NSDL Scout Report for Math, Engineering, and Technology
The tenth issue of the first volume of the MET Report is available. Its Topic in Depth section offers Web sites and comments about air transportation.
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Usability and privacy: a study of Kazaa P2P file-sharing
http://www.hpl.hp.com/shl/papers/kazaa/KazaaUsability.pdf
Published on the Hewlett Packard (HP) Web site, this report finds that a large percentage of Kazaa users have either accidentally or unknowingly shared their private files with everyone who has access to the Kazaa network. Conducted by Nathaniel S. Good of HP Labs and Aaron Krekelberg of the University of Minnesota, this study discloses shortcomings in the Kazaa software, which in turn, poses a serious threat to computer privacy. Using various experiments to analyze the usability of the Kazaa file sharing interface, the researchers discovered that the majority of the users in the study were unable to tell what files they were sharing, and in certain cases, were not even aware they were sharing files at all. The researchers also created dummy files on a server and discovered in a 24-hour period that the files had been accessed and downloaded several times by unique visitors. Available in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf), this nine page report, on the whole, is primarily for those affiliated with P2P file sharing systems. [MG]
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The Final Report and Findings of the Safe School Initiative: Implications for the Prevention of School Attacks in the United States
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/SDFS/preventingattacksreport.pdf
A publication of the U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Department of Education, this report is an expansion of the earlier Interim Report on the Prevention of Targeted Violence in Schools, released in October 2000. After the 1999 shooting incident at Columbine High School, the two agencies began the safe school initiative to examine the "thinking, planning and other pre-attack behaviors engaged in by attackers who carried out school shootings." The agencies hope to prevent future school attacks by helping educators and administrators identify and obtain crucial information before an attack occurs. In short, this fifty-page report details how the two agencies conducted the study of school-based attacks and what they discovered. It contains five chapters and includes findings such as characterizing the attacker, along with conceptualizing, signaling, advancing, and resolving the attack. [MG]
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Slaves and the Courts, 1740-1860
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/sthtml/
This online collection, containing approximately 105 documents, raises a miniature magnifying glass into a corridor of Americas past and discloses the experiences of African and African American slaves in America, with a few cases involving Great Britain. The documents, which were taken primarily from the Law Library and the Rare Book and Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress, consists of "trials and cases, reports, arguments, accounts, examinations of cases and decisions, proceedings, journals, a letter, and other works of historical importance" dating mostly from the nineteenth century. Notable entries include the Boston Slave Riot, and Trial of Anthony Burns; A Brief Sketch of the Trial of William Lloyd Garrison; The Case of Dred Scott in the United States Supreme Court; and the Trial of John Brown. Viewers can search the collection by keyword, or browse by subject, author, or title index. [MG]
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COMPARA - Portuguese-English Parallel Translation Corpus
http://www.portugues.mct.pt/COMPARA/
If you have ever studied another language extensively enough to try your
hand at translating text from one language to another, you will appreciate
Compara, especially if you have some Portuguese under your belt. An open
and ever-growing source of parallel texts in English and Portuguese, the
Compara Portuguese-English Parallel Translation Corpus offers visitors the
opportunity to see how specific phrases have been translated from one
language to another by others. Pedagogically this is a great tool, as it
allows visitors to put their knowledge of another language to use
immediately - by assessing the quality of a given translation. Was the
tense correctly rendered? Were syntax and idioms respected or done away
with? Offering a searchable index of texts in the original and in
translation from both languages, guests are free to search holdings by
keyword. The result of each search yields parallel passages from relevant
texts contained within the database. A work in progress, the directors of
the project actively encourage others to join them by suggesting ideas,
translations, or material of their own. [WH]
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E-Library of Literature
http://www.gallup.unm.edu/~smarandache/eBooksLiterature.htm
E-Library of Literature, a part of the Arts and Letters Web site, contains a modest selection of e-book essays, poetry, dramas, and translations. Selections are arranged in seven categories --- English, French, Portuguese, Romanian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish, and Multi-languages --- and primarily pertain to literary criticism and theory. Available in either Adobe Acrobat (.pdf), or html formats, the materials on this site would be of value to certain literature students, educators, and/or researchers. [MG]
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Foundation for the Advancement of Sephardic Studies and Culture
http://www.sephardicstudies.org/
Launched in January 2002, the new web site of the Foundation for the Advancement of Sephardic Studies and Culture (FASSC) showcases the work of the organization: "preserving and promoting the complex and centuries-old culture of the Sephardic communities of Turkey, Greece, the Balkans, Europe and the U.S." The FASSC also promotes the preservation and study of, and devotes an entire section to, Ladino ---the Judeo-spanish language. In May, the FASSC site hosted a Ladino Internet audio-chat session, and future chats are planned. Other sections of the web site feature FASSC publications, including books, videos, and exhibits; and the FASSC Digital Archives of Sephardica, images of historic Sephardic texts such as a 1695 haggadah from Amsterdam; Hakham Yehuda Ha'Levi Poem, 1586; and calendars from Sephardic communities in Paris, Salonica, Constantinople and Buenos Aires. [DS]
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The Transition to Digital Television [.pdf]
http://www.ncta.com/pdf_files/WhitePap4-2002.pdf
The National Cable and Telecommunications Association has prepared this document that summarizes the transition to digital television (DTV) in the U.S. The report, delivered in April 2002, assesses the countrys progress toward greater digital coverage and more widespread DTV programming. After a brief introduction to the technology, the report gives some background on the broadcast industrys efforts to hasten the transition and the challenges that remain. Then the changes in the cable industry are examined, including upgrades and the carriage of digital signals. Lastly, the report covers consumer response -- the sales trends of DTV sets show steady growth for the technology, but the overall transition is not proceeding as quickly as some speculated. This site is also reviewed in the June 21, 2002 NSDL Scout Report for Math, Engineering, and Technology. [CL]
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White House Conference on School Libraries
http://www.imls.gov/pubs/whitehouse0602/whitehouse.htm
On June 4, 2002, Laura Bush and Dr. Robert Martin, Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), hosted the White House Conference on School Libraries, and were joined by leaders and experts in the fields of education, library, and government from all across the country. Thanks to the IMLS, the entire transcript from this conference is available on their Web site. Interested Internet users may read opening remarks by both First Lady Bush and Dr. Martin, as well as other speeches made by the panelists (including the keynote address). In addition, the IMLS has included, among other things, biographies of all the speakers, and a list of administrative resources provided by Dr. Gary Hartzell, Professor of Educational Administration at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. [MG]
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Scottish Documents: Scotland's Written Legacy
http://www.scottishdocuments.com/content/default.asp
Created and maintained by the Scottish Archive Network, or SCAN, "Scottish
Documents: Scotland's Written Legacy" offers a unique glimpse of the past
through scanned copies of documents contained within the Scottish National
Archives. Included in selection posted by SCAN are more than 300,000
names of deceased Scots linking to more than two million scan images of
wills and death certificates. Covering a span of nearly four hundred
years (1500-1875), the Scottish Documents collection is a treasure trove
for genealogists and historians alike, rich in facts about how Scots
lived, where and what they did for a living. Registers are often so
detailed that they even disclose what people wore and how they furnished
their dwellings! Searchable alphabetically and in fifty year date ranges,
the database is highly accessible. Beyond the above, the Scottish
Documents site goes the extra mile, helping users to understand and
interpret the documents with which they come into contact. Thus, it offers
a handwriting guide and a lexicon of terms appearing in wills, such as
weights and measures, monetary units and occupations. A fun, informative
sidelight, the site also showcases some of Scotland's favorite sons with a
drop-down menu of famous names and the stories behind them. [WH]
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The Presidents of the United States
http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/
Presidents of the United States, an extension of the White House Web site, offers a list of every President that ever served this country. Listed by date of service, this site features a picture along with a brief biography of each American President. Also available are quizzes and interesting trivia facts such as July 4, 1826 --- 50 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence --- is the day of both President John Adamss and President Thomas Jeffersons death. Equally important, accessible on this page are hyperlinks to the First Ladies site, where pictures and historical data is provided for all of the women who served as First Ladies of the U.S.; and the White House home page, where, among other things, viewers can receive up-to-date information concerning the President, Vice-President, and the latest happenings in Congress. [MG]
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TANF families and recipients
http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/news/stats/tanf.htm
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has recently published statistical data on the total number of TANF [Temporary Assistance for Needy Families] families and recipients for the 1st Quarter FY 2002. The chart, which is arranged by state, lists the numbers of TANF families and recipients for October, November, and December of 2001, and compares these numbers to the ones from September 2001 and December 2000. The data is presented in html format, is easily readable, and is primarily for social workers, politicians, and others interested in welfare statistics. [MG]
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National Association of Counties
http://www.naco.org/index.cfm
With 3066 U.S. counties, the National Association of Counties (NACo) has the arduous task of making sure the nations counties are acknowledged and understood in the halls of the White House and Congress. NACo, the only national government organization devoted to highlighting and improving the understanding of county issues, "collects, researches, publishes and disseminates a variety of different information for, on and about counties." On their Web site, viewers have access to a comprehensive and in-depth database of county information including county population; census bureau quick facts; elected county officials; county codes and ordinances; county policies; links to Capitolimpact.com, which provides nationwide county statistics such as economic and demographic data; and much more. This site is easily navigable, has counties arranged alphabetically by state, and would be of value to anyone living inside a county domain --- which is just about everyone. [MG]
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PaPa iNk: The International Gallery of Children's Art
http://www.papaink.org/gallery/home/index.html
An amazing resource and unique tribute to the oft under-recognized value
of children's art, PapaInk archives and makes available works that
otherwise certainly would have been overlooked by everyone but the
creators and their immediate loved ones. Founded in 1999 with a mission
of preserving and posting children's artwork, PapaInk has grown in
significance and status ever since. Serving as a crossroads for art
sharing and appreciation, the site features several collections, some
arranged by theme, others by artists or gallery. Showcasing art from
around the world, Papaink is a global forum. Visitors to the site can
both view and forward links of what they appreciate to others. Many of
the featured works offer detailed captions and descriptions, allowing
visitors more intimate glimpses into the lives and minds of the young artists
that created them. Convinced that what children see is every bit as
valid as what adults do, Papaink is dedicated to helping preserve those
visions and all they express. [WH]
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Glucose WeatherPop
http://www.glu.com/products/weatherpop/index.html
Have you ever been at work starring into a computer wondering what the weather was like outside? Or flipping through the Yellow Pages looking for the "time" number to find out your local temperature? For Mac OS X only, Glucose has developed the WeatherPop Advance, which keeps you in contact with the current weather conditions and temperature in your area. Merely type in the name of the city where you live, and the weather condition and temperature will update every fifteen minutes in your menu bar. For this nifty product, Internet users can download the advance version for a 14-day demo trial (after which a small fee is required), or download the older version for free. [MG]
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VBirthday 2.0: Vasilenok's Birthday Notifier
http://www.vasilenok.com/products/vbirthday.html
Forgot another birthday or anniversary? Well, Vbirthday 2.0 has come to the rescue. Compatible with all PocketPC/PocketPC2002 devices, Vbirthday informs you of upcoming birthdays or anniversaries. The software scans your contact book for birthdays and anniversaries, sorts the information, and then notifies you of upcoming dates. Best of all, its absolutely free. [MG]
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Two former Harvard scientists arrested for stealing and violation of employment agreement
Two charged with stealing genes from Harvard
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2002/06/20/eline/links/20020620elin022.html
Jailed Former Harvard Post-Docs Await Arraignment
http://www.genomeweb.com/articles/view-article.asp?Article=200262016322
Pairs arrest stuns colleagues: Gene researchers accused of theft
http://www.businesstoday.com/business/business/gene06212002.htm
American Cancer Society Home Page
http://www.cancer.org/
NIH Home Page
http://rsb.info.nih.gov/nih-image/
NIH: Grants and Funding Opportunities
http://grants2.nih.gov/grants/index.cfm
Wednesday, June 19, scientists Jiangyu Zhu, a 30-year old Chinese citizen, and Kayoko Kimbara, a 32-year old Japanese citizen, were charged with stealing trade secrets from a laboratory at Harvard Medical School's department of cell biology. According to the federal complaint, the trade secrets included both biological materials and scientific documents relating to drug research that has the potential to help the body accept transplanted organs. Both scientists were working in the lab of Frank McKeon, a Harvard professor, when they made significant discoveries about several genes that offered a potential means of treating diseases affecting the cardiovascular, immune, and nervous systems. The tools used for the drug research was developed with the help of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and American Cancer Society funds, and are also used to develop anti-rejection drugs and to study genes that regulate a potentially important enzyme.
According to the allegations, Mr. Zhu, who worked in the Harvard lab from February 1997 until December 1999, and Ms. Kimbara, who worked there from October 1998 until December 1999, secretly sent three of the newly discovered genes to a Japanese company (a violation of their employment agreements with Harvard). Once receiving the genes, the Japanese company then produced antibodies based on the information. The Japanese company has fully cooperated with the FBI and has returned all research data and products to Harvard. Consequently, both Zhu and Kimbara were arraigned in federal court on charges of conspiracy, theft of trade secrets, and interstate transportation of stolen property. For more information concerning this story, viewers may access the first three links listed above. For information on the American Cancer Society, the National Institutes of Health, and NIH grants and funding opportunities, viewers may access links four, five, and six, respectively. [MG]
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