The Framework Five - Critical Assessment

Summary
Critical assessment takes into account the origin, context and suitability of the information being studied, how it is influenced by not only the creator, but everyone involved in handling and disseminating it. These factors determine the authority and therefore credibility of the source of information, the most important assessment.

Personal
There are some very timely examples of critically assessing information I could use as my example: politics such as "he who I don't like to name" (could be one of two people in power to be honest) and Brexit; healthcare with the coronavirus; science with climate change. However all those are depressing and can be downright scary, especially now it seems the whole world has changed. I prefer not to dwell on them too long and the world of misinformation is massive and complex when it comes to these subjects, so this post would be very long otherwise.

I could be very British and talk about the weather, specifically weather apps as they seem to vary wildly, particularly about whether it will rain. But I'm going to get personal, hopefully not too personal. I have three chronic health conditions, meaning I have to live with them as they are not going to go away: anxiety, a vestibular problem and endometriosis. For two of which, I've had to fight the system for treatment and if I hadn't done my own research, I may not have been diagnosed in the first place. So it's something I feel I can talk about with some passion and authority, something I've proved myself in being adept at critically assessing information, but it wasn't always the way. Doctors can easily dismiss things you've looked up on the internet and don't like self-diagnosis, at least in my experience. When it comes to your health, you know when something is wrong; you know yourself, your body and your symptoms best. So you have to become an expert very quickly and advocate for yourself.

Without going into too much detail, my endometriosis has an "unusual presentation of symptoms" and vestibular conditions are hard to diagnose; you tend to get given the easiest answer and told there's nothing they can do. I have explained my vestibular journey in more detail on my blog before: Bittersweet Victory. Just click on the anxiety tag to see my numerous posts about anxiety, but this one is a good place to start: My Past, Present and Future. The endometriosis is a new thing, even though I've probably been living with it for many years, so I haven't written much about it yet.

Trust me, I'm a doctor

In the beginning, I thought healthcare professionals knew best and deferred to them. I didn't ask enough questions, or the right questions, assuming what they were telling me was correct. I always have a problem with figures of authority, quailing in front of them. I should have critically assessed the situation, their situation. I should have taken into account the little time they had, the fact they weren't a specialist in the field and whether they were doing the right tests to critically assess my symptoms to prove their assertions.

When I spoke to a specialist, they said what the previous doctor had told me was wrong. I was sent back and forth, given different diagnoses. When they gave me another diagnosis and told me there was nothing they could do, I researched it and discovered it didn't fit as there was one essential symptom I was missing, cross-checked it on numerous websites, some very academic full of sciencey terms I didn't understand. I looked them up and learned the lingo so I could speak their language when I saw them next to show them I'm serious: I am a mix of stubbornness and curiosity at the best of times and it stood me in good stead. I got a test done off my own back, returned with the results and with irrefutable evidence, they couldn't ignore me. I had to push for treatment and when I found the right person, the person who was willing to listen and didn't just dismiss me, I asked all the questions. I asked what tests they were doing and why, got them to explain the results.

When it came to the second diagnosis of endometriosis, I visited practically every department of the hospital so they could rule everything else out first. I didn't accept what they told me each time, knowing everyone is fallible, even doctors, and pushed for more, knowing what they were saying wasn't right. I critically assessed every person I spoke to, ensuring they had the authority to back up what they were telling me. I quietly defied them and did my research afterwards. They didn't listen to me, so I let them go through the motions, doubting myself. I held my ground, more in desperation than anything else. When they ultimately came up with nothing, that's when they listened to me, they were finally in the right place to listen. I came with a carefully rehearsed speech and proof from an authoritative website. I was proved right and it goes to show, sometimes the authority comes from you and not external sources.

My critical assessment during these medical journeys each took years, comprising the critical assessment of the doctors and specialists themselves, their job titles, specialisms and whether this was just their opinion or they had information to back it up from tests and other sources. I then did my own research, using books, websites and yes, blogs. Blog posts were especially useful for other people's experiences and other avenues to research, some even had links to read and advice. Finally, which leads me to my professional example, I joined a Facebook group for support and shared experience for better understanding of what living with the condition is like.

Capt. Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks)
from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Professional
In comparison, my professional example will seem downright boring and far less dramatic. It can be fun though as it's about social media. Social media is all about people and individual accounts, on Facebook, Twitter or whichever platform you're using. You can use hashtags and lists all you like, but it still comes down to the individual account. Twitter in particular becomes unwieldy very quickly the more accounts you follow. So now I use Hootsuite (other social media managers are available) to manage it better, and I've created Twitter lists on topics. I can separate social media accounts into three categories: macro, micro and mono.

First there is the macro, an account that covers a lot of people, or sites, such as the UL Twitter account; it may be one library, but it is vast and covers a wide range of collections, not to mention people. Then there is the micro account, one library such as the MMLL Instagram account or Classics library Twitter account. Finally, there is the mono account, one single channel, for one single person, such as my own Twitter account. So you have to take into account who they are representing, the context they are based in and who may be behind the account.

I have curated these streams and lists myself, populating them with people and places I know in real life, so I have critically assessed them in person and know what they are an authority on. Others I know by reputation, such as Orkney Library and know they have built up authority through other's opinions. Lastly, there are the recommended accounts, those accounts I have been referred to by people I trust.

Social media is a great source of information, but you have to know where it's coming from. So even the accounts I have critically assessed and deemed good, I still assess the information they provide. I don't take much notice of retweets unless they have made a comment. Tweets with links and images I can be easily swayed by, especially those with a suitable gif or meme; it makes their tweet or post seem more credible.

The Credible Hulk

Critical assessment is key in social media as there is a lot of misinformation out there, but also it can be a great big echo chamber where you only see the information that follows your cognitive biases, that agrees with you, in more ways than one. So don't surround yourself with people like you, curate your sources wisely.

Themes
Again, my information sources are centred around people: information from doctors and healthcare professionals, and information from individual social media accounts. I assess them by their job, professional knowledge of them and whether I have met them in real life. I feel more confident critically assessing information professionally as there are processes and policies to follow, known authoritative sources and places to use, as well as people to ask. You feel on surer ground.

13 Reasons Why...

...I have to talk about 13 Reasons Why. I hate to add to the clamour around this TV series, but I have some very personal reasons why I want to talk about it.

In case you haven't heard of it, which you may not have as it's on Netflix, it's about schoolgirl Hannah who has committed suicide, but she created a series of tapes detailing the 13 reasons why she did it. Those tapes are given to the people in chronological order who contributed to those reasons and then passed on to the next person.

What I should have said

The best fiction holds a mirror up to your own life and some parts were a little too close for comfort, but ultimately in a good way. While I didn't go through exactly what Hannah went through, some of the earlier reasons; they get increasingly more dramatic; are only slight variations on what happened to me at school. Like Hannah, I was bullied. It started with a person I trusted who turned against me, just like Hannah. Like her I was alienated and through one person bullying me, it spread. All it takes is one person to start as it permits others to do the same. I was bullied for 6 years, non-stop. One constant bully and several others along the way, usually name-calling, taking my stuff, blocking my path, goading and teasing. The usual, for girls anyway. It only once turned physical, but I backed down. I should have done more to stand up for myself, sure. But when it's every day and seemingly anyone, it has a way of grinding you down; which is what happens to Hannah at the end; she is defeated.

What could have been

So here are my 13 reasons why I am talking about 13 Reasons Why, if you haven't seen it yet, I've avoided any spoilers:

1. It has got everyone talking about mental health and teenage suicide, which can only be a good thing as it is an increasing issue.
2. However one of those conversations is about the controversial decision to show the suicide. There are trigger warnings, a bit like the warnings given before footage which contain flashing lights, but for people with mental health problems, not epileptics. I know why they showed it as they wanted to portray the full story and be emotionally honest. My opinion on this has changed since, after I finished the series, I saw the latest Supernatural episode which showed someone trying to kill herself in the exact same way as Hannah and I doubt there were any trigger warnings, at least 13 Reasons Why did it responsibly.

   

   An excuse to show the stars of Supernatural, I still love you

3. I believe that if the series were shown in schools, it could change things. In the wake of Hannah's suicide, the school and parents were talking about warning signs, how to identify if someone is struggling. We need to be more aware as this is a problem that's only getting worse.
4. It could also change attitudes. Hannah's suicide was not about one thing, it rarely is; it was a series of 13 things. Some of the reasons seem insignificant, but it all builds up. It will hopefully make people realise by calling someone names, by spreading rumours, by physically attacking someone, it can have a significant effect, whether you intended it to or not. It may make people kinder. I confronted my bully years later over Facebook and she said she didn't realise that what she was doing was having such an impact on me, despite my parents reporting her to the school, but anyway. Plus she even bullied my Mum, a 10-year old bullying an adult! Many of the reasons Hannah details are instances of bullying. However bullying isn't just about the people involved, the bullies and the victims, it is also about the people who stand by and do nothing. One of the biggest themes of 13 Reasons Why is it not just about what people do to Hannah, it's about what people don't do.

   

   Rumours spreading

5. Communication is key. Many of the scenes are heartbreaking and frustrating and excruciating as it really gets inside the characters' heads. You know exactly what the characters aren't saying, start to say and stop. Meanwhile you're screaming at the screen "just say it!"

   

   Exactly

6. 13 Reasons Why is all about the characters. Some of them are superb and complex like Tony who is an unhelpful Yoda, Clay the lovely character we follow, Justin who seems like the stereotypical jock who is anything but, Jessica the least typical screen cheerleader you could ever meet and seemingly sweet Zach who appears to be the breakout actor of the series. Thanks to these characters, the programme isn't only about suicide and bullying, it's about addiction, alienation, sexual assault, alcoholism, peer pressure, family dysfunction and self harm.

   

   Tony with his beloved car

7. However some of the characters are stereotypes: the arrogant creative Ryan, the nerdy bitter Tyler, the entitled rich kid Bryce, the tormented goth Skye and the determined future and reputation-obsessed Courtney and Marcus.
8. The character of Hannah is extremely familiar to me. When I saw her handwriting and her brief foray into creative writing, it was almost identical to mine at her age. I think she is one of the main reasons why this show has made such an impression; you identify with her so strongly. But we only get to know her through the tapes and flashbacks.
9. The cinematography and the way they interweave the storylines are extremely effective; merging the past and present together on screen was incredibly poignant. However the soundtrack is the best thing; the music choices, it's... well it has to be heard in context. If I listed the songs and you listened to them, they wouldn't have the same impact.

   

   Music is integral

10. It has made me realise how well I coped through it all. It was only when the bullying stopped that my anxiety started! It took me a while to work out why, but when I looked at the differences between my life and Hannah's, there are 3 reasons why what happened to her wouldn't have happened to me, if it had escalated, if it had got worse. The first is family. Hannah is an only child and her parents are well-meaning and they clearly love her, but their attention is elsewhere. I have 3 brothers and my parents always put us kids first and as soon as they realised what was happening to me, they did something. It worked, for a while, and then she started up again; schools can be useless when it comes to bullying, but I will not accept that it's just part of school life.

    

    We should all have friends like Tony

11. The second is friends, or at least a friend. I had one friend who stuck by me, when the first bully turned everyone else against me. Hannah had no one at the end; the friends she had made deserted her. There was one person who could have been a proper friend, but he was inaffectual. One of my bullies apologised, years later of course, and if he didn't become a friend, he at least gave me a lollipop as a peace offering, while he was drunk and at a nightclub.
12. The last is interests. Hannah isn't sporty or academic and when she tries to have outside interests, they come to nothing. I had my books. I loved to learn. I had things I was doing outside school. Because all Hannah had was school and home and work, nothing that gave her any real enjoyment, the things that happened to her became everything.

    

    Technology makes it easy

13. Hannah's story takes place now. When I was bullied, it happened before the age of social media, mobile phones and the internet. Mobile phones in particular play an integral part in Hannah's downfall. I don't know what would have happened to me if I had to go through what I went through now. The teasing and name-calling wouldn't have just happened in the playground, in the classroom and on my way home, it would have come by text message and on social media. Photos would have been taken and shared around. Rumours would have been spread almost instantly. There would have been no escape; I had safe places like the library at school and my home, but now, there is nowhere safe.

The tapes

Like Clay, who added a 14th tape, a final reason or at least an expansion on one of the reasons, I'm adding one final reason why 13 Reasons Why is important to me and that's because it has finally allowed me to let go of it all; it helped me work through it. I had inklings as to the reasons why the people who bullied me did it; troubles at home like Justin who's bullied himself; loneliness like Bryce; just trying to fit in like Jessica; fear like Courtney; and ambition like Ryan. But I now understand better the culture that allows bullying to happen, why people turn away when they can help, why they do nothing instead of something. One of my favourite quotes has been doing the rounds recently because of the political landscape right now and it seems apt here too: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." Edmund Burke. Don't be the person who does nothing.

You said it Clay

How to and how not to do your librarianship degree

I have recently finished my MSc in librarianship, distance learning from Aberystwyth while working full-time. I tried to do it as quickly as possible, completing it in just more than two years. I did it the hard way, I always do things the hard way. I wouldn't recommend it as it damn near caused a nervous breakdown!

It occurred to me that I have a few other bits of advice to impart, some serious and some not so serious. For those of you contemplating doing a librarianship degree, distance learning whether from Aberystwyth or otherwise, this blog post may prove useful. For those of you currently doing your degree, I have broken it down into general MSc advice, as well as specific dissertation advice. And for those of you who have like me finished, you may chuckle in recognition. For everyone else, there's some pretty pictures of Aberystwyth.

My dissertation was on ebooks, looking at the attitudes of publishers, suppliers, faculty and librarians (the main influencers of the success of ebooks in academic libraries) rather than users; the University of Cambridge became a sort of case study. For those of you interested, here is my dissertation. It got a decent enough grade, but maybe reached too far and tried to encompass too much:
https://www.academia.edu/6393946/_Books_are_no_more_threatened_by_Kindle_than_stairs_by_elevators._The_impact_of_ebooks_on_printed_book_collections_in_University_of_Cambridge_libraries_Attitudes_of_librarians_faculty_and_suppliers

The statue on the hill

How not to do your MSc in librarianship

Here are my recommendations on what to do and what not to do while studying for your MSc/MA in librarianship. I did mine at Aberystwyth distance learning while working full-time. But I believe the lessons I learned are attributable to at least all distance learning courses, let alone beyond. These are hard-earned lessons through bitter experience.

DO NOT:

...spend time off. Work steadily and regularly.

...forget the people you met at study school. Regardless of how quickly they or you get through the course, they will be your benchmark, virtual friends and the people who understand what you are going through the most. If you don't meet these people at study school, or go to study school, find them in your local librarian community who have done/are doing the course. Cambridge is great for that. I won't list those that helped me, but they know who they are. I occasionally met up with another Cambridge librarian to talk about where we were at, rant about annoyances and generally catch up. Just knowing someone else is going through the same things as you is comforting and encouraging. It also helps with the distance side, not having lessons or lectures, no socialising with classmates and not having someone to talk to on a daily basis.

Me with the friends I made at the first study school

...on that note, avoid contacting the course leaders if you have any questions, no matter how small, via email or on the forums. Do use the forums and keep in touch virtually (social media is particularly useful. Facebook or Twitter via the #aberils hashtag) with classmates and other librarians, they are your most useful resource, not the electronic articles, textbooks and course packs.

...be scared of the blank page. It is a genuine phobia by the way: vacansopapurosophobia. Write something, anything. Once you start, you'll find it gets easier and better the more you write. You can always edit afterwards. There is no such thing as the perfect assignment, the perfect essay.

...stay at Pantycelyn, if you go to Aber. You will not get any sleep. The food is worse. The sleeping quarters are atrocious. The ablution facilities are bad bordering on dangerous. Trefloyne was the best place I stayed. But I also booked a lovely little hotel on the seafront for the last study school. However you'll need a car or try and catch the bus as the route to the library studies campus is up a steep hill.

...try to do it in 2 years unless you don't plan on having a life, enjoy hard work and have unshakeable determination.

...take on too much such as trying to solve long-standing mental problems, learning to drive and passing your test (5th time), while also trying to have a family life, going on holidays and holding down a full-time job.

...expect too much of yourself. You will run yourself ragged with the combined stress of family, work and study.

Castle hill

...make a mountain out of a molehill. Tackle the molehills, not the mountain.


DO:

...choose the right course for you. I don't know about Robert Gordon in Scotland, but with Northumbria you have to do it in 2 years and Aber you can do it in 2-5 years, which allows for much more flexibility. There are also part-time and full-time courses, of course.

...set yourself deadlines. Yes, there are marking deadlines, but they are almost impossible to stick to, particularly if you're a perfectionist like me. The only one that matters is the dissertation deadline, otherwise with all the hoops it has to jump through, you have to wait months for your mark to come back. You will set off with the best of intentions, especially after the study schools: to be the best you can be. But I can guarantee by the end of it, you will be saying "that will do."

Babe "That'll do, pig"

...heed the universe. If you keep coming up against barriers, frequently get writer's block or everything seems against you, the universe is trying to tell you something. Put it this way, if traffic lights keep changing to red just before you get to them, the universe is telling you to SLOW DOWN.

...expect to put on weight. I haven't ever weighed so much without medical intervention. This will happen specifically when you are writing the dissertation. It's from comfort eating, convenience foods and lack of sleep/stress.

...have a good work-life-studies balance. Get into a routine if possible. If you can't, do little and often. It's about regular work. Go with the flow. Whatever works.

Aberystwyth sunset

...remember life will always get in the way. Distance learning is tough as it encroaches on all areas of your life at all times, if you let it. It's not like a job which you can usually leave at your workplace; it comes home with you.

...realise procrastination is the enemy. Self-motivation is key and the hardest part about distance-learning especially. You will find any excuse not to work. There will always be one more chapter to read, one more episode to watch, one more chore to do. Do not give in.

The bluebell walk trip during the April study school

...take advantage of the opportunities offered at study school, such as the National Library visit and the bluebell wood walk in Aberystwyth.

...use Dropbox. It's invaluable. You can work wherever you are. All you need is an internet connection. You will always have an up-to-date version of your work. It will allow you to take advantage of any moment you have, any inspiration and any motivation. That said, make sure you keep a back-up as well.

Backup from Veronica Mars

 ...use Zotero. You can keep all your references and bibliography in one place. You can create folders to separate them according to each assignment or module. One click is all it takes in your internet browser (Firefox and Chrome at least) to save something. There is also a Word add-in so you can instantly add citations to your assignment and create a bibliography, using your chosen citation style. I always used APA. You will never lose a reference and you will never have to manually create a bibliography again.

...have good, supportive people around you, be they workmates, friends or family. They will act as cheerleaders, there to crack the whip and preferably to do the cooking, cleaning, washing etc. I didn't until my dissertation as me and my brother who I live with share all the chores, but you might be luckier. It means if you're on a roll, you can stay on a roll. Even in the depths of my dissertation I had to take time out to cook, clean and grocery shop as it was my turn.

...allow for downtime. Do something away from work, family and studies. I took refuge in books (paradoxically studying will reignite your love of reading, at least reading literature) and TV, as well as the aforementioned learning to drive and trying to solve my mental problems. For me it was particularly Glee, Once Upon a Time and How I Met Your Mother for the TV programmes, Anne of Green Gables, Jasper Fforde and Cornelia Funke for the books. Without downtime, you'll go mad. A special mention to Gilmore Girls who saved me after I finished.

The balloon I purloined from the 25th anniversary dinner

...have fun with it! Do things your own way. Do the modules that interest you as well as the ones that will further your career.

...lastly and simply, get enough sleep!

How not to do your dissertation

Here are my recommendations on what to do and what not to do while writing your dissertation for the librarianship MSc/MA.

DO NOT:

...do every kind of research under the sun: interviews, surveys, the literature review, statistical analysis. It takes a long time to create, arrange, do, analyse and write up everything.

Beautiful Aberystwyth

...try to finish it under a strict deadline. More so than any other of your assignments, you will find dissertation time frames are unreliable, intangible and ephemeral.

...take a week off to try and write the bulk of the dissertation, in a heat wave, in England, in the summer. As you know, that almost never happens. So your dedication to your work will flutter away into the sunshine.

...ignore a wrist problem. All that writing, typing and mouse work will have their toll on your poor old wrist. It will only get worse, so let it have a break. If you must continue, get appropriate wrist support.

From the funicular railway

...accidentally ignore your supervisor's advice, creating a hybrid structure of the social science and thematic model. They are there to advise you. They know what the markers are looking for, so you must do as they say, or argue your point with them and in your dissertation.

...get sick at the wrong time, just as you are on the final stint of your dissertation. Not only is it extremely inconvenient, it saps your strength, energy and motivation.

...falter at the last hurdle, thinking "yes! It's almost over". It ain't over until it's over.

...write down all the things you want to do afterwards, so you will have a list when you've finished. It only adds pressure and makes things harder, looking at all the much more fun and entertaining and useful things you could be doing. Your librarianship MA/MSc is useful and sometimes fun too.

DO:

...think about your dissertation right from the very beginning of your course. You can be gathering research as you go, thinking about the topic and how you will go about it. And yes, you do need to have at least a shortlist of topics before the dissertation study school and ideas about the research methods you could use.

...get as few people involved in your dissertation as possible, only who you need. It just adds unnecessary pressure.

...print off and proofread your dissertation in paper format. My dissertation went through 3 people before I printed it off. By reading it in print rather than on screen, I found a few typos, incidences of repetition and mistakes and then my proofreaders found far more. One of the markers still found a minor mistake, despite it having gone through 7 people other than me!

Camera obscura image of Aberystwyth

...ask someone who is not a librarian and knows nothing about your subject to do the proofreading. My parents were brilliant at finding grammar and punctuation errors, parts that needed more explaining and consistency mistakes.

...choose a topic you're interested in, know something about already and won't send you doolally after months of work. You want to be sane by the end!

...plan something for when you finish, don't just go on holiday. You will go from being really ridiculously active to nothing otherwise. There will be a crash, I guarantee it, so if you have a project to do, TV series to watch or anything really, it will mitigate the effects.

So that's my advice. Do with it what you will. If you want more advice, the excellent Library Wanderer has written more articulately on the same subject. N.B We both came up with the Babe reference separately. Good luck!

Penumbra visit - Selwyn College

"Quit ye like men"

Beginning this blog post about my penumbra visit to Selwyn College Library, I thought, what does penumbra actually mean? It means "partial shadow, between regions of complete shadow and complete illumination." I thought this was very apt, not only on a personal level, or a physical level (the weather), but the whole point behind the penumbra scheme is to shadow other librarians in their work and gain inspiration, illumination, from it. Anyway, I was told by my deputy librarian that the Greek words above Selwyn college's main gate translate as “quit ye like men”. The full meaning is actually "Stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men." I took this to mean take courage or don't be nervous. But it could also have meant acquit yourself well. If I was nervous, all fears went away at the sight of this:

Selwyn College

Selwyn College may not be as old as the majority of the Cambridge colleges, but it's still stunning and I love the Victorian era and everything from it: buildings and literature especially. History lesson: Selwyn College was founded in 1882. It looks imposing, especially with the chapel, but the courtyard is wide and open. There are also gardens next to the chapel, but I didn't have time to look around those.

This is because I was kept very busy. Sarah Stamford, the head librarian, met me in the friendly Porter's Lodge and then gave me a brief tour of the grounds, including the beautiful chapel. It was a welcome change to not have the crucifixion above the chapel altar. Instead there is a much more uplifting scene of the ascension. I always consider it a privilege to be able to visit the Cambridge colleges and I try to take advantage of every opportunity to do so. The penumbra placements are perfect, not just to visit different colleges and departments, but to see how different libraries work. There is always something to learn, take away and get inspired by. The sunshine, beautiful court and feel-good chapel set the tone for my visit. Everyone I met was welcoming, from the library assistants to the porters, the lunch staff to the people I met in the hall.

Onto the library part, which obviously was the point of the visit! Before I even went, I liaised with Sarah Stamford, the head librarian, about what I would like covered during the visit. A structure is then set out so you know, roughly, what will happen in what order. This is especially important for Selwyn, so the right members of staff will be there as some are part-time. It will turn out to be more of a guideline as things can easily overrun. I chose Selwyn College Library over the other libraries on offer for penumbra placements because, if I ever leave the Judge Business School, it would be for a college library. I would like to work with older books, as well as modern books and ebooks like I do now. I wanted to learn how to repair books from an expert: the excellent Katie Turner. I also wanted to pick Sarah Stamford's brains about ebooks; I'm doing my Library MSc from Aberystwyth and my dissertation is on ebooks, specifically the impact they are having on printed books in academic libraries.

Selwyn College floorplan (Prezi)

Sarah took me for a tour around the library and I got my first glimpse of rare books. Although the Judge is a very modern library and I work with databases, social media and ebooks amongst many things, I'm traditional at heart. I love the feel and smell of books. I've only been to a few colleges and even fewer libraries, so I can't compare Selwyn to other college libraries, but I can say that the atmosphere was wonderful. Everyone studying there respected each other and the space. There was an almost palpable sense of quiet, broken only by the turning of pages, footsteps and the now omnipresent sound of computers. However the computers were segregated in their own sections. One of the reasons why I would like to work in a college library is for the community aspect, which I do get at the Judge but to a lesser extent. Selwyn has a student-run DVD collection and a general fiction collection named after Gus, the Master's cat. These are for people who need to relax and take their mind off things; we have a DVD collection in our library for the same reason. Selwyn's library also has a jigsaw puzzle. The holistic side to the library profession has always fascinated me and Selwyn gets it just right.

Then it was back to the office and a long chat with Sarah. I can't tell you everything we talked about, but it was very wide-ranging covering library management, reclassification (going from their own system to Dewey), the history of the library, user surveys... Sarah Stamford is the font of all library knowledge! Go on one of the penumbra placements and you have the opportunity to learn from libraries and librarians all over Cambridge. Don't be afraid to ask questions, no matter how silly or obvious they seem. To get the most out of a penumbra placement, you need to go with an open and curious mind. Giving Sarah's voice a break, Michael Wilson, the assistant librarian, took me to see the rare books and archives. For a person who has only seen old books in glass cases before, this was a real treat for me. We talked about the rare books project and the difficulties in finding the books; surely it's every librarian's nightmare not to know where books are in your own library! However I spent most of the time marvelling over the books, holding one from the Tudor period, seeing a poor vellum book possibly beyond all hope as rigor mortis has set in. I stopped short of smelling the books, but I stared in wonder at ages-old book graffiti and my favourite was Bewick's History of British Birds, which featured in one of my favourite novels, Jane Eyre.

Bewick's History of British Birds

Needless to say we were late for lunch. It was a far cry from relaxing with my packed lunch overlooking the Fitzwilliam Museum. It was another ambition fulfilled eating in one of the Cambridge College halls, even if it did give me a flashback to my old school canteen. It was now my turn to be questioned, talking about the library I work at with Michael. After lunch it was onto book repairs with Katie. It is all to easy to replace a damaged book, but I feel we should never give up until the pages are all falling out, the spine is cracked and no amount of glue can fix it. Katie made it look so easy and even asked if I wanted a go, but I didn't as I didn't want to look bad, even if the books she was demonstrating with were not going back on the shelves. I learned a lot in a short space of time and plan to revive some of our own books.

Finally I had a long chat with Sarah about ebooks, in terms of acquisitions and collection development, reading lists and faculty engagement, the balance between print and electronic, the differences between college and subject libraries, the future of libraries; it turned quite philosophical. I madly made notes and got advice and inspiration for my dissertation.

My head was spinning by the end of the visit, full of information, ideas and insight. The time flew by and I wholeheartedly enjoyed every moment of it. Sorry, no hyperbole intended. I urge everyone to take full advantage of the penumbra and visit one of the penumbra libraries. Or even offer a placement of their own!