Columbia Newsblaster
http://www.cs.columbia.edu/nlp/newsblaster/
With a team of researchers headed by Prof. Kathy McKeown, Columbia Newsblaster is an online project at Columbia University's Department of Computer Science in the School of Engineering and Applied Science. Newsblaster currently looks at news reports from thirteen sources, including Yahoo, ABCNews, CNN, Reuters, Los Angeles Times, CBS News, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Virtual New York, Washington Post, Wired, and USA Today. The product uses artificial intelligence techniques to cull through news reports published online and then sorts and summarizes these reports in five different news categories -- US, world, finance, entertainment, and sports. These summaries are based on reflecting factors, such as where a fact is mentioned in the published reports and how often it is repeated across reports dealing with the same event or subject. They are also based on the news value of individual facts, such as how many were killed or injured, or how much damage to property occurred. On the whole, in an age of information overload, this newly developed tool may provide assistance to journalists, executives, and average news consumers. [MG]
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CrisisWeb: Latest Publications
http://www.crisisWeb.org/projects/reports.cfm#top
The International Crisis Group (ICG) is a private, multinational organization "committed to strengthening the capacity of the international community to anticipate, understand and act to prevent and contain conflict." The ICG, which is chaired by former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, is headquartered in Brussels and has advocacy offices in Washington DC, New York, and Paris. The organization currently operates field projects in nineteen crisis-affected countries and four continents: Algeria, Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Zimbabwe in Africa; Myanmar, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan in Asia; Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia in Europe; and Colombia in Latin America. Teams of political analysts gather information from a wide range of sources, assess local conditions, and produce regular analytical reports, containing "practical recommendations targeted at key international decision-takers." For those users interested in exploring publications on issues related to conflict prevention and management, this is definitely a place to start. [MG]
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The Investor's Clearinghouse from the Alliance for Investor Education
http://www.investoreducation.org/
The Alliance for Investor Education has created the Investor's Clearinghouse in an effort to facilitate a greater understanding of investments and the financial markets among current and prospective investors of all ages. This site offers a range of investment information that includes investing basics, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, online Internet investing, financial planning, and tips on how to avoid becoming a victim of stock market fraud. Overall, this site is a great resource for current investors and anyone considering investment opportunities. [MG]
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Acurian
http://www.acurian.com/patient/
Very timely and in ever-increasing demand, services like Acurian hold a glimmer of hope to those suffering beyond the reach of currently-approved medical drug treatments and therapies. Offering state-by-state listings of clinical trials of cutting-edge drugs under investigation both by pharmaceutical manufacturers and/or academic research facilities, Acurian can serve as a vital link to users who want to be included, but who might not otherwise know where to look. An academic resource, the Acurian site is quick to note the experimental nature of the treatments to which it links. That said, it is there for those who feel they must look beyond the currently-sanctioned armory of treatments. Providing such data as length of studies listed, a given drug's side effects, and stage in the FDA approval process, Acurian promises to help many make informed decisions about some of life's hardest choices. [WH]
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PhotoGraphic Libraries: Education Resource
http://www.photographiclibraries.com/
PhotoGraphicLibraries.com is an educational resource site that provides links to other sites related to the field of photographic images. Links are arranged in categories that include stock and moving images, media services, photo and ad agencies, graphics, and clip art. The site also contains a library and archive collection that consists of national and private photographic collections. Ultimately, this site is an excellent resource for television producers, advertising agencies, libraries, education centers, picture researchers, and media services researching visual communications. [MG]
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Business 2.0 Web Guide
http://www.business2.com/webguide/
According to one of its own brochures, "Business 2.0 is the essential tool for navigating today's relentlessly changing marketplace, particularly as it's driven by the Internet and other technologies." In both print and electronic versions, Business 2.0 does cover an incredible amount of ground, including day-to-day and month-to-month information and offering extensive subject lists of its material, broken down by general subjects -- from management and marketing to Enron and the Internet. Not only clearly in touch with today's business world, Business 2.0 promises to put its readers in touch with it through company links, as well as through straightforward contact lists. While Business 2.0 is open for anyone's consultation, registered readers are granted greater access privileges to archived and premium content. [WH]
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The Moonlit Road
http://www.themoonlitroad.com/godschillun/intro_godschillun.asp
In honor of Black History Month, the Moonlit Road (last mentioned in the January 22, 1999 Scout Report) proudly presents a new story from Veronica Bryd entitled "All God's Chillun Had Wings." This classic slave tale of deliverance from the Georgia coast can be read or heard using RealPlayer. In addition, in an attempt to provide a better understanding of the historical and contextual make-up of the story, the site offers background information on the Sea Islands and Gullah culture. As important, Moonlit Road has brought back "The Boo Hag," one of their popular African-American folktales from the past. [MG]
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