Internet information is ubiquitous. It can be overwhelming even to seasoned information professionals. We constantly question if the information provided is any good. Gale eBooks on GVRL can be your go-to research resource.
To flourish in today’s knowledge economy, people need “the capacity and disposition to learn in small, quick doses rather than wade through mounds of links and piles of data.”¹ Because GVRL is built with research in mind, it’s chock-full of features to enrich eBook searching and reading experiences. All eBook content is expertly indexed at the title, chapter, and article level, so users can zoom directly to the information they need. Continue reading →
Written by Benjamin Clanton, Government Publications
‘There can be nothing in the world more beautiful than the Yosemite, the groves of giant sequoias and redwoods, the Canyon of the Colorado, the Canyon in the Yellowstone, the Three Tetons; and our people should see to it that they are preserved for their children and their children’s children forever with their majestic beauty unmarred.’ -Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, was born on October 27, 1858. In honor of his upcoming birthday, it seems proper to highlight some of his countless triumphs in the political realm and beyond, and to display his influence on the Government Publications Department here, and to others around the country. Throughout the years, both during his lifetime and following his death in 1919, Roosevelt (or “Teddy,” which he actually hated to be called!) morphed into an almost mythical character in American history. When examining just a few of his more famous accomplishments, it is not hard to understand why. He first rose to national fame during the Spanish-American War in 1898, where he formed the infamous Rough Riders military squadron, comprised of former Ivy Leaguers, outdoorsmen, cowboys, and Native Americans.
In 1901, following the assassination of William McKinley, Roosevelt became the youngest American President ever at age 42. His administration was defined by Roosevelt’s battles against big business and his efforts to protect American citizens through the idea of a “Square Deal.” However, one of the more lighthearted events during his presidency actually occurred in our southern neighbor of Mississippi. During a hunting trip in 1902 near the Delta town of Rolling Fork, Teddy refused to shoot a bear that organizers had tied to a tree, claiming it was unsporting. The story grew to nationwide fame, leading to a shopkeeper selling stuffed animals coined “Teddy Bears.” President Roosevelt also became the first American to win a Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 due to his efforts in brokering a peace agreement ending a war between Russia and Japan. Continue reading →
Just one of the awesome resources within the Gale Virtual Reference Library is the Business Plans Handbook. Published in 2015, this handbook provides business plans actually used by retail, service, and manufacturing industries’ entrepreneurs who need funding for their small businesses. Plans include services like bartending services, mobile hair salon, and web development businesses.
Each entry has industry and market analyses, examples of services offered, personnel needed, operations, growth strategy, marketing and sales plans, and financial analysis.
If you’re interested in starting your own business, the Business Plans Handbook can give you valuable insight into all of the information you’ll need to get your business off the ground!
Check out all of the great reference resources (dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks) that Gale Virtual Reference Library has to offer!
McWherter Library is open to the public! If you’re not affiliated with UofM, you can still utilize UofM resources, like our guest computers with access to databases and eBooks, check out books, and view microfilm. Visit the Community Users webpage for more information and application for a Special Privileges card.
The Libraries’ QuickSearch allows you to search a ton of library databases all at once (though, unfortunately, it can’t search all of them, so don’t give up if you can’t find what you’re looking for on QuickSearch!). QuickSearch is more robust than Google Scholar, and it shows you materials you can access as a UofM student/employee! We created a “Find and Download Full Text Articles in UofM Libraries QuickSearch” video (7 min.) to help guide you through the process, too.
Here are a few tips and tricks to make the most out of your QuickSearch experience: Continue reading →
Written by Benjamin Clanton, Government Publications:
Esi Edugyan, with the highly acclaimed novel Washington Black (one of President Obama’s favorite books of 2018!), has written a harsh but touching story of a runaway slave and his journey to find identity and his place in the world. The title character, Washington Black, or Wash as he comes to be known, is a field slave early in life on a sugar plantation in Barbados. Watched over by a female slave named Big Kit, his world is one of unceasing labor and vicious treatment at the hands of the plantation owner and overseers. Erasmus Wilde, whose family owns Faith Plantation, rules over it with brutality, displayed in his almost casual violence towards the slaves, viewing them truly as mere property. Sugar plantations were historically notorious in the Caribbean for their awful and inhumane working conditions. Therefore, it is not unrealistic that Erasmus treats his slaves in such a manner, something he explains to his brother Christopher: ‘My language cannot offend her. She has no sensibilities to offend . . . They are not the help, Titch. They are the furniture.’Continue reading →
When starting off with a research project, where’s the first place (after class notes and lecture) you turn to for more information? I think most of us would answer “Wikipedia.” (Librarians use Wikipedia, too!) However, most instructors discourage citing Wikipedia. Luckily, you have access to many online scholarly reference collections that can be cited as background information for your project!Continue reading →
Written by Benjamin Clanton and Meghan Campbell, Government Publications:
On September 17, 1787, delegates to the aptly named Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia signed the U.S. Constitution, setting in place the structure of our nation’s government that is still followed today. We here in Government Publications regularly handle documents that relate to what was adopted on that day over two hundred years ago. One of the wonderful things about the Constitution is that avenues were put in place to make additions and changes to its original form. With that in mind, we have written about a couple of Constitutional Amendments that both intrigue us and have personal meaning to us as individuals. Enjoy and have a wonderful Constitution Day!
Join us on the 2nd Floor Commons Area in McWherter Library today from 12 – 3 pm, where you can pick up a U.S. Constitution and snacks, and watch a documentary titled The Words that Built America. Continue reading →
Fog rolls across a desolate landscape. A chanting song gives an ominous command to the viewer: “Look upon the ruins / Of the castle of delusion.” Thus begins Akira Kurosawa’s 1957 film ‘Throne of Blood,’ a retelling of William Shakespeare’s infamous play ‘Macbeth’ set in feudal Japan. Kurosawa, considered a master of Japanese cinema and samurai films, provides a haunting portrait of ambition and the corruption of power. So, if you like murder and betrayal, prophecy and the descent into madness, this is one you should check out.Continue reading →
Written by Shelia Gaines, Circulation Coordinator:
Friday night lights. Season Openers. Homecoming. Saturday tailgating. Yes. You guessed it. It’s football season. That time of the year when team loyalties test family ties and some spouses suffer through their annual season as living “sports widows”.
If you are wondering this year (and every year) what all the fuss is about, why not visit The Ned and check out the literary side of the game? If you need to start from scratch, Football: The First 100 Years: The Untold Story may be the perfect book for you. But, be warned that football on the other side of the pond is a little different than the grid iron.
If you are a more seasoned sports fan and think you would enjoy the players’ stories that have been told on the big screen, we have something for you, too. Did you know that former NFL Tackle, Michael Oher, began his road to fame at our regional rival, Ole Miss? If not you can read all about it in The Blind Side by Michael Lewis. Better yet, read the story in his own words in How I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness, to the Blind Side, and Beyond. Find out how he felt when he went to see the movie incognito and saw the fan’s reaction. If your loyalties divide anytime you don’t see a Memphis connection, don’t forget that Michael Oher’s adoptive father was a broadcaster for the Memphis Grizzlies for many years.
Find these and other sports-related tomes in the library. Take some time to peruse the stacks or find an interesting article or research idea from one of our databases. But, be sure you take care of all of your library business during the weekdays, because you may have better things to do with your weekends.
