BBW: YouTube Virtual Read Out

Check out the Virtual Read Out on YouTube featured Banned Books Week.  Readers are encouraged to read short segments of their favorite banned or challenged book. 

BBW: Library Displays

Banned Books Week library displays are in the east and west lobby areas on the main floor.  Feel free to check out any of the displayed titles.

BBW: Challenge vs. Banning

Banned Book Week (BBW) 2012

What is the difference between a challenge and a banning?

According to the American Library Association:

"A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection." ~American Library Association's About Banned & Challenged Books

Looking to learn more on Banned Books Week? These resources will be helpful:

• American Library Association's Banned Book Week Website: Full information on Banned Book Week and the history of the event.
• More on the differences between a Challenge and a Banned Book
• More Terms & Definitions relating to Banned Book Week

Banned Books Week: Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the Freedom to Read

Banned Books Week this year will run from September 30 - October 6.  From the American Library Association:

"Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. Typically held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

Intellectual freedom—the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular—provides the foundation for Banned Books Week. BBW stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them.

The books featured during Banned Books Week have been targets of attempted bannings. Fortunately, while some books were banned or restricted, in a majority of cases the books were not banned, all thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, booksellers, and members of the community to retain the books in the library collections. Imagine how many more books might be challenged—and possibly banned or restricted—if librarians, teachers, and booksellers across the country did not use Banned Books Week each year to teach the importance of our First Amendment rights and the power of literature, and to draw attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the availability of information in a free society."
 

Check out the displays and most frequently challenged book lists throughout the library and take home a challenged book today!

Hewes Library Election 2012 Guide

In anticipation of the upcoming general election on November 6, 2012, Hewes Library created an Election 2012 Research Guide.  The guide provides you with links to information to make an informed decision.  You can:

-Learn more about the candidates & issues
-Follow the latest election news
-Check the facts on candidate statements
-View videos from the campaigns
-Discover the history of the electoral process
-Media election coverage

New ScotsRead Titles

The following books have recently arrived and added to the ScotsRead Collection:

• Low Pressure by Sandra Brown
• Thomas Jefferson's Creme Brulee: how a founding father and his slave James Hemmings introduced French cuisine to America by Thomas Craughwell
• The Lincoln Conspiracy: A Novel by Timothy O'Brien
• The Unfaithful Queen: A Novel of Henry VIII's Fifth Wife by Carolly Erickson
• The Richest Women in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age by Janet Wallach

Database of the Month: A-Z Maps

Database of the Month: A-Z Maps

As promised, this blog will take a look at some of the lesser known databases subscribed to by Monmouth College.  So why not start at the beginning with A-Z Maps?  This contains exactly what the title suggests, over 145,000 maps.  You name it and this database has a map of it: it contains antique maps and modern maps of countries and states, maps of climate, earthquakes, the environment, the holy land, hurricanes, NASA maps, tree and bird distribution maps, volcano and weather maps and many other types of information presented in map format.  There are maps of both large and small geographic regions in the database.  There are even maps of imaginary places.  For instance, there are several antique maps of the holy land that depict imaginary images of the city of Jerusalem and of places like Solomon’s temple that no longer existed at the time the original maps were drawn. 

There are different views of maps; rectangular, oval, round and hand drawn.  The maps come in several format options and can be printed, saved or downloaded for further use.  If you are new to the collection a very useful feature is the online demo found at the top of the A-Z homepage.  The online demos are a voiced slide presentation that explains how to use the different map collections and gives instructions for importing the maps into Power Point presentations.

Some maps (especially those from NASA) require Google Earth images in order to view the map data.  If you are using any of the NASA maps please be patient as it takes some time to download Google Earth images and for the program to launch.  Many of the NASA maps have attached data sets and first time users would be wise to view the explanatory material before using these maps. 

There are also various glossaries which explain terms found on the different maps that are specific to the topic illustrated.  Many of these terms are ones you may be unfamiliar with such as “brontophobia” (weather) “hornito” (volcanology or volcanoes) and “moho” (earthquakes).  Most of the definitions have images illustrating the terms.

What should you use this database for?  If you need a map of a place or to illustrate climate, weather or some other geological/geographic topic for a paper or a presentation, use this database.  The maps are easily organized and it is not hard to find one that illustrates the information you wish to discuss.  For instance, the maps of Illinois section contains many outline maps both blank and those containing physical or political features (counties, voting districts, etc.) suitable for use in a paper or presentation.

Access to databases is limited to the current students, staff, and faculty of Monmouth College.

Research Tip: Off Campus Database Access

All of the databases provided by Hewes Library can be accessed from off campus. To do so, follow these directions:

• Select the database you wish to use off campus. (You must select it from the library's webpage instead of doing a web search for it.)
• You wil be prompted at a MC login screen to enter your username and password. Enter your MC username and password - which is the same one you use to access your MC email.
• Once logged in, you can use the resource as if you were on campus.

New Mobile Whiteboards

Throughout the library you will notice some new additions for the school year: mobile whiteboards!

Several whiteboards will be floating around the library for student use.  Feel free to move them around to areas where you will need them.  Markers and erasers are attached to each whiteboard. 

Coming Soon: Banned Books Week

Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempting bannings of books across the United States - from the American Library Association.

Look for the Banned Book Week displays and most challenged list in the library soon!