North York Central Library Blog

What's New in Our Law Collection?

What's new in our Law Collection? Everything from history to biography to civil rights to murder to environmental issues and much, much more.

 

Laughing at the gods showcases eight judges who made decisions that set new standards in law.

 

Then there are trials going back to Roman times, Horatius for killing his sister, the trial of Jesus, that of Priscillian for heresy, and other famous, ancient cases. Modern legal practices were built on those of the past. Take a look at Summoned to the Roman Courts. I think you'll find it interesting.

 

Let's move closer to modern times. Some consider the international human rights movement began after World War II, but Jenny Martinez feels the roots go back to the banning of the slave trade in the 19th century.

 

Flagrant conduct is the story of John Lawrence, arrested in Texas in 1998 for having sex with another man in the privacy of his own bedroom. The case went all the way to the Supreme Court.

 

Here are some other new books in the collection covering such topics as Sharia law, discrimination, child pornography, war crimes tribunals, and family violence.

 

                    

                                    

 

The Business of Fitness, Check out this new magazine!

                                         

                                                                      Fitness Then

    Want to know more about the fitness industry in Canada? We have a new fitness industry magazine in the Business Department at North York Central Library called Fitness Business Canada! Fitness Business Canada is the only national magazine serving fitness professionals throughout the health/fitness industry in Canada. Fitness has evolved over the years from Jane Fonda's aerobics videos, Sweatin' to the Oldies with Richard Simmons, Suzanne Somer's Thigh master to Yoga, the extreme Crossfit Kettlebell training (I've tried it - it's intense) and Zumba. Just like everything else, there are trends in the fitness world.

 

                                 
                                                                       Fitness Now

    The magazine is full of interesting articles primarily for people in the industry. The articles range in topic from sales strategies for success for fitness club owners, new fitness trends, new products and equipment from fitness industry suppliers. Whether you're in the fitness industry or just interested in what's new in the fitness world - you should take a peek at this magazine.

I looked over the March/April issue, I was interested in the article on the cover Dispelling Weight Training Myths - one myth that was dispelled was that weight training makes you inflexible - apparently not. DId you know that Olympic weightlifters are the second most flexible athletes next to gymnasts? Here's a peek at some of the other interesting articles: 

The State of the Global Fitness Industry 2012 - The Economy and weather disasters are just two factors that have affected the buy in to fitness.

Motivational Closing - Help your team members improve their closing ratios.

The Power of Group Exercise - It's a sales tool and a retention tool, and for some members its the only reason they go to the gym. Let a strong group exercise program create the fans your club needs to succeed.

One nice feature of the magazine is that each issue has a section called "FBC Trainers" which features articles for fitness trainers such as The Fitness Professional's Quick Guide to Menopause. Even if you aren't a trainer, the information could be useful for your own workouts.

To check out other Fitness Business Canada magazines, come visit the Business Department on the 4th floor at North York Central Library and as they used to say on  Participaction "keep fit and have fun!".

 

 

 

 

                          

 

 

Long Hot Summer

It probably comes as no surprise that the summer of 2012 is shaping up to be one of the hottest on record in North America.

The implications are troubling:

- Extreme heat is a leading cause of weather-related deaths. It's estimated that 50,000 people died across Europe during the extreme heat wave of 2003.

- Drought in the central U.S. and parts of Canada will lead to higher food prices in the coming months.

- Hot summers test our electrical generating capacity and aging distribution infrastructure, leading to blackouts and brownouts. Over fifty million people in Ontario and seven states lost their electricity in the blackout of August 14, 2003.

 

 

While I worry about the problems associated with the weather we're having this summer, I'm not going to dwell on them. After all, summers in Canada only last a few short months. It would be a shame not to enjoy them.

I took this photo a couple of weeks ago on beautiful Cape Breton Island. It was a hot, sunny day at the beach, but the water was a chilly 14 degrees. Even the record-setting summer of 2012 hasn't warmed up the North Atlantic!

Here are some books and DVDs to help you get the most out of summer.

For help dealing with the heat:

 

And to celebrate the best things about summer:

Hackers in the Library

On July 18^th, 2012 I had the opportunity to listen in on the American Library Association’s 12^th Annual Virtual conference. Speakers from all around the world spoke on a wide range of topics. The buzz word of the day - err, phrase - was Makers Space sometimes referred to as a hacker space; a physical space devoted to creation, knowledge sharing, collaboration and creativity. Goals that seem identical to the philosophical values of libraries.

Within a Makers Space, library patrons would get to test out new technologies with the goal of creating something new. In some existing makers spaces, like the Fab Lab in the Fayetteville Free Library, users get free access to a range of devices and technology with the end goal of learning and producing a new piece of technology. Once a project is completed, the creator takes a copy and the library holds a copy for its collection.

An arduino, proudly manufactured in Italy.

Examples of such spaces within libraries are popping up around the world.  For example, in Aarhusm, Denmark a new multi-million dollar central library is being constructed that will contain a makersspace. To the Dannes, learning to work and create together is vital to a healthy democracy.


Artist rendition of the Mediaspace in Aarhusm, Denmark.

 

While completing my masters degree at the University of Toronto, I had the opportunity to partipate in a makers space known as the crital making lab. In class we used small programmable computers - arduinos - to evaluate and explore critical themes through hands‐on work. A truly unique experience. I found the class to be a refreshing change from constant reading and writing of papers that is grad school.

So, the question remains, why are libraries changing and rebranding themselves in such ways to include things like makers spaces? Is it out of a hope to stay relevent in an increasingly digital age? Some think so, but others believe that it is the natural progression of libraries; a new way to support learning, creativity and democracy. Or as Librarian Jamie LaRue, the Director of the Castle Rock Library System, bluntly put it, "We must adapt, or die".

Library Resources

• The hacker ethic, and the spirit of the information age
• Hacker culture
• The whale and the reactor: a search for the limits in an age of high technology
  • A personal favorite of mine, not directly realted to the idea of makers spaces, takes a critical look at the morality of technology and the idea of including morality in the design process. For example, should we create nuclear weapons because we can?

External Links
Below are a few links to makersspaces, or hacker spaces, in and around Toronto. More exist, but here are just a few for reference.

• Critical Making Lab - University of Toronto
• Hackersnest - Toronto
• Centre for social innovation - Toronto

A Canadian summer tradition: pretending to rough it in the bush

Recently I left the city smog behind and headed north, to camp out for a few days. Accustomed to rubbing shoulders with hordes of others in packed subway cars and buses, it was both exhilarating (in the day) and terrifying (at night) to have the forest to ourselves. The campground was strangely underpopulated--the closest campfire was a distant glimmer through the trees. As the sun set, the surrounding trees transformed from an emerald fairy forest to twisty, ensnaring monsters of the vegetative realm. This was not urban ‘dark’, illuminated by neon signs and street lights. This was can’t see your hand in front of your face dark, call of the wild dark, primal dark. As we made our nightly trek up a dirt road to the ‘vault toilet’, one gripping a flash light, the other with a two-handed strangle hold on a hatchet, we couldn't stop thinking about the bear that had been sighted, and we trembled to see our campfire grow smaller and smaller, finally being smothered by tree trunks and darkness. Never have I understood so clearly why 19th century Canadian poet Isabella Valancy Crawford called the campfire the ‘camp-soul’. (Her poem "The canoe" follows this post.) Back at the campfire, I thought about the early settlers working hard to make a life for themselves in the back woods of Canada, like Susanna Moodie, author of the early Canadian classic, Roughing it in the bush and her sister, Catherine Parr Traill. True, we were sleeping on the ground in a tent, but were we really roughing it? I bought the wood for our campfires pre-chopped, for seven bucks, at the camp store, and there was a water faucet steps from our campsite. If we encountered a bear we could jump in the car and zoom away. I guess we were just pretending to rough it, to get a small taste of what the early settlers faced, and try to imagine what life was like for Canada’s indigenous peoples long ago. It seemed we city dwellers had nothing in common with them. But as we read tales by the light of the softly glowing embers I realized we did have something in common. It is something we have in common with all people, everywhere, throughout the ages: the love of story. There is no better setting for reading stories aloud than by a campfire. Here are a few suggestions for campfire reading for all ages, just a tiny sample of the wealth of folklore, tales and legends in the Toronto Public Library's collection, which is, dear reader, your collection. I prefer my campfire tales to be spooky or chillingly mysterious. During my foray into the woods, I took intense delight in Neil Gaiman's delicious short story collection Fragile things: short fictions and wonders. In one story, "A study in emerald", the world of the hyper-rational Sherlock Holmes meets the demented world of H. P. Lovecraft with supremely creepy results. Here are some other books to read by the campfire: The Canoe Isabella Valancey Crawford (b. c.1857–87) My masters twain made me a bed Of pine-boughs resinous, and cedar; Of moss, a soft and gentle breeder Of dreams of rest; and me they spread With furry skins, and, laughing, said,— “Now she shall lay her polished sides As queens do rest, or dainty brides, Our slender lady of the tides!” My masters twain their camp-soul lit, Streamed incense from the hissing cones; Large crimson flashes grew and whirled, Thin golden nerves of sly light curled, Round the dun camp, and rose faint zones Half-way about each grim bole knit, Like a shy child that would bedeck With its soft clasp a Brave’s red neck, Yet sees the rough shield on his breast, The awful plumes shake on his crest, And fearful drops his timid face, Nor dares complete the sweet embrace. Into the hollow hearts of brakes Yet warm from sides of does and stags, Passed to the crisp dark river flags, Sinuous, red as copper, snakes,— Sharp-headed serpents, made of light, Glided and hid themselves in night. My masters twain the slaughtered deer Hung on forked boughs, with thongs of leather. Bound were his stiff, slim feet together, His eyes like dead stars cold and drear; The wandering firelight drew near And laid its wide palm, red and anxious, On the sharp splendor of his branches; On the white foam grown hard and sere On flank and shoulder. Death, hard as breast of granite boulder, And under his lashes, Peered through his eyes at his life’s gray ashes. My masters twain sang songs that wove (As they burnished hunting blade and rifle) A golden thread with a cobweb trifle, Loud of the chase, and low of love. “O Love! art thou a silver fish, Shy of the line and shy of gaffing, Which we do follow, fierce, yet laughing, Casting at thee the light-winged wish? And at the last shall we bring thee up From the crystal darkness under the cup Of lily folden, On broad leaves golden? “O Love! art thou a silver deer? Swift thy starred feet as wing of swallow, While we with rushing arrows follow: And at the last shall we draw near, And over thy velvet neck cast thongs, Woven of roses, of stars, of songs, New chains all moulden Of rare gems olden?” They hung the slaughtered fish like swords On saplings slender; like scimitars Bright, and ruddied from new-dead wars, Blazed in the light the scaly hordes. They piled up boughs beneath the trees, Of cedar-web and green fir tassel; Low did the pointed pine tops rustle, The camp fire blushed to the tender breeze. The hounds laid dew-laps on the ground, With needles of pine sweet, soft and rusty, Dreamed of the dead stag stout and lusty; A bat by the red flames wove its round. The darkness built its wigwam walls Close round the camp, and at its curtain Pressed shapes, thin woven and uncertain, As white locks of tall waterfalls.

The Facts about Epilepsy

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, and yet - like many conditions which effect the brain - one of the least understood. It has been observed for millenia; anecdotal evidence suggests that Socrates, Julius Caesar and Dante had the condition. And the number of artists, writers and musicians who have, or are believed to have had, this disorder ( from Handel and van Gogh to Agatha Christie and Neil Young ), has led to speculation that there is a relationship between epilepsy and creativity.

You can learn more about epilepsy at 7:00 pm on Wednesday, July 18 at the North York Central Library. Leah Sultan-Khan from Epilepsy Toronto will discuss the cultural myths and misconceptions surrounding epilepsy, types of seizures and the diagnosis and management of this condition. Learn how to respond effectively when someone experiences a seizure.

For more information about epilepsy:

 

Have We Got a Deal For You! Read on.

Looking for a good read for your summer vacation?  Need some gently used magazines for your living room coffee table?  Go no further than Book Ends, the store for donated and withdrawn library materials at North York Central Libary.

Read about the history and hours of operation at Sales at Book Ends North.

In addition to novels, popular magazines, and books on a variety of topics including science, parenting and how-to-do-it, you can also find DVD's and CDs, children's books, books in French, Chinese and other languages.

Check out their Half Price Summer Sale on Friday, July 27, 2012, 10-4 pm.  

Prices range from 25 cents to 50 cents.   What a deal!  You can't beat that! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Green up your health

Whether it's organic food that's not actually organic, olive oil that has no olives in it, or honey that doesn't come from bees, every day we hear stories of food contamination and questionable practices. And yet, what our bodies need most is good, nutritious food that's won't make us sick.

But in today's toxic world, even better would be food that cures our ails. So here's a question for you... what food can help you:

• Lose weight
• Detoxify the body
• Prevent diabetes, depression and heart disease
• And to top it all off -- leave your hair silky smooth?

Give up?

Greens. Packed with protein, these leafy vegetables are chock full of the nutrients our bodies need to lead us back to health. This might also explain the rise in popularity of books, documentaries and websites about these humble vegetables.

           
                
"But what if I HATE eating vegetables?" you ask... Well, that's easy - drink them instead.

In 2007 Kristine Miles created a website devoted to healthy eating. In her new book The Green Smoothie Bible she outlines how to blend green vegetables to make a healthy drink. She discusses the benefits of blending over juicing and provides green smoothie recipes for the beginner and expert. 

                     

Most importantly, if you like your green smoothie, then tell a friend. In the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, Joe Cross goes on a 60 day juice fast to free himself from obesity and chronic disease. While travelling across America he tells everyone he meets about his new diet and offers them a glass of his juice. Most people nod politely and continue eating the way they've always done. But for Phil Staples, a 429 lb trucker, Joe's offer of a glass of juice changes his life forever.

Don't know where to start?

Kristine's hottest tip: Start slow. Begin with greens that have a milder taste like spinach. If you're not crazy about the taste of spinach, then add only 10% leafy vegetable to 90% fruit. Get used to the flavour and slowly bump up the amount of greens to 40%. Also don't stick to the same old greens. Give your body a break by switching up the leafy greans you use. 

Age is Just a Number

June was Seniors' Month at Toronto Public Library, and many programs focusing on age and aging were held in branches across the city.  Some of the  programs included  how to avoid identity theft,  how to write your memoirs, or how to invest wisely. 

The North York Central Book Club discussed the fiction title Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante. Jennifer White, an accomplished orthopaedic surgeon, is coping with dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. Told from her viewpoint, she is the prime suspect and charged with the murder of her best friend Amanda, who is found dead with four fingers of her hand cut off.

I recently turned 60, but they say it's the new 40.  There are a lot of cliches about aging:  "Old Age is not for sissies", "Age is a state of mind", or "You're only as old as you feel".

Here are a few more titles where the central characters deal with aging.

Award winner Julian Barne's relates the story of Tony in Sense of an Ending. Divorced and comfortably retired,  he suddenly receives a letter from the recently deceased mother of his first love, who has bequeathed him the diary of his school friend who committed suicide. 

Linden McIntyre follows his successful  The Bishop's Man with Why Men Lie. In 1997, Effie is a middle-aged woman working as a professor of Celtic studies, but her disappointing love life has her questioning why men lie.

Jeanne Ray writes about Clover in Calling Invisible Women. As she enters her 50's she is feeling unattractive and underappreciated as a wife and mother.  She wakes up one morning and discovers that she has actually become invisible, a condition that goes unnoticed by her family.  After answering a classified ad, Clover soon discovers a community of other middle-aged invisible women.

 

For other interesting reads, please see a list of titles from our City Librarian, Jane Pyper, from June 2012. 

 

 

Toronto Summer Music Festival Concerts at North York Central Library

 

The Toronto Summer Music Festival is back with three weeks of superb classical chamber music!  Enjoy the magic of live performance!  North York Central Library is pleased to again be one of the locations for a two-part series of free lunch-time concerts featuring the gifted Toronto Summer Music Festival Fellows!  Come and hear these young musicians put what they've learned into practice and showcase their incredible talent.

Concert #1:
Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 12:00 p.m.
AUDITORIUM

Concert #2:
Wednesday, August 1, 2012 at 12:00 p.m.
AUDITORIUM

Please call 416-395-5639
to REGISTER

 Visit NAXOS any time, the online music library available through Toronto Public Library's website, to enjoy classical jazz, world music, classical pop, rock and Chinese orchestral music.  NAXOS offers streaming access to more than one million tracks, standard and rare repertoire.