If you clicked through from the Rowan Libraries Home Page you will have noticed we have a new look. Changes are designed to improve the presentation of information; most of the information previously found on the right side of the page is now available on the left. Simply mouse over the menu for additional choices. Importantly, these changes are minor and temporary; but we have some big news.
We are working hard on a next generation Website, to be released this September. It will be vastly improved and we think you will really like it. Based on an open source content management system, it will allow for far more timely and informative information delivery. The site will include new Web 2.0 advances with feeds and customizing components and specialized user portals to finely tune the delivery of information. For instance, a Government Materials portal and a Music Library portal will present specialized information relevant to user's special needs and a faculty portal will present information from the instructor's perspective. For all users assistance will also be available in a more contextualized way in order to improve user understanding and enhance the use of selected information.
Advances in the delivery of information through our next generation service will ensure that students and faculty learn about the many resources we make available and about new resources and services as they are added. Users will be able to take advantage of online tutorials and instructional vignettes on an as needed basis, and use new resources such as Refworks to help present information in an efficient and correct manner.
We will be looking for feedback and for ideas about how we can improve our new site. If you have ideas about what you would like to see, email the Dean, or add comments to this page. In August a Beta version will be put up and input will be looking for comments, suggestions and input. In the fall the new site will be up and ready and we are sure the next gen site will be user focused, east-to-use, and informative.
Friday's List: My Favorite Websites this Week
Speakout.com
This interesting, informative, fun website is required reading for anyone anxious to share their opinion on the latest issues of the day. It is "jam packed" with news and data so follow all the links.
Ethics Updates
Founded in 1994 & edited by Lawrence M. Hinman, now located at the University of San Diego; the site provides link to literature and updates on the increasingly important topic of Ethics.
Intute
I think Intute should be a bookmark or favorite on every student's browser. From the Intute web site:
Librarians Index to the Internet (LII)
Librarians' Internet Index is a publicly-funded website with a market focus primarily for California, but incredibly useful for the rest of us as well. The entries are extensive and vetted by librarians so you know you can trust them. Google ads were added recently, they say to find stable sources of revenue; the ads are generally unobtrusive.
Cyward Internet Education
Search Engines & Specialized Directories, compiled by Nancy Picchi, Internet Consultant. The great amount of effort and time that has been put into this guide will make finding information you need a breeze.
This interesting, informative, fun website is required reading for anyone anxious to share their opinion on the latest issues of the day. It is "jam packed" with news and data so follow all the links.
Ethics Updates
Founded in 1994 & edited by Lawrence M. Hinman, now located at the University of San Diego; the site provides link to literature and updates on the increasingly important topic of Ethics.
Intute
I think Intute should be a bookmark or favorite on every student's browser. From the Intute web site:
a free online service providing you with access to the very best Web resources for education and research. The service is created by a network of UK universities and partners. Subject specialists select and evaluate the websites in our database and write high quality descriptions of the resources. The database contains 120,404 records.
Librarians Index to the Internet (LII)
Librarians' Internet Index is a publicly-funded website with a market focus primarily for California, but incredibly useful for the rest of us as well. The entries are extensive and vetted by librarians so you know you can trust them. Google ads were added recently, they say to find stable sources of revenue; the ads are generally unobtrusive.
Cyward Internet Education
Search Engines & Specialized Directories, compiled by Nancy Picchi, Internet Consultant. The great amount of effort and time that has been put into this guide will make finding information you need a breeze.
Friday's List: My Favorite Websites this Week
The British Empire
Created and is maintained by a teacher in the UK, the site is elegant and very informative with over 5000 pages of information about the approximately tow and a half centuries of world history dominated by Britain.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Another great example of your tax dollars at work, the CDC is recognized as a preeminent source for health related information.
IMDB
Claiming over 50 million visits a month, IMDB is the most comprehensive web site dedicated to movies and the people who make them. You will no doubt find the answer to all trivia questions here and it is a great starting point for those doing more in depth research
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Met should be on the agenda of every visitor to New York but for those not not planning a trip, their web site offers an introduction to the wonders that can be found there. Start with Explore and Learn and for research see the Collection Database.
Created and is maintained by a teacher in the UK, the site is elegant and very informative with over 5000 pages of information about the approximately tow and a half centuries of world history dominated by Britain.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Another great example of your tax dollars at work, the CDC is recognized as a preeminent source for health related information.
IMDB
Claiming over 50 million visits a month, IMDB is the most comprehensive web site dedicated to movies and the people who make them. You will no doubt find the answer to all trivia questions here and it is a great starting point for those doing more in depth research
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Met should be on the agenda of every visitor to New York but for those not not planning a trip, their web site offers an introduction to the wonders that can be found there. Start with Explore and Learn and for research see the Collection Database.
Friday's List: My Favorite Websites this Week
Consumer Reports Web Watch
Brought to you by the publisher of the well known magazine, the site promotes consumer awareness on the Web. The page is underwritten by Consumers' Union, the Knight Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trust, and the Open Society Institute.
U.S Census Bureau, State and County Quick Facts
Select a State, County and/or City for a quick breakdown of useful demographic information. A quick and accurate presentation of very useful information
E-How
An attractive easy to use layout presents over 75,000 articles about how to do things; well worth a look.
Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers
A man claimed by three countries, Alexander Bell's best know 20th century contribution of the telephone overshadows significant advancements in aerodynamics and, particularly, in deaf education and research.
10X10 / 100 Words and Pictures that Define the Time
Each hour 10X10 scans the RSS feeds of Reuters, the New York Times International News, and the BBC World Service. The results are ranked in importance and presented in pictures from top left to bottom right. Mouse over the corresponding words to the right of the photos, one word for each picture. Click a word or picture for related headlines and stories.
CancerFacts.com
A commercial site but one that presents valid and valuable information about all types of cancer.
Brought to you by the publisher of the well known magazine, the site promotes consumer awareness on the Web. The page is underwritten by Consumers' Union, the Knight Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trust, and the Open Society Institute.
U.S Census Bureau, State and County Quick Facts
Select a State, County and/or City for a quick breakdown of useful demographic information. A quick and accurate presentation of very useful information
E-How
An attractive easy to use layout presents over 75,000 articles about how to do things; well worth a look.
Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers
A man claimed by three countries, Alexander Bell's best know 20th century contribution of the telephone overshadows significant advancements in aerodynamics and, particularly, in deaf education and research.
10X10 / 100 Words and Pictures that Define the Time
Each hour 10X10 scans the RSS feeds of Reuters, the New York Times International News, and the BBC World Service. The results are ranked in importance and presented in pictures from top left to bottom right. Mouse over the corresponding words to the right of the photos, one word for each picture. Click a word or picture for related headlines and stories.
CancerFacts.com
A commercial site but one that presents valid and valuable information about all types of cancer.
Banned Books Week: Sept 29 - Oct. 5
There is an interesting story in the news these days about a woman in Maine who deliberately removed copies of a book from two local libraries. She sent a check to the library to pay for the books and told them she had no intention of returning them. I am amused that she has taken it upon herself to determine what I and my family should be able to read when we go to the library. If I can find her address I will send her a copy of another document: the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Follow this link for more on that story.
The American Library Association has published a list of the 10 most challenged books in the 21st century. Many of these titles were also on the list in the 1990s and they continue to be hotly contested. The Harry Potter series tops the list these days. Here is the list from the ALA:
At Rowan Libraries we think this is important and we will celebrate Banned Books Week, this year from Sept. 29 through Oct. 5, with an educational display on the first floor of Campbell Library.
The number of books challenged, and often banned from libraries and schools in the United States is very great, the reasons are few; they are almost always because of political views expressed, the sexual content or health content related to sex, or religion. Interestingly that about covers the contents of the first amendment. Here is what it says:
The American Library Association has published a list of the 10 most challenged books in the 21st century. Many of these titles were also on the list in the 1990s and they continue to be hotly contested. The Harry Potter series tops the list these days. Here is the list from the ALA:
1. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
2. "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier
3. Alice series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
4. "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck
5. "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
6. "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers
7. "It's Perfectly Normal" by Robie Harris
8. Scary Stories series by Alvin Schwartz
9. Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
10. "Forever" by Judy Blume
At Rowan Libraries we think this is important and we will celebrate Banned Books Week, this year from Sept. 29 through Oct. 5, with an educational display on the first floor of Campbell Library.
The number of books challenged, and often banned from libraries and schools in the United States is very great, the reasons are few; they are almost always because of political views expressed, the sexual content or health content related to sex, or religion. Interestingly that about covers the contents of the first amendment. Here is what it says:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
If you haven’t read a banned book we want to help. Check one out during banned book week receive a free “I Read Banned Books” lapel pin.Banned Books Week is a program of the Office for Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association. For more information, visit www.ala.org/bbooks or drop by the Campbell library.
Friday's List: My Favorite Websites this Week
Europa (main link) and Europa: Gateway to the European Union (English link)
Begun in the 80s as a site for the classics it has grown to include a variety of offerings including the Classics, Papyri, The Renaissance, the Boyle Collection of London, California, Chicago, and the Chesapeake. This was one of the first sites to demonstrate the real power of the web as an educational and research tool and it is still ranks of a favorite.
National Atlas.Gov
Here is another exceptional example of your tax dollars at work. The site is phenomenal! I recommend you take twenty minutes of uninterrupted time to experience what you can learn, then set a bookmark for this page. As they describe it, it is like no map you have ever used before.
From the web site “Our cultural and natural heritage . . . unique and diverse as the wilds of East Africa’s Serengeti, the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Baroque cathedrals of Latin America make up our world’s heritage.” It is a special site for this universally important effort.
The Center for Public Integrity
If you get your news form any media source you should spend some time on this site. This is a different take on news: award winning, import, investigative reporting that we should demand from all media sources.
Friday's List: My Favorite Websites this Week
100 Milestone Documents
In keeping with Rowan University’s upcoming week-long celebration of the Constitution of the United States take a look at OurDocuments.gov. A cooperative effort of National History Day (NHD), the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), and the USA Freedom Corps, this is an excellent page for those interested in politics and history, and it is an especially valuable source for teachers and other educators.
Project Gutenberg
It has been around for years and is still one of the best sites on the Web, making available the full text of over 20,000 free books, and counting. There are over 100,000 titles available through Affiliates and Partners.
The Name Voyager on Babyname.wizard.com
This is a fun and interesting java application that lets you see, on a dynamic graph, the popularity of names from the 1880s to the present day in the United States. Click a box to select a gender and type the name by the flashing curser.
Eric Weisstein’s World of Science from Wolfram Research
This site claims to be the best resource for math and science on the Internet. It certainly is one of my favorites. Each area – math, physics, astronomy, chemistry – is very comprehensive and there is a great biography section as well.
Time Magazine’s Pictures of the Week
Pictures of the Week are selected from the Time collection of photographs. They are exceptional examples of the photographers’ art. Sometimes disturbing, sometimes sublime, always informative, this sight is well worth a look.
In keeping with Rowan University’s upcoming week-long celebration of the Constitution of the United States take a look at OurDocuments.gov. A cooperative effort of National History Day (NHD), the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), and the USA Freedom Corps, this is an excellent page for those interested in politics and history, and it is an especially valuable source for teachers and other educators.
Project Gutenberg
It has been around for years and is still one of the best sites on the Web, making available the full text of over 20,000 free books, and counting. There are over 100,000 titles available through Affiliates and Partners.
The Name Voyager on Babyname.wizard.com
This is a fun and interesting java application that lets you see, on a dynamic graph, the popularity of names from the 1880s to the present day in the United States. Click a box to select a gender and type the name by the flashing curser.
Eric Weisstein’s World of Science from Wolfram Research
This site claims to be the best resource for math and science on the Internet. It certainly is one of my favorites. Each area – math, physics, astronomy, chemistry – is very comprehensive and there is a great biography section as well.
Time Magazine’s Pictures of the Week
Pictures of the Week are selected from the Time collection of photographs. They are exceptional examples of the photographers’ art. Sometimes disturbing, sometimes sublime, always informative, this sight is well worth a look.
Rowan University Recognizes Constitution Week
It is a truly historic document! Through the efforts of a few extraordinarily courageous men the United States Constitution has become the cornerstone for what is now the oldest continuous democracy in the world. The greatness of this document and the system for which it has laid the foundation has been demonstrated throughout our history: resilient in times of political and economic upheaval; consistent in the manifestation of the founders’ desire that these United States be a nation of laws by and for the people of this country. Constitution Day recognizes the achievement of our constitution, one of the world’s greatest documents. This year Constitution Day falls on September 17.
At Rowan University, Campbell Library will be the home of a week of activities exploring and celebrating the constitution and citizenship in the United States. We challenge you to take the U.S. Citizenship History and Civics Review test! It is found on the library’s Learning Express database. Those scoring 85% or better will qualify for prize drawings offered throughout the week. Once completed, print your score page, add contact information, and drop the page in the basket in the lobby of Campbell Library. As well, the library will screen DVDs about the constitution on a scheduled basis in the library and a special movie will be presented on Thursday evening—popcorn included.
Visit Campbell Library through the week of the Sept. 17th to learn about and celebrate the constitution. Free copies of the constitution will be available for all who would like one. To learn more about the Constitution of the United States online visit the National Constitution Center Museum Website.
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