Google released their own open-source web browser today entitled “Chrome.”  They have released an online comic discussing the various virtues of their new browser which include, among many other new features, fast rendering of pages and tabbed browsing that run each tab as a separate process.  Users of Chrome will also see thumbnails of their most visited pages as well as being able to search directly from the address bar.  

Chrome looks to be a new contender against Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Mozilla’s Firefox. Take a look at Google’s new browser and let us know what you think!

A new study finds that in 2007, 56 percent of American adults—more than 122 million people—sought information about a personal health concern, up from 38 percent in 2001. Use of all information sources rose substantially, with the Internet leading the way. Consumers who actively researched health concerns widely reported positive impacts: More than half said the information changed their overall approach to maintaining their health, and four in five said that the information helped them to better understand how to treat an illness or condition.

The report, “Striking Jump in Consumers Seeking Health Care Information” (Tracking Report No. 20) is authored by Ha T. Tu and Genna Cohen. It was published in August 2008 by Center for Studying Health System Change.

Because of the upcoming Labor Day weekend, the deadline to submit your application for a MAR Health Literacy Award (new or existing project) has been extended to September 2.

Information on the awards, as well as online application forms, are available here:

http://nnlm.gov/mar/funding/

The History of Medicine Division of the National Library of Medicine is pleased to announce a new web exhibit: “Hooke’s Books:  Books that Influenced or were Influenced by Robert Hooke.”

www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/hooke/

Robert Hooke (1635-1703) was a remarkably versatile man — artist, biologist, physicist, engineer, architect, inventor, and more. However, his crowning glory was Micrographia: or Some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses, first published 1665. It was a masterpiece — an exquisitely illustrated introduction to the previously unknown microscopic world. This exhibit focuses on Hooke’s influences and legacy in print, the pioneering books that stimulated Hooke’s research, and the works he left for others — most famously the great Dutch microscopist, Antoni van Leeuwenhœk (1632-1723).

The August 2008 issue of NIH News in Health is now online at http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/.  The monthly NIH News in Health newsletter brings you practical health news and tips based on the latest NIH research.  In this issue:

Arm Yourself for Good Health
Stay Up-to-Date on Vaccines
As summer winds down, students from kindergarten to college are heading off to new schools, with lots of new people to meet—and new germs to catch. One of the best ways to guard you and your family against infectious disease is to stay up-to-date with your vaccines.
Full story: http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/newversion/2008/August/feature1.htm

Matching Genes and Vitamins
A Personalized Plan May Be in Your Future
You may be one of the many people who take vitamin and mineral supplements as a kind of insurance plan, to make sure your body’s getting enough of all the nutrients you need. New research suggests that doctors may one day be able to design a personalized supplement plan that’s best for your particular body.
Full story: http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/newversion/2008/August/feature2.htm

Health Capsules

• Wide Waists Boost Risk of Death
• Online Care Helps Control Blood Pressure
• Featured Web Site: Findings

Click here to download a PDF version for printing.

This is a reminder that applications are due by Friday, August 1, 2008 for three MAR Awards:

EFTS Awards: http://nnlm.gov/mar/funding/efts.html

Planning Awards: http://nnlm.gov/mar/funding/planning.html

Technology Awareness Conference Award: http://nnlm.gov/mar/funding/techawareness.html

Now available: Online Search Clinic Recording for PubMed Update on Automatic Term Mapping, Citation Sensor, and Advanced Search

A 30 minute online search clinic was presented by the NLM® and the National Training Center and Clearinghouse (NTCC) via Adobe® Connect™ on Thursday, July 17th (2pm ET). The presentation  covered changes to PubMed including changes to how PubMed handles your search (the new automatic term mapping process), the citation sensor, and the beta Advanced Search page.

View the Clinic recording

Responses to questions that were not addressed during the Clinic time will be posted to this Web site in the near future.

Comments and suggestions regarding the new PubMed features and the search clinic are welcome.

For more training opportunities, see the National Training Center and Clearinghouse Web site and the NLM Distance Education page. Watch for announcements of new training resources in the NLM Technical Bulletin.

We hope you find the Search Clinic: PubMed Update useful and enjoyable.

We have heard from many libraries about rejecting requests from non-EFTS libraries. While we understand EFTS libraries’ desire to avoid paper invoices, we also understand non-EFTS libraries limits in participating in the program.

For all libraries that consider it acceptable to not fill for non-EFTS libraries, we urge you to consider the long-term implications and the potential exclusion this will impose on a large segment of the DOCLINE community. More importantly, if you elect to practice this method of rejection, please use some professional discretion:

• Urgent Patient Care requests require immediate service and all participating libraries should do their best to complete these request promptly for EFTS and non-EFTS requestors alike.
  
• Requests that have routed beyond the normal routing table (Refer to Resource Libraries, Refer on After NLM) have exhausted normal options for borrowing and need to be completed.
  
• Free reciprocal requests which would not require invoicing should not be rejected for non-EFTS libraries. Participation in a library group requires completion of requests per the terms of the group. Any library that is a member of FreeShare or BHSL *must* honor another FreeShare/BHSL library’s requests per group agreements. Even if the requesting library is not EFTS, that has no bearing on whether or not that library is FreeShare/BHSL.

DOCLINE requires that libraries provide reciprocal service and the rejection of an entire category of libraries from resource sharing seriously jeopardizes the continued success of DOCLINE.

MAR has explored non-EFTS libraries’ reasons for not participating in the program and we have found that these libraries are excluded not by choice, but by circumstance—hospital administrators and accounting departments that restrict the placement of money on deposit.

If you encounter a non-EFTS library, take a moment to encourage their membership in the program or refer them to their RML to help them join EFTS.

For non-EFTS libraries, MAR has recently launched a new EFTS award which provides up to $200 in starter funds. These funds can ensure that when and if you ever need to borrow for cost, the money will be there. It also marks your library as an EFTS participant. Please consider applying for this award (http://nnlm.gov/mar/funding/efts.html). Deadline for applications is August 1, 2008.

If you have questions, please contact the RML (rml@library.med.nyu.edu or 1-800-338-7657).

The American Library Association is beginning to rally libraries and their patrons for more privacy in this digital age.  They have posted their white paper on “Rallying Americans for the Right to Information Privacy” as well as posting videos of panel speakers at their recent conference.

You can find all of this on their Privacy Revolution Site.

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Middle Atlantic Region is pleased to announce the recipients of our initial round of Technology Innovation Awards!

The recipients are:

• Touro-Harlem Medical Library - Shelly Warwick - Building instructional capacity.
• Columbia University Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library - Flash screen network.
• University of Rochester Medical Center - Donna R. Berryman - CLIC-on-Health online outreach to refugees.
• St. Francis Medical Library - Rosemary Figorito - Projecto Salud - outreach and training to hispanic communities.
• John F. Kennedy Medical Center Medical Library - Lena Feld - Software Upgrade Promotes Enhanced Research (SUPER)

Congratulations to all the award recipients!

All MAR network members should keep an eye out for our next call for applications for Technology Innovation Awards in late summer or early fall!