Photo Contest Winner!
Congratulations to Jessica, winner of Danbury Library's first ever Summer Reading Photo Contest! She submitted the photo on the left and was the overwhelming favorite among the staff.
« July 2008 | Main | September 2008 »
August 29, 2008
August 25, 2008
Conventional Trivia
The last time the Democrats held a convention in Denver it was 1908, and the nominee was William Jennings Bryan, who as we all know did not become president. The 1924 Democratic convention which nominated John Davis as president lasted 17 days. Conventions are now, thankfully, limited to 4 days.
Every Democratic convention since 1960 has featured a member of the Kennedy family. Teddy's fiery speech on healthcare reform at this democratic convention while struggling with his own health problems was inspiring and poignant.
The current presidential conventions are little more than "coronations" since nominees have already been decided. Conventions of the past, however, were brawling, brutal affairs with much intrique and high drama, with nominees undecided until the very end. It's worth taking a look at past conventions.
August 21, 2008
Synthetic Fuel
Our recent attempts to deal with the spike in gasoline prices have reminded me that perhaps a solution for these problems lies in the production of synthetic fuels. Prior to World War Two, the Nazis, who knew that they would face a critical shortage of fuel, pressed for a program to make synthetic fuels. They enlisted I.G Farben, a giant cartel, to produce synthetic fuel on a large scale. Farben used a method called the Bergius Process, which produces synthetic fuel by the hydrogenation of coal at high temperatures. The Nazis created several hydrogenation plants during the War and were producing synthetic fuel to keep their war machine going. The plants were destroyed by air raids in 1944-45, and the effort ended. “Altogether,” wrote Daniel Yergin in The Prize, “synthetic fuels would account for half of Germany’s total oil production.” We should look at this option as a way of coping with our current problems.
August 19, 2008
Bye Bye, Analog TV
At midnight on Thursday, February 17, 2009, TV stations in the U.S. will switch from analog to digital signals. Digital TV will provide a clearer picture and more programming options, and it will also free up airwaves for use by emergency responders. If you currently receive your TV signal via cable, nothing will change. However, if you have a TV that uses a roof-top antenna or "rabbit ears," you'll need a digital-to-analog converter box to continue to watch broadcast television on that set. Congress created the TV Converter Box Program for people who wish to continue using their analog TV sets after February 19, which allows you to obtain two $40 coupons that can be applied toward the cost of eligible converter boxes.
August 14, 2008
Bernie Mac & Isaac Hayes
The entertainment world lost two great icons this weekend. Bernie Mac (1957 - 2008) passed away on August 9 & Isaac Hayes (1942 - 2008) passed less than 24 hours later. Mac, a great, sometimes controversial standup comedian, starred in his own TV show on Fox, "The Bernie Mac Show". He also had roles in many movies over the years, including "Friday", "Ocean's Eleven" and its sequels, "Mr. 3000" and "Bad Santa". Isaac Hayes, an iconic legend of soul music, was best known for the theme song to "Shaft", and most recently, the voice of Chef on the "South Park" series.
Mac and Hayes just wrapped up filming a movie together, due out in November, called "Soul Men". There hasn't been much buzz about this upcoming movie, but certainly, there will be a heightened interest due to the deaths of Mac and Hayes, not unlike "The Dark Knight" and the Heath Ledger tragedy. Check out some library materials starring these great entertainers and celebrate the lives and accomplishments of Heath Ledger, Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes.
August 11, 2008
The Olympics
In Rome 1960 author David Maraniss takes us back to the Olympics of 1960, when Muhammad Ali, competing as Cassius Clay, won a Gold Medal and the Cold War loomed in the background. A bit of the Cold War seems to be looming in the background now. The author contends the 1960 Olympics changed the world, although some would argue the 1972 Olympics in Munich had a bigger impact.
Be sure to stay tuned to the current Summer Olympics -- history is being made. Comcast customers can go to www.comcast.net/olympics for scheduling info or go to NBCOlympics.com .
August 06, 2008
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn 1918-2008
In The Namesake by Jhampa Lahiri, which is our One Book, One Community title for the fall, one of the main characters (Ashoke) is advised by his grandfather to "Read all the Russians, and then reread them,".
One of the giants of the Russians, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, passed away on August 3rd. I think that he will find a place alongside Tolstoi, Dostoyevsky, Gogol, Chekhov etc. His output was extraordinary starting with his searing portrait of life in Stalin's Gulag, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. He had served a sentence of 8 years for criticizing Stalin in a letter. He went on to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1970 and was exiled by the Soviets in 1974. He lived in Cavendish, Vermont until 1994 when he returned to Russia.