KT Lowe

KT Lowe

Separating Sense from Nonsense: McGill University’s Office for Science in Society

Separating Sense from Nonsense: McGill University’s Office for Science in Society

“Science looks like magic, until you know how it works.”  That was one of the first things Dr. Joe Schwarcz said when IU East Coordinator of Library Instruction, KT Lowe, met him last month.  Dr. Schwarcz is the director of the McGill University Office for Science and Society, one of the best fake news fighting organizations in North America.  The OSS focuses primarily on the science of the everyday, busting myths about food, sunscreen, homeopathy and other quotidian things. The room where it happens. The OSS was formally established in 1999 and receives no corporate funding.  It is a formalization of Dr. Schwarcz’s work since the 1980’s, when he would speak with the media on all things science.  He and his … Continued
Poetry from Community Christian Schools

Poetry from Community Christian Schools

For National Poetry Month, IU East Campus Library collaborated with Community Christian School for the entire month of April, to help students write their own original poetry.  On May 2nd those students, in 5th through 8th grades, delivered their poetry on campus, with rousing success. KT Lowe, who leads the program, has worked with CCS students for the past three years.  “It’s always fascinating to see what directions the students take.  Some of the work is based on video games and sports, which is pretty interesting.  There’s always poetry with a lot of humor as well.  But some of the work is also really serious, quite mature for their age,” she remarks.  “It’s always a delight to see what they … Continued
Red Wolves Write!

Red Wolves Write!

To celebrate student writing in all its forms across the curriculum, IU East hosted its second annual Student Writing Day, on April 10, 2019. With posters, presentations, infographics and more, students from English, criminal justice, nursing and other fields presented the best of their written work. Coordinated by English Assistant Professor and Writing Program Director Travis Rountree, Student Writing Day also included activities and advice.  The Writing Center was staffed and ready with schedules and knowledgeable students.  The IU East Campus Library staff offered literary games, which included ekphrastic poetry exercises and a narrative drawing game involving prompts and ingenuity.  A total of 12 poems and 21 drawings were produced, with insights on cats, books, bubbles and butterflies. Students from … Continued
Tales from the Comics Database: A Brief Look at EC Comics

Tales from the Comics Database: A Brief Look at EC Comics

“It’s a bird!  It’s a plane!  No!  It’s Superman!”  While Superman is among the very first successful comic book characters, period, and the earliest comic book superhero, many important comics came in his wake.  A market whose art and ideas were dominated by immigrants and their children, women and religious minorities, comic books were conceived by and for an audience left out of what might be termed “high culture.”  The success of Superman, and other comic titles like New Fun, All-American Comics and others, led to a thriving comic market, where up to 15 million comic books were purchased by Americans every single week by 1941. Indiana University East boasts a large digital database of comic books, the Underground and … Continued
How accurate is Hamilton?

How accurate is Hamilton?

Hamilton, the ten dollar Founding Father musical released in May 2015, is among the most successful musicals in history.  With the all-time best selling cast recording and a total gross of $463 million by January 2019, not to mention 11 Tony awards and a thoroughly lovable collection of alternative “Hamildrops,” the musical continues to remain in the popular imagination.  But one question that needs to be asked is – Just how true to its history is Hamilton? Alexander Hamilton, by John Trumbull (1806) Nobody listens to a musical for a history lesson.  While a new play by novelist Ishmael Reed asks rather pointed questions about the musical’s accuracy, it can be stated that Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of Hamilton, went … Continued