Friday, December 19, 2008

Holiday closing

Now that finals are just about over, LNDL is getting ready to close for the holidays. Over the next few days, our hours will be:

Saturday, 12/20: 8am - 1pm
Sunday, 12/21: closed
Monday, 12/22: 8am - 6pm
Tuesday, 12/23: 8am - noon

We'll remain closed from Tuesday at noon through January 4. We'll reopen on Monday, January 5 at 8am. Check the website for more info on the library's hours in January.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

LNDL Open Overnight for Finals

The main lobby area of the Loyola/Notre Dame Library will be open overnight on several days during finals. The rest of the library (book stacks, etc.) will be closed off during the overnight hours. Access will be limited to current students from Notre Dame and Loyola; all students will be required to show a college ID to enter overnight. For security reasons, at 2am the entire building will be cleared, and those who wish to stay will have to show their IDs. (Think of it as a chance to stretch your legs and pick out a new seat!)

On the following days, LNDL will be open from 2am - 8am:

Monday, 12/8 to Saturday, 12/13
Monday, 12/15 to Thursday, 12/18

This means that at least a portion of the building will be open continuously from:
10am on Sunday, 12/7 through 8pm on Saturday, 12/13
and again from
10am on Sunday, 12/14 through 2am on Friday, 12/19.

(The library will also be open from 8am - 2am on Friday, 12/19 and 8am - 1pm on Saturday, 12/20. Please check the website for more information about library hours.)

Don't forget that this Friday, 12/5, we will be open until 10pm!

Monday, December 1, 2008

Friday, 12/5: Open Late!

Racing to finish that last paper or get ready for a tough exam? We're here to help. LNDL is extending hours on Fridays this month! This Friday, LNDL will be open from 8am to 10pm. A librarian will be available at the Research & Instruction Desk until 9:30pm.

On Friday the 12th and Friday the 19th, we'll be open until 2am!

Get more info on the library's hours or on the Research & Instruction Desk hours.

Edited 12/3: LNDL will be open overnight for a portion of the final exam period!

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Library Hacks: Text LNDL!

We're rolling out a new service on December 1 -- send your questions to the reference desk by text message! Here's how it works:
  • Address your text message to 246246
  • Start off the body of the message with send textlndl
  • Add your message
We're providing this service by taking advantage of AOL's Mobile AIM Service. That means that the librarian at the reference desk will receive an IM with your text message. Our response back to you will still be sent to your phone like any other text. (We'll do our best to keep it under 160 characters!)

This service should work with most major carriers (we've tested it on Verizon and T-Mobile), but if you try it and find it doesn't work for you, please send us an email (askemail@loyola.edu) and let us know who your cell carrier is. That way we can update our information about the service. We'd also like to hear from you if you experience any problems using this service.

Please remember that your cell phone carrier may charge you for each text message sent and received. The library is not responsible for these charges.

EDIT 2/3: It has come to our attention that AOL has changed the process for sending IMs via text message. The instructions above have been updated to reflect this change. We apologize for any inconvenience.

FREE Film Screening: Outsourced

Join us for a free screening of "Outsourced," an award-winning film by John Jeffcoat. Films are open to students, faculty and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

Thursday, December 4
7pm
LNDL Auditorium (Lower Level)
Enjoy FREE soda and popcorn, courtesy of Loyola's Student Activities office.
Thirty-two-year-old Todd Anderson (Josh Hamilton) manages the order filling call center of Western Novelty: "We sell kitsch to rednecks," he explains, with typical efficiency. Abruptly told by boss Dave (Matt Smith) that his entire department is being outsourced to India, the Seattlite finds himself persuaded to travel there and train his replacement.
--Cockrell, Eddie. "Outsourced." Variety, October 2, 2006.
Starring Josh Hamilton, Ayesha Dharker and Asif Basra. View a trailer on Hollywood.com.

Monday, November 24, 2008

Thanksgiving Hours

In the area over Thanksgiving break and need to get some work done? Be sure to double-check the library's hours before you head over to finish up that paper:
  • Tuesday, Nov. 25: 8 a.m. - 8 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Nov. 26 through Friday, Nov. 28 - Closed
  • Saturday, Nov. 29 - 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Regular library hours resume on Sunday, Nov. 30., at 10 a.m.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Library Hacks: 24/7 help

As you work on your final papers and projects for the semester, you might find yourself pulling an all-nighter or two to get things done. While the library closes at 2 a.m. most nights, the reference librarians who staff the Research Assistance desk go home long before that. So what can you do if you need help while we're asleep?

Try our 24/7 chat service! Clicking the 24/7 chat button on the library homepage will connect you to a librarian somewhere else. They'll be able to help you navigate LNDL's resources to find the information you need.

You might also find this service handy when the library is closed for Thanksgiving. Take a look at the library hours to see when we're open. You can also look up the hours for the Research Assistance Desk.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Limited Hours for Library Guests

Beginning on Sunday, November 30, 2008, and continuing through December 21, 2008, the Loyola/Notre Dame Library will be limiting access to the library. After 2:00 p.m. each day only students, faculty, and staff from the College of Notre Dame and Loyola College will be admitted.

Students from other institutions as well as the general public will be admitted only before 2:00 p.m. each day. In addition, priority use of library computers and study rooms will be given to students from Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

These restrictions do not apply to students, faculty and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

FREE Film Screening: The Wind That Shakes the Barley

Join us for a free screening of "The Wind That Shakes the Barley," a film by Ken Loach that won the Palme D'or at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. Films are open to students, faculty and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

Thursday, November 20
7pm
LNDL Auditorium (Lower Level)
Enjoy FREE soda and popcorn, courtesy of Loyola's Student Activities office.

Two Irish brothers are torn apart by the anti-Brit rebellion of the '20s in "The Wind That Shakes the Barley," a studiously sincere film by veteran helmer Ken Loach and scripter Paul Laverty in which the human drama increasingly gets lost in the political.
--Elley, Derek. "The Wind That Shakes the Barley." Variety, May 22, 2006.
Starring Cillian Murphy and Padraic Dellaney. View a trailer on IMDB.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

FREE Film Screening: Cool Hand Luke

Join us for a free screening of "Cool Hand Luke," a 1967 film by Stuart Rosenberg. Films are open to students, faculty and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

Thursday, November 13
7pm
LNDL Auditorium (Lower Level)

Enjoy FREE soda and popcorn, courtesy of Loyola's Student Activities office.
Now in his latest film, "Cool Hand Luke," Newman . . . [plays] a hero who becomes an anti-hero because he despises the slobs who worship him. Luke is on a Southern chain gang. He's the only prisoner with guts enough to talk back to the bosses and the only one with nerve enough to escape.
--From Roger Ebert's original review
Starring Paul Newman, George Kennedy and Dennis Hopper. View a trailer on IMDB.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

FREE Film Screening: The Visitor

Join us for a free screening of "The Visitor," a film by Thomas McCarthy. Films are open to students, faculty and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

Thursday, November 6 at 8pm*
Sunday, November 9 at 6pm
LNDL Auditorium (Lower Level)

*On Thursday, enjoy FREE soda and popcorn, courtesy of Loyola's Student Activities office. (Snacks will also be available on Sunday.)
Walter Vale [(Richard Jenkins) is a] widower, economics professor and the ne plus ultra of boring white men. When he reluctantly returns to Gotham to give a talk at NYU, he finds two immigrants living in his little-used Manhattan apartment: Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and his girlfriend, Zainab (Danai Gurira), illegals who were scammed into renting Walter's usually vacant pad. We half expect a grand gesture from Walter, but McCarthy makes us wait: It isn't until Tarek and Zainab are packed and on the street that Walter tells them to return and stay. And so begins an ostensibly short-term, ad hoc family, with the gregarious Tarek acting as bridge between the taciturn Walter and the always wary Zainab.

--Anderson, John. "The Visitor." Variety, October 3, 2007.
Starring Richard Jenkins, Hiam Abbass, Haaz Sleiman and Danai Gurira. View a trailer on IMDB.

Friday, October 31, 2008

New Interlibrary Loan System

On Tuesday, November 4, we'll be debuting our new InterLibrary Loan system. This system, called ILLiad, will enable you to track your requests in the same way that you can go online to track a package.

The first time you make a request, you'll have to set up an account. You can use any username and password that you like - make it match your Loyola or Notre Dame login, or pick a different combination. You'll also be asked to fill in your contact information, and where you usually like to have the items you request delivered. Once you've provided that information, you won't have to do it again! After you've put in a request, you can log in at any time to check its status.

This new system will also connect with WorldCat and the library databases. When you find an item that LNDL doesn't own, you'll be able to make a request -- without copying & pasting (or retyping) the citation information!

As you get used to the new system, please don't hesitate to contact the Research & Instruction Desk for assistance. You can call us at (410) 617-6802; additional contact information (and hours the Information Desk is open) can be found on the LNDL website.

This new system won't change the way you request a book you find in the library catalog (for example, something owned by Hood or Mount St. Mary's). For those requests, once you're viewing the detailed information about the book, just click the "Request" link on the top of the page.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

FREE Film Screening: Brick

Join us for a free screening of "Brick," winner of a Special Jury Prize for Originality of Vision at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. Films are open to students, faculty and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

Thursday, October 30 at 7pm*
Sunday, November 2 at 6pm
LNDL Auditorium (Lower Level)

*On Thursday, enjoy FREE soda and popcorn, courtesy of Loyola's Student Activities office.
Hardboiled '30s detective fiction invades a SoCal high school with moderately tasty results in "Brick." At its core, writer-director Rian Johnson's first feature is a stunt, putting Dashiell Hammett-like tough-guy vernacular into the mouths of contempo teens. But the story, while derivative, isn't half bad, and the picture gains in finesse and confidence to the point where Johnson more or less pulls off his peril-fraught exercise. Distinctive lingo provides a talking point, and youthful cast creates possibilities for some theatrical payoff.

--McCarthy, Todd. "Brick." Variety, February 7, 2005.
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Lukas Haas. View a trailer on IMDB.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Get started on that term paper!

Even though it's only mid-October, you might want to start thinking about any end-of-semester projects or term papers you have to write. Some professors will force you to start early by asking you to hand in various parts of the paper throughout the semester. But if you have a class where the professor isn't doing that, you might find yourself scrambling for sources in the week before it's due. Taking a few minutes now to get started will help you out in the long run. Even if you only start gathering sources and don't look at them right away, you'll still be a step ahead of the game.



If you're not sure where to start, first check out our Survival Skills Workshops. Otherwise, the best place to start is our subject guides. In the "Find Articles and Other Resources" section on the library homepage, there's a menu labeled "Subject." Pull that down and select the appropriate field for your project. This will take you to the Subject Guide for that discipline, where you'll find information on the best research databases (for articles), reference books, websites and other resources. Depending on exactly what you're researching, you might also want to check some of the other subject guides.

For books, you'll want to search the library catalog. You can do that from the library homepage, in the "Find Books and Media" section. If you find something in our catalog that's at another college, you can have it delivered here by clicking the "request" button at the top of the page.

If you want to expand beyond what's available in our catalog, you can search WorldCat (linked at the bottom of the "Find Books and Media" section of the homepage) and find even more books. If we have a book that's listed in WorldCat, you'll see a link to the library catalog to get the call number. For all the rest, you can put in an Interlibrary Loan request (you can link to the form from the top right of the library homepage) and have the book delivered here.

You can also use Interlibrary Loan for articles -- providing you have the whole citation, and haven't been able to find the article through our "Find E-Journals" search (guess what -- that's also on the library homepage) or in the library catalog. Here's a tutorial on how to check those two places before you submit an Interlibrary Loan request for an article.

Take a look at our How do I? page for quick answers to some basic questions about using LNDL. For more in-depth help, check out our Help Guides. Both of these are linked off of the library homepage as well. And of course, you can always contact the Research Assistance desk for help.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Getting & Staying Organized

Not a morning person? Constantly losing track of due dates and assignments? We've rounded up several different websites and applications that can help you keep yourself organized in class, and in life. We haven't tried all of these, but thought that you might find some of them helpful. Enjoy!
  • Alarm clocks for irregular schedules - You can set one of these alarm clocks to wake you up at a different time every day. Windows users can try College Alarm Clock; Mac users can check out Alarm Clock 2.
  • Compact Academic Calendar - Track long-term projects and more with this spreadsheet.
  • Don't have Excel to check out that calendar? Consider downloading OpenOffice for the PC, or NeoOffice for the Mac. These programs contain all the applications you'd find in Microsoft Word (word processing, spreadsheets, slideshows, etc.) but without the cost.
  • StudyRails - An application to help you manage your study time and assignments. (This one costs $5 a month.) The link will take you to a screenshot tour on Lifehacker, a blog that posts tips and tricks for organizing your life.
  • Online to-do lists - Remember the Milk is a great online to-do list application. The Hack College blog posted about it recently, and gave some tips on how you can use it as a student. Check it out: Be an Organized Student with Remember the Milk.
  • Registering for Classes - Hack College also has a great post on how to figure out which classes to register for.
  • Back to School Power Tools - Lastly, Lifehacker posted a roundup of software that can help with taking notes, keeping track of your schedule, and more.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Digital Media Lab

This semester, LNDL has officially opened the new Digital Media Lab, located on the library's lower level. This space is open to any and all faculty, students and staff of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame.

The lab is home to ten Dell multimedia PCs and five Power Macs, all with built-in DVD and CD burners. We also have flatbed scanners and other peripherals available for use. Both platforms feature Audacity, as well as Adobe Creative Suite 3, including Flash and Dreamweaver. In addition, the Macs have Final Cut Express, GarageBand and iMovie. The PCs feature Quark XPress and AVS Video Converter. (If you're just looking for a place to do some research and use Microsoft Word, there are computers available throughout the library.)

The Digital Media Lab is staffed by members of the library's Digital Services Department, as well as three work-study students. We aren't necessarily experts in every facet of the software available, but someone will be there to help you figure things out. In addition, we are building a collection of manuals and reference books, and are constantly on the lookout for tutorials and websites to add to our list.

The Digital Media Lab's hours differ from the library's hours. You can either make an appointment, or drop by during our open lab periods. (We strongly recommend that you check the schedule before heading over, as lab hours are subject to change due to class sessions or staff availability.) To make an appointment or check the schedule, click Room Reservations on the library website, then pick the tab for the Digital Lab.

For more information, please see the Digital Media Lab webpage. You can also contact Danielle Whren, the lab manager: dwhren@loyola.edu, dwhren@ndm.edu or (410) 617-6872.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Food in the Library

To help us keep your new facility in the best possible shape, please limit the food you bring in to packaged snacks (cookies, chips, candy, granola bars, etc.) and drinks. This type of food is allowed throughout the building, with the exception of the Digital Media Lab, the Instruction Labs and the Archives & Special Collections. In those three spaces, all food and drink is prohibited in order to protect the computers and the archival materials.

Other types of food, such as pizza, sandwiches, salads and the like, may only be eaten during library-sanctioned events.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Open House Program

Full programs with locations will be available at the library on Friday.

Loyola/Notre Dame Library Community Open House
Friday, September 12
11:00 am - 6:00 pm

Ongoing:
  • Archives & Special Collections and the Digital Media Lab will be open all day.
  • Raffle winners will be pulled at noon, 2pm and 4pm. Win some Loyola or Notre Dame swag!
  • An exhibit of photos of LNDL through the years.
Programming:
  • 11:00: A reading from Tolkien by Sue Abromaitis, Loyola Professor of English
  • 11:30: A discussion with artists Kevin Raines of Notre Dame and Mary Beth Akre of Loyola
  • 12:00: Behind-the-scenes tour with Senior Cataloging Assistant Polly Connor
  • 12:30: Demo: Photosharing with Flickr, presented by Public Relations & Instruction Librarian Alison Cody
  • 1:00: Lunchtime Literary Trivia
  • 2:00: “The Future of Libraries,” a talk by Library Director John McGinty
  • 2:30: Behind-the-scenes tour with Public Relations & Instruction Librarian Alison Cody
  • 3:00: A performance by Notre Dame’s Concert Choir
  • 3:30: Demo: Quick & Easy Course Pages, presented by Instruction Librarian John Breitmeyer
  • 4:30: Demo: Library Thing, presented by Instruction Librarian Julie Nanavati
  • 5:15: Behind-the-scenes tour with Head of Research & Instruction Joanne Hélouvry

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Fall Film Series

Do you like movies? We do! And we want to take advantage of our new auditorium this semester by having a film series. We're looking for suggestions for films we might show, and also for students who are interested in helping to whittle down the ideas and get the word out. Anything and everything is fair game, from recent indie films to "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" to your favorite foreign film.

If you have films to suggest, or if you're interested in helping us put this together, please leave a comment or contact librarian Alison Cody:

acody3@loyola.edu
acody@ndm.edu
AIM: akcatlndl

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Library Hacks: Interlibrary Loan and WorldCat

When you're doing research, do you search WorldCat in addition to our catalog? Are you tired of having to copy and paste the citation information from WorldCat into our ILL form when you find something you want?

If you said yes, you'll like what you're about to read!

When you find an item in WorldCat that you'd like, you can now request it right there! In the screenshot below, the two links to make your request are circled. At the top is a button that says "ILL," and further down the record is a link that says "Borrow this item through Interlibrary Loan."


All you have to do is click on one of those and enter your contact info and libary barcode number.

We've enabled this option as one of the first steps of some changes we're making to the way Interlibrary Loan works. Right now these changes are happening behind the scenes, but later this fall you'll see a new interface for all of your interlibrary loan requests. The new system will remember who you are, and allow you to track the progress of your requests (much like you can track a UPS package). We'll keep you posted on this change as the semester moves forward.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Community Open House

Come celebrate our beautifully renovated library!

The construction is completed and we're bigger and better than ever! To celebrate, we're hosting a Community Open House on Friday, September 12. Festivities will start at 11am, and wrap up in the early evening. We're still finalizing the program for the day, but wanted to give you a taste of what's in the works:
  • We're lining up a performance by Notre Dame's Concert Choir.
  • We'll be running a few drop-in library tours.
  • Artists Mary Beth Akre of Loyola and Kevin Raines of Notre Dame will be on hand to discuss the paintings they're creating for us, and to show off their progress so far.
  • The Research & Instruction Department will present a couple of quickie workshops on social networking software, including Library Thing and Flickr.
  • We'll be running a quiz game and raffle, and of course there will be food and drink.
  • Library Director John McGinty will be giving a talk on the future of libraries.
  • And we'll be adding a few more events as well!
As the date draws closer, we'll finalize the program and make sure it gets online. We hope that you'll be able to stop by at some point in the day, and join us as we celebrate our wonderful new spaces.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

The Library Welcomes Julie

The Loyola/Notre Dame Library welcomes Julie Nanavati to their staff! Julie joined the Loyola/Notre Dame Library staff on July 7th, 2008, and will serve as a Research and Instruction Librarian. Julie received her Masters of Library Science from the University of Maryland, College Park in December 2005 and her B.A. in English from St. Mary's College of Maryland. Prior to working at the Loyola/Notre Dame Library, she held the position of Liaison/Outreach Librarian for the Health Sciences and Human Services Library at University of Maryland, Baltimore. She also worked as a Reference and Research Librarian for the Maryland AIDS Administration.

Julie is very excited about her new position, where she will provide reference services and library instruction to the faculty and students from both Loyola and Notre Dame campuses. In addition, she will serve as the new disability coordinator, and is also looking forward to the opportunity to work as the library liaison for the Theatre and Film programs--a great chance to bring her personal interests to the job. Finally, Julie brings her previous work experience to Notre Dame as the school starts its new Pharmacy program.

If you would like to say “Hi,” to Julie or ask her a question regarding the library's services and resources, please email her at jenanavati@loyola.edu or jnanavati@ndm.edu. You can also contact her by phone at 410-617-6831-- or drop by the library and ask for Julie at the Information/Research Assistance Desk!

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Are you a fan?

Are you a fan of the library now that the renovations are all but finished? Were you a fan of the library even in the midst of the construction? Find us on Facebook and let us know!

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Third floor now open!

The third floor of LNDL is now open! This means you are now free to roam all over the building to find the exact right space to sit and read, or spread out and study.

Library staff are still working to shift some bound journals between the second and third floors, so don't be surprised as things continue to move around. Here's a current list of where you can find books and bound journals:
  • Lower Level:Books with call numbers P-Z
  • Main Floor: Books with call numbers N (art books); Reference Books; Recent issues of journals and magazines
  • Second Floor: Books with call numbers A-M; some bound journals (they'll be moved up to the third floor soon enough); Juvenile collection (call numbers A to Z)
  • Third Floor: Bound journals (shelved alphabetically by title)
If you have questions about where to find something, or if you have trouble locating a journal, please ask for help at the information desk or the circulation desk on the main floor.

Take a look at what you'll see if you stop by:

Some empty shelves, waiting to be loaded up.







Library staff can follow the plans created by the Collection Management Services department to figure out where to put each journal. You can see the plans taped to the end of each set of stacks. There are also markers on the shelves with additional instructions.


There might still be a little bit of noise as shelving is assembled and fully-loaded library carts are wheeled around, but there's plenty of seating!

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Painting in Progress

As you enter the library over the next couple of weeks, be sure to check out the works that artist Kevin Raines is creating in the Gallery. Raines, faculty at Notre Dame, is painting two large Maryland landscapes -- right where they'll be installed!

In addition, as the final details of the renovation are finished up, keep an eye out for a different kind of fresh paint in the stairwells.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Archives closed for final move!

The Archives/Special Collections Department of Loyola/Notre Dame Library (including the collections of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame) will be closed to researchers from July 1, 2008 to August 1, 2008. During this time, we will move to our permanent quarters on the third floor of the library; the College of Notre Dame of Maryland Archives will be moved into the new facility as well. We look forward to assisting you when we reopen on the first of August!

After the move, our hours will be the same as usual:

Monday - Friday: 9am - 5pm (preferably by appointment)
Evenings and weekends: by appointment only

Thank you for your patience while we move into our gorgeous new space! For any questions regarding the move or our collections, please contact:

Nancy Perlman
Archivist/Head Special Collections
Loyola/Notre Dame Library
200 Winston Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21212
(410) 617-6868
nperlman@loyola.edu

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Jolly boating weather?: Readings for a sunny weekend

Need a book to take with you to relax in the park this weekend? Look no further. All of these are available at the Loyola/Notre Dame Library, and may also be available at the Enoch Pratt Free Library (don't forget, you can have them delivered to the branch nearest you!) or your local public library system.

Click through to see if it’s currently available at LNDL.

A move in the weather (poems), by Anthony Thwaite
PR6070.H9 M68 2003

Calm weather; a volume of essays, by Gilbert Oliver Thomas
PR6039.H58 C3 1966

Heavy weather, by P. G. Wodehouse
PR6045.O53 H4

Ethel Waters: Stormy weather, by Stephen Bourne
ML420.W24 B68 2007

  • Hear a recording of Ethel Waters performing "I Got Rhythm" on the PBS website for Ken Burns' film Jazz.

Sailing alone around the room: new and selected poems, by Billy Collins
PS 3553 .O47478 S25 2001

Blue is hot, red is cool: choosing the right color for your logo, editor David E. Carter.
NK1548 .B55 2001


Jolly boating weather,
And a hay harvest breeze,
Blade on the feather,
Shade off the trees
Swing, swing together
With your body between your knees.

William Cory, “Eton Boating Song,” from The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase, Saying, and Quotation. Reference PN6080 .O945 1997

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Hot Hot Heat: Readings for an Air-Conditioned Existence

As the Maryland summer starts to heat up, we'll all start to look towards more indoor activities. With that in mind, we’ll continue with the non-required reading (and viewing, and listening) suggestions to consider when you're tired of reality TV reruns and you've seen all the Law & Order episodes ever filmed.

All of these are available at the Loyola/Notre Dame Library, and may also be available at the Enoch Pratt Free Library (don't forget, you can have them delivered to the branch nearest you!) or your local public library system.

Click through to see if it’s currently available at LNDL.

The complete Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings, by Louis Armstrong
Media CD 0991

Some like it hot, directed by Billy Wilder
Starring Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe
Media PN1997 .S646373 2006
  • Take a look at the DVDTown review of this re-release.

Why some like it hot: food, genes, and cultural diversity, by Gary Paul Nabhan
QH431 .N28 2004
  • Check out the editorial reviews from Publisher's Weekly and the Washington Post's Book World on Amazon.com.

Hot shots: an oral history of the Air Force combat pilots of the Korean War
, edited by Jennie Ethell Chancey and William R. Forstchen
DS920.2.U5 H67 2000
  • Editorial reviews from Booklist and Publisher's Weekly are available on Amazon.com.

Hot potato: how Washington and New York gave birth to Black basketball and changed America’s game forever, by Bob Kuska
GV885.73.W18 K87 2004
You might also want to check out music from Hot Hot Heat, a band from Victoria, British Columbia.

Friday, May 23, 2008

Non-Required Reading: Mornings on Horseback

Facing a long plane ride later this summer, or need something to keep you occupied before summer classes start? Some of us here thought we'd share recommendations for some recent reads and perennial favorites. Today, Associate Director Jack Ray makes a recommendation.

Mornings on Horseback
by David McCullough

David McCullough is a writer who puts the "story" in "history." His works are exhaustively researched and scrupulously documented in endnotes, but are as absorbing and eloquent as good novels. Right now I'm reading "Mornings on Horseback" (1981), the story of Theodore Roosevelt's youth and early career. The entire Roosevelt family and their nineteenth-century New York milieu come to life in this vivid account. Struggling from childhood with debilitating attacks of asthma, young TR was nevertheless inspired by his father to achieve greatness, and after graduating from Harvard he embarked upon a tumultuous career in New York State politics. It's a great read, like all of McCullough's works.

Get it at our library, or from the Enoch Pratt Free Library or your public library at home, wherever that may be.

Friday, May 16, 2008

Non-Required Reading: The Fabric of the Cosmos

Facing a long plane ride later this summer, or need something to keep you occupied before summer classes start? Some of us here thought we'd share recommendations for some recent reads and perennial favorites. Today, Research & Instruction Librarian/Web Support Specialist John Breitmeyer makes a recommendation.

The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality
by Brian Greene

The Fabric of the Cosmos popularizes science -- specifically physics -- in a manner somewhat reminiscent of efforts made by Carl Sagan and other (good) science writers to reach and educate the general public. By a kind of prose miracle, it's entirely math-free, although Greene is frequently obliged to refer to the difficult mathematics underlying various physical theories in a "trust me--the math bears this out" sort of way. However, his presentations are clear and convincing, and he succinctly, and excitingly, conveys a sense of the historical controversies and progress in physics to the layperson.

Greene manages to engagingly and clearly summarize over three hundred years of physics (it begins with Newton), and at the same time convey the vertiginous sense of wonder that comes from discovering how deeply strange and mysterious the universe is.
Get it at our library, or from the Enoch Pratt Free Library or your public library at home, wherever that may be.

Monday, May 12, 2008

Non-Required Reading: Short takes

Facing a long plane ride later this summer, or need something to keep you occupied before summer classes start? Some of us here thought we'd share recommendations for some recent reads and perennial favorites. Today, two librarians share short takes on some books read in the last few months.

Joanne Hélouvry
Head of Research & Instruction Services
With gas prices going up and organic foods abounding, I would recommend Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. Just be careful not to be sucked into the guilt that I felt when eating asparagus in November. Request it from Hood, and have it delivered right to LNDL!

Philip Fryer
Digital Media Librarian
I recently helped Dr. Pat Dwyer perfect slides for a presentation on assessment of education, and that brings to mind Jonathan Kozol's The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America. The book is really a sequel to his earlier work, Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools and is as dismaying as it is well-written and researched. Check out our copy of The Shame of the Nation (LC212.62 K69 2005) or Savage Inequalities (LC4091 .K69 1991).

Of course, you can also check these out from the Enoch Pratt Free Library or your public library at home, wherever that may be.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Non-Required Reading: Empire Falls

Facing a long plane ride later this summer, or need something to keep you occupied before summer classes start? Some of us here thought we'd share recommendations for some recent reads and perennial favorites. Today, Digital Access Librarian Danielle Whren makes a recommendation.
Empire Falls
by Richard Russo

Russo's Pulitizer Prize-winning novel is a look in time at a small, blue-collar town in Maine. Through the eyes of protagonist Miles Roby, the reader sees the people of the town and how they all got where they are now. Russo's excellent character development allows the reader to truly experience the lives of the people living in Empire Falls.
Get it at our library, or from the Enoch Pratt Free Library or your public library at home, wherever that may be.

Friday, April 4, 2008

Recent Event: Celebration of Faculty Scholarship

On Wednesday, March 26, the library held its annual Celebration of Faculty Scholarship. Each year at this event, we honor the publishing efforts of the faculties of Loyola College and College of Notre Dame of Maryland with a reception and an exhibit of the books and journal articles they published.

In addition, this year four faculty spoke about the publishing process: Dr. R. Trent Pomplun, Assistant Professor of Theology, Loyola College; Sr. Eileen Eppig, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, College of Notre Dame; Dr. Elizabeth Schmidt, Professor of History, Loyola College; and Dr. Alison Dray-Novey, Professor of History, College of Notre Dame. They discussed a variety of issues surrounding publishing, including the differences between academic and trade publishing, the travails of soliciting essays for reference works, the process of actually gathering information for a book, and much more. Their contributions to the Celebration were much appreciated, and brought a new level of engagement and excitement to the event. Below are just a few pictures of the event - we hope to have the rest posted to the website in the near future.

Faculty members enjoy the reception.








The display of journal articles.








One of two tables displaying books.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Recent Research Help - Study Abroad Students

Recently, librarians staffing our Research Assistance desk helped a student get started on some architectural research. This came with a neat twist: the student is studying abroad in Copenhagen, and needed information on the architecture of two local buildings - the Rosenborg Castle and the Baroque Palace.

We were able to find the website for the Rosenborg Castle, which has some information on the building’s history and architecture. The Baroque Palace was a bit trickier - it turned out that this building is also known as Marshal’s Court, and it’s currently used as a post office.

As the architecture resources at the library were not quite robust enough to provide more detailed information on the palaces, we suggested that the student take advantage of being in the same city as the buildings and visit them to see what she could learn in person. She e-mailed us excitedly to say that the information we provided was quite useful and she had successfully completed her project.

If you need to do research on architecture, here’s where to start:
  • JSTOR includes articles on architecture. You can also see the pictures that were originally printed with the articles, and images from ARTstor.
  • Bibliography of the History of Art covers architecture. Because it mostly includes citations, there won’t be as many full-text links as you might like. Give ArticleLinker a try, and don’t forget that you can request articles through InterLibrary Loan.
  • You can find more resources on our Arts subject page. Don’t forget to check out the tabs at the top of the page for tips on good websites and reference books.
Remember, no matter where in the world you are, we're still your library and will be happy to assist you! For information on how to contact us via e-mail or chat, see the Research Help page.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Italian Week at the Library

This week, the library is proud to participate in the Eighth Annual Italian Week celebration, sponsored by Loyola's Department of Modern Languages and Literatures. In addition to hosting Thursday evening's lecture by Salvatore J. LaGumina, professor emeritus and director of the Center for Italian American Studies at Nassau Community College in New York, the Loyola/Notre Dame Library is hosting an exhibit throughout the week. Stop by the library and learn more about the medals of honor awarded to Italian Americans during World War II. The exhibit is located in the Gallery, the library's main lobby, and will continue through Thursday, February 28.

A second exhibit inside the library highlights books on Italian history and art, as well as cookbooks and travel books! This exhibit is located on the first floor, to the right of the Research Assistance desk.

Don't miss other great Italian Week events! Learn more about this week's events from the Modern Languages and Literatures Department.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Library Hacks: Books Quick from MIC

This is the first in an occasional series of Library Hacks -- tips that we hope will make your life at LNDL that much easier!

Ever found something you needed in the library catalog, only to find it's not actually at LNDL? As you discovered, we share a catalog with Hood, Columbia Union, Mount Saint Mary's, and Villa Julie. But there's more to it -- you can borrow those books!

Just place a request, and your book will be delivered right to our Customer Services desk. During the academic year, a courier will deliver your books within 24 hours if you place your request between Monday and Thursday. Friday and weekend requests will be filled the following Monday. (The courier makes less frequent runs during summer sessions.)

Placing a request is easy. When you're looking at the page for the book in our catalog, you can simply click the "Request" link way up at the top of the page, in the blue banner. Follow the prompts to submit your request, and once it arrives we'll give you a call.

For the fine print and step-by-step instructions, including a short video of the process, please visit http://www.loyola.edu/library/circ/MICbooks.htm.

Thursday, January 24, 2008

New year, new librarian!

Hello! I'm the newest librarian at the Loyola/Notre Dame Library, and I'd like to take a moment to introduce myself. My name is Alison Cody, and I joined the staff earlier this month as Public Relations/Instruction Librarian. I have an MS in Library and Information Science from Simmons College in Boston, Mass., and a BA in English from Boston University. My background includes working as a writer and copyeditor and as an assistant webmaster. I also have experience teaching workshops on new technologies.

At the library, I'll work with the Research & Instruction Services department to provide reference service and library instruction sessions. In the next couple of weeks, I will start to serve as the liaison librarian for the Communication Department and the Department of Writing at Loyola, and the Communication Arts Department at Notre Dame. I'll also be working with other library staff on some public relations and marketing projects--first up is the annual Faculty Scholarship Celebration later this semester. Stay tuned for more!

If you have any questions or comments about the library or the programs and services we offer, I would love to hear them. You can e-mail me at acody3@loyola.edu or acody@ndm.edu, call me at 617-6835, or drop by the library and ask for me at the Research Assistance desk.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

The library is open!

The library is open! We will have abbreviated hours for the first two weeks of the new year. The schedule will be as follows:



Wed. Jan. 2 - Sat. Jan. 5:   8:00 am - 6:00 pm

Sun. Jan 6:   10:00 am - 10:00 pm

Mon. Jan 7 - Thurs. Jan. 10:   8:00 am - 10:00 pm

Fri. Jan. 11:   8:00 am - 7:00 pm

Sat. Jan. 12:   8:00 am - 6:00 pm

Sun. Jan. 13:   10:00 am -10:00 pm

Mon. Jan. 14:   Begin Spring Semester Hours



Best wishes from all of us here at the library for a happy and productive 2008, and keep your eyes on the library blog for the latest LNDL library news.