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NLM Newsline 1999 January-March; Vol. 54, No. 1


In This Issue:

bullet"Breath of Life" Exhibition Opens

LOCATORplus on the Web

Reading Room, Rotunda Update

NGC Web Site Goes Live

African-American Health Issues, Voting Rights

Elizabeth Blackwell, M.D.

Worthy of Note

Louise Darling Dies at 87

Lederberg's Papers on "Profiles" Site

The "Difficult Woman"

MLA Time Capsule

HBCU Explores Internet

Older Adults and the Web


In Every Issue:

Names in the News

Products and Publications

NLM in Print



"Breath of Life" Exhibition Opens in Grand Style


Jackie Joyner-Kersee, "Sesame Street" Characters

Help Launch In-depth Look at Asthma

Somehow, it didn't feel like a Monday night at some government building.

With the balloons, the celebrities, the gourmet food, hundreds of guests, and an entertaining, educational exhibit as backdrop, it was more like a gala extravaganza in the name of asthma research. "Breath of Life," a unique interactive exhibition about asthma, opened at NLM March 22nd. Asthma is a growing concern in this country and affects nearly 15 million Americans, or more than five percent of the population. Developed by the Library's History of Medicine Division, in collaboration with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, "Breath of Life" highlights the history of asthma, the experiences of people with asthma, and efforts to understand and manage the disease. NLM Director Dr. Donald A.B. Lindberg welcomed the capacity crowd to a 5:30 p.m. press event in the HMD Reading Room. He also had good news to announce.

"Because of the generosity of Glaxo Wellcome [a research-based pharmaceutical firm], it's going to be possible to ship this exhibit to perhaps as many as ten American cities, and that's going to be a wonderful thing, because it will carry the message that you all are going to hear to places outside Washington," noted Dr. Lindberg. A special guest at the press event was House Appropriations Committee Chair C.W. (Bill) Young (R-FL). The Congressman gave an enthusiastic endorsement of the "Breath of Life" exhibition, and of NIH in general.

"It is exciting for an appropriator to see where some of the dollars that he or she has appropriated are being used and being used effectively," said Congressman Young. "And I would suggest that right here at NIH is one of the best examples of tax dollars being used. What an exciting time to come to NIH."

The congressman was accompanied by his son and other members of the track team from Gar-Field High School in Woodbridge, Virginia. The team has been nationally ranked and several of its members have asthma. The group posed for pictures with Olympic gold medalist in track and field, Jackie Joyner- Kersee.

Joyner-Kersee, considered by many to be one of the greatest female athletes of all time, also suffers from asthma. Speaking at the press event, she reflected on her own experience with the disease. "As a young girl growing up, I didn't know I had asthma. The most important thing [in dealing with asthma] is knowledge," Joyner- Kersee told the audience in the HMD Reading Room. "Allowing our doctors to be our friends. So I started respecting asthma like I respect my opponent. I would not take my opponents for granted, and I had to stop taking asthma for granted, because it was getting the best of me."

Jackie Joyner-Kersee was joined by another Olympic medalist, Nancy Hogshead. Hogshead, who won her gold medals for swimming, is now an attorney. She had a positive message for those suffering from asthma.

"If you have asthma and you want to be the very best in the world, there are a lot of things you can do," she told the crowd at the press event. "With treatment and working with your physician, you really can go and accomplish what it is in your heart and soul." Another Olympic gold medalist, NLM Board of Regents Chair Dr. Tenley E. Albright, introduced her fellow Olympians to the audience. Dr. Albright won her medal for women's figure skating.

She read a statement from First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, who expressed regret that a trip abroad prevented her attending the opening of "Breath of Life." In her message, Mrs. Clinton observed, "In the last decade, there has been an alarming increase in the number of people with asthma, particularly for children under the age of five. The most effective way to help control and prevent asthma is by providing information about this health problem to the widest possible audience."

"The 'Breath of Life' exhibit," she continued, "is a wonderful way to inform communities about the triggers, symptoms and treatment for asthma, so that lives can be saved and enhanced and the health of children can be improved." Congresswoman Connie Morella (R-MD) was also a guest at the opening press conference. She discussed her own efforts to help double the NIH budget by 2003 and pointed out that "Medical research reverberates throughout the country," improving the way we deliver health care. She characterized asthma as a "silent disease," its victims trying to go about their lives, doing their work and not complaining. She pointed out that an estimated five million American children have asthma, and that an estimated one in three of those has had to go to an emergency room for treatment in the past year. Then came the exciting finale of the formal program. "Sesame Street"!

Thirty children of NLM employees, clad in "Sesame Street" T-shirts, could barely contain themselves as they entered the HMD Reading Room single file and beheld familiar faces from the popular children's show. A lively group from NIH's Children's Inn also joined in the fun. Dani, a new Muppet character who has asthma, joined fellow cast members Rosita and Luis and the assembled crowd in a rollicking rendition of "The Breathing Song."

They also watched lively videotaped segments about asthma that had aired on "Sesame Street." (Children's Television Workshop, the producer of "Sesame Street," has teamed with the Prudential Foundation and the American Lung Association in a new bilingual multimedia educational campaign, "A Is For Asthma." Asthma is a rapidly growing health problem among inner-city Latino populations.)

At about 6:25 p.m., the program ended and the party began. An eclectic soundtrack with music from asthmatic composers (Beethoven, Vivaldi and Bernstein, among others) and performers (including Liza Minnelli, Alice Cooper and Kenny G) set the tone for the opening and hinted at the variety of celebrities with asthma. (A more comprehensive list composes the "Faces of Asthma" section of the exhibition.)

Besides the stars that were projected onto the ceiling of the NLM rotunda during the reception, the stars from the press event stayed around, interacting with the crowd and posing for photographs. Persons from the national asthma community greeted one another and all guests enjoyed viewing the "Breath of Life" exhibition, with its many interesting objects and interactive displays. All in all, a breathtaking occasion.

"Breath of Life" is open to the public during regular Library hours, Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with late hours Thursdays (till 9:00 p.m.) until Memorial Day weekend. The Library is also open Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The exhibition will run through June of 2000.

To take a virtual tour of the "Breath of Life" exhibition via your web browser, go to http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/breath/breathhome.html

Watch for a longer article about the content of the "Breath of Life" exhibition in the next issue of NEWSLINE.

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Caption:
The vast panorama of the "Breath of Life" exhibition, which occupies NLM's lobby and rotunda through June of 2000.

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Caption:
Golden moment. Olympic gold medalists Jackie Joyner-Kersee (l.) and Nancy Hogshead (r.), both of whom have asthma, greet each other following the "Breath of Life" press event.

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Caption:
Cong. Connie Morella (R-MD), addresses the "Breath of Life" press event, as NLM Director Dr. Donald A.B. Lindberg looks on. Ms. Morella represents Montgomery County, where NIH is located, and serves on the House Committee on Science.

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Caption:
NLM Board of Regents Chair Dr. Tenley Albright (l.) stands with fellow Olympian Jackie Joyner- Kersee and Executive Director of the Friends of the NLM, Keith Krueger.

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Caption:
Children of NLM staff members are spellbound, seeing members of the "Sesame Street" cast, up close and personal.

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Caption:
"Sesame Street" favorites (l. to r.) Rosita, Dani and Luis delighted and informed the crowd with a song and several videoclips from "A Is For Asthma."

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Caption:
Jackie Joyner-Kersee pauses for a photograph with Donovan (c.), age 1, and Diamond, age 6, (r.) McLean, the children of Renee McLean in NLM's Bibliographic Services Division.

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Caption:
House Appropriations Chairman C.W. (Bill) Young had words of praise for NIH. His entourage included members of the Gar-Field High School track team.

Photo credits: Chase Studio, Bethesda, Maryland, and Karlton Jackson, NLM.

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Last updated: 20 September 1999
First published: 01 January 1999
Permanence level: Permanent: Stable Content


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Last updated: 20 September 1999