DVDs and videos on business topics

Posted on August 15, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

The Bronfman Business Library offers a selection of DVDs and videos on a variety of business topics that current York University students, faculty and staff may borrow from the Sound and Moving Image Library (SMIL) located in the Scott Library. Students may borrow the videos for a four hour loan period. Graduate students and faculty may reserve videos for classroom use: http://theta.library.yorku.ca/depts/smil/filmvideo.html

To see a list of what’s available by business topic visit our web page: http:/www.library.yorku.ca/ccm/BG/collections/dvd.htm Each entry in this list includes a description of the DVD or video and the SMIL call number.

But the great news is that now many of these videos can be viewed online in the classroom or from a link on a course web page.

The streaming videos are only available to current York students, staff and faculty. A current Passport York account or a library barcode and PIN is required to access these videos online. The link to these videos is included in the abstract for the title.

For classroom use, faculty may create ‘playlists’, i.e. select sections of the video to show in class or to include on their course website. For information on how to create and save playlists, comprising selected videos or video clips, or to learn about other useful features in the FMG digital video collection, please see the FMG Guide at http://library.yorku.ca/binaries/BG/fmgstreamingvideo.pdf.

We welcome your feedback on our selection. Please send comments to watson@yorku.ca .

Business e-books

Posted on June 18, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

Students, staff and faculty at York University now have access to electronic books from Books 24X7 and also the ExecSummaries. All the books are listed in the York University Libraries catalogue but you can also check out what’s available by typing – books 24X7 – in the title quick search box on the YUL homepage http://www.library.yorku.ca You may select Business Pro or Finance Pro or ExecSummaries (these are the approx. 7 page summaries of a variety of professional and popular business and economics books). We also have Engineering Pro and IT Pro available. You will be requested to login using your Passport York account or your YU Card ID and library PIN even though you have already connected via the proxy server login.

Depending upon your selection you will have online access to books on marketing, finance, ethics, international business, corporate case studies, management, investing, risk management and more. However, you may not print more than a few pages or you will lose access privileges. These books are meant to be read online and not copied for your collection.

Because the ExecSummaries are synopses and key points and not the entire work, you can download or print the entire summary and you can also download it onto your mp3. Sometimes in addition to the ExecSummary we also have the full-text of the book available in either Business Pro or Finance Pro so it’s worth checking in both places.

We hope you enjoy this new service and would love to hear what you think about it.

Past exams from Schulich courses

Posted on June 17, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

We often get asked if we have copies of old exams. We don’t, but Schulich students should look here on the Schulich portal:

Not all past exams are there, but that’s the place to go to find whatever old exams are available.

Librarian vs Mouse – Rounds 2 and 3

Posted on May 23, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

This is not an easy tale to tell but for those of you who want to know the outcome of this epic battle, read on.

Round 2

I baited the traps with choice peanut butter, the crunchy nut filled variety that Heather recommended and placed it in its migratory path. The mouse enjoyed the peanut butter immensely and ate several helpings. Then Dat informed me he had witnessed the mouse with his head in the mouse trap delicately lapping up the last lingering bits of peanut butter. Naturally I assumed the trap was faulty but not being a complete fool (although I was beginning to doubt myself), I tested it with a light tap of a spoon handle and it snapped shut vigorously. After some discussion with the staff, Bill suggested that we should try to trap the mouse and then donate it to the Science Dept as this mouse was clearly a specimen worthy of study for the gene which enabled its superior survival skills. I decided to stop feeding the mouse as he was clearly winning. Savi decided to up the ante and moth balls were strewn about. Staff fled but the mouse perservered. I conceded Round 2 to the mouse and went on holiday for a week.

Round 3

Upon my return after the long Victoria day weekend I went into the staff room and was appalled by the stench which assaulted my nostrils. I asked around and was informed that the mouse lay dead between the cushions of a chair. How had he come to this sad end? I can only surmise that he was taking a nap and someone sat on the chair and smothered him. I cannot claim victory. In fact the victory belongs to the mouse, even in death. I had to remove him and ask the cleaning staff to shampoo the chair. It still smelled. I brought in my own cleaner and a brush and scrubbed and scrubbed but after 4 days the chair still smells and I have removed it. The smell haunts Savi and I even when we leave work! Clearly the mouse is having his revenge. I am contemplating making offerings to the mouse spirit to free us from this curse.

Librarian battles mouse

Posted on April 27, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

Librarian battles mouse – Mouse wins round one!

I am an animal lover and fond of mice who know their places. However, I am also Head of the Library and it is my sworn duty to uphold the honour of the library against all comers, human or pawed.

I ignored the little blighters in the winter months because I felt sorry for them but spring is here and it is time for them to go outside and enjoy nature, as should we all. Hence I have told them they are no longer welcome but they have chosen to ignore me. I say they but in truth I have only seen one very cute brown mouse but Savi tells me that one of them is enjoying eating the white blossomed plant that resides on her window. The chewing can be heard by staff sitting desks away from Savi and I myself have heard the relentless chewing.?????? How the plant has survived this onslaught is beyond me. So you can see why I have pitted myself against the mouse.??????

Now comes the humiliating part. I purchased the superior trap (I tried the humane trap but the mouse refused to be civil) and baited it with peanut butter thinking it would be difficult for a mouse to eat sticky peanut butter and escape unscathed. Sadly I misjudged the mouse.?????? Thrice now he has eaten the peanut butter and the trap has not been tripped. I thought there must be something wrong with the trap and tapped it gently with a spoon handle and it clamped violently shut on the handle. My worthy combatant is clearly a mouse of great skill and acumen. ??????

It has now gotten to the point where a staff member was enjoying her lunch and the mouse came to within a short distance of her and looked at her. We think the mouse was expecting to be fed, perhaps as a reward for having won the battle.

I cannot give up…. it is as I have said a point of honour. I am reminded of the keeper in a poem I read many years ago – The grey squirrel

The bell has sounded for round two.

New Books -March

Posted on March 31, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

The York University Libraries add books to the collection daily so I thought I would try to make it easier for you to keep up with newly added books related to business topics by screening the new titles and only including those which relate broadly to business topics. I will compile a list of new titles at the end of each month and post them on this blog. Please note that not all of the books are located in the Bronfman Business Library. To check the location, please click on the title and you will see the catalogue record appear. At the bottom of the record the location and availability are indicated.

In March I identified 94 titles and I haven’t tried to sort these by subject.

I did this for two reasons. The first reason is that some of the books are multidisciplinary and do not fit neatly into categorites, e.g. accounting, marketing etc. The second reason is that I am waiting to see if anyone is looking at the monthly lists before I invest time in sorting these by narrower subjects. So if you want to have these titles sorted into subjects you need to let me know by posting a comment. Also, if you are a member of the York University community and want to receive a monthly notice when the list is published please let me know.

Congratulations to Profs Crane and Matten on the publication of their book.

Corporate social responsibility : readings and cases in a global context / edited by Andrew Crane, Dirk Matten and Laura J. Spence.

Author: Crane, Andrew, 1968- | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

A class with Drucker : the lost lessons of the world’s greatest management teacher / by William A. Cohen.

Author: Cohen, William A., 1937- | Published: New York : AMACOM/ American Management Association, c2008.

Handbook of econometrics / edited by Zvi Griliches and Michael D. Intriligator.

Author: Griliches, Zvi, 1930- | Published: Amsterdam ; New York : North-Holland Pub. Co.

Partnerships, governance and sustainable development : reflections on theory and practice / edited by Pieter Glasbergen, Frank Biermann, Arthur P.J. Mol.

Author: Glasbergen, P | Published: Cheltenham, UK ; Northampton, MA : Edward Elgar, c2007.

Carbon finance : the financial implications of climate change / Sonia Labatt, Rodney R. White.

Author: Labatt, Sonia | Published: Hoboken, N.J. : John Wiley & Sons, c2007.

Exposed : the toxic chemistry of everyday products– who’s at risk and what’s at stake for American power / Mark Schapiro.

Author: Schapiro, Mark, 1955- | Published: White River Junction, Vt. : Chelsea Green Pub., c2007.

Response of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy to its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act.

Author: National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (Canada) | Published: [Ottawa] : National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, 2007.

Explorations in information space : knowledge, agents, and organization / Max H. Boisot, Ian C. MacMillan, and Kyeong Seok Han.

Author: Boisot, Max | Published: Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2007.

Geo-business GIS in the digital organization / James B. Pick.

Author: Pick, James B | Published: Hoboken, N.J. : J. Wiley & Sons, Inc., c2008.

The Sage dictionary of qualitative management research / compiled and edited by Richard Thorpe, and Robin Holt.

Author: Thorpe, Richard, 1951- | Published: London : Sage, 2008

Global edge : using the opacity index to manage the risks of cross-border business / Joel Kurtzman, Glenn Yago.

Author: Kurtzman, Joel | Published: Boston, Mass. : Harvard Business School Press, c2007

Microsoft Office Project Server 2007 : the complete reference / Dave Gochberg, Rob Stewart.

Author: Gochberg, Dave | Published: New York : McGraw-Hill, c2008

Small firms, global markets : competitive challenges in the new economy / edited by Jerry Haar and Jeorg Meyer-Stamer.

Author: Haar, Jerry, 1947- | Published: Basingstoke [England] ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2008.

In defense of monopoly : how market power fosters creative production / Richard B. McKenzie and Dwight R. Lee.

Author: McKenzie, Richard B | Published: Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press, c2008

Unions in crisis? : the future of organized labor in America / Michael Schiavone.

Author: Schiavone, Michael | Published: Westport, Conn. : Praeger, 2008.

Fair trade coffee : the prospects and pitfalls of market-driven social justice / Gavin Fridell.

Author: Fridell, Gavin | Published: Toronto : University of Toronto Press, c2007

Greater good : how good marketing makes for better democracy / John A. Quelch, Katherine E. Jocz.

Author: Quelch, John A | Published: Boston, Mass. : Harvard Business Press, c2007.

Authenticity : what consumers really want / James H. Gilmore, B. Joseph Pine II.

Author: Gilmore, James H., 1959- | Published: Boston, Mass. : Harvard Business School Press, c2007.

Accounting : what the numbers mean / Marshall … [et al.].

Author: Marshall, David H | Published: North Ryde, N.S.W. : McGraw-Hill Australia, c2008.

Internal auditing : an integrated approach / Richard Cascarino, Sandy van Esch.

Author: Cascarino, Richard | Published: Lansdowne, South Africa : Juta, 2007

Investigating the use of sex in media promotion and advertising / Tom Reichert, editor.

Author: Reichert, Tom | Published: Binghamton, NY : Best Business Books, c2007

National currencies and globalization : endangered specie? / Paul Bowles.

Author: Bowles, Paul | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Flying together : EU air transport policy / European Commission, Directorate-General for Energy and Transport.

Author: European Commission. Directorate-General for Energy and Transport | Published: Luxembourg : Office for Official Publication of the European Communities, 2007.

Overcoming vulnerability to rising oil prices : options for Asia and the Pacific.

Author: Regional Energy Programme for Poverty Reduction | Published: Bangkok, Thailand : UNDP Regional Centre in Bangkok, c2007

Sharpening Canada’s competitive edge : a consultation paper issued by the Competition Policy Review Panel / Competition Policy Review Panel.

Author: Competition Policy Review Panel (Canada) | Published: Ottawa : Competition Policy Review Panel, [2007]

The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange handbook : two thousand and six.

Author: Zimbabwe Stock Exchange | Published: Harare : Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, [2006]

Provincial and national business cycles, 1976 to 2006 : how the provinces fared / Edward J. Chambers.

Author: Chambers, Edward J | Published: Edmonton : Western Centre for Economic Research, University of Alberta, 2007.

Multicultural marketing : an introduction / edited by G. V. S. Sreedhar.

Author: Sreedhar, G. V. S | Published: Hyderabad : ICFAI University Press c2006.

The global securities market : a history / Ranald C. Michie.

Author: Michie, R. C., 1949- | Published: Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2006.

Organizational behavior : the ethical challenge / [edited by] Yassin Sankar ; contributions by Nancy Adler … [et al.].

Author: Sankar, Yassin | Published: Toronto : Canadian Scholars’ Press, 2004.

Optimization methods in finance / Gerard Cornuejols, Reha Teuteunceu.

Author: Cornuejols, Gerard, 1950- | Published: Cambridge, UK ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Knowledge management : social, cultural, and theoretical perspectives / edited by Ruth Rikowski.

Author: Rikowski, Ruth | Published: Oxford, England : Chandos, 2007.

Building supply chain excellence in emerging economies / edited by Hau Lee, Chung-Yee Lee.

Author: Lee, Hau Leung | Published: New York : Springer, c2007.

Perspectives on corporate social responsibility in international business / Esa Stenberg, Salla Sutinen (eds.)

Author: Stenberg, Esa | Published: [Turku, Finland] : Turku School of Economics and Business Administration ; Tampere : Esa Print , 2006.

Strategic challenges and strategic responses : the transformation of Chinese state-owned enterprises / Jifu Wang.

Author: Wang, Jifu, 1976- | Published: Oxford : Chandos, c2006.

Canadian income taxation : planning and decision making / W.J. Buckwold, Joan Kitunen.

Author: Buckwold, W. J | Published: Toronto : McGraw-Hill Ryerson, c2007.

Making cars in Canada : a brief history of the Canadian automotive industry, 1900-1980 / Richard White.

Author: White, Richard, 1952- | Published: Ottawa : Canada Science and Technology Museum, 2007.

Behind closed doors : secrecy in international financial institutions / edited by Catherine Musuva.

Author: Musuva, Catherine | Published: Cape Town, South Africa : IDASA : Global Transparency Initiative, 2006

Taxing reforms : the politics of the consumption tax in Japan, the United States, Canada and Australia / Richard Eccleston.

Author: Eccleston, Richard | Published: Cheltenham : Edward Elgar, 2007.

Strategy and entrepreneurship in Arab countries / M.S.S. El Namaki.

Author: Namaki, M. S. S., 1941- | Published: Basingstoke [England] ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2008

Encyclopedia of business ethics and society / general editor, Robert W. Kolb.

Author: Kolb, Robert W., 1949- | Published: Thousand Oaks : Sage Publications, c2008.

Understanding financial crises / Franklin Allen, Douglas Gale.

Author: Allen, Franklin, 1956- | Published: Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2007.

Industrial and organizational psychology : research and practice / Paul E. Spector.

Author: Spector, Paul E | Published: Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons, 2008

Advertising media planning : a brand management approach / Larry D. Kelley and Donald W. Jugenheimer.

Author: Kelley, Larry D., 1955- | Published: Armonk, N.Y. : M.E. Sharpe, c2008.

International business geography : case studies of corporate firms / edited by Piet Pellenbarg and Egbert Wever.

Author: Pellenbarg, P. H | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Governing finance : East Asia’s adoption of international standards / Andrew Walter.

Author: Walter, Andrew, 1961- | Published: Ithaca : Cornell University Press, 2008.

Governance and sustainability : new challenges for states, companies and civil society / edited by Ulrich Petschow, James Rosenau and Ernst Ulrich von Weizseacker.

Author: Petschow, Ulrich, 1952- | Published: Sheffield, UK : Greenleaf Publishing, 2005

Can Latin America compete? : confronting the challenges of globalization / edited by Jerry Haar and John Price.

Author: Haar, Jerry, 1947- | Published: New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2008

India, China and globalization : the emerging superpowers and the future of economic development / Piya Mahtaney.

Author: Mahtaney, Piya | Published: Basingstoke [England] ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

Rethinking information systems in organizations : integrating organizational problem solving / John Paul Kawalek.

Author: Kawalek, John Paul | Published: New York : Routledge, 2008.

Leadership therapy : inside the mind of Microsoft / Anna Rowley.

Author: Rowley, Anna, Ph. D | Published: New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2007

Changing organizational culture : cultural change work in progress / Mats Alvesson and Stefan Sveningsson.

Author: Alvesson, Mats, 1956- | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Corporate culture : illuminating the black hole / Jerome Want.

Author: Want, Jerome H | Published: New York : St. Martin’s Press, 2007

The power of unreasonable people : how social entrepreneurs create markets that change the world / John Elkington, Pamela Hartigan.

Author: Elkington, John | Published: Boston, Mass. : Harvard Business School Press, c2008

Managing performance improvement / Lynne F. Baxter and Alasdair M. MacLeod.

Author: Baxter, Lynne F., 1961- | Published: New York : Routledge, 2008

Global management : strategy, challenges, and uncertainties / Alejandro L. Domainguez, editor.

Author: Domainguez, Alejandro L | Published: New York : Nova Science Publishers, c2008

Knowledge networks for business growth / Andrea Back, Ellen Enkel, Georg von Krogh (editors).

Author: Back, Andrea | Published: Berlin : Springer, c2007.

Corporate governance, finance and the technological advantage of nations / Andrew Tylecote and Francesca Visintin.

Author: Tylecote, Andrew | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Large Chinese state-owned enterprises : corporatization and strategic development / Yong Zhang.

Author: Zhang, Yong, 1973- | Published: Basingstoke [England] ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2008.

The perspective of women’s entrepreneurship in the age of globalization / edited by Mirjana Radoviac Markoviac.

Author: Markoviac, Mirjana Radoviac | Published: Charlotte, NC : Information Age Pub., c2007.

The business environment : themes and issues / edited by Paul Wetherly and Dorron Otter.

Author: Wetherly, Paul | Published: Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2008.

A benchmark approach to quantitative finance / Eckhard Platen, David Heath.

Author: Platen, Eckhard | Published: Berlin ; New York : Springer, 2006.

Challenges in the management of new technologies / edited by Marianne Heorlesberger, Mohamed El-Nawawi, Tarek Khalil.

Author: Heorlesberger, Marianne | Published: New Jersey : World Scientific, c2007.

Being there even when you are not : leading through strategy, structures and systems / edited by Robert Hooijberg … [et al.].

Author: Hooijberg, Robert | Published: Amsterdam ; London : Elsevier JAI, 2007.

Mergers, acquisitions, and other restructuring activities / Donald M. DePamphilis.

Author: DePamphilis, Donald M | Published: Amsterdam; Boston : Academic, [2007], c2008.

Strategy formulation in entrepreneurial firms / by Azhdar Karami.

Author: Karami, Azhdar | Published: Aldershot, England ; Burlington, VT : Ashgate, c2007.

Dynamic capabilities between firm organization and local systems of production / edited by Riccardo Leoncini and Sandro Montresor.

Author: Leoncini, Riccardo, 1959- | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Outsourcing and human resource management : an international survey / edited by Ruth Taplin.

Author: Taplin, Ruth | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Corporate governance and corporate finance : a European perspective / edited by Ruud A. I. van Frederikslust, James S. Ang and P. Sudi Sudarsanam.

Author: Van Frederikslust, R. A. I | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Automobile politics : ecology and cultural political economy / Matthew Paterson.

Author: Paterson, Matthew, 1967- | Published: Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Business ethics in focus / Laura A. Parrish, editor.

Author: Parrish, Laura A | Published: New York : Nova Science Publishers, c2007.

The green marketing manifesto / John Grant.

Author: Grant, John, 1964- | Published: Chichester, England ; Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons, c2007.

Analysis for marketing planning / Donald R. Lehmann, Russell S. Winer.

Author: Lehmann, Donald R | Published: Boston : McGraw-Hill Irwin, c2008.

Product development : a structured approach to consumer product development, design, and manufacture / Anil Mital … [et al.].

Author: Mital, Anil | Published: Amster dam ; Boston, MA : Butterworth-Heinemann, An imprint of Elsevier, c2008

Private label : turning the retail brand threat into your biggest opportunity / Keith Lincoln & Lars Thomassen.

Author: Lincoln, Keith | Published: London ; Philadelphia : Kogan Page, 2008.

The economics of global environmental change : international cooperation for sustainability / edited by Mario Cogoy and Karl W. Steininger.

Author: Steininger, Karl W | Published: Cheltenham, UK ; Northampton, MA : Edward Elgar, 2006.

Agent systems in electronic business / Eldon Y. Li, Soe-Tsyr Yuan [editors].

Author: Li, Eldon Yu-zen, 1952- | Published: Hershey, PA : Information Science Reference, c2008

Strategy and human resource management / Peter Boxall and John Purcell.

Author: Boxall, Peter F | Published: Basingstoke [England] ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2008

Human resource management : linking strategy to practice / Greg L. Stewart, Kenneth G. Brown.

Author: Stewart, Greg L | Published: Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons, c2009.

Bits, bytes, and balance sheets : the new economic rules of engagement in a wireless world / by Walter B. Wriston.

Author: Wriston, Walter B | Published: Stanford, Calif. : Hoover Institution Press, Stanford University, c2007.

Auditing, trust and governance : regulation in Europe / edited by Reiner Quick, Stuart Turley and Marlene Willekens on behalf of European Auditing Research Network.

Author: Quick, Reiner | Published: London ; New York : Routledge, 2008.

Globalisation in China, India, and Russia : emergence of national groups and global strategies of firms / editors, Jean-Fran?cois Huchet, Xavier Richet, Joeel Ruet.

Author: Huchet, Jean-Fran?cois | Published: New Delhi : Academic Foundation, 2007.

International accounting / Frederick D.S. Choi, Gary K. Meek.

Author: Choi, Frederick D. S., 1942- | Published: Upper Saddle River, N.J. : Pearson Prentice Hall, c2008.

The language of success : business writing that informs, persuades, and gets results / Tom Sant.

Author: Sant, Tom | Published: New York : AMACOM, c2008.

Operational excellence : using lean six sigma to translate customer value through global supply chains / James William Martin.

Author: Martin, James W. (James William), 1952- | Published: New York : Auerbach Publications, c2008

Strategies for business and technical writing / Kevin J. Harty.

Author: Harty, Kevin J | Published: New York : Pearson Longman, c2008.

High frequency financial econometrics : recent developments / Luc Bauwens, Winfried Pohlmeier, David Veredas (eds.).

Author: Bauwens, Luc, 1952- | Published: New York : Springer, c20087

Knock ‘em dead 2008 : the ultimate job seeker’s guide / Martin Yate.

Author: Yate, Martin John | Published: Avon, Mass. : Adams Media, c2007, [2008].

My secret life on the McJob : lessons from behind the counter guaranteed to supersize any management style / Jerry M. Newman.

Author: Newman, Jerry M | Published: New York : McGraw-Hill, c2007.

Wisdom of Indian business leadership : a compilation of valuable thoughts with notes of wisdom and analysis to face 21st century challenges / compiled, edited and analysed by Bimal R. Bhatt ; [foreword by G. Narayana.

Author: Bhatt, Bimal R | Published: Mumbai : English Edition Publishers & Distributors (India) Pvt. Ltd, 2005.

Corporate governance : from compliance obligation to business imperative.

Author: Institutional Shareholder Services | Published: Rockville, Md. : Institutional Shareholder Services, 2006.

Transformation in cultural industries / edited by Candace Jones, Patricia H. Thornton.

Author: Jones, Candace | Published: Amsterdam ; Boston : Elsevier JAI, c2005.

Management of organisational stress : understanding harmony between individuals and the environment / Uma Gulati.

Author: Gulati, Uma | Published: New Delhi, India : New Century Publ., 2005

Baby boomers, Generation X and social cycles / Edward Cheung.

Author: Cheung, Edward, 1963- | Published: Toronto : Longwave Press, 2007

March Maelstrom

Posted on March 24, 2008 by Elizabeth Watson

Well it’s almost the end of term and the mood in the library has shifted. It does this every year so it comes as no surprise to me. Deadlines are looming and students nerves are getting edgier. Noise that would have been tolerated a few weeks ago, has become a call to arms. I am getting complaints about not only the volume of noise in the library but the lack of respect one encounters. Groups are circling looking for a place to study. The competition for group study rooms has escalated. Students are draped about the library and the occasional one has even nodded off although how they can sleep with so many other students passing by is a mystery to me. I guess the answer is exhaustion.

The library staff have the decidedly unpleasant duty of trying to maintain an environment in which students can work together as well as to maintain an environment where those seeking a quiet place to work/study, may do so. The reason I describe this as “decidedly unpleasant” is because we really are not nags and take no pleasure in power games. We do however, feel strongly that there is a time and place for certain behaviour and March is a time to respect the needs of students to have a quiet place to work. The Seymour Schulich building offers a wide variety of places to socialize and relax but few where one can find a relatively quiet haven.

We ask that you participate in ensuring that the noise level is low by whispering when in groups and confining your social conversations to a minimum. Also please respect that there are students looking for spaces to work and don’t take up prime real estate (i.e. chairs and passageways) by littering your possessions about. For example, place your jacket on back of the chair you are occupying and your materials on the floor.

The staff and I wish you success in completing this academic year and if you are graduating our wish for you is that you get the job you desire and a salary that makes all your efforts worthwhile.

It’s just a little while longer, hang in there and when you feel like you are losing it, remember to take a few deep breaths to relax yourself and relieve the tension.

And don’t forget if you need help with your research, you can stop by the reference desk, you can phone us 416-736-5139, you can email us at bgref@yorku.ca (24 hr turn around), or you can chat with us.