So exactly what have the Library summer interns been up to since they began work just a few short weeks ago? A lot! In addition to the wide variety of work they are doing for the Libraries, they’ve also been attending training sessions, blogging, and exploring the beautiful Stanford campus.

The entire group of interns attended a two-part training session on how to begin doing research in college. Using the Information Center reference collection as a snapshot of Stanford University Libraries' collections, Rose Harrington introduced the students to the Library of Congress (LoC) subject classification system. Interns learned that knowing the LoC classification scheme allows for more refined researching and makes it easier to select appropriate databases for research. Lessons learned from this session were priceless:

1. Get to know your university’s librarians right away and don’t wait until senior year to meet them. Librarians can offer invaluable support and save you lots of time.
2. From Duke and UC Riverside to Emory and St. Mary's, academic libraries throughout the United States use the Library of Congress subject classification system.
3. There are treasures in libraries that cannot be found on Google!

Session two will focus on individualized catalogue and database training focused on the college each intern is attending in the fall.

Abraham Tewolde, who is working for the Archive of Recorded Sound (ARS), has become a guest blogger on the Libraries Blog page. Check out Abraham’s first post where he speaks of the experience of being transported back in time, seeing and hearing records, record players and LPs. He speaks of how these “artifacts” “have left a tremendous impact on the way modern music is made.” Abraham’s work in the ARS has given him a glimpse of some of the many resources he will have available to him once he begins his studies at Stanford in the fall, and his blog post reminds us of the unique collections that Stanford Libraries have. So, do you know why most songs are only about four minutes long? Check out Abraham’s blog post to find the answer.

The beautiful Stanford Campus is always something to behold, but Judy Marsh, of Social Science Data and Software, got to experience it through the eyes of another Stanford fall 2013 frosh, Joseph Thorton, the SSDS intern. While having lunch in the garden at the Alumni Center, Joseph got to see one of the many birds for which this campus is so well known, a red-shouldered hawk. Judy was excited to share the difference between this red-shouldered hawk, which originally was incorrectly identified as a Cooper's Hawk, and other birds of prey, and gave Joseph a short ornithology lesson on the many birds that make Stanford their home. Check out SearchWorks for more information on Familiar Birds of the Stanford Campus...

Upcoming events for our library interns include: classes on Photoshop and iMovie; lunches with Judge LaDoris Cordell, former Stanford Vice Provost for Campus Relations and Special Counselor to the Stanford President, and Julie Lythcott-Haims, Stanford’s former “Dean Julie”; a tour of the Libraries’ Book-scanning Robot; and a Social Skills training session with Dr. Judith Ned, Executive Director of Stanford Medical Youth Science Program (SMYSP).

We are delighted to have this talented group of interns and are glad to see that they’ve taken to the Libraries with such ease and enthusiasm.