The Andersen Library Blog

No Free Refills?!

Posted on August 22, 2008 by kyle

Oh, wait, you wouldn’t know what that’s like (unless you’ve traveled to Europe).

Beloit College has released their annual Mindset List, which examines the worldviews of incoming freshmen. Just in case math isn’t your forte, the majority of students beginning college this year were born late 1990 or early 1991. According to the list, these kids have been deprived of the raw umber crayon and Benefit Cereal with psyllium but have always had global positioning systems and been looking for Carmen Sandiego.

The list provides insight into what our new fresh faces have under their thinking caps, but it also might make you feel old – just FYI.

Posted in around the world | Comments Off

International Year of Languages

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Barbara

“On average, a language ceases to be spoken every two weeks.”

That’s what the web page for the UN’s International Year of Languages (2008) says. UNESCO suggests that language policies enable people in linguistic communities to use their first languages as much as possible, including in education, while also learning a national or regional language and an international language. At the same time, dominant-language speakers should be urged to master another national or regional language and one or two international languages.

hello in different languages UWW offers language classes (Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, and Arabic), and language study is good preparation for life in a global society, promotes intercultural understanding, and comes in very handy during study abroad too! The University Library has materials that can help, including dictionaries (e.g., Kodansha’s romanized Japanese-English dictionary, 2nd-floor Reference Collection PL679 .V36 1993, and Oxford Reference Online’s bilingual dictionaries), books, and CDs for language practice (e.g., Conversational Japanese, 1st-floor Media Center, Oversize CDs PL535.5 .C66 2005).

For a partial listing of some recently-acquired CDs, search the Library Catalog for the keyword pimsleur.
For a broader listing of resources search for the keywords “japanese language” and (study or dictionary), substituting the language of your choice in place of japanese. This will list language practice CDs, videos, teaching methods books, K-12 language textbooks, foreign language dictionaries and grammar books, etc.
The 1st-floor Periodicals Collection includes some non-English subscriptions, such as Stern Magazine and Die Zeit (German), World Journal (Chinese), and Le Monde (French). Additional major non-English publications from around the world are available through the LexisNexis Academic database.

Of course, for quick and dirty help with translation of text there are translation sites online such as Yahoo! Babel Fish.

But the issue of language preservation/endangerment is much bigger than asking university students to study another language. Language transmits and embodies culture. Loss of linguistic diversity leads to a loss of cultural diversity. For more information see The Rosetta Project, which is “building a publicly accessible online archive of ALL documented human languages,” a National Science Foundation special report on Endangered Languages, and the web site of the Indigenous Language Institute.

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!

Posted in around the world, info.gov, online @ the library | Tagged international year of languages, language study, languages, united nations | 1 Comment

Burmese Days

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Carol

The spring 2008 cyclone that ripped through the Irawaddy Delta region, once again brought the Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar to the forefront of world news for the worst of reasons. As if the country’s political and economic woes were not enough, Mother Nature dished out a disaster of her own. As the world rushed to the aid of the cyclone victims, the military regime that holds the country in its iron grip, just as swiftly blocked the flow of aid to those victims.

Finding George Orwell in Burma

Until 1989, Myanmar was known as Burma, the name given it during British rule from 1885-1948. The country obtained independence after World War II and elected new leaders despite an economy tattered by years of fighting. But within a short time, a military coup ousted the government. While there have been internal changes in leadership, the military is still in firm control of the government and swiftly squashes any form of political dissent.

To understand Myanmar’s history, it’s helpful to read George Orwell’s, Burmese Days, a depressing, but illuminating novel set during British rule in Burma in the early 20th Century. Orwell had spent five years in Burma as a military policeman before writing the novel. Emma Larkin (pseudonym) visited Myanmar in 2003 and wrote a fascinating account of her attempts to understand the country through the lens of George Orwell’s writings. In Finding George Orwell in Burma, Larkin travels around the country, meeting casually with citizens as she gauges the literary and political undercurrents of an the country.

You may also want to read Perfect Hostage: A Life of Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma’s Prisoner of Conscience. Aung San Suu Kyi is a political activist who was essentially elected as Prime Minister of Myanmar in 1990 but was prevented from taking office by the military.

Posted in summer reading | Tagged burma, dictators, dictatorship, emma larkin, george orwell, myanmar, totalitarianism | Comments Off

New Stuff Tuesday – August 19

Posted on August 19, 2008 by kyle

Fat Rights

Fat Rights:
Dilemmas of Difference and Personhood
by Anna Kirkland
KF4757.5 .O94 K57 2008
New Book Island, 2nd floor

Civil rights and the struggle for equality have come a long way over the last century. This week’s NST book features one group commonly left out of the discussion for equal rights, but that might be changing.

Kirkland, assistant professor at the University of Michigan, tackles the topic in a bold way, starting with the title (in the preface, she addresses her use of the term ‘fat’ as opposed to ‘overweight’ or ‘obese’ because of their medical and pejorative nature). The book examines whether or not – to use the author’s words – fatness should be added to the list of protected classes like race and gender. Because of this, the book not only looks at the current issue, but also the general case of antidiscrimination laws and movements over the years. The author explores how our society and legal system decide what differences constitute added protection under the law. It’s an eye-opening study which incorporates real-life examples accompanying the text.

Posted in new stuff tuesdays | Tagged books, civil rights, law, new stuff | 1 Comment

Looking for a final summer read? Try Phantom Prey

Posted on August 15, 2008 by Ronna

Phantom Prey

Phantom Prey
by John Sandford
MCN San
McNaughton Collection, 2nd floor

This just might be my last review for “summer reading,” since classes start very soon (I refuse to think in more specific numbers). I’m back to series reading again, but this time it’s a series by a male author. I’ve been reading John Sandford’s “Prey” series for years, and have been anxiously waiting to read this latest one. When I finally got the chance, I found it to be…not bad.

Lucas Davenport is the star of the series, which is set in Minneapolis. He started out way back in the beginning as dark and dangerous—he followed his own path, solved crimes, had lots of love affairs. Over the years he’s matured and changed and is now a family man. Frankly, I preferred him the way he used to be, but oh, well.

This latest book has Davenport looking for a killer (or killers, we don’t know) who is viciously stabbing people involved in the Minneapolis Goth community. All seem connected in some way to the disappearance of Frances Austin, the crime Davenport is originally recruited to solve.

The main reason I found this book only “not bad” is because the author reveals the killer/killers (to the reader, not the police) about halfway through the book, and for some reason that made the rest of the book anti-climactic.

Like the J. D. Robb “Death” series I blogged about a few weeks ago (see our blog archives), I find the books in the “Prey” series hard to keep straight due to very similar titles (Invisible Prey, Broken Prey, all the way back to the first book, Rules of Prey). Most of them can be read out of order, but there are a few titles with recurring criminals. The complete list of books and their synopses can be found on the author’s web site. The University Library has five of the series titles in our Main Collection and two more—including this one—in the McNaughton Collection. All seven can be found using the library’s online catalog, or by asking a reference librarian.

Give this series a try. Lots of action, great characters, all set in locales you may have visited (or even lived in) yourself. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Posted in summer reading | Tagged fun stuff, leisure, murder, mysteries, summer reading | Comments Off

View documentaries on the web

Posted on August 14, 2008 by Barbara

SnagFilms offers free viewing of documentaries.

You can look for specific titles or browse by topics. There’s everything under the sun here, from A Pug’s Life to Super Size Me (you might remember that one, where the guy eats a fast food diet for a month?).

Posted in around the world | Tagged documentaries, SnagFilms, web sites | Comments Off

New Stuff Tuesday – August 12

Posted on August 12, 2008 by kyle

Whatever Happened to Thrift?

Whatever Happened to Thrift?:
Why Americans Don’t Save and What to Do About It
HC110 .S3 W54 2008
New Book Island, 2nd floor

You hear about it all the time – make sure you’re saving money, make sure you put enough money away for retirement. It turns out that we as a country aren’t doing a very good job about it.

Wilcox, professor at the University of Virginia, actually thinks that we’re downright awful at it. Dr. Wilcox contends that although personal savings may only seem to affect you as an individual, it also has effects on society and the economy. The author takes a hard look at saving habits (of lack thereof) of Americans and their financial literacy, painting a grim picture of the future. Of course, he doesn’t just tell us we have a problem and end it there. Wilcox offers solutions from the top down, starting with government policies and coming down to personal practices. Overall, the book provides real, hard-hitting insight to a real issue.

Posted in new stuff tuesdays | Tagged books, economics, new stuff, united states | Comments Off

Witches of Whitewater

Posted on August 8, 2008 by kyle

One of our favorite questions here at the Reference Desk is, “Is it true that there’s a book in the library that will make you go crazy?” Since we’re all pretty sane around here, that would mean that we haven’t seen the book ourselves.

This question is certainly going to come up a lot more in the future thanks a movie currently in development, aptly titled The Witches of Whitewater. The topic is the fascination to those in the surrounding area, and the movie caught the attention of NBC 15 in Madison. They even interviewed our very own Karen Weston, University Archivist, about the town’s paranormal connections.

Whitewater’s “Witches” Subject of Movie Trailer – NBC 15

Just in case you haven’t seen the trailer…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCWLed98QFM[/youtube]

Posted in around the library, around the world, campus connection | 11 Comments

Olympic fever?

Posted on August 8, 2008 by Barbara

Yes, it’s time for the summer Olympics, being held in Beijing, People’s Republic of China, on August 8-24, starting with the opening ceremony (on television Friday evening).

swimmer clip art fencing clip art Visit the International Olympic Committee’s official web site, which lists the summer events and provides details about the medals and other trappings of the games, the history and goals of the Olympic Movement, and information about athletes and future Olympic sites.

Visit the official site of the 2008 Beijing Olympics for the 2008 competition schedule.

You can read more about the Olympics in Library resources.

For example, do a subject keyword search in the Library Catalog for olympics and find titles such as Olympic turnaround: how the Olympic Games stepped back from the brink of extinction to become the world’s best known brand (3rd-Floor Main Collection, GV721.5 .P34 2006) and A picture history of the Olympics (3rd-Floor Main Oversize, GV721.5 .C63 1972). You can also find materials on specific events, such as fencing. Or, search for articles on the 2008 Olympics in databases such as ProQuest Newspapers (a possible search is olympics and beijing).

Posted in around the world | Tagged athletics, Beijing, China, Olympics, sports | Comments Off

Roswell revisited

Posted on August 7, 2008 by Barbara

Recently one of my iGoogle science gadgets alerted me to an interview with Apollo astronaut Edgar Mitchell in which he says he believes there really was an alien spacecraft that crashed at Roswell, NM, in July 1947. Now, I hadn’t thought about that for a long time, probably not since the last time I saw X-Files on TV. I suppose this is timely, since the X-Files movie was recently released.

The Roswell incident has been debated for years: Was it just a weather balloon as was initially reported? Was it a top secret research device? Or was a UFO crash covered up by our government, and kept so secret that nobody knows the truth anymore, not even our President? Were previous Presidents unable to get to the bottom of it? (oooh, cue spooky music here)

Roswell final report cover As late as the 1990’s the government launched an investigation, and issued a report based on exhaustive Air Force research, The Roswell report: case closed (2nd-floor U.S. Federal Documents Collection, D 301.2:R 73).

A search of the Library Catalog would find a few more materials on this fascinating incident in our history, such as UFO crash at Roswell: the genesis of a modern myth (3rd-floor Main Collection, TL789.5.N6 S25 1997), and on UFOs in general, such as Hidden truth, forbidden knowledge: it is time for you to know (3rd-floor Main Collection, BF2050 .G74 2006).

You can search for New York Times articles from the time of the Roswell incident, or from the time that the incident was being investigated, using the Proquest Historical Newspapers database.

The National Archives has had so many requests for materials related to Roswell and UFOs that it actually has a web page explaining what records and documents exist, and what does not, e.g., “Periodically, it is erroneously stated that the remains of extraterrestrial visitors are or have been stored at Wright-Patterson AFB. There are not now nor ever have been, any extraterrestrial visitors or equipment on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.” Well, there you have it. If you decide to research this topic, don’t go looking for the aliens’ remains.