Popular Databases Exercise (20 points)
		ASSIGNED DUE	Feb 19 2003 March 5 2003

General Notes

• I intend these exercises to be serious learning experiences, not just a search for answers. Consequently, they require creative thought about using the techniques you have learned.
• Some questions require more than one step to get an answer. In other words, it may not be obvious.
• I have no problem with you helping each other think about or develop strategies to solve these problems because:
  • Each person has different ways of understanding and approaching problems.
  • You gain by the insights that others may have.
  • On the other hand, I expect each person to answer the questions herself/himself.
• Thoroughly think out and prepare your search strategy(ies) before you go online. It is, though, not as important with these databases as with DIALOG, as some of these databases are provided free to the patrons of many public or academic libraries.
• Do NOT make your search statement to broad. Some students waste a lot of time looking through hundreds of records to find the article with the answer because they made too general a search.
• There may be multiple records that can provide an answer to some of the questions.
• A couple questions may require more than one record to answer the question.
• You may get different answers from other students! Either or both of you may be right or wrong.
• The assignment must be turned in at the beginning of class.

Grading

• There are 20 questions. Each question is worth a maximum of 1 (one) point.
• Some questions require a very specific answer. Other questions may be answered by a variety of records, but records that best answer the question will get the best grade for that question.
• Automatic 10% off if the exercise is late, NO EXCEPTIONS. You, of course, have the options of emailing or mailing your answer sheets to me if you can not attend the class.
  • Email: I must receive the email on the date the assignment is due. Put "Popular Databases Assignment" in the Subject of the email.
  • Mail: The envelope must be postmarked no later than the date the assignment is due.

Format for your the Cover Page for your Assignment

General Format for Answering the Questions

• Turn in a print-out of one (1) page or more (if absolutely necessary) from an article that answers each search question. DO NOT print the entire article. Just print enough of the article to include the following:
  1. The answer(s) to the individual questions for each search. This may be on the first page or on another page of an article.
  2. The bibliographic information from the article (including the title, author, publication, pages, date of publication, etc.). Usually, this is on the first page of the record.
• NOTE: I deduct if you:
  • 1) turn in irrelevant or excess pages or multiple answers, or
  • 2) do not include the bibliographic information.
• At the top of first page of the article, write:
  • The name of the database you used if it is not visible on the page.
  • Your successful search statement (unless you used a multiple entry field search, such as are in the advanced search screens).
  • The number of the question in the upper-right-hand corner.
• The actual part(s) of the article that answers the search question(s) MUST BE HIGHLIGHTED in a light, highlight color, preferably yellow. I will deduct one-half point (-.05) if you do not highlight the answer(s).
• Attach (preferably staple) the sheets for each in order to the cover page.

  NOTE: The reason for all of these specific format requirements is that, in the past, some students have turned in upwards of dozens of pages for each question, and no specific answer was highlighted.

• NOTE: ONLY USE the databases in the InfoTrac Trial Web site to find your answers because these are where the questions are taken from.
• You have to choose the appropriate database.

1.

You are a library tech in a activist law office. A lawyer is looking for a case study about the inadequate enforcement of the Environmental Protection Act in the case of freshwater mussels. A paralegal says that an article on that just came out in the winter 2002 issue of Environmental Law on the subject. A. What is the case study based on? (This can be found in the abstract.) B. How do supporters of the Endangered Species Act view its importance?

2	Pacific Crest Securities released an investment analysis of eBay in February, 2003. Find that report. A. What kind of buy or sell rating do they give eBay? B. What country is driving much of eBay's international growth?

3

The online publication, ExtremeTech.com, reported an announcement by Macromedia that the company's Java application server complies with Sun Microsystems' J2EE 1.3 standard. A: What is the name of the Macromedia Java application server? B. Where can the next version of the .Macromedia Java application server be downloaded?

4	In a November 2002 Newsweek article, the author proposed that one disease may destabilize the world more than terrorism. A. What is that disease? B. In what 3 (three) countries is the disease coming to a crest?

5.

A large volcanic dome is being pushed up in a caldera somewhere in California. Scientists are measuring gravitation on the volcanic dome to determine how much it is being pushed up. It is not at Mount Lassen. A. What is the name of the region where it is happening? B. Why are the changes in gravity a result of:?

6	Some researchers have developed a storage technology that can store a single bit in an atom. A. How much storage per square inch is the technology capable of? B. Where is the research being done?

7	A declassified1960 Whitehouse memo details the CIA chief's discussion with the President about continuing CIA support of Tibetan guerrillas. Find the memo. A. Was the Secretary of State in favor of continuing the CIA support? B. What did the President worry about?

8

You are a library tech in an elementary school library. A teacher is going to do an ocean life module. She wants an article that her 4th-5th-grade students can read that compares Spongebob Squarepants to real sponges. Find that article. A. Who created Spongebob Squarepants? B. lWhy do many people mistake sponges for plants?

• NOTE: ONLY USE the databases in the EBSCOhost Trial Web site to find your answers because these are where the questions are taken from.
• You have to choose the appropriate database.

9	An article in a 2002 issue of the journal "Foreign Affairs" details how China is dealing with what it calls terrorists in the country's northwest. A. What is the primary ethnic group that China is concerned with? B. Who does China call a terrorist, no matter what ethnic group they belong to?

10	In President Bush's radio address of Feb 15, 2003, addressed terrorism. Find a transcript of that address. A. What did Bush say Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge issued the previous week? B. How many newly trained federal screeners have been placed at airports?

11	The doctor told the nurse to get a copy of the drug monograph for the drug Clopidogrel, as her 5-year-old PDR (Physician's Desk Reference) did not have an information on the drug. Find a drug monograph for Clopidogrel. A. What is Clopidogrel used for? B. When did the FDA approve the drug?

12

It's your turn to figure out all by yourself how to use one tool on Ebsco: Company Profiles (See the top button bar). Specifically, find a profile of "The Thomson Corporation." A. What are the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes for Thomson? B. What re the company's top competitors? (Note: You will have to look at the Complete Report, which requires that you use a computer that has Acrobat.)

13

A physician is looking for a 1997 article that had "oncology" in the title that was about patient care. In the article an integrated approach to patient care was discussed. A. What was the name of the doctor who created the integrated approach discussed in the article? B. What were the four components of that approach?

14	In the last couple years a San Francisco Bay Area company has developed a handheld device for that would be useful for detecting the radiation from suitcase-sized dirty bombs. A. What is the name of the company? B. What is the company's major competitor?

• NOTE: ONLY USE the databases on the ProQuest Trial Web site to find your answers because this is where I located the answers.

15	A patron who is thinking about buying a Nikon D100 digital camera is looking for a recent (2003) review that is SPECIFICALLY ABOUT the camera. Find the review. A. What is the rating on the original page ? (You must look at the "page image" format.) B. How many pixels can the camera capture?

16

The person who demonstrated (not patented) the FIRST device that could be considered a wireless telephone or "cell phone" starved to death. The patron looking for the information believes there was an article in 1996 about the man. A. What was his name? B. What was the year of his first wireless telephone communication? (Clue: It was before 1910.)

17	A theater instructor is trying to find out the name of the pantomime put on by the Hippotheatron around Christmastime 1864. What is the name of the pantomine?

18	American composer Lou Harrison died recently. Sometime in the last few weeks National Public Radio's "Morning Edition" program had a tribute to him. A. Harrison combined Western music with what kind of music? B. What other arts were Harrison involved in?

19	Apparently there was a recent successful experiment involving the teleporation of light . It done by scientists in Australia in 2002. A. Who led the research team, and at what university was the research done? B. What could teleportation, according to one team member, be used to develop?

20	An investor wants to find out what Apple Computer's share of the PC market was in 1992 and 2002. (One article can answer this.) A. What was the percentage share in 1992 and 2002? B. In the same article, the author says that the company's current market share should be enough to do what?