The Scout Report - April 28, 2000

April 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 Science & Engineering_
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/report/sci-eng/2000/se-000426.html
Volume 3, Number 16 of the Scout Report for Science & Engineering is available. The In the News section annotates eight resources on the FDA-approval of Zyvox, the first in a new class of synthetic antibacterial drugs designed to treat a number of drug-resistant infections. [MD]
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Research and Education

Quality Counts 2000: Who Should Teach? -- Education Week
http://www.edweek.org/sreports/qc00/
Produced in collaboration with the Pew Charitable Trusts, Education Week's fourth annual 50-state report card on public education focuses on efforts by states to recruit, screen, and retain competent teachers. It concludes that, "based on the most exhaustive survey of state teacher policies to date," the enforcement of professional standards and the provision of additional training and support to help teachers develop are both falling short. At the site, users will find the full text of this detailed report, including an executive summary, an examination of teacher quality and recruiting, reviews of state policies, a review of the states, state report cards, and state policy updates. Numerous charts and tables are used throughout the text. [MD]
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Two from the AAAS
Policy or Panic? The Flight of Ethnic Albanians from Kosovo, March-May 1999
http://hrdata.aaas.org/kosovo/policyorpanic/
AAAS Science and Technology Policy Yearbook 2000 [.pdf]
http://www.aaas.org/spp/yearbook/2000/
The first of these two new items from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) comes from the Association's Science and Human Rights Program. The report offers a new approach to human rights analysis by "contextualizing the claims made by witnesses with analysis of objective administrative data," namely statistical records of a particular border post, official records of refugee movements, and surveys conducted in refugee camps. The report concludes that the mass movement of refugees in Kosovo in the spring of 1999 "was most likely the result of a deliberate Yugoslav policy of 'ethnic cleansing.'" The full text of the report, with several appendices, is available in HTML format. The AAAS has also placed the 2000 edition of its Science and Technology Policy Yearbook online in .pdf format. This edition of the Yearbook focuses on globalization and the knowledge economy. As in the past, most of the Yearbook is derived from the proceedings of the Annual AAAS Colloquium on Science and Technology Policy, with additional content from the 1999 AAAS Annual Meeting, a special AAAS-sponsored meeting at MIT, and several significant reports issued during the year. [MD]
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Ancient Coin Collection from MFA and Perseus Project
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/PR/mfa.ann2.html
Perseus Coin Collections
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/browser?object=Coin&field=Collection
Perseus Lookup Tool
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/sor
The Perseus Project (last discussed in the January 1, 1999 Scout Report) has announced the second illustrated Web catalog produced in conjunction with the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), Boston. This release is a catalog of over 775 ancient coins, added to the Perseus Coin Catalog. A straight list of the new additions may be accessed through the link provided at the press release page (the first URL above), or by selecting the MFA link at the second URL. The coins will also appear along with coins from other collections, images, and encyclopedia entries returned via keyword searches using the Perseus Lookup Tool. Images of the coins are offered in three resolutions, the largest at 3060x2036 pixels. Catalog entries for the coins include material, denomination, mint, region, issuing authority, actual weight, diameter, and a description of the type and legend on either side of the coin. The culmination of this phase of the collaborative project will be "an online publication of Roman art, with descriptions, pictures, and other educational resources. The publication will catalog over 1100 artworks, including sculpture, coins, jewelry, glass, gems, and pottery." [MD]
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IIE Passport
http://www.iiepassport.org/
Created and maintained by the Institute of International Education (IIE), the largest educational and cultural exchange organization in the US, this new site will quickly prove invaluable to college students and others searching for study abroad opportunities. The IIE has published a pair of well-respected directories to international study opportunities for 50 years, and this site allows users to conduct quick and sophisticated searches, using up to 34 different criteria to search over 5,000 program listings. Registered users can also save their search results for up to 90 days. In addition, the site contains several other useful features: a searchable listing of over 1,000 organizations that sponsor education abroad programs for US students and adult learners, a glossary, a link to US passport information, and a How To Guide. [MD]
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NEH Outlook
http://www.neh.gov/news/outlook/index.html
2000 Jefferson Lecturer in the Humanities -- James McPherson
http://www.neh.gov/news/mcpherson/homepage.html
Published since April 1999, the National Endowment for the Humanities's monthly online newsletter, NEH Outlook, is a quality resource not only for news about NEH programs and funding opportunities, but also for information about outstanding NEH-funded Websites and online projects. An example of these is the companion site to the 29th Annual Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities, which featured acclaimed Civil War historian James McPherson, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Battle Cry of Freedom (1988) and several other notable works on Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War. The site features the full text of McPherson's engaging lecture, entitled, "For a Vast Future Also: Lincoln and the Millennium." In addition, the site offers a brief biography and appreciation of McPherson, an interview, book excerpts, and a bibliography. Users can subscribe to the newsletter at the NEH Outlook site, where they will also find the complete run of back issues. [MD]
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory Technical Report Server [.pdf]
http://jpltrs.jpl.nasa.gov/
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory Technical Report Server currently contains close to 8,000 online reports. This "database of Abstracts, Citations and full text Technical Reports written by and for the scientific and technical community" is searchable by keyword, and users may scan technical report abstracts and citations by year. Related technical reports systems linked here are the NASA Technical Reports Server (described in the September 17, 1997 Scout Report) and the Telecommunications & Mission Ops Progress Report. Also included are links to other NASA centers. [KR]
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Two Resources for Central Asian Studies
Dissertations in Central Asian Studies
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/CASWW_Diss.html
Central Asia Experts Directory
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/CASWW_Expert.html
The Harvard Forum for Central Asian Studies
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~centasia/index.html
Provided by the Harvard Forum for Central Asian Studies, these two new sites will prove useful to graduate students and scholars of Central Asia. The first currently contains information on approximately 150 recent dissertations in Central Asian Studies completed in universities worldwide. These are listed by author, institution, subject keywords, or in one of 25 major subject headings. The second site, which is currently under development, was created to facilitate access for policy-makers, the press, and others to scholars with the appropriate expertise in Central Asian Studies. The Directory will feature those who have indicated their willingness to be contacted for expert consultations, and their listing will include a brief description of their qualifications. The Forum for Central Asian Studies is still gathering names and data, so the site at present has no content to speak of. It will, however, organize experts by name, topic, location, and under several headings: Politics and International Relations, Economy, Social Issues, and Cultural and Historical Background. The site is still soliciting experts for inclusion, and a link to the questionnaire is provided. [MD]
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H-US1918-45, The New Deal era and its Origins
http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~us191845/
This new H-Net discussion list is associated with the New Deal Network (originally reviewed in the October 25, 1996 Scout Report) and seeks to provide a forum for a wide audience interested in teaching and writing about the history of the United States, from 1918 to 1945. As the editors envision it, the list will cover such topics as "current research and research interests; methods and tools of analysis; reviews of primary and secondary sources; calls for papers, [and] conferences, grants, [and] fellowships." Users can read archived message logs and subscribe to the list at the site. [MD]
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General Interest

Victoria and Albert Museum Images Online
http://www.vam.ac.uk/Explorer/Virtual/images/
Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A)
http://www.vam.ac.uk/
The official site of London's V&A, the largest museum of decorative arts in the world, has a new look and a new image database containing images of over 2,000 objects. While the new, snazzy interface may be slow to load or difficult to read in some browsers, the image database loads and operates relatively quickly. Users can search the database by keyword or browse by one of three major categories (19th Century British Ceramics, 19th Century textiles, Chinese Ceramics) or by country, century, and object type (Glass, Jewellery, Furniture/Woodwork, Textiles, etc.). Results include small thumbnails displayed chronologically (or by country or object type) which link to briefly annotated larger images. The new V&A homepage offers information about the museum and its current exhibition on Art Nouveau and links to the National Art Library (located in the V&A) and the 24 Hour Museum Website (reviewed in the August 13, 1999 Scout Report). [MD]
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"Budgetary and Technical Implications of the Administration's Plan for National Missile Defense" -- CBO
.pdf Version
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdoc.cfm?index=1984&type=1
Postscript Version
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdoc.cfm?index=1984&type=2
Wordperfect Version
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdoc.cfm?index=1984&type=3
Released on April 25, this report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the cost of the proposed national missile defense system may reach as much as $60 billion. The offspring of President Reagan's space-based "Star Wars" missile defense system, the proposed missile shield would be composed of ground-based missile interceptors guided by infrared satellites and radar. Vehemently opposed by the Russian Government and receiving only lukewarm support from significant sections of the military and Congress, the missile program's fate will be decided this summer, when President Clinton has said he will determine whether or not to proceed. His decision, he has said, will be based on the cost, its effects on international arms control agreements (those with Russia in particular), and whether or not the system will actually work. One of the two tests conducted so far has succeeded, with a third planned for June. Users can download the full text of the report in .pdf, postscript, and Wordperfect formats at the CBO site. [MD]
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1stHeadlines
http://www.1stHeadlines.com
This handy current-awareness resource links to literally thousands of headline news stories each day from over 300 hundred newspapers, broadcast, and online sources. While the homepage offers links to the day's front page stories, unlike some news sites, users can also browse current stories in the business, health, sports, technology, or travel sections, or even by topics such as the olympics, animals, education, fires, aviation, etc. In addition, visitors can search for news stories by keyword, view newspapers and their headlines by state, view US political news by politician, and access international headlines by country. Additional resources include a list of top stories for each of the main sections and scrolling news tickers. While our test searches and browsing invariably found a few broken links for older stories, the vast majority of links were stable. A very helpful, well-organized, and easy-to-use resource for a wide variety of current news. [MD]
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Library of Congress -- New Sites For All Ages
Thomas Jefferson
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/jefferson/
America's Story From America's Library
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/
In celebration of its Bicentennial, the Library of Congress presents these Websites (and a large number of other programs). The online preview of the Jefferson exhibition examines Jefferson's intellectual development, using his own writings, supplemented by all manner of related items from the Library's collections. A draft fragment of the Declaration of Independence, letters Jefferson wrote, and his drawing of his own gravestone and epitaph are accompanied by images such as (his father) Peter Jefferson's 1755 Map of Virginia and an oil painting, "Congress Voting the Declaration of Independence." The second site, America's Story, makes history fun, presenting content in broad thematic areas: Meet Amazing Americans, Jump Back in Time, Explore the States, Join America at Play, and See, Hear and Sing. There are lots of pictures and guessing games that should interest kids. The "Meet..." section features biographies; currently there are eleven. Join America at Play includes baseball history, as well as American celebrations from parades to county fairs. [DS]
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Journal E: Interviews 50 Cents [QuickTime]
http://www.journale.com/interviews50cents/
Producer Ray Farkas and reporter Alex Chadwick (sometime NPR correspondent) had a simple idea: they traveled around the country with a card table, a couple of chairs, and a sign that read "Interviews 50 Cents" The result is a collection of interviews with ordinary folks that are at times funny, sad, inspirational, and moving, but always real. At this highly recommended site, provided by Journal E (see the April 7, 2000 Scout Report), visitors can view the first of four QuickTime films of these interviews. Entitled Uptown, Downtown, Out of Town, the film features a series of interviews in and around Washington, DC. Future segments, to be released in roughly two-week intervals, will be Along the Seashore,Indiana State Fair, and Key West.[MD]
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Medterms.com
http://www.medterms.com/
MedicineNet.com
http://www.medicinenet.com
Created by MedicineNet.com, this free and constantly revised encylopedic dictionary of classic and contemporary medical terms contains over 9,000 entries. Written entirely by physicians for both professional and non-professional readers, the dictionary also includes "pertinent scientific items, abbreviations, acronyms, jargon, institutions, projects, symptoms, syndromes, eponyms, medical history -- all having to do with medicine and the biomedical sciences, particularly anything of value and of interest." Users can browse the dictionary by alphabetical entry or conduct a keyword search. The length of dictionary entries vary widely, and some are quite brief. Some, however (mostly conditions or diseases), include links to detailed articles and related forums at the MedicineNet main site. While new medical information sites seem to pop up every day, the depth of Medterms, the frequent updates, and its doctor-only editors mark it as a notable resource. [MD]
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Technocopia
http://www.technocopia.com/
Technocopia is an entertaining, consumer-oriented site that provides information and opinions about the growing role of technology in our everyday lives. The site's perspective on technology is generally a celebratory one (its stated credo is "anticipate ubiquity"), and the varied articles are typically written in a lighthearted, accessible style. The site is divided into several areas, each of which focuses on the implementation of new technologies (primarily computers) in a particular context. For example, the Technology in Your Home section offers suggestions for "living like the Jetsons," with information about such topics as home automation and home computer networks. The Technology in Your Play section deals with such issues as home theaters, "pet tech," and "smart toys." Other sections of the site focus on productivity and home offices, health issues like "assistive technology" for the disabled, and speculations on future developments, such as those in the field of robotics. Each section also contains a small selection of links to other online sources of information, some of which are retailers's sites. Technocopia's front page allows users to go directly to the most recent articles in each of the site's sections, and to link to selected user-submitted questions on the Expert Answers page. All in all, an informative resource that is fun to peruse. [SW]
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Network Tools

ICQ 2000a (beta) [Windows 95/98/NT]
http://www.icq.com/download/
The latest beta release of the universally popular instant messaging program ICQ ("I seek you") contains a number of new features, including a new interface, a quick launch bar, ICQmail, a new answering service, and the ability to work behind firewalls. With a separate download, ICQ will also support ten different languages. Additional changes include a redesigned preferences feature, help cards, and an improved privacy feature. Users can download ICQ 2000a at the ICQ site. [MD]
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NIPC CyberNotes
http://www.fbi.gov/nipc/cybernotes.htm
Is my network secure? Are there holes in our security? If you're directly or indirectly responsible for maintaining computers connected to the Internet, those are questions you've probably asked yourself from time to time. Unfortunately, certain answers are difficult to come by, considering the rapid rate at which networks and operating systems are evolving and the staggering complexity of some of the software involved. Any resource that can bring you closer to that certainty is worth a look. CyberNotes, maintained by the National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC), is one of the wide array of useful security resources available. Given their mandate "to detect, deter, assess, warn of, respond to, and investigate computer intrusions and unlawful acts," NIPC is obviously concerned with tracking and alerting system administrators to potential security holes, and CyberNotes is one of their primary tools to achieve that goal. CyberNotes features an appropriately detailed list of recently discovered bugs and security holes, including the software involved, information about potential patches or workarounds, and a rating indicating the severity of the problem. The newsletter's "Trends" section discusses specific trends in attack techniques and origination points and security vulnerabilities that have recently been in frequent use by intruders. In general, CyberNotes can be a very valuable tool if hands-on computer security is part of your job, and it's worth browsing if you are indirectly involved in any fashion with the maintenance of networked computers. [EA]
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Search Engine Meeting Report
http://websearch.about.com/internet/websearch/library/blsem.htm
The Fifth Annual Search Engine Meeting was held in Boston, April 10-11, and Chris Sherman, author of the About.com Guide to Web Search (see the December 3, 1999 Scout Report), was in attendance. His detailed, five-part report covers the most important presentations and panel discussions featured at the conference, including Danny Sullivan's State of the Search Engines Report, a talk by Inktomi co-founder Eric Brewer, reports on MSN Search and FAST, a look into the future of intelligent agents, and a spirited panel presentation and open discussion between the chief technologists of the major engines and members of the audience. [MD]
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In The News

Breaking Up is Hard to Do: DOJ Proposes Microsoft Split
Microsoft on Trial -- New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/reference/index-microsoft.html
US v. Microsoft -- Wired News
http://www.wired.com/news/antitrust/
US v. Microsoft -- Washington Post [RealPlayer]
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/business/specials/microsofttrial/
In Depth: Microsoft -- BBC News [RealPlayer]
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/in_depth/business/2000/microsoft/default.stm
DOJ vs. Microsoft: Judgement Day -- ZDNet [RealPlayer, Windows Media Player]
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/special/msdojendgame.html
The Big Picture -- CNET
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-204-1775879.html?tag=st.ne.ni.bpstck.bp-1003
Microsoft Editorial Cartoons
http://www.cagle.com/microsoft/
"Two is better than one" -- Boston Globe
http://boston.com/dailyglobe2/119/editorials/Two_is_better_than_one+.shtml
United States of America v. Microsoft Corporation, Conclusions of Law and Order
http://usvms.gpo.gov/
United State vs. Microsoft: Main Index -- DOJ
http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/ms_index.htm
Microsoft PressPass Trial Update
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/trial/
Although it was leaked earlier in the week, today the Justice Department and the nineteen states party to the successful monopoly suit against the software maker will officially release their joint proposal for a remedy. The proposal will call for Microsoft to be split into two companies, which would be forbidden to recombine for at least ten years. Under the proposal, one of the companies would sell Windows, while the other would be responsible for application programs such as Office. This follows US District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson's April 3 ruling that Microsoft had violated antitrust laws by stifling competition in the Internet browser market and "unlawfully tying its Web browser" to Windows. Microsoft has until May 10 to respond, but has already stated that it will request an extension, a move in line with the company's general "go slow" legal strategy that may drag the case on for years barring any move by Judge Jackson to expedite the case to the US Supreme Court.

As would be expected, a number of online news sources have crafted special reports following the progress of the trial. The best of these include features from The New York Times (free registration required), Wired News, the Washington Post, BBC News, ZDNet, and CNET. Together these special reports offer an exhaustive collection of resources on the trial and the future of Microsoft, including legal documents, past reports, analysis and opinion, profiles, background, and audio and video clips. Also of interest is the collection of over 120 editorial cartoons on the trial and the company offered at Daryl Cagle's Professional Cartoonists Index, and a recent editorial from the Boston Globe. Users can also view the full text of Justice Jackson's decision and read about the case from the Department of Justice and Microsoft's point of view. [MD]
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The Scout Report (ISSN 1092-3861) is published weekly by Internet Scout
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