As the end of 2017 approaches, we naturally tend to reflect on the year that passed. A new calendar year always seems like an opportunity to change, evolve, and do better. Whether you want to change yourself, or the world, a good place to start is at your own library.
Sounds nice, but you really don’t feel like going out? No problem! We created a list of e-book suggestions for self-improvement inspiration. Just click on the links and enjoy them without leaving your couch.
December 21st marks the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere. This astronomical event represents the time of the year when the path traveled by the sun is the farthest away from the northern part of the globe. Because the sun is traveling the shortest path through the sky, this is the day with the longest night in the year.
The figure below shows the earth’s orbit around the sun. On the right side, we can see that the earth’s inclination during the winter solstice causes the sun rays to shift southward, being directly overhead at the Tropic of Capricorn. After the winter solstice, the sunlight starts to increase again.
During this time of the year, we have cold, snow, hot beverages, family gatherings, holiday decorations… However, we can see by the figure above that while the sun rays are the farthest away from the northern hemisphere, they are the closest to the southern hemisphere. Our winter solstice is the summer solstice in the southern part of our planet. So how different is this time of the year south of the Equator?
Where were you born?
Brooklyn, NY.
Where else have you lived?
Israel.
What languages do you speak?
Hebrew and English, and no, I do not speak Russian.
How long have you been at Touro and what’s your position?
Since July 2017, I’ve been the T&ES (Technical & Electronic Services) Assistant.
What is the name of your site and where is it located?
It’s the Midtown campus. It’s at 27-33 W 23rd Street, NY (Manhattan).
What is the part of your job that you enjoy the most?
That I’m in charge of a few things, so I can pick and choose what I feel like doing that particular day.
I am a late adopter of all things technological. I am not saying I am opposed to it; it’s more like I’m not exposed to it. So when Dr. Marianne Cooper, Professor Emeritus of Queens College Graduate School of Library and Information Studies, insisted that listening to audiobooks is considered “reading”, I insisted otherwise. I refused to believe that listening to a book was more than a shortcut taken by those either unable or unwilling to read an ACTUAL book. Despite this, an online search revealed that while some believe listening to a book is cheating, the brain processes audiobooks and text similarly. Good to know! So, for the purpose of this blog posting, I decided it is time for my brain to give audiobooks a chance, and to recount my experience with them to you.
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