Category: Book of the Day

Some very short introductions: the series!

Sometimes, you just need a jumping point.  Enter a new series acquired, A Very Short Introduction.  If you’re ever in need of a good place to start, these small books probably have you covered. From 18th Century Britain, to Ghandi, to WWI, to Ronald Reagan.

Currently, if you’d like to check out the entire series, it’s on the Second Floor on the New Item display case, across from the checkout desk. In a few weeks, they’ll all be shelved according to appropriate subject, in call number order, with the general collection.

All of the new items are also coming across our New Item RSS feed, updated every day there’s new material added. Or, search our catalog for “A Very Short Introduction” in quotes.

Let’s build some iPad web apps

 

We have a fairly sizable group of people taking classes based around web development, interactive media, computer science… but I’m sure there are plenty of people who are hobbyists as well. With that in mind, here’s a how-to book, Beginning iPhone and iPad Web Apps : Scripting with HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript. This is a book for those looking to make sites that look good and flow well on Apple devices, but not necessarily building App Store apps. By taking advantage of the latest versions of HTML and CSS, web developers can actually make some slick design choices to build sites that use your mobile browser to recreate the way a lot of apps feel.  This is a good book for anyone running a website that wants a solid mobile version of their site, for design students, or for anyone with an interest in interactive and mobile media.

Stay positive with these technology-related doomsday scenarios

In another optimistic entry to the Billington Library Book of the Day catalog, The Technology Trap, examines how super-powerful technology, combined with the unreliable human factor, can wipe out civilization.

Complete with helpful tables to tell readers all about who has (or used to have) nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and histories of accidents and terrorism, this is a pretty bleak book. Not only does it discuss the unreliability to a world covered with nuclear weapon silos prone to mechanical failings, but it also takes the time to examine human factors (depression, discontent, incompetence, etc.) to show how the two make an awful combination for our planet’s safety.

So by all means, check out what the author, Lloyd J. Dumas, thinks about the state of the world, maybe do additional research, and see if you agree.

Don’t let your clone get you!!

Today’s book takes a peak into the future of biotechnology, and aims to prepare us all for dealing with the possibilities of cloning. How to Defeat Your Clone by real-life scientists, Kyle Kurpinski and Terry D. Johnson, takes you on a hypothetical journey through a future where cloning things could become the norm.

It may primarily be a humor book, but the authors don’t deviate beyond the possibilities of science, aiming to make sure readers understand what may or may not be possible. And in the end, it’s best to always be prepared, right?

The Internet melts your brain in today’s book

If you hear someone talk about being too connected on the web, you’re likely to expect a thesis on the dangers of Twitter or why Facebook is going to ruin us all. Not so, in today’s Book of the Day, OVERconnected: The Promise and Threat of the Internet by William H. Davidow. Instead of looking at oversharing personal information, Davidow points out larger issues like financial failings, natural disaster, and other events have become larger in how people feel their impact and how professionals react. Remember that Icelandic volcano that erupted last year? Would you have without the Internet constantly reminding you?

It’s an interesting look at how the connections we’re forced to have because of the Internet overload us into not only acting quick, but also perhaps has us sacrificing some caution. This book is good for those interested in social and interactive media, history, science, economics, and sociology.

Inequality Enforced by the Post-Civil War Supreme Court

After the Civil War, the Supreme Court of the United States could have really worked to ensure equal rights for US citizens. Instead, they took things like the Civil Rights Act of 1875 (which garanteed fair treatment in establishments regardless of race, among other things) and declared it unconstitutional. Their interpretations of laws are argued to have set up years of oppression in today’s Book of the Day, Inherently Unequal: The Betrayal of Equal Rights by the Supreme Court. This historical account by author Lawrence Gladstone examines the effects of these early decisions and how they defined policy and its enforcement for years to come.

It’s an embarrassing time for the United States, but an important one to know about. Getting Gladstone’s perspective should be of interest to those interested in US history, law, human rights, civil rights, or politics and government.

Physicists at War

 

Author Jim Baggot explores the creation of the atomic bomb in today’s Book of the Day, The First War of Physics: The Secret History of the Atomic Bomb, 1939-1949. Instead of looking at how it was done or the wartime events leading up to it, the author is much more curious about how some of the smartest scientists in the world were pulled into working on a tool for destruction.  Looking at the discovery of nuclear fission and the quest for knowledge, readers will see the difficult journey that these physicists were pulled into projects that would eventually lead to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Know your rights

Today’s book, Search and Seizure Handbook by David M. Waksman, is billed as a valuable resource for future police officers. Heck, even the Supreme Court recommends it for all future law enforcers.  But really, knowing what the police can and cannot do is just as important for every citizen. Now in its 3rd edition, this collection of legal information, sample warrants and consent forms, and stories of law enforcement interactions is important information for you and the 4th Amendment.

Great speeches of the civil rights movement and beyond

It would appear that most people don’t want to go outside, with the way everybody’s treating snow like it’s one of Oprah’s Favorite Things. So if you stay in, I recommend grabbing a book.

Like this one! Triumph, inspiration, struggle, a true appreciation for hardship and an understanding of America’s past and present: Say it Loud! compiles the greatest speeches of the Civil Rights Movement and African American identity. It’s a great resource, tracing the struggles of the 50s and 60s all the way to President Obama’s inauguration speech. While having a collection of speeches is helpful for things like history classes and assignments, it’s an important part of American history and identity that everyone should stay familiar with.

A thorough challenge to your school’s progress

You ever think that someone’s been arguing for the same change so long that they’ve been left behind?  Today’s book argues that both sides can end up hurting school progress by getting hung up on certain ideas, regardless of whether or not they’re more traditional or progressive. In Same Things Over and Over by Frederick Hess, the author shows how debates rage on about hot topic issues like bilingual eductation or vouchers, many aspects considered standard in education are often overlooked (like defining grades by age, for example).

It’s an interesting book for both students, educators, future educators, or current and future parents.