July 2011
73 posts
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Encourage Kids to Read This Summer
The U.S. Department of Education launched their annual summer campaign, Let’s Read, Let’s Move. The campaign encourages children to participate in summer reading programs and parents to read to their children more often.
Through summer reading, kids may discover a favorite author that sparks a lifelong love of reading. Summer reading can also prevent learning loss and help prepare a child for the...
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Help To Improve Your Credit Score →
If your credit score needs work, use these resources from the Federal Trade Commission to start getting things back on track
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How to Contact Your Elected Officials →
Find contact information for your U.S. Senator, your Representative in the U.S. House, the President, and more government officials.
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Check Your State's Sales Tax Holiday →
Some states offer a sales tax holiday when you can save on clothing, school supplies, and more. Check your state to see when yours is.
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What's In Common Dietary Supplements?
By the Specialized Information Services Division of the National Library of Medicine
If you’ve ever wondered what’s in a certain dietary supplement, like over-the-counter vitamins and minerals, or if a certain product is safe for you to take, the Dietary Supplements Labels Database can help you find the answers.
The database has information about the ingredients in several thousand selected...
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How to Make a Budget →
Struggling with debt? Here are guidelines for making a budget and resources for extra help in managing finances.
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Keep Track of Your Preventative Care with this...
These days we have checklists for just about everything. Have you considered one for preventive care services to help you and your family stay healthy?
Take this checklist to your doctor to find out what preventive services are right for you. It spells out the Medicare covered preventive services and helps you keep track of when you received a particular test, screening, or service, as well as...
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Know the Symptoms of Dehydration →
Dehydration is easy to overlook until it gets dangerous. This summer drink lots of water and know the symptoms.
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Keep Food Safe in Summer Power Outages
The summer months are fraught with risk for power outages, with air conditioning gorging on electricity and hurricanes brewing in the Atlantic. So how do you keep it from spoiling when the power dies, know what foods you can safely eat, and which you must throw out?
Hard cheeses, such as Cheddar and Swiss, can be eaten well after the refrigerator loses its cold; but low-fat and shredded cheeses,...
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Protect Yourself from Caller ID Spoofing
Caller ID has been around for years, and now with cell phones, everyone can see who is calling before they pick up.
Recently, a new type of scamming has developed – caller ID spoofing - allowing telemarketers and scammers to mask their number as a number you trust, such as the police department. The person on the line will ask you for a donation or tell you that you have an overdue bill you must...
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Use Post Office Services on Your Mobile Phone →
The Unites States Postal Service now offers new ways to access its tools while on the go. With a new mobile friendly website and apps for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Andriod devices, you can find the nearest post office, look up zip codes and track your packages.
Search “USPS Mobile” in your app store to easily find the application for your device.
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Stay Active Outside This Summer
First Lady Michelle Obama works with chefs and students in the White House Kitchen Garden during the “Let’s Move!” chefs event.
According to statistics, approximately 1/3 of American children are overweight or obese. First Lady Michelle Obama started the Let’s Move campaign to solve the challenge of childhood obesity and encourage healthy and active lifestyles. Let’s Move is...
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How to Protect Your Home In Case of Wildfires →
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WatchVideo description: Space shuttle Atlantis lands for the final time at Kennedy Space Center.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT:
ANNOUNCER: The pre-flare maneuver executed. Landing gear down and locked. Main gear touchdown. Now deploying drag chute. Ferguson rotating the nose gear down to the deck. Nose gear touchdown.
Having fired the imagination of a generation, a ship like no other, its place in history...
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Finding A Job in This Tough Market
The Department of Labor announced the unemployment rate had edged up to 9.2 percent in June, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that it takes about 10 weeks to find work (PDF).
While those numbers might be disheartening, there is help if you’re looking for a job.
The Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration has online tools and resources to help find you find the...
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Watch the Space Shuttle's Final Landing →
Space shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to land just before 6 a.m. today. Watch the shuttle’s final landing live.
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The Anniversary of the First Women's Rights...
Elizabeth Cady Stanton presented the Declaration of Sentiments, a document modeled after the Declaration of Independence that called for moral, economic, and political equality for women, at the Seneca Falls Convention on July 19 and 20, 1848. An estimated three hundred women and men attended the Convention, including Lucretia Mott and Frederick Douglass.
All of the resolutions within the...
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Watch Restored Footage of the First Moon Walk →
42 years ago today, two Americans became the first humans to walk on the moon. Watch restored video of their feat.
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What is the Debt Limit?
The federal government can borrow money to pay its bills, just like taking out a loan. The debt limit is the maximum amount that Congress allows the government to borrow, similar to the credit limit on a credit card. The government will exceed the current debt limit of $14.3 trillion dollars on August 2 unless Congress votes to raise the limit before that date.
Raising the debt limit would let...
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Is a Passport Card Right For You? →
If you’re traveling over land or sea this summer, a Passport Card might be right for you. Read the FAQs to find out more.
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What's a Lumen? Understanding New Light Bulb...
By the Federal Trade Commission
Quick Quiz:
What’s a lumen?
What’s the Lighting Facts label?
Why will either of them matter when I shop for light bulbs?
Not sure? Watch a new video from the Federal Trade Commission to be illuminated. You’ll learn how lumens and the FTC’s Lighting Facts label can help you compare different bulbs when you shop.
Newer light bulbs — like halogen incandescents,...
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Census Announces New Center of U.S. Population
Image description: This Census map shows the new center of the U.S. population, based on 2010 census data.
The new center of the U.S. population is Plato, Missouri, according to 2010 census data. With each new census, a new center of the U.S. population emerges. Over the years, it has continually moved west, as the population moved off the east coast. For the first census, in 1790, the center of...
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“On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate...”
– Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on celebrating the first Nelson Mandela International Day.
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Cancer Prevention Starts in Childhood
From the CDC’s Division of Cancer Prevention and Control
Reduce your children’s risk of getting many types of cancer later in life. Start by helping them adopt a healthy lifestyle with good eating habits and plenty of exercise to keep a healthy weight. Then follow the tips below to help prevent specific types of cancer.
Sun Safety
A few serious sunburns can increase your child’s risk...
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Earthquakes can happen at any time. Report an... →
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WatchVideo description: This video shows our Sun over several weeks during a period of highly unusual solar activity. It is comprised of images taken by a device called the Solar X-Ray Imager (SXI), which is aboard one of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association’s (NOAA) weather satellites. NOAA monitors the Sun with the SXI in order to predict when solar flares may cause dangerous...
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What You Need to Know Before Buying a Timeshare
Rather than booking a hotel room, some vacationers plan their destination based on the location of their timeshare. A timeshare is a unit in a vacation property that you purchase the right to use each year.
Each year, you pay for the right to use the timeshare, regardless of whether or not you take a vacation.
Depending on your contract, you may own the timeshare for a specified number of years...
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Find the latest recalls, or search for a specific... →
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Stay Safe in Extreme Heat
Image description: This map shows the areas of the country currently experiencing extreme heat.
Large parts of the United States are currently experiencing dangerous levels of heat and humidity. Heat causes more fatalities per year than floods, lightning, tornadoes, and hurricanes combined. Here’s how to stay safe in the heat this summer:
Go to locations with air conditioning, such as public...
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Learn about Lyme disease and how to prevent it. →
Most cases of Lyme disease occur in the spring and summer. Learn more about how to prevent it.
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Industrial Designers Honored with New Stamps
The 12 new Forever stamps pay tribute to industrial designers that revolutionized American life in the 20th century.
Twelve industrial designers have been honored by the United States Postal Service with a new set of Forever stamps. The Pioneers of American Industrial Design stamp pane features some of the nation’s most significant industrial designers from the past century. The work of these...
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Find Out How Long It Will Take to Pay Off Your... →
If you’re only making minimum payments on a credit card, find out how long it will take and what it will cost to pay it off.
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White House Hosting Live Chat This Afternoon
The White House invites you to participate in a live chat about improving government websites today at 4pm EDT.
There are currently more than 2,000 federal government websites. While many of these provide valuable services and information, the volume of government websites can make make it difficult to find authoritative, official information.
In an effort to reduce wasteful spending, government...
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Thinking about expanding your family through... →
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Canning Tips for Beginners
Home canning lets you preserve the summer fruits and vegetables you grew in your garden or bought at the farmers market. The National Center for Home Food Preservation offers these tips for beginners:
Choose proper ingredients including unblemished produce that’s not overly ripe. When recipes call for salt, use only canning and pickling salts.
Use jars and lids specifically designed for...
