Book Report Projects - YES, WE ARE READERS!

The Introduction to Interdisciplinary Studies class is on course, and one of our current projects is the Book Report:


Every student chooses a book that reflects an interdisciplinary approach (librarian Jonathan Garren has been functioning as Recommender Extraordinaire), reads a good bit of it (or all), and reports back on the disciplines the author(s) invoke, the different types of discipline-specific research or reporting methods reflected, and the challenges or successes of melding the two to create a new perspective on a process or issue.



We do have a curated set of books to work with, located in the library on the top shelf of New Releases - the books are selected based on past and current student interests in the IS200 course, and the shelf is replenished as needed. Any student is welcome to check out these books, of course!





This is what some of the current IS200 students are saying about their book choices:


"I am choosing The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. I read a sample of the prologue and was intrigued by the kind of mystery it involves. It involves situations of race, science, and moral ethics." (Sophia, 1st year IS major, PSY&EDU)

"I found two books, by the same author, Edward Tufte. They both go over the different forms of visual communication (charts, signs, Powerpoints, and so on) and explain how they can be interpreted by their intended audiences. They combine the fields of art and communication, but they also include some psychology and design." (Sierra, 4th year IS major, ART&COM)

"I am choosing Becoming Hewlett Packard by Robert Burgelman. The main discipline discussed in the book is business, but after I read the summary, I realized it was also about technology. And, since it is a biography, English!" (Angelique, 3rd year IS major, BA&ENG)

"The book that I am considering is titled Digital Humanities. [...] The disciplines explored are digital humanities and media and communication. I am interested in this book because it explores the effects of computer technology on modern society." (Kate, 4th year IS major, ART&COM)

"The book I have picked is Moneyball by Michael Lewis, and it was recommended to me by Jonathan Garren. What makes this book interdisciplinary is that it deals with business from a financial standpoint and it also deals with math and stats. And - it is about sports!" (Justin, 3rd year IS major, BA&COM)




If you want to make a recommendation for the shelf, please contact Jonathan Garren or me - we are excited about the variety on offer now, but there must be yards and yards of books about subjects we have not even thought about (yet!) that would make good additions!