NSDL Scout Report for Math, Engineering, and Technology
The nineteenth issue of the first volume of the MET Report is available. Its Topic in Depth section offers Web sites and comments about solid-state lighting.
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National and Local Profiles of Cultural Support [.pdf]
http://www.pewtrusts.com/pdf/culture_policy_profiles.pdf
This report was conducted by the American for the Arts group and the the Ohio State University Department of Arts Policy and Administration based on the premise that policy makers need good information in order to make effective decisions about resource allocations for culture, and that cultural advocates need reliable data to make a compelling, grounded case for support. Funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, the report documents (with the assistance of local and national data) how the nonprofit cultural sector is sustained in the United States. Specifically, the study was conducted between 1999 and 2001 and looked at local arts agency research partners in ten communities around the US, including Cleveland, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. The 14-page report contains several interesting findings, including a general trend that indicates that monies raised through admissions constitute the largest single source of revenue and that at times there is unexpected support from non-arts agencies, such as the Los Angeles Sheriffs Department. While the report indicates that a great deal of sustained research into the funding of the arts and cultural activities in the US needs to be done, this document is clearly a step in the right direction. [KMG]
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UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center
http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/csrc/
Established in 1969, the Chicano Studies Research Center at UCLA places a premium on "interdisciplinary and collaborative research that analyzes issues critical to the knowledge of Chicano and Latino communities in the United States." Visitors to their site will find information on their ongoing research projects, such as the Mexican-American Study Project, a 30-year longitudinal and inter-generational study of the Mexican-origin people. Scholars will find the section devoted to the Center's publications quite helpful, as it contains links to "Azatlan: A Journal of Chicano Studies" and a series of policy briefs addressing issues affecting the Latino community. For persons looking for more detailed scholarship within the field of Chicano studies, a link to the research center library is also provided. [KMG]
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Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment
http://www.sage.wisc.edu/
Since the days when John Muir walked across its campus, there has been a keen interest in the environment at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. The Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment keeps this tradition alive through its different projects and publications. Perhaps the best part of the site is the Atlas of the Biosphere, which contains numerous maps documenting environmental phenomena across the globe, such as water resources, ecosystems, land use patterns, and human impact, at a variety of scales. The Atlas also contains the data sets that were used to generate these different thematic maps. Related material on the site includes several different global ecosystem and terrestrial hydrology models that have been created by the Center, and are made publicly available here for general review. Providing engaging scholarship and general information about the relationship between humankind and the environment makes the Center's work both timely and of great interest. [KMG]
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The Global News Networks and US Policymaking in Defense and Foreign Affairs [.pdf]
http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/presspol/publications/GilboaE.pdf
As part of the publication series of the Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics, and Public Policy (located within the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University), this 34-page paper examines the potential influence of global television news on the formulation and implementation of foreign policy. Written by Eytan Gilboa, a professor at Bar-llan University, the paper finds that, while there is no evidence to support the "CNN effect" (which states that global television determines policy), extensive and omnipresent news coverage does present certain ethical dilemmas for politicians, officials, and journalists. Near the conclusion of his paper, Professor Gilboa concludes that "Successful coping with the challenges of global communication and efficient utilization of new and innovative media technologies require two sets of reforms in policymaking: first, in the training of leaders, high level policymakers, and diplomats; second in the planning and implementation of policies." Persons interested in the dynamic between expanding global media networks and the formation of policy responses and their subsequent implementation will find this paper quite helpful. [KMG]
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Columbia, Irvine, and The Woodlands: Planning Lessons from Three US New Towns of the 1960s and 1970s [.pdf]
http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/dl/117_forsyth02web.pdf
Published as part of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy's Working Paper series, this 34-page paper by Professor Ann Forsyth of the University of Minnesota examines three communities in the United States developed during the 1960s as responses to critics of urban sprawl. As Professor Forsyth states in her opening remarks about these communities, "They also represent a best case scenario for private sector development-they had big land areas, rich developers, cutting edge professionals, and visions that were held on to." Throughout the paper, Professor Forsyth relies on a mix of methodologies, including extended interviews, site observations, and census data. This work is probably most important for the effective way that it examines the connection between these attempts to address the seemingly endemic problems generated by urban sprawl and the current "smart growth" and New Urbanism movements within city and regional planning. [KMG]
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Intellimotion: California PATH's Quarterly Newsletter [.pdf]
http://www.path.berkeley.edu/PATH/Intellimotion/
The California Partners for Advanced Transit and Highways (PATH) researches methods for increasing highway safety, reducing congestion, and minimizing pollution and energy consumption. Intellimotion is one of its publications that highlights some of the current projects. Although it is labeled as a quarterly newsletter, Intellimotion is released on a very irregular basis. The 2002 issue covers several stories, including a project that makes vehicle navigation with the Global Positioning System extremely accurate. Another article looks at intelligent transportation systems and the issues regarding Bus Rapid Transit. Many past issues of Intellimotion are available on this Web site. This site is also reviewed in the October 25, 2002 NSDL MET Report. [CL]
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The National Women's Health Information Center
http://www.4woman.org/
Designed to provide women with authoritative and timely knowledge of a host of womens health issues, the National Womens Health Information Center site (sponsored by the US Department of Health and Human Services) offers a reliable and thorough overview of hundreds of topics and current news briefs. Health topics on the site (which range from abstinence to yellow fever) are alphabetically listed or can also be located by entering keywords. Visitors to the site can also sign up here to receive weekly health tips via email. Along with featuring information on health topics, other issues affecting women are well-represented here, including domestic violence awareness and body image. Also helpful is the fact that the site is also available in Spanish, which will be useful to Spanish-speaking persons and health professionals working with Spanish speakers. [KMG]
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Poverty, AIDS and Children's Schooling: A Targeting Dilemma [.pdf]
http://econ.worldbank.org/files/18719_wps2885.pdf
Written by Martha Ainsworth and Deon Filmer of the World Bank, this 44-page working paper examines the relationship between orphan status, household wealth, and child school enrollment. Drawing on data collected in the 1990s from 28 different countries within Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, the authors conclude that there are such divergent patterns within the data, that broad generalizations are almost impossible. One interesting finding was that the gap in school enrollment between female and male orphans was not that much different than the gap between girls and boys with living parents. In conclusion, they offer multiple policy programs to alleviate the plight of orphans, stating that "Policymakers need to resist the temptation to advocate a single 'best practice' model for all countries regardless of the extent or source of orphan enrollment differentials." [KMG]
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Museum of Contemporary Art-Chicago
http://www.mcachicago.org/
Founded in 1945, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago features contemporary photography, video, film, sculpture, and other visual arts, both in its galleries and its extensive onsite performance series. For persons considering visiting the museum, the site contains information on current and upcoming exhibitions, which have featured artists from the sculptor Alexander Calder to Gillian Wearing, the British artist perhaps best known for her video installations. The Web site also contains "Website Insights," which is the online searchable archive of the MCA's holdings of approximately 6,000 objects. The search engine for the collection is quite flexible, allowing visitors to search by artist name, nationality, title of work, medium, and the decade in which the work was produced. For educators, the site also contains lesson plans to use with different age levels and with different pieces of art from their collection. [KMG]
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New Zealand Historic Places Trust
http://www.historic.org.nz/
The New Zealand Historic Places Trust site contains several sections that will be of great assistance to persons interested in the area of historic and cultural preservation, or for those interested in a different perspective on the practice and art of historical preservation. The research centerpiece of the site is the New Zealand Historic Places Register, which contains information on over 1,000 different sites, including the Wahi Tapu, which are places sacred to the Maori, New Zealand's indigenous people. Searching the register is quite user-friendly, as visitors can search by place name, region, current or former use, dates of original construction, and a handful of other criteria. Similar to many other historic preservation agencies, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust also has a section devoted to Heritage at Risk, which lists existing historic structures or places that are currently threatened with demolition or significant alteration. For persons interested in visiting New Zealand, there is an interactive map divided into regions where basic information about the historic sites of interest throughout the country. [KMG]
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Dot City: Dorothy Parker's New York [RealPlayer]
http://www.dorothyparkernyc.com/
Dedicated to that bon vivant of the New York 1920s literary set, the Dorothy Parker's New York is sponsored by the Dorothy Parker Society of New York. The site is essentially a visual history of Ms. Parkers life in New York during the period and her time as a member of the legendary Algonquin Round Table. Visitors are taken to her different homes, literary hangouts (where she hobnobbed with fellow writers like Robert Benchley), and their favorite speakeasies. As Ms. Parker eventually moved west to write for Hollywood, visitors can also take yet another visual tour to some of the places she lived and frequented. The highlight of this section is an audio archive featuring Ms. Parker reading some of her favorite poems, including Men and One Perfect Rose. Rounding out the site is information on the Society's activities, including a newsletter and details on the annual Parkerfest, held to celebrate the memory of Dorothy Parker. [KMG]
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The Old Farmer's Almanac
http://www.almanac.com/index.php
With the advent and proliferation of the Internet and Web access, a multitude of information has become immediately accessible to anyone with a computer and a phone line. Providing home-spun wisdom and advice has been a hallmark of The Old Farmers Almanac since 1792, and their site features quite a bit of free information that will be useful to new visitors and familiar to long-time fans of the publication. Divided into sections similar to those in the regular publication, material can be located by topic, including Weather, which includes an article on "How To Predict the Weather Using a Pig Spleen," and Food, which has hundreds of recipes divided by dish type, courses, dietary requirements, and preparation style. Additionally, the Question of the Day feature provides helpful information on such topics as "How can I get makeup out of rugs?" with previous questions and answers located in an archive. For those looking for helpful household information, the Almanac is a good place to start. [KMG]
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Jack London's Ranch Album
http://www.geocities.com/jacklondons/
Jack London once referred to himself near the end of his life as the sailor on horseback; although during his short life, he was a man of many talents, least among them novelist, socialist, and critic of his age. Drawing heavily on the pictorial biography of Jack London by the late Russ Kingman, the Ranch Album contains a cornucopia of writings by and about Jack London, interspersed with hundreds of pieces of visual material. While the main page is a bit chaotic in its layout, a helpful search engine allows visitors to navigate the site's full contents. As the name of the site suggests, there is ample visual and written material on Mr. London's beloved ranch, where he spent a great deal of his time with his family and writing his books. Along with presenting Jack London's thoughts on the writing process, an extended timeline of his life, and reflections from his family members, the site also has full-text editions of some of his works, including The Sea Wolf,White Fang, and perhaps one of his most depressing yet honest novels, John Barleycorn. All in all, this site is a must see for anyone wanting to know more about this storied and larger-than-life American author. [KMG]
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Atlanta 1906: A Race Riot [Flash]
http://www.wpba.org/atlantariot1906.html
Produced by Public Broadcasting Atlanta, in conjunction with the PBS series "The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow," this visual history of the 1906 Atlanta Race Riot is a useful education tool that offers an introduction to this traumatically violent event in the city's not-so distant past. The online exhibit and timeline is divided into six chapters and an introduction that offers some perspective into race relations and the status of the African-American community in Atlanta. The exhibit is an effective blend of both descriptive text and historical photographs that rotate through as the visitor progresses through the material. The exhibit concludes with an examination of the reforming of the Ku Klux Klan after the riot, along with a helpful timeline that highlights turning points in Atlanta's history from its founding in 1847 to the present day. [KMG]
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The Castles of Wales
http://www.castlewales.com/home.html
Jeffrey L. Thomas has created this online trove of visual and written material dedicated to providing visitors to his site with information about the castles of Wales. Himself a devotee of Welsh culture, Mr. Thomas offers a site that features background reading on castle construction, the Welsh language, medieval Welsh history, and a glossary of terms related to castles. From the main menu, users can browse a list of Welsh castles or select any of the Welsh castles from an interactive map of Wales divided into six sections. Every castle entry on the site has a historical sketch of the castle's history, often with a description of current archaeological work in progress around the site. Rounding off the site are a series of essays on different topics, including "The Castles of Wales in Art." Persons traveling to Wales or those with even a passing interest in the histories of these structures will find a great deal to enjoy here. [KMG]
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Copernic Agent 6.0 Basic
http://www.copernic.com/desktop/products/agent/download.html
New applications for searching the Web are released daily, but Copernic Agent 6.0 is one of the more user-friendly and powerful ones available. Copernic Agent 6.0 Basic is a free Web-search engine that has the capability to query over 90 search engines grouped into categories. The application is also completely customizable, and users can keep histories for their search queries and sort the results as well. While the application may be unnecessarily detailed for some more casual Web surfers, persons looking for an advanced application will not be disappointed. Copernic Agent 6.0 Basic is compatible with all Windows operating systems. [KMG]
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SuperBot 3.1
http://www.sparkleware.com/superbot/index.html
SuperBot is a novel little program that downloads entire Web sites automatically and saves them on your computer. It operates by rewriting the hyperlinks on every downloaded Web page to ensure every duplicated site is virtually identical to its online counterpart. Also, it allows users to view the internal organization and structure of a Web site, so that they may be able to learn HTML and the principles of site design by example. Users should note that this is a free trial version of SuperBot, and they will be required to register after 100 uses of the application. SuperBot 3.1 is compatible will all Windows operating systems. [KMG]
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Controversy and Debate Continues over the Advertising of Beer and Spirits
Irish Times: Believe It or Not, Advertising Authority Calls Time on Beer Ads
http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2002/1023/506297159HM1ADBAN.html
Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland
http://www.asai.ie/
Guinness : The Story of the Ad [Flash]
http://www.guinness.com/guinness/en_ZZ/seeing/ads/ad/0,6438,125540_125894,00.html
Facing Public Pressure, Led by the AMA, NBC Drops Plans to Accept Hard Liquor Advertising
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/article/3216-6040.html
Misguided Critics Force NBC To Temporarily Back Away From Responsible Distilled Spirits Advertising
http://www.discus.org/mediaroom/2002/release.asp?pressid=33
Booze News: Updating Advocates on Alcohol Prevention Policies
http://www.cspinet.org/booze/
Advertising, Consumption, and Abuse
http://www2.potsdam.edu/alcohol-info/Advertising/Advertising.html#FunctionCommercials
Print advertisements for alcohol have been in existence for hundreds of years, but their promotion on radio and television has been the source of much consternation and debate, with different groups weighing in on the subject with increased fervor over the past decade. Most recently, the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland has decided to ban a recent ad for Guinness beer after several complaints were registered. The television advertisement (which was set in a village devastated by a volcanic eruption) showed a barefoot man walking over lava so that he and others could enter a local pub. Advertising alcohol in the United States, particularly spirits, has received a great deal of attention lately as well, with the American Medical Association effectively leading the effort to get advertisements for hard liquor off of NBC successfully in March 2002. Previously, there had been an informal agreement among the major television networks since 1948 not to allow advertisements for hard liquor, which lasted until December 2001 when NBC began airing commercials for a popular brand of vodka.
The first link is to an Irish Times news article about the banning of the recent beer commercial in Ireland. The second link is to the Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland Web site, which contains their code of advertising standards. The third link leads to the Guinness Web site, where visitors can view the recently banned advertisement. The fourth and fifth links are responses to the decision by NBC in March 2002 to no longer air advertisements for spirits, the first one originating from the American Medical Association and the second from the Distilled Spirits Council. Sponsored by the Center for Science in the Public Interest's Alcohol Policies Project, the sixth site is designed to "help focus public and policy maker attention on high-leverage policy reforms to reduce the devastating health and social consequences of drinking." The last link leads to a Web site designed by Professor David Hanson of the State University of New York at Potsdam that questions the findings of different research projects that state that advertising increases alcohol consumption. [KMG]
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