A look at NLM's Herb Garden

Did you know NLM has an herb garden? According to their site, "Started in 1976 as part of National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Bicentennial celebration, the herb garden at the National Library of Medicine showcases the healing power of nature at its very richest. Located directly in front of the main Library building (38) across the oval driveway, the garden's lush variety of herbs captures the endless curative, aromatic, and useful qualities that made these healing plants integral to the development of modern medicine."

Take a look... 

Digitized documents now available from 1932 Tuskegee Syphilis study

No doubt you've heard about the heartbreaking and unjust 1932 study by the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) on the effects of untreated syphilis in Black men at Tuskegee Institute. NLM has just made available a collection of over 3,000 items including letters, meeting minutes, articles, and more available to anyone for use.

This newly digitized collection aims to "ensure this chapter in history is never repeated and build greater trust in current biomedical research through transparency."

Searching for pumpkins at NLM

 Re-posting from the NLM Circulating Now blog:

An updated look for ClinicalTrials.gov

Have you seen the updated ClinicalTrials.gov? In July 2023 NLM launched an updated version of the well-known site. 

Two things jumped out at me right away: a clear description of the purpose of the site and disclaimer about safety/science. Both of those additions will help users better understand what they will find here. 

If you prefer the classic version, no need to panic. According to the "Top Questions and Answers about the Transition to the Modernized ClinicalTrials.gov and Modernized IRS" the classic version is still available but will be retired eventually. 

Just in time for Halloween....

 Looking for a spooky read this Halloween weekend?  Check out The Great Amhurst Mystery: A true narrative of the supernatural by Walter Hubbel.  The entire book is available online in NLM's digital collection.  Hubbel observed a series of bizarre, unexplained events in Amherst, Nova Scotia that went on to become one of the best documented cases of poltergeist activity.  Hubbard went as far as to swear an affidavit that his accounts of the events were true.

Thanks to WHSLA member Mini Prasad for sharing Nicole Baker's Circulating Now blog post with us.  If you don't have time to read the entire book, Baker gives an interesting summary of it.

Also from NLM's digital collection!
 http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101444428

National Library of Medicine titles included in international film festival

The weekend of September 24-26, the Wellcome Trust presented the Healthy Scepticism Film Festival.  This free virtual event featured a competition of ten short films, films produced by the Healthy Scepticism Project, and several historical films (many of which are held by the National Library of Medicine and can still be viewed in their archives).

Thanks to WHSLA member Mini Prasad for telling us about this Circulating Now blog post!

The Magical, Medicinal NLM Herb Garden

 "Since the beginning of time, people have used plants to cure illnesses and treat wounds. In previous centuries, medicinal gardens were carefully cultivated and the knowledge of their healing properties passed on to succeeding generations.

The NLM Herb Garden was created in 1976 as part of NIH’s celebration of the US Bicentennial. It continues to thrive today, with some of those original plantings still going strong. The garden’s lush variety of herbs captures the endless curative and useful qualities that made these healing plants integral to the development of modern medicine. Today, it’s lovingly maintained by volunteers from the Montgomery County Master Gardener Association and the Herb Society of America, Potomac Unit...."

Read more about NLM's magical garden

NLM's Dream Anatomy Exhibition

The National Library of Medicine recently launched their Dream Anatomy Exhibit.

The interior of our bodies is hidden to us.  What happens beneath the skin is mysterious, fearful, amazing.  In antiquity, the body's internal structure was the subject of speculation, fantasy and some study, but there were few efforts to represent it in pictures.  The invention of the printing press in the 15th century ad the cascade of print technologies that followed helped to inspire a new spectacular science of anatomy, and new spectacular visions of the body. Anatomical imagery proliferated, detailed and informative but also whimsical, surreal, beautiful, and grotesque -- a dream anatomy that reveals as much about the outer world as it does the inner self.  

 

TOXNET Website to Retire Dec. 16, 2019: Most content will Remain Available

Table of Contents: 2019 SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER No. 430

TOXNET Website to be Retired, Most Content Will Remain Available. 

NLM Tech Bull. 2019 Sep-Oct;(430):e3.

On December 16, 2019, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) TOXNET (TOXicology Data NETwork) website will be retired. Most content will remain available through other NLM databases as well as from external websites.

TOXNET has served as an integrated system of toxicology and environmental health information. The most frequently used databases are being incorporated into three NLM core resources: PubChem, an open chemistry database; PubMed, a resource for biomedical literature; and Bookshelf, a free online resource to access books and documents in life science and healthcare.

Several resources in TOXNET came from other organizations, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and will continue to be available from those sources. Some databases will be retired.

The TOXNET transition page provides a list of its databases and how to access their content. Please check that page and the NLM Technical Bulletin for updates.

If you have questions, please contact NLM Customer Support at https://support.nlm.nih.gov/.

ISSN 2161-2986 (Online) 

Content not copyrighted; freely reproducible.

U.S. National Library of Medicine 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894
National Institutes of Health NIH...Turning Discovery into Health®Last updated: 24 September 2019