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Clemmer
Clemmer
Ana Clemmer
IR 2/10-GT
10/19/18
Site Visit Reflection 2
On October 19, 2018, I visited the Albin O. Kuhn UMBC Library with my mother. The main
reason that I visited the UMBC Library was to find more sources about antibiotic resistance, specifically
related to water and livestock. I also wanted to find out how the library system works there, and how I can
use the databases there, as well as the books and physical resources, in the future. My original plan was to
arrive as early as possible in the morning, then spend a few hours in the library. I wanted to look for
physical sources about antibiotic resistance developed in water related to livestock that I could check out,
as well as online sources from the databases UMBC has access to. I actually ended up arriving at the
I had a great experience at the library and I think I will go there again. The all of the librarians
were very helpful and aided in my ease of experience. I found all of my books on floor 3. The first
librarian I talked to at the resource desk helped me find a book on antibiotic resistance, and gave me a call
number to locate it. The book was titled The Microbes Fight Back by Laura Bowater, published by the
Royal Society of Chemistry. This book was a very good overview of antibiotic resistance, and I checked it
out so to ensure my general knowledge of antibiotic resistance. On the very same shelf, I found the book
The Antibiotic Paradox by Stuart B. Levy, M.D. This book is related to my topic most in chapters six and
seven, titled “Antibiotics, Animals, and the Resistance Gene Pool” and “Further Ecological
Considerations: Antibiotic Use in Agriculture, Aquaculture, Pets, and Minor Animal Species.” I checked
this book out as well. After that, I picked up the book The Rumen and its Microbes by Robert E. Hungate.
I was drawn to this book due to the title, since I had never even considered how the rumen microbes may
play into the grand scheme of antibiotic resistance. The book was published in 1966, but I still checked it
out since I hadn’t seen any other sources related to this specific topic. Next, I looked at two other books
that I didn’t end up borrowing, since they were not as closely related to my topic. These books were titled
Revenge of the Microbes and The Evolving Threat of Antimicrobial resistance: Options for Action.
Following that, I went back downstairs to look at the databases. I asked for a UMBC guest log in and then
searched Agricola and ProQuest, searching for “resistance” and “rumen.” I saved four journal articles
total, “Distribution and Quantification of Antibiotic Resistant Genes and Bacteria across Agricultural and
groups and species through secondary metabolite profiles,” “Resistance of Soil-Bound Prions to Rumen
Digestion,” and “The animal gut as a melting pot for horizontal gene transfer.”
I obtained several sources from this site visit, including four journal articles and three print books.
In addition to finding excellent sources, I was able to find a new aspect of the broad topic of antibiotic
resistance, bacteria and microbes in the rumen. A new and narrower topic I am thinking about is antibiotic
resistance gene transfer in livestock waste lagoons and how it relates to rumen microbes. When searching
for online sources, I realized that many of the sources I was finding did not exist online, but were listed
under the catalog for the National Agricultural Library. Next, I am planning to visit the National
Agricultural Library, after I have an even narrower topic with the help of my research advisor.