The Ambulance Officers are coming!

The opening of the Monash University Centre for Ambulance and Paramedic Studies has been highlighted in other Monash publications. This new Centre will be based at the Peninsula Campus and the Peninsula Library is preparing to meet the challenge of providing library services for this dynamic group.

The Peninsula Library currently has an extensive nursing collection. This is now being expanded to include materials relating to paramedical studies and emergency medicine. The nucleus of the collection will be material from the Ambulance Officers Training Centre Library. This library, in Queens Road, will close in November when the ambulance training courses are transferred to Monash. Work is underway to integrate the collection into the Monash library catalogue and to ensure that books and journals are on the shelves ready for borrowing when the first of the year 2000 trainees begin their studies in early January.

Library staff are looking forward to assisting these students when they come into the library and they will, of course, be able to access the library catalogue and many library databases from off campus, as can all Monash students and staff. A paramedic studies tutorial is currently available in the Virtual Librarian to assist students when they are off campus and can't get to the Information Desk for help.

Regional Electronic Access and Delivery of Serials is a trial online service for researchers in physics, chemistry and related areas. It allows staff and postgraduates from the participating universities to request articles from 400 journals held by La Trobe, Monash and Melbourne universities. The articles are delivered by fax or mail directly to the requestor within 48 hours.

Many of the journals available via READS were cancelled by at least one of the participating libraries as a result of serial price inflation. READS makes these titles available to authorised users at all three universities.

Researchers can register online using a form on the World Wide Web. Once registered, access to READS is available at any time via a password login. The researcher can browse the contents pages of journals or search by keyword, author or title. If the journal is not held by their university library, articles of interest can be selected and the full text ordered. An email will advise the requestor when the article is on its way.

If you are interested in using the READS service during the trial, ask for a brochure from the library or visit the web site at http://www.lib.monash.edu.au/reads/

This trial will run until March 2000.

This exhibition centres on two of the less-well known areas of the Monash Rare Book collection: - a collection of American Science-fiction magazines from the 1920s to the 1960s and the Library’s collection of comics.

The science-fiction magazines carry such titles as Astounding, Startling, Amazing, Thrilling Wonder Stories and their eye catching covers ensure that they live up to expectations. As well as being key texts in the study of science-fiction as a genre, these publications also tell much about the attitudes between the sexes; and society's fears of otherness projected onto the concept of "the alien". The 1950s examples, throw an interesting side-light onto the cold war, showing among other things, Stalin's role in the proliferation of UFOs above America at that time.

From the comic collection are rarities such as Buck Rogers (Australian edition) no. 1, and early runs of Captain Marvel and the Marvel comics spin-offs. Also on display are a number of eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth century novels and journals by writers such as Jonathan Swift, Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, and even Carter Brown (under a pseudonym).

Monash University Library’s collection is one of the best in Australia and is capable of supporting research at the highest level in this field of popular culture.

A detailed catalogue is available for $A5.00 ($10.00 posted within Australia and $US20.00 overseas). You may also read the text of the catalogue and view the virtual exhibition online at http://www.lib.monash.edu.au/hss/rare/xhibitn.htm#scifi The exhibition closes on 29 February 2000.

Nick Pengelley

Since graduating with a BA (Library Studies) from the University of South Australia in 1986, he has gained admission to the NSW Bar in 1993, and a Masters of Law from Monash University in 1998. He is currently researching private international law for his PhD thesis.

He built a close working relationship with the Law Faculty and was actively involved in its retreat, working parties and several committees (amongst them the Faculty Information Technology Advisory Committee). Law academics hold in high regard his knowledge of both law and librarianship and his skillful marrying of these two disciplines in managing the library. In the Law School Gazette of 28 September 1999, the Faculty noted users' high level (83%) of satisfaction with the Law Library in a user survey conducted by the University Library. The result was cited as "evidence of the care and dedication shown by Nick and the other Law Library staff".

Several awards attest to his innovative work, dedication and commitment to his profession: the inaugural Australian Law Librarian of the Year Award, 1996 (jointly with Lisa Smith); the LBC Information Services Bursary in 1997; and the 1999 ALIA Award for Innovation in Victoria for his guide "Researching International Law". Tangible reminders of Nick’s energy and interest in art are the wall murals and trompe l’oeil that are favoured backdrops for graduation photos.

He is a prolific contributor to both law and library journals published in Australia and overseas, and has published several editions of "Mabo: a Source Book". Nick has worked in the High Court, the Australian Taxation Office, and the Legal Services Commission of SA. He was a consultant in 1995 for the government of Kiribati, establishing a law library for its Attorney-General. His parting words are "the Monash Law Library staff is the best I've worked with".

Sue Steele

During her involvement with automated library systems, Sue has overseen a number of complex and innovative projects such as:

• the migration of Chisholm, Gippsland and Pharmacy libraries from their respective library systems to PALS
• the Electronic Resources Directory
• the exam paper database
• a web based interface to SESAME2
• an online document delivery service

During her career, Sue has shown a great commitment to continuing education and skill development, gaining both library and computing qualifications during her time at Chisholm, and embracing the learning opportunities provided by advances in technology. Sue acknowledges that many of the opportunities that she has been offered resulted from her employment with a large institution, in a library committed to technological advancement.

Sue was involved in setting up the Campus Wide Information Service (CWIS) that was the precursor to the University web site. She was appointed as the first Monash University webmaster in 1996, a role she combined with responsibilities as Systems Librarian until 1998. Since then Sue has worked on the selection and implementation of Voyager, the new library system.

The Library will miss Sue’s exceptional skills, her resourcefulness, her brilliant and innovative mind, her sense of humour and her dedication. Her role in innovative and effective use of technology has led to very significant improvements in service provision.

Sue leaves the library to take up a position with Information Technology Services (ITS) as Web Team Leader.

With the departure of Nick Pengelley, Law Librarian, Lisa Smith will be appointed as the Customer Services Librarian (Law) with responsibility for managing the day to day operations of the Law Library and the provision of a comprehensive information service to Law Faculty staff and students. Lisa will report to the Associate University Librarian, Mrs. Chooi Hon Ho, who will take over responsibility for overall management of the Law Library, in addition to her current responsibilities for the direction of library information services, including Flexible Library Services and Document Delivery Services.

Barbara Jacoby will add Gippsland to her portfolio of site responsibilities (currently Berwick, Caulfield and Peninsula) and take on responsibility as the faculty team leader for Information Technology (in addition to Business & Economics and Art & Design). Kay Steel, Customer Services Manager (Gippsland) will continue to be responsible for the day to day operational management of Gippsland Library.