In Honor of Senator Robert M. Kerr

Flags will be flown at half-staff Monday to honor state Sen. Robert M. Kerr, who died Wednesday at the age of 73.

Gov. Brad Henry made the order Friday, and it includes any flag on state property. Henry said Kerr was a "consummate professional" who worked to better Oklahoma and the state Senate.
Kerr was elected to the Oklahoma State Senate in 1987. He advocated for rural Oklahoma and authored major agriculture, economic development and transportation legislation.

Funeral services for Kerr are scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday at the Altus High School Auditorium.

Content courtesy of The Oklahoman

Mozart2006! 250th Anniversary of a Musical Genius

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the most famous Austrian, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. To celebrate his musical genius throughout the year, Austria will be honoring his memory with a variety of events, ranging from festivals, operas, concerts, and museum exhibitions. Enjoy the celebration!

Campus phone problems

SWOSU is having problems receiving some phone calls. The Telecommunications Office has sent this message to employees:

"Currently, the campus is experiencing high volumes of the following phone problems:

• Incoming phone calls sometimes ring where you cannot hear the caller but the caller can hear you.
• Cingular cellphone calls from the 405 area code and other cellphone service providers from any area code hear a recording stating that 'this is not a working number'."

If you're unable to reach the library by phone, use the Ask a Librarian form to send us an email. To email a specific library employee check the employee directory for addresses.

New Displays: Future Pandemics; Also 2006 Winter Olympics

The Al Harris has two new displays this month.

The first is about Pandemics and Epidemics. One little known fact: During World War I influenza killed more of our young soldiers overseas than the battles did. For some reason 19 years olds were just as likely to die as babies and 100 year olds from that flu strain. This display shows books, videos and websites about AIDS, Cholera, and the new avian flu - H5N1. Click on the title above (New Displays) for avian flu data from the Centers for Disease Control. Yes you can also check the books out.

The second display is about the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The first Winter Olympics was held in 1924 in Charmonix with a total of 294 athletes. The 2006 Winter Olympics will host an amazing 2,500 athletes. Fact: Only 2 countries south of the equator have ever won medals at all Winter Olympics. Any quesses? Australia won gold medals in short-track speed skating and freestyle skiing at Salt Lake City in 2002. New Zealand won a silver medal in the women's slalom in the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville, France.

Inside Higher Ed :: Rate Your Students

Inside Higher Ed :: Rate Your Students: "For some professors who have had to cringe at scathing personal attacks posted by students on RateMyProfessors.com, a new blog — Rate Your Students — is providing a bit of catharsis.

RateMyProfessors.com, launched in 1999, has come to be the bane of some professors’ semesters. The public site allows students to anonymously rate instructors on categories like clarity, helpfulness, ease and even some qualities that arguably aren’t critical to learning, such as hotness.

“We love our jobs,” said “The Professor,” an associate professor at a small college in the South who started Rate Your Students anonymously in November. “But we are reacting to something we see as unfair,” he said in an interview. The Professor makes sure that neither people who submit a post to the blog nor the students they rail against are identifiable.

Several students pointed out that, ostensibly, RateMyProfessors.com, which lists over 700,000 professors, has a function: to provide information for students trying to choose courses, whereas Rate Your Students does not. The Professor, however, sees utility. “When we have the occasional moment of frustration,” he said, “to vent — that makes me a better teacher.” Judging from the posts, plenty of professors need a cyber ear to bend. The Professor said he was getting in the vicinity of 100 hits a day at first, but since a mention in a recent Village Voice article, that number has been around 3,000. The Professor said he can’t get through all the rants that are being submitted anymore, but he still hopes to get the cream of the crop on the site."

Facts on the Holiday Season

Whether you've been naughty or nice, the following information might give you pause when reflecting on the holiday season.

• Americans sent approximately 1.9 billion Christmas cards this season
• Americans spent approximately $20.8 million on Christmas trees that are located on 21,904 farms spread out across 447, 000 acres of land
• China is the leading foriegn source of artificial Christmas trees and provides $561 million in imported Christmas tree ornaments
• $3.9 billion was the total value of shipments of dolls, toys and games by manufacturers
• 20 billion letters, packages and cards are delivered by the U.S. Postal Service between Thanksgiving and Christmas

Fire Danger in Oklahoma

Tomorrow is another day of high fire danger in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Fire, and Forestry (ADAFF) has created a website with daily updates, maps, aerial information, and fire terminology to keep the public informed during this dangerous time.

Thanks to Clif Broadworth of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries for distributing the link to this website to all the Oklahoma Publications Clearinghouse Depository Libraries.

Transylvania U. Book Thieves Sentenced to Seven Years

Kentucky U.S. District Judge Jennifer Coffman sentenced four men convicted of stealing rare manuscripts from the Transylvania University Library to more than seven years in prison, the AP reported. The four, Eric Borsuk, Charles Allen II, Warren C. Lipka, and Spencer W, Reinhard, all age 20, begin their sentences January 16. On December 27, 2004, two of the suspects were alleged to have physically assaulted and restrained a special collections librarian, then fled with two others in a gray minivan. Among the volumes stolen were an 1859 first edition of Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (Click on title above for more information) and a number of sketches by John James Audubon. They later attempted to sell the books through auction house Christie's, whose staff tipped off investigators leading to the arrests.