UCLA Science and Engineering Library: A Comprehensive Guide to Resources

The UCLA Science and Engineering Library (SEL) is an invaluable asset for students, researchers, and faculty within the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science (HSSEAS), as well as the departments of physics and astronomy, atmospheric and oceanic sciences, chemistry and biochemistry, mathematics, computer science, and statistics. SEL comprises several branches, including SEL/Boelter, which maintains a research-level collection, and SEL/Geology, which specializes in earth sciences. This guide provides a detailed overview of the resources and services offered by the UCLA Science and Engineering Library, including its extensive online collections and physical locations.

Physical Locations and Resources

The Science and Engineering Library encompasses several key locations, each offering unique resources and services.

SEL/Boelter

SEL/Boelter focuses on meeting the information needs of HSSEAS and related science departments, maintaining a comprehensive research collection.

SEL/Geology

SEL/Geology houses the library's geology collections and provides a quiet reading room, circulating stacks, group study rooms, and laptop lending services. It specializes in geology, geochemistry, geophysics, space physics, planetary science, seismology, and regional geology. The library also collects publications from state geological surveys and many international geological surveys.

William C. Putnam Map Collection

Adjoining SEL/Geology is the William C. Putnam Map Collection, which holds ninety thousand topographic and geologic maps. It serves as a depository for USGS geologic map series and topographic maps for California, Nevada, and Arizona.

Services Available at All Locations

All SEL locations offer various services to support learning and research:

ADA Stations: Accessible workstations for users with disabilities.
Computer/Laptop Access: Availability of computers and laptops for research and academic work.
Laptop Lending: Loaner laptops for students and researchers.
Print, Copy, and Scan: Facilities for printing, copying, and scanning documents.
Research Help: Assistance from librarians and staff for research inquiries.
Spaces for Collaborative Work: Group study rooms designed to foster collaborative learning.
Research Consultations: Personalized consultations with librarians to assist with research projects at every stage.

Accessing Online Resources

The UCLA Library provides access to a vast array of online resources, including databases, e-books, journals, and articles. These resources are accessible both on campus and remotely to current students, staff, and faculty at UC campuses via Single Sign-On, after choosing University of California, Los Angeles from the list of institutions. (Note: Community use is not allowed.) All e-books and reference works can also be found in UC Library Search.

Key Databases and Online Collections

The Science and Engineering Library offers access to numerous specialized databases and online collections:

Comprehensive Science and Technology Resources

Access Science: A repository of fully searchable engineering content providing full access to thousands of articles, dictionary terms, illustrations and graphics, bibliographies containing literature citations, and hundreds of Research Updates in all areas of science and technology, updated daily. It also includes biographies of more than 2,000 well-known scientists from the Hutchinson Dictionary of Scientific Biography.

Chemistry Resources

ACS Symposium Series: Peer-reviewed books developed from the technical symposia of the ACS national and regional meetings. Along with chemistry, covers nanoscience, chemical education, polymers, renewable materials, medicinal chemistry, food and agricultural chemistry, and environmental science. Includes the earlier Advances in Chemistry series and The ACS Style Guide.
CHEMnetBASE: Complements the databases of CHEMnetBASE with dozens of resources, references, and CRC handbooks. Chemistry topics covered include: analytical, industrial and applied, inorganic, materials, medicinal, organic, physical, polymer, and surface & colloid.
SciFinder-n: The interface for the most comprehensive index to the chemical literature and related sciences, including chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, & nanotechnology. Search 52 million article, patent, and conference references, the CAS Registry of 161 million chemical substances (many include property data) & CASREACT database of 126 million chemical reactions and preparations. Search by topic, reaction, or chemical substance (Registry number, structure, substructure).
Reaxys: Access to Beilstein's Handbuch der Organischen Chemie, and Gmelin's Handbuch der Anorganischen Chemie.

Engineering Resources

ASCE Library: Database containing the bibliographic records of publications and proceedings from the American Society of Civil Engineers.
ASTM Digital Library: Includes ASTM International's books & manuals, journals, and conference proceedings (Selected Technical Papers, or STPs).
Compendex: Contains citations and abstracts to over 5000 engineering journals from 1884 to the present, conferences and technical reports in the fields of chemical and process engineering, computers and data processing, applied physics, electronics, communications, civil engineering, and mechanical engineering.
Earthquake Engineering Abstracts: Bibliographic database with abstracts of books, technical reports, journal articles, conference proceedings, etc. related to earthquake engineering and earthquake hazards reduction published since 1971. Includes works on structural engineering, geotechnical engineering, and engineering seismology. Coverage is worldwide and includes more than 120 technical journals.
IEEE Xplore E-books: Provides Web access to more than over 1,000 eBooks from the fields of electrical engineering, computer science and electronics from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Materials Science Resources

Materials Science Citation Index: Featuring content from 1962 to present, supports numerous areas of both materials science research and engineering.

Computer Science Resources

O'Reilly Online Learning: OHE includes more than 38K computer science, engineering, business book titles from 200+ publishers, as well as video, case studies, expert playlists, audio books, and more. Includes pre-publication titles published by O'Reilly. Titles are HTML only. Replaces the Safari Tech Books Online collection.

Earth, Atmospheric, and Oceanic Sciences Resources

Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA), Oceanic Abstracts, and Meteorological & Geoastrophysical Abstracts (MGA): Coverage of the earth, atmospheric, and oceanic sciences, including scholarly journals, trade and industry journals, magazines, technical reports, conference proceedings, and government publications.

Physics Resources

Astrophysics Data System (ADS): Digital Library portal for researchers in Astronomy and Physics, operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) under a NASA grant.
INSPEC: Contains citations to articles in over 4000 scholarly journals, conference proceedings, books, reports, and dissertations in physics, electrical engineering and electronics, computers and control, and information technology. Most citations include abstracts. Full-text is available for many articles. Corresponds to the print publications: Physics Abstracts, Electrical & Electronics Abstracts, and Computer & Control Abstracts.

Environmental and Agricultural Science Resources

AGRICOLA, TOXLINE, Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management, Ecology Abstracts, and Environmental Impact Statements (EIS): Coverage of the agricultural and environmental sciences, including scholarly journals, trade and industry journals, magazines, technical reports, conference proceedings, and government publications.

Geoscience Resources

GeoRef: Over 3 million references to geoscience journal articles, books, maps, conference papers, reports and theses. Covers the geology of North America from 1693 to the present and the geology of the rest of the world from 1933 to the present. Geological Survey.

Biomedical Resources

PubMed: Citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to full-text content from PubMed Central and publisher web sites. Also searches NCBI's integrated molecular biology databases, including nucleotide sequences, protein sequences, 3-D protein structure data, population study data sets, and assemblies of complete genomes in an integrated system. Note: This link uses a special address which turns on Get it at UC.

Other Notable Collections

National Academies Press: The National Academies (National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council) ebooks and reports are freely available online.
SpringerLink: Immense array of books, chapters, conference proceedings and journal articles in the social sciences and sciences, published by Springer-Verlag. After searching, unclick Preview Only Content, whose materials are not under UCLA subscription.
Taylor & Francis eBooks: E-books from Routledge, Psychology Press, and Focal Press, mostly in the humanities, social sciences, and behavioral sciences. UCLA subscribes to only a small number of the available titles. Also includes the scientific, technical, and medical reference books formerly contained in CRCnetBASE.
U.S. Government Technical Reports: Provides indexing and open access to a collection of more than two million historical and current government technical reports archived by the National Technical Information Service (NTIS).

Additional Library Services

The UCLA Library offers a range of services to support students and researchers:

Data Services: The UCLA Library Data Science Center supports researchers in working with data throughout all stages of the research process. We offer consultations, training and practical resources to support data collection, management, analysis and sharing.
Equipment Lending: The UCLA Library lends a variety of technology equipment to support learning and research.
Research Consultations: We can help at every stage of the research process. Schedule a consultation or stop by a help desk!

Featured Events and Collections

The UCLA Library regularly hosts events and exhibitions, and maintains several featured collections:

Featured Events: The library hosts a variety of events, including screenings, lectures, and workshops. Examples include "Visions of the Future: Then and Now," "An Introduction to Artists' Books," and "On the Unreasonable Ineffectiveness of Mathematics in Psychology."
Featured Collections: The library houses unique collections, including the Ray Bradbury Papers (manuscripts, correspondence, and ephemera by and related to the celebrated American author and screenwriter) and the Richard and Dion Neutra Papers (collection of original architectural drawings, photographs, correspondence and travel sketches from seminal mid-century architect Richard Neutra). The library also houses notable works related to the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy and the contributions of influential figures like Bonnie Cashin, emphasizing its role in preserving significant cultural and historical narratives.

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