social science sites of the week
This week the Leveson Inquiry opened.
This was set up in the wake of the phone hacking scandal. Specifically Lord Justice Leveson will examine the relationship of the press with the public, police and politicians. Get the full facts from the official website which includes transcripts of hearings and evidence.
A number of news sites have ongoing coverage. These include the BBC
Telegraph
Guardian.
Other key organisations relating to UK press are Media Standards Trust which campaigned for a full inquiry via its hacked off campaign
Press Complaints Commission
National Union of Journalists.
Finally don’t forget the and UK Parliament Culture, Media and Sport select Committee
Recent phone hacking evidence from James Murdoch. Scroll down the list of publications (especially oral evidence to find many more transcripts of hearings)
Birmingham civic dashboard
Interesting example of a community e-government project. The Birmingham Civic Dashboard was created by local digital agency Mudlark on behalf of Digital Birmingham, a partnership body promoting digital projects. It displays all requests to Birmingham city Council’s customer relations management centre onto an interactive map of the city. This enables users to view information about requests for data by times, location. It doesn’t satisfy the need for open information on how claims were progressed. Look at the comments field for public feedback on the usefulness or otherwise of the system! guardian Background articles can be found on the NESTA site
London Recovers
Site established by The Recovery Co-ordination Group membership. Includes 33 London councils, Greater London Authority, Metropolitan Police Service, London Fire Brigade, London Development Agency. Aims to provide access to information on steps made by authorities to recover and rebuild in the wake of the London 2011 riots. It has news, links to official reports, advice for businesses on financial support,examples of civic / community rebuilding and regeneration projects. Information can be accessed by borough.
Open Access Africa 2011
A BioMed Central and Computer Aid International event, was hosted at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, during Open Access Week 2011.Access the presentations and posters online from the Biomed website Includes Google perspective on open access developments in Africa
Discussion on why open access benefits researchers in Africa.
Case Studies of open access initiatives in developing countries in Africa.
Europeana Collections 1914-1918
Latest special project provides free access to a wealth of materials covering the First World War from Europe’s national library collections. Material will be added continuously until 2014. It will include primary source images, manuscripts, personal diaries and memorabilia. Partners include the British Library, libraries in Germany, France and Italy. They will showcase personal, civilian and military experiences. Currently available are a small collection of materials.
The IMP Archive: launched (Business and marketing)
Provides free access to all conference papers from 1984-1999. The IMP Group was originally formed in the mid-1970s, as a research project on “Industrial Marketing and Purchasing”, by a group of researchers representing five European countries and universities. Its annual conference is the world’s largest relating to marketing, purchasing and technological development in a business-to-business context. Search the database by keyword or browse. Site supplements other online resources on the IMP website such as research papers and dissertations
E-Map Explorer Norfolk County Council.
Award winning local history site enables users to compare aerial and photographic maps of Norfolk. Includes tithe and enclosure maps. Aerial photography from 1946 and 1988. The site has the possibility to zoom in on specific localities. Information about scales, sources and copyright is displayed on the website.
Papers of the War Department 1784-1800
A project of the Center for History and New Media, George Mason University with funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission and the Humanities. It provides free online access to primary source documents of the American war department. Responsibilities of this office included: the War Department was responsible Indian affairs, veteran affairs, naval affairs (until 1798), as well as militia and army matters. It is therefore a rich source of information on Early American government, founding of the nation. Search or browse the site.
Geospatial Platform
New official site from the United States government. Provides free access to a wealth of geospatial data produced by US federal government agencies. It also links to apps relating to geospatial data.
Users can view maps and build their own. Topics include land coverage, geographical features, weather and some social and economic indicators.
Open Secrets: Org2012 presidential race resources.
Already available from the Center for Responsive Politics site open.secrets.org.
Data for the US 2012 presidential elections.
Includes fund raising summaries. enabling candidate comparisons, fundraising in particular regions. Over time by different candidates. Charts and graphs of trends are provided.
Coming soon Spanish elections
Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas
Major conductor of public opinion polls amongst the Spanish public. Its website has information about its work and access to recent findings. Consult the databank for the latest barometers. These include recent voting intentions. Some information is offered in English. You can also access other social and economic polls online.
See some more links on our election blog.
