Teens are impatient and unsophisticated online researchers who are often limited by their poor reading skills. Because they are attracted to clean and simple Web interfaces, they often turn to Google--and now Wikipedia--to help meet their research needs. The Google Game, co-authored by this author, teaches kids that there is a well-thought-out…

Given the massive amount of science and mathematics content available online, libraries working with science teachers can become lost when attempting to select material that is both compelling for the learner and effective in addressing learning goals. Tools that help educators identify the most appropriate resources can be a great time saver.…

Although the five classic evidence-based medicine steps to make the literature useful in caring for patients sound simple, most clinicians who try this approach do not find it easy. Although the first step--creating an answerable question--is manageable for busy clinicians, tracking down "the best evidence" and critically appraising it for…

ScanGrants (www.scangrants.com) is a free, online listing of grants, scholarships, and other types of funding in the health sciences. It is basically a launch pad for anyone looking for money to fund medical research or community/public health projects, or to finance their education in various healthcare fields. The goal is to enable researchers,…

Discusses metasearch engines for information retrieval on the Internet, describes some of their advantages and disadvantages, and reviews the features of 10 popular metasearch engines currently available (Ask Jeeves, C4 Cyber 411, Dogpile, Highway 61, Inference Find, Mamma, Metacrawler, Metafind, Profusion, and Savvy Search). (LRW)

Explains human search engines, also known as online advisors, knowledge networks, interactive Q&A (question & answer), or people portals, which are all Web sites where you can ask questions and receive personal responses. Provides examples of different types, some of which are free, including the Internet Public Library, and some which…

In this article, we describe a simplified approach to teach students to assess information obtained from diverse sources. Three broad categories (credibility, content, and currency; 3C) were used to evaluate information from textbooks, monographs, popular magazines, scholarly journals, and the World Wide Web. This 3C approach used in an inquiry…

This paper proposes an ontology mapping-based framework that allows searching for learning resources using multiple ontologies. The present applications of ontologies in e-learning use various ontologies (eg, domain, curriculum, context), but they do not give a solution on how to interoperate e-learning systems based on different ontologies. The…

Many students cannot discriminate between posts that are accurate and attributable and those that are undocumented and misleading. This fact leads teachers to limit online research to subscription services like netTrekker or Web directories like Awesome Library. While sites like these certainly play an important role in the classroom, there…

For years, patrons have been able to access library services from home and in the library building, but in the world of Google, Yahoo, YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook, library web sites and catalogs are too often not the first place people go to look for information. The innovative use of toolbars could change this. Toolbars have been popular for…

Evidence-based practice (EBP) refers to clinical decisions as a result of the careful integration of research evidence and student needs. Legal mandates such as No Child Left Behind require teachers to employ evidence-based practices in their classrooms, yet teachers receive little guidance regarding how to determine which practices are…

Explains the capabilities of Bibliographic Retrieval Services' CROSS database index, a "postings only" file which serves as a presearch aid to training and database selection, and as a tool for ready reference and interlibrary loan verification. Limitations of the aid are noted, and a specification table summarizes operating information.…

Outlines a panel discussion that examined document genres in relation to the World Wide Web, including the history of genre; "The Concept of Genere in the Humanities" (Clare Beghtol); "Genre and Form: How Users Recognize Genre" (Elaine G. Toms); and "Identifying Document Genre to Improve Web Search Effectiveness (Kevin…

Discussion of commercial document/information retrieval models focuses on the fact that document retrieval, specifically access to intellectual content, is a complex process which is most strongly influenced by the size of the document collection, the type of search (exhaustive, existence or sample) and the determinacy of document representation.…

One can obtain definitions and perform calculations, conversions, and a variety of other tasks on the Google search bar. The most useful shortcut for most Web searchers is Google's definitions. The ability to obtain definitions from Google without reaching for a dictionary or searching a dictionary web site is very helpful when reading technical…