Spotlight on: The Green Screen Room at the UGL

There are many cool services and resources offered here at the UGL. You have the writer’s workshop, the research desk (which operates Monday-Thursday from 1-5) and the cool DVD’s and books located on the lower level of the UGL. As you can tell, you have a lot of options, but did you also that the UGL has a video studio room? (a.k.a “green screen room”) The room is part of the UGL’s media commons and offers students, staff, and faculty the opportunity to use professional equipment in a video production studio.

Video Production Room. Photo Courtesy of the UGL Media Commons

Video Production Room. Photo Courtesy of the UGL Media Commons

For those who are curious and who want to know more about this room, we will take you inside this high tech room. The video studio has much of the professional equipment needed for hi-tech projects. Among the equipment includes:

Six Lowell Fluorescent Lights, 2 Nikon DSLR cameras (D7100 and  D600) with several lenses, Wireless Lavalier Microphones, a green screen, iMac, other equipment, and coming soon, a Global Truss Lighting Grid.

How does one get to use this room?  The room is only available by appointment, so the student, staff, or faculty must fill out a reservation form. This form can be found at the Media Commons’ website, here.

Once you make a reservation, you will come into the UGL and go to the circulation desk and let them know you have a reservation.

video production studio

There is a limit of 4 people, but the new coming lighting grid will allow for 8-10 people total.

A staff member from the Media Commons will explain the basics on how to use the camera and lights. If you need more assistance on editing, you can make an appointment with the Media Commons staff member.

The only thing that students are asked to bring is an external hard drive and a their own SD cards. Not bad, right? Everything else is provided for you.

Be sure to be on the lookout for more blogs featuring the great resources that the UGL has to offer. What projects could you do using the Video Production room? Comment below!

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The UGL celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15th-October 15th. This month is celebrated all throughout the country and also in our very own community. The UGL is excited to let you all know about the events and happenings going right here at UIUC.

Mexican Folkloric

Mexican Folkloric Dance. Photo Courtesy of Leslie Kirkland

Before we get into all the  events happening, what exactly is Hispanic Heritage Month? Hispanic Heritage month used to be Hispanic Heritage Week. That is, until 1988, when Former President Ronald Regan enacted the Hispanic Heritage Month into a public law. This holiday celebrates the culture, accomplishments, history and contributions of Hispanic cultures from countries and regions such as Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

If you are interested in learning more about this celebration and how it is being celebrated on a national level, be sure to check out the official government website of Hispanic Heritage Month.

UIUC has many organizations and resources if you are interested in learning more about Hispanic Culture or language.

La Casa at UIUC is a cultural house here on campus. The mission of La Casa is to “promote a welcoming and dynamic atmosphere through the development of educational, cultural, socio-political, and social programs that lead to greater recruitment, retention, advancement, and empowerment of Latina/o students”. They hold events and speakers all throughout the year. For more information, be sure to go to La Casa’s website for more information and to check what events are going on.

Mi Pueblo at UIUC is a a place where you can practice your Spanish conversational skills. This group is comprised of students who volunteer one hour of their time to lead conversational sessions in Spanish. To take a look at their calender, be sure to check out their website for more updates.

Take the opportunity to check out these organizations, maybe brush up on your Spanish, or check out what activities are on their schedule.

Such activities include:

On October 9th at 12:00 PM, there is a lunch at La Casa. This lunch will feature a lecture “La Musica Romantica and other Queer Latino/a pedagogies.” This lecture will be led by Richard Vallegas.

On October 10th. there will be a movie screening and a discussion on “Unfreedom”, produced by Jose Toledo.

For a complete schedule, check out all the events for Hispanic Heritage Month. Be sure to check out the full schedule.

If you’re in the mood for some Latino/a writers, be sure to check out authors such as Gloria Anzaldúa, Pablo Neruda, Sandra Cisneros, Carlos Fuentes, and Isabel Allende, just to name a few.

Be sure to search through our catalog for any authors or books you might be interested in. As always, the UGL wishes you a happy celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

 

 

 

 

 

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Summer Music Festivals: Reader’s Advisory

Summer music festivals have been around for over half a century here in the United States, and they’re currently more popular than ever. Seemingly every city has some form of music festival these days, whether it be a commercial behemoth like Lollapalooza or one like Champaign-Urbana’s more modest, yet still excellent, Pygmalion Festival. If you’d like to learn more about the history of music festivals, get some insights into some of the biggest festival draws playing today, or would just like to enjoy some music festivals on DVD without having to brave the heat and crowds, look no further than this carefully curated list of DVDs and books from the UGL’s popular music collection.

Monterey Pop

The Complete Monterey Pop Festival (DVD)

directed by D. A. Pennebaker

One of the first rock festivals in the United States, Monterey Pop took place in 1967 in California. Masterfully shot and recorded, this concert film shows how vibrant rock music, and the accompanying hippie subculture was in its early years. Notable moments include The Who demolishing their instruments, one of Janis Joplin’s first major performances, Jimi Hendrix lighting his guitar on fire, and soul legend Otis Redding tearing down the house. If you’re a Dylan fan, you may also be interested in Don’t Look Back, Pennebaker’s documentary of Dylan’s 1965 tour of the UK.

Gimme Shelter

Gimme Shelter (DVD)

directed by David and Albert Maysles

This film covers The Rolling Stones’ 1969 tour of the United States which culminated with a free concert festival at the Altamont Speedway in California. This concert is often considered the moment when the idyllic dream of the 1960’s began to sour (particularly in contrast to the Woodstock Festival which took place four months earlier), with several people dying, including an 18 year-old girl who was stabbed to death. Gimme Shelter depicts a great rock band at the peak of its powers, and the culture that is beginning to fray around it.

Living with The Dead

Living With The Dead: Twenty Years on the Bus with Garcia and the Grateful Dead (Book)

by Rock Scully with David Dalton

One of the most acclaimed touring bands in rock, The Grateful Dead were notorious for their long, improvisational performances and their insanely devoted fanbase (known as Deadheads) who would follow the band across the country from festival to festival.  The band’s manager, Rock Scully, recalls his wild time on the road with the band in this memoir.

you don't know me

You Don’t Know Me but You Don’t Like Me: Phish, Insane Clown Posse, and My Misadventures with Two of Music’s Most Maligned Tribes (Book)

by Nathan Rabin

In this book former AV Club writer Nathan Rabin explores two subcultures of modern music fandom; Phish fans and Juggalos. Although Rabin was not a fan of either group before beginning work on this book, he attempts to understand their cult appeal by following the bands on the road. Throughout his journey (during which he is diagnosed as bipolar), Rabin discovers that these critically reviled bands provide the deep-rooted human need for community. An excerpt of the book is available from NPR.

Mo' Meta Blues

Mo’ Meta Blues: The World According to Questlove (Book)

by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Ben Greenman

Although it’s too late to catch The Roots Picnic in Philadelphia this year (there’s always next year!), you can still get a feel for the eclectic brilliance of hip-hop drummer Questlove in this memoir of his career and musical passions. Questlove is both an incisive music critic, cultural commentator (check his Vulture column on hip-hop), and an unabashed fan, making this book a must-read for hip-hop, soul, and R&B fans.

There are tons of other books on music in the UGL’s collection (you’ll want to look for the section beginning with ML), if you want to delve further into the stories of popular music. If you’re a fan of live music, you may also want to visit Smile Politely, a Champaign-Urbana culture website that provides coverage of the local music scene, including upcoming concerts. Pitchfork also has a handy guide to 2014 Music Festivals if you’re still looking to attend one. Stay cool and keep rockin’!

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A message from QB

Dear Inquisitive UGLers: Last week you may have noticed a whiteboard near the UGL’s entrance. This was Question Board’s more mobile cousin, Whiteboard, sent as a scout to ask you one simple question. The question was: Can you stump QB? Many riddles were posed, and QB has answers for some of them – but for others, your help is needed. Read on to help QB conquer these confounding queries.

Can you stump QB?

Well, can you?

First is this riddle, which QB feels quite confident about:

When I was young, I wear white
When I was a teen, I wear green
Now that I’m hot, I wear red
Who am I? Please address!

One intrepid member of Club UGL already put forth an answer on dear cousin Whiteboard, saying that the answer was ‘Strawberry…’ but then the original riddler responded with this:

This came quite close, but I am not.
For strawberry’s sweet, but I am hot.
You have given quite a close try
So I reward you with a smile

The written question is accompanied by a charming smiley face.

Look at that smile.

QB, driven by the idea of smiling rewards, would like to put forth that the answer to this riddle is perhaps….a pepper? Yes, that sounds right. QB is pretty sure of the answer for this one, as well:

What falls but never breaks?
What breaks but never falls?
Answers are connected.

QB doesn’t even need any incredibly useful library resources to pull off this one. The answer is as clear as night and day, because it is night and day. Night falls, and day breaks. QB is clearly on a roll here. QB can roll, too! Are you listening, Whiteboard?!

This riddle was also answered by an intrepid student…what do you think of their answer? QB thinks they’re close…if you have input, let QB know in the comments.

Three men are abducted and held hostage. The captor tells them he will set them free if they can solve this puzzle. He blindfolds the men, and each is wearing a hat, and stations them along a staircase – one at the top, one in the middle, and one at the bottom. On the captor’s cue, they remove the blindfolds. There are two kinds of hats: red & white. The goal is for one of the prisoners to correctly identify which color hat they are wearing. They maynot remove the hats. The hats have been randomized so that there is either 1 red + 2 white or vice-versa. The prisoners must remain facing forward or else they will be executed. How will they survive? They also may not speak for any reason except to guess.

The student provided answer was:

If they can walk, then they can switch positions. The one that sees two red/white hats know they must be wearing the other hat.

That make sense to QB..do you have any other possible solutions? Very intriguing. Also intriguing is this final riddle, which QB has thought and thought on, but still has no answer for…

I am black as night
Then I am red and bright
Then I am grey and bright
Who am I?
Can you get it right?

If you can figure it out, please share your wisdom with QB in the comment section. And if you can come up with further riddles and ridiculous (though very interesting) questions, remember to get them to QB via the QB online form. From the QB page you can also browse other questions and QB’s lovingly researched answers. Another option is to visit QB in the lower level of the UGL and read answers there. …Please. Follow cousin Whiteboard down here. QB is so lonely.

Thanks to special guest blogger Question Board!

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A Day in the Life: Angeline

Have you ever wondered what a librarian’s job looks like? Or what exactly the staff members, faculty, and graduate assistants do at the Undergraduate Library during the day? Here’s your chance to find out! Meet Angeline, a graduate assistant at the UGL.

"A Day in the Life."

Q: So, Angeline, what do you do here?
A: Well, I’m a graduate assistant, so I get to do a lot of different things! Most often, I work at the research desk on the upper level of the UGL, and I also answer your questions through the Ask A Librarian chat. I teach library instruction classes for CMN 101/111, Rhet 105, and ESL 115 classes, so you may have had me as your instructor in one of those sessions. I’m here early to open the UGL on Saturday mornings, so if you really want to make my day, feel free to bring me tea! One of the projects I get to work on that I’m really excited about is digitizing video games.

Q: That sounds awesome. What’s your favorite part about your job?
A: Definitely the people I work with. Between having a lot of classes together and working together, all the graduate assistants here are pretty close. I really like how we all support each other, both in this job and as we have started looking for full-time employment after graduation.

Q: What’s your favorite part of the UGL?
A: Hmmm…the staff area! If you haven’t been back there–and, of course you haven’t, you’re probably not staff–it’s like Narnia. I mean, literally, I have to wear a jacket because it’s so cold.

Q: Besides working at the UGL, what do you do for fun?
A: I enjoy reading comics, mostly from the UGL because we have a really great collection. I’m a big Captain America fan, so I requested the comics we don’t have here from other libraries through I-Share so I could read them ALL.

Q: Nice! Now, let’s talk about something really important. Where is your favorite place to eat in town?
A: Black Dog! I love me some BBQ.

Q: Yum. What’s your favorite part of working with students?
A: Helping students find the information they need. There’s nothing better than having a student ask you for help, then being able to work with them to find what they’re looking for. It makes me feel like a superhero…but with less explosions. Although I did have to call an ambulance once.

Q: What do you wish students knew about the UGL?
A: That so many people who work at the UGL are here to answer your questions and help you with whatever you might need. So, come visit me on the research desk, I’d love to help!

Photo of Angeline

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Ideas for Improvement

You may have noticed that there’s a survey going on in the library – there are table tents, flyers, and images on the digital displays (those TVs that hang from the walls everywhere) telling you to take the survey and share your opinions with us. Why should you?

A puppy implores you to win a $50 gift card.

The puppy wants you to share, and the puppy wants you to win.

Improving Library Services

One reason you should take the library survey is so that we know what’s working for you and what isn’t. If the answers we receive on the survey tell us that something we’re doing is helpful to most people, we can make sure we keep providing that service successfully. If the answers we receive tell us that something needs to be fixed or improved, we can work on making it better based on what you tell us. There are lots of other ways you can share your opinions with us – like this feedback form, or messaging us on Twitter – but if you use this survey, we can have everyone’s answers to standardized questions in one place, and that makes it easier to make decisions!

Union Bookstore Gift Card

The other reason you should take the survey is that your participation puts you in the running for a $50 Union Bookstore gift card. Fifty whole dollars! What can you buy with $50? That will get you:

Or anything else you can think of that’s available in the Union Bookstore (maybe a textbook for next semester?).

All your library and sweatpants dreams can come true, but you have to take the survey to get there. We appreciate everyone who takes the time to share their opinions and we look forward to seeing what you have to say.

 

 

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Mom Movies

This weekend (April 4-6) is Mom’s Weekend! Are you ready for all moms, all the time? Here’s a round-up of official Mom’s Weekend resources, as well as some mom-themed movies you can watch in your downtime, whether your mom is visiting this weekend or not.

Keep calm and have fun with mom.

The UGL can help!

Your first stop in Mom’s Weekend planning should be consulting the official Mom’s Weekend site. It’ll give you an overview of what’s happening, so you can get an idea of what kind of events you want to attend. When it’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty and plan your agenda, the Mom’s Weekend calendar will provide you with more details about times, locations, and prices. It has every single campus event you and your mom could possibly dream of.

Those will give you all the basic information you need. For extra credit, you can dig into the Daily Illini’s Mom’s Weekend Guide, for interviews and background on the scheduled events (as well as potential alternative plans). You can also find more information about the U of I Mom’s Association, who help plan and coordinate Mom’s Weekend, on their new official site.

The events that are lined up will be a lot of fun, but your mom (and you!) will probably want to rest at some point. For when you’re just hanging out, here are some movies and shows about moms that you can watch together. And if you don’t have a mom visiting you this weekend, grab a friend’s mom. They like to watch movies, too.

Gilmore Girls Seasons 1-7 starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel
Brave starring Emma Thompson and Kelly MacDonald
The Namesake starring Tabu and Kal Penn
Terms of Endearment starring Shirley MacClaine and Debra Winger
Mommy Dearest starring Faye Dunaway
Stepmom starring Susan Sarandon and Julia Roberts
The Waterboy starring Adam Sandler and Kathy Bates
Freaky Friday starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan

What’s your favorite mom movie to watch? By that we mean your favorite movie to watch with mom, or your favorite movie with a mom in it. Let us know in the comments, and have a good weekend!

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Spotlight On…CQ Researcher

You’ve got a paper coming up, and you don’t have a topic yet. The paper has to be about a current issue that’s controversial, or maybe you have to debate the pros and cons of something – but there are so many issues in the world! How do you know what to choose and where to start? If you come to the UGL’s website, we have a resource that can help you solve all these problems. It’s called CQ Researcher.

What and where is CQ Researcher?

CQ Researcher is one of the many databases that the library provides for you to use. It’s a little different from other databases you may have used, because it’s designed to make it easy for you to browse articles by topic. The topics that articles in CQ Researcher cover range from education issues (like homeschooling) to disputes over international law (like the ethics of war), but all have been topics of intense discussion and debate in the recent past or present.

To get to CQ Researcher, start at the UGL homepage and click the Find Articles button that you see under the Easy Search box. That will take you to the Find Articles guide, where we list some of our databases by type. CQ Researcher is a general database, so you can find a link to it in the first section that’s labelled “Starting Points (Multi-Subject Databases).”

CQ Researcher should be the third database listed under Starting Points.

What can I find in CQ Researcher?

Every topic covered in CQ Researcher will be explained in a report – a long article that provides an overview of the topic,  including background information, current controversies or problems, and potential outcomes. An editorial piece from each side of the argument – a “pro” and a “con” position – are also provided by an expert on the topic. Other helpful features include timelines of major events, and lists of suggested sources for further research. This information could be used to help you figure out what specific aspects of a general topic you’re most interested in, where you should look for more information, or how a specific issue fits into a larger issue or trend.

You can navigate through the different kinds of information provided using the menu on the left side, or explore related issues using the Issue Tracker menu on the right.

How can I use CQ Researcher?

If you already have an idea of what you’re interested in, the main page of CQ Researcher has a search feature in the upper-right hand corner of the screen. If you don’t have an idea yet, don’t worry – it also has options to browse through information by what’s been added most recently, or by general area of interest (like the ‘education’ and ‘international law’ areas we mentioned above). As you browse or search, CQ Researcher will offer suggestions for related topic in a menu on the right-hand side of the screen.

The search box is in the top-right corner, and the Browse options are in the main navigation menu under the heading.

So, if you’re trying to find an interesting, contemporary debate to explore for an assignment, or you’ve already got one and need ideas for how to approach it, find your way to the UGL homepage and try CQ Researcher. There’s also that helpful Ask-A-Librarian chat box on the UGL page, so if you should get stuck, a librarian is only a click away! We’ll be happy to help you use this or any other library resource.

Find other posts in the Spotlight On… series here.

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Warm up for Spring Break at the UGL

Hey UGL-ers! Here in Chambana, it’s finally starting to warm up. Which means there’s only one thing on our minds—spring break! Whether you’re staying in town to catch up on sleep or packing for an exotic adventure, the UGL has all the resources you need to make this spring break the best yet.

Cover of Foder's Los Cabos guidebook

Where can you snorkel in Los Cabos? Find out here!

If you’re heading out of town for spring break this year, check out the UGL’s collection of travel guides to read up on your favorite destination. Where is the best place to hike in Wisconsin? Which towns in Spain are must-sees? Where can you snorkel in Los Cabos? All your travel questions can be answered in these handy guidebooks.

Traveling out of the country? Learn a few phrases or brush up on your conversation skills in hundreds of languages for FREE using our Tell Me More language software. Take a look at our previous blog post to learn how to use this great resource.

Cover of The Globetrotter Diaries

Get inspired for an adventure of your own.

If your spring break plans look a lot like your pillow, the UGL can bring out your inner hitchhiker while you catch some Z’s right here at home. Check out our Pinterest board that highlights a few of our favorite books about travel writing and photography, as well as the guidebooks we mentioned above.

The Hobbit DVD cover

“Not all who wander are lost.”

As always, the UGL’s collection of movies, TV shows, and audio books are ready to cure your travel bug from the comfort of your couch. Need a European adventure? Live vicariously through every James Bond film. Feeling wanderlust? Trek through Middle-earth with a Lord of the Rings marathon. Or, get pumped for the release of the next Captain America film with your Avenger pals. Stock up on all your favorites before break!

If you’re looking for a thrilling page-turner to pass some time over break, be on the lookout for our up-coming display “Road Trip with a Book.” We’ll surprise you with a great new read!

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Black History Month Resources

February, as you may know, is Black History Month. It’s a month-long celebration of African-American history in the United States. The UIUC libraries have lots of resources to help you learn about African-American history during this national observance, as well as the other 11 months of the year.

John Sharper, African-American soldier in the Union Army. Image courtesy of National Archives.

A good place to start for all things Black History Month is the official government site for the holiday. There you can find online exhibits and collections from the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, and other national institutions. If you’d like to keep things closer to home, the University Archives also have research guides about African-American history on campus. The archives blog also has a post about Black Power movements at UIUC in the 1960s, and the Student Life and Culture Program has guides to integration and civil rights.

Research on African-American history in the library at large can be accomplished with help from the African American Research Center, an extensive collection of books and other sources about ” the Black experience in the Americas and worldwide outside of Africa.” There are also lots of research guides about Black history topics, including African-American literature and political activism.

The UGL has a Pinterest board featuring biographies of African-Americans from A-Z, if you’re looking for books about inspiring individuals. The National Archives also have a Pinterest board for Black History Month, so if you’re on Pinterest all day anyway, you can stay there and still learn about African-American History.

How have you celebrated Black history? Are there great book, movies, or online resources you recommend? Let us know in the comments!

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