UNews - technical specialist

Oral history project brings past to life

trevor.kenney — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 22:02:45 +0000

By MIKE PERRY

In January 2009, Dr. James Tagg, Professor Emeritus of the history department, initiated a project to conduct, collect, digitize and make accessible interviews with individuals intimately connected with the early years of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

With the assistance of Graham Ruttan, a student in the Faculty of Education, the number of interviews conducted with faculty, staff, administrators, students and friends of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ has grown to 70. The interviews are between one and three hours long and provide a wealth of engaging and informative storytelling of the lives of individuals who experienced the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge during its infancy.

According to the Oral History Association, "Oral history is a field of study and a method of gathering, preserving and interpreting the voices and memories of people, communities, and participants in past events. Oral history is both the oldest type of historical inquiry, predating the written word, and one of the most modern, initiated with tape recorders in the 1940s and now using 21st-century digital technologies."

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Archives, together with the Department of History, has taken on the important role of ensuring that the collection is preserved and accessible to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community. Dr. Heidi Macdonald has assumed responsibility for the collection and has been instrumental in ensuring that the project continues to grow. Jacob Cameron, a technical specialist in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Library and working in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Archives has done most of the work required to design and facilitate the easy access to these recordings.

Karissa Patton, a student in the history program, has also contributed to this project by assisting with the biographies and transcripts first worked on by Ruttan. Ruttan spent two summers on this project, interviewing former students, creating written transcripts and conducting the research for the short biographies of the participants.

While the project is largely complete, it is still a work in progress. It can be accessed on campus from two online locations. From the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Library's homepage under the Resources tab, choose "U of L's Digital Collections" and follow the link to the collection. It is also located on the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Archives web page at digitallibrary.uleth.ca/cdm/singleitem/collection/oralhistory/id/44/rec/1.

Dr. Tagg joined the Department of History in 1969. During his tenure here, he served as assistant dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science. Tagg, who retired in 2003, devoted much of his time to the advancement of liberal education here at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ. In recognition, the U of L has honored him and a fellow Professor Emeritus, Dr. Ron Yoshida, with the Tagg-Yoshida Lectures, which emphasize the importance of liberal education to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and to the southern Alberta community.

In addition, the Dr. James D. Tagg Citizenship Award is available to continuing graduate students for academic achievement and community involvement.

This oral history project provides the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ with a distinctive and valuable way to capture the early history of our institution. Together with all the interviewees, Tagg has captured the lived experiences of individuals forever linked to the U of L. It will serve as an enduring legacy to our institutional memory.

Mike Perry is the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Archivist

This story first appeared in the February 2012 edition of The Legend. To view the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Oral history project brings past to life

trevor.kenney — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 21:34:42 +0000

In January 2009, Dr. James Tagg, Professor Emeritus of the history department, initiated a project to conduct, collect, digitize and make accessible interviews with individuals intimately connected with the early years of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

In addition, the Dr. James D. Tagg Citizenship Award is available to continuing graduate students for academic achievement and community involvement.

Mike Perry is the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Archivist

This story first appeared in the February 2012 edition of The Legend. To view the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Library projects have students helping students

trevor.kenney — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 21:57:39 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Library is involved in a pair of recent initiatives that highlight its commitment to student service.

A pilot project launched in early March is aimed to provide improved IT support in the library, especially on evenings and weekends. Computer-related questions are often asked at the Information & Research Assistance Desk or the General Services Desk, which are staffed by librarians and technical services staff whose expertise may not be in this area. While the library has an internal IT staff that takes calls during the day, this resource is unavailable after hours. Enter the Peer-Assisted Technology Support Students (PATTS).

A group of seven, newly-hired student assistants, several of whom have new media or previous computer experience, have been trained in both hardware and software issues that library staff often encounter. Software questions include those regarding Microsoft Office, Blackboard/WebCT and Moodle; while hardware issues they will be able to handle include printing problems, microfiche scanning and printing, projector and laptop use in group work rooms, problems with library computer stations, as well as the circulating equipment such as laptops, digital cameras, projectors and video cameras.

"The library has 176 distributed (sit-down) computer stations and 33 (stand-up) public access stations, which are very highly used," says Jeremy Pierson, the Technical Specialist in the library responsible for hiring and training the students. "The PATSS program will hopefully alleviate the number of technical questions received at the other service desks and provide not only improved service after-hours, but quicker response times during the day when IT staff aren't always available to immediately respond."

Pierson notes that students are often the best people to help their peers with technical issues, as they are more familiar with course software and can often be more tech-savvy.

The PATSS station will be in a highly visible location when entering the library, immediately beside the Information & Research Assistance Desk. It will be staffed from 1 p.m. to close on weekdays and during all library opening hours on weekends, including extended hours which begin closer to exam time.

The library also recently received nine new circulating Macintosh laptops, purchased by the ULSU through their Quality Initiatives Proposal fund. These replace the five laptops which were purchased with this fund in 2007-2008. Circulating laptops are a high-demand item, and requests for Macs especially, has been growing.

Through both the introduction of PATSS and the increased availability of student-use laptops, the library has partnered with students to continue to improve the library's technical services to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community.

Library projects have students helping students

trevor.kenney — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 20:48:51 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Library is involved in a pair of recent initiatives that highlight its commitment to student service.

A pilot project launched in early March is aimed to provide improved IT support in the library, especially on evenings and weekends. Computer-related questions are often asked at the Information & Research Assistance Desk or the General Services Desk, which are staffed by librarians and technical services staff whose expertise may not be in this area. While the library has an internal IT staff that takes calls during the day, this resource is unavailable after hours. Enter the Peer-Assisted Technology Support Students (PATTS).

A group of seven, newly-hired student assistants, several of whom have new media or previous computer experience, have been trained in both hardware and software issues that library staff often encounter. Software questions include those regarding Microsoft Office, Blackboard/WebCT and Moodle; while hardware issues they will be able to handle include printing problems, microfiche scanning and printing, projector and laptop use in group work rooms, problems with library computer stations, as well as the circulating equipment such as laptops, digital cameras, projectors and video cameras.

"The library has 176 distributed (sit-down) computer stations and 33 (stand-up) public access stations, which are very highly used," says Jeremy Pierson, the Technical Specialist in the library responsible for hiring and training the students. "The PATSS program will hopefully alleviate the number of technical questions received at the other service desks and provide not only improved service after-hours, but quicker response times during the day when IT staff aren't always available to immediately respond."

Pierson notes that students are often the best people to help their peers with technical issues, as they are more familiar with course software and can often be more tech-savvy.

The PATSS station will be in a highly visible location when entering the library, immediately beside the Information & Research Assistance Desk. It will be staffed from 1 p.m. to close on weekdays and during all library opening hours on weekends, including extended hours which begin closer to exam time.

The library also recently received nine new circulating Macintosh laptops, purchased by the ULSU through their Quality Initiatives Proposal fund. These replace the five laptops which were purchased with this fund in 2007-2008. Circulating laptops are a high-demand item, and requests for Macs especially, has been growing.

Through both the introduction of PATSS and the increased availability of student-use laptops, the library has partnered with students to continue to improve the library's technical services to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community.

For a look at the March issue of the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Creating a space unlike any other

trevor.kenney — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:30:45 +0000

The tag line, "If you build it, they will come," doesn't exactly work for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's Digital Audio Arts (DAA) program. They (as in the students) are already here, and they can't wait for it (the new Digital Audio Arts Studio) to be unveiled.

"It will definitely be the crowning jewel of the program," says Chris Morris, the technical specialist with digital audio arts. "It will be a state of the art recording facility as well as a critical listening and practice facility. It will be a collaborative environment for the Faculty of Fine Arts."

Digital audio arts is in just its second semester. With a full complement of 32 students and a healthy waiting list of applicants, the program is off to a rousing start. Dr. Rolf Boon and Dr. Arlan Schultz started the process six years ago. The program was created with an eye to the future, and students have definitely responded.

"Dr. Boon likes to say, 'We're preparing people for careers in music technology that may not even exist yet,'" says Morris. "Right now we're finding a lot of students are mostly interested in music production and working in a recording studio. But it's not just a music production program – it's defining audio research for the future.
"When you really open your mind, the sky's the limit in terms of what you can do. Media is everywhere and wherever there is media, there's audio, there's sound, so there will always be an opportunity with this kind of degree."

The studio is currently under construction and is scheduled to open in late March or early April. An entirely custom built facility, it has transformed what was once a static, drab, concrete-walled area into a dynamic teaching and recording space complete with hardwood floors, custom speakers and a top shelf audio console.

"Basically the whole place is custom except for the console itself," says Morris.

California-based studio designer Jay Kaufman, a specialist in working with odd spaces, was brought in to recreate the area. The result is a studio that will allow students the opportunity to learn in a professional setting, and similarly attract outside labels and recording artists.

"In terms of post-secondary education, nobody has what we'll have. We're definitely on the cutting edge of everything," says Morris. "It'll position us in a way where this is a showpiece that will attract a lot of attention."

Internally, the studio will benefit the entire faculty. Besides the hands-on learning opportunities for DAA students, new media students will be able to use it for audio work on film, the art department can utilize it for sonic art studies and music students will walk off campus and into the job market with professionally-mastered portfolios.

Externally, Morris says positioning a recording studio in an educational facility
allows recording labels to bring in artists for extended stays, housing them on campus to complete projects quickly. This opens up internship opportunities for DAA students.

"Labels always want to bring their own engineers in to work with their artists," says Morris. "To use the space, it will be mandatory that they take a few of our students as assistant engineers so that they can get experience in the studio with real engineers and real artists."

Already off to a flying start the new DAA studio promises to set the U of L apart from other music programs in the country.

"The first semester of the program was an absolute success," he says. "The feedback from the students has been great, and they love to be able to use the audio research lab we have. Once the new studio is on board, it will be that much better."

GET THE FACTS

• The DAA studio is described as a room within a room within a room. The centre room is pressure-fitted and the entire facility "floats" on neoprene pucks at all points within the concrete cavity of the space.

• The recording area is designed to be completely soundproof with lead-lined walls that are 18 inches deep and floors made of an extra-thick hardwood.

• All the walls, including the glass and the roof, are angled. "There are no parallel walls in the space," says Morris. "It's all about not having any standing waves that would be bouncing back and forth. They'll get scattered in all directions, and therefore create an acoustically sound space."

• The studio's console is the latest from Solid State Logic. The 48-channel Duality allows students to work with both analog and digital audio.

• The entire studio will be connected to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Recital Hall via 16 channels of audio, a CCTV camera and LCD screens. This allows for the recording of concerts and performances or the use of the hall as a larger recording venue for larger groups of artists, such as orchestras.

Changing habits can start before New Year's

trevor.kenney — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:25:22 +0000

By SUZANNE MCINTOSH

Did 2009 fly by for you? As we all know this has been an extremely busy and, at times, stressful year. It's at this time when many people begin to think about what they have and have not accomplished in the past year and turn to making resolutions for the New Year. This can be stressful in itself, after all who likes to make resolutions that you may never get around to or are difficult to keep?

You don't have to wait until New Year's to make some changes to your own health and wellness, and as Everett Mámor states, "Without health, there is no point. To anything."

So how to do this without adding to both your stress and to that list of things that never get done?

First step – start small! Everyone remembers the SMART acronym – Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic and Timely. As far as taking stock of your health and wellness and making some positive changes, the most important part of this acronym is "Achievable". Making sure your goals are achievable is a huge factor in determining how successful you will be.

Throughout my year here at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, I have met a number of people who have made small (and some not so small) changes to their own health and wellness by taking achievable steps. Here is a story, may it inspire you – not make you feel guilty or overwhelmed with one more thing you need to do – but prompt you to take a look at your own health and wellness and bring you one step closer to feeling less tired, having more energy, or just having some fun.

Venkat Mahadevan works as a Technical Specialist in Fine Arts, New Media. Venkat told me that a year ago he weighed 195 lbs and realized this was not an ideal weight for him. He felt drained of energy and thought it might have something to do with his diet. So he decided to cut out the "unholy trinity" (his words) of junk foods – pop, chips and sugar (especially chocolate).

Venkat started out making small changes first by cutting out a few candy bars a week, and soon started replacing these types of foods with fruit. He noticed that he was starting to lose weight. Then he did some research on what types of food he should eat and started including more vegetables, fruits and whole grains in his diet. He then cut out fried foods and white breads. Venkat says that he now avoids buying any of the unholy trinity foods at the grocery store. By summer he had lost between 46 and 50 lbs and this has stabilized over the past few months. He has noticed a positive change in his energy levels and just "feels better". In fact, when he does slip and eat some of the junk foods, he notices a definite change in how he feels after eating – and not for the better.

Recently, Venkat took one more small step; he made an appointment to see Diane Britton, Health Centre dietitian. Diane was able to add a few healthy eating tips but mostly encouraged his habits and reinforced that he was doing the right thing. He suggested it might have been more helpful to see her earlier on in his journey to healthy eating.

Suzanne McIntosh is the Health and Wellness co-ordinator at the U of L

Changing habits can be done one step at a time

trevor.kenney — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:24:32 +0000

Did 2009 fly by for you? As we all know this has been an extremely busy and, at times, stressful year. It's at this time when many people begin to think about what they have and have not accomplished in the past year and turn to making resolutions for the New Year. This can be stressful in itself, after all who likes to make resolutions that you may never get around to or are difficult to keep?

You don't have to wait until New Year's to make some changes to your own health and wellness, and as Everett Mámor states, "Without health, there is no point. To anything."

So how to do this without adding to both your stress and to that list of things that never get done?

Throughout my year here at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, I have met a number of people who have made small (and some not so small) changes to their own health and wellness by taking achievable steps. Here is a story, may it inspire you – not make you feel guilty or overwhelmed with one more thing you need to do – but prompt you to take a look at your own health and wellness and bring you one step closer to feeling less tired, having more energy, or just having some fun.
Venkat Mahadevan works as a Technical Specialist in Fine Arts, New Media. Venkat told me that a year ago he weighed 195 lbs and realized this was not an ideal weight for him. He felt drained of energy and thought it might have something to do with his diet. So he decided to cut out the "unholy trinity" (his words) of junk foods – pop, chips and sugar (especially chocolate).

UNews - technical specialist

Oral history project brings past to life

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Oral history project brings past to life

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Library projects have students helping students

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Library projects have students helping students

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Creating a space unlike any other

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Changing habits can start before New Year's

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Changing habits can be done one step at a time

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