In the darkness and cold of winter, the only thing we have is each other (and SOUP). While us mortals scuffle through the snow and start the winter semester, a little flying baby has other plans. From the top of the Arts Building a heart-shaped arrow is drawn with chubby little fingers… cupid has struck the Humanities and Social Sciences Library. Suddenly we are pawning over statistics, excel, charts, and more. From this adoration, Love Data Week was born.
Love Data Week is back for 2022!
This year, there is a full week of events catered to all. Whether or not you have been bitten by the love(data) bug, there are introductory workshops, intermediate tutorials, and an exciting panel. Data is for everyone. All workshops are remote, but still a ton of fun.
You can register for individual workshops, or as many of the 11 offered that you want to come to.
A little cupid told us that an exciting event this year is the The Pandora Papers for Data Lovers. This is a panel from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalistsabout the process of working with these papers that expose the shadow financial system that benefits the world’s most rich and powerful. You can register here to attend on February 16th, at 12PM EST.
Wonderful librarians and staff have super worked hard to bring #LoveDataWeek2022 so come, bring friends, and show love <3
Join us for a romantic week with data and maybe even fall in love…
By Sandy Hervieux, Jessica Lange, Michael David MILLER, and Nikki Tummon
Starting one’s graduate studies can be overwhelming. To support McGill’s graduate students, McGill Library has created the workshop series Research and Publishing for Graduate Students in the Humanities and Social Sciences. This series is composed of two sessions: advanced search techniques and trends in scholarly publishing. While the workshops are complementary, it is not necessary to attend both; students can pick and choose what suits their needs best.
Discover the workshops below!
Research and Publishing for Graduate Students in the Humanities and Social Sciences: Advanced Search Techniques:
Provides graduate students with the skills to:
craft and advanced search strategy for their topics
search multidisciplinary and subject databases
conduct citation searches
set up alerts on topics in order to stay current on new research
The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and the sun has unleashed my inner gardener. Hosted by Dana Ingalls, a Liaison librarian at MacDonald Campus, the Introduction to Gardening Workshop on April 1st 2021 was a great session to encourage the McGill Community to nurture their green thumb.
With another 8 pm curfew in place, our life in Montreal seems to have slowed down again. However, this provides a great opportunity to cultivate our own little gardens using tools and many resources which are easily accessible! The Macdonald CampusSeed Library Guide on the McGill Library web site is such a great place to look – it contains lots of information on how to obtain the seeds needed, as well as all the necessary next steps to be successful! The workshop really emphasized that no matter the size of your living space, there is always a way to start a garden.
If you have a small indoor space you can start a garden by planting herbs (basil, parsley, cilantro, chives, mint…), hot peppers, cherry tomatoes, green onions, lettuce, microgreens, carrots, radishes, etc. Get some old containers, poke some holes in them, and get growing! Seed starting is very important for a healthy plant. Make sure you have a warm room, fertilizers, LOTS of light (artificial growing light bulbs are great) and seed starting soil mix (or you can sift any soil to make sure there are no rocks/chips which would prevent the seedlings from growing). April is a great time to start some veggie seeds inside, like tomatoes.
If you have a patio or small outdoor space, you can use containers and set them where available. Any size is good, depending on what you’re growing and what you have. You can even use reusable tote bags if you make sure to create drainage holes if there aren’t any. Most vegetables and herbs can be grown in containers, even the big ones like corn or giant pumpkins. To maximize space, trellises are great for climbing vegetables (cucumbers, zucchini, peas, etc.)
If you have a larger yard, you can either grow directly in the ground, or build raised beds. However, be diligent because the soil in many parts of the Montréal area is stony, and clay is common, so garden plots must be well-tilled, cleared of stones, and fertilized!
Dana’s workshop was great as it covered many topics: common pests and how to deter them, starting points for beginners, an introduction to companion planting (a great way to utilize space and the nutrients in the soil), and how to save your seeds for next season. As someone who has been intimidated by gardening for a long time, and struggles to keep a cactus alive, this workshop really made me realize, it’s just about starting strong and then committing to your little plant babies!
If you’re interested in watching the workshop recording you can click here. if you have any gardening related-questions, you can contact Dana by emailing her at dana.ingalls@mcgill.ca
