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| New This Week for June 18, 2009 |
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This Week Utopia, bookmobiles, Linus Pauling, and getting the lead out are some of this week's topics, plus Father's Day (it's this Sunday). A penultimate "bon appetit" from librarians Jennifer, Maria, Charlotte, and Wendy. Tip of the Week A few of you have asked about the titles of the websites in this database. Folks, we call them as we see them. Very occasionally we'll fudge a title when none is apparent; otherwise, what you see is what the website itself chose. With that in mind, don't miss "Shorpy" and "Divedco," whose titles mask some great art and photography. |
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Arts and Humanities
America and the Utopian Dream
An introduction to American utopias "from the first Puritan settlements to the communes of the 1960s" as presented through literary works and manuscript collections. Features images of works and commentary for utopian literature such as "Das Kapital" and "Erewon," dystopian literature such as "Brave New World" and "1984," and material on utopian communities such as the Shakers, Brook Farm, Oneida, and Halycon, California. From the Yale University Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
URL: http://beinecke.library.yale.edu/utopia/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/27437
American Bookbinders Museum
Information from this San Francisco museum dedicated to the art of bookbinding in the U.S. Its site features images and information about printing presses and other printing equipment (such as stampers, a glue machine, and a stapler), information about dozens of historical bookbinders, examples of endpapers, and descriptions of selected publications in the museum collection.
URL: http://www.bookbindersmuseum.com/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28261
Ornament and Pattern: Pre-Victorian to Art Deco
"Several thousand images from nearly 100 volumes on decorative art and surface ornament, mainly portfolios of plates, pattern books, and scrapbook compilations." Find images of flowers, animals, butterflies, house colors, ceramics, and more. Many images are from French publications. From the New York Public Library (NYPL).
URL: http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/explore/dgexplore.cfm?topic...
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/27732
Shorpy
This site "is a vintage photography blog featuring thousands of high-definition images from the 1850s to 1950s. The site is named after Shorpy Higginbotham, a teenage coal miner who lived 100 years ago." Most of the photos on the site "were extracted from reference images ... from the Library of Congress research archive," with others from the personal files of contributors. Includes three photos of Shorpy.
URL: http://www.shorpy.com/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/27069
Sol LeWitt: A Wall Drawing Retrospective
Companion website to this exhibition that "comprises 105 of LeWitt's large-scale wall drawings, spanning the artist's career from 1969 to 2007. These occupy nearly an acre of specially built interior walls that have been installed ... over three stories of a historic mill building situated at the heart of MASS MoCA's campus." View the drawings by grid or floorplan, watch timelapses of creating selected drawings, and listen to an audio tour. From MASS MoCA.
URL: http://www.massmoca.org/lewitt/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/27243
Business
Lead-Free Wheels
Background on this program that promotes alternatives to lead wheel weights, which "are used worldwide to balance vehicle tires." It notes that many of the wheel weights fall off and abrade into lead dust, "and increase the risk that lead will contaminate surface, groundwater, and drinking water supplies." Provides information about alternatives (such as zinc), listing of U.S. distributors of lead-free wheel weights, and a wheel-balancing fact sheet. From the Ecology Center.
URL: http://www.leadfreewheels.org/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28380
National Lead Free Wheel Weight Initiative (NLFWWI)
This initiative "encourages the transition from the use of lead for wheel weights to lead-free alternatives. Wheel weights are clipped to the rims of every automobile wheel in the United States in order to balance the tires. These weights often come loose and fall off," ending up in waterways or landfills. Provides quick facts and reasons for transitioning to lead-free wheel weights (such as reducing toxic lead exposure). From the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
URL: http://www.epa.gov/waste/hazard/wastemin/nlfwwi.htm
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28381
Government
Data.gov
The purpose of this website "is to increase public access to high value, machine readable datasets generated by the Executive Branch of the Federal Government." Search the raw data catalog by category (such as energy or population) or federal agency to obtain machine-readable, platform-independent data sets. Also includes links to tools for mining data sets, a tutorial, and a form for suggesting additional data sets.
URL: http://www.data.gov/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28368
People
Linus Pauling Online
Collection of resources on Linus Pauling (1901-1994), "the only recipient of two unshared Nobel Prizes, (Chemistry, 1954; Peace, 1962) [who] undertook a wide range of studies during his seventy-year career as a scientist, humanitarian and peace activist." Features online exhibitions focusing on Pauling's research (blood, quantum mechanics, and DNA) and his work in the peace movement. Also includes a timeline, blog, and other material on Pauling. From Oregon State University Libraries Special Collections.
URL: http://pauling.library.oregonstate.edu/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28303
Recreation
Summer Sailstice
Website for this "global holiday [created in 2001] celebrating sailing held annually on the summer solstice, the longest sailing days of the year." Find a listing of events from around the world, details about featured events (such as sailing on Casco Bay by the Maine Hunter Sailing Association and an event on Treasure Island in the San Francisco Bay), stories of sailstice experiences back to 2003, and links to sailing websites and blogs.
URL: http://summersailstice.com/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28386
Regions of the World
Divedco
This exhibition "is about posters from the Division of Community Education (DIVEDCO) of Puerto Rico [government] dating from 1949 to 1989. ... DIVEDCO was a social experiment which mirrored several of President Roosevelt's New Deal Programs." Features a gallery of posters, exhibition brochure, and educational materials. In English and Spanish. From the Smithsonian Latino Center.
URL: http://latino.si.edu/DIVEDCO/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28102
Science
Extreme Mammals
Companion to a 2009 exhibition that "examines the ancestry and evolution of numerous species, ranging from huge to tiny, from speedy to sloth-like, and displays animals with oversized claws, fangs, snouts, and horns." Features articles, stories, fun facts, photos, video clips, interactive features, classroom resources, and related material about "the biggest, smallest, and most amazing mammals of all time." From the American Museum of Natural History.
URL: http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/extrememammals/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28344
Google PowerMeter
Background about this tool that "shows consumers their electricity consumption in a secure Google gadget." As of summer 2009, Google is "testing the product with utility partners in the US, India and Canada" and has plans for expansion. Find videos, links to articles and reports, policy statements and testimony, a FAQ, listing of partners, and energy saving tips. From Google.
URL: http://www.google.org/powermeter/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/27968
Society & Social Science
Angus Reid Global Monitor
This site provides results from over 20,000 market research and public consultation polls from around the world. Includes global opinion polls such as on same-sex marriage in the U.S., political polls on topics such as "Obama's Honeymoon," and an election tracker (featuring a list of recent and upcoming elections). Also search, or browse by issues, such as Afghanistan, Iraq War, North Korea, stem cell research, and terrorism. Poll results go back to 2003.
URL: http://www.angus-reid.com/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28093
Bookmobile: Past. Present. Future.
This presentation recounts the history of the Tulsa (Oklahoma) City-County Library's bookmobile, from its beginnings in 1930 to the present. A series of publications features historical photos, news clippings, memories from "bookmobile kids," and selected children's drawings from a 2008 "bookmobile of the future" art contest. Also includes video clips. From Tulsa City-County Library.
URL: http://www.tulsalibrary.org/outreach/bookmobile-exhibit.php
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28354
Father's Day
Collection of material about Father's Day. Topics include a brief history of this holiday (which was not instituted as a national observance until 1972), famous TV dads, fun facts, video clips, and photos of famous dads such as Paul McCartney, Elvis Presley, Jackie Robinson, and Muhammad Ali. From the History Channel.
URL: http://www.history.com/minisites/fathersday/
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/28263
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Thanks for reading LII New This Week!
Jennifer English, Liaison to Califa Library Group
Wendy Hyman, Senior Editor
Maria Brandt, Associate Editor
Charlotte Bagby, Senior Weeder
| Copyright Notice Use of the annotations from this list must be accompanied by: Copyright 2009 Librarians' Internet Index, LII. We encourage you to cite our records, to forward all or part of New This Week to colleagues and other discussion or announcement lists, to include citations to our resources in your pathfinders and training materials, and to otherwise leverage this publicly-funded resource. |
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| Funding and Support Primary financial support for LII (Librarians' Internet Index) from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian. LII is also supported by the IPL Consortium, and hosted by The iSchool at Drexel, College of Information Science and Technology. Other sources include California Digital Library (CDL). |