Now @ MPL...

If you love the theatre and are curious about the "Great White Way," The Internet Broadway Database - IBDB provides a comprehensive database of shows produced on Broadway. The Internet Broadway Database also provides historical information about theatres and various statistics and fun facts related to Broadway.

The data found in IBDB is derived primarily from theatre programs (in most cases from a production's opening night). Supplemental information was taken from newspaper and magazine reports, theatrical text books, interviews with theatre professionals, and League archives.

So "Come on along and listen to The Lullaby of Broadway-the hip hooray and bally hoo." -Al Dubin

For additional databases and links on the subject of Performing Arts, check out the Performing Arts Category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

RealClearPolitics.com is an independent political website. It is updated every morning and throughout the day with the latest polling data, commentary and election analysis. Editorials and topics from all perspectives are gathered and maintained for your convenience.

For additional databases and links on the subject of Politics, check out the Politics Category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

HowStuffWorks is a website dedicated to explaining the way many things work. The site uses photos, diagrams, videos and animations to explain complicated terminology and mechanisms in easy-to-understand language. So if you're curious about how digital TV works, a refresher on the basics of baseball or how ATM's work--take a look at HowStuffWorks for an easily understood answer.

For additional databases and links on the subjects of general information, check out the Quick Reference Category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

Disability.gov is an award-winning federal Web site that contains disability-related resources on programs, services, laws and regulations to help people with disabilities lead full, independent lives. Disability.gov provides critical information on a variety of topics, including benefits, civil rights, community life, education, emergency preparedness, employment, housing, health, technology and transportation.

For additional databases and links on this subject, check out the Resources for People with Disabilities Category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

Research environmental information about your community using the EPA - Where You Live Community Profiles website. Find out detailed information about hazardous waste, air quality and facility compliance. Enter your zip code and choose from five databases from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency website.
For additional databases and links on this subject, check out the Science and Technology Category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

As the Baby Boomer generation marches toward retirement age, the need for information on senior resources continues to increase. The purpose of Senior Resources is to provide the most accurate and comprehensive online information on services available to older adults in the state of Wisconsin.
For additional databases and links on this subject, check out the Seniors Category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

Are you waxing nostalgic about the old County Stadium Packer Games? The Stadiums of Pro Football site includes stadiums of the NFC and AFC: current, past and future. The site has ticket information, seating charts, comparisons, and future Super Bowl sites. It's a gridiron lover's dream!

For other websites about Sports, investigate the Sports Category in the Reference Resources Links on the MPL homepage.

The United States Federal Census is taken every ten years by the Department of Commerce. The Census Bureau is currently gearing up for the next Census tabulation slated to begin in 2010. This in-depth data provides statistics on population, housing, economics and geography for the United States. Census data is a gold mine of authoritative information for businessess, researchers, historians and anyone else interested in data. Before the advent of the electronic 2000 Census, people would rely on the dozens of paper indexes and tables that would slowly become available to the library. Looking for specific information was often difficult to find. Now with the American FactFinder, Census data is at your fingertips.

For other websites on different types of statistics, check out the Statistics Category on the MPL Homepage under Recommended Links.

On October 28, 1965, construction was completed on Saint Louis's spectacular Gateway Arch. The 630-foot-high landmark was erected to commemorate the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 and to highlight the city's role in the westward expansion that followed. To find out other events that have happened on specific days, check out the website This Day in History, which you can link to under the History category on the Milwaukee Public Library's Recommended Links page.

Today seems like an auspicious occassion to mention that 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy, as Benjamin Banneker and Carl Sagan (both American astronomers) were born on November 9th.

This celebration coincides with the 400th anniversary of the first recorded astronomical observations with a telescope by Galileo and the publication of Johannes Kepler's Astronomia Nova in the 17th century. The purpose of IYA2009 is to help people rediscover astronomy, and thereby reexperience a personal sense of wonder and discovery.

The official IYA2009 site includes special events and projects. You can access it here. For additional databases and links on this subject, check out the Science and Technology category from the Recommended Links section of the Milwaukee Public Library home page.

What's your passion? Do you love music? Is medieval poetry your thing? Do you love astronomy? Are you determined to be a life long learner? Whatever you geek, your public library supports you. Geek The Library is a campaign to spread awareness of the value of public libraries and the critical funding they face. Almost any topic at any age level can be fostered and explored at your library. So don't hold back, get your Geek On!

Many years ago, a young library patron asked me to help him find information on a "numbat." Now, I'd heard of a wombat, but not a numbat, and back in those pre-Internet days, it wasn't too easy to find any references to such a creature. After much paging through books and encyclopedias, we had success. Thanks to the Animal Diversity Web, one of the websites highlighted under Kids' Homework Help on the Milwaukee Public Library's Recommended Links page, finding information on this Australian marsupial is much easier.

On January 6, 1878, Carl Sandburg, American author, editor and son of the Midwest, was born. Much of Sandburg's poetry focused on Chicago, a city he famously described as "Hog Butcher for the World...City of the Big Shoulders." He received Pulitzer Prizes for The Complete Poems of Carl Sandburg and Abraham Lincoln: The War Years and was the author of the beloved Rootabaga Stories for children. (Does anyone else remember Pony Pony Huckabuck?) On the local front, Sandburg served as secretary to Milwaukee's Mayor Emil Seidel, the first Socialist mayor of a major city in the U.S. For more information about Seidel, check out MPL's Milwaukee Mayors Digital Collection.

Milwaukee Public Library's links for movies, radio, and television is a great source for Hollywood news and buzz, listings, channel info, and the latest on current shows and cinema. These links will also lead you to radio stations on the internet, a portal for hundreds of free vintage radio shows for you to listen to online in mp3 format, and a site that keeps track of who is alive and who is dead in the world of celebrities---organized by television show, film, band, and other categories, such as sports.

For websites about other interesting topics, check out the MPL homepage under Recommended Links.

The massive earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010 has dominated the news cycle for the past couple weeks. As reports come out about the massive devastation and loss of life, many Americans wish to assist monetarily to the relief effort. Unfortunately, as more people dig deep into their pockets to offer help, e-mail scams soliciting funds have also appeared. In order to ensure that your funds are going to a reputable charity, check out Charity Navigator and the Better Business Bureau's charity page. Charity Navigator rates charities and also provides a brief description of their services. The Better Business Bureau's charity site provides information about charities and also provides contact information for further inquiries or to file a complaint. If you receive an email that appears to be from a scammer, you can assist the FBI in closing down fraudulent operations by reporting the email to Internet Crime Complaint Center .

On February 10, 1992, American author Alex Haley died at the age of 70. Haley was best known for Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which, combining fact and fiction, described the history of his family beginning in mid-18th century Africa. Haley's fame grew after an eight-part dramatization of the book appeared on television in 1977. That same year, he received the Spingarn Medal, awarded annually by the NAACP for the highest achievement by an American of African descent. If you're inspired to research your own family tree, the Milwaukee Public Library has many books, as well as websites highlighted under Genealogy at the MPL home page's Recommended Links.

Even those of us without a drop of Irish ancestry can use St. Patrick's Day as an excuse to sample some delicious fare from the Emerald Isle. Recipe sources range from books such as The Irish Pub Cookbook to the Ready Reference Historic Recipe File to numerous websites. One of my favorites, accessible via the Milwaukee Public Library's House and Garden Recommended Links, is www.allrecipes.com. What I especially like about this site is the review section, which allows a sort of virtual kaffeeklatsch in which people who've made the item offer their suggestions on how to tweak it. There's also the serendipity of starting out with a search for Irish potatoes and winding up with a delicious mash up of spuds and cabbage called Colcannon. Bon appetit, now you may eat!

The United Nations General Assembly declared March 22, 1993 the first International World Water Day. International World Water Day is a reminder of how important freshwater resources are to the world. International World Water Day also serves to focus on advocating for sustainable management of freshwater resources. Since 1993, each International Water day focuses on a particular aspect of water resources. The theme in 2010 is "Clean Water for a Healthy World". Milwaukee Public Library has many books that can help you understand the issues surrounding the lack of clean water in certain areas of the globe and what can be done about it. Milwaukee Public Library also has many books for children on these topics.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, April 13th is National Library Worker's Day. According to the American Library Association, National Library Worker's Day..." for library staff, users, administrators and Friends groups to recognize the valuable contributions made by all library workers." National Library Worker's Day was created by a ALA resolution in 2003 to be honored as part of National Library Week.
The day's theme is "Libraries Work Because We Do!". Particularly in today's economic climate, libraries employees provide invaluable services to assist the community with job searching, internet use, and financial literacy. Comment cards are available at all locations. You can even nominate your favorite library employee to Submit a Star!

On May 3, 1978, the first unsolicited bulk email, or "spam", was sent by a Digital Equipment Corporation marketing representative to every ARPANET address on the west coast of the United States. ARPANET was a Department of Defense network, and the predecessor of the internet. Although it was not referred to as "spam" at the time, this event preceded the arrival of trillions of spam messages in email inboxes around the world. You can read more current articles about spam on the website CNET. The link to this site is also available through MPL's website.
If you would like to read more about the historical aspects of this infamous computer concept, try reading Brian McWilliams Spam Kings.

On May 24, 1961, Freedom Riders were arrested for trying to use a whites-only facility at the bus depot in Jackson, Mississippi. The purpose of the Freedom Riders' trip was to test the Supreme Court decision, Boynton v. Virginia. Boynton v. Virginia overturned the conviction of an African American law student cited for tresspassing in a restuarant in a bus terminal deemed "whites only".
The violent treatment the riders endured in prison, the harsh treatment by southerners, and the demands of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., prompted Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy , to petition the Interstate Commerce Commission to comply with a ruling that desegregated buses. The cumulative effect of these events was to end the Jim Crow era in the south. To learn more about this time period, check out the many books the library has about the Freedom Riders as well as books about the Civil Rights Movement.

Soundzabound is a collection of royalty free music and sound effects that are copyright compliant, content safe, and royalty free for use in student projects and other school productions. Access to the complete Soundzabound collection can be found on MPL's website .

The downloadable MP3 files are available for Microsoft Windows, Apple, as well as other platforms. The files can be used for podcasts, videos, digital storytelling or any type of multimedia production. You can select by artist, category, run times, or title. For tutorials on how to use Soundzabound audio, click on "Community" - "Licensed Users" - "Tutorials" on the Soundzabound site.

The state of Wisconsin's ACCESS (Access to Eligibility Support Services for Health & Nutrition) web site provides a quick and easy way for Wisconsinites to find out whether they might be able to get help through the state's health and nutrition programs. Taking a fifteen minute survey will help determine whether a state resident is eligible for food assistance, prescription drug assistance, low or no-cost health care and tax assistance.

Access to ACCESS is available via the Milwaukee Public Library website's Health & Medicine reference links.

Whether you are barbecuing or boating, swimming or sunning, travelling or tenting, you can find safety tips for the Fourth of July weekend at usa.gov. At this website, you can also find fun facts about July 4, ways to help your country, and American recipes (including everything from Diabetes recipes from the National Institutes of Health to Mrs. Truman's Mac & Cheese). Access to usa.gov is available via the Milwaukee Public Library website's recommended Federal Government links.

On August 9, 1945 a B-29 Superfortress named Bockscar dropped an atomic bomb codenamed "Fat Man" on the city of Nagasaki. Three days earlier, on August 6, the atomic bomb codenamed "Little Boy" was dropped on the city of Hiroshima. It is estimated that 60,000 to 80,000 people died in Nagazaki from the atomic bomb, while 90,000 to 160,000 died in Hiroshima. Several of those who died were unintended victims, including U.S. POW's and foreign students studying in Japan.
These events ushered in a new era of warfare that changed the geopolitical landscape of the 20th and 21st century. You can learn more about these events by either reading documents available at the Harry S. Truman library, browsing Milwaukee Public Library's collection of books on the topic, or watching the award winning White Light/Black Rain.

At the start of each new school year Beloit College (located in Beloit, Wisconsin) releases its Beloit College Mindset List. Originally created in 1998 to remind Beloit faculty that the cultural references they make in class may not be understood by their students, the list serves as a look at the influential events and experiences of many incoming college freshmen.

This year's Beloit College Mindset List is for the Class of 2014 and the list has 75 items on it.

Examples of things the list says are true for this class include:
#7 - "Caramel macchiato" and "venti half-caf vanilla latte" have always been street lingo.
#12 - Clint Eastwood is better known as a sensitive director than Dirty Harry.
#27 - Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.
#62 - Having hundreds of cable channels, but nothing to watch has always been routine.

Summer is almost over. The new school year is here. The Labor Day weekend will be here and gone before we know it. I can certainly use a boost. How about you?

A Website I often turn to when I need some inspiration (or education or a cure for boredom) is Ted.com. TED (it stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design) is a small nonprofit organization that is "devoted to ideas worth spreading." Since 1984 they've hosted invitation-only conferences where some of the world's most fascinating people are challenged to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Fortunately for those of us not lucky enough to receive invites, TED makes these talks (called TEDTalks) available for free.

You can search over 700 TEDTalks and other performances TED calls Best of the Web. My favorite TedTalks include JJ. Abrams' Mystery Box and Malcolm Gladwell on Spaghetti Sauce. Some of the great performances they offer are the Stanford commencement speech Steve Jobs gave on How to Live Before You Die and Randy Pausch's Carnegie Mellon talk about Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams.

Take a look for yourself (a good place to start is the Top 10 TedTalks). I bet you'll find something to take your mind off of the end of summer. Well, for 18 minutes anyway.

I have found Merriam-Webster.com to be a great place to look up definitions of words and to listen to proper pronunciations. And recently, thanks to the advice of a colleague (thank you, Jacki!), I discovered Merriam-Webster offers even more online. Here's a list of other helpful features you can find on Merriam-Webster's Website:

• Videos - Wondering what the plural of octopus is? How about the difference between rein and reign? Merriam-Webster offers clear, concise videos on a variety of topics (and they're interesting to watch!).

• Trend Watch - If you want to learn about words that have been top lookups recently on Merriam-Webster.com check out their Trend Watch page. For example, on August 11 one of the top lookups was rancor thanks to the jurors in the trial of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. They used it in their note to the judge.

• Top 10 Lists - For the curious among us, Merriam-Webster offers Top 10 Lists that are helpful, Top 10 Commonly Confused Words, and fun, Words For Things You Didn't Know Have Names.

• New Words & Slang - This is Merriam-Webster's collection of user-submitted words. It's where words go before they make it into the dictionary.

So whether you simply love words, want to improve your grammar and spelling, or need to submit a word for dictionary consideration, Merriam-Webster.com has something for you.

I love contests, so when I heard about Challenge.gov I was ecstatic. The idea behind this Website is that U.S. government agencies post challenges and the public provides solutions. Examples of current challenges include creating nutritious school lunch recipes, composing wake-up songs for NASA astronauts, and developing digital forensic investigative tools, techniques, and methodologies. There are also often prizes for solving challenges.

I've had some problems accessing the site, but hopefully they'll get all the bugs worked out soon. From what I've seen I think it'll be worth the wait. Now you'll have to excuse me while I try to help NASA find new ways for astronauts to do their laundry in space.

The ASPCA declared the month of October adopt a shelter dog month. If you ever considered adopting a dog from the humane society or from a rescue, the library has books and DVDs about how to to help you choose a breed that works with your lifestyle, what to look for in a shelter dog, how to help your dog adjust to life with you, and how to train your new friend. If you already have all the animals you can handle, but like heartwarming stories about shelter animals finding good homes, the library has a variety of books and DVDs on that topic as well.

This week the MacArthur Foundation announced its Fellows Program winners. These awards, often referred to as "genius" grants, come with a $500,000 stipend that can be used however the winner chooses. The primary purpose of the MacArthur Fellows Program is "to enable recipients to exercise their own creative instincts for the benefit of human society."

There are 23 fellows this year including an indigenous language preservationist, a stone carver, a fiction writer, an author/screenwriter/producer and a high school physics teacher. The winners received phone calls in the past two weeks telling them they were selected. Most didn't even know they were under consideration.

Check out the MacArthur Foundation Website where you can watch videos about each winner and learn more about the program. And, yes, you should take this as an invitation to be creative in your own daily endeavors. You never know who's watching.

Did you know that Access NewspaperARCHIVE of Badgerlink recently updated their website? Besides being the largest online newspaper archive, NewspaperARCHIVE is easier to use with new search tabs and one click access to newspaper articles detailing historic events. The tabs at the top of the screen include the capability to browse and "Ask a librarian" as well as search. The search capability is also expanded with the ability to conduct a name search. You can access a variety of news articles covering famous historic events as they happened by clicking the links on the front page. Coverage includes all of the United States and some select countries.

On January 21, 1789, the first American novel was published in Boston. The Power of Sympathy: or, The Triumph of Nature, by William Hill Brown advocates rational thinking and moral education to avoid dangerous situations caused by giving into one's base instincts.
The Milwaukee Public Library owns a copy of a later printing of this famous novel. Patrons can request this material at the information desk. The text of this novel is also availabe through archive.org, which is run by Cornell University. Many critics believe the text mirrors the political situation of the infant United States. Experience a piece of history by reading the first American novel!

The Milwaukee Public Library wants to help you get smart about money! Stop by any Milwaukee Public Library for your very own Get Smart about Money kit. The kit includes a folder with a Money Smart Resource Guide that lists suggestions and agencies to assist you with personal finance topics. There is also a notebook and pen in each kit so you can keep track of your expenses and receipts.

Additional information and suggested websites and titles are available at the new Get Smart about Money @ MPL website.

This is all made possible by a grant from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation through Smart Investing @ your library®, a partnership with the American Library Association.

photo © 2008 Javier Candeira
The holidays are over and you finally have the new eReader you've always wanted. What next? Free ebooks of course! There are thousands of free ebooks just a mouse click away. Here are some of the best sites to find your next great read.

ManyBooks.net

• Search for books by title, author, genre, and language. The site is well organized and easy to navigate. Look through recent reviews, browse the New Titles section, and check out the Special Collections page. Use the Help page to find instructions on how to download titles for your particular eReader.

• Project Gutenburg is the grandfather of all free ebook providers. It has more than 34,000 books (mostly public domain texts) and all ebooks on their site can be "freely downloaded: choose between ePub, Kindle, HTML and simple text formats." You can search by topic, top downloads and titles, recently added, and by title word(s) and author. Check out the "How To" page for answers to commonly asked questions.

• Google Books has free ebooks from the public domain. To search for free electronic books, select "Full View Only" in the Advanced Book Search form (this filters out books for purchase and preview only texts.) Google's Book Help- Read has helpful information on supported eReaders and how to manage your ebooks.

• This is a great site to browse with tons of ebooks available to read on your PDA and PC. Use the Memoware eBook Primer to gain familiarity with the formats available on the site.

Do you hate calling customer service lines and getting automated operators? If so, you may want to check out GetHuman.com. This website offers phone numbers and instructions on how to get a real person when calling over 2,200 customer service lines. You can either search for a specific company or browse their A to Z list. The site also provides estimated wait times and callers can rate their success when using the recommended tips.

With the arrival of Spring comes an increased risk of flooding for many areas in the United States. Stay prepared with for spring flooding with some advice from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) blog, via USA.gov:

• Make a plan - Your family may not be together when a flood hits, so it's important to know how you will contact one another, how you will meet up in a safe place and what you will do in case of an emergency. Not sure where to start? Ready.gov has a great checklist for making your family emergency plan.

• Get a kit - An emergency kit can be your life line after an emergency. It should sustain yourself and your family for up to three days. For flood prone areas, keeping your important documents in a sealed, airtight container will keep them safe from water damage. See other tips on getting your emergency kit in tip-top shape.

• Know your risk - One of the most important steps of being prepared is to find out if your home is at risk for flooding. After you know your risk, check out this tool to estimate the financial impact a flood could have your home.

• Protect your property - A final step to make sure you're prepared for flooding is to purchase flood insurance. Unfortunately, most homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage. Talk to your insurance provider about your policy and consider flood insurance coverage.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services also has a comprehensive site with information on mold, drinking water safety, utility service interuption and more. Check out their Flooding and Safety page for additional useful preparedness tips.

On March 15, 44 B.C. Gaius Julius Caesar was assassinated in the Roman Senate by a group of senators led by Gaius Cassius Longinus and Marcus Junius Brutus. The "liberators", as the senators called themselves, felt they were saving the Roman Republic from the grip of tyranny by removing Caesar from power.

One of the most famous accounts of the assassination is Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar. Among the most oft-quoted of the play's lines are those spoken by a soothsayer warning Caesar of the impending attempt on his life: "Beware the Ides of March" - the Ides referring to the 15th of the month according to the Roman calendar.

Caesar is regarded as one of the greatest historical figures in the Western world. Read more about his life and legacy in Philip Freeman's Julius Caesar, or one of the many other biographies available at the library. For a modern retelling of Caesar's death, check out Richard Appignanesi's graphic novel Julius Caesar. If you're a fan of Shakespeare's play then you'll enjoy browsing through the First Folio edition of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar available digitally through Internet Shakespeare Editions.

Milwaukee residents can enjoy a six month trial of the database Access Video powered by Films on Demand. This database provides streaming for educational videos on various topics. Teachers, do it your selfers, and those of you who are just plain curious can enjoy content on the topics of Home & Family, Health & Wellness, Career Planning & Resources, Trades & Technical Skills, Science, Math & Technology, Social Sciences, History, Language, Speech & Literature, Visual & Performing Arts, Business & Economics, Archival Films & Newsreels, Crime & Law. To find the link to this database, you can click on the categories of Education, Library Databases, Library Databases for Remote Use and Movies Radio & TV. Make sure you try it soon because the trial expires September 16th, 2011.

If you're wondering where your federal taxes are spent, have a look at the White House's 2010 tax receipt. You can get a specific breakdown of how much of your money is spent on different programs based on the dollar amount you paid in taxes for 2010. You can see how much goes to agricultural subsidies, Medicare, disaster relief, defense, and scientific research. There's even some accounting done for the amount spent to offer certain tax credits and deductions.

Now that summertime is approaching, many of us are getting serious about making healthy lifestyle changes. May is fitness month, which is a great reason to invest some time in yourself so you can look and feel your best for summer. If you're looking for great information about health, diet and exercise, check out the Badgerlink databases for articles, and free streaming videos on various health topics. This is the perfect place to find reliable and accurate health information that's available to all Wisconsin residents for free. Don't forget to check out some books and videos from the Milwaukee Public Library too. Whether it's Zumba or boxing you're interested in, we've got something for you.

Stay informed on current domestic and international topics with NewsBank Special Reports. NewsBank has recently added "Conflict and Terrorism Around the World" to their collection. This Special Report provides in-depth newspaper coverage of international areas of conflict. Sections of the report include Osama bin Laden, Conflict in the Korean Peninsula, Current Coverage on War in Afghanistan, Investigations, and many others. "Conflict and Terrorism Around the World" also includes links to background information, images, and related maps.

Click here to access NewsBank's Special Reports. You'll be prompted to enter your library card number before proceeding to NewsBank. Click on "Other NewsBanks Products" link on the upper right of the screen and select "Special Reports"; "Conflict and Terrorism Around the World" is the first report listed.

NewsBank is a subscription database available to city of Milwaukee residents with a valid Milwaukee Public Library card. NewsBank include content from sources throughout the world to provide a global perspective and current and background information. New information is added daily to featured and current reports.

The American Library Association and the Public Library Association have teamed up with American Public Media on a journalism project called LibrariUS. The goal of this project is "to explore the information and civic needs of communities and do a better job of meeting them."

You can participate by going to the LibrariUS website and telling them how you're using your library today. You are required to include your name, city, state and either an email address or a phone number. Your information is collected in case American Public Media wants to follow up with you. It's shared with a small group of their reporters, but other than that your personal information is confidential.

Even if you don't want to participate by sharing information you can go to the LibrariUS website and see how other people in the U.S. are using libraries. The site maps library patrons' stories in real time.

Would you like to own a doodle drawn by Martin Sheen? How about Florence Henderson? Or Neil Gaiman?

These celebrities and more have donated their doodles to raise money for Neurofibromatosis, Inc., an organization dedicated to providing support to individuals and families affected by neurofibromatosis. The doodles will be auctioned off on eBay starting today.

You can also view the doodles from past years by famous people like Amy Poehler, President Obama and Jodi Picoult.

eXtension is an online learning environment providing reliable information from experts at land-grant universities from across the United States. Experts in the fields of agriculture, disaster, energy, child care, gardening, community planning, fitness, and more share the latest research with the general public, students, and professors with a focus on solving real-life problems in real time.

Search eXtension's site by Resource Area (also known as Community of Practice) or select a topic in the "News", "Articles" or "Answers" portion of the website. In addition to the wealth of information provided on the website in print and video format, there is an Ask An Expert link that allows you to electronically submit your question to experts in your area.

eXtension is constantly updated with timely and informative resources for everyone. One of the more recent articles available involves the financial crisis. Check out "When Prices Rise: Living on Your Income" for useful tips on managing finances. An RSS Feed is also available to track all new content for a specific Resource Area such as the Financial Crisis.

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month. Initially a week-long celebration of Asian American culture introduced as a congressional bill in 1977, it was expanded to a month-long celebration by President H.W. Bush. May was selected for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869 (the majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.)

Asianpacificheritage.gov is a web portal bringing together online exhibits and collections, audio and video resources, and educator resources on Asian American and Pacific Islander heritage.

The Milwaukee Public Library has many wonderful resources celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander culture and history. Browse through our catalog for a list of books on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

Looking for a new way to search for information online? Try Blekko, a search engine featuring slashtag (/) searching. Slashtag categories are created by a group of initial users and guide searchers to trusted websites. For example, a Blekko search "headache/health" will return only health sites determined to be helpful by other users. Categories are rechecked with artificial intelligence software to ensure relevancy. Blekko sees slashtag searching as a way to bypass "junk" webpages and reach the most useful information quickly.

Blekko's examples of where slashtag searches come in handy include searches you can't do with keywords: global warming /conservative, ufos /paranormal, congress /humor and searches in categories that are otherwise heavily spammed: avoiding swine flu /health, iphone 4 reviews /techblogs, Aruba /travel.

Blekko's complete list of slashtags can be found here. You can also open an account with Blekko and create your own slashtags. The video below provides an overview of how to search using Blekko and information on the company's web search bill of rights , a document outlining their commitment to open search practices and user privacy.

June is Great Outdoors Month and there are a lot of ways you can celebrate:

• Enjoy local and state parks with great activities like hiking, camping, swimming, fishing, geocaching and more.
• Take a road trip and stop at these Wisconsin attractions.
• Visit the Milwaukee County Zoo, the Milwaukee Public Museum and local gardens and nature centers to learn more about nature and animals.
• Looking for inexpensive ways to celebrate Great Outdoors Month? Take a walk around your neighborhood, sit outside or go birdwatching.
• Become a volunteer for the Wisconsin State Park System.
• If you have a smartphone there are a lot of apps available to help you enjoy the outdoors. A free one to try is Oh Ranger Park Finder. It finds the parks closest to you and includes comprehensive information about activities.

Maurice Sendak, famous author and illustrator best known for Where the Wild Things Are, was born on June 10, 1928. From an early age Sendak wanted to be an illustrator, and his love of books was intiated by several health problems that confined him to bedrest. He became an internationally acclaimed writer and illustrator with the publication of Where the Wild Things Are, which won the Caldecott Medal in 1964. Sendak has won numerous other awards for his work, including the National Book Award and the National Medal for the Arts.
Tributary books have been written about him, and Where the Wild Things Are was made into a feature film in 2009

Invitation to World Literature is a free multimedia series introducing readers to thirteen pieces of literature from around the world. Developed under the guidance of Professor David Damrosch of Harvard University, a world-renowned expert on world literature, the series includes videos of author and critic discussions, excerpts and background information on the texts, and key discussion points, timelines, and slideshows.

Explore Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things to experience the wealth of resources available on Invitation to World Literature. In addition to a basic timeline, background information and character overviews of The God of Small Things, there is a video explaining the role of caste in Indian society - an essential element of Roy's novel. The connections page provides citations for articles about Roy's work, as well as movies/popular interpretations/TV and music with similar characteristics.

In addition to being a must-see for literature lovers, this resources is especially well suited for students.

Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP) Entrepreneurship Corner, or ECorner, is a free online archive of entrepreneurship resources for teaching and learning. ECorner offers over 2000 videos and podcasts from innovation leaders around the globe. Browse by catagories like Creativity and Innovation; Marketing and Sales; Leadership and Adversity; and Career and Life Balance, or search by most popular videos and speakers. Subscribe to ECorner's newsletter or iTunes feed to stay connected with new content. Check out one of ECorner's most popular videos below, The Factors to Improve Entrepreneurial Success.

The Milwaukee Public Library has numerous resources for job seekers:

• Seven MPL locations offer drop-in job help. A job trainer specialist is available to help you complete online job applications, write a resume, search online job listings and obtain a free email account. For more information stop by any MPL location or call Ready Reference at (414) 286-3011.

• All MPL locations have materials you can check out to help with your job search. Central Library also has an area on the second floor with career and job reference books. These books can't be checked out, but you can use them in the library to find a lot of information. The book below is an example.

  
  
  

• When looking for a job, MPL's databases provide invaluable resources. For example, Access Video helps you explore careers, provides job searching tips and much more. There's also Career Cruising to help with career information and interest and aptitude self-quizzes. WISCareers and LearningExpress Library may be of help to job seekers too.
• MPL also has a lot of great databases to help you research companies. Try ReferenceUSA, Business & Company Resource Center and Dun & Bradstreet Million Dollar Database to answer all sorts of questions. For example, you can research specific companies, find certain types of companies in particular areas and look up contact information.
• And finally, MPL offers Job Seeker Help and Job Listing Sites.

Did last week's heat wave catch you by surprise? To avoid this in the future keep up with the weather using the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's website (NOAA, for short). It's easy to type in your city or zip code and get 7-day forecasts, radar and satellite images and detailed lists of hazardous weather conditions.

NOAA has a lot of other information on its website, so it's worth poking around. Highlights include archived weather information, all-time climate extremes data and weather safety tips.

On August 2, 1776 the Declaration of Independence was engrossed on parchment and signed by fifty-six state delegates. Delegates signed the document by state location, from northernmost New Hampshire to southernmost Georgia. Five delegates signed on a later date and some, due to a lack of space, were never able to sign the document. Add your name to signers of the Declaration of Independence by signing a (virtual) copy at the National Archives website!

Check out these resources for more information on the Declaration of Independence:

• The official, signed Declaration of Independence can be viewed at ourdocuments.gov, along with more information on how the Declaration of Independence was written and adopted.

• The Library of Congress has an informative web guide Primary Documents in American History: The Declaration of Independence which lets you explore other related collections such as The Thomas Jefferson Papers and an online exhibition American Treasures of the Library of Congress - Declaration of Independence.

• The Declaration mural by Barry Faulkner (pictured above) is located in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom in the National Archives building in Washington D.C. See who is pictured in the mural and learn about the restoration process here.

On August 10th the Library of Congress announced the appointment of Philip Levine as the 18th Poet Laureate. Philip Levine was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1928 to Russian-Jewish immigrant parents. After graduating from Wayne State University, Levine worked a number of industrial jobs, including the night shift at the Chevrolet Gear and Axle factory. He is a Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award, and National Book Critics Circle Award winner.

Check out the Library of Congress' Philip Levine Web Guide for more information on the new Poet Laureate. Click here to view a complete list of Philip Levine's work available at the Milwaukee Public Library.

Here Levine reads "Bell Isle, 1949".

"Belle Isle, 1949" from They Feed They Lion and The Names of the Lost by Philip Levine, copyright ©1999 by Philip Levine.