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June 10, 2007
Headlines - Blog Announces Top 100 Alternative Search Engines
- Economic and Financial Data for the United States
- Article Reviews Google Acquisitions in Past Year
- USPTO Report On Paper Search Collection of Registered Marks That Include Design Elements
- Database of NRC Nuclear Licensees Posted Online
- Privacy Ranking Report of Internet Service Companies
- Global Terror Insurance Market – The World Continues on High Alert
- Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act 2005 Report to Congress, June 2007
- Commerce Department Report Encourages Commercial Technologies for First Responders
- Recent CRS Reports on ID Theft Laws, Defense Asqusition, Terrorism Risk Insurance Program
- Association of Religion Data Archives
 Blog Announces Top 100 Alternative Search Engines The AltSearchEngines announced the June Top 100 ( attached spreadsheet), inclusive of name, URL and type of search (business, people, podcast, health, meta, games, google mash-up, charity and many other categories). Well worth a look, as you may be familiar with a few of these search tools, but others offer unique and expert features to facilitate focused research on topical and issue-related content. Economic and Financial Data for the United States Economic and Financial Data for the United States, Updated June 10, 2007: "The data shown in this page correspond to the data described on the International Monetary Fund's Dissemination Standards Bulletin Board (DSBB). For a fuller explanation of the DSBB and the statistical standards to which the United States has committed, please visit the DSBB Home Page." Article Reviews Google Acquisitions in Past Year Computerworld: What Google bought in the past 12 months - A rundown of the year's acquisitions. Note - the news that Google has acquired FeedBurner was not included in this article. Feedburner announced the purchase on June 1, 2007. It was for a reported $100 million. USPTO Report On Paper Search Collection of Registered Marks That Include Design Elements Report of the USPTO Concerning the Paper Search Collection of Registered Marks that Include Design Elements: "The United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") has developed a plan to provide the public with access to United States trademark registrations that include design elements exclusively through its electronic search systems and through microfilm. Under the plan, the USPTO will microfilm, then remove from its Trademark Search Facility in Arlington, Virginia, the paper search collection of trademark registrations that include design elements. The USPTO has determined that the combination of the upcoming enhancement to its electronic search systems and the microfilming of the existing paper search collection will permit the same search functionality through these media as has been available through the paper search collection. This plan will permit the public to search for and retrieve information on trademark registrations that include design elements, in accordance with 35 U.S.C. § 41(i)(1). The USPTO Director has determined that implementation of this plan will not negatively impact the public, and is concurrently submitting a certification to that effect." Database of NRC Nuclear Licensees Posted Online Via Michael Ravnitzky, these documents have been posted on Cryptome: "Four Excel spreadsheet files identifying the complete set of Licensees of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. For a description of what the NRC licenses, see http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/licensing.html. These were provided by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Region1.xls (10,244 names and addresses, 2.1MB) Region2.xls (2,511 names and addresses, 556KB) Region3.xls (9,966 names and addresses, 2.1MB) Region4.xls (6,417 names and addresses, 1.4MB)" Privacy Ranking Report of Internet Service Companies Source: " Privacy International (PI) is a human rights group formed in 1990 as a watchdog on surveillance by governments and corporations. PI is based in London, and has an office in Washington, D.C. Together with members in 40 countries, PI has conducted campaigns throughout the world on issues ranging from wiretapping and national security activities, to ID cards, video surveillance, data matching, police information systems, and medical privacy, and works with a wide range of parliamentary and inter-governmental organisations such as the European Parliament, the House of Lords and UNESCO." Background report from Privacy International - "A Consultation report: This report has been prepared by Privacy International following a six-month investigation into the privacy practices of key Internet based companies. The ranking lists the best and the worst performers both in Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 across the full spectrum of search, email, e-commerce and social networking sites. The analysis employs a methodology comprising around twenty core parameters. We rank the major Internet players but we also discuss examples of best and worst privacy practice among smaller companies. The report was compiled using data derived from public sources (newspaper articles, blog entries, submissions to government inquiries, privacy policies etc), information provided by present and former company staff, technical analysis and interviews with company representatives. Because the 2007 rankings are a precedent, Privacy International will regard the current report as a consultation report and will establish a broad outreach for two months to ensure that any new and relevant information is taken into account before publishing a full report in September." Interim results are available here in PDF format, 6 pages Related: An Open Letter from Privacy International to Google, 10/06/2007 Global Terror Insurance Market – The World Continues on High Alert Reports, Guy Carpenter, Global Terror Insurance Market – The World Continues on High Alert: "In this report, we provide updates on insurance cover for terror in the United States, Belgium, France and the Netherlands. The survey encompasses information from six continents and 34 countries." Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act 2005 Report to Congress, June 2007 Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act 2005 (P.L. 109-121) Report to Congress June 2007, Department of State Publication 11425 Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs. Related documents - Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act 2005 Commerce Department Report Encourages Commercial Technologies for First Responders Press Release: "The U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in a report released [June 8, 2007] encourages the federal, state and local public safety community to consider utilizing commercial technologies in satisfying broadband interoperable communications among first responders." Spectrum Policy For The 21st Century – The President's Spectrum Policy Initiative: A Public Safety Sharing Demonstration (DC Wireless Accelerated Responder Network), Posted 06-08-2007 Recent CRS Reports on ID Theft Laws, Defense Asqusition, Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Identity Theft Laws: State Penalties and Remedies and Pending Federal Bills, June 1, 2007 Defense Acquisition: Overview, Issues, and Options for Congress, June 4, 2007 The Terrorism Risk Insurance Program: Current Issues and Background, May 31, 2007 Liability of Interactive Computer Service for Violating the Fair Housing Act, May 30, 2007 Association of Religion Data Archives "The Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) strives to democratize access to the best data on religion. Founded as the American Religion Data Archive in 1997 and going online in 1998, the initial archive was targeted at researchers interested in American religion. The targeted audience and the data collection have both greatly expanded since 1998, now including American and international collections and developing features for educators, journalists, religious congregations, and researchers. Data included in the ARDA are submitted by the foremost religion scholars and research centers in the world. Currently housed in the Social Science Research Institute at the Pennsylvania State University, the ARDA is funded by the Lilly Endowment, the John Templeton Foundation, and the Pennsylvania State University."
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