Library Resources

Library Resources

Peace Studies

Peace Studies

Peace studies is a growing movement in higher education, with new programs and courses being created in colleges across the country. Perhaps you’re enrolled in one, or interested in viewing something in another class through the lens of peace studies. Fortunately, the library has plenty of information for you, whether you are interested in learning about the peace movement, the lives of specific nonviolence and peace leaders, or getting involved yourself. Starting with social science databases like SocIndex, ProQuest Social Science, or Opposing Viewpoints, we can obtain articles both scholarly and popular. When it comes to books, we have plenty – from print titles like The Strategy of Peace by John F. Kennedy, Peace and Power: Building Communities for the … Continued
It’s On Us

It’s On Us

November 9th through 13th is the “It’s On Us National Week of Action“, a national awareness campaign administered by The White House to end sexual assault on college campuses. All this week IU East will focus on this theme. There will be a T-shirt give-away, a poster of the It’s On Us pledge in Springwood Hall for students to sign, and plenty of sexual assault information, including pamphlets and videos (IU East’s own “It’s On Us” video will debut on campus this Tuesday). Everyone is encouraged to wear their T-shirt on Tuesday, November 10th. Of course, IU has never taken sexual assault lightly. And if you or someone you know has suffered it, there is help for you. All of IU’s … Continued
Media Literacy Week

Media Literacy Week

Media education is the discipline that teaches people how messages are created to influence and persuade others, and how to analyze and critique those claims dispassionately. It also empowers people how to craft their own messages to be best received by others, through any medium. Poor media literacy leaves a person vulnerable to manipulation, whether benign or malicious, from any organization trying to influence opinion through imagery, sloganeering, advertisement, or more subtle reinforcement. Media literacy frees a person from (or at least mitigates) this influence, encouraging thoughtful reflection and critique of the ideas and claims that might otherwise go unexamined. There are, of course, safeguards. Have you seen a pharmaceutical ad on television in the last few years? Drug companies … Continued
Peer Review and How to Find It

Peer Review and How to Find It

As a scholar, you will likely be asked to find a lot of very specialized information for your assignments, papers, and projects. Some of this is the type of material – use a certain number of books, articles, and websites. Sometimes you’ll be looking for primary sources – those created by the participants themselves. Other times it will be multimedia, like documentaries, interviews, or television news broadcasts. And other times it will be for peer reviewed material. Peer review isn’t complicated – it is a work of scholarship, usually a journal article, which other experts in the field read before it is published, and who attest to its veracity or academic value. A journal that is peer reviewed is generally … Continued
Building from ideas and research

Building from ideas and research

Construction is in the air at IU East! The new Student Events and Activities Center is taking shape! New buildings are always a welcome barometer of progress. IU East has grown from just Whitewater, to include Hayes, Middlefork (later renamed Tom Raper), and Springwood Halls. It is worth noting that all of those things were built from pieces. Some of the pieces were physical – lumber, pipes, wiring, drywall. Others were conceptual – ideas, plans, vision. Research is like that, too. First you have an idea – a topic you’re interested in, or a question you have. And you think about it, refining it and making choices about what would make a good paper, project, or experiment. Then, when it … Continued