Word of the Day for Saturday, December 31, 2011
anamnesis \an-am-NEE-sis\, noun:
1. The recollection or remembrance of the past.
2. Platonism. Recollection of the Ideas, which the soul had known in a previous existence, especially by means of reasoning.
3. The medical history of a patient.
4. Immunology. A prompt immune response to a previously encountered antigen, characterized by more rapid onset and greater effectiveness of antibody and T cell reaction than during the first encounter, as after a booster shot in a previously immunized person.
5. (Often initial capital letter) a prayer in a Eucharistic service, recalling the Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Christ.
When I was writing a novel about a fourteen-year-old girl, I must remember what I was like at fourteen, but this anamnesis is not a looking back, from my present chronological age, at Madeleine, aged fourteen.
-- Madeleine L'Engle, "The Irrational Season"
The narrator of Dostoevsky's Dream of a Ridiculous Man visits in his sleep, in a state of anamnesis perhaps, a humanity living in the Golden Age before the loss of innocence and happiness.
-- Czesław Miłosz, "To Begin Where I Am: Selected Essays"
Anamnesis is derived from the Greek roots ana (meaning “re”) and mimnḗskein (meaning “to call to mind”).
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : What is the French for New Year's Eve? (from The Concise Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary (English-French)) See also: (French-English)
New Year's Eve noun la Saint-Sylvestre.
How to cite this entry: "New Year's Eve" The Concise Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary. Ed. Jean-Benoit Ormal-Grenon and Natalie Pomier. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 31 December 2011
New Year's Eve noun la Saint-Sylvestre.
How to cite this entry: "New Year's Eve" The Concise Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary. Ed. Jean-Benoit Ormal-Grenon and Natalie Pomier. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 31 December 2011
Friday, December 30, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Friday, December 30, 2011
lave \leyv\, verb:
1. To wash; bathe.
2. (Of a river, sea, etc.) to flow along, against, or past; wash.
3. Obsolete. To ladle; pour or dip with a ladle.
4. Archaic. To bathe.
noun:
1. The remainder; the rest.
adjective:
1. (Of ears) large and drooping.
One must have a freshness of mind, a cleanliness of body. One must lave oneself in sparkling springs— -- Vikram Seth, "A Suitable Boy"
And sit on the hearthstone so I may lave your alabaster skin with my own hands. -- Güneli Gün, "On The Road to Baghdad"
Lave may come from an Old English word gelafian meaning “to wash by pouring” or from the Latin word lavare meaning “to wash.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
lave \leyv\, verb:
1. To wash; bathe.
2. (Of a river, sea, etc.) to flow along, against, or past; wash.
3. Obsolete. To ladle; pour or dip with a ladle.
4. Archaic. To bathe.
noun:
1. The remainder; the rest.
adjective:
1. (Of ears) large and drooping.
One must have a freshness of mind, a cleanliness of body. One must lave oneself in sparkling springs— -- Vikram Seth, "A Suitable Boy"
And sit on the hearthstone so I may lave your alabaster skin with my own hands. -- Güneli Gün, "On The Road to Baghdad"
Lave may come from an Old English word gelafian meaning “to wash by pouring” or from the Latin word lavare meaning “to wash.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
January 1-7 2012 Hours
Sunday, January 1 - Closed
Monday, January 2 – Closed
Tuesday, January 3 – 8 a.m.-7 p.m. - Interim Session begins.
Wednesday, January 4 - 8 a.m.-7 p.m.
Thursday, January 5 - 8 a.m.-7 p.m.
Friday, January 6 - 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday, January 7, 9 a.m.- 12 p.m.
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Who wrote The Secret Life of Walter Mitty? (from The Oxford Companion to American Literature)
Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The, short story by James Thurber, published in The New Yorker (1939) and collected in My World—and Welcome to It (1942).
Henpecked Walter Mitty daydreams as he drives his wife downtown, attends to errands she requires, and waits while she has her hair done, envisioning himself as the beloved commander who gets his men through the worst storm in 20 years of navy flying; as the brilliant surgeon who saves the life of a millionaire banker; as the world's greatest pistol shot testifying in a murder case and refusing to be bullied by a nasty district attorney; as the British bombardier preparing to attack a German ammunition dump on a dangerous solo flight; and then, as his wife momentarily leaves him waiting outside a drugstore, he snaps away his cigarette, disdains a blindfold, and faces “the firing squad; erect and motionless, proud and disdainful, Walter Mitty the Undefeated, inscrutable to the last.”
How to cite this entry: "Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The" The Oxford Companion to American Literature. James D. Hart, ed., rev. Phillip W. Leininger. Oxford University Press 1995. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 30 December 2011
Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The, short story by James Thurber, published in The New Yorker (1939) and collected in My World—and Welcome to It (1942).
Henpecked Walter Mitty daydreams as he drives his wife downtown, attends to errands she requires, and waits while she has her hair done, envisioning himself as the beloved commander who gets his men through the worst storm in 20 years of navy flying; as the brilliant surgeon who saves the life of a millionaire banker; as the world's greatest pistol shot testifying in a murder case and refusing to be bullied by a nasty district attorney; as the British bombardier preparing to attack a German ammunition dump on a dangerous solo flight; and then, as his wife momentarily leaves him waiting outside a drugstore, he snaps away his cigarette, disdains a blindfold, and faces “the firing squad; erect and motionless, proud and disdainful, Walter Mitty the Undefeated, inscrutable to the last.”
How to cite this entry: "Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The" The Oxford Companion to American Literature. James D. Hart, ed., rev. Phillip W. Leininger. Oxford University Press 1995. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 30 December 2011
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Where in the body is the scaphoid bone? (from A Dictionary of Nursing)
scaphoid bone (skay-foid) n. a boat-shaped bone of the wrist (see carpus). It articulates with the trapezium and trapezoid bones in front, with the radius behind, and with the capitate and lunate medially. It is commonly injured by falls; for example, a scaphoid fracture is usually caused by a fall onto the outstretched hand.
How to cite this entry: "scaphoid bone n." A Dictionary of Nursing. Oxford University Press, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 29 December 2011
scaphoid bone (skay-foid) n. a boat-shaped bone of the wrist (see carpus). It articulates with the trapezium and trapezoid bones in front, with the radius behind, and with the capitate and lunate medially. It is commonly injured by falls; for example, a scaphoid fracture is usually caused by a fall onto the outstretched hand.
How to cite this entry: "scaphoid bone n." A Dictionary of Nursing. Oxford University Press, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 29 December 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Thursday, December 29, 2011
interpolation \in-tur-puh-LEY-shuhn\, noun:
1. The act or process of introducing something additional or extraneous between other parts.
2. Something interpolated, as a passage introduced into a text.
3. Mathematics. A. The process of determining the value of a function between two points at which it has prescribed values. B. A similar process using more than two points at which the function has prescribed values. C. The process of approximating a given function by using its values at a discrete set of points.
When men interpolate, it is because they believe their interpolation seriously needed. -- Thomas Paine, "The Age of Reason"
"I am inclined to think," he added after a moment, once he had their attention again, "that if some pages were interpolated it was either done around the time of the original edition, or now, in our time. -- Arturo Pérez-Reverte, "The Dumas Club"
Interpolation is derived from the Latin word interpolātus, meaning “to refurbish or touch up.” Dictionary.com Word of the Day http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
interpolation \in-tur-puh-LEY-shuhn\, noun:
1. The act or process of introducing something additional or extraneous between other parts.
2. Something interpolated, as a passage introduced into a text.
3. Mathematics. A. The process of determining the value of a function between two points at which it has prescribed values. B. A similar process using more than two points at which the function has prescribed values. C. The process of approximating a given function by using its values at a discrete set of points.
When men interpolate, it is because they believe their interpolation seriously needed. -- Thomas Paine, "The Age of Reason"
"I am inclined to think," he added after a moment, once he had their attention again, "that if some pages were interpolated it was either done around the time of the original edition, or now, in our time. -- Arturo Pérez-Reverte, "The Dumas Club"
Interpolation is derived from the Latin word interpolātus, meaning “to refurbish or touch up.” Dictionary.com Word of the Day http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Wednesday, December 28, 2011
fusty \FUHS-tee\, adjective:
1. Having a stale smell; moldy; musty.
2. Old-fashioned or out-of-date, as architecture, furnishings, or the like.
3. Stubbornly conservative or old-fashioned; fogyish.
He could even smell the old woman in the buggy beside him, smell the fusty camphor-reeking shawl and even the airless black cotton umbrella in which (he would not discover until they had reached the house) she had concealed a hatchet and a flashlight. -- William Faulkner, "Absalom, Absalom!"
I won't stop accusing you of being fusty if you don't stop acting that way. For God's sake, what is wrong with seeing what a rock concert is like? I'd like to find out. -- Lionel Shriver, "The Female of the Species"
Fusty comes from the Old French word fust, meaning a “wine cask.” As wine casks are stuffy and smelly, the adjective is a logical association.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
fusty \FUHS-tee\, adjective:
1. Having a stale smell; moldy; musty.
2. Old-fashioned or out-of-date, as architecture, furnishings, or the like.
3. Stubbornly conservative or old-fashioned; fogyish.
He could even smell the old woman in the buggy beside him, smell the fusty camphor-reeking shawl and even the airless black cotton umbrella in which (he would not discover until they had reached the house) she had concealed a hatchet and a flashlight. -- William Faulkner, "Absalom, Absalom!"
I won't stop accusing you of being fusty if you don't stop acting that way. For God's sake, what is wrong with seeing what a rock concert is like? I'd like to find out. -- Lionel Shriver, "The Female of the Species"
Fusty comes from the Old French word fust, meaning a “wine cask.” As wine casks are stuffy and smelly, the adjective is a logical association.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Internet Research Strategies
LIB 113 Internet Research Strategies - 3 credits- Internet Research Strategies will teach students to
find, communicate, and critically evaluate online
information.
Students will learn how to create effective research strategies, access information in a variety of formats, and use online databases and the Internet. Students will be taught to evaluate Internet-based information and will become familiar with practical, social, and ethical issues relatiing to information.
Prerequisite: COM 021 or ESL 020 Corequisite: COM 061 or ESL 060 or COM 040 or COM 041 or ESL 041
LIB-113- Internet Research Strategies
Time and space is running out.
Sign up now. LIB-113-3161 has 7 spots left; LIB-113-3860 has 1.
LIB-113-3161 (36375) Internet Research Strategies Main Campus 01/23/2012-05/09/2012 Hybrid With Angel Monday, Wednesday 01:00PM - 01:50PM Penn Hall, Room P126 J. Fabiani 13 / 20 / 0 3.00
LIB-113-3860 (36384) Internet Research Strategies Online Learning 01/23/2012-05/11/2012 Online Angel C. Steffy 1 / 20 / 0 3.00
Students will learn how to create effective research strategies, access information in a variety of formats, and use online databases and the Internet. Students will be taught to evaluate Internet-based information and will become familiar with practical, social, and ethical issues relatiing to information.
Prerequisite: COM 021 or ESL 020 Corequisite: COM 061 or ESL 060 or COM 040 or COM 041 or ESL 041
Sign up now. LIB-113-3161 has 7 spots left; LIB-113-3860 has 1.
LIB-113-3161 (36375) Internet Research Strategies Main Campus 01/23/2012-05/09/2012 Hybrid With Angel Monday, Wednesday 01:00PM - 01:50PM Penn Hall, Room P126 J. Fabiani 13 / 20 / 0 3.00
LIB-113-3860 (36384) Internet Research Strategies Online Learning 01/23/2012-05/11/2012 Online Angel C. Steffy 1 / 20 / 0 3.00
December Hours
Wednesday DEC. 28 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thursday DEC. 29 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Friday Dec. 30 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 31 CLOSED
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Word of the Day,
Word of the Day for Tuesday, December 27, 2011
adventive \ad-VEN-tiv\, adjective:
1. Not native and usually not yet well established, as exotic plants or animals.
noun:
1. A not native and usually not yet well established plant or animal.
I'm sure it's hard to be adventive, temporarily naturalized, that is. -- Gish Jen, World and Town
Carrion beetles usually avoid competition with blowflies by visiting the carcasses at a later, dried stage of decomposition. Next come the omnivores, such as wasps and ants, and finally there are the adventive insects, like spiders. -- David Shobin, The Provider
Adventive, like adventure, is derived from the Latin word adventus meaning “an advance.” The suffix -ive denotes a noun that comes from an adjective, like detective or active.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Which building in New Zealand is nicknamed Darth Vader's pencil box? (from Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable)
Darth Vader's pencil box. A facetious nickname applied to the Bank of New Zealand Head Office building in Wellington, New Zealand. It dates from the early 1980s, when George Lucas's initial STAR WARS films were at the height of their success, and the building's shape and sinister black non-reflective cladding called to mind their chief villain.
How to cite this entry: "Darth Vader's pencil box" Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable. Edited by John Ayto and Ian Crofton. Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. 27 December 2011
Monday, December 26, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Monday, December 26, 2011
solatium \soh-LEY-shee-uhm\, noun:
1. Something given in compensation for inconvenience, loss or injury.
2. Law. Damages awarded to a plaintiff as compensation for personal suffering or grief arising from an injury.
Perhaps something could be done. And the following week it was. Arthur found himself awarded a solatium of £7, which had accumulated in some overlooked fund, and which the authorities graciously felt could be applied to his purpose. -- Julian Barnes, "Arthur & George"
It is essential to emphasize that I was in no way “fired” that afternoon; rather, for the record, I merely committed my signature to a number of documents resigning tenure, accepting a none too liberal severance solatium, agreeing to vacate my offices within the week. -- Tim O'Brien, "Tomcat in Love"
Solatium is a variation on the Medieval Latin word sōlācium, which shares the root with the word solace.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
solatium \soh-LEY-shee-uhm\, noun:
1. Something given in compensation for inconvenience, loss or injury.
2. Law. Damages awarded to a plaintiff as compensation for personal suffering or grief arising from an injury.
Perhaps something could be done. And the following week it was. Arthur found himself awarded a solatium of £7, which had accumulated in some overlooked fund, and which the authorities graciously felt could be applied to his purpose. -- Julian Barnes, "Arthur & George"
It is essential to emphasize that I was in no way “fired” that afternoon; rather, for the record, I merely committed my signature to a number of documents resigning tenure, accepting a none too liberal severance solatium, agreeing to vacate my offices within the week. -- Tim O'Brien, "Tomcat in Love"
Solatium is a variation on the Medieval Latin word sōlācium, which shares the root with the word solace.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
LIB-113- Internet Research Strategies
Time and space is running out. Sign up now.
LIB-113-3161 has 7 spots left; LIB-113-3860 has 1.
LIB-113-3161 (36375) Internet Research Strategies
Main Campus 01/23/2012-05/09/2012
Hybrid With Angel Monday, Wednesday 01:00PM - 01:50PM
Penn Hall, Room P126 J. Fabiani 13 / 20 / 0 3.00
LIB-113-3860 (36384) Internet Research Strategies
Online Learning 01/23/2012-05/11/2012 Online Angel
C. Steffy 1 / 20 / 0 3.00
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Which island used to be called Van Diemen's land? (from The Oxford Companion to Australian History)
Van Diemen's land, also known as Vandemonia, the island south of mainland Australia, was named in 1642 by Abel Tasman after Antonio van Diemen, the governor-general of the Dutch East Indies. Following British colonisation, Van Diemen's Land was settled in 1803 and became a separate colony in 1825. In 1851 its Legislative Council was changed into a partially elected body with power to draw up a constitution for self-government; this took place in 1856.
The colony's name was changed to Tasmania in 1853. This move was strongly supported by Rev. John West, a leader of the anti-transportation movement, who used the word Tasmania in the title of his 1852 history in the expectation that it would dispel the notoriety associated with convictism and penal servitude. Helen Doyle
How to cite this entry: Helen Doyle "Van Diemen's land" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 26 December 2011
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Sunday, December 25, 2011
hiemal \HAHY-uh-muhl\, adjective:
Of or pertaining to winter; wintry.
Since snow and frost lasted from October well into April, no wonder the mean of my school memories is definitely hiemal. -- Vladimir Nabokov, Speak, Memory
We took hours to make camp and hours to break camp, and in between tottered like children across the immensity of that bleak and hiemal playground. -- Beryl Bainbridge, The Birthday Boys
Hiemal is derived from the Sanskrit word hima meaning “cold, frost, snow.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
hiemal \HAHY-uh-muhl\, adjective:
Of or pertaining to winter; wintry.
Since snow and frost lasted from October well into April, no wonder the mean of my school memories is definitely hiemal. -- Vladimir Nabokov, Speak, Memory
We took hours to make camp and hours to break camp, and in between tottered like children across the immensity of that bleak and hiemal playground. -- Beryl Bainbridge, The Birthday Boys
Hiemal is derived from the Sanskrit word hima meaning “cold, frost, snow.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Saturday, December 24, 2011
canticle \KAN-ti-kuhl\, noun:
1. A song, poem, or hymn especially of praise.
2. One of the nonmetrical hymns or chants, chiefly from the Bible, used in church services.
And, yes, finally, I understood the love in this canticle not just as love between man and woman as they unite, but between the Creator and His people, our Israel. -- Donna Jo Napoli, "Song of the Magdalene"
Of course, anyone who writes canticles must know the life of the saint to perfection, to the least trivial detail. -- Anton Chekhov, "The Bishop and Other Stories"
Canticle comes from the Latin word canticum meaning “song.” (That is also the root of “canto.”) The suffix -ule implies a diminutive version, like the word capsule.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
canticle \KAN-ti-kuhl\, noun:
1. A song, poem, or hymn especially of praise.
2. One of the nonmetrical hymns or chants, chiefly from the Bible, used in church services.
And, yes, finally, I understood the love in this canticle not just as love between man and woman as they unite, but between the Creator and His people, our Israel. -- Donna Jo Napoli, "Song of the Magdalene"
Of course, anyone who writes canticles must know the life of the saint to perfection, to the least trivial detail. -- Anton Chekhov, "The Bishop and Other Stories"
Canticle comes from the Latin word canticum meaning “song.” (That is also the root of “canto.”) The suffix -ule implies a diminutive version, like the word capsule.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Winter Break Hours
The Yocum Library of RACC
Winter Break Hours December 2011
Saturday DEC. 24 CLOSED
Sunday DEC. 25 CLOSED
Monday DEC. 26 CLOSED
Tuesday DEC. 27 CLOSED
Wednesday DEC. 28 8 a.m.-5 p.m. - OPEN
Thursday DEC. 29 8 a.m.-5 p.m. - OPEN
Friday DEC. 30 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 31 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 24 CLOSED
Sunday DEC. 25 CLOSED
Monday DEC. 26 CLOSED
Tuesday DEC. 27 CLOSED
Wednesday DEC. 28 8 a.m.-5 p.m. - OPEN
Thursday DEC. 29 8 a.m.-5 p.m. - OPEN
Friday DEC. 30 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 31 CLOSED
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : In psychology what is the Young-Helmholtz theory? (from A Dictionary of Psychology)
Young-Helmholtz theory n. Another name for the trichromatic theory of colour vision. [Named after the English physician, physicist, and Egyptologist Thomas Young (1773–1829) who proposed it in 1802, and the German physiologist, physicist, and mathematician Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand von Helmholtz (1821–94) who subsequently championed it]
Young girl/old woman figure
How to cite this entry: "Young-Helmholtz theory n." A Dictionary of Psychology. Edited by Andrew M. Colman. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 24 December 2011
Young-Helmholtz theory n. Another name for the trichromatic theory of colour vision. [Named after the English physician, physicist, and Egyptologist Thomas Young (1773–1829) who proposed it in 1802, and the German physiologist, physicist, and mathematician Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand von Helmholtz (1821–94) who subsequently championed it]
How to cite this entry: "Young-Helmholtz theory n." A Dictionary of Psychology. Edited by Andrew M. Colman. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 24 December 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
Word of the Day for Friday, December 23, 2011
swaddle \SWOD-l\, verb: 1. To bind an infant with long, narrow strips of cloth to prevent free movement. 2. To wrap (anything) round with bandages. noun:
1. A long, narrow strip of cloth used for swaddling or bandaging.
A child is our natural company; it is a delight to us to make a fright of it, to fondle it, to swaddle it, to dress and undress it, to cuddle it, to sing it lullabies, to cradle it, to get it up, to put it to bed, and to nourish it... -- Honoré de Balzac, Droll Stories
But that was a little later—just now Narlikar and Bose were tending to Ahmed Sinai's toe; midwives had been instructed to wash and swaddle the newborn pair; and now Miss Mary Pereira made her contribution. -- Salman Rushdie, Midnight's Children
Swaddle is related to the Old English word swath meaning “a bandage or wrap.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
swaddle \SWOD-l\, verb: 1. To bind an infant with long, narrow strips of cloth to prevent free movement. 2. To wrap (anything) round with bandages. noun:
1. A long, narrow strip of cloth used for swaddling or bandaging.
A child is our natural company; it is a delight to us to make a fright of it, to fondle it, to swaddle it, to dress and undress it, to cuddle it, to sing it lullabies, to cradle it, to get it up, to put it to bed, and to nourish it... -- Honoré de Balzac, Droll Stories
But that was a little later—just now Narlikar and Bose were tending to Ahmed Sinai's toe; midwives had been instructed to wash and swaddle the newborn pair; and now Miss Mary Pereira made her contribution. -- Salman Rushdie, Midnight's Children
Swaddle is related to the Old English word swath meaning “a bandage or wrap.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
December 23 through December 31 Library Hours
The Yocum Library of RACC
Winter Break Hours December 2011
Friday DEC. 23 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 24 CLOSED
Sunday DEC. 25 CLOSED
Monday DEC. 26 CLOSED
Tuesday DEC. 27 CLOSED
Wednesday DEC. 28 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thursday DEC. 29 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Friday Dec. 30 CLOSED Saturday DEC. 31 CLOSED
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Which US president launched the Christmas bombings?(from The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military)
Linebacker II an eleven-day campaign, also known as the “Christmas bombings,” launched by President Richard M. Nixon in late December 1972. The second series of Linebacker attacks, it was the most intense air assault of the Vietnam War. Tactical aircraft flew more than 1,000 sorties and B-52s, about 740 against targets in the heart of Hanoi and Haiphong.
The North Vietnamese destroyed twenty-seven American aircraft, including eighteen B-52s. By the end of the campaign, Hanoi had used its entire supply of antiaircraft missiles, and B-52s could fly over the North Vietnamese cities with impunity.
How to cite this entry: "Linebacker II" The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. Berkley Books, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 23 December 2011
Linebacker II an eleven-day campaign, also known as the “Christmas bombings,” launched by President Richard M. Nixon in late December 1972. The second series of Linebacker attacks, it was the most intense air assault of the Vietnam War. Tactical aircraft flew more than 1,000 sorties and B-52s, about 740 against targets in the heart of Hanoi and Haiphong.
The North Vietnamese destroyed twenty-seven American aircraft, including eighteen B-52s. By the end of the campaign, Hanoi had used its entire supply of antiaircraft missiles, and B-52s could fly over the North Vietnamese cities with impunity.
How to cite this entry: "Linebacker II" The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. Berkley Books, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 23 December 2011
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Thursday, December 22, 2011
calvous \KAL-vuhs\, adjective:
Lacking all or most of the hair on the head; bald.
The wit's voluminous neckerchief unraveled and slipped to the mold, and the spangled silver wig fell from the telltale calvous head. -- D. M. Cornish, "Lamplighter"
Admittedly most old, bloated, calvous Germans could double for me, and even if he hadn't been doppelganger material, with the beard I had started growing and the two black eyes, you'd need x-rays to spot the difference. -- Tibor Fischer, "The Thought Gang"
Calvous is derived from the Latin word calvus which meant simply “bald.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
calvous \KAL-vuhs\, adjective:
Lacking all or most of the hair on the head; bald.
The wit's voluminous neckerchief unraveled and slipped to the mold, and the spangled silver wig fell from the telltale calvous head. -- D. M. Cornish, "Lamplighter"
Admittedly most old, bloated, calvous Germans could double for me, and even if he hadn't been doppelganger material, with the beard I had started growing and the two black eyes, you'd need x-rays to spot the difference. -- Tibor Fischer, "The Thought Gang"
Calvous is derived from the Latin word calvus which meant simply “bald.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
December 22- 31 Hours
The Yocum Library of RACC Winter Break Hours December 2011
Thursday DEC. CLOSED for Library Staff mtg.
Friday DEC. 23 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 24 CLOSED
Sunday DEC. 25 CLOSED
Monday DEC. 26 CLOSED
Tuesday DEC. 27 CLOSED
Wednesday DEC. 28 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thursday DEC. 29 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Friday Dec. 30 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 31 CLOSED
Thursday DEC. CLOSED for Library Staff mtg.
Friday DEC. 23 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 24 CLOSED
Sunday DEC. 25 CLOSED
Monday DEC. 26 CLOSED
Tuesday DEC. 27 CLOSED
Wednesday DEC. 28 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thursday DEC. 29 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Friday Dec. 30 CLOSED
Saturday DEC. 31 CLOSED
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Which ballet did Pavlova first perform in St Petersburg on this day in 1907? (from The Oxford Dictionary of Dance)
Dying Swan, The (orig. Russ. title Umirayushchy lebed; Fr. title Le Cygne) Solo ballet in one act with choreography by Fokine and music by Saint-Saëns. Premiered at a gala on 22 Dec. 1907 at the Hall of Noblemen, St Petersburg, with Pavlova. This setting of Saint-Saëns's music from Le Carnaval des animaux was created for Pavlova.
Its poignant fluttering movements not only convey the struggles of the dying bird, but also evoke the art of the ballerina, performer of an ephemeral art which ‘dies’ after every show. A film of Pavlova dancing it still survives and it remains ‘her’ ballet (she became known as the Immortal Swan). Other celebrated performances have been by Markova, Ulanova, and Plisetskaya. Les Ballets Trockadero perform a notorious comic, ‘moulting’ version and de Frutos also created his own solo to the music in 1990.
How to cite this entry: "Dying Swan, The" The Oxford Dictionary of Dance. by Debra Craine and Judith Mackrell. Oxford University Press Inc. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 22 December 2011
Dying Swan, The (orig. Russ. title Umirayushchy lebed; Fr. title Le Cygne) Solo ballet in one act with choreography by Fokine and music by Saint-Saëns. Premiered at a gala on 22 Dec. 1907 at the Hall of Noblemen, St Petersburg, with Pavlova. This setting of Saint-Saëns's music from Le Carnaval des animaux was created for Pavlova.
Its poignant fluttering movements not only convey the struggles of the dying bird, but also evoke the art of the ballerina, performer of an ephemeral art which ‘dies’ after every show. A film of Pavlova dancing it still survives and it remains ‘her’ ballet (she became known as the Immortal Swan). Other celebrated performances have been by Markova, Ulanova, and Plisetskaya. Les Ballets Trockadero perform a notorious comic, ‘moulting’ version and de Frutos also created his own solo to the music in 1990.
How to cite this entry: "Dying Swan, The" The Oxford Dictionary of Dance. by Debra Craine and Judith Mackrell. Oxford University Press Inc. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 22 December 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Wednesday, December 21, 2011
brogue \brohg\, noun:
1. Any strong regional accent.
2. An Irish accent in the pronunciation of English.
3. A durable, comfortable, low-heeled shoe, often having decorative perforations and a wing tip.
4. A coarse, usually untanned leather shoe once worn in Ireland and Scotland.
5. Brogan.
6. A fraud; trick; prank.
“Nothing like hair of the dog that bit ya, as long as it's green hair,” he said in that brogue that was getting old. -- Michael Connelly, "The Lincoln Lawyer"
"His brogue grew less heavy, his speech more formal, tailoring it to his audience. -- " James Rollins, "The Doomsday Key"
Brogue originally referred to a type of shoe worn by rural Irish and Scottish highlanders. The word came to be associated with the accent of these people by the early 1700s.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
brogue \brohg\, noun:
1. Any strong regional accent.
2. An Irish accent in the pronunciation of English.
3. A durable, comfortable, low-heeled shoe, often having decorative perforations and a wing tip.
4. A coarse, usually untanned leather shoe once worn in Ireland and Scotland.
5. Brogan.
6. A fraud; trick; prank.
“Nothing like hair of the dog that bit ya, as long as it's green hair,” he said in that brogue that was getting old. -- Michael Connelly, "The Lincoln Lawyer"
"His brogue grew less heavy, his speech more formal, tailoring it to his audience. -- " James Rollins, "The Doomsday Key"
Brogue originally referred to a type of shoe worn by rural Irish and Scottish highlanders. The word came to be associated with the accent of these people by the early 1700s.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Celebrate New Year's Eve early this year at The Museum!
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Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Tuesday, December 20, 2011
lucent \LOO-suhnt\, adjective:
1. Shining.
2. Translucent; clear.
The film of evening light made the red earth lucent, so that its dimensions were deepened, so that a stone, a post, a building had greater depth and more solidity than in the daytime light... --
John Steinbeck, "The Grapes of Wrath"
His lucent top-hat, his dark frock-coat, indeed, every detail, from the pearl pin in the black satin cravat to the lavender spats over the varnished shoes, spoke of the meticulous care in dress for which he was famous. --
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, "The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Vol. 1"
Lucent comes from the Latin word lucentum meaning “to shine.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
lucent \LOO-suhnt\, adjective:
1. Shining.
2. Translucent; clear.
The film of evening light made the red earth lucent, so that its dimensions were deepened, so that a stone, a post, a building had greater depth and more solidity than in the daytime light... --
John Steinbeck, "The Grapes of Wrath"
His lucent top-hat, his dark frock-coat, indeed, every detail, from the pearl pin in the black satin cravat to the lavender spats over the varnished shoes, spoke of the meticulous care in dress for which he was famous. --
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, "The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Vol. 1"
Lucent comes from the Latin word lucentum meaning “to shine.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : What ingredients would you find in war and peace pudding? (from Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable)
War and peace pudding. An austerity substitute for Christmas pudding promoted in Canada in the First World War and by the Ministry of Food in Britain in the Second World War. It was made by mixing flour, breadcrumbs, suet, dried fruit, grated raw carrot and bicarbonate of soda, turning all into a well-greased pudding bowl, and boiling or steaming the result for at least two hours.
The meaning of the name is obvious, with a pun also implied on ‘pease pudding’.
How to cite this entry: "War and peace pudding" Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable. Edited by John Ayto and Ian Crofton. Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. 20 December 2011
War and peace pudding. An austerity substitute for Christmas pudding promoted in Canada in the First World War and by the Ministry of Food in Britain in the Second World War. It was made by mixing flour, breadcrumbs, suet, dried fruit, grated raw carrot and bicarbonate of soda, turning all into a well-greased pudding bowl, and boiling or steaming the result for at least two hours.
The meaning of the name is obvious, with a pun also implied on ‘pease pudding’.
How to cite this entry: "War and peace pudding" Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable. Edited by John Ayto and Ian Crofton. Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. 20 December 2011
Monday, December 19, 2011
Word of the Day for Monday, December 19, 2011
ectype \EK-tahyp\, noun:
A reproduction; copy.
Were it not for the existence of the prototype, the ectype would not exist. And the characters of the ectype are determined entirely by those of the prototype, being again simply their reflections. -- Robert W. Jenson, "The Knowledge of Things Hoped For"
The development of ectype from prototype occurs as a concatenation, so that each dimension arises out of the previous one without wholly seperating itself. -- Martin Wallen, "City of Health, Fields of Disease"
As opposed to prototype, ectype originally meant “wrought in relief” in Greek. Its roots are ec, a variant of “ex,” and týpos, a “figure on a wall.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
ectype \EK-tahyp\, noun:
A reproduction; copy.
Were it not for the existence of the prototype, the ectype would not exist. And the characters of the ectype are determined entirely by those of the prototype, being again simply their reflections. -- Robert W. Jenson, "The Knowledge of Things Hoped For"
The development of ectype from prototype occurs as a concatenation, so that each dimension arises out of the previous one without wholly seperating itself. -- Martin Wallen, "City of Health, Fields of Disease"
As opposed to prototype, ectype originally meant “wrought in relief” in Greek. Its roots are ec, a variant of “ex,” and týpos, a “figure on a wall.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : In which year was the first Christmas card published? (from A Dictionary of Modern Design)
Cole, Henry (1808–82) One of the major forces in British design education in the 19th century, with a particular emphasis on its relevance for industry, Cole was also significantly involved in setting up the Great Exhibition of 1851, and the establishment of the Journal of Design. From the age of 15 he was involved with public records, eventually rising to the post of Assistant Keeper at the Public
Record Office in 1838. Under the pseudonym Felix Summerly he became involved in a number of design‐related activities including the publication of illustrated children's books, the first Christmas card, designed by J. C. Horsley in 1846, the year in which Cole won a Silver Medal from the Royal Society of Arts for his design of a tea service that was later put into production by Minton.
In 1847 he founded Felix Summerly's Art Manufactures, commissioning a number of artists to produce a series of designs in different media. His interest in art manufactures was followed through in his organization of a series of annual exhibitions from 1847 to 1849 through the Society of Arts, which he had joined in 1846. Having worked closely with Prince Albert and other members of the Royal Commission for the Great Exhibition, Cole was also involved with the London International Exhibition of 1862 and the Paris International Exhibitions of 1855 and 1867.
With the artist Richard Redgrave as its editor he also founded the Journal of Design and Manufactures (1849–52), an important campaigning voice for improvements in British design education. In 1852 Cole was made joint secretary with Lyon Playfair of the Department of Practical Art, established in the same year by the Board of Trade to administer the Government Schools of Design. He became secretary in his own right in 1858, a position he held until 1873. He was also responsible for building up a collection of design that was to form the basis of the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum. He was knighted in 1875.
How to cite this entry: "Cole, Henry" A Dictionary of Modern Design. Jonathan Woodham. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 19 December 2011
Cole, Henry (1808–82) One of the major forces in British design education in the 19th century, with a particular emphasis on its relevance for industry, Cole was also significantly involved in setting up the Great Exhibition of 1851, and the establishment of the Journal of Design. From the age of 15 he was involved with public records, eventually rising to the post of Assistant Keeper at the Public
Record Office in 1838. Under the pseudonym Felix Summerly he became involved in a number of design‐related activities including the publication of illustrated children's books, the first Christmas card, designed by J. C. Horsley in 1846, the year in which Cole won a Silver Medal from the Royal Society of Arts for his design of a tea service that was later put into production by Minton.
In 1847 he founded Felix Summerly's Art Manufactures, commissioning a number of artists to produce a series of designs in different media. His interest in art manufactures was followed through in his organization of a series of annual exhibitions from 1847 to 1849 through the Society of Arts, which he had joined in 1846. Having worked closely with Prince Albert and other members of the Royal Commission for the Great Exhibition, Cole was also involved with the London International Exhibition of 1862 and the Paris International Exhibitions of 1855 and 1867.
With the artist Richard Redgrave as its editor he also founded the Journal of Design and Manufactures (1849–52), an important campaigning voice for improvements in British design education. In 1852 Cole was made joint secretary with Lyon Playfair of the Department of Practical Art, established in the same year by the Board of Trade to administer the Government Schools of Design. He became secretary in his own right in 1858, a position he held until 1873. He was also responsible for building up a collection of design that was to form the basis of the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum. He was knighted in 1875.
How to cite this entry: "Cole, Henry" A Dictionary of Modern Design. Jonathan Woodham. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 19 December 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Sunday, December 18, 2011
gangrel \GANG-gruhl\, noun:
1. A lanky, loose-jointed person.
2. A wandering beggar; vagabond; vagrant.
Patrick had a likeness to his father, but was still just a gangrel of a boy with long arms and a slouching posture. -- David Farland, "Worlds of the Golden Queen"
I longed to tell you so when you threw me over at the meeting for that pretentious pedant, that long-backed Leslie, whom I remember as a gangrel gawky with his sleeves half-way up his arms. -- Elizabeth Lynn Linton, "The Rebel of the Family"
Gangrel dates back to Middle English and is related to the word gangling. The suffix -rel has a very precise use: to denote nouns that are seen as trivial or worthless, as in mongrel or wastrel.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
gangrel \GANG-gruhl\, noun:
1. A lanky, loose-jointed person.
2. A wandering beggar; vagabond; vagrant.
Patrick had a likeness to his father, but was still just a gangrel of a boy with long arms and a slouching posture. -- David Farland, "Worlds of the Golden Queen"
I longed to tell you so when you threw me over at the meeting for that pretentious pedant, that long-backed Leslie, whom I remember as a gangrel gawky with his sleeves half-way up his arms. -- Elizabeth Lynn Linton, "The Rebel of the Family"
Gangrel dates back to Middle English and is related to the word gangling. The suffix -rel has a very precise use: to denote nouns that are seen as trivial or worthless, as in mongrel or wastrel.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Where in the world are the Kuril Islands? (from World Encyclopedia)
Kuril Islands (Kurilskiye Ostrova) Chain of 56 islands in SAKHALIN region, Russia; extending 1200km (750mi) from the S Kamchatka Peninsula to NE Hokkaido, Japan, and separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean. The N islands were settled by Russians, the S islands by Japanese.
In 1875, Russia gave the islands to Japan in exchange for full control of SAKHALIN island. After World War 2, the islands were ceded to the Soviet Union. Chief economic activities are sulphur mining and whaling. Area: 15,600sq km (6,023sq mi).
How to cite this entry: "Kuril Islands" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 18 December 2011
Kuril Islands (Kurilskiye Ostrova) Chain of 56 islands in SAKHALIN region, Russia; extending 1200km (750mi) from the S Kamchatka Peninsula to NE Hokkaido, Japan, and separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean. The N islands were settled by Russians, the S islands by Japanese.
In 1875, Russia gave the islands to Japan in exchange for full control of SAKHALIN island. After World War 2, the islands were ceded to the Soviet Union. Chief economic activities are sulphur mining and whaling. Area: 15,600sq km (6,023sq mi).
How to cite this entry: "Kuril Islands" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 18 December 2011
2012 January Session Library Hours
Tuesday, January 3 through Thursday, January 19
Monday- Thursday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Closed:Sundays
Monday, January 2 for Winter Break II
Monday, January 16 for Martin Luther King Holiday
2012
Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Closed:Sundays
Monday, January 2 for Winter Break II
Monday, January 16 for Martin Luther King Holiday
2012
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Saturday, December 17, 2011
procellous \proh-SEL-uhs\, adjective:
Stormy, as the sea.
Amongst other effects he had a surpassing notion for the storm. Kean has seen a mechanical exhibition in Spring Gardens (the remains of Loutherburg's “Eidophusicon”) in which very striking procellous effects has been produced, and which he fancied very available to his purpose. -- George Raymond, "Memoirs of Robert William Elliston: Comedian"
The plan traced on our chart will lead us through oceans procellous and perilous straits, amid regions where the atmosphere is cheerless and the sun's rays are pale, and the spring blossoms no sooner unfold their petals than they droop and languish. -- C.C.C.P. Silva, M.D., "The Western Medical Reporter," Vol. 10
Procellous is derived from the Latin word procella meaning “storm” and the suffix -ous which implies a general sense, like in the word operose.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
procellous \proh-SEL-uhs\, adjective:
Stormy, as the sea.
Amongst other effects he had a surpassing notion for the storm. Kean has seen a mechanical exhibition in Spring Gardens (the remains of Loutherburg's “Eidophusicon”) in which very striking procellous effects has been produced, and which he fancied very available to his purpose. -- George Raymond, "Memoirs of Robert William Elliston: Comedian"
The plan traced on our chart will lead us through oceans procellous and perilous straits, amid regions where the atmosphere is cheerless and the sun's rays are pale, and the spring blossoms no sooner unfold their petals than they droop and languish. -- C.C.C.P. Silva, M.D., "The Western Medical Reporter," Vol. 10
Procellous is derived from the Latin word procella meaning “storm” and the suffix -ous which implies a general sense, like in the word operose.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : What was the purpose of the Darwin rebellion which took place on this day in 1918 in Australia? (from The Oxford Companion to Australian History)
Darwin rebellion took place on 17 December 1918 when three or four hundred men led by the Australian Workers Union secretary, Harold Nelson, marched on Government House to demand that the NT Administrator, Dr John Gilruth, leave the territory and submit to investigation of his administration. Gilruth's unbending attitude to industrial issues had angered the unionists; nor was he helped by his own aloofness, too readily seen as arrogance, or by the parsimonious colonial policies of his federal masters which dashed the hopes generated among Territorians by the Commonwealth's 1911 acquisition of the NT.
Gilruth stood his ground and the rebellion ended in stalemate; but continuing agitation caused the government to recall him in February 1918. Eight months later, the threat of violence forced his three closest colleagues to leave Darwin. In November 1918 the Hughes ministry appointed a Tasmanian judge, Norman Ewing, to investigate the Gilruth regime.
Ewing accused Gilruth of improper conduct and of being temperamentally unfit to administer the NT. On the evidence, the first finding is dubious and the second well-merited. Territory political lore tends to equate the Darwin rebellion with Eureka and the Rum Rebellion. Frank Alcorta, Darwin Rebellion (1984) , gives a partisan view of the times.
Alan Powell
How to cite this entry: Alan Powell "Darwin rebellion" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 17 December 2011
Darwin rebellion took place on 17 December 1918 when three or four hundred men led by the Australian Workers Union secretary, Harold Nelson, marched on Government House to demand that the NT Administrator, Dr John Gilruth, leave the territory and submit to investigation of his administration. Gilruth's unbending attitude to industrial issues had angered the unionists; nor was he helped by his own aloofness, too readily seen as arrogance, or by the parsimonious colonial policies of his federal masters which dashed the hopes generated among Territorians by the Commonwealth's 1911 acquisition of the NT.
Gilruth stood his ground and the rebellion ended in stalemate; but continuing agitation caused the government to recall him in February 1918. Eight months later, the threat of violence forced his three closest colleagues to leave Darwin. In November 1918 the Hughes ministry appointed a Tasmanian judge, Norman Ewing, to investigate the Gilruth regime.
Ewing accused Gilruth of improper conduct and of being temperamentally unfit to administer the NT. On the evidence, the first finding is dubious and the second well-merited. Territory political lore tends to equate the Darwin rebellion with Eureka and the Rum Rebellion. Frank Alcorta, Darwin Rebellion (1984) , gives a partisan view of the times.
Alan Powell
How to cite this entry: Alan Powell "Darwin rebellion" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 17 December 2011
Friday, December 16, 2011
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : What does 'terra nullius' mean? (from The Oxford Companion to Australian History)
Terra nullius has two meanings, according to Henry Reynolds: ‘both a country without a sovereign recognised by European authorities and a territory where nobody owns any land at all, where no tenure of any sort existed’. The distinction between senses is politically significant: to assert Aboriginal land rights is not necessarily to challenge Australian sovereignty.
These distinct meanings of terra nullius structure
Reynolds's revision of Australia's history in The Law of the Land (1987) . Reviewing the policies and practices of British colonisation from 1788 to the 1840s, he did not question British sovereignty, but reinterpreted its significance. Colonial practice did not live up to British law in that Aboriginal people were not attributed property rights but were gradually, and controversially, dispossessed. Correspondence between the British Colonial Office and colonial governors and administrators in the 1830s and 1840s showed London's unsuccessful effort to bring Australian colonial practice into line with British understanding of international law, and with practices elsewhere in the Empire.
MORE...http://www.oxfordreference.com/pub/views/fact-of-the-day.html?date=2011-12-16
How to cite this entry: Tim Rowse "Terra nullius" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 16 December 2011
These distinct meanings of terra nullius structure
Reynolds's revision of Australia's history in The Law of the Land (1987) . Reviewing the policies and practices of British colonisation from 1788 to the 1840s, he did not question British sovereignty, but reinterpreted its significance. Colonial practice did not live up to British law in that Aboriginal people were not attributed property rights but were gradually, and controversially, dispossessed. Correspondence between the British Colonial Office and colonial governors and administrators in the 1830s and 1840s showed London's unsuccessful effort to bring Australian colonial practice into line with British understanding of international law, and with practices elsewhere in the Empire.
MORE...http://www.oxfordreference.com/pub/views/fact-of-the-day.html?date=2011-12-16
How to cite this entry: Tim Rowse "Terra nullius" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 16 December 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Friday, December 16, 2011
abrade \uh-BREYD\, verb:
1. To scrape off.
2. To wear off or down by scraping or rubbing.
The cuff digs into Landsman's wrist, sharp enough to abrade the flesh. -- Michael Chabon, The Yiddish Policemen's Union
He was shorter than Lloyd but heavier in the chest, a wiry-limbed man with bristling dark hair and a quick harsh laugh and a way of crinkling his face so you knew he would say something to abrade your skin like sandpaper. -- Joyce Carol Oates, High Lonesome
Related to abrasion, abrade is from the Latin roots ab meaning “away from” and rādere meaning “to scrape.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
abrade \uh-BREYD\, verb:
1. To scrape off.
2. To wear off or down by scraping or rubbing.
The cuff digs into Landsman's wrist, sharp enough to abrade the flesh. -- Michael Chabon, The Yiddish Policemen's Union
He was shorter than Lloyd but heavier in the chest, a wiry-limbed man with bristling dark hair and a quick harsh laugh and a way of crinkling his face so you knew he would say something to abrade your skin like sandpaper. -- Joyce Carol Oates, High Lonesome
Related to abrasion, abrade is from the Latin roots ab meaning “away from” and rādere meaning “to scrape.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Reserved Group Study Rooms
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Tower Room reserved
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis, Ricardo Rimpel.
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Yocum 103 Reserved
Where: Yocum 103
Description: Study Group with Gina Aldi, Trisha Lasher & Steve Iluliano.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Thursday, December 15, 2011
veriest \VER-ee-ist\, adjective:
1. Utmost; most complete.
2. Superlative of very.
Abagail had held her tongue when Molly said that—Molly and Jim and the others were young and didn't understand anything but the veriest good and the veriest bad.
-- Stephen King, The Stand
Though in the course of his continual voyagings Ahab must often before have noticed a similar sight, yet, to any monomaniac man, the veriest trifles capriciously carry meanings.
-- Herman Melville, Moby-Dick: Or the Whale
Veriest is obviously related to the word very, which derives from the Old French word verai meaning “true, real or genuine.” The suffix -est makes a word a superlative, like fastest.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
veriest \VER-ee-ist\, adjective:
1. Utmost; most complete.
2. Superlative of very.
Abagail had held her tongue when Molly said that—Molly and Jim and the others were young and didn't understand anything but the veriest good and the veriest bad.
-- Stephen King, The Stand
Though in the course of his continual voyagings Ahab must often before have noticed a similar sight, yet, to any monomaniac man, the veriest trifles capriciously carry meanings.
-- Herman Melville, Moby-Dick: Or the Whale
Veriest is obviously related to the word very, which derives from the Old French word verai meaning “true, real or genuine.” The suffix -est makes a word a superlative, like fastest.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : In which year did the first Calgary Stampede take place? (from The Oxford Companion to Canadian History)
Calgary Stampede. The city of Calgary is recognized globally for its annual stampede, a time when the city dons its western garb, puts on its cowboy face, and treats visitors from around the world to the hospitality of the Old West. Originally a rodeo grafted onto an agricultural exhibition, the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede features one of the world's top rodeos , and has given Calgary the most distinctive urban image in Canada.
Calgary Stampede. The city of Calgary is recognized globally for its annual stampede, a time when the city dons its western garb, puts on its cowboy face, and treats visitors from around the world to the hospitality of the Old West. Originally a rodeo grafted onto an agricultural exhibition, the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede features one of the world's top rodeos , and has given Calgary the most distinctive urban image in Canada.
Ironically, when in 1912 the first stampede was promoted by American entrepreneur Guy Weadick , and backed financially by four Alberta ranchers, it was meant to be no more than a farewell tribute to the passing of the ranching era. Resurrected in 1923 with the popular chuck wagon race, the stampede has become a cultural phenomenon and a powerful visible presence in the city. In 2000 , over 1.2 million visitors spent $120 million enjoying the ‘greatest outdoor show on earth’.
Max Foran
How to cite this entry:
Max Foran "Calgary Stampede" The Oxford Companion to Canadian History. Ed. Gerald Hallowell. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 15 December 2011
Max Foran
How to cite this entry:
Max Foran "Calgary Stampede" The Oxford Companion to Canadian History. Ed. Gerald Hallowell. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 15 December 2011
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Wednesday, December 14, 2011
cleave \kleev\, verb:
1. To adhere closely; stick; cling.
2. To remain faithful.
3. To split or divide by or as if by a cutting blow, especially along a natural line of division, as the grain of wood.
4. To make by or as if by cutting.
5. To penetrate or pass through (air, water, etc.).
6. To cut off; sever.
7. To part or split, especially along a natural line of division.
8. To penetrate or advance by or as if by cutting.
It bothers him as much as it bothers you, but he is a man of faith and the Bible says that a man should leave his mother and father and cleave unto his wife.
-- H.O. Fischer, For This Land
I will confide in thee. But if you betray my confidence, a father's curse shall cleave to you.
-- Sir Walter Scott, Peveril of the Peak
Cleave is actually related to two separate but similar Old English words. Cleofan meant “to split,” while clifian meant “to adhere.” Today the same word carries both meanings.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
cleave \kleev\, verb:
1. To adhere closely; stick; cling.
2. To remain faithful.
3. To split or divide by or as if by a cutting blow, especially along a natural line of division, as the grain of wood.
4. To make by or as if by cutting.
5. To penetrate or pass through (air, water, etc.).
6. To cut off; sever.
7. To part or split, especially along a natural line of division.
8. To penetrate or advance by or as if by cutting.
It bothers him as much as it bothers you, but he is a man of faith and the Bible says that a man should leave his mother and father and cleave unto his wife.
-- H.O. Fischer, For This Land
I will confide in thee. But if you betray my confidence, a father's curse shall cleave to you.
-- Sir Walter Scott, Peveril of the Peak
Cleave is actually related to two separate but similar Old English words. Cleofan meant “to split,” while clifian meant “to adhere.” Today the same word carries both meanings.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
New Hours January 3 through January 19
2012 January Session – Tuesday, January 3 through Thursday, January 19
Monday- Thursday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Closed:Sundays
Monday, January 2 for Winter Break II
Monday, January 16 for Martin Luther King Holiday
2012
Monday- Thursday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Closed:Sundays
Monday, January 2 for Winter Break II
Monday, January 16 for Martin Luther King Holiday
2012
Reserved Group Study Rooms
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Tower Room reserved
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis,
Ricardo Rimpel.
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis,
Ricardo Rimpel.
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : What are congeners and why could they make you feel ill? (from The Oxford Companion to the Body)
"hangover" Suffering from a hangover — the after-effects of too much alcohol — is such a common experience that there has been little research on it. But most people know what it feels like! Kingsley Amis provides an evocative description of this undesirable state in his well-known novel Lucky Jim:
He lay sprawled, too wicked to move, spewed up like a broken spider-crab on the tarry shingle of the morning. The light did him harm, but not as much as looking at things did; he resolved, having done it once, never to move his eyeballs again. A dusty thudding in his head made the scene before him beat like a pulse. His mouth had been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum. During the night too, he'd somehow been on a cross-country run and then been expertly beaten up by secret police. He felt bad.
The long list of symptoms, documented in numerous medical and literary sources and abundant in personal accounts, can be grouped into eight categories: constitutional ( fatigue, weakness, and thirst); pain ( headache and muscle aches); gastrointestinal ( nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain); sleep and biological rhythms (less sleep, and more disturbed sleep); sensory ( vertigo, and sensitivity to light and sound); cognitive (decreased attention and concentration); mood (depression, anxiety, and irritability); sympathetic hyperactivity ( tremor, sweating, and increased pulse rate and systolic blood pressure).
Some hangover symptoms are due to the direct effects of alcohol on the body — as a diuretic for example, increasing urination, dehydrating the body, and increasing thirst. Other symptoms result from the body's efforts to cope with the removal of alcohol and counteract its depressant effects on the central nervous system. Unpleasant sensations such as tremors, sweating, and rapid heartbeat plague the sufferer. Behaviours associated with the previous evening's drinking, such as eating too little, having less sleep than usual, or overdoing it on the dance floor, may also account for some of the aches and pains.
The experience of a hangover is not the same for everyone. If your hangovers seem worse than other people's, it may be because your personality or how you feel about your life is contributing to the symptoms. Researchers have suggested that personality traits, such as anger, defensiveness, and neuroticism, feelings of guilt about drinking, and experiencing negative life events (such as divorce, death, loss of employment, or other stressful events) can increase the experienced severity of hangovers. Other factors are involved too.
"hangover" Suffering from a hangover — the after-effects of too much alcohol — is such a common experience that there has been little research on it. But most people know what it feels like! Kingsley Amis provides an evocative description of this undesirable state in his well-known novel Lucky Jim:
He lay sprawled, too wicked to move, spewed up like a broken spider-crab on the tarry shingle of the morning. The light did him harm, but not as much as looking at things did; he resolved, having done it once, never to move his eyeballs again. A dusty thudding in his head made the scene before him beat like a pulse. His mouth had been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum. During the night too, he'd somehow been on a cross-country run and then been expertly beaten up by secret police. He felt bad.
The long list of symptoms, documented in numerous medical and literary sources and abundant in personal accounts, can be grouped into eight categories: constitutional ( fatigue, weakness, and thirst); pain ( headache and muscle aches); gastrointestinal ( nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain); sleep and biological rhythms (less sleep, and more disturbed sleep); sensory ( vertigo, and sensitivity to light and sound); cognitive (decreased attention and concentration); mood (depression, anxiety, and irritability); sympathetic hyperactivity ( tremor, sweating, and increased pulse rate and systolic blood pressure).
Some hangover symptoms are due to the direct effects of alcohol on the body — as a diuretic for example, increasing urination, dehydrating the body, and increasing thirst. Other symptoms result from the body's efforts to cope with the removal of alcohol and counteract its depressant effects on the central nervous system. Unpleasant sensations such as tremors, sweating, and rapid heartbeat plague the sufferer. Behaviours associated with the previous evening's drinking, such as eating too little, having less sleep than usual, or overdoing it on the dance floor, may also account for some of the aches and pains.
The experience of a hangover is not the same for everyone. If your hangovers seem worse than other people's, it may be because your personality or how you feel about your life is contributing to the symptoms. Researchers have suggested that personality traits, such as anger, defensiveness, and neuroticism, feelings of guilt about drinking, and experiencing negative life events (such as divorce, death, loss of employment, or other stressful events) can increase the experienced severity of hangovers. Other factors are involved too.
We probably all know people who say they can drink certain kinds of alcohol without ill effect whereas other kinds result in misery the morning after. Red wine, for instance, is more likely to result in a severe hangover than white wine; bourbon and port are more likely to than gin or vodka. The ‘culprits’ responsible for these differences are known as ‘congeners’ — the toxins present in the organic chemicals used to colour and flavour alcoholic beverages (examples are methyl alcohol, aldehydes, and tannins).
Research studies indicate that people vary in their tolerance of alcohol and of the congeners in different drinks, so that bodily reactions to ‘detoxifying’ — getting rid of poisonous substances — will reflect individual differences in the ways in which alcohol is metabolized and the body clears itself of toxins. Seasoned heavy drinkers may cope more easily with this process, possibly because their metabolism adjusts more quickly or because they have become less sensitive to the effects than the occasional or less heavy drinker.
So what can you do to enjoy the pleasures of alcohol and avoid the pain? There are steps you can take to alleviate the discomfort. Drinking plenty of water before going to bed helps counteract dehydration and dilutes the congeners; replacing lost fluids by drinking water, fruit juices, or tea the morning after might also reduce the intensity of a hangover.
So what can you do to enjoy the pleasures of alcohol and avoid the pain? There are steps you can take to alleviate the discomfort. Drinking plenty of water before going to bed helps counteract dehydration and dilutes the congeners; replacing lost fluids by drinking water, fruit juices, or tea the morning after might also reduce the intensity of a hangover.
Although a strong cup of coffee will certainly not get rid of the alcohol in your body, caffeine is a stimulant and might perk you up. If you can face it, bland foods such as toast or crackers may relieve feelings of nausea. Medication can provide symptomatic relief, but needs to be used with caution, since some kinds of medication are likely to exacerbate symptoms or add to the toxicity in the body, and other kinds appear to be ineffective in reducing headaches and other hangover symptoms.
Down the ages, there have been numerous ‘folk’ cures and remedies for hangovers, one of the best known being ‘the hair of the dog that bit you’ — another drink on waking. It is the likely base of the ‘tissue restorer’ favoured by P. G. Woodhouse's Bertie Wooster and prepared by his manservant Jeeves:
He returned with the tissue restorer. I loosed it down the hatch, and after undergoing the passing discomfort, unavoidable when you drink Jeeve's patent morning revivers, of having the top of the skull fly up to the ceiling and the eyes shoot out of their sockets and rebound from the opposite wall like raquet balls, felt better.
The remedy works — temporarily! But the body still has to clear itself of the after-effects of the drinking bout, and morning drinks, if taken too often, can signal problem drinking. Time, sleep, and rest are the best ‘cure’ for a hangover.
B. Thom
Bibliography
Rae, S. (ed.) (1991). The Faber book of drink, drinkers and drinking. Faber and Faber, London.
Swift, R. and Davidson, D. (1998). Alcohol hangover mechanisms and mediators. Alcohol World Health and Research, 22(1), pp.54–60.
How to cite this entry:
B. Thom "hangover" The Oxford Companion to the Body. Ed. Colin Blakemore and Sheila Jennett. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 14 December 2011
Down the ages, there have been numerous ‘folk’ cures and remedies for hangovers, one of the best known being ‘the hair of the dog that bit you’ — another drink on waking. It is the likely base of the ‘tissue restorer’ favoured by P. G. Woodhouse's Bertie Wooster and prepared by his manservant Jeeves:
He returned with the tissue restorer. I loosed it down the hatch, and after undergoing the passing discomfort, unavoidable when you drink Jeeve's patent morning revivers, of having the top of the skull fly up to the ceiling and the eyes shoot out of their sockets and rebound from the opposite wall like raquet balls, felt better.
The remedy works — temporarily! But the body still has to clear itself of the after-effects of the drinking bout, and morning drinks, if taken too often, can signal problem drinking. Time, sleep, and rest are the best ‘cure’ for a hangover.
B. Thom
Bibliography
Rae, S. (ed.) (1991). The Faber book of drink, drinkers and drinking. Faber and Faber, London.
Swift, R. and Davidson, D. (1998). Alcohol hangover mechanisms and mediators. Alcohol World Health and Research, 22(1), pp.54–60.
How to cite this entry:
B. Thom "hangover" The Oxford Companion to the Body. Ed. Colin Blakemore and Sheila Jennett. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 14 December 2011
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Tuesday, December 13, 2011
cortege \kawr-TEZH\, noun:
1. A procession, especially a ceremonial one.
2. A line or train of attendants; retinue.
From her parlor window, Susan Kidwell saw the white cortege glide past, and watched until it had rounded the corner and the unpaved street's easily airborne dust had landed again.
-- Truman Capote, In Cold Blood
As the cortege neared the downtown section more cars joined it. The hearse was followed by six Packard touring cars with tops back, driven by liveried chauffeurs and filled with flowers.
-- William Faulkner, Sanctuary
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
cortege \kawr-TEZH\, noun:
1. A procession, especially a ceremonial one.
2. A line or train of attendants; retinue.
From her parlor window, Susan Kidwell saw the white cortege glide past, and watched until it had rounded the corner and the unpaved street's easily airborne dust had landed again.
-- Truman Capote, In Cold Blood
As the cortege neared the downtown section more cars joined it. The hearse was followed by six Packard touring cars with tops back, driven by liveried chauffeurs and filled with flowers.
-- William Faulkner, Sanctuary
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Monday, December 12, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Monday, December 12, 2011
felonious \fuh-LOH-nee-uhs\, adjective:
1. Wicked; base; villainous.
2. Law. Pertaining to, of the nature of, or involving a felony: as in, felonious homicide; felonious intent.
Now, there was much in your manuscript and the accompanying material which was evidence of indiscreet, and possibly criminal, and in some cases undeniably felonious behavior.
-- Richard S. Prather, The Cheim Manuscript
Felonious malfeasance. Jimmy, you never talked like that when you were a cop. The term is—crooked scams.
-- Jeff Sherratt, Six to Five Against
Felonious dates back to the the 1500s. The word felon is from the Old French meaning “villan” and the suffix -ous which applies a quality to a general sense, as in nervous or glorious.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
felonious \fuh-LOH-nee-uhs\, adjective:
1. Wicked; base; villainous.
2. Law. Pertaining to, of the nature of, or involving a felony: as in, felonious homicide; felonious intent.
Now, there was much in your manuscript and the accompanying material which was evidence of indiscreet, and possibly criminal, and in some cases undeniably felonious behavior.
-- Richard S. Prather, The Cheim Manuscript
Felonious malfeasance. Jimmy, you never talked like that when you were a cop. The term is—crooked scams.
-- Jeff Sherratt, Six to Five Against
Felonious dates back to the the 1500s. The word felon is from the Old French meaning “villan” and the suffix -ous which applies a quality to a general sense, as in nervous or glorious.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : In psychology what is the Fraser spiral? (from A Dictionary of Psychology)Fraser spiral n. A twisted-cord illusion in which a series of concentric circles composed of cord made by twisting dark and light strands together, or of thin strips of diagonal stripes resembling such a twisted cord, appear as a spiral when presented against a chequered background composed of radiating curved bands (see illustration). The term is a misnomer, given that it is not actually a spiral. [Named after the Scottish physician and psychologist James Fraser (1863–1936) who published it together with other twisted-cord illusions in the British Journal of Psychology in 1908]
Fraser spiral. What appears to be a spiral is in fact a series of concentric circles, as can be confirmed by tracing all the way round any of them.
How to cite this entry:
"Fraser spiral n." A Dictionary of Psychology. Edited by Andrew M. Colman. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 12 December 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Sunday, December 11, 2011
à la mode \ah luh MOHD\, adjective:
1. In or according to the fashion.
2. Cookery. A.(Of pie or other dessert) Served with a portion of ice cream, often as a topping: apple pie à la mode. B.(Of beef) Larded and braised or stewed with vegetables, herbs, etc., and served with a rich brown gravy.
I do not yet know what is the fashion in England, but naturally if you assure me it is not à la mode, I won't have a lover. Can I have a house in town?
-- Georgette Heyer, The Talisman Ring
However that may be, Wilhelm was undeniably à la mode; the greatest ladies in England would beseech and entreat of him to write but one line in their albums...
-- Hamilton Murray, Falkenburg: A Tale of the Rhine
À la mode literally means “of the fashion” in French. (The sense of a scoop of ice cream on top of pie arose in 1903 in America.)
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
à la mode \ah luh MOHD\, adjective:
1. In or according to the fashion.
2. Cookery. A.(Of pie or other dessert) Served with a portion of ice cream, often as a topping: apple pie à la mode. B.(Of beef) Larded and braised or stewed with vegetables, herbs, etc., and served with a rich brown gravy.
I do not yet know what is the fashion in England, but naturally if you assure me it is not à la mode, I won't have a lover. Can I have a house in town?
-- Georgette Heyer, The Talisman Ring
However that may be, Wilhelm was undeniably à la mode; the greatest ladies in England would beseech and entreat of him to write but one line in their albums...
-- Hamilton Murray, Falkenburg: A Tale of the Rhine
À la mode literally means “of the fashion” in French. (The sense of a scoop of ice cream on top of pie arose in 1903 in America.)
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : What is a Longworth trap used to collect? (from A Dictionary of Zoology)
Longworth trap A metal (usually aluminium) trap that is used to collect small mammals without injuring them. It consists of a nest-box, in which appropriate nesting material and food are placed, and a tunnel leading into it. As an animal enters it trips a door which falls shut so it cannot escape and must remain in the nest-box.
How to cite this entry:
"Longworth trap" A Dictionary of Zoology. Ed. Michael Allaby. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 11 December 2011
Longworth trap A metal (usually aluminium) trap that is used to collect small mammals without injuring them. It consists of a nest-box, in which appropriate nesting material and food are placed, and a tunnel leading into it. As an animal enters it trips a door which falls shut so it cannot escape and must remain in the nest-box.
How to cite this entry:
"Longworth trap" A Dictionary of Zoology. Ed. Michael Allaby. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 11 December 2011
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Saturday, December 10, 2011
adytum \ad-i-tuhm\, noun:
1. A sacred place that the public is forbidden to enter; an inner shrine.
2. The most sacred or reserved part of any place of worship.
The girls stood in old-fashioned awe of the presence of betrothed lovers, and the schoolroom, by tacit consent, was treated as an adytum into which no third person would venture to penetrate.
-- Bertha Thomas, “Cressida,” London Society, Vol. 33, March 1878
And they, Père Silas and Modeste Maria Beck (that these two wrought in concert I could not doubt) opened up the adytum of his heart...
-- Charlotte Brontë, Villette
Adytum is from the Greek roots a- meaning “not” and -dyton meaning “to enter.”
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
adytum \ad-i-tuhm\, noun:
1. A sacred place that the public is forbidden to enter; an inner shrine.
2. The most sacred or reserved part of any place of worship.
The girls stood in old-fashioned awe of the presence of betrothed lovers, and the schoolroom, by tacit consent, was treated as an adytum into which no third person would venture to penetrate.
-- Bertha Thomas, “Cressida,” London Society, Vol. 33, March 1878
And they, Père Silas and Modeste Maria Beck (that these two wrought in concert I could not doubt) opened up the adytum of his heart...
-- Charlotte Brontë, Villette
Adytum is from the Greek roots a- meaning “not” and -dyton meaning “to enter.”
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Reserved Group Study Rooms
11am - 2pm Yocum 103 reserved
Where: Yocum 103
Description: Study Group with Karen Bowers and other Chemistry students
Where: Yocum 103
Description: Study Group with Karen Bowers and other Chemistry students
Human Rights Day
The United Nations' (UN) Human Rights Day is annually observed December 10 to mark the anniversary of the presentation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.What do people do?
Events focused on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are held worldwide on and around December 10. Many events aim to educate people, especially children and teenagers, on their human rights and the importance of upholding these in their own communities and further afield.
(Human Rights Day is a time for people to reflect about the meaning, importance, and need for human rights. This illustration is based on artwork from ©iStockphoto.com/Amanda Rohde)
Public life
Human Rights Day is a global observance and not a public holiday.
Background
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted between January 1947 and December 1948. It aimed to form a basis for human rights all over the world and represented a significant change of direction from events during World War II and the continuing colonialism that was rife in the world at the time. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is considered as the most translated document in modern history. It is available in more than 360 languages and new translations are still being added.
The UN General Assembly adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France, on the December 10, 1948. All states and interested organizations were invited to mark December 10 as Human Rights Day at a UN meeting on December 4, 1950. It was first observed on December 10 that year and has been observed each year on the same date. Each year Human Rights Day has a theme. Some of these themes have focused on people knowing their human rights or the importance of human rights education.
Symbols
The UN symbol (an azimuthal equidistant projection of the globe centered on the North Pole surrounded by olive branches) is often associated with Human Rights Day. Copies of the whole Universal Declaration of Human Rights are also regarded as symbolic of Human Rights Day and are often distributed on or around December 10.
*http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/un/human-rights-day
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : In the field of ecology what are Buchan spells? (from A Dictionary of Ecology)
"Buchan spells" Several periods of the year, ‘more or less well defined’, when the normal seasonal rise or fall of temperature is halted or reversed for a time (e.g. May 9–14 is a cold period and December 3–14 a warm period). They are named after the Scottish meteorologist Alexander Buchan (1829–1907), whose analysis of temperature records for Scottish stations in the middle of the nineteenth century revealed them. Six cold and three warm periods of this type were identified by Buchan in 1869 from his examination of records covering several years. See also singularity.
How to cite this entry:
"Buchan spells" A Dictionary of Ecology. by Michael Allaby. Oxford University Press Inc. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 10 December 2011
"Buchan spells" Several periods of the year, ‘more or less well defined’, when the normal seasonal rise or fall of temperature is halted or reversed for a time (e.g. May 9–14 is a cold period and December 3–14 a warm period). They are named after the Scottish meteorologist Alexander Buchan (1829–1907), whose analysis of temperature records for Scottish stations in the middle of the nineteenth century revealed them. Six cold and three warm periods of this type were identified by Buchan in 1869 from his examination of records covering several years. See also singularity.
How to cite this entry:
"Buchan spells" A Dictionary of Ecology. by Michael Allaby. Oxford University Press Inc. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 10 December 2011
Friday, December 9, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Friday, December 9, 2011
bough \bou\, noun:
A branch of a tree, especially one of the larger or main branches.
In the background, behind the pool and beneath the dramatic sidereal display, there is a little tree with a bird perched in its uppermost bough, exactly as there is on the Star card.
-- Tom Robbins, Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas
He ran up the creeper as easily as though it had been a ladder, walked upright along the broad bough, and brought the pigeon to the ground. He put it limp and warm in Elizabeth's hand.
-- George Orwell, The Orwell Reader: Fiction, Essays, and Reportage
Bough can be traced back to the Sanskrit word bāhu, meaning “shoulder.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
bough \bou\, noun:
A branch of a tree, especially one of the larger or main branches.
In the background, behind the pool and beneath the dramatic sidereal display, there is a little tree with a bird perched in its uppermost bough, exactly as there is on the Star card.
-- Tom Robbins, Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas
He ran up the creeper as easily as though it had been a ladder, walked upright along the broad bough, and brought the pigeon to the ground. He put it limp and warm in Elizabeth's hand.
-- George Orwell, The Orwell Reader: Fiction, Essays, and Reportage
Bough can be traced back to the Sanskrit word bāhu, meaning “shoulder.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Reserved Group Study Rooms
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Tower Room reserved
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis, Ricardo
Rimpel.
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Yocum 103 Reserved
Where: Yocum 103
Description: Study Group with Gina Aldi, Trisha Lasher & Steve Iluliano.
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis, Ricardo
Rimpel.
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Yocum 103 Reserved
Where: Yocum 103
Description: Study Group with Gina Aldi, Trisha Lasher & Steve Iluliano.
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : In Australian history who was Nellie Melba? (from The Oxford Companion to Australian History)
Melba, Nellie (1861–1931) first Australian prima donna and, with the gramophone, the first Australian woman to achieve world fame, contributed uniquely to Australian pride, musicality, language, and confusion as to Australian identity. She also bequeathed and provoked a pot-pourri of small lies and sensational legends about herself, which, despite John Hetherington's popular Melba (1967), were not plumbed historiographically until Thérèse Radic's biography and
Jim Davidson's ADB entry, both in 1986.
She was born Helen Porter Mitchell in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond, the eldest daughter of David and Isabella Ann Mitchell, migrants from Forfarshire, Scotland. Father and daughter were both ruthless and painstaking exemplars of the colonial Calvinist dynamic. She enjoyed the privileged childhood conferred by her father's rising wealth as a contractor who built Scots Church (he was a lifelong choir member), Charles Pearson's Presbyterian Ladies College (where Nellie became a day student), Menzies Hotel, and the 1880 Royal Exhibition Building, as well as Doonside, where she grew up.
Melba, Nellie (1861–1931) first Australian prima donna and, with the gramophone, the first Australian woman to achieve world fame, contributed uniquely to Australian pride, musicality, language, and confusion as to Australian identity. She also bequeathed and provoked a pot-pourri of small lies and sensational legends about herself, which, despite John Hetherington's popular Melba (1967), were not plumbed historiographically until Thérèse Radic's biography and
Jim Davidson's ADB entry, both in 1986.
She was born Helen Porter Mitchell in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond, the eldest daughter of David and Isabella Ann Mitchell, migrants from Forfarshire, Scotland. Father and daughter were both ruthless and painstaking exemplars of the colonial Calvinist dynamic. She enjoyed the privileged childhood conferred by her father's rising wealth as a contractor who built Scots Church (he was a lifelong choir member), Charles Pearson's Presbyterian Ladies College (where Nellie became a day student), Menzies Hotel, and the 1880 Royal Exhibition Building, as well as Doonside, where she grew up.
Her high spirits already showed, but the tale told by her organ teacher and flourished by
Jack Hibberd in his play A Toast to Melba (1976), that she used to swim naked in the Yarra with Richmond boys after school, still looks tall.
In contrast to Ethel (‘Henry Handel’) Richardson, also a product of PLC, who was taken, fresh from school, by her mother to Leipzig music studies and marriage to an English academic, but felt obliged to write her expatriate novels under a man's name, Melba took longer to escape. In 1882 she had a swiftly breaking marriage to Charles Armstrong, genteel Anglo-Irish sugar plantation manager, in humiliatingly uncouth and humid Port Mackay, and a son (George, born in 1883).
Jack Hibberd in his play A Toast to Melba (1976), that she used to swim naked in the Yarra with Richmond boys after school, still looks tall.
In contrast to Ethel (‘Henry Handel’) Richardson, also a product of PLC, who was taken, fresh from school, by her mother to Leipzig music studies and marriage to an English academic, but felt obliged to write her expatriate novels under a man's name, Melba took longer to escape. In 1882 she had a swiftly breaking marriage to Charles Armstrong, genteel Anglo-Irish sugar plantation manager, in humiliatingly uncouth and humid Port Mackay, and a son (George, born in 1883).
She then returned to Melbourne for seven years of singing classes with Pietro Cecchi before her début at a Liedertafel concert in the Melbourne Town Hall on 17 May 1884. She was almost 25 by the time she went to London in March 1886 with her husband, son, and father, who was Victoria's Commissioner to the Indian and Colonial Exhibition.
Unlike Richardson, Melba was able to brandish her sex, and her comeliness clearly helped her voice get a fair hearing in a cut-throat competition where patronage could be decisive. Australian artists of all kinds had to grapple with the severest anti-colonial prejudices in London.
Unlike Richardson, Melba was able to brandish her sex, and her comeliness clearly helped her voice get a fair hearing in a cut-throat competition where patronage could be decisive. Australian artists of all kinds had to grapple with the severest anti-colonial prejudices in London.
Unsinkable, she weathered her dismal first recital on 1 June and the lukewarm listening of Sir Arthur Sullivan and went off to Paris where her audition with Mathilde Marchesi proved the turning-point: ‘If you are serious, and if you study with me for one year, I will make something extraordinary of you’, she declared and rushed upstairs to tell her husband: ‘Salvatore, j'ai enfin une étoile!’
Madame Nellie Melba (‘my operatic nom de guerre’) was introduced to the world at Marchesi's matinée musicale on 31 December 1886, saluting what George Sala had nicknamed Marvellous Melbourne in 1885. She was an apt pupil (‘It was her brain that made Melba's voice’, insisted Marchesi), and refined her birdlike ‘Melba trill’, pianissimo touch, and Australian French. Her exhilarating opera début was at Brussels as Gilda in Rigoletto on 13 October 1887: the start of her phenomenal 38 years on the world stage.
Madame Nellie Melba (‘my operatic nom de guerre’) was introduced to the world at Marchesi's matinée musicale on 31 December 1886, saluting what George Sala had nicknamed Marvellous Melbourne in 1885. She was an apt pupil (‘It was her brain that made Melba's voice’, insisted Marchesi), and refined her birdlike ‘Melba trill’, pianissimo touch, and Australian French. Her exhilarating opera début was at Brussels as Gilda in Rigoletto on 13 October 1887: the start of her phenomenal 38 years on the world stage.
But Covent Garden did not warm to her on 24 May 1888; not until her triumphant Paris Opera début as Ophélie in Thomas's Hamlet on 8 May 1889 did her English patron, Lady de Grey, persuade her to return. After more apathy, the Prince of Wales and Princess Alexandra were in the ardent audience when she sang Gounod's Juliette in French on 15 June and captivated Covent Garden for a whole generation. In 1891 the Tsar invited her to St Petersburg, and in 1893 she graduated grandly as Lucia at La Scala, Milan.
Offstage, she began an affair with the young Duc d'Orléans, Pretender to the French throne, in 1890—abruptly ended in 1892 when her husband cited him in divorce papers, the embarrassing scandal explaining why the Westminster Gazette blithely called her ‘an artist and a woman of the world’. She began two decades at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, in 1893, but switched to Oscar Hammerstein's Manhattan Opera House in 1907.
Offstage, she began an affair with the young Duc d'Orléans, Pretender to the French throne, in 1890—abruptly ended in 1892 when her husband cited him in divorce papers, the embarrassing scandal explaining why the Westminster Gazette blithely called her ‘an artist and a woman of the world’. She began two decades at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, in 1893, but switched to Oscar Hammerstein's Manhattan Opera House in 1907.
She made her first recording in 1904. In 1974 J.B. Steane ranked her in important respects the best of all the recorded singers: ‘Hers was the purest and firmest of voices, the most perfect scale, the most exact trill’, and her records ‘the crowning glory of the age called golden’.
In 1962 Geoffrey Hutton quoted an estimate of £500 000 for her earnings, plus £200 000 for charity. She found an excellent business manager in Australian flautist John Lemone, and controlled her finances cannily—and from 1910 she was free of her husband, who obtained a Texas divorce for desertion. Percy Grainger's father had built Melba's Coombe Cottage at Coldstream, outside Melbourne, following her extraordinary 16 000-kilometre bush concert tour in 1909. Melba lived there during most of the Great War, which she spent singing to troops, and raising money and morale by means that included a film clip with Charlie Chaplin in Hollywood. Her reward was a DBE in 1918 and a return to Covent Garden for the first postwar season.
Chewing wattle-gum at Covent Garden, she boasted that ‘I put Australia on the map’; this reflected real pride in her country, even if there is no reason to doubt Clara Butt's word that, about to tour Australia, Melba advised her: ‘Sing 'em muck; it's all they can understand.’ She was also proud of being very modern; on each return visit she gave classes on the Marchesi teaching method, and she published The Melba Method (1926).
In 1962 Geoffrey Hutton quoted an estimate of £500 000 for her earnings, plus £200 000 for charity. She found an excellent business manager in Australian flautist John Lemone, and controlled her finances cannily—and from 1910 she was free of her husband, who obtained a Texas divorce for desertion. Percy Grainger's father had built Melba's Coombe Cottage at Coldstream, outside Melbourne, following her extraordinary 16 000-kilometre bush concert tour in 1909. Melba lived there during most of the Great War, which she spent singing to troops, and raising money and morale by means that included a film clip with Charlie Chaplin in Hollywood. Her reward was a DBE in 1918 and a return to Covent Garden for the first postwar season.
Chewing wattle-gum at Covent Garden, she boasted that ‘I put Australia on the map’; this reflected real pride in her country, even if there is no reason to doubt Clara Butt's word that, about to tour Australia, Melba advised her: ‘Sing 'em muck; it's all they can understand.’ She was also proud of being very modern; on each return visit she gave classes on the Marchesi teaching method, and she published The Melba Method (1926).
She also helped both the university and Marshall–Hall orchestra introduce normal pitch instruments, laid the foundation-stone of Melba Hall in 1913, established the Albert Street Conservatorium in 1915, and bequeathed £8000 to it for a singing scholarship ‘in the hope that another Melba may arise’ as well as possibly ‘the purchase or building of an Opera House’. In 1920 she took part in direct radio broadcasts of music (possibly the first international artist to do so). Inevitably, she sang at the 1927 opening of the new Parliament House in Canberra.
Her aggressively Australian jokes could be near the bone as demonstrated by her shipboard bon mot in 1908 (when offered a limp jelly at table): ‘No thanks, there are two things I like stiff, and jelly's one of them.’ Linguistically not hers were pêches Melba and Melba sauce; ‘to do a Melba’ posthumously celebrated the diva's prolonged and repeated international adieus that began in October 1924 with a farewell to grand opera in Melbourne and ended there on 27 September 1927—the year she was promoted to Dame Grand Cross of the British Empire.
Her aggressively Australian jokes could be near the bone as demonstrated by her shipboard bon mot in 1908 (when offered a limp jelly at table): ‘No thanks, there are two things I like stiff, and jelly's one of them.’ Linguistically not hers were pêches Melba and Melba sauce; ‘to do a Melba’ posthumously celebrated the diva's prolonged and repeated international adieus that began in October 1924 with a farewell to grand opera in Melbourne and ended there on 27 September 1927—the year she was promoted to Dame Grand Cross of the British Empire.
She died at St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, following infection from a face-lift in Europe, and she was embalmed and buried (next to her father) in Lilydale Cemetery after a huge funeral at Scots Church and a marathon procession, flatteringly patronised by many thousands of ordinary Australians, partners of this strange love–hate relationship—a fitting finale.
Noel Mclachlan
How to cite this entry:
Noel Mclachlan "Melba, Nellie" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 9 December 2011
Noel Mclachlan
How to cite this entry:
Noel Mclachlan "Melba, Nellie" The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Ed. Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Macintyre. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 9 December 2011
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Thursday, December 8, 2011
copse \kops\, noun:
A thicket of small trees or bushes; a small wood.
The sun was setting behind a thick forest, and in the glow of sunset the birch trees, dotted about in the aspen copse, stood out clearly with their hanging twigs, and their buds swollen almost to bursting.
-- Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
Despite the December afternoon sunlight, the interior of the copse looked dark and impenetrable. The fact that none of the trees were covered in snow appeared to him to be improbable but welcome.
-- John Berger, Once in Europa
Copse is derived from the Old French word copeiz meaning “a cut-over forest” which originates in the Latin word colpaticum meaning “having been cut.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
copse \kops\, noun:
A thicket of small trees or bushes; a small wood.
The sun was setting behind a thick forest, and in the glow of sunset the birch trees, dotted about in the aspen copse, stood out clearly with their hanging twigs, and their buds swollen almost to bursting.
-- Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
Despite the December afternoon sunlight, the interior of the copse looked dark and impenetrable. The fact that none of the trees were covered in snow appeared to him to be improbable but welcome.
-- John Berger, Once in Europa
Copse is derived from the Old French word copeiz meaning “a cut-over forest” which originates in the Latin word colpaticum meaning “having been cut.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Fact of the Day
Fact of the Day : Which drink is made from pineapple juice, coconut milk, and rum? (from An A-Z of Food and Drink)
piña colada A piña colada is a long drink made from pineapple juice, coconut milk, and rum which enjoyed a certain vogue in the mid to late 1970s. In Spanish the term means literally ‘strained pineapple’ (unfortunately, perhaps, for the drink's would-be sophisticated image, colada is related to English colander).
How to cite this entry:
"piña colada" An A-Z of Food and Drink. Ed. John Ayto. Oxford university Press, 2002. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 8 December 2011
piña colada A piña colada is a long drink made from pineapple juice, coconut milk, and rum which enjoyed a certain vogue in the mid to late 1970s. In Spanish the term means literally ‘strained pineapple’ (unfortunately, perhaps, for the drink's would-be sophisticated image, colada is related to English colander).
How to cite this entry:
"piña colada" An A-Z of Food and Drink. Ed. John Ayto. Oxford university Press, 2002. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 8 December 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Reserved Group Study Rooms
12 p.m. - 3 p.m. Tower Room reserved
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis, Ricardo
Rimpel.
Where: Tower Room
Description: Study Group with Samantha Rambo, Kery Yoder, Antoine Lewis, Ricardo
Rimpel.
Children Book Area
The Yocum Library has an area on the second floor that is child friendly. The area has books, a few toys and area rug for the children.As you come into the library go toward the large windows and turn left.
There are computers adjacent to the children's area for the convience of the student parents.
Library Policies
Any patron over 18 years of age may use the library. However, children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult, who is at least 18 years old and responsible for the child at all times.
December 7, 1941 - Japanese Attack Pearl Harbor
The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 - The day after Pearl Harbor was bombed, President Roosevelt appeared before a joint session of Congress and declared, "Yesterday, December 7, 1941--a date which will live in infamy--the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan."
To learn more about "a date which will live in infamy" open the links below.
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
If your computers have speakers and audio turned on = YouTube has a great
selection of "Day of Infamy" clips to go along with FDR's speech
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VqQAf74fsE
Chances of you knowing someone or having a family member who was lucky enough to have been a Pearl Harbor Survivor are slim.
To hear a survivor of that day, here is the story of a 90 year old survivor living about an hour north of New York City.
http://www.lohud.com/article/20111205/NEWS01/112050313/Veteran-s-memories-Pearl-Harbor-captured-video
http://www.lohud.com/article/20111205/NEWS01/112050313/Veteran-s-memories-Pearl-Harbor-captured-video
Thanks to:
Evan Frankl
Bronx Campus Librarian
Boricua College
for the links.
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Wednesday, December 7, 2011
boscage \BOS-kij\, noun:
A mass of trees or shrubs.
In places the park and the site itself were edged right up to its rubble and boscage by the rear of buildings...
-- China Miéville, The City & the City
Plunging along a narrow path thick-set on each side with leafy boscage, Paul caught sight of the two retreating figures a few yards only in front of him.
-- John R. Carling, The Shadow of the Czar
Boscage comes from the Middle French word boscage, from the roots bosk meaning “a small wood or thicket” and -age, a suffix that denotes a general noun, like voyage and courage.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
boscage \BOS-kij\, noun:
A mass of trees or shrubs.
In places the park and the site itself were edged right up to its rubble and boscage by the rear of buildings...
-- China Miéville, The City & the City
Plunging along a narrow path thick-set on each side with leafy boscage, Paul caught sight of the two retreating figures a few yards only in front of him.
-- John R. Carling, The Shadow of the Czar
Boscage comes from the Middle French word boscage, from the roots bosk meaning “a small wood or thicket” and -age, a suffix that denotes a general noun, like voyage and courage.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Scheduled Classes for Computers
2 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Where: Yocum Instruction Area
Description: Amy Lawlor ORI 102 (15) Introduction to The Yocum Library presented by
Ms. Brenna Corbit.
Where: Yocum Instruction Area
Description: Amy Lawlor ORI 102 (15) Introduction to The Yocum Library presented by
Ms. Brenna Corbit.
Reserved Group Study/Meeting Rooms
12 p.m. - 2 p.m. Tower Room Reserved
Where: Tower Room
Description: GSA meeting with Chelsea Lutz, Steven Lewis, Lisa Delong, Gabrielle
Brossman, Dylan James, Emily Loose, Vatyna Glenn, Meghan Gallagher.
Where: Tower Room
Description: GSA meeting with Chelsea Lutz, Steven Lewis, Lisa Delong, Gabrielle
Brossman, Dylan James, Emily Loose, Vatyna Glenn, Meghan Gallagher.
4 p.m. - 5 p.m. River Room Reserved
Where: Student Activities Board
Where: Student Activities Board
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Tuesday, December 6, 2011
weald \weeld\, noun:
1. Wooded or uncultivated country.
2. A region in SE England, in Kent, Surrey, and Essex counties: once a forest area; now an agricultural region.
I am tempted to give one other case, the well-known one of the denudation of the Weald.
-- Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species
And your advertisements must refer to the other, which is Great Willingden or Willingden Abbots, and lies seven miles on the other side of Battle. Quite down in the weald.
-- Jane Austen, Sanditon
Related to the word wild, weald comes from the Old English word weald meaning “forest.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
weald \weeld\, noun:
1. Wooded or uncultivated country.
2. A region in SE England, in Kent, Surrey, and Essex counties: once a forest area; now an agricultural region.
I am tempted to give one other case, the well-known one of the denudation of the Weald.
-- Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species
And your advertisements must refer to the other, which is Great Willingden or Willingden Abbots, and lies seven miles on the other side of Battle. Quite down in the weald.
-- Jane Austen, Sanditon
Related to the word wild, weald comes from the Old English word weald meaning “forest.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Monday, December 5, 2011
Reserved Group Study Rooms
5 p.m. - 6 p.m. Tower Room Reserved
Where: Tower Room
Description: International Club meeting with Jill Melones, Amanda Donmoyer, Dylan
James, Deepthi Mannepuli, and Anushka Liyanage.
Where: Tower Room
Description: International Club meeting with Jill Melones, Amanda Donmoyer, Dylan
James, Deepthi Mannepuli, and Anushka Liyanage.
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Monday, December 5, 2011
frondescence \fron-DES-uhns\, noun:
1. Leafage; foliage.
2. The process or period of putting forth leaves, as a tree, plant, or the like.
What we found were three hundred pristine, mostly level acres with a forty-five-acre pond, completely undeveloped, covered with exquisite wildflowers and frondescence.
-- Paul Newman, In Pursuit of the Common Good
I now become aware of the sound of rumbling water, emanating from somewhere inside the rain forest next to my tropical rest stop. I approach the wet and abundant frondescence of the forest.
-- Richard Wyatt, Fathers of Myth
Frondescence is from the Latin root frondēre meaning “to have leaves.” It is clearly related to frond meaning “leaves.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
frondescence \fron-DES-uhns\, noun:
1. Leafage; foliage.
2. The process or period of putting forth leaves, as a tree, plant, or the like.
What we found were three hundred pristine, mostly level acres with a forty-five-acre pond, completely undeveloped, covered with exquisite wildflowers and frondescence.
-- Paul Newman, In Pursuit of the Common Good
I now become aware of the sound of rumbling water, emanating from somewhere inside the rain forest next to my tropical rest stop. I approach the wet and abundant frondescence of the forest.
-- Richard Wyatt, Fathers of Myth
Frondescence is from the Latin root frondēre meaning “to have leaves.” It is clearly related to frond meaning “leaves.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Write a Short Story
Attention all writers, if you have a story you want to submit and possibly have it posted on the Yocum Library blog, send it to theyocumlibrary@gmail.com Subject: short story for the blog.
Miriam Stone from InterLibrary Loan wrote and submitted her short story,
"How far we’ve come in a few short years" – a short story by Miriam Stone. The story was posted December 3, 2011.
I am looking forward to reading your short story.
Kathy Nye - Editor - The Yocum Library Blog
Miriam Stone from InterLibrary Loan wrote and submitted her short story,
"How far we’ve come in a few short years" – a short story by Miriam Stone. The story was posted December 3, 2011.
I am looking forward to reading your short story.
Kathy Nye - Editor - The Yocum Library Blog
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Winter Break Hours 2011-2012
The Yocum Library of RACC Winter Break Hours 2011-2012
December 2011
Sunday
18
CLOSED
Monday
19
8am-5pm
Tuesday
20
8am-5pm
Wednesday
21
8am-5pm
22
Thursday
CLOSED for
Library Staff mtg.
Friday
23
CLOSED
Saturday
24
CLOSED
Sunday
25
CLOSED
Monday
26
CLOSED
Tuesday
27
CLOSED
Wednesday
28
8am-5pm
29
Thursday
8am-5pm
Friday
30
CLOSED
Saturday
31
CLOSED
CLOSED
Monday
19
8am-5pm
Tuesday
20
8am-5pm
Wednesday
21
8am-5pm
22
Thursday
CLOSED for
Library Staff mtg.
Friday
23
CLOSED
Saturday
24
CLOSED
Sunday
25
CLOSED
Monday
26
CLOSED
Tuesday
27
CLOSED
Wednesday
28
8am-5pm
29
Thursday
8am-5pm
Friday
30
CLOSED
Saturday
31
CLOSED
Diversity - Foreign Films- Asian
Goyangileul butaghae (Take Care of My Cat) – South Korean – Korean with English subtitles.
Yeojaneun namjaui miraeda (Woman is the future of Man) - South Korean – Korean with English subtitles.
Chi-hwa-seon (Painted Fire) - South Korean – Korean with English subtitles.
Yi ge dou bu neng shao (Not One Less) – Mandarin Chinese- English subtitles.
Chun gwong cha sit (Happy Together )– Hong Kong –Cantonese with English subtitles.
Ba wang bie ji (Farewell My Concubine) –Chinese with English subtitles.
Xizao (Shower) - Mandarin Chinese- with English, Spanish and French subtitles.
Ringu – Japanese – with English, Spanish and French subtitles.
Ping Pong - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Hana-bi (Fireworks) - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Shall we dansu? (Shall We Dance?) - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Mystery & Horror Tales Vol. 1 - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Yeojaneun namjaui miraeda (Woman is the future of Man) - South Korean – Korean with English subtitles.
Chi-hwa-seon (Painted Fire) - South Korean – Korean with English subtitles.
Yi ge dou bu neng shao (Not One Less) – Mandarin Chinese- English subtitles.
Chun gwong cha sit (Happy Together )– Hong Kong –Cantonese with English subtitles.
Ba wang bie ji (Farewell My Concubine) –Chinese with English subtitles.
Xizao (Shower) - Mandarin Chinese- with English, Spanish and French subtitles.
Ringu – Japanese – with English, Spanish and French subtitles.
Ping Pong - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Hana-bi (Fireworks) - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Shall we dansu? (Shall We Dance?) - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Mystery & Horror Tales Vol. 1 - Japanese – with English subtitles.
Winter Quote
The tendinous part of the mind, so to speak, is more developed in winter; the fleshy, in summer. I should say winter had given the bone and sinew to literature, summer the tissues and the blood. ~John Burroughs
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Saturday, December 3, 2011
operose \OP-uh-rohs\, adjective:
1. Done with or involving much labor.
2. Industrious, as a person.
It seems to me a circuitous and operose way of relieving myself to put upon your community the emancipation which I ought to take on myself.
-- Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
But what an operose method! What a train of means to secure a little conversation!
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays
Operose is from the Latin word operosus meaning “taking great pains.” It shares a root with the word opus meaning “work.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
operose \OP-uh-rohs\, adjective:
1. Done with or involving much labor.
2. Industrious, as a person.
It seems to me a circuitous and operose way of relieving myself to put upon your community the emancipation which I ought to take on myself.
-- Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
But what an operose method! What a train of means to secure a little conversation!
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays
Operose is from the Latin word operosus meaning “taking great pains.” It shares a root with the word opus meaning “work.”
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday/
Write a Short Story
Attention all writers, if you have a story you want to submit and possibly have it posted on the Yocum Library blog, send it to theyocumlibrary@gmail.com Subject: short story for the blog.
Miriam Stone from InterLibrary Loan wrote and submitted her short story,
How far we’ve come in a few short years – a short story by Miriam Stone. The story was posted December 3, 2011.
I am looking forward to reading your short story.
Kathy Nye - Editor - The Yocum Library Blog
How far we’ve come in a few short years – a short story by Miriam Stone
Summer was forever when I was a kid. Parents didn’t hover over us. In fact they rarely saw us. Each morning we played the same game with our mother. If we were fast enough, all she would hear was the slam of the screen door, and we were gone, hair uncombed, teeth unbrushed, and stomachs with no breakfast. We were ecstatic. On the days that Mom met us at the door, it took us an additional ½ hour to get outside. But we were combed and brushed and full of whatever some magazine told Mom was the most nutritional breakfast of the week.
When the torture was finally over, we raced out, slamming the screen door, just as Mom was telling us not to slam the screen door, and we looked next door to see if the kids who lived there waited for us. Apparently they had been tortured also and they were later than we were. All together we were six – Tom, Debbie, Chrissie, Me, Jennifer and Barbara. Sometimes we stayed together, sometimes we split up. Usually Tom, Debbie, and Chrissie stayed together because they had taken up smoking that year and thought they were big shots.
They also thought that no one knew – they were so stupid. But they were going to be teenagers soon and even though they smelled like tobacco and could pass for chimneys, they flatly denied that they were smoking.
Since there were six of us, at least one of us had a dime. So before we split up we would make a trip to the penny candy store down at the end of the street. A lot of things were sold at that store but we couldn’t name even one of them because all we saw was the beautiful glass front case to the one side of the store. In that case was everything we could ever want in this world – penny candy – shelves of penny candy. You could buy ten things with one dime so each of us was assured one thing and the owner of the dime got three.
Jennifer, Barbara and I were younger and were fine without the three chimneys. We flip-flopped our way through the woods behind our houses and went further every day. We were intrepid explorers. If we came across a stream, we somehow managed to get every part of ourselves wet. We found interesting branches and rocks. We all had pocket knives and we tried to make eating sticks out of birch. When you’re a kid in the country, you have a pocket knife.
We knew where all the berries were and when they would ripen – blackberries and raspberries and blueberries. We never took any home. We just stood at the bushes and ate until our mouths were the color of the berries and so were our clothes because we had wiped our hands there so much.
We found some of the most beautiful flowers growing wild in the woods and if we came upon a large mossy area, we had to lay down on it. Some of the most secret of secrets were confided while lying on the softest bed that only we knew existed.
My favorite flower was and is still the violet. They grew all over the place. But you had to be an experienced land rover to know where to find the best ones. The very best ones were across the street, behind a house and down a steep embankment. In my magical years of wandering that was the only place that I ever found white violets. I’m not sure if I loved white violets because they were beautiful or because they were hard to find.
An old couple lived two houses down from the violets house. There was a front porch and a big window so that if you were on the front porch you could talk to anyone who was in the window. I have no idea when I started to say “hi” to Charles, the man in the window. Someone might have told me to do it or I just picked it up from other kids. The problem was, we never could see in the window.
So we never saw Charles. If we weren’t in a hurry, we’d park our bikes and walk up on the porch and sit and talk to Charles. He had very little to talk about so we would sit back, put our feet up on the porch banister and talk about our days out in a world that Charles would never know. He would ask questions.
We would get bored and off we would go on our bikes. Every child who passed that house shouted hello to Charles and we all got a happy hello back. But, none of us ever saw Charles. Charles passed away one winter day and his parents moved so that when summer came, there was a new family in Charles’ house. I don’t think I felt bad. I just had to learn not to shout “Hi Charles,” as I whizzed past his house on my bike.
There was only one drawback to living in the country and it was a big one. We used to appoint a lookout and the others of us would dam up a part of the stream we had stumbled upon the day before. Out of the sack we brought with us came little boats, shovels, jars and anything we thought we might use in the lake we were creating. We were all playing and having a wonderful time and the lookout had long ago forgotten to look out. Most of the time it didn’t matter.
But, every once in awhile a garter snake that to us was the size of a python slithered across our path. It took the play all out of us. We couldn’t get our toys picked up fast enough. We were sure there were more of these giant, garter, python, snakes on the attack. We spent the rest of the afternoon trying to find the three chimneys hoping they would teach us how to smoke.
If we were off learning to smoke like we should have been, we wouldn’t have been attacked by the killer snakes.
We never did learn to smoke. We managed to stay reasonably healthy so we could have our own children who could elude us and have forever days in the woods. Among the three of us there are ten children.
But there aren’t any more woods. There aren’t any forever days for our children, no time for them to be free of us, to have their own secrets, to explore and to know where the good berries are and the flowers and the streams.
I know all of this is gone because when I go home none of it is there anymore. It started when city people moved to the country and brought the city with them. They didn’t want to be inconvenienced with long trips to the grocery store so a grocery store opened and on and on. And then more affluent people came to the country and bought land and taxes went up and country folk went down the drain.
Some of the woods I used to love was purchased and made into a miniature golf course. When that tanked, the course was left, the owners fled and to this day the land is empty and ruined. All that is left is some wood and pieces of green felt.
But maybe that’s ok because even if the woods were still there, we would have to be crazy to let our children go out and play in them unsupervised for even ten minutes. We will be ringing in 2012 in a few weeks. How far we’ve come.
When the torture was finally over, we raced out, slamming the screen door, just as Mom was telling us not to slam the screen door, and we looked next door to see if the kids who lived there waited for us. Apparently they had been tortured also and they were later than we were. All together we were six – Tom, Debbie, Chrissie, Me, Jennifer and Barbara. Sometimes we stayed together, sometimes we split up. Usually Tom, Debbie, and Chrissie stayed together because they had taken up smoking that year and thought they were big shots.
They also thought that no one knew – they were so stupid. But they were going to be teenagers soon and even though they smelled like tobacco and could pass for chimneys, they flatly denied that they were smoking.
Since there were six of us, at least one of us had a dime. So before we split up we would make a trip to the penny candy store down at the end of the street. A lot of things were sold at that store but we couldn’t name even one of them because all we saw was the beautiful glass front case to the one side of the store. In that case was everything we could ever want in this world – penny candy – shelves of penny candy. You could buy ten things with one dime so each of us was assured one thing and the owner of the dime got three.
Jennifer, Barbara and I were younger and were fine without the three chimneys. We flip-flopped our way through the woods behind our houses and went further every day. We were intrepid explorers. If we came across a stream, we somehow managed to get every part of ourselves wet. We found interesting branches and rocks. We all had pocket knives and we tried to make eating sticks out of birch. When you’re a kid in the country, you have a pocket knife.
We knew where all the berries were and when they would ripen – blackberries and raspberries and blueberries. We never took any home. We just stood at the bushes and ate until our mouths were the color of the berries and so were our clothes because we had wiped our hands there so much.
We found some of the most beautiful flowers growing wild in the woods and if we came upon a large mossy area, we had to lay down on it. Some of the most secret of secrets were confided while lying on the softest bed that only we knew existed.
My favorite flower was and is still the violet. They grew all over the place. But you had to be an experienced land rover to know where to find the best ones. The very best ones were across the street, behind a house and down a steep embankment. In my magical years of wandering that was the only place that I ever found white violets. I’m not sure if I loved white violets because they were beautiful or because they were hard to find.
An old couple lived two houses down from the violets house. There was a front porch and a big window so that if you were on the front porch you could talk to anyone who was in the window. I have no idea when I started to say “hi” to Charles, the man in the window. Someone might have told me to do it or I just picked it up from other kids. The problem was, we never could see in the window.
So we never saw Charles. If we weren’t in a hurry, we’d park our bikes and walk up on the porch and sit and talk to Charles. He had very little to talk about so we would sit back, put our feet up on the porch banister and talk about our days out in a world that Charles would never know. He would ask questions.
We would get bored and off we would go on our bikes. Every child who passed that house shouted hello to Charles and we all got a happy hello back. But, none of us ever saw Charles. Charles passed away one winter day and his parents moved so that when summer came, there was a new family in Charles’ house. I don’t think I felt bad. I just had to learn not to shout “Hi Charles,” as I whizzed past his house on my bike.
There was only one drawback to living in the country and it was a big one. We used to appoint a lookout and the others of us would dam up a part of the stream we had stumbled upon the day before. Out of the sack we brought with us came little boats, shovels, jars and anything we thought we might use in the lake we were creating. We were all playing and having a wonderful time and the lookout had long ago forgotten to look out. Most of the time it didn’t matter.
But, every once in awhile a garter snake that to us was the size of a python slithered across our path. It took the play all out of us. We couldn’t get our toys picked up fast enough. We were sure there were more of these giant, garter, python, snakes on the attack. We spent the rest of the afternoon trying to find the three chimneys hoping they would teach us how to smoke.
If we were off learning to smoke like we should have been, we wouldn’t have been attacked by the killer snakes.
We never did learn to smoke. We managed to stay reasonably healthy so we could have our own children who could elude us and have forever days in the woods. Among the three of us there are ten children.
But there aren’t any more woods. There aren’t any forever days for our children, no time for them to be free of us, to have their own secrets, to explore and to know where the good berries are and the flowers and the streams.
I know all of this is gone because when I go home none of it is there anymore. It started when city people moved to the country and brought the city with them. They didn’t want to be inconvenienced with long trips to the grocery store so a grocery store opened and on and on. And then more affluent people came to the country and bought land and taxes went up and country folk went down the drain.
Some of the woods I used to love was purchased and made into a miniature golf course. When that tanked, the course was left, the owners fled and to this day the land is empty and ruined. All that is left is some wood and pieces of green felt.
But maybe that’s ok because even if the woods were still there, we would have to be crazy to let our children go out and play in them unsupervised for even ten minutes. We will be ringing in 2012 in a few weeks. How far we’ve come.
Friday, December 2, 2011
The Academic Testing Center
The Academic Testing Center
(College @ Home and make-up tests)
is Located Within The Yocum Library
New, computer testing, more information to follow.
(College @ Home and make-up tests)
is Located Within The Yocum Library
New, computer testing, more information to follow.
Students must register for these tests at the Circulation Desk on the 2nd floor of The Yocum Library at least ONE HOUR prior to the closing of the Testing Center. Students must present a picture ID when registering.
1.Picture ID must be presented when registering for tests in the Academic Testing Center. 2.Children are not allowed in the Academic Testing Center
3.Children under 18 must be with an adult at all times in The Yocum Library
4.No foods or drinks allowed in the Academic Testing Center.
5.No cellular phones allowed in the Academic Testing Center.
6.Students must use scrap paper provided by Academic Testing Center.
7.Calculators, dictionaries, notes, etc. are allowed only when specified by teachers on Academic Testing Center forms.
8.Students cannot leave Academic Testing Center during tests.
9.Students cannot return to the Academic Testing Center to finish tests at a later time unless their instructors have made such arrangements.
10.Students must contact their instructors directly to enquire if their tests have been placed in the Academic Testing Center.
Word of the Day
Word of the Day for Friday, December 2, 2011
bobbery \BOB-uh-ree\, noun:
A disturbance or a brawl.
“Allow me, Mr. Ivolgin,” Ippolit suddenly interrupted, irritably, “what's all this bobbery for, if I may ask...”
-- Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Idiot
Kicked up the most delightful bobbery that had ever been witnessed!
-- Anthony Trollope, Is He Popenjoy? A Novel
Bobbery, unexpectedly, is from the Hindu phrase bap re meaning “O father!” It was first recorded in print in 1816 in The Grand Master.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday
bobbery \BOB-uh-ree\, noun:
A disturbance or a brawl.
“Allow me, Mr. Ivolgin,” Ippolit suddenly interrupted, irritably, “what's all this bobbery for, if I may ask...”
-- Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Idiot
Kicked up the most delightful bobbery that had ever been witnessed!
-- Anthony Trollope, Is He Popenjoy? A Novel
Bobbery, unexpectedly, is from the Hindu phrase bap re meaning “O father!” It was first recorded in print in 1816 in The Grand Master.
Dictionary.com Word of the Day
http://www.dictionary.com/wordoftheday
The Yocum Library Online Databases
Today a library can be open 24/7 for its patrons by accessing library resources online through the Internet. These online sources are available to patrons of libraries that subscribe to them.
To access these online resources, patrons must have their library's passwords. RACC students, staff, faculty, and trustees can acquire passwords
On campus in The Yocum Library with RACC ID.
Off campus by emailing a request to library@racc.edu from your Ravens email account with your full name and RACC ID number.
To access these online resources, patrons must have their library's passwords. RACC students, staff, faculty, and trustees can acquire passwords
On campus in The Yocum Library with RACC ID.
Off campus by emailing a request to library@racc.edu from your Ravens email account with your full name and RACC ID number.
Dec 2, 1864: Confederate General Gracie killed at Petersburg
On this day in 1864, Confederate General Archibald Gracie Jr. is killed in the trenches at Petersburg, Virginia, when an artillery shell explodes near him.
Gracie was born in New York City in 1832 (his grandfather built Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor of New York) and graduated from West Point in 1854. Although his family lived in the North, his father owned a business in Mobile, Alabama, and Gracie moved there upon his resignation from the army in 1856.
Gracie soon became an ardent supporter of the Southern cause, and was active in the Alabama state militia. In early 1861, before Alabama seceded from the Union, Gracie was ordered by the governor to seize the federal arsenal at Mount Vernon.
Gracie joined the 3rd Alabama when hostilities erupted between North and South, and he served in Tennessee and Kentucky during the first part of the Civil War. He was part of General Edmund Kirby Smith's invasion of Kentucky in 1862, and his service earned him a promotion to brigadier general.
He fought at Chickamauga and Chattanooga in 1863, and his brigade joined General James Longstreet for the campaign against Knoxville in November. Gracie was wounded at the Battle of Bean's Station on December 15, but he continued with Longstreet back to Virginia when Longstreet rejoined Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
Gracie's command protected Richmond, Virginia, in the summer of 1864, and his leadership at Drewry's Bluff was instrumental in holding Union General Benjamin Butler's force at bay near the Confederate capital.
Gracie fought during the siege of Petersburg for the rest of the year, and was recommended for promotion to major general. However, he was killed before the rank was confirmed. Most of Gracie's family remained in the North, and his relatives arranged for transfer of his body to Union lines. He was buried in New York City.
Gracie was born in New York City in 1832 (his grandfather built Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor of New York) and graduated from West Point in 1854. Although his family lived in the North, his father owned a business in Mobile, Alabama, and Gracie moved there upon his resignation from the army in 1856.
Gracie soon became an ardent supporter of the Southern cause, and was active in the Alabama state militia. In early 1861, before Alabama seceded from the Union, Gracie was ordered by the governor to seize the federal arsenal at Mount Vernon.
Gracie joined the 3rd Alabama when hostilities erupted between North and South, and he served in Tennessee and Kentucky during the first part of the Civil War. He was part of General Edmund Kirby Smith's invasion of Kentucky in 1862, and his service earned him a promotion to brigadier general.
He fought at Chickamauga and Chattanooga in 1863, and his brigade joined General James Longstreet for the campaign against Knoxville in November. Gracie was wounded at the Battle of Bean's Station on December 15, but he continued with Longstreet back to Virginia when Longstreet rejoined Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
Gracie's command protected Richmond, Virginia, in the summer of 1864, and his leadership at Drewry's Bluff was instrumental in holding Union General Benjamin Butler's force at bay near the Confederate capital.
Gracie fought during the siege of Petersburg for the rest of the year, and was recommended for promotion to major general. However, he was killed before the rank was confirmed. Most of Gracie's family remained in the North, and his relatives arranged for transfer of his body to Union lines. He was buried in New York City.
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