The Scout Report -- Volume 27, Number 31

Readers in the U.S. may be familiar with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requiring government agencies to provide people with disabilities with equal access to electronic information and data. ANDI is an accessibility inspection tool designed specifically to check for compliance with Section 508 standards, but one that will prove useful for anyone concerned about web accessibility. ANDI lives in the bookmarks or favorites section of a user's browser toolbar, and when clicked, it automatically analyzes the current webpage and displays a window flagging accessibility issues and suggesting recommended actions. It also indicates what a screen reader should say for interactive elements. To install, simply drag the icon from the page linked above to the toolbar of any browser (ANDI works on Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari). At the top of the page, users can click "Tutorial" and "Modules'' to learn more about ANDI's features and how to use it. The "Alerts'' section provides an overview of the accessibility alerts that will appear in ANDI's analysis. ANDI is an open source project created and maintained by the Accessible Solutions Branch of the U.S. Social Security Administration. [HCL]

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First published in 1908,The Sociological Review is one of the world's oldest journals of sociology. Although it is a peer-reviewed journal, The Sociological Review aims to produce creative and critical sociology that is politically relevant and engaged with current issues, in addition to advancing the discipline of sociology. As such, it will be of interest to social scientists and other readers from any background who seek to think critically and sociologically about the events of the day. On the main page, visitors can scroll through a feed of recent posts, access articles from the latest issue of the journal, or search for items by keyword tags. Readers will also find a monthly "Magazine" with book reviews, sociological literature, and news items. Each magazine centers themes such as food (see the October 2020 installment), digital social life (May 2021), and visual sociology (May 2020). The Sociological Review is managed by an editorial board of eminent scholars from the UK and elsewhere. [MJZ]

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Heat maps use color to visually summarize information and make the relationship between data values immediately apparent. Heatmapper is a free data visualization tool that allows users to generate, cluster, and visualize five different types of heat maps: Expression, Pairwise, Image Overlay, Geomap, and Geocoordinate. Users upload their own data and can easily customize their heat map's appearance and plotting parameters. The tool can also be applied to explore datasets using the searchable and sortable data table view, or by hovering the cursor over the heat map to view numeric data values. For detailed information, example images, and instructions on making each of the five classes of heat maps, users can click the "About" drop-down menu at the top of the page and select "Instructions." Sample datasets are provided to experiment with each type of heat map. Heatmapper was developed by the Wishart Research Group at the University of Alberta, with financial support provided by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Genome Alberta. [HCL]

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Finding credible, up-to-date, practical information about the COVID-19 pandemic can be an overwhelming and time-consuming task for people who just want answers to questions such as: Do I need a vaccine booster shot? Is it safe to swim in a public pool? When should I wear a mask, according to the latest guidelines? The all-woman interdisciplinary team of researchers and clinicians behind Dear Pandemic aims to provide readers with quick and easy access to curated, fact-based, straightforward information and updates about the pandemic. The project began on Facebook (@DearPandemic), and that remains the best place to follow the most recent posts (as well as the recently launched Spanish-language page @QueridaPandemia). The Dear Pandemic website has some features that make it easier to sort through previous posts. On the homepage, readers can enter their question into the search bar or click "Browse Recent Posts" to navigate to the Posts page. On that page, readers can explore posts dating back to May 1, 2020, organized into categories such as School, Travel, Masks, and Posts en Espanol. Readers are also welcome to submit their own question or subscribe to the Substack newsletter, both linked on the homepage. Readers who scroll to the Who We Are section can click "Read Our Bios" to learn more about the team of volunteers behind the project, whose expertise spans the fields of nursing, mental health, demography, health policy, health economics, and epidemiology. [HCL]

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The pandemic has prompted questions about the role and value of science festivals (referred to as conferences in the U.S.) and how to make them effective, engaging, and safe. This publication discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on science festivals and the future of science communication. Each section is written by a science festival leader or organizer, exploring topics such as whether and how to transition to virtual events and what science festivals might look like in a post-pandemic world. While the content is focused primarily on Poland and Europe, many of the ideas apply to science events around the world and consider the value of such events more generally. The document was prepared by the University of Silesia in Katowice as part of the 1st Forum of Polish Science Festival Organisers, with financial support from the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education and cooperation from the European Science Engagement Association (EUSEA). [HCL]

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The Country Music Hall of Fame (last featured in the 06-01-2001 Scout Report) is open for onsite visitors, but for those who are unable to get to Nashville in person, two online exhibits funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities provide a glimpse of its collections. The first, Dylan, Cash, and the Nashville Cats: A New Music City, explores the impact of Bob Dylan's 1960s Nashville recordings, Johnny Cash's TV show, and the ace musicians known as the "Nashville Cats." The exhibit consists of six sections: Dylan in Nashville, Johnny Cash, The Nashville Cats, Artists That Followed, A New Music City, and Today's Influences, and concludes with a link to a list of the performances, books, and recordings that trace the impact of these artists into the 21st century. The second online exhibit, Suiting the Sound: The Rodeo Tailors Who Made Country Stars Shine Brighter, introduces the clothiers who dressed country music and rodeo stars in rhinestones, including Bernard "Rodeo Ben" Lichtenstein, Nathan Turk, Nudie Cohn, and others. Visitors can view the rhinestone-studded garb worn by musicians from Gene Autry to Lil Nas X and watch videos of performers wearing the sparkly clothes, all while learning the backstory of the tailors behind these iconic fashions. [DS]

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In each episode of this hit podcast, Nashville-based creator Tyler Mahan Coe takes a deep dive into the sparkle, sweat, and tears of 20th century country music history and lore. Lifelong country fans will appreciate Coe's thorough approach to the subject, while those new to the genre and fans of narrative-style podcasts will enjoy discovering a new facet of American cultural history. A sampling of the topics covered includes Loretta Lynn's banned 1975 song about birth control (Episode CR002), the mysterious disappearance of one-hit-wonder and "Ode to Billie Joe" singer Bobbie Gentry (Episode CR004), the tumultuous personal life of Wynonna Judd (Episode CR012), and a three-part series on the bizarre hit song "Harper Valley PTA" (Episodes CR007-009). Besides the compelling subject matter, the podcast is distinguished by Coe's meticulously documented research. Each episode is accompanied by a blog post where listeners will find a list of Primary Sources, Liner Notes linking to all songs and videos sampled in the episode, and a Commentary and Remaining Sources section with Coe's behind-the-scenes research notes and further reading suggestions. Each blog post also includes a transcript of the episode with relevant visual aids. To find the blog, readers can click "Episodes" at the top of the page, then select a season and episode. In addition, readers can click "Library" for a list of referenced books along with Coe's commentary on each. The podcast streams on most listening platforms. [HCL]

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Linda Martell was the first black woman solo artist to perform at the Grand Ole Opry and three of her singles earned spots on the country charts in the 1960s, yet her name rarely appears alongside contemporaries like Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton. This Rolling Stone profile focuses on Martell's career trajectory, beginning in gospel and R&B before blossoming as a country singer billed as the "First Female Negro Country Artist." Martell's performances of her only album, Color Me Country, earned standing ovations at the Opry before her career came to an abrupt halt in the 1970s. In the article, writer David Browne talks to Martell about the impact of black voices on country music, her experiences with racism as a country singer, and her thoughts on the country music genre today. [HCL]

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A companion resource to Ken Burns's documentary Country Music, Roots & Branches of Country Music invites readers to explore the diverse origins, influences, and offshoots of the genre. Gospel tent revivals, British ballads, travelling minstrel shows, and banjo traditions dating back to ancient Egypt are all among the "roots" of American country music, and it has since spread its "branches" from honky tonk to rockabilly to "countrypolitan." On the page linked above, readers can scroll to the Explore sections to find clickable tiles. Images and a summary of each root or branch can then be found by clicking "Read More." To see behind-the-scenes clips from the film, readers can navigate to the top of the page and click "Extras," then "Video Extras." The "Extras" menu also includes other resources of interest, such as a "Country Music Timeline" and a selection of lesson plans for grades 6-12 ("Classroom"). The project is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and PBS, along with other donors that are listed in the page footer. [HCL]

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According to music historian Lester Feder, American country music has not always been associated with conservative values or politics. In this 2007 episode of NPR's All Things Considered, host Debbie Elliot, a national correspondent who often covers the American South, speaks with Feder about when and how country music got political and became the unofficial soundtrack for conservative ideals and cultural pride. The conversation centers on a little-known compilation album called Thank You, Mr. President, which was created exclusively for then-President Richard Nixon by the Country Music Association in 1972. Listeners will learn how Alabama segregationist George Wallace's gubernatorial campaign, Merle Haggard's parody song "Okie from Muskogee," and the Dixie Chicks critique of the war in Iraq shaped the political significance of country music. The page linked above includes a written transcript of the episode, audio streaming and download options, and links to related stories from NPR. [HCL]

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Disconnect is a browser extension to block user tracking from major third-parties like social media sites (e.g., Facebook, Twitter), web analytics software (e.g., Google Analytics, Hotjar), and advertising networks (e.g., Google Ads, Doubleclick). In contrast to the private mode provided by most browsers, which prevents the browser from saving browsing history on your local computer, Disconnect prevents third-party sites on the internet from storing your browsing history. Disconnect categorizes these sites as either Content, Social, Analytics, or Advertising. All but the first are blocked by default when visiting a new site, but users may opt to whitelist certain categories of site or specific sites within each category. Readers can also find a brief interactive demo on the page linked above under Disconnect's Features or read the "FAQ" for more detailed information about how it works. Disconnect is available for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera. [CRH]

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Woob (the Web Outside Of Browsers) is a Python-based framework for interacting with websites and end-user applications built with this framework. For developers, Woob provides an API to interact with any website via code. The featured end-user applications (found by clicking "Applications" in the menu at the top of the page) include resources like Woob Parcel, which provides a command-line interface that can pull data from eight different package tracking websites. Another resource on the same page is Woob Job, which also offers a command-line interface to search for job postings across nine sites. Users can find detailed API references and developer guides linked on the "Docs" page. Woob requires a Python installation and can be installed via Pip on any system that has one. Many Linux distributions and BSD operating systems also include Woob in their package repositories. [CRH]

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The nonprofit Birthplace of Country Music is dedicated to providing engaging content and learning materials about the country music legacy of the Bristol region. Since it was last featured in the 01-21-2011 issue of the Scout Report, the site has added a "Museum from Home" section with a variety of virtual resources.

Country music has a number of historical "hearth" areas, but perhaps none is better known than the Bristol area around eastern Tennessee and southwest Virginia. The Birthplace of Country Music is dedicated to educating the public about this regional heritage with exhibits, learning activities, performances, and cultural events that celebrate the rich musical tradition. On the homepage, visitors can navigate to the "Museum" dropdown menu and click "Museum from Home" for video content, student activity sheets, and links to live virtual events and performances. Alternatively, visitors can click the "Radio" dropdown menu and select "Listen Live" to stream Radio Bristol's programming on American roots music. [KMG] [HCL]

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