Podcasts Searches

Heard about a great podcast but can't find it? Here are a couple of search engines that searches audio content for keywords. Regular search engines are looking only at the audio metadata such as headlines.

Podzinger
Blinkx

Using Wikipedia for research

Where else but Wikipedia could you find an article examining the merits of using Wikipedia for research?

Here are some things to keep in mind when using Wikipedia:

• Always be wary of any one single source, or of multiple works that derive from a single source.
• Where articles have references to external sources (whether online or not) read the references and check whether they really do support what the article says.
• In many academic institutions, an encyclopedia is unacceptable as a major source for a research paper.

Google Guide

GoogleGuide offers instruction on getting more out of your Google search. For example, you don't have to locate a web dictionary to look up words; just type define:word into the Google search box to get definitions of your word.

Other examples:
phonebook: Lucky32 NC - searches for Lucky 32'S phone numbers in North Carolina
rphonebook: jane smith VA - searches for all Jane Smith's in Virginia
movie: breach - searches for information about this movie, including reviews, showtimes, etc.

African-American Family History

Read the entire news release:

Ancestry.com Breaks Barriers in Black Family History Research With Launch of Largest Online Collection of African-American Historical Records
Newly Expanded Collection Traces Back to Thousands of African-Americans Living Before the Civil War
PRNewswirePROVO, Utah
PROVO, Utah, Feb. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of Black History Month, Ancestry.com, the world's largest online resource for family history, today announced the launch of the largest collection of African-American family history records available and searchable online.

Health Resources

More web resouces via Amy Dominello:

The State Center for Health Statistics in North Carolina has released new publications and data on its web site:

Central Cancer Registry:
2003 Cancer Incidence in North Carolina, County-Specific Numbers http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/CCR/incidence2003.html

County-level Data:
2007 County Health Data Book http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/data/databook/
Best resource for county level data published in conjunction with the Community Health Assessment Initative.

Periodic Publications:
2005 North Carolina Health Statistics Pocket Guide http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/data/pocketguide/2005/
2005 Local Health Department Facilities, Staffing, and Services Survey http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/data/lhd/2005/

PRAMS Surveillance Updates:
Infant Exposure to Secondhand Smoke - 2006 http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/prams/pdf/InfantExposure2006.pdf
Maternal Smoking Around the Time of Pregnancy - 2006 http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/prams/pdf/PRAMSsmoking2006.pdf

Special Studies and Reports:
SCHS Study 152 -
The Association of Breastfeeding and Childhood Asthma:
Results from the 2005 North Carolina Child Health Assessment and Monitoring Program http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/pdf/SCHS152.pdf
A Resource Guide for Community Health Assessment http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/pdf/resguid.pdf

Vital Statistics:
North Carolina Vital Statistics, Volume 1 - 2005 http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/vitalstats/volume1/2005/
The tables of this report show annual frequencies, annual rates, and 5-year rates for the state, six Perinatal Care Regions, and the 100 counties of North Carolina.

Web Resources for a Slow News Day

Not that today is a slow news day, but here are some places to look if it was:

• About.com Also a search engine, organized by subjects, includes current event topics - up now are links to Madi Gras
• Census Bureau's Newsroom includes facts for features, monthly & quarterly economic indicators, news releases about the nation's people and economy
• Yahoo Groups Organized by subjects - with millions of groups
• Glo Clubs Clubs and forums - connect with people who are passionate about...
• ivillage Grouped by subjects – from babies to work – also has magazines link.
• ScienCentral News: ScienCentral specializes in science and technology content. Some topics covered include environment, general sciences, genetics, health/medicine, space, technology.
  

What's Happening to the News?

Be sure to catch part 3 to Frontline's four part series on the future of newspapers on Feb 27.

In part three of "News War," entitled "What's Happening to the News,"FRONTLINE examines the mounting pressure for profits faced by America's network news divisions and daily newspapers, as well as growing challenges from cable television and the Internet. Bergman talks to network executives, newspaper editors and publishers, bloggers, Wall Street analysts and key players at Google and Yahoo! about the battle for market dominance in a rapidly changing world.

Free wi-fi hotspots in Greensboro

Here is a list of free wi-fi hotspots in Greensboro via Forbes.com The site allows you to add a hotspot, and to look up hotspots by state, city or zip. According this list, Greensboro is number 3 behind Charlotte and Raleigh.

Daylight Savings Time - Just call it Summer Time

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 extends Daylight Savings Time beginning this year.

Dr. David Prerau has written the definitive book on the story of DST, Seize the Daylight: The Curious and Contentious Story of Daylight Saving Time. Check out the Seize the Daylight web site to read some interesting facts about Daylight Savings Time, for example did you know that Benjamin Franklin, living in Paris, first conceived the notion of daylight saving time. And Europe just calls it "Summer time".

Other web sites with information about daylight savings time include:
The California Energy Commission - with facts related to the energy saved
And of course, good old Wikipedia