Friday, August 18, 2006

What You Say

The U.S. Supreme Court has begun posting transcripts of oral arguments on the same day the cases are heard. Older transcripts are also available on the site.

Thursday, August 17, 2006

At What Cost

The Personal Disclosure Database took those hard-to-read pdf files and put them in a searchable database. You can now search the most recent reports for net worth, major holdings, liabilities and transactions, as well as sources of income, gifts, and travel reimbursements. The Congressional Travel database tracks lawmakers' privately sponsored trips around the world. Also, OMB Watch created FedSpending.org, a database that allows searching of over $12 Trillion of federal spending.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

For Our Defence

The CNSS - The Committee on National Security Systems: Under Executive Order (E.O.) 13231 of October 16, 2001, Critical Infrastructure Protection in the Information Age, the President redesignated the National Security Telecommunications and Information Systems Security Committee (NSTISSC) as the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS). The Department of Defense continues to chair the Committee under the authorities established by NSD-42. This was reaffirmed by Executive Order 13284, dated January 23, 2003, Executive Order Amendment of Executive Orders and Other Actions, in Connection with the Transfer of Certain Functions to the Secretary of Homeland Security.

The CNSS provides a forum for the discussion of policy issues, sets national policy, and promulgates direction, operational procedures, and guidance for the security of national security systems. National security systems are information systems operated by the U.S. Government, its contractors or agents that contain classified information or that involve intelligence activities; involve cryptographic activities related to national security; involve command and control of military forces; involve equipment that is an integral part of a weapon or weapons system(s); or are critical to the direct fulfillment of military or intelligence missions (not including routine administrative and business applications). Index of National Security System Issuances

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Documenting A Democracy

The National Archives of Australia has recently created this website which explores the various documents that tell about the creation and formation of their country as a commonwealth. The homepage presents a map of the country, divided into its contemporary political divisions, allowing visitors to click on each area to read primary documents that provide insight into each locale. Areas such as New South Wales include transcripts and original documents, such as the secret instructions to Captain James Cook on what to do if he finds land and the New South Wales Courts Act of 1787. Other sections of the site include “Pathways”, which allow users to delve into these documents in a thematic fashion (related to issues surrounding land and the like) and a basic timeline that begins in 60,000 BC and continues to 1836.

Monday, August 14, 2006

Head Count

The National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) is a project to create and freely disseminate a database incorporating all available aggregate census information for the United States between 1790 and 2000. The NHGIS work invloves three major components: collecting and enriching historical and contemporary U.S. Census summary data, incorporating this data into a Geographic Information Systems framework, and creating a web-based system for access to both census data and the metadata.

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Earth Angel

As the crucial element of the National Science Digital Library that provides information on the area of geoscience, the Digital Library for Earth Science Education (DLESE) provides access to “quality teaching and learning resources about the Earth as a system for a wide range of learners.” With an impressive array of materials, it’s hard to know where to start, but first-time visitors may wish to look over the most recent edition of their in-house newsletter, which profiles some of the materials that have been added to the site. Of course, there is also a general search engine that allows users to search all of the materials by grade level, resource type, standards, and thematic collection.

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Connect The Dots

Environment Dot is the online resource for environment. Provide environment resources, water resources, vegetarianism, pollution prevention, agriculture, microbia, ozone and more.

Friday, August 11, 2006

The Fourth Element

The Encyclopedia of Earth is a new electronic reference about the Earth, its natural environments, and their interaction with society. The Encyclopedia is a free, fully searchable collection of articles written by scholars, professionals, educators, and experts who collaborate and review each other's work. The articles are written in non-technical language and will be useful to students, educators, scholars, professionals, as well as to the general public. The scope of the Encyclopedia includes; The hydrosphere, lithosphere, atmosphere, magnetosphere, cryosphere, and biosphere, and their interactions, especially in regards to how these systems support life and underpin human existence and the living organisms on Earth that constitute its biological diversity.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Beeker Full Of Secrets

The WWW Chemistry Guide is a comprehensive collection of annotated links for chemists and researchers involved in organic, biochemical, computational, medicinal and/or other chemistry research. All sites listed in the directory are examined by our team of editors (scientists with Bsc, Msc and Ph. D. degrees of chemistry), and only if qualified are granted inclusion. Editorial review ensures that all sites are appropriately listed in their most relevant category; all sites included must contain substantive unique content, navigate in a user-friendly manner, contain no broken links or pictures, be up and running 24/7, and conform to universally accepted web standards.

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

A Pin Drop

The Musical Acoustics Research Library (MARL) is a collection of independent archives or libraries assembled by distinguished groups or individuals in the field of musical acoustics research. MARL is directed by representatives of each member collection, in conjunction with the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) at Stanford University, which maintains the contents of each library. Currently, MARL is comprised of the Catgut Acoustical Society Library, the Arthur H. Benade Archive, the John Backus Archive, and the John W. Coltman Archive. MARL consists of an extensive collection of files compiled by or about many of the most prominent acousticians of our time.

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

Moving Picture Show

Moving Image Collections Union catalogs archives with portals providing specific information for general users, archivists, or science educators. The collection offers bibliographic records from more than 230 institutions and archives. Some records include links to file downloads or streaming video.

Monday, August 07, 2006

Make Them Laugh

The American Comedy Archives was established at Emerson College in 2005 to acquire, preserve and make available primary source material that documents the professional activities of the ground breaking individuals who have written, produced or performed comedy for radio, television, motion pictures or live performance. It is the first academic collection of its kind devoted to exploring the nature of comedy as an American art form and reflects the College's view that examining the history, sociology, and culture of comedy represents an important and underrepresented field of study.

Sunday, August 06, 2006

White Collar

The Government Accountability Office's Financial Restatement Database alllows you to download two files containing its Financial Restatement Database, which includes 1,786 announcements from July 1, 2002 to June 30, 2006 "identified as having been made because of financial reporting fraud and/or accounting errors."

Saturday, August 05, 2006

Democratic Control

Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) is an online legal database on security sector governance. This "database provides reference information and texts of over 300 laws and regulations from some 30 countries of the Euro-Atlantic region, relating to one of the following five topics; armed forces, democratic control of armed forces, intelligence, national security and police and non-military security forces." There is also publications from DCAF who’s goals are to "work with governments and civil society to foster and strengthen the democratic and civilian control of security sector organizations such as police, intelligence agencies, border security services, paramilitary forces, and armed forces." The publications area of this site includes "backgrounders," books, handbooks, occasional papers and policy papers from DCAF, freely available in PDF.

Friday, August 04, 2006

Lost In Translation

The Asia-Pacific Literacy Data Base is a resource from UNESCO for literacy facts and figures, reports, publications, and non-formal educational curricula and NGO literacy programs in the Asia-Pacific: Afghanistan, India, Maldives, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mongolia, the Philippines, Bhutan, Iran, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Thailand, China, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Vietnam. Fulltext publications are in PDF format.

Thursday, August 03, 2006

Casglu'r Tlysau

Gathering the Jewels: The Website for Welsh Cultural History is a website about Welsh history provides "over 20,000 images of objects, books, letters, aerial photographs and other items from museums, libraries and record offices in Wales." Searchable; or browse by county in Wales or by subjects such as agriculture, industry, arts, religion, politics, education, transportation, domestic life, and war. In English and Welsh. From the National Library of Wales

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

All Aboard

Cruise Critic is a "cruise vacation planning guide which includes objective cruise reviews on 225+ ships, 55 cruise line profiles, information on what to do and where to go in 135+ worldwide ports, readers' ship ratings and reviews, cruise bargains and cruise tips." Browse cruises by destination, city of departure, cruise line, price range, interest (such as golf), and lifestyle (such as gay and lesbian). From the Independent Traveler, publishers of a travel exchange website.

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

SpecOps

Overview and history of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), such as the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR), Psychological Operations (PSYOP), Rangers (special light infantry operations), and others "operations conducted by specially trained, equipped and organized Department of Defense forces." The mission of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command is to organize, train, educate, man, equip, fund, administer, mobilize, deploy and sustain Army special operations forces to successfully conduct worldwide special operations, across the range of military operations, in support of regional combatant commanders, American ambassadors and other agencies.