It’s 2AM and your research paper on the brain physiology of serial killers is due in six hours. You realize that you are lacking the two peer reviewed journal sources that your professor demands. Hastily, you stuff all of your articles, books, and laptop into your bag and get ready to head out of the comfort of your dorm room and go to the library. But then you realize that the library is closed. Very closed – it has been for three hours! Desperately, you look to your virtual savior – Google – and try to find some sources. No luck. All of the articles you find in Google want you to pay, and you’re a college student, so that’s not an option. Now you feel doomed to failure, all because nobody was there for you during your middle of the night academic crisis. Have you ever found yourself in this situation? Have you ever desperately needed the help of a research specialist only to discover that your library is closed? Or, have you ever wanted to ask a question that is too personal or embarrassing to discuss at the reference desk?
Fortunately for you, there is a service out there that can help you with your research needs twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. AskColorado is a virtual reference program funded and staffed by the State Library of Colorado and college, public, and school libraries around the state. You can ask any research question, academic or personal, at any time of the day and you will receive help from an actual librarian.
Let’s say that you, as an Adams State College student, need help finding sources for a paper. The AskColorado librarians will use the Adams State College resources, such as Marmot Catalog and the article databases, and guide you through the process of finding relevant research. If you have a more personal question, the AskColorado staff will allow you to remain anonymous while they find reliable websites and articles to answer you.
Another great aspect of AskColorado is that it is a chat format. Many students today spend a great deal of time texting and feel comfortable communicating in that style. Chatting with a librarian on AskColorado is very similar to texting. In fact, the AskColorado staff members make a point of keeping up with the texting abbreviations and lingo!
Two Adams State College librarians, Brooke Andrade and Paul Mascareñas, answer reference questions on AskColorado; Paul works from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM on Mondays and Brooke has the 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM shift on Thursdays. You can access AskColorado two different ways. From the Nielsen Library website, go to the Reference Services link and choose AskColorado. You can also go to the service directly at http://www.askcolorado.org.
1 comment:
Bolton? Blargggggg, plop
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