Month: June 2017

New Content Recently Added to National Geographic Virtual Library

The content below has been recently added and can be located in the product using Basic or Advanced Search forms. To view a list of all the content included in the National Geographic collections and for complete coverage information, please visit our Database Titles List. Stay tuned for updates on new content! National Geographic: People, Animals, … Read more

Register Today! Driving Decisions with Data Webinar

Is Your Library Measuring Up? How can you ensure your library’s goals and initiatives support households in your community? It can be tricky, but with Analytics On Demand, you can add value to your library’s existing data and unlock key insights about your community. Join us, and American Libraries, July 24th for a free episode … Read more

U.S. Declassified Documents Online Appeals to Scholars

U.S. Declassified Documents Online‘s greatest value lies in the wealth of facts and insights that it provides in connection with the political, economic, and social conditions of the United States and other countries. A significant resource for researchers in almost every discipline, this collection makes it possible for researchers to easily and quickly access and review … Read more

Highlights of BookExpo

BookExpo Buzz Titles

We attended BookExpo last month at the Javits Center in New York. The largest annual trade book fair in the United States, BookExpo brings together publishers, booksellers, authors, and librarians. It’s an exciting place to be, with thousands of other book people and huge banners hanging from the rafters displaying upcoming buzz books. It was a great chance to meet publishers and some of our authors to learn about titles to watch for in the coming year ―  and hear from librarians about what their patrons of all ages are looking for, and how we can serve them better. Panels of authors and industry insiders discussed trends, upcoming titles and programming, and tried to predict the next big genre. Here is a list of some Book Expo buzz titles that we’re publishing in large print.

Read moreHighlights of BookExpo

Gale and Book Aid International: A Shared Mission for Empowerment

| By Jessica Edwards |

Although I spend most of my time working for the Gale International Marketing team, I’m also a Publisher Ambassador for the charity Book Aid International. After touring the Cengage warehouse last year and learning about operational processes, including the scrapping of books, I was inspired to research ways of extending the lives of books marked for pulping. I consequently came across Book Aid International, a long-established charity who ship new books from UK publishers out to sub-Saharan Africa, and was immediately impressed with the value and scale of their work.

The charity not only accepts book donations, but establishes librarian training programmes and funds refurbishments at partner libraries in sub-Saharan Africa and the occupied Palestinian territories. Some of these libraries are in communities with a very limited access to books such as refugee camps, prisons, and slums, others are in hospitals or universities where resources are extremely dated. Book Aid International works with some of the largest UK publishers, and all the books shipped abroad are new. In 2016, they sent over a million books. They also work with local publishers to source books in local languages.

It can be hard to appreciate quite how desperate the need is, but a few particularly powerful stories go some way towards demonstrating. The Menelik II Referral Hospital in Ethiopia is a hospital with no internet connection, and therefore no online resources. Thus, the library is vital for medical staff to access the up-to-date information they require. Nearly all the books in the hospital library are provided by Book Aid International. Samuel’s story in the video below is also a powerful indication of how the work of Book Aid International helps individuals pull themselves out of poverty. The video also outlines the charity’s many achievements over the last year.

Read moreGale and Book Aid International: A Shared Mission for Empowerment

Gale Courses Classroom Goes Mobile

With the June 14 session, 7 additional foreign language courses have been added to Gale Courses. To date, 235 courses have launched on the new platform. Students who enroll in these classes will experience an enhanced classroom interface which includes: Mobile responsive design Modern, intuitive features More options to engage with content The new platform will roll out … Read more

Mastering Workflow: Connecting Learners to Your Library

As digital demands continue to rise, the emphasis on creating a seamless workflow becomes all the more important: eliminating multiple logins, developing efficiencies in how materials are prepared and distributed, and building a collaborative environment with students and peers are all essential to today’s educators. Gale is proud to announce additional authentication options with single … Read more

Introducing: The Dashboard

A new tool has been added to Analytics On Demand. It’s called the dashboard. What is the Dashboard? The Analytics On Demand dashboard gives users the ability to transform patron data and drill down into rich visuals. Best of all, once the three apps needed for the dashboard output are acquired by the library, it’s no … Read more

San Luis Obispo High School Improves College Readiness and More

San Luis Obispo High School (SLOHS) is one of the top-ranking academic high schools in California. According to the school’s website, beyond their core academic program, they provide elective classes to better prepare students for what’s next. Recently, they acquired Gale’s Biography In Context,  a user-friendly portal experience containing context on the world’s most influential people. Here’s … Read more

Celebrate World Oceans Day

| By Debra Kirby |

Did you know that World Oceans Day is celebrated June 8 each year and that it was officially recognized by the United Nations in December of 2008? Or that the Canadian government first proposed the idea at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992?

Each year World Oceans Day events are organized around a different theme, with this year’s focus on “plastic pollution prevention and cleaning the ocean of marine litter.” http://www.worldoceansday.org/

Even if you don’t live near an ocean, or are not planning to participate in an event on June 8, there are many things you can do to make a difference. Since all of Earth’s waterways are connected, what affects your local stream, river, or lake also eventually makes its way to the oceans. Here are a few easy things anyone can do throughout the year:

Read moreCelebrate World Oceans Day