Here’s your daily dose of library-oriented speed-reads to start your day!

TODAY IN THE LIBRARY…

Office for Undergraduate Students: Pre-Law Advising Workshop. 12:00 – 1:30 p.m. in room 204. Questions? Contact: michael.j.pennington@villanova.edu

In celebration of World Meeting of Families 2015 and Pope Francis’ visit to Philadelphia Falvey Memorial Library invites you to celebrate your family by sharing a family photo. There are two ways to participate. 1.) Bring in a copy of your favorite family photo and hang it on the library display window. 2.) Post your family photo on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram with the hashtag #falveyfamily and we’ll hang it for you. Please note, submission of a photo implies your permission to use images on library social media accounts, displays, and publications. Provide copies and not originals as photos displayed will not be returned.

#VillanovaUatWMF

#popeinphilly

#wmf2015

Did you know—

—you have a rare opportunity this weekend to catch a unique exhibit before it leaves campus?

“The Zen Photography of Thomas Merton: A Hidden Wholeness” will be on display at the University’s art gallery, in the Connelly Center, until Sept. 24.

A part of the Office for Mission and Ministry’s Celebration of Thomas Merton, this exhibit has been sponsored by Campus Ministry and the Villanova Art Gallery.

This Friday, Aug. 28, the art gallery will host a reception from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. followed by a presentation— The Zen Photography of Thomas Merton—featuring Paul Pearson, PhD.

For more about Thomas Merton and library resources about him and his work, please click here.

“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” ~ Thomas Merton

SAVE THE DATE…

On Thursday, Sept. 10, Reyna Grande, the author of The Distance Between Us: A Memoir  will visit Villanova University.  Her book was chosen as the new OneBook Villanova, the campus wide reading program that is now in its eleventh year. First year students were mailed the book during the summer and all others can purchase the book from the Center for Multicultural Affairs or the Office of Student Involvement or by ordering online by cash, check or budget transfer.

Ms. Grande will appear in the library’s Speakers Corner between 4:40 and 5:30 on September 10 to provide readers with an opportunity to meet the author and get their book signed.

FACEBOOK JOINS THE VIRTUAL ASSISTANCE TREND WITH “M”

Yesterday, Facebook users in the San Francisco Bay Area were introduced to “M,” Facebook’s equivalent of Siri, Cortana, and Google Now –except not quite “equivalent.” While Apple, Microsoft, and Google all have implemented artificial intelligence technology, M is a bit of a “hybrid.” It utilizes virtual assistance as well as a team of Facebook workers to meet the needs of its users. Read more here.

NEW BOOK NEWS

From a review in Commonweal, the author Garry Wills is said to be “writing about what Catholics used to call ‘changes in the church.'” The Future of the Catholic Church with Pope Francis is a study both of such changes and of change itself as the church’s “means of respiration.””

The author uses his book to anticipate and “watch the phases of this process, the reaction of the church as a living body in real situations.”

Excerpt from the book:

“Pope Francis heartens some Catholics, but frightens others–both of them for the same reason, the prospect of change. The Catholic Church is the oldest institution in Western civilization. Surely the secret to its longevity is its ability to defy and outlast all the many breaks and discontinuities over the last twenty centuries.”

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Just twenty-four hours after National Dog Day, today is The Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan’s 45th birthday. While dog whispering is barkin’ cool, who wouldn’t want to be a book or database whisperer, right? Your research would be done in no time if your books could open to exactly the page you need and your databases could spit out all the best articles. *sigh* Too bad nobody has that skill… oh wait! Your friendly and well-trained librarians do! And you don’t even need to bring treats! (Although it certainly wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world…)

“A dog is the only thing on Earth that loves you more than he loves himself.” – Cesar Millan

HAVE A GREAT DAY!

If you have ideas for inclusion in The 8:30 or to Library News in general, you’re invited to send them to joanne.quinn@villanova.edu.