OK, school is back in session and that means... homework. The Discovery Channel folks are there for you, not just with a lifeline but the whole lifeboat. Their PJ Pinchbeck Homework Helper offers more than 625 links to educational sites that can clarify, amplify or get you through when you've forgotten your textbook at school. This month's featured site is Encyclopedia Smithsonian. If the resources at Homework Helper prove insufficient, try Homeworkhelp.com which provides live, online contact with a tutor.

school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/bjpinchbeck

www.homeworkhelp.com

WEATHER

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center has posted an online report about sand and dust storms in which "the planet's deserts kick up literally millions of tons of dust, and winds send it flying to far- flung destinations where it clogs our lungs, changes soil chemistry, deposits minerals in bodies of water," and causes other environmental damage. It includes a link to images of recent storms, such as the one earlier this month in Iraq, and links to related sites.

www.gsfc.nasa.gov/feature/2004/0116dust.html

POPULAR CULTURE

As a customer research consultant in the San Francisco Bay area, Steve Portigal has a natural interest in the stuff of popular culture. Portigal has created an online Foreign Groceries Museum, a collection of images of food packaging from all over the world, including Ritz Crackers from Canada shaped like the NHL logo, hot squid rings from Malaysia and Spice Girls Suckers from England.

www.portigal.com/Museum.htm

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0126 or bainbird@gazette.com

Copyright 2005
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