Public Archives | Page 98 of 149 | Gale Blog: Library & Educator News

Show Your Furry Friend Some Love with
National Hug Your Cat Day, June 4th!

June 14, 2016June 3, 2016

Posted June 3, 2016

By Tara Blair

What a purr-fect day to show your best friend some love and affection with a big hug. June 4th marks Hug Your Cat Day, a day where cat owners everywhere can rejoice and squeeze their furry buddies until the sun goes down. But, hugging your whiskered pal is just the tip of the iceberg. At Gale, we took a deeper look into how hugging improves your mind, body, and soul.

Save your catnap for later and read what we found!

National Hug Your Cat Day, June 4th!

New Patron info added to Patron Profiles in Analytics On Demand

June 16, 2016June 1, 2016

Curious whether households in your community would read a library mailing? Individuals with a history of mail-order buying are twice as likely to respond to a promotion as someone who has never purchased by mail. Now the Analytics on Demand Patron Profiles app contains more details around households who have purchased merchandise, magazines or services by mail or have responded with contributions to charitable and nonprofit appeals.

New Buyer Data
Fifteen categories were added to the existing multi-category buyer information. This additional Mail Order Responder (MOR)-Bank data including:

Why Advocacy Matters for Public Libraries

March 26, 2018May 31, 2016

Posted on May 31, 2016

By Rhonda Sewell

Long gone is the notion of public libraries lingering in the shadows and doing little to advocate their value to their communities and promote their many offerings, programs, and activities. Advocacy and unapologetic promotion of our transformative systems is now a major priority. Such ideas hold a sacred place in our discussions surrounding public service, strategic goals, funding, construction, marketing, and digital implementation for libraries. Even the Twittersphere of endless hashtags has transitioned from reading sentiments to action items and rallying statements such as #LibrariesMatter, #LibrariesTransform, and #SaveOurLibraries.

Because doing more with less is a reality for public libraries, especially as competition for funding sources and customer demands increases, advocacy matters now more than ever. “Advocacy, the process of acting on behalf of the public library to increase public funds and ensure that it has the resources needed to be up to date, is critical to the success of libraries,” states the Public Library Association (PLA)[i].

Huddle Up Your Sports Enthusiasts

May 23, 2016May 23, 2016

Posted May 23, 2016

Join the 2016 Summer Reading Program
Are you ready for the swarm of kids eager to learn about today’s most admired sports and athletes? 2016 Summer Reading Program is upon us, and learning shouldn’t stop when classes are out for the summer. Keep your library’s school-aged users engaged and on track with fun and authoritative eBooks from Gale.

From DK and Britannica Digital Learning to ABDO Publishing and more, young learners will have better access to your sports resources with the ability to save content to Google Drive for later use.

Worldmark Global Health and Medicine Issues:
a “Comprehensive” and “Informative” Resource

June 8, 2016May 20, 2016

Posted on May 20, 2016

Searching for “very useful” information on global health and medicine issues in the modern world? Worldmark Global Health and Medicine Issues, 1st Edition addresses health and medicine topics relevant to everyone’s lives across the globe. Organized alphabetically, the encyclopedia gives readers easy access to authoritative information on various topics.

This article was published in Booklist‘s May 15, 2016 issue; by Barbara Bibel. Read what she had to say!

CONTENT With the speed of modern travel and the global connections of commerce and industry, health issues quickly become international. This new encyclopedia does an excellent job of placing health and medical problems within social, political, and economic contexts. Using primary source documents, photographs, charts, and graphs to supplement the text, the book provides a brief but comprehensive overview of 90
topics affecting world health.

a “Comprehensive” and “Informative” Resource

Stand Up for Patrons Seeking Cancer Information

May 17, 2016May 16, 2016

Posted on May 16, 2016

Each year, about 14 million people around the world learn they have cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. But with improved screening and treatment methods, many now survive the once-deadly diagnosis when they connect with information and health providers who can support their treatment.

Does your library have the resources cancer patients in your community and their family members need?

Treatments, therapies, care, and more

Ramona Quimby Becoming Ramona Quimby

June 8, 2016May 12, 2016

Posted on May 12, 2016

By Kelly Torpey

“…when I was a children’s librarian, that was about 1940, boys particularly asked where were the books about kids like us, and there weren’t any at that time. So when I finally told myself if I was going to write I should sit down and start writing, well, I expected to write about the maturing of a sensitive girl but I found I didn’t have anything to say on the subject, and so I thought about those boys who wanted books about kids like us….”

Data-Driven Decision Making Ideally Locates New Library Construction

June 1, 2016May 9, 2016

Posted on May 9, 2016

When Dedham Public Library realized the time had come to replace both its 19th century main library and early 20th century branch, the primary question was, where is the best place to construct a new library to meet the needs of our 21st century patrons?

A professional librarian with more than four decades of experience in public and academic libraries was called upon to help answer the question. Mary Ann Tricarico, BA, MLS, MA, DA, began researching, tabulating and analyzing information to create a strategic planning document to optimally locate the new construction. “All my career I’ve been involved in answering complex questions about communities, patron populations, borrowing patterns and usage data – all hand- calculated and hand-tabulated,” she says, noting that it’s an expensive and time- consuming activity.

A Quick Quiz for Mind and Body Health

May 18, 2016May 5, 2016

Posted on May 5, 2016

By Debra Kirby

There are only so many variations a fitness instructor can use to keep things fresh in an indoor cycling class (aka spinning class). This editorial manager by day, spinning instructor by very early morning, has found the perfect way to keep her students interested and alert — the daily quiz! Fortunately for me, through the wealth of information available in the Gale databases our team produces, I am never at a loss for material! Here are a few questions and answers I’ve used to keep my students on their toes in recent 6:00 am classes:

Q: What organization was the precursor to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)?

A: The Office of Strategic Services (OSS), established in 1942 (U.S. History In Context)

Q: What country is the native home to lemurs?

A: Madagascar, an island off the southeast coast of Africa (Science In Context)

Q: Who standardized level measurement in cooking?

A: Fannie Farmer (Biography In Context)

Q: What famous poet was known as the Belle of Amherst and what actress portrayed her in the play of the same title?

A: Emily Dickinson & Julie Harris (Artemis Literary Sources)

Do You Keep Your Library’s Business Resources Hidden?

May 23, 2018May 5, 2016

Posted on May 5, 2016

You may remember last year when we published a blog about Samantha Cole’s editorial in Fast Company magazine. Since it’s National Small Business Week, we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to make sure you’re not missing out on an opportunity to leverage the gift of free advertising. Keep reading; it’s not too late.

Cole’s article, “Who Needs Business School? The Hidden Startup Resources at your Local Library,” perfectly tells the value story of public libraries and specifically, how you support local entrepreneurs and foster economic growth. Do you ever read or hear something and think to yourself, “I couldn’t have said it better myself!”? This is one of those moments. What Cole has explained about libraries—and how she has explained it—is evidence-based and right on point.