A Publication of the Internet Scout Project
Computer Science Department, University of Wisconsin
The Scout Report is a weekly publication offering a selection of new and newly discovered Internet resources of interest to researchers and educators. However, everyone is welcome to subscribe to one of the mailing lists (plain text or HTML). Subscription instructions are included at the end of each report.
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http://www.ilrt.bris.ac.uk/mirrors/scout/
For
our UK readers, we are now mirrored at the SOSIG site.
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The FASEB Journal Online
http://www.fasebj.org/
HighWire Press
http://highwire.stanford.edu/
Founded
in 1912 by three societies, the Federation of American Societies for
Experimental Biology (FASEB), facilitates scientific interchange by providing
logistic support (via scientific publications and conferences) to its member
associations. To this end, FASEB has recently placed the full text of The
FASEB Journal online, containing all figures and tables in a searchable (by
keyword) format. In addition, cited references include "hyperlinks to
Medline and to the online full text of many other frequently-cited
journals." Online FASEB content begins with the January 1998 issue and will
expand with each month's new issue. Abstracts begin with the July 1987 issue.
Subscriptions are free through the end of March, 1999. The journal is provided
in conjunction with Stanford University's HighWire Press. [LXP]
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Technology Counts '98--Education Week on the
Web
http://www.edweek.org/sreports/tc98/
Sticking
to its goal of being "the place on the World Wide Web for people
interested in education reform, schools, and the policies that guide them,"
Education Week on the Web (reviewed in the September
13, 1996 Scout Report) has just released a special report on the
effectiveness of technology in schools. In particular, the report addresses
concerns that the presence of computers in schools hasn't raised test scores.
Technology Counts '98 considers the effectiveness of technology from several
angles, namely: "technology's impact on test scores and school
climate" (based on how students performed on the 1996 National Assessment
of Educational Progress mathematics exam); ten case studies of "schools
that are using technology to foster goals of the education reform
movement;" and third, a review of state activities and suggested policies.
This timely report offers "the most recent national and! state-by-state
data on technology access, capacity, and use." [LXP]
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Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
http://www.jaffebros.com/lee/gulliver/about.html
The
main feature of this site, a part-time project from librarian and dedicated
Swift fan Lee Jaffe, is the text of the 1726 Motte edition of Gulliver's
Travels with corrections from the 1735 Faulkner edition. The site features
not only an authoritative, hyperlinked edition of Gulliver's Travels, but
also links to additional resources, source texts, study guides, scholarly
societies and just about anything that could be of use to a Swift scholar or
fan. Jaffe is still in the process of hyperlinking the text to a dictionary he
has compiled for the purpose, and he has also assembled a collection of quotes,
a list of Swift's neologisms, illustrations from other editions, and a timeline
of relevant dates. Though Jaffe demurs, "I don't pretend that this is a
scholarly edition," he may be too modest. [TK]
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World Economic Outlook--IMF [.pdf]
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/weo1098/index.htm
Recently
published by the International Monetary Fund, the World Economic Outlook (WEO)
is a semi-annual examination of recent world economic developments and future
prospects. Responding to recent financial turbulence around the world, the
report highlights monetary policy issues in Asia as well as development
strategies in emerging market countries and Russia. A 28-page statistical
appendix is also included with financial growth indicators by region. [MW]
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BONAP Checklist: A Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular
Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin
Islands
http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/b98/check98.htm
Provided
by the Biota of North America Program (BONAP) in collaboration with the Texas
A&M Bioinformatics Working Group (TAMU-BWG), The BONAP Synonymized Checklist
is more than a typical checklist. It is a database, offering multiple layers of
vascular flora information at several different taxonomic levels. Understanding
the organization of the site is central to its utility; to enter the database,
users may select options to browse by family name, query by genera or common
name, query text (for text strings), or follow links to the Flowering Plant
Family Finder (Cronquist classification system; also accessible through The
Flowering Plant Gateway, reviewed in the September
25, 1998 Scout Report). Once inside the database, users can drill down to
distribution maps of the selected family, genus, or species. In many cases,
species images accompany distribution maps through links to the Vascular Plant!
Image Gallery (reviewed in the September
12, 1997 Scout Report. This new resource unifies and deepens the already
impressive wealth of TAMU-BWG/BONAP information on vascular flora on the Web. [LXP]
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Living Planet Report 1998--WWF
Index:
http://panda.org/livingplanet/lpr/index.htm
Lite
Site: [frames]
http://panda.org/livingplanet/lpr/lp_index.html
Enhanced
Site: [RealPlayer, Flash]
http://panda.org/livingplanet/lpr/flash.htm
The
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has recently published the inaugural Living Planet
Report. This report analyzes environmental data in conjunction with global
consumption patterns to calculate the cumulative effect that humankind has on
the earth's ecosystems. The report consists of two major parts: the Consumption
Pressure section and the Living Planet Index. The Consumption Pressure section
measures the per capita resource consumption and pollution statistics from 152
countries to determine humanity's impact on earth. The Living Planet Index
presents new data on the health of the forest, freshwater and marine ecosystems
around the world from 1970-1995. Two versions of the report are available from
the WWF: the Enhanced Site, which requires Macromedia Flash and RealPlayer; and
the Lite Site, which provides the same information minus the plug-ins. [AO]
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InteliHealth [Shockwave]
http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH
InteliHealth,
from Aetna US Healthcare and Johns Hopkins University and Health System,
provides the latest health and medical information for consumers and
professionals. The Consumer Network features a News section of recent press
releases from news agencies and Johns Hopkins; a Drugs section has patient
information on generic and brand name drugs from the US Pharmacopoeia database;
and a Health Library includes patient information, databases, directories,
interactive educational resources [some require Shockwave], and
"Ask-the-Doc," where visitors can pose a question or browse through
already-answered questions. The Professional Network, for doctors, pharmacists,
nurses, and other healthcare professionals, features the latest health and
medical news, career and education resources, Medline database, clinical and
research resources, pharmaceutical information, and a bookstore where users can
order professional literature. [GW]
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Guide to European Legal Databases
http://www.llrx.com/features/europe.htm
The New York University (NYU) Law School Reference Librarian For
International and Foreign Law, Mirela Roznovschi, has prepared this excellent
Guide to European Legal Databases. The Guide offers recommendations for search
engines and search tips/strategies for researching foreign law topics. Visitors
will find the annotated list of European Websites useful for finding
constitutional, copyright, and environmental laws (many laws listed by country).
Also referenced in the Guide are sites covering the laws of Austria, Belgium,
Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, the Council of Europe, and the European Union. A section entitled
Indices, Guides, Journals, Dictionaries, Library Catalogs covers consolidated
resource guides and notable collections, to facilitate further research efforts.
[LXP]
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ACM Multimedia '98: Proceedings
http://www.acm.org/sigmm/MM98/electronic_proceedings/
The
Sixth Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) International Multimedia
Conference was held in Bristol, England in September 1998 to discuss current
research in various multimedia disciplines. Many of the papers presented at the
conference are available here at this site. A wide variety of topics were
covered, ranging from highly technical reports on software and hardware, to
discussions on applied uses of new technologies in education, research, and
entertainment. Navigation of the site is made easier with a chronological table
of contents, an index by author, and an index by keyword. The ACM, an
educational and scientific computing society founded in 1947 sponsored the
conference. [DM]
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Contents]
The Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia
http://wwwusr.obspm.fr/planets/
Jean
Schneider, of the Observatoire de Paris, put together this no-nonsense site
featuring current information on the "detection and study of extrasolar
planets, including exobiology." Schneider's commitment to the subject is
clear with the inclusion of detailed scientific and technical articles, a
tutorial (by Arizona State University) on the detection of extrasolar planets,
and a hyperlinked bibliography of some 200 scientific journal articles, books,
and reports. A catalog of extrasolar planets (with links to the scientific
articles describing them) features dozens of confirmed planets (or brown dwarfs)
around main sequence stars or pulsars, in addition to disks and unconfirmed
objects. Whether you are a dedicated amateur or pro (and read English or
French), these pages are clearly designed and well worth the orbit. [LXP]
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World Bank Group Relaunch
http://www.worldbank.org/
In lieu of
current global financial turmoil, users will be interested in this site. To
facilitate easier information access, the World Bank Group (reviewed in the September
25, 1997 Scout Report for Business & Economics) recently relaunched
their extensive website of development information according to a new, more
integrated graphical structure. New menu option highlights include the
arrangement of data publications by geographical location and topic, visitor
"portals" or entrance ways into the site based on specific audience
needs, and a Special Interest section designed to spotlight important research
and tools. [MW]
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Contents]
Cool Science for Curious Kids [Java]
http://www.hhmi.org/coolscience/
Kids
can explore animal classifications, dust particles in the air, the stages of a
butterfly's life, and which plant parts to use in a garden salad, at this simple
and well-designed site. With support from the Precollege and Public Science
Education Program of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, five museums have
contributed questions, activities, and factual information on individual
sections in Cool Science for Curious Kids. Tips for parents and links to the
contributing museums complete the site. [JR]
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Giotto: The Scrovegni Chapel
http://www.pipeline.com/~roye/gallery/giotto/arena.html
This
site offers an up-close tour through Giotto's frescos in the Cappella dell'Arena
in Padua (also called the Scrovegni Chapel), built by Enrico Scrovegni between
1300 and 1303 on the site of a Roman amphitheater. Carefully researched and
presented by Roy Evans, the site introduces the user to Giotto, an art
historical legend, and presents Giotto's fresco representation of the lives of
the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ. Users can browse through the frescos, zooming
in on details. Giotto is often regarded as a founder of modern painting since he
broke with the painting conventions of his day and attempted to depict
three-dimensional figures in space on a flat surface. The frescos in the
Scrovegni Chapel show the full scope of this artistic revolution. See the third
image, "The Annunciation of Anna," to appreciate Giotto's handling of
space. [DS]
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Contents]
B-EYE
http://cvs.anu.edu.au/andy/beye/beyehome.html
One
of the great treats awaiting Scouts (or any others who learn to search the Web
efficiently) is the large number of high quality science Websites put forth by
Australian research institutions. B-EYE is yet another such wonderful site. Dr.
Andrew Giger, a neuroscientist studying insect vision at the Centre for Visual
Science (CVS) at Australian National University, put together this site so
visitors could see the world "through the eyes of a honey bee."
Although simplified to grayscale images (bees view colors differently than
humans), the visual distortions (from human to bee) are fascinating and highly
educational. The well-designed site takes the viewer through the specific
elements of each visual distortion, offering descriptions, a gallery of
pre-processed images, and several options for viewing. The most sophisticated
option allows users to set parameters (distance to pattern, horizontal and
vertical position, background intensity, etc.) to view a series of images thr!
ough a human eye, a simulated projection, and eventually, a bee's eye. [LXP]
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CNN Media Search
http://magnifi.cnn.com/
Hollywood Online
http://www.hollywood.com/grid/search_new.html
PBS
ONLINE
http://www.pbs.org/search/
Try a search
of the more than ten gigabytes of digital content at CNN Interactive's
multimedia Website using CNN Media Search, powered by Magnifi Server. Users can
retrieve text, images, sound, video, VR, and animation in a single search. The
expanded search format also allows users to specify media formats specifically
as JPEG images only, or documents only. Magnifi Server runs on the Windows NT
and Solaris platforms. Other sites using Magnifi Server for multimedia searching
include Hollywood Online and PBS ONLINE. [DS]
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Video Search Engine--AltaVista & Virage
[RealPlayer]
http://video.altavista.com/
Virage and
AltaVista have combined to launch the first video search engine available on the
Web. Using new technology that watches, listens, and reads videos, the Virage
Video Cataloger automatically extracts relevant information to create searchable
indexes in real-time. This breakthrough technology has been adapted for the
Internet, allowing users to search video files by keyword and view selected
segments. The experimental Web version of this technology, available at
AltaVista, currently features four hours of President Clinton's video testimony
to a grand jury last month. [AO]
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Copyright Susan Calcari and the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents, 1994-1998. Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of the Scout Report provided the copyright notice and this paragraph is preserved on all copies. The Internet Scout Project provides information about the Internet to the US research and education community under a grant from the National Science Foundation, number NCR-9712163. The Government has certain rights in this material.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Wisconsin - Madison or the National Science Foundation.
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