Researchers are often distressed to discover that the data they wanted to use in their landmark study is not configured in a way that is usable by a Statistical Analysis Software Package (SASP). For example, the data needed may come from two or more sources and it may not be clear to the researcher how to get them combined into one analyzable…

The purpose of this exploratory study was to develop research methods to compare the effectiveness of two video browsing interface designs, or surrogates--one static (storyboard) and one dynamic (slide show)--on two distinct information seeking tasks (gist determination and object recognition). (AEF)

The development of authoring tools for intelligent systems is an important step for creating, maintaining, and structuring content in a quick and easy manner. It has the benefit of allowing for a rapid change to new domains or topics for tutoring. The development of such tools requires functional control, access protection, ease of learning, and…

Automated persuasion is the Holy Grail of quantitatively biased data base designers. However, data base histories are, at best, probabilistic estimates of customer behavior and do not make use of more sophisticated qualitative motivational profiling tools. While usually absent from web designer thinking, qualitative motivational profiling can be…

Elementary students can investigate U.S. geography and exercise critical thinking and research skills by compiling a computer database on state facts and figures. As they research and work, they develop their own questions to ask and answer and make thoughtful hypotheses about how and why facts may be related. (SM)

Raises questions about the validity and reliability of doing research online via the proliferation of academic databases. Finds different versions of the Lexis-Nexis database have differing search capabilities. Argues that dependence on database research findings means dependence on decisions made by a few people who design search engines and…

Reports on a project to provide contextual information about the derivative bibliographic relationship by studying a sample of works from a research library catalog. The research design, the proportion of works that were part of bibliographic families, the constitution of bibliographic families, and directions for further research are presented.…

Seven articles discuss research by and for practitioners. The topics include demystification of research for practitioners, experiences with helping teacher researchers, an application of a collaborative action research model, one health practitioner's experience, creating a dance research database, basic data analysis for nonresearchers, and why…

Presents the objective and methodology chosen for the construction of a global emissions source database called EDGAR and the structural design of the database system. The database estimates on a regional and grid basis, 1990 annual emissions of greenhouse gases, and of ozone depleting compounds from all known sources. (LZ)

Examines the potential for the replacement of CFCs for historic uses with substituting technologies. The potential production and emissions of the principal HCFCs and HFCs are calculated for the next 25 years. (LZ)

This study is the final report from the National Center for Education Statistics task force on redesign of the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). Following an executive summary outlining the need for changes and a series of recommendations, Section 1 details the reasons, goals, and processes involved in the IPEDS redesign.…

This monograph, based on a conceptual model called an information support circle, describes a structured management process that can be used by higher education institutions to add value to institutional data and information. The model offers a sequence of (1) thinking about the management and use of data, (2) considering problems in providing…

The National Longitudinal Study (NLS) of the High School Class of 1972 is a large-scale long-term survey effort supported by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement in the U.S. Department of Education. NLS is designed to provide statistics on a national sample…

To establish a comprehensive national database on postsecondary student financial aid, the National Center for Education Statistics conducted the 1987 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS). Objectives were to: (1) determine the costs of postsecondary education for aided and non-aided students; (2) evaluate how students finance their…

This study evaluates two databases, "Historical Abstracts" and REESWeb, to determine their effectiveness in supporting academic social science research. While many performance evaluations gather quantitative data from isolated query and response transactions, this study is a qualitative evaluation of the databases in the context of…