March 8th will be International Women’s Day (IWD)! Women’s day has been celebrated in various forms by socialist and communist groups and countries for over 100 years. It became a more widespread celebration of women’s achievements and aspirations when the United Nations adopted and promoted International Women’s Day. Here at HKUST, the Library has joined the broader HKUST celebrations with an IWD 2025 Book Display. It highlights women’s achievements and work across the ages in many areas: science, technology, the arts, music, and literature, as well as in politics and labor. Celebrate IWD by taking something to read, to listen to, or to watch. As this year's HKUST IWD 2025 theme states: #Accelerate Action! Victoria Caplan Head, Research and Learning Support lbcaplan@ust.hk
I joined the first day of E-Discovery Week Exhibition. The experience proved to be nothing short of enriching. Designed to unveil the wealth of databases accessible through the HKUST Library, it blended learning with playful engagement—a combination that left me both informed and inspired. The concept was simple yet clever: Participants received a “Crewmate Pass” to collect stamps by exploring booths hosted by ten leading database providers. Spanning disciplines from Business and Science to Humanities, each booth offered a deep dive into specialized resources. What impressed me most was the hosts’ expertise—not only did they demystify their platforms, but they also shared tailored tips for navigating them through HKUST’s Library portal. It felt like unlocking cheat codes for academic success! The real adventure began with stamp hunting. With just three stamps, participants could enter a lucky draw brimming with enticing prizes. Yet, as I gathered more stamps, I realized the greater reward lay in the discoveries themselves: databases I’d never considered for assignments, now bookmarked as secret weapons for future research.
The Semester is Ending! In the midst of all the end-of-semester work, we sometimes need to relax with a good read or interesting video. Or, we like to imagine or even plan our relaxation and fun for after we've sat our last exam in December, or handed in the last section of grades (if we're a teacher or TA). Science & Science Fiction – Fuel for the Imagination For centuries, science and science fiction have been linked: inspiring happy dreams, terrifying nightmares, or thought experiments in between. Both explore and extrapolate from past and present into the future. Both fuel our imaginations. To make it easier for HKUST people to “fuel up” from now until the end of January 2025, library staff have made a Science & Science Fiction Collection Highlights. It has books and videos on interesting scientific topics and classic and recent science fiction, in both English and Chinese. The physical display of some of the print books and DVDs is near the Service Desk on the G/F. If the title you want isn’t on the table, ask staff for it at the Service Desk.
As ChatGPT celebrates its second birthday, we thought it was a good time to showcase our comprehensive collection of AI-related books that capture this transformative moment in history. Introducing our new book display: “Popular Readings on AI”—a curated selection of around 380 books, available in both print and e-format. From the latest in technology and education to the impact of AI on business, medicine and beyond, this collection is now on display at the G/F of the Library, ready for you to explore. Selecting the Books: A Fun Challenge Curating this display was both fun and challenging. We started with a giant list of over 6,000 AI-related books published after 2020, aiming to narrow it down to the best mix of popular, accessible, and informative reads—not too technical, not overly academic. As the subject librarian responsible for book selection, I spent quite some time digging into bestseller lists, reviews and recommendations from Amazon and other trusted sources. It wasn’t just about picking the top-rated books, but to represent a variety of perspectives and topics. Whether you are a tech newbie, a business leader, or interested in AI ethics, we wanted to make sure there’s something here for you. Setting Up the Display: A Team Effort Bringing this display to life was truly a collaborative effort, with colleagues from multiple teams in the library to make it happen. It all started with our Collection Development team, who compiled a comprehensive list of AI-related books from our collection for me to select the most relevant ones to feature.
Recently, we conducted a poll of potential monitors on the G/F to see which model you preferred. The Battle: October 28th – November 5th, 2024 On one side, a 34-inch curved monitor; on the other, a 32-inch 4K flat monitor. Both offer larger screen size, higher resolution, and USB-C connectivity. But which shape would dominate? Library users voted for their favorite monitor model using colorful stickers. After a few days, a clear preference began to emerge. AI Assisted Vote Tallying Visually, we could see there was a preference for curved monitors, but what were the exact numbers? It would have been tedious to count them individually. We turned to POE. The results: curved = 314; flat = 166.
Welcome to the HKUST Library! Whether you're returning from a sun-soaked summer filled with internships and travel, or you're a newcomer ready to embark on your university adventure, you will find the Library a welcoming place for you to start the new term. As you enter the library from the ground floor (G/F) entrance, you'll see a wall adorned with welcoming messages in various languages. Drop by, grab a sticky note, and add your own thoughts - whether it's your feelings about our library, an encouraging message for fellow students, or cheers for the new term! Curious about what the library offers? Register here to join our "Becoming a Learning Maze Runner" undergraduate orientation program! We'll guide you through the twists and turns of our resources and services. It's like a treasure hunt, but instead of gold, you'll find knowledge - and maybe some new study buddies too! For our postgraduate students, we've got a similar program in both Zoom and face-to-face formats and you can register here! Whether you're a freshman still finding your way around campus, a senior aiming to make your final year count, or anyone in between looking to excel academically, you will find help and resources in the Library.
You probably use a Hong Kong map often. When you check a bus route, explore a hiking trail, find your way to a restaurant …, you use a map, most likely a digital one on your mobile device. For a change of perspective, I invite you to look "up" rather than "down" on your phone – come to the Library to experience a large wall map of Hong Kong! The big map is almost 3m x 3m, mounted on a big wall on the G/F. We have had the HK map there for many years, and we recently updated it to the latest version. Not only is the color brighter and the print sharper on this newly printed map, this version has richer details of the city. And of course you can find many new landmarks, such as the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, the West Kowloon Cultural District, and the Tseung Kwan O Cross Bay Link. Come and experience the physical map offline! See if you find anything new. Happy exploration!