Bringing it all together: Collaborative programming at the library

The library’s Meet the Author series and other programming present a unique opportunity for collaboration between university departments, colleges, and other units to go beyond the classroom and engage with the Northeastern community. t [dot] urell [at] neu [dot] edu (subject: Library%20Program%20Suggestion) (Please let us know) what events we can collaborate on, which writers could join us for a Meet the Author program, ideas for exhibits, or anything else that would make a great Library program.%20t [dot] urell [at] neu [dot] edu (subject: Library%20Program%20Suggestion) ( )

One major piece of programming this spring was Places & Spaces, a traveling exhibit of science maps that reached across disciplines to show how much we know, and how far we still have to go. With multiple related events, the exhibit brought in the curious from across campus and beyond.

Exhibit curator and Indiana University Professor Katy Börner presented an introduction to Places & Spaces as part of the Library’s Meet the Author series in February.

In partnership with the College of Science and Gallery 360, the library hosted the Places & Spaces: Mapping Science exhibit this spring, highlighting network science and Northeastern’s prominence in this emerging interdisciplinary field. Included in the exhibit were maps by Northeastern professors Albert-László Barabási (physics, computer science, biology) and Alessandro Vespignani (physics, computer science, health science), and a piece by research scientist Maximilian Schich, who created his map while working with Barabási in the Northeastern Center for Complex Network Research.

In a Meet the Author event in February, Indiana University Professor, exhibit curator, and author of the companion volume The Atlas of Science, Katy Börner spoke about the process by which a science map comes into being. From data collection, such as paper citations and other units of research measurement, through analysis, modeling, and layout, then into the stages of data communication and visualization, science mapping must combine meticulous documentation with engaging art and design. The end result, as seen in Places & Spaces, is a graphic teaching and learning tool. More than just a communication piece or infographic, science maps can be visual representations of discovery, she explained.

Meet the Author event collaboration, Spring 2012:

Stephanie Schorow & Beverly Ford, Boston Mob Guide

Presented with the Northeastern University School of Law Library

Katy Börner, The Atlas of Science: Visualizing What We Know

Presented with the College of Science, Lazer Lab

Dana Gioia, Disappearing Ink: Poetry at the End of Print Culture

Presented with the Humanities Center’s Artists and Practitioners in Residence Program

Lars Iyer, Dogma

Presented with the Department of Philosophy & Religion

Felice Frankel, Envisioning Science: More than Pretty Pictures

Presented in conjunction with the Places & Spaces exhibit

Susan Shaw, “The Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Inside Out”

Presented with the Humanities Center’s Artists and Practitioners in Residence Program

John Powers, Fenway Park: A Salute to the Coolest, Cruelest, Longest-Running Baseball Stadium in America

Presented with the Northeastern University School of Journalism

Paul Tukey, Tag, Toss, & Run

Presented with the College of Business Administration, Sport in Society

Tag, Toss, & Run Field Day games hosted by NUHOC, Tri Sigma, BGE and the Vietnamese Student Association.

Let’s work together to build programs and events that enrich the cultural and intellectual life of the university. To get started, please t [dot] urell [at] neu [dot] edu (subject: Library%20Program%20Suggestion) (email Thomas Urell) or call (617) 373-2821.

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