Hidden Gems Mined by the Alaska State Library

Transportation Noise Reference Book

2011-01-28T10:55:00.004-09:00

Nelson, P. M. (1987). Transportation noise reference book. London: Butterworth.

REF TD 893.6 .T7 T73 1987
Find in a library near you: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/14819463

This guide to the causes and effects of noise and vibration generation by the transportation industry was really more complete than I thought it would be at first glance. Along with the expected aspects of acoustic scales/ratings and the specific hows and whys of how noise is created by each method of transportation, it also covers the community and medical aspects of transportation noise, including the effects of noise on sleeping patterns.

This book also includes methods of controlling noise and vibration, pertinent legislation, and how to predict the level of noise for a given mode of transportation.

Historical Account of Tuberculosis in Alaska

2011-01-19T12:24:00.007-09:00

Fortuine, R. (2005). "Must we all die?" Fairbanks, AK: University of Alaska Press.

CIRC RC313.A63F67 2005

Find in a library near you: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/57168788

This well-researched book chronicles the origins, impact, and efforts to control tuberculosis in Alaska. Appendices include mortality and morbidity statistics through 2002, “a look at sanatorium life in Alaska,” a glossary, and a detailed timeline covering 400 AD to the year 2000. The extensive endnotes following each chapter function as access points for many of the primary source and other documents relevant to this topic. For a book so packed with facts and statistics, Must We All Die? is surprisingly easy to read. You don’t have to be researching tuberculosis to appreciate it.

Applying for Permanent Fund dividends and more with myAlaska

2011-01-10T16:48:00.003-09:00

We've reached the form time of year, when visitors to the library are often looking for advice in applying for Permanent Fund Dividends (PFD) or tax refunds. While we at the Alaska State Library are not accountants and can't provide advice, we can point you to the forms and resources for help.

myAlaska is the State of Alaska's portal for e-government. You can complete many interactions with state agencies here, either as an individual or as a business, including reporting a vehicle accident, viewing child support payment financial statements, and managing your business's employment security tax.

If you're applying for the PFD, there are a few tips to keep in mind:

* Although anyone can apply online, there are some restrictions on who can use an electronic signature. In particular, if this is your first PFD, you'll need to print a signature page to submit.
* You can still choose to apply in paper. If you're in Juneau, you can pick up a form and envelope at the Alaska State Library on the 8th floor of the State Office Building. For other locations, see http://www.pfd.state.ak.us/BookletDistribution.aspx.
* For more information about PFDs, to apply, or to check the status of your PFD, see the main page of the Permanent Fund at http://www.pfd.state.ak.us/.

The Merck Veterinary Manual

2010-12-29T16:02:00.003-09:00

Siegmund, O. H., & Merck & Co. (1955). The Merck veterinary manual. Rahway, N.J: Merck and Co.

REF SF 748 .M47 2010
Find in a library near you:
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/670529698 the 2010 edition
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1770866 our record

We originally discussed the 1986 version of the Merck Veterinary Manual in our weekly librarians' meeting, but the horror of finding out that we had an edition that old caused us to quickly purchase the 2010 edition. While the older edition was useful for us, especially to the pet owning librarians when they were trying to remember a technical term during Pet-Anecdotes-Chat-Time, we did feel that the past 24 years had enough advances in veterinary medicine that some of the information would be invalid, especially the drug references.

Like previous versions, this book is organized by anatomic systems, such as circulation or digestion, in the first half and topics, such as behavior or pharmacology, in the last half. This new edition also has full color images for the first time.

History of the Mines and Miners in the Juneau Gold Belt: A collection of stories about the mines, the miners, and their dreams

2010-12-08T14:15:00.002-09:00

Redman, E. 1988. History of the mines and miners in the Juneau Gold Belt: A collection of stories about the mines, the miners, and their dreams. Juneau, AK: E. Redman.

Genealogy Ready Reference TN 413 .A6 R25 2009
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/40985801

This history of mining in the Juneau Gold Belt area is told in an easy to read style. Earl Redman compiled this history through detailed research, looking through company records, newspaper articles, and personal accounts from people who worked in the mines.

Of particular interest are the Juneau area maps that have each of the locations of the mines noted, and the listings of how much each of the mines produced over the years.
This publication covers in detail the big three mines in the Juneau area; the Treadwell, Perseverance, and Alaska Juneau mines. In lesser detail the smaller mines in the area are also described.

The 2009 edition has the inclusion of many color photographs of the mines and their workers.

The Sword and the Shield: The Defense of Alaska Aboriginal Claims by the Alaska Native Brotherhood

2010-11-22T09:04:00.012-09:00

Metcalfe, P., with Research Assistance by Ruddy, Kathy. 2010. The sword and the shield: The defense of Alaska aboriginal claims by the Alaska Native Brotherhood. Juneau, Alaska: Tlingit Readers, Inc.

E78.A3M382 2010.
Available at http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/ANCR/Southeast/Chronology/LR%20Final%20Sword%20and%20Shield.pdf

This paper describes Alaska Native involvement in the Alaska statehood movement, the effects of the movement on Alaska aboriginal claims, and the work of the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) in defense of those claims. It includes succinct and readable legal analysis and presents the points of view of the people and groups involved in some of the most important events in Alaska’s history.

Sections include Aboriginal Claims in Alaska, Native Claims in the Early 20th Century, the ANB Prior to WWII, the Significance of (the) Tee-Hit-Ton and Tlingit and Haida (court cases), Reservations in Alaska, the Tribal Termination Movement of the Early 1950’s, Postwar Political Realities in Alaska, Statehood at the Sacrifice of Alaska Native Claims, the Issue that Would Not Go Away.

A glossary and note on terminology explain the meaning and significance of essential (and sometimes misunderstood) terms including, for example, “Alaska Native Land Claims” and “extinguishment.” An extensive Chronology of Events Relative to the Development of Alaska Native Law covers from 11,000 years before present to 1995. And check out the key to the photograph of the members of the 1929 ANB Grand Camp Convention in Haines – you can match member names with images on a photograph.

A slightly different version of this paper, titled The Alaska statehood experience grant: Alaska Native involvement in the Alaska statehood movement, is also available at the Alaska State Library.

The research and composition of the papers was supported by an Alaska Humanities Forum grant. The author notes the importance to the work of 30 boxes of documents compiled by Andrew Hope III before his death.

Fuel Economy Guide

2010-11-04T09:49:00.002-08:00

REF TL 151.6 .G37 2009 www.fueleconomy.gov
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/31459058

Looking to buy a car or curious where your car ranks in terms of fuel usage? This guide lists MPG for city and highway, annual fuel costs, and some miscellaneous information about the car. The online guide offers more information, such as your car's carbon foot print and the ability to compare cars, but it’s nice that they’re still producing a paper copy.

Alaska Department of Law, Consumer Protection Unit Website

2010-10-21T09:39:00.002-08:00

Have you ever wondered about your rights after buying a defective product? Would you like to know what Alaska laws protect consumers? Do you need to know more about common scams? These are just some of the questions that are answered by the Consumer Protection Unit’s website. Here, you’ll find news and alerts, information and links to other resources organized by topic, and forms you can use to lodge consumer complaints with Alaska’s Attorney General.

Black's Legal Dictionary

2010-09-09T11:00:00.014-08:00

Garner, Bryan A. 2009. Black's Law Dictionary, Standard Ninth Edition. St. Paul, MN: Thomson West.

REFERENCE KF156.B53 2009

You’ll find so much more than just definitions in the 9^th edition of Black’s Law Dictionary. Want to dazzle your friends with witty legal maxims, find out what a particular abbreviation means, or determine just what the “Office of Thrift Supervision” does? Black’s Law Dictionary can help.

The definitions cover legal terms, organizations and government offices, and legislative acts. The entries are robust, with many describing the origin of the term, the date of first use, a subject matter tag identifying the associated field of law, cross references to related entries, a quotation about the term from another legal source, and citations to West’s key number system. Explanatory or encyclopedic information frequently appears together with the definition. For example, the entry for “ex post facto law” provides a definition (“A law that impermissibly applies retroactively…”) but also tells us that “Ex post facto criminal laws are prohibited by the U.S. Constitution.” Many entries include subentries for terms relating to the same general topic. So if you want to find out what types of insurance exist, just look up “insurance,” and you’ll find over 100 subentries ranging from “accidental and health insurance” to “whole-life insurance.”

Among the eight appendices, you'll find legal abbreviations, legal maxims, the United States Constitution, a list of all of the members of the Supreme Court, and the British Regnal Years (just in case you want to find out when Queen Victoria reigned).

Oxford English Dictionary (OED)

2010-09-01T10:29:00.003-08:00

Simpson, J A; E S C Weiner; and Oxford University Press. Oxford English Dictionary. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.

REF PE1625.O87 1989 VOL.1-20
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/17648714

While, with 20 large volumes and a reputation to match, this offering isn't exactly "hidden," it certainly is a gem. Unlike other dictionaries, the Oxford English Dictionary, fondly known as the OED, strives to be comprehensive and provides print examples of use over time. If you're a word geek, like me, this set is ambrosia. I find that our set is getting less use than in the past, probably due to extensive online resources (including those in Oxford Premium Reference, which is available to all Alaskans through the Digital Pipeline). It may also be due to changing cultural norms regarding acceptable usage of words, but that's a discussion for another time and place.

Alaska Legislative Research Reports

2010-08-20T10:00:00.001-08:00

The Alaska Legislative Research Services has conducted an amazing amount of research on a wide range of topic of interest to all Alaskans. Over the years, aspects of the agency's names and organizational method have changed slightly, such as the Alaska House of Representatives Research Agency, Senate Advisory Council, Rural Research Agency, Legislative Research Agency.

Regardless, a good portion of their memorandums and resultant research from 1980 forward can be found via their online image retrieval page. Toggle between the table view and a list view by clicking on the buttons above the search box, depending on your preference. You will find extensive historic research on topics such as Medicaid, eminent domain, rural education, alternative energy, and much more. Click on the PDF file to see the full report.

Sources of Compiled Legislative Histories

2010-08-13T13:52:00.008-08:00

Johnson, Nancy P. & the American Association of Law Libraries. 1979. Sources of Compiled Legislative Histories: A Bibliography of Government Documents, Periodical Articles, and Books. Littleton, Colo: F.B. Rothman.

REF KF42.2 1979
Find in a library nearby:
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/5158039

Part I includes a bibliography of some commercial and government sources for federal legislative histories. Part II, the real gem of the work, is an extensive list of compiled legislative histories. The legislative histories identified cover major federal laws from the 1st U.S. Congress (1789 – 1791) through the 108th Congress (2003-2004). Although few legislative histories for earlier Public Laws are listed (none are identified for the 2nd through 36th Congress), coverage increases steadily after the 36th Congress. References to compiled legislative histories are organized by Public Law Number. An index to the names of the covered Public Laws also exists. In addition to the Public Law Number, each entry includes the Bill Number, Statute at Large Number, name of the Congressional Act, and the type of information included in the legislative history (e.g., full text of reports, hearings, citations, etc.).

Most of the citations are to law review articles. Among the other types of legislative histories referenced are federal documents, including congressional reports, monographs or treatises, and the IHS Legislative Histories Microfiche Program (described on the Law Librarians of Washington D.C. website at http://www.llsdc.org/Fed-Leg-Hist/#Finding).

Gabby's Wordspeller Phonetic Dictionary

2010-07-23T11:25:00.005-08:00

Frank, Diane. 2009. Gabby's Wordspeller Phonetic Dictionary. Rainier, WA: DMFrank Publishing.

REF RE1153.F72 2009
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/title/gabbys-wordspeller-phonetic-dictionary-find-your-word-by-the-way-it-sounds/oclc/440804411

Geared towards people with dyslexia, this book would likely be useful for anyone who has difficulty looking up words in a standard dictionary, including those who find themselves in circumstances where dialects or accents have caused a misunderstanding of the pronunciation. The book includes brief but complete directions for finding base words along with prefixes and suffixes. It doesn't cover proper nouns at all, and for complete definitions and correct pronunciations, this book should be used in conjunction with a standard dictionary.

Our edition is revised and condensed. The accompanying CD includes a powerpoint presentation for PC computers on using the resource, along with Mozart accompaniment, which may be helpful for auditory learners.

Federal Government Acronyms Guides

2010-07-20T10:00:00.000-08:00

In searching for current guides to government acronyms, I discovered GovSpeak by Kelly Smith, a listing of federal acronyms and abbreviations that are actively linked to coordinating websites. She notes that it is a work of love that began during her employment at IUPUI University and continues into the present. She updates her listings and links on a monthly basis. Academic and government institutions regularly cite this excellent tool.

In addition, I came across the Department of Defense's useful Dictionary of Military Terms that includes both a search and browse function for military acronyms. Listings are current and you can even download a PDF version of all the terms if you like.

Encyclopedia of Life

2010-07-13T09:17:00.002-08:00

This week’s resource is the Encyclopedia of Life.
With the ambitious goal of listing every single living thing on earth, the Encyclopedia of Life is off to a good start. As of this posting, they have 22 exemplar species, which are examples of how complete they hope all other entries will be eventually.

Entries to the website are added and edited wiki style by actual scientists, who have to submit their credentials to register. The purpose is to collect information that is currently in various locations into one place.

Individual species pages show where the species is located on a classification chart, with the ability to view related species or go higher up the classification to genus, family, and on.

Of use to us non-scientists are:

Descriptions - Brief examples are physical, life cycle, behavior, reproduction, diseases.
Ecology and distribution - Including conservation issues and conservation status.
Information on the evolution of the species.
Media - Many photos, videos, and maps.
What relevance the species has - This is different for each type of entry, growing information/toxicity for plants and fungi, other uses for animals.

GuideStar's online directory of nonprofit organizations

2010-06-21T10:51:00.003-08:00

GuideStar publishes a directory of nonprofit organizations at http://www2.guidestar.org/. Over 1.8 million IRS recognized tax-exempt organizations are represented in GuideStar's database. Some information, such as an organization's name, city and state, and mission statement, is available free to anyone who visits the site. Other information, like the complete address and IRS form 990, is available free to people who register at the site. Financial statements, the identity of the organization’s officers, and some other documents and data are available on a subscription basis. GuideStar compiles the information from nonprofit reporting and “several other sources,” one of which appears to be IRS form 990. Although only rudimentary information is available for many organizations, GuideStar is the most complete free online directory of nonprofit organizations that we have found.

DSM-IV-TR

2010-06-15T12:46:00.005-08:00

American Psychiatric Association. 2000. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV-TR, 4th ed., text revision. Washington, DC: APA.

REF RC455.2.C4D536 2000
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/title/diagnostic-and-statistical-manual-of-mental-disorders-dsm-iv-tr/oclc/43483668

This manual provides information on codes used for reporting diagnoses of mental disorders. After a chapter on the use of the manual and an overview of the classification, there are sections that provide more detail on each type:

Multiaxial assessment
Disorders usually first diagnosed in infancy, childhood, or adolescence
Delirium, dementia, and amnestic and other cognitive disorders
Mental disorders due to a general medical condition
Substance-related disorders
Schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders
Mood disorders
Anxiety disorders
Somatoform disorders
Factitious disorders
Dissociative disorders
Sexual and gender identity disorders
Eating disorders
Sleep disorders
Impulse-control disorders not elsewhere classified
Adjustment disorders
Personality disorders
Other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention
Additional codes

In addition, there are appendices. Since this resource is really geared towards medical professionals and medical coders, appendices most likely to be useful for librarians or the general public are: the glossary of technical terms, highlights of changes in this revision, information on cultural syndromes, and possibly the comparison with ICD-9-CM and ICD-10 codes. If you're an employee of the State of Alaska and need online access to the DSM-IV-TR or ICD-10, please ask a librarian for assistance.

Employer's Immigration Compliance Desk Reference

2010-05-28T10:07:00.003-08:00

Siskind, Gregory H. 2009. Employer's Immigration Compliance Desk Reference. Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management.
REF KF4829.S57 2009
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/title/employers-immigration-compliance-desk-reference/oclc/271647204

Provides practical guidance to employers on compliance with Federal and State immigration laws. Also includes an overview of the U.S. immigration system. Material is presented in a question and answer format, with a detailed table of contents listing every question. Abbreviations and acronyms are defined on page 21. Appendices include descriptions of "notable" enforcement actions in the 2006-2008 time period, a Department of Homeland Security Handbook for employers, and a list of electronic I-9 and E-verify vendors. The author points readers to a blog for tracking new laws and legislation: http://i9compliance.blogspot.com. The National Conference of State Legislatures website also offers a wealth of information on immigration law and legislation at the state level: http://www.ncsl.org/ (click on Issues and Research, then Immigration).

New Resource for State employees!

2010-05-14T15:50:00.003-08:00

The Alaska State Library is using a new tool in our continuing efforts to improve online access to library materials for State employees: the confluence wiki. What's that, you say? Well, to most of you it will look pretty much like a regular webpage. The key difference is that because we can limit who can access the pages, we can post passwords and other access information for some resources that we previously were unable to make available outside of the library.

To see this new page, go to https://wiki.state.ak.us/display/publib/For+State+Employees from your work computer within the State of Alaska network. This page is not accessible outside of the State of Alaska network.

You may notice that this page looks similar to the For State Employees page on our website. Just click on the link "Access information for special resources." There you'll find terms of use and/or access information for:

EAP Digest
Phi Delta Kappan
State and Local Government Review
American Indian Quarterly
Ecologist
Energy and Buildings
Environmental Management
Government Information Quarterly
Journal of Collective Negotiations
Journal of Wildlife Management
Marine Pollution Bulletin
Nature
Scientific American
Western Historical Quarterly
Wildlife Monographs

Or, easier yet, just use our Journal Finder. Where appropriate, links have been included to direct you to this information.

We're considering other options that will allow us to use this tool to make more resources available. For some, authentication might be necessary, in which case you would just sign into confluence in the same way that you log into your State email account.

What do you think about this? Please contact us at 907-465-2920 or asl@alaska.gov with any suggestions or questions.

Habitats and Ecosystems: an encyclopedia of endangered America

2010-05-07T08:53:00.003-08:00

Crawford, Mark 1999. Habitats and ecosystems: an encyclopedia of endangered America. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO.

REF QH 76 .C73 1999
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/43164895

Are you interested in whether your state holds any endangered, threatened, or rare plants and animals? In Habitats and Ecosystems, Mark Crawford lists locations of public lands that contain these groups. Not listed are National parks or wildlife refuges, as those already have descriptions elsewhere, and places that remain unknown for their own protection.

Sites are grouped by state, with each state having a section in the appendix listing their species. There is an overview for each state, and each site has a description and location. Other appendixes contain contact information for national conservation organizations, conservation organizations listed by state, a bibliography on ecology and conservation grouped into general and state specific listings.

Encyclopedia of Leadership

2010-04-21T15:34:00.006-08:00

Goethals, G. R., Sorenson, G. J., & Burns, J. M. 2004. Encyclopedia of leadership. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Sage Publications.

HD 57.7 E53 2004

Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/title/encyclopedia-of-leadership/oclc/54066411

This four volume set includes 373 entries on leadership theory, practice, and effects. About 150 of the entries are biographies. What stands out most about this work are the primary source documents you’ll find in it. About 300 sidebars reprint speeches, quotes and texts ranging from Aristotle on Authority to the Body Shop’s Values Mission statement. Appendix 1 reprints presidential speeches on foreign policy and war. Appendix 2 reprints a few sacred texts relevant to leadership.

The finding aids could be better; the index appears in Volume 4 alone and the lists of entries and sidebars do not include page numbers. So try browsing it.

ListenAlaskaPlus!

2010-04-07T14:17:00.003-08:00

For quite some time, the Alaska State Library has been a part of a consortium of libraries that subscribe to downloadable audiobooks from Overdrive. This service has been known as ListenAlaska. At the recent Alaska Library Association conference in Anchorage, the group decided to expand our holdings into electronic books. These are available in two different Adobe formats, and in a variety of subjects. To determine whether or not you are eligible to access ListenAlaska, click on Member Libraries from the home page. If you have a Capital City Libraries card, you can access this resource with your library card barcode. If you are an employee of the State of Alaska, regardless of whether or not you are in Juneau, the State Library would be happy to create a library card for you so that you can access this neat resource. Please contact us at 907-465-2920 for more information.

National Recreation Trails Database

2010-04-02T10:00:00.001-08:00

In 1968, Congress passed the National Trail System Act to develop a network of recreational, scenic and historic trails in all 50 states. Every year, the Secretary of Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture designates trails of local or regional importance to become a part of the national trail system and receive benefits such as funding and promotional assistance.

To search the listing of over 1,000 trails, visit the National Recreation Trails Database at http://tutsan.forest.net/trails/default.htm. On the main page, you will see big green buttons to perform a basic search, browse through the entire list of trails or use the help button for a brief overview of a basic and advanced search. In a basic search, you can narrow by the trail name or part of a name, a specific state and/or trail use from a long list of activities. Whether you browse or search, you can always re-sort the list by clicking on the link at the top of any column. For example, "Len (mi)" will sort results by the length of the trail in miles, from shortest to longest.

Once you enter the database, you will find a link to the advanced search at the bottom and in the right hand sidebar. The advanced search does everything that a basic search can do as well as limit by county, trail type (e.g. "snow trail" or "Urban trail/bikeway"), up to two types of trail activities, managing agencies (e.g. "U.S. Corps of Engineers" and "State"), and/or year of designation. You can indicate how you want your results sorted prior to hitting the "Find Trails!" button.

Lastly, peruse through NRT photo contest entries and past winners from a link on the page above or directly at http://americantrails.org/photoGalleries/photocontest2009/index.html. This is an excellent way to get a snapshot of the trails prior to putting on your hiking boots or snow shoes!

Cooperative Extension Service Publications

2010-03-15T14:50:00.002-08:00

How do you can caribou, make a trapper cap, or build a greenhouse? How do soil characteristics affect pesticide movement? Where can you find a DVD on the Gwich’in people of Arctic Village Alaska? These are just a few examples of the diverse questions you can answer through University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service (“CES”) resources. Many CES resources are available free for download at the CES website, http://www.uaf.edu/ces/pubs/. There, you will also find out how to order publications, such as DVDs, which you can’t download for free. You can search the CES publications catalog by keyword or browse by topic. The Alaska State Library has also acquired many of these publications through the Alaska State Documents program and most of these can be checked out to patrons.

FDsys

2010-02-26T10:00:00.001-09:00

A program developed by the Government Printing Office (GPO), stands for Advanced Federal Digital System and is found online at http://www.fdsys.gov. GPO is migrating all of its content on http://www.gpoaccess.gov to this new, easily searched platform. The new system allows federal agencies such as Congress to submit electronic materials; provides public access to authenticated digital versions of documents; and serves as a mechanism for preserving government information long-term. To learn how to best utilize FDsys, watch the Adobe Flash tutorials at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsysinfo/tutorials.htm.

Dangerous Marine Animals that bite, sting, shock, are non-edible

2010-02-22T09:08:00.002-09:00

Halstead, Bruce W. 1980. Dangerous marine animals that bite, sting, shock, are non-edible. Centreville, Md: Cornell Maritime Press.

REF QL 100 .H3 1980
Find in a library nearby: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/6356210
The latest version http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/32312789

This book contains numerous images of both the animals in question and the aftereffects of their attacks. It organizes itself into chapters by attack type and vertebrate status, e.g. biting, stinging, poisonous, and vertebrate and non-vertebrate. Each chapter divides itself by general information, specific information about the attack, medical aspects (what will happen to the attacked), treatment, and prevention. Species-specific location information is included. The treatment section is somewhat in-depth.

Examples of the specific information given about the attack type would be description of the stinging, biting, or venom apparatus is located, with location information.

“Nightmare inducing, useful item.” quotes one librarian.
A word from the slightly traumatized: stay away from the images of shark attacks on pg. 35 unless you have either a strong stomach or access to the river Lethe. This librarian spent far too long trying to decipher what she was looking at, and now has the image burned into her brain.

Medical Library Association Encyclopedic Guide to Searching and Finding Health Information on the Web

2010-02-17T14:34:00.004-09:00

Anderson, P. F. and Nancy J. Allee (Eds). 2004. The Medical Library Association Encyclopedic Guide to Searching and Finding Health Information on the Web, v. 1-3. New York: Neal-Schuman Pub.

REF R859.7.I58M436 2004 V.1-3
Find in a nearby library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/54371537

The first volume of this highly rated work provides information about what's in the three volumes, how to use it, and searching and evaluation tips. Evaluation is especially important with online medical information, because there are a lot of professional-looking websites that are biased, out-of-date, or simply not authoritative.

The second volume covers diseases and disorders, with basic information about each disease, search terms (my favorite part!), resources, and more. The third volume focuses on real-life topics, which may or may not relate to a specific disease, such as car accidents and reproductive health.

In general, I tend to steer folks towards Consumer Health Complete (for Alaska residents) or MedlinePlus (free resource) for consumers, and to PubMed (Alaska State Library portal, free resource) for professionals. Those are probably still the easiest and best places to start for most health information needs. If you don't find what you want in those resources, consider checking these books to improve your searches or find other resources.

The Encyclopedia of Air

2010-01-20T13:58:00.004-09:00

Newton, David E. 2003. The Encyclopedia of Air. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press

REF QC 854 .N48 2003
Find in a nearby library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/51726738

This encyclopedia covers a narrow topic with a broad range of entries. The entries include airbags to zeppelins with a stop at “Wind Beneath My Wings”.

It is best to browse the guide to selected topics in the beginning pages before jumping in, as there are some unexpected entries. Most items have further reading titles included.

Firefly Atlas of North America

2010-01-13T08:43:00.005-09:00

Phillip, George and Son. 2006. Firefly Atlas of North America: United States, Canada & Mexico. Buffalo, NY: Firefly.

REF G 1105 .G43 2006 ATLAS CASE (3B)
Find in a library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/72069114

This atlas would be a good tool for students doing reports on US States or Canadian Provinces. It would also be useful for planning trips within North America, particularly Mexico. The atlas is divided into four sections: Statistics, Gazetteer, Maps and Index. The brief statistics section lists the principal cities of Canada, the United States and Mexico. It also offers top 15 lists of mountains, rivers, islands and lakes. The Gazetteer section is a collection of facts about Canadian Provinces, US States and regions of Mexico. The pages for US states offers listings of state symbols and economic overviews. The Maps section is organized by country, then by regions and then by states/provinces. Some basic city maps are included. The index at the back of the book is unified in that places for all three countries are listed together.

The Municipal Year Book

2010-01-06T13:31:00.002-09:00

International City Managers' Association, International City Management Association, and International City/County Management Association. 1934. The municipal year book. Chicago: International City Manager's Association.

REF JS344.C5 A24
Find in a nearby library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1239357

Covers city, village, town, borough and county government statistics as long as the government entity responded to the survey. Regardless, there is a great wealth of data here: health stats, municipal/county official salary tables, police and fire department expenditures, wonderful directories not only to municipal officials BUT also each state's community affairs agency, municipal leagues, municipal management associations, international and Canadian municipal groups, county officials, AND professional, special assistance, and educational organizations serving local and state governments. The latter portion of the directory also lists all the publications produced by the organization, many directed at government agencies. Lastly, the trends and the intergovernmental chapters give up-to-date info on what local governments are doing and what is happening on a state and federal level to affect local governments.

Ethnologue

2009-12-30T13:20:00.000-09:00

Gordon, Raymond G., and Barbara F. Grimes. 2005. Ethnologue: languages of the world. Dallas, Tex: SIL International.

14th Edition: REF P 371.E833 2005
15th Edition: http://www.ethnologue.com/

Find in a nearby library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/60338097

A comprehensive list of living languages around the globe. The online edition interlinks you to all the 3-letter language codes, languages by country and complete language data. In the print version, you have to flip between sections. Generous use permissions granted for scholarly or research purposes. Excellent maps of languages by various geographical areas.

The Citizen Action Encyclopedia

2009-12-23T13:17:00.000-09:00

Halsey, Richard Sweeney. 2002. The citizen action encyclopedia: groups and movements that have changed America. Westport, Conn: Oryx Press.

REF JS 303.5.H35 2002
Find this in a nearby library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/47050043

"Includes 160 organizations that succeeded in effecting changes in the legal system, societal values, or the political landscape." Guide to Related Topics helps tie together related cases, subjects and people. Includes extensive index in the back, directory of organizations with contact information and website, and helpful bibliography. Each encyclopedia entry has references to articles, books and websites for further information on the topic.

Supreme Court Justices: A Biographical Dictionary

2009-12-16T13:15:00.000-09:00

Hall, Timothy L. 2001. Supreme Court justices: a biographical dictionary. New York: Facts on File.

REF KF 8744 .H35 2001
Find in a nearby library: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/45356926
The bulk of this book is a chronologically arranged dictionary of Supreme Court Justices. Each article contains information on the circumstances of the Justice's appointment and summaries of important cases they ruled on. In addition the book has several helpful sections: glossary of legal terms; a table of Justices including the dates nominated, confirmed/rejected, oath taken, service ended and years of service; Presidents and their appointments to the Supreme Court, Important Supreme Court Cases and the Constitution of the United States. As expected for a reference work it also contains a good bibliography and index.

ADF&G Division of Sport and Commercial Fisheries Reports

2009-12-09T13:09:00.000-09:00

http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/index.cfm

Read a description of and learn the codes for each report series found in the database at http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/dsp_ReportTypes.cfm. Review search tips at http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/dsp_help.cfm. "Basic" searches author, title, year published, abstract and keywords automatically and as a phrase search. "Advanced Search" gives you drop down options, ability to narrow to a specific report series, and option of adding Boolean strings (up to 3). Works best in Internet Explorer. "Associated File" field narrows the search to those records with a PDF attached. All searches assume a wild card or truncation once you have two characters entered and are not case sensitive. Avoid punctuation unless you want to use in search and search authors by last name first. Full text searches the entire document. Help menus are useful but a little outdated.

Conservation Directory

2009-12-02T10:52:00.000-09:00

REF S 920 .C64 2005/2006
http://www.nwf.org/conservationDirectory/

A compact guide to environmental organizations from the National Wildlife Federation, this publication lists federal, state, and provincial agencies, non-government for profit and non-profit organizations, and educational institutions. Descriptions, contact information and keywords are available for each group, as well as lists of publications produced, scope of the organization, and a general membership count, where available.

Most of the entries give direct contact information for key people in the organizations, and the educational institutions section lists what degree programs are available from the institutions. The back of the book offers organization name, personal name, keyword, and regional indexes.

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T07:37:00.000-09:00

The staff at the Alaska State Library would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our readers a safe and pleasant holiday. We are thankful for so much, including you!

We'll be open regular hours on Friday, November 27th. Stop by and say hi!

Encyclopedia of American Civil Liberties

2009-11-25T10:33:00.000-09:00

REF KF4747.5 E53 2006

Consists of three volumes containing 1423 entries on organizations, legislation, biographies, cases, and topics/themes/concepts/events. Entries are organized alphabetically and are 250 to 6000 works in length. At the end of each entry, you'll find lists of cases and statutes, references to further reading, and sometimes cross-references to other entries. Finding aids include an index at the back of each volume and alphabetical and thematic lists of entries at the front of each volume. This resource can help people gain a general understanding of our civil rights and the laws, cases, people, organizations, and events that have shaped the development of civil rights law in the United States.

Encyclopedia of Tourism

2009-11-18T10:22:00.000-09:00

REF G 155 .A1 E4295 2003

A one volume multi-disciplinary resource on tourism with over 1000 entries. The book is arranged alphabetically by topic. Bolded words in articles refer the reader to other entries. Some articles come with references and/or suggestions for further readings. Volume contains country profiles focusing on tourism sector. Generous 45 page index. All articles are signed.

Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian genealogy of Alaska

2009-11-11T13:40:00.002-09:00

http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=klea

If you don't have this link handy, you can also go to http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ and search the for a database with one of the keywords in the title. It is important to remember that although this database is affiliated with ancestry.com, we can't seem to access it through our subscription, so you may instead need to go through this open web site.

Once you get into the site, you can search or browse by name. You may notice that many entries show Living for the first name. These have minimal information. The amount of information on others varies, but can be extensive, and often includes clan and moiety as well as birth, death and marriage dates and brief stories or listings of events. This database currently has nearly 38,000 entries, and seems to be an outstanding resource for Southeast Alaska Native genealogy. It also seems to cover some non-Alaska Natives who are connected by marriage to the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people included.

Scorecard

2009-11-04T13:39:00.000-09:00

http://www.scorecard.org/

Find information about air, water, and agricultural pollution and other toxins in a specific state or community with this resource. Enter in a zip code to search by county or select a pollution topic on the left side of the page to browse by state. The “About Scorecard” link at the very bottom of the page will bring up a page listing their data sources and ownership of the site.

Legislative Information Notebook

2009-11-04T13:34:00.003-09:00

READY REF JK9531.D55

Online sources for information gathered in the print "Legislative Information Notebook":

Alaska State Legislature homepage
- Senate tab: Leadership, some Senate contacts, location and contact for each Senator, link to bill sponsorship, and a list of committees.
- House tab: Leadership, some House contacts, location and contact for each Representative, link to bill sponsorship, and a list of committees.
- Publications tab: Legislator Contact List, Legislators by District, Session Contact List (includes staff), Senate and House Seating Charts, Legislative Session Calendar, Committee and Members, and a Roster of Members (historic)
Juneau Empire's Legislative Guide 2009
Websites for the House Majority, House Minority, Senate Majority and Senate Minority
Alaska Public Office Commission's Lobbyist and Employer Summaries and Lobbyist and Employer Directories
Office of Management and Budget's Instructions to State Departments on Fiscal Notes

USGS Map Locator

2009-11-04T13:33:00.001-09:00

http://store.usgs.gov

Select Maps, then Map Locator, and scroll down to the bottom of the screen. Here, you can find and download or link to a purchase form for USGS topographic maps. Search by entering a location (use "help" to figure out how to enter search terms) or dragging your mouse along the map and marking points on the map. The points marked on the map will look like red balloons. Click on the red balloons to see what maps are available.

OAIster and ArchiveGrid

2009-11-04T13:23:00.002-09:00

These two new databases are included with our OCLC base package:

(1) OAIster – This is a union catalog of 19 million digital resources (including born digital texts, images, audiovisual files, and data sets. Access is through the FirstSearch interface (go to WorldCat, then choose OAIster in the dropdown database list);

(2) ArchiveGrid – This is a database of nearly a million descriptions of archival collections. Some UAA and Historical Library collections are included. While ArchiveGrid is not accessible through the FirstSearch interface, we can access it at http://archivegrid.org. Libraries wanting to contribute finding aids can find information athttp://archivegrid.org/web/jsp/contribute.jsp.

Access to both of these resources may be restricted. State of Alaska employees should be able to access these databases from workstations on the State network.

Data.gov

2009-11-04T13:18:00.004-09:00

http://data.gov

A new website from our friends at the Federal CIO Council, this website gives us a ceneralized location for finding datasheets on federal information. Information on each datasheet includes author, citations, originating website, publications that the data was used in, and much, much more. Download the data itself in many different formats, or look for what widgets other agencies have available.