Scout Report for Science & Engineering_
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/report/sci-eng/2000/se-000301.html
Volume 3, Number 12 of the Scout Report for Science & Engineering is available. The In the News section annotates eight resources on the eruption of Mount Mayon in the Phillipines. [MD]
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ClinicalTrials.gov
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct/gui
Announced by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on February 29, this new site offers information on over 4,000 federal and private medical studies involving patients and others at more than 47,000 locations nationwide. Aimed at patients, family members, and the interested public, the database can be searched by keyword or browsed by condition or sponsor. Returns include study title, sponsor, location, design and purpose, eligibility criteria, and contact information. Additional resources at the site include a User's Guide, a backgrounder on clinical trials, and links to several related NIH sites. ClinicalTrials.gov will be updated frequently and will remain confidential (no registration is required). [MD]
[Back to Contents]SOSIG New Look
http://sosig.ac.uk/
Social Science Search Engine
http://sosig.ac.uk/harvester.html
US Mirror
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/addserv/mirror/sosig/
The Web's premiere Social Science gateway has gotten even better, with a new interface and several other features that help users find quality social science research and education resources, hand-picked and described by librarians and subject specialists. The heart of SOSIG remains its excellent Internet catalog, which includes thousands of online resources, browseable or searchable by subject area. Within each section, resources are organized by subcategory and listed by type. Each section supplies information on its editor and a link to an extremely useful Subject Guide to conducting online research in that field. Visitors can find additional, uncataloged resources, using the Social Science Search Engine, which indexes a database of over 50,000 Social Science Webpages. SOSIG also helps users stay current, not only with their constantly updated list of new additions, but also with a new My Account feature. Integrated with SOSIG's Grapevine (reviewed in the April 7, 1998 Scout Report for Social Sciences), My Account lets users customize SOSIG and register for a free weekly email notification of new resources in their area of interest. Note: At time of publication, Scout's US mirror of SOSIG does not yet reflect these changes. [MD]
[Back to Contents]MIR FacultyOnline
http://www.FacultyOnline.com
Open only to college and university instructors, this free site from Monument Information Resource (MIR) can be extremely useful, especially for younger faculty or professors tasked with teaching courses out of their field. The heart of the site is the textbook database of over 60,000 titles searchable by author, title, or ISBN number, and with links to online information from the publisher. Users can also browse lists of top-selling titles by discipline and class subject, based on research from over 1,000 college bookstores. From these lists, users can obtain basic bibliographic information, link to publisher information, request a review copy, and when available, read other users's comments and reviews. Another major service at the site is the FacultyConnect section, which allows users to search for books and then find other faculty who are using specific titles (note the list offers their last name and links to their institution, not directly to the faculty member). The FacultyConnect section also includes a forum and a course materials information exchange. Other on-site resources include a new title listing and a collection of related links. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Laboratory for Global Environmental Science Information (LaGESI)
http://www.lagesi.caltech.edu/
WebWinds Interactive Data System
http://webwinds.jpl.nasa.gov/
Housed at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), the Laboratory for Global Environmental Science Information (LaGESI) was launched in conjunction with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory "to increase the use of Earth science data sets to improve our understanding of global and regional environmental science issues." The LaGESI Website offers access to a huge collection of Earth science data (via WWW and FTP), simulations of earth science processes, free desktop visualization software including WebWinds (see URL above), earth science education activities and modules, and support information (alerts and technical assistance). Online data vary in accessibility, scope, and detail, but include atmosphere (AVIRIS, ATMOS, GENESIS, GCMD), land (AIRSAR, AVIRIS, MASTER, GCMD), and ocean data (AIRSAR, AIRSEA, AVIRIS, MASTRER, NSCAT, PO-DAAC, TOPEX, and GCMD). For any researcher seeking earth science data from the regional to global geographic scale, this is a phenomenal resource and reference tool. [LXP]
[Back to Contents]The UN and Decolonization [.pdf]
http://www.un.org/Depts/dpi/decolonization/
Since its founding in 1945, over 80 nations formerly under colonial rule have joined the UN as sovereign independent nations. Today, seventeen non-self-governing territories remain, administered by France, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This site explores the process of decolonization and especially the role of the UN's Special Committee of 24 on Decolonization, founded in 1961-2. At the site, users will find a history of decolonization, information on the Special Committee of 24 and the International Trusteeship System and Council, a collection of relevant documents, maps of the world in 1945 and today, and the latest news on decolonization issues. Throughout the site, links are offered to related online resources and documents. As a UN site, it can only offer limited commentary and analysis, but on the whole it is well-organized, and the collection of original documents and authoritative resources make it an excellent adjunct to classes studying the post-colonial world. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Two from the FAO
FAO Document Repository
http://www.fao.org/docrep/
Desertification [QuickTime]
http://www.fao.org/desertification/
The first of these two sites from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) allows users to retrieve and view full-text documents from the FAO and related bodies. Users can search by keyword, perform an advanced search with multiple modifiers, or conduct a simple search within selected fields (note this last option is not fully functional at time of review). Search returns include title, an abstract, and a link to the full text in HTML format. Several language options are available. The second site offers technical and scientific information and links designed to assist "national, regional and international stakeholders and networks involved in sustainable development of drylands and in particular in the implementation of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)." Available in several languages, the heart of the site is the documents section, which contains citations and full-text papers, maps, photos, statistics, and videos. Users can search the collection by keyword or browse by region, theme, UNCCD article, type of resource, and date. Other offerings include links to related institutions, a link to a Roster of Independent Experts for each country party to the UNCCD, a list of programs and activities, and a searchable/ browseable database of desertification links. [MD]
[Back to Contents]"Creating and Documenting Electronic Texts: A Guide to Good Practice" -- OTA
http://ota.ahds.ac.uk/documents/creating/
The latest in the UK's Arts and Humanities Data Service (AHDS) publication series, Guides to Good Practice (see the November 3, 1998 Scout Report for Social Sciences), this guide from the Oxford Text Archive (OTA) takes users through the basic steps involved in creating and documenting an electronic text or similar digital resource. Aimed at anyone involved with or planning the digitization of texts or similar material, the guide offers good practice and standards that are relevant to a variety of disciplines and projects. The guide may be read by chapter and section in HTML format. A glossary and bibliography are also provided. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Mathematical Physics Preprint Archive [.ps]
http://rene.ma.utexas.edu:80/mp_arc/index.html
The University of Texas-Austin's Mathematics Department houses this excellent Mathematical Physics Preprint Archive. With abstracts and papers organized by year (1991-present), this free service lets users "deposit papers in an electronic format over the Web or by email." Users may also access papers (by email, FTP, Gopher, wais, HTTP). In addition, the service supplies weekly updates. This site offers a substantial archive for those interested in mathematical physics. [KR]
[Back to Contents]Global Directory of Marine (and Freshwater) Professionals (GLODIR)
http://ioc.unesco.org/glodir/index.htm
Newly redesigned, GLODIR is an excellent resource that helps marine and freshwater scientists and graduate students contact other researchers and learn about their publications. Developed and maintained by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC), the site hosts a database of over 10,000 records, with information on individuals from around the world involved in all aspects of marine or freshwater research and management. Users can search the database by name, institution, country, and activities keyword, as well as perform an advanced search with a host of modifiers. In addition, users can also search a database of publication citations by keyword. Any marine or freshwater professional is welcome to enter their personal information and publication citations. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Search ERIC/AE Draft Abstracts
http://ericae.net/sinprog.htm
This recently added featured to the ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation (ERIC/AE) (reviewed in the September 3, 1999 Scout Report) allows users to bypass the traditional six-to-nine-month wait for abstracts appearing in ERIC's Resources in Education or the Current Index to Journals in Education. Updated once a week, the database contains very current abstracts of papers on "assessment, evaluation, research methods and learning theory and the educationally relevant articles appearing in over thirty professional journals." Users may search the database by keyword with several modifiers or browse one of a number of "Pre-packaged strategies" (Format, Audience, Publication Type, Topics), which group related abstracts together. Some search hints are provided. [MD]
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British Museums Release List of Art Possibly Looted by Nazis
Spoilation of works of art during the Holocaust and World War II period
http://www.nationalmuseums.org.uk/spoliation/spoliation.html
Reports by Museum or Gallery
http://www.nationalmuseums.org.uk/spoliation/reports.html
This week, experts in Britain released a list of approximately 350 works of art in British museums with hazy provenances, and which may have been stolen from European Jews and others by the Nazis. Worth millions of dollars, the suspect art includes works by Picasso, Matisse, Miro, Cezanne, and many others. At the National Museum Directors' Conference Spoilation site, users can read the full text of the report, which includes information for inquirers and potential claimants, and view by gallery or museum the lists of works, "the provenance of which, following initial research, cannot with certainty be specified for the whole of the period 1933-45, and for which further provenance information is being sought." For each work, the artist, title, dimensions, provenance, the additional information being sought, and any other information available are listed. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Almanac of American Politics 2000 [RealPlayer]
http://www.freedomchannel.com/almanac/almanac_of_amer_pol.cfm
Freedom Channel
http://www.freedomchannel.com/index.cfm
The Freedom Channel, a nonpartisan online resource for American political video-on-demand, has recently placed on their Website an electronic version of The Almanac of American Politics 2000. Published by National Journal Group Inc. and authored by US News & World Report's Michael Barone, the almanac is an invaluable reference resource, with profiles of every member of Congress, political histories of every state and congressional district, political essays, and information on congressional redistricting, campaign finance, congressional committees and leadership, presidential politics, and election cycles. The almanac is browseable by state and district or by elected official, or searchable by keyword. From this page, users can also access content from the Freedom Channel, including candidate information, campaign ads, transcripts, and links; and various video selections. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Images from the History of Medicine (IHM)
http://wwwihm.nlm.nih.gov/
On February 24, the National Library of Medicine announced that approximately 60,000 rescanned images had been placed on the Images from the History of Medicine Website (originally reviewed in the June 17, 1994 Scout Report). These new images have been scanned directly from archival slides at a high (2700 dpi) resolution rate. Because of the quality of these images, they have been watermarked. Users can browse or search the image collection by keyword. Returns include a large thumbnail image, author, title, and physical description. Copyright and ordering information are provided at the site. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Two Resources on Current Conflicts
chechnya.co.uk
http://chechnya.co.uk/
KFOR Online [.pdf, RealPlayer]
http://www.kforonline.com/
Using these two new sites, users can keep abreast of events in two of the world's most troubled regions: Chechnya and Kosovo. Created and maintained by two Londoners, chechnya.co.uk bills itself as a comprehensive, non-partisan, and independent resource "for anyone with a personal, academic or business interest in the current events, culture, politics, of Chechnya." At the site, users will find links to current news stories and related events, analysis and commentary, governmental policy statements, a comprehensive links section, and a live Java chat. In the future, the site plans to add content on business, culture, and charities and NGOs active in Chechnya. The second site is the official online presence of KFOR, the NATO-led international force responsible for establishing security in Kosovo. At the KFOR site, users can read the latest (and archived) news from Kosovo and the KFOR Chronicle; learn about KFOR's structure and objectives; read detailed background information, biographies, and original documents; and access audio and video selections and a searchable database of photographs in the Multimedia Gallery. Additional resources include press/ media information, related links, and an internal search engine. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Africana.com: The Digital Bridge
http://www.africana.com/news/homepage/index.htm
Africana.com was founded in 1999 to present "information and commentary reflecting the diverse concerns of people of African descent." Designed by Harvard Square Netcasting, with Harvard University professors Henry Louis Gates and Anthony Appiah on the its Board of Directors, Africana.com provides a broad spectrum of information from scholarship to lifestyle articles and headline news. Several features boost the interactivity of the site: a free email service for registrants, a quiz (AfriQuest), and Radio Africana, listings of radio stations worldwide webcasting Black music. There are also links to related Web resources, a media center (primarily books and CDs for purchase), and the Adopt-A-School philanthropy program. [DS]
[Back to Contents]Cleaning Up the Nuclear Weapons Complex: Internet Resources
http://www.rff.org/nuclearcleanup/
Launched in late January by Resources for the Future (RFF), an independent, nonprofit organization devoted to the economic aspects of environmental issues (see the August 28, 1998 Scout Report), this metasite offers about 100 annotated and categorized online resources on the cleanup of the nuclear weapons complex. The site is divided into four main categories: Recommended Reading, Research and Stakeholder Organizations, Federal Government, and News Sources and Periodicals. Links point to the organizations's Webpages, relevant documents, and other resources. Suggestions are welcome. [MD]
[Back to Contents]CancerShock [Flash]
http://www.cancershock.com/
Developed by Rick Voithofer after a friend was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, this site was created "as a place where people can build new ways of talking about cancer, and themselves-with-cancer." To that end, it features a StoriesBoard, an electronic bulletin board divided into different categories; a collection of quotes; a section called NewToCancer, for people newly diagnosed and their family and friends; Writing Space, open-ended stories that users write with others; and a collection of short Flash animations. Other features include polls, recent cancer-related news, and related links. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS) Online
http://www.uss-salem.org/danfs/
Published in nine volumes between 1959 and 1991, DANFS is regarded as the foremost reference work on US naval vessels, chronicling virtually every ship that the US Navy has put to sea. Under the guidance of project manager Andrew Toppan, a team of international volunteers have been transcribing DANFS (without updates or corrections) and placing it online. Currently, the site includes over 7,000 ship histories. These are listed by ship type under two main headings: The Modern Era (post-1880s) and The "Old Navy" (pre-1880s), with additional information on the Confederate States Navy. The length of each ship's tale varies, but most include basic physical information, when and where the ship was first commissioned, its service record and notable actions, and its decomissioning, sale, or sinking. Naval and military history buffs will quickly lose themselves in this fascinating collection of miniature naval epics. [MD]
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TopClick
http://www.topclick.com/
Users concerned about the increased efforts by Websites to collect personal information about them for marketing purposes and tired of the flood of banner ads they inevitably encounter at many search engines will heartily welcome TopClick, a search engine committed to preserving the user's right to privacy. Powered by Google, one of the most powerful, fast, and easy-to-use search engines, TopClick displays no banner ads, does not use cookies or any other profiling technologies, and will not disclose any information about users to third parties. In addition, the site offers a Privacy Center, with related links and the latest privacy headlines. Comparative searches with Google produced the same results at very nearly the same speed, but TopClick does not offer Google's cache and GoogleScout features. Still, TopClick provides excellent search power without sacrificing the individual's right to privacy. [MD]
[Back to Contents]Audion 1.5
http://www.panic.com/ppack/audion/index.html
Tired of the functional but bland looks of the Mac AppleCD Player or having to switch between audio utilities? Audion 1.5 is a multipurpose audio tool that looks cool too. Available only for Mac, Audion 1.5 is a CD player, MP3 player, and network audio player all in one. Audion 1.5 comes with five interface choices in a selection format similar to the Mac OS Appearance Control Panel, and a large selection of user-designed faces are available at the Audion download site. Perhaps the most interesting interface feature Audion 1.5 sports is truly transparent-capable alpha interface windows. Audion 1.5 also offers karaoke mode, an alarm clock, deep playlists allowing the use of Finder-style folders, AppleScript support, and a fair degree of Preference options. Audion 1.5 costs $17.95 and requires MacOS 8.1 or higher, with PowerPC 604 or better recommended. [AF]
[Back to Contents]Deja.com: Discussions
http://www.deja.com/usenet_home.epl
Deja.com New Mainpage
http://www.deja.com/
Although support for Usenet discussions has been flagging elsewhere (e.g. MSN), newsgroup discussions are alive and well at Deja. While the new mainpage has been redesigned to strictly conform to Deja's projected image of itself as a consumer research center, they have also fortunately made their Usenet service an independent site. At the site, users can search discussions by keyword or browse a Usenet hierarchy, which is conveniently organized with a brief explanation for each category. A concise Usenet primer is also provided for new users. Users must register to post messages and participate in Deja Communities, but need not do so to read the discussions. [MD]
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Pinochet Returns to Chile
Special Report: The Pinochet File [RealPlayer]
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/special_report/1998/10/98/the_pinochet_file/newsid_198000/198306.stm
Prosecuting Pinochet -- New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/library/world/americas/index-pinochet.html
Pinochet on Trial -- Guardian
http://www.newsunlimited.co.uk/Pinochet_on_trial/0,2759,17493,00.html
Politics in Chile: An Online Newshour Focus -- PBS
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/latin_america/chile/index.html
The Pinochet Precedent: The End of Impunity?
http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/chile98/index.htm
Pinochet case: no turning back in the global fight against impunity
http://www.amnesty.org/news/2000/12mar00.htm
Chile and the United States: Declassified Documents Relating to the Military Coup, September 11, 1973 -- NSA
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB8/nsaebb8i.htm
State Department Release on Chile Shows Suspicions of CIA Involvement in Charles Horman "Missing" Case -- NSA
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/news/19991008/index.html
A frail and ailing General Augusto Pinochet returned to Santiago this morning, after his release from a seventeen-month house arrest in the United Kingdom. Reflecting Pinochet's continuing popularity in military circles and the Army's power in Chile, his return was handled entirely by the Chilean army, which banned the media until shortly before Pinochet's plane landed. On Thursday, UK Home Secretary Jack Straw announced that, for medical reasons, Pinochet would not be extradited to Spain, where he was indicted for human rights abuses. The former dictator's health had considerably declined since his initial arrest in October 1998, and he was said to be suffering from brain damage, sparking concerns in some UK governmental circles that he might die on British soil before the extradition was resolved. While he has escaped prosecution in European courts, Pinochet still faces 59 civil lawsuits in his home country, although many observers doubt that any trial will take place. This decision has angered families of the General's victims and human rights activists, but the process has established one important legal precedent for future prosecutions of ex-dictators. In their March 1999 ruling, Britain's Law Lords determined that Pinochet was not automatically immune to prosecution for acts committed as a head of state. This reversal of the "sovereign immunity" claimed by many former dictators may pave the way to future prosecutions for human rights abuses.
Users can begin with the BBC's excellent special report, which includes full-text statements, a timeline, analysis of the legal battle and Pinochet's rule, commentary on the impact of the case on human rights efforts, and some personal perspectives on the Pinochet Years. The New York Times (free registration required) also offers an in-depth report, with breaking news and archived articles and analysis. More special reports are available from the Guardian and PBS NewsHour. Human Rights Watch offers a fairly deep special section on the Pinochet case and its long-term implications, with commentary, questions and answers, and links to related stories. Amnesty International has also issued a press release on Pinochet's release and its role in the fight against impunity. Users interested in more background on Pinochet's seizure of power in 1973 should consult the original documents in the National Security Archive's (NSA) Electronic Briefing Books. [MD]
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