The Division has identified the following events and observances below as of interest to either libraries, archives, museums or to Alaskans at large during the month of August.
Month long observances
Week long observances
Specific day observances
Conferences
If you’re aware of a general event or observance in July that meets our criteria, e-mail Daniel Cornwall at daniel.cornwall@alaska.gov.
Today we take a quick look at the SLED history primary sources guide Health and medicine in Alaska:
This guide consists of collections of primary source material held by Alaskan archives, libraries, and museums which relate to health and medicine in Alaska. This guide is an overview of collections containing significant amounts of material relating to health and medicine and is not meant to be comprehensive or include every collection containing material related to the topic.
A few of the collections mentioned in this resource guide include:
All of the Alaskan Primary Sources guides on SLED are supported in whole or in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act, administered by the Alaska State Library.
In response to recent information we’ve received about the functionality of some web filtering methods on satellite internet connections, we’ve updated our web filtering guide to note services we know will not work with HughesNet. Researching into router based solutions that WILL work with satellite connections are ongoing. In the meantime we suggest a computer by computer based software solution. Reviews of several programs are available from the filtering guide.
If you have a reliable filtering solution for a satellite internet connection, we really want to hear from you. We’ll need product name, pricing, and your testing method to verify that it works.
Last Saturday we held our last regular youth activity for FY 2019. Kids ages 6-12 were invited to join local geologists Sonia Nagorski and Cathy Connor on a journey into geologic time in the Cruisin’ the Fossil Coastline exhibit. Participants explored the exhibit, g0t hands-on with fossils and dinosaur bones, and used clues to recreate prehistoric animals and their habitats. Librarian Claire Imamura offered this report and photos (Photo releases on file):
A big thank you to Cathy Connor, Sonia Nagorski, Gabrielle Vance, and Ann Gifford for leading a very fun fossil activity for kids last Saturday! It was wonderful to see kids engaging with the Science on a Sphere as well as Ray’s exhibit to learn more about geologic time and to hold real fossils in their hands and explore them deeply through sketching. Thanks to Sara Lee and Christine for identifying relevant SOS datasets and the Museum Visitor Services team for managing the signups.
Caption: Presenters show images of past continents on our Science on a Sphere.
Caption: Child VERY intent on her work.
This program is partially funded by the citizens of the City and Borough of Juneau through sales tax revenues and is sponsored by the Friends of the Alaska State Library, Archives, and Museum. The activities under this program are expected to resume in September.
As part of our services to museums around the state, the Alaska State Museum makes a number of traveling exhibits available to Alaskan museums to borrow. Exhibits currently available on our Traveling Exhibits page are:
Since March we’ve been doing a presentation by presentation look at sessions done at the 2019 Alaska Library Association (AkLA) Annual Conference where presenters had posted slides and other materials. At this rate, we’re unlikely to finish our retrospective before the next conference, so we’re picking up the pace so we’ll finish by the end of July.
Today’s highlights:
The Alaska State Library Internship Project placed interns at two larger Alaska Public Libraries for eight week stints in the summer of 2019.
Katlin Younger was placed with the Anchorage Public Library. We asked to introduce herself and her work and she provided this summary:
Kaitlin is currently getting her Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In her previous career she worked as a scenic artist for theatre, painting both backdrops and theatrical scenery. Although painting is still a passion, the desire to have a daily impact on people’s lives as well as providing equitable access to information and resources has guided her into the library profession. In her extra time she works closely with the student organization Tribal Libraries, Archives and Museums (TLAM) at UW Madison which continues to bring Indigenous information into students’ education through coursework, community building, resource sharing, service learning opportunities, and partnerships with American Indian Cultural Institutions. TLAM and youth services are her primary passions moving forward as an Information Professional.
Through her internship at Anchorage Public Library Kaitlin has been learning the foundation of marketing for libraries, more specifically through social media. She works closely with the Community Relations Manager as well as the Virtual Librarian to come up with marketing plans and implementation for various programs and events. She has also been working hard on a two month project planning and producing a video that will highlight and promote what Summer Discovery can do for you. This video will be used for promotional purposes for Summer Discovery 2020.
Recently, the Alaska Zoo welcomed a pup born to Chloe, an adult female harbor seal. Due to limited facilities at the zoo, the pup will eventually be sent to another zoo.
For details and pictures of the new seal pup, visit:
Cute Alert: New arrival at the Alaska Zoo. By Tracy Sinclare. KTUU, 6/14/2019.
In a recent e-mail, the Gustavus Public Library announced their Wizarding Week will take place in late July:
If you ever dreamed of attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, now’s your chance- as an adjunct professor! Because we had so much fun at our Wizarding Evening last year, we decided that this year we would host an entire WEEK of all-ages Wizarding Summer School at the library!
Wizarding Week will take place July 28th-August 3rd.
Here’s some of the ideas we are working on so far:
- Inaugural Quidditch Team Bike Ride
- Fantasy Art Class with Professor Hocker
- Potions Class with Madam Landry and Professor Cannamore - make your own potion, and eat it too!
- Herbology Class- bring home young own magical succulent
- Charms Class- beading and other mystical crafts
- Celebration in the Great Hall: an evening devoted to witches and wizards of all ages. This event will be catered by House Elves.*
- Wand Carving and Dueling Class with Wand-Master Streveler the Gray
Do you have a special magical talent to share with the community? Would you like to lead a class on sewing your own cloak, perhaps? Know a particularly tasty recipe involving local herbs or fungi? Maybe you’d be interested in assistant-teaching one of the classes above? We want your participation!
We are currently looking for the following items to help support this magical week:
- Large feathers that can be turned into quills
- Crystals or other stones/glass that can be embedded into wands
- Silicone molds (especially spooky or magical-themed ones) for potion-making
- Glass jars or bottles for mixing potions
- Miniature clay pots for succulent starts
- Any wizard-themed decorations, prizes, etc- witch hats, cauldrons, tablecloths, etc
*We would also LOVE for someone to help our poor house elves out by baking some special treats for our Wizarding Evening! Let me know if you are up for the challenge.
If you’re having a special summer event, let us know!
Radio station KRBD recently reported on a flag history and etiquette presentation held at the Ketchikan Public Library in early July. The presentation was given by Hunter Davis, the chaplain and service officer for Ketchikan’s American Legion post James Whaley, a Boy Scout and member of the Sons of the American Legion.
For details and pictures of the presenters see Honoring the Stars and Stripes. By Maria Dudzak. KRBD, Jul 2, 2019.
For additional information and infographics on properly treating the flag of the United States, see the page The American Flag on usa.gov.
While it is unlikely you or your patrons have bought ebooks from Microsoft’s store, a recent article in Wired shows the problems of people wishing to hold on to their ebooks:
Microsoft’s Ebook apocalypse shows the dark side of DRM [Digital Rights Management]. By Brian Barrett. Wired, 6/30/2019.
From the article:
YOUR ITUNES MOVIES, your Kindle books—they’re not really yours. You don’t own them. You’ve just bought a license that allows you to access them, one that can be revoked at any time. And while a handful of incidents have brought that reality into sharp relief over the years, none has quite the punch of Microsoft disappearing every single ebook from every one of its customers.
AND
More than anything, Microsoft’s ebook rapture underscores the hidden dangers of the DRM system that underpins most digital purchases. Originally intended as an antipiracy measure, DRM now functions mostly as a way to lock customers into a given ecosystem, rather than reading or viewing or listening to their purchases wherever they want. It’s a cycle that has persisted for decades and shows no signs of abating.
The bottom line here is that anyone who wants to make sure their book won’t disappear in a digital haze needs to either buy an e-book without DRM (which is often not possible), break the DRM if they can (usually illegal) or buy a print book. We love ebooks but we must point out that neither publishers nor vendors can grab a print book off your shelf, nor will a print book become unreadable because the power goes out.
Looking for a cheap and fun Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) activity for your library or museum? How about a balloon joust?
According to the Balloon Joust page of the STARnet STEM Activity Clearinghouse:
“In this hands-on STEM activity, patrons design a balloon duel and investigate thrust. Using balloons, string, straws, tape, and wooden skewers, students manipulate their resources in ways to determine what would make their balloon triumphant in a joust. Safety goggles are essential for this activity.”
If you work in a place with spreadsheets on network drives, you may have found yourself locked out from editing the spreadsheet. You may see a message like [Filename is locked for editing] by [windows user]”
At that particular moment you’re stuck, but if you ask everyone in your workplace to open Excel and go to File -> Options -> General and put their name into the “User name” field of “Personalize your copy of Microsoft Office”, the next time a file is locked, you’ll see an actual person’s name. Then you can politely ask them to close the file.
Instructions with a screenshot can be found at the Superuser.com thread, How to get Excel to show username of person that has file open?
The month of the 50th Anniversary of the first human landing on the moon is here. We recently learned that the after school community site “BOOST Café” put out a blog post outlining resources and some activities students could undertake for Moon Month. The post went up on 6/20/2019 and is titled Build Your Kids’ Moonshoot-ability”!
Since we are near the beginning of Moon Month, we wanted to share this NASA press release of Apollo at 50 celebrations. Some are online, some are in person.
NASA will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 Moon mission and look to the future of exploration on the Moon and Mars with a live, two-hour television broadcast Friday, July 19, and partner-led events taking place across the country from July 16 through July 20.
On July 16, 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins lifted off from Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a journey to the Moon and into history. Four days later, while Collins orbited the Moon in the command module, Armstrong and Aldrin landed Apollo 11’s lunar module, Eagle, on the Moon’s Sea of Tranquility, becoming the first humans to set foot on the lunar surface.
Highlights of events in which NASA is participating include:
July 16 – Apollo 11 Launch Reflection at Pad 39A
Apollo 11 astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins will reunite at the historic launch pad where Apollo 11 began its mission 50 years ago for a question-and-answer session with Kennedy Center Director Bob Cabana, beginning at 9:15 a.m. EDT, followed by a visit the Launch Control Center and Firing Room 1 to connect with Apollo-era launch controllers and those who will launch the Artemis missions that are part of America’s Moon to Mars approach for human space exploration.
This event will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
July 16 – World Record Model Rocket Launch Attempt
At 8:32 a.m. CDT – the same time as the Apollo 11 mission lifted off from Florida 50 years ago – the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, the official visitor center for NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, in Huntsville, Alabama, will host a Guinness Book of World Records attempt for most model rockets launched simultaneously from a single location.
On the same day, the Apollo 50th Global Rocket Launch, a 24-hour challenge, will be held in conjunction with partners launching around the world. Groups may register at https://rocketcenter.com/apollo50/GlobalLaunch
July 18 to 20 – Apollo 50 on the National Mall
NASA and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum are hosting the Apollo 50 Festival, a free three-day event on the National Mall in Washington, July 18-20. The event will include exhibits, speakers, demonstrations and a host of fun activities for the entire family. NASA researchers, scientists and engineers will showcase NASA’s newest technologies and innovations that will take us forward to the Moon and on to Mars. Festival hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT July 18 and 19, and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. July 20. For more information, visit https://airandspace.si.edu/events/apollo-50-festival
July 18 to 20 – Apollo A-Maze-Ment at Cherry Crest Adventure Farm in Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Throughout the summer, Cherry Crest is presenting an Apollo-themed corn maze for tourists. NASA and local and agriculture industry representatives will participate in stage talks and media interviews about the intersection of NASA technology, farming in America, and our everyday lives on Earth – demonstrating the return on investment of tax dollars. There will be talks by NASA’s Chief Technologist Douglas Terrier, astronaut Alvin Drew, and Technology Transfer Program Executive Dan Lockney. For more information, visit https://www.cherrycrestfarm.com/corn-maize
July 19 – Dedication of U.S. Postal Service’s 1969 Moon Landing Stamp
The U.S. Postal Service will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 and humanity’s first steps on the Moon with two Forever stamps. It will dedicate the stamps in a ceremony at 11 a.m. EDT at the Apollo/Saturn V Center of the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. The ceremony is open to the public with paid admission. For more information, visit https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2019/0610ma-first-moon-landing-stamps.htm
July 19 – NASA’s Giant Leaps: Past and Future
On July 19, NASA’s Giant Leaps: Past and Future will air 1 to 3 p.m. EDT on NASA TV and the agency’s website, and will be simulcast on the Discovery Science Channel. Hosted from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center, the show will salute the heroes of Apollo and discuss the agency’s future plans, with segments at:
- The National Mall in Washington
- NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, including the newly restored Apollo Mission Control Operations Room and Space Center Houston, Johnson’s official visitors center
- The U.S. Space & Rocket Center near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama
- Neil Armstrong’s hometown of Wapakoneta, Ohio
- The Apollo 11 command module on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle
The show also will feature slices of Americana at other anniversary celebrations around the country.
At 3 p.m., NASA TV will air a special program, STEM Forward to the Moon, which will feature kids participating in Moon landing simulations at four partner museums across the nation:
- Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, Kansas
- Saint Louis Science Center in St. Louis
- Columbia Memorial Space Center in Downey, California
- Arizona Science Center in Phoenix
NASA also will bring Apollo 50th anniversary participants together to take part in a virtual engineering design challenge on social media. Along with each of its museum partners, NASA invites the public to help build a component of NASA’s return to the Moon using simple household materials. For more information, visit https://spacestem.nasa.gov/
July 19 – NASA at Nasdaq Closing Bell
NASA’s Chief Financial Officer Jeff DeWit and astronaut Jeanette Epps will represent the agency during the Nasdaq Stock Market closing bell ceremony in New York City.
Ongoing – Restored Apollo Mission Control Center
In celebration of the golden anniversary of the first landing, the Apollo Mission Control Center at Johnson has been restored to appear as it did in that era, ready to begin its new life as a source of learning and inspiration. Visitors to NASA can experience the restored control room as part of regular tours provided by Space Center Houston.
July 19 to 21 – Summer Moon Festival in Wapakoneta, Ohio
NASA and the Armstrong Air & Space Museum, built to honor Wapakoneta’s own Neil Armstrong and other Ohioans in space exploration, will mark the anniversary with festivities including a 5k and 10k Run to the Moon with NASA astronauts, space inflatables, interactive STEM activities, rocket launches, and more. Activities on the museum grounds run July 19 to 21 and coincide with the 10-day, city-wide Summer Moon Festival, which includes a family-oriented street fair July 17-20 in downtown Wapakoneta. For more information, visit https://armstrongmuseum.org
July 20: National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) Pops presents Apollo 11: A Fiftieth Anniversary
NASA is collaborating with the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington and the National Symphony on a musical and visual tribute to the 1969 Moon landing. The concert, which begins at 9 p.m. EDT, will be hosted by Meredith Vieira and Adam Savage and feature appearances by singer-songwriter and producer Pharrell Williams, singer-songwriter Natasha Bedingfield, composer Michael Giacchino, actor LeVar Burton, and more. For more information, visit http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/event/NTPPH
July 20: NASA Night at Discovery Green
From 6 to 10 p.m. CDT, Downtown Houston’s Discovery Green will host a free public screening of the movie Apollo 11. The U.S. Army Golden Knights jumpers will land before the screening, in addition to a special appearance from Spacey Casey. The event will feature an appearance by NASA astronaut Steve Bowen. Find more information at https://www.discoverygreen.com/moonlanding
For more information about NASA’s Apollo 11 mission and a list of other events taking place across the country, visit https://www.nasa.gov/specials/apollo50th/
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