DAILY REFERENCES

Just for grins, here is a list of resources which you can send to your desktop for easy access.

• State of the Vote ~ updated daily.  If the presidential election were held now, would Barack Obama or Mitt Romney have more electoral votes?  Includes a map showing the breakdown by state.  Also includes a tab showing senatorial races.
• Distance Calculator ~ input the names of two cities, and learn how many road miles separate them.  Includes driving time and a route map.
• Language Translator ~ find the equivalent words or phrases between any two of 53 languages.  Swahili to Irish?  No problem.
• Height-Weight Chart ~ learn the healthy weight range for your gender and height.  Being lower within your weight range is better than being higher.
• World Population and You ~ input the day, month, and year of your birth, and find out the world population on that day, your rank order among all humans who have lived, and much more.
• Wind Chill Index ~ when it's cold outside, adding wind doesn't actually lower the ambient temperature, but it feels as if it does.  Cross-reference various temperatures and wind speeds and learn exactly what that perceived colder temperature is.
• The Shakespeare Insult Kit ~ priceless.
• Dictionary ~ yes, a dictionary.  What a concept.
• Contact Elected Officials ~ phone numbers, email and snail mail addresses for the U.S. president, senators, representatives, plus state governors and legislators.  Use them!
• Thesaurus ~ find that perfect, elusive synonym or antonym.
• Snopes ~ "the definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation."  The go-to place to check whether a rumor, news article, or factoid is real.
• 12 Most ~ an eclectic (and highly subjective) collection, ranging from the 12 Most Enjoyable Blogs by Women, to the 12 Most Annoying Things My Dad Does.
• World Population Clock ~ real-time number of humans on planet Earth.  Includes number of births and deaths, today and this year.  Am I alone in finding it depressing that there are 7 billiion 056 million 761 thousand 381 of us?  Oops.  382.  383.  Never mind.
• IMDb ~ the Internet Movie Database.  Includes info on current movies, plus you can search by movie name, actor name, director name, character name, and have a merry time following the links.
• Measuring the U.S. Melting Pot ~ an interactive map showing the distribution of people from assorted heritages ~ English, French, German, Irish, Italian, Mexican Norwegian, and 'other'.
• CNET ~ thinking of buying a new cell phone, desktop or laptop computer, digital camera, television, printer, tablet, home audio system, security software, or other device?  CNET posts reviews and comparisons with similar models.
• White Pages ~ an online national phone directory.  Fill in the name and location of the person you're seeking, and contact information (phone number and address) will appear if it is available.  Caveat ~ for 'advanced searches' you pay a fee.
• Clock/Calendar ~ a precise virtual reference which you can set to your time zone.
• Craigslist ~ classified ads for cities around the nation, around the world.
• EarthCam ~ live streaming webcam feeds from just about everywhere.
• Wikipedia ~ over 4 million encyclopedia entries.
• xkcd ~ "a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language."  Just because.
• Google Images ~ insert just about any word or phrase, and within a heartbeat you'll be presented with scores of photos and other images related to that theme.