The Scout Report -- Volume 21, Number 5

The Scout Report -- Volume 21, Number 5

The Scout Report

February 6, 2015 -- Volume 21, Number 5

A Publication of Internet Scout
Computer Sciences Department, University of Wisconsin-Madison




Research and Education

  Science Friday: Educate
  Eudora Welty's "A Worn Path" in Graphical Representation
  Wired Science
  A Day in the Life: Artists' Diaries from the Archives of American Art
  Sesame Workshop
  Counterspill
  Edgar Allan Poe Museum
  Nautilus

General Interest

  Why We Sleep
  Packers Project
  Hmong Embroidery
  The Science of Hatred
  Surviving & Thriving: AIDS, Politics, and Culture
  Astrobiology
  The High Line
  OUPblog: Oxford University Press's Academic Insights for the World

Network Tools

  TinyScan
  Pocket

In the News

  A Year After his Death, Pete Seeger Still Inspires



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Research and Education

Science Friday: Educate

·http://www.sciencefriday.com/teacher-resources/index.html#page/full-width-list/1

While Science Friday started as a show on public radio stations around the country in 1991, it has since expanded in a number of exciting directions, from digital videos to original web content. The Educate section of the Science Friday website is a boon to teachers, as well as learners of all ages. The informative articles, which are updated two or three times a month, have been sorted into subjects that include Chemistry, Earth Science, Engineering and Technology, Life Science, Mathematics, and Physical Science. The content is always fresh and entertaining, and the punchy prose is sure to keep students' attention. Also of note, each Lesson Plan is accompanied by Target Grade levels and estimated time, as well as an Educator Toolbox (at the bottom of each page), that provides easy access to downloadable material. [CNH]


Eudora Welty's "A Worn Path" in Graphical Representation

·http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/eudora-weltys-worn-path-graphical-representation#sect-introduction

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Eudora Welty was known for her elegiac, character-driven novels and short stories about the South. Over her decades-long career, she published nearly two dozen works of fiction. This enriching site from the National Endowment for the Humanities offers an unusual inroad to Welty's classic short story, "A Worn Path." Educators can access guiding questions, learning objectives, background, preparation instructions, lesson activities, and assessment, all on the site, and all for free. As the site states, graphic representations may encourage students to "learn to appreciate elements of characterization, setting, and plot in a manner that engages them actively in the production of meaning." [CNH]


Wired Science

·http://www.wired.com/science/

Some science websites try to make science cool. Wired Science just IS cool. The blog, which is updated multiple times a day by a diverse flock of authors, takes the things people - and maybe especially teenagers - are fascinated by, and then breaks them down and explains them. Recent articles describe a mathematical model of objects slowed down by the iPhone 6 camera, animal cannibalism, killer asteroids, and why we're looking for life on moons. With hundreds of posts to scroll through and hundreds of topics to learn about, readers will find much to celebrate on this science blog from one of the world's most-read technology magazines. [CNH]


A Day in the Life: Artists' Diaries from the Archives of American Art

·http://www.aaa.si.edu/exhibitions/day-in-the-life-diaries

These engrossing diaries, currently on exhibit at the Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian, provide exceptional snapshots into the lives of American artists - as well as European artists living in America. Entries cover such topics as New Year's Eve dinner parties, reflections on the war efforts of World War I in France, musings on dreams, marriages, friends, and the quotidian details that make up a life. The overall effect is transportive: readers may find themselves living, if only for a few moments, in other times and places, in the subjectivity and happenstance of these artists' days. Particularly noteworthy is Rubens Peale's diary entry from April 1865 recounting President Abraham Lincoln's assassination and funeral procession. [CNH]


Sesame Workshop

·http://www.sesameworkshop.org

Sesame Workshop is a non-profit educational organization that uses the power of media to help children learn. Most of us are familiar with the Sesame Street show, but as this website demonstrates, the organization does much, much more. With lessons spanning topics from reading and math to emotional well-being and health and wellness, Sesame Workshop is active in over 150 countries around the world. Readers may like to start with the What We Do tab to access information on topics such as Sesame Street goes to school, Sesame Workshop's program focused on early education in the U.S. The site can also be searched by category (Literacy & Numeracy, Emotional Wellbeing, Health & Wellness, Respect & Understanding) and region (by continent). Additionally, the news tab offers a blog and press releases related to the programs. [CNH]


Counterspill

·http://www.counterspill.org/

Counterpsill.org is a bustling hub of information that covers 100 years of non-renewable energy disasters. As a "living archive," the site is updated with news stories, infographics, educational and satirical videos, and invitations to political action. The homepage is a case in point. Disasters are placed on both a world map and a timeline. Readers may click on any incident, represented by a color-coded circle, to read the details of what happened, how many (if any) lives were lost, and the amount of money that was spent to clean up. That cost is used as a benchmark for what could be accomplished by spending the same amount of money on renewable resources. For instance, the $87,000,000 spent on the Upper Big Branch Mine Disaster in 2010 could buy 44 wind turbines and power over 15,000 homes for a year. [CNH]


Edgar Allan Poe Museum

·https://www.poemuseum.org/index.php

Edgar Allan Poe, who was born in 1809 and died in 1849, published work for only two decades, but his influence on literature was profound. In addition to being toted as America's first great literary critic, he is often credited with inventing the detective story, pioneering science fiction, and mastering the psychological horror story. The Poe Museum's excellent website is abundant with resources for teachers and students of Poe. Readers may like to start with Poe's Life, which provides a brief biography. Selected Works available on the site include such classics as The Raven, The Cask of Amontillado, and The Tell-Tale Heart. In addition, the Teachers section and the Students section both offer excellent resources for the study of Poe, including an elucidation of Poe's literary techniques and activities such as "Solve the Mystery of Poe's Death." [CNH]


Nautilus

·http://nautil.us/

Nautilus Magazine, which launched in April of 2013, positions itself as "science, connected." While the opulent print quarterly costs $49 a year, the online iteration is accessible free of charge. Here's how it works: each month, the editors of Nautilus choose a single topic. Previous issues have focused on creativity, illusions, and genius. Then the magazine publishes a "chapter" each Thursday on that topic. Unlike other science magazines, which often stick to breaking the latest research and leave it at that, Nautilus publishes essays, investigative reports, blogs, and even fiction. They post games, videos, and graphic stories. The site is intuitive and easy to navigate. Back issues can be located under the Issues tab. Otherwise, readers may simply click the well-displayed and visually pleasing articles and chapters that appear on the homepage. [CNH]


General Interest

Why We Sleep

·http://www.ted.com/talks/russell_foster_why_do_we_sleep

Russell Foster studies sleep. In fact, he's a circadian neuroscientist, which means he studies what happens to the brain when it does - and doesn't - sleep. This entertaining talk, just under twenty-two minutes in length, covers a range of sleep-related topics from the amount of sleep people typically got before the invention of the lightbulb (hint: a lot more than we get now) to dangers of depriving teenagers of their bed rest. Along the way Foster asks, and tries to answer, the age old question of why we sleep, and explores the relationship of interrupted sleep cycles with mental illness. Subtitles for the talk are available in 36 languages. [CNH]


Packers Project

·http://packersproject.org

The Green Bay Packers, who started playing in the wind-swept north country of Wisconsin in 1919, are the third-oldest football franchise in the country. They are also, importantly, the only non-profit, community-owned major league professional sports team in all of the United States. Perhaps this at least partially explains the unswerving devotion of Packers fans that are displayed on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Packers Project website, which gathers memorabilia from throughout the history of the team. Collections are divided into four broad categories: UWGB Day at Lambeau field, Lambeau Selfies, Fanecdotes, and Game Day Superstitions. As a community-sourced digital collection, fans can easily contribute an item to the site - in fact it's highly encouraged. The site is also easily searchable and browseable. [CNH]


Hmong Embroidery

·http://www.hmongembroidery.org

This wonderfully educational site was funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Asian Pacific Endowment of the Saint Paul Foundation. Functioning as an online museum, it features 213 unique Hmong embroidery pieces, including images of animals, village life, farming, and war. The site can be easily scouted through its online exhibits, which are listed in order on the right hand side of the page, and also include examples of Hmong attire and crafts and ornaments. There is also a useful and accessible glossary and a section that outlines typical Hmong motifs and symbols, which can be accessed under the Symbols tab. Many of the items are accompanied by annotations explicating the history and culture of the Hmong, which makes for a very educational reading experience. [CNH]


The Science of Hatred

·http://chronicle.com/article/The-Science-of-Hatred/143157

This fascinating, in-depth article from the Chronicle of Higher Education, traces the work of Sabina Cehajic-Clancy, a social psychologist who studies intergroup conflict and reconciliation in present day Bosnia and Herzegovina. A former refugee from the very conflict she now works to understand, Cehajic-Clancy turned down more prestigious academic positions in the United States and England to work at the newly founded Sarajevo School of Science and Technology, where she can be close to the people she wished to interview and observe. While some of Cehajic-Clancy's findings have been positive, she has also found that Serbs tend to deny the atrocities of Muslims outright or insist that it would be better to forget. As she says in the article, "It is unbelievable the extent and amount of creativity that people possess when it comes to denying." [CNH]


Surviving & Thriving: AIDS, Politics, and Culture

·http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/survivingandthriving/index.html

When the first cases of AIDS began appearing in the United States in 1981, doctors and researchers were baffled. It took a decade rife with protests and media coverage to encourage action by government officials and funding organizations, and it wasn't until the 1990s that effective treatment practices for HIV and AIDS were disseminated to the wider medical community. Surviving & Thriving: AIDS, Politics, and Culture is a U.S. National Library of Medicine-sponsored exhibition about the history of AIDS in America. Readers may scout the site by clicking the Exhibition tab and then peruse chapters such as Doing Science, Making Myths and Government (In)Action. Teachers might be especially interested in the Education tab, which opens to lesson plans, higher education modules, online activities, and links to other resources. [CNH]


Astrobiology

·http://online.liebertpub.com/toc/ast/15/1

Put simply, Astrobiology is a diverse and multidisciplinary field that seeks to understand the origins of life. Sometimes it manifests as a search for life on other planets, other times it might be a deep ocean dive. Astrobiology, the journal, is the "leading peer-reviewed international journal for astronomers, biologists, chemists, geologists, microbiologists, paleontologists, and planetary scientists." Best of all, readers can download dozens of peer-reviewed articles, ranging from tributes to pioneers in the field to intricate studies of ocean vent microbes, for free. Recent articles have focused on the debate over how to define life and the implications for the detection of potential bacterial life on one of Jupiter's moons. Each issue features a tribute, a News & Views article, and an education article. [CNH]


The High Line

·http://www.thehighline.org

The High Line, which runs 1.45 miles along a disused railroad line on the Lower West Side of Manhattan, is one of those successful urban projects that brings beauty to a neighborhood. Funded entirely through private donors and drives, the aerial greenway provides a park-like space where trains used to rumble through with cars full of frozen turkeys and coal for power plants. The site is well-designed and visually pleasing. Readers can learn about the project in the About tab, which provides a timeline, a design section, and photographs (including a link to the organization's Flickr page). The High Line Blog is updated regularly and features posts about the recent goings on. For anyone interested in urban renewal projects, this site offers many treasures. [CNH]


OUPblog: Oxford University Press's Academic Insights for the World

·http://blog.oup.com/

True, Oxford University Press is a publisher and most of its content is available on a for-purchase basis. However, its Academic Insights blog has a lot on offer - free of charge. For example, see the Series and Columns section for short pieces like "The economics of Scottish Independence" by Richard S. Grossman. Grossman is one of Oxford's authors who writes a series on economic policy. Other current pieces include "Reading on-screen versus on paper" by Naomi Baron, the author of Words Onscreen: The Fate of Reading in a Digital World. While there are prominent links to buy the most recent books by these authors, some reading related pieces, such as "A lifetime in the library," contains no links to books to buy. This particular piece was written by Rachel Brook, a Marketing Assistant at Oxford University Press, in celebration of UK National Libraries Day (February 7th). [DS]


Network Tools

TinyScan

·http://www.appxy.com/tinyscan/

The idea of TinyScan is simple - the app uses the camera function of iPhones to make them into portable scanners, so that users can scan documents and transform them into PDFs. The scanner automatically detects the page frame, making scanning extremely user friendly. PDFs can then be easily shared with others by uploading to Dropbox, Evernote, Google Drive, and others. TinyScan requires iOS 6.0+ or Android 3.0+. [CNH]


Pocket

·https://getpocket.com

When you see something you'd like to read, but you don't have time at the moment, put it in Pocket and read it later. This is the simple, but powerful notion behind this helpful app. Once select items are placed in Pocket, there is no need for an Internet connection - a great feature for daily commuters or others who find themselves at various times throughout the day without an Internet connection. Items (articles, videos, etc.) can be added via email, web browser, or a handful of other apps, such as Twitter, Flipboard, or Pulse. Compatible with all operating systems. [CNH]


In the News

A Year After his Death, Pete Seeger Still Inspires

Smithsonian Folkways: A Tribute to Pete Seeger
http://www.folkways.si.edu/PeteSeeger

M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections & Archives: Remembering Pete Seeger
http://library.albany.edu/archive/seeger

Library of Congress Blog: Remembering Pete Seeger
http://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2014/01/remembering-pete-seeger/

Remembering Pete Seeger
http://www.rememberingpeteseeger.org/

Pete Seeger: the man who brought politics to music
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jan/28/pete-seeger-man-brought-politics-to-music

NPR Music: Pete Seeger
http://www.npr.org/artists/15869924/pete-seeger

Pete Seeger, who died a year ago at the age of 94, stood for a great many things throughout his lengthy musical career. He stood for working men and women, he stood for peace, he stood for clean water and clean air. But above all, and always, he stood for the basic human connection that blossoms when people stand up and sing together. While Seeger was considered a political radical (his multimillion-record-selling band The Weavers was blacklisted into silence during McCarthy witch hunts), perhaps the singer and banjo player's greatest radical act was his sustained hope and his unwillingness to bend to the cynicism and heartbreak that has so often defined American politics since the 1970s. [CNH]

The sites listed here pay tribute to Pete Seeger and his life. Readers may follow the first three links to the Smithsonian Folkways, The University of Albany Library, and the Library of Congress, each of which offer excellent collections of articles, videos, and recordings of Pete Seeger singing through the years. The fourth link, Remembering Pete Seeger, was founded just after the singer's death, and functions as the sort of community space that Seeger would have held dear, with the opportunity for fans, friends, and scholars to make their own contributions and comments. Fifth, the Guardian offers several articles about Seeger, the first of which begins, "Pete Seeger was a good man." Finally, NPR's coverage traces some of Seeger's later performances and features a four-minute In Memoriam 2014 for other singers, songwriters, instrumentalists, and visionaries we lost in 2014, a list of 5 Pete Seeger Songs to Sing Together, and other great tributes to the man and his memory.





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