Eeeeeeeeek!
Dear students,
Books are not to be used for storing used
Jolly Rancher strawberry candies. Thank you.
Yours truly,
Conservation Services
Category Archives: Quick Pic
Quick Pic: Why You Need Your Shots
It’s flu season, but there are more shots than the flu vaccine that you should consider getting if you work in Conservation.
We deal with a lot of rusty staples, various rodent and insect “evidence” and other animal and human unmentionables in our daily routine. I always advise matching the job with the appropriate personal protection equipment (PPE) such as gloves, dust masks or respirators, and clothing that can be washed in hot soapy water.
It is also wise to make sure your tetanus vaccine is up to date. And consider a hepatitis vaccine, one sewer-overflow response in the stacks and you will thank me. Who knew conservation could be so risky?
Quick Pic: What Is She Doing Under There?
Today was board-shear maintenance day! It takes two of us to change out the blades on the shear. That’s me under the shear, and Jennifer on the right.
The arm-blade is easily removed. The base-blade has bolts holding the screws on, so they need to be loosened from underneath. Once the blades are changed we replace the clamp and check to see that it cuts square. I also put some new lithium grease on the catch basin gears while I was down there.
It’s always great to put a sharp blade on the shear. It cuts “like butter” and makes a wonderful “swishing” sound.
Note to self: don’t wear black pants on blade-changing day; and closed-toe shoes are probably a better footwear choice.
Quick Pic: Why I Wouldn’t Have Survived The Civil War
Two words: Amputation kit.
While this is a fascinating piece from our History of Medicine Collection, it does make me very happy to be living in an era of modern medicine (e.g. anesthesia).
This is in the lab for evaluation prior to being loaned for an exhibit at the Duke Medical Center Library. It’s an amazing thing to contemplate.
Quick Pic: Sometimes The Critters Win
Books always tell you what sort of lives they have lead. Sometimes those clues are very subtle and hard to tease out, sometimes it is easy to see what has happened prior to them coming to the library. Occasionally the critters win the battle if not the war.
Quick Pic: This Week In Conservation (we’re on Instagram!)
This week Duke Libraries joined Instagram! We will be posting along with our colleagues from across departments to show you the inner (and outer) workings of the library.
Our pics will be linked to the Library’s Flickr page and to the DUL Twitter account as well.
If you are an Instagram user, search for Duke University Libraries and follow us. If for some reason you cannot find it, search for #conservation, #rubensteinlibrary, or #perkinslibrary.
Quick Pic: Before There Was Power Point
Now ubiquitous, presentations that combined audio, images and text were once revolutionary and cutting edge.
Before we could do it all on a computer, multi-media presentations were put together with a mixture of photographic slides, a script, and audio tapes that contained not only the taped narration but cues to advance the slide tray. The best systems did this automatically with the inclusion of magnetic blips that “talked” to the slide projector to make it advance by itself…it was magic!
We recently got this kit into the lab for boxing. As someone who once created presentations like this, I can tell you Power Point is so much easier to use (some would say too easy…blinking cartoons flying in from stage left, anyone?).
Quick Pic: Dirty Books
Today I’m working in the fume hood with the HEPA vacuum. There is something deeply satisfying about cleaning mold and dirt from paper. We don’t get a lot of immediate satisfaction in conservation.*
*Cue the Rolling Stones or Devo, depending on your generation. Ear worms for everyone! You are welcome.
Quick Pic: Special Delivery
Only 117 days until Talk Like a Pirate Day. Arrrrrrrr!
Quick Pic: Packing A Baker’s Rack
I am drafting a presentation on packing library materials for shipping and general transportation. We use these large baker’s racks for moving oversize materials that don’t fit into boxes or flip-top bins.
There are a few more photos from our various care and handling presentations up on Flickr.