By Anna Jankowski, Ethan Shea, and Annie Stockmal

Happy Thursday, Wildcats! This week’s installment of the Curious Cat will be a bit different than usual. Rather than a more traditional question, we asked some Falvey patrons to guess the flavor of a mystery Peep. Check out the accompanying Instagram Reel to watch these students give the curious marshmallow treat a taste!

“Feeling confused … Is it red velvet?”

— Lauren Jones ’23

“Cherry?”

— Lily Daubenspeck ’26

“Cherry Cola.”

— Jack Murphy ’25

“It just tastes like marshmallow.”

— Lauren Arnold ’25

“Cherry Cola, Cherry Coke, or something like that?”

— Ava Eberly ’25

SPOILER ALERT:

And the mystery flavor is …

.

.

.

Dr. Pepper!

Anna Jankowski ’23 CLAS is a Senior Communication Major from just outside Baltimore who ​​works as a Communication & Marketing Assistant in Falvey.

Ethan Shea is a second-year graduate student in the English Department and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

Annie Stockmal is a graduate student in the Communication Department and Graduate Assistant in Falvey Library. 

By Ethan Shea

This photo from Belle Air 2003 shows Villanova Women’s Basketball alum Courtney Mix leaping for a layup while her teammate Katie Davis watches for a rebound. Davis, a co-captain at the time, was recently inducted into the Big 5 Hall of Fame. With 1,293 points, she ranks 16th in school history.

The 2002-03 season was the first and last time the Wildcats advanced to the Elite Eight in the National Tournament. Twenty years later, (#4) Villanova is looking to repeat this feat by winning against the University of Miami on Friday at 2:30 p.m. Tune into ESPN to watch!

Best of luck to our women this week! #LetsMarchNova #TBT

Ethan Shea is a second-year graduate student in the English Department and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

By Ethan Shea

New Moon Suit (Image courtesy of NYT)

Last week, NASA unveiled their new moon suits, which will be worn by astronauts the Artemis program plans to send to the Moon by 2025.

For temperature regulation, the suits actually used on the Moon will be white instead of the black suit presented here. Temperatures on the surface of the Moon can reach 250 degrees Fahrenheit in the daytime and drop to -208 degrees Fahrenheit at night, so needless to say, astronauts need to take every precaution they can.

Without even taking the extreme temperatures into account, humans could, in theory, only survive a matter of seconds (about 15) on the Moon without a spacesuit. This is because space lacks air, so asphyxiation would occur very quickly, as the body will have used up all the oxygen in its blood in a matter of seconds.

This recent lunar fashion show is a perfect opportunity to highlight some extra-terrestrial threads you can find right here in Falvey’s stacks. Below, you’ll find a collection of iconic space-related outfits from popular literature and even their cinematic adaptations.

“Hidden Figures” promotional poster

Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

This book turned movie shows that moon suits aren’t the only outfits essential to sending astronauts to space. Hidden Figures tells the story of a group of Black women mathematicians who overcame discrimination to help make the Apollo moon landing possible. The movie’s iconic promotional poster shows three women wearing outfits that just can’t be excluded from this list.

2001: A Space Odyssey

This classic Stanley Kubrick film showcases a memorable spacesuit that goes far beyond the moon. There are several iconic scenes in this flick, featuring everything from apes to robots!

Image from “2001: A Space Odyssey”

Men in Black

Sometimes space-wear is more earthly than you might think. The classic Men in Black suits certainly can’t be left out of any space fashion show.

Gravity

Gravity shows Hollywood stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney sporting more traditional spacesuits. This suspenseful story of survival is a must-see.

Star Trek Beyond

I couldn’t make a list about space fashion without including the iconic Star Trek fits. This most recent Star Trek film stays true to the classic suits. Which one is your favorite color?

Ethan Shea is a graduate student in the English Department and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

Photo courtesy of Isabel Choi.

Your ten-year-old sibling might ask you one morning, “So, what exactly do you do at school?” What if you study thermomechanical and electromagnetic properties of ceramic composites at high temperatures or smooth orthogonal decompositions? What would you say? How would you say it? This is the question graduate students competing in Three Minute Thesis (3MT) are forced to wonder and answer. At Villanova University’s 3MT competition, graduate students had to answer the question, “What do you do?” in three minutes or less. 

Held in The John and Joan Mullen Center for the Performing Arts on Friday, Feb. 24, 13 finalists (master’s and doctoral students at Villanova) presented their research to members of the audience in front of a large slideshow presentation. The stage was setup so that audience members were able to see the three-minute timer. Similar to that of a game show, audience members watched the timer tick down to minutes and then to mere seconds. After each presentation, numerous judges (Villanova faculty) would give feedback before going on to the next contestant.

Towards the end of the event, audience members were able to vote for a “people’s choice” award while the judges calculated the first and second place winners. Before the winners were announced, audience members were able to hear a couple personal comments from the contestants themselves–their process, struggles, and aspirations.

Eliana Uriona took first place for her presentation “Optimizing Biochar Conditions for Heavy Metal Immobilization in Contaminated Soils.” Uriona also earned the people’s choice award. Grace Sutoris, won second place for her presentation “Using Machine Learning to Detect Underlying Heartbeat During CPR.”

Representing Villanova University, Uriona will compete at the Northeast Regional 3MT Competition on Friday, April 28. The virtual competition will be hosted by the University of New Hampshire. Watch Villanova’s 2023 3MT competition here. Be sure to check out Falvey’s blog next year for 2024 3MT announcements.

Isabel Choi ’26, is Communication & Marketing Assistant at Falvey Library.

“Attending the competition definitely inspired me…to see dedicated graduate students present their studies….perhaps graduate research is something I should consider pursuing too!”

Falvey patrons, overnight system maintenance may affect library services, such as Pick Up & Go, on Friday, March 17. We apologize for the inconvenience. Questions? Please email circ@villanova.edu.

By Anna Jankowski, Ethan Shea, and Annie Stockmal

Happy Thursday, Wildcats! In this Week’s Curious Cat, we’re putting our microphone to use. That’s right, the question this time around is: “What’s your go-to karaoke song?” Whether you like to “crank that” with Soulja Boy or jam to Shania Twain, we want to know!

Check out the blog and corresponding Reel to hear what a few Falvey patrons had to say, and don’t be afraid to leave a comment with your favorite karaoke tunes.

“Mine is ‘You Belong With Me’ by Taylor Swift.”

— Catarina Calvo ’26

“Mine’s ‘A Night to Remember’ from High School Musical.”

— Lily Daubenspeck ’26

“’Dancing Queen’ Mamma Mia! version.”

— Maia Nagorna ’26

“My go-to karaoke song is ‘Made You Look’ by Meghan Trainor.”

— Chloe Mcgreger ’26

“’Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.’ Especially if I’m with one of my friends.”

— Seamus Daniello ’23

“’Starships’ by Nicki Minaj.”

— Amélie Devine ’26

Anna Jankowski ’23 CLAS is a Senior Communication Major from just outside Baltimore who ​​works as a Communication & Marketing Assistant in Falvey.

Ethan Shea is a second-year graduate student in the English Department and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

Annie Stockmal is a graduate student in the Communication Department and Graduate Assistant in Falvey Library. 

By Ethan Shea

Happy hump day, Wildcats! The semester is back in full swing, and there are already plenty of holidays to celebrate. Check out Graduate Assistant Annie’s Peek at the Week for a full list, but you can look forward to St. Patrick’s Day and my personal favorite, Pi Day, just to name a couple. My bias for Pi day is personal, as it is also my half birthday (and Albert Einstein’s actual birthday), but Pi day aside, there is an important reason why today, March 15, is infamous.

Statue of Caesar in front of Forum Romanum

Today is the ides of March, a date made famous by Shakespeare in the play Julius Caesar. “A soothsayer bids you beware the ides of March” is the prophetic warning Caesar receives in the first act of the play, an iconic foreshadowing of his impending assassination. You can read Julius Caesar online through Falvey’s website here.

The ides only occurs when a full moon falls on the 15th of a month. This phenomenon does not happen very often. In fact, the only months with ides are March, May, July, and October.

Shakespeare did not choose the ides of March without reason, as Caesar was really killed on March 15, 44 B.C.E. Caesar’s death led to a civil war, and the following power vacuum placed Augustus, Caesar’s heir, on the throne.

Before Julius Caesar ruled, the Romans celebrated the New Year on March 1. To honor the two-faced God Janus, Caesar implemented the aptly named Julian calendar and changed New Year’s Day from March 1 to Jan. 1 in the year 46 B.C.E. The 365-day Julian calendar is the same one we continue use here in the United States to this day.

Ethan Shea is a second-year graduate student in the English Department and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

By Ethan Shea

It’s spring break! I don’t want to steal too much of your vacation time, so I’ll keep this week’s blog brief. That being said, I hope you’re enjoying some well-deserved relaxation.

You may be far from campus. Perhaps you’re napping on a beach or skiing slopes in Colorado. Or you could be enjoying a staycation, enjoying your time off while saving a few bucks.

If you’re staying local, to spice up your time at home, consider paying Falvey a visit! Even during break, there’s 24/7 Wildcard access. See our full service hours here.

Not only is the Library a quiet place to relax, but it’s also a way to travel the world without ever leaving your seat. Many of our texts are available online, so you can enjoy everything Falvey has to offer from home.

In the spirit of the staycation, here are a few spring break reading recommendations that will take you to faraway places:

A Room with a View – E.M Forster

On the Road – Jack Kerouac

Journeys – Jan Morris

The Sun Also Rises – Ernest Hemingway

The Expedition of Humphry Clinker – Tobias Smollett

Corregidora – Gayl Jones

The Odyssey – Homer

If you have any other spring break reading recommendations, feel free to leave a comment below. Enjoy the break, and happy reading!

Ethan Shea is a second-year graduate student in the English Department and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

Photo credit: Paige Critcher.

Villanova University’s 2023 Literary Festival will be featuring Tsering Yangzom Lama, who will read from selections of her works on Thursday, March 16, at 7 p.m. in Falvey’s Speakers’ Corner. Tsering Yangzom Lama was born in Kathmandu, Nepal, and earned an MFA in Writing from Columbia University and a BA in Creative Writing and International Relations from The University of British Columbia. She currently resides in Vancouver, Canada.

Her debut novel, We Measure The Earth With Our Bodies (Bloomsbury, 2022) is a New York Times Summer Reads Pick and a finalist for The Scotiabank Giller Prize. It is also longlisted for The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and The Toronto Book Award. She is a co-founder of Lhakar Diaries, an English-language blog for Tibetan youth in exile. Her other works have made appearances in The Globe and Mail, The Malahat Review, Grain, Kenyon Review, Vela, LaLit, and Himal Southasian. She is also a 2018 Tin House Novel Scholar.

Dig deeper and explore the links below for more on her work:

• Tsering Yangzom Lama’s official website
• Tsering Yangzom Lama’s Twitter and Instagram
• We Measure The Earth With Our Bodies (2022)
• Lhakar Diaries 
• “Q&A with Tsering Yangzom Lama” (Victoria Festival of Authors)
• “Tibetan author Tsering Yangzom Lama opens up about immigrating to Canada” (The Globe and Mail)
• “Tsering Yangzom Lama on Cultural Appreciation Versus Cultural Engagement” (Literary Hub)
• “Tibet Talks: A Reading and Conversation with Author Tsering Yangzom Lama” (International Campaign for Tibet)
• “Tsering Yangzom Lama: We Measure the Earth with Our Bodies w/ Jay Neugeboren” (Books Are Magic)

Julia Wagner ‘26 CLAS is a Communication major from New Hampshire (Go Patriots!). She works as a Communication & Marketing Assistant in Falvey Library.

You’re one smart cookie!

Thanks for stopping by our midterm stress buster, Wildcats. Have a safe and relaxing spring break.

Kallie Stahl ’17 MA is Communication and Marketing Specialist at Falvey Library. Photos courtesy of Ethan Shea, Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.