Friday, July 29, 2011

Book of the Week: Give Some Take More


Sherell Simonet, a graduate of Goodwin College, published her first novel in April, Give Some Take More: Is Blood Thicker than Water.
Sherell, a native of Hartford, received an associate degree in Medical Assisting here. She now lives in Baton Rouge where she is completing a Master's Degree in counseling education at Southeastern Louisiana while working on her next novel.

The book is highly recommended by members of the Goodwin community. It is currently available in the Goodwin Library.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

New Books in ebrary Academic Complete

This database has 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.Y our library has access to Academic Complete, a growing e-book collection spanning all academic subject areas.

The list of new additions includes:
Accidental Archaea: Molecular and Cellular Biology, by Ricardo Cavicchioli
Fruit, the Tree, and the Serpent: Why We See So Well, by Lynne A. Isbell
Odes of Horace,by Quintus Horatius Flaccus Horace
Oxford Bible Atlas, by Adrian Curtis
Treacherous Alliance: The Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States, by Trita Parsi

Required Reading: Zeitoun


Zeitoun by David Eggers is required reading for incoming freshmen at Northeastern University in Boston and Tulane University in New Orleans. It is available in the Goodwin Library.

Eggers returns to his journalistic roots with this nonfiction account of one family's surreal experiences in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Eggers spent three years researching these events and working closely with the Zeitoun family to understand what happened, and the disturbing details of story he uncovered illustrate the atmosphere of fear which pervaded the Big Easy in the wake of the disaster. He uses Zeitoun's experience to brilliantly illuminate how the most pertinent issues of our time--xenophobia, terrorism, the flawed justice system, and FEMA's abysmal response to Katrina--are mere branches protruding from a trunk of distrust between the American government and the citizens of the world. Selected by the New York Times Book Review as a Notable Book of 2009.

CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics


The 92nd edition of the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics: A Ready Reference Book of Chemical and Physical Data is now available in the reference section of the library. Faculty members may take it to classes. This edition, published in June this year, includes new tables, major updates, and a reorganization of several sections.

There is no search engine to help you navigate through the pages, but the index should be sufficient. "As ever in science, the serendipity of a detour by accident into a new territory", accordingto Sir William Wakeham's foreward, "is itself often fruitful when one can have confidence in what you find."

This is not a handbook to be read from cover to cover, but is to be dipped into from time to time as a source of secure information.

Library of Congress Call number
REF QD64.H3 2011

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Booker Prize Long List Announced!

The long list for the 2011 Man Booker Prize for Fiction - the 'Man Booker Dozen' - is announced today, Tuesday 26 July. The 13 books on the list include: one former Man Booker Prize winner; two previously shortlisted writers and one longlisted author; four first time novelists and three Canadian writers. The list also includes three new publishers to the prize - Oneworld, Sandstone Press and Seren Books.

Julian Barnes - The Sense of an Ending (Jonathan Cape - Random House)
Sebastian Barry - On Canaan's Side (Faber)
Carol Birch - Jamrach's Menagerie (Canongate Books)
Patrick deWitt - The Sisters Brothers (Granta)
Esi Edugyan - Half Blood Blues (Serpent's Tail - Profile)
Yvvette Edwards - A Cupboard Full of Coats (Oneworld)
Alan Hollinghurst - The Stranger's Child (Picador - Pan Macmillan)
Stephen Kelman - Pigeon English (Bloomsbury)
Patrick McGuinness - The Last Hundred Days (Seren Books)
A.D. Miller - Snowdrops (Atlantic)
Alison Pick - Far to Go (Headline Review)
Jane Rogers - The Testament of Jessie Lamb (Sandstone Press)
D.J. Taylor - Derby Day (Chatto & Windus - Random House)

The prize aims to reward the best novel of the year written by a citizen of the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland. Howard Jacobson won last year with "The Finkler Question." Hilary Mantel won with "Wolf Hall" in 2009. The prize is one of the world's most important literary award and has the power to transform the fortunes of authors and even publishers.

The short list will be announced some time in early September. The prize is awarded in October.

Bottlemania: Required Reading

College Confidential is currently featuring required reading for incoming freshmen at colleges and universities across the country. In the next few days and weeks, we will be featuring more great reads from that list.

Incoming freshmen at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland are reading "Bottlemania: How Water Went on Sale and Why We Bought it" by Elizabeth Royte--available in the Goodwin Library.

Even as tap water rises to its highest levels of purity and cleanliness, the bottled-water industry has inexplicably grown into a $60 billion dollar industry. Royte pulls back the curtain on the marketing monster (masterminded by Pepsi, Coke, and Nestle) that has not only created an absolutely unnecessary product, but has generated massive amounts of waste via mountains of plastic water bottles and fleets of water bottle trucks.

Friday, July 08, 2011

iPad App for Biology

Howard Hughes Medical Institute BioInteractive launched their first iPad app – the Virtual Bacterial ID Lab http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-virtual-bacterial-id-lab/id443867462?mt=8 – last week, and one for the iPhone and iPad – the all-in-one Click and Learn App just today http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/click-and-learn/id443814512?mt=8!

These are both free (of course), and they would love to hear your feedback on them. More are on the way!

Jennifer Bricken
Department of Science Education
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
www.BioInteractive.org

Friday, July 01, 2011

Latest News on State Library Budget Cuts

iCONN must postpone the restoration of CINAHL Full Text and ProQuest Newsstand.The state library received a summary of the Governor’s proposed budget adjustments for the Library that represents a 23% cut from their budget that was previously approved for the next biennium. Since the Governor now has authority, it is believed that the agencies will be asked to implement the reductions. Obviously, in addition to personnel cuts, there would have to be significant cuts to library programs in order to reach the $2,670,034 reduction.

Our library has already begun negotiations to purchase CINAHL Full Text, if possible.

Filmakers Library Online Now Available

For more than 40 years, Filmakers Library has worked to offer high-quality, issue-based documentaries and independent films from around the world. Now more than 1,000 of these titles are available online in a single, easy to search, multidisciplinary collection of streaming video designed specifically to meet the needs of researchers and teaching faculty. If we wished to purchase each film individually, the collection would cost more than $250,000 to build. The library has purchased this database through Alexander Press as part of our membership in Westchesters Academic Library Directors Organization (WALDO).

Here is the access URL. Enjoy!
http://flon.alexanderstreet.com/

New Audio-Visual Resources

All from the CT Department of Environmental Protection

Expedited Site Assessment: the CD-Multimedia technicl guidance on investigating fuel releases at underground storage tank sites.
Better Birdwatching in the East: DVD Field Guide-Three hours of video and audio for 270 birds commonly found in the Eastern U.S.
An Introduction to the Threatened Turtles of Massachusetts: Why They Need Our Help-How they have survived for 200 million years and why they need our help today.
Topo USA: Terrain, Trail, and Street Maps for GPS and PCs East Region-Plan trips for maximumenjoyment and navigate with complete confidence.

Don't Do What You Love

It's common wisdom to do what you love. Management experts usually promise that happiness and fulfillment will follow. But that's not always the case. Here are three reasons you may want to avoid pursuing your passion:
It's not your strength. You may love to do something you are just not good at. Because it can be hard to self-assess, ask for frank feedback from those around you to know where your strengths are.
You're too emotionally attached. Passion may cloud your judgment. When you care deeply about something, it can be hard to be take criticism or let others get involved.
It's a hobby, not a job. Sadly, you can't be paid for everything. What you love may not be lucrative. Instead find something you like that pays.
Source: Harvard Business Review Tip of the Day, July 1

Thursday, June 30, 2011

State Budget and Goodwin Library

STATE BUDGET AND OUR LIBRARY

Kenneth Wiggin, State Librarian, received a summary of the Governor's proposed budget adjustments. The Governor will seek to gain legislative authority during the upcoming Special Session to implement these adjustments. If he receives that authority, Wiggin believes the expectation is that the agencies will be asked to implement the reductions. There is, at this point, no proposed line by line budget reduction for the State Library (or any agency). But the proposed adjustments for the State Library represent a 23% cut from the budget that was approved for the next biennium. Obviously, in addition to personnel cuts, there would have to be significant cuts to library programs in order to reach the $2,670,034 adjustment that is proposed. They have not been asked for specifics and he does not have them at this time.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

FILMAKERS LIBRARY ONLINE


Great News! Soon you can search, find, click, and watch videos on your computer screen, iPad, or smart phone. The Goodwin Library is subscribing to Filmakers Library Online. In partnership with electronic publisher Alexander Street Press, this new online collection gathers together for the first time all of the superb documentary films in the Filmakers catalog on a single cross-searchable streaming platform. Encompassing more than 1,000 films at launch and with new titles being added all the time, this multidisciplinary collection will include documentaries that present points of view and historical and current experiences from diverse cultures and traditions worldwide.
Source: Information and illustration from Filmakers Library Online website.

EBRARY SURPASSES 70,000 TITLES

Just when you thought our ebrary's Academic Complete™ database couldn't get any bigger, they have added over 16,000 e-books! Our subscription database now offers unlimited, multi-user access to over 70,000 titles. The newly added selection spans all academic subject areas from Amsterdam University Press, Brill Academic Publishers, MIT Press, National Academies Press, Oxford University Press, University of Minnesota Press, World Scientific, and other leading publishers.

Academic Complete gives you,our library users, access to new content at no additional cost, along with powerful research technology.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Featured Reference Title of the Month


Meet the Philosophers of Ancient Greece (Ashgate Publishing)

Ancient Greece was the cradle of philosophy in the Western tradition. Meet the Philosophers of Ancient Greece brings the thoughts and lives of the pioneers of Western philosophy down from their sometimes remote heights and introduces them to a modern audience. Comprising essays written by internationally distinguished scholars in a lively and accessible style, this book presents the values, ideas, wisdom and arguments of the most significant thinkers from the world of ancient Greece.

Commencing with Thales of Miletus and continuing to the end of the Ancient Period of philosophy by way of Heraclitus, Parmenides, Protagoras, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Archimedes, Epictetus this book explores the major contributions of each philosopher as well as looking at archaeological and historical sites where they lived, worked and thought. This book is an outstanding introduction to the world of the philosophers of Ancient Greece.

This reference book is available in the Credo Reference Database.

Summer is here!

The summer solstice – the annual moment at which the sun is the highest it ever gets in the sky – occurs today at 1:16 p.m. ET. This time also marks the beginning of astronomical summer in the Northern Hemisphere.

Specifically, the summer solstice is the moment when the sun is directly above the Tropic of Cancer. This is the farthest north the sun ever moves in the sky, which is why the days near the solstice have the most daylight of any days of the year. Today, for instance, Washington, D.C., will have almost 15 hours of daylight and only about nine hours of darkness.

Friday, June 17, 2011

New In the First Person Database

Some of the exciting new documents on In the First Person database include:
A full text oral history interview with an anonymous British civilian female aid worker serving in Afghanistan. (Afghanistan Provincial Reconstruction Team, Interview #37, July 22, 2005).
A travel diary written by a man named Alvan Stewart. Included is mention of his new friendship with world-renown author James Fennimore Cooper while visiting Paris. (Alvan Stewart Papers, July 4, 1831).
Letters written by American Civil War veteran, Calvin Shedd, to his wife from the lonely, perilous battlefront and from remote cities, where he roamed looking for post-war work. (Calvin Shedd Papers, 1861-1869).
Audio excerpts voiced by Chicana feminists and activists from 20th century Los Angeles. (Women's History: Chicana Feminists).
There are also 788 new memoirs, oral histories and letters from the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress.

In case you have forgotten, In the First Person is a free, high quality, professionally published, in-depth index of close to 4,000 collections of personal narratives in English from around the world. It lets you keyword search more than 700,000 pages of full-text by more than 18,000 individuals from all walks of life. It also contains pointers to some 4,300 audio and video files and 30,000 bibliographic records.

Emergency Preparedness Information

The Preservation Directorate of the Library of Congress (LC) redesigned and updated its Web site in acknowledgement of MayDay 2011. MayDay is an initiative promoted by Heritage Preservation to increase the emergency preparedness and response capabilities of cultural heritage organizations. LC’s new Web site features information about emergency preparedness, protecting family treasures, collections care, preservation science, and where to get help. It also highlights the activities of the Preservation Directorate, including conservation projects, outreach opportunities, and upcoming lectures and events.

CQ Global Researcher: Brazil on the rise

Centuries ago, Brazil was a remote Portuguese colony. Today the biggest nation in Latin America has evolved into a stable democracy, a regional power and an important U.S. and European Union partner. Economic growth has been steady, fueled by rising food exports, and the burgeoning oil and ethanol industries have helped the country become energy independent. Twenty-eight million Brazilians have been lifted out of poverty in the past decade. Globally, Brazil participates in numerous peacekeeping missions and is becoming an aid donor rather than recipient. The picture is not all rosy, however. Brazil needs major infrastructure upgrades before it hosts the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics. The Amazon rain forest continues to disappear, drug gangs control many city slums and the country increasingly relies on cheap Chinese imports. Nevertheless, as Brazil's new President Dilma Rousseff — a former guerrilla fighter — begins to make her mark, Brazil is a booming regional power.
The full CQ report is available online (password protected).

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

New Reference: Berkshire Encyclopedia of China

NEW CREDO REFERENCE BOOK
BERKSHIRE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CHINA

The Berkshire Encyclopedia of China is now available in the Credo Reference database accessible from the library home page. The encyclopedia features lavishly illustrated articles (over 1,100 unique photographs and maps) that appear in English and in Chinese with pinyin transliterations and tones (that will help those studying the language). 800 articles and over 1,100 photographs on Chinese history and culture are now live on Credo.

Berkshire's collection, 5,000 years in the making, is not just the history of
China! With information on blogging and Internet use, human rights, and overseas returnees (the "sea turtles"), Berkshire's Encyclopedia of China looks to the future with articles on renewable energy and other political and environmental challenges.With additional subject coverage ranging from arts and education to social welfare and technology, these volumes are specifically intended to help students and professionals improve their knowledge of all aspects of China.

Credo Reference is an online database of 535 full-text reference books.
http://www.goodwin.edu/library/libdatabases.htm