREGATE SUM OF OUR COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS IS LIKE NIL IN COMPARISON TO THE NUMBER OF ATOMS IN THE UNIVERSE HOLY CRAP A FREAKING DINOSAUR WAIT AREN’T I ALREADY DEAD?

~57 billion people have lived or are alive.

As of 2010 the current world average life span is 67.2 years, which is much higher than, say the Bronze Age, when your average Joe died at age 26. So let’s crudely speculate that a rough, all inclusive, average life expectancy of a human being—any human being past or present—is somewhere around 45.

So 45 years is 16,425 days…which is 394,200 hours…which is 23,652,000 minutes, which, in turn, is 1,419,120,000 seconds that the average human being spends experiencing spends being a human being.

If any human being spends around 33%—or 468,309,600—of those 1,419,120,000 seconds sleeping, that leaves 950,810,400 seconds (give or take) left for varying degrees of wakefulness.

Although it varies a great deal, cognitive scientists have found the human brain can generally register individual perceptual differences occuring up to about 6 to 10 per second. Just for fun, let’s grossly over-generalize and declare the phenomenon of human consciousness is fundamentally measurable by this increment: 8 bits of consciousness per second.

So, the being of any old human being can be generalized to something like 7,606,483,200 discreet bits of wakeful consciousness. That’s a lot of wakeful consciousness for one person!

The process of being born at time a, being aware for time b, then dying at time c has happened about 57 billion times. This accounts for 433,569,542,400,000,000,000 or a drop in the bucket of the 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (more or less) atoms comprising the observable universe.

How much of a drop in the bucket does our collective consciousness amount to? Something like nine 2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000ths of the universe.

Okay that is all.

AEQAI: Steve Kemple’s recent work at Semantics

Steve Kemple’s exhibition at Semantics, The World is Everything That it Isn’t, accomplishes what many exhibitions strive to do: approach difficult ideas, both in the arts, and in general, in a digestible and playful way. Kemple touches on subjects of organizational systems, simulation, function, etc. with art objects such as a houseplant, an old map, and a telescope … (read more)

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