Project I - Volcanoes

Part 1 : Searching For Specific Information

Someone once noted that using the Internet is like trying to drink from a firehose. There is so much information and it is easy to "get lost" while "surfing".

To aid in the process, there are a number of "search engines" which you can use to try and locate specific information. I have found that the best way to learn about these engines is to try them out!

Several of my favorites are listed below. Pick one and try and locate the information needed to answer the questions that follow. In fact, try a couple of these and see if they locate the same resources.

alta vista
HotBot
webcrawler.com


An Internet Scavenger Hunt will give you the chance to experiment with locating Internet resources. It is easy to get lost but remember that you can use the GO menu to return to a familiar place or the Back arrow to return to the previous link.

When you use a search engine plan to spend a few minutes becoming familiar with the options. For example, in Hot Bot you can type in a phrase and specify the an exact match must be found. Or, you can ask for sources that contain all the words or any of the words. Careful selection of the phrase (or single word) can speed up the process.

1. how many US colleges have the nickname "professors". [a good choice of key words would be college nicknames - try this .... name the college ... Trust Me .... there is at least one. Your search may identify several good sources but they may not all be the same. You need to check out several.]

2. The CIA keeps track of geographic information in its facts books. What is the total surface area of Peru? If there should be one agent per 100,000 square kilometers, how many agents (nearest whole number) should be sent to Peru?

3. Where is volcano Fogo and when did it last erupt?

After your hunt is completed try searching for information that you might be interested in for another course.

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