The Semester is Ending! In the midst of all the end-of-semester work, we sometimes need to relax with a good read or interesting video. Or, we like to imagine or even plan our relaxation and fun for after we've sat our last exam in December, or handed in the last section of grades (if we're a teacher or TA). Science & Science Fiction – Fuel for the Imagination For centuries, science and science fiction have been linked: inspiring happy dreams, terrifying nightmares, or thought experiments in between. Both explore and extrapolate from past and present into the future. Both fuel our imaginations. To make it easier for HKUST people to “fuel up” from now until the end of January 2025, library staff have made a Science & Science Fiction Collection Highlights. It has books and videos on interesting scientific topics and classic and recent science fiction, in both English and Chinese. The physical display of some of the print books and DVDs is near the Service Desk on the G/F. If the title you want isn’t on the table, ask staff for it at the Service Desk.
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 of my all-time favorites: Begin Again: A touching story about finding new directions and creativity, with a great soundtrack. If you like this film, don’t miss “Once” by the same director, John Carney. Though its visuals might not be the best, the story is genuine and deeply moving! La La Land: Dive into the bright world of dreams and love in this beautiful musical. The music really impressed me when I saw it in theaters! Love Story: A classic film that tells a touching tale of love overcoming obstacles.
While visiting the map exhibition in the Library, you may not notice what is underneath the rare books on display. Guess what, it is more than just a stand! These rare books from our Special Collections have various ages; some older ones were published in the early 1600s, so they are almost 400 year old! To display them without hurting them is a huge challenge. Each book needs a custom-made support, called a cradle, that lets it stay open at the particular page and angle in the most comfortable way. In May 2023, library colleagues Fiona, Lu, and June worked together as the "cradle team" to tackle the challenge. For each book, they had to take these steps: 1. Determine the angle: they first had to figure out with the curators which page was to be shown; then they determined the best angle to let the book stay open. This was crucial to ensure that the book spine wouldn't be damaged while still allowing visitors to read the text and illustrations. 2.
Do you know there was a commemorative stamp of HKUST in 1989? I did not, until I saw it today in the Library! The stamp was presented in a first day cover of a set called "Hong Kong Building for the Future," issued on October 5th, 1989. Colored in gold and featuring the academic building, it portrays a budding campus aspiring to be a world-class university. Our University Archives curates a collection of artefacts to preserve the history of the university. Some of them are now being shown on the Library 1/F. Besides the first day cover, another exhibit I find fascinating is the original sketches of the graduation gowns. Thanks to archives colleagues who organize the display, we get to see these interesting items that inspire us to reflect on the growth of HKUST. By the way, "Hong Kong Building for the Future" was a set of 6 stamps. The other five were Cultural Centre, Eastern Harbour Crossing, Bank of China, Convention and Exhibition Centre, and Light Rail Transit.
Do you have a favourite spot in the Library? For me, the corner I like the most is the New Arrivals wall on G/F. Here, you come face-to-face with the latest books in our Library. The display is always so colourful and visually attractive, and I often encounter books that pique my curiosity. For example, today I picked up a book called Less is More, which is about the “Degrowth” approach to reverse the ecological crisis that we are facing. It may change how I see the world, or it may not at all. I won't know until I read it. But what I do know is that if I hadn't stumbled upon it in the New Arrivals section, I probably wouldn't have learned about the idea of "Degrowth". In librarians’ jargon, we call this “serendipity” – the way of encountering books and ideas by chance in libraries. In Chinese, I like to call it “碰緣分“.
