UWSP Libraries

Cached:  Decoding the Internet in Global Popular Culture By Stephanie Ricker Schulte Call Number:  HM 851 .S34 2013 Publisher's Description :  In the 1980s and 1990s, the internet became a major player in the global economy and a revolutionary component of everyday life for much of the United States and the world. It offered users new ways to relate to one another, to share their lives, and to spend their time—shopping, working, learning, and even taking political or social action. Policymakers and news media attempted—and often struggled—to make sense of the emergence and expansion of this new technology. They imagined the internet in conflicting terms: as a toy for teenagers, a national security threat, a new democratic frontier, an information superhighway, a virtual reality, and a framework for promoting globalization and revolution.   Schulte maintains that contested concepts had material consequences and helped shape not just our sense of the interne...

The University Library is pleased to announce the completion of a new site specific sculpture, located at the west entrance, created and designed by Prof. Susan Morrison’s students of ART 398 (Sec. 21). “Four Feet Under” is a vertical structure of nine “I” beams spanning 20 feet and weighing 240 pounds. Students describe the work as, “o ur design of line, plane, and space have been combined to create an imposing array of spiral velocity. The powerful vertical structure standing its tallest at 16ft is also inviting with its open construction between the spiraling beams. The spacious proximity of the spiraling beams for viewers to visually explore drives their eyes to the radial balance as the composition’s negative space is connected at the center of the tightest wound beam. The repetition of increasing beam heights creates rhythm and the multiple perspectives the structure can be viewed at accentuate the design. ” Congratulations to the following students, and to many others ...

The Joy of Pain : Schadenfreude and the Dark Side of Human Nature By Richard H. Smith Call Number:  BF 575 .E65 S65 2013 Review from the Wall Street Journal Publisher's Description :  Few people will easily admit to taking pleasure in the misfortunes of others. But who doesn't enjoy it when an arrogant but untalented contestant is humiliated on American Idol, or when the embarrassing vice of a self-righteous politician is exposed, or even when an envied friend suffers a small setback? The truth is that joy in someone else's pain-known by the German word schadenfreude --permeates our society. In The Joy of Pain, psychologist Richard Smith, one of the world's foremost authorities on envy and shame, sheds much light on a feeling we dare not admit. Smith argues that schadenfreude is a natural human emotion, one worth taking a closer look at, as it reveals much about who we are as human beings. We have a passion for justice. Sometimes, schadenfreude can feel ...

This week is the  6th International Open Access Week , dedicated to celebrating and raising awareness of open access to scholarly information.  What is open access? Open access is the free, immediate, online access to the results of scholarly research, and the right to use and re-use those results as you need. The University of Wisconsin Digital Collections Center is an example of a digital repository that provides open access to resources that support the teaching and research needs of the UW community. It is also unique in the sense that it provides access to rare of fragile items that have broad research value.  In the spring, the Library plans to hold an event on open-access, predatory journals, and vanity presses. Stay tuned for more info....

  The Cancer Chronicles: unlocking medicine's deepest mystery By George Johnson Call Number:  RC 268.48 J64 2013 New York Times Review Publisher's Description :  When the woman he loved was diagnosed with a metastatic cancer, science writer George Johnson embarked on a journey to learn everything he could about the disease and the people who dedicate their lives to understanding and combating it. What he discovered is a revolution under way—an explosion of new ideas about what cancer really is and where it comes from. In a provocative and intellectually vibrant exploration, he takes us on an adventure through the history and recent advances of cancer research that will challenge everything you thought you knew about the disease. Deftly excavating and illuminating decades of investigation and analysis, he reveals what we know and don’t know about cancer, showing why a cure remains such a slippery concept. We follow him as he combs through the realms of epidemiol...

EndNote for iPad Workshop:  OCT. 11 (Fri) noon - 1:00 pm (Room 316) OCT. 17 (Thu) 4:00-5:00  pm (Room 316) EndNote for Desktop: OCT. 14 (Mon) noon - 1:00 pm (Room 316) The Library is offering three EndNote workshops. EndNote can help you organize citations, create bibliographies, and store PDFs.  Workshops are FREE and we offer two choices for the iPad or Desktop. Bring your lunch or snacks!

Purpose:  An Immigrant's Story By Wyclef Jean Call Number:  ML 420 .J299 .A3 2012 (You can currently find it on the new book shelf) New York Times Review Publisher's Description :  Multiplatinum musician, producer, and actor Wyclef Jean's revelation-filled memoir recounts his path to fame...from his impoverished childhood in Haiti to the bright lights of the world stage. Son of a pastor and grandson of a Vodou priest, Wyclef Jean was nine years old when his family left the Haiti slums for New York. He lived first in Brooklyn's projects and then Newark, where his father converted a burnt-out funeral home into a house for his family and a church for his congregation. Struggling to fit in, Wyclef made his way by competing in "freestyle" rap battles at school, while singing in his father's choir and learning multiple instruments.   Within a few years, Wyclef catapulted to international renown with the Fugees. Here he details for the first time ...