Whole Building Design Guide
The National Institute of Building Sciences is developing the Whole Building Design Guide (WBDG). While not yet complete, there is already a substantial knowledge base for building professionals to draw upon. The purpose of WBDG is to help designers "improve the performance and quality of their buildings by following the guidance and recommendations provided within the categories of this web site." There are sections for specific building types and design objectives. Eventually, WBDG will have a
The Universal Troubleshooting Process
The Universal Troubleshooting Process (UTP) is an abbreviated version of the book Troubleshooting Techniques of the Successful Technologist by Steve Litt. UTP consists of ten steps designed to help modern workers diagnose the system in question and ultimately repair it. The process is very general and can be applied to virtually any well-defined system. Each step of the process is carefully outlined and can be easily followed. The Web site also has links to applicable articles from Steve Litt's
Broad Institute: Resources for the Scientific Community
From the Broad Institute--a research alliance of Harvard University, the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology--this website makes a variety of genomic resources publicly available to researchers. The site links to Genome Sequence Databases under the following categories: Fungal, Vertebrate Lineage, Bacterium, Mammalian, and Archaebacterium. Examples of software available through the site include Locusview 2.0: A Program for Generating Images
USGS Fact Sheets
As part of the US Geological Survey's (USGS) Water Resource Division, the USGS Fact Sheet Web site provides a full listing of scientific publications listed by state. The reports span water and non-water related topics with coverage that includes Coal Resource Assessments in the Northern and Central Appalachian Coal Region, The San Francisco Volcanic Field, Arizona, Pesticides in Ground Water, and Springs in Florida. The dozens of reports are either viewed online or downloadable and, although pr
Eureka County, Nevada: Nuclear Waste Page
Yucca Mountain in south central Nevada is the site of a governmental project for long-term storage of radioactive waste. Although it is a highly controversial subject, the project, if approved and completed, will certainly be an engineering marvel. A tunnel to a massive repository deep under the mountain is expected to take several years and cost billions of dollars. The Nuclear Waste Page of Eureka County has continually updated reports about the status of the project, pictures and maps of the
Making Mathematics: Mentored Research Projects for Young Mathematicians
Making Mathematics is a great way for middle and high school students to get involved in mathematics research. The program matches a student or group of students with a mentor (a professional mathematician or graduate student). The student then works on an open-ended research problem and corresponds with his/her mentor via email. The student's teacher can also participate or communicate directly with the mentor. The Making Mathematics Web site has information about possible research projects and
The Marine Mammal Center
This Web site from San Francisco's Marine Mammal Center (MMC) offers a look at current research at the facility. Research focuses primarily on marine mammal health issues, with the goal of improving the rehabilitation process for stranded animals. Visitors to this site can read brief descriptions of current projects in three areas -- Disease Studies; Clinical Technique Studies, which investigates ways to improve diagnostic tests and clinical procedures for stranded marine mammals; and Tagging St
Project LABS (Learning About Basic Science)
Project LABS is an academic industrial partnership sponsored by Rohm and Haas. The program is designed to foster collaboration between teachers and scientists to promote science education, develop hands-on activities, demonstrate the practical side of science, and show that science is fun. Three categories of lessons are provided that include general science, physical science, and natural/ environmental/ biological science. Examples of these include such topics as Density, the Nature of Chemical
Applied Soft Computing: Elsevier Science
Debuting in March 2001, Applied Soft Computing is the official, online journal of the World Federation on Soft Computing. The journal focuses on "Fuzzy Logic, Neural Networks, Evolutionary Computing, Rough Sets and other similar techniques to address real world complexities." Applications of soft computing are very diverse, ranging from pattern recognition to telecommunications. The most recent issue has five articles, in which genetic programming is a prevalent topic. Access to full online text
Audio Mining
Occasionally referred to as audio indexing, audio mining is a computerized task involving the processing of an audio file, extracting the dialog and creating a textual transcript, and searching the transcript for certain words or phrases. Considering the amount of audio content on the Internet and other sources, it is clear that audio mining is a growing technology.To get an idea of what audio mining is and how it can be used, people can read this article from the Cutter Consortium (1). It lists
The Glossary of Mathematical Mistakes
Each month, the Glossary of Mathematical Mistakes examines a common fallacy that is frequently made by the media, politicians, and "many non-math people." The site has won awards from Scientific American, Britannica.com, and several others. Besides the monthly addition, there is an archive that includes mistakes that date back one year, plus many more that are just too classic to remove. Readers have the opportunity to email suggestions for mistakes that they would like people to know about. Ano
Space Technology Hall of Fame
The Space Technology Hall of Fame is a fascinating Web site that honors "the innovators who have transformed technology originally developed for space into commercial products." Selection criteria for the induction process are given in the Hall of Famers section. It is interesting to note the weights of each criterion, with the most points given for public awareness and social benefit. The Hall of Fame was started in 1988, and descriptions of all the technologies inducted since then can be brows
Wacky Patent of the Month
Maintained by Michael Colitz, a registered patent attorney, the Wacky Patent of the Month is an amusing Web site "devoted to recognizing selected inventors and their remarkable and unconventional patented inventions." The complete original patent document is given with each item covered on the site. The highlighted patent of December 2002 is the scarecrow; however, as can be seen from the seven-year archive, some of the previously featured patents were a bit more outlandish. Most people probably
Prime Curios!
The University of Tennessee at Martin has one of the most expansive sites devoted to prime numbers and their significance. This page "is an exciting collection of curiosities, wonders and trivia related to prime numbers." As of December 2002, there are nearly 2,000 numbers with at least one curio. Some of the smallest numbers are interesting to peruse; however, reading every curio or researching other numbers to submit to the database is probably left to the mathematicians. One thing is certain,
GSC-IS Version 2.0
The Government Smart Card-Interoperability Specification (GSC-IS) was released June 27, 2002. Developed in part by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, it provides an overview of the GSC architecture and discusses "solutions to a number of the interoperability problems associated with smart card technology." The main sections of the document offer details about the GSC architectural model, access control model, basic services interface, virtual card edge interface, card capabiliti
CAIB Report: Columbia Accident Investigation Board
The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster took place on February 1, 2003. For the next seven months, a group of scientists have been compiling evidence to determine what went wrong and how to prevent future accidents. At this NASA website, visitors can read the findings of this extensive report. Within the report interface, users can view six short movies illustrating the launch, the foam striking the Space Shuttle, Columbia's reentry, and the impact testing of the RCC panel. The site also has links t
Logistical Networking for Digital Video on Internet2
Researchers at the University of Tennessee have developed "an Internet2-enabled personal video recorder (PVR) service." The service is based upon Logistical Networking, which is a new kind of data management that transfers and stores data through a distributed network environment. This online resource provides a detailed explanation of how the technology works and how it can be used. It illustrates the network operations that allow a user to program her or his computer to record a television sho
Backyard Jungle
Created by Forum One Communications and funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Backyard Jungle is a kid-friendly Web site where members can upload photos, drawings, and descriptions of their own backyard or other natural area to share with an online community. Membership registration is straightforward and free of charge. While Backyard Jungle does not include any formal lesson plans or educational activities, it offers kids a fun incentive to explore and communicate about their natu
NOVA: Sinking City of Venice
First aired on November 19, 2002, the Sinking City of Venice is a fascinating episode of the NOVA television series that focuses on the threat of rising tide levels for the exposed Italian city. Venice has many historical treasures and centuries-old architecture, which is forcing the government to turn to engineers for possible solutions to safeguard the city. A very ambitious proposal that is currently being considered involves massive underwater gates that rise in times of dangerously high tid
Seville Game Theory Group
Jesus Mario Bilbao Arrese, a Professor of Applied Mathematics at the University of Seville, heads the Seville Game Theory group (SGT). On this website, visitors will find a selection of publications by members of the group, including papers, preprints and PhD theses. The Blackboard section includes various position papers, mostly in Spanish, which address issues such as the value of using scientific methods to understand, design and analyze complex voting systems. The website also provides links
