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Yale University
Library (posted 04-25-07)
Project AMEEL- Arabic and Middle Eastern Electronic Library
The Yale University Library today announced key international
collaborations with partners in Egypt, Germany, and
the Netherlands in two granted projects: Project AMEEL
(Arabic and Middle Eastern Electronic Library) and
Iraq ReCollection.
Project AMEEL is developing
a web-based portal, which will integrate new or existing
scholarly digital content
covering the history, culture, and development in this
vibrant region. The Iraq ReCollection project will
digitize a select group of the most important scholarly
humanistic Iraqi journals held by Yale and the University
of Pennsylvania. These digitized journals, digitally
preserved and accessible via the Internet, will form
part of the AMEEL electronic archive. Both projects
propose to develop "best practices" for scanning
Arabic language-based humanistic content and to share
this expertise with academic libraries worldwide.
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina (Alexandria, Egypt) is
the modern recreation of that city's ancient and formidable
library. Today, the BA is a world leader in library
and cultural technological innovations and contributes
its considerable expertise to Yale's digital projects,
particularly in the digitization of Arabic texts.
The Universitäts-und Landesbibliothek
of Sachsen-Anhalt (Halle, Germany) has a long and
significant history
of contributions to and library leadership in Middle
Eastern studies. Halle's university library
will contribute to the AMEEL portal with digital fulltext
materials
created from printed documents of its Middle East collection
and with data from its electronic database called ALMISBAH.
Brill Publishers, founded in
the 17th century (Leiden, the Netherlands) produces
essential scholarly materials
concerning the Middle East, including the notable Encyclopedia
of Islam. Brill will share its metadata holdings with
AMEEL, thus expanding searchable information for Middle
Eastern scholars.
About Project AMEEL: This grant was
awarded under the U.S. Department of Education's Title
VI TICFIA
Program, which fosters innovative techniques or programs
that address national teaching and research needs in
international education and foreign languages by using
technologies to access, collect, organize, preserve,
and widely disseminate information on world regions
and countries other than the United States. (www.ed.gov/programs/iegpsticfia/index.html)
About Iraq ReCollection: In
response to the damage sustained by museums, libraries,
and other cultural
institutions in Iraq, the National Endowment for the
Humanities funded an initiative called "Recovering
Iraq's Past," to preserve and document resources
which, because of their intellectual content and cultural
value, are deemed vital for research and education.
(www.neh.gov/news/archive/20051221.html)
For Additional Information,
contact: Ann Okerson, Associate University Librarian,
Collections & International
Programs, Yale University, 130 Wall Street, PO Box
208240, New Haven CT 06520-8240 (203 432-1764; fax:
203 432-8527; ann.okerson@yale.edu).
Books for Baghdad
Announces Second Drive
Jacksonville State University’s
Books for Baghdad project (www.booksforbaghdad.org)
has announced a new drive for books, supplies, and cash
donations to help rebuild the war-torn library at Baghdad
University.
Dr. Safaa Al-Hamdani, JSU biology
professor and founder of the project, said, "Our
objective includes collecting recent editions of textbooks
in math, science, medicine and technology to be sent
to war ravished Iraq. Books are being accepted now and
may be dropped off at JSU. We can also make arrangements
to pick up large contributions. In addition, we are
planning to collect computers and refurbish them. They
will be sent to the Baghdad Library to be used by the
students."
"Jeff Spurr from Harvard University
and Dr. Anwar Diab of Baghdad University will be involved
in this project," said Al-Hamdani. "Furthermore,
a committee was established in western Massachusetts
by a group of librarians to help in accomplishing the
same objective. If all comes about as I expect it, we
will have enough material to be shipped from Massachusetts
to Baghdad in the near future. We should do what we
can to help and I can not emphasize the tremendous need
for the books and computers in Iraq."
Anyone who would like to contribute
books and other gifts should contact Dr. Al-Hamdani
(256-782-5801; sah@jsu.edu).
Cash contributions can be made to the JSU Foundation,
700 Pelham Road North, Jacksonville AL 36265.
Dr. Safaa Al-Hamdani and a small group
of faculty volunteers established the Books for Baghdad
project in 2004 as an international humanitarian effort
to help reestablish the war-torn Baghdad University
library. Local volunteers were soon joined by faculty
and students from throughout the U.S. Thanks in part
to international media coverage, including special reports
on CNN, the project far exceeded its goal of 5,000 books
with a total collection of more than 11,000 textbooks
and $6,500 in school supplies.
Volunteers filled a standard
shipping container, which departed for Baghdad on January
20, 2005.
The Baghdad Museum Project
The Baghdad Museum, or the Iraq National Museum in Baghdad,
has been looted, stripping it of a priceless collection
of cultural artifacts dating back to the dawn of civilization.
As you will see from the “museum walkthrough”
(available from the website), these are major historical
treasures not only for the Iraqi people but for all
humanity as well. How can we respond to this cultural
catastrophe? This is an opportunity to promote better
dialogue among our cultures. The Baghdad Museum Project
proposes a 4-part program to not only help save the
museum but also to bring about improved relations in
the international community. The goals are to: Establish
a comprehensive online catalog of all cultural artifacts
in the Baghdad Museum to help locate them, discourage
illegal dealing in these antiquities, and encourage
their safe return to the museum’s curators in
Baghdad; create a virtual Baghdad Museum, a content-rich
website–free to the general public–based
on the Baghdad Museum collection, in order to stimulate
cross-cultural appreciation and dialogue. We anticipate
that this site would feature the best search and navigation
tools, including interactive streaming video, GIS, 3D
navigation, and online classrooms; build a 3D collaborative
workspace within the virtual Baghdad Museum, to allow
international teams to work together on renovation designs,
exhibit layouts, and new building proposals for the
museum in Baghdad, as well as fundraising programs for
construction and events; and establish a resource center
for community cultural development within the virtual
Baghdad Museum, offering experiences, ideas and success
stories that show how people can contribute creatively
to their own culture, and thereby strengthen their historical
memory. For information and or to participate, contact:
John Simmons, Chairman, The Baghdad Museum Project (JohnSimmons@BaghdadMuseum.org;
BaghdadMuseum.org).
E-Library on Migration
Resources in the Middle East
The e-library on Migration Information Resource in the
Middle East is a web-based archive containing resources
on migration-related information in the region. By using
a search engine accessible in English and Arabic, readers
are able to browse through papers, statistics, maps
and other relevant documents regarding migration in
the Middle East published by International Organization
for Migration (IOM), academic institutions, research
centers, UN bodies, government institutions and other
counterparts. For information and access, visit: www.egypt.iom.int/eLib.
Group for Music of Iran
and Central Asia (SIGMICA) Formed
Society for Ethnomusicology
(SEM)
Those interested in being on the list can subscribe
to SIGMICA’s discussion list by sending a blank
email to the following address: sigmica-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
SIGMICA began its work in November of 2003 at
a meeting held during the 48th annual conference of
the Society for Ethnomusicology in Florida. Participants
at that meeting voted unanimously in favor of forming
a new SEM special interest group titled “Study
Group for Music of Iran and Central Asia.” It
was decided that the objective of this new special interest
group should be to "promote and support the study
of the music of Iran and Central Asia and to foster
and facilitate scholarly exchange and contact among
members of the region. SIGMICA was officially approved
by the SEM board in the August of 2003. For information,
contact: Niloofar Mina (Niloomina@aol.com)
and Wendy DeBano (wdebano@yahoo.com).
Library Available
The Deborah J. Gerner
Collection (September
13, 2006)
Before her passing in
June the much-loved scholar of Middle Eastern affairs,
Dr. Deborah J. Gerner expressed her hope that the professional
library she had assembled over many years might find
a home where it could be of use to new generations of
enquiring minds. The collection comprises over 1,900
books, some 90 materials in other media, and near-complete
series of periodicals like IJMES, JPS,
MEJ, etc., from around 1983 through 2005 or
2006. Nearly all the materials are in English, are in
good condition, and were published between 1983 and
2006 (though a few are older.)
The collection would make an excellent "starter
library" for any college or research institution
seeking strongly to enhance its offerings in M.E. studies.
If we could find help in covering shipping costs, then
shipping it to a suitable institution in the developing
world would be attractive. Dr. Gerner did, however,
leave a bequest to support the incorporation of this
collection into the library of the recipient institution,
whether at home or overseas. Please contact Helena Cobban
(hcobban@gmail.com)
for further information about the collection or with
any suggestions you have regarding a suitable recipient
institution (your own or another), or possible sources
of help for transoceanic shipping.
New magazine
Alef Magazine
(September 13, 2006)
We are excited to announce the impending launch of Alef
magazine. Slated to launch in the fall, it will be the
first high fashion and luxury goods magazine for Middle
Eastern women. The magazine will be published in New
York, with distribution throughout the Middle East,
United States and Europe and it will showcase aspects
of Middle Eastern culture such as fashion, food, celebrity,
beauty, film and music. Alef’s goal is to further
cross-cultural understanding between the Middle East
and the West, using the common language of beauty to
build bridges. For further information, please contact
our editor-in-chief at sreddy@alefmag.com.
Visit the website: www.alefmag.com.
Society for Islamic Law
Formed
At the IV International Conference on Islamic Legal
Studies in Murcia, in May 2003, steps were taken to
establish a society for the study of Islamic law. This
has culminated in articles of organization filed with
the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, effectively incorporating
the “International Society for Islamic Legal Studies.”
Membership in the International Society for Islamic
Legal Studies (ISILS) will provide the following: 1.
right to attend and vote in the ISILS Business Meeting,
held at each regular conference; 2. receipt of ISILS’s
electronic newsletter; and 3. subscription to the ISILS
email discussion list. For membership and information,
contact: ISILS, c/o Peri Bearman, 1563 Mass Ave., Pound
Hall 501, Cambridge MA 02138 USA (pbearman@law.harvard.edu).
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Arabic Distrance Learning Network
Seeking Institutional Participants
Montana State University-Bozeman is looking for institutions
that want to add Arabic language to their modern language
offerings to participate in an innovation project dubbed
the U.S. Arabic Distance Learning Network, which is
supported by the US Department of Education, Fund for
the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE).
The network offers a full two-year program of Arabic
language taught through a distance-learning approach
complemented by face-to-face instruction and an integrated
study abroad component for students who want to continue
their Arabic studies. Interested parties should contact
Yvonne Rudman (406 994-4032; rudman@montana.edu).
Dr. Norman Peterson will be attending the upcoming AIEA
conference and will be available to discuss the program
in more detail. For more information about the Network,
access: www.arabicstudies.edu.
U.S. Department of Education
Readers for Grant Programs
of the Office of Postsecondary Education (March
14, 2008)
The U.S. Department of Education seeks qualified individuals
interested in reviewing applications for grant programs
of the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE). These
reviewers (also called field readers, grant application
reviewers, grant readers, proposal readers, or peer
reviewers) will independently read and evaluate applications
submitted to the Department requesting federal funds.
Your application to become a field reader will be reviewed
by OPE staff to determine whether you have the subject
area expertise needed for upcoming competitions. In
addition to having subject area expertise, you must
be able to access the World Wide Web through Internet
Explorer 5.X or higher or Netscape 6.X or higher browsers
and be willing to commit a specified amount of time
to the review process, and complete and submit this
Field Reader Application Form. If selected as a field
reader for a specific grant program, you must establish
that you have no conflicts of interest. (Conflicts
of interest are described later in the registration
process.) Selected readers will be notified via email
so it is important to keep your contact information
current. All payments to readers will be made electronically;
therefore if you are selected as a reader you must
submit your social security number and banking information
prior to the reading. The Department is moving toward
an electronic grant review process. This includes the
electronic submission of grant applications; registration,
selection, notification, and training of field readers;
and the reading of applications. Most of the discretionary
grant programs in OPE have already incorporated some
aspects of the electronic grant review (e-grants) process.
For many of the electronic grant reviews, field readers
may no longer be required to travel to Washington,
D.C. for training; review and evaluation of grant applications;
completion and submission of technical review forms;
or meeting as a panel. Field readers will be asked
to complete their grant review duties online, via a
conference call, and/or via video conferencing. For
information, or to submit application, contact: U.S.
Department of Education, Field Reader System, 1990 "K" Street,
NW, Washington, DC 20006-8513 (ope.field.reader@cbmiweb.com; http://webprod.cbmiweb.com/edfrs/).
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