The Scout Report

July 10, 1998

A Publication of the Internet Scout Project
Computer Science Department, University of Wisconsin

The Scout Report is a weekly publication offering a selection of new and newly discovered Internet resources of interest to researchers and educators, the InterNIC's primary audience. However, everyone is welcome to subscribe to one of the mailing lists (plain text or HTML). Subscription instructions are included at the end of each report.

An Acrobat .pdf version of this report is available for printing and distributing locally. For information on Adobe Acrobat Reader, visit the Adobe site.

Where Are They Now

We regret to inform you that an error occurred in the July 3, 1998 Scout Report annotation for ClearStation. Please note that the portfolios created by users are kept completely private as indicated by ClearStation's Member Agreement. We apologize for any misunderstanding this annotation may have caused.

Scout Report for Science & Engineering
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/report/sci-engr/
Vol. 1, Number 21 of the Scout Report for Science & Engineering is available. It annotates over twenty new and newly-discovered Internet resources in the physical & life sciences and engineering. The In the News section annotates twelve resources on the fight over Pacific Salmon. [MD]
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Atlases of Canada and the United States
Resources Atlas--NRC [frames]
http://ccrs-gad1.cgdi.gc.ca/resources/
National Atlas of the United States--USGS [frames, Shockwave, .tar.gz]
http://www-atlas.usgs.gov/
Text only:
http://www-atlas.usgs.gov/indext.html
These two new Atlases, produced separately, provide a gold mine of valuable biogeographic information about the land cover and geographic features of much of North America. The first site, Resources Atlas, is offered by National Resources Canada and is available in English and French. It includes color graphic layers for "energy, mining, forestry and earth sciences information" for all of Canada. A special feature allows users to combine information layers to build and download customized maps. The National Atlas of the United States offers numerous color map layers for viewing or downloading (as compressed .tar.gz files), for all or some of the US. An interactive resource, the National Atlas uses layers to depict State Boundaries, County Boundaries, Federal Lands, Parkways and Scenic Rivers, Seismic Events, Volcanoes, Water Features (bodies of water and/or streams), Urban Areas, Cities and Towns, Roads, Railroads, and Airports. In addition to the already impressive map layers, the National Atlas includes a fascinating animated loop, showing vegetation cycles across the US in 1995 (Shockwave) and a clickable terrain relief and elevation map. [LXP]
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Oxford Text Archive
http://ota.ahds.ac.uk/
The well-established Oxford Text Archive can now be accessed via its new web site, a redesign intended to improve navigation, functionality, and to utilize the SGML metadata available for all texts. Users can also now conduct full text searches. Founded in 1976 and based in the Humanities Computing Unit of Oxford University Computing Services, the Oxford Text Archive houses selected academic submissions for the purpose of preserving "high-quality electronic texts for research and teaching." Scholars and other interested users have access to more than 2500 resources in over 25 different languages. The OTA encourages new submissions of quality, scholarly electronic resources. [JR]
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PBS Mathline
http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/math/
Brought to us by the Public Broadcasting System (PBS), Mathline is both a project and a website. A wonderful resource for teachers, Math Concepts provides monthly activities that relate mathematical concepts to real-world situations. Health is the current featured topic. Previous topics include baseball, softball and Earth Day. Teaching Tips offers parent and teacher sections that cover such topics as teaching strategy, using real data, and gender equity. Other sections of the site include Math Challenges; Career Connections, which highlights an individual and their profession; Assessment, which provides teachers with methods for assessing student's mathematical abilities; and Resources for each of the Concepts as well as for math in general. Although the project is fee based, all material on the website is freely available. [KH]
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MCI Marco Polo
http://www.wcom.com/marcopolo/
Telecommunications giant MCI has partnered with scholarly organizations to develop MCI MarcoPolo, a navigational tool/gateway for teachers, parents and students who are trying to find educational web resources in the fields of science, the humanities, geography and economics. Science NetLinks utilizes the subject expertise of the American Association for the Advancement of Science to provide links to quality science web sites. EDSITEment (Reviewed in the October 31, 1997 Scout Report), a partnership between the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Council of the Great City Schools provides a gateway to humanities sites offering materials for learning and teaching history, social studies, English, foreign languages and art history. Developed by the National Geographic Society, Xpeditions brings rich geography content to teachers and students. The MCI/EconomicsAmerica Technology Education Program combines MCI's technological expertise and the National Council on Economic Education's materials and experience to offer students and teachers web-based opportunities to integrate current events, economics and technology into lessons to boost economic literacy. [DS]
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Natural Fibers Research and Information Center
http://www.utexas.edu/depts/bbr/natfiber/
The Bureau of Business Research of the Graduate School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin maintains this site, which is highlighted by two research databases, CotRes and NatStat. CotRes is a searchable database of ongoing cotton research in the US. It can be searched by any of five variables (including major subject category) and most records contain a brief description of the research. NatStat contains marketing and economic statistics for such fibers as cotton, oilseeds, wool, and mohair. While these statistics concentrate on Texas, selected state, national, and international statistics are also available. NatStat also provides links to selected government reports. The Research and Information Center site provides a compendium of news on natural fibers and information about the mission and research of the center. [JS]
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Water Science for Schools
http://wwwga.usgs.gov/edu/indexjs.html
Chock full of information about water, the US Geological Survey's (USGS) Water Science for Schools is an enjoyable site for educators and students alike. From Water Basics to Special Topics, this easily navigable site teaches students about the importance of water in their everyday lives. Visitors confused about terminology can refer to the glossary, a tool that defines terms used within the site and in the water field in general. An activity center allows educators and students to apply their newly-gained knowledge. The picture gallery, which is divided into four categories for easy browsing, shows water in action as well as human and animal interactions with water. [KH]
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Sustainable Development Timeline [Shockwave Flash]
http://iisd.ca/timeline/
HTML-only Timeline
http://iisd.ca/rio+5/timeline/sdtimeline.htm
Prepared by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), the Sustainable Development Timeline traces milestones in the shifting relationship between the environment and development from 1967 to 1997. The Timeline is divided into five year blocks, each of which features milestones in four spheres of interest: Public Awareness; Institution Building; Reports and Publications; and International Meetings and Agreements. Links to related sites and charts of five key statistics are also provided. An HTML Timeline is available, although it is less comprehensive and ends in 1992. [MD]
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The Progress of Nations 1998
http://www.unicef.org/pon98/[frames]
http://www.unicef.org/pon98/fronote1.htm[no frames]
gopher://gopher.unicef.org:70/11/.s498pon
UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) has placed its annual report, Progress of Nations, online. The report examines the situation of children in the world today and reviews how nations have actively addressed children's social and health situations. The 1998 report specifically addresses children's civil rights, including the right to be registered at birth, a right that makes possible access to health and education benefits. Also addressed in this year's report: the progress of childhood immunization programs, issues related to adolescence in developing countries, and the struggles of the homeless in industrialized countries. The Statistical Tables provide "a summary of the year 2000 goals agreed to by almost all nations at the 1990 World Summit for Children." The full report is available in .pdf format at the web site. [AG]
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Suspicious Internet Banking--FDIC
http://www.fdic.gov/consumer/suspicious/
To help consumers better navigate through the vast quantity of financial services offered over the Internet, the United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) home site (reviewed in the May 5, 1995 Scout Report) offers information on Suspicious Internet Banking. Up-to-date official memoranda from the FDIC to financial institutions on unauthorized banking operations are included to inform the public; users may report on site any suspicious web sites they find to the FDIC. The legitimacy of an institution may also be determined via the FDIC Institutions Search Engine with listings available by institution name, holding company, or branch office. Complete legal names, branch locations, contacts, dates of establishment, and asset data may be retrieved for FDIC-insured financial institutions only. [MW]
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FDA Almanac
http://www.fda.gov/oc/almanac/
The Office of Public Affairs for the Food and Drug Administration, the Public Health Service, and the Department of Health & Human Services has placed the most recent FDA Almanac online. The Almanac serves as a comprehensive starting point for information on the FDA and its subsidiary agencies. The introduction offers an overview of the FDA's organization, its mission, and its vision for the year 2000, as well as a compilation of the major laws it enforces. The Almanac itself contains information on the agency's 1999 budget and links to its major departments, such as the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, and the Office of Regulatory Affairs. Additional resources include a list of milestones in US food and drug law history, FDA-related acronyms and abbreviations, and a guide to obtaining information from the FDA. [MD]
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Highlights from the Columbia University Library Science Library Vertical Files, 1832-1994
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ahx/ala/new/exhibits/clvf/clvf.htm
Jeffrey Makala at the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library & Information Science used materials from the American Library Association Archives to create a virtual exhibition. Makala selected from the Columbia University Library Science Library Vertical Files, which contain over 118 cubic feet of library documents from the United States and around the world, dating from 1832-1994. Material types include photographs, staff manuals (the cover of the 1966 Tucson Public Library example is decorated with smiling cacti), floor plans, postcards, and signs from all types of libraries. Some highlights are a photograph of the children's room in the Brooklyn Public Library, 1919; book pockets printed in English, Polish, Russian, and Yiddish from the Cleveland Public Library; a library bookcase sign stating legal penalties for defacing books in Delaware in 1910; and a flyer for a tie-dye workshop held at the San Francisco Public Library in 1970. [DS]
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The Initiative to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health-HHS
http://raceandhealth.hhs.gov/
Text only:
http://raceandhealth.hhs.gov/text-hm.htm
Press Release
http://www.aoa.dhhs.gov/pr/racialehd.html
The US Department of Health and Human Services has recently created a site to disseminate information on its Initiative to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health, a new strategy to "eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities in six key areas of health status by the year 2010." From the site, users can access information about racial and ethnic health disparities in the six targeted areas: Infant Mortality, Cancer Screening and Management, Cardiovascular Disease, Diabetes, HIV Infection, and Child and Adult Immunizations. The site also features an overview of the initiative (including the text of the President's radio broadcast announcing the initiative), information on planned meetings and funding, a collection of related links, and a FAQ section. [MD]
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Roots Music Gathering: Roots Music Professionals Mailing List
http://www.ikoiko.com/cuttingedge/moreinfo.html
Roots Music Gathering's web site
http://www.ikoiko.com/cuttingedge/
ListBot Subscriber Page:
http://www.listbot.com/cgi-bin/subscriber
This new discussion list is designed for professionals in "roots" (traditional or community-based) music, such as scholars, musicians, media members, and promoters. The list owners hope that the focus of the list will remain on professional issues surrounding the music: "education, preservation, promotion, booking, recording, legal concerns, publicity, etc." Subscription information and a form are available at both the sign-up and main pages. All messages on the list will be archived on the ListBot server. To view the archive after subscribing, users should log in to the ListBot subscriber page, select the "view archives" option, and then select the Roots Music Gathering list. [MD]
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WWW Computer Architecture Home Page [frames]
http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~arch/www/
The WWW Computer Architecture Home Page, created by Mark Hill and maintained by Milo Martin at the University of Wisconsin Computer Sciences Department, contains a wealth of up-to-date and useful links to myriad resources about computer architecture. Site features include timely calls for papers and calls for participation, useful links to information on commercial hardware, a white pages listing of people involved in computer architecture, links to architecture research groups and projects around the world, and many other pages of informative links. While not searchable, the organization, size, and usefulness of the collection make it a valuable starting point for computer architecture research. [CL]
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Webhoo!--Hierarchically Organized Web Development Resources
http://nordstrand.hypermart.net/webhoo/
Originally an organization of Jonas Nordstrand's bookmarks, Webhoo! contains Web development Internet resources organized hierarchically by category. Examples of catagories include Client Side Interactivity (DHTML, JavaScript, Java, etc.), General Resources, Graphics, HTML (CSS, Style, Tools, etc.), HTTP (Cookies, Security, Servers, etc.), Server Side Interactivity (ASP, CGI, PERL, etc.), and Sitekeeping. Sites can be submitted and modified by the public. Webhoo! also contains articles, book suggestions, open forums, and development tools. [TB]
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ZDNet Anchordesk
http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/
The ZDNet Anchordesk, provided by ZDNet of Ziff-Davis Inc., is an up-to-date technology information site. Primarily a source for news pertaining to the technology industry, ZDNet also offers information for home computer owners (MAC and PC) that includes suggestions when purchasing and upgrading computers, and free downloads. In addition, a daily mailing list summarizes and links to the headlines of the day, a Talk Back feature allows visitors to voice their opinions, and a search engine enables users to search the site. [TH]
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Where Are They Now

The Scout Report was not published July 7, 1995. This feature will resume with the July 14, 1998 issue. [MD]
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Copyright Susan Calcari and the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents, 1994-1998. Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of the Scout Report provided the copyright notice and this paragraph is preserved on all copies. The Internet Scout Project provides information about the Internet to the US research and education community under a grant from the National Science Foundation, number NCR-9712163. The Government has certain rights in this material.

Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Wisconsin - Madison or the National Science Foundation.

The Scout Report (ISSN 1092-3861) is published weekly by Internet Scout

Susan Calcari
Jack Solock
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