Monthly Archives: October 2014

Check out this item, featured in our “What’s New Wednesdays” column – Review originally published in Library Journal, 2003, by James Swanton:

“As Ofri related in this marvelous book, becoming a doctor is a complex process. The author, who trained at New York City’s famed inner-city, 250-year-old Bellevue Hospital and cofounded Bellevue Literary Review, relates cases that evolve around gravely ill patients who die in stark and painful circumstances. Her gifted storytelling discloses a variety of patients, their medical needs, and the doctor-hospital-patient interface. How does “the System” make a doctor? The answer is still a big mystery (as David Duncan’s Residents also makes clear). New, book-smart graduates must sometimes feel like impostors as they take up their residencies, but a few years later they discover that they have become doctors. It is this alchemy that Ofri’s well-crafted prose successfully exposes. Her sometimes stressful and sad stories reveal that the connections made by a resident-physician with patients is a demanding part of medical training, a part that finally makes becoming a physician uplifting. [A chapter was selected for The Best American Essays of 2002 and won the Missouri Review Editor’s Prize for Nonfiction.–Ed.].”

Check it out today!

Every Tuesday we like to feature some technology brought to you by The Ames Library and/or Information Technology Servcies. Library databases are a specific kind of technology application, that can make your life easier. Did you know that most of your access to scholarship on campus is made possible because the library subscribes to databases? So just what is a database?

Thanks to Enoch Pratt Free Library for the following:

• Library databases contain information from published works.
  • Examples: Magazine and newspaper articles,encyclopedias and other reference books.
• Library databases are searchable.
  • By Keywords, Subject, Author, Magazine Title, Date, etc.
• Library databases provide citation information.
  • Author, if available
  • Title of Article
  • Publication (Title of Magazine, Newspaper, or Reference Book)
  • Publisher
  • Date of Publication
• Library databases often contain full-text articles.
  • You can print or email an entire article.
• There are different kinds of library databases
  • For specific topics. Examples: Environmental Sciences Collection
  • For general topics Examples: Academic Search Complete

How is a library database different from a website?

 Ethnographic Video Online: Volume II is one databases you currently have access to as part of the IWU community. It is the second volume of the award-winning Ethnographic Video Online collection, expanding on Alexander Street’s anthropology offerings by adding 500 hours of classic and contemporary documentaries, field recordings, and previously unpublished footage from renowned anthropological archives. Have questions about using it? Ask a librarian!

We’ve got a great lineup of events  happening in The Ames Library this week.

Tonight (Monday, 10/27), Beckman Auditorium, 7pm – Undocumented, Unafraid, & Unapologetic w/ Antonio Gutiérrez: Fighting for Immigrant Rights with Dignity in Chicago and Beyond with Antonio Gutierrez of Centro Autónomo de Albany Park, Chicago and Mexico Solidarity Network.

Antonio came to the United States in 2000 when he migrated with his younger sister and mother from Guadalajara, Mexico to reunite with his father. Since 2011, Antonio has been part of the immigration rights movement as an organizer with IYJL, an undocumented-led organization formed in 2009 in Chicago, with both undocumented youth and allies. Antonio recently joined the Centro Autónomo/Mexico Solidarity Network as the lead organizer for the Casas del Pueblo Community Land Trust, a housing rights movement based in the Albany Park, Chicago. He has a professional bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the Illinois Institute of Technology. Want to learn more? Check out the event page!

Thursday, 10/30, Beckman Auditorium, 3pm – Travel While Abroad: A Savvy Student’s Guide – Planning to study abroad? Interested in travel? Don’t know where to start? We’ll discuss all the elements of a trip, including choosing a destination, getting there, affordable lodging, how to find activities, and keeping it all on a student budget. This informational meeting is designed and presented by a returned study abroad-er for students who are looking to travel internationally or domestically and want to learn more.

Sunday, 11/2, Beckman Auditorium – German Film Series: Theresienstadt: Der Fuhrer schenkt den Juden eine Stadt/Terezin – The Fuhrer Gives Jews a City (1944) – Hitler commissioned this film with the idea of demonstrating to the Red Cross and the world that his concentration camps were humane. Sponsored by German, Russian and Asian Languages.

Instruction Lab, Room 129

• Monday, 9am, Span. 468, Prof. Flores-Rodriguez
• Tuesday, 9am, Psych. 300
• Tuesday, 11am, Gateway, Prof. Plath
• Thursday, 8am, Gateway, Prof. Green
• Thursday, 10:50am, Hisp. Studies 240

Meeting Room, Room 214

• Monday, 9:30am, Network Group
• Monday, 1pm, IT Meeting
• Monday, 3pm, CUPP
• Tuesday, 4:30pm, Star Literacy
• Wednesday, 3pm, CUPP
• Thursday, 11am, Assessment Committee
• Thursday, 1pm, Web Redesign Workgroup
• Thursday, 4:30pm, Star Literacy
• Friday, 9am, PRC Meeting

Beckman Auditorium

• Monday, 9am, Nursing 217
• Monday, 7pm, Undocumented, Unafraid, & Unapologetic w/ Antonio Gutiérrez: Fighting for Immigrant Rights with Dignity in Chicago and Beyond
• Tuesday, IWU Board of Trustees
• Wednesday, 7pm, Psych. 369
• Thursday, 1:10pm, Inside Job, International Political Economy
• Thursday, 3pm, Travel While Abroad
• Thursday, 4pm, Pembroke Program Information Session – Spend your junior year at Oxford! If you are a sophomore with at least a 3.75 GPA, you are eligible to apply for the prestigious Pembroke Program.
• Thursday, 7pm, International Film Series

The legacy of William Morris, a leading member of the Artsand Crafts Movement, has been the subject of four public events, with the last events today, Oct. 24.

The program brings together the disciplines of art, economics, history and politics as represented through the life of one transformative individual, according to Meg Miner, University Archivist and Special Collections Librarian and associate professor. Morris was a 19th-century English designer, writer, philosopher and founder of the Kelmscott Press, a publisher influencing the revival of the private press.

Morris was also an influential figure for Elbert Hubbard, a native of McLean County. Hubbard founded the Roycrofters (in East Aurora, N.Y.) inspired by Morris’ Kelmscott Press.

“Both Walsdorf and Boos have written books on Morris from different perspectives,” said University Librarian Karen Schmidt. “Jack’s focus has been on Morris from the point of a collector, while Florence has written about Morris as a poet, utopian writer, and social reformer.”

Walsdorf has loanded several Morris-related items from his personal collection for exhibit at The Ames Library through Nov. 14. Walsdorf will discuss Hubbard’s connection to Morris Oct. 24 at 5 p.m. at the McLean County Museum of History. Miner said attendees are invited to bring one or two books from their collections for an “Antiques Road Show” type of assessment with Walsdorf narrating.

The program is made possible by a Re-Centering the Humanities grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

E-books are pretty awesome. You get the same content as a physical volume, but you can read it anywhere you can access the Internet. Which means, 9 times out of 10, all you need is your phone or laptop (which you’re carrying around anyway). You can find hundreds of e-books in The Ames Library catalog – just search like you normally would for a specific title.

Normally, e-books are just as expensive as physical volumes, because you’re purchasing the rights to view them. These costs can add up quickly. But wait, you’re in luck! Our academic library consortium, CARLI, has negotiated a multi-publisher program that allows e-books to be shared among all CARLI library users in Illinois. The program provides over 29,000 titles in all disciplines; the publisher list is included at the end of this message.

Catalog records for these titles are available in our local catalog and the I-Share catalog. You may also visit the CARLI eBook website to access the titles directly. You will be prompted to authenticate, whether or not you are on campus, to enable tracking of circulations. These e-books have a 7 day loan period and users can view content online, download and print. Once a title has been used 9 times, it is purchased by CARLI for permanent use by all libraries.

This pilot program comes as part of our CARLI governing library membership and follows months of negotiations by the CARLI staff. Shared consortial e-book programs are still quite unusual, as publishers are leery of this changing marketplace. The library faculty look forward to your feedback on this program.  If  you have comments to share, please contact Karen Schmidt, University Librarian.

Still not sure? Here’s one e-book brought to you through this program.

It’s Not Like I’m Poor: How Working Families Make Ends Meet in a Post-Welfare World

Connect to the e-book!

From the publisher’s website: “The world of welfare has changed radically. As the poor trade welfare checks for low-wage jobs, their low earnings qualify them for a hefty check come tax time—a combination of the earned income tax credit and other refunds. For many working parents this one check is like hitting the lottery, offering several months’ wages as well as the hope of investing in a better future. Drawing on interviews with 115 families, the authors look at how parents plan to use this annual cash windfall to build up savings, go back to school, and send their kids to college. However, these dreams of upward mobility are often dashed by the difficulty of trying to get by on meager wages. In accessible and engaging prose, It’s Not Like I’m Poor examines the costs and benefits of the new work-based safety net, suggesting ways to augment its strengths so that more of the working poor can realize the promise of a middle-class life.”

Article reposted from IWU News:

William Morris

The legacy of William Morris, a leading member of the Arts and Crafts Movement, will be the subject of four public events Oct. 22-24 on the campus of Illinois Wesleyan University.

The program brings together the disciplines of art, economics, history and politics as represented through the life of one transformative individual, according to Meg Miner, University Archivist and Special Collections Librarian and associate professor. Morris was a 19th-century English designer, writer, philosopher and founder of the Kelmscott Press, a publisher influencing the revival of the private press.

“At a time when the Industrial Revolution in Britain and elsewhere had reduced workers to mechanized toil, Morris argued for the importance of creative labor,” said Miner. “As a founder of the Arts and Crafts movement and Britain’s first historical preservation society, he wrote and lectured on the vital connections between society and art, as embodied in his beautiful book and textile designs, stood for issues of equality and social justice, and became a crusading Socialist.”

Morris was also an influential figure for Elbert Hubbard, a native of McLean County. Hubbard founded the Roycrofters (in East Aurora, N.Y.) inspired by Morris’ Kelmscott Press.

Two Morris scholars will present an opening convocation Oct. 22. Jack Walsdorf, a book collector, author and president of the William Morris Society in the U.S., and Florence Boos, author and former president of the William Morris Society in the U.S., will speak at 11 a.m. at Evelyn Chapel.

“Both Walsdorf and Boos have written books on Morris from different perspectives,” said University Librarian Karen Schmidt. “Jack’s focus has been on Morris from the point of a collector, while Florence has written about Morris as a poet, utopian writer, and social reformer.”

A leaf from The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, published by Kelmscott in 1896, will be one of the items on loan to The Ames Library through Nov. 14 .

A resident of Portland, Ore., Walsdorf estimates he has collected more than 9,000 books in his nearly 50-year odyssey as a collector. He is the author of On Collecting William Morris: A Memoir. Walsdorf is also lending several Morris-related items from his personal collection for exhibit at The Ames Library through Nov. 14. Walsdorf will narrate highlights of the exhibit Oct. 22 at 4 p.m.

A professor of English at the University of Iowa, Boos is the author of The Artist & The Capitalist: William Morris & Richard Marsden. She will present a lecture Oct. 22 at 5:30 p.m. on Morris’ relation to the Garden City Movement, a mixed-use urban planning design theory that developed in response to poor living conditions in cities during the Industrial Revolution.

Walsdorf will discuss Hubbard’s connection to Morris Oct. 24 at 5 p.m. at the McLean County Museum of History. Miner said attendees are invited to bring one or two books from their collections for an “Antiques Road Show” type of assessment with Walsdorf narrating.

Schmidt said she believes these events are particularly relevant for Illinois Wesleyan because the program brings together several disciplines. “Through the lens of Morris, we can reflect on how the many threads of the liberal arts connect with one another through an individual whose influence is present in contemporary society,” said Schmidt.

The program is made possible by a Re-Centering the Humanities grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

In case you missed it, “the annual Homecoming football game at Illinois Wesleyan was spoiled with a 7-2 loss to Augustana.” While we lost the game, there was plenty of fun had throughout the rest of the weekend, so we’re all waking up a bit more slowly this morning. Need a little extra pick-me-up? Check out photos from around campus from this weekend.

We’re officially half way through the fall semester, and things are starting to get busy. There are still study spaces to be found in Ames in the evenings, but make sure you’re getting here early to get your preferred space. Remember you can reserve a project room through the Help@Ames desk for up to 4 hours at a time. Make your reservation now!

Speaking of getting started, do you know what’s going on in Ames this week? Read on to find out.

Today, Monday 10/20, the Writing Center is hosting an Open House to celebrate the National Day on Writing. Did you know the Writing Center recently moved into the library? It’s on the first floor near the Circulation Desk. Make your appointment today!

Instruction Lab, Room 129

• Monday, 1pm, Prof. Coleman’s Gateway
• Monday, 3pm, Prof. Coleman’s other Gateway
• Tuesday, 9:25pm, Prof. Sibley’s Spanish 102
• Tuesday, 10:50am, Prof. Ferradan’s Spanish 280
• Tuesday, 1pm, Prof. Hoyt’s Business 490
• Wednesday, 1pm, Prof. Coleman’s Gateway
• Wednesday, 2pm, Prof. Harper’s Biology 217
• Thursday, 9:25pm, Prof. Nillas’s Gateway
• Thursday, 2:35pm, Prof. Nadeau’s Spanish 280
• Friday, 10am, Prof. Connelley’s Gateway
• Friday, 2pm, Prof. Isabelli’s Spanish 303
• Friday, 3pm, Prof. Coleman’s Gateway

Room 214

• Monday, 3pm, CUPP
• Tuesday, noon, Library Advisory Committee
• Tuesday, 4:30pm, Star Literacy
• Wednesday, 3pm, CUPP
• Thursday, 11am, Assessment Committee
• Thursday, 1pm, IT Sharepoint
• Thursday, 4:30pm, Star Literacy
• Friday, 8am, IT Sharepoint

Beckman Auditorium

• Monday, 7pm, Vanishing of the Bees
• Tuesday, 1:10pm, Battle of Ideas
• Tuesday, 7pm, Food, Inc. – Food, Inc. is the perplexing documentary on America’s food. Delving into various issues such as safety, health, rights, law and business, this film covers how factory farms fit into the American culture. This film is presented by VVV, (Vegetarians, Vegans, Victorious).
• Wednesday, 5:30pm, Boundless Spirit: William Morris for the 21st Century – A public evening event focused on the Garden City Movement and its influence on Morris.
• Wednesday, 7pm, Psychology 369
• Thursday, 7pm, Baron von Munchhausen (1943) – A fantasy comedy of a German folktale about a man who never grows old. This version was filmed under the National Socialists as a distraction. Sponsor: International Film Series
• Friday, 9pm, Nursing 400 Exam