Library News

Faculty Author Series: Dr. Nicosia Shakes

*Co-sponsored by the UC Merced Center for Africana Studies

Please join the UC Merced Library and the Center for Africana Studies for a faculty author talk featuring Assistant Professor of History and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies, Nicosia Shakes. Dr. Shakes' new book, Women's Activist Theatre in Jamaica and South Africa explores the relationship between activism and theater production. Shakes examines how theater intersects with histories and geographies of oppression and resistance, the connections created by movements of people in colonial and settler colonial histories, and the ideas of womanism and feminism.

When: December 6, 2023

Where: UC Merced Library, KL 232

Time: 11am - 12pm with time for Q&A

Light refreshments will be provided.

Registration is encouraged to attend. The first 15 to register and attend will receive a free copy of the book.

For more details about the book visit the Library's event page.

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The University of California will end open access publishing support through its agreement with IEEE effective January 1, 2024. The UC libraries’ funding support for page charges will also end at that time. Reading access to IEEE publications will continue without interruption — essentially reverting to the type of agreement UC had with IEEE prior to the open access publishing pilot.

Since the pilot agreement began in July 2022, only 20 percent of UC authors publishing with IEEE have chosen to publish open access — far fewer than with UC’s other open access agreements — and of those who chose to publish open access, fewer contributed grant funds toward the open access fee than projected.

With the low number of UC authors choosing open access with IEEE, and the resulting financial costs under the structure of this particular pilot agreement, the data do not support its continuation. Cost containment has always been a top priority, and a metric against which all the University’s open access pilot agreements are evaluated. The decision to end funding support for publishing with IEEE was made by the UC Libraries in consultation with Faculty representatives from the Academic Senate, and supports that commitment to fiscal responsibility.

Even after UC’s funding support for publishing in IEEE journals ends, reading access to IEEE  publications will continue.

UC authors who publish in IEEE journals will also still be able to make their articles open access, but starting January 1, 2024, authors will once again be responsible for covering the open access fee — as they were before the pilot agreement — since funding support will no longer be available through the UC libraries. As always, authors have the option to deposit their pre-publication, peer-reviewed author accepted manuscript in an open access repository like arXiv or UC’s eScholarship for free.

UC’s open access agreements with other publishers are also unaffected. While this specific approach, for these particular disciplines, did not work out as we hoped, author participation rates for UC’s other open access agreements are generally much stronger than they were with IEEE. Open access funding support remains available to UC-affiliated researchers who publish in journals covered under these other agreements, and authors are encouraged to take advantage of it.

UC researchers with questions about this change to the IEEE agreement should contact Jerrold Shiroma, jshiroma@ucmerced.edu.

ArcGIS Story Maps Workshop 

Location: Kolligian Library Building, Gonella Discorery Room - Data Lab (KL 260)

Date: October 11, 2023

Time: 12:00pm - 1:30pm (1.5 hrs)

Audience: Campus Community, Faculty, Staff, All Students

Learn how easy it is to make an ArcGIS StoryMap! Story Maps are simple web apps that combine interactive maps, multimedia content, and user experiences to tell stories about the world.
The GIS Center will present a 1.5-hr workshop on Wednesday, October 11, in the Gonella Discovery Lab KL260 or via Zoom. 

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A new exhibition, curated by Secure Water Future, is on display in the third floor reading room of the Kolligian Library, KL355. Photographs and infographics vividly portray UC Merced's role in shaping a sustainable and resilient water future amid the uncertainties of our changing climate.

As the newest addition to the University of California system, UC Merced has swiftly risen to prominence for its water research. Nestled in the heart of a region grappling with the dual challenges of water scarcity and escalating demands, UC Merced's faculty, students, and staff have dedicated their expertise to essential work that informs water management practices and measurement techniques. Researchers also explore the implications of hydroclimatic whiplash, examine the causes and impacts of groundwater contamination, and promote cross-sector collaboration in the region. These efforts extend beyond innovative research initiatives to include nurturing the next generation of water leaders and amplifying the impact of interdisciplinary team science.

In September 2021, UC Merced received its largest extramural grant to date—an impressive $10 million from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The acquisition of Secure Water Future funding underscores the imperative to make significant strides in addressing agricultural and environmental water needs, with a particular focus on the Central Valley of California. 

The exhibition runs through May 24, 2024.

Exhibit Flyer Text:

Living In Hydroclimate Extremes: A Visual Journey into Water Rearch at UC Merced. An exhibition on UC Merced's role in shaping a sustainable and resilient water future. September 25, 2023 - May 24, 2024. Kolligian Library Third Floor, KL 355. Curated by Secure Water Future which is support by Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competive Grant no. 2021-69012-35916 from the USDA National Institution of Food Agriculture.  UC Merced Library logo. 5200 North Lake Road. Merced, CA 95343. library@ucmerced.edu (209) 228-4444

Photo of individuals sitting in a semi-circle in a stream featured at top of flyer.