Luther Seminary Library

Concept Mapping — Use both sides of the brain!

When you are faced with a challenge how do you do your best thinking? Are you logical and analytical, or more abstract and random? Are you a Right Brain Thinker (intuitive, synthesizing, subjective, random, holistic)? Or a Left Brain Thinker (logical, sequential, rational, analytical, objective)?

Do you consciously try to balance your approach to a problem or question? Concept Mapping (also known as Mind Mapping) is a tool that helps you think through complex problems, summarize information, or plan projects in a more visual way. It can help you to step away from a one-sided approach and take a look at another way to organize your thoughts, or a project.

The following example of a concept map comes from Mike Wazowski's blog Learner-Shaped Technology. Mike used concept mapping software (Cmap Tools) to give us a closer look at Superheroes and the issues they deal with.

According to Joseph Novak, emeritus professor at Cornell, "concept maps are graphical tools for organizing and representing knowledge." Novak is well known for his work on concept mapping. A technical report on his ideas and methodology is available here: download. In the corporate world Tony Buzan is the developer of what he calls "Mind Maps." Check out his site to see colorful, graphic-laden examples.

The Web Center for Social Research Methods describes concept mapping as a "structured process, focused on a topic or construct of interest, involving input from one or more participants that produces an interpretable pictorial view (concept map) of their ideas and concepts and how these are interrelated." They go on to say that concept mapping helps people to manage the complexity of their ideas without trivializing them or losing detail.

Reasons to use Concept Mapping

• Learning Tool
• Evaluation Tool (products, processes)
• Consolidate information from multiple sources
• Summarize information
• Reveal hidden patterns, connections between elements
• Think through complex problems
• Change the way people think about data
• Remember complex information
• They are fun!

How to Create a Concept Map

Hal White's site proposes that you use the following as a way to create and organize your concept map. Check out his site for more details.

1. Brainstorm: Identify facts, terms, ideas. Put each one on a Post-it Note.
2. Organize your concept terms into groups and sub-groups, create hierarchies
3. Layout: create a layout that reflects your understanding of relationships and connections
4. Link the concepts, define relationships
5. Finalize: add images and color

You can keep it simple. Use Post-it Notes with a big tablet of paper to create your concept map. If you prefer to use software there are many programs available. Ryan Torma (Director of Learning Design and Technology) has used Xmind for website development. A few other sites are listed below. There are many free, open source options for concept mapping software.

Websites about Concept Mapping

http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/mapping/mapping.htm

http://www.studygs.net/mapping/

http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/03/08/three-web-based-mind-mapping-tools-reviewed/

Concept Mapping Software

http://www.xmind.net/

http://cmap.ihmc.us/conceptmap.html

Watch the recorded video from the Tech Talk on Concept Mapping

-J Bartholomew, electronic services

Elementary, my dear young theologian, elementary

                We’re back from a blogging hiatus over January term.  I hope your J-term was productive -- or not, depending on your need.  Some of yours, I’m sure, were more ambulatory than others, involving walks (or perhaps jogs) through airports on the way to some far-flung locations, and then more walking once you got there.  Even those of us who stayed here, however, found walking on the ice covered sidewalks and streets of St. Paul to carry its own brand of excitement and adventure.

                There was not a break from reading, however.  In Minnesota, January and reading are made for each other and last month I came across a book I would highly recommend for those who have even a passing interest in knowing more about the impact that the doctrine of predestination has had in American church history.  The book is Predestination: the American Career of a Contentious Doctrine (Oxford University Press, 2009).  Its author is Peter J. Thuesen, a church historian who teaches at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis.  Thuesen writes that predestination has been “one of the most important but unacknowledged sources of discord in churches across the denominational spectrum.”  Calling his work an “intellectual history,” Thuesen examines how struggles to understand and teach a doctrine of predestination led to numerous feats of interpretive gymnastics which, in turn, precipitated arguments, divisions, and general rancor in their wake, leaving few parts of American Christianity untouched.

            In particular, I found fascinating the chapter discussing how North American Lutherans agonized over predestination.  The rifts that came about during the decade of the 1880s when the controversy reached its peak altered the future course of Lutheran denominations and institutions.  One example of the mind-numbing nature of attempts to reconcile predestination with other biblical teaching came in an 1881 colloquy held in Milwaukee.  Disputing factions within the Synodical Conference met to debate all the key passages on predestination, but after 10 sessions they had hardly moved beyond Romans 8:29, (“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined . . .”).  As Thuesen relates, “the correct sense of the verb ‘foreknow’ prompted days of disagreement.”

            Thuesen has written a first-class work of church history, telling in an engaging way the story of how a doctrine marched across and changed the landscape of Christianity in America.  To browse our library's holdings of this and other books on  predestination, the following heading will provide a good list -- BE

	Predestination --History of doctrines

The Last Post

 This blog post is being composed a long ways from Luther (I'm spending the Christmas vacation with extended family in a suburb of Vancouver, Canada), but that doesn't mean Luther is not on my mind.

An unusual New Years' Eve, in several respects: a long way from home, and today marks not only the last day of 2009 but my final day as an employee of Luther Seminary - I officially begin my new position at Bethel University this next Tuesday. A good time to look back in gratitude at exactly five and a half years as Director of Library Services. What will I remember most fondly?

1. a superb library staff: Judy, Mary Ann, Jennie, Paula, Judy, Bruce, Karen and Trisha are all that any library director could ask for in a group of colleagues. Talented, resourceful, collegial, and always a pleasure to work with.                                                                     
2. a beautiful library to work in: okay, I didn't say a library that was uniformly beautiful, but Luther's has some of the most attractive and pleasant spaces (the Reading Room, the Rare Books Room, etc.) I've ever seen. And while we are on the subject, I will miss my office with its leafy view of the Gullixson/Bockman part of the campus, and the birdfeeder on my window with its varied clientele.
3. A community that values (in vastly different and always changing ways) its library.

Don't get me wrong - I'm both eager and enthused about the challenges of my new position, but Luther has been a good place, in which I have grown in my work, and I will always think of my time here with respect and gratitude.

So, as 2009 comes to an end (in the words of that old New Years' standby) Auld Lang Syne (whose author, Robert Burns, is pictured above), "there's a hand, my trusty friend(s)" and God's best to all of you in days to come.

Cheers,

David Stewart

Among the Giants

There is a book listed on Amazon called "1000 Places to See Before You Die."

Looks interesting, but in a slightly less morbid vein, let me suggest at least one of the places to see in the library before you graduate: the Group Study Room just adjacent to the computer workstations in the public services area of the library.

It's a great place to study – maybe one of the quietest and best-lit in the library – but along the wall to your right as you enter is the best part of the library's oversize/art books.

Amazing stuff, but a bit obscure in its location, and definitely on the hefty side.

Some sample titles: Icons, Art of Florence, Treasures of Prehistoric Arts, The Plan of St. Gall (a renowned Benedictine monastery in Switzerland), Carved Splendor: Late Gothic Altar Pieces (see cover photo to the left), and The Complete Work of Raphael (surely one of the heaviest books in the library's collection).

At a time of the semester that places many demands on the mind, here's a perfect opportunity to feast your eyes on some timeless treasures.

DRS

GusDay 10

Last week, several seminary staff members (the Learning Design and Technology team: Kris Payne, Dan Ruth, and Ryan Torma; Jana Ratkovich and Nunu Vongsouvan from Computer Services; our webmeister, Jim Dudley, and I) spent a day at Carleton College, attending GusDay 10. This is an annual event “designed for the technology staff from the Minnesota Private Colleges and other like-minded institutions to gather and share successes, challenges, strategies, and friendships.” The Carleton staff, all decked out in colorful shirts to go with a Hawaiian conference theme, provided warm hospitality, good food, and door prizes. Kris Payne continues to be the lucky winner at GusDay. Last year she won an iPod, this year she took home a reconditioned laptop.

There were a number of interesting sessions on topics ranging from Windows 7, project and software management, cloud computing, and web design. Kris, Dan, and Ryan presented on “Creating Engaging Online Courses.” The Learning Design and Technology group has created lots of excellent content to support online classes at Luther and their session was one of the few that is addressing this need in the region. http://www.luthersem.edu/orientation/default.aspx?im=171

One of the nice things about Gus Day is the chance to visit other campuses and see what resources their tech staff are supporting and what the priorities are for their campus culture. It’s also a great chance to network. New ideas and ways to collaborate are increasingly important in these times of budget challenges. A highlight of the Carleton campus tour was our visit to the server room where our host waxed eloquent on the server racks, the fiber-optic cabling, the voltage, and other details that make “his baby” unique. We saw first-hand how providing uninterrupted access to the computer side of learning and communicating requires knowledge, resources, and creativity.

 
This is true at Luther Seminary. Our team of tech experts is doing a great job, working with the challenge of reduced budgets and competition for resources. Thanks be to God for all the men and women who work hard to make our access to technical resources seem easy.

— Jennie Bartholomew, e-services librarian

Giving Thanks for "Giving Thanks"

One of the reasons I have come to like Thanksgiving Day more through the years is my increasing enjoyment of the radio program “Giving Thanks.”  The program is expertly hosted by John Birge and can be heard on public radio stations around the country every Thanksgiving (check your local listings).  Each year the broadcast follows the same simple format: reflections on, as the program is subtitled, “fall, food, and gratitude” by noted authors and poets, interspersed with delightfully rich seasonal music, both choral and instrumental.  Previous guests have included poet Rita Dove, Rabbi Harold Kushner, and writer and food critic Calvin Trillin, who presented his case why spaghetti carbonara, instead of turkey, really should be our official meal at Thanksgiving.

However, my favorite part of the broadcast, a segment repeated every year, features a recording of actor Charles Laughton narrating the experience of his first trip to Chartres cathedral as a young man, followed by a return visit many years later.  The two visits are connected by an encounter, each time, with the same local guide, who, Laughton came to realize, had had a profound influence on him, extending far beyond their first meeting of only a few hours.  The dramatic rise and fall of Laughton’s voice, his theatrically trained narrative skill as he tells his story, is a pure delight.  For me, it isn’t Thanksgiving without listening to a least a portion of this exquisite program.  Busy on Thanksgiving?  Here’s an additional something to be thankful for, the program is archived on the American Public Media website.  Happy Thanksgiving!

be

Free Internet Resources — Who Can You Trust?

Whenever I hear someone talking with persuasive intent about information they “found on the internet,” the prickles at the back of my neck go up. This confidence invites a closer look at the website. This may seem cynical but you have probably heard the phrase, “lies, d--mn-d lies, and statistics.”Growing up it was not unusual during dinner table conversations to hear my father, a statistician, illustrate how someone had used numbers to draw faulty conclusions and mislead people.

There are many excellent, free sites on the web. You may find exactly what you need as you search...but if you aren't familiar with a site, take the time to play detective and find out who or what lies behind them. Are they trustworthy?

Several libraries have pulled together evaluative criteria and checklists to evaluate web resources. Take a look at what Cornell has to say about “Accuracy, Authority, Objectivity, Currency, and Coverage.” Southwestern Oregon Community College  goes with a more standard, “Who, What, When, Where and Why?”

We are confident that the subscription databases we offer through the library’s website are good quality and provide excellent resources for your research. It's also possible that you may be seeking information that is available in its most current form on the web. Government agencies, academic institutions, and private foundations all offer wonderful, yet sometimes hidden treasures on the web. Seek and ye shall find!

Random examples

The Dictionary of North American Hymnology

Minnesota Digital Collections: Search this collection for 48 images of Luther Seminary buildings, faculty and students. 

ELCA archives

Wabash Center's Internet Guide to Religion

Luther Seminary Archives: The Prodigal Son art collection (High-quality JPEG images) are available for educational use to anyone with a Luther Seminary login.

Luther Seminary has www.EntertheBible.org  and www.workingpreacher.org

Academic digital repositories:

UCLA’s The Encyclopedia of Egypt

Yale Divinity's digital image collections

Harvard Divinity

— JKB

 

This image comes from Wordle—a fun way to create word clouds out of text you've written. It's an interesting compromise between image and text.

Architects of Grace

I used to confuse Christopher Wren with Christopher Robin.  When I heard Wren I thought Robin and in my mind I would see Winnie the Pooh and his friends, only to be more confused when the context just didn’t fit.  I haven’t made that mistake for quite awhile, but I have to admit that, until recently, I probably knew more about Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, & company than the famous architect of St. Paul’s Cathedral and many other notable parish churches in and around London.

My knowledge deficit has been swiftly and surprisingly remedied, however, by the wonderful gift to the library of a collection of books all having to do with the life, times, and accomplishments of Sir Christopher Wren.  Wren (1632-1723) was a Renaissance figure.  As professor of astronomy at Oxford, he was also skilled in mathematics and engineering.  He gradually made his way to architecture.  Having successfully designed buildings for several Oxford colleges, the Great London Fire of 1666 afforded him the opportunity to design 52 of the 87 London churches destroyed in the fire.  Wren’s crowning achievement was the design for the rebuilding of St. Paul’s Cathedral.  The Cathedral, whose 300^th anniversary is fast approaching (January, 2011), was constructed over a 35-year period, “the sole English cathedral built from start to finish under the supervision of its original architect.” (Judith Dupre, Churches, 68).

On Thursday, October 29th, a number of these volumes of Wreniana will be on display as the object of the library’s annual Special Collections open house, 10:30 am-2:00 pm.  Included in the showing will be several rare and unusual items, one among them being an elephant folio or “elephantine” size volume of “the dimensions, plans, elevations, and sections” of Wren’s London parish churches.  You wouldn’t lose this book under the sofa cushions.

The books are a gift from Mr. and Mrs. Edward Sovik of Northfield, MN.  Ed Sovik, himself an architect, had developed a strong interest in the life and work of Christopher Wren and collected these pieces throughout a distinguished career in architecture.  We are extremely grateful for this exceptional gift from Ed and Anne Sovik, a delight for the eye, the mind, and the spirit.

BE

KINDLE 2 REVISITED

I don't make a habit of quoting myself, but since this is a return to an earlier topic, let me make an exception.

I said, on this very blog, back on February 27 of this year, that

"there is no reason not to wish Amazon well [with its release of the Kindle 2), but for now what they are doing and what libraries like ours are doing are complementary, not in competition."

Ten months have passed, during which I have made pretty frequent use of the library's Kindle 2. How does that earlier claim stand up now?

A few observations, unscientific and anecdotal:

1. I'm increasingly comfortable reading off a Kindle screen. In other words, it feels less and less like a "transition" from printed page to digital display.
2. I'm curious to know if I actually find reading easier from a Kindle than from a printed book.
3. I find at least some of the features of reading from a Kindle (e.g. the capacity to create notes on the Kindle as I read) intriguing.
4. When traveling, I value the small size and weight of the Kindle.

There is nothing particularly surprising or earth-shattering in this. It's just my notes to myself as I make yet another adjustment to a new medium, the sort of shift that is required of all of us, with increasing frequency.

The main issue, at least for me, is resisting the either/or mentality.

I'm a librarian, and it could be argued that I therefore have a bigger state than most people in how the relationship between print/digital plays out.
But from my experience so far, I am less concerned all the time about what the medium is, and more interested in what medium/media foster more and better reading.

Isn't that what matters most?

DRS

Wikipedia as Punching Bag

When the subject of Wikipedia comes up among academics, I've seen lots of different responses (almost all of them negative): rolling-of-the-eyes, tisk-tisking or harrumphing, hasty disavowals are among the most common.

If responses of this variety demonstrated only the view that Wikipedia was less-than-perfect, or that Wikipedia is no substitute for a library, I'd have no objection. But what I am usually picking up is far more disdainful than that, and (what's worse), responses that often don't seem suggest an accurate sense of what Wikipedia is (and isn't), or of how it works.

I can almost hear the shouts of "heresy" already, but let me offer a good word or two, if not in praise of Wikipedia at least in favor of critiquing it more insightfully.

All resources - whatever their pedigree, whoever is responsible for them, and in whatever medium they appear – are fair game for informed scrutiny, but if we are going to judge Wikipedia,

• Let it at least be on its own terms – as a colossal co-operative venture, which at least potentially draws together a vast community of people with an interest in a given topic.
• Let's be clear which version or edition we are judging. Because, unlike even the most distinguished reference source in print, Wikipedia is not the same today as it was yesterday.
• If we are going to use comparisons, let's at least make them reasonable and balanced. Far too often I find that some randomly-selected weak item from Wikipedia is held up against an exceptionally fine entry from a print volume. These comparisons prove very little.
• We ought to bear it in mind that when a given entry is incomplete or still in development, at least an effort is made to tell us so.
• We have access to a much broader community of learning than when we limit ourselves to print. There is a growing understanding of the value of the "community of enthusiasts," as well as of the better-known "community of scholars."

Is Wikipedia an alternative (intentional or not) to a library? Nope, but it doesn't claim to be, either.  It's just another resource to evaluate (the kind of evaluation the library community is supposed to excel at), though it just happens to be a resource which is extremely convenient, as well at least capable of being continually improved (have you tried authoring or editing an entry? Or tracking its history ?), and continues to expand dramatically.

In other words, a resource that merits critique that is balanced and well-informed.

DRS