http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/course/filter.php?grouping=topic&detail=8&order=level

The Open University had long been dedicated to the proposition of providing high-quality educational materials for persons all over Britain and the world. They were one of the first universities to place such materials online, and their OpenLearn website has received high marks from many quarters. This particular section of materials on their site is devoted to providing instructional units in both math and science. Currently, the site contains about 30 different units, and visitors can stroll through these units and take in their materials at their leisure. The units include such titles as “Modeling pollution in the Great Lakes”, “Exploring data: graphs and numerical summaries”, and “Using vectors to model”. [KMG]

http://www.math.ucdavis.edu/~calculus/

From time to time over the past several centuries, the word “calculus” has caused more than a few college students to break out into a sweat and become a bit anxious. These potentially embarrassing moments can be alleviated by a visit to The Calculus Page. The site is under the direction of Professors Joel Hass and Duane Kouba, and it features dozens of links to valuable online resources that deal with this branch of mathematical inquiry and discovery. The first section of the site is dedicated to providing materials for students of calculus (including calculus animations and sample exams) and a number of resources for instructors follow. The site is rounded out by links to other relevant websites and online portals, so interested parties will definitely want to make several return visits. [KMG]

http://www.beyondcrossroads.com/QLindex.html

Quantitative literacy is rather important, and for teachers working in different areas of the mathematical sciences, it can be of the utmost importance. Working with different schools of the Beyond Crossroads consortium, this website provides a number of helpful resources on this important subject. The site is divided into areas that include “What is Quantitative Literacy?” and “Quantitative Literacy Websites”. In the first area, visitors can view video clips of different experts talking about the nature of quantitative literacy and its applications in a number of educational settings, including community colleges. After looking at some of these clips, visitors will want to look at the “Books and Articles on Quantitative Literacy” area, which includes information about high-quality print and online resources that address this topic. [KMG]

http://ted.hul.harvard.edu:8080/ted/deliver/home?_collection=iohp

Oral histories can be quite fascinating, and a number of significant collections have been placed online as of late. One of the best-known projects might be Harvard University’s own Iranian Oral History Project (IOHP). The collection consists of the personal accounts of over 150 individuals who were eyewitnesses (or active participants) to a range of crucial political events in Iran from the 1920s to the 1980s. Visitors can start their journey through this site by going to the “About” section, where they can learn about the history of the IHOP and the interviewing process. After that, visitors can go the actual “Transcripts” area, where they can view an index of interviews, and in certain cases, they can listen to audio recordings of these conversations. [KMG]

http://www.voxeu.org/

Online portals that take on policy issues in different parts of the world are increasing in popularity and the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) recently created just such a portal. Working in tandem with a number of existing sites, the Vox site is designed to feature “research-based policy analysis and commentary from Europe’s leading economists.” As such, the site consists of original columns that range in length from 500-1500 words in length, which are written at an analytical level that lies between what one might find in a newspaper article and a scholarly journal. Recent pieces that have appeared on the site include “Does financial globalization help?” and “Do Americans really pay too much for pharmaceuticals?” Visitors can post comments on different pieces of writing and also sign up to receive RSS feeds. [KMG]

http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/education/welcome.html

From Monterey to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, the United States has a coterie of marine sanctuaries and habitats that are quite rich in their diversity of marine life. Teachers will particularly appreciate the National Marine Sanctuaries Education site as it offers up a number of instructional materials for use in the classroom, including lesson plans and video clips. Much of this material can be found in the “For Teachers” area, and instructors can make use of the “West Coast Field Guide” and specialized materials on humpback whales. For those looking for more specific data, there is also an “Ocean Data” area that features GIS materials on the various marine sanctuaries, along with instructional materials that make use of satellite images. Finally, visitors can sign up to be notified via email when new materials are added to the site. [KMG]

http://www.museum.upenn.edu/mellon/sitio/index.html

In 1940, the University of Pennsylvania Museum embarked on a massive archaeological expedition to the pre-Columbian site at Sitio Conte, Panama. Their work yielded some rather amazing finds, including the discovery of a cemetery that contained elaborate gold work and painted pottery that dated back to 450 CE. This site brings together the documents created by the expedition leaders, including diaries, various pieces of correspondence, field notes, and so on. First-time visitors will want to read through the expedition summary, and then proceed to some of these documents. They can click on the “Document Archives” area to learn more about each separate collection, and then make their way through items of interest. It’s a very fine collection, and one that archaeologists and those in related fields of endeavor will want to take a close look at. [KMG]

http://pewhispanic.org/files/reports/75.pdf

The Pew Hispanic Center has worked on numerous reports and studies during its existence, and this recent report may be one of its most compelling. Released in April 2007, the report takes an informed and broad look at the ways in which Latinos are transforming American religion. Working in collaboration with the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, the Pew Hispanic Center conduced over 4600 interviews in order to create an accurate portrait of the ways in which Latinos worship and how the emergence of Latino-oriented churches is changing the broader religious landscape across the United States. The report is divided into eight chapters, which include “Religious Practices and Beliefs”, “The Ethnic Church”, and “Ideology and Policy Issues”. It’s an important look at these trends, and visitors with an eye towards religion and public policy will enjoy browsing through the report or forwarding it to colleagues. [KMG]