The Pesky Library Blog

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

2012-02-01T14:51:00.000-05:00

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore from Moonbot Studios on Vimeo.

“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” will be considered for an Academy Award in animated short films. Wonderful on so many levels!

Chain of Gratitude

2012-01-27T09:44:00.001-05:00

Paper Chain 2
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

During the community service portion of our Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, juniors and seniors made links for the chain, writing messages of gratitude to family, friends, teachers, staff . . . Ms Struck brought it to the library so we could all read about the acts of kindness in our community.

Smithsonian’s Online Treasures Revealed

2012-01-25T18:22:00.003-05:00

The Collections Search Center is an easy search interface to the holdings of the various museums that make up the Smithsonian Institution. It links to over 7.4 million records with 568,100 images, video and sound files, electronic journals, and other resources from the Smithsonian's museums, archives, library and research holdings and collections.

Many primary sources have been digitized, and are available in full through this interface. This should make it an attractive destination for juniors working on their U.S. history thesis!

There is a helpful tutorial to get you started.

The Smithsonian Collections Search Center is also mobile-aware. Users visiting the site with their iPhone or Android devices should automatically be redirected to a mobile friendly version of the site; iPad users receive the fully formatted pages. The Smithsonian Collections Blog features interesting items, current works in progress, or “whatever catches their eye”.

Objects of the Week 9 and 10

2012-01-23T14:29:00.000-05:00

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library until the next objects arrive.

Here are two batches of objects. One is based on a scouring pad, the other on jute twine and candy cups. The inventiveness and imagination of our students is a pleasure to see.

We are looking forward to seeing what Ms. Struck's student will come up with next!

History Mystery of the Week

2012-01-20T12:16:00.001-05:00

Our new archivist, Ms. Slater, has started a weekly history mystery. This week’s question was ‘In what year did the academy welcome its first student of African descent?’ And the follow up bonus question: ‘What was the student’s name?’ She had four correct answers from students " who knew that Wentworth Cheswell was in Samuel Moody’s first class at the academy in 1763. Mr. Cheswell apparently thought highly enough of his time here to have it mentioned on his gravestone located in Newmarket, NH. For those of you who thought that Booker T. Washington Jr., son of the famous African-American leader, was the first, you were not alone.”

Mr. Bidstrup followed up her e-mail response with a link to more information on Cheswell at America’sFounding Fathers. Master Moody's early students were indeed a remarkable group!

SOPA Blackout Display

2012-01-18T15:40:00.002-05:00

SOPA Blackout Display
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Wide-spread protesting in the form of blackened web pages were all over the Internet - and headlines - today. Both large, powerful web companies and smaller, private parties joined in this protest. Among the former, there are ubiquitous presences like Google, Wikipedia and Firefox; among the latter, the web comic XKCD and others.

At the crux of the matter are two bills: the Stop On-line Piracy Act (in the House) the and Protect Intellectual Property Act (in the Senate). Known by the adorable acronyms SOPA and PIPA, they are backed by major media companies and are directed against the illegal downloading and streaming of copyright-protected TV shows and movies online. However, according to criticism, the vague language in the bills would enable them to be used to stifle not only user-driven sites, like YouTube or Reddit, for example, but also big operators like search engines and small ones like self-employed media professionals.

Want to know more? The text of both bills is available through the Library of Congress (SOPA and PIPA, respectively), and contacting your elected officials is possible through the Usa.gov website.

P.S. If you need to access an online encyclopedia today, try our website instead of Wikipedia. We have access to the Encyclopedia Britannica and other databases.

New Databases: Sharpe and eLibrary Science

2012-01-16T15:15:00.001-05:00

The Pescosolido library provides access to online encyclopedias and scholarly articles through several databases. We evaluate our databases periodically. This academic year, we have already added two valuable resources.

The Sharpe Online Reference database contains encyclopedia articles, an image gallery, primary documents, and foreign perspectives on United States. There are also web links and teacher’s resources on early America, economic history, and Ancient and Modern worlds. Other topics covered are conflicts, global history, terrorism, and world trade.

The eLibrary Science, as the name implies, collects scientific full-text articles from thousands of magazines and newspapers. There are also multimedia resources like images, websites, e-books, and videos. Other interesting features include biographies of famous scientists, an RSS feed to latest scientific news, and, in the Today in Science History section, snippets of significant events from the point of view of science. The database’s Interactive tab is especially well suited to casual browsing: dozens of links direct you to online games that illustrate various scientific principles.

We have added links to both these databases on our Catalogs and Databases page. Feel free to visit, and let us know how you found our current selection. We always appreciate feedback.

The Joy of Books at Type Bookstore in Toronto

2012-01-13T11:15:00.000-05:00

Highlighting Massachusetts Author Salvatore

2012-01-11T16:01:00.002-05:00

Mass. Author Salvatore Mini Display
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

This mini display on our first floor highlights R.A. Salvatore, a lifelong Massachusetts resident and prolific author.

Salvatore has been writing for over 20 years. According to the recent Boston Globe article, his books sell at the rate of one million a year, and they've been translated into more than dozen languages.

His most famous character has become an icon in the genre - he's featured in books and graphic novels as well as computer, video, and board games. There's been talk of a movie, even. And yet, Salvatore still lives within a quarter of a mile from his high school, near his and his family's old stomping grounds.

Clearly, Salvatore has hit on a recipe for success. His own take on his success is twofold: it's about people - the characters in the story - and realism that comes from his commitment to history and sports.

Read an interview on Salvatore at The Old Board Gamers' Blog (Part 1 and Part 2), or check out his website.

Latest Reviews: January 2012

2012-01-09T15:07:00.002-05:00

Damned by Palahniuk
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Welcome back! We hope your holidays were enjoyable and relaxing.

Some of the latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth by Alexandra Robbins, Damned by Chuck Palahniuk, Sex on the Moon by Ben Mezrich, and Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

MOO Cards for the New Year

2012-01-04T18:15:00.001-05:00

MOO Cards Collage
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Welcome back from the Holiday Break! We at the library had a hitch with our heating system early this week, but things are running well again and we are back to our normal hours.

In the photo you can see a selection of our latest MOO cards. (MOO cards are small, custom business cards.) These cards contain the library contact information and various photos from the premises. Please help yourself to one in the lobby.

We look forward to seeing all of you again!

Holiday Card Display

2011-12-16T11:16:00.001-05:00

Holiday Card Display
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

As the stress of exams subsides we hope you all take a moment to check out the Governors Holiday Card Display in the Cobb Room of the Phillips Building. These festive cards from the school’s past are a lovely reminder of the rich history and holiday spirit here at Governors. You can read more about the display in the archives blog.
As you all pack up to head home for the holiday don’t forget to stop by the library to pick up a new book to read or a holiday DVD to watch with your family and friends!
The library will be closing today at 3:45 and will reopen with normal business hours on January 4th.

Latest New Books

2011-12-14T19:21:00.002-05:00

Nonfiction - 600s - December 11
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Just in time for the Holiday break, we have a batch of new books available. Here are a few of the latest books to hit our shelves.

Check out the just added titles - and more! - in the new books nook on the first floor and the small display stand in the lobby. We have also refreshed the end-of-shelf display stands in the fiction section. All of the books and DVDs in our displays are available for checkout as well - just grab them, or ask us to open a case for you.

More new books are visible via Flickr and LibraryThing, and The Book Network offers short reviews should you find yourself stumped for reading.

Object of the Week 8

2011-12-12T15:38:00.001-05:00

Object of the Week 8 Presents
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a roll of aluminum foil. The range of transformed items is really impressive!

Spanish Christmas Carols

2011-12-09T14:36:00.001-05:00

Spanish Christmas Carols a video by Pesky Library on Flickr.

Day two of Christmas caroling in the library! Yesterday the German class treated us with Christmas carols, today it was Christmas carols in Spanish.

Singing Christmas Carols

2011-12-08T15:00:00.001-05:00

Singing Christmas Carols
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Can you think of a better way to start your day than having a group of students arrive and sign Christmas carols to you? We thoroughly enjoyed their performance and appreciated their thoughtfulness.

Now we're looking forward to a visit from the Spanish class! We hear they'll be stopping by tomorrow to sing Spanish Christmas carols.

Pearl Harbor Display Updated

2011-12-06T15:42:00.002-05:00

Pearl Harbor Display Updated1
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

This December 7, 2011 is the 70th Anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Mrs. Marnell’s brother lives in Hawaii where he works as a systems analyst for Northrup Grumman. Since he works right on the navy base at Pearl Harbor, he sent us items to use in our Pearl Harbor display. He mailed us a copy of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin from December 7, 1941 for students to peruse. He gave us two posters: one details the leaders and the fleet of the United States; the other provides insight into Japan’s leaders and fleet. We also received postcards from the USS Arizona Memorial which honors the 1,177 crewmen who lost their lives that day. Lastly, we included a photo of an Unknown Soldier grave taken at the National Cemetery of the Pacific on Memorial Day 2011.
We also included a copy of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Infamy speech from the National Archives. Students who have been working on their history thesis will recognize this as a primary source document.

Latest Reviews: December 2011

2011-12-05T14:44:00.002-05:00

Witchs Daughter
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

If you need a breather before the exams, or want to give your brain something else besides textbooks to read during the break, consider borrowing a book reviewed by our staff.

Just some of the latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler, The Witch’s Daughter by Paula Brackston, The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson, and The Swallows of Kabul by Yasmina Khadra.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

From Book to Buffet

2011-11-30T14:39:00.003-05:00

Over the holidays, the book Hello, Cupcake!: Irresistibly Playful Creations Anyone Can Make was an inspiration for making holiday treats. Although Tom Turkey was in keeping with the Thanksgiving tradition, we decided to make a new tradition of our own by including Swampy as another holiday dessert. This book is available on our shelves: check it out, have fun, and feed your friends! After all, who doesn't like cupcakes?

Thankful Tree

2011-11-18T11:28:00.001-05:00

Thankful Tree
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

As everyone is packing up for Thanksgiving break, we can feel a collective sigh of relief as everyone passes in their last assignments and begins thinking of the family and food to come. So as you are feeling this relief, it is the perfect time to think of what you are thankful for.
Here in the library we have a Thankful Tree filled with the thanks of the students here at Govs. People are thankful for everything ranging from ‘coffee’ and ‘guys who make them smile’ to ‘friends’, ‘family’ and ‘heat and electricity.’ A few students were even thankful for Governors Academy! So as everyone thinks how thankful they are for this break and passing in their assignments on time, we hope you take a moment to think of all the amazing people and things in your life that you are thankful for!
The staff of the library is very thankful for all of the wonderful students who visit us. 
The library closes today (November 18, 2011) at 3:45 and will reopen after break on November 29th with normal business hours.
Happy Thanksgiving! See you all soon.

JSTOR Early Journal Content

2011-11-16T15:37:00.000-05:00

JSTOR announced recently that they are now providing free access to early journal articles. By this they mean journal content published prior to 1923 in the United States and prior to 1870 elsewhere. Anyone, anywhere in the world can search and read these articles. This “Early Journal Content” includes discourse and scholarship in the arts and humanities, economics and politics, and in mathematics and other sciences. Although only 6% of the content on JSTOR, it includes nearly 500,000 articles from more than 200 journals.

We have added a link and short instructions on how to get to this content on our Catalogs and Databases page. For more information, check out the JSTOR video above, or read their Frequently Asked Questions.

Object of the Week 7

2011-11-14T20:30:00.001-05:00

Object of the Week 7b
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week, the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library for that week, until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a rubber chicken, and you can tell that students had fun with it! There are so many clever ideas here. We're looking forward to even more student artwork in the library!

“Why join the Navy if you can be a pirate?”

2011-11-11T15:18:00.001-05:00

Steve Jobs Display2
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Steve Jobs died last month, and we thought it only fitting to construct a display highlighting the innovation that influenced, and continues to influence, the iGeneration. His vision helped to revolutionize the use of personal computers, the way we listen to music, and how we stay connected to friends and family. What did we do before iPhones and status updates? We have many resources in the library related to internet technology. Students may be interested in watching a Pixar movie, reading Walter Isaacson’s authorized biography, Steve Jobs, or reading iBoy, a book about a boy turned App after an accident embeds a shattered iPhone in his head. The students at Governor’s Academy are creative, independent thinkers. If Steve Jobs can keep on plugging, even after losing a quarter of a billion dollars, he might inspire future entrepreneurs to “put a ding in the universe.” The legacy of Steve Jobs is more about believing in yourself and pursuing your passion than it is about the products he created.

Diversity Display

2011-11-09T18:00:00.001-05:00

Diversity Display1
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

At the end of September, our headmaster Dr. Quimby announced the formation of a focus group to consider how to address diversity in all its facets in our community. The committee is jointly chaired by a faculty member and a student from the junior class.

The first meetings were a success, with over 30 members of our school community, both adults and students, volunteering their time and energy. The conversations were thoughtful and productive.

To support the work of the focus group, we in the library put together a display. It highlights as many kinds of variety as we could think of. Included are both non-fiction works and novels. Please come by to have a look!

Object of the Week 6

2011-11-07T18:38:00.003-05:00

Object of the Week 6 Closeup
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a small, humble roll of duct tape. The transformed objects are a far cry from humble, though, as you can see in this photo!

Primary Research for AP US History

2011-11-04T15:17:00.002-04:00

Primary Research for AP US History
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Students in Mr. Quigley's AP US History class are writing their thesis papers on topics drawn from the academy's history. They have been meeting with our archivist, Mrs. Dimodica, and using Archons, school catalogs (for curriculum offerings,) and headmaster correspondence as well as many other primary source documents. They have also meet with a librarian on finding secondary sources to support their research. We are all learning (quite serendipitously!) wonderful nuggets of our school's past and are looking forward to reading the completed papers.

Latest Reviews: November 2011

2011-11-02T16:37:00.002-04:00

Dogtown
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Thanksgiving break is almost here! If you need a breather in the middle of the pre-break push, consider borrowing a book reviewed by our staff.

The latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include Dogtown: Death and Enchantment in a New England Ghost Town by Elyssa East, and Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

Hadrian's Wall Display

2011-10-26T21:22:00.003-04:00

Hadrians Wall3
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

This colorful display at the back of the reference section was inspired by Ms. Jensen's summer trip to Britain. She had a hiking holiday, and walked the Hadrian's Wall Path end to end, all 84 miles (135 km) of it.

The display highlights the features of the wall and aspects of life in Roman Britain. Books, reference books, and videos complement the display posters.

We also collected relevant and interesting links and online sources on a Hadrian's Wall PageFlakes page - something new we're trying out this year. Check it out and tell us how you like it!

Parents' Weekend

2011-10-24T14:22:00.001-04:00

Studying.......
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Last weekend, the Academy invited parents to come join us and see what their children's school environment is like. Friday's academic schedule was rearranged to accommodate performances, concerts, community service, and the regular afternoon activities.

We at the library were happy to offer some of our spaces for teacher-parent meetings. There was a lot of activity. In the middle of all the hullabaloo, students were nevertheless able to put in work. As you can see in this photo, also the weather cooperated and presented some of the very best fall decor for parents to admire. We hope everyone is refreshed by the weekend and today's school holiday.

Have some Happiness

2011-10-21T09:51:00.001-04:00

Have some Happiness
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.”
Frederick Keonig
“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.”
~ Marcus Aurelius

It is strange to think that happiness is a challenge. We assume that it is normal to be happy and it is abnormal to be sad or angry. However, this is not the case. Most people are content, but happiness takes work. In high school students are overwhelmed with homework, friends, family and the day to day struggles of existing. In the midst of this chaos of high school, happiness sometimes falls by the wayside. Students often just try and get through the day.
Here in the library we are going to try and cultivate real happiness. We have put up a “Have Some Happiness” display right behind the “Rules of the Library” (a little ironic I know). While this may sound cheesy (let’s all skip and hold hands) this display is just a reminder to take a moment to smile, or do something silly that makes you happy. Skipping and holding hands is all well and good, but it is the small things that we can appreciate and make us happy.
What you will find on the “Have Some Happiness” display is inspirational quotes, helpful lists, cartoons, pretty pictures, jokes and anything else that could (hopefully) bring a small smile to someone. Students are encouraged to make suggestions of things to add to the board, and if you think it’s too cheesy, say something and we will try to de-cheese.

Object of the Week 5

2011-10-19T18:54:00.002-04:00

Object of the Week 4a
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week on Monday afternoon, the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library for that week, until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a breathing mask. In addition to modifying the item itself, students transformed existing items (like statuary) around campus with the mask and photographed the results.

P.S. Did you get a sudden urge for ice cream?

Getting Ready for Halloween

2011-10-17T17:12:00.001-04:00

Halloween DVDs 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

We are prepared for Halloween!

We may not have witches, ghosts, ghouls and other ghastly creatures lurking in our foyer - at least not yet... Instead, we do have a selection of our newest and scariest titles on DVD. The titles include Sleepy Hollow, The Thing, Shaun of the Dead, Them, An Evening of Edgar Allen Poe, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Signs, Dracula, Corpse Bride, The Sixth Sense, The Exorcist, and many more.

For the faint of heart, we selected scary books for the lobby display stand. Pick your favorite from among cobwebs and spiders... Titles include Dracula the Un-Dead, Gothic!, Haunting Violet, Book of Ghost Stories, The Haunting of Hill House, Everlost, The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein, and The Devil's Alphabet, among others.

There is nothing like watching a film or reading a book that makes you think twice about turning off the lights!

Archival Storage for National Geographic

2011-10-12T18:20:00.001-04:00

Archival National Geographic
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Our collection of National Geographic magazines goes back to 1902. The oldest issues have been bound into book format for easier browsing and better protection. They are nevertheless showing their age: The spines are brittle, pages are dog-eared, and the old paper attracts dust. We want to keep them available for our users, though, so we purchased archival boxes to store them in.

Each box is clearly labeled with the magazine name and year(s). The boxes are shelved with the rest of the National Geographics, in the Bragdon Reading Room, in order by year. Feel free to have a - gentle! - look. And if you have questions about our magazine collection, we're happy to answer!

Object of the Week 4

2011-10-10T21:31:00.001-04:00

Object of the Week4
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week on Monday afternoon, the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library for that week, until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a deck of cards. Feel free to visit the lobby display for a glimpse of these resourceful creations!

Womens Land Army

2011-10-07T15:19:00.001-04:00

Womens Land Army
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Through our Archives, we discovered the following:

In the 1917-1918 Annual Report for Radcliffe College, the College President relates Dummer farming to patriotism:

“The most important patriotic work of our students was in farming. By an arrangement with Dummer Academy, a boys’ school in South Byfield, Massachusetts, a farm, planted by the boys in the spring, was taken over by Radcliffe College for the summer. When the girls came back to College and the boys went back to school, the boys became available for harvesting. Throughout the summer, the girls went and came, no squad staying for more than three weeks, though one or two individuals remained through the season. Besides caring for the Dummer farm, squads of our students worked for neighboring farmers who could not have picked and marketed their summer vegetables without such help. The good impression made by our young farmers wherever they went, their actual service to the country in furthering production of food, their evident health and happiness, and the new world that was opened to them in a vigorous out-of-door life have more than paid the College for the money that the experiment demanded. In this first year we expected no pecuniary profit and were quite prepared for a loss. The spirit shown by the girls and the education they received are profit enough. I believe that there are few uses of a summer vacation to which college girls can look back with such measure of satisfaction, and that no year will seem complete without a Radcliffe farm.”
--L.B.R. Briggs, President

We were intrigued. After all, it was the rents of the original farm which financed the Master Moody and his teaching in the Little Red Schoolhouse. So,this additional reference to farming sent us on a research hunt. We discovered the Women's Land Army and School Garden Army which supported the war effort at home during both of the World Wars.

Our display has pictures of the farm here on campus as well as farm implements of the WWI period which came from a farm in Freedom, NH and would have been of the type used here.

Latest Reviews: October 2011

2011-10-05T17:01:00.002-04:00

Burning Bright
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

We hope you have enjoyed returning to the full swing of the new academic year. If you need a breather, consider borrowing a book reviewed by our staff.

The latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier and A Jane Austen Education: How Six Novels Taught Me about Love, Friendship, and the Things That Really Matter by William Deresiewicz.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

Object of the Week 3

2011-10-03T19:27:00.002-04:00

Object of the Week3a
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week on Monday afternoon, the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library for that week, until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a seven-day pill box. We were happy to note that among the transformations are several miniature book cases - proof that electronic readers have not displaced paper books yet.

Banned Books Week 2011

2011-09-29T16:37:00.001-04:00

Banned Books Pins
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

We are celebrating Banned Books Week with a large display in the first floor hallway case, and these colorful pins.

Discussion about book challenges and banning books from libraries have already risen between students and staff alike.

Feel free to come have a look! Our display highlights just a fraction of banned or challenged books, and gives some of the reasons behind the attempted or successful bans.

Did you know, for example, that Roald Dahl's children's book James and the Giant Peach is often challenged? Come in and find out why!

Object of the Week 2

2011-09-26T16:05:00.001-04:00

Object of the Week2a
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week on Monday afternoon, the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library for that week, until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a rubber glove. We are very impressed with the creativity that students have treated and transformed them.

Text Books!

2011-09-23T12:53:00.002-04:00

Tired of lugging all your text books around? Come to the library! Not only do we offer comfy chairs, a studious atmosphere and plenty of computers, but we also have all your text books.

Over the past few years, we have been keeping a cache of text books for students to use while in the library and it has become one of our most popular features. Students can come in, sans back ache, and ask one of the helpful librarians for any text book. We have all your subjects covered, from your 50 pound Science books to your small novels for English, all are available to be checked out and used in the library.

This is also helpful if you forget one of your books. Since we also have a copier, you can copy a few pages out of a text book; that way you are still prepared for class.

So stop in and lighten the load! Knowledge is power but it doesn’t have to be so heavy!

Computational Help Online

2011-09-21T18:45:00.001-04:00

Search engines bring us data from around the world, which is fantastic. Sometimes there is just too much information to go through, which is less fantastic. Ultimately, though, selecting, interpreting and further processing the information brought to us by a search engine requires a human brain. There is help out there, too.

One novel approach to searching and data processing is called Wolfram|Alpha. It is not a search engine. Instead, it uses its own internal knowledge base to return answers to user questions. Their web site says t his about the project goals:

"We aim to collect and curate all objective data; implement every known model, method, and algorithm; and make it possible to compute whatever can be computed about anything. Our goal is to build on the achievements of science and other systematizations of knowledge to provide a single source that can be relied on by everyone for definitive answers to factual queries".

For example, typing in "birth rate Massachusetts" returns a results page that shows you a number of things. Firstly, it tells you that "Massachusetts annual births" was used instead of the literal query. Secondly, the results for the query are displayed in a demographics table. Options to display additional information are given as well; in this case, age and gender, ethnicity, and education information is available with the click of a button. The numbers are also converted into hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly birth rates. Lastly, it is possible to view thorough source information for these numbers, and download the data as a .pdf file.

Sounds like there are a lot of possibilities! Wolfram|Alpha is free for personal noncommercial use.

Object of the Week

2011-09-19T15:37:00.001-04:00

Object of the Week1
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each student in Ms. Struck's art class will be transforming one object a week. Each week on Monday afternoon, the objects will be displayed somewhere in the library for that week, until the next objects arrive.

This week's item is a spray bottle. Unfortunately, "[n]ot every artist is represented each week," according to Ms. Struck, "for a variety of possible reasons."

Ms. Struck describes the project: "The idea behind this assignment is to challenge, question, and re-imagine our relationship with everyday objects. Through the process of doing this, hopefully we gain insights into our own preconceptions as well as into our methods of creative thinking."

We're thrilled to have such creative items on display in our library!

This I Believe

2011-09-14T15:48:00.002-04:00

This I Believe
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Dr. Quimby's chapel speech this morning referred to the NPR series This I Believe. The series was introduced in the 1950's by Edward R. Murrow who stated, "In this brief space, a banker or a butcher, a painter or a social worker ... will write about the rules they live by, the things they have found to be the basic values in their lives." It was brought back from 2005-2009.

You can search npr.org for the series and listen as both famous and ordinary Americans speak. Both the 1950's and the more contemporary ones are available.

You can also browse through either of the books in this display for a selection of essays to read.

Settling In for the New Academic Year

2011-09-12T16:45:00.001-04:00

Settling In Before Semester Starts
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Welcome back students, staff, and faculty! Pictured on the right is someone already settling in last Friday, before the semester officially started.

Here at the library, we have been getting ready for the new semester for weeks. New books - fiction, nonfiction plus textbooks - have been coming in and added to the collection. New nonfiction DVDs and movies are now available as well. Check out the new books nook and the lobby displays for selected acquisitions, or ask us!

We hope that everyone enjoys the fresh start and the wonderful community on campus.

Summer Activities

2011-06-01T11:02:00.002-04:00

Summer Activities Display
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

The semester is almost over, and summer break is looming. Why not do something different this summer? Pick up a new hobby from among the suggestions in our lobby display. This selection comes from our most recent acquisitions, and there are plenty of more sources. Just ask; we're here to help!

Graduation Bouquet

2011-05-31T19:55:00.001-04:00

Graduation Bouquet 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

The finals week is half over; only two exams remain. Besides seeing how hard library users are studying, we're delighted by these beautiful flowers. They were dropped off by Mrs. Doggett, the Headmaster's wife. She was kind enough to deliver them to us after this year's Commencement ceremonies.

Memorial Day Display

2011-05-30T18:38:00.002-04:00

Memorial Day
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

According to the Department of Veteran's Affairs, the origins of special services to honor those who die in war can be found in antiquity. The Athenian leader Pericles offered a tribute to the fallen heroes of the Peloponnesian War over 24 centuries ago that could be applied today to Americans who have died in the nation’s wars:

“Not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions, but there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men.”

Stop by our Memorial Day display in the lobby.

Latest Reviews: June 2011

2011-05-27T10:26:00.002-04:00

The Lace Reader
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Looking for relaxing reads for the summer break? Why not select a book reviewed by our staff!

The latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include Because I am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas, Jezebel: The Untold Story of the Bible’s Harlot Queen by Lesley Hazleton, and The Way I See It: A Personal Look at Autism and Asperger’s by Temple Grandin.

Also reviewed are The Map of True Places and The Lace Reader, both by Brunonia Barry, and, finally, The King’s Speech by Mark Logue and Peter Conradi.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

Happy summer!

Growing at a High School

2011-05-26T13:45:00.002-04:00

Nonfiction - 600s - May 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

"High school" and "gardening resources" is perhaps not an intuitive combination. We find that our collection of gardening books is in surprisingly high demand. In fact, one of our seniors grew herbs and documented the process as well as some common uses of the herbs for her senior project. Perhaps it's the beautiful Byfield countryside, thriftiness in the current economic situation, or the need to balance studies with something completely different; perhaps it's a yearning for concrete results nurtured by your own efforts.

Here is the latest addition to our growing collection (pun totally intended). Please stop by to look at our gardening and yard books. They are upstairs, in the 635s range.

How Do You Spell... Successful Initiative?

2011-05-25T10:48:00.002-04:00

How do you spell?
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

As a part of getting our end-of-the-year report together, we did a web search to see how our Web 2.0 social networking initiatives are faring. (We maintain an active presence in Flickr, LibraryThing, and Facebook, for example.)

It is a delight to see how often our Flickr images - under creative commons licensing - are used and re-used. We find them in personal blogs, informational web sites, association newsletters, and, occasionally, national news corporation blogs.

Screen capture from The Atlantic Wire blog post (April 19, 2011).

We are very excited to have earned a prime location in a post on The Atlantic Wire blog about the Western spelling of Gaddafi's name. They used a photo of our display from March 2011.

100 Year Old Sweater May 19 2011

2011-05-24T13:28:00.001-04:00

100 Year Old Sweater May 19 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Fascinating pieces of school history destined for the Archives often walk in the front door. This amazing sweater was a recent donation, found in the attic of a long graduated alum. Two pictures accompanied it - one of a class in front of the little Red Schoolhouse from 1919 and one of the football team from 1918. The young man holding the football in the photo was wearing this sweater. The sweater looks to be hand knit with a homemade D on the front and is free of moth incursions.

Following Your Online Footsteps: The Button Issue

2011-05-23T19:48:00.000-04:00

Earlier this spring we wrote about social networking issues to be aware of, namely malware and clickjacking, and the importance of managing your online presence. Another issue seems to have surfaced: using social networking widgets to track website visits. Your visits.

Everyone knows of the "Like" (for Facebook) and "Tweet" (for Twitter) buttons, which were created to make it easy to share content with friends. These buttons are called social widgets, and they can be found on various web sites. With them you can link a page (for example, news, articles, or even products) easily and effortlessly on your Facebook wall or in your Twitter feed.

According to a study done for The Wall Street Journal, these widgets notify Facebook and Twitter that you visited a site even when you don't click on the buttons during a visit. The study also found that once you've logged into your Facebook or Twitter account in the past month, the widgets will continue to collect browsing data. This happens even if you close your browser or turn off your computer. Only after you explicitly log out does data collecting stop.

As mentioned earlier in this blog, your online reputation is worth preserving. Peter Eckersley, a senior technologist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (a privacy-advocacy group), is quoted in the Wall Street Journal article mentioned above. He says, "Our reading habits online encompass everything we're thinking about, political and religious views, health and relationship problems." Awareness of our choices and their safely implications - including whether to log off or to leave yourself logged in - is as important as being aware of cars when crossing a road. And like exercising caution when crossing a road, caution online will soon become second nature.

Women's Firsts Display

2011-05-20T10:54:00.001-04:00

Women's Firsts - Amelia Earhart
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

May 20, 1932, Amelia Earhart took off from Harbor Grace, Newfoundland, for Europe. She was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. This trip took place exactly five years after the first transatlantic solo flight by Charles Lindbergh.

To honor Amelia Earhart and other pioneer women, we pulled together facts and sources on some of the first achievements for women in western history.

Take a look at our display in the reference area!

Lost and Found Table

2011-05-19T18:59:00.001-04:00

Lost and Found Table
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

As the semester draws to an end, we want to reunite these lost items with their owners.

Are you missing a hat? Mittens? A shirt? Books? Math CD-ROMs?

Stop by the library lobby to have a look and pick up your property.

School History and Traditions Highlighted

2011-05-18T19:09:00.000-04:00

Do you ever wonder where the school traditions come from? Or what might lurk in the school's past? Our Archives Manager Ms. DiModica an the enviable position: our history is literally at her fingertips. Whenever she finds especially delicious nuggets, she lifts the veil in her Archives blog posts.

For example, in her latest post, Mrs. DiModica quotes a speech by Headmaster Doggett revealing the origins of two graduation traditions (jumping the Mansion House wall and marching around the Milestone). We also have records indicating Govs alumni involvement in the Civil War, and of various student building projects. Sports activities like fencing and the existence of a rifle club on campus are also described.

Ms. DiModica highlights some of the items held in the archives as well as papers, photographs, and paintings. There is a genuine antique sword from the 1800s that belonged to an officer in the Dummer Guard, a cherub weather vane, and a 1937 lacrosse stick, to name just a few.

Please have a look at the Archives blog. There really is such an unequaled wealth of history there. If nothing else, you have got to see the donkey basketball photos from the 1980s!

McSweeney’s Display

2011-05-17T13:31:00.002-04:00

McSweeneys
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

The end of the semester is drawing near. To offer a respite from finals cramming, we put together a display highlighting the quirky, unique McSweeney’s series.

McSweeney’s, or more properly, Timothy McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern, is a journal unlike any other. It has been published quarterly by McSweeney’s publishing house and edited by Dave Eggers from 1998.

McSweeney’s Quarterly often plays around with both content and physical appearance. As Village Voice writer Matt Goldberg puts it, it’s a journal that “comprises killed articles and odd, obliquely humorous experiments”. Eggers himself describes it as “a weird, esoteric thing.” The issues can appear in a cigar box (Spring 2006), as an 8-volume set that sits in a tray (Summer 2008), or as a cubic human head (Winter 2010/2011), for example.

Inevitably, there’s also a web page. As a cheap and timely way to publish, Eggers uses the web to distribute “sarcastic, ephemeral rants about pop culture and the media,” to quote Goldberg. The web site is updated regularly in between issues, with jokes, columns, memories, humor, sarcasm, and more.

Visit our display in the Bragdon Reading Room!

Social Media Presence for College and for Life

2011-05-16T20:20:00.000-04:00

Privacy and online profile are even more important nowadays than before. Credit card purchases have become ubiquitous, but online stores are no longer the only businesses hankering after your life's story. Some businesses go through your personal data and mine information they can exploit for their benefit. Writing of a 13-year old student, Cecilia Kang says:

"The games he plays know his location at any given moment through the phone’s GPS technology. He has entered his parents’ credit card number to buy apps, and iTunes has his family’s e-mail address and everyone’s full names. Facebook knows his birth date and the school he attends." (Boston Sunday Globe, May 15, 2011.)

If you play any online games, even on your cell phone or other mobile device, chances are that at least a part of your behavior is recorded and stored. At the least, you'll leave a track. At the worst, like Kang writes, you'll hand out personal information that can be reviewed by prospective employers, insurance companies, and colleges. Who would want to be rejected as a prospective student because of a Facebook photo, or fired because of online activities? (And this is not even getting into malware and phishing attempts.) In 2008, in 500 of the nation's top colleges, 80 % of admissions officers said they use social media to evaluate applicants. Furthermore, of the schools that did check social networking sites, 38 % said that what they saw negatively affected their view of the applicants.

Try googling yourself. If you're not happy with what you find, take action. The best time to start managing your online presence is now. When you sign up with a new service, take a minute right away to check your account settings. Go check the privacy settings for services you're already using. Many services turn information sharing on by default. Change those defaults. Very few media applications actually require you to share your personal details to work. Protect your online reputation as you would protect your real-life reputation. There are many how-to guides for managing your online presence, especially for college-bound students. The basics, however, are easy: be safe, use common sense, and create a positive message.

Cultural Goings-On at Campus

2011-05-12T20:22:00.000-04:00

It sure is a busy cultural week here at Governor's campus! Tonight, we have the Fine Arts Excellence Awards ceremony at 6:30 in the PAC. We are constantly amazed at the superb quality of our student work. Every incoming class seems to outdo the previous. This year's winners are sure to inspire their peers, too.

Collage made with images from the school website.

In addition to the fine arts awards tonight, the winners of the Murphy-Mercer Short Story and Poetry Contest will be announced tomorrow (Friday) at the morning meeting. Also happening tomorrow is the release of this year's edition of our literary magazine, The Spire, followed by the release party at 6:30 in the Remis Library. (Student publications can be downloaded from the school website.) Finally, The Guild presents poets, writers, and other talents. Enjoy The Guild show from 7:30 to 9:00 in the PAC on Friday.

Research Help: NoodleTools

2011-05-11T13:09:00.002-04:00

All of our students know NoodleTools through the application that helps them format their bibliographies (NoodleBib). However, few know that NoodleTools has many more resources to offer.

The Choose the Best Search page is definitely worth a look. This valuable NoodleTools page introduces a number of search engines besides the most commonly known ones. The search engines are broken down into groups according to broad types of information needs. The broad search categories include defining the topic, finding quality results, researching a specific discipline, timeliness of information, facts and opinions/perspectives, specific media, special search requirements (e.g. file type), and kinds of searchers. Each of these groups contains several suggested search engines to try, and lists the types of searches that each engine is best suited for.

NoodleQuest assists beginning researchers who have trouble figuring out where to start. Selecting as many pertinent choices as desired and submitting the selection will create a personalized searching strategy. The Teacher Resources list sources for 21st century literacies, curriculum collaboration, and the ethics of information use.

We recommend that you at least look at the Best Search page. There will certainly be something useful - and new - for anybody.

Way Cool May

2011-05-10T18:53:00.002-04:00

Way Cool May
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

We have prepared an updated selection of new reads for the library lobby display.

These books are recent acquisitions, and are sure to entertain. Check back often - we do refill the display spots as books are checked out.

If you're looking for reading inspiration, don't forget to check out The Book Network and LibraryThing for reviews.

Finals Looming, Study Tips Blooming

2011-05-09T15:18:00.001-04:00

Finals Looming, Study Tips Blooming
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Finals, dreaded finals, are barely a month away. We’ve collected some helpful tips for improving your brain performance. The key, of course, is to keep lots of oxygenated blood rushing up there! To this end exercise breaks are encouraged, along with using stress balls which stimulate pressure points in your palm thereby encouraging release of muscle tension in your arms and increased circulation.
Beware the dangers of multi-tasking! The consensus seems to be that this will only inhibit the brain’s power to draw up and retain information…this will be so perhaps until such time as the next generation’s brain is Darwinistically altered to adapt. In the meantime sign yourself up for one of the numerous web distraction blocker sites such as “SelfControl”,” Freedom”, or “Leechblock”. And don’t miss the article by our own Reed Kennedy in which he tests the impact of listening to music while you study – and it doesn’t look good!
MAT

Batch of New Books

2011-05-09T11:08:00.001-04:00

Story Collection - April 30 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

The academic year is dwindling down. We are still buying books and DVDs, however.

Here is one of the latest books to hit our shelves. Check out the new books nook for this title - and more!

Freedom Riders Display

2011-05-06T13:23:00.003-04:00

Freedom Riders
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Fifty years ago this week, on May 04, 1961, the first of many civil rights activists left Washington, D.C., for the segregated southern states on interstate buses. They were testing the Supreme Court decision Boynton vs. Virginia, which outlawed racial segregation in the restaurants and waiting rooms in terminals for public transportation that crossed state lines.

The Freedom Riders set out to challenge the status quo by riding public transportation in the South to challenge local laws or customs that enforced segregation. Upon arrival, many Riders were arrested for trespassing, unlawful assembly, and violating state and local Jim Crow laws. Beatings and mob violence against the Riders eventually called federal attention to the issue.

Our display highlights a part of our collection on segregation and civil rights. Feel free to check our catalog for more.

JFK: A Wealth of Virtual Materials

2011-05-05T19:46:00.000-04:00

Boston area residents who are also history buffs will be glad to hear that the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum has just opened a new wing. The JFK Library is one of 13 Presidential Libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration.

The Library is dedicated to the memory of our nation's thirty-fifth president. Besides exhibits, library materials, and archives, it hosts a series of talks, Kennedy Library Forums, to foster public discussion on a range of historical, political and cultural topics that reflect the legacy of President Kennedy's White House years.

You do not have to visit the Library in person to benefit from its collection, though. Their Virtual Museum Tour offers excerpts of film and exhibit materials. The Library website offers ample materials: for example, there are short articles on JFK in history and the on Kennedy family. Also posted are a number of JFK's speeches (with both video and audio), and a fantastic media gallery with both color and black and white images. The website Research section covers all possible ways to research JFK, including a link to search the Digital Archives; the Ready Reference section offers speeches, quotations, and a chronology, links to databases, plus answers FAQs. They also participate in social networking; check out at least their YouTube materials and podcasts.

This resource should prove a great help for our juniors, or anyone else interested in the JFK era.

Govs Graduate Makes Quite an Impression

2011-05-04T10:50:00.000-04:00

We recently discovered that John Leslie Breck grew up in the Boston area and, in fact, attended Governor's during the years 1868 and 1869. He was recognized in his day as the first American impressionist.

According to the academy’s records, Breck resided in Newton Lower Falls, a village of Newton, Massachusetts, through at least 1871. He would subsequently study in Munich, Germany, and in 1886, at the Academie Julian in Paris, France (1886). Later Breck would become one of the few Americans to enter the inner circle of Claude Monet.

Read more at the Governor's Archives blog and the City of Newton website!

Latest Reviews: May 2011

2011-05-03T13:38:00.002-04:00

Bryson At Home
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Looking for something to read other than textbooks or assigned reading?

The latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include At Home: A Short History of Private Life by Bill Bryson, Scars by Cheryl Rainfield, and The Mind’s Eye by Oliver Sacks.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

Louise Gluck Poetry Reading

2011-05-02T18:46:00.009-04:00

It is always interesting to hear a poet read their work. Last Thursday Louise Gluck did a wonderful job sharing her work with the students, faculty and other poetry lovers that came to her reading here at Governor's.

Ms. Gluck chose a variety of poems spanning her 11 books. She also talked about the time in between her books and how stressful it was to be stalled in the lag time between inspiration. I really enjoyed that Ms. Gluck talked about her difficulties with writing. It is comforting for all aspiring writers to know that it is even hard for the professionals.

Royal Wedding: History of British Royalty

2011-04-29T10:38:00.003-04:00

Royal Wedding History
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Britain's Prince William and Kate wed each other early this morning (Eastern Standard Time) among lavish celebrations - and protests. There's been a lot of media attention leading up to the wedding, but that's only a part of their story. Let's not forget the preceding generations and their legacy.

Our Royal Weddings display showcases works from our collection. There are also information panels with historical scenes and items of interest. It's not too late to get a dose of royal history.

Poetry Reading Tonight!

2011-04-28T10:51:00.002-04:00

Louise Gluck
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Today, the Governor's Academy has the honor of hosting poet Louise Gluck. In the words of Mr. Searles:

"Louise Gluck will be reading in the PAC tonight at 7:30 p.m. She will also be at dinner in the Dining Hall from 5:30 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. for anyone interested in eating and talking with her. She is a former U.S. Poet Laureate, and her visit will be a great acknowledgement of April, Poetry Month, at our school."

We have some of her work on display in the lobby; please come in for a taste. Also, check out her poem Fable on our blog.

We hope everyone enjoys her visit!

First to Sit in the New Chairs!

2011-04-27T11:17:00.002-04:00

First to sit in the New Chairs!
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

After weeks of planning, negotiating, selecting, and waiting, our library finally got a delivery of new comfy chairs this morning!

Charles and Nick performed the inaugural ceremony for the lobby chairs. We're all very excited about the chairs.

Go to our Flickr photostream to see more pictures.

Chernobyl: A 25-Year Anniversary

2011-04-26T13:43:00.004-04:00

Chernobyl/Pripyat Exclusion Zone (020.1679)
Originally uploaded by Pedro Moura Pinheiro

On April 26, 1986, the Number Four reactor at the nuclear power plant at Chernobyl, Ukraine, went out of control during a test at low power. This lead to an explosion and fire that demolished the reactor building and released large amounts of radiation into the atmosphere. Safety measures were ignored. The uranium fuel in the reactor overheated and melted through the protective barriers. Radioactive elements including plutonium, iodine, strontium, and cesium were scattered over a wide area.

The accident was approximately 400 times more potent than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Some 150,000 square kilometers in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine were contaminated. Also Scandinavian countries were affected by the radioactive releases from Chernobyl. Radioactive isotopes were blown by wind northward into Sweden and Finland and over other parts of the northern hemisphere.

The initial explosion resulted in the death of two workers. The death toll among the firemen and emergency clean-up workers in the first three months was 29 (one of cardiac arrest and the rest from radiation sickness). In total some 200,000 people are believed to have been relocated as a result of the accident. In addition, there have been at least 1,800 documented cases of thyroid cancer children who were between 0 and 14 years of age when the accident occurred.

Nowadays it is possible to visit the Chernobyl area, even including the exclusion zone (a 30 kilometer radius surrounding the plant). Read more on the IAEA Chernobyl FAQ and the United Nations Chernobyl sites, or explore 25 years of satellite imagery over Chernobyl. Wikipedia offers links to some image collections (at the bottom of the page), or you can search Flickr for photos.

Poetry Reading This Thursday

2011-04-25T20:40:00.002-04:00

Louise Gluck, former U.S. Poet Laureate, will be giving a poetry reading in the PAC this Thursday (April 28) at 7:30 p.m. Here is a poem from her book The Seven Ages.

Fable

By Louise Gluck

We had, each of us, a set of wishes.

the number changed. And what we wished –

That changed also. Because

we had, all of us, such different dreams.

The wishes were all different, the hopes all different.

And the disasters and catastrophes, always different.

In great waves they left the earth,

even the one that is always wasted.

Waves of despair, waves of hopeless longing and heartache.

Waves of the mysterious wild hungers of youth, the dreams of childhood.

Detailed, urgent; once in a while, selfless.

All different, except of course

the wish to go back. Inevitably

last or first, repeated

over and over –

So the echo lingered. And the wish

held us and tormented us

though we knew in our own bodies

it was never granted.

We knew, and on dark nights, we acknowledged this.

How sweet the night became then,

once the wish released us,

how utterly silent.

Our Library STATs

2011-04-25T18:56:00.002-04:00

If you stacked up all the books in the library they would be 505 feet tall. That’s taller than the Great Pyramid (450 feet) but shorter than the Washington Monument (555.5 feet). If all the pages in all the books in the library were laid end to end it would be 533,410 feet, which is 0.4057 % of the circumference of the Earth and a 1.68 hour drive. If you were to pack up and move all the books in the library, they would fill 206.2 U-Haul book boxes. Imagine carting all those books of the college with you. Also imagine all the amazing information held in the magnitude of books that we have here at the library. Could your bedside table hold the Great Pyramid?

You can find other interesting facts about our library here!

Earth Day Display

2011-04-22T13:43:00.002-04:00

Earth Day
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

It's Earth Day! How are you celebrating?

We made this small display with both older and brand new sources on the environment and living an eco-friendly life. Come in to have a look.

Also check out our Facebook links for today - Greenpeace International has published an intriguing report on the energy footprint of 10 popular online service providers (Apple, Amazon, and Yahoo, for instance).

How Many Books Have You Read?

2011-04-21T19:02:00.002-04:00

The vast majority of the world's books, music, films, television and art, you will never see. It's just numbers.
Consider books alone. Let's say you read two a week, and sometimes you take on a long one that takes you a whole week. That's quite a brisk pace for the average person. That lets you finish, let's say, 100 books a year. If we assume you start now, and you're 15, and you are willing to continue at this pace until you're 80. That's 6,500 books, which really sounds like a lot.

Let's do you another favor: Let's further assume you limit yourself to books from the last, say, 250 years. Nothing before 1761. This cuts out giant, enormous swaths of literature, of course, but we'll assume you're willing to write off thousands of years of writing in an effort to be reasonably well-read.

Of course, by the time you're 80, there will be 65 more years of new books, so by then, you're dealing with 315 years of books, which allows you to read about 20 books from each year. You'll have to break down your 20 books each year between fiction and nonfiction – you have to cover history, philosophy, essays, diaries, science, religion, science fiction, westerns, political theory ... I hope you weren't planning to go out very much.

You can hit the highlights, and you can specialize enough to become knowledgeable in some things, but most of what's out there, you'll have to ignore. (Don't forget books not written in English! Don't forget to learn all the other languages!)

This in an excerpt from NPR's Blog. You can read the whole article here.

Holmes, Linda. The Sad, Beautiful Fact that We’re All Going to Miss Almost Everything. NPR Blog, Culture and Criticism. April 18, 2011.

One Year Anniversary: The Gulf Oil Spill

2011-04-20T21:37:00.001-04:00

One year ago today, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded. The explosion killed 11 men, injured 17, and sank the rig. The deepest, most long-lasting outcome of the mishap, however, was the sea-floor oil gusher that started leaking oil into the ocean. After several attempts, the spill was finally effectively capped on July 15, 2010.

The consequences of the Gulf oil spill range from economic to ecologic, and effects on health, fishing, and tourism. Legislative efforts and public reactions also followed. The various documenting efforts include recording the impact of the event in the lives of the Gulf area residents.

The new media allow us great new ways to record history as it happens and the reactions of so-called ordinary people. For example, Bridge the Gulf, a citizen journalism and new-media initiative, conveys the residents' stories and their vision for the future of Gulf Coast communities. The Southern Oral History Program in the Center for the Study of the American South at the University of North Carolina conducted a small series of interviews to begin the work of documenting the human effects of the oil spill. They have published a selection of oil spill stories on Tumblr. Historians of the future will surely find a rich source of primary materials among these and other similar collections.

The British Royal Wedding: 10 Days to Go

2011-04-19T18:30:00.002-04:00

Royal Wedding Red Carpet
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

It’s now 10 days and counting to the biggest media event of the year – the wedding of Prince William and Catherine (Kate) Middleton. They will say “I do” in Westminster Abbey, London, on Friday April 29th.

The British royalty may have a long history, but this couple isn’t your traditional, stuffy pair of talking heads with stiff upper lips and “what-ho, old chap” remarks. Just check out all the 2.0 ways with which they are reaching out!

They’ve established an official website, and provide materials for YouTube. The Royal Channel on YouTube also has a clock counting down to The Broadcast event. Of course, BBC keeps tabs on everything wedding-related. Also Westminster Abbey, the location for the wedding ceremony, provides information on their website. Even the British government has a web page for the wedding.

Here in the library, we’re following the story and counting down as well.

Keyboard Shortcuts

2011-04-18T11:33:00.000-04:00

Have you ever been frustrated about how slow it is to operate a web browser with a mouse? There are a number of keyboard commands you can adopt to speed things up.

For example, to select just one word, double click it. To copy a highlighted section, press CTRL and C; to paste, press CTRL and V. To select everything on a web page (or in a document), press CTRL + A. CTRL + O opens and CTRL + S saves a file.

Use the F5 key to reload and CTRL + F to find something on the current page. Navigate quickly to the top or bottom of your web page (or document) with HOME and END. If you’ve opened several applications (several windows), you can move between them with ALT + TAB; CTRL + TAB switches between browser tabs.

Some of these shortcuts work not just with browsers, but also in a Windows environment (Word, Excel, etc.) – try them out!

For a full list of Firefox, Windows, or Mac keyboard shortcuts, see their respective support pages.

Grandparents Day 2011

2011-04-15T11:11:00.001-04:00

Grandparents Day 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Today we welcome grandparents to the campus!

They can attend classes with their grandchildren. At midday, there is a lunch reception in the Whiston-Bragdon arena with a musical performance and a student reflection.

We hope everyone enjoys our school and this gorgeous weather!

The Light in the Library

2011-04-14T19:07:00.001-04:00

Now that spring is finally here student life will take to the great outdoors. However the floor to ceiling windows in the reference section of the library makes sitting inside and doing homework a lovely event. The sunlight and fresh air fill the library as we open our windows to the beautiful weather. After you’ve had your fill of walking outside and it’s time to study or curl up with a good book come to the library when you can sit and enjoy the view from all our windows.

Poetry at Circ Desk

2011-04-13T13:43:00.001-04:00

Poetry at Circ Desk
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

The latest donation to our library is of the anonymous kind.

This poem at the circulation desk was left behind by a creative student (we think). What better way to spend a rainy afternoon than with your favorite literature!

Check out what we've been collecting - maybe it's yours!

2011-04-12T11:22:00.000-04:00

Can you guess the correct number of headphones in this photo? How about find the button? Who’s ID tag and key is that….? Which white plug is the Apple plug? Do we have to find new homes for ALL these items, or do they belong in yours???

Here’s three calculators, two with their covers, and three lonely covers. All the students here at the Academy appreciate their fellow students’ generosity in sharing their scientific calculators, but, in the event you need your own back for exams, this is what we have here!

Civil War Scrapbooking

2011-04-11T18:46:00.000-04:00

Did you know that the Governor’s Academy’s archival collection holds many military-related items? One of them is the Civil War-era scrapbook of Captain William White Dorr. Born in 1837, Dorr entered the army at age 25 and served in the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, and at Spottsylvania Court House. His scrapbook holds a number of letters from the battlefield, journal entries, newspaper clippings, sketches, pressed flowers, and memorabilia from the Civil War era.

Read more at The Governor's Academy Archives blog.

New Study Room

2011-04-07T10:52:00.001-04:00

New study room
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

This spring, we were able to convert an office on the first floor into a study room. We know how much demand there is for an enclosed space for working with a small group, or for tutors to meet their students in. Step in and make yourself comfortable!

Lost and Found Desk

2011-04-06T13:09:00.001-04:00

Lost and Found Desk
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

You'd be surprised how many little odds and ends people forget in the library. To reunite these possessions with their owners, we've set aside a convenient corner of the front desk.

Latest Reviews: April 2011

2011-04-05T11:37:00.003-04:00

Looking for something to read other than textbooks or assigned reading?

The latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include Flirting with Pride and Prejudice by Jennifer Crusie, Wench: A Novel by Dolen Perkins-Valdez, and Give Me Your Heart: Tales of Mystery and Suspense by Joyce Carol Oates.

Give Me Your Heart
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

Revisit Days 2011

2011-04-04T13:58:00.002-04:00

Revisit Days 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

We welcome all those revisitors! After visiting classes, students had a scavenger hunt. In the library, Mr. Ramos-Glew taught the intricacies of tying a bowtie.

National Poetry Month Begins!

2011-04-01T14:07:00.000-04:00

To celebrate the start of National Poetry Month, listen to one of our Common Book Authors read "Rain."

Museum Blog: Van Gogh

2011-03-31T20:37:00.000-04:00

When doing research on a specific artist, it's a good idea to check whether there is a museum or another type of institution dedicated to the artist's work. If there is, it's worth checking out the museum's web site. Nowadays many institutions offer superb materials and links on their sites, available for free. There certainly are good, authoritative sources available for the world's most famous artists.

For example, the Van Gogh Museum in the Netherlands has established a blog. The Van Gogh’s Studio Practice provides access to collaborative research projects in art history, technology and natural science. The objective is to gain new insights into Van Gogh’s working method by investigating every facet of his creative process and his works of art, and through comparison with his contemporaries.

Browse the blog for fascinating images from van Gogh's sketchbooks, details of the latest van Gogh research, and more.

Haiku PoeTree for April

2011-03-30T11:11:00.001-04:00

Haiku PoeTree closeup
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Japanese haikus, those mesmerising 17-syllable poems, have fascinated the West since the nineteenth century. We start the National Poetry Month by paying tribute to haikus with a poetry tree, complete with origami cranes.

Originally a part of the 5-line poem tanka, the haiku almost always contains the name of the season, or a key word with which to infer the season. This short-cut method allows the reader to immediately comprehend the weather, the foliage, the animal life, and the emotions that go with the season in question. More than a statement of feeling or a picture of nature, a haiku connects two seemingly different things and creates an implied identity between them.

Remember also that Friday, April 1st, is Jeans Day. A small donation will let you wear jeans that day, and the money raised will go to buy socks for victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Revisit Day Reads

2011-03-29T12:03:00.002-04:00

Selected Young Adult Poetry
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

The revisit days are almost here! We've set out a selection of short stories, novels, and poetry in the lobby with a connection to teenagers or writing by teens.

The tall pyramid in front of the circulation desk displays the latest acquisitions. The front desk corner shelf has poetry. You can find even more books at the ends of the fiction shelves, where we've showcased some of the older young adult stories. We've already checked out several, so if you want your share, hurry in!

Melville and Whaling Display

2011-03-28T11:08:00.001-04:00

Melville and Whaling Display
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

One hundred and sixty years since the publication of Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, and our fascination with all things whaling endures. Books and articles continue to be published, new discoveries made, and Moby Dick is secure in his spot on the AP English Literature reading list. What makes whaling all the more fascinating for us here in Byfield is our proximity to the origins of many great whaling vessels. The whaleship Essex was built just up the road in Amesbury. The Essex was captained by George Pollard Jr., of Nantucket. This was the whaleship that went down with more than half of its crew after being attacked by a whale. And therein lies the tale of Moby Dick. We have a number of excellent non-fiction reads on the sinking of the whaleship Essex. It’s intriguing to contemplate the extent to which the anthropomorphisation of the whale played a role in drawing men to the sea in this harshest of jobs. Archaeologists announced just last month that they have discovered the remains of another 1800’s whaler just north of Hawaii, the Two Brothers, which may very well have also been made in Amesbury, and was also captained by Mr. Pollard.

U.S. History Display: 1960s

2011-03-24T19:19:00.003-04:00

American History 1960s
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Our Display series featuring the different decades of the 21st century in American History has reached 1960s. Check out the table in the back of the reference area for a taste of the spirit of the sixties.

We have sources on the life of Muhammad Ali, for example, and on the days of the peace marches, Woodstock, and psychedelic music. Read how post-World War II comfort turned into yet another war, how a new, rebellious youth culture shook the existing conventions, and how feminism and civil rights transformed the society. There's also a book on the Kent State shootings of 1970, where guardsmen killed four students and wounded nine after a student protest against the invasion of Cambodia went awry. This decade is like no other, and will leave no-one cold!

Archives Poster - Dummer Work Squad

2011-03-23T12:23:00.002-04:00

April Archives Poster - Work Squad
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Our latest poster celebrating Academy history looks at the work squads of the past. In the '30's students built an outdoor wooden running track and a new skating rink and enlarged the playing fields. In the '40's students picked up the work done by men who had left to serve in the war. Read more about the squads and what they accomplished on Mrs. DiModica's Archives blog - parts one and two.

Social Networking Hazards

2011-03-22T20:48:00.003-04:00

Welcome back from spring break! We hope everyone feels refreshed and energetic to tackle the rest of the spring semester.

Whether you're cruising the Byfield backroads or the information superhighways, it pays to mind your manners. Did you know that Facebook malware has become a serious threat to IT security? Due to phishing and clickjacking activities, some colleges and universities are even isolating student computers before they infect the rest of the school network.

Our IT department recently sent out a reminder about Facebook threats. It's very easy to click on interesting stories and catch up on gossip on any social networking site, especially if it looks like a friend recommends the link. Unfortunately, it's equally easy to fall pray to malware programs. At the very least, they will spam your profile - and your contacts' profiles - with annoying links. At worst, you'll be stuck with very real cell phone or credit card bills.

One of the latest Facebook scams is called "My Top Stalkers". Users are directed to an external site that claims to reveal the top people checking out their profile. Of course, somewhere along the way users are asked to provide their information, and a charge will appear on their cell phone bill. You can read more about the "My Top Stalkers" scam at All Facebook: The Unofficial Facebook Resource.

So do yourself and your friends a favor. Educate yourself. Google before you click. A quick web search will often reveal a scamming attempt. Remember also to check your Facebook account settings. Make sure no rogue applications are active, because just deleting the spam posts does not get rid of malware.

Last Moments Before Break

2011-03-04T10:59:00.002-05:00

Last Moments Before Break
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Students catch up with each other in the library for the last time, and print out their tickets or last papers before break. In an hour it's vacation time; even better, we have gorgeous weather to start it off with!

We hope everyone has a great spring break!

Latest Reviews: March 2011

2011-03-03T12:03:00.002-05:00

Lives Like Loaded Guns
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Looking for something to read over the March break for a well-earned respite?

The latest reviews linked to our "virtual collection" include Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection by John T. Cacioppo, Lives Like Loaded Guns: Emily Dickinson and Her Family’s Feuds by Lyndall Gordon, and Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach.

You can always find even more reviews through our LibraryThing profile.

March Break Travel Abroad

2011-03-02T19:25:00.002-05:00

School Exchange Programs
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Each year, students from The Governor’s Academy travel abroad during the March break to participate in formal student exchanges. In 2011, 14 members of the junior class were selected to visit four sites.

Read more in the Governor's Academy Blog from Aboard!

The photo to the right contains a collage of memories from last year's exchanges. Come visit the library to see them in full. We're sure that this year's visits will create memories just as incredible!

Latest New Books

2011-03-01T20:27:00.001-05:00

900s - Feb 28 2011
Originally uploaded by Pesky Library

Just in time for the spring break, we have a batch of new books available. Check out these just added titles - and more! - in the new books nook on the first floor.

P.S. Remember to check out the awesome Ronald Reagan display in the hallway display case!

American Experience Online

2011-02-28T12:03:00.000-05:00

Last week we introduced two online video sites. This week we'll bring you the American Experience Online by PBS.

This highly acclaimed site premiered in November 1995, and features over 200 films at the moment. The series brings to life the incredible characters and epic stories that have shaped America’s past and present. Films include the Presidents collection, videos on political events, natural phenomena and how they affect us (e.g. hurricanes, the Hoover Dam), professions and making a living (whaling, the gold rush), economics, wars and weaponry (D-Day, the atomic bomb, biological weapons), religions in America, and much, much more.

Below each video on the screen there are links for example to further information, people and events, a timeline, and maps. Browsing this amazing site will surely be worth your time.