·http://civilwarstudies.org

More Americans died in the four year conflict that we now know as the American Civil War than in World War I and World War II combined. The brutal melee not only shaped a generation; the battle lines that were drawn in 1861 can be seen to this day in the nation's social and political fabric. This site from the Smithsonian Associates offers a host of resources about the American Civil War, including articles, trivia, and online tours. For instance, a recent article traced the history of Civil War naval battles, an understudied but essential component of the military strategies of both the North and the South. In addition, an online tour traces the conspiracy to assassinate President Lincoln. [CNH]

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·https://bostoncollegesubpoena.wordpress.com/

The Troubles, the 30-year sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland, divided neighborhoods, friendships, and even families. When the Good Friday Agreement was reached in 1998, there were several attempts to preserve these histories, which included interviews with republican and loyalist paramilitary members and were to be housed under a confidentiality agreement at Boston College's Burns Library. But when the British government demanded access to the tapes in 2011, and the U.S. attorney general complied with a subpoena, controversy erupted. Should the tapes be held until interviewees died, as per the original agreement? Or should they be used to try paramilitary members for their actions during The Troubles? This site offers links to dozens of articles from around the web, as well as legal documents surrounding the case, radio interviews, and television specials from CNN, PBS, and the BBC. For educators teaching modern Irish history or for anyone interested in the ambiguities of international law or sectarian conflict and reconciliation, this site is a must read. [CNH]

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·http://newsroom.unfccc.int/action-to-adapt/fao-famers-bear-brunt-of-climate-impacts/

Nearly a third of the seven billion people alive on Earth today directly depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. So when floods, storms, and - above all - droughts occur, it is this swath of the population that suffers most. In addition, a new United Nations study concludes that as the effects of global climate change increase, these losses accrue more and more to the farmers who can least afford them. Featured here is the complete UN study, "Farmers Bear Brunt of Climate Impacts." Readers may want to begin by reading the short overview of the report. More information can also be found in the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations' press release, which goes into more detail. This content here can be especially useful to educators who are teaching about Sub-Saharan Africa and other Third World economies, politics, and agricultural practices. [CNH]

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·http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which NASA launched in February 2010, is a "sun-pointing semi-automatic spacecraft," a mini space observatory that is designed to study the sun so that scientists may better understand the causes of solar variability and its effects on Earth. For educators who are teaching about the power of our solar system's only star, or for anyone interested in breaking research on the sun, this is a fascinating website. Readers might like to start with the Mission tab, which lists information about the SDO's science, the spacecraft itself, the team that is running the project, and 1968 refereed publications. News & Resources is interesting for its Mission Blog, which offers updates on the mission as instruments are repaired, data is gathered, and conclusions are drawn. The Gallery section also offers some powerful images, animations, and videos of the sun. [CNH]

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·http://www.okhumanities.org/publications

While the Oklahoma Humanities Council (OHC) organizes a number of local, innovative educational venues, readers living out-of-state will perhaps find the the Oklahoma Humanities Magazine to be the highlight of the OHC website. The periodical is chock-full of beautiful images, interesting articles, and educational interviews, often organized around a single theme. For instance, the most recent issue (Winter 2015) focused on the theme of romance in honor of Valentine's Day, and examined the Second-Oldest Profession (matchmaking), kissing in the movies, and love lessons from contemporary female poets. With archives dating back to 2008, this freely-accessible magazine can be a boon to teachers looking to spice up their humanities lesson plans, to those interested in the blossoming culture of the arts in Oklahoma, or to anyone just looking for a good read. [CNH]

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·http://www.womeninscience.org/

This radio series is produced with the express purpose of getting women involved in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. As the site notes, it's a great resource for students, teachers, parents, guidance counselors, organizational leaders, researchers, professors, or anyone interested in helping women pursue careers in technical fields. Readers will find much of interest in features such as Her-Story: Then & Now, which profiles both historical and present-day female STEM pioneers. The Sounds of Progress, another feature, offers an eight-part documentary-style series that covers groundbreaking research, great women in science, and other topics. And this is just the beginning of what this fantastic site has to offer. [CNH]

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·http://www.careeronestop.org/GreenCareers/GreenCareers.aspx

Interest in green careers (those that promote the health of the environment) has been growing for decades. But students are not always clear about what the options are. This U.S. Department of Labor website can help. Readers can scout the site in a number of interesting ways. A first step might be the What Are Green Careers? section, which outlines how the Department of Labor defines green careers, as well as some of the terminology used throughout the site. Readers may then locate and explore more than 200 green careers, in categories such as Renewable Energy Generation, Transportation, Green Construction, and about a dozen others. The Find Education and Training section is also informative, as it links to options that run the gamut from short-term on-the-job training to master's degrees. This is an excellent resource for guidance counselors, advisers, or anyone who works with young people to help them clarify and pursue their careers. [CNH]

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·http://iat.iupui.edu/bradburycenter/page/welcome-center-ray-bradbury-studies

The Center for Ray Bradbury Studies, which is housed at the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)'s School of Liberal Arts, was founded in 2007, and remains one of the best Ray Bradbury resources in the world. For those readers who can't make it to the physical archives in Indianapolis, the website has plenty to offer, including a well-maintained news page that often features links to lectures, articles about new studies of Bradbury's work, and notes on the continuing legacy of this great science fiction writer and humanist. The External Resources tab is also worth a good look, as it links out to resources around the web, including a short story finder from the University of Wolverhampton, an unofficial Russian site dedicated to the author's work, and an unofficial Ray Bradbury YouTube channel. [CNH]

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·http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/

For readers who are looking for a clear-eyed source for news about ecological issues, the Washington Post's new blog, Energy and Environment with Chris Mooney, is a fantastic place to start. Mooney and his colleagues publish daily articles about the intersection of water rights, economics, psychology and behavioral science, global warming, and many other topics. Each article is professionally researched and presented with a balanced journalistic prose. The site can be searched by five categories (Climate Change, Energy, Psychology and Behavior, Science, and Endangered Species). It's also interesting to simply scroll down the news feed, examining the most recent posts. However readers approach the site, they will find up-to-date coverage of the latest science, politics, and economics of environmental issues. [CNH]

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·http://news.vanderbilt.edu/research/

While Research News at Vanderbilt is dedicated to all of the ground-breaking work that goes on at this Research I university, the website is not just for Vanderbilt community members. In fact, for anyone who is interested in the latest developments in a huge range of fields - from business, to education, to psychology, to astrophysics - this site functions as a window into many worlds. One wonderful way to scout the site is by category, including Health & Medicine, Education & Psychology, and Law, Business & Politics among others. For instance, one current article under Health & Medicine reviews a new study on pathologic cardiac hypertrophy. For readers who are looking for targeted searches, the site also features an excellent search function. [CNH]

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·http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/03/19/how-millennials-compare-with-their-grandparents/

This fascinating comparison by Eileen Patten and Ricard Fry of the Pew Research Center elucidates the differences between today's young people (age 18 to 33) and their counterparts in 1963. The numbers are illuminating. For instance, in terms of simple demographics, nearly 80 percent of "Silents" (those born between 1928 and 1945) were White. That number is down to 57 percent for Millenials. In addition, the study indicates that Millenials - especially women - are far more educated than their predecessors, are far more likely to have never married, and are much less likely to be veterans. These are just a few of the interesting tidbits from this timely report. [CNH]

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·http://www.brookings.edu/research/topics/affordable-care-act

The Brookings Institution publishes hundreds of studies and articles each year on a huge range of topics. This site on the Brookings page elucidates the ins, the outs, and the controversies of the American Affordable Care Act, popularly known as ObamaCare. Readers may peruse the site using the All tab, which includes everything from papers to articles to blog posts. There is a tremendous wealth of information here. One very interesting paper, published on January 27, 2014, examines The Potential Effects of the Affordable Care Act on Income Inequality, predicting that Obamacare should increase the real incomes of those in the bottom fifth of earners by about 6 percent. There are many other examples of equally fascinating arguments on this well-researched and comprehensive site. [CNH]

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·http://web.stanford.edu/group/spatialhistory/cgi-bin/site/index.php

The Spatial History Project at Stanford University is one of the sweeping, brilliant, amorphous ideas that so exhilarate and perplex interested bystanders. Projects at the institute encompass a dizzying array of topics, from Chinese Railroad Workers to Nineteenth Century Crowdsourcing to a Spatial History and Geology of Desert Ant Colonies. What holds the reader's interest is the sheer energy and wit of the projects, and their underlying commitment to a Humanities-inspired view of the world. After getting to know the Project through reading About Us and Our Team, readers may like to begin scouting the projects themselves. For instance, the Chinese Railroad Workers project, on which 16 lead researchers, research assistants, lab staff, and lab affiliates worked, links out to the full project page. Here readers will find beautiful photographs, an informative timeline, and even a contact form where site visitors may provide information on descendants of railroad workers or any suggestions for revisions or additions to the site. [CNH]

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·http://dp.la/exhibitions/exhibits/show/maps-in-american-culture

This compelling exhibit from the Digital Public Library of America traces the history of maps in American culture, in the process making some very sophisticated arguments about how maps have shaped the history, economics, and psychology of the United States. Readers may explore maps and photos by theme, including Westward Expansion, The Rise and Fall of America's Forests, Depicting a Fractured Society: Civil War Maps, Travel and Tourism: Maps for Every American, and Moving Forward. There are a number of resources under each category, and each map or photograph is accompanied by a detailed textual explanation. This site is well worth a visit. [CNH]

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·http://www.hirshhorn.si.edu/collection/home/#collection=current-exhibitions

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden was established on the edge of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. in 1974, primarily with works drawn from the personal collection of the Latvian-born financier Joseph Hirshhorn. Considered one of the "big five" modern art museums in the U.S., the Hirshhorn boasts impressive permanent collections and is known for innovative exhibitions. The museum also has a stunning website, where readers can peruse a continually updated array of current exhibitions. For instance, at the time of this writing, exhibitions featured on the site included Speculative Forms, which "reconsiders the historical development of sculpture since the early twentieth century and its critiques of the autonomy of the object." Photographs of items from the collection can viewed here along with a brief description of the object; the Exhibition Checklist highlights items on display that should not be missed. [CNH]

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·https://www.ghostery.com/en/

Would you like to surf the web free of the prying eyes of advertisers? Ghostery provides an easy - if only partially effective - solution. Originally launched in 2009, the service is simple to install. From the above link, the site automatically recognizes which browser you are using and offers itself as an add on. Ghostery is available for desktop and mobile devices and is compatible with Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, Opera, Android, iOS, and Firefox Android. Once Ghostery has downloaded, it will appear as a ghost icon on your browser toolbar and launch an introduction page with further instructions. Every time you visit a page, it will show you the number of detected trackers in a number bubble. You can then block those trackers individually or by clicking categories such as "advertisers" or "analytics" (located under "options"). [CNH]

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·https://drive.jolicloud.com/welcome

The ever-developing Paris-based tech company Jolicloud has been producing web-based desktop tools since 2009. So the Drive app, which allows users to consolidate various cloud storage services, is built on five years of designing, redesigning, and integrating as customers' needs have adapted to the shifting ecology of the Internet. Many people these days have stored music, documents, spreadsheets, photos, videos, and other files on web-based services like Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive. But what if you want to be able to access everything from a single, user-friendly platform? Enter Drive by Jolicloud. Drive allows 44GB of free storage (compare to the 2GB allowed on Dropbox) and provides a consistent, attractive interface where users can edit images, play music files, and watch videos. It connects with Evernote, Flickr, and other services for simple drag and drop functions. For users looking for a place to integrate all their web-based storage, Drive is a great program. [CNH]

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The Snake That's Eating Florida
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/06/us/the-burmese-python-snake-thats-eating-florida.html

What Happens When People Release Exotic Animals Into the Wild
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/what-happens-when-people-release-exotic-animals-into-the-wild/

Florida's exotic pet amnesty day means a chance to turn over nonnative animals without blame
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/state/floridas-exotic-pet-amnesty-day-means-a-chance-to-turn-over-nonnative-animals-without-blame

'Super' Termite Hybrid May Wreak Havoc on Florida
http://www.livescience.com/50290-hybrid-termite-pests.html

Invasive Lionfish Beyond The Reach Of Divers Worry Researchers (VIDEO)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/16/invasive-lionfish_n_3603726.html

Florida's Exotic Fish and WIldlife
http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/nonnatives/

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, more than 500 nonnative species of fish, birds, reptiles, insects, and other critters have taken up residence in the Sunshine State. That's a lot of unwelcome guests. While some of these hopping, swimming, slithering visitors make a home without too much trouble, others, like the 200-pound Burmese Pythons that currently haunt the Everglades, or the Asian and Formosan termite species (that are now interbreeding), can really wreak havoc on local flora, fauna, and even real estate. So what to do? Florida has instituted the Exotic Pet Amnesty Program, which allows owners of illegal pets to release their charges to officials - free of prosecution. Officials are also promoting education programs and opening their doors and phone lines to people who are thinking of buying an exotic pet. Whatever the method, the experts all agree, something needs to be done - and fast. [CNH]

The first link takes readers to a New York Times article and video about the threat that the Burmese Python poses to Florida's wildlife. Next, One Green Planet tracks what happens when people release their exotic pets, and the Naples News provides coverage of Florida's exotic pet amnesty day. Meanwhile the fourth link navigates to Live Science's article about the new termite hybrid that might have dire consequences for homeowners in South Florida, and a 2013 article and video in the Huffington Post reports on the attempt to control the Lionfish population crowding the shallow waters near Florida and throughout the Caribbean. Lastly, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's website offers a fount of information about invasive species, including sections on Freshwater Fish, Marine Life, Amphibians, Reptiles, Birds, and Mammals.