Cassettes Galore with the William R. Jones Papers

This Spring Break was probably one of the more relaxed ones I’ve had while working here in Special Collections. While everyone was off campus, I had the pleasure of working in solitude with the William R. Jones Papers, a collection that has me handling more cassettes at once than I ever have in my life.

Spines of Special Collections

Here in the Special Collections & Archives Division of the Florida State University Libraries, we see a variety of spines on our shelves. Sometimes you get so busy you don’t pay them too much mind. Others catch your eye and bring about curiosity about what may lay inside its bindings. We often have books with

Pest Management in an Archive

What is it, and why do we need it? As we begin making bigger and better changes for the archive, one major adjustment currently being worked on is the creation of a standardized Integrated Pest Management (IPM) policy. IPM is a program put in place in order to effectively protect archives from damaging insects. For

Herbaria side by side

Herbaria are collections of different plant specimens which have been dried and preserved. They can be used for many different reasons including personal collecting and as data necessary for scientific studies. FSU even has a museum-quality collection of plants and micro-algae specimens held at the Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium. Special Collections also has a good

Principles of Astronomy as detailed in an atlas by James Ferguson

While combing through the vast amount of science related items we hold in Special Collections & Archives, I came across quite the peculiar book. I decided to scour the stacks for it as astronomy has always interested me and I was hoping for some interesting images. I knew from my initial search in the catalog

Wildflowers of North America

Special Collections here at FSU holds a large collection of books on botany and herbal medicine that go as far back as the 16th century. As much as I would love to scour through the many many herbal encyclopedia we hold, I found myself more interested in the different types of flowers and plants collected

Updating the P.A.M Dirac Collection

At the beginning of the Fall 2018 semester, I began working with the Paul A. M. Dirac Collection found in the Special Collections & Archives at Florida State University. I didn’t really know what I would come across when I got started, but the photographs in this collection would end up being the very beginning

Dirac at FSU

It wasn’t until his later years that Paul Dirac moved to work for the University we call home. In September of 1970, after retiring from his position at Cambridge, Paul Dirac moved to Tallahassee, Florida where he was appointed to work as a visiting professor for Florida State University. He was 68 at the time

1925-1933: The Years That Count

There is no question as to whether Paul Dirac was a great scientist. From his keen eye for mathematical beauties to his contributions as a pioneer in quantum mechanics, one can only argue that Dirac was anything but ordinary. Dirac’s peak was between the years of 1925 and 1933. Despite being only one of many

Paul Dirac: Early Adulthood and the Start of a Scientific Career

Paul Dirac’s record was almost flawless as an undergraduate. In three years, Dirac nearly managed to be at the top of his class in all subjects, the only flaw being a single Strength of Materials course where he ranked second. After receiving his engineering degree at the young age of nineteen, Dirac went on to