Father’s Day: History in the Making

Yesterday, the United States observed Father’s Day. This celebration honoring fathers and celebrating fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society is observed by over 40 countries, just not all on the same day. Though it has been celebrated since the Middle Ages, this celebration was brought by the Spanish and Portuguese to Latin America,…

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Does Digital Increase Reading?

The debate on whether reading “real” books, i.e. paper, is better than digital versions continues. This interesting topic came to our attention from New Republic in their article, “Why Digital Reading Is No Substitute for Print.” Both parents and teachers are asking whether students learn as much when they read digitally as they do in print. Computer-based media…

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What’s On Your Summer Reading List?

It’s that time of year again: summer reading! Last year I wrote about how librarians catalog, search, provide readers advice and come up with book lists. This year I want to go in a different direction. Imagine being packed into an old Chevy Suburban filled with cousins and going on road trips to the mountains. This…

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Spell What?

A colleague and I were discussing spelling bees at lunch just today. As a long time fan and childhood participant, I enjoy watching them, though I am still amazed at how the content has evolved since my youth (just a few years ago). So when I came back to my desk and read about this…

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Expanding Access

EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) have reached an expanded distribution agreement allowing EBSCO to sell AAAS journals, including Science, via the AAAS platform. PRNewswire brought this interesting information to our attention in their article, “EBSCO Information Services and the American Association for the Advancement of Science Announce…

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April: America’s Newest Sweetheart

Who is April? I heard that at a least a dozen times last month from friends and colleagues. With more than 1.2 million people logging in to watch  her give birth live online, there were still some who had no clue as to her identity. Over 232 million views took place in the two months…

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ORCID is Coming to Canada

ORCID and the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN) along with support from a working group of 16 Canadian stakeholders who are deeply committed to supporting research, scholarship, and innovation in Canada, are collaborating to build ORCID-CA, the ORCID consortium in Canada. The Canadian Research Knowledge Network brought this news to our attention in their article, “ORCID-CA, the…

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The Librarian Pioneers

In this era of digital libraries, machine assisted indexing and technological advancements that seem to evolve on a daily basis, it is more than nostalgic to hear about the struggles of librarians before technology – even before motorized transportation; it is inspiring. This interesting story came from the Archive Project in their article, “The Amazing…

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Linguistic Challenges in Foreign Languages

Linguistic traps can be embarrassing and horrific, depending on the guffaw. It could result in more than embarrassment over using the wrong verb when using a language other than your first one. This interesting information came to us from JSTOR Daily in their article, “Friend or Faux? The Linguistic Trickery of False Friends.” Call it semantic…

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