holidays

holidays

Connecting with Black History

Connecting with Black History

, , Library Resources
Black History Month is a focused opportunity to be intentional about connecting with the African American experience and learning about the contributions of Black Americans throughout the centuries.  The IU East Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is hosting a Trivia and Treats Contest celebrating Black History Month on February 28, starting at noon, in the Multicultural Center (Hayes Hall, room 127).  The contest is open to all – students, faculty, staff, and community members.  Refreshments will be provided. Learning is its own reward, but for anyone interested in discovering a lot of fun and engaging facts about African American history that might even help win the contest, the library has plenty of resources to support you.  Books like Young, … Continued
Advances in Surgery

Advances in Surgery

, , Library Resources, Matt Dilworth
On December 25, 1809 surgery took a pioneering step forward.  In December of that year, forty-seven-year-old Jane Crawford of Motley Glenn, Kentucky seemed to be pregnant, although she thought she was too old to have more children.  Her stomach grew and grew – and kept growing, beyond nine months.  At the recommendation of her local doctors, she called upon a physician named Ephraim McDowell, who lived sixty miles away, in Danville.  He came – a two or three day journey by horse – and diagnosed her as having an ovarian tumor rather than a baby.  Realizing that if it were left to grow, she faced a certain, slow, and agonizing death, she asked for it to be removed, and was … Continued
Constitution Day

Constitution Day

, , Library Resources, Matt Dilworth
September 17 is Constitution Day, commemorating the day in 1787 that thirty-nine of the fifty-five delegates to the Federal Convention in a hot Philadelphia courthouse signed their great work.  Creating the Constitution for the United States, currently the oldest republic with power derived from the people, was an intricate work with very few historical precedents.  Not all of the delegates came in May of 1787 with the intention of building a new government (some hoped merely to reform the Articles of Confederation), but they came with remarkably little in the way of personal agendas or preconditions, remaining open to other arguments, in a manner almost inconceivable in today’s polarized environment.  They faced many divisions as severe as ours today, but … Continued
Celebrating Juneteenth

Celebrating Juneteenth

, , Library Resources
Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, Black Independence Day, Emancipation Day, or Jubilee Day, is a day that recognizes and celebrates the commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States and it takes place every year on June 19th. This is one of the oldest nationally celebrated commemorations on the emancipation of slaves, dating back to June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers led by Major Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas with the news that the war was over and that slavery was abolished. Even though Juneteenth has been celebrated in various ways and places across the U.S. for over a century, it wasn’t formally recognized as a federal holiday until President Biden signed Public Law 117-17, the … Continued
World Bee Day

World Bee Day

, , , Library Resources, Research
One of the most important aspects of getting food from the farm to the table is the necessity of bees to pollinate many of our crops. “Almost 90% of wild plants and 75% of leading crops depend on animal pollinations,” and bees are one of our most important pollinators (WWF-UK). In the US, bees pollinate approximately 130 different agricultural crops, including fruits, vegetables, and nuts, and add nearly 15 billion dollars in improved crop quality and yield. However, many bees are facing significant threats and extinction due to climate change, habitat loss, invasive plants, chemical pesticides, and disease and parasites. The U.S. honeybee population has declined by 60% since 1947 and the rusty patched bumblebee was the first bee to … Continued