Author Archives: mdilwort

Author Archives: mdilwort

A Murder Mystery in the Library!

A Murder Mystery in the Library!

, Friends of the Library, Matt Dilworth, Programs
Sherlock Poems here, detective extraordinaire.  Perhaps you’ve heard of me? Regardless, you’ve no doubt heard that the IU East Friends of the Library, Drama Club, and Humanities Club are hosting a murder mystery luncheon on Saturday, April 17th.  A murder has been committed in the library, and only my refined intellect is up to the challenge!  Or maybe not.  As a detective, I like to hedge my bets, and a room full of enterprising sleuths seems like just the thing to shed light on this shadowy crime! So join us at noon on the 17th, and be treated to a three-course meal and a twisting, turning plot of skullduggery and murder that even a storied detective like me might need … Continued
Real Scholarship

Real Scholarship

Matt Dilworth, Research
This is Matt here again. So, I recently had a research question I’d like to share with you.  One of our excellent faculty had found a story in a blog online.  Apparently Sarnia, a town in Canada, is experiencing an abnormal shift in birth rates – today, there are two girls born for every boy.  It started changing in 1993, and there is no evidence that it’s going to stop.  It’s a part of Canada rife with industrial pollution, and the shift is blamed on contaminants. So that alone is interesting.  But the part that impressed me was not so much the question as the questioner.  Our faculty are thoughtful people, and don’t accept as true everything they read on … Continued
Eat a Book on April 1 (Not a Joke!)

Eat a Book on April 1 (Not a Joke!)

, Contests, Matt Dilworth
Hi, this is Matt again. Do you like to eat?  Boy, I do.  Plus I also like to read.  If only there was a way to combine those joys! And yet, like a miracle, there is a way!  On April 1st (I swear this is not an April Fools’ joke) the library will hold our second annual Edible Books contest.  Joining libraries all over the world, you can create a delectable treat inspired by your favorite book.  The best entries will get prizes – including a new prize this year!  Enter on behalf of a department or student organization and you could win a whole basket full of books! Then comes the best part; eating.  All those edible books get … Continued
Library Work – Notes from the Inside

Library Work – Notes from the Inside

, Hamid Zakaeifar, Student Workers
Hello, I’m Hamid, a work study student at the library. There are a few misconceptions about library workers, and I’d like to tell you about what I do. Most of the time when I say that I work at a library, there is an assumption that I shush students and get to read all day.  This is not the case. There is always something that needs to be done in a library; the top priority is to keep the books on the shelves. There are lots of books checked out, left lying out, or even mailed by patrons every day, and those books eventually make it back to us. If you look around the library, there’s much more than books; … Continued
Jargon Junction

Jargon Junction

, Matt Dilworth, Website 2 Comments
This is Matt again. So, in case you hadn’t noticed, the library’s just launched a new web site.  And one big thing that’s changed was something that surprised me. A lot of the words I use all the time and think are obvious are instead off-putting jargon to people.  So while the old website was filled with ambiguous words like ‘databases’ and ‘reference’ and the like, words that could mean different things in different contexts, people wanted words that describe what they’re actually there to do.  Words like research. So our Aaron Hill and our other talented friends in marketing did a lot of reading and usability testing and put together a website that does just that.  Things are called … Continued