http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/features/sacred/homepage.html

Helping understand the shared traditions among the world's major religious traditions is a tall order for a website, but this lovely online gallery from the British Library does the job quite admirably. The site was designed to complement a recent exhibition at the Library, and visitors can start by viewing an interactive slideshow of those materials. Moving on, visitors will want to make their way through 78 various sacred texts, which include the Codex Sinaiticus, an Islamic marriage contract, and the Tyndale New Testament. The "Interactive" section of the site is delightful, and visitors can listen to different faith leaders and everyday citizens talk about their religious beliefs. The site is rounded out by a selection of videos that feature weddings in three faiths, an exploration of several sacred texts, and a scribe at work. [KMG]

http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/image-idx?page=groups#um-ic

The University of Michigan has been developing online digital collections for well over a decade, and their image collections cover everything from architecture to zoology. On this site, visitors can browse through the various collections at their leisure. They are arranged alphabetically, and first-time users would do well just to look over the "Art/Art History" section. Here they will find art images that can be used in the college classroom, tremendous holdings from their textiles collections, and a special section dedicated to Egyptian amulets. Also included here are collections from the University of Michigan's Herbarium Fungus Image Database and field notes. Not every site can say they have "something for everyone", but just about anyone with an interest in the visual arts, science, or the humanities in general will find something to pique their interest. [KMG]

http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/online/ssalbum/

In January 2007, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Archives received a very unique and important donation. The donation came in the form of a photo album inscribed "Auschwitz 21.6.1944". To be sure, it was an unusual item, as there are few wartime photographs of the Auschwitz concentration camp complex. Museum archivists determined that the album's owner was almost certainly SS-Obersturmfuhrer Karl Hocker. The album contains photographs of Hocker with other SS officers in the summer and fall of 1944 and taken together they provide scholars and others with a new understanding of their lives and activities in the camp. Recently, the Museum decided to digitize the album and place it online here for the public. On the site visitors can read a series of interpretive essays about the album, view a documentary about the album, and also look through the album in its entirety. Overall, it's an utterly fascinating and troubling document, and one that will be appreciated by a wide range of people interested in the Holocaust, cultural studies, and history in general. [KMG]

http://www.thegreenguide.com/

Going "green" can be a challenge but it doesn't have to be. National Geographic created this site to provide the public with information about various green-friendly products, services, and so on. The homepage presents users with a "Tip of The Week", a selection of picks from the editors of the site, and a number of articles on topics such as wind farms, environmentally-friendly cleaning products, and conserving water. The "Green Home Makeover" area is worth a look, as visitors can learn about working on different rooms in the house, including the living room, the laundry room, and the bathroom. Finally, the site includes links to a clutch of weblogs, including "Home Green Home" and "The Ecopolitan". [KMG]

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/

For people who are living with a mental health condition, it can be most helpful to have access to high-quality and authoritative information. The National Institute of Mental Health provides such information on the publications area of their website, and visitors can make their way through fact sheets, booklets, and Spanish-language versions of these documents here. First-time users may wish to begin by looking at the drop-down tab which covers everything from autism to social anxiety disorder. The fact sheets are quite good, and they include titles such as "Suicide in the U.S.: Statistics and Prevention" and "Depression: A Treatable Illness". Moving on, the "Booklets" area includes "Eating Disorders", "Depression", and ten other offerings. Finally, the right-hand side of the site includes news about recent research findings from the Institute. [KMG]

http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/

The Royal Academy of Arts in London sponsors work that ranges across a multitude of diverse artistic traditions and practices. For visitors who aren't planning a trip to London in the near future, this site allows them to experience some of their very fine programs and initiatives. First-time visitors will want to look at the "RA Collections" area, which profiles the work of an artist in their collection and also includes an examination of their "Object of the Month". Moving on, the "RA Podcasts" area includes audio explorations of the work of noted architects Inigo Jones and Sir Christopher Wren, along with a profile of Georg Baselitz. Finally, visitors can also learn about visiting the Academy and also look over an interactive calendar of events. [KMG]

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/archives/avery/greene/index.html

Charles Sumner Greene and Henry Mather Greene were brothers who formed an important architectural firm which went on to design a number of notable residences, including the Blacker, Gamble, Pratt, and Thorsen houses. Their substantial collection of architectural drawings, photographs, personal papers, and other manuscript materials found their way into the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library at Columbia University. Visitors to the site can start their exploration of this fine material by looking over the indexes, which include listings by personal names, subject headings, geographic names, and genre/medium type. It's quite a bit of fun to browse through the image index, as visitors can view drawings and photographs of notable houses, churches, and office buildings executed by the Greene brothers. [KMG]

http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/2007/rauschenberg/index.shtm

This web site accompanying Let the World In, an exhibition of Robert Rauschenberg's prints at the National Gallery, takes a close look at around a dozen of the artist's works. Using the "zoomify" feature of the site, viewers can magnify selections from each print. Since Rauschenberg typically uses a collage-type approach, melding many images in each print, "zoomify" gets interesting results, as details of individual components are revealed. For example, in L.A. Uncovered #12, 1998, what looks like a patch of blue and red turns out to be a piece of a cigarette ad, complete with Marlborough man. The only downside is that while zooming in is easy, it's a little more difficult to step back and appreciate the entire piece. [DS]