This project is making enhancements to two existing websites, the Black Hole Encyclopedia and the Spanish version Enciclopedia de Agujeros Negros. The original websites were created by the PI under his NSF CAREER grant. The enhancements include 20 additional black holes in the Directory section, new listings in the Popular Culture section, profiles of six leading black hole researchers (including the PI), audio podcasts, a new section on the history of black hole research, and extensive graphics and animations. The evaluation of the website is expected to add to the informal science education community's knowledge of how the internet is being used to support science learning.
The StarDate Black Hole Encyclopedia website at blackholes.stardate.org was developed to provide an extensive but easy-to-read resource for the public and students. A Spanish-language version, Enciclopedia de agujeros negros, is also available at blackholes.radiouniverso.org. Evaluation shows that the sites are used by the public, students, and astronomy professionals, and the site is among the top references in most web searches for individual black holes. The site comprises seven major subsections: Basics, Directory, Research, History, Pop Culture, News, and Resources. The Basics section introduces black holes, explains how they are discovered and studied, and covers their basis in the theory of gravity. This section also includes a six-minute video introduction, "Black Holes: Stranger than Fiction." The Directory section contains extensive descriptions of more than 80 well-known stellar, intermediate, and supermassive black holes as well as images and vital statistics of each. The Research section takes a look at three NSF-funded projects, including the work of Andrea Ghez, Karl Gebhardt and Jenny Greene, and the LIGO project. The History section provides a timeline of black holes from Isaac Newton to the present. Some of the best and worst roles played by black holes in films, TV shows, and books are included in the Pop Culture section (and pop culture references and images are sprinkled through the rest of the site). An archive of news reports about black holes is available in the News section, which provides links to the original stories or press releases. And the Resources section offers FAQs, articles from StarDate magazine and radio programs, activities for students that are tied to national standards, a glossary, and a reading list of books and websites. Hundreds of thousands of people are accessing the Black Holes Encyclopedia each year. In a survey where information was collected through September 2010 and 569 surveys were available for analyses, 82% of the people surveyed indicated that the Black Holes Encyclopedia stimulated their interest in science and 76% indicated that the site increased their motivation to learn more about astronomy. Fifty-three percent of the respondents identified themselves as students. In a small survey analyzed in October 2012, both English and Spanish users indicated that the Research and Basics sections, respectively, were the most popular. Of the Spanish language users evaluating the website, all agreed that the website had increased their interest in Black Holes, most agreed it increased their curiosity and wish to learn more about Black Holes, and most agreed that the website had deepened their understanding of Black Holes research.
