I Need a Book About Chipmunks

"I need a book about chipmunks."  The Newton Falls Public Library staff member wasn't too surprised by the statement; we have another patron who enjoys books about squirrels.  After careful questioning as to the exact nature of information wanted about chipmunks, it was learned the our patron is having a problem with chipmunks in their garden.  She wished to know how to humanely remove them.

A search of our shelves revealed a selection of materials about wildlife and gardens.  One of the books taken from the shelf was The Nature-friendly Garden: creating a backyard haven for plants, wildlife, and people by Marlene A Condon.  While it did have some suggestions concerning squirrels and birdfeeders, discussed a variety of wildlife including coyotes and bears, it had no information about chipmunks.

Living with Wildlife how to enjoy, cope with, and protect North America's wild creatures around your home and theirs discourages live traps as they often cause death and do not permanently remove chipmunks from gardens.  It does suggest protecting flower bulbs by covering the planting area with coarse gauge wire screen and removing their favorite dwelling places, "like rock and woodpiles, brushy hedges, and dense ground cover. [p.105]. The Friendly Trapper The Friendly Trapper Book II (2) by Harold E. Bailey has instructions for a humane chipmunk trap.  Bailey seems to feel that chipmunks were placed here for a reason, and the only time they need to be removed is if we need to protect our homes or vehicles from them chewing on wires.

Why Do Some People Draw a Line Through the Number 7?

 "Why do some people draw a line through the number 7?" The Newton Falls Public Library staff understood that our patron was curious as to why there was a line crossing the vertical line of that number. 

Using the search words "why line through 7" brought up a variety of results.  There were several different theories.  At www.funtrivia.com, Carlos responded to this question, stating that "Mathematicians and computer data entrists are prone to crossing their sevens to differentiate from ones, and also their zeros to differentiate from the letter o."  Other websites also noted that some people put a line through the letter Z, to ensure that it is not confused with the number 2.

The website, www.sciencechats.com directed us to an interesting slide show  by Nzar Hama, an engineer in Sulimni, Kurdistan, Iraq.  He states that "the numbers we write are made up of algorithms (1, 2, 3, 4, etc), called arabic algorithms . . . written in their primitive form . . ." they are made up of angles.  The number one written with the small tall at the top has one angle.  The other numbers, written in straight lines, is each made up of lines with the corresponding number of angles.