Recently they began offering a series of enhanced pages called SPOTLIGHTS which focus on specific topics. Many of these have their roots in popular culture but when considered have a scholarly basis as well. The release of a popular film such as Titanic or Saving Private Ryan will often spark an interest in the real life events behind it. Britannica gathers the material from a wide variety of sources--not just their own not inconsiderable offerings.    SPOTLIGHTS are found on the Britannica home page at http://www.eb.com:180/

SPOTLIGHTS offer more than just pulling together various Britannica articles on a topic. Their most recent SPOTLIGHT dealt with Women in American History. Doing what the web does best it combines traditional text sources with well-chosen graphics and pertinent multimedia. Sound and video files represent both the arts and history, many with authors reading from their own works. Broken into manageable time periods it offers an excellent reading list organized by not only subject, but age level and offers links to Amazon.com for hard copy books. There are also extensive links to materials elsewhere on the WWW.

Their Guide to Black History and recent Harlem Renaissance SPOTLIGHTS are rich sources of materials for both interested individuals and students and teachers looking for ways to enhance the educational experience. They combine the cache of computers with a base of good solid information effectively organized and attractively presented. Drawing from both primary sources and scholarly study and analysis these pages show that the Britannica is taking full advantage of technology. And so should you.

One enters the Normandy site by clicking on the classic Robert Capa photo that is recreated in the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan. Then using the film as a jumping off point they explore various aspects of the event. Utilizing maps, photos, video, and first person narrative they bring the events to life. There are even army training films. 

The British Invasion 1964 studies the impact on America of the music and fashion cultural invasion of the early 1960s. There are several teaching modules on the site complete with the resources to complete the individual projects. There is even a set of band "trading cards" that can be sent electronically to friends and family.

Other SPOTLIGHTS dealt with Toys Through Time; Shakespeare and the Globe: Then and Now; Roller Coasters: Inventing the Scream Machine; and Discovering Dinosaurs. Many of the SPOTLIGHTS include special materials for teachers or classroom activities. Most have "just for fun" features built in as well.

Britannica Online is only available from the Brooklyn College Library home page on Brooklyn College workstations (proxy server users also have home access). You may need to provide your own headphones for full access to multimedia at some locations.