http://www.huduser.org/periodicals/pdrperio.html

The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publishes three periodicals aimed towards urban development professionals, policy makers, and scholars. This website brings all three of these periodicals together in one place, and visitors can look through current and past issues of “ResearchWorks”, “Cityscape”, and the quarterly report, “U.S. Housing Market Conditions”. For those interested in a more general-interest publication, “Cityscape” is a good bet, as it contains pieces on housing vouchers, ethnically diverse urban neighborhoods, and the legacy of the Fair Housing Act. “ResearchWorks” is the official newsletter of HUD’s Office of Policy Development & Research, and here visitors can read about recent case studies and success stories in the area of urban development. There are some interesting theme issues here as well, including “Universities Rebuilding America” and “The Public’s Views of Affordable Housing”. Finally, the “U.S. Housing Market Conditions” reports consist of statistical data and written reports on the quarterly status of economic and housing market trends for 10 geographical regions. [KMG]

http://vc.hul.harvard.edu:11080/vc/deliver/home?_collection=scarlet

The history of sensational trials goes back much further than the days of Court TV, and even past the sordid business of Leopold and Loeb, which was known as the “Trial of the Century”. The good folks at the Harvard University Library are well aware of this fact, and they recently created this fascinating online archive of 420 trial narratives for use by historians and members of the web-browsing public who might be intrigued by such goings-on. Titled “Studies in Scarlet”, this collection includes American, British, and Irish cases from 1814 to 1914 that involve domestic violence, seduction, breach of promise to marry, and murder. While many of the lives chronicled here are not well-known to the public, there are a few recognizable trials, such as the trial of Harry Thaw for the murder of Stanford White, the famed architect, and a transcript of the adultery trial of Caroline, Queen Consort of George IV. [KMG]

http://www.exploratorium.edu/imaging_station/index.html

The Exploratorium in San Francisco continue to break new and intriguing ground with their latest online project, the Microscope Imaging Station. The actual physical Station resides at their museum, and was opened in 2004. Developed to complement this interactive exhibit, this online manifestation of the Station allows visitors to peer into the cells of living organisms such as sea urchins and zebrafish. The sea urchin feature is a real treat, as it is accompanied by a well-written essay on how this spiky creature may help unlock the secrets of genes, reproduction, and cancer. If that wasn’t enough, the essay (as with other features on the site) includes a short video clip. The “Gallery” is definitely worth a stop as well. Here, visitors will find a wide range of high-resolution images and movies created with research-grade microscopes. Watching cells move, the fertilization process and the world of mitosis is a rather nice way to spend a few minutes, and visitors will probably want to pass the site along to friends and family. [KMG]

http://cndls.georgetown.edu/

New centers and institutes dedicated to the proposition of bridging the gulf between pedagogy and technological advances in the college classroom are nothing new, but The Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS) is definitely one of the leaders in this important area. Based at Georgetown University, CNDLS was started in 2000 and is primarily concerned with promoting “discovery, engagement, and diversity in an ever-expanding conception of learning.” By clicking on the “Projects” section of the site, visitors can learn about novel and classroom-tested pedagogical innovations in the humanities, law, and mathematics, to name but a few of the areas covered here. Visitors to each site (such as the one dedicated to online pediatric training), can read a summary of each project and then proceed to a separate website or related links. The site is rounded out by a calendar of events and contact information for those who would like to learn more about their work. [KMG]

http://devdata.worldbank.org/atlas-mdg/large.html

The World Bank established a set of Millennium Development Goals as both a challenge to poor countries to demonstrate “good governance” and to wealthy nations as a spur that would hopefully encourage them to support economic and social development. Recently, the World Bank created this visually engaging and sophisticated interactive atlas to track those eight goals, which include the promotion of gender equality, combating disease, and reducing child mortality. Visitors can click on any of these eight goals and they will be able to view maps of the world that document the progress that has been made in each nation. Clicking on each nation individually brings up clear and easy-to-read tables that chart additional changes within each separate goal. Visitors can export the data for their own use, and they can also resize the map to demonstrate the changes made over the past few years. [KMG]

http://www.marinetech.org/

Working together with a range of partners, including a number of community colleges, the Marine Advanced Technology Education Center (MATE), has created a number of valuable resources that will be useful for those with an interest in this field. The instructional resources are primarily related to those interested in careers in hydrographic surveying, aquaculture technicians, and several other fields. Visitors will appreciate the “Careers, Jobs, “Internships” area which features profiles of these fields, current job listings, and other items. The education center is a real find, as it includes learning modules, worksheets, and other informative pedagogical tools for instructors. [KMG]

http://library.stanford.edu/depts/swain/hosted/earthday/2005/climate.html

Started by the late Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, Earth Day has become a world wide event in its over thirty years of existence, and educators will find this site most helpful as they begin to develop lesson plans and exercises around this event. Created by the American Chemical Society, this site contains links to online resources that deal with the climate, various climatic regions, and ongoing changes in climate. The links are organized into three sections, and visitors can also read brief descriptions of the materials they can find on each site. There are some very fine links here, including one to NASA’s Earth Observing System and the Global Climate Change site offered by The Exploratorium Museum in San Francisco. [KMG]

http://themathworksheetsite.com/

For people of a certain age, the phrase “math worksheet” may conjure images of pieces of paper with wet purple ink, freshly mimeographed. For others, they might just say: “What’s a mimeograph?” Both groups will find things to like about this website, which brings together a number of math worksheets for general use. The site is maintained by Scott Bryce, and while some of the materials require a subscription, there is enough free material to warrant several visits. Visitors should take a look at the “Preview” section, where they can look over examples of instructional worksheets that cover concepts such fractions, mixed numbers, graphing, and measurement. The site is rounded out by a weblog, which is updated with additional materials and suggestions on using the site. [KMG]