By
Ken on
November 18, 2009
Just out is the 2009 Word of the Year. If you are “connected” you probably already know this. But, just in case, the WOTY is “unfriend” beating out the likes of hashtag, sexting, and paywall, among others. See this CNN story for more details.
Unfriend joins previous winners such as chad, metrosexual, Y2K and bailout. Do you [...]
Posted in Misc.
| Tagged awards, communication
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By
Ken on
October 22, 2009
I don’t know if you caught this or not but Finland recently declared broadband access to the Internet a legal right (low affordability though not compulsory). Come again? According to the Communications Minister it is part of Finland’s effort to develop an information society. “We decided that broadband connections are no longer this kind of [...]
Posted in Misc., Technology
| Tagged access, government
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By
Ken on
October 19, 2009
As we have entered into a another academic year with new services and resources, a revamped look to the first two floors, an emphasis on marketing and publicizing, and making the very best use of funds, the thought occurred to me that while I think the library is indispensable nevertheless there may be some who [...]
Posted in Duggan Library News, Misc.
| Tagged Duggan Library, librarians
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By
Ken on
October 9, 2009
Did you know that President Barack Obama signed a proclamation on October 1st declaring the month to be “National Information Literacy Awareness Month“? I have to confess that I didn’t hear about this until reading Steven Bell’s blog entry on the ACRLog today. Must have got lost in the buzz leading up to Homecoming.
I say, “it’s [...]
Posted in Duggan Library News, Misc.
| Tagged information literacy
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By
Ken on
September 25, 2009
There is an interesting article published yesterday in the NY Times discussing the financial value of a college education. In essence, does a college education really make a difference in potential earnings?
Of course, one doesn’t (or shouldn’t) go to school just with the idea that it will guarantee financial success (getting an education is simply that, [...]
Posted in Misc., Resources
| Tagged research
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By
Ken on
September 22, 2009
An article in the latest eCampus News says that college students are particularly vulnerable to internet addiction which includes gaming, social networking, and texting. Apparently, for some students, the combination of living on their own for the first time along with unbridled access to technology threatens their academic well-being and potentially other areas of their [...]
Posted in Misc., Resources
| Tagged social networking, Technology
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By
Kelly on
September 18, 2009
Saturday is “Talk Like a Pirate Day” Arg! Search for keyword ‘pirate’ in PantherCAT and you can find 3 e-books to help you more authentically recreate the pirate lifestyle. All are from our Early American Imprints collection. One even features the word “piratically” in the title - how often do you [...]
Posted in Humor, Misc.
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By
Ken on
September 18, 2009
Thanks, minimally, to Law and Order or Dragnet (depending on one’s age), everyone knows the first two lines to the Miranda Warning, “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
I was reminded of this when I recently read an opinion piece [...]
Posted in Misc.
| Tagged social networking
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By
Ken on
September 11, 2009
Taking its cue from a recent NY Times article on advice to new college students, this is a very quick read about the practicality of cultivating research skills and implications for life after college (and an embedded recommendation from McSweeney’s for [fellow] students to take advantage of their college library, while they can). From the ACRL [...]
Posted in Misc.
| Tagged research
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By
Ken on
September 8, 2009
In this day and age of blogs, tweets, chats, and wall postings it is nice to see that pen and paper still have value.
Attending a presentation on the (library) user experience at a conference in April I jotted down in my notes the following: “Look at what is broken (assumptions/perceptions?) and fix it. Leave up an [...]
Posted in Duggan Library News, Misc., Services
| Tagged library hours, reference, user experience
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