For those who haven't been following the SAS Forum closely,
Shawn Carlson has started a company to scan all 70 years of Scientific
American amateur sci. columns and publish a CDROM. They now have a
website:
They're still collecting advertizing revenue and working towards the $100K
necessary funding. No predictions for when it will be released, but you
can sign up for their mailing list at the website above.
Here's the "contents" list:
"The Amateur Astronomer"-- Complete: Every one of "The Amateur Astronomer"
and "The Amateur Telescope Maker" columns by Albert Ingalls.
"The Amateur Scientist"-- Complete: Every one of "The Amateur Scientist"
columns of Albert Ingalls, C. L. Stong, Jearl Walker and Shawn Carlson as
well as all guest authors, through 1998. Many of these articles will be
amended and corrected with detailed commentary by Shawn Carlson and
invited writers.
Resource Directory: An interactive Resource Directory to link readers to
our AdvertisersU products and services. (See Opportunities For
Advertisers.)
Classic Text on Instrument Building: Procedures in Experimental Physics by
John Strong, a classic and much sought-after reference on instrument
making.
Classic Text on Vacuum Methods: A Manual of Vacuum Technique. This
renowned monograph provides everything an amateur needs to know to set up
their own high-quality vacuum system to achieve fantastically low
pressures in their home labs.
Extensive Pop-Up Glossary: A pop-up glossary of science terms will be
integrated throughout the text. The user need only click on an obscure
word or phrase to see a clearly-written definition.
Comprehensive Bibliography: A comprehensive bibliography of books cited in
the column as well as titles written or published by Advertisers that
could be of interest to amateur scientists. The bibliography will also
include published reviews of select books. These can be submitted by
Advertisers who sell books. (See Opportunities For Advertisers.)
Special Commentary: by Shawn Carlson to provide key insights on some of
the more popular projects.
TechBanners: Detailed additional technical information to supplement
individual topics.
History of the Column: A brief history of the column and the people who
wrote it.
Search Capability: AmSci-70 will be offer full search capability. Users
will be able to search for words or phrases anywhere in the text. Users
will also be able select projects by subject, age suitability, cost,
hazard level, relationship to other projects, and other criteria.
PS, I couldn't find an index for the online version of SciAm's THE AMATEUR
SCIENTIST, so I put one together here: