Welcome to Study Hall! The Internet can be a great resource as long as you know how to use it. Here you will find tips for effective web research to help you get the most out of the Internet.
Maya
Cyber Defender & Databank Supervisor
Because of her unquenchable thirst for knowledge, Maya started out as a librarian. While she loved her job, she wanted to do more to help protect people.
Since Cyber Villains such as Ms. Information and Elvirus can corrupt websites and the information on them, Maya teaches people to protect themselves by using caution when visiting websites and avoiding sites that are not trustworthy.
Give me a fish and I eat for a day. Teach me to fish and I eat for a lifetime
- Chinese Proverb
Anything chocolate
Interests:Browsing bookstores, baking
November 30 2007
Holiday Shopping
December is almost upon us. Do you know what you are going to get your family and friends for the holidays? Shopping online is a great place to get started. Just make sure you have a trusted adult help you with when you place your orders! Or just use the Internet to learn about what you want to get and go pick it up at a normal store.
posted by Maya
topic: Using the Web
November 20 2007
Finding Reliable Sites: Who wrote this?
When doing Web research, it can be time-consuming trying to find Web sites that have useful information. Some sites can have false or old information so you should always try and find credible and reliable sites for your research.
One of the things you can look for to determine if a site is credible and reliable is an author or an organization. Real news articles or other publications usually have the author's name listed. Sites belonging to a real organization like National Geographic or NASA are likely to be more reliable than mystery sites. It's also a good idea to check for the authors' sources. If they list real, valid sources, it shows they did their homework, too!
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
November 19 2007
Data Recovery
M.C. Spammer's attack left our servers a mess. I've been working with Dr. Keen to construct a program that will help me recover the data that was lost in the assault. It makes me so sad to see everything in such disarray. To be honest, this is the real reason why we are holding off on exams until after the break. I need the time to recover the tests we were going to use!
posted by Maya
topic: Miscellaneous
November 9 2007
Research Challenge: Meaning of Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is about more than just a Turkey dinner or pilgrims and Native Americans getting together to share a meal. Did you know that Thanksgiving is also a day of thanks for having the opportunity to peaceably establish a government for the safety and happiness of United States citizens? Or that it is a reflection of a fall festival held since humanity was young?
As the holidays come up why don't you do your own Internet research on them? You may learn something new about the traditions your family regularly holds.
posted by Maya
topic: Using the Web, Research Challenge
November 6 2007
Research Tip: Getting Started
Don't know where to get started when doing Web research? The first thing to do is to look at your topic and figure out what you need to know. It helps to write down everything you already know about your topic and what you think you may need to know.
Let's say I'm writing a paper on the first three presidents of the United States and the only thing I know about them is their names: George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson. I'd then make a list of what I think I need to know about them for my paper: when they were president, where they were born, and what they did before they were president, just to list a few. Now I can use my list as a starting point for researching facts about each president for my paper.
If you don't know very much about your topic, you can also try an encyclopedia site like Wikipedia or Encyclopedia Britannica, or even talk to a librarian or your teacher about it to learn enough to be able to search intelligently.