Boolify!

Go Boolify! Website: http://www.boolify.org/

'Boolify teaches it's users how to create Boolean searches into Google using operators such as OR, NOT plus AND to get very specific search results.' 

Boolify basically is an interesting search engine and what it does is that it expands your search results and gives you numerous meanings and links to go to and find your answers. The appearance of the website is simple, yet appealing. Your search keywords are typed into blocks that resemble puzzle pieces. Some of the main features you may use while researching are the 'OR' and 'NOT' puzzle pieces to be more exact, basically to refine your search to only what you want and need. 

These are the pieces you can use (left): *WORD*, AND, NOT, OR and URL.

For example you use the 'word' button as your main search base, you can limit your search by adding the 'not pice and making your search more precise. Another great tool you can use more or less to widen your search is by adding the 'and' piece. This piece helps give you more options in terms of what you are searching for (right). Suppose you are researching about sharks, you may add 'and' fish to deepen your inquiry. Maybe even to look at the relativity between the two and how they can be differentiated. 

The last additional tool included in Boolify is GLEAN (above). This is a simple tool for mathematics and science research and questions. Glean tools target critical mathematical concepts and skills to help students in areas where they face a challenge.

Well, those are the main tools that Boolify features. This search engine will much be applied to support your learning. Additional information can be learnt and used in various subjects. Plus you can actually save what you have searched, for end of class revision! This gives you an advantage as you can bookmark whatever links you need and remember facts of topics you have covered. 

Altogether the tools you can use are:

1. 'WORD' piece
2. 'AND' piece
3. 'NOT' piece
4. 'OR' piece
5. 'URL' piece
6. GLEAN
7. 'REMOVE' piece
8. 'SAVE SEARCH' piece
9. 'VIEW SAVED' piece
10. 'START OVER' piece

I am recommending this search engine as it helps ME research and gain knowledge on external information i may need to add to my main points. This is definitely worth a try for projects, assessments and maybe just a simple piece of writing.

Mallika Chawla 9E 

PaperRater - Your Very Own Editor

Website: http://www.paperrater.com/

We've all typed up a piece of writing for school homework or for some other reason and as we're writing it, everything seems to fit into place.

But then, there's the editing.

There are not many people would get their work grammatically correct at the first try, and even when you've read over your work and hand it in, your teacher gives it back with one or two correction markings that you overlooked.

With PaperRater, you can solve these little mishaps of your own subconscious. PaperRater is a free, online program that finds the mistakes in your work and makes them noticeable to you without having to consult anyone. What's more is that an artificial intelligence also marks it to a teacher's standard, giving you a grade and a score on your writing just like a teacher would.

Features of PaperRater (Written on the website):

• Auto-Grader
• Readability Statistics
• Style and Word Choice
• Spelling and Grammar Check
• Plagiarism Check
• Title Validation
• Vocabulary Builder

What it also does is that it rates your work based on the type of Year that you're in and the type of work that you are writing. Simply enter your grade, type of paper, title and text to get your editing feedback. It also can detect plagiarism in your work from your research sites, which you can post into the "Work Cited" section.

Uses in Learning and Reasons for Recommendations:

PaperRater is a great program to use when you can't seem to find anymore problems in your work. The difference from an average word processor is that it not only points out the problems that you miss, but it forces you to change those problems yourself rather than auto-correcting it for you. Therefore, you learn to identify more problems and change it yourself. It also suggests using different words and phrases that you may have never thought of using, opening your mind to more ideas.

For those who are extremely lazy and are tempted to plagiarize, or perhaps are hard-working but have unintentionally plagiarized, PaperRater detects it and points it out. It's probably what your teacher would find out anyway. So basically, it's your online teacher/marker.

Of course, if you are confident with your skills in editing or don't want to take advice from a computer, you can always ignore what it says.

By: Michael Kang 9F