Monthly Archive for March, 2009

Big Read: To Kill a Mockingbird

Published
by
Barbara
on March 31, 2009
in around the library and campus connection
. 1 Comment

UWW & surrounding communities are taking part in “The Big Read” featuring the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Events are scheduled throughout April at sites such as local libraries and museums, and in the UWW’s Young Auditorium. See the blog http://youngauditorium.wordpress.com/

To Kill a Mockingbird DVD coverAndersen Library has the Oscar and Golden Globe-winning movie (2nd-floor Browsing DVD, Feature Film Collection) and will show it on the 2nd floor on April 1st. The novel is available in Andersen Library’s 3rd-floor Main Collection (PS3562 .E353 T6).
Free copies of a reader’s guide, bookmarks, and an audio guide CD will be distributed starting April 1st. Andersen Library also is raffling off 5 free t-shirts — drop off your name and contact info at the Circulation Desk for the drawing.

Image of portion of NYT articleMore information about author Harper Lee, along with an analysis of her novel, is available via the MagillOnLiterature database, and there are many other relevant resources in the Library, such as an early review in the New York Times (July 13, 1960, p.33) available from the ProQuest Historical Newspapers database. Please ask a librarian for assistance in finding additional information.

New Stuff Tuesday – March 31

Published
by
Susan
on March 31, 2009
in new stuff tuesdays
. 0 Comments

The Global Achievement Gap

The Global Achievement Gap:
Why Even Our Best Schools Don’t Teach the New Survival Skills Our Children Need – and What We Can Do About It
By Tony Wagner
LB1607.5 .W34 2008
New Book Island, 2nd floor

Are students in the U.S. graduating from high school with the skills and problem solving abilities to compete in a global economy? In this book, Tony Wagner outlines his concerns with the way children are being educated in U.S. schools today and how educators, parents, and employers can work to improve the education system.

Wagner was a high school teacher, principal, university president, and now is co-director of the Change Leadership Group at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Wagner believes that education has changed little in 50 years, and that students graduating from most American schools lack the “Seven Survival Skills for the twenty-first century.” Wagner provides suggestions for improving student assessment, how teacher and administrator preparation programs can be made more effective, and why student motivation is such an important component in improving education.

Miss me? I may be at Lost & Found

Published
by
Barbara
on March 30, 2009
in around the library
. 0 Comments

Are you missing something? Did you have it with you in the Library recently? If so, try Lost & Found in the Library, which is at the Circulation Desk (262-472-5511).

Library staff attempt to contact owners when possible, but of course some items just don’t have any identification on them. Books from Textbook Rental are returned there. Items still unclaimed at the end of the semester are disposed of.

Want Help for Research?

Published
by
Barbara
on March 30, 2009
in around the library
. 0 Comments

Ad for research help appointmentsThe reference librarians are available to meet with individuals or small groups who need help! Contact us to make an appointment and you’ll be matched up with the librarian who knows most about the subject area, e.g., Kyle Naff (liaison to the College of Business & Economics) would meet with business students, Sue Coenen (liaison to the College of Education) would meet with education students.

Call 262-472-1032 or use the librarian liaison email/phone information to contact a librarian.

Big Screen TV in Library

Published
by
Barbara
on March 29, 2009
in around the library
. 0 Comments

Andersen Library now has a large-screen television on the 2nd floor (near the Browsing Books area, straight ahead from the Library entrance doors). News will be showing most of the time, but with Library approval it is possible to play other broadcast/cable channels, Blu-Ray discs, DVDs, and VHS tapes. Check it out, especially on April 1st when there will be something special showing in honor of the “Big Read.”
image of Library's big screen TV

Several group study rooms have televisions with DVD/VHS players also.

Obama’s Online Town Hall Meeting 3/26

Published
by
Barbara
on March 26, 2009
in around the world and info.gov
. 0 Comments

President Obama scheduled a town hall meeting with all of us Thursday morning, March 26th, at 10:30 a.m. People were directed to the White House web site to review questions.
Screenshots from Obama's online town hall Mar 26 2009

If you missed it, you can read the transcript or view the video:YouTube Preview Image

Government Printing Office logo

The University Library is a federal depository with many federal, state, local, and international documents on a variety of current and relevant issues available to you in print, microfiche, CD-ROM, and electronically. Come check out your government at the University Library!

States ranked for personality traits

Published
by
Barbara
on March 25, 2009
in around the world
. 2 Comments

I read something recently that claimed North Dakota was ranked first among the 50 states for having the most agreeable people. Huh. I decided this was research I had to find, since I was curious about how Wisconsin fared. You can read it too, and see how the states are ranked for the extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness of their citizens. Wisconsin, by the way, was ranked 5th for agreeableness and 2nd for extraversion.

journal cover imageThis research is explained and reported in the article:
Rentfrow, P. J., Gosling, S. D., & Potter, J. (2008). A theory of the emergence, persistence, and expression of geographic variation in psychological characteristics. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 3(5), 339-369.

New Stuff Tuesday – March 24

Published
by
kyle
on March 24, 2009
in new stuff tuesdays
. 0 Comments

The Ascent of Money

The Ascent of Money:
A Financial History of the World
By Niall Ferguson
HG171 .F47 2008
New Book Island, 2nd floor

Money, money, money. You can’t live with it, can’t live without it. It makes the world go round and all that good stuff. It dominates the conversation in some form or another when it comes to the nightly news to the water cooler to the classroom. The question is how did it get to be so powerful? This week’s featured title seeks to answer that question.

Ferguson, highly-revered historian and scholar, tackles world history by examining the financial back stories of time. The author claims that evolution of credit and debt has had more of an impact on the rise of civilizations than any technological innovation and cites examples from the Italian Renaissance to the American Civil War. Perhaps by looking to the past can provide answers to today’s tumultuous financial environment.

Mar. 25 Commemorates End of Transatlantic Slave Trade

Published
by
Barbara
on March 23, 2009
in around the world and info.gov
. 0 Comments

In December 2007, the United Nations General Assembly designated March 25th as an annual International Day for the Commemoration of the Two-Hundredth Anniversary of the Abolition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

Economic growth... book's coverYou can research this topic at your University’s Library. A search of the Library Catalog would find materials such as the Congressional committee hearing Legacy of the trans-Atlantic slave trade (2nd-floor US documents collection Y 4.J 89/1:110-63) and Economic growth and the ending of the transatlantic slave trade (3rd-floor Main Collection HT1162 .E48 1987). Search the Library’s article databases to find Encyclopedia of World Slavery coverarticles such as “The U.S. transatlantic slave trade, 1644-1867: An assessment” in Civil War History (2008, vol.54, no.4, pp. 347-378). Use Reference Universe to identify reference works to consult, such as The Historical encyclopedia of world slavery (2nd-floor Reference Collection HT861 .H57 1997).

Among web sites of interest are:

Please ask a librarian for assistance with finding additional materials.

Government Printing Office logo

The University Library is a federal depository with many federal, state, local, and international documents on a variety of current and relevant issues available to you in print, microfiche, CD-ROM, and electronically. Come check out your government at the University Library!

Spring Break Library Hours

Published
by
Barbara
on March 19, 2009
in around the library
. 0 Comments

The Library’s hours change for Spring Break:
image of Robin (bird)

  • F March 20: 7:30am-4:30pm
  • Sat.-Sun. March 21-22: CLOSED
  • M-F March 23-27: 8am-4:30pm
  • Sat. March 28: CLOSED
  • Sun. March 29: 6pm-midnight

Remember that even when the Library is closed or you are traveling:

  • The Library’s article databases are available…just login when prompted with your campus Net-ID (same as for your campus email or D2L).
  • You can search the Library Catalog and use links to the titles that are online, including ereserves for classes.
  • You can renew your checked-out books, DVDs, etc. online (once) through your Personal Record.
  • You can ask a librarian for help using email or chat, or phone us at the Reference Desk during open hours (262-472-1032).

Regular Spring Semester hours resume on Monday, March 30th.