The Scout Report -- Volume 11, Number 48

http://www.itu.int/wsis/index.html

Convened first by the United Nations in 2003 in Geneva, the World Summit on the Information Society is concerned with providing a place for dialogue on a number of crucial issues, such as the ongoing digital revolution that is transforming the developed and developing world as well as the digital divide. The most recent international World Summit took place in November 2005, and this website provides detailed information on its proceedings, meetings, and focus groups. From the homepage, visitors can view a list of final documents submitted at the meeting, read a list of speakers, and view some of the webcasts from the proceedings. To get a sense of the broad scope of the general nature of the goals of this summit, visitors may wish to read the text of the opening address given by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the meeting. Finally, visitors may also wish to view the four documents adopted at this meeting, including the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society. [KMG]

http://www.bibalex.org/English/index.aspx

The ancient library at Alexandria was rightfully one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and its spirit and commitment to the pursuit of learning is embodied in the modern Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt. As their mission statement notes, the library is to be a center for dialogue between peoples and civilizations. This is no easy feat, and the web-browsing public can learn about their laudable efforts on this website. Visitors may first want to learn about the remarkable structure that houses the library, along with a variety of facts about this buildings construction. While visitors who may be planning a visit to Egypt may wish to learn about tours of the building and the ways in which they may utilize their research collections, others may want to peruse the Initiatives area. Here they will find links to some of their digital projects, which include Eternal Egypt, which offers an extremely media-rich site that allows visitors to explore over 5000 years of Egyptian civilization through timelines, objects, and interactive maps. [KMG]

http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/2005/RAND_MG422.pdf

With a great deal of general talk and commentary about the role of the so-called information revolution, it is at times difficult to tell exactly what these developments may mean for different regions of the world. This report from the RAND Corporation looks at how Russia is utilizing various forms of information and communication technologies to modernize business and industry, stimulate economic growth, and enhance the quality of life for Russian peoples. With significant funding from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the report (authored by D. J. Peterson) is based on six years of research in this area, and contains chapters on the role of information technology in Russian society, government, and concludes with a brief summary of key findings. Data in the report also receives nice visual representation through a host of charts, tables, and figures. Overall, this is a very interesting document that will be of particular interest to those working in the fields of international public policy and technology development. [KMG]

http://profiles.nlm.nih.gov/WG/

Though he described himself as a very dull child, Albert Szent-Gyorgyi developed a passion for learning and science when he was sixteen. He quickly developed a keen interest in becoming a medical researcher, and over the next thirty years he would develop his interest in researching the connections between free radicals and cancer. For his efforts, he would receive the 1937 Nobel Prize for his work in biological oxidation and vitamin C. After Szent-Gyorgyi passed away in 1986, his collected papers (which also included photographs, oral histories, and published articles) went to the Woods Hole Biological Laboratory in Massachusetts. Recently, the Laboratory and the National Library of Medicine collaborated to create this online digital collection that contains many of these documents and supporting materials. Visitors can browse through four different sections that explore different periods of his career, including his time spent at the Institute for Muscle Research and his time at the National Foundation for Cancer Research. Visitors to the site can also elect to view the materials alphabetically or chronologically, if they are so inclined. [KMG]

http://dl.lib.brown.edu/paris/index.html

The world of Paris in the 19th century was one that might be called a gaudy yet rich mixture of cultural, social, and other such delights. From the poems of Baudelaire to the architectural fancies of the Second Empire, the City of Lights became an icon of all that was (and is) urban, for good and for ill. Much of this world can be explored through a variety of visual documents offered by this ongoing project that is being developed as part of the digital projects initiative at Brown University. Visitors to the site can browse the materials here by subject, title, or by historical period. The site also contains a number of historical essays that provide additional background to this subject. The essays deal with the emerging condition of modernity, panoramic literature, and alienation in the city. The site is rounded out by a nice listing of additional online resources dealing with 19th century France. [KMG]

http://www.thirdspace.ca/

The possibilities afforded scholars by online digital publishing are immense, and a number of persons in higher education have taken full advantage of such opportunities. One such project of note is the Thirdspace journal and its attendant online community, Chora. The role of both projects is to raise the profile of feminist scholars and scholarship. The journal is available here, and it contains critical essays, book reviews, and editorials. Currently, visitors can read the most recent issue here, along with perusing back issues to July 2001. Their online community, Chora, is worth taking a look at as well, as it contains listings of feminist organizations, journals, and directories. This area also contains a number of special features, including profiles of feminist publishers and bookstores. [KMG]

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cocoon/ihas/html/songofamerica/songofamerica.html

The Library of Congress has bringing a number of Americas musical archives to its website through the I Hear America Singing project, and this addition to their existing work is most welcome. The Song of America website is designed to serve as a companion piece to an ongoing 11-city concert tour which features the baritone Thomas Hampson performing a number of American songs. This site draws visitors attention to the world of the American art song, which began to flourish in the late 19th century as a number of American composers began to explore the world of the more serious art song. Influenced by the German lied and the French melody, composers such as Charles T. Griffes and Edward MacDowell began to incorporate a more refined sensibility into their works. On this website, visitors can learn more about eight of these American art songs by examining short essays about each piece, listen to an audio recording, and in many cases, viewing manuscripts of each composition. Some of the songs profiled here include Walter Damroschs Danny Deever and Stephen Fosters Beautiful Dreamer. [KMG]

[Macromedia Flash Player]
http://www.npg.si.edu/time/

The US National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution holds an impressive collection of portraits from the covers of Time magazine. In 1978, the magazine donated about 800 portraits to the Gallery, and the collection has since grown to over 2,000. The web version of the collection features a selection of portraits, accompanied by biographical sketches and audio where appropriate - for example, listen to a clip of Martin Luther King's "I have a dream speech" while viewing his February 18, 1957 cover. A few broad categories have been created for browsing, such as Sports, Civil Rights, and Technology & Invention. Richard M. Nixon turns out to be the most featured person on Time covers, with 57 appearances. The Resources section provides the link to search Time Magazine's comprehensive archive of covers http://www.time.com/time/coversearch.[DS]

http://www.tribalresourcecenter.org/
Over the past decades, Native Americans have fought to provide legal assistance to their number and also to provide adequate support to their tribal justice systems. In 2000, the National American Indian Court Judges Association with funds provided by the US Department of Justice established the National Tribal Justice Resource Center. Since
that time, the Center has provided a wide range of technical services to the American Indian and Alaska Native justice system. Visitors with an interest in how the Native American justice system functions will appreciate the information available here, much of which is contained with sections that deal with tribal courts, legal research, and their
outreach programs. Interested parties may wish to start by looking through the Tribal Court Opinion Search Page, which contains over 1800 Tribal Court opinions, memorandums, and orders. Persons who might be unacquainted with the history of these courts may also want to read a brief history of these institutions that is offered here. Visitors will also appreciate the fact that the homepage also offers links to relevant funding opportunities and an In the News digest that culls together topical news stories that deal with various tribal suits and related matters. [KMG]

http://www.adaa.org/home.asp

Millions of people across the United States live with a variety of anxiety disorders and for twenty-five years, the Anxiety Disorders Association of American (ADAA) has worked to promote the prevention, treatment and cure of these disorders. From the sites homepage visitors can learn about some of the most common anxiety disorders, such as panic disorder, social phobia, and post-traumatic stress disorder. The sites homepage also offers visitors the opportunity to sign up to receive their e-newsletter. As might be expected, there is a rather useful section titled Getting Help. Here visitors can learn about how they find a therapist for themselves (or a loved one). There are a myriad of resources within this particular area that will be of great use, including a section where visitors can learn about how to pick a therapist and a place for first-person narratives about living with a variety of anxiety disorders.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/katrina/index.html

There have been many stories that have come out in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and most of them have dealt with the human tragedies involved in this traumatic set of events. The people at the long-running PBS series, Nature, have created this website to complement a recent edition of the show that offered some insights into the effects the hurricane had on the animal population of Louisiana. On the site, visitors can take advantage of a number of special interactive features. These features allow visitors to ask questions of those involved in the animal rescue efforts and learn about the psychological and physical effects on animals. The site also contains a section where visitors can learn about other web-based resources, such as the homepages for Animal Rescue New Orleans and the Best Friends Animal Society.

http://www.mainlesson.com/main/displayfeature.php

The mission of the Baldwin Online Childrens Literature Project is to bring together a wide selection of literature for children from the period from 1880 to 1920. The project is named after the noted author James Baldwin (not to be confused with the noted African-American novelist of the 20th century) who was responsible for adapting a number of stories (such as the story of Siegfried) for children in the late 19th century. The creator of this fine online archive is Lisa Ripperton, who has a background in classics, and maintains a strong affinity for the ancient world and childrens literature. First-time visitors to the site will want to read an introductory piece offered here that explains how the site works, and then proceed to one of the 256 books that are currently part of the archive. Some of these titles include classic works by Beatrix Potter, Clara Dillingham Pierson, and M. B. Synge. Visitors may also peruse the offerings here as listed by author, title, genre, or subgenre. Persons who find themselves moved to do so may also want to sign up to volunteer to assist with this worthwhile endeavor by offering to prepare a book or two for inclusion on the site. [KMG]

http://www.synergeticsoft.com/

In these times, it is difficult to browse through a favorite website without being pestered by a variety of unwanted advertisements. Fortunately, a number of free applications are available to the general public such as this version of Pop Up Blocker. With this application, visitors can block advertisements that appear in such forms as Flash movies, flashing banner ads, and other such noxious guises. This application is compatible with computers running Windows 98 and newer. [KMG]

http://www.splinterware.com/products/idailydiary.htm

The most intimate of all prose may be in fact the world of the personal diary. In the digital age, diaries can be placed online for full disclosure or kept in a secretive file on a computer desktop. With this program, visitors can keep a diary that contains various image files, such as animated GIFs or different icons. Users can also create as many diaries as they want, and they may also enter links to other diary pages. This version of iDailyDiary 3.1 is compatible with computers running Windows 95 and newer. [KMG]

Peacekeeping a struggle in Sudan
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-11-29-african-union-sudan_x.htm

The need to interfere in Sudans Darfur Region
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20051130/ESUDAN30/TPComment/Editorials

African Union: The Situation in Darfur [pdf]
http://www.africa-union.org/DARFUR/homedar.htm

Greater Darfur Crisis [pdf]
http://www.unsudanig.org/emergencies/darfur/index.htm

Darfur Drawn: The Conflict in Darfur Through Childrens Eyes
http://hrw.org/photos/2005/darfur/drawings/

The ethnic conflict in Sudans western Darfur region has continued without letting up for the past three years, and so far, over 180,000 people have been killed and 2 million additional people have been displaced by the violence. The situation is rather complex, but at its essence the fighting began in 2003 when a number of African tribes in the region launched an extended conflict against the Arab-dominated government. This week, a new round of talks began between Sudanese government officials and rebels from the area. The talks are being mediated by the African Union, which is an umbrella organization started in 2002 to act as an indigenous network of African nations that would assist other nations in a number of different capacities, including the provisioning of peacekeeping forces when necessary. While the talks are concerned primarily with ending the violence in the region quickly, they are also designed to address the long-term question of how the residents of Darfur will be able to effectively interact with the central government based in Khartoum. All of this is additionally complicated by the contention by some that the central government has deployed a number of Arab tribal groups known as janjaweed to murder civilians and to stir up a general climate of fear and uncertainty among the residents of Darfur. [KMG]

The first link offered here will take visitors to a compelling news story from Rob Crilly, writing in USA Today, which discusses the difficulties encountered by African Union soldiers as they attempt to patrol the Darfur region. The second link leads to a strongly worded editorial on the importance of effective and immediate intervention in Darfur from the editorial staff of the Globe and Mail. The third link will take users to the African Unions page of material related to the ongoing conflict in Darfur. The fourth link will take visitors to a site set up by the United Nations that discusses the broader issues surrounding this ongoing conflict, along with providing a number of reports and materials on policy initiatives. The fifth link leads to a rather moving (and distressing) site, which offers drawings by children who are caught in the violence throughout Darfur. [KMG]