http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/#

Summer certainly isn't a bad time to start a new home (or apartment) improvement project, whether it be a gut rehab or just fixing a wobbly toilet seat. Fortunately, the This Old House television program website is a good place to look for a wide range of information about just such endeavors. While the site certainly has a number of advertisements on it, there is still a good deal of very reliable content for use by the general public. The homepage contains a number of "Improvement Highlights", ranging from how to install a garage floodlight to how to tile a floor. Of course, most users will also want to check out some video highlights from the popular television show. Users may also want to submit a question for consideration by the This Old House staff. [KMG]

http://www.artsmia.org/world-myths/

Primarily for teachers and students (but fun for anyone), this website from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts uses 26 works of art selected from its collections to explore mythology from around the world. Each work of art has a corresponding essay that includes key points; the story that inspired the work of art; background, such as history, cultural context and style; and suggested discussion questions. For example, the entry for a Navajo ketoh includes a Navajo creation myth describing the adventures of the earliest beings as they moved through the first four worlds; explains that while this particular piece is decorative jewelry, the ketoh form is based on wrist guards worn by archers to protect their forearms from the snap of their bowstrings; and also provides background information on the Navajo, and their arts and crafts. [DS]

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/TNBhistory/

Stretching across the southern portion of Puget Sound, the elegant Tacoma Narrows bridge is considered one of the finest suspension bridges in the United States. The current bridge is the second on the site, as it was constructed in 1950 to serve as a replacement to the famous "Galloping Gertie" bridge, which collapsed in a windstorm in the fall of 1940. Currently, the Washington State Department of Transportation is building a bridge to replace the existing structure, and it is anticipated that it will be completed in 2007. This site offers a host of materials on all three structures, including ample information on the construction of the bridges and their aesthetic appeal. Along with these materials, the site also provides a glossary of related terms, Weird Facts, and some information about the dog "Tubby", who perished when "Galloping Gertie" collapsed on that fateful fall day back in 1940. [KMG]

http://www.museesdegrasse.com/MIP/fla_ang/MIP_accueil.shtml

It may be hard to imagine a website about perfume without the actual fragrances, but the International Perfume Museum does its subject matter proud with this very nice exhibit. The Museum was created in 1989 and its collections "retrace the history of perfumes", along with those of soap and cosmetics over the past 40 centuries. Visitors will want to begin by looking through a virtual visit of the "greenhouse," where they may view the raw materials that form the basis of many perfumes, and then proceed to the section titled "Leading techniques". A real treat is the "History of Perfume" area, which offers a broad chronological overview of the various incarnations and uses of perfume from antiquity to the present day. [KMG]

http://www.cyberjournalist.net/

CyberJournalist.net was founded in 2000 by Jonathan Dube, a print and online journalist who wanted to provide a site that offers news and resources on "how the Internet, convergence, and new technologies are changing the media". The site contains helpful tips, news and commentary about online journalism, digital storytelling, and how the Internet can be used as a reporting tool. One rather compelling feature of the site is the Great Work Gallery, which highlights very effective examples on online journalism, thematically organized into such areas as Breaking News, Student Work, Use of Flash, and Civic journalism. The site is quite pragmatic as well, as it also contains extensive job postings in the field. Not surprisingly, the site also features "The Weblog Blog", which is, in fact, a weblog about blogs and their use in journalism. [KMG]

http://www.californiaconnected.org/

Even as public interest programming on television seems to constitute less and less of the average programming schedule, there remain a few bright spots on the dial. One such program is California Connected, which is a public affairs television show that focuses on issues throughout the state of California. The program is produced through a collaboration of four of the state's PBS stations, along with generous assistance from a number of foundations, including The Annenberg Foundation. Visitors can view each show in its entirety on the site, and they may also want to browse the archives, which date back to 2002. There are a number of compelling programs here, including episodes on the efforts to create a solar-hydrogen fuel system and the state of California's biotech industry. If users of the site wish to search the contents of the archive by keyword or topic, they may do so here as well. [KMG]