Today is the anniversary of the first reported killing of a human by a robot occurred at Jackson, MI, in 1984. A robot turned and caught a 34-year-old worker between it and a safety bar, crushing him. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, it was "the first documented case of a robot-related fatality in the US."
    Wednesday is Rat-Catchers Day, which is observed on the anniversary of the extraordinary feat of the Pied Piper of Hamelin on July 22, 1376.     Thursday is the anniversary of the day in 1827 when the first swimming school in the United States opened. Its pupils included John Quincy Adams and James Audubon.
    Saturday is the anniversary of the First Airplane Crossing of the English Channel. In 1909, after asking from the cockpit, "Where is England?", Louis Bleriot took off from France and landed on English soil, where he was greeted first by English police and customs officers. This was the world's first international overseas airplane flight.

WHAT'S HAPPENING?
    At Wednesday's 10:00 a.m. storytime, the Dairy Classroom with Denise Lightfoot, sponsored by the Southwest Dairy Museum, will be parked in front of the library on Pennsylvania for an educational program featuring a live milkcow. There will also be two consecutive storytimes about cows in the Bondurant Room. One half of the audience will listen while the other half visits the Dairy Classroom. At Wednesday's 3:30 p.m. sotrytime, cow tales continue without the milkcow, but participants will make a cow jumping over the moon.
Bugs are fun at Saturday morning's 10:00 storytime. Bring your pet bug or bug collection to put on display for the program. Prizes will be given for the biggest bug, smallest bug, ugliest bug, most beautiful bug, and the most bug bites. Participants will also create a weird bug!

BOOK TALK
    The library's Bob Kerwick provides this week's book information. Speaking of bugs, recently there have been a number of items in the news about viruses, biological warfare, and bio-terrorism. The library has a wide selection of fiction and non-fiction books on these very topics.
    In the non-fiction area, you can check out "Virus X," by Frank Ryan, M.D.; "Virus Hunter," by C. J. Peters and Mark Olshaker; "Virus Ground Zero," by Ed Regis; or "Hot Zone," by Richard Preston. These are all terrifying but true tales of the brave men and women who track the killer viruses and try to tame them before they get out of control.
    In the fiction area, you might read Robin Cook's "contagion," a tale of conspiracy by a for-profit medical giant to eliminate some of its more costly subscribers. "The Cobra Event," by Richard Preston, tells a scary story of a rogue scientists working for an Iraqi controlled American research lab, who develops a killer virus and is testing various ways of dispersing it in the major US cities.
    Another choice is "The Eleventh Plague," by John Baldwin, in which a brilliant but deranged scientist sets out to duplicate the ten plagues of the Old Testament and add a new one of his own. Other titles you might select from include "Carriers," by Patrick Lynch; "The Bood Artists," by Chuck Hogan; and "Reaper," by Ben Mezrich. When you've read all of these, ask one of the friendly reference librarians for help in finding more!

DID YOU KNOW?
    If you're a traveling parent, find ways to continue parent-child rituals while you're away. For instance, if you usually read a bedtime story, make an audio- or videotape of one before you leave to be used at bedtime. Or take along a story to read over the phone. If you will miss a child's recital, game, or performance, have it taped and then watch it together when you return home.

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: "How old would you be if you didn't know how old you was?" (Satchel Paige)

JUDY ARMSTRONG, 624-7276

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