metadata ● \met-uh-DAY-tuh\ ● noun

Posted on February 6, 2007 by Marie Kennedy

from http://www.m-w.com

The Word of the Day for February 06, 2007 is:

metadata • \met-uh-DAY-tuh\ • noun

: data that provides information about other data

Example Sentence:

The word processing program also tracks and saves metadata such as the author of the document and how many copies have been printed.

Did you know?

It’s easy to find data on the source of “metadata”: the word was formed by combining “data” with “meta-,” which means “transcending” and is often used to describe a new but related discipline designed to deal critically with the original one. “Meta-” was first used in that way in “metaphysics” and has been extended to a number of other disciplines, giving us such words as “metapsychology” and “metamathematics.” “Metadata” takes the “transcending” aspect a step further, applying it to the concept of pure information instead of a discipline. “Metadata” is a fairly new word (it first appeared in print in 1983), whereas “data” can be traced back to the middle of the 17th century.

Thanks, Rosie!

Posted in library, metadata, writing | Comments Off on metadata ● \met-uh-DAY-tuh\ ● noun

weboggle

Posted on February 1, 2007 by Marie Kennedy

weboggle

Posted in monkeys/bananas | 1 Comment

a year in librarianship

Posted on February 1, 2007 by Marie Kennedy

today marks a year that i’ve been a librarian. here are a few things that have surprised me during the year:

  • some of my colleagues are more word-nerdy than i
  • writing collaboratively has given me a new perspective on the peer-review process
  • being the youngest librarian on staff hasn’t been intimidating
  • though i had no ambitions to work at a reference desk, my 2-hour weekly shifts are quite enjoyable
  • i haven’t had to cheerlead my staff to do a solid job; they do it naturally

sounds like it’s been a pretty good year, yes?

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russian nesting bags

Posted on January 28, 2007 by Marie Kennedy

it seems that there are two ways to store your plastic grocery bags: all jammed inside a bin or the russian nesting bag way (one bag inside another, inside another, ad infinitum). i prefer the every-bag-for-itself way because when i reach inside our storage bin i am certain to pull out just one bag. by storing them the russian-nesting-doll way it is likely that instead of pulling out just one bag i’ll actually get one bag filled with many other bags, which can be frustrating when i’m in a hurry.

does anyone have a really good way to store plastic grocery bags?

Posted in organization tips | Comments Off on russian nesting bags

retaining your rights to self archive, made easy

Posted on January 25, 2007 by Marie Kennedy

do you know how wickedly easy it is to retain your rights as an author, in order to self archive articles you have submitted for publication? i set special time aside today in order to buckle down and figure it out, only to discover that all i have to do is submit an addendum with my copyright agreement to the publisher. mit has made one for me, so all i have to do is download the PDF or Word file, fill it out and negotiate from there. here’s a link to the mit site: http://libraries.mit.edu/about/scholarly/copyright-form.html.

thanks for pointing me to the mit link, Open Access News!

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this is how i get into trouble

Posted on January 21, 2007 by Marie Kennedy

i was surfing around on the ‘net and came across a website on how to make an “amazing circle” with an image in photoshop. so, of course, i had to stop my surfing and make one. and then i had to sign up for a flickr account in order to upload it, to be part of the “amazing circle” pool. bing, bam, boom, there go two hours of my saturday morning.

make your own “amazing circle.”

see other “amazing circles.”

mushroom ring

Posted in art | Comments Off on this is how i get into trouble