Web Standards Project
Led by the World Wide Web Consortium, the Web Standards Project is an effort to make "technologies for creating and interpreting web-based content." These standards allow many types of languages and object models to be compatible on different browsers and platforms. The project's home page has many resources for users to learn about standards and guidelines. Some of the major topics include HTML, XML, Cascading Style Sheets, and accessibility. An informative section on Web browsers compares the
Researchers Find Genetic Response to Global Warming
University of Alberta biologist Stan Boutin and his research team have recently published findings that North American red squirrels exhibit genetic changes in response to a warming climate. This Web site contains a University of Alberta press release detailing this first-ever demonstration of genetic adaptation to global warming. With implications that extend far beyond the immediate research concerns of geneticists and environmental scientists, Boutin's work as presented in this Web site shoul
Plastics Resource: Information on Plastics and the Environment
The American Plastics Council (APC) maintains the Plastics Resource: Information on Plastics and the Environment Web site. The APC, which is a major trade association for the US plastics industry, works to promote the benefits of plastics and the plastics industry. Visitors to the site can learn the development history of plastics and how they contribute to our health and safety in the Plastics 101 link. They can also find out how plastics are actually environmentally friendly, how much they rea
The American Association of Immunologists
The American Association of Immunologists (AAI) works "to advance knowledge of immunology and related disciplines, to foster interchange of ideas and information among investigators in the various disciplines and to promote an understanding of the field of immunology." The AAI maintains a number of Training and Job Opportunity Lists on their website for Graduate Programs, Postdoctoral Fellowships, Faculty Positions, Research Scientists, and Positions Wanted. The AAI site also provides contact in
IBM: Programming and Poetry
This article reviews a Poetry vs. Programming panel sponsored by IBM to continue a 2004 discussion from the Innovation Days speaker series. Panel participants, which included poets Thomas Lux and Vijay Seshadri, and IBM researchers John Richards, Josh Scribner and John Vlissides, discussed whether or not "writing code is like writing poetry." The panel was also broadcast to IBM's U.S. labs. The author provides quotes from the participants and describes the conversation as “lively and dynamic.”
Energy Star: Prepare for Summer Now With a More Energy Efficient System
As summer approaches, energy providers are preparing for the few days per year when their systems will be pushed to the limit. To help reduce the enormous electricity demand from air conditioners, people can follow several tips on energy conservation given on this site. A number of informative guides and fact sheets explain proper maintenance and usage practices that can help to maximize energy efficiency. A particularly interesting document is the Home Heating and Cooling Tutorial, which illust
KidsAstronomy.com
KidsAstronomy.com was created by astronomy buff and elementary school teacher Hiram Bertoch. Her goal of creating a kid friendly Web site that is balanced between text and tech was definitely achieved. Interactive, visually pleasant, and content rich, the site provides kids a great learning resource that is fun to explore. One of the activities "How Big is the Universe" shows a picture of a man in the grass and lets you zoom out by powers of ten to finally see the whole universe. Teachers will a
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
Chemguide
The Chemguide Web site is written and maintained by chemistry teacher and author Jim Clark. In his goal to help students better understand chemistry concepts, he offers several topics that include Atomic Structure and Bonding, Inorganic Chemistry, Basic Organic Chemistry, Organic Reaction Mechanisms, Instrumental Analysis, and Chemistry Calculations. The pages offer descriptions and illustrations, which, although may not give wide ranging information, can be a good supplemental source for studen
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
10th Report on Carcinogens
The US Department of Health and Human Services has recently made available its 10th Report on Carcinogens (RoC), as prepared by the National Toxicology Program located at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). Users may view the entire report on this Web site provided by Environmental Health Perspectives, a peer-reviewed journal published by NIEHS. The RoC is an authoritative study that identifies and examines substances that pose a potential carcinogenic hazard to huma
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,
Super-Kamiokande at UC Irvine
Designed for users who do not have a strong background in physics, this educational website, produced by the University of California - Irvine, explains all about neutrinos. Students can learn how the Super-Kamiokande detector, located one kilometer underground, is able to act as a target for neutrinos and as a sensing device for the by-products of neutrino interactions. Visitors can find out how neutrino studies are contributing to the fields of particle physics, cosmology, and experimental neu
SearchEngineWatch.com: Web Searching Tips
This webpage is much more than its name implies. It provides a series of articles about using search engines efficiently, as well as about the dynamics and operation of search engines. One particularly intriguing article describes how search engines actually perform searches, which is a remarkable task considering the vast amount of data that is indexed. Another article, current as of September 2003, compares some of the most popular search engines in terms of the number of textual documents cov
PBS TeacherSource Classroom Currents
PBS offers this online set of lesson plans and other learning resources to help students explore the world's oceans for the December 2002 edition. The Web site provides ten interdisciplinary activities for grades K-12. The activities cover a broad range of fields, including history, poetry and literature, economics, and of course the sciences. The activities' titles Weird Sea Creatures (grades K-6 with modification) and Ocean Adaptation Wheels (grades 2-6) each have a life sciences focus. The si
Curious and Useful Math
This site is a fun diversion from the tedious monotony of everyday math. It is basically a collection of many mathematical curiosities, some of which are useful, but most are simply interesting tidbits to amaze and perplex others. Many of the items will make readers wonder, "How in the world is that possible?" Fortunately, the author provides explanations, which can help teach mathematical skills that ordinarily are never exercised. Some sections are suited for grade school students, such as mul
JAMSTEC Data Site
From the Japan Marine Science and Technology Center (JAMSTEC) comes the JAMSTEC Data Site. Visitors can access several databases and data sites including the Deep Seafloor Image Database, Japan ARGO Delayed-mode Database, the J-CAD Compact Arctic Drifter, MIRAI Data Web, Research Results Report System, Submarine Cable Data Center, and the TRITON Buoy Data Web site. All provide marine science related information from Japan and around the world.
Philips: What if You Could Carry Your TV Around?
Philips Research demonstrated "the world's first matrix display that keeps functioning while being bent," and it has great expectations for the technology. Although it will probably not be commercially available for some time, it is intriguing to envision being able to unroll an e-book to read. A broad introduction to flexible displays is given on this Web site. Several potential technologies that could be used to manufacture the devices are discussed, including organic light-emitting diodes and
Observational Science Branch
The Observational Science Branch (OSB), working within the Laboratory for Hydrospheric Processes of the Earth Sciences Directorate at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, conducts research in the oceanic, atmospheric, and terrestrial sciences. "We design, fabricate and operate both remote and in-situ sensing instruments for aircraft, balloons, and rockets. We plan and conduct laboratory and field measurements to improve the fundamental knowledge of earth sensing and to evaluate sensor systems as
Engineer's Edge: Solutions by Design
Engineer's Edge is a great reference for a wide variety of engineering, design, and manufacturing information. Most of the material is in the form of online calculators and equation charts, which save users time that would otherwise be spent flipping through books. Other resources such as part specifications (e.g., drill sizes, gauge charts) and material properties are also available. Interactive conversion tools, beam statics analyzers, and calculators for many different applications are free a
