January - February 2012 IN THIS ISSUE
1.What Should You Read Next?
2."The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" 3.Book Review: Physics of the Future by Michio Kaku
4.Update Your Bookmarks - Health Sciences Library to deactivate old proxy server 5.A Fine Romance - traveling exhibit on Jewish composers
6.Violet Ray Exhibit 7.Appendix: Book review
Someone asked me to help her find a new book to read based on what she just read (and liked), so I thought I'd share this list (with credit to Lifehacker.com):
http://www.goodreads.com/ - most popular tool according to one website
http://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/ - Simple interface (type the title in slowly and select from a drop down list) - but no covers to browse until you click "more info" and land on a book's Amazon record.
http://www.mindthebook.com/ - selects a book based on a question, eg. "How to be happy?" - probably best for non-fiction
http://www.shelfari.com/ - kind of like facebook for readers, but the recommendations seem to be less relevant. No need to create an account to search, though.
http://www.lazylibrary.com/ - helps you find short books
http://www.authonomy.com/?from=bookarmy - I wasn't able to get the search function to work, so i don't know how good the results are
http://booklamp.org/ - promises to find books based on writing style, but I couldn't get it to pull up any books I'd read (even popular titles like "The Help", and "Catch-22")
http://www.whichbook.net/ - Instead of searching, you slide scales on the side eg. (Funny or Sad, Unusual or Conventional). You can also browse by Author, but that doesn't give you recommendations for other authors, just shows you where their books are on the scales. Fun to use, but not sure how useful.
http://www.yournextread.com/us/ - Easy to use interface, some of the recommendations are similar to Shelfari, so maybe the two websites are sharing data.
http://bookseer.com/ - Very simple interface, but you need to know the title and the author to search
http://www.librarything.com/ - Has been around a long time, free to join but there is a paid membership option. No searching without signing up.
http://getglue.com/ - Searching for members only. Free.
And of course, there is always http://www.amazon.com - probably the most powerful in terms of data, but what you will see is only the most popular books other people liked, and sometimes what is most popular is not particularly well written.
Don’t forget: you can always Ask Us – in person or via phone, email, or chat!
[Addie Myers Fletcher, CCTSI Librarian]
Have you seen this year's Academy Award short film winner? "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore", is a reminder that books still fuel the imagination and innovation (whether flying or not, electronic or print copy!)
[Lynne M. Fox, Education Librarian] 2.
Physics of the future: how science will shape human destiny and our daily lives by the year 2100 By Michio Kaku
HSL Amesse/1st Floor, 303.48 KAK
In 1899, the commissioner of the U.S. Office of Patents, Charles H. Duell, famously said, “Everything that can be invented has been invented.” Today such a statement seems exceptionally myopic, but as citizens of 2012 know, hindsight is 20/20. The true challenge is envisioning the future with accuracy.
By interviewing hundreds of leading scientists across the disciplines of computer science, artificial
intelligence, medicine, nanotechnology, physics, and even economics, Dr. Michio Kaku takes up the difficult task of synthesizing their collective works and envisioning what our global civilization may look like throughout the 21st century.
Dr. Kaku anticipates that nearly every aspect of our lives will involve computers and computer chips, woven into society in such a way that they become invisible and ubiquitous. Nanotechnology should develop to the point that our bodies will even be full of microscopic chips designed to monitor our health and alert us to potential diseases and cancers. While robots may become common place, we don’t need to fear a Matrix-like take over because scientists in the field of artificial intelligence have not been able to replicate emotional intelligence.
Energy of course will be a grave issue facing this century. Dr. Kaku examines the possibilities of magnetism, nuclear power, including fusion and fission, as well as wind and solar technologies. Developments in these areas will also benefit the future of space travel as we continue to explore our nearest planetary neighbors. The world of 2100 is exciting and vibrant, thanks to the persistent scientific breakthroughs of this century. While Dr. Kaku’s 2100 feels a little too utopist, there is no question that science will continue to fuel and change our society in many significant ways.
3.
-Reviewed by Brittany Heer Library Technician II Interlibrary Loan
On Monday, Feb. 27, we will be deactivating our IMPULSE proxy server. Back in August we moved to a new proxy server, EZProxy, and the two systems use two different kinds of URLs. When we deactivate the old server, some links will break if you have them in your own system of bookmarks (as opposed to using the library home page).
If you use bookmarks or other personalized, static links to library resources that used our old proxy server, they look like this:
http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.impulse.ucdenver.edu (ScienceDirect) (Note the "impulse.ucdenver.edu" in the link above.)
...please edit your links, or simply make a new link to this format:
http://hsl-ezproxy.ucdenver.edu/login?url=http://www.sciencedirect.com (Note the "hsl-ezproxy.ucdenver.edu" in the link above.)
You can, of course visit any library resource via the library home or databases web page and make a new bookmark from there.
Reason for deactivation? Since we made the move in the fall, there is already much that is inaccurate in the old proxy server. Currently, with usage continuing fairly heavy on our old proxy server, trying to join the usage statistics sets is very challenging. The library does not have the staff or resources to maintain two proxy servers.
Why the change of proxy servers in the first place? The library feels EZProxy is a more forward-looking product, with better ease of maintenance and support, which eventually will allow us to integrate as single sign-on with other campus systems.
Questions or access problems? Please feel free to call us at the Service Desk at 303-724-2152, or use our Ask a Librarian service.
4.
The traveling exhibit A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, 5.
American Songs, 1910-1965 will be on display March 7 through April 20 at the Health Sciences Library. The exhibition is co-sponsored by the University of Colorado Health Sciences Library, the Mizel Museum, the Colorado Hebrew Chorale and the Program in Jewish Studies, University Colorado Boulder.
from a common ethnic background. A Fine Romance tells the story of many Jewish composers, such as Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern and George Gershwin, who made indelible contributions to the American popular music repertoire. The best composers of this period combined a genius for melody and a talent for finding the perfect words. A large number of them were Jewish—from families that had immigrated to American in the 1800s or had fled persecution in Europe. Libraries across the country are hosting the exhibit.
The Health Sciences Library and the Mizel Museum will host two events in conjunction with the exhibit. Opening Reception – Monday March 12, 4:00 pm in the Library’s Reading Room.
Thomas L. Riis, PhD, University of Colorado Boulder, will give a presentation entitled "Nice work if you can get it! Writing Jewish music on Broadway". The presentation will be illustrated by recorded examples and will explore the fascinating back stories, composers’ lives, questions, and social issues surrounding the
development of one of America’s most original musical traditions.
Colorado Hebrew Chorale Concert – Monday, March 19, 4:00 pm in the Trivisible Room on the second floor or Research 2.
The Chorale will perform a variety of songs from the American songbook.
[caption id="attachment_1935" align="aligncenter" width="191" caption="Poster for Swing Time. Courtesy of RKO Radio Pictures Inc./Photofest ©RKO Radio Pictures Inc. Photographer: John Miehle."] [/caption]
A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, American Songs, 1910-1965 was created by Nextbook, a Jewish cultural organization, and the American Library Association. Based on a book written by David Lehman, the exhibit tells the story with images from Broadway musicals, classic films, posters and personal collections. The collection features famous Jewish songwriters as well as compositions by more obscure figures, including Harold Arlen, Sammy Cahn and Leo Robin.
Nextbook, Inc., is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting Jewish literature, culture, and ideas, and the American Library Association Public Programs Office. The national tour of the exhibit has been made possible by grants from the Charles H. Revson Foundation, the Righteous Persons Foundation, the David Berg Foundation, and an anonymous donor, with additional support from Tablet Magazine: A New Read on Jewish Life.
6.
The Violet Ray was an electrical "therapy" device that was popular in the early twentieth century.
Manufacturers of Violet Rays made all sorts of outrageous claims about what the Violet Ray could cure. In the late 1940s and 1950s the FDA brought a series of lawsuits over the spurious claims the manufacturers made, which ended the popularity of the Violet Ray.
The Health Sciences Library has a Violet Ray and it is currently on display on the 2nd floor of the library. Stop by and check it out!
State of Wonder HSL Amesse/1st Floor F PATCHETT STA
In Ann Patchett’s latest novel, State of Wonder, researchers discover a drug in the Amazon rainforest that can extend a woman’s fertility indefinitely but the painstakingly slow development of the drug comes to a halt when the project’s lead scientist, Dr. Annick Swenson, disappears and another scientist is reported dead. The pharmaceutical company sponsoring the research sends pharmacologist Dr. Marina Singh to the roiling, insect-infested jungle to learn what happened to her deceased colleague and to find Dr. Swenson, who was formerly Dr. Singh’s tyrannical mentor at Johns Hopkins. Over time, Dr. Singh understands that everything in the Amazon is complicated and interconnected: the flora and fauna, the fertility drug and the people. Even the answers to the questions she seeks are not simple. As she descends deeper and deeper into the rainforest, with its sometimes horrifying brutality, Dr. Singh’s humanity remains intact even as she finds herself doing things she never could have imagined when she worked in the laboratory. This “gone native” story raises questions about the costs of life-long fertility and the ethical considerations surrounding drug research and development.
- Heidi Zuniga, Electronic Resources Librarian 7.
