Monday, February 23, 2015

I researched obesity in Proquest, and was amazed at the number and variety of articles I found.  It was so interesting because there were articles from many other countries, as well as from the United States.  It seems they are all in agreement about the cause of obesity, and I did find it interesting that economic and racial trends are, in part, thought to be a cause.  In my mind, it really boils down to poor eating habits and inactivity, regardless of age.  My eyes have been opened through this research project.  

In the publication portion of Proquest, I first researched investments, and finally 401(k) investments.  What a vast array of  information on investments to make, why one should be investing, and many mistakes to avoid.  I was aware of the basics about investing in a retirement plan, but was never very clear in my understanding about the differences.  I will be talking to my investment coordinator to make certain that we are investing in the right areas, and making the most of our investments, so when we reach retirement age, we will be able to retire!

I also did research in the publication section of Proquest, on librarians.  Though only one entry was provided, I widened my search to "books" and could have spent all day researching the many publications regarding books.  There are publications about books for all ages.

Living in an ag-based community, I did some research on publications on agriculture, and once again am amazed at the number and variety of things I found.  I enjoyed that I could widen the search or easily narrow the search.

I researched armadillo and giraffe in SIRS Discoverer and was blown away by the number of sources that are available. This is so helpful, as teachers often require more than one source, it is like a "one stop" guide.

My daughter recently returned from a trip to China, so enjoyed all the information available of foreign countries.  For her group it was a whirlwind adventure, but enjoyed mapping her route and the many places she visited.  Also enjoyed the history and population facts, as one thing she talked about was how many people live in China.  She talked at length, too, of the farming practices they saw.

Using the SIRS Issue Researcher, I searched teen suicide articles.  I found that it offered suggested topics related to suicide, along with many sources about suicide in teens.  In using a search engine for suicide in teens, there were many web sites that came up, but not knowing if the information is accurate, a bit leery of what I learned.  The SIRS site, I felt offered more reliable information and a wider variety of sources.

Civic discussion on water restrictions could be supported by researching aquifers and wells, and historic weather information.

The Learning Express Library is another fun site, and the portion I explored would be most useful for college-bound students, or non-traditional students.

The career portion of this site would be very useful for people changing careers, perhaps enabling them to find their strengths and weaknesses, or their passions.  I explored the nursing assistant portion, and found it extremely helpful for what I would need to know to apply for and be hired to perform that particular job.  I would see this being helpful even for students seeking part-time employment, so they would have a clue what is required of them as they search for employment.

The Mango language tutorial was fun, though humbling to realize how little I know about other cultures.  Even learning bueno and buena, I guess I have lived a very sheltered life.  Since a foreign language is offered in our public school, this would be a great way to boost the lessons for the students.

In helping someone with English as a second language, I think Mango languages would be very helpful.  The word is written and spoken, which would be beneficial for audible and visual learning.

I have waded through a small portion of the Chilton online library, and though I am sure it would be very useful to someone who knows their cars, I know that I drive a 2011 red toyota camry, that's about it. However, I was able to find out that at 30,000 miles required maintenance includes rotating the tires, inspecting and/or servicing the brake linings and drums and inspecting and/or servicing the brake pads.

The last technical recall/bulletin on the 2011 Toyota Camry was regarding a protective film that had been applied to the door handle to protect the paint finish during delivery and display and that it was to be removed prior to delivery to customer.

In exploring the chilton online library further, I say again, this is a gold mine if you are a car fanatic, but not extremely useful to myself.  The Chilton books in our public library do get used, and are showing wear and tear, so online will be very helpful to preserving this valuable information.

I found the World Book Foreign Language edition fascinating, though I do not speak or understand any language other than English. At our public library, we do not seem to have much call for foreign language anything, but would be sure to direct patrons to this website if asked.

I loved World Book Online for kids, I could spend hours researching so many things.  At a public library, sometimes it is hard to have a book on every famous person or historical event, etc., so this website will make doing research so much easier.  The information is clear and concise, and we all know that is what students are looking for.  With a number of students doing reports on the same item, this will help spread our resources among them more evenly.

In using the World Book Online Reference center, I found it kind of hard to navigate.  I realize there is a ton of information at my fingertips, but not sure how to use it all, or sometimes even what it would be used for?  Can you read or have the entire book read aloud to you?  Are these abridged versions?  I wonder if patrons would sit down and read a book on the computer?