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12 Things You Can Do At Brown Library in 2012

  1. Learn to use RefWorks- Never able to remember where the period goes in APA style? RefWorks keeps track of all the resources you find in the databases and online and can create your bibliography of reference list for you! In fact, we like RefWorks so much, we made it its own guide.
  2. Plan a Dinner Party- Brown Library has a collection of cookbooks dating back to 1938. Borrow a few and plan out a party for a few of your friends.
  3. Add to your book collection- Did you know Brown Library has a "Free Books" shelf where we offer books to anyone who wants them? Stop by and pick out a few of your favorites or anything that might help decorate your personal library!
  4. View old USF-related correspondence- John L. Raymond is one of USF's important benefactors, donating much of her personal collection of books, art and other items to the Sisters and students of CSF. Much of his correspondence with the Sisters has been digitized and made available online through the USF Library Archives Finding Aids.
  5. Avoid buying textbooks- Did you know there are a couple of ways you can avoid paying the sky-high prices for your courses' textbooks? We hold many textbooks on course reserves and also can help you place a request to borrow your textbooks from another library.
  6. See what your Illinois hometown looked 100 years ago- Through the CARLI online image collection Sanborn Maps of Illinois you can view maps initially made initially made to help fire insurance companies determine rates from 1867-1970.
  7. Find reliable primary sources- Primary sources are a researchers dream, conveying not only the information about an event, but the emotion too, but they can be tricky to locate. Brown Library did a lot of the work for you and has created their Primary Sources Research Guide to match you with letters, images, oral histories and other primary resources from throughout history.
  8. Read some old news. Really, really old news- Take a look into Chronicling America, a historic newspaper database that holds high resolution images of local and national newspapers dating back to 1836.
  9. Find a book for your kid, cousin, niece or nephew- Brown Library has a fantastic children's book collection including the Newbery winners since the award's creation and preschool picture books.
  10. Figure out a research topic- Picking what to write about is often the first problem students run into on a research assignment. Let us help get you started with our Narrowing Your Topic worksheet.
  11. Plan a movie marathon- You can't study all the time and Brown Library has a great collection of DVDs to get you through the upcoming Chicago winter. Borrow a few for the weekend and keep yourself entertained while staying warm and dry. You're on your own for the popcorn, though!
  12. Relax!- Brown Library has a host of comfy places to take a break from studying or writing that paper, including the couches on the main level, the chairs in the Pop Lit section and the quiet of the USF Library Archives. All can offer a welcome respite to reclaim your sanity during a stressful semester.