New NLM Traveling Exhibit features Shakespeare and the Four Humors

Shakespeare exhibit

A traveling banner exhibition, and online exhibition with education resources developed and produced by the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health will be on display for a limited engagement at the South Campus (main) Library from March 19 – April 28, 2012.

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) created characters that are among the richest and most humanly recognizable in all of literature. Yet Shakespeare understood human personality in the terms available to his age—that of the now-discarded theory of the four bodily humors –blood, bile, melancholy, and phlegm. These four humors were thought to define peoples’ physical and mental health, and determined their personalities, as well.

The language of the four humors pervades Shakespeare’s plays, and their influence is felt above all in a belief that emotional states are physically determined. Carried by the bloodstream, the four humors bred the core passions of anger, grief, hope, and fear—the emotions conveyed so powerfully in Shakespeare’s comedies and tragedies.

“And there’s the humor of it” Shakespeare and the four humors explores these themes in a special display featuring images of rare books and incunables from the collection of the National Library of Medicine and the Folger Shakespeare Library.

Curated by Gail Kern Paster, PhD and Theodore Brown, PhD and exhibition design by Riggs Ward Design.

New Black History Month Poster Exhibit honors pioneers of medicine

The Black History Month poster exhibit honors the many contributions of African Americans in science and in the field of medicine.  Nine of the eighteen posters are displayed on the Main Floor of the South Campus (main) Library; the remaining posters are on D1 across from the Food Court.

The exhibit is sponsored by the UT Southwestern Chapter of the Student National Medical Association along in conjunction with the Office of Minority Student Affairs and the Office of Faculty Diversity and Development.  It will remain throughout the month of February.

Biomedical Communications Alumni Art Exhibit showcases great talent

An exhibit of 40 medical illustrations and fine art by 23 alumni of the Biomedical Communications Graduate Program is on display in the South Campus (main) Library until May 18.

This year marks the 65th anniversary of the world’s first degree in medical illustration, which was awarded by Southwestern Medical College in 1947. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, the program will close in July of 2013.

St. Paul Hospital and School of Nursing History exhibit now in Library

An exhibit of photos and artifacts illustrating the history of the University Hospital—St. Paul is now on display in the South Campus (main) Library. The photos range in date from the early 1900s through about 1975.

St. Paul began in 1896 in a frame cottage on Hall Street that was both a 10-bed hospital and home to a few Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul sisters. From this modest beginning, St. Paul grew rapidly. In 1898, a new 110-bed hospital building opened on Bryan Street, and substantial additions were made in 1916 and 1952. A School of Nursing was begun in 1900, and would operate until 1971. In 1964, St. Paul moved to a new state-of-the-art building on Harry Hines Blvd., where it remains today. These milestones are all reflected in the photographs on display.

A humorous, illustrated essay from 1923 titled “Evolution of a Uniform: 1903-1913-1923” is included in the exhibit and traces the radical changes in nurses uniforms over that twenty-year period.

The exhibit will be on display for at least two months.

“Women in Science and Medicine” book display, web guide, and speaker in collaboration with WISMAC

The Women in Science and Medicine Guide to information resources is available on the Library web site, and books featured in the Guide will be displayed at the Library entrance from February 6 through February 28, 2012. Both the Guide and the exhibit were developed in collaboration with the UT Southwestern Women in Science and Medicine Advisory Committee (WISMAC).

The exhibit coincides with the Southwestern Medical Foundation’s Ida M. Green Distinguished Visiting Professorship, Honoring Women in Science and Medicine. This year’s honoree is Judith Kimble, Ph.D., who is the Henry Vilas Professor of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Dr. Kimble will present “Stem Cells and RNA Regulation: Networks and Mechanism” on Wednesday, February 8, 2012, at 4 p.m. as part of the UT Southwestern University Lecture Series. The presentation will be given in the Excellence in Education Auditorium in the Simmons/Hamon Biomedical Research Building (Room NB2.101).

If you are unable to attend the presentation, a videotaped copy of the lecture should be available for checkout from the South Campus (main) Library within a few weeks. To locate the item, check the Library’s online catalog under “Judith Kimble.”

The “Women in Science and Medicine Guide” lists web sites, books, and databases arranged under headings such as:

  • Biography/History
  • Career Guidance/Management
  • Gender, Science, & Medicine
  • Professional Organizations

To locate the Guide on the Library web site, click on Resources by Subject and scroll down the list until you reach the Guide. Library-owned resources on the topics can also be found in the online catalog by searching for “Women in Science and Medicine.”

Dallas medical history: "Map It!"

Do you know where the first open-heart surgery in Dallas was performed? Where was St. Paul Sanitarium built? What about the first “Baby Camp” cottage in Texas? Find more than 50 of these historic locations with the map feature in the Library’s Medical Milestones in Dallas, 1890-1975 web exhibit.

To explore, click on the “Browse Items” tab in the web exhibit, then select Browse Map. Zoom into the map for greater detail. Web exhibit items are marked on the map with red map pin icons.

Browse Map feature in web exhibit

Click on one of the pin icons to see a preview of the image. Click on the link or the thumbnail image to view a larger image and more information about that item.

map pin icon with item preview for web exhibit

The map feature is also accessible when viewing individual items with location information. The map is available at the bottom of the page between the citation and the social bookmarking features.

item level view with map at bottom of page

This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, under Contract No. N01-LM-6-3505 with the Houston Academy of Medicine-Texas Medical Center Library.

Library hosts Darwin exhibit through January 2

The UT Southwestern Library is displaying “Rewriting the Book of Nature: Charles Darwin and the Rise of the Evolutionary Theory”, a four-panel exhibit from the National Library of Medicine. The display, which will be available through January 2, is located near the Library entrance (turn right after you enter) and provides a brief overview of Darwin’s groundbreaking work and its impact. In 1860, Darwin (born 1809, died 1882) published The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, which was the first book to propose the theory of evolution.

To accompany the display, the Library has gathered 28 books about Darwin and the theory of evolution from its holdings. These books are on a book truck near the display during the Library’s staffed hours. You are welcome to browse and check out these books. Electronic books about Darwin and his work are also available via the Library web site.

The Library owns an original edition of On the Origin of Species…, as well as a number of Darwin’s other books. These original editions are located in the Library’s Rare Book Room. To view these original editions or to arrange a tour of the Rare Book Room, please contact Bill Maina, Archivist and History of Medicine Librarian, via email or at 214-648-2629.

Learn from the experts at the November 14-17 classes

The Library is presenting a “Learn from the Expert” series on November 14-17, 2011. These unique training classes give you an opportunity to learn about new features and get answers from trainers of the EndNote and SciFinder resources.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14
Beginning EndNote Sessions – Learn the basics of the software.
9 a.m. – 10 a.m. in E2.310A Library Classroom
2 p.m. – 3 p.m. in NL3.120 Classroom

Advanced EndNote Session – Learn some special features of the software.
10 a.m. – 11 a.m. in E2.310A Library Classroom
Web-Based EndNote Session – Learn the web-based version of the software.
3 p.m. – 4 p.m. in NL3.120 Classroom

Cheryl Rodriguez, Content Manager for Research Software products at Thomson Reuters, will showcase special features of the EndNote bibliographic software to assist with your research. Ms. Rodriguez’ role is aligned with the product development team, allowing her to provide critical feature improvements to the Research Software product line. Prior to her current role, Cheryl was a technical support representative and content specialist at Thomson Reuters.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 16
SciFinder/SciPlanner Training Sessions
9 a.m. – 10 a.m. in E2.310A Library Classroom
10 a.m. – 11 a.m. in E2.310A Library Classroom
3 p.m. – 4 p.m. in NL3.120 Classroom
4 p.m. – 5 p.m. in NL3.120 Classroom

Peter Blasi, SciFinder Applications Specialist for Chemical Abstracts Service’s (CAS) West Region, will be on campus to conduct training sessions about your Library’s SciFinder resource, including the new SciPlanner feature. With a diverse background in biochemistry and patent law, Blasi has more than four years of experience with CAS assisting SciFinder users with valuable search techniques and strategies for this chemical and biomedical database.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17
Searching for Clinical Literature Using…Google?!?
1 p.m. – 2 p.m. in E2.310A Library Classroom

Jack Bullion, Clinical Informationist at UT Southwestern Library, will show you how to effectively and efficiently search for clinical literature using Google Scholar.
In this new Library class, you will learn how to:

  • Set your preferences to include complete full-text UTSW holdings
  • Send references from Google Scholar to your EndNote account
  • Build awareness of its limitations compared to databases like MEDLINE

Fall health policy forum spotlights the legal landscape of health care reform

The UT Southwestern Library will sponsor a free health policy forum presentation by Thomas Mayo, J.D., a law professor at Southern Methodist University (SMU), entitled “Health Care’s Day in Court: Trials of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”. The forum will be held on Tuesday, November 15, at 12 noon, in McDermott Lecture Hall D1.700 and is open to the public. Ethan Halm, M.D., UT Southwestern Professor of Internal Medicine and Clinical Sciences and Chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine, will host the forum. Light lunch will be served so please come early!

More than 20 legal challenges to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) have been filed since it became law in 2010. Five federal district judges and three federal appeals courts have rendered contradictory opinions concerning the legality of the “insurance mandate” and other aspects of the law. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to consider the ACA and rule next year.

Meanwhile, implementation of the law proceeds. For example, insurance companies cannot deny coverage because of previous condition, children may remain on parents’ policies until age 26, and there is no lifetime cap on insurance benefits. What happens next will likely impact every aspect of health care delivery in America.

Thomas Wm. Mayo, J.D., is Associate Professor, SMU’s Dedman School of Law; Adjunct Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, UT Southwestern; and Of Counsel, Haynes and Boone, LLP. He is also the immediate past director of SMU’s Maguire Center for Ethics and Public Responsibility. He currently teaches about nonprofit organizations, health care law (health care finance and regulation), torts, and bioethics, as well as a literature course for fourth-year medical students and third-year law students. He is a Fellow in the American Health Lawyers Association and the former poetry columnist for the Dallas Morning News.

Ethan A. Halm, M.D., M.P.H., is Professor of Internal Medicine and Clinical Sciences and Chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine, UT Southwestern. Dr. Halm, who holds the Walter Family Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine in Honor of Albert D. Roberts, M.D., is actively involved in clinical epidemiology, outcomes, and health services research. He received his B.A. from Wesleyan University, M.D. from the Yale School of Medicine, and M.P.H. from Harvard University. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, among others.

Co-sponsors of the Forum:
UT Southwestern Medical Center Library, UT School of Public Health/Dallas Regional Campus, UT Southwestern Department of Psychiatry, UT Southwestern Department of Clinical Sciences/Division of Ethics & Health Policy, American Medical Women’s Association, Medical Humanities Interest Group, UT Southwestern School of Health Professions, Dallas County HHS District 3 Public Health Advisory Committee, UT Southwestern Department of Family Medicine/Division of Community Medicine, Dallas-Ft.Worth Area Health Education Council, UT Southwestern Department of Clinical Sciences/Division of Outcomes and Health Services Research, Global Health Interest Group, and UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Department of Clinical Sciences, recipient of the NIH’s CTSA award, titled “UT Southwestern Clinical and Translational Alliance for Research (UT-STAR).”

Pre-registration for the forum is not required. For more information, please contact John Fullinwider either by phone at 214.648.3801 or by email at  john.fullinwider@utsouthwestern.edu.

Art exhibit explores the healing effects of color

Artist Leanne Venier showcases her evocative and vibrant abstract oil paintings in a solo exhibition titled “Effective Color: Using Light & Color Frequencies in Medicine”, which explores the healing effects of color. The exhibition will be on display at the UT Southwestern Library from October 11, 2011, through January 29, 2012.

“Technology is finally catching up with what’s been proven in Eastern medicine and numerous other cultures for thousands of years,” remarks Venier. “The use of color and light can bring healing, wellness, and tranquility into our lives. This exhibition showcases how we can all use this knowledge to lead more productive and healthy lives.”

Venier earned her engineering degree in Michigan and then moved to California to work on submarine design for Lockheed Martin. In her spare time, she began exploring numerous aspects of holistic healing including the connection between mind and body and the healing effects of color.

“I’ve been interested in the body’s innate ability to heal itself since I was young, refusing to take even aspirin as a child,” recalls Venier. “I would tell my mother that my body would ‘fix’ itself.”

After several years in California, she decided to move to Italy. It was while she was in Italy that she began her study of the healing arts in earnest. After Italy, she moved to Austin to study acupuncture and then to British Columbia to complete her studies where she started a healing practice working with cancer patients.

Venier has dedicated almost two decades to the study and practical use of holistic healing methods and color therapy.

“I’ve always been interested in how various colors are tied into our psyche and more importantly how they affect us on a physical and emotional level,” says Venier. “We are, in fact, so influenced by color, that by simply noticing which colors we’re drawn to at any given time, we can gain insight into where and how we need to bring balance back into our lives. My goal with this exhibition is to give both lay people and medical practitioners simple tools they can use to bring both themselves and others back into a state of health, wellbeing, and balance.”

Venier, a self-taught artist, has only been practicing her craft for the last four years. She was awarded grand prize of the Jury for Outstanding Artwork in Vico del Gargano, Italy in 2008. Then in 2009, she was selected from thousands as a finalist for the prestigious Hunting Art Prize in Houston. This exhibition is the second solo show that Venier has had at a medical university.

Artist Leanne Venier in front of her artwork

Artist Leanne Venier in front of her artwork