By: Tara Anthony

This spring semester the Donald W. Hamer Center for Maps and Geospatial Information is hosting webinars on GIS, mapping, and geospatial data, along with specific sessions focused on ArcGIS Story Maps, ArcGIS Online applications, and QGIS. In addition to scheduling individualized consultations, there are also virtual student office hours. Please see below for information on webinars and share with interested individuals and respective departments. 

Working with Geospatial Data, GIS, and Mapping Projects  
Date: 3/3/2021, 3-4pm  
Zoom Registration  
Presenter: Tara Anthony, GIS Specialist  

This session will introduce participants to geospatial data from U.S. and international sources, along with information on geospatial software access at Penn State including ArcGIS Online, ArcGIS ArcMap, and ArcGIS Pro. A highlight of online geospatial resources available to will be included. Additional resources will be provided to help participants manage geospatial projects.  

Introduction to ArcGIS Online and Story Maps  
Date: 3/17/2021, 3-4pm  
Zoom Registration  
Presenter: Tara Anthony, GIS Specialist  

This session will provide an introduction to ArcGIS Online available through the Penn State ArcGIS Online account. Users authenticate with Penn State credentials to access geospatial data from authoritative sources, user-generated content, and to create their own content. An overview of web map and Story Map applications will be highlighted.  

Leveraging ArcGIS Applications: ArcGIS Business Analyst, ArcGIS Experience Builder, and ArcGIS Hub for showcasing projects, maps, and data  
Date: 3/24/2021, 3-4pm  
Zoom Registration  
Presenter:  Tara Anthony, GIS Specialist  

This session provides examples of ArcGIS applications available through the Penn State ArcGIS Online Organizational Account. The applications to focus on this session include ArcGIS Business Analyst, ArcGIS Experience Builder, and ArcGIS Hub. ArcGIS Business Analyst enables users to explore demographics, charts, and infographics for locations. ArcGIS Experience Builder enables users to create visual content surrounding maps, narrative, images, and media using multiple types of templates. ArcGIS Hub enables the user to create a site with map and embedded map applications with content from ArcGIS Online.  

Introduction to QGIS: (Part 1/2)  
Date: 4/20, 1-2pm  
Zoom Registration  
Presenter: Jae Sung Kim, Open Source Geospatial Analyst  

QGIS instruction for beginners in QGIS. The objectives are 1) to be familiarized with QGIS, 2) to learn the most basic GIS concepts. The topics will include installation of QGIS, QGIS Interface, projection, creation of vector data, and geoprocessing of vector data.  

Introduction to QGIS (Part 2/2)  
Date: 4/21, 1-2pm  
Zoom Registration  
Presenter: Jae Sung Kim, Open Source Geospatial Analyst  

QGIS instruction for beginners in QGIS. The objectives are 1) to be familiarized with QGIS, 2) to learn the most basic GIS concepts. The topics will include overview of raster, raster analysis, georeferencing of raster, creating maps, and use of web map services.  

Maps and Geospatial Virtual Student Office Hours  
Dates: 3/12/2021, 3/31/2021, 4/13/2021, 4/28/2021, 1-2pm  
Zoom Link  
Presenter: Tara Anthony, GIS Specialist  

Students are welcome to drop-in during virtual student office hours to discuss maps and geospatial projects using GIS software, maps, and/or geospatial content.

By: Tara Anthony
Donald W. Hamer Center for Maps and Geospatial Information

Penn State University Libraries co-hosted with the Department of Geography a virtual GIS Day event this year, held on November 12, 2020. This year we invited two great and informative speakers to present on relevant geospatial activities of mapping organizations.

Penn State GIS Day Highlights

Susan Powell, GIS and Map Librarian at the University of California, Berkeley, and co-editor of “Water: An Atlas,” spoke about Guerrilla Cartography’s “Atlas in a Day.” Past Atlas series related to water, food, community, and migration. These atlases are available for download.

Patricia Solis, Co-Founder/Director of YouthMappers, Executive Director of the Knowledge Exchange for Resilience at Arizona State University, and Associate Research Professor in the Arizona State University School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, spoke about the YouthMappers international network of student-led chapters on university campuses. She shared also about their initiative Everywhere She Maps.

BTAA GIS Conference

The Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) held a GIS Conference on November 13, 2020. This virtual event had participants from Big Ten academic institutions with interests in geospatial technologies. The Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) GIS Conference site includes the agenda, map gallery, and presentation information. Tara Anthony gave a lightning talk on “Managing GIS student engagement projects: a sustainable approach.” The social hour of GIS Education Programs in Big Ten was coordinated by Nathan Piekielek, which included Penn State programs of the Online Geospatial Programs, and Geodesign.

Central Pennsylvania GIS Day

The Central Pennsylvania GIS Day held on November 18, 2020 was virtually hosted by Harrisburg University and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Tara Anthony spoke about “Integrating Diversity into Geospatial Projects: Geospatial Diversity Resources Guide.”

By: Melody Gehlbach

Zoom link: https://psu.zoom.us/j/8148630468

Agenda:
– My Libraries Account – Learn more about new feature which allows you to view and renewing checkouts, viewing and modifying holds, and viewing your bills.

– Security Awareness – Report out on the status of library security monitoring plus issues that we should all be watching out for (Phishing scams, personal device security, ransomware
preparedness, password strength).

– Global Protect – New client used to connect to the Penn State VPN and keep our network safe while allowing users to access our resources. How this will affect you and our users and
how to use the Global Protect.

– Advanced Threat Protection – ATP is the replacement for Symantec on your computer. What this product does, how it works and what you can do to help us with implementation.

– Lifecycle – What to expect during Lifecycle this year, how the process will be managed and what timelines you can expect to see.

– Computer Management – How we are managing updates to computers, plans for the “Corona” laptops and what you can do to help us.

– Libraries Researcher Metadata Database, Orcid and You – Learn about the Libraries Research Metadata Database and how you can use it to write to your ORCiD account.

By: Pembroke Childs

The University Libraries Health and Safety Committee presents: The Virtual Halloween Party!
Now on the Halloween 2020 channel in Teams.

Post your: Costumes, Creative seasonal displays, Recipes, Greetings, or Favorite Masked selfie! *This year’s safety topic is: Focused Driving. Deadlines for submissions: October 31, 2020.

Teams: UL-Libraries: University Park: Hidden channel: Halloween 2020. If you are not on the U-Libraries team already, you can join with this code: 40a1oo3. Or join us via the link.

By: Melody Gehlbach

Announcing the next Tech Update: Wednesday, October 28 from 2-3pm, via Zoom. Please add this link to your calendar: https://psu.zoom.us/j/8148630468.

Summer 2020
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

UPDATE: In light of the University’s March 11 announcement regarding measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, nonessential events and meetings scheduled at University Libraries locations throughout the spring semester have been canceled, rescheduled or will be offered virtually. 

EXHIBITION: Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact. To coincide with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Archives explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, and the documentary record. Highlights of the virtual exhibition include representations of varied print, manuscript, and art works that invites the viewer to consider a range of environmental-related topics and will serve as a growing, centralized resource.

EXHIBITION: International Solidarity: Highlights from the Ken Lawrence Collection. A virtual look at the visual culture of political protest in the late 20th-century, to provoke thought about international solidarity in our own time, including human and civil rights, immigration, and independence movements.

EXHIBITION: Celebrating the ADA: The Legacy and Evolution of Disability Rights & Lived Experience at Penn State. To coincide with the 30th anniversary of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 26, a new online exhibition, Celebrating the ADA explores the first 100 years of national disability rights legislation and the movement’s impact on the Penn State University community.

Summer 2020
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

UPDATE: In light of the University’s March 11 announcement regarding measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, nonessential events and meetings scheduled at University Libraries locations throughout the spring semester have been canceled, rescheduled or will be offered virtually. 

EXHIBITION: Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact. To coincide with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Archives explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, and the documentary record. Highlights of the virtual exhibition include representations of varied print, manuscript, and art works that invites the viewer to consider a range of environmental-related topics and will serve as a growing, centralized resource.

EXHIBITION: International Solidarity: Highlights from the Ken Lawrence Collection. A virtual look at the visual culture of political protest in the late 20th-century, to provoke thought about international solidarity in our own time, including human and civil rights, immigration, and independence movements.

EXHIBITION: Celebrating the ADA: The Legacy and Evolution of Disability Rights & Lived Experience at Penn State. To coincide with the 30th anniversary of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 26, a new online exhibition, Celebrating the ADA explores the first 100 years of national disability rights legislation and the movement’s impact on the Penn State University community.

Friday, Aug. 14, Libraries Trivia Night: Historical Markers. Trivia topics from markers located on campuses across the Commonwealth. will include campuses, diversity, equity, and research. University Archivist Angel Diaz will emcee the evening. Please register in advance for the Zoom event, 7-8 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 20, Libraries Lunch Book Club. The University Libraries quarterly book club will launch with the selection “The Hidden Life of Life,” including a Q&A and discussion of the book with author Elizabeth Marshall Thomas. Noon-1:30 p.m. via Zoom. Advanced registration required.   

By: Mark Mattson and Christina Riehman-Murphy

The cakes and cookies are gone, the pie tins are cleaned, and the hashtags are counted. It was extremely close, but Penn State Libraries emerged the winner of the inaugural Great Rare Books Bake Off! 

 A collaborative project between the PSU Libraries and our international sister-library Monash University Library in Melbourne, Australia, the Great Rare Books Bake Off aimed to engage our collective communities with some of the tastier materials from the special collections of the two institutions. As a chance for cultural exchange, and a bit of fun during a time of limited travel and social interaction; and to raise awareness of the partnership between the two universities, the project encouraged individuals to try to bake one of the historic Australian or American recipes from our collections and post the results to social media. While PSU came out just ahead in submissions, both libraries consider the event a great success with over 160 individual submissions tallied between Monash and PSU. Given the fantastic engagement of the inaugural event, the partners are exploring the possibility of making the Bake Off an annual affair. 

To learn more about the event visit the event webpage and to see what people baked, visit Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook and search for #BakePennState and #BakeMonash.  

A huge shout out goes out to Christina Riehman-Murphy, the overall organizer of the event, as well as Jennifer Meehan, Clara Drummond, Maggie Welch, Marissa Nicosia, Mark Mattson, Heather Froehlich, Lillian Hansberry, Amanda Peters, Heidi Moyer, Barbara Lessig, Jennifer Cifelli, Bev Molnar, and Christopher Blaska for all of their help putting this together. And a big thank you to all of you who participated in the contest and to our colleagues at Monash for their willingness to give this a go! 

Summer 2020
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

UPDATE: In light of the University’s March 11 announcement regarding measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, nonessential events and meetings scheduled at University Libraries locations throughout the spring semester have been canceled, rescheduled or will be offered virtually. 

EXHIBITION: Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact. To coincide with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Archives explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, and the documentary record. Highlights of the virtual exhibition include representations of varied print, manuscript, and art works that invites the viewer to consider a range of environmental-related topics and will serve as a growing, centralized resource.

EXHIBITION: International Solidarity: Highlights from the Ken Lawrence Collection. A virtual look at the visual culture of political protest in the late 20th-century, to provoke thought about international solidarity in our own time, including human and civil rights, immigration, and independence movements.

Friday, Aug. 14, Libraries Trivia Night: Historical Markers. Trivia topics from markers located on campuses across the Commonwealth. will include campuses, diversity, equity, and research. University Archivist Angel Diaz will emcee the evening. Please register in advance for the Zoom event, 7-8 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 20, Libraries Lunch Book Club. The University Libraries quarterly book club will launch with the selection “The Hidden Life of Life,” including a Q&A and discussion of the book with author Elizabeth Marshall Thomas. Noon-1:30 p.m. via Zoom. Advanced registration required.   

Summer 2020
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

UPDATE: In light of the University’s March 11 announcement regarding measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, nonessential events and meetings scheduled at University Libraries locations throughout the spring semester have been canceled, rescheduled or will be offered virtually. 

EXHIBITION: Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact. To coincide with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Archives explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, and the documentary record. Highlights of the virtual exhibition include representations of varied print, manuscript, and art works that invites the viewer to consider a range of environmental-related topics and will serve as a growing, centralized resource.

EXHIBITION: International Solidarity: Highlights from the Ken Lawrence Collection. A virtual look at the visual culture of political protest in the late 20th-century, to provoke thought about international solidarity in our own time, including human and civil rights, immigration, and independence movements.

Friday, Aug. 17, Libraries Trivia Night: Historical Markers. Trivia topics from markers located on campuses across the Commonwealth. will include campuses, diversity, equity, and research. University Archivist Angel Diaz will emcee the evening. Please register in advance for the Zoom event, 7-8 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 20, Libraries Lunch Book Club. The University Libraries quarterly book club will launch with the selection “The Hidden Life of Life,” including a Q&A and discussion of the book with author Elizabeth Marshall Thomas. Noon-1:30 p.m. via Zoom. Advanced registration required.   

Summer 2020
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

UPDATE: In light of the University’s March 11 announcement regarding measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, nonessential events and meetings scheduled at University Libraries locations throughout the spring semester have been canceled, rescheduled or will be offered virtually. 

EXHIBITION: Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact. To coincide with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Archives explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, and the documentary record. Highlights of the virtual exhibition include representations of varied print, manuscript, and art works that invites the viewer to consider a range of environmental-related topics and will serve as a growing, centralized resource.

EXHIBITION: International Solidarity: Highlights from the Ken Lawrence Collection. A virtual look at the visual culture of political protest in the late 20th-century, to provoke thought about international solidarity in our own time, including human and civil rights, immigration, and independence movements.

Friday, Aug. 17, Libraries Trivia Night: Historical Markers. Trivia topics from markers located on campuses across the Commonwealth. will include campuses, diversity, equity, and research. University Archivist Angel Diaz will emcee the evening. Please register in advance for the Zoom event, 7-8 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 20, Libraries Lunch Book Club. The University Libraries quarterly book club will launch with the selection “The Hidden Life of Life,” including a Q&A and discussion of the book with author Elizabeth Marshall Thomas. Noon-1:30 p.m. via Zoom. Advanced registration required.   

Summer 2020
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

UPDATE: In light of the University’s March 11 announcement regarding measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, nonessential events and meetings scheduled at University Libraries locations throughout the spring semester have been canceled, rescheduled or will be offered virtually. 

EXHIBITION: Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact. To coincide with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Archives explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, and the documentary record. Highlights of the virtual exhibition include representations of varied print, manuscript, and art works that invites the viewer to consider a range of environmental-related topics and will serve as a growing, centralized resource.

EXHIBITION: International Solidarity: Highlights from the Ken Lawrence Collection. A virtual look at the visual culture of political protest in the late 20th-century, to provoke thought about international solidarity in our own time, including human and civil rights, immigration, and independence movements.