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CultureGrams & World Conflicts Today Releases: Updated June 2009
Our CultureGrams (free trials) releases updates and new content to CultureGrams several times each year. Don't miss out! Details of the latest changes are below.
In brief, login to CultureGrams and World Conflicts Today to experience all of the most recent updates, including:
- Summer 2009 updates brought many new features to CultureGrams users, including:
- A fantastic new feature: Faces of the World interviews! Click the "Interviews" link at the top of the World and Kids editions to access this new content.
Faces of the World is a collection of nearly one hundred interviews in which people of all ages—from around the globe—describe their challenges, ambitions, world views, and everyday lives. Rich in detail, these accounts provide a new layer of insight into their respective cultures.
- New reports added: In the Kids Edition, our latest additions are Nicaragua and Syria, two of the most requested countries. In the World Edition, users can explore the Faroe Islands, an isolated country in the North Atlantic where reciting medieval ballads and hunting pilot whales remain vital elements of national identity.
- Expanded features, including photos, slideshows, teaching activities, and graphs and tables. Among the many photos added to the Photo Gallery are seven new country albums, including one featuring the largely inaccessible country of North Korea. Other new albums include Botswana, El Salvador, Paraguay, Swaziland, Uruguay, and Zimbabwe.
- Our new slideshows include depictions of weddings in Uzbekistan and Zimbabwe, foods in Colombia and the Philippines, and festivals in Bolivia, Brazil, and Peru. Our graphs and tables offerings have grown to include world currencies and caloric consumption.
- Our popular teaching activities collection has 10 new activities incorporating the Faces of the World interview feature. For example, in one activity students are asked to answer interview questions themselves. Then they compare their answers to Faces of the World interviews to see what they have in common with people from foreign cultures.
- A new mp3 player now allows users to easily download audio files—such as our excellent national anthem mp3s—to their desktops.
- And as always in early summer, we've updated our reports and incorporated critical reviews from in-country experts.
- Full November 2008 updates included:
- A revised home page interface and States Edition color scheme add even more visual appeal to the site. Be sure to play our new, short video (4:00) to introduce your users to the new look.
- We've expanded the Video Gallery with more than 60 new video segments.
- Our new national anthem MP3s (audio files) now provide ear-pleasing, full symphonic sound.
- Dozens of additional photos and slideshows increase our ever-growing multimedia offerings.
- We've enlarged our Teaching Activities collection to include 70 lesson plans for CultureGrams in the classroom.
- Our updated Curriculum Standards outline how CultureGrams meets 21st-century teaching and learning standards.
- Navigation changes include a Training Resources link and links in the States and Provinces flag galleries.
- All reports have been updated with recent government changes and critical reviews.
- New Kids Edition Reports: Seven in all: Cambodia, Costa Rica, Lithuania, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Portugal, and Sudan.
- World Edition Addition (added Aug. 2008): Kosovo.
- 13 New Themed Slideshows + More Fresh Photos: Check the Slideshow and Photo galleries.
- World Leaders Table: Added to the World and Kids Editions.
- Seasonal Climate Information: Added to each States and Provinces Edition report.
- New Login Method Available: Barcode authentication is now available for CultureGrams.
- Email Function: In response to customer feedback, we have added an email function that allows users to easily email information to themselves or others. In all four editions of CultureGrams (World, Kids, States, and Provinces), users may email a full report using the Email report link on the main page of a country/state/province. Or, they may email a specific section using the Email this section link next to Print this section. These links generate a window in which users can fill in the desired email address and other details.
- Outline Maps: In response to direct requests from educators, CultureGrams now offers outline maps of every country. These blank maps allow students to fill in cities and geographical features on their own, perfect for classroom use!
- 2 new World Edition countries (added April 2008): New Caledonia (a group of tropical islands where Pacific and French cultures meet) and Vatican City (the world's smallest country, where the Catholic pope is head of state.)
The World Edition now features 204 countries, including all 192 U.N. member states and more.
- Updated historical timelines and government sections in our States and Provinces editions. These content pieces have been updated to include the most recent changes.
- Revised content throughout the site: All editions have been updated with the latest information and critical reviews in April 2008.
- Citation Generator: Just click the citation link and get an MLA citation for the content at hand. Handy, concise, and critical for researchers at all levels.
- Videos: Short videos (streamable and downloadable in WMV and QuickTime) are among the great new additions to CultureGrams. A Videos link can always be found at the top of the World and Kids editions. Examples of the new video feature include a look at the diamond trade in Belgium, street performers in Dublin, a flamboyant "welcome dance" in a Malian village, and dozens more. (Video highlights)
- Slideshows: Also new to CultureGrams is our Slideshows feature, which organizes photos around a single theme. For example, explore a souq in Egypt, a French bakery, the Duomo (Cathedral) of Milan, a chocolateria in Spain, and an open-air market in Vanuatu. (Slideshow highlights)
- 4 new Kids Edition countries (added Winter 2008): Iceland, Iran, Kazakhstan, and Laos.
- Flag Galleries & Outlines: See all the flags of the world, U.S. states, or Canada in one place. We offer the best outlines of flags on the Web, bar none.
- Native America category in our States Edition: Every state now has its own Native America section, with salient info about the past and present. (Separate from mentions in history sections.)
- New Cultural Notes sections in the States Edition: We've added more cultural notes--what states are known for, and what makes them tick.
- Country images: More than 1,000 new images were added to the Kids and States Editions, followed by a late month push of 160 more, bringing the total count to 1,160 by the end of 2007. Plus, new photo galleries have been added to the Word Edition, including American Samoa, Belgium, Fiji, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Samoa, United States, and Vanuatu. New photos were added in early 2008 for Greece, Armenia, Portugal, Mongolia, New Zealand, South Africa, Taiwan, Papua New Guinea, Ethiopia, Russia, Mauritius, and many others.
- Graphing Tool: Choose the countries you wish to compare, choose the data to review, and see it graphed instantly. Perfect for use in your library or classroom.
- New Categories in Build-Your-Own Data Tables: It's even easier to see and choose the data you want to compare.
- World Time Chart: What time is it in Gaborone, Botswana? CultureGrams can tell you what time it is in any capital city.
- Distance Calculator: How far is it between Yerevan, Armenia and Buenos Aires, Argentina? CultureGrams can give you, in miles and kilometers (and graphically, on a map), the distance between any two capitals.
- Housing section (World Edition): Explores the typical dwelling of an average family. Elements include size, building materials, decoration, access to utilities, differences between urban and rural homes, etc.
- Life Cycle section (World Edition): Learn about the rituals, celebrations, and practices that mark life transitions: birth (such as pregnancy and child naming), the transition to adulthood (coming-of-age rituals), and death (funerals and memorial rituals).
- World Conflicts Today Home Page: Sports links to the reports and slideshows in an updated, catchy format.
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