The Scout Report -- Volume 26, Number 43

Quirky and "laugh-out-loud funny," Everything is Alive is just what the doctor ordered. Podcast host Ian Chillag is no stranger to the radio or comedy scene (he previously worked for NPR, among other outlets). Along with Chillag, the many comedians and entertainers who guest-star deliver the "unscripted" life story of inanimate objects. For example, listeners are introduced to a lamppost named Maeve who yearns to be seen and a subway seat named Sean craving connection. The result is a mash up between poignant, human-interest theater and high-level improv comedy. The show has received a 2019 Webby Award and praise from Indiewire, Time, and other distinguished outlets. This year, it won the 2020 Miller Audio Prize for humor. Jennifer Mills produces the podcast, which is a member of the Radiotopia network. Listeners can stream episodes on most popular platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. [EMB]

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This publication connects readers with "life in the science communication community, research about science communication, and tools and advice for science communicators." Recent posts highlight #BlackinSciComm week (with features on leaders in various science fields); demonstrate how to create useful public health multimedia in light of COVID-19 (see the May 26, 2020 post); and recap the trials and triumphs of virtual conferences (see the April 13, 2020 post). Visitors can use the panel on the right-hand side to filter posts by month (June 2017 to present) or topic. This panel also contains information on how to pitch a story. A Science Blog is an extension of Science Talk, "a non-profit organization that seeks to empower and inspire the science communication community to expand their communication potential and affect the world." Readers may want to browse other parts of the website, particularly the Conferences tab, which previews the 2021 Science Talk conference, a series of workshops and presentations around the theme of "resilience" (readers should note that this event requires a registration fee). Science Talk also has a Twitter presence where readers can follow along @ScienceTalkOrg. [EMB]

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Dr. Cath Sleeman, the head of data visualisation at Nesta (a UK-based "innovation foundation"), combed through more than 500,000 articles from The Guardian published between 2000 and 2018 to create She Said More. The project aims to analyze gender disparities in "reporting on the creative industries." Before diving into the findings, readers should note a couple of things. First, the article acknowledges that research was limited to "mentions of male and female third-person singular pronouns," and "it was not possible to collect mentions of people who identify as non-binary because non-gendered pronouns are also used as plural pronouns." Second, the article contains a brief discussion of the Me Too movement and sexual violence. The research revealed a significant increase "in references to women within the creative sections of The Guardian," in 2014 and beyond. The greatest representation was found in the Fashion section, while the lowest was found in the Games and Technology section. Another major finding was that "words that imply creative achievements and leadership roles were less likely than other words to refer to women." Rather, "she" references were usually followed by non-verbal and verbal reactions (for example, "smiles" and "laughs"). In addition to the findings noted, at the macro-level, this project hopes to serve as a template for how "big data and machine learning," paint a more complete picture of gender inequality. And the key ingredient for such analysis? Open data. She Said More is a collaboration between Nesta and the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre. [EMB]

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Southern California is home to "the largest concentration of Vietnamese [Americans]." This project housed within the University of California, Irvine hopes to capture and preserve their diverse stories and experiences for generations to come. The Viet Stories: Vietnamese American Oral History Project (VAOHP) collection includes audio and video files, transcripts (in Vietnamese and/or English), and photographs. Many of these oral histories were captured by UC Irvine students (under the direction and supervision of faculty). Launched in 2011, the collection now features more than 200 items, but remains "a work in progress," so readers are encouraged to check back often for new content. Visitors can use various tools on the left-hand side of the site to view current collection items. For example, users can search by keyword or browse by category (including "narrators" and "subjects"). Each oral history record includes a summary paragraph, so listeners can preview the content before diving in. [EMB]

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What is the goal of a library? What is the work of a librarian? Perhaps, "a new librarianship" has emerged, an expanded role "based not on books and artifacts but on knowledge and learning." To facilitate this, librarians must embrace an expanded role, too: "to improve society through facilitating knowledge creation in their communities." R. David Lankes, an award-winning scholar and director of the University of South Carolina's School of Information Science, makes these claims in The Atlas of New Librarianship, a book he published in 2011. The next year, the book won the 2012 ABC-CLIO/Greenwood Award for the Best Book in Library Literature. Now freely available under a Creative Commons License, readers can download the book as a PDF or ePub file. Its in-depth insights encapsulate "input from hundreds of librarians and professors from 14 accredited library programs, 25 formal presentations to more than 50 conferences, and 14 publications." And, since its initial publication, the Atlas added new indexes (highlighted in the Expanding the Atlas section). [EMB]

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November 8, 2020 is National STEM/STEAM Day, and what better way to celebrate than to go "full STEAM" ahead aboard The Coding Train. This YouTube channel, hosted by Daniel Shiffman, introduces viewers to coding programs and fundamentals. The videos (which vary greatly in length) are informative, easy-to-follow, and fun, providing a perfect way to get students excited about the world of STEM. Plus, the multimedia format makes for a seamless implementation into remote learning. Teachers may want to use one of the beginner level playlists as the foundation for a week-long coding unit. Check out "Learning Processing: A Beginner's Guide to Programming Images, Animation, and Interaction," seven videos on the "core principles of computer programming," as a possibility. Shiffman also occasionally welcomes "guest conductors" aboard the train to share their expertise (with an emphasis on amplifying underrepresented voices in the tech field). The channel has gained more than one million followers since its launch in 2006, which further illustrates its magnetic impact on the STEM community. [EMB]

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"Science is for everyone." This is the guiding principle of We Rep STEM, a platform "celebrat[ing] STEM minorities, [including] people of colour, professionals with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ community, Indigenous researchers, women of all races, [and] scientists in niche areas of expertise." The site is a useful resource for teachers, as it offers information on inclusivity in STEM fields, highlights upcoming events and programs, profiles diverse STEM superstars, and discusses relevant health topics such as youth wellbeing. Scrolling down the home page, readers will find stories grouped in various categories, such as Most Read, Latest, and At Work. The Glossary tab at the top of the page may also be worth scrolling through, as it defines several words and acronyms frequently referenced on the site (for example, "code-switching" and "SciComm"). Readers can also find the platform on Instagram (@werepstem), Twitter (@WeRepSTEM), and YouTube (We Rep STEM). [EMB]

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K-12 educators may enjoy Siemens STEM Day, a program providing resources to energize the future of the STEM field. Readers should not be fooled by the name; the wealth of activities can also be formatted into a curriculum that stretches beyond one day. Educators will want to begin with the Train the Trainer Toolkit. The five-minute video and three-page handout introduce users to the program and provide tips on how to best implement it in classrooms. Next, explore the various offerings under the Educators tab, where resources are divided into three pages: Career Profiles (short videos profiling various Siemens employees and their work), Activities (sortable by category, career path, and grade), and Educator Support (downloadable "five-minute refreshers" on various science topics). This program is supported by the Siemens Foundation, which seeks to "clos[e] the opportunity gap for young people in the U.S. when it comes to STEM careers," as well as Discovery Education. [EMB]

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The Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention (located in Gainesville, Florida), was recognized as Gainesville's 2019 Best Museum, and readers who browse through the museum's Cade at Home component will quickly see why. Cade is all about creativity, and Cade at Home combines creativity and STEAM principles through various lessons and activities. Lessons "include everyday things you can use at home for activities, plus step-by-step videos and instructions to invent and create at home." Pre-school teachers will enjoy the Little Sparks section, which features videos with nature-based craft projects for little learners. Instructors with slightly older students can explore the Activities section (where they will find 10 tutorials with STEAM experiments and projects) and PBS Feature section (highlighting some segments from PBS Kids). Finally, those with students in upper-elementary and middle school will find some great resources in the Tech and Design section. Here, users can access a few basic coding lessons using TinkerCAD and Scratch programs. [EMB]

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Teacher Advisor uses its artificial intelligence technology to connect educators with curated content from open access platforms such as EngageNY, CPALMS (Florida), and North Carolina Department of Instruction, among others. The award-winning platform is designed for K-8 math teachers. Each grade level has its own page, which is located under the Grades tab at the top of the site. Visitors can browse by category (standards, lessons, activities, and strategies) or use the query bar to search for a specific topic. While a plethora of materials are available, the platform's advanced technology helps tailor results to each user's needs. For example, a search for "fractions" reveals more than 40 lesson plans. But, the Watson AI technology, "trained by math experts to understand elementary math concepts and certain modes of engagement within the elementary classroom," flags the top recommendations. Teacher Advisor is supported by IBM philanthropic resources and the Ford, Carnegie, and Stavros Niarchos foundations. While it is currently only available to users in the United States, the platform is looking to expand internationally soon. [EMB]

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Pagekite is a reverse proxy service that can make sites and services running on a user's local machine accessible from the Internet, even for machines that are behind a firewall. For example, a web developer could use Pagekite to make the development copy of a site residing on their personal machine accessible over the Internet for testing or review. Users configure names for the services they want to set up (called "kites"), then run a small helper program on their computer that connects to Pagekite's cloud. When a request for a given kite arrives from the public Internet, it is forwarded along to the helper and then to whatever program on the user's machine should handle it. In Pagekite's QuickStart Guide (found on the Support page), users can find instructions for setting up a website both with and without a web server running on their computer. The Pagekite wiki contains instructions for setting up additional types of services such as Minecraft, SSH, VNC, and others. Pagekite is written in Python and should run anywhere that Python does. The Pagekite front page provides installation instructions for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux systems. The service is free to all users for one month. Individuals can continue to receive free service thereafter by providing a review of Pagekite. [CRH]

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The classic UNIX grep command searches in text files for lines that match a pattern. It was named for the command in ed (the original UNIX text editor) that it replicated, g/re/p to perform a Global search for a Regular Expression and Print anything that matched. Ugrep extends classic grep with a number of helpful features including support for Unicode files, fast parallel search of multiple files, and an interactive query interface. It can also search within archives, handle non-text formats like PDF, DOCX, XLSX and others, and produce output in a variety of formats. The Notable Improvements Over Grep section of the ugrep README gives a complete list of its additional features. The Tutorial section in the README walks users through a number of example uses of the tool. The Download and Install section provides instructions for installing ugrep on Windows, macOS, Debian, NetBSD, and Haiku. Ugrep is also available via the package repositories of most UNIX-like systems. [CRH]

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STEM principles are not limited to science classrooms, as exemplified by this curriculum featured in the 09-20-2019 Scout Report that combines statistics, data analysis, and history lessons.

The U.S. Census Bureau's Statistics in Schools (SIS) program "brings school subjects to life using real-world Census Bureau statistics." This collection of classroom history and social studies activities features well-developed activity plans for K-12 students, each focused on a specific topic. The home page highlights some 2020 Resources, "activities designed specifically to spotlight the 2020 Census and the importance of making sure everyone is counted, especially children." Additionally, activities are broadly grouped into grade-level appropriate subjects: elementary grades (e.g. "Jamestown - Factors Affecting Population Change, 1630-1700"), middle school (e.g. "Where Should I Live? Using U.S. Census Bureau Data to Make Decisions"), and high school (e.g. "19th Century Immigration - Causes & Effects"). The webpage for each activity gives a description, states the time and materials required, and provides a list of learning objectives. Some activities also take advantage of the Census Bureau's interactive digital tools, such as QuickFacts. Each lesson includes attractively designed and downloadable PDFs of teacher and student versions of the activity. [JDC] [EMB]

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