Have you noticed people wearing the paper red poppies that veterans sell each Memorial Day? This tradition can be traced back to Miss Moina Michael of Athens, Georgia. She had the inspiration on November 9, 1918 to make the red poppy (Papaver rhoeas) the symbol of remembrance for the sacrifices of fallen soldiers during World War I. Her […]
Masking tape, transparent (cellophane) tape, duct (or duck) tape… we use tape when we paint, wrap gifts, mend things, and create clothing. Yes clothing! My daughter made a dress from duck tape for her junior prom – it is quite the competition. Where did it all begin? An engineer by the name of Richard Drew […]
If you were having a dinner party and could invite any three people, who would you invite? My guest list would include Einstein, Marilyn Monroe, and Martin Gardner. If you know of Martin Gardner’s work, then you know why I would want him at my dinner party. He was a great thinker and could discuss […]
It may sound clichéd, but as a librarian, one of the best gifts you can give me is a book. For Christmas one year, I received a re-issue of Rachel Carson’s 1965 Sense of Wonder . This book is an expansion of her 1956 essay “Help Your Child to Wonder” published in the July issue […]
The 2010 calendar in my office is from The Economist. It is quite colorful and full of little tidbits of information and has, on more than one occasion, provided me with ideas for this blog. The entry on the calendar for today is “1st McDonald’s Opens, San Bernardino, California, 1940.” Those of you who may […]
In these tough economic times, many U.S. states and the Federal government have pulled together a number of great resources for their residents to use in getting career help. In an effort to help get the word out, we have begun an effort to compile websites in the areas of general resources, resume help, job […]
Our guest author today is Gulnar Nagashybayeva, Business Reference Specialist, with another “Favorite from the Fifth Floor.” May 10, 1876 was the opening date of the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia where industrial exhibits of 37 nations were displayed in over 250 pavilions for six months until its formal closure on November 10, 1876. It was […]
In observance of Mother’s Day many of us in the United States will be buying and sending flowers to the mothers in our lives. You might not know it, but this tradition of sending flowers started back in the early 1900’s before ‘Mother’s Day’ was proclaimed. The connection of flowers to Mother’s Day can partially […]
Our guest author today is Ellen Terrell, Business Reference Specialist with another in our “Favorites From the Fifth Floor” series. Quite early in my tenure here at the Library I realized that “history” in terms of business research was not 5 years or less but 50, 100, or 200+ years ago. Coming from the private […]
Today the Library of Congress is 210 years old. It was on this date in 1800 when our building name sake and President, John Adams, approved the appropriation of $5,000 for the purchase of “such books as may be necessary for the use of congress.”