NCAA data available @ ICPSR

ICPSR has released a new thematic archive called NCAA Student-Athlete Experiences Data Archive. It will serve as a repository for publicly available NCAA data on a variety of topics, such as graduation rates, academic progress, and more. Currently only the NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate 2009 dataset is available, but in 2010 they will add the Graduation Success Rate Public-Use dataset and more. In addition, the Progress Rate 2009 data can be analyzed online.

The NCAA archive looks to be a great resource for scholars interested in student-athletes. Stop by the website to see their new content!

Get the Facts about the 2010 Census

A phony Better Business Bureau email is circulating the intertubes. Check out the press release from the BBB below. As we enter the crunch time for the Census, people will start spreading misinformation. Don't fall for the lies. Keep yourself informed!

Phony BBB E-mail Spreads Fiction about 2010 Census; Get the Facts

An e-mail which falsely claims to be from the Better Business Bureau about the upcoming 2010 Census is inaccurate and BBB is advising consumers to get the facts.

How to Identify a Census Field Representative
If a U.S. Census Bureau employee knocks on your door, here are some recognition tips to assure the validity of the field representative:

• The field representative must present an ID badge that contains a Department of Commerce watermark and expiration date. The field representative may also be carrying a bag with a Census Bureau logo.
• The field representative will provide you with supervisor contact information and/or the Regional Office phone number for verification, if asked.
• The field representative will provide you with a letter from the Census Bureau Director on official letterhead.

When Field Representatives will be Going Door-to-Door

• From April to July 2010, we will knock on the door of every
  household that does not mail back a completed 2010 Census form.
• It’s critical that you take just 10 minutes to fill out and mail back your form rather than wait for a census worker to show up on your doorstep. About $85 million in taxpayer dollars are saved for every one percent increase in mail response.
• The Census Bureau must get a census form to – and a completed form back from – every residence in the United States. That’s more than 130 million addresses. This is why the census is the largest domestic mobilization our nation undertakes.

What the 2010 Census DOES NOT Ask

• Field representatives will never ask you for your social security number, bank account number, or credit card number. Census workers also never solicit for donations and will never contact you by e-mail.

The Census is Safe

• The 2010 Census will ask for name, gender, age, race, ethnicity, relationship, and whether you own or rent your home – just 10 simple questions that will take about 10 minutes to answer.
• Your answers are protected by law and are not shared with anyone.
• The Census Bureau safeguards all census responses to the highest security standards available.

For more information about the upcoming 2010 Census visit www.census.gov/2010census

ICPSR presents: the new "Research Connections" website!

ICPSR will provide a webinar on January 25 on its new "Research Connections" website. More information below:

Research Connections offers a comprehensive, easily searchable collection of more than 15,000 resources from the many disciplines related to child care and early education.

Some of the new tools we'll demonstrate:
• Filter your search results by author, state, peer reviewed journal, resource type, or acquisition date to quickly find the resources you need.
• Save your search and receive notices when new resources are added that meet your saved search criteria.
• Browse the collection by topic to fully explore your areas of interest.
• Search for variables in individual datasets to easily find the data you want.

This webinar is FREE and open to the public. Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/739004691

Title: Introducing the New "Research Connections" Website!
Date: Monday, January 25, 2010
Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST
After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

Pop quiz hot shot: What are the top 10 largest cities in Croatia?

New in Euromonitor Global Market Information Database: "Cities are drivers of economic growth and at the same time cities are the result of economic growth. City consumers are more brand-aware and have higher disposable incomes and tend to be trend-setters. Emerging markets are home to some of the world’s most dynamic and fast-growing cities. The data covers the largest 10 cities in each country and are available for 82 countries from 1998-2015."

From within GMID, the data can be found by selecting urban population:

And the answer is...

Stop back by for an upcoming quick start tutorial on accessing GMID's country data.

American Community Survey Release!

From the Census Bureau: The U.S. Census Bureau today released the 2006-2008 ACS PUMS files. The 2006-2008 ACS 3-year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) files provide population and housing unit responses from a sample of individual ACS questionnaires collected during the January 2006 through December 2008 period.

These microdata allow ACS data users to look at relationships among variables not shown in the standard data products published by the Census Bureau and provide greater accessibility to data for research projects. In particular, researchers and data users have found the PUMS data useful for regression analysis, modeling applications, and designing tabulations to create custom ACS population and housing characteristics data.

The 2006-2008 ACS 3-year PUMS data can be accessed on American FactFinder or by using DataFerrett

The Minnesota Population Center's IPUMS project will release their version of the 2006-2008 ACS PUMS files later this year.

Hey! IPUMS users! Read this!

IPUMS Research Award! Call for Nominations!

The Minnesota Population Center is pleased to announce the second annual award competition for research using the MPC’s microdata collection. The 2009 IPUMS competition has been expanded to include separate awards for research using the USA and international databases. Papers or publications submitted should utilize one or more of the IPUMS datasets for studying social, economic, and/or demographic processes.

To be eligible for the USA awards, papers must make significant use of data from the IPUMS-USA (decennial census and/or American Community Survey data) or IPUMS-CPS (Current Population Survey data). To be eligible for the INTERNATIONAL awards, research must make substantive use of at least one non-USA sample in the IPUMS-International (census microdata from the US and other countries).

Prizes will be awarded for:
• Best published work, and
• Best work by a graduate student, published or unpublished.

To be considered for the graduate student competition, the paper’s lead or sole author must currently be a graduate student. The award consists of a $250 cash prize, a plaque, and a prominent announcement on the IPUMS websites. Winners may also be invited to the Minnesota Population Center—at MPC expense—to present their research.

Deadline for nomination or submission: December 15, 2009.

Submission procedure: Papers or publications should be submitted in electronic form to ipums@pop.umn.edu by December 15, 2009. All submissions should include the submitting author’s name, institution, and contact information. Please indicate whether the lead author is currently a graduate student. Work that is already published should have a publication date of 2008 or 2009. Unpublished work should have been written within the last two years. Publications may be in any language but an English-language version must be provided.
Notification: Winners will be notified in late February, 2010.

Do you like working outdoors and meeting new people?

Then I've got a job for you! The US Census Bureau is looking for temporary, part-time employees for the 2010 Census. They are especially interested in bilingual speakers. Check out their website for more information!