-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 16:36:57 -0500
From: L-Soft list server at UGA (1.8d) <[log in to unmask]>
To: Angie Cope <[log in to unmask]>
Hello, All--
It may be useful to look at the word "numeric" from a linguistic
standpoint. In several languages, the word numeric means digital.
Therefore, a Numeric Librarian is one who works with digital data. This
describes a large percentage of the subscribers to this list. Perhaps
simplistic, but at the same time straightforward. To paraphrase Jon,
there are numerous words than can be used to describe the same thing (or
librarian).
Geoff
Geoffrey A. Forbes, M.S.
LAND INFO Worldwide Mapping LLC
Tel: +1.763.428.4129
Fax: +1.303.790.9734
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Web site: www.landinfo.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Angie Cope, American
Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee
Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 2:31 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: RE: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 15:27:27 -0500
From: Redmond, Edward James <[log in to unmask]>
To: 'Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship'
<[log in to unmask]>
My head hurts.
Ed
-----Original Message-----
From: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Angie Cope, American
Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee
Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 3:09 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: RE: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 14:35:27 -0500
From: Grabach, Kenneth A. Mr. <[log in to unmask]>
To: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship <[log in to unmask]>
If I might add a little, since the most recent job posting is from my
institution.
The surmises and discussion of the numerical data are spot on. I think
geospatial data is something more or less familiar to uses of this
forum. But also, GIS work involves analysis of numerical data put into
geographical contexts. In addition to the boundary shape files and
other layers that form a map, a geodatabase uses numerical data,
sometimes in tabular form, sometimes laid out spatially, allowing for
visualization not only of the mapping data, but of the data actually
being analyzed (say demographic factors, or agricultural or natural
vegetation, etc.)
Ken Grabach <[log in to unmask]>
Maps Librarian Phone: 513-529-1726
Miami University Libraries
Oxford, Ohio 45056 USA
-----Original Message-----
From: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Angie Cope, American
Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee
Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 12:33 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian
Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 09:11:50 -0800 (GMT-08:00)
From: Jon Jablonski <[log in to unmask]>
To: Air Photo Maps, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship <[log in to unmask]>
I think (and I remember seeing a list of 'preferred skills' somewhere)
they are talking about someone to manage tabular data that is best
analyzed using quantitative methods. Libraries are looking for people
who know how to find and evaluate data on repositories like ICPSR (heck:
some libraries are looking to START repositories like ICPSR), can
walk advanced undergraduates and grad students through the process of
opening and exploring those datasets using software like R, SPSS, stata,
and a host of others.
Physical and natural sciences have a lot of that sort of thing too, and
librarians are actively working in those domains as well (digitizing
herbaria, curating genomics data), but often that work happens,
respectively, in museums (musea?) and government agencies rather than in
academic libraries.
IMHO: there is a lot of overlap between spatial and other sorts of data
that people (read: administrators) are starting to see as useful to have
in libraries. If you don't have a paper map collection to support a
full time map librarian, having a spatial/numeric person makes a lot of
sense. Add on collecting for earth and social sciences and you've got a
really versatile subject specialist/data curator/bibliographer/call me
whatever you want.
Jon Jablonski
Map & Imagery Laboratory
UC Santa Barbara
----- "Angie Cope, American Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee"
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Numeric/Spatial Data Services Librarian - Miami University -
> Oxford, OH
> Date: Wed, 07 Mar 2012 09:25:50 -0600
> From: Angie Cope, American Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee
> <[log in to unmask]>
> Organization: American Geographical Society Library
> To: Maps-L <[log in to unmask]>
>
> Anyone want to talk about the word "Numeric" used in 2 recent job
> announcements? What, exactly, does that mean? All I can think of is
> the alternatives - visual, textual - Or opposites being: connotative
> or qualitative.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Angie
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