January 2017

The Maps We Wandered Into As Kids

If I ruled the world, or at least a publishing company, all books would contain as much supplementary information as possible. Nonfiction, fiction — doesn’t matter. Every work would have an appendix filled with diagrams, background information, digressions and anecdata. And of course, maps. Lots and lots of maps. This predilection probably sprang from the books I read as a kid — books like The Phantom Tollbooth, The Hobbit and The Princesss Bride — all of which feature engaging maps that serve as gateways to imaginary lands. Here, say these maps, you’re in this other world now.

From The Maps We Wandered Into As Kids

‘New York Times’ Cuts a Range of Bestseller Lists

The New York Times has eliminated a number of bestsellers lists, although the exact number could not be confirmed Thursday morning. Cutting the various lists is part of an overall plan by the paper to revamp its coverage of publishing.

A note sent on Wednesday to subscribers to the advance bestsellers lists said, “Beginning with the Advance BSL edition that will be delivered today for Feb. 5, 2017, there will be revisions to multiple categories in the publication. These changes will span weekly and monthly lists.”

From ‘New York Times’ Cuts a Range of Bestseller Lists

The Psychomachia: An Early Medieval Comic Book

What do Captain America, Wonder Woman and a 10th-century Anglo-Saxon manuscript have in common? The answer may be more surprising than you think. The Psychomachia, or ‘War of the Soul’, was composed by the Late Antique poet Prudentius in the 5th century and depicts an action-packed battle between the Virtues and Vices for possession of the human soul. This allegory of good versus evil was hugely popular in the medieval period with about 300 surviving copies of the work, 20 of which were illuminated. Two illuminated Anglo-Saxon copies are held at the British Library (now Additional MS 24199 and Cotton MS Cleopatra C VIII) and their illustrations can be compared to our comic books today.

From The Psychomachia: An Early Medieval Comic Book – Medieval manuscripts blog

Texas Aggieland Bookstore no longer selling books

A longtime College Station business is making a big change.
The Texas Aggieland Bookstore is no longer selling books.

Buying textbooks for college classes isn’t how it used to be.

“I find it easier just to get on my tablet and have my books on there,” said Texas A&M student Zachary Williams.

He wasn’t surprised that the Texas Aggieland Bookstore is pulling textbooks from shelves.

From Texas Aggieland Bookstore no longer selling books

You Can Watch Porn At Chicago Libraries, But That Doesn’t Mean You Should

The man wasn’t wearing headphones or using a privacy screen filter — he was recording the porn with his phone. Hansen found a security guard standing 15 feet away from her computer, but didn’t find much help when she told him about her neighbor.

“He said ‘Yeah, I know, but there’s nothing we can do about it,'” Hansen said.

From You Can Watch Porn At Chicago Libraries, But That Doesn’t Mean You Should – Downtown – DNAinfo Chicago

US Museums, Libraries Collect Signs From Women’s Protests

Homemade signs that protesters waved when marching against President Donald Trump across U.S. cities last weekend were being collected for posterity Tuesday by museums and libraries,
officials said.

The National Museum of American History in Washington and smaller institutions said they were collecting and sorting through protest signs they now considered records of nationwide protests of historic proportions.

From US Museums, Libraries Collect Signs From Women’s Protests

Equipping librarians to code: ALA, Google launch ready to code university pilot program

“Libraries play a vital role in our communities, and Google is proud to build on our partnership with ALA,” noted Hai Hong, who leads US outreach on Google’s K-12 Education team. “We’re excited to double down on the findings of Ready to Code 1 by equipping librarians with the knowledge and skills to cultivate computational thinking and coding skills in our youth. Given the ubiquity of technology and the half-a-million unfilled tech jobs in the country, we need to ensure that all youth understand the world around them and have the opportunity to develop the essential skills that employers – and our nation’s economy – require.”

From Equipping librarians to code: ALA, Google launch ready to code university pilot program | News and Press Center