Learning Objects and Learning Object Collections:

World & U.S. Studies

Learning Object Collections

ECAI Iraq
The Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative (ECAI) Iraq website offers users "a temporal-spatial portal into existing digital resources about history, cultural sites, archaeological excavations and heritage preservation initiatives." Utilizing unique interactive and thematic maps, visitors to the site will find an incredible array of information including topics such as the Akkadian Empire, the Hittites, the Roman Empire, and much more. By selecting one of the topic areas, users are taken to a page with lists related books, artifacts, maps, and timelines pertaining to that area. The maps are especially helpful in picturing how the world was divided between groups in 700 B.C., for instance. This site will definitely be a great resource for the researchers and students who are interested in the historical cultural trends of this area of the world.
http://ecai.org/iraq/

UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre
It is widely accepted that global biodiversity is at risk. While humans are often encouraged to think globally yet act locally, who's watching out for the bigger picture. The answer is in the form of the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC), which is a function of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). It is now noted as "the world’s foremost intergovernmental environmental organisation." This site offers up-to-date news and publications about world biodiversity issues as well as providing an incredible array of information on the several projects in which the centre is involved, ranging from habitat to species to protected area issues. The site also offers great Interactive Map Services, which take the visitor through in-depth presentations of topics ranging from Coral Disease to Marine Turtles.
http://www.unep-wcmc.org/

Ancient China
This excellent interactive site, produced by the British Museum, contains a wealth of information about ancient China. Explorers can follow any of five links that cover major sections of the website, including Crafts and Artisans, Geography, and Tombs and Ancestors. Each section contains historical information in the topical area and Story, Explore and Challenge links. The Challenge links are especially useful for classroom activities.
http://www.ancientchina.co.uk/menu.html

Historical Maps Online
Digitized map collections abound online these days, and the Historical Maps Online collection from the University of Illinois Library is one of the better ones available for researchers and the inquisitive public. Part of a collaborative effort between the University of Illinois Library and the University of Illinois Press, the online material includes hundreds of digitized maps, which may be examined in minute detail with an effective zoom feature. Visitors may browse the maps by preset topics (such as Wisconsin, Indians of North America, Kansas), or browse through the special section containing topographic maps of Illinois. While the general intent of the project was to electronically present images of maps that chart the past 400 years of historical development in Illinois, there are also a few real unusual gems here. One such map is the little-known caricature map of Chicago from 1931 titled "A Map of Chicago's gangland from authentic sources: designed to inculcate the most important principles of piety and virtue in young persons, and graphically portray the evils and sin of large cities."
http://images.library.uiuc.edu/projects/maps/index.html

NationMaster
If you have ever wanted to look up any number of national statistics, the NationMaster website is an excellent resource for finding out any number of current details about just about any country in the world. Currently, NationMaster has 335 statistical data sets, ranging from library books, forested land, Internet users, and airports. For easy reference, the main Web page features the most frequently requested stats, such as televisions and military expenditures per capita. NationMaster also allows visitors the option of creating their own graphs in order to effectively compare different nations. The site also has links to national profiles, which include the available statistics for each country, and images of the country's flag and a political map. Additionally, the site has a search engine, and a place where visitors can read short facts on the different countries. Apart from being interesting to browse through, the site will be helpful for students looking for basic statistics on the world's different countries.
http://www.nationmaster.com/