Blog Post
John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel of 2007
by muffy
The Campbell Award (and a list of previous winners) named In War Times by Kathleen Ann Goonan the Best Science Fiction Novel of 2007. The award was created to honor the late editor of Astounding Science Fiction magazine (now called Analog). Many writers and scholars call Campbell, who edited the magazine from 1937 until his death in 1971, the father of modern science fiction.
You might remember back in January 2008, In War Times was picked as the best 2007 SF novel by the American Library Association's Reading List Council Genre Fiction Awards. For a list of the major literary award winners, check out our new service : BookLetters.
Blog Post
Mario Kart!
by jaegerla
Mario Kart has been released for the Wii and is, pardon the cheesy language, super fun. The game has sold more copies than the previous five Mario titles for the Wii combined and is a solid investment guaranteed to entertain you for hours on end (as you compete with friends in person and online). But of course, one of the most exciting updates to the game is the implementation of the Wii remote as the steering wheel. If you find video games interesting, you may enjoy looking into the library's databases' information on the history of gaming. Try running a search for Video Game History in General Reference Center Gold or First Search, and let us know what you think of the databases!
Blog Post
HomeWork Bits - Online Science Fair Sites
by ryanikoglu
School Library Journal provides an "Online Science Fare" resource list for Science Fair season.
Here it is, and hope it HELPS !
Science Fair Project Resource Guide from the Internet Public Library.
Online (and Hands-on) Activities created by the San Francisco Exploratorium.
Science Fair Project Resource Guide created by Librarians, "a well-known classic among science fair veterans". And
ZOOMsci with simple experiments especially good for elementary students and teachers looking for in-class projects
Blog Post
New Border Crossing Rules Begin Jan. 31st
by Debbie G.
Beginning today, travelers crossing into the United States via land will be required to show identification documentation. Also effective January 31, 2008, U.S. and Canadian citizen children ages 18 and under will be expected to present a birth certificate issued by a federal, state, provincial, county or municipal authority. The Dept. of Homeland Security website includes an FAQ for travelers.
Blog Post
Rosetta Stone Will No Longer Be Available After March 31, 2008
by Van
Rosetta Stone has sent us “formal notice that Rosetta Stone Online will no longer be available to public libraries for use in online database offerings.”
Therefore, the Ann Arbor District Library will no longer be able to provide online access to Rosetta Stone after our current contract expires on March 31, 2008. At that time all public library registered users will no longer be able to log on to Rosetta Stone.
Foreign Language Materials at the Library
In the Foreign Languages section of the AADL Select Sites you can find some basic online instruction through the BBC Languages, FSI Language Courses, Livemocha, and Mango Languages.
We will be adding the substantial subscription price for Rosetta Stone to the library’s budget for foreign language learning materials in order to provide the Pimsleur Language Programs on compact disc (the beginning, intermediate, and high intermediate (Levels I, II, and II) courses).
The library has very good collections of print and audio courses available for check out. Click on Read More for links to the catalog for a few foreign languages or search the catalog under the name of the foreign language you want to learn.
Blog Post
An Economist holiday
by remnil
If you've never read the annual holiday edition of The Economist, you're missing a rare treat. In addition to the magazine's typical insightful reporting and commentary, this edition includes several special reports on as sundry topics as professional poker to Mao Zedong's management style. Here are just a few articles that I enjoyed from this year's issue:
* Why humans' hunter-gatherer era wasn't quite as idyllic as we think
* The political sensitivity and power that comes from the Census
* China's attempts to encourage panda sex, and why we should care
* The political implications of electing a Mormon president.
Has your interest been piqued? Want to check out this issue of The Economist in its full-text glory? You're in luck! You can access it online in General OneFile, one of our great research databases. After you get into the database, just click the "Publication Search" link and search for The Economist. You will need to login to your aadl.org account to follow the database link.
Blog Post
Tired of Google?
by Robb
Like a lot of locals I’m thrilled to have the Google Company move to town. However when I’m looking for information I’ve grown tired of the typical search result of millions of hits. Too many answers are useless to me. Maybe you’ve got time to go thru them all. I don’t.
Fortunately I’m not alone in my frustration. Try Clusty search engine. It searches for your requested information and presents the results in clusters. It’s a refreshing way to get the answers. Try it! You’ll like it. I did.
Blog Post
Becoming and Staying Healthy During Recovery From Addiction
by MarilynG
Whether you are in recovery from an addiction or are part of the support system for someone who is, take advance of the resources the library has to offer on the health issues for those in recovery. Check out The Wellness-Recovery Connection, The Sober Kitchen and Safe Medicine For Sober People, which provide advice on becoming and remaining healthy during recovery. For more information and resources on wellness, consider using Health Wellness Resource found under databases on our Research Databases By Subject page.
Blog Post
One Stop Shopping for Information about Businesses
by annevm
If you're looking for detailed information about a corporation, try Reference USA. You may be surprised to learn that you can get contact information for major American corporations, just by clicking into this database. Maybe you thought Reference USA was mostly for phone numbers? Wrong. Check again. This is an excellent database that includes management directories, images, competitor reports, public filings, and Uniform Commercial Code profiles.
Blog Post
The Big Mac, a (nearly) perfect form of global currency
by remnil
Have you ever exchanged your dollars for a different currency? I don't know about you, but I'm always confused as to how much I'm actually getting. If I can trade one dollar for 0.75 euros, can I still get as much stuff as I would with a dollar (which, admittedly, is not that much)?
For over 20 years, The Economist has been giving a clever answer to this complex question: Big Macs. The Economist's Big Mac Index compares the prices of that beloved artery-clogger around the globe, and in the process helps show just how much you can get for your dollar. Or franc. Or rouble. In their latest index, you can get a burger in the U.S. for about $3.41. But in China, it will only cost you $1.45. If you're traveling to Norway, though, it will cost you a whopping (pun intended) $6.88!
The Big Mac isn't a perfect way to measure exchange rates and purchasing power. After all, you can't trade them across international borders (eww!). But they have the advantage of being made the same way no matter where you go, an elusive quality in international markets.
Want to find out more about the Big Mac index, or any number of other current events or international trade topics? As an AADL cardholder, you can actually access The Economist in its full-text glory in General OneFile, one of our great research databases. You will need to login to your aadl.org account to follow the database link.