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[ECP] The Scout Report -- November 10, 2006

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=======
The Scout Report
November 10, 2006
Volume 12, Number 45
-----
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. The Cost of Living and the Geographic Distribution of Poverty
2. Documents Online: Domesday Book
3. Join Together
4. Close to Home: The Development Impact of Remittances in Latin America
5. Leonardo da Vinci: Experience, Experiment and Design
6. Electionline
7. Pumas: Practical Uses of Math and Science
8. Teaching and Training Modules on Trends in Health and Aging

====== General Interest ====
9. Air Force Link
10. Just-In-Time Teaching
11. Ohio History Central Online Encyclopedia
12. World Wide Web Consortium
13. Waterford Area Local History Collection
14. Painted Prints: The Revelation of Color in Northern Renaissance and
15. Science Animations: Movies & Interactive Tutorial Links
16. Cane River National Heritage Area

====== Network Tools ====
17. GRASS GIS 6.2.0
18. StudioLine Photo Basic 3.5.8

====== In The News ====
19. Orson Welles and his work continue to draw the attention of filmmakers,
critics, and devotees

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

1. The Cost of Living and the Geographic Distribution of Poverty [pdf]
http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/err26/err26.pdf

The Economic Research Service division of the United States Department of
Agriculture has published a number of insightful and thoughtful studies in
its long history, and this study by Dean Jolliffe lives up to those exacting
standards. Released in September 2006, the paper takes a critical look at
the location of poverty across urban and rural areas in the United States.
Drawing on a variety of data sources, the report finds that federal funds
for social programs for the needy and community development have favored
non-metropolitan areas. The report also notes that cost-of-living
differences play a significant difference in this phenomenon. Visitors can
read the entire 26-page report, or they may also wish to take a look at the
2-page summary document. [KMG]

2. Documents Online: Domesday Book [pdf]
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/domesday.asp

William the Conqueror had a considerable interest in the property holdings
of his subjects, and around Christmas 1085 he decided to commission a great
survey to discover just what resources were out among the boroughs and
manors of England. The massive document that came out of this lengthy
process was the Domesday Book. It has fascinated historians for centuries,
and recently The UK National Archives created this online guide to the work.
Visitors can take a look through the book via interactive features such as
?Discovery Domesday?, which provides a bit of background on the work,
complete with images from its pages. Additionally, the ?World of Domesday?
feature provides some contextual background for understanding what life was
like for the people of 11th century England. Visitors can search across the
Domesday Book in its entirety by place name, person, or other keyword. [KMG]

3. Join Together [pdf]
http://www.jointogether.org/

Started in 1991, Join Together is a program that operates under the
direction of Boston University?s School of Public Health. Working with
financial support provided by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the
program was designed to provide information on community-based efforts ?to
advance effective alcohol and drug policy, prevention, and treatment.? The
site contains numerous resources aimed at a number of different audiences,
so it is perhaps best to start at the ?What Can I Do?? tab, which features a
drop-down menu that will help guide family members, health care
professionals and others to the most pertinent and appropriate materials.
The ?Key Issues? area is another good way to learn about the group?s work,
as it contains information on treatment medications and intervention
techniques that they promote. Finally, the ?Resources? area is definitely
worth a look, as it features working papers and books that deal with the
subjects of alcohol and tobacco addiction. [KMG]

4. Close to Home: The Development Impact of Remittances in Latin America
[pdf]
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTLACOFFICEOFCE/Resources/ClosetoHome.pdf

For many immigrant families, sending money back to relatives and friends in
their country or region of origin is an important part of ensuring their
success, along with increasing the possibility that they may be able to
bring over family members in the future. Examining these payments, sometimes
referred to as remittances, is of interest to a number of international
organizations and think-tanks. Recently, the World Bank published a long
report which looks at the practice of sending remittances to Latin America
and the Caribbean from migrant workers living abroad. The report notes that
in 2005 migrant workers from these two regions sent a total of $48.3 billion
back to their home countries, but they also observed that their impact on
the region has, in some cases, been overestimated. The report also notes
that some positive effects of remittances include ?higher savings, better
access to health and education?and reductions in poverty and social
inequality.? [KMG]

5. Leonardo da Vinci: Experience, Experiment and Design [Macromedia Flash
Player]
http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1384_leonardo/

Upon the most casual glance through this lovely and visually stimulating
online exhibit, one might think that an equally appropriate title for such a
venture might well be ?da Vinci Comes Alive!? Designed to accompany an in
situ exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, this multimedia
tribute to da Vinci?s work includes a section where visitors can look over
the Forster Codices in all of their exquisite detail. All told, they contain
five notebooks filled with drawings and illustrations, all of which were
eventually bequeathed to the Museum by John Forster in the late 19th
century. Another feature on the site is the ?Canal Challenge?, which lets
users attempt to design a canal inspired by the work of da Vinci, and most
importantly, to see if it works properly. The site is rounded out by a
selection of electronic cards, the opportunity to win a trip to Italy, and a
timeline of his life. [KMG]

6. Electionline [pdf]
http://www.electionline.org/

Produced and maintained by the Election Reform Information Project, the
Electiononline website details the latest news surrounding various issues
surrounding election reform, whether its "absentee ballots or touchscreen
machines, legislation or commission reports.? While most visitors may not be
surprised that their headquarters are in Washington, DC, they will certainly
be pleasantly surprised to find full-length reports in their ?Publications?
section on election reform (in all its many forms) and their ?Resource
Library?, which includes links to materials on the Voting Rights Act of 1965
and the election reform legislation database. Finally, as with most such
civic-minded organizations, they also have a weekly electronic newsletter,
which users can sign up to receive or they can just browse away through
their archives. [KMG]

7. Pumas: Practical Uses of Math and Science [Last reviewed November 14,
1997]
http://pumas.jpl.nasa.gov/

Getting students interested in applied and practical uses of math and
science can be easier than having students just learn basic principles,
although those remain very important to be sure. Almost ten years ago, NASA
began their own online journal of just such examples for students, and
titled it ?Practical Uses of Math and Science?, or PUMAS. The project
continues to be going strong, and educators and other members of the general
public will appreciate looking over their archive of 64 examples currently
available. On the site?s homepage, visitors can click on the ?PUMAS
Examples? area to read (and hopefully use) these pedagogical materials,
which include such titles as ?Coastal Threat: A Story in Unit Conversions?
and ?How Now, Pythagoras??. [KMG]

8. Teaching and Training Modules on Trends in Health and Aging [pdf]
http://www.asaging.org/NCHS/

The fields of gerontology and aging studies continue to grow quickly, and
educators working in these fields will appreciate this particular set of
instructional resources. Developed and maintained by the National Center for
Health Statistics (NCHS) and the American Society on Aging (ASA), these
modules deal with trends in health care utilization, health-related
behaviors, and health care expenditures of the United States population.
Each module has been tested by a variety of professional educators, and
currently there are eight modules available on the site. Based on data from
the NCHS Data Warehouse on Trends in Health and Aging, the titles include
?Life Expectancy and Mortality?, ?Trends in Chronic Diseases among Aged
Population?, and ?Disability Trends Among the U.S. Aged Population.? [KMG]

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

9. Air Force Link
http://www.af.mil/history/

Appropriately enough, this website is ?dedicated to the men and women who
made the U.S. Air Force what it is today.? As an official website of the
United States Air Force, the Air Force Link Heritage website presents a wide
range of materials that detail the history of this division of the Armed
Forces. Here visitors will find a ?This Week in History? feature which
presents summary details of important events in the organization?s past,
such as the dates of important test flights and important air battles.
Within the ?Categories? area, visitors can delve into Air Force history.
Neatly divided into decades, each section allows visitors to view
photographs of important persons in the Air Force during the period, along
with documents that relate various aspects of the group?s history. Finally,
the site also contains a set of links to other useful sites, such as the
American Airpower Heritage Museum and the National Museum of Naval Aviation.
[KMG]

10. Just-In-Time Teaching [pdf]
http://134.68.135.1/jitt/

The very notion of ?just-in-time? (JiTT) teaching may seem to some to sound
like a phrase adopted from the world of corporate culture, but in fact, it?s
actually a ??teaching and learning strategy based on the interaction between
web-based study assignments and an active learner classroom.? All told, it
sounds pretty compelling, and this website, created by Professor Gregor and
his colleagues at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)
has been designed to provide fellow educators with materials that will help
them adopt such an educational stance and approach in the classroom. After
reading the introductory section titled ?What is JiTT??, visitors may wish
to proceed to look over the resources area, where they can look over JiTT
resources that may be used with a variety of disciplines, including physics,
psychology, and chemistry. [KMG]

LEARN THE PERIODIC TABLE WITH A SONG
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/IEC/elementsong.html

11. Ohio History Central Online Encyclopedia
http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/

>From William Howard Taft to Toledo, the Ohio History Central Online
Encyclopedia is a veritable cornucopia of material about the places, events,
and other elements of the Buckeye state?s history and lore. As noted on the
site?s homepage, this encyclopedia ??is an evolving, dynamic online
encyclopedia that includes information about Ohio?s natural history,
prehistory and history.? That is certainly a tall order to fill, and the
site does so admirably. Visitors can click on over to the built-in search
engine on the homepage, or just browse along through such broad categories
as ?History?, ?Natural History?, and ?State Symbols?. Visitors to this last
category may be intrigued to learn that the state?s beverage is tomato
juice, or that the state?s official insect is the ladybug, a peaceful
creature best known for its voracious appetite for aphids. [KMG]

12. World Wide Web Consortium [pdf]
http://www.w3.org/

Founded in 1994, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has been primarily
concerned with ??developing protocols and guidelines that ensure long-term
growth for the Web.? To do so, they draw on a set of international
professionals and experts throughout the field of computer science and
related fields. The W3C is led by Tim Berners-Lee, who directs the project
and who was also responsible for inventing the World Wide Web. First-time
visitors should take a look through the ?New Visitors? area, which includes
a basic overview of where to find certain materials, such as their technical
reports and how to sign up for their mailing lists. Another way to look over
some of their materials is by browsing their ?A to Z? section on the
homepage, which covers everything from accessibility to XML encryption.
[KMG]

HISTORY OF THE NET
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Internet/history_internet.html

13. Waterford Area Local History Collection
http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/WI/subcollections/WaterfordLocHistAbout.shtml

Located west of Racine and southwest of Milwaukee, the town of Waterford,
Wisconsin sits along the Fox River. In addition to its scenic location,
Waterford also happens to have a vibrant public library that has worked with
other local organizations to create this elaborate digital local history
archive. Working in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Digital
Collections, they have created this digital home for an array of maps,
photographs, books, manuscripts, and other printed ephemera. The thematic
headings include ?community?, ?maps?, and ?people and portraits?. As the
town served as a popular resort for decades, visitors will be delighted to
learn that the archive has several dozen photographs of the various leisure
pursuits that were popular throughout the town and its outlying areas. [KMG]

14. Painted Prints: The Revelation of Color in Northern Renaissance and
Baroque Engravings, Etchings & Woodcuts
http://artbma.org/exhibitions/online2.html#

Adapted from an exhibition shown at the Baltimore Museum of Art in 2002 and
2003, the online version of Painted Prints explores the use of color in
Renaissance prints. The idea for the exhibition began in 1996, when curator
Susan Dackerman first saw a 16th century Dutch print The Triumph of
Patience, by Dirck Volkertsz Coornhert. The research project that led to the
2002-2003 exhibition is featured as a section of the Web site, where
visitors can read about Dackerman's investigations, and see the results of
conservator Thomas Primeau's analysis of the pigments used in the colored
prints as well. Primeau used X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) to
identify the pigments used to color a painted impression of Albrecht Dürer's
print Christ Presented to the People from The Large Passion. On the Web site
there is an interactive example where rolling over the image brings up
details of the pigments and their chemical makeup. In addition, there are
sections about the makers of the prints, their purpose, lesson plans for
teachers, and a gallery of a dozen painted prints. [DS]

15. Science Animations: Movies & Interactive Tutorial Links [Macromedia
Flash Player, Shock Wave]
http://science.nhmccd.edu/biol/animatio.htm

Many students appreciate visuals in the classroom, but in some instances,
practical demonstrations of various scientific principles may be difficult,
if not impossible. Fortunately there is this nice site, provided by North
Harris College. The site functions as a clearinghouse for science animations
created by a wide range of institutions from the University of Hawaii to
Cambridge University. There is no search engine offered here, but visitors
can just scroll down through the entire list, or jump around to such topical
areas as microbiology, geology, ecology, and physics. Additionally, visitors
can also avail themselves of the ?General Collections? area, which feature
broad animation collections, such as the ?General Collection in Biology?
site, created at the University of California-Irvine. [KMG]

16. Cane River National Heritage Area
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel/caneriver/

Tucked away in the northwestern corner of Louisiana, the Cane River winds
its way through a primarily rural and agricultural landscape. Over the past
several hundred years, the many groups of people who have lived and worked
by the river have transformed this landscape. Created by the National Park
Service, in partnership with the Louisiana Division of Historic Preservation
and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers, this
website serves as a virtual tour guide to the Cane River National Heritage
Area. First-time visitors should click on the interactive map offered here,
as they can get the ?lay of the land?, and also utilize this feature to
learn about historic landmarks in the area, such as the Cherokee Plantation
and Fort Jesup. Along with this mélange of photos, maps, and descriptive
passages, visitors can also take a look at three concise essays that provide
answers to such questions as ?Who are Louisiana?s Creoles?? [KMG]

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

17. GRASS GIS 6.2.0
http://grass.itc.it/

With the release of such programs as Google Earth, computer users have
access to a rather diverse set of geographical data tools. One program that
has recently been released in a new edition is the Geographic Resources
Analysis Support System (GRASS). With this program, users can perform a
number of tasks, such as spatial modeling, visualization, and image
processing. The program may be a bit complex at first for some users, but
its uses are very diverse. The site also includes a FAQ section and a
newsletter. This version is compatible with computers running Windows 98 and
newer or Mac OS X and newer. [KMG]

18. StudioLine Photo Basic 3.5.8
http://www.studioline.biz/EN/

As the holidays approach, some users may be looking for a photo album
software program that is helpful, easy to use, and most of all, available at
no cost. The latest version of StudioLine Photo Basic is a good bet, as it
includes 30 professional image editing tools and the ability to create on-
screen slide shows. Additionally, this latest version features some
significant improvements to the printing menu. This version is compatible
with computers running Windows 98 and newer. [KMG]

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

19. Orson Welles and his work continue to draw the attention of filmmakers,
critics, and devotees
Searching for Orson
http://hollywoodreporter.com/hr/awards_festivals/fest_reviews/article_display.jsp?JSESSIONID=FMTCP2qJK8r28yrJnrnzplktnp2pTCW2LnnNTXrlzn24Wdv46wvQ!-
522630548&&rid=6767

Let us not see it all
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1941161,00.html

The Mercury Theatre on the Air [Real Player]
http://www.mercurytheatre.info/

The Magnificent Ambersons [Windows Media Player]
http://ambersons.com/

Interview with Orson Welles by Peter Bogdanovich [pdf]
http://www.oup.com/pdf/019515892X_01.pdf

Making Magic with Orson Welles: A Conversation with Mike Caveney
http://www.thefilmjournal.com/issue9/magic.html

Internet Archive: Orson Welles [Real Player, Macromedia Flash Player, Quick
Time]
http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=orson%20welles

When he passed away on October 10th, 1985, young people who knew Orson
Welles (if they knew him it all) may have remembered him for his promotional
efforts on behalf of a certain wine or for his all-too brief appearance as
director Lew Lord in ?The Muppet Movie?. The back story of Welles? life
included a rich mix of film, television, documentaries, stage production,
and one of the most enigmatic personalities that ever wandered from New York
to Hollywood to Europe and back. While Welles never really left the sights
of those with a keen interest in cinema, a number of new projects have
recently been completed that cast a critical and introspective gaze upon his
life and artistic endeavors. This past week, the American Film Institute
premiered a new documentary about Welles titled ?Searching for Orson? and
Simon Callow recently released the latest installation of his three volume
work on Welles. Perhaps these reconsiderations of Welles? work will undo the
very concise remark he once offered on his own struggle with fame,
acceptance, and recognition: ?I started at the top and worked my way down.?
[KMG]

The first link will take users to an article from the Hollywood Reporter
discussing the recent biographies and the documentary about Orson Welles.
The second link will take users to an article from The Guardian discussing
the abundance of movie festivals and how they may be diminishing the romance
of the hard to find movie. The third link leads to the website of ?The
finest radio drama of the 1930?s, The Mercury Theatre on the Air, a show
featuring the acclaimed New York drama company founded by Orson Welles and
John Houseman.? The show is famous for its notorious War of the Worlds
broadcast, but the other shows in the series are relatively unknown. The
site contains many of the surviving shows, and will eventually have all of
them. The fourth link leads to a site dedicated to Welles? ?Magnificent
Ambersons? which provides insights in the making, filming and editing of the
movie and its effects on Welles? later career. The fifth link leads to an
interesting interview of Welles by Peter Bogdanovich. The sixth link leads
to another interview with Jim Steinmeyer, a close friend of Welles. The
last link takes users to the Internet Archive which contains many of Welles?
radio broadcasts. [KMG]

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