Pre-Finals & Finals Extended Library Hours - Fall 2009

Hewes Library is currently on regular operating hours. Pre-finals and finals extended hours will begin on Friday, December 4. The library will remain open late throughout the finals exam period and our last evening of extended hours will be Tuesday, December 15. On Wednesday, December 16, the last day of finals, the library will be open from 8am to 6pm. For more information, stay tuned to the library blog or visit the Hours page of the library's website for full schedule information.

Pre-Finals & Finals Extended Hours:

• Friday, December 4: 8am - 10pm
• Saturday, December 5: 9am - 10pm
• Sunday, December 6: 9am - Midnight
• Monday, December 7 - Friday, December 11: 8am - 1am
• Saturday, December 12 & Sunday, December 13: 9am - 1am
• Monday, December 14 & Tuesday, December 15: 8am - 1am
• Wednesday, December 16: 8am - 6pm

On Thursday, December 17, Hewes Library will begin its winter break hours, which are 8am - 4:30pm, Monday - Friday.

Thanksgiving Break, Fall 2009

Hewes Library is currently on Thanksgiving Break 2009. Hours will be shortened until classes resume and students are back on campus.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009: 8am - 2:30pm
Thursday, November 26, 2009: Closed
Friday, November 27, 2009: Closed
Saturday, November 28, 2009: Closed
Sunday, November 29, 2009: 6pm - midnight
Monday, November 30, 2009: 8am - midnight, Regular hours resume

For more information about the library's hours, please visit the Hewes Library Website.

Microforms, Part II: Microfiche

In the first part of this series, microformats in general were described. The library has two types of microformats, microfilm and microfiche. This time the card version, microfiche, will be discussed. Microfiche is used at the library for two different types of information, magazines and government documents. A number of popular magazines are available in as microfiche, among them Business Week, Newsweek, New Yorker and Time. Because these titles publish so frequently (over 45 times a year), it would take a lot of shelf space to store the print versions of these magazines. So the decision was made to obtain the back issues on microfiche as it is small and easy to store. Microfiche issues reproduce the print versions exactly, with the pages containing all the stories and advertisements found in the paper issues. However, they are in black and white not in color. The microfiche copies of magazines are filed alphabetically by title and can be found in the back left hand corner of the mircroform room.

Much of the information that Hewes receives from the Federal Government as part of the Depository Library program also comes in on microfiche. These are stored in the filing cabinets facing you as you stand in the door of the microform room. How do you know if the government information you are looking for is on microfiche? From the catalog record. Let’s say you are looking in the library catalog for information on the impact agriculture has on wetlands. You may come across the following catalog entry, “Wetlands and agriculture, private interests and public benefit”. The listing states that this book can be found in government document microfiche on the main level with the call number “A 1.107:765” This type of number reflects the government filing system which is unlike the system the library uses to catalog its books and video materials.

Hewes library’s microfiche can be viewed on the readers found in the microform room. Prints of needed pages can also be made from the machines at a cost of 10¢ per page. As always, ask a librarian if you cannot find the information.

What are you reading?

Hewes Library's staff pick: Kristallnacht: Prelude to Destruction by Martin Gilbert

“Factual, well documented, and brilliant, Martin Gilbert’s book on Crystal Night is a poignant lesson.” – Elie Wiesel

In the same vein of The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom and Schindler’s Ark, this book is full of events before, during and after the Night of Broken Glass, November 10, 1938. Filled with numerous eye-witness accounts, this book is sometimes hard to read. The power and control evil had over Germany created heroes from everyday citizens and shamed others, including nations who refused to provide refuge. A “poignant lesson”, indeed.

Art & Artifacts: Snow on the Nihon-Bashi Bridge by Utagawa Hiroshige

Our highlighted work from the Permanent Art Collections is the stunning Snow on the Nihon-Bashi Bridge from the “Famous Place” series, by the renowned Japanese artist, Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1849). This woodcut, dating from the mid-19th Century, and measuring approximately 8” x 13”, is from our Takashi Komatsu Print Collection, and was donated to Monmouth College sometime after 1937. It is in excellent condition.

The hand-colored woodblock print, known as ukiyo-e (“pictures of the floating world”), depicted the emerging commercial and cultural milieu, particularly around the new capital of Edo. This particular print captures the activity around the famous bridge, in a picturesque snowfall. For a summary analysis of the technique of Japanese woodblock prints, please see page 833 of Marilyn Stokstad’s Art History, revised second edition.

This particular piece is currently on display in Gallery 203 as part of our “Around the World in (less than) 80 Fonts” exhibit, showcasing a number of exquisite examples of calligraphy from our Permanent Art Collections. Please stop by and see it and many other intriguing works of art!

New Items at Hewes Library

New items are added to the Hewes Library collection on a continual basis. Each week a selection of new items are displayed in the new book display case. The new book display case is located on the main level of Hewes Library next to the ScotsRead collection.

Recent titles have included:

• On the Shoulders of Giants by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• Power of the Zoot by Luis Alvarez
• Legacy by Greg Bear
• Towns of Destiny by Hilaire Belloc
• 1939, Baseball's Tipping Point by Talmage Boston
• Reading Difficulties and Dyslexia by J.P. Das
• Rock, Paper Scissors by Len Fisher
• 7 Best Things That Happy Couples Do by John c. Friel and Linda D. Friel
• Snow Goose by Paul Galeico
• On Their Own by Joyce Hoffmann
  

All new items in the New Book Display case can be found in the Hewes Library catalog and are subject to normal circulation procedures for their respective collections. For more information on collection circulation policies, please visit the Hewes Library home page.

On Display: Monmouth College Insect Collection

Currently on display in the Hewes Library's East Lobby display cases is a portion of the Monmouth College Insect Collections. Student Dusty Sanor spent most of her independent study recasing and organizing the collections. All of the specimens have been collected by former Monmouth College faculty and students.

In spring 2009, Sanor completed a full overhaul of the Insect Collections. She spent time restoring the original collections, labelling each insect, and repairing the damaged specimens. The collection will remain on display until the beginning of December.

Microforms, Part I: What are they?

You may have noticed that the library has a room located to the right of the photocopier with a large “MICROFORMS” sign above the entrance. And just what, you may be asking yourself, is a microform? Microforms are a convenient way of saving a large amount of information in a very small space. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the micro-format was developed in 1928 as a way to store banking records. It consists of taking a photograph of the print page and reducing it in size and storing it on a card or a roll of film. Materials transferred to micro-format are long-lasting, easy to store and take up a lot less space than paper.

Over the years two main formats have come to be preferred, the card version known as microfiche and the film roll version known as microfilm. Both formats require special equipment to view and print the information found on microforms. The library has two reader/printers that are capable of displaying both types of micro-formats. If you are doing historical research or research that requires the use of government information you will probably find yourself using the microforms room. Be sure to ask a librarian if you have any questions about using the equipment. More information on the Hewes microform holdings will be given in later Research Tips.

Anime Club Gift

Through the generosity of the MC Anime Club, Hewes Library now has a collection of both Anime films and manga-influenced graphic novels.

Newly processed DVD’s will join last year’s donation in the DVD collection under the call number PN1992.8.A59 and the novels are on the upper level in the book stacks under PN6790.J34.

Thanks again to the Anime Club for their great gift!

Hewes Library & Popular Magazines

Hewes Library is considering adding a collection of popular magazines to be made available for browsing and use within the building. Magazines would cover a wide variety of subjects - including, but not limited to: sports, fashion, travel, decorating, gaming and more.

The Hewes Library staff would like your input! Please take a few minutes to complete the survey online. The survey will be available the rest of the week. Thanks!