Renewable Energy and Green Careers book display

Click on the image for more pictures of the book display!

By Lisa M. Rabey
Systems & Web Librarian

If you have been in the library as of late, you may have noticed that the display next to the doors leading to the second floor has changed! For the summer, the theme is renewable energy, with an emphasis on wind energy and smart grid training.

Curated by Michael Klawitter, liaison librarian to the Engineering and Energy & Construction programs, the displays illustrates a sampling of materials available at the library as well as information on the wind energy and smart grid training training programs available via GRCC Works.

All the books on the display ARE available for checkout! If you are interested in finding out more information on this or related topics, we have a wealth of materials on similar topics such as renewable energy sources, energy conservation, sustainable engineering, sustainable living and the green movement to name a few options. In addition to books and other materials that are available for checkout, we also have periodicals available on such topics as sustainable development.

As always, if you need any help with finding materials, you can always email a librarian, call the reference desk at 616.234.3868 or just stop in!

Books currently on display [Link takes you to catalog record and availability via RaiderCat]:

• Solar Energy Fundamentals and modeling techniques: atmosphere, environment, climate change and renewable energy by Zekâi Sen.
• Electricity from sunlight : an introduction to photovoltaics by Paul A. Lynn
• Career opportunities in the energy industry by Allan Taylor and James Robert Parish
• Understanding renewable energy systems by Volker Quaschning
• Fundamentals of renewable energy processes by Aldo Vieira da Rosa
• Energy for the 21st century: a comprehensive guide to conventional and alternative sources by Roy L. Nersesian
• Sustainable energy : opportunities and limitations edited by David Elliott
• America’s energy future : technology and transformation
• Alternative energy by Brian C. Black and Richard Flarend
• Introduction to wind energy systems : basics, technology and operation by Hermann-Josef Wagner & Jyotirmay Mathur
• Energy alternatives edited by Barbara Passero
• Energy in a changing climate by Martin Nicholson
• Wind power by Peter Musgrove
• Winds of change : the environmental movement and the global development of the wind energy industry by Ion Bogdan Vasi
• Green energy : sustainable electricity supply with low environmental impact by Eric Jeffs
• Introduction to wind principles by Thomas E. Kissell

Happy Bloomsday!

By Lisa M. Rabey
Systems & Web Librarian

Since 1954, James Joyce fanatics celebrate June 16th as Bloomsday. What is Bloomsday?  Bloomsday is a celebration of Joyce and specifically of his work, Ulysses, in which all the events in the novel take place in Dublin on that particular day. The day is named after the protagonist in the novel, Leopold Bloom.

Joyce is considered one of the most influential writers of the early 20th century, specifically for his stream of consciousness and avant-garde approach to writing and literature.   You could encounter Joyce via a number of English classes taught here at GRCC, whether in EN237, EN242 or in EN281/282 (Survey of British Lit,I &II).

If you’re interested in reading Ulysses, the library has the book available in paper or as an eBook. We also have all of Joyce’s works (Finnegans Wake, Dubliners, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man) available in paper and eBook forms.

Bloomsday and Joyce links:
Bloomsday Worldwide (via James Joyce Centre, Dublin)
5 Ways to Celebrate James Joyce’s Ulysses
@11ysses on Twitter (Ulysses, 140 characters at a time.)
James Joyce Centre, Dublin

Geeks at the Beach Summer Reading List

The Chronicle of Higher Education recently posted a summer reading list, Geeks at the Beach: 9 intriguing summer reads (and a video) about technology’s turning society upside down, so pick up that beach reading at GRCC’s Library & Learning Commons! Click each title for complete title and location information here at GRCC!

• Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other by Sherry Turkle
• Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers Into Collaborators by Clay Shirky
• The Future of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence on Stanford’s YouTube
• In the Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives by Steven Levy
• The Googlization of Everything (And Why We Should Worry) by Siva Vaidhyanathan
• The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires by Tim Wu (Use MeL’s “Get This For Me” for free delivery to GRCC)
• Merchants of Culture: The Publishing Business in the Twenty-First Century  (Use MeL’s “Get This For Me” for free delivery to GRCC)
• The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom by Evgeny Morozov
• Nightwork: A History of Hacks and Pranks at MIT by T.F. Peterson (Use MeL’s “Get This For Me” for free delivery to GRCC)
• The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr

-bns

Grand Rapids Festival, June 3-5, 2011

Creative Commons © by Zendra MacLeod, Seyferth & Associates

By Lisa M. Rabey
Systems & Web Librarian

Festival of the Arts, colloquially known simply as “Festival,” is marking its 42nd year this upcoming weekend. With hundreds of vendors, food and drink booths, free performances that range from musicians to artists and more, Festival marks the beginning of the summer of fun events happening downtown.

Did a particular photographer at Festival pique your interest? GRCC offers a wide range of photography classes to get you started on becoming the next Ansel Adams. In addition to classes, the library has nearly 1500 different items, from books and magazines to videos and more, that cover how-to’s, specific photographer to techniques & tips and genres.

Hear a band at Festival and want to rock out like they do? GRCC has a robust music program. In addition, the library has access to over 3500 different items that not only cover from production to history, but also different types of music and techniques, how-to’s and musician biographies.

Remember if you have any questions, you can always email or call the library’s reference desk!