chosen by your "librarian without walls," Marylaine Block marylaine at netexpress.net

January 29

Art of the Embroiderer
http://dept.kent.edu/museum/exhibit/embroidery/main.htm
Once you click on "view the artifacts," you can search the stunning images in this exhibition by embroidery technique, time period, and location.

Best Values in Public Colleges 2009-2010 - Kiplinger
http://content.kiplinger.com/tools/colleges/?partner=yahoo
Kiplingers used Petersons college data on traditional four-year schools to assemble this list. You can develop your personal list of prospects by any combination of cost, academic quality measures, financial aid measures, and state; then click on each institution's name to visit its web site.

Consumer Reports Health Blog
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/health/
Answers questions and offers news and analysis on health concerns, products, and public policy.

Employment Projections, 2008-2018: a Summary
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecopro.nr0.htm
In addition to a broad general outline of projected growth in employment, this Bureau of Labor Statistics news release features specific charts that will be of interest, including fastest-growing occupations, 2008-18; industries with the largest wage and salary employment growth, 2008-18; and occupations with the largest number of total job openings due to growth and replacements, 2008-18

Eruptions
http://scienceblogs.com/eruptions/
If you're anywhere near as fascinated with volcanoes as this geologist is, you'll like his blog. It includes links to volcano research facilities and other geology blogs.

Map: U.S. States as Countries of Equal Population
http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2009/06/06/388-us-states-as-countries-of-equal-population/
A visual demonstration of how each individual state's population compares to that of nations of the world. If you can't guess the nations from the flags, see comment #36 for a cheat sheet.

The Periodic Table of Videos
http://periodicvideos.com/
Science teachers take note: not only are there videos here for every element, but the site plans to offer "films about other areas of chemistry, latest news and occasional adventures away from the lab."

Recalls.gov
http://www.recalls.gov/
Six federal agencies combine their work on this one-stop-shopping site for all government recalls. Search or browse by product or recent recalls (parents might want to search for "children's products"). You can also use this site to report unsafe products and to sign up for automatic notification.

US Geological Survey Photographic Library
http://libraryphoto.cr.usgs.gov/
You can search the 400,000+ photos of the US Geological Survey or browse by categories like earthquakes, mines, national parks, etc.

U.S. Religious Landscape Survey - Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life
http://religions.pewforum.org/pdf/report2-religious-landscape-study-full.pdf
The Pew Forum is a trusted, impartial source of information on "issues at the intersection of religion and publif affairs." The current survey updates information on Americans' "Religious Beliefs and Practices" (Worship Attendance, Formal Membership, Religious Upbringing of Children, etc.), "Religion and Political Attentiveness," "Religion, Ideology and Partisanship," and more.

We the Corporations - Move To Amend
http://movetoamend.org/
If any of you are horrified by the Supreme Court Decision to let corporations spend unlimited amounts of money to purchase, er, support, political candidates and take over governance of our country, you might be interested in this petition, and in this article, "Some Remedies for the Supreme Court Power Grab," <http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=background.view&backgroundid=00429>.

Worldometers: Real Time World Statistics
http://www.worldometers.info/
Watch the numberical increases speed by for populations, deaths, government expenditures, money spent on video games, Google searches, carbon dioxide emissions, etc.

January 22

20 Things That Happen Every Minute
http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=45981
The site takes a sampling of the world's wealth of statistics and divides it by the number of minutes in the year to show you, on average, how much people earn, how many babies are born, how much trash is thrown away, etc., every minute.

50 Banned Books That Everyone Should Read
http://onlinecollegedegree.org/2009/05/20/50-banned-books-that-everyone-should-read/
Includes capsule descriptions of the recommended books and explanations of why they have been banned.

2009's Best Young Adult Fiction - NPR
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=121173632
A short list, but a compelling one, judging from the extended descriptions given here.

2010 Earthquake in Haiti - US Department of State
http://www.state.gov/p/wha/ci/ha/earthquake/
Includes frequently released Fact Sheets on the situation in Haiti and the government's response. There's also a Person Finder to request or share information on the status of Americans in Haiti. See also the background info and daily situation reports at the World Health Organization's site, <http://www.who.int/hac/crises/hti/en/>

ChoralWiki - home of the Choral Public Domain Library
http://www2.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
"one of the world's largest free sheet music sites. You can use CPDL to find scores, texts, translations, and information about composers." It also allows you to browse by church calendar. Available in 7 languages.

Comfort Cravings - Psychology Today
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/comfort-cravings
A blog about soothing yourself without food and eating healthily and mindfully. Be sure to check out the post on being a mindful food shopper - it's an excellent guide to food industry marketing ploys disguised as health claims for their products.

Food Allergy - AllergicChild.com
http://allergicchild.com/
"Supporting families & communities dealing with severe food allergies." The founders of this site, parents of a boy with life-threatening allergies, had to find out everything there was to know about food allergies to keep their son alive and to answer people's questions about his problems. Among the info they provide here are Food allergy basics, the top 8 allergens, allergy-safe foods, keeping your food allergic child safe, and lots more.

Internet Sacred Text Archive
http://www.sacred-texts.com/index.htm
"the largest freely available archive of online books about religion, mythology, folklore and the esoteric on the Internet." Includes each religion's key documents, including variant forms, as well as commentaries, interpretations, and literature.

Journal TOCs
http://www.journaltocs.hw.ac.uk/
Use this to search "the latest Table of Contents (TOCs) of 12,730 journals collected from 422 publishers," or browse by journal title, disciplines, or broad topics - Population Studies, Men's Studies, Women's Studies, Advertising, Metallurgy, etc.

Librophiliac Love Letter: A Compendium of Neautiful Libraries - Curious Expeditions
http://curiousexpeditions.org/2007/09/librophiliac_love_letter_a_com.html
Whenever I travel, no matter what the purpose of the trip, I always visit libraries in that community. The beautiful libraries here are monuments on the grand scale, built to reflect the understanding that libraries represent the highest achievements of humanity. My own librophiliac love letter would also have included some of today's colorful, enchanting children's rooms, built to entice children to a lifetime love of learning and libraries.

Weird Book Room at AbeBooks
http://www.abebooks.co.uk/books/weird/index.shtml
Abe offers up "101 crazy and strange titles about every oddball aspect of life you could possibly imagine and a few things you couldn't possibly imagine," including Atlas of the Fleas, The Who's Who of British Beheadings, How To Teach Physics to Your Dog, and my favorite, A Cow Is Too Much Trouble in Los Angeles.

January 15

101 New Uses for Everyday Things - Real Simple
http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/101-new-uses-for-everyday-things-10000001030084/index.html
You'd be surprised how many problems you can solve with a Ziploc bag, salt, vinegar, dryer sheets, and other items that you probably have in your cabinets already.

Badman's Tropical Fish
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/
Whether you've just gotten your first tropical fish or you're a long-time tropical fish hobbyist, you'll find plenty of useful information here, including fishkeeping ABCs, fish profiles, info on aquatic diseases, a photo gallery, message boards, and more.

The Best Time To Buy Almost Everything - Get Rich Slowly
http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2010/01/07/the-best-time-to-buy-almost-everything/
When markets are slow, or inventory is changing, there are deals to be had. This article explains when (which month, or even day of the week) this is the case for different products - real estate, cookware, appliances, bicycles, baby clothes, wedding dresses, etc.

Christian Fiction Finder - ACFW
http://www.fictionfinder.com/
Courtesy of American Christian Fiction Writers. The advanced search allows you to search by author, genre, target audience, publication date (including forthcoming books), and content (sensuality, action, humor, suspense, etc.)

The Daily Number - Pew Research Center
http://pewresearch.org/databank/dailynumber/
Draws on Pew Research Center surveys and research to offer a daily statistic "that highlights an important finding or trend" on a wide range of topics - voter enthusiasm among Republicans, teen texting while driving, how many think global warming is a hoax, etc.

FoodSafety.gov
http://www.foodsafety.gov/
All kinds of information on how to handle food safely, food poisoning, food recalls, news, and educational materials. Check out the handy guide to how long you can safely keep various foods in your refrigerator or freezer, which may surprise you as much as it did me.

Keeping Family/Household Records
http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/money/keeprecords/keeprecords.htm
Tax season is when we are most likely to realize the defects in our methods of record-keeping and document retention. Here are some tips on what you should keep, what you can safely discard, and how to organize them.

Men's Health -
http://www.menshealth.com/men/
The magazine's web site is searchable and browsable by categories like fitness, health, nutrition, weight loss, grooming, and the inspiration for all of those: women. Content includes articles, blogs, workouts, "lists you can't miss," videos, and Twitter feeds.

MERLOT: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
http://www.merlot.org/Home.po
Faculty should appreciate how this site helps them "Find peer reviewed online teaching and learning materials, share advice and expertise about education with expert colleagues, and Be recognized for your contributions to quality education."

The Odds of Airborne Terror - Five-Thirty-Eight
http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/12/odds-of-airborne-terror.html
After reading Nate Silver's analysis of the statistics on airplane terrorism, you may think the current panic and heightened security procedures are a bit overblown.

OMG I'm the Adult
http://omgimtheadult.wordpress.com/
A group blog sharing those horrifying moments that made us realize that, OMG, I'm the adult in the room. Aside from raising children, what were your OMG moments?

Portion Distortion: 10 Food Servings, Now vs. Then - Mental Floss Blog
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/42673#more-42673
You think the expansion in portion size demonstrated here might have something to do with America's obesity problem? The article also explains how much exercise it would take to work off the extra calories favorite dishes have acquired over the years.

January 8, 2009

The 9th Annual Year in Ideas - New York Times Magazine
http://www.nytimes.com/projects/magazine/ideas/2009/#a
"from A to Z, the most clever, important, weird, and just silly innovations from all corners of the thinking world," including the "myth of the deficient older employee," cul-de-sac bans, treating PTSD with Tetris, the Obama effect, and more.

32 Astounding Gingerbread Houses
http://weburbanist.com/2009/12/16/32-astounding-architectural-designs-of-gingerbread-houses/
Those of us who can barely get four gingerbread walls to stay together with slathers of icing can only marvel at this amazing gingerbread architecture - a lighthouse, a Victorian mansions, an ark, a fairytale palace, etc.

50 Best Websites 2009 - Time
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/completelist/0,29569,1918031,00.html. See Also the Top 100 Web Sites of 2009 selected by PC Magazine <http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2350553,00.asp>.
These should keep you busy discovering bike routes, already-taken user names, sheet music, tributes to the dear departed, awkward family photos, iPhone apps, and more.

100 Best Albums of the Decade - Rolling Stone
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/31248017/100_best_albums_of_the_decade/
"Chosen by more than 100 artists, critics and industry insiders." You can also click on their choice of the 100 best songs of the decade. Fodder for hours of pleasant arument - and it's always so much more fun to argue about music than politics.

2009 Year View Mirror: Books - Lists Galore
http://listsgalore.blogspot.com/2009/12/2009-year-view-mirror-books.html
There's something for everyone here - best cookbooks, young adult fiction, biographies, business books, crime books, airplane reads, best debut fiction, and more.

Best Photos - Nat Geo Global Contest Winners 2009
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/12/photogalleries/national-geographic-photo-contest-winners/index.html
There's some gorgeous stuff here - and if you really like one, you can turn it into wallpaper to decorate your computer.

New Laws Ring in the New Year - NCSL
http://www.ncsl.org/?tabid=19425
A sampling of some of the new state laws we'll be living with.

The Noughtie List: the 2000s in Review
http://kottke.org/plus/noughtie-list/
Indexes best lists on topics both popular and for specialized audiences: best TV Spots, Corporate Scoundrels and Scandals, graphic novels, beauty products, sneakers, magazine covers, etc.

Top 10 Discoveries of 2009 - Nat Geo News' Most Viewed
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/12/091202-top-ten-discoveries-2009-year-science-news.html
And you might also be interested in Nat Geo's Top 10 Space Finds of 2009, <http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/12/091204-top-ten-discoveries-2009-space-news.html>

Whoppers of 2009 - FactCheck.org
http://factcheck.org/2009/12/whoppers-of-2009/
FactCheck.org had a busy year of it in 2009, between widely circulated political misinformation and lies. Here's FactCheck's selection of the most heavily repeated during the year.

The Year in Media Errors and Corrections
http://www.regrettheerror.com/2009/12/16/crunks-2009-the-year-in-media-errors-and-corrections/
Regret the Error exists to report newspaper errors and corrections, but some that are especially egregious or hilarious win the not-so-coveted Crunks of the year award.

December 4

100 Blogs That Will Inspire You To Be a Better Person
http://www.massagetherapycareers.com/blog/2008/100-blogs-that-will-inspire-you-to-be-a-better-person/
Here's some fodder for your new year's resolutions.

Advice for Desperate Men
http://marylaine.com/myword/advice2.html
A column I wrote to help men who view buying gifts for women as a no-win proposition, because they're sure they will be written off as hopeless, whether they buy an unacceptable gift or no gift at all.

Bart's Blackboard
http://bartsblackboard.com/
Someone has done a great favor for those who regard the things Bart s forced to write on the blackboard as the high point of each Simpson's episode. Those lines are all preserved here. Some of my favorites: "I saw nothing unusual in the teacher's lounge," "I will not charge admission to the bathroom," "Goldfish don't bounce"...

Boing Boing Gift Guide 2009 - nonfiction
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/11/28/boing-boing-gift-gui-3.html
Boing Boing editors draw on their 2009 reviews to recommend their favorites. Part 4 of a 6 part series with links to the other parts (Kids, Media, Gadgets, Fiction, Comix and Art).

Christmas-carols.net
http://www.christmas-carols.net/
If you have to start humming the carols by the time you come to the third line, here are lyrics for many of the most popular carols and Christmas songs, with MIDI accompaniment.

Diets - MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diets.html
Many of our New Year's resolutions involve doing penance for the pounds we gained during our nonstop holiday eating, but not all diets are safe or effective. Check out MedlinePlus' guide to quality information on diets.

Finding the Laws That Govern Us - Google Scholar
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/finding-laws-that-govern-us.html
Google announces here that Google Scholar <http://scholar.google.com/> now includes full text legal opinions from U.S. federal and state district, appellate and supreme courts.

Inhabitat Green Gift Guide
http://greenholidaygiftguide.inhabitat.com/
Whether you yourself want to give green, or you're giving to people who think green, there are plenty of ecologically conscious gifts here, as well as ideas for making your own gifts and offering the gift of your time and thoughtfulness. Stuff for tots, new parents, gadget nerds, etc., at affordable prices.

National Association of Boards of Pharmacy
http://www.nabp.net/
Before you order your prescription drugs online, you might want to check to make sure the site you're buying from is a legitimate licensed pharmacy. Click on Internet Pharmacies, then on Buying Medicine Online, for guidance on which pharmacies meet ethical and medical standards and which are to be avoided.

Recycling and Safe Disposal of Electronics
http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/materials/ecycling/donate.htm
If there are new electronics under your Christmas tree, you might want to check here to find out how to recycle or dispose of the old ones safely.

Santa Claus Blog
http://www.clauschronicles.blogspot.com/
So, what do you suppose Santa is thinking about as his busy season starts up? Here are the musings (and twitter account) for someone who says he's Santa. Includes a 3 part installment on the origins of Santa Claus, and his thoughts on how to work around the commercialization of Christmas. You may want to share some of Santa's thoughts with your children.

Video Game Gift Guide - GameSpot
http://www.gamespot.com/video-game-gift-guide/index.html
Find out about "some of the most exciting games of 2009," arranged by platform and by the interests of your giftees - military buffs, armchair jocks, family and kids, music lovers, etc.

November 20

2009 Gift Guide - TreeHugger
http://www.treehugger.com/giftguide/
TreeHugger urges you to have a slow holiday, and recommends gifts that help people savor the moment. There are suggestions for people with a variety of interests: foodies, outdoors enthusiasts, green geeks, do-it-yourselfers, etc.

Best of What's New 2009 - Popular Science
http://www.popsci.com/bown/2009
The editors point to their favorite things to buy, or simply marvel at, in auto technology, gadgets, green tech, home entertainment, and more.

The Business Insider
http://www.businessinsider.com/
A 2009 Webby Honoree in the Blog - Business Category. In addition to its main page, it includes other business-related blogs like Clusterstock, The Green Sheet, and Law Review. Among the recent stories: "Americans Still Delusional About The Value Of Their Homes," "How To Blow Your Business School Interview," and, wonder of wonders, "Goldman's Blankfein Finally Says I'm Sorry" for destroying the world's economy.

Everyday Giving
http://www.everydaygiving.com/
New year's resolutions don't need to be hard. This site shows you how to "build a better world by doing everyday things." Check out its articles ("7 Unique Ways To Make Someone Smile," "Little Things Do Make a Difference," etc.), its suggestions for all the different ways you can give, and "9 Questions to Consider Before Volunteering."

Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index
http://www.well-beingindex.com/
Gallup interviews at least 1000 Americans every day, asking about their physical and emotional health, healthy behaviors, access to health care, and their sense of how their life is going, to track "what people [Americans] believe constitutes a good life." Each chart displays variations by month and compares to the previous year's data.

Holiday Meal Planning from the American Diabetes Association
http://www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/food/planning-meals/holiday-meal-planning/
With so many American adults and children afflicted with diabetes, there's a good chance someone you're cooking for has it, so this should come in handy. Also check out all the suggestions for a Diabetic Diet at MedlinePlus http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diabeticdiet.html>

How To Make a US County Thematic Map Using Free Tools
http://flowingdata.com/2009/11/12/how-to-make-a-us-county-thematic-map-using-free-tools/
This step by step guide shows you how to use free tools to map any US data by color across a United States map.

It Made My Day
http://itmademyday.com/
Reader-submitted reports of amusing and/or heartwarming incidents or comeuppances.

National Day of Listening
http://www.nationaldayoflistening.org/
Urges you to use the day after Thanksgiving as a time to get older people in your family or community to share their stories with you, record them, and make them part of the nation's oral history.

Reducing Risk Factors for Alzheimer's and Promoting Successful Aging
http://www.alzprevention.org/
The Alzheiner's Foundation offers guidance on prevention, lifestyle choices, early detection, and education about the disease.

Science Made Fun
http://www.youtube.com/sciencemadefun
This YouTube channel explores science through ice rinks, the famous drinking bird toy, pets gone wild, hot air balloons, sleep, sonic booms, and more.

Women Writers - BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/arts/features/womenwriters/index.shtml
Maya Angelou, Jamaica Kincaid, Bharati Mukherjee, and several other world-renowned women writers "talk about their writing and how their gender has influenced their works."

November 13

10 Clever Fixes for Your Broken Stuff - Lifehacker
http://lifehacker.com/5399043/top-10-clever-fixes-for-your-broken-stuff
Problems solved here include failing hard drives, wet cell phones, stripped screw holes, splinters too tiny for tweezers to remove, and more.

2009 Public Officials of the Year - Governing.com
http://www.governing.com/poy/2009
Once again, governing.com reminds us that government done well makes a difference in people's lives. Honorees include the man responsible for rebuilding Greenburg, Kansas after it was flattened by a tornado, a transportation official whose major highway rebuild was ahead of schedule, on budget, with minimal traffic disruptions, a mayor cleaning up blight in a declining industrial city, and a state auditor prosecuting massive corruption in her state.

2012: Six End of the World Myths Debunked
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/11/091106-2012-end-of-world-myths.html
Just in time for the release of the end-of-the-world movie 2012, National Geographic examines the truth behind the scary myths.

The Becker Collection: Drawings of the American Civil War Era
http://idesweb.bc.edu/becker/
Contains around 650 drawings by Joseph Becker and other artist-reporters for Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Weekly, including images of the Civil War, reconstruction, the Spanish-American War, and the Chicago fire. Also includes landscapes and political cartoons.

Cheap Family Vacation Ideas, Travel Tips, and Travel Deals
http://travelingmom.com/
TravelingMom.com aims to provide "stories, tips and expert advice to make your trips easier whether you are traveling with or without your kids." Contributors offer their takes on family vacation destinations, free tourist attractions in 50 states, travel deals, and travel solutions ("parents' weekend do's and don'ts," taking kids out of school for a family vacation, etc.).

FinancialStability.gov
http://financialstability.gov/
The Treasury Department's site to keep us informed about government efforts toward financial regulatory reform, consumer financial protection, making homes affordable, etc.

Hair Loss - MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/hairloss.html
Offers info on prevention, specific conditions, treatments, clinical trials, and more.

The Healthy Heart Handbook for Women
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/hhw/hdbk_wmn.pdf
One in four American women die of heart disease (including my mother and sister - I'm the first woman in my immediate family to live past 60). This handbook consolidates the latest research on risk factors, treatment, and prevention.

Holiday Shipping Deadlines for Christmas 2009
http://www.couponsherpa.com/online-coupons/holiday-shipping-deadlines/
CouponSherpa promises to keep adding to this list of over 100 retailers' "drop-dead holiday shipping deadlines for Christmas delivery." While you're at it, you might want to browse through CouponSherpa's guide to coupon offerings.

InsideHoops.com
http://insidehoops.com/
Shares news, views, and rumors for NBA, other pro leagues, college, high school, and fantasy basketball.

The Jobless Rate for People Like You - Interactive Graphic - NY Times
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/11/06/business/economy/unemployment-lines.html
Unemployment is not distributed evenly. Select any combination of demographic categories (ethnicity, gender, age, education level) to see how people like you are faring.

Science Blog - science news straight from the source
http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/index.php
Links to press releases on new findings from research organizations around the globe. Its archive is searchable.

November 6

101 Historical Moments You Can Relive on YouTube
http://www.onlinedegree.net/101-historical-moments-you-can-relive-on-youtube/
Events from both political and cp>ultural history, captured and stored on YouTube, including Pearl Harbor, the Oklahoma City bombing, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the 1929 stock market crash, Billie Jean King in the "Battle of the Sexes," the first MTV program, the O.J. Simpson trial, the 1960 presidential debate, Woodstock, and the space shuttle Columbia disaster.

Best Jobs in America: Top 50
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/2009/snapshots/1.html
Money chose these jobs based on pay scale, job growth, and quality of life. There are also Top 10 lists for specific factors like job security, flexibility, benefit to society, etc.

TheBioenergySite.com
http://www.thebioenergysite.com/
"devoted to the global bioenergy industry from a farming/agricultural perspective." Includes news, articles, market reports, regulatory information, and videos, searchable and browsable by subject, sector, and crop.

GovernmentAttic.org
http://www.governmentattic.org/
Anyone who distrusts government secrecy should have fun with this collection of "interesting Federal Government documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act." While some, like the list of brown bag talks for employees of the Fish and Wildlife Service, look so innocuous or boring that you can't imagine why they were kept secret, a lot of them look quite intriguing.

How-To Guide - 60 Great How To Sites and Resources
http://mashable.com/2009/02/18/how-to-guide/
Includes both everything-but-the-kitchen-sink directories, and specialized how-to's on business and careers, technology, productivity, and miscellaneous (how to photograph, eat sushi, go green, etc.), as well as a sampling of Mashable's own How-To guides.

Kaiser State Health Facts
http://www.statehealthfacts.org/index.jsp
State by state data on health costs, insurance coverage, Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, women's health, etc., plus the ability to compare state performance on any of these categories.

Mapping Main Street - a Collaborative Documentary Media Project
http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/
The goal of this project is to "document all of the more than 10,000 streets named Main in the United States. We invite you to capture the stories and images of the country today." So far, in the six months since the project debuted, they've garnered around 40 stories and songs about Main Streets all over the country. Check out the instructions for contributing your own Main Street to the project. (This would be a great project for librarians, who could draw on their local history collections and solicit photos from townspeople.)

Nature Podcast
http://www.nature.com/nature/podcast/
The weekly podcast highlighting content from the current issue of Nature includes interviews with the scientists behind the stories, and analysis from science journalists. You can download or read the transcript of archived podcasts, and subscribe to new ones through iTunes.

Random Kitten Generator
http://www.randomkittengenerator.com/
Every time I'm tempted to get a new kitten, who would disrupt the placid lives of my elderly cats, I get my kitten fix here instead.

Research Channel
http://researchchannel.org/
This site from "a consortium of leading research and academic institutions to share the valuable work of their researchers with the public" offers more than 3500 videos. The library is searchable and browsable by broad disciplinary categories, series or program titles, or the institution supplying the program.

RetirementRevised - Retirement planning, investing, and jobs
http://retirementrevised.com/
Journalist Mark Miller, who specializes in reporting on retirement and aging, uses this site to post information on how the crash of our economy is affecting the retirement plans of older Americans. Includes guides to retiremement planning, jobs, benefits, and investing.

Vitamins: MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vitamins.html
Given the recent news stories about widespread vitamin D deficiency, this might be a good time to find out more about how vitamins make our bodies function properly. As always, MedlinePlus is a good place to find consumer-friendly, authoritative scientific information - overviews, info on specific conditions, info targeted to children, teens, women, and seniors, and more.

October 30

8th Day Cafe - Vegan and Vegetarian Recipes
http://www.eighth-day.co.uk/recipes.htm
This Manchester cafe is well-known for making tasty vegan fare. The recipes, served with several ounces of droll British humor, show you how to prepare your own vegan versions of Mulligatawny, kebabs, goulash, pancakes, pizzas, and more.

15 Podcasts that Will Make You Smarter
http://www.collegecrunch.org/entertainment/15-podcasts-that-will-make-you-smarter/
Annotated links to series from NPR, the BBC, TED talks, and programs about science, economics, and political issues.

Ask Henson Archives
http://web.archive.org/web/20001003125242/www.henson.com/ask/ask_archives_body.html
Fans of Muppets, Fraggles, Sesame Street, The Storyteller, and the magical Jim Henson movies (The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth) will find answers here to all kinds of questions about the characters, techniques, puppeteers, etc.

Child Psychology Research Blog
http://www.child-psych.org/
"A research-based informational blog on child development, parenting, and child psychology." Recent posts comment on research on ADHD, bullying, sleep problems, vaccination, etc.

Halloween 2009: Top Costumes, History, Myths, and More
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/10/091028-halloween-facts-costumes-history.html
Where do our pumpkins come from? How many potential trick-or-treaters are there? National Geographic offers these and other tidbits of information about the holiday.

How to Clean Stuff
http://www.howtocleanstuff.net/
Tips on cleaning pretty much anything: old photos, a Blackberry screen, cats, spas, etc., and even smashed candy (which could be useful to know come November 1.

Knowledge Score - General Knowledge Quiz Game
http://www.knowledgescore.com/
Allows you to test your knowledge in a variety of subjects: chemistry, history, movies, politics, etc. You're scored on both correctness and how quickly you come up with the answers. You might want to protect your self-esteem by doing these in private the first time around.

Sleep Disorders - MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/sleepdisorders.html
As always, MedlinePlus points you to authoritative medical information about virtually every sleep problem. It includes info about specific disorders, treatments, videos, journal articles, and info about sleep problems in men, women, teens, seniors, and children.

Starting a Business? Government Can Help
http://blog.usa.gov/roller/govgab/entry/starting_a_business_government_can
The GovGab bloggers give a nice round-up here of links to all the free government resources and financial assistance for would-be entrepreneurs.

Test Tube: Behind the Scenes in the World of Science
http://www.test-tube.org.uk/
"an award-winning website following the highs and lows of life as a scientist. Each week we feature new videos, showing the reality of life in the lab, from the joys of discovery to the disappointment of funding rejection." It's a wonderfully useful site for students wondering how the life of a practicing scientist would suit them.

Walk Score
http://www.walkscore.com/
I've mentioned Walk Score before, but it's recently made some improvements. Now, in addition to showing you how close the address you type in is to various kinds of services and retail establishments, it also shows you a current valuation on that property and how it compares for walkability to the entire community's walk score. You can also check out their rankings for America's most walkable neighborhoods.

World Monuments Fund
http://www.wmf.org/
Working with local communities, governments, and funding agencies, WMF applies "proven techniques to preserve important architectural and cultural heritage sites around the globe." One technique is publicizing each year's Watch List of the world's most endangered cultural heritage sites.

October 23

BBC Wildlife Finder
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wildlifefinder/
"Watch the most amazing animals in the world." Hundreds of videos and audio clips on individual species, as well as on habitats, ecozones, and adaptations.

Career Advice and Guide for Job Searches - US News Business
http://www.usnews.com/money/careers/
US News has long specialized in rankings, and there are plenty of them here: America's best careers, best employers for older workers, and America's best places to find a job. Also includes lots of advice (10 things to do when you're unemployed, how to survive when you hate your jobs, etc.).

Child Care Resource Center
http://www.ccrcla.org/home/index.asp
A resource for both parents and child care providers, this site includes links to a database of licensed child care providers, financial assistance for child care, a learning and lending library, and training resources for child care providers.

DatabaseFootball.com
http://www.databasefootball.com/
Fans and fantasy football league managers will revel in the wealth of data here: current and historical NFL statistics, awards, player info, records, draft data, and more.

Fall Maintenance Tips for Your Home
http://www.statefarm.com/learning/be_safe/home/seasonal/fall.asp
Even in mild climates, you'll need to spend some quality time with gutters, chimneys, windows, furnaces, etc. to protect your home from weather damage and keep your family safe. Here's one useful checklist.

NeighborGoods
http://neighborgoods.net/
Why should a neighborhood with 16 houses have 16 lawnmowers, 16 snowblowers, etc., when with a website like this they can share and schedule the use of each other's equipment? So far this site is available only for southern California, but people elsewhere may want to imitate this idea.

New Geography
http://www.newgeography.com/
"Economic, demographic and political commentary about places." The articles and blog are searchable and browsable by categories Economics, Politics, Urban Issues, Small Cities, Demographics, Suburbs, Housing, and Best Cities Ranking(s).

NPR: National Public Radio
http://www.npr.org/
Radio programs are fleeting, but its archives, happily, are not. NPR offers news, opinion, concerts, reviews, interviews, blogs, and podcasts of their programs (available an hour after the program airs).

Public Data Sets on Amazon Web Services
http://aws.amazon.com/publicdatasets/
Amazon provides not only a centralized repository of several immense public data sets, but also tools that allow researchers to analyze the data and collaborate in their use. Datasets include Daily Global Weather Measurements, 1929-2009, census data for 1980, 1990, 2000, Ensembl Annotated Human Genome Data, the PubChem Library, and lots more.

Recipezaar
http://www.recipezaar.com/
A cooking, baking community that has contributed over 384,000 recipes to the database. Searchable, and browsable by recipes, cookbooks, and menus (romantic dinners, brunch, kid pleaser meals, etc.). Check out the currently featured Halloween Sweets and Treats.

SciDevNet
http://scidev.net/en/
"News, views and information about science, technology and the developing world."

The Science of Cute
http://www.wimp.com/cutescience/
This video illustrates the current scientific thought on why baby animals and particular species and behaviors are universally awwwww-inspiring.

October 16

5 Ways Google Can Save You Money
http://moneyfeatures.blogs.money.cnn.com/2009/09/24/five-ways-google-can-save-you-money/
Check out these Google features you may not have known about, including free voice/video chat anywhere in the world via a gmail account

America's Smartest Cities
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-10-04/americas-smartest-cities---from-first-to-worst/
The Daily Beast analyzed the 55 largest American metropolitan statistical areas. Their measures for "smartness" were: percentage of the population with bachelor's and postgraduate degrees, nonfiction book sales, number of institutions of higher education, and percentage of eligible voters who actually vote. (I wonder why they didn't they measure public library circulation.)

Archives Month and Archives Week Activities - Council of State Archivists
http://www.statearchivists.org/archivesmonth/AAM-directory.htm
Do you have any idea what a wealth of history - documents photos, recordings, films, posters, etc. - is available in state archives? October, known to archivists as Archives Month, is a good time to check out what the state archives linked here have made available on the internet.

Basketball Reference
http://www.basketball-reference.com/
Here's a useful site for anybody who's gearing up to spend the next 6 months watching professional basketball. It's got current and historical player and team statistics, coaches' records, and data on playoffs, all-star games, awards, drafts, the WNBA, and the D-League.

Behind the Headlines: Your guide to the science that makes the news
http://www.nhs.uk/news/Pages/NewsIndex.aspx
The United Kingdom's National Health Service provides "an unbiased and evidence-based analysis of health stories that make the news," which is important because the headlines, and the news stories themselves, are misleading, and leave out key information and qualifiers. To see what bad health news reporting looks like, take a look at this case study I wrote, "The Devil Is in the Details (and the Details Are in the 6th Paragraph)" <http://marylaine.com/exlibris/xlib273.html>.

Book of Odds - the Odds of Everyday Life
http://www.bookofodds.com/
Uses US statistical data to predict the odds on practically everything: your chances of cheating or being cheated on, owning a pair of high heels, being the victim of a firearms accident, owning a clothes dryer, living to 88 years or longer, etc.

Flu Myths and Realities
http://www.flu.gov/myths/index.html
A lot of people, including health professionals, are reluctant to get vaccinated for seasonal flu and/or H1N1 because of widely circulated rumors. Here's what the Centers for Disease Control has to say about those charges.

Gender Law Library
http://www.doingbusiness.org/elibrarydata/elibrary.aspx?libID=1
This "collection of national legal provisions impacting women's economic status in 183 economies," available in multiple languages, allows you to discover and compare women's legal rights and or restrictions on them, from country to country, by categories like marriage and divorce, child care, work-hour limits, equal pay, citizenship, etc.

The GOOD 100 or so
http://awesome.good.is/good100/good100.html
Good Magazine's "collection of the most important, exciting, and innovative people, ideas, and projects making our world better." You don't have to agree with all of them for this to cheer up your view of the human race.

Gun Safety - MedlinePlus
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/gunsafety.html
If you have both children and there are guns in your house or the houses of friends or relatives, you might want to check out the National Library of Medicine's suggestions for protecting the kids from firearm injuries.

National Association of Free Clinics
http://freeclinics.us/
People with medical needs and no insurance are flocking to these free clinics whenever and wherever volunteer medical personnel set up shop to take on all comers. This site helps you find a free clinic that might be coming to your area, and allows you to donate to the cause.

United States Conference of Mayors
http://usmayors.org/
While national leaders may not see problems like homelessness and unemployment as urgent, the damage they cause to lives and property is inescapable in cities, and mayors have no choice but to try to solve them. That's why this web site's repository of reports and best practices is an unusually practical policy resource. (The search engine would be more useful if it put recent material at the top of the results, though.)

October 9

30 Dumb Inventions - Photo Gallery - Life Magazine
http://www.life.com/image/3270485/in-gallery/25371/30-dumb-inventions
An entertaining look at dumb (and even horrifying) ideas, including the curved barrel shotgun, baby cage, motorized surfboard, yodel meter, birdman flying suit, etc.

30 Resources to Find the Data You Need
http://flowingdata.com/2009/10/01/30-resources-to-find-the-data-you-need/
Links to significant data resources, some comprehensive, and some that are specific to government and politics, geographic data, sports, and more.

Archival Sound Recordings - British Library
http://sounds.bl.uk/
Makes available thousands of the British Library's extensive recordings of music, spoken word, and natural sounds. Search or browse by categories: accents, arts, classical music, environment, jazz, oral history, sound recording history, and world music. Users from license-holding institutions have full access to all recordings, but many of them are freely available to the general public.

Distracted Driving - Consumer Reports Cars Blog
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/cars/distracted-driving/index.html?EXTKEY=I91ECON&CMP=OTC-ConsumeristLinks
The Consumer Reports Car Blog provides an overview of recent Distracted Driving Summit, and links to related posts they've done on the issue. I assume that eventually we'll be able to find the proceedings of the summit on its web page, <http://www.rita.dot.gov/distracted_driving_summit/>

EatingWell
http://www.eatingwell.com/
If you want to improve your family's nutrition, this is a pretty good place to start, with its healthy recipes, tips on healthy foods and cooking, and nutrition and health. It also provides food news, a menu planner, blogs, and videos. Among the topics addressed here are healthy AND tasty school lunches, cooking for two, recipes under $3, delicious low-cal dinners, game-day recipes, healthy makeovers of favorite splurge foods, etc.

EconomPic Data
http://econompicdata.blogspot.com/
Uses charts to help people make sense of economic news and ideas. Recent posts include a breakdown of the economic performance of the 30 companies making up the Dow-Jones Industrial Average, stabilization of home prices, the returns of treasury bonds versus high yield bonds, consumer confidence trends, etc.

Injury Prevention - Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh
http://www.chp.edu/CHP/besafe
Offers a downloadable Home Safety Handbook, and advice on potential hazards in your home and yard, preventing falls, fire safety, etc. With Halloween approaching, check out the safety pointers for little trick-or-treaters.

Kaiser Health News
http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/
More accurately, this is health policy news, covered by the top organization in the country for creating and gathering objective information and statistics on health issues. You can browse specifically for news on health reform, Medicare, Medicaid, health costs, aging, health I.T., quality, etc.

Money and Main Street: Money's Two Cents
http://moneyfeatures.blogs.money.cnn.com/category/moneys-two-cents/
This blog from Money Magazine is full of intriguing bits of economic news, data, and possible indicators of the state of the economy (the Hot Waitress index, the Underwear Index, etc.)

National Criminal Justice Reference Service
http://www.ncjrs.gov/index.html
A guide to official government statistics and information on a wide variety of crime and criminal justice policy topics (and not just the big ones - topics include bullying, date rape, DUI, missing children, hate crimes, etc.).

Organized Home
http://organizedhome.com/
Devoted to helping you organize your home and your home maintenance chores. It currently features a Fall Cleaning Chore Checklist, a Christmas planner, "Declutter 101," a freezer cooking guide, "speed clean tips from cleaning pros," and lots more.

Park Histories - National Park Service
http://www.nps.gov/history/history/park_histories/
If the Ken Burns PBS series on the national parks whetted your curiosity, here's where you can find out lots more about when and how each park came to exist.

October 2, 2009

2009 Green Rankings for US Companies - Newsweek
http://greenrankings.newsweek.com/
This should interest anyone who'd like to work for or invest in green companies.

Banned Books Week: Interactive Map of Book Challenges, 2007-2009
http://bannedbooksweek.org/Mapofbookcensorship.html
A little late for Banned Books Week, but the subject should be of interest any time of year. As for which books are targeted, see Books Challenged or Banned in 2007-2008 <http://www.ila.org/pdf/2008banned.pdf>. Also of interest: the Kids' Right To Read Project, <http://www.ncac.org/images/ncacimages/KR2R%202009(1).pdf>.

Bullying Prevention Awareness Week October 4-10, 2009
http://www.pacer.org/bullying/bpaw/index.asp
"free web sites, downloadable activities and helpful information for teachers, administrators, parents and community organizations to engage and educate children about bullying prevention."

Futurity
http://futurity.org/
"An online news source featuring the latest discoveries in science, engineering, the environment, health, and more from North America's leading research universities." Searchable and broswable by Earth & Environment, Health & Medicine, Science & Design, and Society & Culture. Among recent posts: "Largest quakes weaken fault zones worldwide," "Tai Chi lowers glucose, helps control diabetes," "Brain may crave fast food fix," "Putting social media to work in a crisis," "Software speeds hunt for cancer triggers," etc.

Get Rich Slowly - Personal Finance That Makes Cents
http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/
Money Magazine calls this "the most inspiring money blog." The author says he's an average guy who got in a financial mess, then read and studied his way back to solvency; from there, he went on to "getting rich slowly." Recent topics include fixing a rotten resume, free e-books on personal finance, spicing up your emergency fund, and money “carnivals”that collect the best articles on one financial topic from a variety of sites.

Golden Gems
http://goldengems.blogspot.com/
"A collection of little golden books and other vintage & modern illustrations meant to inspire and delight."

Manipulating the Public Agenda
http://departments.oxy.edu/uepi/acornstudy/
If you've wondered what the deal is about ACORN, you might be interested in this academic study of ACORN, the political campaign against it, and the failures of the press in objective reporting on the issue.

Museum of Animal Perspectives
http://www.sameasterson.com/map
gathers videos from inside animal nests, cameras carried by animals, camera traps, and remote vehicles.

Not Invented Here, by Bill Barnes and Paul Southworth
http://notinventedhe.re/
Fans of Unshelved <http://www.unshelved.com/>, the comic strip set in a public library, will recognize Bill Barnes as the artist half of the duo that created it. His new comic strip centers on life in the software business (which he used to work in).

Off the Page: A Historical Collection of Live Poetry Recordings
http://poetry.eprints.org/
Here's your chance to understand what poetry really is: not just words on a printed page but words chosen as carefully for their sound as for their meaning.

SciTopics
http://scitopics.com/
Free "distilled, authoritative and up-to-date information for researchers on scientific, technical and medical topics," courtesy of science publisher Elsevier.

Stay Warm, Save Money: Financial Assistance for Energy-Saving Improvements
http://www.energysavers.gov/seasonal/financial_assistance.html
When even southerners have started pulling electric blankets out of storage, it's time to start thinking about improving both our heating systems and their expense. Fortunately, help is available here.


Older Backfile