FreeLists / networknewsletters / The Scout Report -- April 21, 2006

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The Scout Report
April 21, 2006
Volume 12, Number 16
-----
A publication of the Internet Scout Project.
Sponsored by University of Wisconsin - Madison Libraries.
=======


==   I N   T H E   S C O U T   R E P O R T   T H I S   W E E K  ========



====== Research and Education ====
1.  Minnesota Maps Online
2.  Sustainable Development in Coastal Regions and Small Islands
3.  Hispanics and the Future of America
4.  Exploratorium: Faultline
5.  Tennessee Documentary History Collection, 1796-1850
6.  U.S. Intelligence and the Indian Bomb

====== General Interest ====
7.  The Best of the Humanities on the Web
8.  The American Roadside
9.  Senses of Cinema
10. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
11. FDA Centennial
12. Art in Cities

====== Network Tools ====
13. Yahoo Widgets 3.1
14. Gallery 2.1.1

====== In The News ====
15. With feelings of uncertainty on the decline, San Franciscans commemorate
1906 earthquake

====== Research and Education ====

1.  Minnesota Maps Online
http://www.mnhs.org/collections/digitalmaps/index.htm

Historians, cartographers, and those who are just generally curious about
maps often flock to archives and museums to get a closer look. Fortunately,
many institutions have digitized some (or all) of their map collections and
placed them online. The Minnesota Historical Society has created this
tremendous collection of land survey maps, plat books and atlases, dating
from 1848 to 2001. The search interface for the collection is quite easy to
use, as visitors can search the land survey maps by county or township.
Those persons who encounter trouble using the search engine can click on a
small ?Help? icon to get more information about performing a detailed
search. The plat books and atlases are great fun as well, particularly the
illustrated historical atlas of Minnesota from 1874. Through its 394-pages,
the atlas contains interesting views of the state?s counties, along with
sections dedicated to persons of note at the time, including prominent
physicians, attorneys, ?public men?, and lumber dealers. As the preface to
this august volume notes, ??we can conscientiously say that we have strived
to make it as near perfect as the circumstances under which we have labored
would permit.? Truer words have never been spoken. [KMG]


2.  Sustainable Development in Coastal Regions and Small Islands [pdf]
http://www.unesco.org/csi/

Despite the promises of an ?information revolution?, many small islands and
coastal regions remain somewhat isolated, whether it is culturally or
economically. In 1996 UNESCO established this program in order to look at
how sustainable development might be encouraged on small islands and coastal
regions throughout the world. To get a better sense of the projects they
have sponsored so far, visitors should first visit the ?Activities? area to
learn about some of their field projects. Here they will learn about how
they have assisted in the creation of integrated coastal management plans in
South Africa and also worked towards developing a fisheries management plan
in Haiti. Visitors should also peruse some of the themes offered here, which
include ?Sustainable Island Living? and ?Island Youth Visioning?. This
latter initiative is worth taking a look at, as it encourages young people
living in small islands to develop their own visions of how they would like
to see their communities grow over the coming years. Visitors who are
seeking a place for dialogue on some of the issues surrounding these places
should also examine the virtual discussion forums area. Here they can learn
about wise coastal practices, and view responses to the timely question ?Are
tiny islands viable in the 21st century??. [KMG]


3.  Hispanics and the Future of America
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11539.html

Over the past few years, there have been many long-term research projects
dedicated to examining the role that Hispanics play (and will continue to
play) in the transformation of American social, cultural and economic life.
Located within this broad stream of often well-informed and intelligent
research is this very fine volume published by the National Academies in
2006 titled ?Hispanics and the Future of America?. Edited by the noted
sociologists Marta Tienda and Faith Mitchell, this 490-page volume is
divided into eleven chapters and two appendices. The chapters range across a
broad spectrum of research interests to provide a holistic portrait of the
Hispanic population in the United States. The chapters include ?Latino Civic
and Political Participation?, ?Hispanics in the U.S. Labor Market?, and ?The
Health Status and Health Behaviors of Hispanics?. [KMG]


4.  Exploratorium: Faultline [QuickTime, Real Player, pdf]
http://www.exploratorium.edu/faultline/index.html

How can the drama and power of an actual earthquake be brought online? It?s
a difficult task, but the good and talented people at the Exploratorium
deserve multiple huzzahs for their fine efforts on this site. Designed to
provide some basic information about the nature of earthquakes, the site
contains five primary sections. Under the ?Quake Basics? heading, visitors
can expect to learn about the basics of earthquakes, including some nice
sections on plate tectonics, faults, and how scientists measure such
phenomena. As the Exploratorium is based on San Francisco, visitors should
not be surprised to find that the section titled ?Great Shakes? includes
information on the 1906 earthquake and the devastating quake of 1989 as
well. There are some nice video clips here, including a video taken during
the 1989 World Series and shots of the damage wrought by the quake in Santa
Cruz. [KMG]


5.  Tennessee Documentary History Collection, 1796-1850 [pdf]
http://diglib.lib.utk.edu/dlc/tdh/index.html

Started in 2001, the University of Tennessee?s Digital Library Center has
embarked on a number of ambitious projects over the past five years. This
particular digital archive, which was created with the kind assistance of
the Institute of Museum and Library Services, brings together a diverse set
of documents and images related to antebellum Tennessee. While intended
primarily for K-12 educators, the site will be of general interest to anyone
with even a passing interest in Tennessee history. Visitors will find a
number of ways to search the entire collection, but most visitors will want
to utilize the ?browse subcollections? option. These subcollections are
organized by donating institution, such as the University of Memphis and the
Knox County Public Library. There are a number of real gems here, including
letters to Sam Houston, papers from East Tennessee College, as well as
letters penned by Andrew Jackson. The site is rounded out by a short, but
helpful, bibliography of related works. [KMG]


6.  U.S. Intelligence and the Indian Bomb [pdf]
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB187/index.htm

Though it has been some time since the Scout Report has mentioned the
various electronic briefing books published by The National Security Archive
at George Washington University, it is good to know that their fine work has
continued unabated, and this latest effort is very intriguing. Released in
April 2006, this National Security Archive electronic briefing book brings
together 40 formerly classified documents that detail the efforts of the US
intelligence community to monitor civilian and military nuclear energy
activities in India. Drawn from the period 1958 to 1998, these various
documents and reports comment on a wide range of material, ranging from
nuclear policy, reactor construction, foreign assistance, nuclear tests, and
the international ramifications of such tests. Overall, this is a collection
of documents that will be of great interest to any one with an interest in
the history of nuclear policy, proliferation, and diplomacy. [KMG]



====== General Interest ====

7.  The Best of the Humanities on the Web [pdf, Macromedia Flash Player]
http://edsitement.neh.gov/

Working together, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the MCI
Foundation have created this website in order to bring together some of the
best online humanities resources from the world?s great museums, libraries,
and universities. Even a cursory glance would indicate that they have done a
splendid job, and this site warrants several visits in order to take full
advantage of these materials. Along the top of the homepage, visitors will
find thematic tabs that will direct them to some of the resources in the
areas of history, art, literature, and foreign languages. For visitors who
are looking for just a taste of these offerings, they may want to take a
look at the monthly feature, which include tours of the National Mall,
celebrations of Native American history, and explorations of women?s
history. Visitors will also take comfort knowing that every website profiled
on the site has been reviewed for content, design and educational impact in
the classroom. Also, in terms of classroom activities, the site contains
dozens of lessons plans that draw on the online resources offered here in an
attempt to promote active learning. [KMG]


8.  The American Roadside
http://www.theamericanroadside.com

The open road has a great deal of allure for many, and the archetypical
American road trip fueled by a taste for adventure, so-so dining options,
ironic tourism, and well, fuel, is the stuff of legend. Created and
maintained by Ron Dylewski, this site serves as an online home for people to
come and share information about the experiences they have had along the
highways and byways of America. From the homepage, visitors can learn about
the latest in American roadside news, including items about the efforts to
preserve historic White Castle restaurants and drive-ins. Of course, the
site also has a number of lovely photo galleries, including one that pays
homage to the diner and another that contains postcards of roadside
landmarks such as Simpson?s Dining Car in Houston. Before embarking on a
long road trip, visitors will also want to look at the forums here as well.
The topics covered in these sessions include roadside attractions of note
and preservation alerts for those attractions that may soon be paved over in
the name of progress. If all of this material is not enough, the site also
contains links to roadside blogs titled ?City Comforts?, ?Big Cities, Big
Boxes?, and ?The New Diner?. [KMG]


9.  Senses of Cinema
http://www.sensesofcinema.com

There are thousands of websites dedicated to serious and not-so-serious
discussions of film, and even the most dedicated web-surfing individuals may
grow frustrated looking for helpful sites in this particular realm of the
Internet. The Senses of Cinema website is a real find, and it is ?devoted to
the serious and eclectic discussion of cinema?. The journal itself is open
to a number of different critical approaches to understanding and analyzing
film. Based in Australia, and funded in part by the Australian Film
Commission, the site contains reviews of films, interviews with filmmakers,
film polls, and movie soundtracks. One particularly compelling section is
the ?Great Directors? area. Here visitors can read intelligent and
intriguing profiles of well-regarded auteurs, such as Robert Altman, Anthony
Mann, and Nicholas Ray. The site is rounded out by several informative
essays on Australian cinema, including a lucid discussion of the
representation of Australia?s colonial history in film. [KMG]


10. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/

Located at the University of Texas, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
holds over 50 million pages of presidential documents, a half million feet
of motion picture film, and thousands of other important materials that tell
the story of President Reagan?s life. From the Library?s homepage, visitors
can learn how they can perform research at the library, read through a
?Quick Reference? guide on the President, and also browse through some of
the many speeches and public statements he offered during his time in
office. While the site does offer many finding aids, the bulk of the full-
text material offered here is primarily of Reagan?s speeches given during
his time as President. The speeches can be viewed chronologically, beginning
with January 1981, and concluding with remarks given on a memorandum on
trade with Thailand on January 19, 1989. [KMG]


11. FDA Centennial [pdf]
http://www.fda.gov/centennial/default.htm

On June 30th 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Food and Drugs
Act, which prohibiting interstate commerce in misbranded and adulterated
foods, drinks, and drugs. Broadly understood, this action was part of the
Progressive Movement in the United States which brought forth a number of
substantial changes in the way that government interacted with private
industry and so on. 100 years on, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has
decided to celebrate the centennial of this act by creating this site.
Starting at the homepage, visitors can learn about events created to
celebrate the FDA?s legacy as well as read a nice feature titled ?This Week
in FDA History?. Visitors may also want to look through a nice graphic
presentation titled ?FDA?s Role in Protecting and Promoting Public Health?.
Through images and text, this presentation brings together some highlights
of their work over the years, including information about the effects of the
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938. Finally, the site also
contains a short quiz on FDA history. [KMG]


12. Art in Cities
http://www.artincities.com/

The organizers of Art in Cities say, "Cities are like a huge art gallery
with a permanently changing exhibition." Therefore, this web site exists to
collect submissions of artwork from cities all over the world, and plot it
on a map. To view the art, browse by selecting points on the map, or search
by City, Submitter, or artist (Artwork by). There is also a quick link to
the most recent uploads. On the day we visited, this link lead to stencil
art and graffiti from several cities in the Netherlands, including
Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Eindhoven, as well as one from San Bernardino, CA.
This was just the first page of 473 for this specific link, which is in turn
only a fraction of the close to 6,000 pieces of art on view at the site.
Submitting art is as easy as uploading an image from your computer, and
filling out a few fields on a form thus encouraging anyone to walk the
streets of their city looking for art to add the site. [DS]



====== Network Tools ====

13. Yahoo Widgets 3.1
http://widgets.yahoo.com/

The mere mention of ?widgets? to people of a certain age or disposition may
conjure up images of an imaginary products designed for insertion into any
number of business-type questions, such as ?How many widgets can be produced
if the Acme factory has 4 assembly lines operating at speed X given, etc.??
The widgets offered here, on the other hand, are small, yet mighty, stand-
alone applications that can be used as helpful computer desktop extensions.
While the basic widget package includes a small weather-forecaster and a
contacts list, users have submitted dozens of compelling additions to
Yahoo?s widget site, including a bulk coin tosser and one that tracks the
price of gold every 30 minutes. This application is compatible with all
computers running Windows 2000 or XP. [KMG]


14. Gallery 2.1.1
http://gallery.menalto.com/

A number of helpful photo gallery applications have been released in the
past few weeks, and Gallery 2.1.1 is certainly one of the better ones
available. With this application users can create photo galleries with ease,
create themes for each album, and also administer the usage of the galleries
as well. Additionally, users can publish their photo galleries with RSS.
This version is compatible with computers running Linux or Windows 2000 and
newer. [KMG]



====== In The News ====

15. With feelings of uncertainty on the decline, San Franciscans commemorate
1906 earthquake
San Francisco pays tribute to triumph over 1906 quake
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002938899_quake19.html

Quake worries on the decline [pdf]
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/14367487.htm

NPR: 100 Years After the San Francisco Quake [Real Player]
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5337518

SFGate: The Great Quake: 1906-2006 [Real Player, pdf]
http://www.sfgate.com/greatquake/

1906 Earthquake Centennial Alliance
http://1906centennial.org/

100th Anniversary 1906 San Francisco Earthquake Conference [Real Player,
pdf]
http://www.1906eqconf.org/


Residents of San Francisco, it is safe to say, are accustomed to change and
upheaval, whether it is in terms of the American cultural revolution of the
1960s or the ground physically moving underneath their feet. Keeping this in
mind, it is no surprise that the city commemorated the traumatic events of
April 18, 1906 in a variety of ways this past Tuesday. For many, the keynote
event was a gathering of dignitaries and elderly survivors of that mighty
quake that took place in the early morning hours this past Tuesday at the
city?s historic Lotta?s Fountain. Here, wreaths were laid down to honor the
dead, and Mayor Gavin Newsom delivered a short address, and remarked that
?We rebuilt, and we are stronger and better than ever.?. The optimistic mood
at this event seemed to mirror a broader sentiment that was conveyed in the
results of a recent poll taken throughout the Golden State. Essentially, the
Field Poll noted that most Californians don?t think earthquakes pose any
greater danger than other natural disasters and three in four think they
could probably survive an even larger tremor, if one were to occur. [KMG]

The first link will take users to a news article from The Seattle Times that
reports on the various celebrations and commemorations that took place this
week in San Francisco. The second link leads to a rather compelling story
from the San Jose Mercury News about the results of a recent poll that asked
Californians about the likelihood of another major quake in the region. The
third link leads to a host of National Public Radio stories that address
various issues surrounding the earthquake, including artists seeking to
commemorate the earthquake in a variety of ways. The fourth link leads to a
rather impressive collection of multimedia presentations on the history of
the quake from the San Francisco Chronicle that includes a collection of
historic postcards and oral histories from those who survived the events of
that day.  The fifth link leads to the homepage of the 1906 Earthquake
Centennial Alliance, which serves as a clearinghouse of information on
various ongoing activities designed to reflect on the legacy of this event.
The final link leads to the homepage of a conference designed to provide
contemporary information on the ramifications of a large-scale earthquake
around the Bay Area, and how various groups might prepare for such an event.
[KMG]




======                        ======
==   Index for April 21, 2006     ==
======                        ======

1.  Minnesota Maps Online
http://www.mnhs.org/collections/digitalmaps/index.htm

2.  Sustainable Development in Coastal Regions and Small Islands [pdf]
http://www.unesco.org/csi/

3.  Hispanics and the Future of America
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11539.html

4.  Exploratorium: Faultline [QuickTime, Real Player, pdf]
http://www.exploratorium.edu/faultline/index.html

5.  Tennessee Documentary History Collection, 1796-1850 [pdf]
http://diglib.lib.utk.edu/dlc/tdh/index.html

6.  U.S. Intelligence and the Indian Bomb [pdf]
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB187/index.htm

7.  The Best of the Humanities on the Web [pdf, Macromedia Flash Player]
http://edsitement.neh.gov/

8.  The American Roadside
http://www.theamericanroadside.com

9.  Senses of Cinema
http://www.sensesofcinema.com

10. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/

11. FDA Centennial [pdf]
http://www.fda.gov/centennial/default.htm

12. Art in Cities
http://www.artincities.com/

13. Yahoo Widgets 3.1
http://widgets.yahoo.com/

14. Gallery 2.1.1
http://gallery.menalto.com/

15. With feelings of uncertainty on the decline, San Franciscans commemorate
1906 earthquake
San Francisco pays tribute to triumph over 1906 quake
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002938899_quake19.html


From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2006.
http://scout.wisc.edu/

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