Archive for November, 2010
Nov
22
It’s finally Thanksgiving! For most of you it’s a needed respite from studying, papers and the pressure of mid-terms. You’ve done enough serious research on academic topics, so how about researching something fun and carefree—like the Thanksgiving holiday? Let’s do some research on the holiday and the centerpiece of this commemorative day—the turkey. The first stop was the JSTOR database where a keyword search of the terms (thanksgiving AND holiday AND history) retrieves this article: Pleck, Elizabeth. “The Making of the Domestic Occasion: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States.” Journal of Social History 32.4 (1999): 773-74. Here, you’ll learn that Thanksgiving evolved as a “domestic occasion” beginning in the mid-nineteenth century. Next, a search of the Internet Public Library reveals many interesting links including an article entitled Out of This World Thanksgiving from NASA about celebrating the holiday in space. You can also do serious research on turkeys using the Academic Search Premier database. Just go to the Subject Terms guide and key in turkeys and you get some related terms including wild turkeys, which leads to an article entitled Ground Invasion. Reading the abstract, you’ll discover that the East Bay hills in California are being overtaken by—you guessed it—wild turkeys (and pigs!) McGlynn, Daniel. “Ground Invasion.” Bay Nature 10.4 (2010): 18-22. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Finally, did you know that this year, the estimated cost is $43.47 for a traditional Thanksgiving feast for 10 people? You can find other interesting statistics about gobblers and Thanksgiving gathered by the Indiana Business Research Center at Indiana University. Enjoy your break and your Thanksgiving feast!
Nov
3
Yes ladies and gentleman, it’s that time again when we change our clocks. On Saturday, November 6, 2010, before you go to bed, remember to turn your clocks back an hour in order to observe Daylight Saving Time (DST). The practice was originally conceived by Benjamin Franklin in order to save on energy costs (extra daylight in the evening means less need for lighting. See parts of his essay with commentary on DST). The idea was later elaborated on by a New Zealand naturalist George Vernon Hudson (read an article about him). DST was followed off-and-on for a long time. For example, during WWI and WWII, as a way to save coal, the U.S. implemented DST but reverted to normal time when the country was at peace. It was not until 1966 that the U.S. Congress passed the Uniform Time Act to standardize the practice even when the country was not at war.
Today we continue to change our clocks: every March/April we turn our clocks an hour forward and in October/November we turn them back an hour; hence the saying “Spring forward, Fall back”. Even so, there is still a lot of confusion about why and who. Did you know that Arizona, Hawaii, Guam, and Puerto Rico do not observe daylight saving time? I know what you’re thinking: “What!? Why?!” I have to admit, this has also created a lot of confusion for me when calling friends who live in Hawaii or when I’m making a connecting flight in Phoenix (and thinking I’ve missed my flight). The reason: States can opt out of DST/Uniform Time Act. The Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records has a timeline of DST in the state and why they don’t participate.
Where and why did I find all of this information?
- I began by looking on the internet (google, wikipedia) and then checking the information that I found with library resources, including electronic encyclopedias in the Oxford Reference Collection and Reference Library-Gale Virtual Reference Library. The encyclopedias included Dictionary of American History and World Encyclopedia. I found the resources by typing in “daylight saving”.
- To get more information, I looked at the library’s database. Ones about American history or sciences (specifically astronomy) were great, including America: History and Life and Science Direct. Similarly, I found the articles by typing in “daylight saving”.
An important part of research is to check a variety of resources for accuracy. Not everything you find (all types of resources – Wikipedia, books, articles) should be taken at face value. It’s always best to evaluate them for reliability, accuracy, currency, etc. Here is a resource to help you with evaluating resources.
Nov
1
Is your head whirling from the daily barrage of attack ads from the candidates and spin doctors? Do you want nonpartisan information on the gubernatorial candidates and the issues? Then log on to these library databases and recommended web sites for balanced perspectives on the personalities and issues at stake in the 2010 mid-term elections:
Gale Biography Resource Center: Read up on Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman and you’ll find some fascinating facts about our candidates for governor in this database. For instance, did you know that Margaret (no wonder she prefers Meg) was once a pre-med major at Princeton, and that she “traded Beanie Babies and Pokemon cards with her children on eBay”? Or did you know that Edmund—yup, that’s Jerry’s actual name—worked briefly with Mother Teresa in India?
CQ Researcher: An excellent source for in-depth articles on politics and current events written by seasoned journalists. Be sure to read this week’s featured report: Democrats’ Future: Will they lose their congressional majorities?
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center: The perfect database to research different perspectives on an issue. Review the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana, air pollution control or find balanced articles about Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown.
Now, if you want nonpartisan web sites on elections and politics, Prof. Herb Gooch of the Political Science Department steers his POLS 102 students to these sources:
- California Secretary of State (Ballot measures & more)
- California Voter Foundation (Polls, surveys and research)
- California General Election (Ballot measures, etc.)
Happy voting!