Answering questions at Boston College O’Neill Library
There aren’t a whole lot of Answer Walls, so I’m not sure if other places have different customs. For sure an excuse to have cake was part of it, but I also think my helpers enjoy this whole thing we’re doing together. Getting me to answer questions was an experiment, and we’ve been doing it for three years, so I think that’s worth some cake.
I’ll report it to the library administration, thanks.
When people devour books, it’s metaphorical. Mice, not so much.
I’ll have my assistants look into this and get back to you.
Yes, they are possible, but they’re definitely difficult. My advice to you is to communicate, but don’t suffocate. Give your partner enough breathing room to miss you, and most importantly enjoy your own life even though you’ll miss them, too!
I did answer, but sometimes the little post-its go off and hide! You can always see my answers on my blog: https://library.bc.edu/answerwall/. The answer was: 12/11/19 from Campus Rec: “Campus Recreation allows community members to purchase memberships during the Summer, but not during the academic year. We keep the facility foot traffic during the semester to the students and faculty/staff that are directly affiliated with BC.”
Check out the view from the Top of the Hub, the restaurant at the top of the Prudential Center, before it closes in April. Some other suggested gems in the Boston area include: Mount Auburn Cemetery, Castle Island, and Cambridge Center Roof Garden. Have fun breaking out!
You are absolutely not stupid. You’d be surprised at how many students struggle (many!) Please check in with you professors, your advisor, and the Connors Family Learning Center (bit.ly/BC-connors). There’s advice and tutoring and support. And thanks for the birthday wishes.
Sure! I’m enthusiastic about anything that makes you happy.
I am a Wall that communicates with the help of a few different library workers. I have a few other cousin and extended family walls around campus that provide advice as well. While I’m flattered by the profession of love, my deepest hope is that you find a human that can love you better than I ever could. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that my pronouns are They/Them/Their; I am non-gendered Wall after all.
I’m a bit of a chameleon, in that I tend to reflect the personalities of the people who help me answer your questions. Librarians tend to be INTJ, though.
Thanks! I will most certainly continue to give advice. I hope it remains meaningful!
Aww, thanks. And thank YOU for making O’Neill special, just by being here.
I am thankful there are many doctors and scientists working to help people. We can do our part by washingour hands often to keep illness from spreading.
I see you, all tired and bleary-eyed, but still smiling. May all your study yield much learning and success.
Thank you! I will continue to be upstanding and supportive.
Thanks! I appreciate the post-it version of cake. I love eating post-its. I do work hard, but all the walls here at BC work hard.
???
Thanks! I’ll stay strong & supportive. With the collective help of a small army of librarians and all the books in here, I can’t help but seem smart, right?
No one knows! There are a few different theories, but probably the most legitimate one is that it is a stylistic variation of a middle ages mark designed to show interrogative annunciation. That mark was a dot next to a lightning-bolt-shaped line (to see the image check out bit.ly/OriginalQuestionMark). This potentially morphed into today’s question mark. Another popular theory online is that the question mark comes from the Latin word for Question, “quaestio”. This would be abbreviated “qo” and the q eventually migrated over the o creating the modern “?”. I am unable to find any primary or high quality secondary sources that back this theory, however.
