getting smarter!

The annual Get Smart! workshop took place today in the Gresham Hotel just around the corner. The library has played a pivotal role in this initiative for 1st years in The School of Hospitality Management and Tourism for their personnal and professional development. There was a fine good attendance to hear Kathryn Thomas (of rte No frontiers fame) talk about her career ups and downs, Micheline Corr of The firm provides tips on getting where you want in your career.

A great interactive sesion with all the students entitled "If only i'd know...." which explored what would have helped them on day 1 which they didn't know then, that they do know now. - if that makes sense. And also "What challenges (academic, personal, whatever) might a new student coming into college face during their 1st term?" Answers to these mysteries will hopefully help when planning the Get Smart sessions for the class of 2010/2011. All credit to Mary O'Rawe DIT lecturer and main driver behind Get Smart! going from strenght to strenght

no accounting for paste

food trends, food fads slow food wonder berries, food that delay aging, prevent coronary disease revitalise skin......etcetc Now comes Umami or Taste No 5. If you believe the hype it's like the discovery of a new primary colour or new sense to rival touch, smell and the rest. Well with taste you have sweet, sour, bitter and salty. Apparently Umami which comes to Ireland for the 1st time, available as a paste in tubes defies all these and offers a taste sensation completely new. Like a mixture of ... well it's all a matter of taste. I couldn't possibly comment myself but according to the Irish Times Kierab Glennon (Guilbauds) and Jonathan MacIver (Gordon Ramseys Powerscourt) have already stated rather sniffily that they wont be using it. But we'll make sure to order some books on Umami and for now we'll have to make do with The sense of taste. Dear knows what the great Brillat-Savarin, The Physiology of taste would have made of it all