With the Academy Awards coming up, movie-lovers may find themselves in heated debates about the merits of their favorite films. Brush up on your movie knowledge with resources from Oesterle Library. For basic facts and quick reviews of over 21,000 movies old and new, see Leonard Maltin’s movie guide in the Reference Collection. Need more details? For more thorough information about a film, including an essay-length review, box office totals, and a list of awards, try Magill’s cinema annual. Oesterle Library has volumes from 1982-2008 in the Reference Collection. For reviews online, MRQE – the Movie Review Query Engine, is a searchable website that links to “all published and available movie reviews.” Feel like watching a movie? Search CardinalCat to find videos and DVDs located in the Giere Audiovisual Center. Do a title search for your favorite film or use a “Quick Limit” to search for movies using keywords.

The Gallery at Oesterle Library currently features works by Jing Zhou, a Chinese artist and member of the art and design faculty at Monmouth University.   The exhibit titled “Ch’an Mind, Zen Mind” includes computer-generated artworks that incorporate traditional art forms such as photography, painting, printmaking and drawing.   The artist’s works will be on display until February 20th.  The exhibit is free and is open during regular library hours.

Relive the moment where now President Obama takes the oath of office at www.CNN.com/themoment. Pictures and video sent in by inauguration attendees will be fused together to create a 3-D experience using Microsoft Photosynth technology. Still want more? The C-SPAN website has posted videos featuring the events of the day, and more video of the inauguration can be found at hulu.com.  MSNBC.com’s inauguration site features video of this inauguration and past inauguration speeches with commentary. Wondering about the history of inauguration day? Icue.com, an educational website run by NBC News, provides an inaugural history mini-course via video presentations by historians and featuring footage of some of the ceremonies. The website of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies provides a thorough history of the traditions that make up inauguration day, with photos selected by the Senate Curator, as well as details from this inauguration such as the luncheon menu!  At Oesterle Library in the Reference Collection, you can pour over the Public papers of the Presidents of the United States and read inauguration speeches from past presidents. Check out our copy of Inaugural addresses of the Presidents of the United States from George Washington, 1789, to Lyndon Baines Johnson, 1965 and impress your friends with your inaugural knowledge.

Stop by the lower level of Oesterle Library on Tuesday, January 20th to watch the historic 2009 Presidential Inauguration. We will begin showing the festivities at 10:00 am.

While you’re waiting check out the official Presidential Inauguration Day 2009 website to get a taste of what all will be happening in our nation’s capitol during this historic even. Or have a look at any of these other official inauguration sites:

Presidential Inaugural Committee 

Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies

Armed Forces Inaugural Committee

United States Secret Service: 56th Presidential Inaugural

Who won the annual Frosh-Soph Pushball contest during Homecoming in 1956? When did then Senator Barack Obama speak on the North Central campus? How did John Schaefle, former Chronicle editor, class of ’16, describe the front lines of World War I? Find all the answers in the archives of the North Central Chronicle, now available online via Oesterle Library’s website!  Search the entire run of NCC’s student newspaper, from May 1873 through May 2008, by using keywords and dates.  View full page scans in PDF format and compare life on campus one hundred years ago to today. The digitization project was directed by Kim Butler, North Central’s Archivist, with the help of Sesquicentennial Coordinator Marguerite Waters.  Kim expressed, “We felt having this resource finally keyword-searchable and web-delivered would be crucial in supporting research for the upcoming 150th Anniversary of the College (2011-2012).” To access the online Chronicle, select North Central Chronicle from the “Find Articles” menu on the library homepage or link directly from the Archives’ homepage.

Oesterle Library now offers a fast and easy way to connect with Librarians to ask reference questions.  The Library’s “Chat with a Librarian” service uses Google Talk to create an interactive reference service that lets you communicate with Librarians in real-time.   This feature is designed to answer brief questions and is available in the upper right hand corner of every page of the Library’s website.  Help will be available whenever the library is open.   Simply click on “Chat with a Librarian” and enter your question.

Welcome back to all the students, faculty, and staff! We hope you all had an enjoyable and relaxing winter break.

Here at the library we’ve been busy preparing for the start of a new term.  Among some of the new things you’ll notice is the digitized version of the North Central College Chronicle dating back to 1873!  Look for more information on this exciting resource to follow!  To see some of the other exciting things we have planned for winter term take a look at the latest edition of the library’s newsletter, Ex Libris, and keep watching this blog!