Gale Virtual Reference Library

The Blume Library now provides access to the Gale Virtual Reference Library. Titles currently available include:

New Catholic Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia of Religion

Encyclopedia of Bioethics
Gale Encyclopedia of Science

American Women Writers
Feminism in Literature: A Gale Critical Companion
International Directory of Film and Filmmakers

Encyclopedia of World Biography
Encyclopedia of World Cultures
Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations

These fulltext reference works are now accessible 24/7 and via remote access to you wherever you and your computer are located. Articles can be emailed or printed.

All Gale Virtual Library titles can be searched at the same time or you can restrict your search to individual titles. The online format provides expanded search capabilities for difficult-to-find material.

Links to the Gale Virtual Library are available in the Blume Library's Catalog and on the library's website.

Free Access to New York Times Times Select information

The New York Times is now offering free access to the Times Select portal to students and faculty at colleges and universities in the U.S. Along with free access to the current daily paper, you will be able to access the following resources via Times Select (description from the NY Times):

The Archive
Explore The Times archive dating back to 1851. Access 100 articles per month.

Op-Ed & News Columnists
Get exclusive online access to The Times's Op-Ed columnists.

Multimedia
Go beyond the written story with the sights and sounds of video, audio, slide shows and interactive graphics.

Times Preview
Be the first to read selected articles before they are published in Sunday's Times.

News Tracker
Receive personalized e-mail alerts on the topics that you choose.

Talking Points
Learn more about the issues the editorial board has been tracking.

Times File
Save and file any article from NYTimes.com or from around the Web. Access Times File from any computer with an Internet connection.

You can sign up for free Times Select access by going to http://www.nytimes.com/gst/ts_university_email_verify.html.

Women's History Month stats and facts

March 1 begins Women's History Month. But how long has this been so? International Women's Day was first observed in 1909, but it wasn’t until 1981 that Congress established National Women’s History Week during the second week of March. In 1987, Congress expanded the week to a month.

The Census Bureau presents the following interesting stats about women and their status in the U.S.—

• As of November 1, 2006, there are 152 million females in the U.S., as opposed to 148 million males


• The median earnings of full-time women workers over the age of 16 in 2005 was
  $32,168 (77% of the earnings of male workers)


• As of 2005, 85.4% of women 25 or older had completed high school (as opposed to 84.9% of men)


• There were nearly 6.5 women-owned businesses in 2002, up 20% from 1997. These businesses generated $939 billion in 2002.


• As of September 30, 2005, there were 203,000 women serving in the military on active duty. 35,000 women were officers, and 168,000 were enlisted personnel.

And don't forget to check out the Library's Women's History Month display of favorite fictional female characters!

Become an investment guru by using Morningstar at the Blume Library

If you have an interest in investing and investment topics, you should take a look at the Blume Library’s most recent database acquisition: Morningstar.

Morningstar offers detailed information on over 20,000 stocks and mutual funds. Morningstar is famous for the quality of its mutual fund analysis. For mutual funds, you can read analysis on the fund’s performance, examine the fund’s performance over time, find out the fund’s current top five holdings, and get fund purchasing information. For stocks, the database includes detailed information such as analyst reports, ratings, prices, company financial statements, annual financial filings, and dividend and return information.

Morningstar also includes more sophisticated features. You can use the Screeners feature to build customized lists of stocks and/or mutual funds based on a variety of performance, ratings, cost, and management data. The database also offers a neat feature called the Portfolio X-Ray. With the X-Ray, you can enter investments from your own portfolio (or investments you are interested in) and get an idea of the portfolio’s strengths and weaknesses.

Morningstar is available online from the Blume Library website. Students, staff, and faculty may access the database both on-campus and off-campus.

Invest wisely…by using library resources like Morningstar.

Undergraduate Research Award

Are you entering a project in the Undergraduate Research Symposium?

Consider applying for the
First Annual Louis J. Blume Library Undergraduate Research Award

First Prize: $200
Second Prize: $100

Recognizes student researchers who demonstrate skill and originality in the application of library and other information sources in a research project

Symposium application deadline: Friday, March 2, 2007
Research Award application deadline: Friday, March 9, 2007

Candy and Flowers for Valentine's?

Planning on sending some of these traditional Valentine's Day presents to that special someone next week? Join the crowd. The Census Bureau and the Department of Agriculture offer these interesting facts about the production and sale of these treats from their datafiles:

• U.S. firms producing chocolate and cocoa products shipped $13.9 billion worth in 2004, and in 2005 the per capita consumption of candy by Americans was 25.7 pounds. There were 3,267 confectionery and nut stores in business in the U.S. in 2004.
• The wholesale value of domestically-produced cut flowers in 2005 was $397 million, with $39 million coming from the sale of roses. In 2004, there were 21, 667 florists nationwide. Surely one is conveniently located for you!

For information on other commodities, as well as all kinds of other statistics, visit the Census Bureau and the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

This Far by Faith

Spiritual and religious roots have been a major motivation in the civil rights movement and the struggle for social justice. In honor of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday, the 20th anniversary of the Martin Luther King, Jr. March in San Antonio, and in honor of February's Black History Month, the current library book display focuses on African-American religious experiences. The title, This Far by Faith, is borrowed from the title of the Public Broadcast System's series and companion book by Juan Williams and Quinton Hosford Dixie. Visit our library display to see other books related to this topic.