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Ready Reference Questions

1.    Where did Samuel Clemens get his pseudonym?
Internet Strategy:

Analyze the question
•    This ready reference question was a how question that could be answered from one source of biographic information. After reviewing the internet sources listed above, I chose the Open Directory Project as it was a directory that had a clean, simple interface and was organized in a clear and understandable manner. Since this was a biographic question I clicked on the biography link which listed 12 resources. When I came to that page, I chose the Biographical Dictionary as the annotation stated “More than 25,000 notable men and women who have shaped our world.”

Type in the Keywords and Combine with Boolean operators
•    I used the keywords “Samuel Clemens + pseudonym

Click on the search button
•    There was information that Mark Twain was his pseudonym but no explaination as to how he got it.
•    I then went back to Open Directory Project but this time I looked under kids and teens as it is a basic knowledge fact that most adults would know but not most kids.
•    On the subject page, I choose people and society and clicked on that link.
•    I was taken to another page with more specific subjects and I clicked on biography
•    Which took me to an even more detailed subject list but with an A-Z list at the top.
•    I clicked on “C” for Clemens and there were 5 results.
•    The first was for Encarta Encyclopedia so I clicked on that.
•    I found the answer there “Mark Twain, a Mississippi riverboat phrase called out to test the water’s depth; “twain,” or two fathoms (12 feet) deep, meant it was safe for navigating.”

When you find the answer take note of the source.
•    http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761555419/Mark_Twain.html


2.    Do any words rhyme with orange?
Internet Strategy:
Analyze the question
This is a ready reference question that will be found in a rhyming dictionary.


Go to your favorite search engine:
•    I chose rhymezone.com, one of the Internet resources on my major project list.

Type in the Keywords
•    I typed in “orange” and this is the result:
•    Words and phrases that rhyme with orange:   (0 results)
Sorry, no perfect rhymes were found.
 * You might try a shorter word with a similar but slightly different ending.
 * For near rhymes, try searching OneLook.com for words ending with *nge

Combine with Boolean operators
•    I then went to OneLook.com and entered the lettern “nge” with a wildcard *.
•    This search resulted in 100 words or phrases, 100 common word or phrases and also 100 common words that end with “nge” and have the possibility of rhyming.

When you find the answer take note of the source.
•    http://onelook.com/?w=*nge&scwo=1&scwo=1&sswo=1

3.    What does this symbol mean?
 
Internet Strategy:

Analyze the question:
•    This question appeared to have to do with mythology as the hand is covered in mehndi and has a “God’s Eye” , Maybe Indian mythology.

Go to your favorite search engine

•    I know that Merriam-Webster has an online visual dictionary that I will use to start my search.

Type in the Keywords

•    I typed in hand, hand + mythology, hand + myth, decorate + hand and came up with no results for the drawing. I then decided to look for a mythology dictionary or encyclopedia.

If no answer repeat the Search.

•    I then tried Encyclopedia Mythica and searched for Hindu, hand, Asia, but there were no matches for this hand.

•    I then tried Google images and typed in ‘eye in hand’ and many versions of this image turned up, none an exact match. I am glad I was not searching with a student as a pornographic image came up with the results. I clicked on one of the images and this is the information I found:

•    The eye-in-hand is an old and still popular apotropaic amulet for  magical protection from the evil eye. Combining the imagery of Greek and Turkish blue  all-seeing eye  charms with the downward-facing Arab and Israeli hamsa hand, the eye-in-hand is a frequently encountered protective talisman in India and the southern Mediterranean region.

When you find the answer take note of the source.
•    http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.luckymojo.com/eyeinhand.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.luckymojo.com/eyeinhand.html&usg=__Ca-U2nn0okSnSGjl84LKCEfZ-1g=&h=280&w=300&sz=22&hl=en&start=8&um=1&tbnid=j5MirnYonEtGXM:&tbnh=108&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Deye%2Bin%2Bhand%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DG%26um%3D1


4.    How many acres are in 3 hectares?

Internet Strategy:

Analyze the question
•    This is another ready reference question having to do with weights and measures which you can find in an almanac.

Go to your favorite search engine
•    I am going to use ask.com

Type in the Keywords
•    I typed in 3 hectares
•    This is the answer I received
•    How big is a hectare?
One hectare is 10,000 square metres or 2.471 acres (call it 2.5 for ease of mental conversion).

When you find the answer take note of the source.
•    Answer


Search Questions

1.    What are the significant world events of 1852?
This is a history question so I decided to use the Librarian’s Internet Index directory.

I chose the world history link, which led to 9 other sites. I then chose hyper history as the annotation said it had charts and timelines, which would give me the information I needed.

In 1852, David Livingstoe explored Zambesi, Herbert Spencer first used the word ‘evolution’, Harriet Beecker Stow published ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’ and Thackeray wrote ‘History of Henry Esmond, The French president proclaims himself Emperor Napoleon III and it is the Reign of the Second Empire (1852-70) , the Second Burmese War is going on and British forces annex of Pegu.

http://www.hyperhistory.com/online_n2/History_n2/a.html

2.    Why is the murder of Francis Scott Key’s son historically significant?

Again this is a history question. I stayed on the LII and chose United States History. I do know that Francis Scott Key was involved with the Revolutionary War, so for this information I chose Encyclopedia.com. There was an article about key but it did not say anything about his son being murdered. There was a related link about Daniel Edgar Sickles and here I found that Key’s son was having an affair with Sickles’ wife and one evening he shot and killed Key. He was the first person to be acquitted on an insanity defense.

"Francis Scott Key." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 26 Apr. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

3.     What can a DVD do that a videotape can’t?

This is a general knowledge question that could be answered with an encyclopedia. I again used Encyclopedia.com. I typed in DVD and found the entry that told me they produce pictures that are clearer in detail and truer in color than VCRs. As well as offering better sound quality.

"videodisc." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 26 Apr. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.