Research and Education
http://www.openhumanitiespress.org/
As more and more journals elect to move to an open-source model, it is delightful to learn about the existence of the Open Humanities Press (OHP). Their mission is "to make leading works of contemporary critical thought freely available worldwide." First-time visitors will want to look over the "About OHP" section before delving into the rest of the site. Afterwards, they should feel free to look through one of their seven journals, which include "Cosmos and History", "Culture Machine", "Film-Philosophy", and "Fibreculture". While all of the journals are worth a look, the "Film-Philosophy" journal is particularly compelling, and visitors can browse through issues back to 1997. Finally, visitors can also learn about submitting their work for consideration and also take in a few essays about the guiding principles and history of the OHP. [KMG]
http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/index.html
Housed at the University of California, Berkeley, the Greater Good Science Center (GGSC) is "devoted to the scientific understanding of happy and compassionate individuals, strong social bonds, and altruistic behavior." To achieve this goal, the GGSC enlists a broad range of scholars from various disciplines, publishes a quarterly magazine ("Greater Good"), and maintains an outreach program that includes a website designed for parents who wish to foster emotional intelligence in their children. On their homepage, visitors can look over the "What's New?" area to learn about recent findings, view webcasts with experts from the Center, and also read about their latest publications. Next, visitors may want to go to the "Magazine" area to read articles from the latest issue of "Greater Good" magazine. This publication has been nominated for a number of awards, and topics covered between its pages include the importance of play and the binuclear family. Finally, the "For Parents" area contains a number of fine resources on parenting, including a number of short videos that cover emotional literacy, how to praise, and the value of family dinner. [KMG]
http://www.uli.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&CONTENTID=41895&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm
It would seem that for the most part Americans are not terribly fond of high-density developments as they are often associated with increased levels of criminal activity, overcrowding, and a decrease in available parking spots. This 38-page report from the Urban Land Institute takes on some of the myths and facts behind high-density developments. The report was co-sponsored by the National Multi Housing Council, the Sierra Club, and the American Institute of Architects. All told, the report takes on eight myths, including "Higher-housing is only for lower-income households" and "No one in suburban areas wants higher-density development". Overall, it's a fine report whose conclusions are bolstered by the use of rigorous case studies and compelling statistics. This link also offers a few related Power Point presentations for general use. [KMG]
http://www.hks.harvard.edu/hauser/
Established in 1997 with a grant from Rita and Gus Hauser, The Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organization "pursues dispassionate research and education, promoting critical thinking about the importance, roles and performance of civic organizations." This website complements their contextual work by offering information about their staff, publications, research programs, and educational programs. The "Publications" area is one that will be of most interest to visitors, as they can peruse their working paper series, look over their newsletters, and also learn about recent books written by Hauser Center authors. The working paper series contains over 40 titles, including "Comparative Advantage in Disaster Response" and "What Matters to Whom? Managing Trust Across Multiple Stakeholder Groups". In the "Programs" area, visitors will find resources for public sector and religious leaders via the Program on Religion and Public Life and materials on the Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative. Finally, visitors can also sign up to receive the Center's e-newsletter. [KMG]
http://mathdl.maa.org/mathDL/3/?pa=content&sa=viewDocument&nodeId=1674
Developed by Barbara Kaskosz of the University of Rhode Island and Doug Ensley of Shippensburg University, this resource from The Mathematical Association of America's Digital Classroom Resources collection will prove quite valuable for educators and anyone with an interest in computer graphics or geometry. Through this resource, visitors will learn how to draw and rotate 3D objects via a series of short tutorials. Along the way, users will learn about the mathematics behind manipulating cubes, the geometry involved with the manipulation of cubes, and they will also get a chance to work on their own structures. Overall, it's a fine resource and it offers insights for students in several different disciplines [KMG]
The goal of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is to help "the world find pragmatic solutions to our most pressing environment and development challenges." To accomplish this broad set of goals, they manage field projects across the globe, support scientific research, and also bring a variety of stake-holders together to work on developing meaningful policies and laws. The best way to find out more about their work is to glance over the news stories featured on their homepage. Visitors here will find everything from reports on restoring mangrove swamps in Myanmar to the global population status of different oceanic sharks and rays. After that, it's a short jump to the "What we do" area, which will lead users to a thematic list of all of their projects organized around "Species", "Ecosystems", and "Issues". Next up is the "Resources" area, which presents a formidable array of IUCN position papers, research works, conference documents and so on. Additionally, this area also contains the "Tools for Organizations" section, which offers up a number of "how to guides" that cover conservation management, assessment and monitoring, and conservation policy. [KMG]
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/earlyamericas/
When thinking about the early Americas, it's hard not to consider the stellar materials that make up the Jay I. Kislak Collection at the Library of Congress. Kislak amassed thousands of items related to early Florida, the Caribbean, and Mesoamerica, and subsequently donated over 3,000 of these items to the Library. This online exhibition affords interested parties a taste of these materials organized into three sections: "Pre-Contact America", "Explorations and Encounters", and "Aftermath of the Encounter". Within each section, visitors can read a brief introductory essay and then dive right into the artifacts and documents presented therein. One delightful section that should not be missed is the "Urban Landscapes" section within "Pre-Contact America". Here visitors can wonder over miniature village scenes from West Mexico and views of Tenochtitlán and Cusco from 1572. That's far from all, as the site also has three "Interactive" presentations. They cover the famed Waldseemüller Maps of 1507 and 1516 and a complete digitized version of Alexander Exquemelin's rousing 1678 work, "The Buccaneers of America". [KMG]
http://lehd.did.census.gov/led/index.html
The Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) program was designed by the U.S. Census Bureau to bring together census information, surveys, and administrative records in an attempt to offer more specific data on local labor market conditions. Visitors to the site will note that the main sections on the homepage include "Local Employment Dynamics", "Data Tools", "Research", and "Library". The "Data Tools" area is a good place to start as interested parties can view local community economic development reports, view an interactive map of data, and also read a variety of case studies. Moving on, the "Research" area leads to working papers on related projects, such as those on low wage work and human capital and productivity. Finally, the "Library" includes statistical profiles of older workers, presentations, and information on their workshops. [KMG]
