Describes the use of three alternative methods for ranking films for information retrieval (IR). A large film-person incidence matrix is generated using the principle cast, directors, producers and screenwriters for each film. These attributes are used to measure film-film distances by creating a distance matrix. Distance, product distance, and…

Describes the Statistical Interactive Glossary (SIG), an enhanced glossary of statistical terms supported by the GovStat ontology of statistical concepts. Presents a conceptual framework whose components articulate different aspects of a term's basic explanation that can be manipulated to produce a variety of presentations. The overarching…

Reports preliminary results of a study to develop and automate new metrics for assessment of information quality in text documents, particularly in news. Through focus group studies, quality judgment experiments, and textual feature extraction and analysis, nine quality aspects were generated and applied in human assessments. Experiments were…

Textual properties of documents were analyzed to identify predictive variables for various document qualities by means of statistical and linguistic methods. A collection of 1000 documents was created, and each document was judged in terms of nine document qualities (accuracy, reliability, objectivity, depth, author/producer credibility,…

Examined child caregivers' use of various HIV/AIDS information resources in relation to professional background and attitudes. Found that providers' education level, child care experience, and the age group for which they were responsible correlated with use of newspaper/magazine articles, pamphlets, and educational workshops. Use of…

Discusses library Web sites and explains some of the benefits when libraries make their sites into reference portals, linking them to other useful Web sites. Topics include print versus Web information sources; limitations of search engines; what Web sites to include, including criteria for inclusions; and organizing the sites. (LRW)

Discussion of the role of school libraries focuses on a study in England that monitored secondary school students completing a resource-based learning project. Compared students' use of the school library at four different schools with their use of other information resources, including public libraries and the Internet. (Author/LRW)

Lists 41 print resources and 11 Web site resources on teaching and learning about mathematics during the early years. (KB)

Responses from 130 of 156 technology education students indicated that 93% found the Internet an important research tool but 70% used it primarily for e-mail; only 14 had formal Internet training; 78% were unaware of the need to document Internet information sources; 74.2% believed this is public information; most said instructors did not teach…

A survey of more than 400 parents and carers of children and adults with severe learning disabilities in Northern Ireland found respondents' most common sources of information were social workers, staff in schools and centers, and general practitioners. Needed information most commonly concerned available services, leisure and holidays, and…

Describes the four largest sources of publicly available resources, illustrated with a pie chart: government documents, books, periodicals, and the Internet, with the Internet being the smallest of the four. Adds to this the unpublished information inside individual minds. Discusses how to steer students away from using only the Internet in…

Outlines several major ethical and social concerns that face an institution in attempting to integrate "cyberspace" into its academic arena. Focuses on American universities, though the issues are relevant for all levels of education in all geographic areas. Discusses major ethical dilemmas that academic use of cyberspace may present. Identifies…

A literary scholar recounts his personal experiences with manuscripts and archival materials of great variety and sees a pendulum shift back toward examining original source materials. Special collections need to reinsert themselves into the mainstream of intellectual life and promote themselves to students and scholars more effectively. (Author)

Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes have structured most federal and many private collections of industry statistics. This article introduces the new industry classification hierarchy called the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and its effects on searchers. A sidebar includes sources of information on the new code.…

Discusses job search resources on the Internet, electronic resumes, and searching tricks. Features an annotated bibliography of Internet sites that provide links to job search sites, search tips, databanks of jobs, professional and "boutique" sites, and government jobs. (PEN)