March Madness is here! The DH students have their “insanity” countdowns, and the team is rallying for the big finish! There are defenses coming up within the next few weeks so we’re cheering everyone on!

There are no traditional “March Madness basketball tournament” brackets here. We’re not eliminating anyone, and we’re not counting anyone out.  Unlike the basketball tournaments, we’re not pitting teams against each other, and we don’t expect defeats.  Instead, we’re preparing each of you for victory! You’ve been practicing, working hard, training, and positioning yourselves to win.  Here are some thoughts to keep in mind as you prepare for your respective championships:

1. You can do this! You’ve come too far to turn back now.
2. You’re brilliant. Have you been reading what you’ve written? Aren’t you impressed? Of course you have more to write, and more corrections are on the way. It isn’t perfect, but you’ll work to be sure that it’s accurate.  There is always room for improvement, even after the dissertation is bound and filed (even after you’ve published it in a journal), but take a couple of minutes to appreciate and celebrate what you’ve already achieved.
3. The lessons from this journey are becoming a scholar and writing a dissertation. You’ve learned about perseverance, persistence, and determination. To those characteristics, when you work with others along the way, you can also add connection, laughter, sharing, bonding, and friendship.  The DH blog has clear evidence of that connection: http://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/blog-online-challenge/winter-challenge-2012/

Here are your rooms/training facilities at UMBC (for DH participants from UMBC, UM College Park, UMB, or those who have had consultations with Dissertation Coach Dr. Carter-Veale.)

• Friday,  March  9, 2012  from 8:30 to 11:45 AM and again from 1:15 to 5:30 PM Commons Room 318 (This room has a meeting being held between 12 noon and 1 PM, which means that everyone will have to leave for that allotted time.)
• Saturday, March  10, 2012 from 1:00 PM to 8:00 PM Commons 327
• Sunday, March  11, 2012 from 12 noon to 8:00 PM Commons 327

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• Friday, March 16, 2012 from  8:30 to 11:45 and again from 1:15 to 5:30 PM Commons Room 331(This room has a meeting being held between 12 noon and 1 PM, which means that everyone will have to leave for that allotted time.)
• Saturday, March 17, 2012 from 1:00 PM to 9:00 PM Math/Psy Room 102
• Sunday, March 18, 2012 from 12 noon to 8:00 PM  Math/Psy Room 103

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Thanks to the PROMISE team at UMBC and the UMBC Event staff for making arrangements for continuous operation of the Dissertation House. 

CIC conference for URM postdocs in STEM
May 31-June 2, 2012
Hyatt Place Columbus/OSU
795 Yard Street, Columbus, OH 43212

CIC member campuses are committed to recruiting and retaining diverse
faculty. The goal of this conference is to provide Postdoctoral
Scholars from groups historically underrepresented in Engineering and
Natural Sciences the opportunity to network and access information and
materials necessary for a successful transition to a faculty position
at CIC universities or similar research intensive institutions.

The conference is also designed to provide recruitment opportunities
for CIC departments and programs anticipating faculty hires in STEM
disciplines (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The
intent is to match potential faculty recruits with open searches at
CIC universities. For more information, see
http://www.cic.net/Home/Projects/Leadership/PostDocConference/Home.aspx

——————————————

This message has been sent to all AGEPs nationwide.  We hope that postdoctoral scholars from our PROMISE AGEP campuses and beyond will take advantage of this opportunity. Registration is free of charge.  Interested PROMISE postdocs should check with representatives from their respective campus’ office or unit of postdoctoral affairs  (representatives listed below) to see if there are funds available for travel and lodging.

• UMBC: Dr. Renetta Tull (rtull@umbc.edu)
• UMB: Dr. Erin Golembewski (egole001@umaryland.edu)
• UMCP: Dr. Arthur Popper (apopper@umd.edu)

CIC conference for URM postdocs in STEM
May 31-June 2, 2012
Hyatt Place Columbus/OSU
795 Yard Street, Columbus, OH 43212

CIC member campuses are committed to recruiting and retaining diverse
faculty. The goal of this conference is to provide Postdoctoral
Scholars from groups historically underrepresented in Engineering and
Natural Sciences the opportunity to network and access information and
materials necessary for a successful transition to a faculty position
at CIC universities or similar research intensive institutions.

The conference is also designed to provide recruitment opportunities
for CIC departments and programs anticipating faculty hires in STEM
disciplines (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The
intent is to match potential faculty recruits with open searches at
CIC universities. For more information, see
http://www.cic.net/Home/Projects/Leadership/PostDocConference/Home.aspx

——————————————

This message has been sent to all AGEPs nationwide.  We hope that postdoctoral scholars from our PROMISE AGEP campuses and beyond will take advantage of this opportunity. Registration is free of charge.  Interested PROMISE postdocs should check with representatives from their respective campus’ office or unit of postdoctoral affairs  (representatives listed below) to see if there are funds available for travel and lodging.

• UMBC: Dr. Renetta Tull (rtull@umbc.edu)
• UMB: Dr. Erin Golembewski (egole001@umaryland.edu)
• UMCP: Dr. Arthur Popper (apopper@umd.edu)

Listen up, true believers!  We’ve talked about superheroes and we’ve talked about Nick Fury.  But comics aren’t all fun and games!  Since the first modern comic book was published around the turn of the 20^th century, they have been attacked by the powers-that-be for their content, their quality, and their artistic value.  In 1954, faced with the possibility of government censorship after heated Senate hearings on the impact of comics on juvenile delinquency, publishers adopted the Comics Code, a self-censorship mechanism modeled after the film industry’s restrictive Hays Code.  The comics industry was forever changed.

The exhibit “All Lurid, Unsavory, Gruesome Illustrations Shall Be Eliminated: The Comics Code as seen through the UMBC Comics Collection,” currently on display in the Special Collections Department of the Albin O. Kuhn Library isn’t just about looking at some cool rare comics.  It’s a chance to see the ways in which the industry has changed over the past 70 years, from pushing the envelope of taste in order to sell comics, to wilting under restrictions on its creativity, and back to pushing the envelope.  We see how rare pre-Code, Silver Age and underground titles led to non-Code magazines and today’s graphic novels.

This exhibit is also an opportunity to see some fantastic original comic art from the 1970s, from legendary artists such as Jack Kirby, John Romita Sr. and Joe Sinnott.  Straight out of the Special Collections vault, these pieces have almost never been seen in public! Paired with the finished published books, they are great examples of the process of the comic book artists of the time.

So come on down, superfans!  This exhibit will be on display until May 16^th, so you’ve got plenty of time.  Special Collections, located inside the library’s first floor gallery, is open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 1-4 pm, and Thursdays from 1-8 pm.  Other hours are available by appointment. Please provide advance notice if you will be arriving via invisible jet.

To browse all of the comics available at Special Collections, enter “comic books” in the “Collection” field in the following search; or put in more specific search terms to find the exact comic you’re looking for: http://umbc.pastperfect-online.com/37467cgi/mweb.exe?request=advform

by Steve Ammidown, Special Collections Student Assistant

Image from Planet Comics #30, May 1944

Now Online

View photographs from the Hughes Company photography studio and experience Baltimore life during 1905-1940.  Find out what your neighborhood street looked like back then; compare familiar buildings and structures--such as the Hippodrome Theater and Bromo Seltzer tower--with how they look now; peruse images of Flower Mart from the 1920s; make your way through the old outdoor markets of Eutaw and Lexington Streets; or see horse drawn carts, streetcars, and early automobiles traverse the city.

The Basics of the Collection

The 2,682 glass negatives from the Hughes Company Glass Negative Collection were scanned and converted into digital positives.  The collection features images of Baltimore and environs, including street scenes, buildings, churches, schools, store fronts, monuments, and signs.  Also included are commercial photographs from local businesses and community groups, such as company portraits, student groups, advertising images, machinery, and people at work. 

The History of the Company

The Hughes Company was a commercial photography studio in Baltimore, MD founded circa 1878 by James F. Hughes. Business was good for Hughes, and the studio thrived into the 1890s.
After his death in the early 1900s, the company was sold to his studio assistant, photographer James W. Scott. The studio experienced a boom of production, generating advertising photographs for clients as diverse as Westinghouse Company and the Baltimore Sun, as well as local businesses and school and church groups. The glass negatives in the digital collection were created during this period.
In 1939, Scott trained his son, Gaither, in both photography and the operation of the studio. Gaither Scott later took over the studio and eventually moved the company to Annapolis in the 1970s, where he retired and finally closed the business.
Scott divided the collection and gave the Hughes Company negatives to three different institutions, including UMBC, the Maryland Historical Society and the Peale Museum.

How You Can Participate

You can help us enrich the collection by providing additional details about the images. If you recognize a building, a person, or know further information about an image, please email Special Collections at speccoll@umbc.edu.

Additional Resources

• Growing Baltimore is a project carried out by UMBC Public History graduate students Aiden Faust, Ryan McCormick and Trisha Okine, who created an online exhibit using images from the Hughes Company Glass Negatives Collection to illustrate expansion and development of Baltimore City from 1918-1939.
• A portion of UMBC's Hughes Company Glass Negatives Collection can be viewed on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/umbclibrary/sets/72157622584312332/.

• Case studies from Gale CaseBase and from additional publishers
• Interactive LiveCharts for economic and business indicators that let students generate their own analyses and generate custom charts for use in reports and presentations
• Inline article content that lets users explore the broader context behind events and trends they perceive in economic data
• Global company, country, and industry overviews full of detailed information, as well as interactive rankings and stats, with quick links to associated news, case studies and academic journal articles
• Global industry research reports for specific industries within specific countries
• Academic journal articles, periodical articles, news articles, newswires and other news media
• Topic overviews on major areas of international business, with quick links to associated content
• Company histories and market share data
• Faceted search results, extensive deep links, multiple sorting options

Trial access runs through April 9, 2012.  Feedback on the usefulness of this product is appreciated.  Leave a comment to let us know what you think, or contact Drew Alfgren at alfgren@umbc.edu.