Location & Contact Information

First floor, north wing of the Science Center, 119 Woodland and Lorain Streets (Rte. 511)
Adjacent to the Perlik Commons (atrium in the building's center).
Parking : across from the Woodland Street entrance, near the tennis courts.

Email: slibrary@oberlin.edu
Service desk: 440-775-8310
Head, Science Library: 440-775-5146

Floorplan

Study Spaces - please note, face coverings must be worn at all times, in all spaces, in the science library as long as the COVID pandemic continues.

Study Carrels Carrel application [PDF]

Changes in the carrel assignment practice are being considered, given the need to "de-densify" seating in the library due to the pandemic.

• 31 carrels are available for semester-long reservation; this may be reduced by half.
• declared science majors are given first consideration, based on seniority, but all students are welcome to apply
• carrels are numbered; indicate your preference on the carrel application [PDF] (paper copies available at the circulation desk)
• applicants must agree to abide by carrel regulations, printed on the carrel aplication form
• carrels must be cleared at the end of each semester
• students leaving trash or food waste in a carrel are subject to a cleaning fee at any time

iMac Lab

Details:

• 15 iMacs; only 9 computers may be used during the COVID pandemic, to keep people at a safe distance from one another.
• 1 printer
• 1 instructor workstation plus ceiling mounted projector
• white board

Available: anytime the library is open, except when scheduled for instruction sessions

Make a reservation:

• in person at the science library circulation desk;
  
• by phone 440-775-8310 or
• email slibrary@oberlin.edu.

Oberlin.edu users may view the iMac Lab Reservations calendar from your OCMail google calendar login; just search for it in "Other Calendars" (bottom left of the calendar sidebar).

Software and Hardware Maintained by the Center for Information Technology.

Group Study Rooms

Two rooms, able to accommodate only 2 people at a time in each room, at one large table:

• Use of the rooms will be closely monitored, to be sure the 2-person limit is observed. Students completing exams are given preference in use of the room.

One group study room (N175) also functions as the drop-in tutoring center for CLEAR Quantitative Skills Center; this will occur remotely by Zoom or other application.

Make a reservation: in person, on the reservation form posted at each room; call 440-775-8310; or email sibrary@oberlin.edu.

More group study rooms are available in the Mary Church Terrell Main Library.

History

The current library opened in August 2001 with the combined collections of the Kettering (Class of 1904) Science Library and Wright (Physics Reading Room), with the addition of selected materials from Main (all items with LC call numbers beginning with Q, QB-QR, S, TD, TN, TP).

Collections

• Size of Collection: 111,500 volumes (books and journals combined), including materials in Carnegie storage.
• Primary subjects: astronomy, biochemistry, biology, botany, chemistry, geology, neuroscience, physics, zoology
• Also collected: history and philosophy of science, science education, agriculture, environmental technology, soil science, health and medicine.
• Government documents: U. S. Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency, Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service, Geological Survey, National Institute for Standards and Technology, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.