Stories from the Library – what's new and what's happening
Hi everyone! Our Library has a wide range of romance films, and I have chosen over 70 amazing titles for you to enjoy. While streaming is popular, there’s something really special about watching DVDs that I think you will appreciate. Plus, we have DVD drives available for loan if you need one! Here are some…
If you have ever been to one of the congregation ceremonies at HKUST, you might be wondering ─ what is that long stick the procession leader is carrying? A staff of some sort, perhaps, but what is it for? Despite its unconventional appearance, this is the University’s ceremonial mace. Most universities have a ceremonial mace…
Interested to know how many volumes of print books were added to the Library collection in the last academic year? Just 2,380 volumes. I say “just” because this is less than one tenth of the number of ebooks added within the same period. The Library has adopted e-preferred policy for some years, meaning we buy…
Kanopy is a streaming video database the Library subscribes to for you. I knew about it before, but I never really explored it until recently. There’s a lot more there than I thought, and it’s also much easier to use than I thought! Access to Kanopy is available from a web browser, or from a…
Another good read (author I’m fond of) is Marge Piercy. Like Ursula LeGuin, she also writes both poetry and prose. I came to her poetry, after enjoying her novels. Most of her novels are set in the contemporary world when they were published, such as, Small Changes, but some in the historic past, like Gone…
One of our Library staff colleagues has some skill in repairing books. Others asked them to host a workshop so more staff could learn these skills. They used a variety of tools and techniques to show how to fix different problems with worn or damaged books. Despite the Library’s collections moving more and more towards…
Summer induces the vibrancy of awareness. While we are gazing at the fiery blue sky, in the next breath, our faces are already dotted with raindrops from the gloom of dark clouds. There is nothing more absurd than that – uncontrollable, ever-changing, bizarre randomness. Absurdity is what you try to understand, yet far beyond your…
Old maps are visually beautiful; and they carry a lot of interesting stories. The Library hosted a 3-day research symposium last December with map historians from local and overseas institutions. One really memorable talk in the symposium was about this famous Chinese map dated 1644, the year the Ming Empire collapsed: <天下九邊分野人跡路程全圖> (A comprehensive map…
You don’t need to be a Catholic to love this little book^. It is now featured in the Library G/F Collection Highlights corner in celebration of International Women’s Day. Mother Teresa was small in physical stature, but a spiritual giant to many. She founded in 1950 the Missionaries of Charity, a congregation of Catholic sisters,…
You probably use a Hong Kong map often. When you check a bus route, explore a hiking trail, find your way to a restaurant …, you use a map, most likely a digital one on your mobile device. For a change of perspective, I invite you to look “up” rather than “down” on your phone…
