Miniture Golf and Vanishing Breed Shirt

Miniature Golf in the Library.  ISU's Eli M. Oboler Library

Last weekend we hosted a miniature golf event in the library.  It seemed that not as many people came to the event.  We may need to do better at advertising our event and inviting people personally or via Facebook to the event.  Proceeds of the event go to our book budget account.  This event is sponsored by our Friends of the Oboler Library group, which is commonly known as FOOLs.  It's a fun name and one with meaning behind it as well, referencing the fools in medieval times that often spoke the truth in the presence of the king--the only one who could do so without negative consequences.

Those who volunteered could wear and keep a free shirt with the phrase "Save a Vanishing Breed."  The image of a reader with a book appears on the shirt.  Personally, I do not like this, because I think that there are many readers today--that reading is not a rare event in modern society.  However, I am a librarian surrounded by readers.  As a previous experience in a library workshop attests, it may not be so uncommon for a half of any group of college freshmen to have never looked up a book in a library before, which supports the argument that fewer and fewer individuals may be reading extensively.

Question 10 of a recent survey I gave to another class indicates that many college students struggle reading scholarly research, even in upper division courses.  I should look this up, but I remember seeing somewhere that an educational organization or some association identified reading as the most important skill of the 21st century.  It is a fundamental skill.

Google Celebrates Earth Day with Art

For Earth Day Google has created a beautiful picture for its logo. Passing the cursor/mouse over the picture makes it so that different animals in the picture move; panda bears move, penguins dive into water, fish swim upstream and are eaten by bears, a bird flies across the sky. It looks great and fun.

For a better description of Earth Day and the Google doodle, as well as explanations of the allusions to other websites and videos referenced in the doodle, read the Guardian's article.

Take a look and celebrate Earth Day.

CQ Researcher

One of my favorite databases is CQ Researcher, which provides articles on "hot topics" each week by qualified writers. Not long ago I wrote a few potential blurbs about this database and sent them to the editor of our bathroom newsletter. It occurred to me just yesterday that these blurbs would be good for this information-literacy blog. This type of database seems like it would be particularly useful to those in Speech and lower-division courses where students need to discuss or write about current topics of interest. The editor's final edition appear at the end of this post.

Blurb #1

"Mexico’s Drug War: Is the violence spilling into the U.S.?" This is the title to a recent report published by CQ Researcher. This database discusses issues of current interest each week in the same format, looking at the past, present, and future of a particular phenomenon. Some students like the section where two experts take opposing sides to the question at hand. Others appreciate the extensive list of references at the end as it launches them on a fruitful research trajectory.

[Trajectory: adj. 1. Physics. Of or pertaining to that which is thrown or hurled through the air or space. N. 1. a. Physics. The path of any body moving under the action of given forces; by many modern writers restricted to that of a body not known to be moving, like a planet, in a closed curve or orbit; esp. the curve described by a projectile in its flight through the air.]

Blurb #2

Do you need to know more about an issue of current interest? Congressional Quarterly Researcher can fulfill your need. Each week it publishes substantive articles that deal with important phenomena in our society, typically with deep political ramifications. Take a look at the most recent issues, browse by topic, or search for issues important to you. Topics include cyberbullying, the drug war in Mexico, obesity in children, steroids in sports, global warming, etc.

Blurb #3

Will you need to write a term paper or a speech this semester? Take a look at one of the Library’s most interesting databases, CQ Researcher. It includes salient articles relevant to today’s most pressing issues, from Mexico’s drug wars to financial bailouts, gun rights to declining birth rates, and gay marriage to internet accuracy. Experts take sides on issues, outlining the pros and cons from their own perspectives. A large bibliography or works-cited section also proves useful for those willing to do more fulfilling, in-depth research.

Blurb # 4

Are you ready to branch out from the normal databases you usually access? This database, CQ Researcher, can help you understand issues of importance for our country, including a breakdown of its history, current situation, and future outlook. Find articles on China’s human rights, Mexico’s drug war, cyberbullying, race and politics, and much more. Each article offers other sources of information for digging deeper into the subject.

Editor's Final Edition Titled:

"For Current Events & Controversial Issues!"
Need to write a speech or a term paper on a "hot topic"? Try CQ Researcher, one of the Library's most interesting databases. Weekly reports focus on specific topics, from financial bailouts to Mexico's drug wars; gun rights to declining birth rates; gay marriage to Internet accuracy. Each includes:
• an overview of the topic
• an in-depth discussion of the current situation
• a Pro/Con section
• a very useful Chronology
• a bibliography
• an "Issue Tracker" for Related Reports.
Written by experts, all information is accurate and trustworthy. For help with CQ Researcher or any library resource, just ask at the Reference Desk!

Book Sale Prices

Family in Poky 009,
originally uploaded by Ref & Ins.

Here's a photo with the prices. It looks like hardbacks sold for $3.00 on the first day and $1.50 the second day. Paperbacks sold for $1 the first day and 50 cents the second day. I managed to find a children's book about the Nativity told entirely with pictures of Gothic sculptures from the outside of a cathedral in France.

Anyone can donate books to the Oboler Library. We also have a Book Swap rack where individuals may bring a book in exchange for one on the rack.

Library Book Sale

Family in Poky 010,
originally uploaded by Ref & Ins.

Every other year the Oboler Library has a book sale. Usually, the books have been donated to the Library, and a bibliographer has determined that we already have a copy or we do not need that book for our collection. The money made from the book sale goes back into purchasing more books for our Library. We sold books for two days. The first hour or two was the busiest, as it seemed that local book sellers came to buy as much as they could. They knew what they wanted and would dump them into boxes. The first day each book was a dollar and then the second day they were fifty cents, if I remember correctly. It seems that the paperbacks were sold for less than the hardbacks.

Recently, the Library has begun a continuous book sale. A stand of books are always for sale near the Circulation Desk. I have heard that it is going rather well. I frequently see people looking at the books available.

Arrrrgh! Come to the Library!

Pirate2,
originally uploaded by Ref & Ins.

A year ago we had a theme of finding buried treasure at the Library, so I dressed up as a pirate for the white-tent event. We gave away brochures and pens. I did have to almost grab people to get their attention. Most students thought it was fun, and a few wanted to take pictures with me.

We rented the hat, boots, and shirt from a local rental place, but most of the paraphernalia came from Library colleagues. We bought the eye patch and the parrot from the rental place.