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Explorations: the Cornell Theory Center's Online Science Book
Margaret Corbit
Cornell Theory Center
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY USA
corbitm@tc.cornell.edu
Michael Herzog
Cornell Theory Center
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY USA
herzog@tc.cornell.edu
Abstract: In the summer of 1995, the Cornell Theory Center (CTC) decided to move
publication of its printed, periodical, glossy science book to the World Wide Web. The result
is the interactive, online publication--Explorations
(http://www.tc.cornell.edu/er96/science96/Explorations). In technical design, the book
anticipated the availability of new Web browser capabilities and the expansion of graphics
capabilities, such as VRML viewers. The development team tried to balance these
interactivity-enhancing new technologies with the overriding concern of making the book as
appealing and accessible to the audience as possible. Explorations went online in April 1996.
We present here a review of the conceptual and technical development of Explorations, along
with ideas for extending the capabilities of online publications.
1.0 Introduction: Audience and Scope of Project
As part of its mission, the Cornell Theory Center (CTC), one of four National Science Foundation-supported
supercomputing centers in the US, communicates information about research conducted using its resources
(hardware, software, and staff expertise) through a variety of media at several levels of technical detail
(http://www.tc.cornell.edu). This work includes the production of a periodic book featuring scientific and
engineering applications of interest to a lay audience.
CTC's 1996 online science book, Explorations, is intended for a mixed audience that includes
researchers, college students, the media, K-12 students, legislators, and the general public. Our goal was to
retain the graphic appeal of hardcopy publications and to enhance the publication through the incorporation of
hypermedia technologies. We wanted to involve the viewers at the same time that we entertained them.
Target audiences access the World Wide Web via all possible computing platforms, from high-end
workstations with accelerated graphics processors to outdated personal computers donated to schools and
libraries. In general, CTC tries to accommodate low-end users when providing online information. Since a
goal of this project was to experiment with leading-edge technologies for the communication of science,
development of Explorations was not constrained in this way. Instead, we attempted to select new technologies
and the hardware they would be ported to early on and aimed the technical development at the midlevel
machines.
Emerging technologies featured in Explorations include inline animation using a server push, the
frames function that was new with Netscape 2.0*, and viewing of 3D files in Virtual Reality Modeling
Language (VRML). By designing with frames, we were able to enhance the visual appeal and the graphical
navigation of the book. Frames were suppoorted on all platforms at the time this paper was prepared. In
contrast, porting of the technology for viewing VRML files has not been consistent among platforms.
Acceptable viewers were not available for Macintosh* or UNIX* platforms at this writing. These factors
influenced the development process.
Because we wanted to avoid presenting the audience with unnecessary surprises or frustrations, we
incorporated a CGI script to detect the reader's browser and its version when he/she first enters the site. This
information is presented on a gateway page along with links to sites for downloading the necessary browser
and other technologies before entering the publication (these resources are also accessible from within the
publication). For VRML, we link to the VRML Repository (http://www.sdsc.edu/vrml), which maintains
current technical information as well as access to downloadable software. In addition, we provide a navigation