One for movie buffs...  if you can't wait to see which films get Academy recognition this Sunday night, you can see recaps of all the Oscar movies in one handy location, plus find out where you can see them online or offline, at Roger Ebert's movie site.  Also - through the site, you can check out the new "Watch It" app that allows you to add movies to your various queues and be alerted when a movie you're waiting for gets added to one of the services you use.

http://gowatchit.com/channels/roger-eberts-guide-to-watching-the-oscar-films

http://gowatchit.com/

We're pretty sure you've already heard about Angry Birds coming to Facebook - but maybe you didn't realize that through the end of TODAY ONLY - you can get extra power ups when you play.  Not a holiday for productivity, certainly...  but fun nonetheless!  Check out Angry Birds on Facebook if you dare - here's an article with more:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2101007/Angry-Birds-hits-Facebook-A-black-day-office-productivity.html

If you're a fan of our "Flashback" tunes, you'll love this...  it's a musical time machine - choose the year and you'll link to 20 of the top hits from that year.  A fun way to go back in time! (Thanks, Bob, for sending me here!)

http://upchucky.org/TimeMachine.htm

Today's highlight site has become a bit of an obsession with me...  Have you discovered Pinterest yet?  It's the hottest new social networking site of 2012.  Basically, it's a virtual pinboard that helps you organize projects, ideas, or your favorite things found while surfing the internet.  You'll get inspiration from others, too, as you check out their favorite things!  So much fun - make sure you allow plenty of time for your first visit!

http://pinterest.com/

So how about those commercials??

In the end, they were the only thing making Patriots fans smile last night...  well, most of 'em anyway...

If you missed any while you had your head in your lap weeping, see them now here:

http://www.superbowl-commercials.org/

The annual Doodle 4 Google contest is on!

Your student, grade K-12, is invited to use his or her artistic talent to redesign Google's homepage logo.  The theme this year - "If I could travel in time, I'd..."

The winner's artwork will not only appear on Google's homepage on May 18th, it'll also adorn a limited edition Crayola 64 crayon box!

Deadline for submission is March 23.  Good luck!

http://Doodle4Google.com

Get PAID to watch TV??  Sound like a dream come true?  No dream - it's a reality now, with Viggle!

It's an app for the iPhone and iPad that "listens" to what you're watching - and issues credits - about 2 per every minute watched.  Rack up 7,500 points and you could win a $5 gift card to a popular retailer, like Starbucks or CVS.  There are ways to score bonus points, too.

Get started and download the app here:

http://viggle.com/

Amatuer filmmakers - this is an opportunity to have your short film screened by Ridley Scott's production company, and enetered into the running for a $500,000 grant from YouTube to produce a piece of work with Scott Free Productions, the company Ridley and his brother Tony run.  Beginning a week from today, YouTube's "Your Film Festival" channel will begin accepting submissions of films up to 15 minutes in length.  10 finalists will win the chance to attend the Venice Film Festival - one will be chosen for the Grand Prize grant.

http://www.YouTube.com/YourFilmFestival

Film buffs - see the 25 films that have been added to the Library Of Congress's National Film Registry for 2011.  This brings the total archive to 575 films - over 2,200 were nominated from the past year.  The intent is to preserve movies  that have significant social, cultural, or historic impact - check out the full list and the new additions here:

http://www.loc.gov/film

I am not kidding about this.  It's real (and thank to our friends at Dial Global for the heads - or bottoms - up!)

Ozzy Osbourne is teaming up with CBS for a contest in which the winner gets a trip to New York City to get a colonoscopy. Osbourne’s wife, Sharon, says her life was saved by a colonoscopy that Ozzy urged her to get. The winner of the CBS Cares Colonoscopy Sweepstakes will get a trip for two to New York City, including a hotel for three nights overlooking Central Park and a colon screening with a colon cancer expert from New York-Presbyterian Hospital. The winner will be selected by random drawing in early April - and will hereafter be able to claim "Hey - I got a colonoscopy from Ozzy Osbourne!" Details and rules can be found here:

http://www.CBSCares.tv

I thought this would be a good one with Wayne White in the chair, because I know he enjoys a trip down memory lane as much as I do…  If you’re trying to remember the words to the theme song from your favorite TV show – just go to TelevisionTunes.com, and you can listen to it in all its glory.  There are over 20,000 TV shows to choose from – and you have the option to download them to your cellphone as ringtones.  Warning – get ready to waste a little time here!

http://www.TelevisionTunes.com

The automotive students at Cape Cod Regional Technical High School need your help - they're in the running for $25,000 from the UTI Foundation to improve their shop, and right now they're among the top 8 contenders in this national video contest. Check out their very clever video - and cast your vote today!!

https://apps.facebook.com/drivetosucceed/index2.php

If you're a fan of Groupon and Living Social, this may have some appeal for you - Yipit collects deals from more than 800 different services and filters them through preferences that YOU set - giving you the best of the best deals in your selected region (or nationally, if you choose.) 

http://www.Yipit.com

If you wear glasses, you may want to take some time to check out the frames at Warby Parker -  they design their own glasses and you pay only $95, including prescription lenses made of polycarbonate plastic.

Nervous about ordering glasses without being able to try them on first?  The site uses facial recognition technology so you can upload a photo of yourself and try on their styles virtually - there's also an option to have 5 pairs mailed to you so you can try them out for 5 days before you make your final selection!

A great option for those who wince at the prospect of shelling out $300+ for a pair of designer glasses.

http://www.warbyparker.com/
 

Local astronaut Dan Burbank is in space as we speak - he's on a 6-month assignment to the International Space Station to do some maintenance and conduct a variety of experiments.  On January 20th, he's hosting a Q&A session about life in space, and the session will be broadcast on NASA's youTube channel.  If you'd like to upload a question for him, click the link below for more - your uploaded videos have to be fewer than 30 seconds long.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2zoqq4_Uh4&list=PLD41452325838884C&index=1&feature=plpp_video

If you'd like to follow Commander Burbank on Twitter, by the way, visit

http://twitter.com/AstroCoastie.

Dedicated  to your health, your fitness, your happiness - you'll love the tips you find at Greatist.com.  Become a subscriber to their free daily tips  - you're bound to learn something new!

http://www.greatist.com/
 

Ever wonder what Santa's reindeer do AFTER Christmas?  Keep an eye on them at ReindeerCam.com, and if you're lucky, you'll catch them being fed and possibly read to by Santa himself at 10AM and 5 PM!

http://reindeercam.com/

OK, so you're wondering how to make these last two work days before the Christmas weekend pass by more quickly so you can get to the Yuletide cheer?  Here you go...

http://www.jokesunlimited.com/christmas_elf_name.php

Make sure you post signs at all your co-workers' desks...  they'll love you for it.

You're welcome.  Love, Snappy Bing-A-Ling  ;)

I have to give the credit to my buddy Jill for this one. Jill isn't a parent - but has lots of kids in her life.  She discovered this site and has been singing from the rooftops about it ever since!  It's a great forum BY parents FOR parents (or those involved with kids) containing some great solutions to everyday problems.  You can seek advice, comment on the "hacks," or submit one that's worked for your family at ParentHacks.com - make sure to go through the archives, and read the comments below each hack; they often contain tips just as good as the one being commented on!

http://www.parenthacks.com/

For a weekly glimpse of the articles and images people have been talking about, check out the Twisted Sifter - some great pop culture browsing - and if you click on Best Of the Sifter, make sure to check out the 20 Clever Logos with Hidden Symbolism!

http://twistedsifter.com/

A couple of holiday themed websites this morning, just for fun...

Are you into the ugly Christmas sweater craze?  Apparently it's become increasingly popular to wear the ugliest possible holiday apparel to your family or office gathering - and a stay-at-home Mom decided to capitalize on the trend by offering the worst of the worst for you to buy at My Ugly Christmas Sweater.  Buy one for yourself, for a family member, for a colleague... or just browse through 'em and shake your head.

http://www.myuglychristmassweater.com/

This next site, though, is one on which I plan to do some serious shopping - not only now but throughout the year.  For that hard-to-buy-for literate type on your list, you're sure to find something that will suit at The Unemployed Philosophers Guild (their motto:  "The unexamined gift is not worth giving.")  There are some truly unique items here aimed at the thinker in your life - things like Albert Einstein finger puppets,  a "Here's Looking at Eu-Clid" T-shirt (for the geometry lover!!), the ever-popular Shakespearean Insult Coffee Mug, and maybe my favorite item, the Salvador Dali wristwatch - his 'stache twirls to keep the time!  Cool, cool, cool.

http://www.philosophersguild.com/home.php

Do your kids tire of toys after they've played with them for just a few weeks?  This site proposes an innovative solution - why not RENT your kids' toys - Netflix style - and send 'em back for new ones once every couple of months?  Toygaroo sterilizes the toys between rent stints, and your monthly subscription covers all the shipping charges.  And if your kid truly falls in love with a toy, you can purchase it at a discount. 

http://www.toygaroo.com/guest/xmas_welcome

I have 2 for you today - both for aimed at those looking to expand their knowledge in math & science!

First of all, if you want to learn more about topics from calculus to history to physics, you can access more than 2,700 video lectures and over 200 practice exercises at the online Khan Academy.  It's a not-for-profit site that aims to provide some free knowledge to anyone anywhere.  Great stuff for students, home schoolers, adults who have gone back to school, or just the curious.

http://www.khanacademy.org/

Then - scientists at Woods Hole and The Sea Mammal Research Unit in Scotland are looking for some help from some "citizen scientists" - so Scientific American has teamed up with the Citizen Science Alliance for The Whale Song Project, also known as WhaleFM.  Basically they're asking you to listen to a whale song file, and match it to one from an existing database - it'll help them, hopefully and eventually, learn what's being communicated once they analyze all the gathered data.

Find out more here:

http://whale.fm/

Ok - let's talk Christmas lights!!  Here are 3 sites that will either inspire you or distress you... 

First - AOL online presents last year's best of the best from around the country.  Truly impressive.

http://news.travel.aol.com/2010/11/22/10-best-christmas-light-displays-in-the-us/

I found some of these displays (the ones that had pictures included) pretty cool, too.  Why search out California displays?  Well, considering the lack of winter weather, they have to get pretty creative to establish a holiday feel!

http://lightsofthevalley.com/

And finally - for a good laugh - check these out.  (Christmas Elephant, anyone?!)

http://uglychristmaslights.com/

Happy Cyber Monday!  If you're doing any shopping online today, you're sure to find some great bargains.  But deciding WHAT to buy?  That's where this site may come in handy...

Give 'Em This is a personalized gift engine that uses information your friends have made public on Facebook and other social media sites to recommend gifts they'd be likely to enjoy.

If that sounds a bit invasive, the site offers assurance that they ONLY use public information, they don't post to your wall or your friend's, and that you can disconnect from them at any time. 

http://www.giveemthis.com/

You're going to have the camera fired up at full speed from this point on in the season - so here's a site that'll help you make the most of all those family photos you're about to take. 

Picnik is an online photo editor that gives you photo editing superpowers! It’s fast, easy, offers tons of powerful tools, artistic effects, stickers, frames, touch-ups, scrapbooking tools and more - AND - it's all FREE!! There is a Premium service available, too, that offers more tools, advanced effects, seasonal content all year long and more. 

http://www.picnik.com/

I don't want to be a nag, really - but it IS the American Cancer Society's 36th Annual Great American Smokeout.  Resons to try one more time to put down the butts??

20 minutes after quitting: Your heart rate and blood pressure drop.

12 hours after quitting: The carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal.

2 weeks to 3 months after quitting: Your circulation improves and your lung function increases.

1 year after quitting: The excess risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a continuing smoker’s.

5 years after quitting: Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, and bladder are cut in half. Cervical cancer risk falls to that of a non-smoker. Stroke risk can fall to that of a non-smoker after 2-5 years.

10 years after quitting: The risk of dying from lung cancer is about half that of a person who is still smoking. The risk of cancer of the larynx and pancreas decreases.

15 years after quitting: The risk of coronary heart disease is that of a non-smoker’s.

Just do it.  For some tips that will help -

http://www.cancer.org/Healthy/StayAwayfromTobacco/GreatAmericanSmokeout/index

Need a tangible reward to inspire you to lose weight?  This may not work for everyone, but  HealthyWage, a New York City-based company that designs weight loss challenges and contests, recently launched a new program that lets you “bet” on yourability to lose weight using any diet and/or fitness program you choose. Basically, you put $100 on the line - but you'll net $200 if you lose 10% of your starting weight within six months. Starting and ending weights will be verified through HealthyWage health club partners across the country, and you will have to self-report your weight online once a week. In addition to this challenge, the company offers other cash rewards-based diet programs that pay participants for successfully make healthy choices, like lowering your BMI.

http://www.healthywage.com/

One for Veteran's Day:

http://yourmilitarystory.com/

Thank you for your service to our country.

I have 2 for you this morning!  First of all, the American Red Cross has kicked off its 2011 Holiday Mail for Heroes program. This is the fifth year Red Cross and Pitney Bowes have partnered to reach out to members of the military, veterans and their families trying to ensure all have a happy holiday.

Get all the guidelines (there are LOTS) here:

http://www.redcross.org/holidaymail

Then, when you're ready, mail those cards here:

Holiday Mail For Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

This morning's World Wide Web Update involves a search for a new reality show star.  If someone you know is a single guy who's also a food expert - a chef, restaurateur, or gourmet - and looking for the love of his life, Pilgrim Studios wants to talk to him.  They're putting together a new reality series, a kind of "culinary Bachelor" that will pair said foodie, hopefully, with a woman after his own heart.  This is the company responsible for American Choppers, Larry The Cable Guy, Ghost Hunters, and Dirty Jobs - and the show will air on a major cable network.  The deadline, though, is looming fast - it's this Wednesday - so check it out quickly!

http://pilgrimstudios.com/casting/culinarybachelor/

Today's National Cliché Day - here's a site that'll not only explain the meanings and the origins of those we use most often, but just in case you're using your favorites a little too much - click on any cliché and you'll see a list of other clichés that mean the same thing.  It's like a cliché THESAURUS!!  ;)

http://www.clichesite.com/

Today's supposedly the day that our world population reaches 7 billion, and Population Action International has launched an application and released a report that explores the dimensions of a world at 7 billion at Whats-Your-Number.org.  Enter your birthdate and you can find out where you fall in the world's 7 billion (share it on Facebook and Twitter if you'd like, too.  You can also add yourself to their population map.

http://populationaction.org/Articles/Whats_Your_Number/

Looking for an alternative to Facebook?  Concerned about privacy invasion and undue influence from big advertisers?  Unthink.com, which is billing itself as the “anti-Facebook,” is recruiting its first round of beta testers. The company sees itself as a more open, more honest form of social networking; its users, say its creators, are the owners of their data, and not the product being sold to advertisers. Unthink's CEO says that on Unthink, user data isn’t sold to brands. Instead, users choose a brand to sponsor their page, by way of an ad called an “iEndorse.” The idea is that a user will tend to select a brand they use and are comfortable with, and will then become an advocate for that brand. Users who don’t want to select a brand have the option to pay for the service at the niminal cost of $2 a year.  If you're disillusioned with Facebook, check it out:

http://unthink.com/

This morning's update is a TED talk from "Mathemagician" Arthur Benjami, who races a team of calculators to figure out 3-digit squares, solves another massive mental equation and guesses a few birthdays. How does he do it? He’ll tell you.

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/lang/eng//id/199

Have you ever wondered what Madonna looked like as a high school junior?  How about A-Rod, Alec Baldwin, or Justin Timberlake?

Ancestry.com has just added to its already extensive collection of yearbooks - they boast 155 million entries at this point - and there are some fn celebrity pics you can browse even if you don;t register with the site.  Some fun browsing at

http://www.Ancestry.com/celebrity

Amazing stories about amazing dogs - a panel of celebrity dog-loving judges (Whoopi Goldberg, Orlando Bloom, Jillian Michaels, and Mark Hamill, among others) helped to vote in the winners!

A must-visit for dog lovers.

http://www.herodogawards.org/

The iPhone 4s goes on sale tomorrow - and advance orders broke the one day record, says Apple.  If you're one of the millions who have decided on the upgrade, CashForiPhones.com has some suggestions as to what to do with your iPhone 4 so it doesn't languish in a landfill.

• Use it as a universal remote - just add one of the range of apps and accessories to convert it
• Use it  as a personal media player instead of upgrading your iPod
• Use it as your camera - it already has some pretty impressive specs, and with a few add-ons, it makes a great camera
• Sell it - and use the proceeds to buy your 4S!

Learn about more recycling uses for your phone - and get directions on how to cash in if that's your choice.

http://cashforiphones.com

LOVE this one - if you have an outfit you've picked out for an important occasion, but aren't quite sure if it looks as good as it should on you - upload a picture of yourself wearing it to GoTryItOn.com, and get ready for popular opinion to give you a "yea" or a "nay!" 

You can also earn badges for giving really good advice to other would-be fashionistas, or by setting an example by always looking mahvelous... 

http://GoTryItOn.com

Launched in 1999, WebExhibits is an interactive, online museum of science, humanities, and culture.  Learn about some interesting topics, and enjoy some interactive activities that'll enhance your learning - it's all very visually attractive, too.

http://www.webexhibits.org/

So do you ever feel like you're battling with your hair?  Dove wants you to kiss and make up - so they're offering you a chance to meet with a celebrity stylist, take an all expense paid trip to NYC - and appear in a Dove commercial!   Check out the rules and details here:

http://www.DoveHair.com/Friends

A fun contest for you amateur photographers, with thanks to our friends at Dial-Global:

Justin Timberlake is hitting the big screen again next month with a lead role in the sci-fi thriller “In Time,” and he has teamed up with Los Angeles digital agency Talenthouse to launch a photography contest aimed at building buzz for the film. “In Time” is set in a world in which people don’t physically age past 25 and have to buy time to live longer. The new campaign, titled “Every Second Counts,” calls for photo submissions that represent the idea of making every second count. Timberlake will use the winning photo as his Facebook profile picture in November, and that photo and those from nine other finalists will be featured at a pop-up gallery at the Los Angeles premiere of the film. Closing date for submissions is October 10th.

http://www.Talenthouse.com

9/22/11:

CafeMom is an online community where moms come together to get advice and support on topics like pregnancy, health, fashion, food, technology, entertainment, and more.  It's fun, it's free, and it's just for moms...

www.cafemom.com/

9/19/11:

Here's one for you old-school video game lovers - it's RetroGamer.com, where you can play some old-school video games right on your computer. From “Pac-Man” to  “Frogger” and more, these retro games are still tons of fun to play - and they're free!   Check it out on your break...

retrogamer.com/home.jhtml

9/15/11:

This one's gonna make you hungry...  I'm not the world's best cook, but I DO have some favorite websites to consult when I'm inspired to get creative.  I love Epicurious (one of my daughter's favorites - and she IS an amazing cook!)  - and CookingForEngineers.com.

But I'm definitely adding Gojee.com to my arsenal.  The visuals are stunning, and some of the tools are handy - you can look for a recipe that caters to your cravings, or eliminates ingredients that trigger allergy symptoms for you (or that you just plain don't like!)  The recipes have been compiled from food bloggers all over the world, so there's lots of variety.  I tell you, though - I can spend a half hour just looking at the pictures!

www.gojee.com

9/12/11:

If you like to keep up with technology as it evolves and be the first to know - Venturebeat.com is a great site for you to check out.  It's technology news that keeps you up-to-date with what's new - and what's coming.  You'll find articles about smartphones, gaming, renewable energy, social media, networking, IT development, cloud computing, and more.  Want a preview of the iPhone 5, Windows 8, and the new music service Facebook's planning to offer?  You'll read about it at VentureBeat.  Interpreting innovation, so you can understand and apply it - VentureBeat.com.

venturebeat.com/

9/8/11:

This weekend, the world will observe the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks on New York.  While many media outlets will cover the anniversary, there is one place, for people to revisit the attacks and the week after as events unfolded, without any filters. The Internet Archive, a California-based organization that collects audio, moving images and web pages for historical purposes, has put together a television news archive of that day’s coverage. More than 20 channels were recorded with more than 3,000 hours of television. Besides major U.S. networks like ABC, CBS, CNN and NBC, the Internet Archive has posted online TV recordings from Moscow, Paris, London, Baghdad, Tokyo, Ottawa and elsewhere. The archive begins 46 minutes before American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

www.archive.org/details/911/day

9/6/11:

Disorganized?  Here's help - and it works with all your media!  Plus - the little cow icon is irresistible...

www.rememberthemilk.com/

9/1/11:

A site promoting your good health - enjoy its articles, videos, and blog - and subscribe to its newsletter!

www.meyouhealth.com/

If you're really serious about becoming healthier, though, let the site help you with a daily challenge for you to complete:

challenge.meyouhealth.com/signup/

8/29/11:

If you're a crafter, you'll love this one - do you remember Craft Magazine?  They've got a great site for crafters looking for new ideas.   There are how-to videos, patterns, ideas for projects, and more - and achieve crafting glory by winning one of their contests!

craftzine.com

8/25/11:

Getting ready for Irene?  Here are some apps to help (thanks to our friends at Dial Global):

The Hurricane HD app is equipped with video updates for storms currently underway or forming. It covers hurricanes all over the world. The app costs $2.99 at iTunes.

The iMap Weather Radio app draws on your phone or tablet’s GPS and alerts users if they enter an area where a watch or warning has been issued. The app costs $9.99 at iTunes.

The Weather Channel app (free at www.weather.com) includes weather maps, animated radar maps, detailed weather conditions and forecasts, severe weather alerts and more.

Twitter will let you get free weather reports and alerts on your phone or computer by following certain Twitter sites such as The Weather Channel’s twitter feed @weatherchannel, MyWeather.com tweets @MyWeather, or AccuWeather’s @breakingweather. Or you can just search for “Irene” on Twitter and get all of them in one feed.

8/22/11:

So how's your brain?  Find out a little more about yours at TestMyBrain.org.  Learn about yourself with personalized results and feedback, while contributing to research on the brain and psychology.  Each of the tests featured takes about 15-25 minutes to complete, and will help you compare your cognitive abilities with those of other people.  As the site grows, it'll report more on brain research and education.

TestMyBrain.org

8/18/11:

Just a quick one this morning, for fun.  Not for those on a diet.

www.scandybars.com

8/15/11:

Forvo is the largest pronunciation guide in the world, the place where you´ll find millions of words pronounced in their original languages - more than 200 languages! More than just a handy reference site, Forvo allows you to add words you don’t know how to pronounce if they aren’t already on the site, rate and discuss the pronunciations you hear, and create your own Favorite Pronunciations list.  You can also track all of your added and pronounced words.  Bookmark it, and next time you run into a word you’re not quite sure how to say – in any language – go to Forvo.com.  All the words in the world – pronounced!

www.forvo.com

8/11/11:

Is there a nurse in your life who's made a significant impact on you or a loved one?  Johnson & Johnson is looking for nominations of exceptional U.S. nurses.  One lucky nurse will be selected to receive an expenses-paid trip to L.A. to appear on the CNN "Heroes: An All-Star Tribute" show and December, and the winner will also get to appear in a TV commercial that'll run on CNN.  12 semi-finalists will receive a certificate in honor of their nomination.  Nominations are being accepted through September 11 - voting begins at the end of September.

www.facebook.com/jnjnursingnotes

Looking for more information on becoming a nurse?  There's been a chronic shortage during the last 10 years - and the vacancy rate for RN's is more than 4%.  Read more about what it takes to pursue a nursing career here:

discovernursing.com

8/8/11:

There are thousands of dollars in unclaimed , forgotten money that state governments are tending - could some of it be yours?  Find out at Unclaimed.org.  Right now, at least $32.877 billion is currently being safeguarded by state treasurers and other agencies for 117 million accounts.  Why not check to see if you're due some of that?

The site is offered by NAUPA - The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, a non-profit organization affiliated with the National Association of State Treasurers and the Council of State Governments.

www.unclaimed.org

8/4/11:

It's Shark Week - so today I've highlighted 2 sites that pay tribute to the shark!

First, for those of you that would REALLY like to learn more about sharks - an e-Bay auction is underway to benefit the Shark Research Institute’s conservation programs. Being auctioned are dinners or lunches with the world’s foremost shark experts and celebrities. This is an unprecedented opportunity to “talk shark” face-to-face, one-on-one, with a real authority on sharks! Bidding at press time ranged from $50 to $160. Bidding ends on August 11th. Find out more at www.sharks.org.

shop.ebay.com/srilevine/m.html

Then - on the lighter side -

FutureGamesofLondon is offering all its Hungry Shark games on the iTune App Store for FREE for one week in honor of Shark Week.
This is the chance for you to own all of the Hungry Shark games! That's Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, AND the new HD versions Part 1+ and Part 2+!
They’re also running a one week competition to win a custom-made Shark Hoodie (see photo attached of T.F.E.). They’re looking for the most outrageous, creative and original artwork of the infamous Shark Man – if you don’t know about Shark Man, check out the site.

www.futuregamesoflondon.com/

8/1/11:

National Plan Your Epitaph Day isn't till November 2nd - but those of you with a good sense of humor - and a respect for planning ahead - may enjoy Caught Dead In that, a website devoted to pictures of funny gravesfrom around the world.  It includes celebrity graves, and some that are pignant and funny at the same time - far from morbid!

caughtdeadinthat.tumblr.com/

7/28/11:

WARNING - this site could become addictive.  At Wordnik, you can not only learn words you may never have heard before, but see them used in examples from literature and articles...  hear them pronounced, discuss 'em, share 'em, love 'em.

If you love language - check it out!

wordnik.com

7/25/11:

WeBuzzApp.com is a great site for those of you who use Facebook for your business.  Add fun apps to your page that really help it stand out!  Add a poll app; an RSS feed; a photo gallery; a special offer app; a welcome tab, and more.  There is a fee for the apps - but your business gets its first app free of charge.  All the apps offered on the site are self-customizable, easily edited with no programming knowledge, flexibly priced, and supported by a multi-language interface.  If you use Facebook for your business, this is a great way to use the exposure more intersetingly.

webuzzapp.com

7/21/11:

WeChooseTheMoon.org is an interactive online experience that recreates the historic Apollo 11 mission to the Moon in real time. The site was created by AOL and the JFK Presidential Library a couple of years ago to celebrate the mission’s 40^th anniversary and to mirror the timing of the original launch. It’s divided into 11 stages that retell the ENTIRE mission through animation, archival photos, and audio - you can listen to the live radio stream and follow the status of the mission in real-time. The site has plenty of pictures and video for you to browse. There's even a timer to let you know when the next stage is starting and when the landing occurs. One great feature of the site is the coordinated Twitter feeds. If you can't sit with the site open all day and just listen, you can set up a column in Tweetdeck for tweets that are synchronized so they flow like a conversation, and that keeps you up to date with what’s happening. Once you’ve re-lived the mission, you can download a personalized certificate for display – great site for classrooms who are studying space exploration. It’s a chance to learn about one of the greatest achievements of mankind - Relive the Apollo 11 mission at WeChooseTheMoon.org.

WeChooseTheMoon.org

7/18/11:

From the folks at time - a site that helps you maintain a ahealthy balance in your life - mind, body, and spirit.  Articles on fitness, parenting, pregnancy, addiction, relationships and more are all here, along with news that relates to your health.

healthland.time.com/

7/14/11:

JetBlue has teamed up with PBS Kids to encourage your kids to keep reading all summer long.  They've launched SoarWithReading.com, a site that'll let your kids download a free reading activity kit, craete a summer reading list (they'll  have some help with that from Random House Books) and log their reading hours.  For every kid who registers at the site, JetBlue will donate a book to First Book - a non-profit that gives books to kids in need, up to 10,000 books.

To help promote the initiative, JetBlue is providing any kid that flies with them this summer with a free activity kit containing games that are based on PBS Kids programming.

In addition - there's a contest through the site.  Enter your favorite library to win up to $10,000 in Random House Books, and YOU to win a JetBlue family vacation to the Bahamas!

soarwithreading.com/

7/11/11:

Today's site was put together by the BBC - it's a cool way to put historical events and places in perspective - literally!  BBC Dimensions allows you to put in your zip code to juxtapose the size of historical events with your home and neighborhood.  The site will then overlay important places, events and things on a satellite view of where you live. Certain “Dimensions” can be transformed into short walks, so you can get a physical appreciation of the distances involved.  Could be a fun resource for Social Studies and history teachers!

howbigreally.com/

7/7/11:

Here's one just for fun if you're a Field of Dreams fan - or frustrated with the NFL lockout (although, even if you're neither you'll enjoy this!)  Funny or Die has produced a "sequel" to the Kevin Costner baseball flick that pokes fun at the lockout.  It stars Taylor Lautner, a bunch of NFL players, and Ray Liotta and of course Kevin Costner from the original.  Stick around after it plays for the "Making Of" short, too - it's just as funny!  A happy 6 minutes to start your day.

www.funnyordie.com/

7/4/11:

Happy 4th of July!

Thought this was an appropriate link considering the holiday - to add to your celebrations, it's a one-stop shop for all things patriotic:

www.patrioticon.org/

If you didn't get the answer to this morning's challenge question, here's an article that may interest you too:

foxnews.com/us/2011/07/04/10-things-might-not-know-about-our-independence/%27%20rel=%27nofollow

6/30/11:

leafsnap.com/

Tree lovers, rejoice!  If you don't know your ashes from your elms, no worries.  Now there's the LeafSnap app for your iPhone or iPad.  It lets you snap a photo of a tree leaf and submit it.  Using visual recognition technology, the app will search through a library of images of leaves collected by the Smithsonian, and return all kinds of information about the one you're trying to identify: a likely species name,  a hi-res photo, and everything you could ever want to know about its flowers, fruits, seeds, and bark.  Communing with nature has never been so easy!

6/27/11:

www.TechCrunch.com

TechCrunch is a leading technology site, dedicated to profiling startups, reviewing new Internet products, and breaking tech news. TechCrunch’s story began in 2005, when founder Michael Arrington launched a blog from his home in Atherton, CA, as a way to share information and get informed about people and companies that were making waves in the burgeoning world of Web 2.0. In less than a year and a half, TechCrunch was drawing several million page views every month and the attention of top entrepreneurs and VCs.  TechCrunch and its network of websites now reach over 10 million unique visitors and draw more than 33 million page views per month.as it continues to become one of the most influential news brands in the tech industry.  From Android to Apple, Google to Groupon, Twitter to Zynga - read all about tech news, new gadgets and more at TechCrunch.com.