The HardiBlog

ARAN has attracted over five million hits (downloads and page views) to date, leaving no doubt that adding your publications to it boosts your citations and increases the visibility of your research. It is the definitive open access showcase for research from NUI Galway. Don’t miss out on the benefits by claiming your publications on IRIS and uploading them to ARAN. Just click on the red button (see above) beside your publications in IRIS  to upload to ARAN or email your publication to   aran@nuigalway.ie  and we’ll upload it for you. Upload the final draft post-refereeing  without the  publisher’s type-setting, formatting, logos and pagination (also known as the  post-print).  We check and adhere to publisher’s policies and explicitly promote and link to your published article. Very little admin is required on your part. For advice and support email  aran@nuigalway.ie Read more about open acc...

" Outside the Walls": Research in the Community Seminar hosted by Special Collections, Hardiman Library,  NUI, Galway Thursday, 6 April, 14.45-17.00  Hardiman Research Building, G011 Speakers: Marie Mannion, (County Galway Heritage Officer), Prof. Noel Wilkins, (Galway Archaeological & Historical Society), Professor Gerry Jennings (Western Family History Association), Dr. Christy Cunniffe, Archaeologist. Panel Discussion facilitated by Dr. Nessa Cronin, Irish Studies.   Places are limited. Admission is free but please register at  https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/outside-the-walls-researchers-in-the-community-tickets-33074564914 or emai l marie.boran@nuigalway.ie . 

The following database trials will expire on Friday, 31 March :   Electronic Enlightenment Kanopy (online films and documentaries) Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History   These resources can be accessed via the database trials page. Please complete the database trial feedback form provided for each resource of interest. Collection Development

The recent stepping away from active political life by Martin McGuinness and from his role as Deputy First Minister, signalled a polemic shift in the political landscape in Northern Ireland, His passing today, aged 66, has further intensified the consideration of his life and role in Northern Ireland, and his journey from conflict to peace, over many decades. The perhaps unknown role that Martin McGuinness played, over many years, in negotiating a peaceful and sustained end to conflict in Northern Ireland can be seen within the archive of mediator Brendan Duddy. Brendan Duddy was born in Derry on 10 June 1936. He became a businessman in his native city, and by the early 1970s he owned and managed two fish-and-chip shops, one in Beechwood Avenue (Creggan) and another in William Street. Duddy knew Martin McGuinness in the 1960s when McGuinness worked for a supplier company delivering burgers to Duddy's shops - at a time when McGuinness's interest in politics was not yet kindled. ...

Last semester the Collection Development team ran a survey aimed at undergraduate students.  We asked a number of questions on reading list use and how students were finding using the new Reading List System.  There were 39 respondents across a range of disciplines with the majority coming from the School of Business and Economics.  Some of the key results were: 95% agreed they are more likely to read items from their reading list when they are easily accessible. 71% agreed or strongly agreed that the Reading List System makes preparing for exams, essays and projects more straightforward. 61% agreed that the Reading List System improved overall engagement with the course module. Some 37% neither agreed or disagreed with the statement. Survey Comments As often is the case with surveys, the comments were interesting: "I think it is a brilliant idea as it allows lecturers to provide students with the books they recommend or have used for a particula...

What do the lecturers mean when  they ask you to research your essays? Can you find good material on google? Are some sources more reliable than others? Are you expected to read every source you find? How do you know which sources to use? In a specially organised workshop on Tuesday 21 March at 2.30, we will answer these questions and to show how to use the library databases to brainstorm your topic, come up with original ideas, and identify the best sources for your essays.  https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/finding-excellent-sources-for-your-essay-tickets-32625092530 The workshop is suitable for both Arts and Science students.  It is free, but please register in advance  The presenters are Kris Meen and Ira Ruppo (AWC). 

The Library now provides access to  IOPscience extra , an archive of expanded content from the Institute of Physics . "IOPscience extra hosts some of the most sought-after articles in science today, providing international breakthroughs and pioneering achievements from prolific researchers."   The new content includes:   The complete IOP journal archive Comprising more than 700,000 articles, the database is an indispensable resource for the physics community containing    every IOP article published since 1874.   The Physics World Archive Physics World is widely recognised as the world’s must-read magazine in physics. You can now access every article published since the magazine’s launch in 1988.   New for 2017 – two journals from the American Astronomical Society The Astronomical Journal   the Astrophysical Journal The Astrophysical Journal alone received the highest number of citations of all journals in its JCR ...

Over the past year, more and more of our database providers have worked to increase the security of their resources. In addition to this, databases are becoming more technically complex and offer a huge suite of options for you to choose to make your research better. However, the increase in security and complexity means that Internet Explorer regularly has problems when trying to display content from these databases. Problems include false security warnings, .pdfs of articles not displaying, even the layout of the database not displaying properly. As a result, we would recommend using either Google Chrome , Mozilla Firefox , or Safari as the best browsers to maximise your search experience, and make the full range of database tools available to you. In addition, the recent security upgrades on all these browsers will ensure a safe web experience. As always, we would reccommend accessing our resources by searching the Library catalogue, and signing into your campus account.

  To mark Seachtain na Gaeilge why not explore some of our print, online and audio-visual resources which may be useful for Irish language learners at various levels:   Spoken Irish/An Ghaeilge Labhartha:   Irish conversation Colloquial Irish the complete course for beginners Speaking Irish = An Ghaeilge Bheo: take your language skills beyond basics Learning Irish   Irish Grammar/Gramadach na Gaeilge:   Basic Irish: A Grammar and Workbook Gramadach gan stró Irish Grammar You Really Need to Know Quick Guide ; Irish Grammar     Dictionaries/Foclóirí: Foclóir Gaeilge-Béarla English-Irish Dictionary Pocket Oxford Irish Dictionary: Irish-English Pocket Oxford Irish Dictionary: English-Irish       Collection Development

 Pop-Up Library Friars Restaurant, Cairnes Building Tuesday 14th March, 1030-1430   Library staff will be available to help and advise users re  Essays & Assignments Referencing & Plagiarism Databases and other sources of information Research Skills EndNote Reading Lists .... and much more   

The Library's newspapers provide a wealth of information on topics and people at both a national and local level.  In recognition of the University's Path Breaking Women Exhibition we looked at articles that illustrate the lives and interests of a number of the women involved. Some of the fulltext newpapers that we searched were: City Tribune* Connacht Tribune* Connacht Sentinel* Irish Independent*  Irish Press  Irish Times *access via Irish Newspaper Archives Here are a selection of articles that we found:     Celia Lynch The 16 Women Candidates (Feb 26. 1973) (September 26 1975) Connacht Tribune "EEC Holds Women's Meeting."  (Mar 11, 1976)  Irish Times "Death of Mrs Celia Lynch"  (Jun 17, 1989)  Irish Times  Lorna Reynolds Restoring Eyrecourt's Historic Theatre  (Jul 30, 1971) Connacht Tribune From Typewriter to Hot Stove  (Oct 15. 1990) Irish Times A Life whose Theme was Freedom ...

The Dictionary of Irish Biography is the most comprehensive and authoritative biographical dictionary yet published for Ireland. It contains over 9,000 signed biographical articles which describe and assess the careers of subjects in all fields of endeavour, including: architecture arts engineering journalism law medicine politics religion science sport The Dictionary of Irish Biography contains detailed biographical articles on the following women who feature in the exhibition Path Breaking Women of NUI Galway: 1912-1922 and beyond :   Ada English (1875-1944)  Alice Perry (1885-1969)  Mary Donovan O'Sullivan (1887-1966) Emily Anderson (1891-1962) Máirín De Valera (1912-1984) Nora Niland (1913-1988) Caitlín Maude (1941-1982) Access to the online version of the Dictionary of Irish Biography is available here . The 9-volume print set is available for consultation in the Library at General Reference (920.0415 DIC). Co...

    Women Writers Online is a full-text collection of early women’s writing in English, published by the Women Writers Project at Northeastern University. It contains the full transcriptions of 392 texts published between 1526 and 1850 , focusing on materials that are rare or inaccessible. The range of genres and topics covered makes it a truly remarkable resource for teaching and research, providing an unparalleled view of women’s literate culture in the early modern period. Access to Women Writers Online is available here . Collection Development

The AWC Twitter Competition 2016-17 The rules of the AWC Twitter Competition are simple. Every two weeks, the AWC team posts a long and cumbersome sentence.  All students and staff at NUIG can compete by posting a shortened version on Twitter ( https://twitter.com/awcnuig ). The challenge is not to lose any important information while reducing the word count. The most elegant version wins. Sentences will be posted in English and in Irish.  There will be at least three rounds throughout March, with prizes ranging from €5 to €15. The competition aims to start a conversation about good writing style. Writers are often advised to condense their writing. As the author of The Elements of Style explains, this does not require writers to ‘avoid all detail and treat [their] subjects only in outline, but that [they] make every word tell’ (Stunk 24). Ideas should be expressed in the least possible number of words, and superfluous words should be avoided. By putting this ...

Kanopy is on trial until Friday 31 March. Kanopy offers a unique and compelling collection of films including award-winning documentaries, indie and foreign films, classics and blockbuster movies etc. Access to Kanopy is available from the database trials page. Please complete the feedback form provided for this trial if it is of interest. Collection Development

Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History is on trial until Friday 31 March. This resource brings together hundreds of accounts by women of their travels across the globe from the early 19th century to the late 20th century. The sources cover a variety of topics including art; the British Empire; customs; exploration; family life; language; monuments; natural history; politics and diplomacy; race; religion; science and war.   Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History consists of a variety of forms of travel writing including: unique manuscripts diaries and correspondence drawings guidebooks photographs The resource includes a slideshow with hundreds of items of visual material, including postcards, sketches and photographs. A broad time period is covered and places visited include USA and Canada; China, Japan and the Philippines; Europe (very well documented); Russia; Africa; and Australia. Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History can be...

Alice Perry (1885-1969)    Alice Jacqueline Perry graduated with a first class honours degree in Civil Engineering from Queen's College Galway (now NUI Galway ) in 1906. It is understood that she is the first woman to graduate with a degree in engineering in Ireland or Great Britain and possibly the first engineering graduate in the world. Alice Perry was born in Galway in 1885 and she came from a family that had strong engineering traditions. Her father, James Perry, was County Surveyor in Galway West and, together with his brother, founded the Galway Electric Light Company. Her uncle, John Perry was a Fellow of the Royal Society and was well known for inventing the navigational gyroscope. Sadly, Alice 's father died soon after her graduation in 1906 and this prevented her from continuing her academic career. She was appointed temporary county surveyor by Galway County Council in December 1906 in succession to her father. She held this post for si...

Electronic Enlightenment (Oxford University Press) is on trial until  Friday 31 March. Electronic Enlightenment is the most wide-ranging online collection of edited correspondence of the early modern period, linking people across Europe, the Americas and Asia from the early 17th to the mid-19th century. It includes 70,057 letters and documents and 8,560 correspondents . The trial can be accessed from the database trials page. Please complete the feedback form if this resource is of interest to you. Collection Development

Rare Coal Mining Archive Donated to NUI Galway On Tuesday, February 28th 2017 members of the Flynn family visited NUI Galway to view the archive of Flynn and Lehany Coal Mines Limited.  The Flynn family very generously donated the archive to the University. The company was established in 1949. Its archive, one of a very small number on mining in Ireland, is a significant source of information about the mining industry, State energy policy, the operation of the company and the social and economic history of the mines at Arigna . Miners at Altygowlan The Flynn and Lehany company operated the coal mine of Glackaundareagh, Altygowlan, in the central part of the Kilronan mountain in Co. Roscommon from its foundation in 1949, and subsequently at Gubbarudda. The company worked on contracts with hospitals and other public buildings through the 1950s, and it was a supplier to the coal-burning ESB power station at Arigna after that station was built in 1958. The power station ...