Friday 28 March 2008

The "Silent Voices Festival" was a series of events to celebrate Library Ireland Week. The events were cultural representations of traditions not often in the foreground. The theme synced well with 2008 as the year of intercultural dialogue. Dr Henry Leperlier opened the event on Tuesday March 4th by a reading of the poem "Silent Voices" which has been loaded on Youtube. This was accompanied by another poem entitled Farewell to Cambridge - read in Chinese by Yiling Liu and Tie Dong Yang and then in translation by Oissine Boushell Payne.

Yiling Liu and Zhe Dong provided much entertainment by playing the classical Chinese piece "Butterfly Lovers" which is also available on Youtube..

On Wednesday 5th March and Thursday 6th March, Nuzhat Abbas - a premier Pakistani poet - sang Sufi poetry and read from her own work. Nuzhat was accompanied by her husband Mohammed and daughter Anusha. They were followed by Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill - a leading Gaelic poet and member of Aosdána - who read selections of her own work chosen specially to complement that of Nuzhat. In between the poetry, Antaine Ó Faracháin sang in the sean nos style. Antaine accompanied himself on violin and tin whistle.

A number of DVDs produced by FOMACS to depict the migrant experience were broadcast on the plasma screens in DIT Kevin Street Library throughout the Festival.

The Festival was a significant cultural event for DIT. It represented a major collaborative effort between all partners involved including DIT Library Services, DITSU, CSSA (Chinese Students and Scholars Association), FOMACS, Oifig na Gaelige and the School of Languages and demonstrates the positive outcomes possible from such partnership activities. It is hoped in future to host similar events in DIT libraries, thereby exploiting their potential as cultural spaces.

Thursday 27 March 2008

String theorists hope to classify the cosmos


Physicists' search for a theory of everything is entering territory more familiar to biologists: taxonomy. A small team of theorists is meeting in Tucson, Arizona, in April to discuss how to classify the billions upon billions of different possible universes created by string theory, which describes fundamental particles and forces as vibrating strings. Read the full article by Geoff Brumfield at http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080326/full/452392b.html

Wednesday 26 March 2008

Science calculations made easy

CalculatorEdge provides a collection of online calculators for use by scientists and engineers in the following categories: general, civil engineering, optical engineering, mechanical engineering, plastic engineering, metallurgy, electrical engineering, electronics engineering, chemical engineering, physics, ceramics, oil and gas, and structural engineering.

The site also has an online bookstore and users can subscribe to free trade magazines. http://www.calculatoredge.com/

Tuesday 18 March 2008

Committee on Publication Ethics


COPE was founded in 1997 to provide a discussion forum and advice for scientific editors. It aims to find practical ways of dealing with the issues, and to define and develop best practice in the ethics of scientific publishing. These guidelines should be useful for authors, editors, editorial board members, readers, owners of journals, and publishers. http://www.publicationethics.org.uk/guidelinesethics.org.uk/guidelines

Friday 14 March 2008

So many science articles, so little time to review them;-)

The Guardian Science Weekly section is replete with interesting features, including a podcast entitled "The Mind's Eye" and an article on a vaccine and high blood pressure.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science

And you thought it was an Irish problem only!

A thought provoking article on the dangers of underage drinking has recently been published in The Lancet. More details from the link below.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/mar/14/drugsandalcohol.health

From God's Helmet to Green Chemistry!

Click on the link below, to peruse some interesting articles on science and medicine, featured in the most recent edition of the Science Today supplement in The Irish Times.

Something delicious this way comes!


A copy of the 2nd edition of Stephen Becket's delicious sounding book, The Science of Chocolate, recently arrived in Kevin Street Library. It is shelved at 664.5. Chocoholics and Scientists take note!

Wednesday 12 March 2008

Easter Opening Hours



Kevin St Library Opening Hours for Easter :


Saturday 15th March: 10am-5pm

Monday 17th March: Closed

Tuesday 18-Wedneday 19th March: 9.30am-9.30pm

Thursday 20th March 9.30am-1pm

21st-25th March: Closed

Normal term hours apply from Wednesday 26th March:

9.30am-9.30pm Monday - Friday & 10am-5pm on Saturdays

Tuesday 11 March 2008

A recipe for food evolution

Researchers apply statistics to cookery books in different cultures.

Many people say they really enjoy food; Antonio Roque can cite a paper to prove his love for it
To read more please click on the link:
http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080307/full/news.2008.660.html

Monday 10 March 2008

Mathematicians Debate the Hole Truth


A British mathematician made headlines this week by claiming to have solved a problem that had defeated researchers for 140 years: how to make a classic formula with broad applications in physics and engineering apply to objects riddled with holes. But a team of American mathematicians say they had the key insight first, touching off a dispute about as tricky as the mathematics itself.Click the link to read ScienceNOW Daily News

Friday 7 March 2008

Bees, Species Extinction and Acid Rain!

Several articles on the threat of several species becoming extinct appeared in the latest Science Today supplement of The Irish Times. Click on the link below to read more.
http://0-www.ireland.com.ditlib.dit.ie/newspaper/sciencetoday/2008/0306/index.html

Thursday 6 March 2008

Wave power as Irish energy source


AN IRISH expert is convinced that energy derived from the waves around our coastline will be providing power to our homes within the next five years. Dr Tony Lewis, the director of UCC's Hydraulics and Maritime Research Centre has catalogued a number of Irish companies currently testing quarter-scale models of wave-energy devices in Galway Bay, all of which could potentially be developed as commercial systems. Swedish power company Vattenfall is to collaborate with one of them, Wavebob Ltd, which will hasten the day when we begin taking "free" energy from the oceans.

and also the Sustainable Energy Ireland site at http://www.sei.ie/

Energy R&D in Ireland


€200 million is be invested in energy related research and development over the next five years in Ireland.

In a report by Sustainable Energy Ireland on the benefits of energy efficiency to the Irish economy SEI found that by meeting the 2020 national energy efficiency target, the economic benefits will outweigh the costs by close to €300 million per annum.