"While the pandemic has made us realize how fragile we are, it’s also shown how resilient we can be. Many of us have had to distance ourselves from loved ones, from elderly family and those with compromised immune systems, which has been very hard. What draws us together is the ARIN community. We are here for each other professionally and personally, and we will get through this."
Christine Keough, BSN, RN, CRN
ANA Webinar series: Be Confident Protecting Yourself and Providing the Best Care to Your Patients during this COVID-19 Pandemic
March 30, 2020 (Available on-demand)
Leadership Essentials During a Disaster - Valerie Aarne Grossman MALS, BSN, NE-BC
Providing Steroid/Corticosteroid Injections Safely in the COVID-19 Environment - Beth Ann Hackett DNP, APRN-BC, CRN


Novels by Agatha Christie
|1920||The Mysterious Affair at Styles||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1922||The Secret Adversary||Tommy and Tuppence|
|1923||The Murder on the Links||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings|
|1924||The Man in the Brown Suit||Anne Beddingfeld, Colonel Race|
|1925||The Secret of Chimneys||Superintendent Battle|
|1926||The Murder of Roger Ackroyd||Hercule Poirot|
|1927||The Big Four||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1928||The Mystery of the Blue Train||Hercule Poirot|
|1929||The Seven Dials Mystery||Bill Eversleigh, Superintendent Battle|
|1930||The Murder at the Vicarage||Miss Marple|
|1931||The Sittaford Mystery or Murder at Hazelmoor||Inspector Narracott]|
|1932||Peril at End House||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1933||Lord Edgware Dies or Thirteen at Dinner||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1934||Murder on the Orient Express or Murder in the Calais Coach||Hercule Poirot|
|1934||Why Didn't They Ask Evans? or The Boomerang Clue||Bobby Jones|
|1935||Three Act Tragedy or Murder in Three Acts||Hercule Poirot|
|1935||Death in the Clouds or Death in the Air||Hercule Poirot, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1936||The A.B.C. Murders or The Alphabet Murders||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1936||Murder in Mesopotamia||Hercule Poirot|
|1936||Cards on the Table||Hercule Poirot, Colonel Race, Superintendent Battle, Ariadne Oliver|
|1937||Dumb Witness, Poirot Loses a Client, Mystery at Littlegreen House, or Murder at Littlegreen House||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings|
|1937||Death on the Nile||Hercule Poirot, Colonel Race|
|1938||Appointment with Death||Hercule Poirot|
|1938||Hercule Poirot's Christmas, Murder for Christmas or A Holiday for Murder||Hercule Poirot|
|1939||Murder is Easy, or Easy to Kill||Superintendent Battle|
|1939||And Then There Were None>/i>, or Ten Little Indians, also Ten Little Niggers|
|1940||Sad Cypress||Hercule Poirot|
|1940||One, Two, Buckle My Shoe, or An Overdose of Death, or The Patriotic Murders||Hercule Poirot, Chief Inspector Japp|
|1941||Evil Under the Sun||Hercule Poirot|
|1941||N or M?||Tommy and Tuppence|
|1942||The Body in the Library||Miss Marple|
|1942||Five Little Pigs, or Murder in Retrospect||Hercule Poirot|
|1942||The Moving Finger, or The Case of the Moving Finger||Miss Marple|
|1944||Towards Zero, or Come and Be Hanged||Superintendent Battle, Inspector James Leach|
|1944||Death Comes as the End|
|1945||Sparkling Cyanide, or Remembered Death||Colonel Race|
|1946||The Hollow, also Murder After Hours||Hercule Poirot|
|1948||Taken at the Flood, or There is a Tide||Hercule Poirot|
|1949||Crooked House||Charles Hayward|
|1950||A Murder is Announced||Miss Marple|
|1951||They Came to Baghdad||Victoria Jones|
|1952||Mrs McGinty's Dead, or Blood Will Tell||Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver|
|1952||They Do It with Mirrors, or Murder with Mirrors||Miss Marple|
|1953||After the Funeral, or Funerals are Fatal, also Murder at the Gallop||Hercule Poirot|
|1953||A Pocket Full of Rye||Miss Marple|
|1954||Destination Unknown, or So Many Steps to Death|
|1955||Hickory Dickory Dock, or Hickory Dickory Death||Hercule Poirot|
|1956||Dead Man's Folly||Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver|
|1957||4.50 from Paddington, or What Mrs. McGillycuddy Saw, or Murder She Said||Miss Marple|
|1958||Ordeal by Innocence|
|1959||Cat Among the Pigeons||Hercule Poirot|
|1961||The Pale Horse||Inspector Lejeune, Ariadne Oliver|
|1962||The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side, or The Mirror Crack'd||Miss Marple|
|1963||The Clocks||Hercule Poirot|
|1964||A Caribbean Mystery||Miss Marple|
|1965||At Bertram's Hotel||Miss Marple|
|1966||Third Girl||Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver|
|1968||By the Pricking of My Thumbs||Tommy and Tuppence|
|1969||Hallowe'en Party||Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver|
|1970||Passenger to Frankfurt|
|1972||Elephants Can Remember||Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver|
|1973||Postern of Fate||Tommy and Tuppence|
|1975||Curtain||Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings|
|1976||Sleeping Murder||Miss Marple|
Collections of Short Stories
Christie wrote 160 short stories in her career. Twelve of the stories, published in The Sketch magazine (1924), under the sub-heading of "The Man who was No. 4" were re-written into one continuous narrative in the novel The Big Four (1927). "The Submarine Plans" (1923), "Christmas Adventure" (1923), "The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest" (1932) and "The Second Gong" (1932), were expanded into longer narratives by Christie as The Incredible Theft, The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, The Mystery of the Spanish Chest and Dead Man's Mirror respectively.
Only one short story remains unpublished in the UK in book form: "Three Blind Mice" (1948) on which Christie placed a moratorium whilst the stage play based on the story, The Mousetrap, was still running in the West End.
In the US, the stories "The Incredible Theft" and "Christmas Adventure" have not been published in book form.
- 1924 Poirot Investigates (short stories: eleven in the UK, fourteen in the US)
- 1929 Partners in Crime (fifteen short stories; featuring Tommy and Tuppence)
- 1930 The Mysterious Mr. Quin (twelve short stories; introducing Mr. Harley Quin)
- 1932 The Thirteen Problems (thirteen short stories; featuring Miss Marple, also known as The Tuesday Club Murders in the US)
- 1933 The Hound of Death (twelve short stories - UK only)
- 1934 The Listerdale mystery (twelve short stories - UK only)
- 1934 Parker Pyne Investigates (twelve short stories; introducing Parker Pyne and Ariadne Oliver, also known as Mr. Parker Pyne, Detective in the US)
- 1937 Murder in the Mews (four novella-length stories; featuring Hercule Poirot, also known as Dead Man's Mirror in the US)
- 1939 Regatta Mystery and Other Stories (nine short stories - US only)
- 1947 The Labours of Hercules (twelve short stories; featuring Hercule Poirot)
- 1948 The Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories (eleven short stories - US only)
- 1950 Three Blind Mice and Other Stories (nine short stories - US only)
- 1951 The Under Dog and Other Stories (nine short stories - US only)
- 1960 The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding (six short stories - UK only)
- 1961 Double Sin and Other Stories (eight short stories - US only)
- 1971 The Golden Ball and Other Stories (fifteen short stories - US only)
- 1974 Poirot's Early Cases (eighteen short stories, also known as Hercule Poirot's Early Cases in the US)
- 1979 Miss Marple's Final Cases and Two Other Stories (eight short stories - UK only)
- 1991 Problem at Pollensa Bay and Other Stories (eight short stories - UK only)
- 1997 The Harlequin Tea Set (nine short stories - US only)
- 1997 While the Light Lasts and Other Stories (nine short stories - UK only)
Novels written as Mary Westmacott
- 1930 Giant's Bread
- 1934 Unfinished Portrait
- 1944 Absent in the Spring
- 1948 The Rose and the Yew Tree
- 1952 A Daughter's a Daughter
- 1956 The Burden
- 1930 Black Coffee
- 1943 And Then There Were None
- 1945 Appointment with Death
- 1946 Murder on the Nile/Hidden Horizon
- 1951 The Hollow
- 1951 A Daughter's a Daughter (Written in the late 1930's. Performed once. Unpublished and later turned into the 1952 Mary Westmacott novel)
- 1952 The Mousetrap
- 1953 Witness for the Prosecution
- 1954 Spider's Web
- 1958 Verdict
- 1958 The Unexpected Guest
- 1960 Go Back for Murder
- 1962 Rule of Three (Comprised of "Afternoon at the Seaside", "The Rats" and "The Patient")
- 1972 Fiddler's Three (Originally written as Fiddler's Five. Unpublished.)
- 1973 Akhnaton (Written in 1937)
- 2003 Chimneys (Written in 1931, but unperformed for 72 years. Unpublished.)
- 1937 Yellow Iris (Based on the short story of the same name)
- 1947 Three Blind Mice (Christie's celebrated stage play The Mousetrap was based on this radio play)
- 1948 Butter In a Lordly Dish
- 1960 Personal Call (A BBC Radio recording of this play is known to exist)
- 1937 Wasp's Nest (Based on the short story of the same name)
- 1946 Come, Tell Me How You Live
- 1977 Agatha Christie: An Autobiography
Other published works
- 1925 The Road of Dreams (Poetry)
- 1965 Star Over Bethlehem and other stories (Christian stories and poems)
- 1973 Poems
She has co-authored several other books and plays. Some of her material remains unpublished.Movie Adaptations of her Work
- 1928 The Passing of Mr. Quinn (Based on the short story The Coming of Mr. Quin)
- 1929 Die Abenteurer GmbH (Based on The Secret Adversary)
- 1931 Alibi (Based on the stage play of the same name from the novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd)
- 1931 Black Coffee
- 1934 Lord Edgware Dies
- 1937 Love from a Stranger (Film) (Based on the stage play of the same name from the short story Philomel Cottage)
- 1945 And Then There Were None
- 1947 Love from a Stranger (Film)
- 1957 Witness for the Prosecution
- 1960 Spider's Web (film)
- 1962 Murder, She Said (Based on the novel 4.50 From Paddington)
- 1963 Murder at the Gallop (Based on the novel After the Funeral)
- 1964 Murder Most Foul (Based on the novel Mrs. McGinty's Dead)
- 1964 Murder Ahoy! (An original movie not based on any of the books, though it borrows some of the elements of They Do It with Mirrors)
- 1965 Gumnaam (uncredited adaptation of And Then There Were None}
- 1966 Ten Little Indians
- 1966 The Alphabet Murders (Based on The A.B.C. Murders)
- 1972 Endless Night
- 1974 Murder on the Orient Express
- 1975 Ten Little Indians
- 1978 Death on the Nile
- 1980 The Mirror Crack'd (Based on The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side)
- 1982 Evil Under the Sun
- 1984 Ordeal by Innocence
- 1988 Appointment with Death
- 1987 Desyat Negrityat (Ten Little Niggers)
- 1989 Ten Little Indians
- 2005 Mon petit doigt m'a dit... (By the Pricking of my Thumb)
- 2007 L'Heure zéro (Towards Zero)
- 1938 "Love from a Stranger" (TV) (Based on the stage play of the same name from the short story Philomel Cottage)
- 1947 "Love from a Stranger" (TV)
- 1949 "Ten Little Indians"
- 1959 "Ten Little Indians"
- 1970 "Murder at the Vicarage"
- 1980 "Why Didn't They Ask Evans?"
- 1982 "Spider's Web" (TV)
- 1982 "The Seven Dials Mystery"
- 1982 "The Agatha Christie Hour"
- 1982 "Murder is Easy"
- 1982 "The Witness for the Prosecution"
- 1983 "The Secret Adversary"
- 1983 "Partners in Crime"
- 1983 "A Caribbean Mystery"
- 1983 "Sparkling Cyanide"
- 1984 "The Body in the Library"
- 1985 "Murder with Mirrors"
- 1985 "The Moving Finger"
- 1985 "A Murder Is Announced"
- 1985 "A Pocket Full of Rye"
- 1985 "Thirteen at Dinner"
- 1986 "Dead Man's Folly"
- 1986 "Murder in Three Acts"
- 1986 "Murder at the Vicarage"
- 1987 "Sleeping Murder"
- 1987 "At Bertram's Hotel"
- 1987 "Nemesis"
- 1987 "4.50 from Paddington"
- 1989 "The Man in the Brown Suit"
- 1989 "A Caribbean Mystery"
- 1991 "They Do It with Mirrors"
- 1992 "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side"
- 1997 "The Pale Horse"
- 2001 "Murder on the Orient Express" (very loose adaptation)
- 2003 "Sparkling Cyanide" (very loose adaptation)
- 2004 "The Body in the Library" (very loose adaptation)
- 2004 "Murder at the Vicarage"
- 2004 "Appointment with Death"
- 2005 "A Murder is Announced"
- 2005 "Sleeping Murder"
- 2006 "The Moving Finger"
- 2006 "By the Pricking of My Thumbs"
- 2006 "The Sittaford Mystery"
- 2007 "Hercule Poirot's Christmas" (A French film adaptation)
- 2007 "Towards Zero"
- 2007 "Nemesis" (very loose adaptation)
- 2007 "At Bertram's Hotel" (very loose adaptation)
- 2007 "Ordeal by Innocence"
Agatha Christie's Poirot television series
- 1990 "Peril at End House"
- 1990 "The Mysterious Affair at Styles"
- 1994 "Hercule Poirot's Christmas"
- 1995 "Murder on the Links"
- 1995 "Hickory Dickory Dock"
- 1996 "Dumb Witness"
- 2000 "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd" (very loose adaptation)
- 2000 "Lord Edgware Dies"
- 2001 "Evil Under the Sun"
- 2001 "Murder in Mesopotamia"
- 2004 "Five Little Pigs"
- 2004 "Death on the Nile"
- 2004 "Sad Cypress"
- 2004 "The Hollow"
- 2005 "The Mystery of the Blue Train"
- 2005 "Cards on the Table"
- 2005 "Taken at the Flood"
Name: Christie, Agatha Mary
Alternative Names: Lady Mallowan
Date Of Birth: 15 September 1890(1890-09-15)
Place Of Birth: Torquay, Devon, England
Date Of Death: 12 January 1976
Place Of Death: Wallingford, Oxfordshire, England


How to contribute to the development of the child with children's literature.
During the month of May 2019 and through the celebration of the Youth Literature Week in Mauritius, we were able to highlight the writings for young people at the Paul and Virginia School and at the French Institute of Mauritius. The students of the school were charmed by the beauty of all these albums written for them.
At Paul and Virginia School, we encourage children's literature authors to visit through various classroom projects. As a result, the students had the opportunity to meet several of them, namely Nancy Guilbert, Amarnath Hosany, Shenaz Patel, Stéphane Servant and many others during their schooling. Thanks to these moments, they can better understand the workings of this stream of words and images that are offered to them in the albums they enthusiastically discover in the classroom or library.
The benefits of children's literature:
It can sometimes be transmitted by word of mouth, either during a time of sharing between adults and children or when the latter decide to read for their classmates. Thanks to these exchanges, it is then possible to create a common cultural background for children. They discover characters like Marcel by Anthony Browne, Tikoulou by Henry Koombes and also Boucle d'Or, the three little pigs with whom they live beautiful adventures. The child can either listen to what the adult reads to him or tell the story to his parent himself. He can also, if he already knows how to read, take a journey alone into the world of characters.
Thus, children's literature makes it possible to transmit the taste for reading but also for writing to children.
At Paul and Virginia School, students are always very happy to ask questions to local or international children's literature authors, who always manage to answer with joy the questions of curious students.
A literary journey without limits:
If you have the opportunity to read them, you will easily notice that these texts from children's literature are very rich and varied and seem to have no fear of any spillover. They leave room for the spontaneity and authenticity of childhood. Imagination no longer having any limits, wonder is at its peak. The literary journey is both present in the content of the text and in the form.
In this universe, it would seem that there are no limits. The typography, the layout, the illustrations, the police games, the whole is solicited in order to stimulate a maximum the imagination of the child, and the adult.
From reverse printed texts to three-dimensional illustrations, a multitude of possibilities that allow children to identify themselves in the characters or not, to dream, to experience many emotions, to believe, to have confidence and to enjoy all that literature can offer.
Written by Aurélie Fleuriau-Chateau
We had the opportunity to ask Constance, 9 1/2 years old, what she thought of children's literature: "What I like about reading is that it allows me to travel. I learn a lot of vocabulary which allows me to have a better spelling. I find myself in the character's world while remaining in mine. Thanks to these people who write for us, we enrich our knowledge. »
You can enrich your reading on the blog "Les p'tits Mots-dits".


And yet, Fiennes pushes the narrative forward at a good pace, and his narration becomes especially lively as he describes the true grind of snow and ice. The clichés disappear and are replaced by the hard-won descriptions of struggle, perseverance and initiative that only someone who has lived through such hostile conditions can know.
I wish Fiennes had done more of these comparisons. The examples used are torn from the order of a life of opposing one’s body to what seems unbearable. Therefore, while the story of Shackleton’s life unfolds in a linear fashion, it is difficult to get a sense of Fiennes’ own journey. It might be a different book, but their life story told side by side would make for interesting reading, exploring both similarities and differences.
As things stand, the comparisons are the book’s most original contribution. While in some cases they might seem a bit superfluous – there simply to introduce a connection – at best they offer genuine insight. For example, Fiennes compares the 24-pound weight loss Shackleton suffered during his failed attempt to reach the South Pole on the Nimrod Expedition with his own 55-pound weight loss after hauling sleds for 94 days in Antarctica. He notes that stress may have been responsible for the near-fatal heart attack he suffered 10 years later, and he posits whether Shackleton’s equally extreme weight loss under equally extreme conditions requiring equally extreme exertion may also have affected Shackleton’s heart.
One hundred years ago, in the early hours of January 5, 1922, while aboard his ship at South Georgia, Antarctica, Shackleton died, aged 47, most likely of a heart attack. .
While researching my own recent book, I visited Shackleton’s hut at Cape Royds, from which he made his unsuccessful attempt to reach the South Pole. I was there to interrogate the hut, to see if I could deduce anything from the men who had used it over a century ago. There’s something about Shackleton that still lingers, and it has less to do with the discarded socks, rusty cans of custard powder and empty reindeer sleeping bags than the sense of camaraderie that still permeates the quarters of open-plan living. Shackleton, as Fiennes shows, was an Everyman hero in an era of disciplined and heroic Antarctic exploration; and, unlike flan powder, its history remains as exceptional and astounding today.
In the end, unlike his polar expeditions, this book by Fiennes does not set any records, whether pure or not. Its appeal lies in its perspective: reading about an extreme polar superstar from the perspective of another. The book is not a 10 like the man, but that hardly matters. For anyone passionate about polar exploration, this is a must read.


Horst Faas, one of the great photojournalists of the 20th century has passed away, leaving an amazing body of work from a decade in Vietnam and elsewhere (including the Congo, Pakistan and Syria). Many of Fass’ photos are well known to Americans who lived through this period. But he also worked with so many American and South Vietnamese photographers as Chief of Photo Operations for AP’s bureau in Saigon that much of his work was behind the scenes, training photographers (“Horst’s Army” as they were called) and selecting images to be forwarded for publication.
From the Associated Press:
A native of Germany who joined the U.S.-based news cooperative there in 1956, Faas photographed wars, revolutions, the Olympic Games and events in between.
But he was best known for covering Vietnam, where he was severely wounded in 1967 and won four major photo awards including the first of his two Pulitzers.
“Horst was one of the great talents of our age, a brave photographer and a courageous editor who brought forth some of the most searing images of this century,” said AP Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll. “He was a stupendous colleague and a warm and generous friend.”
Among his top proteges was Huynh Thanh My, an actor turned photographer who in 1965 became one of four AP staffers and one of two South Vietnamese among more than 70 journalists killed in the 15-year war.
My’s younger brother, Huynh Cong “Nick” Ut, followed his brother at AP and under Faas’s tutelage won one of the news agency’s six Vietnam War Pulitzer Prizes, for his iconic 1972 picture of a badly burned Vietnamese girl fleeing an aerial napalm attack.
Faas was a brilliant planner, able to score journalistic scoops by anticipating “not just what happens next but what happens after that,” as one colleague put it.
His reputation as a demanding taskmaster and perfectionist belied a humanistic streak he was loath to admit, while helping less fortunate ex-colleagues and other causes. He was widely read on Asian history and culture, and assembled an impressive collection of Chinese Ming porcelain, bronzes and other treasures.
“Horst Faas was a giant in the world of photojournalism whose extraordinary commitment to telling difficult stories was unique and remarkable,” said Santiago Lyon, AP vice president and director of photography.
Faas was a two-time Pulitzer winner and a master of his craft, who understood the power of the photographic image to convey a story. He leaves us with some of the most searing images of the 20th century – a visual record that will retain its power with our increasing distance from the actual events. Not surprisingly, he was a task master and perfectionist, but also a humanist, generous in spirit, encouraging South Vietnamese photographers to document the tragedy of the War themselves. Born into a childhood of war in Germany, he knew and had an eye for what we needed to see.
The Associated Press site has put together a slideshow of his work – it represents only a small portion of his influence but the images are memorable. See AP Horst Fass Images
Below, women and children take cover in a muddy canal from Viet Cong fire at Bao Trai on January 1, 1966. In the background, paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Division, who were escorting South Vietnamese villagers through the firefight.


I was looking for some illustrations of tendons and came across this book online: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16370/16370-h/16370-h.htm LAMENESS of the HORSE BY J.V. Lacroix, D.V.S. Professor of Surgery, The Kansas City Veterinary College Author of "Animal Castration" AMERICAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY MEDICINE 1916 Page down through it for the pictures... I have never seen quite the like. I guess they really believed in using extreme cases to emphasize a point!


We’re so excited to launch the first episode of this new children’s discipleship tool on August 8th! We’re calling it Craft Me A Story, but this is more than popsicle sticks and glitter. Craft Me A Story will be a multifaceted experience teaching children biblical truth while also teaching them creative art skills, using an assortment of mediums to further illustrate the meaning of the scriptures.
Sign up below, and we’ll prepare a packet of necessary materials that you can pick up on campus at MPBC. We hope you’ll join us for the first episode, “Creation: The First Story.”
The registration period has ended.


Alchemy of The Phoenix Book Release Summer 2020
Alchemy of The Phoenix is a gripping two-part book detailing Kelly Bramblett’s history with abuse and the darkness that was created from living over 20 years with unhealed wounding
Part self-help, and part memoir Kelly shares a powerful message of hope, love, forgiveness, and healing with you as she walks you through the exact steps she took to heal her unresolved trauma.
Packed full of spiritual insights, juicy nuggets of wisdom, and loads of healing exercises, this book will empower you to take control of your life and begin your transformative healing journey. You will be asked to dive deep into concepts such as:
and so much more.
If you have been living in the shadows of trauma and are ready to heal your life from the inside out, this book is for you.
It is your time now, to rise from the ashes of trauma into the light of love.
Pre-order Alchemy of The Phoenix and receive the Alchemy of The Phoenix mini-course FREE!!
This mini-course has been created to complement the lessons and exercises discussed in Alchemy of The Phoenix to support you on your healing journey.
"Alchemy of The Phoenix is a deeply healing and nurturing book for anyone who's faced trauma or adversity in their life. Full of great practices and advice this book will teach you how to rise up and transform your life"
- Emma Mumford


FIRST CARLIGH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
THEME: INNOVATION FOR ACCESS TO INFORMATION
VENUE: CSIR-INSTI, Accra
The Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana (CARLIGH) was born on the 17th of August 2004 and aims at ensuring a continued availability of library information resources, print and electronic, to the academic and research community, share resources and build the capacities of personnel through workshops, seminars and conferences to improve teaching, learning and research including life-long learning in member institutions and by extension in Ghana. Its membership is open to libraries in public and private tertiary and research institutions. It began with six members and as at July 2014 it had thirty-three members.....
SECOND CARLIGH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
VENUE: CSIR INST, Accra
This will be the second after the 17th July 2014 International Conference was held. Details of the upcoming conference will be upload when ready.
3RD CARLIGH/AAU INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
THEME: Managing Research Output for National Development: Trends and Issues
VENUE: Association of African Universities, Legon - Accra
The Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana (CARLIGH), in collaboration with the Association of African Universities (AAU), is pleased to announce the 3rd International Conference of the Consortium which will be held in Accra, Ghana from 9th – 13th July 2018.
The conference seeks to bring together researchers, faculty, librarians, ICT professionals, data analysts, and industry players to deliberate on and share experiences in the area of research data and its management. The pre-conference workshops will expose participants to key issues around national policy formulation on data management.
Managing Research Output for National Development: Trends and Issues


This is one of the best books I have read for managing a rental property. Very easy to understand and laid out very nicely. Excellent resource for rental property.
My wife and I are considering the purchase of our first rental property. We had no idea where to start or whom to ask. This book answered many of my questions. I was pleasantly suppressed when I wrote an email to the author that she actually responded answered my questions. Not only was this book a great first step in my journey, but the author was genuinely interested in deepening my understanding of the subject.
I really enjoyed reading this book. Normally, books in this genre are so boring to read but this one had me hooked from the first page. This is because the tone is quite conversational and friendly. To top that off, the information that is contained in this book is quite handy. For first timers, it might be a bit overwhelming to buy, as well as manage property. This is where this book comes in. It will teach you all the basics that you need to know, and more. Many thanks to the author for writing such a great book!


The Un-Discovered Islands
Winner: "Illustrated Book of the Year" at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards 2017
'It's a joy to island-hop through the book. ... After wowing the world with Sixty Degrees North last year, Tallack's second book is shaped by the same, clear, sharp prose and keen curiosity. Packed full of intelligent musings on everything from religion to astronomy, alchemy to the occult' – National Geographic Traveller
To find out more about The Un-Discovered Islands, visit the book's website, where you can explore these strange and mysterious locations for yourself. You can also see Katie Scott's gorgeous illustrations in the introductory video below.
One of the "best new travel books" The Guardian.
The Un-Discovered Islands is an exploration of some of the world’s strangest places, illustrated by Katie Scott (Animalium and Botanicum).
Gathered in this book are two dozen islands once believed to be real but no longer on the map. These are the products of imagination, deception and human error. They are phantoms and fakes: an archipelago of ex-isles and forgotten lands.
From the well-known story of Atlantis to more obscure tales from around the globe, from ancient history right up to the present day, this is an atlas of legend and wonder, of places discovered and then un-discovered.
Acclaim and reviews
Slate Magazine selected a sentence from The Un-Discovered Islands as one of the "19 best sentences of 2017". You can read the full list here.
- "A book as thought-provoking as it is engaging, as smart as it is funny, created with real devotion and writerly skill" Doug Johnstone, The Big Issue.
- "Malachy Tallack is an engaging and fluent writer of essential kindliness" John MacLeod, The Scottish Review of Books.
- "This is a splendid and wistful book" The Spectator.
- "It's a joy to island-hop through the book" National Geographic Traveller.
- "intrepid intellectual fun ... Katie Scott’s bold illustrations give an exotic colour to the pages" The Herald.
- "Tallack teases all this out with great wit and subtlety" The Scotsman.
- "Tallack presents these tall tales with tremendous eloquence" Wanderlust magazine.
- Picked for Best Travel Books of 2016, The Telegraph.
- Straddling the line between profound examination of the human imagination and coffee table book, Malachy Tallack’s second publication is a strangely engrossing beast.’ The Shetland Times.
- "a beautiful and fascinating read" Books & Socks.


Quotes of the day
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A whole new perspective on the Mahabharat. This is Mahabharat for the first time shown from the persecptive of woman and that woman is DRAUPADI. It deals ...
: 11 October 2012
0601 KRISHNA STORY -- MAHABHARAT -- DRAUPADI BADLY INSULTED
Duryodhana orders his men to bring Draupadi in the courtyard. She refuses. Hence, Dushashana; one of the brother of Duryodhana is sent to bring her; and is ...
: 19 August 2011
Draupadi Arjun Subhadra Promo
: 04 July 2015
Mahabharat OMG! Draupadi aka Pooja Sharma talks about her Journey from Anchor to Draupadi
: 02 June 2014
Nitin Gupta (Rivaldo) -Draupadi Cheerharan
Indian Stand Up Comedian talks about how Draupadi Cheerharan was practically impossible as depicted in BR Chopra's Mahabharata. Follow him on: ...
: 17 May 2011
Draupadi's vastraharan - part 2
Draupadi's vastraharan (disrobing) -- from the 94-episode TV series (1988 to 1990) based on the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata. The Mahabharata is is one ...
: 03 April 2009
18 DAYS - Draupadi - The Greatest Astra - Full Episode
Witness the birth and legacy of Draupadi; the heart of the story.
: 13 June 2014
Draupadi Vastrapaharanam At Kaurava Sabha || Daana Veera Soora Karna || NTR , Sharada
Daana Veera Soora Karna Telugu Movie scenes starring N. T. Rama Rao, Nandamuri Balakrishna and Nandamuri Harikrishna plays a lwad roles produced and ...
: 28 May 2015
Watch the story of Draupadi on STAR Plus
Catch the movie of Draupadi on STAR Plus, 25th May at 1PM and 8PM.
: 24 May 2014
Draupadi Cheerharan Promo
Thanks for Watching :)
: 16 October 2014
Most Beautiful And Melodious OST- Draupadi Theme(Happy) From Mahabharat 2013
Sit Back And Feel The Music Give a LIKE if u like the OST . Subscribe to hear first whenever we publish new Soundtrack(OST) OR something. All the music ...
: 21 August 2015
Krishna supports his sister-friend Draupadi
: 27 February 2012
Draupadi The Song Draupadi in Mahabharat
: 31 August 2015
Public Online Chat


Online legal research tools are indispensable resources for legal professionals, students, and researchers seeking access to a vast repository of legal information. These digital platforms offer a wide array of legal documents, case law, statutes, regulations, and legal commentary, simplifying the process of legal research and analysis. Widely used platforms like Westlaw, LexisNexis, and Bloomberg Law provide comprehensive legal databases, while more affordable options like Fastcase and Casemaker cater to specific needs and budgets. Additionally, free resources like Google Scholar can be valuable for preliminary research and academic articles. These online tools streamline the search for legal knowledge and help users stay current in a rapidly evolving legal landscape.
Common things to know about online legal research tools
In the contemporary legal world, online legal research tools have evolved into vital assets for legal professionals, students, and researchers. These digital platforms offer expeditious and convenient access to an extensive array of legal resources, streamlining the pursuit of legal information and analysis. Nonetheless, to fully harness the potential of these tools, it’s imperative to delve into their complexities and grasp how to navigate them adeptly. Here, we delve into the crucial aspects that warrant consideration when utilizing these tools:
- Databases and content coverage: Legal research tools typically grant access to comprehensive databases of legal materials, encompassing a wide array of resources such as case law, statutes, regulations, secondary sources, and much more. Evaluating the extent and diversity of content coverage is essential to guarantee that the tool aligns with your specific research requirements. This knowledge empowers users to make informed choices regarding the suitability of a particular legal research tool for their purposes.
- Search capabilities: These tools offer various search features, such as Boolean operators, natural language search, and advanced filters. Understanding how to use these features effectively can help you retrieve relevant information quickly and efficiently. Familiarize yourself with the search syntax and functionality to enhance your research.
- Cost and subscription models: Online legal research tools frequently adopt subscription-based pricing models. Being well-informed about the associated costs is essential. Exploring various subscription levels based on your usage and budget is a prudent step. Many tools also offer free trials, providing an opportunity to evaluate their suitability before making a subscription commitment. This approach aids users in making financially sound decisions while ensuring access to the necessary features and content for effective legal research.
Benefits of using online legal research tools
The Clark Law Office and others in the legal profession reap numerous benefits from the use of online legal research tools. These digital resources streamline access to a vast reservoir of legal information, saving valuable time and improving research efficiency. They provide up-to-date data, enhancing the accuracy of legal arguments and informed decision-making. Advanced search features enable the pinpointing of specific legal information, and many tools offer cost-effective subscription options tailored to individual needs and budgets.
- Efficiency and accessibility: Online legal research tools grant immediate access to an extensive database of legal resources, including case law, statutes, regulations, and secondary sources. This quick accessibility saves valuable time compared to searching through physical libraries or printed materials. Legal professionals can efficiently locate pertinent information to bolster their cases and arguments.
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- Advanced search capabilities: Online legal research tools frequently come equipped with robust search functions, encompassing natural language search, advanced filters, and Boolean operators. These features empower users to swiftly and effectively target precise legal information. Researchers can carry out comprehensive searches and fine-tune their results to uncover the most pertinent documents efficiently.
Mistakes to avoid when using online legal research tools
The adept use of online legal research tools is vital for legal professionals and researchers. Yet, a slew of common errors can mar the accuracy and efficiency of research. Evading these pitfalls is paramount for obtaining the most current and dependable legal information. Here, we explore these key missteps to stay clear of:
- Misunderstanding search syntax: Several online legal research tools incorporate advanced search functions, including Boolean operators and natural language search. Inadequate understanding and use of these features can result in imprecise results, with the risk of missing pertinent documents or inundating the search with irrelevant information. It is crucial to master these functionalities to optimize the effectiveness of legal research.
- Neglecting source evaluation: Pinning your trust on unverified or unreliable sources can compromise the quality and accuracy of your research. It is vital to meticulously evaluate the credibility of sources provided by these tools to avert reliance on outmoded or erroneous information.
- Ignoring updates and changes: Legal regulations, statutes, and case law are frequently updated. Neglecting these changes can result in the use of outdated or incorrect legal information. Regularly verifying updates and the status of legal documents is essential for research accuracy.


Cuesta 129 millones?Denunciar
BHAGAVAD-GITA AS IT IS :
with original Sanskrit text, Roman transliteration, English equivalents,
translation and elaborate purports, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
DEPOSITO O TRANSFERENCIA A BANESCO, BNC, EXTERIOR, VENEZUELA
SE ACEPTAN 300 TRUMPS
(LIBRO DE COLECCION, PRIMERA EDICION ORIGINAL MACMILLAN-COLLIER 1972)
Publication New York, Macmillan | Collier-Macmillan, 1972
Edition Complete ed., classic ed., 1st Macmillan ed., 1st Collier ed., English ed.
Extent xiii, 981 pages
Printed In The United States Of America
"This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by realization, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting and it is joyfully performed." (Bhagavad Gita 9.2.)
Bhagavad Gita As It Is presents and explains the Gita's verses without changing their timeless meaning. This complete edition includes the original Sanskrit verses, easily pronounceable Roman transliterations, word-for-word synonyms , translations and elaborate purports. Pure knowledge, purely transmitted.
Five thousand years ago on an ancient battlefield in India, Krishna spoke Bhagavad Gita to His friend Arjuna. That transcendental conversation, spoken in only thirty minutes, has the power to awaken your eternal consciousness and empower you to discover the secrets of the universe.
Bhagavad Gita As It Is. The most widely read edition of Bhagavad Gita in the world.
Bhagavad Gita As It Is is used as a text book by colleges and universities.
"No work in all Indian literature is more quoted, because none is better loved, in the West, than the Bhagavad Gita. Translation of such a work demands not only knowledge of Sanskrit, but an inward sympathy with the theme and a verbal artistry. For the poem is a symphony in which God is seen in all things....The Swami does a real service for students by investing the beloved Indian epic with fresh meaning. Whatever our outlook may be, we should all be grateful for the labor that has lead to this illuminating work."
Dr. Geddes MacGregor, Professor of Philosophy, University of Southern California
"I am most impressed with A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada's scholarly and authoritative edition of Bhagavad Gita. It is a most valuable work for the scholar as well as the layman and is of great utility as a reference book as well as a textbook. I promptly recommend this edition to my students. It is a beautifully done book."
Dr. Samuel D. Atkins, Professor of Sanskrit, Princeton University
"I have had the opportunity of examining several volumes published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust and have found them to be of excellent quality and of great value for use in college classes on Indian religions. This is particularly true of the BBT edition and translation of the Bhagavad Gita."
Dr. Frederick B. Underwood, Professor of Religion, Columbia University
"...If truth is what works, as Pierce and the pragmatists insist, there must be a kind of truth in the Bhagavad Gita As It Is, since those who follow its teachings display a joyous serenity usually missing in the bleak and strident lives of contemporary people."
Dr. Elwin H. Powell, Professor of Sociology, State University of New York
About Srila Prabhupada
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (1896-1977) is widely regarded as the foremost Vedic scholar, translator, and teacher of the modern era. He is especially respected as the world's most prominent contemporary authority on bhakti-yoga, devotional service to the Supreme Person, Krishna, as taught by the ancient Vedic writings of India. He is also the founder-acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.
Srila Prabhupada, as he's known to his followers, translated and commented on over eighty volumes of the Vedas' most important sacred bhakti texts, including the Bhagavad-gita—a concise handbook for understanding the purpose and goal of human life—and the multi-volume Srimad-Bhagavatam—an epic biography of Krishna, Krishna's avatars, and His many devotees throughout the history of the universe.
Preguntas y respuestas
Hola LEYNAMIFERRER el precio es el publicado, es un articulo de coleccion, quedo a tu ordenDenunciar
Hay pero porque tan caro esto es venezuela estamos cortos de dinerrillo hernamoDenunciar
Hola es una Primera Edicion, sin adulteraciones posteriores, se vende como articulo de Coleccion, en una fraccion de lo que vale afuera, quedo a su orden, saludosDenunciar
Cuál es el precio realDenunciar
Hola JUANKTLFNOS el precio es el publicado, es un articulo de Coleccion, Primera Edicion, sin adulteraciones, quedo a tu orden, saludosDenunciar
Información sobre el vendedor
Caracas, Distrito Capital
- Verde claro
- 100% de compradores lo recomiendan
- 14 Años vendiendo en Mercado Libre
- 113 ventas concretadas
Garantía del vendedor
USED BOOK GOOD CONDITION COLLECTIBLE 100% calificaciones positivas, 14 años en mercado libre
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Ubicado en Caracas (Distrito Capital)


posted 23 Dec 2012, 00:44 by Michiel Blind
Two interesting articles have been developed by Tom Bulatewics et.a.l.
- Bulatewicz, T., A. Allen, J.M. Peterson, S. Staggenborg, S.M. Welch, D.R. Steward, 2013. The Simple Script Wrapper for OpenMI: Enabling interdisciplinary modeling studies, Environmental Modelling & Software, 39 (January), 283-294, ISSN 1364-8152, 10.1016/j.envsoft.2012.07.006.
- Bulatewicz, T. and D. Andresen (2012). Efficient data collection from Open Modeling Interface (OpenMI) components. In:
of the International Conference on Parallel and Distributed Processing
Techniques and Applications (PDPTA), ed. H. R. Arabnia et al., CSREA
Press, Las Vegas, Nevada, Vol. 1, 53-59, July 16-19, 2012. The paper is
included in the publicly available conference proceedings.


B.4 Prophets of the Hebrew Bible
Presiding: David Bernat, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Robert McBride, Providence College
The Exilic Elders of Israel: A Contextual Analysis of Ezekiel 20
Ezekiel 20 presents readers with several interpretative challenges: the identity of the “elders of Israel;” their reason for inquiring a word from Yhwh through Ezekiel; various features of the form, style, and content of Ezekiel’s oracle. After raising the issues and presenting the current “state of the question,” the author proceeds to identify the original content of the pericope and to then make sense of its content by comparing it to various oracles and prophetic acts in the Book of Ezekiel. The author concludes that, rather than seek to use Ezekiel 20 in order to hypothesize the development of Israel’s exodus-wilderness traditions, one should view Ezekiel 20 as another example of Ezekiel’s prophetic creativity. As in the allegories of chapters 16 and 23, Ezekiel 20 is about the sins of Jerusalem.
Christopher D. Anderson, Brandeis University
‘A Cedar In Lebanon’: A Picture of the Assyrians in the Book of Ezekiel
This paper explores the complicated image of Assyria in Ezek 31 from a historical perspective. It argues that the image contains a subtle, though penetrating, condemnation of both Egypt and imperial Babylon encoded in an unusually positive memory of Neo-Assyrian imperialism. The Neo-Assyrian empire had a significant impact on the people who lived in the territories of the southern Levant from the eighth century on. The administrative policies of their expansive empire, implemented by Assyrian officials, continued to shape these populations even after their actual presence. Ezekiel is one place where this is clearly evinced, containing several oracles that mention the Assyrians during a time when their empire was no longer in existence. The primary purpose of this study is to show how one particular memory of Neo-Assyrian imperialism was used by Ezekiel to interpret and judge the current policies of Egypt, as well as the Neo- Babylonian empire’s subjugation of the Levant in the aftermath of Assyrian hegemony. This paper has two parts: the first will provide the historical context in which Assyria declined and Egypt rose to power in the southern Levant, and the second will examine the picture of the Neo-Assyrian empire in Ezekiel’s oracle against Egypt in chapter 31 and assess its relevance for the political environment prior to the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BCE. Only in the light of a brief sketch of the major episodes during the final years of the Assyrian empire in the Levant, the transition to Egyptian dominance, and the emergence of the Neo-Babylonian empire as an imperial power, can the picture of the Assyrians in Ezek 31 be properly understood.
Sung Soo Hong, Yale Divinity School
Discerning the True Prophet of YHWH: Interpreting the Death and Survival of Prophets in Jeremiah 26
The literary functions of Jeremiah 26:20-24 have long been discussed among scholars with no consensus achieved to date. Since commentators often remark that the pericope is not fabricated seamlessly with the preceding verses about the trial of Jeremiah, it is not surprising that they sometimes appeal to contingency, arguing that Uriah was an authentic prophet, even a “martyr,” who, unlike Jeremiah, happened to lack protection from princes.
The present paper offers a coherent interpretation of the chapter, reading it with regard to the Deuteronomistic concern for recognizing the true prophet of YHWH. This paper argues that the performance and the subsequent fate of prophets reveal their identity. The cowardice and death of Uriah are analyzed in contrast to the boldness and survival of Jeremiah, in light of select passages in Jeremiah including ch 1. Also, Uriah’s flight to Egypt, the behavior of the two princes, Uriah’s death by the sword, and the improper treatment of the corpse will be discussed to conclude that Uriah is not a prophet whom YHWH sent. The implication of the pericope is twofold: First, the audience can discern whether the prophets who prophesy in the name of YHWH are authentic messengers before the prophesied events, by observing their behaviors and fate. Second, as the death and survival of prophets demonstrate that YHWH’s words (cf. 1:17) do not fail, the readers are faced with the literary evidence that obeying the words of YHWH is the only way to survive.


August 27, 2008 --- Democrats nominate Barack Obama for president, first African American nominated by a major political party for the office of President of the United States.
August 27, 1972 --- U.S. aircraft conduct heavy raids on Hanoi and Haiphong
In the heaviest bombing in four years, U.S. aircraft flatten North Vietnamese barracks near Hanoi and Haiphong as part of ongoing Operation Linebacker I, part of President Nixon’s response to the NVA Easter Offensive. Planes also hit bridges on the northeast railroad line to China. In an associated action, four U.S. ships raided the Haiphong port area after dark, shelling to within two miles of the city limits. As the U.S. ships withdrew from the area, the cruiser USS Newport Newssank one of two North Vietnamese patrol boats in pursuit, and destroyer USSRowan set the other on fire.
August 27, 1955 --- “The Guinness Book of Records” debuts
On this day in 1955, the first edition of “The Guinness Book of Records” is published in Great Britain; it quickly proves to be a hit. Now known as the “Guinness World Records” book, the annual publication features a wide range of feats related to humans and animals. To date, the book has sold more than 130 million copies, been translated into more than two dozen languages and is the top-selling copyrighted title in history.
The inspiration for the record book can be traced to November 1951, when Sir Hugh Beaver, managing director of the Guinness Brewery (founded in Dublin in 1759), was on a hunting trip in Ireland. After failing to shoot a golden plover, Beaver and the members of his hunting party debated whether the creature was Europe’s fastest game bird but were unable to locate a book with the answer.
Thinking that patrons of Britain’s pubs would enjoy a record book which could be used to settle friendly disagreements, Beaver decided to have one produced. He hired twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter, the founders of a London-based agency that provided facts and statistics to newspapers and advertisers. The book was intended to be given away for free in pubs to promote the Guinness brand; however, it turned out to be so popular the company started selling it that fall and it became a best-seller. An American edition debuted in 1956 and was soon followed by editions in a number of other countries. The McWhirters travelled the globe to research and verify records. Ross McWhirter was involved in compiling the book until his death in 1975 at the hands of Irish Republican Army gunmen; his brother Norris continued to serve as the book’s editor until 1986.


An Undergraduate Library guide providing data and advised assets for citing sources. In APA format papers, tables are usually used to describe the outcomes of statistical analysis and other pertinent quantitative data. However, you will need to word that tables usually are not merely used to copy data that has already been presented in the textual content of the paper and not all information needs to be presented in a table. If you have little numeric information to current, it ought to be described in the textual content of your paper.
Realistic Advice Of apa format – Some Thoughts
Low-income college students also receive much less financial aid or help from the federal government. In accordance with Jon Marcus in the article titled Obama In search of to Assist Poor Students, However Insurance policies Favor the Wealthy: Opinion in CNN, Federal figures also present that students from families that earn a minimum of $one hundred,000 a yr get a median of $10,200 in financial support, considerably greater than the $8,000 that goes to college students from households that earn less than $20,000.” Marcus goes on to indicate that college students who do not have cash issues or who are usually not in want of cash are more likely to obtain extra help than those who are in want. Related Post: more helpful hints
Having a normal format for citing sources permits readers to look at a quotation and simply find the title, author, 12 months revealed, and other vital pieces APA term paper of data wanted to know a supply. If the source materials is likely to change over time (e.g. wikis), include the retrieval date.
For in-textual content citations, use only the author’s last identify and a web page quantity from its authentic model at the https://termpaperstree.com/ finish of any quotes or other references to their work. That is in parenthesis and usually on the end of the sentence, quote, or paraphrase.
The APA reference page must start and be typed on a new, separate web page, and should be labeled References” that is centered at the prime of the page using normal capitalization. Simply with the rest of the format of your paper, all quotation entries have to be double spaced. Moreover, all the APA reference web page entries should be organized in alphabetical order, listed chronologically based on the final names of the authors for every source, not by the type or date. Sources that would not have attributed authors have to be listed by their titles.
If however, you are working on a comparatively quick paper, your introduction can begin proper after APA format cowl page. You probably have multiple sources by one author, order it starting with the earliest publication. For electronic sources reminiscent of Web pages, provide a reference to the writer, the 12 months and the web page quantity (if it is a PDF doc), the paragraph quantity if seen or a heading followed by the paragraph number.
Trackback from your site.


Excerpt from comMUSICation:
“A simple sound like the jingling of a sleigh bell will instantly make an association to Christmas and possibly call up some of the feelings of that season. No, I didn’t mean drunken aunties, bloated stomachs and arguments with noisy neighbours! I meant the warmth of the log fire, the smell of baking and cigars, and the soft sound of a world covered in snow.
While we are on the subject of emotions and Christmas, it might interest you to know that one of the best-selling records of all time only has 54 words, telling of a dream of a ‘White Christmas’. Irving Berlin wrote it and his lack of formal musical training meant that he composed only on the black keys of F-sharp. To transpose, he pulled a lever on his specially-modified piano. This gave his song writing a very special touch. White Christmas was a film song, first released in 1942, which went on to be one of the biggest hits of all time.
It has a most memorable melody, but the fit of the lyrics is rather strange. Most lyricists instinctively would have put accents on the words ‘dreaming’ and ‘Christmas[…]” Not our Irv. He hangs around on the seemingly unimportant word ‘I’m’ for four whole beats. Then he rushes over the other syllables, only to hang around for another four beats on the word ‘white’. Despite this, or maybe even because of this, White Christmas remains one of the most memorable songs ever written”.
Excerpt From: Groves, John. “ComMUSICation: From Pavlov’s Dog to Sound Branding.” Oak Tree Press, 2011-11-16. iBooks.
This material may be protected by copyright.


It is certainly true that colleges and universities are seeing an epidemic of plagiarism, fueled by easy electronic access to resources, including “research papers.” Back in the days before the Internet, students at least had to put out the effort to type out their stolen work by hand; now they need merely cut and paste. It is equally true that we are seeing an epidemic of faulty definitions of plagiarism, including high-profile but inaccurate and unsupportable claims of plagiarism lodged against prominent authors and filmmakers. Bad definitions of plagiarism confuse students and simultaneously trivialize the problem. The examples cited in style manuals are commonly so pedantic that students might be pardoned if they conclude the whole issue is a matter of academic nit-picking. Some commentaries on plagiarism reinforce this notion. For example, Hunt (2002) said:
Scholars -- writers generally -- use citations for many things: they establish their own bona fides and currency, they advertise their alliances, they bring work to the attention of their reader, they assert ties of collegiality, they exemplify contending positions or define nuances of difference among competing theories or ideas. They do not use them to defend themselves against potential allegations of plagiarism.
Few of those are particularly respectable reasons for demanding citations. Most seem to be principally concerned with placing the author and her ideas in the academic pecking order so a reader can judge the work on superficial grounds rather than on its merits. Hunt’s passage is a celebration of form over substance. [In fact, the games I’ve seen reviewers play with references make a strong case that manuscripts at the review stage should not contain references so that reviewers are forced to base opinions solely on the substance of the paper.] Conspicuously missing from the list are the principal reasons for citations; they allow readers to check the accuracy of facts, gauge the credibility of the ideas being presented, know whether an idea is solidly established, controversial, or hypothetical, and find further information.
Peter Levin (2003) bluntly labeled the institutional hysteria over plagiarism a “witch-hunt.” Many statements about plagiarism point to a complete collapse of critical reasoning. For example, there are scattergun conceptions of plagiarism like that of Martin (1994), who broadens plagiarism to include citation of sources second hand, use of quotations from secondary sources even if the original source is cited correctly, use of ghost writers and professional speech writers, and corporate authorship of reports. Another site (University of Phoenix, 2002) actually claims that failing to include a page reference in a citation constitutes plagiarism. Charges of plagiarism are fast becoming the blood sport of choice among academic bottom-feeders.
The core definition of plagiarism is falsely citing someone else’s work as one’s own for the purpose of fraudulently gaining some advantage. Obviously copying 1000 words verbatim without attribution is plagiarism. It’s the less severe cases that cause problems. Is 100 words plagiarism? Almost certainly. 10? Maybe. How many words can be quoted, and how specific do they have to be, before quotation marks are needed? How extensively does a passage have to be reworked before it becomes original?
In a world as inundated by verbiage as ours, there is a very high probability that any author will duplicate someone else’s expression frequently without even knowing it. In fact, just now I went to Google, entered “plagiarism” and “without even knowing it” (as a complete phrase in quotation marks) and got 301 hits – 301 other people using that exact phrase in articles on plagiarism. In violation of some published canons of referencing, I will not cite them. Calling the use of a commonplace phrase “plagiarism” is so pedantic as to be beneath contempt. People who are completely unaware they need to cite references need to be educated; otherwise I submit that the idea of committing plagiarism without even knowing it is an oxymoron.
Many authors on plagiarism discuss “unintentional” or “unconscious” plagiarism. This term seems to be used in two ways. First, it sometimes is used to describe a student who generally knows the rules, but for some reason fails to cite a source, paraphrases without citing, or misjudges the boundary between common knowledge that doesn’t need citation versus longer or more esoteric material that does. This student is guilty of a breach of etiquette, not plagiarism, and needs to have her professional judgment fine-tuned. Calling something like that plagiarism creates an exaggerated idea of how serious the problem is. It’s also likely either to make students overly cautious to the point where they cite everything, no matter how trivial, or just give up and figure they cannot possibly avoid plagiarizing even if they try, so there’s no point in trying.
The other usage of unconscious plagiarism is to describe a student unconsciously duplicating or imitating the wording used in some source. We could imagine a student taking notes from a source, then writing the paper and unconsciously recreating or closely approximating some of the wording used in the source. Taken to its logical conclusion, this definition of plagiarism means any author with a style influenced by another author could be accused of plagiarism. Any of us who uses a turn of phrase or a distinctive method of organizing ideas that we learned from someone else is guilty of plagiarism. This is a definition of plagiarism so sweeping and so trivial as to be useless. Failure to distinguish between unintentional mimicry and putting one’s own name on a paper copied straight off the Internet waters down the definition of “plagiarism” to the point where it means nothing. I submit that “unintentional” or “unconscious” plagiarism is also an oxymoron.
Since outright copying of large excerpts without attribution is clearly plagiarism, and minor duplication of wording is not, the only significant issue involved in defining plagiarism is how extensive and how exact the copying has to be before it becomes plagiarism.
One obvious question I have never seen addressed in any discussion of plagiarism is this: in any copied text, is there any other viable way to express the idea? If there isn’t, then regardless of how exact the quote is, it can’t be plagiarism. Saying “The Civil War began when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter,” or “Plants obtain energy through photosynthesis” isn’t plagiarism for the simple reason those are about the simplest and most direct ways to express those ideas. Only contrived wording could rearrange those sentences significantly. (“When Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter, the Civil War began,” or maybe Yoda-speak: “Began the Civil War did when Confederate forces on Fort Sumter fired.”) Therefore I propose:
Rule 1: If some particular wording is the best way to phrase an idea, or there are few other practical ways to phrase an idea, unattributed usage is not plagiarism. If all the best ways of expressing an idea have been used, a subsequent author has no choice but to use someone else’s words. If the idea has been covered that often, it has probably entered the domain of common knowledge anyway.
In fact, the very concept of “common knowledge” shows that the entire concept of plagiarism is riddled with logical fallacies, inconsistencies, and arbitrariness. Every single idea in the realm of “common knowledge” has a primary reference. The New York Times is an acceptable source for the dates of Pearl Harbor or the assassination of John F. Kennedy (the really primary source is the death certificate on file in Dallas). Every state has a statute defining the location of its state capital. The idea of “common knowledge” is an explicit admission that there are legitimate reasons not to cite sources and that they boil down to convenience and streamlining the narrative. If Martin (1994) can broaden the definition of plagiarism to include all unattributed usage, we could just as logically and legitimately broaden the concept of “common knowledge” to dispense with citations altogether. After all, the greatest works of literature were published in such an environment, and once something is published, it enters the common corpus of knowledge.
One of my principal complaints about style manuals is that, for reasons of economy, they use abbreviated examples, and therefore the examples of “plagiarism” they cite are largely cases where good alternative wordings just don’t exist. For example, a generally excellent style manual by Hacker (2000, p. 173-174) includes the following example. The underlined text is shown that way in Hacker’s book.
Half of the force holding Fort Pillow were Negroes, former slaves now enrolled in the Union Army. Toward them Forrest's troops had the fierce, bitter animosity of men who had been educated to regard the colored race as inferior and who for the first time had encountered that race armed and fighting against white men. The sight enraged and perhaps terrified many of the Confederates and aroused in them the ugly spirit of a lynching mob. -Albert Castel, "The Fort Pillow Massacre," pp. 46-47
PLAGIARISM: UNACCEPTABLE BORROWING
Albert Castel suggests that much of the brutality at Fort Pillow can be traced to racial attitudes. Fifty percent of the troops holding Fort Pillow were Negroes, former slaves who had joined the Union Army. Toward them Forrest's soldiers displayed the savage hatred of men who had been taught the inferiority of blacks and who for the first time had confronted them armed and fighting against white men. The vision angered and perhaps frightened the Confederates and aroused in them the ugly spirit of a lynching mob.
Phrases like “men who had been” and “who for the first time had” are such commonplace usage that calling them plagiarism is just plain silly. “Toward them Forrest's” is inverted word order that is a bit florid for a typical student, but the only real place where the exactness of duplication and the specificity of the wording conclusively prove copying is the last underlined excerpt. So out of six alleged examples of plagiarism, two are commonplace wording, two others (“holding Fort Pillow…”, “armed and fighting…”) are wording that could naturally flow out of the specific situation being described, one is strongly suggestive of copying and only one is really clear-cut. The real problem in this passage comes from the close copying of sentence structure and the substitution of mere synonyms to break up the direct copying, something Hacker herself points out. Hacker does provide an example of acceptable paraphrase.
Albert Castel suggests that much of the brutality at Fort Pillow can be traced to racial attitudes. Nearly half of the Union troops were blacks, men whom the Confederates had been raised to consider their inferiors. The shock and perhaps fear of facing armed ex-slaves in battle for the first time may well have unleashed the fury that led to the massacre.
This doesn’t follow the wording of the original as closely as the preceding example, but is it really free of plagiarism? By many of the definitions being put forward today, including the criteria Hacker herself uses, no. “Nearly half of the Union troops were blacks” and the original “Half of the force holding Fort Pillow were Negroes” are similar enough to be open to the charge that the only difference is a little shuffling of words. The same is true of “raised to consider their inferiors” and “educated to regard the colored race as inferior.” “Shock and perhaps fear” are little more than synonyms for the original “enraged and perhaps terrified.” Ross (2004) takes the stance: “paraphrasing without acknowledgement is still plagiarism, whether it is superficial or radical.”
Hacker actually does an uncommonly good job of explaining what plagiarism is, giving a specific example, and providing a constructive alternative in a constricted space. Her manual is cited here to show how hard it can be to convey the real nature of plagiarism in the short confines of a writing manual or class handout, and how hard it can be to define when legitimate adaptation ends and copying begins. Unfortunately, such abbreviated examples probably serve to convince students that the whole issue amounts to nit-picking, that wholesale borrowing is legitimate if it’s sufficiently camouflaged, and that no amount of effort can avoid plagiarism anyway, so why bother?
Hacker’s example raises a much more fundamental issue than the mere mechanics of paraphrasing. By what bizarre logic can it be plagiarism to give open credit to an author for taking a certain position, and then use that author’s own words to describe that position? What possible purpose is served by forcing a writer to shuffle around an author’s words or substitute synonyms after plainly stating that another author’s ideas are being discussed? The whole concept is a yet another oxymoron.
In fact, these “paraphrases’ are not even paraphrases at all, but indirect discourse. No rational person would object to hearing “Jane said that she and Bill went to the movies” and finding out those were very close to the actual words of the speaker. We would expect it. We would hardly impute intent to steal the original speaker's ideas. If you paraphrased someone else's words in court and did not follow them closely you could be accused of perjury. The fact that so many "experts" on plagiarism can't tell the difference between indirect discourse and paraphrasing doesn't do much to lend credibility to the rest of their ideas. The objections to close paraphrasing simply do not stand up to analysis. I propose:
Rule 2: If an author is openly credited and a passage clearly implies paraphrasing or restatement of the original author's ideas, it is not plagiarism. Period. As Ross noted above, paraphrasing without attribution is plagiarism. But paraphrasing with attribution is never plagiarism.
Here’s an example from a university site on plagiarism (Frick, 2004) where respondents are asked to judge whether adaptations of an original text constitute plagiarism. The original text reads: “The first technology was the primitive modes of communication used by prehistoric people before the development of spoken language” (from Frick, 1991). One text variation reads “One of the earliest technologies was non-verbal signs that our prehistoric ancestors used before spoken language emerged.” Now I might buy this as plagiarism if the test answer were that the author’s ideas were cited without attribution. This is a made-up test, so the designer of the test is free to read the imaginary student’s mind, but in real life it wouldn’t be so clear. The test passage is such an intuitively obvious idea it would be perfectly possible for a student to come up with it independently.
But the “correct” answer, according to the Web site, is that the test passage is plagiarism because it’s a paraphrase of the original author’s words without attribution. How so? The common elements of both passages are “technology,” “prehistoric” “before” and “spoken language.” The idea that communication is technology might count as plagiarism, but it borders on common knowledge. “Prehistoric” is trivially obvious because communication obviously predates written history, and “prehistoric” pretty clearly implies “before.” “Spoken language?” Well, if the focus of the assignment is the evolution of communication, of course it will refer to spoken language.
This is a definition of plagiarism that, if it were to become general, would make it absolutely impossible for any scholar to generate any synthesis of existing ideas without being subject to the charge of plagiarism. The very aim of education is to give the student a web of interlocked ideas and to inspire synthesis. Every author who reads widely and spends a lot of time thinking about what she read would be vulnerable to accusations of plagiarism unless she immediately wrote down every idea when she got it and annotated the works that influenced it. And it wouldn’t be sufficient merely to cite the sources, her narrative would have to include a description of exactly how each source influenced every element of her writing. It would be squeaky-clean, just not very readable. So I propose:
Rule 3: If writing uses wording or ideas that an author could reasonably have composed on her own, a charge of plagiarism is not justified. There may have been plagiarism, but there is insufficient evidence to make the charge stick; therefore there’s no point in even raising the issue.
Stephen Ambrose has been loudly accused of plagiarism, so it’s instructive to look at a number of alleged examples, from Lewis (2002):
A passage in Undaunted Courage and one in History of the United States of America During the Administrations of Thomas Jefferson (Library of America, 1986) by Henry Adams (the Adams work was originally published in 1889 to 1891):
[Those words are quoted from Lewis’ site, which is why they’re indented, but if for some reason you preferred not to quote them exactly, say because it would clutter the narrative or break up the flow to observe all the technical niceties, how else could you possibly word it without running afoul of some definition of plagiarism?]
Adams, pg. 6: "The entire population, both free and slave, west of the mountains, reached not yet half a million; but already they were partly disposed to think themselves, and the old thirteen States were not altogether unwilling to consider them, the germ of an independent empire, which was to find its outlet, not through the Alleghenies to the seaboard, but by the Mississippi River to the Gulf."
Ambrose, pg. 52: "Fewer than one out of ten Americans, about half a million people, lived west of the Appalachian Mountains, but as the Whiskey Rebellion had shown, they were already disposed to think of themselves as the germ of an independent nation that would find its outlet to the world marketplace not across the mountains to the Atlantic Seaboard, but by the Ohio and Mississippi river system to the Gulf of Mexico."
First of all, to anyone aware of the Louisiana Purchase, whose entire purpose was to acquire an outlet to the Gulf, and Aaron Burr’s involvement in a scheme to create such an independent nation and subsequent treason trial, these passages are common knowledge. Apart from the mildly unusual words “germ,” “disposed” and “seaboard,” the two passages easily differ as much as Hacker’s original excerpt and “acceptable paraphrase” above. Note also that Ambrose introduced a new connection, the Whiskey Rebellion, that was not in Adams' passage. This is just not plagiarism by any sane definition of the term. Another example from Lewis (2002) is a little closer to the mark:
Passages in Stephen Ambrose's Nothing Like It in the World (Simon & Schuster, 2000) and their counterparts in an earlier work, The Great Persuader (Doubleday, 1970) by David Lavender:
Lavender, pg. 9: "Only three females were aboard - twenty-four-year-old Jessie Benton Fremont...Jesse was on her way to California, escorted by a young brother-in-law, to meet her explorer husband, John Charles Fremont, at the conclusion of his fourth expedition through the western reaches of the continent, this one in search of a usable railroad route to the Pacific."
Ambrose, pg. 49: "Twenty-four-year-old Jessie Benton Fremont...was on the ship, on her way to California to meet her explorer husband, John Charles Fremont. He had just completed his fourth expedition through the Western reaches of the continent, this one in search of a usable railroad route to the Pacific."
What are the salient facts of the passage?
And now, a challenge to readers. Weave those facts into a coherent paragraph without using so many of the same words that you put yourself at risk of a charge of plagiarism. One solution would be to put a period at the end of every bullet point and concatenate them into a classic example of eighth grade choppy writing. Or we could replace the periods with commas and get a classic eighth grade run-on sentence instead.
It’s obvious that Ambrose borrowed from Lavender. We know that because he cited Lavender. The issue with Ambrose is never that he failed to attribute, it’s that he copied wording too closely. This is an inconsequential enough passage that it’s unlikely that Ambrose would have included it if he hadn’t seen it in Lavender. But is it plagiarism? Those ellipses in both passages are troubling. The ellipsis in the Ambrose excerpt really inspires questions about how much original writing by Ambrose is being omitted to make the case for plagiarism stronger. There is one flagrantly duplicated line: “his fourth expedition through the western reaches of the continent, this one in search of a usable railroad route to the Pacific." Frankly, that's such clunky prose I'd be ashamed to admit I was the original author.
Lavender, pg. 16: "All contemporary accounts of the beach at Panama agree that it was appalling. Rain poured. Mud, mildew, and fungus oozed over everything. Sanitation in the improvised tent city was inadequate. Unwashed raw fruit caused epidemics of dysentery. Malaria swept through the weakened sufferers. There were outbreaks of cholera, threats of smallpox...Bayard Taylor, who also crossed the isthmus in 1849, was horrified by the vice, depravity and selfishness that he encountered on all sides."
Ambrose, pg. 50: "At the end of the trip, all were appalled by Panama City. It rained continually. Mud, mildew and fungus oozed everywhere. Sanitation in the tent city was lacking or completely absent. Unwashed raw fruit caused epidemics of dysentery. Malaria and cholera were common, as were threats of smallpox. Vice, depravity, and selfishness thrived."
This is a pretty clear case of tight paraphrasing that crosses the generally accepted line. The common use of “appall,” “mud, mildew, and fungus oozed,” “unwashed raw fruit caused epidemics of dysentery,” and “vice, depravity and selfishness” pretty much rule out chance duplication. And enough examples have been found in Ambrose’s writing to show a consistent pattern. By many published criteria, this is plagiarism.
But is it unethical? The fact that we can apply a label to something does not make the action itself wrong; it may mean the label is defective. The fundamental fallacy of Martin (1994) is that he correctly recognizes many degrees of appropriation of ideas, but instead of concluding that the term “plagiarism” needs better delineation, concludes that all appropriation is plagiarism. Although Lewis (2002) disparages Ambrose for copying Lavender’s “vibrant” prose, there’s nothing particularly vibrant about the original excerpts. The reason people know Ambrose instead of Lavender is that Ambrose was just plain a better writer. The principal objection to tight paraphrasing is that it misleads the reader into thinking the copied words are the writer’s own. In a student paper, where the goal is to tell how well the student herself writes, that’s an issue. If the prose were really dazzling and copied by a weak writer, it would be an issue. But any decent writer should be able to come up with a line like “mud, mildew, and fungus oozed.” It is very hard to make a plausible case that Ambrose harmed either the original writer or the scholarly community. I’m much less bothered by the copying than I am by the indication of hasty writing, sloppy proofreading and such unfamiliarity with the source material that Ambrose failed to spot a copied phrase when he saw it, in other words, poor craftsmanship.
It is impossible to use any source without incorporating vocabulary, logical structure, or concepts from the original source and thereby violating some definitions of plagiarism. The principal difference between “acceptable” paraphrasing and “plagiarism by paraphrasing” is cosmetic: does the user shuffle and reword enough to disguise the borrowing acceptably? Do we consider textbooks or popular expositions “plagiarism” since they rarely follow strict scholarly citation models? Since the concept of paraphrasing as plagiarism is logically indefensible, I propose:
Rule 4: If a source is cited in situ, or cited appropriately consistent with the format and style of the work, limited duplication of wording is not plagiarism. I am proposing we sharply curtail the definition of paraphrasing as plagiarism. I’m not arguing that we regard it as good practice, nor that lifting text without attribution should be acceptable, but there’s a difference between sloppiness on the one hand, and unethical behavior on the other. Call it the academic equivalent of decriminalizing pot. I propose scaling back this definition of plagiarism for the same reasons that many academics support decriminalizing pot: it’s unenforceable, attempts to enforce it waste time and resources, it does more harm than good, and it creates a pretext for busybodies intent on harassing others. The present definition is unworkable, has ragged and fuzzy edges, and leads to innumerable frivolous accusations. As a guideline, I suggest that anything longer than a line needs to be formally quoted. Highly original, distinctive, memorable or historic utterances also need to be quoted (“Fourscore and seven years ago,” "Don't have a cow, man," "Oh my God, they killed Kenny!"). Anything else is not plagiarism as long as the source is credited and there is significant original material added by the user. Excessive reliance on existing credited text is hack writing, nor plagiarism. Anyone literate enough to read a book with citations and be concerned with plagiarism should be literate enough to realize that a citation means someone else’s work is being melded with an author’s own. Anyone really concerned with telling which is which should take the time to check the original source. Anyone unwilling to expend the effort has no business getting involved.
Also, the “paraphrasing as plagiarism” concept simply doesn’t address the central problem of student plagiarism: the lack of independent thinking. It’s entirely possible for a student to shuffle words and ideas around enough to pass every imaginable test for plagiarism and still not have an original thought in the process. So defining close paraphrasing as plagiarism really doesn’t eliminate plagiarism; it merely makes more skillful and literate plagiarists.
I’d actually prefer to see some skillful plagiarism instead of the sloppy stream of consciousness writing I typically get. The worst problem I see with student writing is that so many students can’t even be bothered to look up sources to plagiarize. Plagiarism exists because it works, and it works because too many faculty cannot be bothered to read assigned papers or devise original writing assignments that are hard to plagiarize. Assigning five pages on generic topics like plate tectonics or the Franco-Prussian War is tantamount to saying “Here’s some busy work. Go copy something off the Internet.”
In addition to allegations of direct copying of text, there have been a number of high-profile cases alleging plagiarism of ideas by novelists and filmmakers. One was lodged by Steven Kessler, who claimed that Steven Spielberg and Michael Crichton had ripped off the idea for Twister from his screenplay Catch the Wind. He cited the following points of similarity:
The first point is a stock literary plot device. We might as well charge Spielberg and Crichton, or for that matter Kessler, with stealing ideas from Moby Dick: the protagonist suffers a personal loss and spends the rest of his life at war with an impersonal force of nature. White whale, black funnel cloud; what’s the difference? The second point is also a standard plot device. Personally, I would gladly read a novel or watch a movie where completely rational people plan how to probe a tornado without getting killed, and without unraveling into petty personality conflicts. I see enough conflict and human irrationality in the news and my daily dealings with people, thank you, but most authors feel the need to include some sort of personal conflict. And who would ever dream of naming a tornado probe after a character from The Wizard of Oz, especially since one of the prototype devices used in real research was called TOTO? (Bluestein, 1983)
If such ultra-broad concepts of plagiarism gain ground, we can kiss all academic freedom good-bye. There is no idea that can’t be shown to incorporate elements of older ideas. The corporate attempts to tighten copyright control pale into insignificance compared with the danger that frivolous charges of plagiarism will do.
Finally, I can’t help but noting that the direction of most plagiarism charges outside the classroom is from the bottom upward. When Mark Svenvold (2005) published a book on chasing tornadoes, Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg didn’t accuse him of plagiarism. Overly strict and broad definitions of plagiarism are creating a culture of academic mosquitoes who sustain themselves by swarming around more successful writers. I concur with Peter Levin (2003) that hypertrophied concern over plagiarism is fast becoming a witch-hunt.
University of Phoenix, 2002; Avoiding Plagiarism: Citation, http://occawlonline.pearsoned.com/bookbind/pubbooks/long_longman_uoplezap_1/medialib/ap/apapa/media/d3_bot.htm, accessed August 1, 2005.
Diana Hacker, “A Pocket Style Manual,” Third Edition, (Bedford/St. Martin’s, Boston/new York, 2000), 173-174.
Created 1 August, 2005, Last Update 24 May, 2020
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“Birds more than any other animals, may serve as bonds between man and nature.” Frank Chapman , Handbook of Birds, Eastern N. America, 1896
As I prepare for my upcoming exhibition, the Art & Craft of Nests at the City Library, as part of Craft Contemporary 2022 and National Bird Week, I am seeking to explore this bond. How might a bridge be suspended between our species?
For centuries, the strength, fragility and resilience of birds has captured our collective imagination. They play a central symbolic role in our mythology, religion and folklore and have inspired our desire to fly – from science to poetry, art and music. Yet could birds have inspired the origins of our textiles and crafts?
Birds are the closest living relatives to dinosaurs so it is reasonable to consider they may have been our earliest craft and textile teachers in both fibre use and technique. They weave, felt, stitch and sculpt their nests using only beak and breast, and from splitting, stripping and shaping, to coiling and random weave, these techniques are all echoed in human crafting tradition. Between birds and humankind, who influenced and inspired who and when?
With a needle as beak, curled fingers and cupped hand as breast, I am delving into the tenacity, determination, skill and ingenuity that is demonstrated by birds to craft and curate their nests. I am researching and exploring the possibility of where the origins of fibres and techniques arose and the evolutionary symbiosis that might exist between birds and humankind.
Birds inhabit the globe and their history of textile use and technique mirrors the diversity of the cultures with which they coincide and intersect. Human habitation may drive bird species towards decline, yet it also drives their innovation and in turn my own exploration of the synergies in my art work.
From bird behaviour to plant ecology, climate change to extinction pressures and adaptation, nests have great potential to be researched, explored, and exhibited as objects of narrative art for they are layered with stories, capturing both moments in time or as a sequence of unfolding events.
Re- envisioning nests that are held in natural history collections around the world, I am emulating a birds methodology in collecting nesting materials foraged locally of fauna, flora and found objects. The archival nest specimens on which I am basing my sculptures demonstrate that the material choices of birds mirror those used by humans spanning cultures and centuries. From the precursor of modern textiles, including leaves, bark, fur, and felted fibre to plastics today, each nest is a time capsule, with cultural, environmental, and artistic narratives waiting to be rediscovered.
To see a nest in the wild is a magical and often a very rare occurrence for most people, especially those living in urban areas. In creating and sharing my nest sculptures I want to bring the wilds of the world to the City Library so everyone can discover this hidden and magical world to delight in the wonders of nature. The nest sculptures offer a portal to faraway lands and times, to connect with the beauty of the rare and wonderful treasures of our avian world.
From scientific discoveries to theories proposing the origins of art and craft traditions, the unique stories revealed with each nest, the bird that created it, and the techniques used, are an invitation to awaken an understanding that every bird species is worthy of our wonder, awe and mostly importantly our protection.
Do fly in and tell your flock!
28 September – 3 December 2022
City Library Niches
235 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
*An exhibition space managed by the City of Melbourne
To align with National Bird Week, I’ll also be hosting artist floor talks at the City Library on Monday 17 October at 4:30pm and Sunday 23 October at 2pm Tickets are free, yet places are limited. Book via Eventbrite to secure your opportunity to discover more about the fascinating world of birds and their nests that inspired my sculptures.