Cites & Bytes @ Bailey

a library newsletter, a compendium of interesting tidbits, a communication tool....from Bailey Library @ Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. (Site Feed)

Monday, April 30, 2007

Withdrawn from the Collection Today....

Cheryl Downing, School Nurse by Ruth MacLeod (1964) that concludes with this statement:

"Suspended in a sea of rapture, Cheryl's only rational thought was that now she could look forward to the most wonderful career of all--that of a wife helping her husband achieve his highest ambitions."

Yuck. I couldn't find any cover illustration for Cheryl Downing, so used one of the more ubiquitous Cherry Ames (accused by Nancy Drew of not being able to hold a job, in some parody I read.) The Cheryl Downing book is part of a series called "Career-Romance for Young Moderns," which also includes such titles as Introducing Patti Lewis, Home Economist, Allison Day: Weather Girl, Tomboy Teacher, and Magic in Her Voice (a tale of a telephone ad-taker.) I strongly suspect they all conclude with suspension in a sea of rapture when Mr. Right takes them away from the horror of working for a living. Let's think of some sequels!

Friday, April 27, 2007

"Hard is the heart that loved naught in May...."

Here's what's happening in May... get ready to celebrate!

May is Older Americans Month. You must be this wrinkled to ride.
May 1 is World Asthma Day! I have no joke here. Decorate your inhaler?
May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii. Sometimes the jokes write themselves. Celebrate as you see fit.
May 5 is Free Comic Book Day. Check out the graphic novel display in front of my office. (These are not free, you should check them out, literally.)
May 5 is Cinco de Mayo. Celebrate the Victory of Puebla! Extra points if you can tell me why this Mexican battle was important to the U.S. Civil War.
May 7-11 is National Substitute Teacher Week! Switch seats and pretend to be someone else. No spitballs allowed.
First full moon in May is Buddha Day. Chant a sutra, release caged birds, reflect.
Related: A Five Year Religious Holidays Calendar.

*Just all about stealing taglines from others lately... this one belongs to Geoffrey Chaucer, from The Romance of the Rose and I found it here. Props to Spiderman's Aunt May, who combines the qualities of Older Americans Month and Free Comic Book Day all in one kind of scary image....

Information Wants to be Free*....

Library technician Kevin McLatchy points out this story about the EPA closing its libraries. What's going on here? Researchers can't access materials. Prosecutions of polluters can't go forward. This writer calls it a "self-lobotomy"....

And on a lighter note...

Best Places to Get Free Books: The Ultimate Guide...
Free Comic Book Day fast approaching...
Children's book reviews in the New York Times...
The Library History Buff...


*This is actually the name of Meredith Farkas' blog, but seemed like a good post title also. Hope she doesn't mind.

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Seek and Ye Might Find....

Thrift Shopper: Find the nearest thrift shop by zip code.
NPR Road Trip: Find all the National Public Radio stations along your route, by zip code.
Ask.com Maps & Directions: The only direction site that gives you both walking and driving directions.
What is My IP? Where are you in cyberspace?

Shout out to the 'Burgh!


Yippy-Skippy! Pittsburgh has once again, after 22 years, finished 1st (that's right, FIRST) in the race to be America's "most livable" city. What does that mean? Well, despite our very crummy climate, we have a lot going for us, such as low cost of living, low crime rate, access to great education and great health care, and great ambience. Of course, yinz always knew 'dat, didn't yinz?


Check out the full story in today's Post-Gazette.



Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Congratulations Shannon!

Shannon Kelley is the winner of Bailey Library's National Library Week Beatles Basket. Shannon has won a basket full of Beatle's music and Beatle's books. Congratulations Shannon and enjoy!

Thanks to everyone who entered the contest and look for more raffles in the fall.

Monday, April 23, 2007

With Mirth and Laughter Let Old Wrinkles Come....


Happy birthday to the Bard of Avon!

Shakespeare's Birthday Celebrations...
Shakespeare's Birthday Open House at the Folger Library...
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust...
Internet Shakespeare Editions...

Check out In Search of Shakespeare, DVD 622, to learn more.... or any of the 629 other items by Shakespeare this library owns.

Image from Gamut Plays.

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Recently Read and Heard....

Long car trips and long waits in airports bring us the following.... all in all, I think it is time for me to start reading some new mystery series. Any suggestions?

The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers. Lilian Jackson Braun. I'm reading these mainly from habit now and because I would hate to miss a volume in my complete run, but wow... autopilot. Spoiler alert: Polly the librarian dumps Jim Qwilleran. She takes her boring self off to Paris and doesn't come back. I hope he is as relieved as I am.







The Bookwoman's Last Fling by John Dunning. I have enjoyed the Bookman series featuring the character of Cliff Janeway, an ex-policeman turned rare book dealer. This entry relies more on the horse racing world for background, although rare children's books are the prize and the center of the mystery. I was disappointed, however, when Cliff finally focused on the killer as a result of a "hunch." I view this as cheating as I like to have at least a bit of a chance to solve the crime myself. Agatha Christie used to do this, too... that "had she but known" bit that stitches everything together at the end, but has left the reader out in the cold. (This phrase is in my mind since I read it on another blog, but it is also applicable here, I think.)

Dust by Martha Grimes. Okay, now you're talking. The Richard Jury/Melrose Plant mysteries are (to me) consistently delicious, well-plotted, thoughtful and broody (that's Richard Jury) and funny and quirky (that's the Melrose Plant part.) I think the major attractions of series books are a) you don't have to think too hard, and b) engaging characters for whom familiarity breeds fondness. This one whips together Henry James, a bad boy and his dog, Nazi art theft, and a vengeful cook, although some bits are left hanging. And then there's some hot sex for Richard Jury...

Children Playing Before a Statue of Hercules, story collection edited by David Sedaris. Delightful audiobook with five wonderful stories from a larger print collection, I believe. It's hard to pick a favorite. I was deeply touched by the story of the dying friend in "The Cemetery Where Al Jolson Is Buried," thinking of friends I have lost. Mary Louise Parker read that one. The story Sedaris reads about the unconventional substitute teacher, "Gryphon," made me smile and think of my own public school days.* I believe my favorite was the last tale of unrequited romance, "Cosmopolitan," wherein a lonely Indian man reads Cosmo to gain insight into the mysteries of love. It is poignantly read by the author, Akhil Sharma.

The River of Doubt by Candice Millard. I have to admit I did not get to hear all of this audiobook, but what I heard was rather amazing for being true. Theodore Roosevelt was a beast... in the sense that young people use it today, meaning he was fierce, strong-willed, he could take it. Roosevelt lost his run for a third term as president and "treated" himself to a near-death travel adventure up an unexplored branch of the Amazon as an antidote to depression. It seemed like they were constantly portaging the boats and losing desperately needed supplies. Roosevelt became extremely ill with an infection to an injured leg but refused to be carried and offered to commit suicide so the group would go on without him. Of course, this noble behavior might be expected from a presidential candidate who goes on with his scheduled speaking engagement with a would-be assassin's bullet in his chest. The more I read about Roosevelt, the more fascinating I find him. I'm at the point in the story where the suffering explorers have finally reached some safety and are within 15 days journey of civilization. The author makes an eloquent point... that none of the party would have survived (3 lose their lives) if the indigenous tribes had not allowed them to pass through the forest. Her descriptions are deft... this is one heck of a good story.

*Thanks to my anonymous commenter for correcting me. "Gryphon" is by Charles Baxter and read by David Sedaris... I was under the mistaken impression that Sedaris wrote the story.

Friday, April 20, 2007

Friday Time Sink....

Librarian Jane Smith just showed me something fun and fascinating she learned at the ACRL conference. The first part of the fun is Montage-a-Google... where you enter a keyword and get a montage of images as a result. As you tweak your search, adding additional terms, etc. you will see different, more specific images. (demonstrating search techniques, of course, and very useful for instruction.) The second bit of fun is the Guess the Google game, where you are shown a montage and have to guess the keyword that generated them.
Addictive... but let's pretend I am practicing information literacy strategies... that's right, I'm preparing for a class!

Thursday, April 19, 2007

RIP Kurt Vonnegut...















Author Kurt Vonnegut died last week.

Slaughterhouse-Five, Cat's Cradle, Breakfast of Champions. Defender of free speech. Humanist. Veteran. Artist.

Kurt Vonnegut obituary, New York Times..
The Vonnegut Web...
From Verne to Vonnegut: A Century of Science Fiction...
The Year of Vonnegut... in Indianapolis

19 titles by Kurt Vonnegut in our library..

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Computers in Libraries, Day Three...

Headed home today... so only a few sessions attended. Here's what I did today:
  • Keynote: World Digital Libraries, John Van Oudenaren, Library of Congress. The Library of Congress is planning and piloting the World Digital Library, a multi-language attempt to digitize cultural artifacts. Read more here, watch the video...
  • 30 Search Tips. Mary Ellen Bates is terrific and she did not disappoint with this rapid-fire list of search engines and sites. I will blog these separately, but Exalead is her favorite...
  • Catalogs/OPACs of the Future. Roy Tennant and Tim Spalding from Library Thing. Bottom line: Integrated library systems have not kept up with user expectations. Good federated search and integrated content are the desirables.
  • Improving Content with Customer Conversations. This was very interesting... the quantification of what users are typing in your search box, how many users go directly to the search box, mapping your content to the search terms, etc. I will be sharing this with the Web Advisory Group.
  • Innovative Tools for Reference Service. Free software to build your own downloadable library toolbar and free software to track your reference transactions and build a knowledge base. I dashed out before this one was over so I could make my flight home.
What a good experience, even with the minor inconveniences... I learned a lot and will have to spend the rest of the semester trying to digest it... and guess what, they listed me as a conference blogger here... I feel like I am sitting at the cool kids' lunch table!

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Library Workers Day....


Today is National Library Workers Day! Feel the love!

Computers in Libraries, Day Two...

Things were a little smoother today... no bagel thievery and I actually found a good place for lunch. They started the morning with a moment of silence for the students at Virginia Tech. Naturally this is on everyone's mind. The keynote speaker spoke briefly about the need for an emergency text messaging network, as so many students no longer read email. Here's what I did today:
  • Keynote: Andy Carvin, National Public Radio. Using Social Media for Community Engagement. How news agencies are engaging with the "people formerly known as the audience." His blog...
  • Mashups and Why Would I Want One? Cool things, mainly involving Google maps, but one library application I really liked.. Book Carousel, mashing up Syndetics and the New Books list. Check out Mashup Dashboard for possibilities. I had to sit on the steps outside the overflow room for this one.
  • Dynamic Instructional Content: Library 2.0 on a Budget. Author of the BizWiki, tons of good ideas for free and reasonable applications, like wink and pbwiki and meebo. We should be implementing meebo for people who don't have AIM accounts.
  • Learning with Wikis and Blogs. Talked about a free course they designed and offered, called "Five Weeks to a More Social Library." See presentation here....
  • 15 Minutes to Creating Library Groupies (Cybertour) Learned a new term... FUD, which stands for Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt. As in: well, sure you can use Google for all of your scientific research, if that's sufficient for your purposes. You know how to get in touch with me when you're ready to get serious, right? And that's called leveraging FUD.
  • Easing Renovation with Web 2.0 Tools. How Ohio State provided more virtual services while moving and remodeling their libraries.
  • Gaming and Learning.
  • Now you see why I said my head is spinning.

Computers in Libraries, Day One...

The wind is howling, my head is spinning, and some guy ate my bagel at the hotel this morning. He thought his wife put it in the toaster for him. Funny. A busy day... I will try to be brief and link to the presentations when I can find them, although my internet connection is spotty at the Hotel in the Middle of Nowhere. This is a great conference, so much to soak in.... thanks to the Teaching, Learning, Technology Roundtable and the Library for supporting my attendance. Here's the official conference blog. Here's what I did today:
  • Keynote: Lee Rainie, Director, Pew Internet and American Life Project. Adores librarians. Showed an Ask the Ninja video on podcasting and sketched the current state of the internet based on the latest Pew studies. The prevalence of broadband has made the creation and sharing of multimedia content very common. I was especially interested in his comments on customization and the emergence of web "conversation"... rating, reviewing, commenting.
  • Alternative and Customized Search Engines. Good stuff: Exalead, Quintura, Kosmix, CrossEngine, Srchr, Scandoo, Rollyo, Swicki, Gigablast Custom Search, and of course, Yahoo! and Google customizables.
  • Building Collaboration, Communication and Community Online. Meredith Farkas talked about a number of different tools and techniques for outreach. A couple of things that sparked my interest were text message reference that comes to the desk as email and Blogpulse, which tracks blog discussions.
  • Mobile Search. This surprising session was jam-packed with information about mobile search, including web sites that will "refit" your library web page to fit a cell phone or PDA screen and tons of examples... too much to link here, I fear I am wearing out my welcome.
  • Cool Tools and Toolkits for Webmasters. Same here... excellent session, some tools I already use but many I hadn't heard of. Stop by the RockTechTalk blog in a day or two to hear more about these. These webmaster sessions were packed!
  • Information Design for the New Web.
  • Gadgets, Gadgets, Gadgets. This was entirely hilarious... check out one of the sites here... and see the usb rocket launching image above. How much fun would that be!

Monday, April 16, 2007

Come Together and Celebrate @ Bailey Library

It is National Library Week and Bailey Library is celebrating in grand style. Here are some activities that you can participate in to help us celebrate...

Celebrate The Beatles @ Bailey Library
Tuesday, April 17

12:30-1:30
Dr. Todd Pfannestiel will present on the infamous “Paul is Dead” hoax. Did Paul McCartney die in a car crash in 1967? Was he replaced by a look-alike? Dr. Pfannestiel will discuss Beatles album art and play backward-masked music as you learn about how pop culture can create a sociological phenomenon. “Lla rof deetnaraug si emit doog A!” This is a brown bag lunch event, with Bailey Library providing dessert and coffee.

7:00-10:00
Bailey Library will present a Beatles documentary starting at 7:00 followed by a Beatles movie, A Hard Days Night. This event will be Special Collections off of the second floor lobby. Snacks and beverages will be provided. Everyone present will be entered in drawing to win the copy of A Hard Days Night.

Come Together and Play @ Bailey Library
Wednesday, April 18: 6:00-10:00
Bailey Library will be hosting a Game & Puzzle Night in their Special Collections room. Enjoy an evening of relaxation before cracking down for the end of the semester. The following games will be available: Mad Gab, Jenga, Scrabble, Trivial Pursuit, Catch Phrase, and Monopoly. There will also be jigsaw puzzles available. Snacks and beverages will be provided.

Come Together for Community Night @ Bailey Library
and Hear a Special Presentation by Dr. David Dixon
Thursday, April 19: 7:00-9:00
There will be a special presentation, “The Great War for Empire in Western Pennsylvania,” by Dr. David Dixon in Special Collections from 7:00-8:00 followed by refreshments, provided by Friends of Bailey Library, in our Reading Room. Community members are invited to join us and learn about what services Bailey Library has to offer. All of those living in the 16057 zip code receive a free library card, and those in neighboring communities receive library cards for a nominal fee.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Things I Learned at the Virginia Hamilton Conference...

The Virginia Hamilton Conference at Kent State is the oldest, continuously running conference on multicultural children's literature. It was my pleasure to attend this year, where I:
  • enjoyed speeches and presentations by Eloise Greenfield, Javaka Steptoe, Kadir Nelson (this year's Caldecott winner, gorgeous artwork) and Pam Munoz Ryan (who was wonderful... hilarious and inspiring)
  • learned more about graphic novels and came back with lots of good titles to order, including books about graphic novels and the importance of images in learning
  • attended sessions on Best Multicultural Picture Books and Notable Books for a Global Society and came home with lists and lists of books to look for
  • enjoyed the performance of the Sogbety Diomande West African Drum and Dance group
  • met a lot of nice librarians and teachers and...
  • brought home some autographed books for Special Collections.

Good News....


Our University Public Relations office sends out a good news note everyday and Friday's reported on Kevin McLatchy's upcoming art show. Kevin is the Archives technician and a very gifted artist. The following good news includes that item and a few others from library land:

Visit the Andrew and Carol Weller Gallery in Fellows Riverside Gardens in Youngstown, Ohio's Mill Creek Park from now until June 3 to view Kevin McLatchy's inspiring artwork. The exhibit is entitled "Interpretations of Nature" and features his unique landscape drawings, most from the Slippery Rock and Lawrence County area. That's wonderful, Kevin!

Librarian Aiping Chen-Gaffey reports that she has completed the records for Early English Books Online, 96,235 titles now accessible through the library's catalog. This valuable collection, which includes the Thomason Tracts (1640-1661,) Pollard and Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue (1475-1640,) and the Wing Short-Title Catalogue (1641-1700) represents historical works from the first book printed in English to works from the era of Spenser and Shakespeare. These items were formerly only available at Slippery Rock on microcards... Thank you, Aiping!

Librarian Judy Silva announces that Katie Forrest, a student employee in the Archives department, has been accepted into the University of Pittsburgh School of Library and Information Science for archival studies. Congratulations, Katie!

And just in time for National Library Week, Librarian Lynn Hoffmann informs us that Greenwood Publishing is providing free access to their resources in celebration. This includes The Latino American Experience, The African American Experience, Praeger Security International Online, Daily Life through History, World Cultures Today, World Folklore and Folklife, The Reader's Advisor Online, Greenwood Digital Collection, and ARBA Online.
Visit Greenwood Publishing for more details... Thanks for sharing, Lynn!

There are a lot of fun activities planned for National Library Week... stay tuned for information from our own Public Relations committee.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Interesting Fact...

If you have been following the Rutgers/Imus controversy in the news lately, you will have heard the eloquent words of Vivian Stoner Stringer, the women's basketball coach. You may not know that she is one of Slippery Rock's distinguished graduates, class of '70. For a nostalgic trip back to that time and other eras, browse the Slippery Rock yearbooks at the reference desk. It would be hard to miss the 1970 volume -- it's bright yellow and has a huge peace symbol on the front of it. Before we get too misty eyed for the good old days, however, I want to point out that I couldn't even find a photo of a women's basketball team at all or very many students of color in the 1970 Saxigena.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

The Continuing Adventures of ResearchGrrl: "Those are my words... Someone else just wrote them first..." & The Mystery of Turnitin

Plagiarism- it's something that few people ever think they'll do, yet cases continue to concern professors and administrators alike. Slippery Rock University calls plagiarism by a different name- "academic dishonesty." But don't let the euphemism fool you, if you are guilty of academic dishonesty there are some stiff consequences that you can face.

As per the SRU Academic Procedures & Policies page (http://www.sru.edu/pages/1441.asp), students who plagiarise can face penalties up to suspension or dismissal from the University. And don't think that your indiscretion will only be between you and the instructor, all sorts of people will be informed of it.

The simple way to avoid all the trouble is to not plagiarise. If you are having any questions about whether or not what you are doing is plagiarism, it probably is. Check out the above link, it provides a comprehensive list of what academic dishonesty is. But the simple fact of the matter is, if what you are turning in is not entirely your work and you don't give authors credit through citation, then you are plagiarising.

Now here's an interesting thing to point out for those of you who believe yourselves to be mastermind geniuses who can get away with plagiarising. Professors have a wide variety of tools to use in verifying that your work is really yours. Blackboard offers this really fun service called Turnitin and it's such a handy thing that some professors will only accept papers turned in this way. What Turnitin does is check your paper against a massive database of papers. It can tell with impressive accuracy when a student has copied another's work.

Now you may be wondering what you are supposed to get out of this, so my friends, I will sum this up for you.
~Plagiarism is not an accident. You know when you're doing it and can avoid it.
~Plagiarism is far more likely to result in a failure than an A.
~Academic dishonesty is just that- DISHONEST- so don't do it.
~If you plagiarise, you will get caught.

There are so many resources available for helping you if you are having problems with a paper so there is no reason that you should ever feel the desire to commit academic dishonesty. You can even use the services of the Writing Center in room 300 if you need help!

And I don't think I can say it enough, plagiarising is wrong! Don't don't don't don't don't don't don't don't plagiarise!

Keep Reading the Continuing Adventures of ResearchGrrl! (And if you want to talk to the Grrl her AIM is SRUResearchGrrl)

Friday, April 06, 2007

Ah, Spring!

The snow is on the daffodil, the robin is on the lam... seems like that ought to rhyme with Easter and ham, but let me set aside my poetic aspirations to bring you this collection of Spring-related info:

The Life of Beatrix Potter, from Enjoy England's North Country
Caution, buzzkill: Easter candy calorie counter, from FitSugar
The 2007 State Easter Eggs, from the White House
Rabbit on the Moon: A Short History of Easter, from the House Rabbit Society
Easter Symbols, Icons, Legends and Lore, from Hallmark

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Recently Read... for Children

From a new shipment of books in the IMC...

I Love Korea by Andrew Nahn. This tribute to Korea includes songs, folk tales, bits of history, and a strong sense of Korean nationalism. For example, the fact that Korea has never gone to war except to defend itself is emphasized. Really? Which Korea? The book is brightly illustrated and written in both English and Korean.




Angkat: A Cambodian Cinderella by Jewell Reinhart Coburn. I have secretly been amassing every variation of the Cinderella story that I can locate, including Cinderellas from every corner of the globe, Cinderellas from the animal world (penguins, Dinorella,) and "alternative" Cinderellas like Cinder Edna who wears sensible shoes and likes organic gardening. This version from Cambodia is very charming and features the magic fish who grants wishes to the kind and generous Angkat. A few dark turns, like the fact that her father conspires with the evil stepmother to lure Angkat home from the palace and murder her, give this familiar tale a definite edge.

The Story of Divaali by Jatinder Verma. A unique book that relates the story behind the Hindu festival of Divaali is gorgeously illustrated and contains a feature on present-day celebrations. The epic on which the text is based, the Ramayana, is complex but this is definitely a worthwhile exploration and explanation of Hindu culture.





The Way We Do It in Japan by Geneva Cobb Iijima. This simple little story tells of a family's move to Japan and the young son's reaction to things that are new and strange to him. His parents constantly tell him, "That is the way we do it in Japan." In the end, his classmates make him feel welcome and comfortable. Interesting facts about Japanese culture are effortlessly woven into the tale. A helpful pronunciation guide is included.





The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron. This 2006 Newbery winner caused quite a stir, since the word "scrotum" shows up in the second paragraph. Forget about that. This novel is all about the characters, including the "Lucky" of the title, her French guardian Brigitte, and the 41 other quirky people who populate Hard Pan, California, a desert community. Lucky's mother was electrocuted after a summer storm and Lucky feels unsure of her future with Brigitte, the first wife of her absent father. I admire gifted authors like Patron who are able to recreate a ten year-old's world in the most authentic and moving way, believable even in bizarre circumstances, and making you care about their characters as if they were your own acquaintanes. The drawings throughout the text are small and delicate and lovely.

Monday, April 02, 2007

What the #@!% is going on?


Can someone please tell me what is up with the students of today and swearing? Let me explain... I sit at the reference desk with students buzzing around me stapling papers and punching holes. As usual, they carry on general conversations about their lives and, while standing not more that 2 feet from me, call each other "d*cks" and ask one another "what the f*ck?" Sometimes they even yell it across a distance to each other. I don't get this. I don't get it at all.


Before you all start grumbling that I am some old, lecturing prude, I swear (no pun intended) that I'm not. In fact, I am 35 and have been known to drop the F-bomb more than my mother would approve of. HOWEVER, and this is a big HOWEVER, there is a time and a place. The middle of a library, with the librarian sitting 2 feet from you, is not the time or the place. I don't get offended easily, and d*ck and f*ck in and of themselves don't make the hair on the back of my neck stand-up. HOWEVER, not knowing when it is appropriate and/or not caring does cause the hair on the back of my neck to stand-up.


I just don't get it. Do you actually think it is acceptable or do you really not give a sh*t?

Sunday, April 01, 2007

These Foolish Things...

Unless you have been under a rock, you have probably seen the cover art for the next and final Harry Potter tome. Apparently Harry will be playing for the Hogwarts badminton team. Check out some other editions here...

The 10 most expensive books of 2006...
William Faulkner: The First Hundred Years ...
Geoffrey Chaucer Hath a Blog...

A tiny bit late for Women's History Month, but why limit the celebration to a single month? Women in the United States and Primary Sources from the Second Wave of Feminist Thought...

"Enjoyment in the Library," a series of sketches by a Holocaust survivor who found libraries a comfortable haven...

Chronicling America: Historic Newspapers, project of the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities...
Book Review podcasts from the New York Times Review of Books...

Recently released FBI documents on Albert Einstein...

All of the above are certified true, non-April Fool's references, so help me Melvil Dewey.