Chapter 2 Various and Sundry Other Internet Resources The following pages are descriptions of several other interesting uses of the Internet resources. They are not complete. Rather, they are a sampling of things that I managed to pick up over the past week or so that are examples of the value of Internet access. Included are - how to access virtually all NSF information electronically - descriptions of K12Net and KidsNet, both of which are devoted to bringing the "global village" into the lives of young people (and vice versa!), - how to get your own copies of NASA data, such as images from the Magellan spacecraft, the Voyager missions, and much, much more; - how to access such things as the US Weather Service reports; - how to access the National Public Telecommunications Network, which is dedicated to free electronic distribution of all kinds of public info; - how to get etexts from the Project Gutenberg Newsletter; - an essay on the use of Computer Networks and Informal Science Education; - a description of GlasNet, a new Soviet Computer Network for Information; - a description of the Public Access Computer Systems (PACS), a group exploring the issues of online access to libraries; - an article from the PACS Review, by Harnad, Stevan, "Post-Gutenberg Galaxy: The Fourth Revolutionin the Means of Production of Knowledge." - and how to obtain various reports from the US Government Accounting Office, e.g. Strategic Defense System: Stable Design and Adequate Testing Must Precede Decision to Deploy ############################ next article ################################# Statement by DONALD N. LANGENBERG Chancellor The University of Maryland System Before the Senate Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation United States Senate March 5, 1991 Donald N. Langenberg is Chancellor of the University of Maryland System. With a doctorate in physics, Dr. Langenberg has held faculty and administrative positions at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Illinois at Chicago. He served as Acting and Deputy Director of the National Science Foundation. He is currently Chairman of the Board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. He chaired the panel of the NAS/NAE/IOM Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy that authored the 1989 report, Information Technology and the Conduct of Research: The User's View. Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: Thank you for your invitation to testify on S. 272, the High Performance Computing Act of 1991. I am Donald Langenberg, Chancellor of the University of Maryland System. My view of the issues addressed by this bill has naturally been shaped by my own experience. I am, or was, an experimental solid state physicist. I have served as Deputy Director and as Acting Director of the National Science Foundation. I am currently CEO of an eleven-campus state university system, Chairman of the Board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Chairman of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. These affiliations account for some of my biases, but most are a result of my service as chair of a National Research Council panel that wrote a 1989 report entitled Information Technology and the Conduct of Research: The User's View. My service on the panel convinced me that the current breathtaking rate of change in information technology will inevitably force historic changes in our institutions for managing information. Nowhere is this more evident than in the research and education communities that both create important new developments in information technology, and are often bellwethers in its use. It is the viewpoint of these communities that I will try to represent this afternoon. Information is the fundamental stuff of both research and education. Research and education are about the creation of information and its transformation into knowledge and understanding, for our individual and collective benefit. Modern information technology has presented us with a challenge of unprecedented scale. The Library of Congress contains about 10 terabytes of information. It took us over two centuries to collect it. It's stored nearby in an impressive collection of expensive real estate. Medical imaging machines nowadays produce that much information every week or so. The particle detectors of the Superconducting Super Collider will one day engulf their designers with that much information every few seconds. NASA already has 1.2 million magnetic tapes combining data from past missions, and its archives are growing by about one Library of Congress every year. In ten years, if all goes according to plan, NASA will be piling up about fifty Libraries of Congress each year. Everywhere one looks, similar gushers of information exist or are in prospect. Fortunately, modern information technology also promises to give us the means to meet this challenge. Transforming promise into reality, however, will take time, skill, resources, and, above all, wisdom. In my opinion, S. 272 represents a major contribution to that transformation. I strongly support its passage into law. Let me make a few points related to the work of our NRC panel. 1. The Panel found that there exist significant technical, financial, behavioral, and infrastructural impediments to the widespread use of information technology in research. Though the Panel's charge was confined to research, I believe the same impediments exist with respect to education. The Panel made three main recommendations and a host of subrecommendations for dealing with these impediments. S. 272 responds to most of them. 2. One of the Panel's three principal recommendations was that, "the institutions supporting the nation's researchers, led by the federal government, should develop an interconnected national information technology network for use by all qualified researchers." S. 272's National Research and Education Network (NREN) responds directly to the need reflected in this recommendation, and also to the very important collateral need of the educational sector. In my judgment, NREN will revolutionize both research and education (in an evolutionary way, of course). 3. When one thinks of what NREN might do for education, one thinks first of the education of scientists and engineers, then perhaps of the incredible potential inherent in linking NREN to every elementary school, secondary school, public library, and museum in the country. There is another educational need of utmost importance. I believe that part of the challenge we face is the creation of an entirely new kind of institutional infrastructure for managing the new information technology, led and supported by a new breed of information professionals. The latter may bear some resemblance to librarians, or to computer scientists, or to publishers. Whatever they might be, we need to create schools for training them and institutions within which they can function. That means educational and institutional innovation of a kind S. 272 appears well designed to foster. 4. The most important words in the title of our panel report reflect our most important observation. They are "the user's view." In simple terms, the Panel concluded that the development of information technology and its app!lications in the conduct of research (and, I would add here, education) are far too important to be left to the experts. The Panel cautioned that planning and development should be guided by users of information technology, both current and prospective, not by information specialists, information scientists, information technologists, or local, national, and international policymakers. It may not invariably be true that "the customer is always right," but institutions that create technology or make policy without a clear understanding and appreciation of the real needs of their clients and constituents risk making serious and expensive blunders. S. 272 calls for the advice of users in the development of the National Research and Education Network. I especially applaud this provision. 5. In my preface to our panel's report, I wrote: "I share with many researchers a strong belief that much of the power of science (whether practiced by scientists, engineers, or clinical researchers) derives from the steadfast commitment to free and unfettered communication of information and knowledge. This principle has been part of the ethos of the global research community for centuries, and has served it and the rest of humanity well. If asked to distill one key insight from my service on this panel, I would respond with the assertion that information technology is of truly enormous importance to the research community, and hence to all humanity, precisely because it has the potential to enhance communication of information and knowledge within that community by orders of magnitude. We can now only dimly perceive what the consequences of that fact may be. That there is a revolution occurring in the creation and dissemination of information, knowledge, and ultimately, understanding is clear to me. It is also clear to me that it is critically important to maintain our commitment to free and unfettered communication as we explore the uses of information technology in the conduct of research." What I asserted there about research, I would assert now about education. If I am right, then by far the most profoundly important consequence of the creation of NREN will not be the expedition of research or the improvement of next year's balance of trade. It will be the fundamental democratization of all the world's knowledge. That means placing the accumulated intellectual wealth of centuries at the beck and call of every man, woman, and child. What that might mean can only be guessed, but let me reminisce for a moment. I grew up in a small town on the Great Plains. In that town was a Carnegie Library, one of hundreds Andrew Carnegie endowed across the nation. That modest building and the equally modest collection it housed opened the world to me. I have been grateful to the Pittsburgh steelmaker ever since. What if I had had direct personal access to the Library of Congress, the British Museum, the Louvre, and the Deutsches Museum, all in the course of a summer afternoon in North Dakota? Imagine! My point here is that there is an overriding public interest in NREN and in the rest of the provisions of S. 272, an interest that transcends research and its industrial applications, or issues of governance and the timetable for commercialization. We have an opportunity here for an American achievement of truly Jeffersonian proportions. Let's not blow it! 6. Finally, I note with approval that S. 272 identifies the National Science Foundation as the lead agency for the development of NREN. The choice is wise, I think. NSF has a demonstrated capacity to manage large complex technical operations. Unlike other S&T agencies, NSF's focus is not on some "mission," but on its "users," i.e., its client science and engineering communities. And, perhaps most important, alone among federal agencies NSF bears responsibility for the support of research across the full spectrum of scientific and engineering disciplines, and for the training of those who perform the research, and for the general education in science and technology of everybody else. You will have gathered that I have considerable enthusiasm for S. 272. I do! I urge you and your colleagues to enact it into law. ############################ next article ################################# STIS AVAILABLE MARCH 1ST ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *the Science & Technology System at the National Science Foundation New materials are added weekly.Some STIS IS ..... will be removed or replaced as they ========================= become out of date; others will re- main permanently. * STIS is a new electronic dissemination system which provides easy access to National Science Foundation (NSF) ON THE INTERNET publications. =================================== The full text of publications can be *STIS can be accessed by using a searched online, and copied from the single command- telnet stis.nsf. system. Electronic publications will gov. To copy a publication, an supplement the wide distribution of Internet user can: printed material from NSF. There is no charge for connect time and no *conduct an anonymous FTP(File need to register for a password. Transfer Protocol) session, *request that a publication be The service is available 24 hours a delivered via e-mail, or day, except for maintenance periods. *print material from a screen Up to ten people can be on the system display at the same time. Up to one million people have access to STIS vis Internet- STIS IS AVAILABLE FOR USE BY... through any of 100,000 com- ====================================== puters linked through 5,000 networks to NSFNet. *the public, *individual researchers in science and STIS is one of many emerging in- technology, formation services on the data *sponsored research offices, superhighway of the Internet that *multi-university information networks, will remove geographic and cost *library services, barriers to the rapid exchange of *science policy analysts, research information. *the press, *other federal programs, and *NSF staff. OR BY DIAL IN... ================================== PUBLICATIONS INCLUDE... ====================================== *Anyone with a modem and communi- cation software to emulate VT-100 *the NSF Bulletin, can access STIS. Users wil pay a *Guide To Programs, phone charge if the call is long *grant booklet- including forms, distance. Depending on the user's *program announcements, modem, STIS is available at 1200, *press releases, 2400, and 9600 baud rates. *NSF Telephone Book, *reports of the National Science Board, Dail-in users see exactly the same *descriptions of research projects funded system as the Internet users. To by NSF- with abstracts, and copy a publication, they may: *analytical reports and news from the International Programs Division *download the full text using the Kermit protocol, *print material from a screen display, or *send full text to user's local printer. Once the modem establishes connection with STIS, the user must press [Enter]. [Enter] to continue PUBLICATIONS MAY BE SEARCHED BY... ================================== LOGIN: PUBLIC *using any keyword such as "nsfnet" ================================== "japan", "superconductivity" or "volcano"; *Users may login to STIS with one simple keyword, public. The user *using a phrase or Boolean inquiriy will then key in a personal ID such as "synaptic mechanism" or up to eight characters. This will "exchange of scientists and soviet be the user's permanent STIS ID union" for future sessions. *using pre-defined topics, such as selecting the topic "biosciences" HELP... would retrieve all material re- ================================== lated to the broad subject; and Users may get help by: *using a filter to limit the user's view of everything : *accessing help screens online in -to a particular NSF organiztion- STIS, "bbs" or "geo", -to a particular type of material- *downloading a user manual from "announcements", "award", or the STIS main menu, "bulletin" -to a date range- "05/07/90 to *directing questions to the STIS 01/31/91". operator through e-mail within STIS itself, and STIS makes it possible to search through thousands of pages of text *phoning the helpline to leave in seconds. A query can retrieve sec- voicemail. tions of the NSF Bulletin, the Guids to Programs, an evaluation report or analytic study, a particular program FOR MORE ABOUT THE SYSTEM... announcment, a list of projects funded ================================== by NSF, and even a listing in the NSF telephone directory. Dr. STIS National Science Foundation Office of Information Systems 1800 G. Street, NW (Rm. 401) Washington, D.C. 20550 Internet: stis@nsf.gov Bitnet : stis@nsf Phone : (202) 357-7555 Fax : (202) 357-7745 TDD : (202) 357-7492 ############################ next article ################################# I N T E R N A T I O N A L E D U C A T I O N A L N E T W O R K --==The Vision of K12net==-- by Jack Crawford Most of us have come to realize that telecommunications-based "Computer moderated communications" (CMC) in the schools is something "whose time has come". It is the last of the "big four" computer applications (word processing, spreadsheet, database and telecommunications) to be developed--and used in our elementary and secondary schools. Until now, online fees and long distance phone charges out of the reach of typical classroom budgets have held any significant growth in the educational uses of CMC in check. A "grassroots" movement called K12net may be the final, "missing link" to make this "final frontier" become truly accessible to the teachers, kids and parents of our world. Let me explain the vision.... Tom Jennings and his friends started to tinker with the initial concept of networking home microcomputers back in 1985. Their "FIDOnet" began as two computers which were programmed to "call" each other across the country in the middle of the night (when phone rates are lowest) to exchange highly compressed messages for maximum economy. The concept worked well! Within a few months, hundreds of others had joined this "network". Now, a mere five years later, FIDOnet consists of some 10,000 "electronic Bulletin Board Systems" (BBS's) in 50+ countries throughout the world. It is growing at a mind-boggling, ever-accelerating rate because more and more individuals and schools are beginning to discover just how easy and inexpensive it is to set up and operate their very own "grassroots" BBS which can share a "critical mass" that is international in scope. As a result, there may already be dozens of NO-fee FIDOnetBBS's accessible to you RIGHT NOW in your local calling area with more coming every week! Perhaps what is most significant about this "revolution" is that Tom Jennings and his friends never "planned" on this size, diversity or dynamism. (They probably never dreamed this would happen!) Their contribution was the basic technical concept of FIDOnet and, of course, the "early" system software to get it all started. It was the "market forces"---the vast numbers of sysops and users subsequently joining and using the network---that caused its structure and content to "evolve" to what it has today. The international scope, sophistication and complexity of the FIDOnetwork as well as the plethora of inexepensive and (mostly) free state-of-the-art FIDOnet-standard system software and utilities available now is the result of the collective "tinkering" of thousands of minds over tens of thousands of man-hours--without any centralized planning or control other than a subscription to a basic set of technical standards. The forces of supply and demand have been the only real governing factors! Tom and his friends "planted a seed" which has grown into an immense "forest" of vast diversity and energy that has evolved its own "ecology". FIDOnet has changed the world! Using Tom Jennings' FIDOnet as a model, K12net is an attempt to "plant some seeds" which we hope will grow into a large, SELF-PERPETUATING "forest" of INDEPENDENT school-based/oriented BBS's that has already become international in scope. K12net should be regarded as a decentralized, open-ended "grass roots movement" which will evolve, self-perpetuate and govern itself as the direct result of the "no nonsense" forces of supply & demand. It should NOT be thought of as a "project" with predefined objectives, structure, membership and time table designed and regulated by some centralized bureacracy or a "service" offered from a centralized computer. The intent of K12net's founders is to "get the ball rolling"--to whet some appetites--to get educators far and wide "tinkering" with the concept of a decentralized "school network" of independently owned nodes governed solely by market forces. Tom and his friends have provided the model for this--we have seen that it works well. Now we're trying to give the concept some wings so that it can "fly" on its own...... There are three basic approaches to implementing K12net. The first is to promote the widespread installation of school-based/oriented K12net (and FIDOnet) BBS's to provide no-fee, local-call computer moderated communications capabilities to as many teachers, kids and parents as possible. In addition to providing immediate benefits to users, the schools and communities involved will begin to develop a base of technical "sysop" expertise to further promote tinkering and experimentation with telecommunications capabilities at a local level. A second component is to develop and nurture echo conferences specifically oriented to K-12th grade curricular areas to a point where they are eventually welcomed into any suitable distribution channels which become available including private distribution from school to school, or, ultimately, a government-funded "K12net 'Backbone'" which may evolve from the demand created. The idea here is to send a clear message to teachers, kids and parents that "there IS something here for YOU" and that access is FREE--to give them a REASON to get a modem and phone line in their homes and classrooms. The forces of supply and demand will make it happen. Our hope is to START building some of that demand. The FIDOnet model is that starting point. A final aspect is a "utilize resources wherever you find them" approach. As K12net is currently entirely compatible with FIDOnet (it's actually more like a subset of it), nearly any school with access to a "low end" MS-DOS, Amiga, Atari ST, or Macintosh computer, modem, phone line and a suitably motivated student or teacher to act as sysop may set up their own node with very little further investment. Furthermore, any NON-educator FIDOnet BBS operator who wants to "help the schools" may do so very easily by simply offering K12net echoes on his/her BBS. (You may be surprised just how many are willing--even anxious-- to do so!! They may even come looking for you!) Any one (or all) of those 10,000 FIDOnet nodes could provide local-call, no-fee access to educational echoes to their local community. Each individual school can determine the structure, content, orientation and usage of its BBS according to its own, individual academic and community needs while still benefitting from membership in the larger group. This "grass roots", decentralized approach is the key to the success of the whole thing--it's open ended and will generate its own momentum. While there have been several attempts to join students and teachers on the commercial networks, their efficacy has been directly affected by CRAWFORD'S FIRST LAW OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS: "If it costs anything AT ALL--if there are ANY online fees or long distance charges involved--90% of potential users won't even consider buying a modem, 6% will use it only sparingly and the remaining 4% will be charging it to someone else. Of course, the first Corollary to this is: "If there are any online fees or a long distance call involved AT ALL, most K-12 school adminstrators (understandably) won't consider installing an outside phone line in a classroom." A "school-net" based on the FIDOnet concept is the solution to the problem posed by this "first law" above (and its corollary). The cost of owning and operating a FIDOnet BBS is sufficiently small that it is VERY feasible to provide our teachers, kids and parents with full access to computer moderated communications which are international in scope with virtually NO online fees and, in most cases, on a LOCAL call. We can create a useful educational telecommunications tool which administrators will recognize as inherently affordable and, at the same time, have community-oriented public relations applications. We'll also be creating an environment which will train thousands of teachers and local community people in the fine art of "sysoping". We can provide a communications tool with incredible versatility and which promotes a global perspective. We can help usher our teachers, kids and parents into the 21st century and DO IT INEXPENSIVELY! Inexpensive telecommunications in the elementary and secondary schools is something "whose time has come"!! Why not join us in our vision and share some of our excitement! --==WHAT IS K12NET?==-- K12net is a decentralized network of school based/oriented "electronic bulletin board systems" (BBS's) throughout North America, Australia, Europe, Asia (and the USSR), which share curriculum-related conferences or "echo forums", making them available to students and educators at no cost and usually on a local phone call. We currently have 150+ FidoNet nodes. The weekly K12Net traffic is about 70-90K which is roughly 800 to 1100 messages. K12Net provides millions of teachers, students and parents in metropolitan and rural areas throughout our planet with the ability to meet and talk with each other to discuss educational issues, exchange information and share resources on a global scale. Unlike other school-oriented networks, K12Net's explosive growth since its founding in September, 1990, can be attibuted to several factors which make it separate and distinct: 1) K12net provides students, teachers and community members with access to FREE international telecommunications capabilities with an educational orientation on a local call. This frees up classroom, student and home budgets for other things. 2) It is relatively easy and inexpensive to set up a K12net BBS. The only equipment required is an MS-DOS or Macintosh computer, modem and phone line which may already be available. System software is very low cost if not free and technical operation skills are developed in-house. Students may act as system operators. 3) It is decentralized. Each participating BBS is locally owned, controlled and operated. It can be oriented to serve the needs of the local school and is an excellent vehicle for developing community relations. 4) It is a superb vehicle for providing students, teachers and parents with a gentle introduction to global telecommunications as a classroom tool to promote literacy, a global perspective and competency in 21st Century information technologies. --==WHAT CAN K12NET DO FOR YOU AND/OR YOUR CLASSROOM?==-- K12net is a "window to the world." It allows you to transcend rural isolation and community colloquialism by freely, conveniently and inexpensively conversing with people in Canada, Hawaii, Sweden, or Australia. You will develop friendships, explore other cultures, gather insight and exchange opinions with other people all over the world. You will become a bona fide member of the "Global Village". K12net provides a vehicle for wide area collaborative classroom projects using telecommunications. Use K12net to jointly gather data and draw conclusions about the distribution of acid rain across North America. Publish a classroom-based "electronic newsletter" for immediate international distribution. Compare fast food prices in a multitude of different currencies throughout the world and develop theories as to the economic reasons for their variations. K12net lets you "rub professional elbows" with other professional educators throughout the world. Find out how educators in the next school district, state or nation are using technologies, materials and methodologies to improve education. Discover why the "movers and shakers" in the educational world meet here to gather and explore new ideas and concepts. K12net is a "great equalizer". Online discussions transcend social stigmas based on age, learning disabilities or other handicapping conditions which might otherwise tend to limit dialogue. No one needs to know that you may be 12 years old or in a wheel chair or have dyslexia. All anyone else will see is your words..... K12net is an information-gathering facility. The online world is particularly well suited for asking "Say, does anyone know...." questions to large groups of people who converge in a wide variety of topic areas. --==K12NET CHANNELS - THE PROJECT ECHOS/NEWSGROUPS==-- One of the most exciting things that telecommunications can provide is contact and exchange with persons far away. Teachers have known this for years, conducting all kinds of exchanges via the regular mail - i.e., "Pen Pals". The K12 PROJECT ECHOES provide teachers and their students with the means of conducting projects with other students and teachers throughout the K12 Net - all over the North American continent - using the exciting medium of computer telecommunications! The project echoes take advantage of the existing K12 net architecture- if you have access to a BBS in K12 net, then the project echoes are available to you. Projects are conducted in one of ten "channels", with an eleventh channel available for teachers to work "behind the scenes" to administer projects. Projects can occur between only two schools, or among many at the same time - everyone participating gets all the messages, no matter who entered them where. Try that with regular mail! To take advantage of the project echoes, you first need to have a link to the K12 net. Once you are able to call in, teachers only need to do the following: 1. Come up with an idea for a specific project. Be imaginative- there are not many precedents for this kind of activity, so you needn't be constrained by previous failures... 2. Find one or more other teachers in the K12 net who might want to join in your project. You might find them in K12.TCH_CHAT, K12.PROJECTS, or any one of the other conferences. All of these conferences should be available to you at your K12 Net node. Once you make contact with interested parties, move your preliminary discussion to K12.PROJECTS, to iron out the details. What can you do with the Project Echoes? Lots of things! In its first year, K12Net projects have included a Holiday Cookbook, a Weather Project, a "Top Ten" List, a Rivers Project, and the Physics Olympics. Other ideas have included acid rain studies across the continent, market comparisons (how much for a Big Mac in your town?), role playing games, and many others. Andy Vanduyne, Channel Coordinator; Sysop: 260/375 --==THE K12NET LIBRARY SYSTEM==-- The K12Net Library was begun in January 1991 by a number of sysops who had files that directly related to education. They desired to pool them so that they would be available to everyone on K12Net. Eventually all the files which these sysops had were exchanged. Later more sysops contributed their educational files to the K12Net Library. In May 1991 the K12Net Library's holdings totaled just over 200 megs and there are 19 K12Net Library (FidoNet) sites located on 3 continents. The files in the K12Net Library cover virtually the whole spectrum of education. The majority of program files are designed to run in an MS DOS environment. The future goal of the K12Net Library involves securing files which will run on various types of computers. There are a few thousand ASCII text files which cover lesson plans in specific areas, NASA space lesson plans, physics, articles from magazines, curriculum guides, US Department of Education reports on all aspects of education, special education reports, ERIC outlines, telecommunications tech articles, and on, and on, and on. FidoNet: The file libraries can be downloaded or FREQed for any one of 19 regional K12Net Libraries. The K12Net Files listing is available from all the K12Net Libraries via FREQ. You can also FREQ 1:321/218 and request K12FILES.ZIP (which is the K12Net Library listing). --==K12NET NOW AVALIALE ON THE INTERNET THOUGH UUNET==-- 20 conferences of 20/20 vision in education Several people have expressed an interest in "gating" the K12 Net echoes to OtherNet systems. Randy Bush has offered us an opportunity to experiment with a connection to Internet through UUNET. This will result in the establishment of USENET Newsgroups in the following categories: FidoNet Echo Usenet newsgroup ------------ -------------------- K12.TCH_CHAT k12.chat.teacher K12_ELE_CHAT k12.chat.elementary K12_JR_CHAT k12.chat.junior K12_SR_CHAT k12.chat.senior K12_ART_ED k12.ed.art K12_BUS_ED k12.ed.business K12_COMP_LIT k12.ed.comp.literacy K12_HLTH_PE k12.ed.health-pe K12_LIF_SKIL k12.ed.life-skills ** refer to "echotags.k12" K12_MATH_ED k12.ed.math above for a short K12_MUSIC_ED k12.ed.music description of each K12_SCI_ED k12.ed.science newsgroup ** K12_SOC_STUD k12.ed.soc-studies K12_SPEC_ED k12.ed.special K12_TAG k12.ed.tag K12_TECH_ED k12.ed.tech K12_LANG_ART k12.lang.art K12_GERM_ENG k12.lang.deutsch-eng K12_SPAN_ENG k12.lang.esp-eng K12_FRANCAIS k12.lang.francais UUNET is currently sending the K12 Newsgroups to the following systems: bellcore.bellcore.com Bell Communication Research bbn.com Bolt, Beranek and Newman bonnie.concordia.ca Concordia University decwrl.dec.com Digital Equipment Corp dove.hist.gov US National Institute of Standards & Technology csus.edu California State Univ at Sacramento europa.asd.contel.com Contel Federal Systems fernwood.mkp.ca.us gateway.sequent.com Sequent Computer ieee.org. Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers infonode.ingr.com InteGraph Corporation jhereg.osa.com Open System Architects lll-winken.llnl.gov Lawrence Livermore National Labs news.tcs.com Teknekron Communication System noc.sura.net SURAnet Southeastern Universities Research Net USA piccolo.cit.cornell.edu Cornell University pmafire.inel.gov Idaho National Engineering Lab seka.scc.com Contel SPACECOM spool.mu.edu Marquette University vuse.vanderbilt.edu Vanderbilt University world.std.com Software Tool & Die sendit.nodak.edu North Dakota Higher Educ Computer Network m2xenix.psg.com Pacific Software Group uunet.uu.net UUNET Technologies This is a very short list that was generated during the first week of the our gating to USENET. We have not attempted to update the list since then. ############################ next article ################################# * Special Internet Connections: * * Compiled By: Scott Yanoff * -Cleveland Freenet telnet freenet-in-a.cwru.edu offers: USA Today Headline News, Sports, etc... -Geographic Name Server telnet martini.eecs.umich.edu 3000 offers: Info by city or area code (Population, Lat./Long., Elevation, etc) -Ham Radio Callbook telnet 128.205.32.4 2000 offers: National ham radio call-sign callbook -IRC Telnet Client telnet 128.2.54.2 offers: Internet Relay Chat access -Library of Congress telnet dra.com offers: Online catalog (you can even look up musicians work!) -Lyric Server ftp vacs.uwp.edu offers: Lyrics in text file format for anonymous ftp downloading -NASA SpaceLink telnet spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov offers: Latest NASA news, including shuttle launches and satellite updates -UNC BBS telnet 128.109.157.30 (login: bbs) offers: Access to Library of Congress and nationwide libraries. -Weather Service telnet 141.212.196.79 3000 offers: Forecast for any city, current weather for any state, etc. -Webster telnet decoy.cc.uoregon.edu 2627 offers: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Spelling checker. Type 'HELP' when online! * NOTE: No login names or passwords are required unless stated otherwise. * ############################ next article ################################# Several comments have been posted requesting information on the Free-Net(s), NPTN, public sites with Internet access, and so forth. To answer some of those questions, here are three files which (briefly) describes what NPTN is about, where our affiliates are located (with telnet addresses), and a general statement of the philosophy behind NPTN. If you want more information... addresses, phones, and FAX's are included. If you want more public access systems on the Internet... form a group, and start a Free-Net. ------------------------ THE NATIONAL PUBLIC TELECOMPUTING NETWORK --- MISSION STATEMENT The National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN) is a non- profit organization dedicated to establishing and developing free, public access, computerized information and communication services for the general public. To that end, specific functions have been formulated in four major areas: 1. To assist in establishing free, open access, community computer systems by making available the technical expertise and software necessary to develop and operate community computer systems virtually anywhere. (For example, NPTN community computer software is available to qualified parties for $1 a year.) 2. To link those systems together into a common network similar to National Public Radio or PBS on T.V. (As of July 1991, NPTN has affiliated systems operating in five cities, with another 13 cities scheduled to go online in the next year.) 3. To establish networkwide electronic mail and "cybercasting" services. (Cybercasting refers to the regular dissemination of information and communication services to NPTN affiliates. These services function like network feeds in the radio and television industry, where local station programming is supplemented on a regular basis by high quality network programs. Examples would include: Project Hermes, U.S. Supreme Court Decisions; the Congressional Memory, reports on legislation in Congress; USA TODAY electronic news service, NOAA Weather Reports, etc.) 4. To establish networkwide special services and programs which take advantage of the unique strengths of telecomputing as a medium. (Examples would include: Academy One, our K-12 education network; and the Teledemocracy Project.) For more information about NPTN or any of our activities contact: T.M. Grundner, Ed.D President, NPTN Box 1987 Cleveland, Ohio 44106 Voice: (216) 368-2733 FAX: (216) 368-5436 Internet: aa001@cleveland.freenet.edu BITNET: aa001%cleveland.freenet.edu@cunyvm CompuServe: 72135,1536 ------------------------------------- THE NATIONAL PUBLIC TELECOMPUTING NETWORK --- AFFILIATES The National Public Telecomputing Network has affiliates currently online in five cities, with another 13 cities scheduled to go online in the next 8 to 10 months. CURRENTLY ONLINE: Cleveland Free-Net - Cleveland, Ohio (216) 368-3888 - telnet: freenet-in-a.cwru.edu freenet-in-b.cwru.edu freenet-in-c.cwru.edu Youngstown Free-Net - Youngstown, Ohio (216) 742-3072 - telnet: yfn.ysu.edu TriState Online - Cincinnati, Ohio (513) 579-1990 - telnet: tso.uc.edu Heartland Free-Net - Peoria, Illinois (309) 674-1100 - telnet: heartland.bradley.edu Medina County Free-Net - Medina, Ohio (216) 723-6732 - telnet: (Internet in mid-Sept.91) FORMAL ORGANIZING COMMITTEES OPERATING IN: Buffalo, New York Chicago, Illinois Denver, Colorado Helsinki, Finland Lorain County, Ohio Los Angeles, California Minneapolis/St.Paul, Minnesota Portland, Oregon Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Singapore, Republic of Singapore Summit, New Jersey Washington D.C. Wellington, New Zealand ------------------------------------- THE NATIONAL PUBLIC TELECOMPUTING NETWORK --- STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES What We Believe: If the core beliefs of the National Public Telecomputing Network were to be summarized in one sentence, it would be this: We believe that everyone in a society has a right to access the primary information resources of that society via the best means available. More specificly, as Citizens of an Information Age: 1. We believe that access to information is a fundamental right of every person in a democracy. 2. We believe that the extent to which an individual's access to primary information and communication is enhanced, is the extent to which that person is enhanced as an individual, and society is strengthened as a whole. 3. We believe that information equity--the right of all people to benefit from Information Age technology--must be developed as a national priority. 4. We believe information equity requires that basic computerized information services be developed as universal community-wide utilities. 5. We believe information equity requires that basic Information Age skills be taught universally in our secondary schools and colleges. 6. We believe information equity requires universal low or no cost access to the minimal technology necessary to reach basic information services. 7. We believe that ongoing systematic development of public information and communication services must be of the highest priority--including the development of publicly accessable national and international communication linkages. ############################ next article ################################# =========================== MAGELLAN LANDSLIDE IMAGES September 4, 1991 =========================== At the request of the Magellan project, I've placed the Magellan landslide image at the Ames Space archives. This image has been released into the public domain by the Magellan project. The images can be retrieved via anonymous ftp from ames.arc.nasa.gov [128.102.18.3], and is in the pub/SPACE/VICAR directory as the file landslid.img. The image is a 1280x1024 image (1,312,000 bytes) and is in VICAR format. I've also converted the image into two GIF files, and you can get them from the pub/SPACE/GIF directory as landslid.gif and landsld1.gif. Make sure you are in binary mode when ftping the images. The image shows side-by-side images of the same area in Aphrodite Terra on Venus. The image on the left was taken by Magellan in November 1990 during the first cycle, and the image on the right was taken in July 1991 during the second cycle. The two images were intended to be a stereo pair. The discovery of the landslide was made when the stereo pair refused to work for the two images. ___ _____ ___ /_ /| /____/ \ /_ /| Ron Baalke | baalke@kelvin.jpl.nasa.gov | | | | __ \ /| | | | Jet Propulsion Lab | ___| | | | |__) |/ | | |__ M/S 301-355 Telos | Good judgement comes from /___| | | | ___/ | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | experience. Experience |_____|/ |_|/ |_____|/ | comes from bad judgement. ############################ next article ################################# The Project Gutenberg Newsletter__August 31, 1991__Our 21st Year This month's release__The Federalist Papers [feder10.txt or .zip]. This is about the first 20% of The Federalist Papers as edited by a person who is not a scholar on the subject (yours truly). Thus any odd characters (and there were a few different ones in each fifth-- they came to me in five parts) were replaced with spaces, carriage- returns, hyphens, etc. I am leaving the original .zip file fedgut. zip for Tom Horton and or other scholars to work with. I will make what progress I can, and post the other four portions this weekend. The compression was particularly effective at 60%. These were made available on the request of Tom Horton who should be of assistance, as mentioned in the next paragraph. Glad to be of service, Tom. I hope you will be able to clean these up a bit more in the future, a service we hope to be a continuing part of Project Gutenberg to and from those who use our etexts. We have several versions in the works, and new editions of federxx, and others should be out soon. We also have encouraged discussions of various copyright issues on the GUTNBERG server, refereed (~more or less~) by three experts in the field. New items of interest for late 1991 and early 1992: 1. Peter Pan has been withdrawn from distribution until we have solved the question of copyright to our satisfaction. A Project Gutenberg standard is that all works distributed should be well researched to make sure we are not infringing on anyone's copyright. A copy of a first edition is supposed to be on it's way from the Carolinas, and we look forward to re-releasing Peter Pan very shortly. If this is not the case, we have two etext copies of Paradise Lost, both which should be okayed for release shortly, one of which would replace an eliminated Peter Pan until another could be made to replace it. It should only take a week from the time it is received, so you should Peter Pan on our list again very quickly. 2. A retrospective. . .releases from previous years (as our storage is growing, thanks to the assistance of Kevin Gilmore and his approach to building of our hardware. We should have additional storage for previous works to be re-released, and eventually to post all future Project Gutenberg releases without having to withdraw any releases, well. . .for a few years, anyway; by that time we should be working with totally new kinds of hardware, some of which may be donated. 3. And. . .just the opposite. . .a sneak peek into the future. . .as a list of works in progress, completed works waiting only for a clear copyright analysis to be released, and works to be on the schedules for the next few years. 4. Other items in the news: we have received a request for commercial interests to pay for using our Lewis Carroll Collection as the base for editions of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. We have also received several financial contributions this month, a beginning to the self-sufficiency of Project Gutenberg. Here are the latest updates for FTP downloading of Project Gutenberg etexts and others. These updates will be posted on several listserv locations once a month. We hope we have answered most questions, as new files, new locations, and new users arrive each month. We can't answer queries about nameservers or how your local system runs FTP. These files are also available in most disk formats. Please do not access the mrcnext machine from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM Central Standard Time (Daylight in summer) as this is peak usage, & mrcnext is always the first machine to get the newest editions. Current releases are Alice26a.txt, Lglass15.txt and Snark11.txt. Others texts are also available at the various sites. If you are interested in getting the electronic books, it's easy if you have access to FTP. Just type ftp mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (or any of the other systems listed below) (Your system may require this in lower case or quotes around the name.) or ftp 128.174.201.12 login anonymous (This is the login username caps not necessary) (Any password works fine ) cd etext ls -a or dir (This will give you a directory listing, case sensitive) get filename.filetype (examples . . . ) get alice26a.txt get lglass16.txt get snark10.txt quit ***** ############################ next article ################################# OVERVIEW You may be reading this document on any one of an amazing variety of computers, so much of the material below may not apply to you. In general, however, systems connected to 'the net' fall in one of three categories: Internet, Usenet, or BITNET. Electronic mail may be sent between these networks, and other resources available on one of these networks are sometimes accessible from other networks by email sent to special 'servers'. The space and astronomy discussion groups actually are composed of several mechanisms with (mostly) transparent connections between them. One mechanism is the mailing list, in which mail is sent to a central distribution point which relays it to all recipients of the list. In addition to the general lists for space (called SPACE Digest for Internet users, and SPACE-L on BITNET), there are a number of more specialized mailing lists described below. A second mechanism is Usenet 'netnews'. This is somewhat like a bulletin board operating on each system which is a part of the net. Netnews separates contributions into hundreds of different categories based on a 'group name'. The three groups dealing most closely with space topics are called 'sci.space', 'sci.space.shuttle', and 'sci.astro'. Contributors 'post' submissions (called 'articles' in netnews terminology) on their local machine, which sends it to other nearby machines. Similarly, articles sent from nearby machines are stored locally and may be forwarded to other systems, so that an article is posted locally and eventually reaches all the Usenet sites interested in receiving the news group to which the article was posted. Gateway machines serve to redirect Usenet netnews into Internet and BITNET mailing lists and vice versa. If you can receive netnews, its more flexible interface usually makes it the preferred option to getting on one of the main mailing lists. MAILING LISTS SPACE Digest is the main Internet list. Email space-request+@andrew.cmu.edu to join. SPACE Magazine is an Internet list containing a distillation of interesting material from SPACE Digest which may be of interest to readers tiring of the signal-to-noise level in the digest. Email space-mag-request+@andrew.cmu.edu to join. Space-investors is a list for information relevant to investing in space-related companies. Email Vincent Cate (vac@cs.cmu.edu) to join. Space-tech is a list for more technical discussion of space topics; discussion has included esoteric propulsion technologies, asteroid capture, starflight, orbital debris removal, etc. Email to space-tech-request@cs.cmu.edu to join. Archives of old digests and selected excerpts are available by anonymous FTP from daisy.learning.cs.cmu.edu (128.2.218.26) in /usr/anon/public/space-tech, or by email to space-tech-request if you don't have FTP access. SEDS-L is a BITNET list for members of Students for the Exploration and Development of Space and other interested parties. Email LISTSERV@TAMVM1.BITNET with a message saying "SUBSCRIBE SEDS-L your name". Email saying "INDEX SEDS-L" to list the archive contents. SEDSNEWS is a BITNET list for news items, press releases, shuttle status reports, and the like. This duplicates material which is also found in Space Digest, sci.space, sci.space.shuttle, and sci.astro. Email LISTSERV@TAMVM1.BITNET saying "SUBSCRIBE SEDSNEWS your name" to join. Email saying "INDEX SEDSNEWS" to list the archive contents. As a general note, please mail to the *request* address to get off a mailing list. SPACE Digest, for example, relays many inappropriate 'please remove me from this list' messages which are sent to the list address rather than the request address. PERIODICALLY UPDATED INFORMATION In addition to this FAQ list, a broad variety of topical information appears in sci.space, sci.astro, sci.space.shuttle, SPACE Digest, and SPACE-L. Please remember that the individuals posting this information are performing a service for all net readers, and don't take up their time with frivolous requests. Postings are in sci.space unless noted; postings to other groups may not be seen by BITNET or Internet readers. ACRONYMS Garret Wollman (wollman@griffin.uvm.edu) posts an acronym list. AVIATION WEEK Henry Spencer (henry@zoo.toronto.edu) posts summaries of space-related stories in the weekly _Aviation Week and Space Technology_. ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF THE ASA Don Barry (don@chara.gsu.edu) posts the monthly Electronic Journal of the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic to sci.astro. ESA BULLETIN Harm Munk (munk@prl.philips.nl) posts summaries of articles in the quarterly _ESA Bulletin_ and the _ESA Journal_. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL Swaraj Jeyasingh (sjeyasin@axion.bt.co.uk) posts summaries of space-related news from _Flight International_. This focuses more on non-US space activities than Aviation Week. NASA HEADLINE NEWS & SHUTTLE REPORTS Peter Yee (yee@ames.arc.nasa.gov) posts a variety of NASA material, including NASA Headline News (with the schedule for NASA SELECT), shuttle payload briefings and flight manifests, and KSC shuttle status reports. For Usenet users, much of this material appears in the group sci.space.shuttle. NASA UPDATES Ron Baalke (baalke@kelvin.jpl.nasa.gov) posts frequent updates from JPL, Ames, and other centers on the Ulysses, Gailileo, Pioneer, Magellan, Landsat, and other missions. The updates posted by Ron and Peter are also available on a mailing list. Contact either one to be added to this list. ORBITAL ELEMENT SETS TS Kelso (tkelso@blackbird.afit.af.mil) posts orbital elements from NASA Prediction Bulletins. Mike Rose (mrose@stsci.edu) posts orbital elements for the Hubble Space Telescope to sci.astro. Jost Jahn (j.jahn@abbs.hanse.de) posts ephemerides for asteroids, comets, conjunctions, and encounters to sci.astro. SATELLITE LAUNCHES Richard Langley (lang@unb.ca) posts SPACEWARN Bulletin, which describes recent launch/orbital decay information and satellites which are useful for scientific activities. Recent bulletins are available by anonymous FTP from nssdca.gsfc.nasa.gov in ANON_DIR:[000000.ACTIVE.SPX]. SOLAR ACTIVITY Cary Oler (oler@hg.uleth.ca) posts Solar Terrestrial reports (describing solar activity and its effect on the Earth) to sci.space. The report is issued in part from data released by the Space Enviroment Services Center, Boulder Colorado. Recent copies of this material are available by anonymous FTP from nic.funet.fi (128.214.6.100) in /pub/misc/rec.radio.shortwave/solarreports (please note this site is in Europe, and the connection to the US is only 56KB). SOVIET SPACE ACTIVITIES Glenn Chapman (glennc@cs.sfu.cad) posts summaries of Soviet space activities. SPACE ACTIVIST NEWSLETTER Allen Sherzer (aws@iti.org) posts a newsletter, "One Small Step for a Space Activist," describing current legislative activity affecting NASA and commercial space activities. SPACE NEWS John Magliacane (kd2bd@ka2qhd.UUCP) posts "SpaceNews" (covering AMSATs, NOAA and other weather satellites, and other ham information) to rec.radio.amateur.misc and sci.space. SPACE REPORT Jonathan McDowell (mcdowell@xanth.msfc.nasa.gov) posts "Jonathan's Space Report" (covering launches, landings, reentries, status reports, satellite activities, etc.) Despite the address, this is not in any way an official NASA document. TOWARD 2001 Bev Freed (freed@nss.fidonet.org) posts "Toward 2001", a weekly global news summary reprinted from _Space Calendar_ magazine. ############################ next article ################################# ONLINE AND OTHER SOURCES OF IMAGES, DATA, ETC. INTRODUCTION A wide variety of images, data, catalogs, information releases, and other material dealing with space and astronomy may be found on the net. A few sites offer direct dialup access or remote login access, while the remainder support some form of file transfer. Many sites are listed as providing 'anonymous FTP'. This refers to the File Transfer Protocol on the Internet. Sites not connected to the Internet cannot use FTP directly, but there is an automated FTP server which operates via email. Send mail containing only the word HELP to the address FTPMAIL@DECWRL.DEC.COM, and the server will send you instructions on how to make requests. The sources with the broadest selection of material are the NASA Ames SPACE archive and the National Space Science Data Center. Don't even ask for images to be posted to the net. The data volume is huge and nobody wants to spend the time on it. ONLINE ARCHIVES NASA AMES Extensive archives are maintained at NASA Ames and are available via anonymous FTP or an email server. These archives include many images and a wide variety of documents including this FAQ list, NASA press releases, shuttle launch advisories, and mission status reports. Please note that these are NOT maintained on an official basis. FTP users should connect to ames.arc.nasa.gov (128.102.18.3) and look in pub/SPACE. pub/SPACE/Index contains a listing of files available in the archive (the index is about 200K by itself). To access the archives by email, send a letter to archive-server@ames.arc.nasa.gov (or ames!archive-server). In the subject of your letter (or in the body), use commands like: send SPACE Index send SPACE SHUTTLE/ss01.23.91. The capitalization of the subdirectory names is important. All are in caps. Only text files (no images) may be sent by email at present. The Magellan Venus and Voyager Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus CD-ROM image disks have been put online in the CDROM and CDROM2 directories. The disks will be rotated on a weekly basis. Thousands of images are available in these collections. The GIF directory contains images in GIF format. A few have been uuencoded so that they be mailed, but unfortunately the majority will not survive mailing. This will be rectified in the future. The VICAR directory contains Magellan images in VICAR format (these are also available in the GIF directory). A PC program capable of displaying these files is found in the IMDISP directory, although it is still a binary file (ZIP format) and so it is not suitable for mailing at this time. The NASA media guide describes the various NASA centers and how to contact their public affairs officers; this may be useful when pursuing specific information. It's in MISC/media.guide. Any problems with the archive server should be reported to Peter Yee (yee@ames.arc.nasa.gov). SPACELINK SpaceLink is an online service located at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. The system is specifically designed for teachers. The data base is arranged to provide easy access to current and historical information on NASA aeronautics and space research. Also included are suggested classroom activities that incorporate information on NASA projects to teach a number of scientific principles. Unlike bulletin board systems, NASA Spacelink does not provide for interaction between callers. However it does allow teachers and other callers to leave questions and comments for NASA which may be answered by regular mail. SpaceLink also offers downloadable shareware & public domain programs, and reviews and ordering information for commercial astronomy software. You can dial in at (205)-895-0028 (300/1200/2400 baud, 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop bit). Most of this information is also available from the Ames server in directory SPACELINK. NATIONAL SPACE SCIENCE DATA CENTER (NSSDC) The National Space Science Data Center is the official clearinghouse for NASA data. The data catalog (*not* the data itself) is available online. Internet users can telnet to nssdca.gsfc.nasa.gov (128.183.10.4) and log in as 'NODIS' (no password). You can also dial in at (301)-286-9000 (300, 1200, or 2400 baud, 8 bits, no parity, one stop). At the "Enter Number:" prompt, enter MD and carriage return. When the system responds "Call Complete," enter a few more carriage returns to get the "Username:" and log in as 'NODIS' (no password). The system is menu-driven; topics available as of 2/7/91 are: 1 - Master Directory - NASA & Global Change 2 - Personnel Information Management System 3 - Nimbus-7 GRID TOMS Data 4 - Interplanetary Medium Data (OMN 5 - Request data and/or information from NSSDC 6 - Geophysical Models 7 - CANOPUS Newsletter 8 - International Ultraviolet Explorer Data Request 9 - CZCS Browse and Order Utility 10 - Astronomical Data Center (ADC) Data can be ordered from the NSSDC on CD-ROM and other formats. Among the many types of data available are Voyager and other planetary images, Earth observation data, and star catalogs. Viewers for Macintosh and IBM systems are also available. As an example of the cost, an 8 CD set of Voyager images is $75. Data may ordered online, by email, or by physical mail. The postal address is: National Space Science Data Center Request Coordination Office Goddard Space Flight Center Code 633 Greenbelt, MD 20771 Telephone: (301) 286-6695 Email address: request@nssdca.gsfc.nasa.gov NSSDCA is also an anonymous FTP site, but no comprehensive list of what's there is available at present. ASTRONOMICAL DATABASES The full SAO stellar database is *NOT* available online, probably due to the 40 MB size. It may be ordered on magnetic tape from the NSSDC. A subset containing position and magnitude only is available by FTP (see "Astronomy Programs" below). mandarin.mit.edu (18.82.0.21) has the following data available via anonymous FTP in directory /astro: StarChart v3.2, orbital elements for bright comets and asteroids, the Yale Bright Star catalog, Saguaro Astronomy Club Deepsky and Double Star databases, some PC astronomy programs, and possibly more. Get astro/README. Contact ccount@athena.mit.edu with questions. The Ames archives contain a database of 8,436 galaxies including name, RA, declination, magnitude, and radial velocity in MISC/galaxy.dat. Supplied by Wayne Hayes (wayne@csri.utoronto.ca). iris1.ucis.dal.ca (129.173.18.107) has a number of GIFs from Voyager, Hubble, and other sources available by anonymous FTP in pub/gif (most of this data is also in SPACE/GIF on the Ames server). Please restrict access to 5pm - 8am Atlantic time. pomona.claremont.edu has the Yale Bright Star catalog for anonymous FTP in directory [.YALE_BSC]. Contact James Dishaw (jdishaw@hmcvax.claremont.edu). The Hubble Guide Star catalog is available on CD-ROM for the Mac and PC for ~$50: Astronomical Society of the Pacific 390 Ashton Ave. San Francisco, CA 94112 For German (and possibly other European) readers, Jost Jahn has a service to distribute astronomical data to interested amateurs at cost. About 30-40 catalogs are available for DM 6..8/disk. Several floppy disk formats are available. Because of the expense of receiving email on his system, he asks that you contact him by physical mail: Jost Jahn Neustaedter Strasse 11 W-3123 Bodenteich GERMANY Phone: FRG-5824-3197 ASTRONOMY PROGRAMS Various astronomy-related programs and databases posted to the net in the past are archived for anonymous FTP at multiple sites, including uunet.uu.net (137.39.1.2): Astonomical/Space-related sources of interest in comp.sources.unix: Volume 8: phoon moon phase and date routines Volume 12,13: starchart starchart program & Yale Star data Volume 15: moontool shows moon phase picture on Suns Volume 16: sao reduced SAO catalog Astonomical/Space-related sources of interest in comp.sources.misc: Volume 7: ephem astronomical ephemeris Volume 8: moon another moon phase program Volume 9: ephem2 astronomical ephemeris, v4.8 Volume 11: starchart starchart program, version 3.2 Volume 11: ephem4.12 astronomical ephemeris, v4.12 Volume 11: ephem4.13 astronomical ephemeris, upgrade to v4.13 Volume 11: n3emo-orbit orbit: track earth satellites Volume 12: starchart2 starchart program, update to version 3.2.1 Volume 12: ephem4.13 patches to ephem 4.13: sac-ephem bug, phase bug Volume 13: jupmoons plotter for Jupiter's major moons [in perl] Volume 13: lunisolar lunisolar (not sure what this does) Volume 14: ephem-4.21 astronomical ephemeris, v4.21 Volume 14: n3emo-orbit patch to orbit 3.7 Volume 18: planet planet generation simulator ORBITAL ELEMENT SETS The most recent orbital elements from the NASA Prediction Bulletins are carried on the Celestial BBS, (513)-427-0674. Documentation and tracking software are also available on this system. The Celestial BBS may be accessed 24 hours/day at 300, 1200, or 2400 baud using 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, no parity. This information is also available via anonymous FTP from nachos.ssesco.com (192.55.187.18) in directory sat_elements/nasa. (address problems with the server to elmquist@ssesco.com), Orbital elements for the Hubble Space Telescope are posted periodically to sci.astro by Mike Rose (mrose@stsci.edu), and a Macintosh program for interpreting this information is available by FTP from stsci.edu (130.167.1.2) in Software/hstmap-3.4.0.sit.hqx. This program has also been posted to comp.binaries.mac. SPACE DIGEST ARCHIVES Copies of back issues of Space Digest are archived on LISTSERV@UGA.BITNET. Send mail containing the message "INDEX SPACE" to get an index of files; send it the message "GET filename filetype" to get a particular file. LANDSAT AND NASA PHOTOS You can get black-and-white 1:1M prints, negatives, or positives for $10, $18, $12 respectively for any Landsat data more than 2 years old from EDC, (Eros (Earth Resources Orbiting Satellite) Data Center). Call them at (605)-594-6511. You get 80 meter resolution from the MSS scanner, 135x180 kilometers on a picture 135x180 mm in size. I think you have to select one band from (green, red, near IR, second near IR), but I'm not sure. Digitial data is also available at higher prices. Transparencies of all NASA photos available to the public can be borrowed from the NASA photo archive; you can have copies or prints made. NASA Audio-Visual Facility 918 North Rengstorff Ave Mountain View, CA 94043 (415)-604-6270 PLANETARY MAPS The USGS address for maps of the planets is: U.S. Geological Survey, Distribution Branch, Box 25286, Federal Center, Bldg. 41 Denver, CO 80225 Maps cost $2.40 to $3.10 per sheet (a few come in sets of 2 or 3 sheets). The best global maps of Mars based on Viking images are 1:15,000,000 scale in 3 sheets. These maps are: I-1535 (2 sheets only) - relief, albedo, names I-1535 I-1618 (3 sheets) - relief, names I-2030 (3 sheets) - relief, topographic contours I-1802-A,B,C (3 sheets) - geology There are many other maps as well: 30 sheets at 1:5,000,000 scale in relief, albedo, geology, photomosaic forms (not all 30 sheets available in all formats); 140 sheets at 1:2,000,000 scale as photomosaics of the whole planet, about 100 sheets of interesting sites at 1:500,000 scale in photomosaic format, and lots of special sheets. Then there are maps of Mercury, Venus, the Moon, the four Galilean Satellites, six moons of Saturn and five of Uranus. I will personally respond to requests for information on any topic relating to lunar and planetary maps. COMETARY ORBIT DATA The Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams and the Minor Planet Center announce the sixth edition of the Catalogue of Cometary Orbits in IAU Circular 4935. The catalogue contains 1292 entries which represent all known comets through November 1989 and is 96 pages long. Non-subscribers to the Circulars may purchase the catalogue for $15.00 while the cost to subscribers is $7.50. The basic catalogue in ASCII along with a program to extract specific orbits and calculate ephemerides is available on MS-DOS 5.25-inch 2S2D diskette at a cost of $75.00 (the program requires an 8087 math coprocessor). The catalogue alone is also available by e-mail for $37.50 or on magnetic tape for $300.00. Except for the printed version of the catalogue, the various magnetic media or e-mail forms of the catalogue do not specifically meantion non-subscribers. It is possible that these forms of the catalogue may not be available to non-subscribers or that their prices may be more expensive than those given. Mail requests for specific information and orders to: Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Cambridge, MA 02138, USA ############################ next article ################################# KIDSNET mailing list The KIDSNET list was established in May, 1989, to stimulate the development of an international computer network for the use of children and their teachers. The first pieces of this network have already begun to take shape, and the mailing list now helps to guide its continuing evolution. Subscribers to the list include teachers, administrators, scientists, developers of software and hardware and officials of relevant funding agencies. Topics of continuing interest include: * networks at the local, regional and national level * news and mail interfaces suitable for children's use * network services for the K-12 audience * development of new network services and projects * collaborative projects at the national and international level * network access for the handicapped Subscription requests may be sent to one of the following addresses: kidsnet-request@vms.cis.pitt.edu [Internet] joinkids@vms.cis.pitt.edu [Internet] joinkids@pittvms [BITNET] A spin-off of the KIDSNET list is another list called KIDS, which exists for children to post messages to other children. This second list was established after some children's postings appeared on KIDSNET and readers requested that the children's traffic be kept separate. Subscription requests for KIDS can be sent to JOINKIDS at the address given above. Postings to the KIDSNET list are accomplished with mailings to the address kidsnet@vms.cis.pitt.edu [Internet] or Similarly, children may post messages for the KIDS list by sending mail to kids@vms.cis.pitt.edu [Internet] or kids@pittvms [BITNET] ############################ next article ################################# Computer Networks and Informal Science Education Barry Kort Visiting Scientist BBN Labs Cambridge, MA Introduction Computer networks have created new possibilities for information interchange, peer dialogues, and instruction. This paper briefly lists the well-established systems for network-mediated learning, and describes some of the newer and more innovative developments. Electronic Mail Electronic mail dramatically enhances the ability of people to communicate quickly and efficiently without the delay and overhead of surface mail. Modern E-Mail systems support the inclusion of non-text computer documents such as binary data files along with the regular text message. The ability to quote portions of an incoming message in a reply makes multiple parallel ongoing dialogues practical, since the discussants need not memorize the current context of each dialogue in progress. Electronic mailing lists and newsletters allow a coordinator to keep all subscribers abreast of transactions on a project or discussion topic of mutual interest. To some extent, such electronic communication has lessened the need for printed newsletters and professional society transactions while opening the channel to wider numbers of contributors and a more informal style of interchange. While one might expect electronic mail to be used primarily by academics and professionals, this author has, for over a year, exchanged E- Mail with a 7-year old boy in Atlanta. With an average of 2 letters per week, the transcripts of my correspondence with Abram now fill a 1-inch binder. The format of the exchange is a Socratic Dialogue, with the intent of engaging Abram in exploration of scientific material. AbramUs literacy and communication skills have improved dramatically while his scholarship, attitude toward school, and self-confidence have progressed from problematic to exemplary. That computer networks can enable a professional scientist to reach into the home and life of an American child is a testament to the largely untapped potential of network technology. Electronic Bulletin Boards Bulletin boards, such as the Netnews system on Internet, enable individuals who do not already know each other to enter into ongoing discussions on any of several hundred technical, political, social, or recreational topics. The global electronic village emerges from this technology, and bridges gaps of time, distance, and subject-matter expertise. It is a folk theorem that one can find an overnight answer to almost any technical question by posting to an appropriate Netnews newsgroup. To some extent, electronic bulletin boards have lessened the need to attend professional society meetings and conferences to keep abreast of the latest thinking within a technical discipline. Network File Servers Many universities and institutions maintain publicly accessible file servers on the Internet. Using widely available protocols such as FTP (File Transfer Protocol), users can locate and retrieve archived documents and computer software from the many electronic libraries on the network. Materials with educational and research value are routinely archived and disseminated through the computer networks. Productivity and entertainment software of limited commercial value may also be obtained through public computer networks. Virtual Realities, Virtual Communities, and CyberNets Through computer modeling it becomes possible to build virtual worlds in which the user interacts with and experiences a synthetic environment. On the high-tech end of the spectrum are virtual realities which embed a single user in a realistic 3-D visual scene in which one can move about and manipulate objects. On the low end are the interactive text adventures in which a single user explores a make-believe world and puzzles through various obstacles and challenges to reach a goal. Network technology has begun to transform such single player worlds into multi-player virtual realities in which the user encounters and interacts with the other players as well as with the animate and inanimate contents of the cybernetic world. At present, the network versions of these synthetic worlds is limited to text-based interactions only. Graphics and sound are perhaps a few years away, awaiting the development and deployment of high-speed network window systems. Known as MUDs (Multi-User Dimensions) or MUSEs (Multi-User Science Environments), these virtual realities offer a rich environment for synergy, community, collaboration, and exploratory discovery. At present there are several dozen publicly accessible multi-user text-based virtual realities running on Internet hosts around the country and in Europe. Players connect to the host computer using conventional Internet protocols and versatile client programs. Players adopt a character and personality of their choosing, and enter into the synthetic world, consisting of a web of connected rooms and movable props. Everything (rooms, movable objects, connecting passageways, and players) has a description (typically a few lines of text) which are displayed when a player looks at it. Actions such as picking up or dropping an object, and exiting to an adjacent room also generate a short message appropriate to the action. Everything in the system is owned by a player (typically the player who created it), and the owner of a room, object, or exit has the privilege of specifying its name and the associated messages when a player encounters or interacts with it. Players can create new rooms and new objects, and construct imaginative interconnected regions for others to explore. In the more powerful MUSE systems, inanimate objects can be given elaborate behaviors which are triggered upon activation by the actions of other players or objects. Animated objects can become arbitrarily complex automata such as vehicles, dispensing machines, androids, or information appliances. In some systems there are player characters whose moves are controlled by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) program running on a remote computer. Such robot players have already become sufficiently lifelike in their behavior that it is at times difficult to tell the human players from the robot players. The most advanced robot player is Julia, created by Dr. Fuzzy (Dr. Michael Mauldin of Carnegie Mellon). Julia's conversational ability surpasses that of many human players and her personality is not without charm. The educational potential of multi-player programmable virtual realities has been explored by some of the more serious-minded professionals who have investigated the genre. Like other technological innovations of the information age, virtual realities appeal to many human needs: social communication, entertainment, information, and education. At California State University at Fresno, a system called MicroMuse chartered itself in November, 1990, as the PBS of CyberNet, featuring explorations, adventures, and puzzles with redeeming social, cultural, and educational content. (In May, 1991, MicroMuse moved from CSU-Fresno to MIT.) The MicroMuse Science Center offers an Exploratorium and Mathematica Exhibit complete with interactive exhibits drawn from experience with Science Museums around the country. The Opera House presents a literary puzzle based on The Phantom of the Opera. The Mission to Mars includes an elaborate tour of the red planet with accurate descriptions rivaling those found in National Geographic. Elsewhere, one can find a sailing cruise to the Virgin Islands which recreates the real-life adventure of the player who created it. For younger players, text-based virtual realities foster literacy skills: reading, writing, and composition, and technical skills such as keyboarding and spelling. For adolescent players, social interaction skills, interpersonal skills, and personality development emerge as primary activities. College students who are not computer science majors enjoy the opportunity to gain some computer literacy and try their hand at creating their own contributions to the cyberspace worlds, usually with the helpful guidance of friendly players with more experience. The more ingenious and inventive players design and build elaborate and powerful artifacts such as electronic newspapers, voice-mail recorders, and self-activated transit systems. Educational Potential The educational potential of network-based virtual realities is largely unexplored, unappreciated and undeveloped. The nature of the medium favors informal science education, since students voluntarily connect to these systems between classes and during their leisure time. Text-based virtual realities foster obvious skill-building in keyboarding, composition, and social interaction skills. But there is far greater potential for improving computer literacy, cognitive skills and scientific awareness through conscientiously crafted content geared toward informal science education. Borrowing on techniques used in the design of interactive science museum exhibits, educational television, and interactive computer games, one can envision a virtual Science Expedition with highly imaginative and interactive adventures not constrained by space, time, or materials. The possibilities of modeling such diverse adventures as interplanetary travel, volcano exploration, or fantastic voyages through the bloodstream are suggestive of projects worth considering. Students, too, enjoy the opportunity to build microworlds of their own, typically copying real-world cityscapes and science-fiction themes. With a little guidance from a faculty advisor, a student group can be organized to build a microworld model from physics, chemistry, geology, biology, or mathematics. While many students already have discovered MUDs and MUSEs on their own, schools could foster educationally beneficial access through extra- curricular activity groups such as computer clubs and science clubs. The enriched atmosphere of network-based microworlds generates a national (and even international) virtual community that broadens the horizons of students who may never have travelled beyond the borders of their home state. Deaf and handicapped students find opportunities for unimpaired interactions within the computer-mediated virtual worlds. The interaction across age groups also stimulates the informal learning process as social communication blends into technical discussion and teaching. Conclusion Network-based virtual realities are now coming of age, largely populated by students seeking an enriched environment for exploration, discovery, and creative expression. Virtual communities emerge with imaginative interactive adventures and puzzles. The science content of such worlds can profitably be enriched by the active participation of the education community. For adult educators and researchers, text-based virtual realities offer an opportunity to enter a synthetic society either as observers of the sociology (and sociopathy) of a predominantly adolescent culture, or as mission-oriented contributors to the informal education and enrichment of the young people populating the ethereal world of Cyberion City. ############################ next article ################################# Received: from mailer.scri.fsu.edu by ibm1.scri.fsu.edu (AIX 3.1/UCB 5.61/4.03) id AA02832; Tue, 10 Sep 91 01:04:48 -0400 Received: by mailer.scri.fsu.edu (5.57/Ultrix2.4-C) id AA17405; Tue, 10 Sep 91 01:00:12 EDT Date: Mon, 9 Sep 91 23:15 EDT From: KIDSNET MAILING LIST Subject: GlasNet from Russia (from CNEDUC-L) To: kids-l@vms.cis.pitt.edu Message-Id: <19778FD7CEFF002034@vms.cis.pitt.edu> X-Envelope-To: dduke@scri.fsu.EDU X-Vms-To: IN%"kids-l" Date: Sun, 8 Sep 1991 19:10:57 CDT From: Richard Lee Holbert Subject: GlasNet from Russia Sender: Computer Networking Education Discussion List From: Dimitri Vulis Subject: GlasNet Friends: We recently learned of the Soviet Youth Preparatory Committee to the Global Forum ECO-92, and their planned national youth conference in Moscow, Aug. 22-24. We think GlasNet electronic mail and conferencing facilities could be valuable to the Soviet Youth Preparatory Committee. We invite them to visit or telephone our Moscow office and discuss with the GlasNet staff how our services might be useful. Here is a description of GlasNet: ------------------------------------------------------- "GlasNet" - A new Soviet Computer Network for Information Interchange. A new computer network called "GlasNet" has been installed in Moscow by The International Foundation (Moscow, Washington, Munich, Sofia) and The Institute for Global Communications (San Francisco). GlasNet is the first non-profit, non-governmental telecommunications network to be established in the Soviet Union. The purpose of GlasNet is to offer easy and inexpensive information exchange between diverse groups within the USSR, including scientists, educators, cultural groups, journalists, environmentalists, computer enthusiasts, and so forth. It will also enable these Soviet groups to correspond electronically with their counterparts in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. GlasNet is intended to serve the communication needs of pro bono groups in the USSR who could not otherwise afford modern communication services. Charges to non-commercial GlasNet users in the USSR will be entirely in roubles, and kept as low as possible while maintaining good system services. GlasNet will be part of the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), a global network-of-networks with host computers in Australia (Pegasus), Brazil (AlterNex), Canada (Web), Great Britain (GreenNet), Nicaragua (Nicarao), Sweden (FredsNaetet), and the USA (PeaceNet,EcoNet). The first GlasNet host computer is a 386 computer running UNIX; it uses the standard APC electronic mail, conferencing, and networking software. The user interface of this software is identical to that which has been used by Sovam Teleport for the last two years. The initial GlasNet hardware configuration will support 5,000 user accounts; of these 7 to 30 can be on line simultaneously, depending on the number of available telephone lines. GlasNet was installed in Moscow in March of 1991 and has been operating officially since May 30, 1991. GlasNet is negotiating with organizations in Dnepropetrovsk, Kiev, Leningrad, and Zelenograd to set up GlasNet associate host computer systems in these cities. Collaboration among scientists, business people, and other specialists in the USA has been facilitated in recent years through the use of computer-based electronic mail and conferencing capabilities, allowing people in different parts of the country to work on joint projects, access data banks and information in computers all across the country, and electronically publish new work. These powerful capabilties are now becoming available to the general public, the non-profit community in particular, through such services as PeaceNet and EcoNet. It is the goal of GlasNet to provide similar performance-enhancing services to the fast-emerging independent sector in the USSR, offering Soviet users easy access to friends, colleagues, and potential associates in the USSR and abroad. The initial services available to GlasNet users will include: Electronic Mail GlasNet subscribers will be able to exchange messages with users on GlasNet, other users within APC, or with users belonging to many other networks through APC "gateways." Networks accessible through APC gateways include: Applelink, AT&T Mail, AT&T LandMail, Bitnet, BIX, CARINET, CGNET, CIGnet, CONNECT, COSY, CSNet, DASNET, DEC (Digital Equipment Corp.), DIALCOM, EasyLink, ECONET, EIES, Envoy 100, FAX, Fidonet, Galaxy, GeoNet, GTE, HandsNet, IMC, INET, Internet, ISISHQ, Janet, MCI Mail, MicroLink, NWI, PANDORA, PINET, Portal, Prairie, PsychNet, ScienceNet, SI (Systemas Industriales), TCN, Telecom Gold, Telemail, Telex, TWICS, Tymnet/Ontyme, UNDP;UNDRO;UNINET, UNICOMP UNISON, WELL Electronic mail (Email) overcomes the cost and problems of telephone use. An electronic mail message is composed at the user's convenience, then quickly sent by the GlasNet computer to its destination in the addressee's host computer mailbox, which may be in Moscow or halfway around the world. When the person to whom it is sent logs in to his or her local network host computer, the message is waiting. Transmission is immediate, and there is no need for both parties to be present simultaneously. Costs are less than long distance telephone calls or those of air parcel services. FAX And Telex Service GlasNet will provide its users with the ability to send messages to FAX machines, and to send or receive messages from Telex machines. Electronic Conferencing An electronic conference is a written conversation with other users; a conference is created to discuss a particular topic or to facilitate communication between people working on a joint project. GlasNet users will be able to start their own conferences on topics of interest, or will be able to participate in on-going conferences on other APC networks. GlasNet has office space in and works closely with the Bank of Ideas of the USSR at their offices on Ulitsa Yaroslavskaya. For further information please contact: Anatoly Voronov, Executive Director Email: avoronov@glas.apc.org Alexander Zaytsev, Technical Director Email: alexz@glas.apc.org Anatoly Yeroshin, User Support Director Email: ayeroshin@glas.apc.org GlasNet Ulitsa Yaroslavskaya 8 Korpus 3 Room 111 129164 Moscow 217-6173, 217-6182 (voice) 217-6170, 217-6171, 217-6172, 217-6174, 217-6180, 217-6181, 217-6183 (data) In the USA: David Caulkins GlasNet USA 437 Mundel Way Los Altos, CA 94022 (415)948-5753 voice (415)948-1474 fax Email: dcaulkins@igc.org (from Internet in the USA) dcaulkins (from PeaceNet/EcoNet in the USA) Richard Lee Richard Lee Holbert 306 Tee Drive Bryan, Texas 77801 (409)-845-4210 (work) X075RT@TAMVM1.BITNET AK152@CLEVELAND.FREENET.EDU ############################ next article ################################# +--------------------------------------------------------------------- | The Public-Access Computer Systems Review | | Volume 1, Number 1 (1990) | | Editor-In-Chief: Charles W. Bailey, Jr. | University of Houston | | Associate Editor: Mike Ridley, McMaster University | | Editorial Board: Walt Crawford, Research Libraries Group | Nancy Evans, Carnegie-Mellon University | David R. McDonald, University of Michigan | R. Bruce Miller, University of California, | San Diego | Paul Evan Peters, New York Public Library | Peter Stone, University of Sussex | | | Published three times a year (January, May, and September) by | the University Libraries, University of Houston. Technical | support is provided by the Information Technology Division, | University of Houston. | | DEADLINE for the next issue is April 2, 1990. | | Editor's Address: Charles W. Bailey, Jr. | University Libraries | University of Houston | Houston, TX 77204-2091 | (713) 749-4241 | LIB3@UHUPVM1.BITNET +--------------------------------------------------------------------- Articles are stored as files at LISTSERV@UHUPVM1. To retrieve a file, send the e-mail message given after the article abstract to LISTSERV@UHUPVM1. The file will be sent to your account. + Page 2 + +--------------------------------------------------------------------- | Contents +--------------------------------------------------------------------- Editorial (page 4) Communications Text Management Software Sue Stigleman (pages 5-22) An overview of five kinds of text management software: text retrieval, text database managers, bibliography formatting, hypertext, and text analysis. Examines roles for libraries in helping patrons utilize this software. To retrieve this file: GET STIGLEMA PRV1N1 Computer-Assisted Instruction for Music Uniform Titles R. Michael Fling (pages 23-33) Describes Making the Most of the Music Library: Using Uniform Titles, a CAI program at the Indiana University Music Library. To retrieve this file: GET FLING PRV1N1 Expansion and Testing of a Meridian CD-ROM Network James Jay Morgan (pages 34-42) Discusses the expansion and performance testing of a Meridian CD Net system running on an IBM Token-Ring network. This work was done at the Indiana University School of Medicine Library. To retrieve this file: GET MORGAN PRV1N1 Electronic Access to Library Systems for Users With Physical Disabilities Norman Coombs (pages 43-47) Examines how libraries can utilize computer technology to improve services to disabled library users. To retrieve this file: GET COOMBS PRV1N1 + Page 3 + Departments Public-Access Provocations: An Informal Column Walt Crawford (pages 48-50) Looks at questions related to browsing in online catalogs. Are they doing an adequate job? To retrieve this file: GET CRAWFORD PRV1N1 Reviews Review by Steve Cisler (pages 51-55) Campus Strategies for Libraries and Electronic Information by Caroline R. Arms. To retrieve this file: GET CISLER PRV1N1 Review by Charles W. Bailey, Jr. (pages 56-57) Cyberbooks by Ben Bova. To retrieve this file: GET BAILEY PRV1N1 Instructions to Authors (pages 58-59) To retrieve this file: GET INSTRUCT PRV1N1 + Page 4 + +--------------------------------------------------------------------- | Editorial +--------------------------------------------------------------------- By Charles W. Bailey, Jr. Welcome to the Public-Access Computer Systems Review. The PACS Review publishes articles about all types of computer systems that libraries make available to their patrons. These include catalog systems (e.g., online catalogs and public use of bibliographic utilities), CD-ROM databases, computer-assisted instruction programs, end-user search services (e.g., Knowledge Index), expert systems, hypermedia programs, local multi-user database systems (e.g., BRS/Search), microcomputer facilities, and other public computer systems. The PACS Review also publishes articles about new computer technologies that are utilized to implement these systems. The PACS Review does not deal with integrated library systems (e.g., NOTIS), except as these systems are used by library patrons. The PACS Review is an electronic journal. Articles are stored as files on the PACS Forum list server. The Contents section is sent to all PACS Forum users, who can retrieve articles of interest from the list server by following the instructions contained in that section. It is anticipated that most users will want to print the retrieved article files using their institutional mainframe computers or, for downloaded files, their PCs. I wish to thank the members of the PACS Review Editorial Board for their useful suggestions (and lively debate) about the potentials and problems of this electronic publishing venture. If such a thing is possible, I have taken a "middle-of-the-road" approach to this electronic journal, deliberately incorporating certain aspects of traditional journals (e.g., pages) that may be artifacts of the print medium. More radical approaches were discussed, but I decided to start off a more moderate initial strategy. Nonetheless, I feel this is a pioneering venture, and I look forward to receiving your comments and article submissions. +--------------------------------------------------------------------- | Copyright (C) 1990 by the University Libraries, University of | Houston. All Rights Reserved. Copying is permitted for | noncommercial use by computerized bulletin board/conference | systems, individual scholars, and libraries. This message must | appear on copied material. All commercial use requires | permission. + -------------------------------------------------------------------- ############################ next article ################################# (the following was retrieved by email from the Public Access Computer System - see the previous message above): Received: from avm.cc.fsu.edu by ibm1.scri.fsu.edu (AIX 3.1/UCB 5.61/4.03) id AA18857; Tue, 10 Sep 91 07:38:47 -0400 Message-Id: <9109101138.AA18857@ibm1.scri.fsu.edu> Received: from FSUAVM by AVM.CC.FSU.EDU (IBM VM SMTP R1.2.2MX) with BSMTP id 0301; Tue, 10 Sep 91 07:40:05 EDT Received: from UHUPVM1.UH.EDU by FSUAVM (Mailer R2.08) with BSMTP id 0298; Tue, 10 Sep 91 07:40:01 EDT Received: by UHUPVM1 (Mailer R2.07) id 5417; Tue, 10 Sep 91 06:37:42 CDT Date: Tue, 10 Sep 1991 06:37:39 -0500 From: Revised List Processor (1.7a) Subject: File: "HARNAD PRV2N1" being sent to you To: dduke@ibm1.scri.fsu.edu + Page 39 + ----------------------------------------------------------------- Harnad, Stevan. "Post-Gutenberg Galaxy: The Fourth Revolution in the Means of Production of Knowledge." The Public-Access Computer Systems Review 2, no. 1 (1991): 39-53. ----------------------------------------------------------------- 1.0 The Evolution of Human Communication and Cognition There have been three revolutions in the history of human thought, and we are on the threshold of a fourth. The first took place hundreds of thousands of years ago when language first emerged in hominid evolution and the members of our species became inclined--in response to some adaptive pressures whose nature is still just the subject of vague conjecture [1]--to trade amongst themselves in propositions that had truth value. There is no question but that this change was revolutionary, because we thereby became the first--and so far the only--species able and willing to describe and explain the world we live in. It remains a mystery--to me at any rate--why our anthropoid cousins, the apes, who certainly seem smart enough, do not share this inclination of ours. At any rate, this divergence between our two respective species was a milestone in human communication and cognition, making it possible for culture to develop and be passed on by oral tradition. That momentous adaptation seems to have had a neurological basis. Injuries to certain areas of the left side of the brain--Wernicke's area and Broca's area, to be exact--result in language-specific deficits in speaking and understanding [2, 3]. So whatever the evolutionary changes underlying language were, they were imprinted as permanent modifications of our neural hardware. The second cognitive revolution was the advent of writing, tens of thousands of years ago. Spoken language had already allowed the oral codification of thought; written language now made it possible to preserve the code independent of any speaker/hearer. It became, if you like, an implementation-independent code. No one knows for sure whether there was any corresponding change in our cerebral hardware. There is nominally a region in the left frontal lobe--Exner's area--that is dubbed the "writing center," and there are certainly specific neurological problems associated with "dyslexia" or reading disorder. But all of this neurology is complicated and ill-understood, and no "pure" alexia (inability to read), without any other associated visual or motor problems, has been found. So it is more likely, I think, that writing and reading were cognitive and motor skills that we acquired without any organic evolutionary change in our brains; they were merely learned adaptations of the same hardware we had all along. + Page 40 + No precise starting point can be assigned to either science or literature. The former began with the first true proposition about the world and the latter either with the first such true proposition that was also formulated elegantly, or perhaps with the first untrue proposition. In either case, the oral tradition was already equipped to produce both science and literature, although perhaps science, being a little too constrained by the limits of memory and accuracy in the word-of-mouth medium, was the greater beneficiary of the advent of writing, with the incomparably greater reliability and systematization it conferred in preserving the words, and hence the thoughts, of others. But there were constraints on writing too. For whereas spoken language conformed well to both the transmitting and receiving powers of human thinkers (perhaps as a reflection of its specific dedicated neurology), writing was somewhat out of synch with thought. It was slow. And worse than that, it had a much more limited scope, for whereas a spoken proposition could be heard by several people, even by multitudes, a written one could only be read by one at a time. This could be done serially by limitless numbers of readers, of course, and this was the real strength of writing, but it was purchased at the price of becoming a much less interactive medium of communication than speech. The form and style of written discourse accordingly adapted to this lapidary new medium--again, not neurologically, but consciously and by convention--constraining the writer to be more precise in some respects, but also allowing him more freedom to redraft and reformulate his text in composing it. In becoming less interactive, writing also became less spontaneous than speech, more deliberate, and more systematic. One might also say it became less social and more solipsistic, although its ultimate social reach became much larger, limited only by the slow pace of copyists in providing the text to disseminate. The third revolution took place in our own millennium. With the invention of moveable type and the printing press, the laborious hand-copying of texts became obsolete, and both the tempo and the scope of the written word increased enormously. Texts could be distributed so much more quickly and widely that again the style of communication underwent qualitative changes. If the transition from the oral tradition to the written word made communication more reflective and solitary than direct speech, print restored an interactive element, at least among scholars, and, if the scholarly "periodical" was not born with the advent of printing, it certainly came into its own. Scholarship could now be the collective, cumulative, and interactive enterprise it had always been destined to be. Evolution had given us the cognitive wherewithal and technology had given us the vehicle. + Page 41 + Of course, there had already been a prominent exception to the impersonal trend set in motion by writing, namely, private letters. These made it possible for people to communicate even when they were separated by great distances, although again the pace of the communication was much slower and less interactive than live conversation, and it continued to be so, even after the advent of print. Many minor and major technological changes followed, but none, I think, qualify as revolutionary. The means of transportation improved, so the written word could be circulated more quickly and more widely. The typewriter (and eventually the word processor) made it much easier to generate and modify one's texts. Photocopying made it possible to duplicate, and desktop publishing to print, even texts that weren't worth duplicating and printing. And the telephone all but did in the art of letter writing altogether, probably because it restored the natural tempo of spoken communication to which the brain is constitutionally adapted. Of course, phoning had the disadvantage of not leaving a permanent record, but for that there were tape recorders, and so on. The reason I single out as revolutionary only speech, writing, and print in this panorama of media transformations that shaped how we communicate is that I think only those three had a qualitative effect on how we think. In a nutshell, speech made it possible to make propositions, hand-writing made it possible to preserve them speaker-independently, and print made it possible to preserve them hand-writer-independently. All three had a dramatic effect on how we thought as well as on how we expressed our thoughts, so arguably they had an equally dramatic effect on what we thought. The rest of the technological developments were only quantitative refinements of the media created by speech, writing, and print. The purist might, with some justification, even hold that print was just a quantitative refinement of writing, but let's argue about that another time: the historic evidence for the impact of print is considerable. + Page 42 + The two factors mediating the qualitative effects were speed and scale. Speech slowed thought down, but to a rate for which the brain made specific organic adaptations. Our average speaking rate is a biological parameter; it is a natural tempo. Hand-writing slowed it down still further, but here the adaptations were strategic and stylistic rather than neurological. In writing, the brain was underutilized. Evidence for this comes from the fact that when the typewriter and the word processor allowed the pace of writing to pick up again, we were quite ready to return to a tempo closer to our natural one for speech. On the other hand, the constraints of the written medium are substantive, and they affect both form and content, as anyone who has tried to use raw transcripts of spontaneous speech can attest. What is acceptable and understandable in spoken form is unlikely to be acceptable and understandable in written form, and vice versa. In a sense, there are only three communication media as far as our brains are concerned: the nonverbal medium in which we push, pull, mime and gesticulate [4]; and two verbal media--the natural one, consisting of oral speech (and perhaps sign language), and the unnatural one, consisting of written speech. Two features conspire to make writing unnatural. One is the constraint it puts on the speed with which it allows thoughts to be expressed (and hence also on the speed with which they can be formulated), and the other is the constraint it puts on the interaction of speaking thinkers--and hence again on the tempo of their interdigitating thoughts, both collaborative and competitive. Oral speech not only matches the natural speed of thought more closely, it also conforms to the natural tempo of interpersonal discourse. In comparison, written dialogue has always been hopelessly slow: the difference between "real-time" dialogue and off-line correspondence. Hopeless, that is, until the fourth cognitive revolution, which is just about to take place with the advent of "electronic skywriting." + Page 43 + 2.0 Scholarly Skywriting: A Personal Glimpse of the Potential Panorama I must now turn from impressionistic history to personal anecdote. My own skyward odyssey in the newest communication medium, the airwaves of electronic telecommunication networks, had its roots in a long-standing personal penchant for scholarly letter-writing (to the point of once being cited in print as "personal communication, pp. 14-20"). These days few share my epistolary bent, which is dismissed as a doomed anachronism. Scholars don't have the time. Inquiry is racing forward much too rapidly for such genteel dawdling--forward toward, among other things, due credit in print for one's every minute effort. So I too had to resign myself to the slower turnaround but surer rewards of conventional scholarly publication. In fact, a decade and a half ago I founded a scholarly journal in the conventional print medium, though Behavioral & Brain Sciences (BBS) is hardly a conventional journal. 2.1 Behavioral and Brain Sciences Modelled on Current Anthropology (CA, which was founded by the anthropologist Sol Tax, who in turn modelled it on the extreme participatory democratic practices of the native North American peoples he studied), BBS's unique feature is "creative disagreement" [5]. Specializing in important and influential ideas and findings in the biobehavioral sciences, BBS, after a round of particularly rigorous peer review (involving five to eight referees representing the multiple areas that candidate manuscripts must impinge upon), offers to the authors of accepted papers the service of "open peer commentary." Their manuscript is circulated to specialists across disciplines and around the world, each invited to submit 1,000-word commentaries that discuss, criticize, amplify, and supplement the work reported in the target article, which is then published along with the commentaries (often twenty or more) and the author's formal response to them [6]. BBS's open peer commentary service has evidently been found valuable by the world biobehavioral science community, because already in its fourth year its "impact factor" (citation ratio) had become one of the highest in its field [7, 8]. + Page 44 + 2.2 Limitations of Print Journals Like other print journals, BBS is prisoner to the temporal, geographic, and (shall we call them) "internoetic" constraints of the conventional paper publication medium. In that medium, new ideas and findings are written up and then submitted for peer review [9, 10]. The refereeing may take anywhere from three weeks to three months. Then the author revises in response to the peer evaluation and recommendations, and when the article is finally accepted, it again takes from three to nine months or more before the published version appears (perhaps earlier, when circulated informally in preprint form). That's not the end of the wait, however, but merely the beginning, for now the author must wait until his peers actually read and respond in some way to his work, incorporating it into their theory, doing further experiments, or otherwise exploring the ramifications of his contribution. After all, that's why creative scholars publish-- not to put another line on their resumes, but to collaborate with their peers in expanding our collective body of knowledge. It usually takes several years, however, before the literature responds to an author's contribution (if it responds at all) and by that time the author, more likely than not, is thinking about something else. So a potentially vital spiral of peer interactions, had it taken place in "real" cognitive time, never materializes, and countless ideas are instead doomed to remain stillborn. The culprit is again the factor of tempo: the fact that the written medium is hopelessly out of synch with the thinking mechanism and the organic potential it would have for rapid interaction if only there were a medium that could support the requisite rounds of feedback, in tempo giusto! Hopeless, as noted earlier, until the forthcoming fourth cognitive revolution makes it possible to restore scholarly communication to a tempo much closer to the brain's natural potential while still retaining the rigor, discipline, and permanence of the refereed written medium. + Page 45 + 2.3 Discussion Groups on the Net I will try to illustrate with an account of my own first (unrefereed) glimpse of the Platonic world of scholarly skywriting. Most of the world's universities and research institutions are linked together by various international electronic networks such as BITNET and Internet (called, collectively, the "Net"). Electronic mail ("e-mail") can be sent via the Net, usually within minutes, to London, Budapest, Tel Aviv, Tokyo, lately even Minsk. But the feature that has the most remarkable potential is multiple reciprocal e-mail: electronic discussion groups in which every message is immediately disseminated to all members. These groups first formed themselves anarchically, on various networks, the biggest of them called USENET, and were devoted partly to technical discussion about computers and information, the technologies that had built the Net, and otherwise to "flaming": free-for-all back and forth messages by anyone, on any topic under the sun. Next, discussion groups devoted to specific topics (e.g., computers, politics, language, culture, and sex) began to form, and these in turn split into "unmoderated" and "moderated" groups. Anyone with an e-mail address whose institution was connected to USENET could post to an unmoderated group, and the message would automatically be sent to everyone who was "subscribed" to the group. It was because most of the unmoderated groups were quite chaotic that the moderated groups were formed. In these, all submissions had to be channeled through a "moderator," but this was usually someone with no special qualifications or expertise, so the quality of the information on the moderated groups was still very uneven, and, with a few exceptions (principally technical discussions about computing itself), these groups were mostly havens for uninformed students and dilettantes rather than respectable scholarly forums for learned specialists in the subject matter under discussion, a subject matter that by now ranged across the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences. + Page 46 + This was the status quo on the Net--a communication medium with revolutionary intellectual potential being used mostly as a global graffiti board (in all fields other than computing itself)--when I first sampled the skyways several years ago in a large (unmoderated) USENET group called "comp.ai" (devoted to the topic of artificial intelligence, a subfield of my own specialty, cognitive science). I had heard that there was a lot of ongoing discussion on comp.ai about something that had appeared in BBS--Searle's "Chinese Room Argument" [11]. The content of that discussion is not relevant here. Suffice it to say that about a profound and complex topic a great deal of nonsense was being posted on comp.ai by people who knew very little (mostly students and computer programmers). This initial demography, and the unscholarly level of discussion that prevailed because of it, was and still is one of the principal obstacles to the Net's realizing its real potential. For what true scholar would condescend to join these innocents in serious scholarly discussion, and in such an anarchic medium! Well, draw your own conclusions, but that did not stop me. Whether it was my partiality for letter-writing or for creative disagreement, I decided to test out the airways, but consciously applying self-imposed constraints, since the medium would not provide them for me. My postings to comp.ai would be conscientiously thought out and carefully written, as if they were for a serious refereed journal, with a sophisticated scholarly readership--for posterity, in fact. Hardest of all, I would treat the contributions of my interlocutors as if they had been serious and scholarly ones too, and when these were uninformed or in error, I would endeavor to correct them in a dignified and respectful way that would be informative and instructive to all, solemnly trying to correct the Nth instance of the same egregious mistake with a Nth new aspect or dimension of the problem under discussion, always with the objective of advancing the ideas for all skygazers. Indeed, critical to my efforts at sobriety and self-discipline was maintaining for myself a conscious fantasy that, silent among the thousands of eyes trained skyward, were my peers, and not just the rookies I was jousting with. + Page 47 + Lest it be thought that this was all just some sort of altruistic exhibition, however, let me hasten to report that I found myself by far the greatest beneficiary of this exercise. For the remarkable fact is that even under these primitive demographic conditions my own ideas profited enormously from the skywriting interactions. The problem under discussion (and it only became evident to me during the discussion just what that problem was) I dubbed, in the course of the skywriting, "the symbol grounding problem," and it has since generated not only a series of (alas, conventional, ground-based) papers [12, 13, 14], but also a cottage industry in the form of a theme for workshops and symposia [15], and soon, no doubt, dissertations. All this as a consequence of aerobatics with mere rookies. "So what would it have been like," I then asked myself, "if the best minds in the field were on the Net, skywriting away with the rest of us?" 2.4 Psycoloquy When I founded BBS fifteen years ago, I had been inspired by the remarkable potential of "open peer commentary" as revealed through an article by Gordon Hewes [16] in Sol Tax's commentary journal, CA. That article was on the origin of language, a topic that had been under an informal moratorium (as breeding only idle conjectures) imposed by the Paris Societe Linguistique a century earlier. Hewes and his animated commentators across disciplines so piqued my own interest in the topic that I: (1) co-organized an international conference under the auspices of the New York Academy of Sciences [17] (a conference that effectively put an end to the moratorium on the topic and went on to spawn an uninhibited series of language-origins conferences, e.g., Raffler-Engel et al. [18]); and (2) I founded BBS, convinced that Sol Tax's "CA Comment" principle could be generalized beyond its discipline of origin. A decade and half later my own rewarding experience with electronic skywriting has convinced me that this newest medium's unique potential to support and sustain open peer commentary must now be made generally available too, so I have founded Psycoloquy, a BBS of the air, unfettered by the temporal and spatial constraints of the earthbound print medium. + Page 48 + Originally initiated in 1985 by Bob Morecock of the University of Houston as an electronic bulletin board called the "BITNET Psychology Newsletter," Psycoloquy was transformed in 1989 into a refereed electronic journal (ISSN Number 1055-0143). It is now sponsored on an experimental basis by the Science Directorate of the American Psychological Association. I am Co-Editor for scientific contributions, and the Co-Editor for clinical, applied and professional contributions is Perry London, Dean of the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology at Rutgers University. One of Psycoloquy's principal scholarly objectives is to implement peer review on the Net in psychology and its related fields (cognitive science, neuroscience, behavioral biology, linguistics, and philosophy). All contributions are refereed by a member of Psycoloquy's Editorial Board (currently 50 members and growing), but the idea is not just to implement a conventional journal in electronic form. Psycoloquy is explicitly devoted to scholarly skywriting, the radically new form of communication made possible by the Net, in which authors post to Psycoloquy a brief report of current ideas and findings on which they wish to elicit feedback from fellow specialists as well as experts from related disciplines the world over. The refereeing of each original posting and each item of peer feedback on it is to be done very quickly, sometimes within a few hours of receipt, so as to maintain the momentum and interactive quality of this unique medium, just as if each contribution were being written in the sky, for all peers to see and append to. Skywriting promises to restore the speed of scholarly communication to a rate much closer to the speed of thought, while adding to it a global scope and an interactive dimension that are without precedent in human communication, all conducted through the discipline of the written medium, monitored by peer review, and permanently archived for future reference. Scholarly skywriting in Psycoloquy is intended especially for that prepublication "pilot" stage of scientific inquiry in which peer communication and feedback are still critically shaping the final intellectual outcome. That formative stage is where the Net's speed, scope, and interactive capabilities offer the possibility of a phase transition in the evolution of knowledge, one in which we break free from the earthbound inertia that has encumbered human inquiry until now, soaring at last to the skyborn speeds to which our minds were organically destined [19]. + Page 49 + Psycoloquy appears in two forms. Its USENET version, called "sci.psychology.digest," is "gatewayed" to the Net from Princeton. Its BITNET version, formerly stored at Tulane University and archived at the University of Houston, is now at Princeton too. The BITNET version currently has around 2,500 individual subscribers and redistribution lists. The USENET version (which is transmitted to sites rather than individuals, and hence is not directly monitored for number of subscribers) may well be reaching an order of magnitude more readers. Psycoloquy is fully international, with subscribers in the Americas, Europe, Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, the Middle and Far East, and growing parts of the third world (where electronic journals promise to be a godsend for the libraries and scholars who have hitherto been information deprived because of currency restrictions and budget limitations). Subscription to Psycoloquy is free. To subscribe, anyone with a login on any of the networks can send the following one line e- mail message to LISTSERV@PUCC.BITNET: "SUB PSYC First Name Last Name" (omitting quotes and substituting your own first and last name). The message must originate from the e-mail address at which you wish to receive Psycoloquy. Subsequent postings are sent to PSYC@PUCC.BITNET or to PSYC@PHOENIX.PRINCETON.EDU. Psycoloquy currently appears about once a month, but we are prepared to publish it much more frequently as the submission rate and demand increase. Back issues of Psycoloquy are archived at Princeton, and they can be retrieved from any Internet e-mail address directly by a simple procedure called "anonymous FTP." Princeton also has a service called "BITFTP" that allows issues to be retrieved indirectly from BITNET by e-mail (other services exist, for example, for JANET subscribers in the United Kingdom). Soon, with the help of an experimental searchable database provided by Bellcore and some collaborative efforts with the American Mathematical Society, it should be possible not only to retrieve items, but to do interactive full-text searches of the Psycoloquy archive from both BITNET and Internet. + Page 50 + 3.0 After the Revolution This fourth revolution has not yet taken place. Some of the impediments have already been noted: (1) the current demography of the Net and the stereotype it has created of the medium as not suitable for serious scholarly communication; (2) the ingrained habits of a scholarly community adapted to the paper medium for centuries; (3) the foot-dragging of the paper publishing industry, with all its interests vested in the ground-based technology; and (4) many prima facie doubts and objections (e.g., about quality, academic credit, and security), all of which are easily and decisively answerable [20], even though they keep getting raised again and again. (An attempt to lay to rest these prima facie objections once and for all is in preparation [21].) It is a foregone conclusion that the revolution will come. My selfish concern is with getting it underway while I am still compos mentis and in a position to partake of its intellectual benefits! Allies in hastening its coming will be the libraries, whose budgets are overburdened with the expenses associated with the print medium; learned societies, whose primary motivation is to get carefully refereed scholarly information disseminated to the peer community as quickly and fully as possible; and the scholarly community itself, who will surely realize that it is they, not the publishers who merely give it the imprimatur, who are the controllers of the quality of the scholarly literature through peer review--not to mention that they are also the creators of the literature itself. (A strategic pro-revolutionary alliance may be in order.) But the most important factor in hastening the onset of the fourth cognitive revolution will surely be the unique capabilities of the medium itself. Electronic journals should not and will not be mere clones of paper journals, ghosts in another medium. What we need, and what Psycoloquy will endeavor to help provide, are some dazzling demonstrations of the unique power of scholarly skywriting. I am convinced that once scholars have experienced it, they will become addicted for life, as I did. And once word gets out that there are some remarkable things happening in this medium, things that cannot be duplicated by any other means, these conditions will represent to the scholarly community an "offer they cannot refuse." We are then poised for a lightning-fast phase transition, again a unique feature of the scale and scope of this medium, one that will forever leave the land-based technology far behind, as scholarship is launched at last into the post-Gutenberg galaxy. + Page 51 + Notes 1. S. Harnad, H. D. Steklis, and J. B. Lancaster, eds., Origins and Evolution of Language and Speech, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences (New York: New York Academy of Sciences, 1976): 280. 2. S. Harnad, R. W. Doty, L. Goldstein, J. Jaynes, and G. Krauthamer, eds., Lateralization in the Nervous System (New York: Academic Press, 1977). 3. G. A. Ojemann, "Brain Organization for Language From the Perspective of Electrical Stimulation Mapping," Behavioral and Brain Sciences 6, no. 2 (1983): 189-230. 4. P. Greenfield, "Language, Tools, and Brain: The Development and Evolution of Hierarchically Organized Sequential Behavior," Behavioral and Brain Sciences 14, no. 4 (1991), in press. 5. S. Harnad, "Creative Disagreement," The Sciences 19 (1979): 18-20. 6. S. Harnad, ed., Peer Commentary on Peer Review: A Case Study in Scientific Quality Control (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1982). 7. S. Harnad, "Commentaries, Opinions and the Growth of Scientific Knowledge," American Psychologist 39, no. 12 (1984): 1497-1498. 8. R. A. Drake, "Citations to Articles and Commentaries: A Reanalysis," American Psychologist 41, no. 13 (1986): 324-325. 9. S. Harnad, "Rational Disagreement in Peer Review," Science, Technology, and Human Values 10, no. 3 (1985): 55-62. 10. S. Harnad, review of A Different Balance: Editorial Peer Review, by Stephen Lock, in Nature 322 (3 July 1986): 24-25. 11. J. R. Searle, "Minds, Brains, and Programs," Behavioral and Brain Sciences 3, no. 3 (1980): 417-457. 12. S. Harnad, "The Symbol Grounding Problem," Physica D 42 (1990): 335-346. + Page 52 + 13. S. Harnad, "Other Bodies, Other Minds: A Machine Incarnation of an Old Philosophical Problem," Minds and Machines 1, no. 1 (1991): 43-54. 14. S. Harnad, "Connecting Object to Symbol in Modeling Cognition," in A. Clarke and R. Lutz, eds., Connectionism in Context (Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1992), in press. 15. S. Harnad, S. J. Hanson, and J. Lubin, "Categorical Perception and the Evolution of Supervised Learning in Neural Nets" (Presented at American Association for Artificial Intelligence Symposium on Symbol Grounding: Problems and Practice, Stanford University, March 1991). 16. G. W. Hewes, "Primate Communication and the Gestural Origin of Language," Current Anthropology 14, no. 1/2 (1973): 5-12. 17. S. Harnad, H. D. Steklis, and J. B. Lancaster, eds., Origins and Evolution of Language and Speech, 280. 18. V. von Raffler-Engel, J. Wind, and A. Jonker, eds., Studies in Language Origins, Volume II: Papers from the 3rd International Meeting of the Language Origins Society (Amsterdam: John Benjamin, 1991). 19. S. Harnad, "Scholarly Skywriting and the Prepublication Continuum of Scientific Inquiry," Psychological Science 1, no. 6 (1990): 342-344. 20. Ibid. 21. S. Harnad, "Prima Facie Arguments Against Electronic Journals: Replies," College and Research Libraries (1992), forthcoming. + Page 53 + About the Author Stevan Harnad Department of Psychology Princeton University Princeton, NJ 08544 HARNAD@PRINCETON.EDU ----------------------------------------------------------------- The Public-Access Computer Systems Review is an electronic journal. It is sent free of charge to participants of the Public-Access Computer Systems Forum (PACS-L), a computer conference on BITNET. To join PACS-L, send an electronic mail message to LISTSERV@UHUPVM1 that says: SUBSCRIBE PACS-L First Name Last Name. This article is Copyright (C) 1991 by Stevan Harnad. All Rights Reserved. The Public-Access Computer Systems Review is Copyright (C) 1991 by the University Libraries, University of Houston, University Park. All Rights Reserved. Copying is permitted for noncommercial use by computer conferences, individual scholars, and libraries. 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