Top reads for the holidays
Oliver Simmonds, chair of the Publications Supervisory Board shares his recommendations from the IMarEST’s online library which is open to all members.
Up until recently, institutions such as the IMarEST had physical libraries requiring members to travel to London to read or take out a book. Having the IMarEST library online now means its contents can reach all of its members, all over the world – even the seagoing members that are at sea, or when they get to ports. Not only is it good to have all the reference material in one place, but members can look forward to being able to publish their own work online soon also.
What surprised me most in the process of sharing the library online is that there's so much still to be learned and shared. We have some really interesting talks on quite fascinating topics across the world. Until everything went online during the pandemic, we never fully realised what was going on in each other’s branches. If we can use the library to share this knowledge, that would be really good.
Blending the old with the new
I speak to a lot of members who are interested in the history of the Institute and there's some great material online with a historical perspective that really complements the contemporary articles from peer-reviewed publications such as the Journal of Operational Oceanography (JOO) and Journal of Marine Engineering Technology (JMET).
Marine Technical Notes was created so members could share shorter less-academic articles on daily life at sea, training, surveys and research data, and branch events on new projects of interest. It’s a bit like the ‘Transactions of the IMarEST’ series from the early 1900s that provided an interesting historical narrative of what went on in the Institute. Marine Technical Notes never really had a formal home as the digital archive was initially a bit clunky until two years ago. But the improved library software meant we could start to accept online videos and other contributions and house Marine Technical Notes which, in 2023, will be rebranded and renewed as ‘Transactions of the IMarEST’. The idea is that in 50 or 100 years, people will be able to look back at what was the IMarEST was doing during the early part of the 21st century.
Illustration from an article about the use of DC electrical power to propel a ship, still of interest 100 years later, was first published in Papers from Engineering Subjects in 1921
Keeping the past alive
In addition to my voluntary role as chair of the Publications Supervisory Board (PSB), I work for a company called BMT that hosted a couple of old IMarEST journals such as the Journal of Naval Engineering, and Papers on Engineering Subjects (which have since stopped publication and the topic areas are covered by JMET, and the INEC conference series). Wearing both my BMT hat and my PSB hat, the new online library seemed a good location for these journals to be rehomed to for all to access. BMT has paid some of the migration costs and the Journal of Naval Engineering and Papers on Engineering Subjects are now open-access and available as a historical record. There's some quite interesting papers available online going back to the early 1900s!
Articles are still being added to the online library and the plan is that by Summer 2023 we'll be inviting members to get in touch about submitting their own work also. In the meantime, watch this space – and give your feedback on the future repository – after you check out my top reads!
Top Library Reads:
1 If you couldn’t make it to INEC 2022, download the Sir Donald Gosling award-winning paper by T Smith & M Kourounioti on Underwater radiated noise from small vessels in shallow water: propagation modelling and experimental measurements.
2 The 52-page Memorial to the "Titanic" Engineering Staff pays tribute to the marine engineers aboard the vessel, featuring correspondence and fundraising efforts.
3 The Articles of Association is the first publication by the Institute and features meeting dates, dues and a members’ list.
4 Transmission of Power for Marine Propelling Machinery covers the use of DC electrical power to propel a ship. First published in Papers from Engineering Subjects in 1921, it's still of interest 100 years later!
5 The Royal Naval Engineering College - 20th Anniversary of the closure of Manadon – 2015 is the first online book; a re-print by R Clarke and S Haines that covers a very important institution of Royal Navy Engineering history, setting the background to today’s modern Royal Navy Engineering training.
6 The online library also links out to our publishing partner, Witherbys. The IMarEST would like to highlight ‘The Right Way Up’ by Hylton Edward Penny CEng CMarEng FIMarEST MRINA. Sadly, the author who many members will remember, died in recent weeks. This publication can be ordered from Witherbys in print and online.
Oliver Simmonds is chair of the Publications Supervisory Board
Browse or search the topics that interest you today at the IMarEST’s online library.