Friday, June 29, 2007

Stuff

It's summer; so hard to blog in the summer. Off next week with no Internet access--haven't done that in a while. So here's some stuff to consider. Back in a week-or so.

Items from the Resource Shelf

MIT's Reference page
http://libraries.mit.edu/help/virtualref/
Simple, uncluttered, useful.

Great skywatching tools at Sky & Telescope magazine: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/javascript

Items from Marylaine Block

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Summer Solstice 1:06 P.M. Today

Have a little druidic dance right after lunch today--longest day of the year.

Thoughts on Facebook from Cornell Univ.

"Thoughts on Facebook" http://www.cit.cornell.edu/policy/memos/facebook.html
Please read the full text of this article if you use Facebook.

Here is the conclusion:

"Facebook, along with much of the Internet, is a great innovation that allows users to express their humanity and an opportunity to create new communities. As such it represents a forum in which one can make choices about their identity, at least insofar as one chooses to represent themselves publicly. That freedom does not suggest that one can do so with impunity, however. Because we live in a society in which expression is judged in legal, policy and even personal ways, it is important to remember the consequences of that expression no matter how ephemeral or fun in the moment it might seem to be.
This essay offers some things to contemplate when using Facebook, all of which can be summed up easily in a "Golden Rule." Don't say anything about someone else that you would not want said about yourself. And be gentle with yourself too! What might seem fun or spontaneous at 18, given caching technologies, might prove to be a liability to an on-going sense of your identity over the longer course of history. Have fun and make productive use of these new, exciting technologies, but remember that technology does not absolve one of responsibility. Behind every device, behind every new program, behind every technology is a law, a social norm, a business practice that warrants thoughtful consideration."

by Tracy Mitrano, Director of IT Policy and Computer Policy & Law Program, Cornell University, April, 2006

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Beloit College Mindset List for class of 2010

BELOIT COLLEGE'S MINDSET LIST® FOR THE CLASS OF 2010
http://www.beloit.edu/~pubaff/mindset/
1. The Soviet Union has never existed and therefore is about as scary as the student union.
2. They have known only two presidents.
3. For most of their lives, major U.S. airlines have been bankrupt.
4. Manuel Noriega has always been in jail in the U.S.
5. They have grown up getting lost in "big boxes."
6. There has always been only one Germany.
7. They have never heard anyone actually "ring it up" on a cash register.
8. They are wireless, yet always connected.
9. A stained blue dress is as famous to their generation as a third-rate burglary was to their parents'.
10. Thanks to pervasive headphones in the back seat, parents have always been able to speak freely in the front.
11. A coffee has always taken longer to make than a milkshake.
12. Smoking has never been permitted on U.S. airlines.
13. Faux fur has always been a necessary element of style.
14. The Moral Majority has never needed an organization.
15. They have never had to distinguish between the St. Louis Cardinals baseball and football teams.
16. DNA fingerprinting has always been admissible evidence in court.
17. They grew up pushing their own miniature shopping carts in the supermarket.
18. They grew up with and have outgrown faxing as a means of communication.
19. "Google" has always been a verb.
20. Text messaging is their email.
21. Milli Vanilli has never had anything to say.
22. Mr. Rogers, not Walter Cronkite, has always been the most trusted man in America.
23. Bar codes have always been on everything, from library cards and snail mail to retail items.
24. Madden has always been a game, not a Superbowl-winning coach.
25. Phantom of the Opera has always been on Broadway.
26. "Boogers" candy has always been a favorite for grossing out parents.
27. There has never been a "skyhook" in the NBA.
28. Carbon copies are oddities found in their grandparents' attics.
29. Computerized player pianos have always been tinkling in the lobby.
30. Non-denominational mega-churches have always been the fastest growing religious organizations in the U.S.
31. They grew up in mini-vans.
32. Reality shows have always been on television.
33. They have no idea why we needed to ask "...can we all get along?"
34. They have always known that "In the criminal justice system the people have been represented by two separate yet equally important groups."
35. Young women's fashions have never been concerned with where the waist is.
36. They have rarely mailed anything using a stamp.
37. Brides have always worn white for a first, second, or third wedding.
38. Being techno-savvy has always been inversely proportional to age.
39. "So" as in "Sooooo New York," has always been a drawn-out adjective modifying a proper noun, which in turn modifies something else
40. Affluent troubled teens in Southern California have always been the subjects of television series.
41. They have always been able to watch wars and revolutions live on television.
42. Ken Burns has always been producing very long documentaries on PBS.
43. They are not aware that "flock of seagulls hair" has nothing to do with birds flying into it.
44. Retin-A has always made America look less wrinkled.
45. Green tea has always been marketed for health purposes.
46. Public school officials have always had the right to censor school newspapers.
47. Small white holiday lights have always been in style.
48. Most of them never had the chance to eat bad airline food.
49. They have always been searching for "Waldo."
50. The really rich have regularly expressed exuberance with outlandish birthday parties.
51. Michael Moore has always been showing up uninvited.
52. They never played the game of state license plates in the car.
53. They have always preferred going out in groups as opposed to dating.
54. There have always been live organ donors.
55. They have always had access to their own credit cards.
56. They have never put their money in a "Savings & Loan."
57. Sara Lee has always made underwear.
58. Bad behavior has always been getting captured on amateur videos.
59. Disneyland has always been in Europe and Asia.
60. They never saw Bernard Shaw on CNN.
61. Beach volleyball has always been a recognized sport.
62. Acura, Lexus, and Infiniti have always been luxury cars of choice.
63. Television stations have never concluded the broadcast day with the national anthem.
64. LoJack transmitters have always been finding lost cars.
65. Diane Sawyer has always been live in Prime Time.
66. Dolphin-free canned tuna has always been on sale.
67. Disposable contact lenses have always been available.
68. "Outing" has always been a threat.
69. Oh, The Places You'll Go by Dr. Seuss has always been the perfect graduation gift.
70. They have always "dissed" what they don't like.
71. The U.S. has always been studying global warming to confirm its existence.
72. Richard M. Daley has always been the Mayor of Chicago.
73. They grew up with virtual pets to feed, water, and play games with, lest they die.
74. Ringo Starr has always been clean and sober.
75. Professional athletes have always competed in the Olympics.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Today at 3:30 in the Library Auditorium

See the post below. "History in Peril: A National Geographic Society Expedition to Endangered Fossil Sites in China."

Monday, June 04, 2007

June Hot Docs

Vickey Baggott, Documents Librarian, has put together a Hot Docs http://www.southalabama.edu/univlib/govdocs/hotdocs.htm list of new documents covering a broad range of college courses/programs proving that there's probably something for every student/researcher in the Government Documents Department located on 2nd Floor, South of the University Library.

Friday, June 01, 2007

Artist Reception 5 to 7 in Library Art Gallery



From the Dean:
"The public is invited to attend the opening art reception for B. J. Ray in
the University Library, Third Floor Gallery, June 1 from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM.

B J Ray, Photographer & Surrealistic Digital Painter, is exhibiting her
surrealistic landscapes, photographic composites and representational
waterfalls in the Third Floor Gallery, University Library. Ms. Ray is the
recipient of many awards including National Shrimp Festival; Arts in the
Park, Pensacola, FL; Fairhope Arts & Crafts Show; Meridian Arts in the Park;
Lexington Art Fest; Branson Art Festival and Minolta Photographers Award.
Her photographs have been published in "International Photographers Guild,"
"Alabama Alive" Magazine, and Ford Motor Company "Highways and Byways."
Studies include the Special Studies Summer Program Painting and Special
Studies Graphic Design Program at the University of Alabama. She also
studied three years with renowned photographer Michael Kaspareck of Brewer
State. The exhibit will be on display through July 31 and may be viewed
during library hours: http://www.southalabama.edu/univlib/info/hours.html."