What I do in my spare time
Europa World Yearbook Now Online
In the past, the library had an annual print subscription to Europa World Yearbook. However, starting today, Augustana students and faculty can now access this information online. This valuable resource was published in 1926. “The year book is renowned as one of the world’s leading reference works, covering political and economic information in over 250 countries and territories from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.” The online version contains the same historical and statistical information as the print version in the areas of area and population; finance; government and politics; and country profiles to mention a few categories. However, the online has the advantage over the print to offer updated information as change occurs in world affairs. For instance, the online entry for the United States of America now has Barack Obama listed as president whereas the print edition still has George W. Bush as president of the United States.
The online version also has a “comparative statistics” feature for patrons to compare countries in the areas of area and population; health and welfare; agriculture; industry; finance; external trade; and education.
There are multiple ways to access Europa World via the library home page. Europa World is listed alphabetically under Electronic Reference, Augustana’s Databases A-Z, and Social Sciences. For additional assistance, please come or call (794-7206) or send an Instant Message to the Augustana Reference Desk.
–Mary Tatro
An unusual library visitor
Today the library had an unusual guest. A friendly stray dog — a brown Pitbull — came up to the library’s entrance and seemed to want to come in! Library Director Carla Tracy called Animal Control and they picked her up. We hope that she finds her way home soon!
Salsa Aerobics
Hello all. I just wanted to let you all know that I will be teaching a Salsa Aerobics class. It will begin Wednesday 2-11-09. It will be held at the Bettendorf Ultimate Fitness, from 6:45-7:45. It is a great way to stay in shape and become a better dancer! You can come to any class, any time. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thanks! RebeccaWheeler@augustana.edu
Happy Birthday, Darwin!
Charles Darwin reaches 200 years old on February 12 (as does Abraham Lincoln–see the current issue of Smithsonian magazine for interesting articles on each man and one, by Adam Gopnik, bringing them together). In celebration of Darwin’s birthday, a new display on the 2nd floor of the library features books from Special Collections by scientists who came before Darwin (okay, we don’t own any early editions of books by Darwin himself), such as Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778), Swedish naturalist and explorer, who created a uniform system of scientific naming called binomial nomenclature; Thomas Bewick (1753-1828), a celebrated wood engraver whose book The History of British Birds (on display) was read by Jane Eyre; and Nicholas Culpeper (1616-1654), an English physician whose Herbal (on display) was a bestseller.
You might wonder why there is a piece of Wedgewood ceramic in the display case. Ask Kevin Geedey. Speaking of Dr. Geedey, there’s another surprise in the display–the 2009 World Book annual “Science Year” which includes an article by Dr. Geedey, entitled, guess what, “The 150-Year Legacy of Charles Darwin & On the Origin of Species.” Not only is it Darwin’s birthday, it’s the 150th birthday of the publication of his famous book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. Congratulations, Dr. Geedey. –Margi Rogal
