We are awash with data. Eighty percent of that data is unstructured, and that number is growing between 55 and 65% annually. Case in point, in 2022, 500 hours of video content were uploaded to YouTube every minute. Much of this unstructured data is text or “natural language” data, and accounts for approximately three-quarters of all recorded digital data. “Text” includes, but is by no means limited to, websites, blogs, social media posts, research papers, news articles, and transcripts.

Dartmouth Libraries has a rich tradition of library and community-curated exhibits. This Winter Term, we debuted four unique exhibits, each demonstrating what one might discover about a “place,” and the power and allure of it. On view until mid-March, these exhibits invite you to discover artful, historical, social, intellectual, and cultural narratives within each.

One of the many pivotal (and wonderful) roles the Libraries fill is providing access to resources and materials that elevate research, spark new knowledge, and deepen understanding of our world - as it was and how it might be. Our part in the teaching, learning, and research experience enriches Dartmouth's liberal arts experience: the interdisciplinary exploration of the arts, sciences, and humanities. The result is often a lifelong love of learning in pursuit of curiosities, inspiration, and new discoveries.

This September, the Libraries invited the Dartmouth community to celebrate and honor the extraordinary life and work of Reverend Edward Mitchell, class of 1828. 

From October 21 through 25, Dartmouth Libraries are hosting a series of events as part of International Open Access Week. This event brings together universities, research institutes, and publishers committed to “Community over Commercialization,” prioritizing “approaches to open scholarship that serve the best interests of the public and the academic community.”

When you think of the word “design,” what do you imagine? City planners choosing the layout of a city or roadway network? Maybe it’s trying to figure out the best shape and material for the ultimate water bottle? For some people, when they think of design, they think of project-based collaborations and human-centered co-design, and human-centered design thinking.

But what is human-centered co-design and design thinking?

For Noelia Cirnigliaro, Associate Professor of Spanish, to teach language is to teach culture. “Language isn’t the end point, it’s a tool and a means for culture.” Since her arrival at Dartmouth in 2009, Noelia has embodied the institution’s renowned teacher-scholar model. 

In May and June, the Dartmouth Libraries’ Preservation Unit hosted a pair of public workshops, co-sponsored by the New England Conservation Association (NECA), and the Vermont Arts & Culture Disaster and Resilience Network (VACDaRN), in the Libraries’ Conservation Lab.

Our colleague, Librarian Matt Benzing, recently partnered with the Student Wellness Center (SWC) to offer mindfulness sessions for Dartmouth faculty and staff. Offered across August, attendees learned mindfulness skills through various practices and techniques, and how to build a daily practice. Why mindfulness, though?

We’ve all probably now seen Roger Federer’s inspirational Commencement speech, and we know Federer spent time with the tennis teams, but did you know Roger and his family visited the Dartmouth Libraries? They did!