University Library E-News

What's New: Exploring Pseudoscience

The Special Collections & Archives exhibit Pseudoscience: Authority, Bias, and Humanity in the Long 19th Century, opened In August 2024. The exhibit explores the history of science as a practice, highlights selected pseudoscientific trends, and makes us think about how we evaluate and use what we presume to be authoritative knowledge. Special Collections & Archives Head Ellen Jarosz and Librarian Mallory Furnier provide insights that will help visitors get the most out of the displays.

What’s New: The Malcolm X Tape

In May of 1963, Malcolm X (later El-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz) graciously sat down to be interviewed by Fred Hardon in the back room of his family’s home on Dalton Avenue in Los Angeles. In honor of the centennial of Malcolm X’s birth (May 19, 1925), the Tom & Ethel Bradley Center would like to announce that Mr. Hardon has donated the audio and copyright to CSUN’s Bradley Center/University Library. Malcolm X’s daughter, Dr. Ilyasah Shabazz represented the Shabazz family in their support of the donation of Mr. Hardon’s recording to CSUN.

What's New: AI Working Group Bridges the Gap Between Mystery and Utility

Tools integrating artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities have been widely available for over a decade. Siri appeared in iOS products starting in 2008, and music streaming apps started predicting our preferences around the same time. OpenAI made its Generative AI ChatGPT service available in late 2022, and we are by now familiar with the “AI Overview” Google provides in response to most searches. AI’s ability to process, generate, and present information at a superhuman pace has prompted a group of CSUN librarians to explore its implications for research and instruction, and help students and faculty to engage its rapidly growing presence in education.