January 2004
Volume 24
(back issues)

In this Issue

New Hires
Jennifer Nolte
Cataloging
Catalog Assistant III
I began work on 1/5/04.
I am from Fairfield, CT.
I attended Fairfield University.
I enjoy reading.

Kathy-Lee Tedone
Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Senior Administrative Assistant
I began work on January 5, 2004
I am from Connecticut
I attended Central CT State University
I enjoy reading, writing, listening to music, hiking, spending time with family and friends.

Viviana De la cruz
Access Services
Library Service Assistant I
I began work on January 02, 2004
I am from Colombia
I attended Gateway Community College
I enjoy going to the gym, playing volleyball, computer...
I am bilingual (spanish and English)

Hannah Bennett
Public Services Librarian, Arts Library
I began work on January 12th
I am from Chicago and was working at the Art Institute of Chicago.
I attended the University of Illinois (Champaign Urbana), University of York (UK), and the University of the South (Sewanee, TN)
I enjoy running, walking my dog, movies, sailing, and so much more!
I look forward to meeting and working with Yale library staff!

Promotions
Daniel Dollar
Digital Resources Librarian
Medical Library

Scott Matheson
Reference & Government Documents Librarian
Law Library

Mike DiMassa
Manager of the Library Shelving Facility
October 1, 2003.

John Gallagher
Head of Access & Document Delivery Services
Medical Library
12/1/2003.

Una Belau
Coordinator I
9/8/2003
Beinecke Library

Doreen Powers
Manager, Administrative Services
9/8/2003
Beinecke Library

Transfers
Julie Dowe
C&IS Support Specialist
Beinecke Library

John-Albert Moseley
Senior Administrative Assistant
Lewis Walpole Library

Departing Employees
Emily Flood
Access Services

Felicia Sirchia
Research Services & Collections

Lynne Thomas
Cataloging

Susan Williams
Visual Resources

Mitsuko Ichinose
East Asian Collection

Mike DiMassa's Promotion

As the charter Manager of the Library Shelving Facility, Mike DiMassa has guided the operations in Hamden and on campus over the past five years to move over a million items to our off-site shelving facility. The program has expanded from primarily a work flow of pick up on campus and accession work at the LSF, to include an active operation on campus of retrieving selected materials and preparing Orbis records for them, a busy daily transport of materials, and far more intensive work on Mike's part to work with staff from the Library Systems Office, Cataloging, and Shipping Room, as well as selectors throughout the Library to develop new routines and resolve the challenges this ambitious program presents. For his increased responsibilities in supervising staff; for developing and applying expertise in bibliographic records, systems applications, and project management; and for working with a wide range of staff on guiding operations that have significant contribution to the Library's strategic plans, Mike has been promoted this fall to the level of M&P 24.

Event Highlights

Holiday Party & Raffle

The annual holiday raffle on December 4 proved to be a milestone in the library staff's ability to raise money for charity with an unprecedented $2522. All proceeds went to the Columbus House (http://www.columbushouse.org), a shelter and social service program for the homeless and less fortunate in the New Haven area.
The staff also donated an unprecedented number of handmade gifts for the raffle. The Library Staff Association (LiSA) was proud to be able to highlight the skills and craftwork of so many Library staffers in this way. In the spring, LiSA will offer another opportunity for staff to showcase their skills at the annual staff art exhibit.

Article submitted by Stephen Cohen, Manuscrits & Archives

Staff Member in Focus

Scott Matheson
Reference Librarian, Law Library

Scott recently accepted the position as the Reference Librarian in the Law Library
Began working on December 15th, previously working as the Visiting Reference Librarian Law Library.

Scott is originally from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. Scott
earned his undergraduate degree in journalism at the University of Alaska in
Fairbanks, Alaska. In Alaska he worked for a public television station where
he published the viewers guide and did fundraising. He hopes all of the
videotapes have been erased.

Scott eventually ended up in Seattle where he attended the University of
Washington School of Law and the university's Information School. After
meeting Yale law librarians at AALL (the American Association of Law
Librarians annual meeting) and a brief internship at the Library of
Congress, he applied to work at the Law Library, using both of his degrees.

Currently Scott enjoys cooking and he has shared his favorite sticky bun
recipe with us. Pecan Sticky Bun Recipe. He is also the go-to-guy at
the Law Library when you need assistance with computers. Scott's other
passion is travel; he shares with us his most recent trip.

This summer Scott went on a road trip and traveled cross-country. He stopped
in Washington, DC; Colorado Springs, Colorado; the Grand Canyon;
Seattle, Washington; and Alaska. It took him a month to complete his
journey. You can view photos and a day by day summary of his trip at
http://www.misinformed.info/trip

Cesar Zapata assisted by asking some interesting interview questions.

Scott what is the most unusual reference question you have been asked?: What
is the tax rate on beer in European countries?

Who is your favorite lawyer, and had you met that person? Atticus Finch is
great, but fictional. In real life, the Solicitor of United States, who
represents the government in the Supreme Court. A past Solicitor General,
Drew Days III is a professor at the Law School. We even get to work for him
from time to time.

Staff Submissions

Recipes

Medical Library's Famous Whiskey Cake
Sent by Lynn Sette
Medical Library

Pecan Sticky Bun Recipe
Sent by Scott Matheson
Law Library

Reviews

New York Opera La Bohème Sent by Amy Apodaca Library Human Resources
http://www.metopera.org/synopses/boheme.html

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A Word From the University Librarian

YUL: Building Stronger Bonds with the University
During November and December, the Library has figured to an unusual extent in high-level university meetings. The Annual Assembly of the Association of Yale Alumni offered a whole day of library events, and about three hundred people crowded into different parts of the library system to hear about aspects of our work. That program was arranged by Carolyn Claflin from her new position at the AYA, with a great deal of help from Katy Hall and contributions from numerous library staff. For more information on the Assembly, see http://www.aya.yale.edu/assembly/f03/.

In the lead-up to a capital campaign for the renovation of Cross Campus and Sterling Libraries, the Development Office invited Danuta Nitecki, Karen Reardon and myself to speak to a meeting of the Yale Development Board in Luce Hall. Diana Timlin, newly appointed as Director of Development and Communications, was able to join us. I gave a short overview, but the highlight of our presentation was Danuta and Karen's demonstration of the ELI project: working closely with faculty to design electronic course materials. (For your own view of the ELI program, see www.library.yale.edu/eli) Members of the board (an audience of about sixty) were very impressed, and we have already heard from two of them, who are seriously interested in supporting our work.

The next command appearance was set for December 5, when Meg Bellinger and I were invited to speak to the Education and Planning Committee of the Yale Corporation. The Provost had asked me to prepare a paper setting out some of the challenges the library faces in the electronic environment. Meg and I invited Karen to accompany us, for a repeat of her star performance at the Development Corporation. I attach a copy of our paper.

Alice Prochaska
University Librarian

Library in Focus

A Selection of Sterling Memorial Reading Rooms

Library in Focus

American Studies Reading Room, SML 608
The American Studies Reading Room on the 6th floor of SML houses a small collection of books meant to support the study needs of graduate students in American Studies. Anyone with authorized stack access may use the reading room, but the lockers and assigned reading shelves are reserved for students. Nancy Godleski (nancy.godleski@yale.edu), Kaplanoff Librarian for American History, is in charge of the reading room and its collections. A web page describing the reading room's mission can be found here:

http://www.library.yale.edu/rsc/american/readingroom.html

Andrews Study
Andrews Study is located on the second floor of the Sterling Memorial Library in rooms 214 & 215. It houses the Charles McLean Andrews Memorial Collection of American Colonial History, about 3,300 volumes of Anglo-American historical sources and works. Both rooms contain reserve shelves for readers and comfortable furniture for studying; a networked workstation is located in Room 215

.

HR in Focus

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Calendar of Events

HR Updates

Printing Sections of Library Links
Select (highlight) the area that you want to print. Either click the print icon on the toolbar at the top of the page or select print from the File menu. Then when the gray print box appears choose "Selection" from the page range instead of "all" or "pages". Then click print.

New Horizons Closed
Please be aware New Horizons Learning Center has closed its New Haven location. As a result, we will no longer offer technical training vouchers for New Horizons classes. If you have any questions,
please contact Kate Reynolds or Andrew Gray.

United Way

The Yale University Library Gave
Generously to United Way in 2002.
We Thank You for Your Donations.

Help Us Again to Make
Greater New Haven
A Stronger Community

Please give to the United Way
http://mire.med.yale.edu/lcdb/unitedway/default.htm

Suggestions and Comments
Send all comments to the Editor, Jessica Linicus

If you would like something or someone featured in the nex of the members of the Library Links Committee.

~Robin Gordon~Randy Main~Marybeth Bean
~Nicole Benevento~Susan Brady~Lynn Sette~George Stranz~Pedro Soto~
Julie Niemeyer~Tanya Allen~Emily Horning~Diane Ducharme~Ceasar Zapata~Claire Halloran~

Wellness in Focus

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Humor in Focus

Quotations about Librarians from the Laughing Librarian web site

"Liberrian: One who picks liberries from wild liberry bushes and makes a liberry pie. Mmmmh! Mmmmh! So delicious!"
R. Lee Hadden
(Message reproduced in Library Juice, 12 April 2000)

"He's like Super Librarian, y'know? Everyone forgets, Willow, that knowledge is the ultimate weapon."
(Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode, "Never Kill a Boy on the First Date."
Line spoken by Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris)

"I deserve a swift kick in the shorts for all the times I've stubbornly wound my way through the library stacks, my mule head leading the way, searching fruitlessly for information a librarian could put in my hands in a matter of minutes."
Michael Perry
(Handbook for Freelance Writing, 1995, as quoted in Marylaine Block's
Ex Libris, 23 February 2001)

http://www.laughinglibrarian.com/index.htm
Article submitted by Lynn Sette, Medical Library

Wellness Now

What to Do About Insomnia

Just can't get to sleep? Can't stay asleep? Waking up too early?
Not feeling refreshed and restored in the morning? Not functioning well during the day? You may have insomnia.

Symptoms
Up to about one-third of the population have symptoms of insomnia. Those with insomnia typically experience:

Sleepiness
Fatigue
Poor concentration
Decreased alertness and performance
Muscle aches
Depression during the day and night
An over-emotional state (tense, worried, irritable, and depressed)
While it may be very difficult to get to sleep at bedtime, you find yourself "out like a light" in front of the TV, at a movie, reading, or even driving. And anticipating getting a poor night's sleep as well as developing rituals and behaviors you think will help your sleep (going to bed earlier) may actually have the opposite effect -- and make the problem worse. Such is the plight, misery, and danger of insomnia.

Many of us experience temporary insomnia from a few days to a few weeks. This kind of insomnia usually results from normal events in our lives such as: A stressful event, Emotional stress, Illness, Temporary pain, Disturbances in sleep hygiene (environmental factors).

Medical Causes
Insomnia also may result from a variety of medical conditions, pain, and even the treatments for these disorders. And poor sleep hygiene can make these medical conditions worse.

Depressive illnesses are almost always associated with sleep disturbances. Those suffering from anxiety may be unable to sleep due to intrusive thoughts, an inability to relax, obsessive worrying, and an "overactive" mind. Bipolar, panic, and psychiatric disorders are each associated with sleep disturbances as well.

Pain from arthritis, other rheumatologic diseases, cancer, and various neurological disorders, like neuropathy from diabetes are common causes of insomnia. Gastrointestinal disorders like acid reflux and stomach ulcers, as well as angina from heart disease may cause chest pain, and consequent awakenings during the night. In addition, cluster headaches may be precipitated during certain stages of sleep or occur from lack of sleep.

Back to Sleep
Developing good sleep hygiene is very important for insomnia relief. For example, smoking, drinking, and exercise can affect your sleep dramatically. What you actually do in bed (like reading or watching TV), the temperature of room, noise levels, the timing and amount of fluids you drink, and the food you eat significantly impact insomnia. Exposure to light in the evening (looking at a bright computer screen, turning on the light to go to the bathroom) may alter your circadian rhythms. Poor hygiene alone can generate significant sleep problems.

Treatments
Treatment for insomnia falls into two basic categories, medication and behavioral strategies for sleep initiation.

Medication
Doctors tend to use one of three different types of medication for insomnia, including:

The so-called non-benzodiazepine or "non-valium-like" hypnotics (such as Ambien and Sonata) are designed for insomnia and are often first-line treatment. They are especially effective because they work quickly, do not disrupt your "sleep architecture" or the quality of your sleep, and are not addictive.
When considering underlying depression associated with insomnia, antidepressants are often used because of their sedating side effects.
Hypnotics (including Restoril, Halcion, and Klonipin) should be used only in selected patients because they are potent medications that greatly impact the quality of sleep and may have severe side effects, including daytime drowsiness and addiction.

Behavioral Strategies
Sleep restriction, that is, restricting where one sleeps to only the bed. The idea here is that you sleep only in bed and you stay in bed only when asleep. Do not lie awake in bed for hours on end. If you do not fall asleep after about 25 minutes, get out of bed and do something calming, like read a book. This helps reduce the anxiety-provoking association of being awake while in bed, and ultimately may create the positive association of sleeping well in bed. When restricting sleep in this manner, you will eventually become so tired that you become sleepy earlier in the evening, relieving insomnia. Given how tired one will be when beginning this regimen, activities where safety is an issue, like driving, should be avoided.

Stimulus control involves making the bedroom a place for sleep and sex only -- no TV-watching, for example. This again tries to create associations to help train your mind.

Relaxation uses certain techniques to relax your mind and body, making it easier to fall asleep and stay asleep.

Cognitive behavioral therapy. Here a psychologist helps to eliminate those thoughts associated with a poor night's sleep.
All the therapies noted above should be instituted, directed, and monitored by a doctor after a proper evaluation and diagnosis.

Conclusion
As if the misery of insomnia is not enough, chronic insomnia takes an additional toll. Studies show an increased mortality risk for those reporting less than either six or seven hours per night. One study found that reduced sleep time is a greater mortality risk than smoking, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

So, if you have symptoms of insomnia, it is very important take it as seriously as any other medical condition or illness. Establish good sleep hygiene and see your doctor or sleep specialist

By Michael Breus, PhD
For More on this topic click here

Article submitted by Jessica Linicus, Library Human Resources

Think Now

Yale Photos

Yale pictures from the web

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