A Publication of Internet Scout
Computer Science Department, University of Wisconsin
A Project of the InterNIC
The Scout Report is a weekly publication offering a selection of new
and
newly discovered Internet resources of interest to researchers and
educators, the InterNIC's primary audience. However, everyone is welcome
to
subscribe to one of the mailing lists (plain text or HTML) or visit the
Web
version of the Scout Report. Subscription instructions are included at the
end of each report.
http://rs.internic.net/scout/report
Biology Hypertext Chapters -- Massachusetts Institute
of Technology
Biology Hypertextbook Chapters, provided by the MIT Experimental Study
group, was originally intended as a study aid to an introductory biology
course at MIT, but is an excellent source of material for any introductory
biology course. It includes chapters on chemistry, large molecules, cell
biology, enzyme biochemistry, photosynthesis, genetics, DNA, and
immunology. Each chapter contains thorough explanations of the topic. One
of the strengths of the site is its extensive use of graphical models to
illustrate concepts. The chemistry review, large molecules, and cell
biology sections contain particularly graphic content. Note that Internet
visitors are asked not to participate in the self quiz exercises.
http://esg-www.mit.edu:8001/esgbio/chapters.html/
[Back to Contents]
Digest of Education Statistics -- 1995 Edition
The U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics
(NCES) has recently made full text of the 1995 "Digest of Education
Statistics" available via the Internet. This is the 31st in a series of
publications begun in 1962. "Its primary purpose is to provide a
compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of
American education from kindergarten through graduate school." The Digest
contains seven chapters: All Levels of Education, Elementary and Secondary
Education, Postsecondary Education, Federal Programs for Education and
Related Activities, Outcomes of Education, International Comparisons of
Education, and Learning Resources and Technology. It contains 32 figures
and 415 tables. Tables and figures are clearly labeled under their
hypertext links, and tables are rendered as ASCII text. Tables are current
through 1992-93. This is one of the most important primary sources of
education statistics available. The gopher version of the Digest provides
the tables and figures in compressed .zip files, and provides pointers to
viewing and decompression software.
http://www.ed.gov/NCES/pubs/D95/
gopher://gopher.ed.gov:10000/11/publications/majorpub/digest/
gopher to: gopher.ed.gov:10000
select: NCES Publications and Reports/Major NCES Publications/
Digest of Education Statistics/
This path will also lead to full text "Digests" for 1992-1994.
For other NCES major publications:
http://www.ed.gov/pubs/stats.html
gopher://gopher.ed.gov:10000/11/publications/majorpub
gopher to: gopher.ed.gov:10000
select: NCES Publications and Reports/Major NCES Publications/
[Back to Contents]
Trace Research and Development Center -- technology
and disability
The Trace Center, an interdisciplinary research, development and resource
center on technology and disability, housed at the Waisman Center and the
Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Wisconsin, has
recently established a Web site. The Trace Program Areas section details
the Center's mission and goals, provides information on computer access
and standards, and gives information on the clinical services provided by
the Center. Under Papers and Publications, you can find a catalog of Trace
publications, including "Quick Sheets," short resource lists on a variety
of
topics, among others. The Designing an Accessible World section provides a
wealth of information about including access for people with disabilities
when
designing Web sites, computers, consumer products, kiosks, and
telecommunications. One of the highlights of the site is a newly released
paper on "Design of HTML Pages to Increase Their Accessibility to Users
With Disabilities." Trace's Web site is an enhancement of an already
existing gopher site.
http://www.trace.wisc.edu/
gopher://trace.wisc.edu
gopher to: trace.wisc.edu
"Design of HTML Pages":
http://www.trace.wisc.edu/TEXT/GUIDELNS/HTMLGIDE/htmlgide.html
gopher://trace.wisc.edu:70/0/ftp/PUB/TEXT/CURBCUT/WORKING/HTML_DSN.TXT
gopher to: trace.wisc.edu
select: New and Spotlighted Items/Spotlighted Items/Design of HTML...
[Back to Contents]
webCATS -- Library OPAC's on the World Wide Web
Peter Scott, the creator of HYTELNET, has collaborated with Doug Macdonald
to create webCATS, a page of library catalogs which can be searched via
the Web. webCATS is arranged for searching geographically, by type of
library, and by library catalog vendor. The webCATS page will soon have an
interactive form for adding a URL to your Web searchable library catalog,
and in the meantime an email address is provided. The site also connects
to the HYTELNET home page. HYTELNET is a computer utility which gives
users instant access to telnet accessible library catalogs, FREE-NETS,
BBSs, gophers, wais, etc.
http://library.usask.ca/hywebcat/
[Back to Contents]
Possibilities! Integrating the Internet into the
Secondary Science Classroom
Possibilities! Integrating the Internet into the Secondary Science
Classroom, a Web site created by a longtime Seattle, Washington
area science and math teacher, attempts to help secondary science teachers
exploit the Internet for teaching purposes. The site is a selective list
of pointers to resources, as well as suggestions for activities organized
by function. It includes interpersonal projects, information collection
and exchange, problem solving projects, and miscellaneous projects. There
are pointers to email, listserv, and news groups, conferencing utilities,
field trips, museum tours, virtual science fairs, database creation, and
many others. There are also sections on evaluating sites, pointers to
other k-12 education sites, and a highlight page of the month.
Possibilities!, while not comprehensive, is a good place to start for
secondary science educators.
http://kendaco.telebyte.com:80/billband/Possibilities.html
[Back to Contents]
Religion and Generational Cultures Discussion
List -- Generation X
What does "religion" have to do with "Generation X"? This list is designed
to support the research activities of the Center for the Study of Religion
at the Department of Religious Studies, University of California, Santa
Barbara. Under the direction of Wade Clark Roof, the Center is
participating in a nationwide Lilly Endowment grant project to study
the relationship between "religion" and "generations." This list is
intended to promote wide-ranging interdisciplinary discussions
on these issues. Membership is open, but participants should be
aware that this is primarily a forum for academic discussion & debate,
and information exchange. Religious proselytization and political
posturing is not appropriate on this list.
To subscribe send email to:
LISTSERV@UCSBVM.UCSB.EDU
In the body of the message type:
SUB SBBUST-L yourfirstname yourlastname, your institution
[Back to Contents]
sci.archaeology.moderated -- a new Usenet
newsgroup
sci.archaeology.moderated is a new Usenet news group dedicated to the
discussion of archaeology. Articles submitted to the newsgroup are first
filtered through a panel of moderators, and may be accepted, rejected, or
sent back with suggested changes. Articles may include requests for
information, announcements of relevance, or topics for discussion.
Articles which contain personal attacks, racist comments, or ad hominem
arguments will not be approved for posting. At present, threads include
web sites of ongoing digs, algorithms for Egyptian fractions, and
Neolithic bones of the feet, among others. The moderation of this group
promises to keep the discussion at a high level.
Point your Usenet newsreader to:
sci.archaeology.moderated
Welcome message to the newsgroup:
http://www.newton.cam.ac.uk/egypt/sam/guide.txt
[Back to Contents]
Picasso and Portraiture
Picasso and Portraiture: Representation and Transformation, is an
exhibition of over 200 Picasso portraits at New York's Museum of Modern
Art (MOMA), that is taking place now through September 17, 1996. From the
Picasso Web site you can read introductions by Claude Picasso and William
Rubin, and view a selection of the portraits in the exhibition. The
virtual exhibition contains self portraits and portraits of the family,
the children, the women, the friends, and the others, over fifty images in
all. Each section is previewed with large thumbnails of all the images it
contains. Click on any thumbnail for an enlarged image. For those who
intend to view the MOMA exhibition, this site is a nice preview. For those
who cannot, it is a wonderful glimpse of what they will be missing.
http://www.clubinternet.com/picasso/
Less graphical entrance:
http://www.clubinternet.com/picasso/homepage.html
More information on the MOMA exhibition:
http://www.moma.org:80/picasso.html
Museum of Modern Art:
http://www.moma.org
Less graphical:
http://www.moma.org/menu.html
[Back to Contents]
Wall St. Journal Interactive Edition
The Wall St. Journal has launched its Interactive Edition on the Web. Due
to be a subscription service, it will be free of charge until July 31 to
anyone who registers before May 31, 1996. It includes the content of the
print version, as well as weather and sports sections. The content can be
accessed by section or by a general index that can be found under Table of
Contents on the home page. Stories that mention companies contain
hypertext links that allow the reader to obtain more information about a
company, including latest news stories, a 20 minute delayed company stock
report, and a "briefing book" on the company which includes background
information, a financial overview, stock performance measures, previous
Wall St. Journal articles about that company, and company press releases.
Walter Mossberg's popular Personal Technology column is also available. He
now takes email questions from readers, and will answer selected ones in
his Interactive Edition columns.
http://www.wsj.com
[Back to Contents]
U.S. House of Representatives Internet Law Library
The U.S. House of Representatives has made its Internet Law Library
available on the Web. Originally a demonstration project of the Offices of
the Law Revision Council and the Legislative Council, the purpose of the
library is to provide easy access to the law-related resources of the
Internet. The site contains links to over 4,900 law related resources in
subjects such as U.S. federal laws, state and territorial laws,
international laws, laws of all jurisdictions arranged by subject,
attorney and legal profession directories, law school library catalogs and
directories, and reviews of law books. The U.S. Code (up to date through
early 1994) and Code of Federal Regulations can also be searched from the
home page. A selected list of law related listservs and pointers can be
found on the "about this directory page."
http://law.house.gov/
[Back to Contents]
The Electronic Banking Resource Center
The Electronic Banking Resource Center, provided by an MBA graduate
student at Ohio State University, is a one stop resource for information
about banking on the Internet. It contains pointers to explanations of
various open payment standards; a FAQ on electronic money/Internet
payment systems that discusses such issues as challenges of Internet
payment systems, electronic cash, credit cards, and checks and the Web,
and advice for merchants on the Internet, among others; a page of pointers
to examples of Internet financial transactions; and a large page of
pointers to banks on the Internet. The Resource Center also contains
pointers to other banking related sites.
http://www2.cob.ohio-state.edu/~richards/banking.htm
[Back to Contents]
National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) reports
on U.S. wildfires
Volunteers in Technical Assistance (VITA), as part of its Disaster
Information Service, is maintaining daily reports from the National
Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) on U.S. wildfires. Each day the
report details progress made in these fires, along with size, percent
containment, estimated date of containment, and estimated losses and
costs, among other variables. In order to better understand the language
used in the reports, interested readers should look at the NICC Incident
Management Report FAQ.
The reports:
gopher://gopher.vita.org:70/11/disaster/report/domestic/forest
gopher to: gopher.vita.org
select: Disaster Information/Disaster Situation and Status Reports/
Domestic U.S. Situations/Incident Management Forest Fires
NICC fire reports are also available via email:
Send email to:
listproc@vita.org
In the body of the message type:
sub fireline FirstName LastName
For information on other disaster information resources maintained
by VITA:
http://www.vita.org/disaster/
gopher://gopher.vita.org:70/11/disaster/report
gopher to: gopher.vita.org
select: Disaster Information/Disaster Situation and Status Reports
VITA Home Page:
http://www.vita.org/
gopher://gopher.vita.org
gopher to: gopher.vita.org
[Back to Contents]
Theodore Tugboat -- an interactive story for
young children
Theodore Tugboat is a Canadian TV series "about a cheerful tugboat who
likes to be friends with everyone." The Theodore Tugboat Web page,
provided by Cochrane Entertainment Incorporated, is highlighted by an
interactive story in which you and your child can decide what Theodore
does next. It also includes 6 pages from an online coloring book
(available in both .gif and .pdf formats), and an interactive postcard
that allows you to receive a real postcard with Theodore's picture on it.
The site also contains a description of all Theodore Tugboat characters,
as well as a section on "How the Big Harbour Works." Theodore Tugboat also
links to over 300 other rated children's sites, ranging from activity
centers to world travel. This is a wonderful site for parents and their
young children.
http://www.cochran.com/
[Back to Contents]
Roger Ebert film reviews and two Cannes
Film Festival Sites
The Chicago Sun Times Web site presents the Roger Ebert on Movies Web
page. Ebert, a Pulitzer Prize award winning film reviewer, writes regular
columns for the Sun Times, as well as being co-host of a nationally
syndicated film review TV program. This site presents full text of recent
reviews, a "one minute summary" of recently reviewed films with a brief
synopsis and rating, and, the highlight of the site, a completely
searchable archive of Ebert reviews going back to 1985. You can search by
movie title, the names of actors, producers, directors, or writers, date,
and rating. Be sure to read the help file on searching to use the
searching system to greatest advantage.
http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert.html
Two of the better sites for interested Internauts to follow the 49th
Cannes Film Festival are the Official Cannes Film Festival site and the Le
Monde (Paris daily newspaper) Cannes site. The Official site is a work in
progress, but at present its highlights include a searchble database of
films and awards from 1955-1995, juries from 1946-1995, and summaries
along with posters and stills from the winners from 1990-1995 (under the
History section). Under Festival 96, Press Guide, there is a listing of
the 1996 jury and films, along with short tributes to great film makers.
The Official Site is available in both French and English, but the
database query results are in French. The Le Monde site, also a work in
progress, includes the official programme, as well as articles from Le
Monde pertaining to previous Festivals. The highlight of this site will be
Le Monde's coverage of the festival as it unfolds. This site is also
available in both English and French, and short articles will be available
in both languages, but feature articles will only be available in French.
Both sites should increase their amount of content as the festival
approaches and then takes place.
Cannes official site:
http://www.festival-cannes.fr/
Cannes Le Monde site can be accessed from two addresses:
http://www.lemonde.fr/Cannes96/
http://lemonde.globeonline.com/Cannes96/
[Back to Contents]
AccessWatch
AccessWatch, provided by David Maher, is a shareware utility that provides
a regularly updated summary of WWW server hits and accesses, and gives a
graphical representation of available statistics. It generates statistics
for hourly server load, page demand, accesses by domain, and accesses by
host. AccessWatch can run on Unix or Windows NT servers. The AccessWatch
page provides sample output, a FAQ, installation instructions, and the
Perl script that makes the product work. It is free for government,
non-commercial home, and academic use. See the license agreement for more
information.
http://netpressence.com/accesswatch/
[Back to Contents]
Adobe Acrobat Access
Adobe Acrobat offers a beta version of its new Netscape plug-in Access for
downloading from its Web site. Acrobat Access presents an alternative view
of the open PDF document in a separate window called the Access View that
is designed to cooperate with screen reading programs. In this way, it
makes complex, rich text formatted .PDF (portable document format) files
more accessible to people with visual disabilities. Complete details about
Access are available at the Adobe Access page, along with downloading
instructions, and an Adobe White Paper concerning the accessibility of PDF
for the visually disabled. At present it is available only on Windows
platforms.
http://www.adobe.com/Acrobat/Access.html
For more information about Adobe Acrobat see the Scout Toolkit:
http://rs.internic.net/scout/toolkit/3d3.html
[Back to Contents]
Netscape Atlas is now Netscape 3.0 Beta
Netscape now offers Netscape 3.0 Beta for downloading from its home page.
3.0 is an enhancement of Netscape Atlas, which was discussed in the April
5, 1996 Scout Report. Video, phone, and enhanced Java support, among other
features, have been added.
http://home.netscape.com/comprod/mirror/client_download.html
For more information about Netscape 3.0
http://home.mcom.com/comprod/products/navigator/version_3.0/index.html
[Back to Contents]
send email to:listserv@lists.internic.net
in the body of the message, type:
subscribe scout-report yourfirstname yourlastname
For example, if your name is Frasier Crane, type
subscribe scout-report Frasier Crane
If your name is not Frasier Crane, substitute your own name.
Do not type your name when unsubscribing.
send mail to:listserv@lists.internic.net
in the body of the message, type:
subscribe scout-report-html yourfirstname yourlastname
For example, if your name is Frasier Crane, type
subscribe scout-report-html Frasier Crane.
If your name is not Frasier Crane, substitute your own name.
Do not type your name when unsubscribing.
The Scout Report's Web page:
http://rs.internic.net/scout/report
FTP:
ftp://rs.internic.net/scout/
Copyright Susan Calcari, 1996. Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of the Scout Report provided the copyright notice and this paragraph is preserved on all copies. The InterNIC provides information about the Internet to the US research and education community under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation: NCR-9218742. The Government has certain rights in this material.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Wisconsin - Madison, the National Science Foundation, AT&T, or Network Solutions, Inc.