"How come the dove gets to be the peace symbol? How about the pillow? It has more feathers than the dove, and it doesn't have that dangerous beak."
Jack Handey

Jack Handey (born 25 February 1949) is an American humorist. He is best known for his Deep Thoughts, a large body of surrealistic one-liner jokes, as well as his "Fuzzy Memories" and "My Big Thick Novel" shorts. Many people have the false impression that Jack Handey is not an actual person, but a character created by Saturday Night Live or a pen name used by National Lampoon.

For more of his witty quotes or rather "deep thoughts" you can either

(a)check out his official website:

(b)run down to your nearest branch library to borrow Jack Handey's books

Posted by digitalk team at 09:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Many would remember Indonesia's former president, Mr. Suharto, as the autocratic leader who dominated Indonesia for 32 years ruling the nation with iron fists.

However, many Indonesians are more likely to remember Mr. Suharto, who died on 27th Jan 2008, due to multiple organ failure, at age 86, as a stubborn strongman who blocked the development of democracy, repressed civil liberties and fostered a business culture tainted by patronage, nepotism and corruption—a toxic legacy that continues to haunt Southeast Asia’s largest country and biggest economy.

Mr. Suharto was born on June 8, 1921, in Kemusu Argamulja, Java, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). Like many Javanese, he used only his given name. After finishing high school, he joined the Dutch colonial army and graduated from its noncommissioned officers school. In 1942, when the Japanese wrested control of the colony from the Dutch, he joined the Japanese-run defense corps, where he trained to become an officer. Although he initially welcomed the occupying forces, by 1945 he was involved in the anti-Japanese rebellion. After Japan's surrender to the Allies, he fought in the guerrilla forces resisting Dutch efforts to regain control. By the time Indonesia became a republic in 1950, he had risen to the rank of lieutenant colonel. Mr. Suharto led the army in putting down an allegedly communist coup d'état attempt on Sept. 30, 1965. In the following months he directed a purge of communists and leftists, during which the army massacred more than 500,000 ethnic Chinese.

Mr. Suharto took control of the Indonesian government in 1966 under an emergency powers act. He was elected president in 1968. His modernization programs brought roads, electricity, and irrigation systems to the most remote areas of the country, and his family-planning programs drastically cut Indonesia's high birthrate. In 1975-76 his government forcibly incorporated East Timor into Indonesia. In the process some 200,000 Timorese were killed, and an equal number were tortured or imprisoned.

Cronyism and nepotism were tolerated in relatively stable economic times, but when the Asian economic crisis hit Indonesia, riots erupted on May 12,1998 throughout the country, resulting in the deaths of more than 500 people. Mr. Suharto strove to remain in power, but public opposition had grown too strong. Faced with the possibility of revolution and no longer able to count on the army to maintain order, he stepped down on May 21, 1998, leaving a legacy of modernization and economic growth tainted by corruption and brutality, bringing an end to the Suharto regime.

After calling on Mr. Suharto earlier this month, former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, a longtime acquaintance, told reporters: “Yes, there was corruption. Yes, he gave favors to his family and his friends. But there was real growth and real progress. I think the people of Indonesia are lucky.” This statement was backed up by real statistics, which clearly displays Mr. Suharto’s achievements—notably an economy that grew at an average annual rate of 6.5% from 1967 to 1997.

Unfortunately, today, Mr. Suharto is often vilified, especially by younger Indonesians—who don’t know or care that his economic policies helped create millions of jobs in the past—and by others who decry his era’s human-rights abuses and corruption.

Many fail to recognize that despite a turbulent economy, throughout the 1980s, Mr. Suharto had channeled funds to agriculture and rural development, opened up Indonesia’s oil and mining industries to foreign investment and attracted billions in loans and aid from foreign governments and the World Bank.

Cameron Hume, the U.S. ambassador in Jakarta, said Suharto was a close ally who led his country through a period of remarkable development.

“Though there may be some controversy over his legacy, President Suharto was a historic figure who left a lasting imprint on Indonesia and the region,” Hume said.

We agree that Mr.Hume could not have said any better.

1."Suharto." Britannica Book of the Year, 1999. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition.
2.Library Press Display: San Fransisco Chronicle, USA, 28 Jan 2008
3.Library Press Display: Wall Street Journal, Europe, Belgium, 28 Jan 2008
4.Library Press Display: The Australian, Australia, 29 Jan 2008
Images from OnAsia and Library Press Display

Posted by digitalk team at 10:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today, we make 5 book recommendations on all things mysterious and suspenseful. Hair-raising and nerve-wrecking thrillers that will keep you reading through the night and on the edge days after. Also, the essential elements which make any thriller novel so tantalising.

1) Whodunit

Although basically a synonym for mystery, the term whodunit is generally used to describe words such as the many "traditional" or classical mysteries of the 1920s and 1930s, which contain significant elements of the puzzle.

2) Crime Novel

From the standpoint of the criminal- hit man/woman, con artist. Often, in a crime novel, the "good guys" and the "bad guys" share equal time- YOU know whodunit- but you don't know how the story will be resolved.

3) Cozy

Think Agatha Christie. Think cats. The cozy is a mystery in which the murder, perhaps violent is committed without any significant unpleasantness to the reader. In the entertaining 1977 book, Murder Ink, Dilys Win decribed the cosy as a "small village setting, a hero(ine) with a faintly aristocratic family connections, a plethora of red herrings, and a tendency to commit homicide with sterling silver letter openers and poison imported from Paraguay".

How true.

4) Hard-Boiled

Plainly, murder taken out of the drawing room and into the streets. Realism. Chandler wrote about authors who "gave murder back to the kind of people that commit it for reason, not just to provide a corpse". Imagine: A private detective, pervaded by pessimism. The humour, if any, will be dark. Lawrence Block's Matt Scudder novels are excellent examples. This styles inevitably get made into movies, the likes of "The Big Sleep", "The Maltese Falcon", "Out of the Past" and can be categorized under the same term, noir. Like crime stories, hard-boiled stories tend to be urban.

5) Caper Novel

One of the newer forms, centered on the commission of some type of crime of scam, usually outrageous and frequently humorous. Will it succeed? Will the scoundrels get away with it? You'll be rooting for characters you wouldn't dare to root for in real life.

Blogger's Note:
Keep in mind that these definitions are shorthand labels that can be used as references for discussion. If you ask what a book is like and someone says "cosy", it gives you an idea of what to expect. Also, these styles can be mingled, so a suspense story might be cosy or a whodunit could be hardboiled.

Here come the raving book reviews:

Hear ye! Hear ye!
NLB's eBook collection is user-friendly. We picked books from the Overdrive collection. Which means you can either listen to them on your PC or download them into your MP3 or PDA for a "mobile" book experience. To read any of these stellar titles, click on eResources, then eBooks to select Overdrive. Then, browse the database for the following titles:

1)

101 Greatest Films of Mystery and Suspense
by: Otto Penzler

From America's leading mystery authority, this informative guide is packed with plot twists, cast lists, delectable bits of fun, and often scandalous trivia. The finest Hitchcockian suspense movies, the toughest gangster flicks, the wittiest Thin Man titles, the bleakest noir films, and the best of the '80s and '90s. This survey is enhanced by the extensive knowledge and sharp style of Otto Penzler, who Booklist calls "a mystery superbuff." In reviews both savvy and engaging, Penzler presents a slew of interesting facts for each and every film encouraging you to see these classic films for the first, or maybe the hundredth, time. In the entries, you'll find answers to questions that test your knowledge of mystery and suspense movies, including: What famous Surrealist painter did Hitchcock hire to design the dream sequence for Spellbound? Which film contains the now famous line, "With my brains and your looks, we could go places"? Bonus points if you can name the character who said it and the actor who played him. Where does the thrilling final chase scene in North by Northwest take place?

2)

The Body In the Library
A Miss Maple Story
by: Agatha Christie

E-book exclusive extras: Christie biographer Charles Osborne's essay on The Body in the Library; "The Marples": the complete guide to all the cases of crime literature's foremost female detective.
The very-respectable Colonel and Mrs Bantry have awakened to discover the body of a young woman in their library. She is wearing evening dress and heavy make-up, which is now smeared across her cold cheeks. But who is she? How did she get there? And what is her connection with another dead girl, whose charred remains are later discovered in an abandoned quarry? The Bantrys turn to Miss Marple to solve the mystery.

3)
Bloody Mary

A Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels Mystery, Book 2
by J. A. Konrath

Lieutenant Jack Daniels is back, and this time she has to solve one of her goriest cases ever. Someone is running around Chicago dismembering women, and the spare body parts are winding up at the local morgue. In addition to the headaches of the job, she also has to deal with her mother showing up to live with her, as well as the reappearance of her ex-husband, right when she’d thought she was making progress in a relationship with a new boyfriend. Along with her binge-eating partner Herb, who’s on a failing quest to find the perfect diet, we see Jack track down and convict one of the scariest serial killers in recent memory – but not before she becomes a target of his wrath, as well.

4)
Isaac Asimov's Chimera

An Isaac Asimov Robot Mystery
by Mark Tiedemann
Isaac Asimov

Coren Lanra is the head of security for DyNan Manuel Industries. A former Special Service agent he’s never cared for bureaucracy, piracy, or deception. And he hates mysteries. Lanra’s troubles begin with the death of Nyron Looms, daughter of DyNan president Rega Looms, during an ill-fated mission to smuggle illegal immigrants from Earth to the colony Nova Levis—all were apparently murdered, but why? The only clue might be contained within the postironic brain of a robot that had accompanied the victims, but it has been deactivated, and Lanra is denied access to its memories. To make matters even worse, he is soon confronted with a puzzling complication: a possible connection between the murders and twenty babies who were snatched from an orphanage over two decades ago. With the help of roboticist Derec Avery and Auroran ambassador Ariel Burgess— whom the security chief had aided in exposing an anti-robot conspiracy on Earth a year before—Lanra searches for answers to a twenty-five-year-old mystery . . . and for the identity of a killer, before more lives are lost.

Posted by digitalk team at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

John Gay.
Born : June 30, 1685, Barnstaple, Devon, Eng.
Died: Dec. 4, 1732, London

Some for renown, on scraps of learning dote,
And think they grow immortal as they quote.
- Edward Young, adapted from Love of Fame

English poet and dramatist, chiefly remembered as the author of The Beggar's Opera, a work distinguished by good-humoured satire and technical assurance.

A member of an ancient but impoverished Devonshire family, Gay was educated at the free grammar school in Barnstaple. He was apprenticed to a silk mercer in London but was released early from his indentures and, after a further short period in Devonshire, returned to London, where he lived most of his life. Among his early literary friends were Aaron Hill and Eustace Budgell, whom he helped in the production of The British Apollo, a question-and-answer journal of the day. Gay's journalistic interests are clearly seen in a pamphlet, The Present State of Wit (1711), a survey of contemporary periodical publications.

From 1712 to 1714 he was steward in the household of the Duchess of Monmouth, which gave him leisure and security to write. He had produced a burlesque of the Miltonic style, Wine, in 1708, and in 1713 his first important poem, Rural Sports, appeared. This is a descriptive and didactic work in two short books dealing with hunting and fishing but containing also descriptions of the countryside and meditations on the Horatian theme of retirement. In it he strikes a characteristic note of delicately absurd artificiality, while a deliberate disproportion between language and subject pays comic dividends and sets a good-humoured and sympathetic tone. His finest poem, Trivia: or, The Art of Walking the Streets of London (1716), displays an assured and precise craftsmanship in which rhythm and diction underline whatever facet of experience he is describing. A sophisticated lady crossing the street, for example:

Her shoe disdains the street: the lady fair
With narrow step affects a limping air.

The couplet does not aim to startle the reader, yet the experience is perfectly conveyed. Another couplet, on the presence of spring felt throughout the whole of creation, states:

The seasons operate on every breast:
'Tis hence that fawns are brisk,
and ladies drest.

Here the effect is at once satirical, sympathetic, and—in its correlation of the animal and human kingdoms—philosophical. It is in such delicate probing of the surface of social life that Gay excels. The Shepherd's Week (1714) is a series of mock classical poems in pastoral setting; the Fables (two series, 1727 and 1738) are brief, octosyllabic illustrations of moral themes, often satirical in tone.

Gay's poetry was much influenced by that of Alexander Pope, who was a contemporary and close friend. Gay was a member, together with Pope, Jonathan Swift, and John Arbuthnot, of the Scriblerus Club, a literary group that aimed to ridicule pedantry. These friends contributed to two of Gay's satirical plays: The What D'ye Call It (1715) and Three Hours After Marriage (1717).

Cover of the sheet music for The Beggar's Opera by John Gay, from a 1920 …
The Granger Collection, New York

His most successful play was The Beggar's Opera, produced in London on Jan. 29, 1728, by the theatre manager John Rich at Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre. It ran for 62 performances (not consecutive, but the longest run then known). A story of thieves and highwaymen, it was intended to mirror the moral degradation of society and, more particularly, to caricature the prime minister Sir Robert Walpole and his Whig administration. It also made fun of the prevailing fashion for Italian opera. The play was stageworthy, however, not so much because of its pungent satire but because of its effective situations and “singable” songs. The production of its sequel, Polly, was forbidden by the lord chamberlain (doubtless on Walpole's instructions); but the ban was an excellent advertisement for the piece, and subscriptions for copies of the printed edition made more than £1,000 profit for the author. (It was eventually produced in 1777, when it had a moderate success.) His Beggar's Opera was successfully transmitted into the 20th century by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill as Die Dreigroschenoper (1928; The Threepenny Opera).

“Honest” John Gay lost most of his money through disastrous investment in South Sea stock, but he nonetheless left £6,000 when he died. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, next to the poet Geoffrey Chaucer, and his epitaph was written by Alexander Pope.

"Gay, John." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition. 24 Jan. 2008
To explore Encyclopedia Britannica, click HERE

Posted by digitalk team at 02:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fancy listening to beats on a brand new 4 GB IPod Nano? Here's your chance to win it FREE. All you have to do is participate in our READ ALL ABOUT IT QUIZ! and GET HOOKED ON AN eBOOK QUIZ! After that, sign up for our TABLOID headline quiz where you stand to win a stunning MP3 player and a SANDISK thumbdrive. And if you emerge as overall WINNER in our 2 nd round, we're jolly enough to award you with a PSP.

Imagine the glee.

Here's a short synopsis of what the quizzes entail:

1) READ ALL ABOUT IT QUIZ!
A test of your knowledge on the NLB's eNews databases.
The winner walks away with a 4 GB Ipod Nano (Silver).

2) GET HOOKED ON AN eBOOK QUIZ
A test of your knowledge on the NLB's eBooks databases.
The winner walks away with an MP3 player AND a Sandisk storage device.

3) TABLOID HEADLINES
We'll post 3 controversial pictures and we want YOU to give us a catchy, attention-grabbing, unqiue headline to match it. The winner walks away with an MP3 Player AND a PC Game.

4) TABLOID STORY
The best TABLOID HEADLINE suggested will then be put up in ROUND 2 of the competition. We want YOU to give us a tabloid story under that headline.
The winner walks away with a Sony Playstation Portable (PSP).

Stay tuned to this blog for further updates and links to the aforementioned quizzes.

Posted by digitalk team at 09:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Heathcliff Andrew Ledger
Born April 4, 1979(1979-04-04)
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Died January 22, 2008 (aged 28)
New York City, New York, United States
Domestic partner(s) Michelle Williams (2005-07)
1 Daughter named Matilda

Yesterday, international newspapers and tabloids rang with sombre news as Heath Ledger, a promising young actor in the prime of his career was found dead in his home. As family members, fans and the acting world reel from the initial shock, investigations are underway to determine the true cause of his death.

We decided to hold a Memorium in order to honour his life and acting career.

Awards and Nominations
Ledger had several Academy Award nominations under his belt in the period 2006-2007. He was nominated the best perfoming actor in his leading role in Brokeback Mountain, Two Hands and Ned Kelly. In addition, he was a BAFTA nominee and an outstanding actor in the MTV Movie Awards scene.

Death..

On January 22, 2008, Ledger was found dead in his fourth-floor apartment at 421 Broome Street in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. Medical workers moved Ledger to the floor, used a defibrillator and CPR, and pronounced Ledger dead at 3:36 p.m.

Police said they found prescription medication in the bathroom and that there were "no obvious signs" of suicide, nor did they suspect foul play. An initial autopsy on January 23 proved inconclusive at determining Ledger's cause of death. The medical examiner's office stated it will take about 10 days to complete the investigation.

On January 23, 2008 (Australian time), Ledger's parents and sister appeared outside Ledger's mother's house in Applecross, a riverside Perth suburb, and read a short statement to the media:

We, [Heath's family], confirm the very tragic, untimely and accidental passing of our dearly loved son, brother and doting father of Matilda, who was found in a peaceful sleep in his New York apartment by his housekeeper at 3:30pm [New York Time]. We would like to thank our friends and everyone around the world for their kind wishes at this time. Heath has touched so many people on so many different levels during his short life, but few had the pleasure to truly know him. He was a down-to-earth, generous, kind-hearted, life-loving and unselfish individual who was an extreme inspiration to many. Please now respect our family's need to grieve and come to terms with our loss privately.

In reaction to his death, former partner Michelle Williams was reported as saying that she was "devastated" at the loss and had boarded a plane from Trollhättan, Sweden to New York City. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd released a statement saying, "It was with great sadness that I have learned of the passing of Heath Ledger... It is tragic that we have lost one of our nation's finest actors in the prime of his life."

Dear Readers, if you would like to view some of Ledger's finest works;

1) A Biography of Heath Ledger

Click here

2) An interview with Heath Ledger where he talks about his role as the infamous Joker.

Click here

3) Heath Ledger Movies

With partial filmography of:

The Dark Knight (2008)
I'm Not There (2007)
Candy (2006)
Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Click here

4) A Biography of Heath Ledger and an account of his roles in various movies
Watch trailers and read the New York Times movie reviews of his works.

Click here

Posted by digitalk team at 02:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

2000 miles in a 150cc three-wheeled Rickshaw must be one of the most gruelling and dangerous road trip challenges on the planet!

A lone rickshaw in the forefront of a breathtaking landscape.

Here's a brief background on the event:

The Rickshaw Run is an event that first ran in December 2006, with international teams driving 150cc, 7 bhp, Auto Rickshaws 3,750km across India from Cochin in the southern state of Kerala to Darjeeling in the Himalayan foothills. In its inaugural run, thirty-four teams started the event, and thirty-one of those finished.

Not for the faint-hearted, the rickshaw run involved a good deal of peril for the participants, with several minor road incidents occurring during the 'race'. However, this element of danger, together with the opportunity to pass through a wide variety of landscapes and cultures makes the Rickshaw Run an experience of a lifetime.

The Rickshaw Run is organised by the Adventurists, who founded the successful and now annual Mongol Rally

The Rickshaw Run route

Imagine: NO accommodation nor support provided, matched with some of the world's most accident prone roads. Last year proved a great success with over 75 people competing in 34 teams to tackle the route from Cochin in south eastern India to Darjeeling in the north west of the world's second most highly populated nation.

Competitors, who must agree to very dangerous terms prior to entry, are all trying to raise funds to alleviate poverty and help those in need. Each team is sponsored and all funds go towards Community Heath Projects, Water and Sanitation awareness and Youth Empowerment programmes, among many other fantastic projects.

Where and When...

The Rickshaw Run takes place every 6 months with a Summer and Winter edition. The route changes each time but starts from the finishing point of the previous run. Inititally the route just included India but by the second Run teams were going through Nepal

History Makers

Past Rickshaw Runs
2006/07 Winter Run (26/12/06) started in Cochin and finished in Darjeeling.
2007 Summer Run (30/06/07) started in Calcutta and finished in Manali.

Future Rickshaw Runs
2007/08 Winter Run (31/12/07) starting in Cochin and finishing in Kathmandu Nepal.
2008 Summer Run (01/06/08) starting in Kathmandu and finishing in Pondicherry.

This rickshaw run of the year is set to be a gruelling and uphill task for many of its contestants. At the same time, it will be an exhilarating experience. Keep updated on all things wacky and fun with these other NLB eResources.

Keep updated on the country hosting the Rickshaw Run and its contestants. Learn about its geography and explore encyclopedias to see what challenges the participants will have to face (eg. terrain, population, risks).

Visit Grolier Encyclopedia or Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Otherwise, explore the culture and heritage of India and see the sights and sounds of this exotic land with onAsia.com.

Visit our NLB website to get started. CLICK HERE.

Posted by digitalk team at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

12 th January 2008 marked the date of our very first event of the year and the DRS team embarked on it wholeheartedly. Coined the eBooks & eNews eXtravaganza, the line up of activities included a quiz on NLB's eNews and eBooks databases, virtual story-telling sessions, opportunities for people to sign up as digital library members and of course, a chance to explore, question and immerse oneself in the plethora of information the Digital Library has to offer.

Held in a cosy corner of the Central Lending Library, festivity was in the air (along with the helium balloons). Young and old participated in our quizzes and all walked away with prizes. We felt jolly and in the spirit of giving, we handed out thumbdrives to all the partipants in the quiz rounds as well as MP4 players and Ipod shuffles for those who championed the eBooks and eNews rounds. Imagine the glee on their faces.

In addition, people were encouraged to register as Digital Library members at our laptop kiosks while friendly staff and Friends of the Library (FOLs,as they're affectionately known) were on hand to provide information on the range of eResources NLB has to offer.

Throw in free eNews postcards with attention-grabbing headlines like "Woman's 27 Hour Kiss" plus catchy-sounding phrases like "Soak up an eBook" plastered on our eBook postcards. But there's more. It was an opportune time to distribute our eBooks and eDatabase guidebooks (a handy, pocket-sized contraption) which many commented was useful.

We were glad to find that visitors posed questions regarding the eResources, indicating their interest in the databases. Many came with specific queries on Buisness, Law or Academic databases and were surprised to find that YES, a whole repository of information in such specific subject areas is easily accessible. Likewise, mummies and daddies who were curious about eBooks and audio story-telling software they could download at home. ( to the great delight of the little ones too).

All in all, it was a memorable Saturday. And we vow to return with a greater blast this week. If you missed out on this one, catch us at the Jurong Regional Library on the 19th of Jan, 1-4pm.

We leave you with our SNAPSHOTS OF THE DAY:

Concentration will get me through this competition!

The little children were enraptured with our virtual story-telling session by Tumblebooks.

A tense moment as names are pulled out of the lucky draw bowl. Names drawn then proceed to take part in our eBooks and eNews quiz, where everyone is a winner!

Give me a balloon! Our NLB staff gave out pink, white, red and black balloons the entire day, much to the delight of the little children. Balloons were also used as bait to draw in people of all ages to sign up as digital library members.

Full steam ahead! Quiz partipants race through the eDatabases to find the answers whilst our emcee adds a dash of humour and encourages participation from all present.

How do I become a digital library member? Members of the public register at our laptop stations whilst NLB staff and Friends of the Library volunteers are on hand to assist them.

Prize-winner Pictures:

Our NLB staff hands out the consolation prizes to 20 gleeful people. They walked away with DowJones thumbdrives and a prize-winning smile to match.

NLB staff, hands out 1st prize winners of the eBook Quiz an MP4 player and PC Game whilst winners of the eNews round won an Ipod shuffle each.

If you missed out on this fun, fret not! Be sure to join us for our next event. The details are as follows.

Join us to find out how you can register as a DIGITAL LIBRARY MEMBER FOR FREE. Plus, take the opportunity to ask our NLB staff about our eDatabases and eBook collections. Help yourself to our attractive postcards and pique your interest in our eLibrary ALL OVER AGAIN.

Posted by digitalk team at 12:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of more than 200 stories including over 50 bestselling horror and fantasy novels. King was the 2003 recipient of The National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, and his numerous literary awards place him among the most-honored horror authors in recent history.

King believes that, generally speaking, good stories cannot be called consciously and should not be plotted out beforehand, they are better served by focusing on a single "seed" of a story and letting the story grow itself. King often begins a story with no idea how it will end!

King has a very simple formula for learning to write well: "Read four hours a day and write four hours a day. If you cannot find the time for that, you can't expect to become a good writer." He sets out each day with a quota of 2000 words and will not stop writing until its met.

Stephen King is truly a literary genius.

Check out these Stephen King titles from our NLB collection:

(1) My Favourite Horror Stories

Synopsis:
In this startling new collection of 19th century horror tales, editor Martin H. Greenberg presents:
* An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, by Ambrose Bierce
* Schalken the Painter, by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
* The Doom of the Griffiths, by Mrs. Gaskell
* The Strange Ride of Morrowbie Jukes, by Rudyard Kipling
* Markheim, by Robert Louis Stevenson
* The Adventure of the German Student, by Washington Irving
* Desiree's Baby, by Kate Chopin
* The Story of the Brazilian Cat, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

(2) Stephen King: A Critical Companion
Critical Companions to Popular Contemporary Writers, 1082-4979

By; Russell Sharon A.

Links:
(1)(2) To read these e-books, click on eResources then eBooks to select NetLibrary to browse our collection for the intended title.

"The fear of horror"

Posted by digitalk team at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Come down to our eBooks and eNews eVent! It's THE event you would not want to miss. Here's the scoop on what's in store for you .

1) Quizzes on our eNews and eBooks databases where you stand to win tantalising prizes like MP4 players, PC Games, thumbdrives or maybe even a PSP player or a Konica Minolta camera. A plethora of goodies for all those who participate!

2) Opportunities to register as a digital library member at our laptop stations. Staff will be on hand to show you the range of eResources NLB has to offer.

3) Free eNews postcards and catchy eBook postcards YOU can use to write messages or collect as souveniers.

4) Free eDatabase guidebooks and eBooks guide which offers a step-by-step introduction to our eResources.

5) Virtual story-telling sessions throughout the event (for the little ones)

Throw in balloons in all its colourful glory, bookmarks, an engaging quiz host and friendly staff to make your day count.

After all this rambling, I hope we've got your ATTENTION. Here come the details

Date: 19th January 2008
Time: 1-4 pm
Venue: Jurong Regional Library

See you there!

Check this out folks:
Download file

Posted by digitalk team at 09:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Take to the water like a fish! Exactly how important is learning to swim? As island- dwelling Singaporeans, surrounded by water and nothing else, we should be champions of swimming.

From countless Gold medals in the Southeast Asian Games, to the likes of regionally-known names from Ang Peng Siong to Joscelin Yeo, we have deliberately created for ourselves a niche-- in the sporting arena.

And so, we conveniently decided to start young. Compulsory swimming lessons in primary school (to equip all with the skill), and further streaming kids into Beginners, Intermediate and Advance levels have only upped the competition. Good enough for the sports school? Rigorous training alongside academics then, are the way to go.

Swimming is a sport that will last for a lifetime. You can choose your own skill level, ranging from simple leisure swimming all the way up to intense Olympic competition. More than that, it is an effective mode of exercise too.

Child's Play

Fancy frolicking in the pool, soaking up the sun and having water fights? Remember diving off boards and Marco Polo, daring to dive underwater (to see who could touch the pool floor)? Or holding your breath for the longest time ever.

Memories of our childhood "swimming expeditions" as I call it .

More than recreational swimming, children around the world have taken up swimming as part of their school curriculum.

In Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, one must know how to swim and handle water emergencies in order to get past the 5th grade curriculum. In both the Netherlands and Belgium, during schoolzwemmen (school swimming, that is) is supported by the government. In the UK, "Top-ups" scheme calls for school children who cannot swim by the age of 11 to undergo intensive lessons. In Canada and Mexico, swimming has been recently introduced into school curriculum. And then there's Singapore where every kid swims by Primary 3.

Recently, Singapore was announced host of the Youth Olympics. Now, are we jumping on the sporting bandwagon. And that’s good.

Swimming trivia

The Anatomy of Swimming

The human body is 80% water and has a very similar density to water. While the lungs are filled with air, the body is slightly less dense than the surrounding water, and there is a net upward force on the body. Thus staying afloat only requires a slight propelling of water. This is done by using the hands and forearms as paddles and by kicking the legs and feet to push water away from the body. (1)
Trivia: Since salt water (eg the ocean), is denser than fresh water (eg. most swimming pools), less effort is requireed to stay afloat in salt water than in fresh water. Hence, the salinity of the Dead Sea allows swimmers to float! (now you know the scientific explanantion).

Want to know more about swimming? Iimmerse yourself in these collections:

Title: Careers for Sports Nuts & Other Atheletic Types
By: William Heitzman

Behind every superstar is a team of people getting paid to do what they love. The world of sports is a wide-open playing field for people of various talents looking for rewarding, fulfilling careers. If you can't get enough sports and want to earn a lucrative salary doing what you love, this practical guide is for you. In Careers for Sports Nuts, you'll learn how the sports obsessed like yourself can earn a healthy living as: Head Coaches Athletic Trainers Publicists Managers Directors of Concessions Physical Educators Sports Medicine Professionals Score Keepers Broadcasters Game Officials Fitness Center Operators Administrators Inside you'll find all the information you need on salaries, working conditions, and opportunities for professional advancement. Written for newcomers and career changers alike, Careers for Sports Nuts will show you how to gain the competitive advantage to land your dream job.

To read, click on eResources, select eBooks, then Overdrive and browse for this title. Start here

Links:
(1) Encyclopedia Britannica Online
Explore here
(2) Images are taken from OnAsia.com
The NLB's reliable photo repository with an Asian focus.

Posted by digitalk team at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"If I am a thinking being, I must regard life other than my own with equal reverence, for I shall know that it longs for fullness and development as deeply as I do myself. Therefore, I see that evil is what annihilates, hampers, or hinders life.…Goodness, by the same token, is the saving or helping of life, the enabling of whatever life I can to attain its highest development."

Albert Schweitzer, “Philosophy of Civilization,” 1923

Alsatian-German theologian, philosopher, organist, and mission doctor in equatorial Africa, who received the 1952 Nobel Prize for Peace for his efforts in behalf of “the Brotherhood of Nations.”

The eldest son of a Lutheran pastor, Schweitzer studied philosophy and theology at the University of Strasbourg, where he took the doctor's degree in philosophy in 1899. At the same time, he was also a lecturer in philosophy and a preacher at St. Nicholas' Church, and the following year he received a doctorate in theology. His book Von Reimarus zu Wrede (1906; The Quest of the Historical Jesus) established him as a world figure in theological studies.

In 1905 Schweitzer announced his intention to become a mission doctor in order to devote himself to philanthropic work, and in 1913 he became a doctor of medicine. With his wife, Hélène Bresslau, who had trained as a nurse in order to assist him, he set out for Lambaréné in the Gabon province of French Equatorial Africa. There, on the banks of the Ogooué (Ogowe) River, Schweitzer, with the help of the natives, built his hospital, which he equipped and maintained from his income, later supplemented by gifts from individuals and foundations in many countries.

Interned there briefly as an enemy alien (German), and later in France as a prisoner of war during World War I, he turned his attention increasingly to world problems and was moved to write his Kulturphilosophie (1923; “Philosophy of Civilization”), in which he set forth his personal philosophy of “reverence for life,” an ethical principle involving all living things, which he believed essential to the survival of civilization.

Despite the occasional criticisms of Schweitzer's medical practice as being autocratic and primitive, and despite the opposition sometimes raised against his theological works, his influence continues to have a strong moral appeal, frequently serving as a source of encouragement for other medical missionaries.

"Schweitzer, Albert." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition. .

Posted by digitalk team at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Have you read the book Gulliver's Travels? Here's an audio version with music additions. It will take you into another realm, Gulliver's world.

Gulliver's Travels is renowned as a playful and comic children's classic. The book itself, rather than the bowdlerized versions that have been derived from it, is a savage, rude and brilliant satire, timeless in its appeal and unerringly accurate. The images of Gulliver among the miniature Lilliputians and the giants of Brobdingnag, the crazy scientists, and the rational horses create a series of novel delights and challenging insights. (1)

Coupled with music by Handel, this e-book is something you must listen to appreciate.

Suitable for children and those young at heart.

Here come the raving reviews:

AudioFile Magazine...
“Naxos follows its usual practice of punctuating the narrative with carefully chosen classical music segments appropriate to the mood of the particular part of the story. Neville Jason reads this classic satire with an intense voice that is crisp and effective.”

To borrow this audio book, follow these simple steps:Click on eResources , then eBooks , select Overdrive. Browse NLB's collection for the title.
Start here

Authors' Note: Sign up as a Digital Library member to enjoy unlimited access to a repository of information. FOR FREE!

To find out more, join us at the Central Lending Library @ the National Library building
eNews and eBooks eXtravaganza
Date: 12 January 2008
Exciting games, prizes, presentations and on-the-spot registration for NLB's digital library membership.

or

Jurong Regional Library
Date: 19 January 2008

See you there!

Links:
(1) Overdrive, eBooks.

Posted by digitalk team at 09:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

New Media includes a wide variety of open sources, for example, Second Life, Creative Commons and Wikispaces. Teachers could harness these New Media options as teaching aids, or introduce them to their students for their project work. Organizations turn to corporate blogging to engage a new generation of clients. Political blogs have been featured in election campaigns worldwide while other Singaporean blogs with a touch of local flavour have been recently archived by the National Library Board.

Yes, archived blogs now equate National Treasure.

Here, we explore the blogosphere in all its shapes and sizes. And the gravity that we are moving beyond the paper and pen to keyboard and computer screen.

A Brief Background

The World Wide Web and the idea of a blog appeared at the same time. Tim Berners-Lee (often described as the Web's inventor) created the first “blog” in 1992 to outline and render visible the ongoing development of the Web and the software necessary to navigate this new space.

Web history had been created.

Another example of a blog that existed before the word was coined is Slashdot. Following its debut in September 1997, Slashdot operated as a clearinghouse for information in its “News for Nerds,” with a small set of editors who decided what to publish of numerous articles and news items submitted by the “geek” community.

Indeed, Web sites mentioned on Slashdot were often overwhelmed, leading to a condition now known as being “slashdotted.”

Since then, the growth of the blogosphere has been nothing short of remarkable. Technorati, Inc., a Web site and organization dedicated to mapping and searching the blogosphere, found that by October 2005 there were 19.6 million blogs, a number that has been doubling roughly every five months. Approximately 70,000 new blogs are created each day—or, more vividly, nearly one every second. Also of importance is the growth of blogs in languages other than English, especially Chinese, Japanese, Spanish.. (1)

What's Special About A Blog

In addition to the frequency of updates, the thing that distinguishes most blogs from ordinary Web pages is the inclusion of forums for readers to post comments to which the blogger might respond. The degree to which dissenting views are tolerated depends on the publisher, but most Web sites must regularly prune “spam”—insertions of commercial and pornographic ads into the text of an apparent comment or the use of insulting and defamatory language. Trackback, an Internet function, facilitates communication by allowing bloggers to monitor who is reading and discussing their site. In turn, bloggers often post a “blogroll,” or a list of other blogs that they read and respect.

Whether we admit it or not, BLOGGING has become a conversational activity that seeks to create a community or reflect an existing community.

Political Blogs: A New Dimension to Politics

The U.S. presidential election of 2004 brought blogs to a newfound prominence as bloggers for both parties used the Internet as another arena of debate and conversation—as well as fund-raising. Democratic presidential primary candidate Howard Dean was the most prominent user of the Internet and the blogosphere. Dean used bloggers as advisers and cheerleaders to help build his base; in turn, bloggers rallied to Dean's campaign against the Second Persian Gulf War. (1)

Flip the coin and you have Irainian President Ahmadenijad rallying votes via blog posts.

Despite the overheated phrase "everybody's a blogger", blogs would be unlikely to overtake mainstream media anytime soon. Cheers then to the traditional newspaper. Instead blogs will continue to complement the existing media by allowing anyone to set up a Web site dedicated to his or her particular interest.

Think about it dear reader, if the purported convergence of electronic technologies- cable television, movies, Internet and the like actually takes place, then blogs may become gatekeepers to a new digital frontier, making criticism and discussion an essential element of search, the most basic of the Internet function!

The future of blogs is bright (pardon the cliche), but we must truly consider the far-reaching effects of today's digital world.

With an audience both transboundary and cross-cultural, blogs offer an alternative medium by which you and I communicate and congomerate over matters close to our hearts-- an activity Mankind has embraced for centuries.

Oh yes, and if you're interested in viewing the uniquely Singaporean blogs being archived (and other interesting national articles) , do visit NLB's eResources to click on eArhive for a treasure trove of information. Start here

Links:

(1) Blog (2008). In Encyclopedia Britannica Online Library Retrieved 8 Jan, 2008, from Encyclopedia Britannica Online Library Edition:
http://library.ebonline.com/eb/article253350

To explore, click here

(2) Images taken from OnAsia.com
The reliable repository for photo shots with a Asian focus.

To explore, click eResources followed by eDatabases then browse for OnAsia.

Start here

(3) Or check out this title from our eBook Overdrive collection:

Buzz Marketing with Blogs for Dummies
By: Susannah Gardner

Synopsis:
If you’re new to blogging, or if you know the mechanics of a blog but want some help refining and targeting yours, Buzz Marketing With Blogs For Dummies will get you going right away. An expert blogger shows you the ins and outs of putting together a professional-looking blog, walks you through the jargon, helps you decide what your blog should do, and even explains various software solutions. You’ll find out how to:

-Set up and maintain a blog, write in blogging style, and observe blogging etiquette
-Define your audience and target your blog to reach them
-Involve your customers, earn their trust, educate the public, and build community
-Avoid possible legal pitfalls while keeping your blog interesting
-Encourage contributions and links to your blog
-Use images and design an eye-catching format
-Optimize your blog for top search engine ratings, track your results, and measure your success

To borrow this ebook, click eResources then eBooks followed by Overdrive to browse this title.

Start here

Posted by digitalk team at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

When a much-loved book becomes a screen adaptation, fans of the book rightfully worry that the movie will fail to capture what delighted them about the story.

Fans of the Kite Runner can rest easy: Award-winning director Marc Forster’s cinematic version of Khaled Hosseini’s novel about friendship, family secrets, betrayal, war and redemption, soars as high as its source material.

The Kite Runner provides a fascinating insight into Afghan culture and ethnic variety, as well as the country’s recent historical background— from the arrival of the Soviets to the Taliban— before invasion by American forces.

The story manages to embrace a variety of topics such as children, conflict, tragedy, redemption, and epiphany, while not forgetting that it charmed millions of readers world-wide. It was right out of the headlines, had a huge audience of book clubs, included in must- reads lists, and captured a firm slot on the New York Times bestseller list.

The story is set in Kabul, Afghanistan, 1978. While the country faces a growing threat from Soviet-backed communists, the only worries best-friends Amir and Hassan face are the local bullies.

While Amir is a well-to-do Pashtun boy, Hassan is a Hazara and the son of Amir’s father’s servant. Amir is taunted about his friendship, with other boys suggesting Hassan is really only an ‘‘ugly pet’’, given that he was born hare-lipped. And while Hassan would gladly put his life on the line for his best mate, Amir is more reticent.

Their friendship is put to the test when Hassan is cornered by some hoodlums and physically assaulted and humiliated. Amir personally witnesses the incident but does nothing, leading to a falling out between the pair, which escalates to the point that Hassan and his father, leave the household.

Shortly afterwards, with the Soviet invasion imminent, Amir and his father move to America, but the boy cannot help feeling a sense of guilt and unfinished business in his homeland, something that will haunt him for decades. Whether Amir succumbs to his childhood guilt is what remains to be seen.

The film has already been released in several parts of America and Europe on Boxing Day, 26th December 2007, granting access to the press such as Toronto Star from Canada to mention that the movie adaptation of the Kite Runner ‘was so accomplished on its own terms it rendered the book redundant’.

By now, if you still have not managed to read the book, you should be in a frenzy to get your hands on it. If so, make a trip down to your nearest branch library before the books start flying off the shelves. Otherwise, you would just have to be reminded just how many pictures a well-chosen word is actually worth, when the movie is released in a few months time on our shores . Now, do not say we did not warn you!

Library Press Display: The Press, 22 Dec 07, New Zealand-The Press
Townsville Bulletin, 22 Dec 07, Australia-Hitting a high note
The Daily Telegraph,26 Dec 07, UK-A too tasteful flight of fancy

Posted by digitalk team at 09:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

“Heal the world, make it a better place” was Michael Jackson’s rendition in the 1990s. Unfortunately, after the rush of blood to the head, Jackson-inspired moment, what else can humankind be appraised for in our bid to really MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE?

Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates writes in the current issue of Newsweek that progress is being made in worldwide health initiatives for developing countries, with governments, aid groups and communities "simply refusing to accept the notion that diseases like malaria and tuberculosis will haunt us forever. The evidence is in: these problems can be solved."

Here's how...

Gates' essay is part of the October 1 Newsweek cover "Giving Globally: How to Heal The World”.
"I believe we stand at a moment of unequaled opportunity," he writes. "Governments must now step up to the plate with more money-wisely targeted-to expand effective global health programs to reach all those in need. Businesses, community groups and individuals all play a role as well ... I'm now more convinced than ever that we can create a healthier world for everyone."

In the cover package, General Editor Mary Carmichael profiles four innovators who are working to bring lifesaving vaccines to children around the world. When it comes to immunization, much of the developing world is still stuck in the 18th century. In vast parts of rural Africa, Asia and Latin America, kids don't get any of the basic vaccines available in developed countries; they die because of that fact.

And no one anywhere gets routinely and effectively immunized against the big global killers-HIV, tuberculosis and malaria, which together take 6 million lives each year-because, even with all the technological prowess of modern medicine, good vaccines for those diseases do not exist, Carmichael reports. (2)

However, there is still a shot at hope. Here's the scoop on some who have succeeded in what they set out to do. The four who are trying to make a difference:

1) Dr. Fred Binka, a doctor who's making it easier to do high-tech science in low-tech environments.

It did not take long. Only 4 months old, Jennifer Mansua has already been infected by the malaria parasite. Her mother, Cecilia Nakabu, brought her child to the Kintampo Health Research Centre in central Ghana. Jennifer underwent a blood transfusion that the doctors and nurses at the clinic believe will save her.

Meanwhile, Dr. Fred Binka, who is working at Kintampo, is helping with a pioneering study to develop a malaria vaccine in the hopes that children like Jennifer may one day be immunized before the disease can strike at all.

INDEPTH, the scientific organization he works for is creating a huge database on every aspect of their patient’s lives. These will cover new life tables for Africa, fertility trends, migration patterns, reproductive health, causes of mortality, and health equity. (1)

2) Emilio Emini, a biologist who has spent 23 years fighting HIV.

A decade ago, Emilio Emini became a pharmaceutical star when he helped launch one of the first in a new generation of well-received AIDS drugs. (3)

Today, a critical question often gets pushed to the side: Is genetic diversity of the virus going to be an insurmountable barrier to a viable vaccine? To that end, Wyeth (a multinational medicinal group) is conducting a series of cohort studies across eastern and southern Africa to compare the genetics of a natural immune response with that elicited by vaccine.

"Obviously a vaccine will not be available in a couple of years. But hopefully by addressing all these questions we will get an insight," said Emini. It may be a long and winding road "but we have to get there."

3) David Edwards, a biomedical engineer at Harvard University who thinks patients can ward off disease with a cheap inhalable powder.

David is a biomedical engineer actively involved in the translation of ideas from the university through novel medical technology, and the writing, performing and visual arts. His scientific research concerns the mathematical design of novel physical parameters that allow nanostructured materials to efficiently deliver drugs and vaccines to the lungs and other human organs, with a special focus on infectious diseases in developing world nations.

Currently, the mitigation of the spread of inhaled infectious disease, development of novel antibiotic therapies for tuberculosis and a new delivery platform for needle-less childhood vaccines.

Medicine in Need, or MEND, is an international not-for-profit organization that translates research from David’s lab to clinical practice in South Africa and other developing world environments. He lives with his wife and three sons in Boston and Paris.

4) Christopher Egerton-Warburton, a banker who has improved the health of poor people by getting rich people to invest in bonds.

LONDON, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Six European countries plan to raise up to $1 billion in the international bond markets next week to buy life-saving vaccines for millions of children in the world's poorest countries.

Funds raised will support immunization projects against killer diseases such as measles and polio in 70 of the world's poorest countries. "The benefit of this concept is that it allows development bodies to front-load resources," says Christopher Egerton-Warburton (executive director at Goldman Sachs which is managing the sale along with Deutsche Bank).

With immunization, there is clearly more that can be done. And that needs to be done today.

Only when the sense of the pain of others begins, does MAN begin
- Yevgeny Yevtushenko

Links:

(1) Encyclopedia Britannica
Keyword: Medicine and Health
Entire encyclopedia, with images included
To explore, click here

(2) Factiva.com
Newsweek magazine commentaries
October 1, 2007 edition
To explore, click here

(3) Newsbank
Provides accurates reports on the latest developments in the world
Full text content of local and regional newspapers.
To explore, click here

(4) Images taken from OnAsia.
The NLB's reliable repository of pictures with an Asian focus.
To view, click here

To further your interest in the topic "HEALING THE WORLD", we recommend these e-books from our Overdrive collection:

1) What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About AutoImmune Disorders

Toxins, which are all around us, are at the root of many auto-immune diseases. They lurk in our clothing, our furniture, and in the products we use every day. Our bodies make heroic efforts to eliminate the toxins, but sometimes the burden is just too much. Get the facts on:

Bottled water: Toxins from the plastic bottles can leak into the water. Use a water filter instead.
Plants: Did you know pollution-reducing plants, including mums and spider plants, can remove chemicals such as formaldehyde and benzene from the air?

Toxins in your home: Carpets, furniture, plastics, foam rubber, upholstery, tiles, linoleum, paint, and varnishes emit hazardous chemicals into the air.

Safe pest controls: Use boric acid and heat instead of toxic pesticides.

Radiation: Protect yourself from the dangers of microwaves, computers, cell phones, televisions, power lines, heating pads, electric blankets, and more.

Posted by digitalk team at 09:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)