Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Science, Simpsons Style...

In honor of the recently released Simpsons Movie:

Part of The Simpsons' greatness is a willingness to find the humour in absolutely everything — including science. Executive producer Al Jean, the show's head writer and a Harvard mathematics graduate, talks to Nature about how to get a laugh out of Euler's formula. Read more...>>

Also check out the top ten science moments in The Simpsons, as chosen by Nature's editorial staff.

(Source: http://www.nature.com/news/index.html)

Did you know that Stevens users have full-text online access to Nature journal? Check it out here.

Monday, July 30, 2007

Let's hope the rains don't come early this year...

Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, iconic for his use of eco-friendly and lightweight materials, lifts the veil on a paper bridge over the Gardon River in southern France. Read more...>>

(Source: BoingBoing)

PS- The post title was enough, we'll spare you the 'don't burn your bridges' joke. You're welcome.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Part-Time Student Workers Needed

POSITIONS FILLED.

SC Williams Library will be looking for work-study students for the upcoming year, starting in the beginning of the fall semester. Undergraduates are eligible to work between 10 and 15 hours per week (graduate students can work up to 20 hours a week.)

Please contact John Cruz, Circulation Services Manager, at (201) 216-5334 or jcruz@stevens.edu, for more information and to arrange an interview.

(You can also stop into the Library to speak with Mr. Cruz during office hours, 9 - 3:30, Monday through Friday. Ask for him at the front circulation desk.)

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Source of the Week: Changes in Innovation Ecology ('Science' Editorial)

The June 2007 issue of Science Magazine features an editorial by William A. Wulf, past president of the National Academy of Engineering, about cultivating and stimulating innovation in our current technological environment, a topic that could be considered particularly relevant here at an institution that is looking to create a climate of innovation.

From the article: "Globalization has introduced both uncertainties and opportunities worldwide. In the United States, a flurry of recent books and reports has told the country how to be competitive in the 21st century, from Thomas L. Freidman's The World is Flat, to the National Academies'Rising Above the Gathering Storm, and at least a dozen more. All note the historic strength of the United States in innovation and suggest that reinvigorating this capability is key to future prosperity. The resulting recommendations relate to an "ecology" of interrelated institutions, laws, regulations, and policies providing an innovation infrastructure that entails education, research, tax policy, and intellectual property protection, among others. Unfortunately, this ecology is more fundamentally broken than is generally recognized." Read more...>>