[DDN] Google Scholar Ready to Work for You

[John Hibbs]

With thanks to David Kees who has passed on the neat bit of an 
addition to the wonders of Google:

--
David Kees <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes
Google Scholar Offers Access To Academic Information
By Danny Sullivan, Editor
November 18, 2004
Google has launched a new Google Scholar search service, providing the
ability to search for scholarly literature located from across the web.
"The goal is to allow and enable users to search over scholarly
content," said Anurag Acharya, a Google engineer leading the project.
More:
http://searchenginewatch.com/searchday/article.php/3437471
Google Scholar:
http://scholar.google.com

In his note, David adds the following -  which shows how this service 
can be put  to work in a particular field (in this case teaching 
English in China):

David writes:
This is great news for teachers who want to hone their skills. Google
has a new service targeting academic papers. (News story below.) I used
to search on the name of my subject plus "ESL" plus "summary",
"conclusion" and other key words like "In this paper" to find academic
papers. Now life is a little bit simpler.
Here are a few interesting titles I found on my first Google Scholar
test drive searching on "China", "ESL" and "communicative approach":
* E-mailing to Improve EFL Learners' Reading and Writing Abilities:
Taiwan Experience
* An Investigation of College English Teaching in Four Universities in
China
* Enhancing Oral Skills: A Practical and Systematic Approach
* English-as-a-foreign-language teacher-training programs: An overview
* Yu-Gong Yi Shan: Exploring Some Possibilities of Designing Tomorrow's
Foreign Language Textbook
* What Influenced Teachers' Adoption of the Communicative Approach in
China?
* A New Perspective on the Goals of TEFL in China
Dave
~~~
P.S. from Hibbs
a quick search brought me here, which I thought worthwhile - Yhee 
ghads!! is there no end to what can be learned from the Net?
Google Scholar Offers Access To Academic Information

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[DDN] 48 foot van? - or 21st Century Innovation Center?

[John Hibbs]

Since so many of you were kind enough to share your thoughts with me 
about the "40 foot van", I thought I would return the favor and tell 
you how my findings have progressed.

First, I have confirmed that I could have a 48 foot by 8 foot 
container shell, insulated, floors, walls, an aluminum skin, wired 
and with heat and air conditioning, placed in my yard for about 
US$14,000. I could have all sorts of exterior advertising signage to 
include some pretty nifty "wall paper" that I could individually 
create on a desktop computer and have shipped to me for about $300. 
per each side of the van. This "wall paper" comes in six colors and 
from pictures provided by the maker, is not a bad option - especially 
if combined by some 4x7 flat television screens that might give the 
outside of the "van" a reasonably modern look.

OR ---
The alternative to the van, I think is a Eugene maker of round wood 
houses, as per

home page here


I visited this manufacturer today and can assure you the insides of 
their conference center models are absolutely beautiful - high 
cathedral ceiling, light and airy, and from a "sustainable" (tree 
hugging) idea. I could put one in of these (empty) in a parking lot, 
on a cement slab, for about $35,000. wired and ready for the 
equipment selected.

NOTE: I am convinced the interior would give a better "feel" than the 
"plain old 40 foot van idea". (But the exterior would not have the 
advertising, but maybe that's okay. So, I dither about the advantages 
of one vs the other - the round wood center is permanent, the van 
could be moved if the location "failed".

NEXT - EQUIPMENT INSIDE
I was greatly, greatly intrigued by computer work stations as shown here:


SO 
The mental image of these PCE work stations being inside what some 
might argue to be a 21st century "play center/work center" is, for 
me,quite excitingthat is if one considers the enormous variety of 
"stuff" that could then be offered  (Some of those images are 
enhanced by recent visits to some brand new Apple stores in big 
cities - have you guys seen those!) (Some of which images are 
enhanced by video labs and radio stations - who says these can't be 
community radio stations (for broadcast of content brought to it by 
kids?) or video labs where you teach how to do all that neat video 
transmission, cell phone, photography, Adobe, wireless, WiFi, et. 
etc. etc.) It seems to me that the interior "look" has a LOT to do 
with the long term viability of the undertaking. No?

ANYWAY
I let my mind wander a bit further and could picture these units next 
to the nursery section of those "big box" retailers --- if they can 
sell stuff that grows in your garden, why can't we sell stuff that 
grows in your mind?

Since we talking about $100,000 for a round wood center, equipped, 
plus $30,000 a month to put well paid technologist/sales persons 
inside, the hard question still remains.. Who would pay? What 
measurable deliverables would be the result?

Thanks everyone. Your help has been wonderful.
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