Most Over-Looked Tax Deductions

Check this list when you're ready to prepare your income tax returns for 2009!

http://finance.yahoo.com/personal-finance/article/108262/the-most-overlooked-tax-deductions

Nature Watch

90-second radio clips about wildlife and nature subjects

http://www.naturewatch.com/

"60 Seconds in the Life of . . ."

Video clips of all sorts of things -- birds, crabs, machines, etc. Just for fun!

http://www.ironicsans.com/60_seconds/

United States Global Change Research Program

"Integrating federal research on climate and global change" -- http://www.globalchange.gov/

GreenBiz.com

Business and the green economy -- http://www.greenbiz.com/ -- articles on greener plastics, creating green jobs, America's 10 Greenest Brands, etc.

H1N1 - What To Do If You Get Flu-Like Symptoms

From the CDC at http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/sick.htm. Also notice the YouTube video link near the bottom of the page.

Academic Info

An extensive list of educational resources including online degrees, education blogs and subject guides for research (examples: environmental organizations, film studies, Russian history, Victorian England).

http://www.academicinfo.net/

Curriki

Learning resources for primary and secondary education. Over 55,000 educators share curricula using wiki technology. Includes ice breakers for the first day, Power Point presentations, and complete lesson plans.

http://www.curriki.org

United We Serve

This website connects volunteers with service opportunities. Get involved!

http://www.serve.gov

WORD! A Glossary of Medical Words for Kids

The KidsHealth site has other health information as well -- and is available in Spanish!

http://kidshealth.org/kid/word/

Rebecca's Pocket: Summer Reading Lists

Lots of reading lists gathered together in one spot at http://www.rebeccablood.net/archive/reading_lists/summer_2009/.

How Products are Made

Fun educational site for kids. Find out how marshmallows and golf balls are made. Includes inventor biographies as well.

http://www.madehow.com/

Henry VIII 500th Anniversary

The Royal Collection Exhibit at http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/microsites/henryviii/
The British Library Online Gallery at http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/henryviii/

Hubble Site

All about the Hubble telescope. Good site for youth interested in astronomy.

http://www.hubblesite.org

Internet Crime Complaint Center

A partnership between the FBI, the National White Collar Crime Center and the Bureau of Justice Assistance, this is the place to report possible cyber crimes. Also features current schemes and prevention tips.

http://www.ic3.gov

Swine Flu Resources

HealthInfoIowa (provided by the State Library of Iowa)

Swine Flu Resource Guide (from the Hardin Library at the U of Iowa)

Centers for Disease Control

The Encyclopedia of Earth

Read one of these articles in honor of Earth Day!

http://www.eoearth.org/

Mirage Bookmarks

Like bookmarks? Here is a site with lots of unusual and collectible ones.

http://www.miragebookmark.ch/

Running the Numbers

An American Self-Portrait by Chris Jordan. A graphic way to understand the huge numbers of things like packing peanuts, airline plastic cups and plastic bottles used in the U.S.

http://www.chrisjordan.com/current_set2.php

Marketplace Whiteboard

From American Public Media -- Senior Editor Paddy Hirsch explains financial terms like "cramdowns," "toxic assets," and "quantitative easing."

http://marketplace.publicradio.org/videos/whiteboard/

Hot Topics from the Jackson Library

Selected articles on how current events (the bailouts, the Madoff scandal, "going green," etc.) affect business from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford.

http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/jacksonlibrary/articles/hottopics/

"TIME" for Kids

Time magazine's site for kids -- with news, homework helper, etc.

http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/kids

RAGBBRAI

Is coming to Southwest Iowa!

http://www.ragbrai.org/

Green Recovery

A Program to Create Good Jobs and Start Building a Low-Carbon Economy

http://www.peri.umass.edu/green_recovery/

artdaily.org

An online newspaper about the arts -- also features short artist bios, puzzles, etc.

http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp

Librophiliac Love Letter

Curious Expeditions' collection of photos of beautiful libraries. (Thanks to Ken Davenport at NEILSA!)

http://curiousexpeditions.org/?p=78

Dealing with Clutter

The U of Illinois Extension offers help to get organized at
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/clutter/.

The Payphone Project

A site devoted to locating those vanishing pay telephones (and also mailboxes!).

http://www.payphone-project.com/

Paper Snowflakes and Fancy Stars

Easy-to-follow instructions for making paper snowflakes, 5- and 6-pointed stars, and more.

http://highhopes.com/snowflakes.html

Paper Snowflakes and Fancy Stars

Easy-to-follow instructions for making paper snowflakes, 5- and 6-pointed stars and more.

http://highhopes.com/snowflakes.html

Visions of Christmas

from the American Antiquarian Society

http://www.americanantiquarian.org/Exhibitions/Christmas/

The History of Hanukkah

from the History Channel

http://www.history.com/minisites/hanukkah/

Image and Sentiment

Victorian Christmas Cards -- some available as e-cards.

http://www.indiana.edu/%7Eliblilly/xmas2/

Skin Deep Cosmetics Safety Database

Check your make-up and shampoo for toxins!

http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/

2008 Electopedia

from New York Magazine . . . in case you're still undecided!

http://nymag.com/news/politics/2008/electopedia/

CollegeNET

Win scholarships by voicing your opinion on current topics (and search for other scholarship sources as well!).

http://www.collegenet.com

All About Cupcakes

Cupcakes are popular right now, so take a look at this pretty site!

http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring07/Ayers/index.html

Mexican Treasures of the Smithsonian

Los Tesoros Mexicanos del Smithsonian.
A good site for Hispanic Heritage Month at http://latino.si.edu/Mexican%20Treasures/index.html.

EyeWitness to History

History through the eyes of those who lived it . . .

http://eyewitnesstohistory.com/index.html

PolitiFact.com

The St. Petersburg (FL) Times checks the truth of various political statements.

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/

The FBI's New E-Scams and Warnings

The latest viruses, phishing attacks, etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/cyberinvest/escams.htm

Beijing2008 Olympic Games: An Insider's Guide

From Budget Travel.

http://www.budgettravel.com/bt-srv/beijing2008/beijing_olympics/

Ultimate Travel Library

National Geographic has come up with a list of travel books recommended by world travelers.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/extras/travellibrary/library.html

sporcle.com

Like trivia quizzes? Sporcle.com has lots of them!

http://www.sporcle.com/

Lawn Nation

Art & Science of the American Lawn

http://www.naturemuseum.org/lawn/

Explore! Fun with Science

"Explor-ations" from the Lunar and Planetary Institute at
http://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/explore/explorations.shtml

Making the Modern World

Stories about science and invention from the Science Museum in Great Britain.

http://www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk/

Free Online Courses from the SBA

The U.S. Small Business Administration offers these courses about starting and managing a small business.

http://www.sba.gov/services/training/onlinecourses/

in pictures: Computer tutorials based on pictures

Free online tutorials for Access, Excel, PowerPoint and more -- using pictures instead of text.

http://inpics.net/

Bring Your Own Bag

This California-based site offers all sort of statistics about -- and alternatives to -- paper and plastic shopping bags. Includes tips on how to get in the habit of bringing your own reusable bags, etc.

http://igotmybag.org/why.htm

Free Rice

A game that builds vocabulary while donating funds to the United Nations World Food Program.

http://www.freerice.com/

USASpending.gov

"Where Americans Can See Where Their Money Goes" -- who receives government grant, contracts, etc.

http://www.usaspending.gov

Trip Advisor

Actual travelers share their opinions about hotels, tourist sites, etc.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/

Learn English With Pictures (or Audio)

A site for those learning English.

http://www.my-english-dictionary.com/

Degree of Confluence Project

Now here's a novel way to pick a travel destination! A confluence is where latitude and longitude integer degrees intersect. There are 16 such locations in Iowa. This site is collecting photos from confluence points around the globe.

http://www.confluence.org/

Roadside America

We've featured this "Online Guide to Offbeat Tourist Attractions" before -- a fun site! Be sure to check the Iowa locations.

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/

National Caves Association

The second in our series of vacation sites.

http://cavern.com/

Sacred Destinations

Site devoted to locations of religious significance around the world -- the first in our series of alternative vacation ideas!

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/

Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Technical Info

Get ready for bicycling season. RAGBRAI anyone?

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/

top 5 myths about downloading internet music

This brief presentation by Messiah College in Pennsylvania, explains the copyright situation regarding downloading music through file-sharing services. A good, simple site for those who have questions.

http://www.messiah.edu/etc/musicdownload.pdf

Rules of Thumb

A collection of rules for all sorts of things from how much to pay for a beginner's musical instrument (twice what you think you should) to how much dirt to remove when digging a grave (take away 17 wheelbarrows full).

http://rulesofthumb.org/

The Secret Life of the Brain

Site to accompany the PBS series.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/brain/

100 Most Often Mispronounced Words and Phrases in English

from Your Dictionary.com

http://www.yourdictionary.com/library/mispron.html

How to Write a Thank-you Note

A practical guide!

http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/how_to/how_to_write_a_thankyou_note.php

50+ Professionals

CareerJournal.com's guide to changing jobs after age 50.

http://www.careerjournal.com/myc/fifty/

Natural History of Holiday Plants

Online exhibit from the San Diego Natural History Museum.

http://www.sdnhm.org/research/botany/hp_photos.html

Northpole

Another fun Christmas site.

http://www.northpole.com/

Christmas Legends

The truth about some common holiday ideas -- How many wise men were there? What do the stripes on a candy cane represent? and so on.

http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/christmas.asp

All Things Christmas

It's that time of year again . . . so we will be featuring some select holiday sites in the coming weeks.

http://www.allthingschristmas.com/

The Iowa Health Fact Book

Statistics and health care resources for Iowans.

http://www.public-health.uiowa.edu/factbook/

Fall Colors from Butchart Gardens

Enjoy the beautiful photos from British Columbia.

http://www.pbase.com/lejun/butchart_gardens

The Shot Heard 'Round the World

Jonas Salk and the Development of the Polio Vaccine

http://museum.pharmacy.pitt.edu/salk/

Carve a Pumpkin

A simple online activity for kids -- http://www.cubpack81.com/images/carve_pumpkin.swf

LessLawn.com

Landscaping alternatives for those who would like something besides a regular grass lawn.

http://www.lesslawn.com/

Craft In America

Enjoy examples of works in clay, metal, fiber and wood by American artists.

http://www.craftinamerica.org/

Legal Lad

Quick and Dirty Tips for a More Lawful Life -- short podcasts (or you can read the transcripts) on basic legal issues such as Power of Attorney, the Right to Assemble, how to find a lawyer, etc. This site also links to Mighty Mommy (podcasts about parenting); Grammar Girl and Mr. Manners.

http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/LegalLad/

Hard to Find 800 Numbers

A listing of Customer Service and other contact numbers for major companies --

http://www.hardtofind800numbers.com/

Games for the Brain

Keep your mind in shape with these online games!

http://www.gamesforthebrain.com/

MediaStorm

A multimedia current events site with great photography, personal profiles and essays. Current topics include the return to New Orleans; ivory trade and the black market in animals.

http://www.mediastorm.org/

State Fair Recipes

Collected recipes from State Fair contests.

http://www.statefairrecipes.com

Movie Locations Guide

Find the real locations (names of hotels, restaurants, etc.) from movies and TV.

http://www.movielocationsguide.com/movie_locations.php

Toy Hazard Recalls

From the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/category/toy.html

U.S. Congress Votes Database

The Washington Post has put together this database showing all Congressional voting since 1991.

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/

Lee de Forest -- American Inventor

Learn about the life and contributions of this inventor who was born in Council Bluffs.

http://www.leedeforest.org/

Alternative Farming Systems Information Center

From the National Agricultural Library.

http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?tax_level=1&info_center=2

Ian's Shoelace Site

Clever ways to lace and tie shoes!

http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/

Design for the Other 90%

Most designers work to invent products for the world's wealthiest people. These designs represent efforts to provide clean water, energy, etc. to the other 90%. From an exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.

http://other.cooperhewitt.org/

America's Farm Bill 2007

Coverage of the USDA proposals, etc.

http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usdafarmbill?navtype=SU&navid=FARM_BILL_FORUMS

Culturekiosque

The European Magazine of Arts and Culture -- features cooking, book reviews, music news, etc.

http://www.culturekiosque.com/

Interactive Health Tutorials

From MedLine Plus.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials.html

New 7 Wonders of the World

Announced July 7th.

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php?id=633

Uncle Sam's Photos

An index to public domain photos from the U.S. government.

http://www.unclesamsphotos.com/

2007 World's Most Ethical Companies

Selected by Ethisphere magazine.

http://ethisphere.com/2007-worlds-most-ethical-companies/

Summer Books '07

Lots of ideas for summer reading from NPR --

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10628227

Consumer Jungle

Consumer awareness site designed for young adults -- with sections for parents and teachers. Links to information about managing credit, buying a car, and so on.

http://www.consumerjungle.org/

Genealogy Learning Center

If you are new to genealogy, this looks like a great place to start! Offers tips, glossaries, etc.

http://www.genealogy.com/genehelp.html

America on the Move

Smithsonian virtual exhibit about transportation and how it transformed America.

http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthemove/

Edward Hopper

From an exhibition at the Museum of Fine Art in Boston.

http://www.mfa.org/hopper/

A Nanotechnology Consumer Products Inventory

What products do you use that are based on nanotechnology (and just what is nanotechnology, anyway)?

http://www.nanotechproject.org/index.php?id=44

Kidnetic.com

A site for kids about healthy eating and fitness.

http://www.kidnetic.com/