The Virtual Body

The Virtual Body [http://www.medtropolis.com/vbody.asp] - Unless one is a medical resident, it can be quite difficult to get a close-up look at a skeleton, a brain, or even the inner workings of the digestive tract. Students of the medical sciences and others need worry no more, as this very fine interactive exhibit offers up dynamic images and cross-sections of these parts of the anatomy and many more to boot. The site contains four sections, including "Brain", "Skeleton", "Heart", and "Digestive Tract". In the "Heart" area, visitors can learn about the individual parts of the heart, view an animated heart, and also take a narrated tour of the heart that will "keep your heart beating." Moving on, the "Skeleton" section features the "Bones Narrated" tour, which will take visitors on a guided tour of the skeleton and its functions. For those who like to keep things interactive, there is also the "Build a Skeleton" feature that will test their knowledge of the human skeleton. Additionally, the "Digestive Tract" area includes a test of organ organization and a trip through the duodenum and other parts of the digestive system. It's worth noting that the entire site is also available in Spanish. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

American Geographical Society Digital Photo Archive

American Geographical Society Digital Photo Archive [http://www.uwm.edu/Libraries/digilib/agsphoto/index.html] - The University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee has rolled out a number of fine digital collections over the past few years that have covered everything from Golda Meir to the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. This latest addition provides access to over 2000 photographs from the American Geographical Society Library (AGSL). The current collection is primarily focused on countries in Asia and the Middle East, and they hope to expand their collection in the near future to include additional regions of the world. Visitors to the site can search the collection by country, city, or search term of their choice. Highlights of the archive include some remarkable photographs of the waterfront in Alexandria, the markets of Bangkok, and photographs of the city of Kathmandu. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

National Institute on Aging

National Institute on Aging [http://www.nia.nih.gov/] - The National Institute on Aging (NIA) is the research arm of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) that focuses on aging research. Their website is geared both toward researchers and laypeople, particularly seniors. Visitors can click on the links, such as "Publications", "Alzheimer's Disease Information" and "Clinical Trials" next to the "Health Information" heading, on the right side of the homepage. For a brief description of what the links are about, visitors can click on the "Health Information" heading to be taken to the links and their descriptions. The "Clinical Trials" link would be of interest to those seniors who have particular medical conditions that may be being studied by the NIH. To see the numerous publications the NIA has available to order or download free, visitors can click on the "Publications" link on the homepage to browse the categories of publications available, including, "Caregiving", "Conditions & Diseases", "Medications/Supplements" and "Safety". Spanish language versions of the publications, can be found by simply clicking on "Spanish Language Materials" in the same section. For researchers, the "Research Information" heading on the right side of the page leads to the descriptions of the links that are also featured in the middle of the homepage. Two links that are concerned with current research are "Research Conducted at NIA" and "NIA Sponsored Research". >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Japanese Fine Prints, Pre-1915

Japanese Fine Prints, Pre-1915 [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pp/jpdhtml/jpdabt.html] - The online division of Prints and Photographs from the Library of Congress has digitized approximately 70% of their more than 2500 Japanese woodblock prints and drawings that date from the 17th-20th centuries. For visitors interested in accessing some of the collection that has yet to be digitized, click on the link "Access to Unprocessed Materials" located at the top of the homepage. To become familiar with the print traditions in Japanese art, visitors should click on the link in the middle of the page, entitled "Background and Scope". To view examples of some of the types of subjects in the prints, visitors can click on "View Examples" next to the various subjects, such as actors, women, landscapes, scenes from Japanese literature, daily life, and views of Western foreigners. To access descriptions of these prints, visitors can click on the links in the middle of the page, with the aforementioned titles, or scroll down to the bottom of the page to read them. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Freedom House: Freedom of the Press

Freedom House: Freedom of the Press [http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=16] - Advocacy, action, and analysis are the tenets of Freedom House, a democracy organization founded in 1941 in the United States. Their website is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, Farsi, Korean, Russian and Spanish, and is loaded with analysis.
One of the focuses of Freedom House is to monitor the freedom of the press available in countries around the world. Each year they publish a survey of 194 countries' degree of free press.

The report includes country scores, draft reports, an overview essay, and methodology employed in gathering the data for the survey. To view any of the editions from 2002-2008 simply click on the drop down menu "Select a Year" next to Edition, near the top of the homepage. Once visitors have selected a year, an interactive, downloadable map will appear, allowing the visitor to choose a region on the map, and then choose any of the countries in the region. A press-oriented biography of the country is given, along with how the country scored in various measures of general freedom. Links to such information as "Methodology", "Survey Team", "Tables & Charts", and "Essays" are accessible at the top of the page once a visitor chooses a country to explore. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Contagion: Historical Views of Disease and Epidemics

Contagion: Historical Views of Disease and Epidemics [ http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/] - With this rather remarkable collection, the dedicated staff members at Harvard University Library's Open Collections Program have brought together Philadelphia's yellow fever epidemic of 1793, London's Great Plague of 1665, and six other notable epidemics from world history. The collection provides general background information on diseases and epidemics worldwide, and as previously suggested, is organized around significant "episodes" of such diseases. Visitors to the collection will find historical pamphlets, serials, books, and manuscripts totaling over 500,000 pages. The "General Materials" area is worth a look as it provides access to brief overviews of important concepts such as germ theory, public health, vaccination, medical geography, and humoral theory. Overall, it's a tremendous set of offerings, and visitors with a penchant for the history of medicine, public health, or diseases will find that this site is well worth many visits. Also, visitors can share resources on the site via Google Bookmarks and Facebook. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Writings of Thomas Wentworth Higginson

Writings of Thomas Wentworth Higginson [ http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/higginson/] - During his long life, Thomas Wentworth Higginson was an outspoken critic of slavery, military conflicts, and many other issues that dominated conversation in 19th century America. Higginson was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1823 and after attending Harvard Divinity School he became a Unitarian minister. Over the course of the next five decades, Higginson would find time to play a leadership role in the women's movement and speak out against the fugitive slave act. This particular digital collection from the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln contains some of Higginson's correspondence, along with a selection of his other writings. These writings include "Does Slavery Christianize the Negro?", "Massachusetts in Mourning", and "The Results of Spiritualism". Visitors can also browse a topical list which will guide them to specific writings that address the Civil War, John Brown, Kansas, and the Woman's Suffrage Association along with many other fascinating topics. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Writing Guidelines for Engineering and Science Students

Writing Guidelines for Engineering and Science Students [http://www.writing.eng.vt.edu/] - Crafting meaningful and articulate lab presentations and correspondence can be difficult for anyone, including engineers and other scientists. This particular set of resources is deigned to teach engineering and science students about creating and writing materials such as resumes, formal laboratory reports, presentation slides, and so on. The guidelines are gathered into several different sections, including "Introduction", "Presentations", "Correspondence", and "Formal Reports". There is material for instructors here as well, and the offerings include pieces on the design of writing assignments, the interactive teaching of writing, and the evaluation of writing assignments. Finally, the site also contains a number of writing exercises on grammar, punctuation, and word usage. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Legacy: Spain and the United States in the Age of Independence 1763-1848

Legacy: Spain and the United States in the Age of Independence 1763-1848 [http://latino.si.edu/SpainLegacy/Archive/index.html] - During the eighty-five year period after the 1763 Treaty of Paris, Great Britain, Spain, France, Native Americans, and the young American republic engaged in a number of conflicts, alliances, and battles on the North American continent. Drawing on primary source materials from the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery and numerous other organizations, this delightful exhibit looks at the crucial Spanish contributions to the American cause during the Revolutionary War and the presence and influence of Hispanic culture in Florida, Louisiana, California, and the Southwest. Visitors can begin their exploration through the site by clicking through the five primary sections, which include "War of Independence" and "Spain in the American Imagination". Upon arriving at each section, visitors will be presented with an interactive "wall" of portraits, maps, treaties, and other items of historical ephemera. Additionally, the site also includes an interactive catalogue and a map. Needless to say, the site's materials are also available in Spanish. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/