In the 19 libraries that make up the IUB Libraries, we field about 5,800 reference questions in a typical week.  Most of the time we’re tracking down citations or digging a little deeper into the research topics of IU students, faculty, and staff.

About 60 percent of the requests are made in person, but our highly ranked and longstanding e-mail service accounts for about 10 percent. Roughly 30 percent of all inquiries come by phone.

These days, an increasing number of inquiries are made by cell phone, which allow people to ask questions on the go…like the time the caller intended to ask his question face-to-face, but couldn’t find a parking spot at the Main Library, so phoned from his car instead.  Callers also phone from the road: for directions (“Exactly which exit in Tennessee?”) and sometimes for help (“What’s the number for AAA?  No, not the office number, the number for roadside assistance.”)

For help with your reference questions:

* Call the Library Information Desk at (812) 855-0100.

* E-mail a librarian. Questions are answered promptly, seven days a week, usually within two hours. 

* Chat online with a librarian.

* Visit any campus library.

Test your knowledge with these recent questions answered by the experts at the Main Library reference desk.   
 
* Why do some Nepalese homes sparkle in the light?  
(The white pigment used to paint houses contains mica, a highly reflective mineral.)

* Why did Richard Nixon send his resignation letter to Henry Kissinger and not the Chief Justice or Speaker of the House?
(Section 11 of The Act of March 1, 1792 requires the president inform the Office of the Secretary of State in writing if he wishes to resign.)

* What is the word used to describe the practice of using long words? (Sesquipedalian.)