·http://www.bioedonline.org/online-courses/bench-to-blackboard/

Created as a joint initiative from the Baylor College of Medicine and Scitable by Nature Education, "Bench to Blackboard" offers up interactive modules that explore genetics via quizzes, worksheets, and a range of additional thoughtful materials. The materials are suitable for educators and life-long learners and are divided into two areas: Key Advances in Genetics and Seminal Experiments in Genetics. Visitors will need to complete a free login process to get started. Once completed, progress can be saved at any time so visitors can come back to complete the course at their leisure. It's a rather neat way to learn about some of the main defining features of genetic research and, by extension, current trends in scientific research more generally. [KMG]

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·http://www.urban.org/Pressroom/data.cfm

The Urban Institute produces dozens of timely policy papers and fact sheets that are read widely by policymakers, journalists, and those with a passion for major metropolitan areas. From this site, users will find access to well over 100 fact sheets. The topics covered include housing finance, economic insecurity, Social Security, and the labor force. Visitors can browse through a complete list of all the topics on the left-hand side of the page. The site also contains links to relevant full-length policy reports and a mix of other related links from various policy centers within the Institute. Additionally, users can take advantage of the Press Room which contains even more information on each fact sheet and topical area. [KMG]

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·http://www.chipublib.org/images/whalen/index.php

The city of Chicago is home to a number of excellent collections of items related to the history of the Civil War. For starters, the Chicago History Museum has some fine Lincolnania, as does the University of Chicago. This particular collection of items hails from the collection of Wayne Whalen and provides visitors with unique insight into a range of paper ephemera, photographs, swords, and campaign ribbons. On the homepage for the collection, users can look over some highlights, including a commemorative medal featuring Abraham Lincoln from 1865 and the saddle of Ulysses S. Grant. Visitors can look at each item in detail using the zoom functions. Visitors should not miss the 15 Civil War etchings from the artist, Edwin Forbes, who was well known for his depictions of campgrounds. [KMG]

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·http://hdl.huntington.org/

This wide-ranging collection from the Huntington Library brings together well over 100,000 items from its prodigious physical collection, which includes 7 million manuscripts, 1.3 million photographs, and prints. As the homepage of its digital collections, this site includes Maps, Rare Books, and Southern California Edison Photographs and Negatives. This last collection offers over 70,000 items from the photographic archive of the electricity supply company, Southern California Edison. The topics covered here alone are exhaustive and range from employee gatherings, streetscapes, advertisements, and small businesses. Another area that should not be missed is the collection of photographs by Maynard L. Parker who documented well-known and lesser-known homes all around Los Angeles and Southern California from the 1930s to the 1970s. [KMG]

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·http://uwdc.library.wisc.edu/collections/Science/VetAnatImgs

These remarkable illustrations were taken from the classic works of German veterinary anatomists, Wilhelm Ellenberger and Hermann Baum, along with medical illustrator, Hermann Dittrich. Originally published in texts from 1898 and 1911 through 1925, these works remain seminal for those studying various animals today. Animals covered here include the horse, cow, dog, lion, goat, and deer. Crafted as part of the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections initiative, these works will be of special interest to veterinarians, anatomists, comparative anatomists, and anyone else with an interest in the musculoskeletal systems of animals. All told there are eighty plates here, rendered in exquisite detail. [KMG]

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·http://www.nabt.org/websites/institution/index.php?p=38

The staff members at the National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT) have put together a stellar array of websites that deal with ten different areas of biology, including animals, bioethics, evolution, and stem cell research. The items here are arranged alphabetically and visitors can review the brief descriptions to learn more about the content covered within each site. There is quite a variety of useful sites, with each area consisting of about two dozen suggested resources. Additionally, the site has a place where visitors can also suggest resources for inclusion. Users can also take advantage of the NABT teaching newsletter, offered here for general consideration. [KMG]

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·http://shelleygodwinarchive.org/

A group of renowned organizations (including the New York Public Library and The Huntington) have teamed up to create this remarkable archive of manuscripts from Mary Wollstonecraft, William Godwin, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, and Percy Bysshe Shelley. What is most remarkable about this collection is that it brings together 90% of all known relevant manuscripts by this amazing family of authors. First-time visitors should look at the About area for a bit of background on the project or use the Archive guide to learn how the archive functions, such as the transcription features and much more. Notably, the Frankenstein section allows visitors to view all known manuscripts of this classic work. The site is rounded out by an excellent search engine. [KMG]

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·https://www.census.gov/multimedia/

A core feature of the Census Bureau is the wide range of statistical reports and fact sheets that they provide for general consumption. Yet, journalists and others with a penchant for demography will appreciate this online multimedia gallery site that offers up radio features, videos, and photos for general use. Within Videos, visitors can look over clips on data visualizations, Stats in Action, and a nice overview of World Statistics Day. Moving on, the Photos area contains sections such as Census History, Facts for Features, and Lifestyle that document the Bureau's activities. Access to a range of radio features can be found within the Audio section. These features provide great information on the bureau's latest statistical profiles and ongoing research. [KMG]

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·http://forecastpublicart.org/

Based in St. Paul, Minnesota, the Public Art Review is dedicated exclusively to the field of contemporary public art. Started in 1990, the Review has been published biannually for over two decades and contains thoughtful meditations on how public art projects come into being along with commentary on the artists engaged in such projects. The online version of the Review mirrors the sections within the public magazine and include rather fun titles, such as Art in Odd Places. Here, visitors can learn about projects that tweak prevailing notions of public art. The Featured area takes users inside long reads that cover everything from public art in abandoned factories to new installations in medical centers. On Location provides updates about ongoing public art projects and previews of upcoming works. Interested parties can sign up to receive updates via email about forthcoming print editions as well as additions to the site. [KMG]

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·http://www.library.unh.edu/digital/category/music-dance

The University of New Hampshire continues its wonderful tradition of digital collections with these celebratory offerings of music and dance. Here, visitors will find two primary publications: Northern Junket and American Squares. This first publication was a collection of New England folk dances, songs, and square dances published between 1953 and the mid-1980s. Published by Ralph Page, visitors can download each edition to browse at their leisure. It's a fascinating find for musicologists and historians. The other publication, American Squares, was published from 1945 to 1955 as a monthly square dance magazine that chronicled the world of American folk dancing. Each issue contains information about competitive dance contests, instructional materials, and so on. [KMG]

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·http://wellcomeimages.org/

The Wellcome Images website is a veritable cornucopia of images that includes Tibetan Buddhist paintings, ancient Sanskrit manuscripts, and beautifully illuminated Persian books. The Biomedical Collection, also found here, includes over 40,000 high-quality images from the clinical and biomedical sciences. A good way to get started is by using the Favourites tab. From here, visitors will find topical collections organized into headings that include World, Witchcraft, and Health. The Wonderful area is a gem and contains photographs of stinging hairs on a nettle leaf and a dramatic image of the cochlea of the inner ear. The educational component of this work comes alive in the Science for Schools tab, which features clutches of images intended for classroom use. Also, users should try the very powerful search tool to quickly locate items of note. It's an impressive collection and one that can be used by casual visitors and serious scholars alike. [KMG]

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·http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/collections/maps/transit/

The last decades of the 19th century and those of the early 20th century were the heyday of urban rail transit around the world. These remarkable maps from the University of Chicago Library's Map Collection illustrate the history of such matters between the 1860s and the 1920s. On its homepage, the site offers a bit of historical context on the development of such systems and visitors would do well to read this area first. In total there are almost two dozen maps, including one of London's District Railway in 1885 and a fine map of Chicago's street car lines in 1897. Visitors can look over the provenance information for each document or read a brief description of each map as well. [KMG]

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·http://peabody.yale.edu/peabody-online

From skulls to forensics, the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History has something for everyone interested in exploring all aspects of this brave, vast world. Its online offerings are a thrill and include image collections, online exhibits, video clips, and podcasts. This last area has some great offerings, including short films on Lyme disease, a tour through the museum's celebrated "Age of Reptiles" mural, and a tribute to Charles Darwin's work. Moving on, the Online Exhibits area includes over two dozen exhibits, including Return of the 17-Year Cicadas! and Black Holes at Yale. Visitors shouldn't miss the lovely Connecticut Biodiversity area, which offers up the excellent Connecticut Butterfly Atlas Project and the very cool Go Botany! application. This last find features a very helpful Simple ID Key that helps interested parties identify over 1,200 common native and naturalized New England plants. [KMG]

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·http://exhibitions.nypl.org/lunchhour/exhibits/show/lunchhour

Opening with a lovely quote from George Foster in 1849, the New York Public Library serves up a digital collection on lunching in New York City where "every thing is done differently… but in eating the difference is more striking than in any other branch of human economy." This offering complements an in situ exhibit that was held at the library from June 2012 to February 2013. First-time visitors should click on the Iconic Foods area to learn about the historical background behind staples such as pizza, pastrami, hot dogs, and sushi. Moving on, The Automat area talks about the wonderful automated cafeterias that dispensed soup, sandwiches, and hot apple pie up from 1912 until 1991. Masters of the universe will find the Power Lunch area a delight as it profiles such iconic restaurants as Sardi's and the Algonquin. [KMG]

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·http://www.justice.gov/ej/

The Environmental Justice Office within the United States Department of Justice brings together resources that staff members use in the quest to secure environmental justice for all. On the homepage, visitors can look over the latest "Environmental Justice Implementation Progress Report" that details its commitment to this ongoing task. Moving on, the right-side of the page contains additional links of note. Under Selected Resources visitors can explore Executive Orders related to the Department's work, along with official documents such as "DOJ Guidance Concerning Environmental Justice" and the coordinating group documents from the Federal Interagency Working Group on Environmental Justice. The site is rounded out by a selection of social media links and RSS feed. [KMG]

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·http://www.getty.edu/publications/virtuallibrary/

In the Getty Virtual Library, visitors can read and download over 250 publications made freely available from the Getty Museum, Getty Conservation Institute, and Getty Research Institute. Museum publications include exhibition catalogs and full issues of the Museum Journal. For example, view Julia Margaret Cameron: Complete Photos, a 259-page catalogue raisonne of Cameron's work, published in 2002. Librarians, archivists, and museum professionals will find helpful resources from the Conservation and Research Institutes on topics ranging from metadata and vocabularies to the digitization of cultural heritage materials. Some titles included are: Introduction to Metadata; Introduction to Controlled Vocabularies: Terminologies for Art, Architecture, and Other Cultural Works, 2010, by Patricia Harpring, foreword by Murtha Baca; and a 2003 update of Howard Besser's Introduction to Imaging originally published in 1995, and widely regarded as a standard textbook for the creation of digital collections. [DS]

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·https://bmark.us/

Open source bookmarking apps are growing in popularity and Bookie is one that's worth a look. Visitors can use the app to import their existing bookmarks from Google or Delicious.com or parse out page content as well. Users can also check out an FAQ area and create a user profile. This version is mobile friendly and compatible with all operating systems. [KMG]

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·https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/timestats/ejifodhjoeeenihgfpjijjmpomaphmah

Ever wonder how much time you spend on any given website? Now you can find out with TimeStats. This version of the Chrome extension allows users to collect stats on the websites they visit each day, week, or month. Users can even create graphs and charts to visually look at how much time they spend on these sites. This version is compatible with computers running Google Chrome 33 and newer. [KMG]

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Great Lakes top 90% ice cover, zeros in on record
http://www.freep.com/article/20140303/NEWS06/303030093/great-lakes-ice-cover-record-ontario

Official Great Lakes ice coverage headed for record
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-03-03/news/chi-official-great-lakes-ice-coverage-headed-for-record-20140303_1_great-lakes-ice-coverage-surface

Ice cover on Great Lakes climbs rapidly
http://www.mlive.com/weather/index.ssf/2014/03/great_lakes_ice_cover_update_l.html

NOAA: Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
http://glerl.noaa.gov/

Great Lakes Maritime History Project
http://uwdc.library.wisc.edu/collections/WI/GreatLakes

Wisconsin's Great Lakes Shipwrecks
http://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/index.cfm

Amidst brutal weather, the Midwest is poised to break another winter record. Along with record snowfall, days with below freezing temperatures, and generally trying meteorological conditions, there's also quite a bit of ice cover on the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes are currently more than 90.5% covered with ice. The cause? Bitterly cold air, in short. In recorded history, it's the most ice cover since 1979 when the total percentage topped off at 94.7%. Interestingly enough, a number of people have wondered if the Great Lakes have ever frozen completely. A cursory glance of the records would indicate no, but it's difficult to say for sure. Another interesting facet of this deep freeze is its impact on spring weather, which will most likely be a bit cooler once the ice begins to melt ever so slowly. [KMG]

The first link will take visitors to a piece on this deep freeze from the Detroit Free Press. Moving on, the second link will whisk interested parties away to another article on the matter from the Chicago Tribune. The third link will take users to a Michigan Live article, complete with a great photo gallery showing the spread of ice across the Great Lakes. The fourth link will take visitors to the homepage of the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, providing additional information on the Great Lakes and research throughout the region. The fifth link will take visitors to a wonderful collection on the history of the Great Lakes maritime culture. Here, visitors can look over hundreds of photos documenting everything from dock workers to communities along Lake Michigan and Superior. The final link will take visitors to a lovely website that explores shipwrecks off the coast of Wisconsin. Crafted by the the folks at the Wisconsin Historical Society, visitors can view interactive maps of the wrecks and their approximate locations.