U.S. Patent Office–Digitization Projects
Source: Newsbytes
“Patent Office Battles Paper Tiger”
From the article, “Fresh from its transition to an electronic filing system, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is embarking upon a controversial plan to dispose of an estimated 135 million documents – literally tons of paper – chronicling more than 200 years of innovation. In a vast research library in Crystal City, Arlington, the PTO maintains countless stacks of patents and trademarks – roughly 27 million in all – some from inventions and ideas dating back as far as 1790. Now that the agency has scanned the papers into its publicly searchable electronic database, it’s looking for a new curator for the aging records.”

Internet Answer Services–AskEarth.Com
Source: San Diego Union-Tribune
Another New Answer Service: AskEarth.Com
This concept seems to be coming back in vogue. First, Google Answers, then the retooling of Yahoo’s service, and know news of AskEarth.Com. The service is along lines the same lines as Google Answers. From the article, “He [Ask Earth Founder, Christoper Cole] said he and a partner started working on AskEarth two or three years ago, but launched the site only in recent months. The service cost more than $1 million to develop, and is making money every day, Cole said. He envisions that the site could provide a side income for people who have accumulated vast amounts of knowledge, such as reference librarians.” I’m looking forward to asking Mr. Cole if his company considered the many free services public libraries (remote dbase access, VRD’s, etc.) offer in the ASKEarth.Com marketing plan.
See Also: My Comments About Google Answers
See Also: Direct to the AskEarth.Com Site

Resources, Tools, and Full-Text Documents (3 Items)
Maps–United States
Source: FEMA
HazardMaps.Gov
After resolving a few technical issues, HazardMaps.Gov, a site we initially informed you about several months ago, is back online. From the site, “HazardMaps.gov is a web-based collection of natural hazards, and supporting, data. The site is comprised of two main components: The WebGIS Atlas and The Hazards Data Exchange.” The service has numerous interactive options to create customized maps.
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Business–Worldwide–Lists & Rankings
Source: Financial Times
2002 Edition Now Online, FT 500
“The world’s largest companies.” Several lists are available. The Global 500 list is available as a pdf file.
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Intellectual Property–United States
Source: GAO
Full-Text, Testimony, “Intellectual Property: Industry and Agency Concerns over Intellectual Property Rights”
Several charts and graphps. The testimony was given be a GAO official to the Subcommittee on Technology and Procurement Policy, House Committee on Government Reform.

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