·http://www.centeroncongress.org/

While many of us read about congress on a regular basis, what members of congress actually do can sometimes seem like a mystery. This website from the Center on Congress at Indiana University, seeks to offer readers a window into the world of our representative democracy. After scouting the landing page, which includes commentaries by former U.S. Representative Lee H. Hamilton, readers may like to select Learn About Congress to peruse sections such as What is Congress?, How Does Congress Work?, What Does Congress Do for Me?, How Can I Participate?, and How Can I Learn More? Within each of these categories, readers will find interactive modules (for instance, The Many Roles of a Member of Congress), short videos, and informative articles. Additionally, educators will find suggestions, links, and standards-based resources under the Classroom Resources tab. [CNH]

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·http://lessonplanspage.com/

HotChalk's Lesson Plans Page has been gathering lesson plans and teacher resources for nearly two decades. Originally developed by the University of Missouri, teachers and professionals have since uploaded over 4,000 classroom resources on a range of subjects and targeted toward every age group. Readers may like to begin by using the the Find A Plan function. For instance, typing "constitution" returns 41 lessons, including an activity in which 5th graders imagine themselves as journalists at the ratification of the constitution in 1788 and then make their own newspaper front pages. Site visitors may also like to explore the hundreds of Teacher Resources, searchable by category, such as Art and Education, Technology in the Classroom, and others. Educators are even free to upload their own Lesson Plans (a simple sign up with email and password is required to access this function). As a result, readers should take note that not all lesson plans are of equal value; the quality may vary from truly excellent to somewhat confusing and incomplete. [CNH]

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·http://cpo.noaa.gov/OutreachandEducation.aspx

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Program Office hosts an information-packed Outreach and Education website. Here readers may find up-to-date information on climate change, including many interesting articles. Within Educational Resources, readers will find an especially interesting resource, Ten Signs of a Warming World. This interactive web page allows users to explore the evidence for climate change themselves, such as warming air temperature over land, air temperature over ocean, arctic sea ice, glaciers, and other indicators of world wide climate change. In addition, the Adopt a Drifter program has been a favorite of K-16 educators since its inception in 2004. In this program, students "adopt" a meteorological buoy that is then released into the ocean. They may then access information from their buoy, track its progress, and learn how it is contributing to the overall data gathering in the world's oceans. [CNH]

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·http://www.beanactuary.org/

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, experienced actuaries can earn well over $150,000 per year. This site outlines the ins and outs of a career in actuarial science. Readers may like to begin with What is an Actuary? to explore what actuaries do, where they work, and and why it is a top ranked job. The Why Actuarial Science? section explains some salary expectations, outlines a day in the life, and examines the career outlook for the future. Meanwhile, the sections How Do I Get Started?, College Study, and Actuarial Exams all dig into the nuts and bolts of how one actually becomes an actuary. For math teachers, college counselors, or anyone who knows a high school or college student interested in this career path, this site can be a clarifying tool. [CNH]

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·https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/teaching-resources

Although educators outside of the United Kingdom will need to adapt some of the curricula from these excellent teacher resources, the lesson plans, activities, and articles on the Teaching Teens section of the British Council's TeachingEnglish site are well worth the effort. Readers may want to start with the Activities section, which boasts dozens of projects and learning tasks on subjects as diverse as mega-bridges and alien abduction. The Lesson Plans tab hosts equally helpful resources. For instance, the Mandela Day lesson plan aims to teach teens the benefits of working for others, and provides a history of famed South African leader, Nelson Mandela. Each lesson plan includes a brief description, allotted time, clear aims, and downloadable materials. This site is a welcome resource for educators of teens around the world. [CNH]

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·http://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/mideast.asp

For anyone interested in the public policy, diplomacy, and international law of the Middle East over the past century, this documentary record provides hundreds of pages of primary sources. For instance, a British White Paper from June 1922 attempted to resolve "the outstanding questions which have given rise to uncertainty and unrest among certain sections of the population" of Palestine, "due to apprehensions, which are entertained both by sections of the Arab and by sections of the Jewish population." Many documents follow, including a number of United Nations Security Council Resolutions, armistice agreements between Israel and Lebanon and Egypt, attempts to establish borders, and many attempts to broker a truce between Israelis and Palestinians. [CNH]

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·http://www.saa.org/publicftp/public/resources/foredu.html

Hosted by the Society of American Archaeology (SAA), Archaeology for the Public hopes to make the practice and study of archaeology accessible to all. The Resources for Educators section, featured here, is especially edifying. Readers may like to start with the Archaeology for Educators area, which provides educators with an overview of the field and offers a few hands-on and interactive activities for students. Eleven other areas follow; topics include K-12 Archaeology Programs Developed By Educators, Archaeology Career Information, and Artifact Study Kits & Reproductions, among others. Each topic features several helpful resources, such as lesson plans, activities, and links to other sites around the web. [CNH]

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·http://www.rockthevote.com/get-informed/elections/

Through the ebb and flow of elections, American news outlets are rife with stories of presidential contenders. For secondary educators looking for compelling ways to present the workings of electoral politics in the United States, and for university faculty and staff who would like to engage students in the political process, this site from Rock the Vote is an excellent resource. Readers may like to begin with the interactive map, which provides detailed, state-by-state information about voting. Next, the Rock the Vote blog elucidates issues that are important to millennials, including college debt, same day voter registration, online voter registration, and other topics. Finally, the Polling & Research tab hosts links to research of interest to young people from around the web. [CNH]

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·http://cacm.acm.org

With a membership of over 100,000 worldwide, the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) has the wherewithal and the aptitude to put out an extraordinarily professional and informative monthly magazine, which includes a print iteration as well as a corresponding online site that can be read by anyone. On the site, readers will find much to explore. For instance, Blog@CACM includes breaking thoughts on computer technology from some of the world's leading experts, while Video Highlights profiles a range of topics, including "Teaching Computers with Illusions." Sections of the site also flesh out Opinion, Research, and Careers. However, the true gems of the site may very well be the Current Issue tab and the Archive tab, both of which feature full-length articles written for the print magazine. These missives provide detailed peeks into the concerns most pressing to the fields of computer science and information technology. [CNH]

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·http://ladigitalmedia.org/

The Louisiana Digital Media Archive (LDMA) is "the first project in the nation to combine the media collections of a public broadcaster and a state archives." Hosted by the Louisiana Public Broadcasting Digital Collection and the Louisiana State Archives Multimedia Collection, this site is loaded with Louisiana memorabilia. Readers may browse by topic (Civil Rights, Sports, Energy, Environment, Arts & Culture, and others), by Series of locally produced public broadcasting content (Louisiana Legends, North Star, Folks, and others), and Programs, such as the fascinating program, "The Civil War: A Louisiana Perspective." Most months, there is also a Spotlight on History section that focuses on historical topics near and dear to the Pelican State. [CNH]

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·http://grantspace.org/

For anyone engaged in the world of education, research, or nonprofits, grant writing can be a fact of daily life. However, becoming a powerful and effective grant writer is a continually evolving process, requiring timely information and the latest in techniques and inspirations. GrantSpace, with its array of "easy-to-use, self-service tools and resources," can be an excellent support for both experienced and apprentice grant writers. While some of the resources on the site require a sign up, there is plenty to peruse without any commitment, including webinars, multimedia tools, and podcasts, which can mostly be found in the Training and Tools tabs, as well as a frequently updated and well-informed blog that covers the latest in the wide world of grant writing. [CNH]

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·http://www.webbyawards.com/winners/2015/

The Internet is big. Really big. In fact, as of the time of this writing, there are over 900 million websites to navigate on the World Wide Web. So how do you choose the best, the most innovative, the most useful, the most beautiful? Every year, the Webby Awards does just that. Readers will find much to explore on the Webby Awards' website. The site can be scouted by category, including Special Achievement, Websites, Online Film & Video, Advertising & Media, Mobile Sites & Apps, and Social. Within each category, awards are meted out by subcategory. For instance, within Websites, there are awards for Art, Best use of Photography, Best User Experience, and many others. For a trip down memory lane, the site can also be searched by year, all the way back to 1997. While not all winners of the Webby Awards are equally academic, there are plenty of interesting and educational website recommendations for Scout Readers on the site. [CNH]

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·http://www.protectionproject.org/

Founded in 1994, the Protection Project is a human rights organization that seeks to combat human trafficking around the world. In addition to opportunities for advocacy, the site is packed with information. Readers may like to begin on the homepage, where the New Publications section offers three downloadable PDFs, including a nearly 100-page report on trafficking for labor and sex, government responses, and the role of NGOs in combating human trafficking. In addition, the Resources tab is packed with information, including reports from dozens of countries, a list of downloadable publications, links to anti-trafficking legislation (under the Law Library tab), and a Speeches & Commentary section. For readers seeking to become informed about the nature of slavery in the 21st century, this site can provide a great deal of education. [CNH]

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·http://jerrygarcia.com/

In his decades of musical engagements, Jerry Garcia played 3,947 shows with 27 bands and over 77 musicians. This giant site chronicles the "long strange trip" of Jerry's musical, professional, and personal lives. Readers may like to begin with Jerry's Story, a visually appealing timeline that narrates the musician's fascination with rock and roll from an early age, as well as his brief stint in the army (he was discharged for "lack of suitability"), and his decades on the road. The Shows tab relates hundreds of shows that Jerry played with the Grateful Dead and other bands, complete with set lists, photos, links to lyrics, and other fascinating minutiae. Inside the Vault, readers can explore a lifetime's worth of photos, videos, posters, concert tickets, and artwork. [CNH]

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·http://css.cul.columbia.edu/

With almost 1,400 images ranging from the 1880s to the 1950s, the Community Service Society Photographs at Columbia University's Rare Book & Manuscript Library "offer representations of urban poverty, unsafe tenement housing, inadequate hygiene in public areas, and other pressing social issues in late-19th and early-20th century New York." Readers may like to begin with the Featured Topics tab, where they can explore the collection through categories such as Children, Girls, Boys, Women, Men, Interiors, Buildings, House Furnishings, and Streets. In addition, the Places tab offers images from over two dozen locations, with the bulk of them orbiting the Lower East Side, Red Hook, Saugerties, and Little Italy. Readers may also scout the dozens of Topics, which include everything from Abandoned Buildings to Memorials to Plumbing. [CNH]

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·http://imaginaryinstruments.org/

In the Museum of Imaginary Musical Instruments - which exists only online, under a Creative Commons license - readers will find a panoply of imaginative inventions, from the Torturetron (from the film script of the Adventures of Baron Munchausen) to Les Paul's Les Paulverizer. Readers may like to begin with the About section, which includes a fascinating exegesis of the site's undergirding assumptions, before moving on to the exhibitions. These include spectacles in the general categories of Abstract Resonators, Acousmatic Instruments, Auditory Extensions, Giganticism, and others. Each instrument is accompanied by the textual or visual reference from which it was drawn and a concomitant image or explanation. This imaginative site must be seen to be believed. [CNH]

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·https://asana.com/

Asana, a collaborative workplace management tool, has garnered positive reviews around the Internet, including recognition as an "Editor's Choice" at PC Magazine. The platform seeks to replace email for group projects, offering in its stead a holistic work environment, with deadlines, priority options, and seamless communication all built into a single system. The layout includes three basic areas: a left rail that displays a list of projects, a main window that features the current working project, and an information box on the right that provides more details on the current work. The platform is extremely fluid and malleable, which makes creative use of the service possible, but, as with any flexible, template-free service, can also produce frustration in the early stages of learning. The free version supports up to 15 team members. Most users will find that they do not need the premium version, though it offers some extra capabilities, such as unlimited guests, private teams, and more access to help desk features. Asana is designed for tech savvy teams that are looking for the next level of online synergy. [CNH]

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·http://www.tricider.com/

As promised, tricider really does make brainstorming and voting amazingly easy. In fact, by the end of the 87-second video on the site's homepage, most users will know everything they need to know about the service. The first step is to sign up with an email address or Facebook or Google account. From there, type in a question (for instance, "What should we have for dinner?"). Then share your question with friends through Facebook, Twitter, or other avenues. Friends can then add ideas ("pizza!"), add arguments for ideas ("everyone loves pizza!"), and vote on ideas. The result is simple, powerful, and efficient. [CNH]

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Light rain brings little relief to Calif. wildfire
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/08/04/california-fire-jumps-containment-line/31093505/

Dry Days Bring Ferocious Start to Fire Season
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/us/dry-days-in-west-bring-ferocious-start-to-fire-season.html?_r=0

Fire and the U.S. Forest Service
http://www.foresthistory.org/ASPNET/Policy/Fire/index.aspx

10 of the worst wildfires in U.S. history
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/wilderness-resources/stories/10-of-the-worst-wildfires-in-us-history

Western Wildfires & Climate Change
http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/impacts/infographic-wildfires-climate-change.html#.Vb-2pjBViko

With a record-breaking drought and record-breaking temperatures settling into the Western United States over the past months, many experts predict that this summer will turn out to be one of the worst fire seasons in history. In fact, this week the news was filled with reports of fires burning hotter and spreading faster, jumping containment lines, destroying homes, and even killing a fire captain in California. The statistics are scary. According to the New York Times, fires will likely cost the government more than two billion dollars this year. Ten of the warmest years on record have occurred since 1998. And more than 36 thousand fires have already burned nearly six million acres since May. While the causes of such catastrophic fire anomalies are complex, most experts agree that the combination of an El Nino cycle and global climate change are the main culprits.
[CNH]

The first two links take readers to USA Today and Seattle Times coverage of several of the fires currently burning in the West, while the third link, from the New York Times, provides a broader overview of the fire season. The fourth link navigates to a U.S. Forest Service history of fire, including sections on policy, research, prevention, famous fires, and suppression. Next, Mother Earth News takes a look at 10 of the worst forest fires in U.S. history. Finally, the Union of Concerned Scientists offers a disconcerting infographic linking the current forest fires in the Western United States to global warming.