Tuesday am, first day of school. Canadian Newsstand is not appearing on the list of databases accessible from ProQuest. I have contacted lib-ejhelp to have our access restored.

Koerner GAAs start this week. Please give them a big welcome!

I overheard a circ staff member tell a student that refunds for money left on copy cards could be refunded at IKBLC. I called Leeta today to confirm. She says NO, no refunds can be given for value on cards at the current time. This may change in the future, but for now, the status quo holds.

Each August, Beloit College presents a Mindset List of experiences and events that have informed the lives of incoming first-year students.
From the introduction:
“Most 18-year-old students entering the class of 2010 this fall were born in 1988. They grew up with a mouse in one hand and a computer screen as part of their worldview. They learned to surf the internet as they learned to read. While they were still in their cribs, the 20th century started to close as the Berlin Wall came down, the Soviet bloc disintegrated, and frequent traditional wars in Latin America gave way to the uncontrolled terrors of the Middle East.”
Some of my favorites in this year’s list:
– The Soviet Union has never existed and therefore is about as scary as the student union.
– “Google” has always been a verb.
– Text messaging is their email.
– The U.S. has always been studying global warming to confirm its existence.
– Michael Moore has always been showing up uninvited.

Discovered a new (to me) full-text database in the A-Z list called CQ Researcher. It has in-depth reports on social and environmental issues of the day, which makes it useful for English 112 students. Each report has an introductory overview; background and chronology on the topic; an assessment of the current situation; tables and maps; pro/con statements from opposing positions; and bibliographies of key sources. One of the reports was on Cyber Socialization and another on Drinking on Campus – topics which I’ve had questions on at the desk recently.
The focus is strongly American, but will give students a starting point for research.
It’s indexed in Academic Search Premier, so doubly good for English 112.
It’s published by CQ Press, whose tagline reads “An independent publisher, advancing democracy by informing citizens.”