Undergraduate Research Day! April 10

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Barbara

clip art of male student presenting posterToday is the annual Undergraduate Research Day! You can wander around the display of posters showing off students’ research projects from noon until 3:15 p.m. in the UC Hamilton Room. A sampling of previous years’ Undergraduate Research posters is online as part of the institutional repository called MINDS@UW.

Your poster could be displayed next year! Get information online about the Undergraduate Research Program at UWW, including basic information about how you get started! This program is for everyone–sciences, arts, business, social sciences and humanities. It’s also a chance to get to know your faculty better.

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Mark Twain’s Racial Relevance

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Barbara

Alan Gribben, a nationally recognized Mark Twain scholar, will talk about “Mark Twain’s Racial Relevance” on Mon., Apr. 9th, at 7pm in the Irvin L. Young Auditorium. It’s the last Contemporary Issues Lecture of 2011/2012, and is co-sponsored by the Big Read program.

Gribben, Professor in the English and Philosophy Dept. at Auburn University at Montgomery, has, of course, published a great deal about Mark Twain, including the controversial Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn in which he replaced some pejorative racial labels with different language in an effort to stop school districts from removing the books from their reading lists. For example, each of the 223 instances of “nigger” was replaced with “slave.” You can read about the controversy this sparked in a UPI release “New ‘Huck Finn’ edition removes the ‘n’ word.” Of course, the original text of both stories can be read online: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Search Andersen Library’s articles databases to find articles written by Dr. Gribben, such as “The importance of Mark Twain” (American Quarterly, Spring 1985, vol.37, pp.30-49). You also can search HALCat (Harold Andersen Library’s catalog) and article databases for a mountain of books and articles both by and about Mark Twain, including an entry about Mark Twain in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism (via the Literature Criticism Online database). Also see a blog post on “Huckleberry Finn” from earlier this year for additional information.

Please ask a librarian for assistance with finding materials if needed.

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Organize yourself! Virtual sticky note boards

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Barbara

Is tacking up paper notes to yourself boring? Go online! This could be useful for brainstorming ideas, organizing points for a paper or presentation, or just keeping track of dates of assignments or meetings.

Screenshot of virtual corkboard excerptThere are several versions of virtual boards and sticky notes, just Google terms like virtual cork bulletin board sticky note whiteboard to find several. Compare features, what’s functional, and what’s free or costs, e.g., a free whiteboard created at GroupZap lasts only 7 days. You can read a brief review of those listed below at “The Best Online Virtual “Corkboards” (or “Bulletin Boards”)” (a blog entry by Larry Ferlazzo).

Have fun.

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Student Creativity Unleashed in the Library

Posted on April 5, 2012 by Ellen Latorraca

Have you noticed the book displays near the Library’s Food for Thought Café or in the Curriculum Collection area on the 2nd floor? These aren’t just catchy-looking collections of colorful items. These displays are projects designed by students in Elementary Math Methods and Children’s Literature classes, through which students demonstrate their ability to integrate content area teaching with children’s fiction and non-fiction. This academic year, some students have taken on the challenge of creating counter-top displays that invite the viewer to browse the various books and items, including everything from hand puppets to felt-board clocks to jellybeans. (Yes, jellybeans. We hadn’t intended on creating edible displays, but creativity prevails.) If you haven’t paid attention to the displays featuring children’s books and media lately, stop and take a gander next time you visit Andersen!

 

“Money Monsters” display designed by Kelly Jones, Natalie Wolf, Samantha Neustadter, and Sarah Hartlaub

“A Matter of Time” included a manipulative felt-board clock as well as copies of instructions for making a simple sundial that the viewer could take. Designed by Heather Bennett

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Submit Earth Day photos

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Barbara

clip art of digital cameraUW-W will celebrate Earth Day on Thurs., Apr. 26, with the theme “We are All Connected by Rivers.” As part of the festivities, we (students, faculty, and community members) can submit digital photos for exhibition around campus. Photos can be landscapes, natural scenes, wildlife or community activities. The deadline for submissions is Monday, April 16 (4:30 p.m.). Read the details online.

Looking for some pointers on photography? Andersen Library has resources that may help with technique and inspiration! Search HALCat (Harold Andersen Library’s catalog) for books such as Field photography: Beginning and advanced techniques (3rd-floor Main Collection, TR721 .B55) and Over the rivers (3rd-floor OVERSIZE Collection, QE77 .C65 2008).

You can see some stunning river photos on National Geographic’s web site.

You can get some advice about how to photograph a river from Graham Turner, photographer for the UK Guardian. (My two favorite tips: “Do not drop your camera in the water.” and “Try not to fall in.”

So get out there and take some beautiful photos for Earth Day!

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New Stuff Tuesday – April 3

Posted on April 3, 2012 by kyle

The Imperfect Primary

The Imperfect Primary:
Oddities, Biases, and Strengths of US Presidential Nomination Politics
by Barbara Norrander
JK522 .N67 2010
New Arrivals, 2nd floor

Just in case you haven’t been paying attention to the news or have your phone number on the do-not-call list [and in theory missing the robo-calls], there’s the elections going on today (make sure to vote!). I’ve personally never really understood the spring elections, so this week’s featured title is especially helpful for me. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it might help you too.

Norrander, professor at the University Arizona, knows a few things about elections, specifically presidential nominations, as she has been writing on the topic for several decades. She has taken this knowledge and understanding of a seemingly bizarre system to enlighten everyone else about this particular aspect of politics. The author covers a brief history of the preliminary race before the big one, other ways in which a president could be selected, as well as a discussion of the fairness of the current system. This book offers a quick and dirty explanation, less than one hundred and thirty pages, of how and why things work the way that they do in choosing the challengers for the highest political post in the United States.

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Book Sale Education Style

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Martha

This month’s book sale is loaded with education related books, mostly history of education and educational theory and practice. It also has a good number of items on the history of the Americas. Don’t worry if these are not your major areas of interest, as we also have books on a host other subjects, including world history, law, religion and more. Titles include How to Live with a Neurotic Cat, Ask the Family Handyman and Best Remembered Poems. Come check out the ecclectic books of this month’s sale and remember to buy, buy, buy whatever interests you now, because if you wait, they may be gone.

Teacher Reading to Class

Thanks for patronizing our book sale!

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Andersen Library Mini Break hours Apr 5-8

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Barbara

Mini Break!
Andersen Library’s hours will be:
Thurs Apr 5: 7:30am-10 p.m.
Fri Apr 6: 7:30am-4:30pm
Sat Apr 7: CLOSED
Sun Apr 8: 3pm-2am (only 2nd floor is open midnight-2am)

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

  • Search article databases …just login when prompted with your campus Net-ID (same as for your campus email or D2L),
  • Search the HALCat Library Catalog and use links to the titles that are online, including ereserves for classes,
  • Renew your checked-out books, DVDs, etc., online (once) through your Personal Record,
  • Consult online guides for assistance, including citation guides for APA, MLA, and Turabian format, and class assignment guides, and
  • Ask a librarian for help using email or chat, or phone us at the Reference Desk (262-472-1032) during Reference Desk hours (Fri 9am-4:30pm, Sunday April 8th 3-10pm).

Regular Spring Semester hours resume on Monday, April 9th.

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Organizing Citations with EndNote Web

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Ellen Latorraca

Do you sometimes think you spend crazy amounts of time formatting your citations, footnotes, and in-text citations? Did you know that there are tools available that allow you to organize your citations in one place (online!), import citations from databases, catalogs, and some websites, and format your citations as you type? EndNote Web is an online tool that makes this possible, simplifying the process for researchers and students, especially those who are juggling many research projects and numerous citations. Get started by visiting our EndNoteWeb Getting Started guide, or attend one of our introductory workshops:

  • Thursday, April 12, 12:00-1:00PM, or
  • Wednesday, April  18, 11-12:00PM

Place: Library Instruction Lab (L2211)
RSVP: Faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend, but please reserve your spot (latorrae@uww.edu or 262.472.5525)

In our hands-on introductory session we will:

  • Create an EndNote account 
  • Get acquainted with the user interface
  • Create groups (folders) for organizing citations, and sharing citation collections with colleagues, students, and professors
  • Add references to your library including from online sources such as EBSCO
  • Experiment with the Cite While You Write feature

If you are a student who has attended one of the Academic Support Center APA/MLA Documentation Workshops, this is a perfect “next step!”

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The Library – It’s Your Bag, Baby!

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Carol

When mid-semester arrives, you know it’s time to hit the books and get your coursework under control. Andersen Library provides students with just the environment they need to get their work done.

The Best Study Spaces

Andersen Library Children's collection

Being around other students trying to accomplish the same goals is what many students need to motivate them to do their best. For some, it gets the competitive juices flowing, for others it provides the right academic mindset to inspire those papers. For nearly everyone, it offers the right social mix: spend a few minutes connecting with friends, then find your favorite spot to buckle down and study. The main floor of the Library is perfect for group projects with its study rooms, larger study tables and clusters of comfy bean bags. The first and third floors offer quiet study spaces.

Library laptops and Macbooks make it easy to turn any corner of the Library into productive work space. And studying with all those books and journals at your fingertips just makes you feel smarter.

The Library is open 105 hours per week, including until 2am Sunday-Thursday. See the Library’s Hours page for details.

Professional Research Assistance

What’s even better is that professional reference librarians are available for inspiration and assistance when you’re working on your research papers and projects. The Reference Desk is open 72 hours per week. Call us at 262.472.1032 during Reference Desk hours or drop by while you’re in the neighborhood. If you’d like to schedule an appointment for more in-depth research assistance, give us a call.

We also offer the 24/7 Ask a Librarian service that allows you to chat online with a reference librarian anytime.

Food — Yum

Did I mention food? The Food for Thought Cafe offers sandwiches, salads, coffee and snacks. And the Library allows you to bring your own food and drinks as long as they’re not near the computers, so you can feed your brain while giving it a workout.

Study Break

Favorite books from the Children's Collection

When you need a time out from the books to relax, here are a few study break suggestions.

  1. Grab a picture book from the “Easy” books in the Children’s Collection and revisit your childhood friends: Curious George, Babar, Frog & Toad, and the Wild Things. We’ve got hundreds of your favorite children’s books along with comfy bean bag and multimedia rocking chair seating.
  2. Find some relaxing music in the Browsing CD Collections and pop it in your computer. Headphones are available at the Circulation and Reference Desks.
  3. Plunk down in front of the TV in the Children’s Collection for a few minutes to catch some ‘toons.
  4. Walk over to the Teaching Tools collection (it’s part of the Children’s Collection) and find a jigsaw puzzle or game to play.
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