In October, November and early December, UCLA librarians and staff will share their expertise across dozens of events — from research and data science workshops to lectures and film screenings — presented by UCLA Library to help new and returning students, faculty, staff and other researchers flourish in their work and advance knowledge. 

Featured events include “Remote Control,” with topics ranging from managing remote classes to building online relationships with classmates and instructors; “Getting Started with Research at UCLA,” which offers tips on where to find research help and how to begin; “Tidy Tuesday: Open Lab for Data Cleaning,” an opportunity for researchers working in R, Python or other programming languages to bring their own data or to work on collaborative projects; and other workshops focusing on how to develop a research question, write a literature review, collect and cite sources, and find archival and primary source material online. 

Other program highlights include “Japanese Studies and Rare Materials,” a webinar with leading scholars from Keio University, Yale and the University of Oregon, and “Virtual Screening Room,” a series of films, television shows and newsreels presented by the UCLA Film & Television Archive, a division of UCLA Library. 

Most events are free, and most are open to the public. For more details and a complete listing of events, see the UCLA Library calendar. 

Welcome Bruin events

Oct. 15: New and returning students, faculty and staff, and other library patrons are invited to the Music Library’s Fall Virtual Office Hours to learn about their collections and services.

Research workshops

Oct. 20; Nov. 3, 17; Dec. 1: Practice and sharpen data skills at Tidy Tuesday: Open Lab for Data Cleaning. Participants are welcome to bring their own data or work on collaborative projects in a semi-structured format open to users working in R, Python or other programming languages.

Oct. 8: At Remote Control: How to Manage Your Remote Classes, strategies for creating optimal study environments while navigating unexpected challenges will be shared. Learn about time management apps and methods for setting boundaries to improve academic success.

Oct. 8, 13: Interested in research and not sure where to start? Learn about the research process and where to get help with your questions at Getting Started with Research at UCLA. This workshop is also available asynchronously. 

Oct. 15: Attending classes and interacting virtually can be an adjustment. Remote Control: Making Connections features a conversation centered around building relationships with classmates, instructors and colleagues in a new remote landscape.

Oct 15: At Developing a Research Question, participants will learn methods for topic exploration and narrowing down their research focus.

Oct. 20: Improve productivity and reading comprehension at Remote Control: Reading Efficiently, Humanities, centered around strategic reading skills for studies in the humanities.

Oct. 22: Improve productivity and reading comprehension at Remote Control: Reading Efficiently, Sciences, centered around strategic reading skills for studies in the sciences.

Oct. 22: There is more to search than Google. Learn effective search strategies at Finding Sources at the UCLA Library and explore the best sources for finding needed information.

Oct. 29: At Open Data and Tableau, participants will learn about free data visualization software and how to utilize it in data sharing and analysis. Explore creating maps and charts and how to tap into open data repositories to refine research questions.

Oct. 29: Create engaging and compelling presentations after attending Presentation Strategies and Tools, where the focus will be on how best to connect with your audience.

Oct. 29: Questions about citing sources and plagiarism will be answered at Collecting and Citing Sources. Learn how to track sources and auto-generate your bibliography to avoid problems down the road.

Nov. 3: How do researchers use source materials to inform their research? That will be covered at Finding Online Archival and Primary Source Materials, in tandem with addressing how to search, retrieve and cite online sources.

Nov. 5: What is Scrivener? Find out at Introduction to Scrivener, where participants will explore how to use the writing application for long-form writing projects. The workshop will cover core concepts, as well as topics including view modes, metadata, tagging and more.

Nov. 5: At Writing a Literature Review, participants will learn strategies for presenting their work and tips on where and how to get published.

Nov. 10: A hands-on approach will be used in Introduction to QGIS, which covers Quantum Geographic Information Systems, an open source software platform. Beginners to mapping will leave the workshop having created a map using spatial analysis tools.

Nov. 12: How can researchers use Microsoft Excel to conduct research? Explore basic and advanced techniques for working with data, including formatting and joining data sets at Excel for Research.

Nov. 12: Manage projects efficiently with lessons from Developing Your Research Plan. Participants will learn how to create a project timeline and keep research goals on schedule.

Nov. 17: Explore the world of geographic information and digital humanities at Introduction to Mapping and Digital Gazetteers for the Humanities, featuring an associate editor of the Pleiades gazetteer of ancient places, an authoritative source for data on over 35,000 ancient locations in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Nov. 19: The meaning of data will be explored for a better understanding of its role in answering research questions at Introduction to Data Literacy. Learn how data impacts how we understand the world and what resources are available for using it in research.

Nov. 24: Library resources from across disciplines will be shared as a source of inspiration at Using the Library Remotely for Creativity and Inspiration, encouraging creative exploration.

Dec. 3: Don’t be daunted by organizing research data. Tools for Research in the Field and Archive examines tools and strategies researchers can adopt to collect, organize and store data.

Dec. 10: At Computational Text Analysis with Voyant, participants will be introduced to the basic workflow, terms and output they may encounter when undertaking a text mining project. 

Lectures

Oct: 20, 23, 27: The UCLA Richard C. Rudolph East Asian Library presents its Japanese Studies and Rare Materials Webinar Series. Leading scholars in Japanese studies from Keio University, Yale and the University of Oregon will introduce rare materials belonging to two exciting genres in the field: Kohitsu Tekagami and Saga-bon. The series will be offered in English or in Japanese with simultaneous English audio translation.

Screenings

The Film & Television Archive continues its Virtual Screening Room series with a dynamic schedule of films, television shows and newsreels, many from the Archive’s extensive holdings. Curated by Archive programmers, the Virtual Screening Room supports the Archive’s mission of offering access to unique moving images that provide insight into diverse communities and our shared cultural history.

Finals week activities

Dec. 10–18: UCLA Library knows how stressful finals week can be, and we’re here to help. Virtual Stressbusters will feature therapy dogs, arts and crafts activities, and more.