Research and Education
http://mathdl.maa.org/mathDL/3/?pa=content&sa=viewDocument&nodeId=1514
The Mathematical Association of America has teamed up the National Science Foundation to create an online collection of digital classroom resources. One of their more recent creations is this multimedia feature that teaches students about Napier’s Bones. Created by Michael Caulfield and Wayne Anderson of Gannon University, this feature will introduce students to the work of John Napier, a 16th century mathematician who created a procedure for multiplication using sticks or bones. In this presentation, visitors can watch a step-by-step demonstration of this technique and then also enter any two factors of up to six digits each in order to create their own animation of this method. It is a nice way to get students thinking about this rather intriguing way to multiply, and the site also contains several links to other sites about John Napier and his bones. [KMG]
http://chnm.gmu.edu/digitalhistory/index.php
The Center for History and New Media at George Mason University has consistently broken new ground with their projects, and this online resource is an important part of their work. Created and written by Professors Daniel J. Cohen and Roy Rosenzweig, this online version of their book serves as an introduction to the web for those “who wish to produce online historical work, or to build upon and improve the projects they have already started in this important new medium.” The work is divided into a number of chapters, including “Becoming Digital”, “Owning the Past?”, and “Preserving Digital History”. Leaving hardly a stone unturned, the work covers everything from copyright law to site design, and it is a work that visitors will want to return to more than once. [KMG]
Most people who work in the academic world of either the humanities or the social sciences will have heard of H-Net, which consists of a number of electronic mailing lists that disseminate information about upcoming conferences, seminars, workshops, funding opportunities and so on. What they may not know about is the H-Net Reviews site, which is equally valuable. The site brings together all of the individual reviews posted to the different individual H-Net networks in one readily accessible database. On their site, visitors can read some of the latest scholarly reviews, read up on their review guidelines, and also perform a detailed search for reviews dating back to 1993. Visitors will also want to check out some of the other networks, including H-Human-Rights, H-Memory, and H-Material Culture. [KMG]
International Bee Research Association [pdf]
http://www.ibra.org.uk/
Honeybee genome [Real Player, pdf]
http://www.nature.com/nature/focus/honeybee/index.html#curr
Are you interested in beekeeping, pollination, beeswax, or just plain old (but never ordinary) bees? This site, created by the International Bee Research Association, is certainly worth a look as it brings together a host of resources on all of the aforementioned subjects. One definite stop should be the FAQ area, which contains answers to such pressing questions as “What should I do if I am stung by a bee?” and “How many honey bees are there in the world?” Visitors can also learn about their journals, which include the Journal of Apicultural Research and their newsletter, Buzz Extra. Moving on, the second site offered here is from the good folks at Nature magazine and it includes information about work being done on the honeybee genome, along with a video of scientists talking about this research. The site also offers full-text articles from the magazine on bee-related materials, including Edward O. Wilson’s “Genomics: How to Make a Social Insect” and a classic piece from 1957 on swarm-bee communication. [KMG]
http://www.discoveringantarctica.org.uk/
Antarctica is arguably the continent that most people know the least about, so it is nice to find out that the Royal Geographical Society (in partnership with the British Antarctic Survey) has created this website which explores all aspects of life on this landmass. The “Imagining Antarctica” area is a fine place to start, and visitors can watch a short video clip about the continent, test their existing knowledge with a short quiz, and then participate in a “being there” activity. Other engaging sections include “A Changing Climate”, “Living There Today” and “What Future?” The site also lists all of the resources by format, including audio files, video clips, Word documents, and images. Finally, the site also includes a “Teachers’ Area”, which offers a number of learning activities for students and teacher notes that are correlated to each of the main sections of the site. [KMG]
http://www.ala.org/ala/pressreleases2007/march2007/SAL_AnnualReport-FINAL.pdf
Released in April 2007, The State of America’s Libraries report from the American Library Association offers users a wealth of information about current trends over the past year. Within the 19-page report visitors will learn that investment in e-books at academic and research libraries rose 68 percent from 2002 to 2004 and that school library media centers were hard hit by funding cuts in 2006. The report contains a number of charts that track library use over the past year and the different types of materials contained within the nation’s libraries. Moving on, the report also contains brief summaries of the expansion of Google’s book digitization project and scholarships awarded to minority librarians. Overall, it is an impressive report, and one that will be of great interest to those interested in the policy issues surrounding libraries and those working in the fields of library and information science. [KMG]
The Encyclopedia of Earth is a very ambitious effort to provide high-quality information on a wide range of subjects related to the Earth, its natural environments and their interaction with society. The “About” section is a great place to start as visitors can learn about the mission, goals, and future direction of the Encyclopedia. From the homepage, visitors can read featured articles, learn about the contributors, as well as learn more about the content providers, such as the International Society for Ecological Economists. Visitors can then browse the Encyclopedia by article title, author, topic, content partner, or content source. For those who are geographically inclined, the “Where in the World?” feature lists article by location. Needless to say, this site is a great resource for anyone looking for excellent information on subjects ranging from acid rain to Vladimir Kosma Zworykin. [KMG]
http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/math.html
Good resources for mathematics educators can be difficult to find, but fortunately Kathy Schrock has brought together a very nice set of links that will be of interest to those looking for materials on algebra, trigonometry, probability, and any number of other related fields. The links are organized alphabetically, and visitors can also use the search engine that appears in the top right-hand corner of the page. Some of the highlights on the site include links to Ask Dr. Math, Math Forum, and the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives for Interactive Mathematics. Visitors may also use an online form to contact Schrock if they have any questions or comments. [KMG]
