Research and Education
http://www.concernedjournalists.org/tools/filter/7
An aspiring journalist might ask: “Where can I find some resources on how to get great anecdotes out of an interview subject?” The short answer is this fine site, which was created and maintained by the Committee of Concerned Journalists within the “Tools for Print Journalists” area of their main site. Although visitors can’t search the various resources, they can scan through the several hundred resources as they see fit, and there are dozens of great things to look at here. For example, Pulitzer Prize-winning report Eric Nalder shares his tips for conducting effective interviews in the “Loosening Lips” factsheet. Moving on, another resource offers a journalist’s guide to the Geneva Conventions. Overall, the site is a very useful resource for journalists of all stripes, and it’s one that journalism instructors can also use in the classroom. [KMG]
http://www.fic.engr.utexas.edu/resources/index.cfm
The University of Texas’s College of Engineering is committed to continual improvement of their undergraduate curriculum and they have created the Faculty Innovation Center in part to work on this process. Along with the work they do in the classrooms at the University of Texas, they also provide a number of tremendously useful online materials that are relevant to both those involved in engineering education and those who teach all manner of college courses. These resources are divided into several sections here, including “Teaching and Learning”, “Teaching with Technology”, and “Distance Learning”. All told, there are over eighty resources here, including a worksheet on developing effective lectures, a “best practices” overview for videoconferencing, and a guide to using student feedback. [KMG]
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/43/50/38982210.pdf
“Lifelong learning” and “human capital” are terms that are bandied about quite a bit, and some may still find them a bit puzzling. Fortunately, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECED) has crafted this policy brief to explain some of the basics regarding the importance of human capital and its increasing importance to economic growth. Released in July 2007, this particular 8-page brief answers such questions as “What is human capital?”, “Why is early childhood important?”, and “How is education responding?” For persons interested in a wide range of policy issues, including economic development, this short brief will be most useful. The brief also includes a list of additional readings, some of which are available via the OECD’s main site. [KMG]
http://mathdl.maa.org/mathDL/3/?pa=content&sa=viewDocument&nodeId=1571
While some may know fractals primarily from their use in abstract painting and African art, fractals are important elements within the world of mathematics. For those who seek to learn more about the construction of fractals and their uses, this very nice Flash-enabled feature from Daniel Gries at Merrimack College will definitely come in handy. This particular Flash applet draws fractals by means of a recursive algorithm, using a simple “generator” that users draw in the space that it is provided. Before using the application, users may wish read the overview offered online, and also take the time to read the instructions thoroughly. [KMG]
http://www.law.indiana.edu/fclj/index.shtml
There’s a whole lot of material to cover within the world of communications law, and within their aegis, the Federal Communications Law Journal (FCLJ) covers everything from intellectual property to cable regulation. The Journal is published by Indiana University law students, and it also serves as the official journal for the Federal Communications Bar Association. This status also means that the Journal will occasionally feature pieces by members of Congress and commissioners in the Federal Communications Commission. First-time visitors to the site can browse through the contents of the most recent issues, or they can browse through archived issues all the way back to 1993. Also, visitors can view some of their short commentaries in the “Forum” area and learn about print subscriptions and submitting manuscripts for consideration. [KMG]
http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/2007/RAND_MG567.pdf
The question of Taiwan’s status in the political economy of East Asia has been one that has bedeviled policy experts, government leaders, and others for six decades. Recently, the RAND Corporation crafted this 40-page report on behalf of the United States Air Force “to assess the nature of U.S.-China relations after the resolution of Taiwan’s status.” The document begins by identifying the principal pathways by which Taiwan’s status might be resolved and also examines the consequences for relations between China and the United States. The report is divided into three chapters which deal with near-term prospects, longer-term possibilities, and a set of final observations. Finally, the report concludes with a complete bibliography and several helpful tables. [KMG]
http://www.bioedonline.org/lessons/water-cycle.cfm
The Baylor University College of Medicine continues to work at a furious pace on their delightful BioEd Online site, and educators everywhere love them for their work and dedication. Recently, they placed this “ready-to-go” lessson on the water cycle and global warming online, and it’s a true delight. As with the other lessons in this series, the materials here include a brief description of the lesson’s objective, along with information on the intended audience, the materials required to complete the lesson, and so on. Teachers will note that they will need to download a slide set, several activity sheets, and a “State of the Climate Report” offered from the National Climatic Data Center.
[KMG]
Studying how people use YouTube and other digital technologies is a rapidly growing academic enterprise, and Professor Michael Wesch and his colleagues at Kansas State University are doing some interesting work in this area. Visitors can learn about their work by clicking on the “Our Projects” section which includes profiles of their separate research initiatives, such as “Explorations of Mediated Culture” and “Digital Ethnography of YouTube”. As one might expect, the site is not populated with research reports, but a selection of rather compelling YouTube videos that cover such ground as “The History of YouTube”, “Authenticity on the Tube”, and “A Global Community”. The site is rounded out by the World Simulation Project, which is an interactive and recursive classroom experience that is designed to create a map that mimics the geographical, environmental, and biological diversity of the real world. [KMG]
