You say Swastika, I say Swastika?

A New York Public Library is under attack because it has set up desks in the shape of a pinwheel, or is it a Nazi Swastika, or is it a left facing Swastika? Several parties are claiming that the desk resembles the Nazi Swastika and lodged a complaint. Article Link

Part of Definition of Swastika from New Catholic Encyclopedia:

The swastika, accordingly, was a symbol of good omen, a bringer of luck, prosperity, fertility, protection, and long life. It was employed also as a symbol of fire, lightning, and of the heavenly bodies and their motions. It has a prominent place in the various forms of Buddhism, and in Hinduism and Jainism.

Bush's Library? What about Eisenhower?

So the fight over whether or not to have the Bush Presidential library at Southern Methodist University ranges on....NY Times article (snap shot:) "Opponents of the project, including current and retired bishops and faculty members hostile to President Bush over the Iraq war and social issues, say church rules require that an agreement be submitted to the 290 elected delegates of the church’s South Central Jurisdiction."

But what if the past proves anything about the future - it won't matter one bit where it is. I got the chance to role through the small town in Kansas where Eisenhower's library was. Total reaction = sad. Off the thruway exits, poor signage to get there - ugly abondoned parking lots. Actual library - hidden, neglected. I couldn't even tell if it was open. Should have stopped, but didn't. It may be a wonderful place, but it lacked curb appeal and cars in the visitors lot.

Classroom configuration...

Tomorrow is my first class at Fredonia and it is 35 high school students. We have an instruction room with 21 computers....moveable tables that seat two kids a table, but only one laptop. This is math at is finest!!!!

Blankies are official!

As a geek I always loved dictionaries. The Oxford English Dictionary does monthly revisions and new words. Check out what just made it in December.

Blankie n.

The lexical innovations of children are often so short-lived or idiosyncratic that they do not gain widespread currency outside a particular family. Blankie, however, a colloquialism for "blanket" formed by adding the suffix –ie to the first syllable, has stood the test of time. Written evidence shows over 80 years of English usage of the word, especially in North America, but it probably has a longer, unrecorded history in the language of the nursery.

I want to work for Google!

So, if I didn't love my job I would definetely consider Google. I just ran into their Google Privacy channel on YouTube. Great videos.

For those looking, here is a the Google employment page http://www.google.com/intl/en/jobs/index.html

What Technology is going to HIT Higher Ed

The Horizon Report from ELI (Educause Learning Initiative) is always awesome. Key areas to watch:

• Mobile Phones
• Virtual Worlds
• Emerging forms of Publication

http://www.nmc.org/pdf/2007_Horizon_Report.pdf

Reference at Finals Time

Class will be over in about a week and the library is jammed with students finishing papers and groups working on projects. The kind of things you will handle:

• Patron prints to Legal, but we don't have legal size paper.
• How do I print a PDF?
• How do I figure out where this book was published?
• How do I cite this webpage in Chicago style?
• Do I cite all the sources I used or just the ones what I quoted directly?
• Phone calls ( I lost my hat, usb drive, etc....)