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Online Resource (Free)

Reminder: Cyber Cemetery

In case, like me, you’ve forgotten all about the Cyber Cemetary here’s a reminder of what it is and what it does:

“The CyberCemetery is an archive of (US)  government websites that have ceased operation (usually websites of defunct government agencies and commissions that have issued a final report). This collection features a variety of topics indicative of the broad nature of government information.”

The archive is maintained by the University of North Texas Libraries and the US Government Printing Office.

Other similar projects are also being carried out by  the Internet Archive, Library & Archives Canada and the US Presidential Libraries System (starting with George W. Bush).  I’m sure there are others – please post details of projects I’ve overlooked 😉

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News Online Resource (Free)

New UN report concludes evidence of war crimes in Gaza Conflict

Read the  news story from the Vancouver Sun  here.

You can read the full advanced edited 575 page report here. The report was just released Tuesday Sept. 15 in advance of the its presentation to the UN Human Rights Council later this month.

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Online Resource (Free)

New apps for US Government data

Sunlight Labs – “a non-profit, non partisan Washington, DC based organization focused on digitization of government data” has been running a contest to identify the top three websites offering applications that provide “easy access and understanding for the public” to US government data/information.  They all make it just a bit easier to access high quality data online.

The winners are:

First Prize: DataMasher.  This website allows you to select from a wide variety of data sets (mostly from Data.gov) and to then combine them into a personalized “mashup.”  Mashups take the form of tables and maps.   Examples of recent mashups are Health Care Coverage + Premiums; Unemployment + State Land Area; and Median Household Income + Median Monthly Mortgage Costs.

Second Prize:  GovPulse.  As mentioned in another blog entry below…this site provides a single search interface for all issues of the US Federal Register, from 1994 to present.

Third Prize: ThisWeKnow: This site provides access to “nationwide data sets from six different agencies in the data.gov catalog.”  In practice, users browse or search for specific American communities and then view a list of fast facts about those communities.  ThisWeKnow then provides links to the underlying data for each fast fact.

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Online Resource (Free)

Report: SEC Investigation into Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi Scheme

The US Securities & Exchange Commission has just released its public version of its full Investigation of Failure of the SEC to Uncover Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi Scheme.  At present it’s sitting on the Commission’s homepage and the report’s URL indicates that it’s a “news” file.  It’s unclear, therefore, if this is a stable URL.  Only the executive summary is currently available from GPO Access, though it’s likely to wind up there eventually.

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Website

Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSEC)

Well it turns out that we have a national cryptologic agency and it has quite an interesting website.

First, what does the agency do? CSEC  provides “the Government of Canada with two key services: foreign signals intelligence in support of defence and foreign policy,  and the protection of electronic information and communication.”

Website Features: provides links to the full text of various related acts & policies including the Anti-Terrorism Act, the National Security Policy and the Privacy Act.  Provides extensive background information on Canada’s policies on national and governmental security as well as national privacy policy.   Also provides access to Government of Canada IT Security Publications: alerts, bulletins, directives, guidance, threat assessments and reports.

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Online Resource (Free)

Search the US Federal Register

“The Federal Register is the official journal of the federal government of the United States. In it, you’ll find any kind of proposal, notification, or solicitation for data that a federal agency puts out.”  It includes Presidential documents – including Executive Orders; current and proposed Rules & Regulations; and Notices.

The Register is currently available online, through GPO Access, but that site does not allow you to search all available content at the same time – the current year is available in a separate database.  A group of software developers has put up an alternate website that allows you to search or browse the Register from 1994 onwards in a single (much more attractive) interface.   You can browse by date, topic, agency or location.

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Online Resource (Free)

Research Database on the US Voting System

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an international non-profit organization with a special focus on “science, engineering and innovation.”  It also publishes the journal Science.  AAAS has just launched a new database which has the lofty goal of providing fundamental information about “the accuracy, reliability and security of voting technologies, election administration” and more.

The database, formally known as the Research Database on the US Voting System and Voting Technology, “provides access to empirical and analytical research about voting and elections to inform evidence-based reforms.  The database includes bibliographic information, abstracts and links to research covering a broad set of issues such as accessibility, ballot design, public confidence, voter demographics, voting technology, and voter registration.”

At present the database has approximately 500 entries – mostly published after 2000 –  but is anticipated to swell greatly over time.

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Online Resource (Free)

IMF Financial Soundness Indicators

The International Monetary Fund recently launched a database of “financial sector soundness” indicators, or FSIs, for member countries who choose to participate. The aim is to provide users with a means of judging the soundness of financial institutions as well as national economies.

The IMF’s list of core FSIs focuses on areas such as debt – both household and national; liquidity of assets; loans; assets; equity and real estate prices.

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Uncategorized

More on the HST- Premier Gordon Campbell comments on the HST

Read the story from the Globe and Mail here.   Also Carole James meets with business leaders about the HST from Globe and Mail.

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Online Resource (Free)

Data.gov

Here’s another one-stop statistics search tool – this time from the Executive Branch of the US Federal Government.  “…Data.gov increases the ability of the public to easily find, download, and use datasets that are generated and held by the Federal Government. Data.gov provides descriptions of the Federal datasets (metadata), information about how to access the datasets, and tools that leverage government datasets. The data catalogs will continue to grow as datasets are added…”  Visitors to the site are encouraged to forward suggestions for future content.

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