7/7/23
The awesome Lindsay Cronk has been appointed the new dean of Tulane University Libraries effective August 1, 2023. Whooha! You will remember that Lindsay has spoken several times in Charleston including a Neapolitan with Rachel Fleming and Cris Ferguson about “They didn’t Teach This in library school” (about identifying core knowledge for beginning acquisitions librarians.) Trying to remember which one of the Charleston Conference Directors had the concept of the Neapolitans which have been voted among the most popular formats for the Conference! We think it was Tony Horava who retired many years ago? Other memories?
2018charlestonconference.sched.com
It’s great fun living on the water and watching all the boats going by here in Charleston Harbor. I guess I was too busy working. But now I am retired and having fun learning more about boats and stuff. What’s the difference between a ship and a boat? Apparently boats are for coastal and inland waters while ocean-going vessels are called ships. Bet you already knew that. Anyway, that got me to thinking about Peter McCracken, remember him, the brains behind Serials Solutions? Serials Solutions was conceived in 1999 over beers by brothers Steve, Mike and Peter McCracken. They identified the frustrations of library patrons in navigating electronic resources. Anyway, Peter’s newest project is ShipIndex.org which is designed to help us research vessels. Access to a subset of the index data is free, and they offer paid upgrades for access to premium data and other advanced features. The service is designed to make it fast and easy to discover resources. Thank you, Peter. Peter is now Electronic Resources Librarian at Cornell.
Speaking of the water and vessels, it’s summer here in Charleston. Sweltering, I ran into a Scientific American podcast about a smart way to stay cool. “The hairless skin on our palms, soles and upper face contain special blood vessels — arteriovenous anastomoses (AVAs) — that offer a more direct connection to the core of the body, bypassing the delicate capillaries. Gently cooling this skin helps you to chill out fast — but avoid freezing-cold water, which will cause the AVAs to slam closed. What not to do: use ice or a wet towel on the back of your neck. You’ll be misleading your brain’s thermostat, which uses the temperature of this area to trigger your body’s natural cooling methods.” ScientificAmerican.com/podcast/
“Human Health depends on thriving oceans by Sabrina I. Pacifici in The Lancet, June 7, 2023:
“Healthy oceans, from coastal waters to remote high seas and deep seabed areas, are integral to human health, wellbeing, and survival. Covering over 71% of the Earth’s surface, the oceans serve as an essential carbon sink. Oceans also regulate climate-associated human health risks between land and sea, ranging from direct injuries and deaths associated with extreme weather events, to negative effects on food and nutrition security, and even chronic diseases (eg, cancer) from ocean pollution. Furthermore, oceans are a source of joy, recreation, spiritual and mental wellbeing, healing, and entertainment, enriching human lives beyond their basic needs. Although more is known about areas that are near the coast, it is clear that the deep sea (ie, the seabed beyond national jurisdiction) and the high seas (ie, the parts of oceans beyond national jurisdiction), comprising 64% of the surface of the ocean and nearly 95% of its volume, are equally important for human health and are increasingly affected by global environmental changes.”
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)01162-5/fulltext
Let’s close with a little food: “The 7 Best Hot Dogs to buy for July 4th.” They can be pork, beef, vegan, kosher or artisanal. Did you know that hot dogs came to the US in the 1860s via German immigrants in New York City. Today Americans purchase more than 900 million pounds annually according to Nielsen IQ. Ok. So the 4th is over, but hot dogs are for always!
https://www.wsj.com/articles/best-hot-dogs-to-buy-grocery-store-10ba7aa5
IOP Publishing has launched a new open access environmental research journal, Environmental Research Energy, a multidisciplinary open access journal devoted to addressing challenges of energy! ATG recently interviewed Tim Smith, Head of Portfolio development and Senior Publisher at IOP to tell us more. Look for this in an upcoming issue of ATG!
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