The Scout Report - January 28, 2000

January 28, 2000

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

The Scout Report is a weekly publication offering a selection of new and newly discovered Internet resources of interest to researchers and educators. However, everyone is welcome to subscribe to one of the mailing lists (plain text or HTML). Subscription instructions are included at the end of each report.


In This Issue:

Subject Specific Reports

Research and Education

General Interest

Network Tools

In The News


Subject Specific Reports

Scout Report for Social Sciences and Business & Economics
Scout Report for Social Sciences
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/report/socsci/2000/ss-000125.html
Scout Report for Business & Economics
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/report/bus-econ/2000/be-000127.html
The ninth issues of the third volumes of the Scout Reports for Social Sciences and Business & Economics are available. The In the News section of the Social Sciences Report annotates ten resources on the recent Supreme Court decision regarding state limits on political contributions. The Business & Economics Report's In the News section offers eight resources on the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) lawsuit against MP3.com. [MD]
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Research and Education

Cambridge History of English and American Literature: An Encyclopedia in Eighteen Volumes
http://www.bartleby.com/141/cambridge/
This week, Bartleby.com (last reviewed in the December 10, 1999 Scout Report) announced the online publication of all eighteen volumes of the classic Cambridge History of English and American Literature. This excellent free resource "comprises the largest public reference work of literary criticism and history on the Internet." Originally published in 1907-1921, the volumes include 303 chapters and more than 11,000 pages, edited and written by a worldwide panel of 171 leading scholars and thinkers of the early twentieth century. The online version features over 5,600 files, searchable by keyword and browseable by volume, chapter, and section. The electronic Cambridge History also includes chapter and bibliography indexes. Although a bit dated in parts, these eighteen volumes are a valuable, and now easily accessible, research tool for secondary and university students. [MD]
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ESRC: Resource Guide to the Social Sciences
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/subject/socsci/
The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) of the United Kingdom have funded this newly posted Resource Guide to the Social Sciences. This directory provides annotated links to sites sorted by subject matter, including Bibliographic, reference and research information; Publications Online; Subject gateways; Data services; Datasets; Data Visualization; Software services and support for data processing; Images, moving pictures and sound; and Learning and Teaching Support Services. Annotations include a description of the site, the URL, and the terms of access. By no means exhaustive, the Guide instead focuses on those main Web sources students or researchers in social sciences will find most useful. [DC]
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Visual Arts Data Service (VADS)
http://vads.ahds.ac.uk/
VADS, part of the UK Arts & Humanities Data Service (AHDS), was established to create a searchable, online archive of digital resources for use by the visual arts community, especially those in higher education, and "to establish and promote good practice in the creation, management and preservation of digital resources through an advisory, training and publications programme." Recently redesigned, the VADS site now offers online access to three collections: the excellent Imperial War Museum Art Collection, Other Educated Persons: Art in East London 1972-1999, and Documentary Photography: Jacob Riis (actually a Computer Assisted Learning program that requires a Windows machine). Visitors to the site will also find the full text of the recent Creating Digital Resources for the Visual Arts: Standards and Good Practice. Co-authored with the Technical Advisory Service for Images (TASI), the Guide "highlights examples of current practice in the creation of digital information in the visual arts domain, and makes recommendations for good practice in data creation, collection, description, delivery and preservation." The site features several additional resources offering training and advice for higher education users involved in the creation, use, and preservation of digital resources. While still rather modest in size and scope, major additions are promised for the future, and interested users will certainly want to follow the development of the VADS site. [MD]
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The Virtual Library on Microcredit
http://www.soc.titech.ac.jp/icm/
Created by Dr. Hari Srinivas of the Tokyo Institute of Technology, The Virtual Library on Microcredit (VLM) is an encyclopedic resource on the issues surrounding microcredit. It was established to be "a repository of information on microcredit...[and aims] to support microfinance and related activities with information on policies, strategies, tools, case studies etc." Special themes, such as "Inspiring Ideas in Microcredit," "Improving Credit Access for Women," and "Capacity Building for Microfinance" are highlighted and contain a vast array of informative resources including documents, Websites, and networks and programs. The site is easily navigated using the main menu and pull-down menu and includes materials in French, Spanish, and Japanese, as well as English. [EM]
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FishBase [.zip]
http://www.fishbase.org/
Subtitled "A Global Information System on Fishes," this site does indeed seem to offer everything you ever wanted to know about fishes. The heart of the site is two databases, FishBase and LarvalBase, the first containing information on over 23,000 species (91,000 common names), 41,000 synonyms, 18,000 pictures, and 17,000 references; the latter featuring 400 species, 500 pictures, and 700 references. Both databases can be keyword searched or browsed by common name or scientific name. Entries include family, order, class, English name, distribution, biology, environment, climate zone, and additional information. Entries also offer a number of links for more species-specific data such as synonyms, countries, key facts, pictures, FAO areas, spawning, reproduction, predators, diet composition, and more. The search page for each database features a searchable glossary and reference database, and information by topic. In addition, the main FishBase page offers downloads, a Fish Forum, a biodiversity quiz, and a link to the expanded LarvalBase at the University of Kiel. [MD]
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The National Security Agency Declassified
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB23/index.html
This new electronic briefing book from the National Security Archive (last reviewed in the November 12, 1999 Scout Report) offers a peek inside the creation, evolution, and management of the National Security Agency (NSA). Originally founded as the Armed Forces Security Agency (AFSA) in 1948, the name and function of the agency was changed in 1952, when its role was expanded beyond merely coordinating the activities of the military service signals intelligence units. Dating from 1948 to 1998, the fifteen original documents in this briefing book include the memo from President Truman, which in part established the NSA, key Department of Defense directives, examples of NSA intelligence work and reporting, a top secret NSA position paper regarding American intelligence service involvement in the deaths of Michael DeVine and Efrain Bamaca Velasquez, and a recent organization chart. While scholars and students will benefit most from this latest release, it should appeal to anyone with an interest in the shadowy world of intelligence operations. [MD]
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EC/UNFPA Initiative for Reproductive Health in Asia Annual Report 1999 [.pdf]
http://www.asia-initiative.org/ar3.html
EC/UNFPA Initiative for Reproductive Health in Asia Homepage [.pdf]
http://www.asia-initiative.org/
Established in 1997 by the European Commission (EC) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Initiative for Reproductive Health in Asia involves international, regional, and local nonprofit organizations in an effort to bring "reproductive health services within reach of populations in South and South-East Asia that are thus far not or under-served." The Initiative focuses on seven Asian countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam. Released in late December, this report offers an overview of the Initiative and summaries of activities in each of the seven target nations. It may be downloaded by chapter or in its entirety in .pdf format. The main page of the site offers background information and links for each of the seven countries, overviews of current projects, newsletters and fact sheets, and other related resources. [MD]
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Hansard -- House of Commons Debates
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmhansrd.htm
Hansard -- House of Lords Debates
http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/ld/ldhansrd.htm
Access to Hansard (House of Commons, British Parliament) debates (originally reviewed in the November 1, 1996 Scout Report) has recently been improved, with the new edition now available each day at 9:00 am UK time. The site contains daily oral questions and debates, written answers to questions, and a table of contents listing column numbers, headings, timelines, and names of members in the Commons Hansard Debates text for each day. The debates are browseable and searchable by keyword, name of member, question number, dates, and document type. Past sessions to 1993-94 are also available at the site. The Lords Hansard will also be available at 9:00 am on the day following debates. The Lords debates and written answers may be browsed chronologically or by one of eleven categories. [MD]
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"FDA's Report on New Health Care Products Approved in 1999"
http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/ANSWERS/ANS00998.html
Released on January 18 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), this report highlights some of the approximately 140 medications and medical devices approved by the FDA last year. The highlighted products are listed by the groups of patients or diseases they are designed to help. The report also discusses FDA approval and application procedures. While neither extensive nor particularly easy to read, the report still contains a useful overview of the most important new drugs and treatments to enter the market in 1999. [MD]
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General Interest

William Gedney Photographs and Writings
http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/gedney/
Duke University's Electronic Scriptorium presents this huge digital collection of the work of photographer William Gedney. With 4,900 photographic images, scanned writings, and notebooks, and nine digitized versions of handmade photographic books put together by Gedney himself, the site might be the largest catalog of an individual photographer's life and work available on the Web today. All of the materials are fully cataloged and searchable in a number of ways. Search results are presented in frames, but the hierarchy can be slightly confusing. Nonetheless, there are many gems here, such as, in the Photographic Book Projects section, "A Time of Youth [San Francisco] 1969," which includes many famous views of the Hippies in Haight-Ashbury. It is also possible to browse the main photographic collection, which has been divided into twelve series, such as Composers, 1962-1968; Kentucky, 1969; The Farm, 1950s; and so on. [DS]
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art
http://www.metmuseum.org/home.asp
This month, New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art (originally reviewed in the December 22, 1995 Scout Report) unveiled its newly redesigned Website. Attractive and well organized, the site offers information on exhibitions, educational resources, program calendars, publications and reproductions, and other activities and holdings. Three new features in particular stand out. The first is the online collection of over 3,500 objects from the museum. The images are organized by department: Ancient Near Eastern Art, American Paintings and Sculpture, Medieval Art, etc. Each department's page includes a general overview and links to the images (accompanied by descriptions), 50 of which on average are offered per department. Users can also view recent acquisitions and the Director's choices, and search the collection by keyword, artist, title, or country of origin. In addition, after registering, users can even create "My Met Gallery," a private online exhibition space where their favorite works are saved. The other two significant resources (both accessed in the Educational Resources section) are Watsonline, an online (Telnet) catalog for the Museum's libraries, and the Annenberg Hazen and Joseph H. Hazen Center for Electronic Information Resources, a large collection of general and specific art links. [MD]
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Hubble Reopens Eye on the Universe [.pdf, .tiff]
http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pr/2000/07/index.html
Hubble Opens its Eye on the Universe and Captures a Cosmic Magnifying Glass [.pdf, .tiff]
http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pr/2000/08/index.html
The Hubble Telescope has reopened for business following the successful December 1999 servicing mission, and the first images to come back are magnificent. The first of these sites offers images and explanatory text related to the "Eskimo" Nebula, "the glowing remains of a dying, Sun-like star." The nebula is called the "Eskimo" because, when viewed from a ground-based telescope, it resembles a face surrounded by a fur parka. This parka is actually "a disk of material embellished with a ring of comet-shaped objects, with their tails streaming away from the central, dying star." Users can read about the nebula and view some beautiful images at the above URL. The second significant new view from the Hubble is of a huge cluster of galaxies called Abell 2218. This cluster is so massive that it actually deflects light passing through it, magnifying and distorting images from distant objects. Thus, "the cluster's magnifying powers provides a powerful 'zoom lens' for viewing distant galaxies that could not normally be observed with the largest telescopes." Text and photos in several formats can be accessed from the introductory page. [MD]
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European Forests Scorecards 2000 -- WWF [MSWord]
http://panda.org/resources/inthefield/europe/forests/scorecards/index_new.htm
Placed online this week, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)'s European Forests Scorecards contain mostly failing marks for nineteen European countries. Each scorecard reports on how the nation treats its forests, where it is succeeding, and where it needs to improve. Interestingly and contrary to many expectations, countries in eastern and southern Europe fared no worse, and in some cases, performed better, than their neighbors to the west and north. At the site, users can view a scorecard summary and read overviews of each nation's scorecard, then download the full text of the 93-page report in .doc format. 1998 scorecards are available for comparison. [MD]
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Women's Legal History Biography Project [.pdf]
http://www.stanford.edu/group/WLHP/
Originating in Stanford Law School Professor Barbara Babcock's course on Women's legal history, this site features a large collection of biographical papers by students on early woman lawyers. These papers, which discuss both living and past women lawyers, are found in the Biographical Chapters section, listed alphabetically. Each includes a timeline and bibliography, and some are in .pdf format. For even more information on these lawyers, users should consult the Pioneer Profile Index, in which each lawyer's entry lists all of the related material on the site, including the student paper, a citation or the text of contemporary articles, a bibliography, and research leads (when available). The latter three are also listed separately in their own sections, accessed from the main page. Additional resources include photos, obituaries, and related links. Submissions, proposed links, and suggestions for articles and sources for the bibliography are welcome. [MD]
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Chronology of Ireland
http://homepage.eircom.net/~chronology/
Created and maintained by D. Hankin and constructed from a number of several standard reference books on Irish History, this site offers an interesting, if admittedly limited, 80,000-word chronology of Ireland from 1600 to 1999. Rather than focus solely on major political or economic events, the chronology attempts to strike a balance between major and mundane events, providing a (politically neutral) "people-centred" timeline of the past 400 years. In addition to listing key and relatively minor events, the chronology for each decade also provides selected births and deaths. Users can browse the chronology by century and then by decade. While probably not well-suited for classroom use, the site should appeal to any and all Irish History buffs. [MD]
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Autosite.com Repairs/ Maintenance
http://www.autosite.com/garage/garmenu.asp
A subsection of Autosite.com, a for-profit (from ads, the content is free) information source for auto buyers, the maintenance and repair area offers free and detailed information on auto care and repair that is accessible but not simplistic. In the maintenance section, users will find a preventative maintenance checklist, illustrated guides to fluids and exterior systems, a discussion on tires, and FAQs. The Repair section features troubleshooting tips, an illustrated repair guide, a fairly deep Auto Repair Encyclopedia, and several related links. Whether you are a die-hard do-it-yourselfer or just prefer to be forearmed before taking your car to the mechanics, this site can help. [MD]
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Network Tools

SearchEdu.com
http://www.searchedu.com/
SearchGov.com
http://www.searchgov.com/
Launched on January 14 by MaxBot.com, the creators of SearchGov and SearchMil (reviewed in the January 12, 2000 Scout Report), this new search engine claims to index over 20 million pages in the .edu domain. Like Google and its other search engines, SearchEdu caches the versions of pages that its robots find and offers a simple keyword search interface and ranked returns that include brief excerpts from the site and links to the site or the cached version. At SearchEdu, users can also try their query in other MaxBot search engines and alternative reference sources such as dictionaries and encyclopedias. Additional resources include reference links, resources for calculations and conversions, and a (sadly outdated) metapage of links to colleges and universities. [MD]
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AOL Instant Messenger 3.5 (Beta)
http://www.aol.com/aim/home.html
The newest version of the extremely popular America Online (AOL) Instant Messenger (free to all users, not just AOL members) includes an enhanced I'm Away feature, improved file transfer capabilities, and the ability to see what features your online buddies have. It also has a new feature called AIM Talk, which allows users to speak over the Internet directly to their buddies (microphone and speakers/ headphones required). AOL Instant Messenger 3.5 Beta is available in both Windows and Mac formats, but please note that the Talk feature is not supported on 68K Macintoshes. [MD]
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XHTML 1.0 -- W3C [.ps, .pdf, .zip. .tar]
http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/
Press Release
http://www.w3.org/2000/01/xhtml-pressrelease.html.en
On January 26, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) released the XHTML 1.0 specification as a W3C Recommendation. According to W3C, XHTML 1.0 "is the first step toward a modular and extensible Web based on XML," as it works in both current HTML browsers and XML-enabled tools. At the W3C site, users can read the full text of the specification or download it in several formats. The official press release is also available. [MD]
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In The News

"The state of our union is the strongest it has ever been"
2000 State of the Union Address [RealPlayer, .pdf]
http://www2.whitehouse.gov/WH/SOTU00/
"Clinton Claims Bragging Rights to Nation's Prosperity" -- New York Times [RealPlayer]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/politics/012800sotu-rdp.html
"Clinton calls for major tax cut, new gun controls" -- CNN [QuickTime, RealPlayer, Windows Media]
http://www.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/01/27/state.union.01/index.html
Analysis: Return to Activist Agenda -- Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/politics/A41775-2000Jan27.html
"Bigger, longer, uncut" -- Salon.com
http://www.salon.com/politics2000/feature/2000/01/28/clinton/index.html
"Clinton Lays Out Ambitious Plans in Last State of Union" -- Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/natpol/lat_main000128.htm
"Clinton: Cut Taxes, Pay Debt State of the Union lauds U.S. prosperity" -- Philadelphia Inquirer
http://www.phillynews.com/inquirer/2000/Jan/28/front_page/UNION28.htm
Last night, President Clinton delivered his final State of the Union address. Crafted in partnership with Democratic members of Congress, the very ambitious address was a veritable laundry list of new initiatives and expanded programs, totalling hundreds of billions of dollars in new spending. Coming in at 89 minutes and interrupted 128 times by applause, the speech was the longest State of the Union ever, beating President Clinton's own 1995 record by eight minutes. Among the more significant new measures proposed are a new gun licensing program, a $350 billion tax cut, expanded federal health care programs (including a prescription drug benefit for Medicare beneficiaries), and further engagement with China. Not surprisingly, this long list of new initiatives did not go over well with the Republican congressional leadership. In their response, the Republicans criticized the President's agenda as spendthrift and focused especially on two traditionally Democratic issues: health care and education, using Senators Bill Frist of Tennessee and Susan Collins of Maine, experts on those subjects. Both Frist and Collins emphasized local and state control of schools and health care over the President's proposed federal oversight. There is one issue, however, upon which the White House and the Republicans now agree and which will likely be enacted this year: reducing the so-called marriage tax penalty, under which working married couples who file jointly pay more tax than working singles. Finally, the President also used the address to increase the political capital of two candidates near and dear to him: Vice-President Gore and his wife Hillary Rodham Clinton, both of whom received several mentions and words of thanks in the course of the speech.

The best place to begin exploring the State of Union Address is the official White House site, which contains the full text of the speech, biographies of the guests in the First Lady's gallery, audio and video recordings (not available at press time), a list of the Clinton/ Gore Administration accomplishments, and background materials. The New York Times (free registration required) offers a lengthy collection of related articles and analysis, with video clips and links to coverage of previous addresses. CNN also provides analysis, related articles, a video of the entire speech, transcripts of all of the President's previous State of the Union addresses, and related links. The Washington Post analyzes the speech and has posted a state of the union index that locates passages on key issues in each of the President's addresses from 1993 to 2000. The site also includes photos and background materials. Additional coverage can be found at the Salon.com, Los Angeles Times, and Philadelphia Inquirer sites. [MD]
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The Scout Report (ISSN 1092-3861) is published weekly by Internet Scout
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