Toronto Reference Library Blog

The Best American Science and Nature Writing

 

Interested in dipping into some science writing but not sure where to start?

 

I recommend the series The Best American Science and Nature Writing. Read the year's most shocking, fascinating and entertaining science writing from magazines such as The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Outside and Scientific American. Contributors include Jonathan Franzen, Jane Goodall and Oliver Sacks.  Here's a peek at some of my favourites from the 2010 and 2011 editions.

 

 

Dithering about Space (2010)

Tom Wolfe writes a humorous and withering essay about his disillusionment with NASA in "One Giant Leap to Nowhere." He suggests that after the moon landing, NASA floundered due to a lack of vision and  funding, and that a manned mission to Mars is NASA's true destiny. Steven Weinberg in "The Missions of Astronomy" argues against the "spectator sport of manned space flights" and feels that robots are far more effective and efficient.

Brain Tricks (2010)

These two articles about neurology are particularly fascinating. Kathleen McGowan in "Out of the Past" describes recent neurological research suggesting that memories are not permanent and can be altered. There is hope that through "editing their memories" patients suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder can find relief. In "Brain Games," John Colapinto profiles the eccentric behavioural neurologist Dr. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran who is a neuroplasticity pioneer. His work in the 1990s with patients suffering from phantom limb syndrome showed how the brain can reorganize itself and how it can be manipulated following trauma. Dr. Ramachandran is a real character and his simple experiments are  fascinating.

Cheap Gas (2011)

Sandra Steingraber's "The Whole Fracking Enchilada" is a shocking description of the process of extracting natural gas from shale. Fracking takes place in Canada, across the US, but most intensely in Appalachia. A couple of million gallons of toxic fracking liquid is pumped into the ground for each well drilled. We all enjoy low gas prices but what are the implications for North America's water table?

 Deadly Chemistry  (2011)

Deborah Blum in "The Chemist's War" describes how during prohibition the American government, in an effort to curb illicit drinking, deliberately poisoned industrial alcohols that were routinely stolen by bootleggers. At least 10 000 people died in what Charles Norris, the Chief Medical Examiner of New York City in the 1920s described as "our national experiment in extermination."

If you enjoy this series, check out The Best American Science Writing, also available at the Toronto Reference Library, Business, Science and Technology Department, 3rd floor.

Happy Holidays to all from TRL

A classic from the Song Index files on the 5th floor

Best. Present. Ever.

We've been waiting for so long, we weren't sure it would ever happen, but the new Cube Entrance to TRL is finally open, as of this morning. Check out the pre-opening pictures and movies on the TRL Facebook Page from yesterday.

                Architect's drawing                                                    TRL today

 

The glass, the light, the high ceiling lift the spirit as you enter. We still have plenty more work to do on the main floor, but even the TD Gallery is nearing completetion. We're looking forward to our first exhibit "A Passion for History: The Legacy of James Bain."

 

Collection Update - Business magazines and journals

The magazines and journals are starting to head to their new homes in the Toronto Reference Library.

As of today, titles related to Business, Science and Technology are moving from their old home in the Periodicals Department on the 4th floor to the 3rd floor.

Just ask staff at the 3rd floor or 4th floor Information Desks, right next to the elevator if you have any questions. Staff will be happy to help.

And we still have plenty of great titles for you to choose from on the 4th floor: Art, Photography, Architecture, Cinema, Theater, Literature, Languages, and more. Our thanks to everyone for their patience and understanding during this period of re-organization and re-vitalization at the Toronto Reference Library.

Getting Ready for the Grand Entrance

Could it be? Yes it's true. That scaffolding is finally down. And the last push is on to finish work on Toronto Reference Library's new entrance, before the year is over.

Inside the building, the drywall is down and daylight is visible through the Cube.
Here's a sneaky peek at what's behind that curtain inside.

 

Stay tuned, we may have a new entrance by next week!

And don't forget to check out the pdf copy of the new What's On, featuring the TRL Cube on the cover.

A Thank-you to David Young, Playwright-in-Residence

Earlier this week, David Young's residency concluded with a rare theatrical treat. Acclaimed actors RH Thomson and Julian Richings, along with workshop participant Greta Papageorgiu, stopped by to perform original works by his 26 workshop students.

The writers were tasked with spending time here at the Toronto Reference Library, observing its clientele, looking at its collections, seeing how the space is used, and then creating a work of imagination: a monologue.

Not only did the David's students get to stretch their creative muscles but they had the opportunity to hear their words spoken by seasoned performers in the space that inspired them. Our thanks to David, the actors and the writers making this Fall's Writer-in-Residence program such an overwhelming success.

Select monologues are published here on David's TPL Blog. More to come...

And here are a few short clips from that evening.
We hope you enjoy them.

 

from a monologue by Risa Klarman

 

from a monologue by Howard Biel

 

 

from a monologue by Rosamund Small

 

 

from a monologue by Johnnie Walker

 
from a monologue by Dominic Mann-Bertrand

 

These excerpts have been posted with the permission of the David Young, Playwright-in Residence, Toronto Reference Library, 2011

Service Update - Dec. 23

The new Cube Entrance will be open on Saturday, December 24th!!

The revitalization program at the Toronto Reference Library will be entering an exciting new stage with the much anticipated opening of the new entrance cube.  There is still a lot more work to be done but we are nearing the completion of the first phase of work which included the new TD Gallery and the Browsery on the main floor.   The next phase, the construction of the new Special Collections Centre on the 5^th floor has just begun.  When completed, this will include a spectacular two-storey Rotunda to bring increased accessibility to the library’s vast Special Collections.

As part of the construction, there may be some service disruptions:

The TD Gallery will not be open to the public as of November 26th as originally scheduled due to construction delays.  The exhibit "A Passion for History: The Legacy of James Bain" has been rescheduled to later in December, date to be confirmed.

For the week of December 28th:

Three ranges of books on the 2nd floor in the 900's travel and history area have been temporarily moved toward the elevator due to the construction.  Ranges are a little out of sequence, please ask staff for assistance.

As part of the move of periodicals into the subject departments, periodicals on the humanities and social science subjects have been moved to the 2nd floor from the 4th floor and periodicals in the business and science & technology area have been moved to the 3rd floor.  There are lists of these titles at the service desks.  Please ask staff for assistance. 

Some computers (28)  on the main floor remain out of service to accommodate wiring work due to construction. There are computers on the terrace and also on floors 3, 4 & 5 and the basement.

The Arthur Conan Doyle Room on the 5^th floor is temporarily closed. However, the collection is still accessible in the Baldwin Room in Special Collections on the 4^th floor.

The Music Practice Room has been moved to the 4^th floor, in Room 401 beside the washrooms.

The move of the Urban Affairs Collection from Metro Hall to the Toronto Reference Library is  complete and the books in the public area are now available.  Stack items from Urban Affairs will be fully accessible soon.  Periodicals published prior to 2009 are not currently accessible.  Many of these periodicals may be accessible in electronic format.  Please ask staff for assistance.

In the Centre for People with Disabilities, screen reading (JAWS) and Kurzweil software and the Braille printer are out of service. For assistance, call 416-393-7099.

 

Collection Update - Magazines

Yes, we're moving again.

The magazines and journals are starting to head to their new homes in the Toronto Reference Library.

First up are titles related to the Humanities and Social Sciences. Also included are "general titles" such as Maclean's plus specialized genealogy titles and a whole lot in between.

These magazines and journals are moving from their old home in the Periodicals Department on the 4th floor to the 2nd floor.

Just pop up to the 4th floor Periodicals Information Desk, right next to the elevator if you have any questions. Staff will be happy to help.

And we still have plenty of great titles for you to choose from in the Arts, Business, Science, Literature, and more.

Our thanks to everyone during this period of re-organization and re-vitalization at the Toronto Reference Library.

 

 

RH Thomson and Julian Richings bring aspiring writers' words to life

For those of you who weren't able to make it to the Toronto Reference Library last night, you missed a great evening.

Playwright David Young concluded his term as the Writer-in-Residence with a special treat for his writing workshop participants and the audience. Actors RH Thomson and Julian Richings, along with workshop participant Greta Papageorgiu, performed new pieces written especially for the night.

A quick readthrough before things get started

Workshop participants were tasked with exploring the Toronto Reference Library before creating original monologues designed to capture who one might see in the library and how the space is used.

 
RH Thomson makes use of the space and a handy prop

The result was a multi-faceted portrait of visitors to the country's largest public library. Through the writers' imaginations and the actors' voices we heard from a procrastinating teenager with a project on Norman Bethune and her book-hoarding nemesis, a proud father whose son's research on the 48th Highlanders formed the basis of a eulogy for a beloved uncle, a microfilm-admiring historian, and a pharmaceutical student struggling with a new country, long commutes and a home-sick wife.

Julian Richings performs as David Young looks on
 

Then there was the angry homeless man railing against City Hall but safe amongst the ghosts of long-dead writers in rows upon rows of books, a statistic-loving baseball fan, and a student who can't decide if 19 books on Trudeau is too much or too little. And we can't forget the biography fan, working his way through the B's.

  Margaret Henry, Greta Papageorgiu & David Young

Toronto Reference Library is grateful to have had this opportunity to host David Young, RH Thomson and Julian Richings, and this enthusiastic group of writers this Fall. Thank-you all.

We missed you last night...

 

In coming days, we'll be publishing samples of the monologues on David's Writer-in-Residence Blog.     We hope you will enjoy reading them.

Glad Tidings

The Special Collections Centre celebrates Christmases and New Years gone by, with an exhibit of seasonal ephemera.  Highlights of the display are a greeting card from 1885 and a postcard from 1919.  Here's a small taste of what is in the exhibit.

 

 

 

 

 
The Library has historical collections of Christmas and New Years' calendars,  menus, concert programmes and sermons.
 
This display of ephemera can be viewed during the month of December in Special Collections, on the 4th floor of the Toronto Reference Library.