Can it be only 13 years?

The search engine marks entering its teens by turning its home page into a birthday party scene. Surrounded by multi-coloured balloons and streamers, its logo is adorned with party hats and sits behind a table heaped with wrapped presents and a large white birthday cake with 13 candles.

Although Google's founders, Stanford University graduate students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, built their first search engine in 1996, it was not until 1998 that they formalised their work and created Google.

The search engine officially celebrates its birthday today, September 27. The pair came up with the name as a play on the word “googol”, the mathematical term for a 1 followed by 100 zeros.

Happy Birthday, Google.

Living in Connecticut

It is true that one of the best times to be living in Connecticut is in the fall. The October issue of Connecticut magazine offers lists of things to do: hikes and drives, cozy bars, comfort foods, and healthy living. Soon the view from the library will be worth a visit.

Science Times Every Tuesday

Small Fixes
"Sometime this year--if it hasn't already happened--the world population will reach seven billion. Many of those people lack the sophisticated medical care taken for granted in the industrial world, and they are still getting sick and dying from diseases that have been all but eradicated in countries like the United States. One way to address the problem is to make drugs and vaccines availble to everyone, but in many countries that remains an expensive dream. So what to do? This special issue is devoted to low-cost innovations that are making a big difference."

The Science section of the New York Times is published every Tuesday. Read about turning a square as big as a thumbnail into a miniature diagnostic clinic. In Mozambique patients share the burdens of living with AIDS. Other articles talk about sweet poison to lure mosquitoes, drug packages for newborns, self-adjustable eyeglasses for $19, vanquishing smallpox again, a straw that filters out pathogens, volunteer networks transforming health care, and more.

Source: New York Times September 27

Most Challenged Book of 2010

Topping the 2010 list is And Tango Makes Three, a children's book by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell about a same-sex penguin couple and its adopted baby. It was challenged for "homosexuality, religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group".

Banned Book Week

Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. This event is observed this year from September 24through October 1.

What's the difference between a challenge and a banning? A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection.

Please take a few minutes to look at the display by the elevators showing some books that have been banned or challenged.Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association; American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression; the American Library Association; American Society of Journalists and Authors; Association of American Publishers; and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. In 2011, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund; National Coalition Against Censorship; National Council of Teachers of English; and PEN American Center also signed on as sponsors.

Remedial Education: Obstacle or Second Chance

The September issue of Youth Today has a long article on remedial education, "Remedial Education: Obstacle or Second Chance" by Andrew Atwal.
First paragraph

"Some call itthe Bermuda Triangle of highereducation. Some see it as a needless expense--double payment for students to attain skills they should have learned in high school. Others praise the programs for opening postsecondary education to students who have been underserved by their local schools."

This is an interesting article for those of us involved in remedial education English and math.

YouthToday is in the library now.

Become Code-Literate

It might be the case that everyone doesn’t have to learn how to program, but it’s true that people should at least be familiar with the rudiments of programming, or at least scripting. Even if you’re never going to program something from scratch, it’s helpful to understand a little bit about the basic structures underpinning so much of our lives and appreciate the people who do this for us.

For people without any experience in programming, but with some curiosity and a few minutes to spare, Codecademy is a clever website that provides a free, interactive overview of basic programming concepts. You, too, can learn to say “Hello, world,” teach a website your name, learn about if-then statements, variables, and a few other fundamental ideas.

Codecademy is simple, free, and more fun than frustrating. Folks who are interested in becoming more conversant with programming concepts, but don’t (yet) have the time to actually learn a language, will probably find it helpful.

Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education September 20

16,000 more books in Ebrary Academic Complete

New in Academic Complete
We have recently added over 16,000 multidisciplinary e-books from Ashgate Publishing Group, Brill Academic Publishers, Harvard University Press, Johns Hopkins University Press, Oxford University Press, University of Chicago Press, University of Michigan Press, and other leading publishers.

Preview all newly added e-books, or browse featured Doody's and CHOICE Outstanding Academic Titles of 2010. To open a document, click on the jacket.

THIS DATABASE NOW HAS 69,491 BOOKS FOR THE GOODWIN COMMUNITY.

CONSTITUTION DAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2011

The events of 9/11 have taken center stage over the past week as Americans remember that day 10 years ago. This week we need to remember a day that is arguably more important today than at anytime in our nation's history. Americans should not only celebrate this event but commit to learning about our country's founding principles. America celebrates Constitution Day on Friday, a day to reflect on what this document has done for our way of life and how to preserve it for our future.

On Sept. 17, 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention met for the last time to sign the document they had created. The most important document in American history is the blueprint by which our government operates. Yet, many Americans have never read this short document, and most have an erroneous view of what it says.

22 percent of Americans can name all five family members of the Simpsons, but only one in 1,000 could name all five freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment. Can you name those freedoms?

CONSTITUTION WEEK ACTIVITY

Goodwin College Celebrates the birthday of the United States of America government during Constitution Week beginning today, September 16.

On Monday, Sept. 19 at 2:30 p.m. in the Community Room, join us as Dr. Harold Schramm examines the landmark case, Snyder v. Phelps, and the extent of free speech in the United States. Light refreshments will be served.

In March, the Supreme Court ruled in Snyder v. Phelps that the Westboro Baptist Church had the right to protest military funerals, despite strong emotional reactions to the group, its mission, and its role in promoting intolerance.

The Library Advocacy Committee is sponsoring a discussion on the Constitution by faculty members on Friday, September 23, in the auditorium. Time will be announced next week.

Please look at the display on the Constitution by the elevators and the book exhibit in the library. In the library, volunteer to take a short quiz on the Constitution and enter a drawing for a MYSTERY prize.

Value of a College Education Questioned

Wired Campus of the Chronicle of Higher Education has an entry today on the Youtube video. I am quoting from that entry here. This is not the entire entry.

"Have you heard that higher education is a scam? That accusation is racing around YouTube these days, in a video that has been viewed more than two million times.

The hourlong video, College Conspiracy, was produced by a group called the National Inflation Association.

Most college officials would undoubtedly dispute those charges, and question some of the facts rattled off in the video. But the video’s popularity highlights a growing frustration among members of the public with the soaring costs of education at a time of rising unemployment.

The producers of College Conspiracy did not return calls and e-mail messages requesting comment. One professor who appears in the film, Karl Klein, an associate professor of computer studies at Onondaga Community College, said he was not aware of how the interview would be used when he talked to a member of the National Inflation Association.

I would have called it something like, ‘Is There a College Bubble?’” he said. “But I think there are some things in that video that we need to think about and talk about, and I’m not sure there is a real good conversation taking place in higher education about cost.”

Source: "Questions About Higher Education's Value go Viral on Youtube" by Jeff Young
Wired Campus, Chronicle of Higher Education
September 15, 2011

New Book Explores Academia, Digital Media and Technology

Hacking the Academy, about academe in the digital age, was compiled from blog posts and Twitter messages posted during a single week last year. The book is now out and freely available online, courtesy of the publishing division of the University of Michigan Library. It has sections on ‘Hacking Scholarship,” “Hacking Teaching,” and “Hacking Institutions.”
Source: Chronicle of Higher Education

Twitter Update

Five years ago, Twitter came to life when @jack sent the first Tweet to his seven followers. Now, 100 million active users around the globe turn to Twitter to share their thoughts and find out what’s happening in the world right now.

More than half of them log in to Twitter each day to follow their interests. For many, getting the most out of Twitter isn’t only about tweeting: 40 percent of our active users simply sign in to listen to what’s happening in their world

Copyright Basics Video

The Copyright Clearance Center has produced a new introductory video, Copyright Basics, available at this link.
Enjoy this fun and informative video about the ins and outs of U.S. copyright law.

Constitution Week Activity

Join Us for An Exploration on the Extent of Free Speech Monday, Sept. 19 In March, the Supreme Court ruled in Snyder v. Phelps that the Westboro Baptist Church had the right to protest military funerals, despite strong emotional reactions to the group, its mission, and its role in promoting intolerance. On Monday, Sept. 19 at 2:30 p.m. in the Community Room, join us as Dr. Harold Schramm examines the landmark case and the extent of free speech in the United States. Light refreshments will be served.

Text Books in the Library

The library does not keep text books for current classes. We know some of you are waiting for books to arrive in the book store. Faculty members may put texts on reserve for you until your books arrive. We now have texts for A & P I and II on reserve in the library. These may be used in the library and, with some restrictions, copies can be made of a section on which you may be tested before your books arrive. Please talk the the librarian when you come in.

CINAHL PLUS WITH FULL TEXT

THE LIBRARY NOW SUBSCRIBES TO THIS DATABASE. IT WILL BE AVAILABLE FROMT THE LIBRARY PAGE LIST OF DATABASES TONIGHT! Read about this amazing EBSCOHOST database below.

CINAHL Plus with Full Text is the enhanced online version of Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature (CINAHL). It is designed to meet the information needs of nurses and allied health professionals.It indexes virtually all English-language nursing journals, publications from the American Nurses' Association and the National League for Nursing, and primary journals from allied health fields. The allied health fields covered include: Athletic Training, Audiology, Cardiopulmonary Technology, Dental Hygiene, Emergency Services, Health Information Management, Medical Assisting, Medical/Laboratory Technology, Nutrition and Dietetics, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation, Physician's Assistants, Radiologic Technology, Respiratory Therapy, Social Service in Health Care, Speech-Language Pathology, and Surgical Technology. CINAHL Plus with Full Text also includes pertinent articles from the biomedical, education, behavioral science, management, and popular literature.

Materials indexed include journal articles, selected pamphlets, selected books, dissertations, selected conference proceedings, standards of practice for nursing specialties, audiovisuals, educational software, and selected poems and cartoons. Foreign language nursing & allied health journal articles are included when English abstracts are provided. Over 4,500 journals are indexed as of July 2010 -- indexing can cover as far back as 1937. A list of journals with dates of coverage is linked from EBSCO Publishing. Searchable cited references have been included since 1994 for over 1,300 journals.

CINAHL Plus with Full Text provides full text of over 770 journals and 275 books/monographs, plus legal cases, clinical innovations, critical paths, drug records, research instruments and clinical trials. There are also Evidence-Based Care Sheets and Quick Lessons available in full text from the search screen - simply click on the links at the top of the search screen to access these items. Other items indexed in CINAHL Plus with Full Text may be available in full text through the library either electronically or in print form.

Ebrary Cyberbullying Sources

Welcome to ebrary’s Searchable Information Center on Cyberbullying!
According to the National Crime Prevention Council, 43% of teens have been the victims of cyberbullying in the past year.

To help educators and students better understand, prevent, and take action against this growing concern, ebrary is subsidizing a collection of e-books on cyberbullying. Additionally, ebrary employees have uploaded a number of government documents from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, U.S. Department of Justice, and other organizations. Access here.