SSB Gets Comic Relief

Comics writer Jim Ottaviani will talk about his new graphic novel biography Feynman, on the life of the noted Nobel nuclear physicist Richard Feynman, for a special installment of Science Study Break.

Feynman’s life story was shaped by his connection to historical significance (he was part of the team that developed the atomic bomb and, later, the commission that looked into the Challenger disaster), his contributions to science (he was a pioneering figure in quantum computing and nanotechnology) and his quirky personality.

Ottaviani is the author of several comic books about the history of science, including Two-Fisted Science: Stories About Scientists which features biographical stories about Galileo Galilei, Isaac Newton, Niels Bohr, and several stories about physicist Richard Feynman. He is also a librarian and has worked as a nuclear engineer.

Come hear Ottaviani talk about Feynman at 6pm on Friday, Sept. 30, in Welch Hall, Room 2.224, located at 24th & Speedway. There will be pizza from Austin’s Pizza (while it lasts) and the University Co-op will be selling copies for Ottaviani to sign (while they last).

Pop culture and the academy collide as Science Study Break features relevant faculty and experts from the University of Texas at Austin discussing the reality and fantasy portrayed as fact in science-themed television and movies. Science Study Break is hosted by the University of Texas Libraries and supported by the University Federal Credit Union.

(See this review of Feynman in the Austin Chronicle.)

%CODE1%

Art on the Street

Baylor Street Wall Art by Rana Ghana

We’ve all seen Shepard Fairey’s work about town, but the burgeoning Austin street art scene features some great local artists, as well.

Photographer Rana Ghana has become a sort of informal liaison for the loose knit collective, and has extensively documented their growing body of work around the city.

Thursday (9/29) at 6pm in the Fine Arts Library (DFA 2.204), Ghana will discuss her work and that of the current group of artists she’s been tracking.

After the talk, there will be a screening of Banksy’s Oscar-nominated satirical documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop.

The event is free and popcorn for the screening is being provided by Cornucopia.

You can RSVP for the event at the Fine Arts Library’s FB page.

%CODE1%

What Can Brown Do For You?


From "Arte de la lengua mexicana y castellana" by Alonso de Molina,Published: 1576, from the Benson Latin American Collection

In the case of original Latin American research materials, quite a lot, actually.

The John Carter Brown Library at Brown University has signed on to the Primeros Libros project – a consortia-driven effort to capture and preserve as many of the “first books” of the New World, those printed in Mexico before 1601. Brown becomes the project’s biggest contributor bringing an additional 70 volumes to the collection, joining the Benson Latin American Collection, Biblioteca Histórica José María Lafragua at the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla and the Cushing Memorial Library and Archives at Texas A&M University, among others.

The digital preservation of these historic cultural documents not only benefits Latin American study abroad, but it means that long-since scattered cultural artifacts of Mexico can return home for use the country’s own scholars and researchers.

Find more information on the project and its players here.

The Trail That Made Texas

When Alonso de Léon took his troops from the Rio Grande to the Guadalupe river – and later to the Neches – in search of French settlements, he probably had no idea that his tracks would pave the way for the creation of the state of Texas.

The Benson Latin American Collection is hosting an exhibition of photographs by Christopher Talbot from the National Historic Trail formed by de Léon’s expedition.

El Camino Real de los Tejas is on display at the Benson through the end of the month, and a reception with Talbot in attendance takes place tomorrow, Wednesday, September 21, from 5-7pm.

You can RSVP to the Benson’s Facebook event page.

Breaking Down Tools

Our First-year Experience Librarian, Cindy Fisher, is a guest blogger over at the Chronicle of Higher Education‘s ProfHacker site. In her post, she lauds LibX, a pretty complex, library-specific browser extension from a couple of innovators at VaTech that makes finding and accessing available resources in your library exponentially simpler.

Like I said, it’s pretty complex, so I’ll let Cindy explain it to you.

 

Be a Fellow

Calling all scholars! The Harry Ransom Center has opened their annual Fellowship application period for 2012-13.

Who wouldn’t want to get their paws dirty digging through the personal papers of such luminary writers as Graham Greene, Anne Sexton, Norman Mailer and David Foster Wallace? Or wile away the time wading through ephemera from Gone With The Wind, Spellbound, The Third Man or any number of other David O. Selznick productions? Or just bask in contemplative imagery from the massive Gernsheim photography archive? With more than 50 fellowships available annually, there’s no reason not to apply.

And the Libraries’ 9 million+ volumes and vast digital resources and special collections are here to support your work…as if you needed more motivation to follow the link below.

More information.