Math museum adds up for kids

Squealing schoolchildren ride a square-wheeled tricycle and a “Coaster Roller” that glides over plastic acorns. Downstairs, they fit monkey magnets together at the “Tessellation Station.”

This is how math is presented at New York City’s new National Museum of Mathematics, the only museum of its kind in the United States and a place where math is anything but boring. Read more »

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Today’s Manufactured Homes are Naturally Green

“An emphasis on eco-friendly building techniques and innovation is propelling the manufactured housing industry forward in many new areas. “

PHOENIX, AZ — There is a “green” building revolution taking place, and manufactured housing is squarely in the forefront of this trend. Due largely to the fact that manufactured homes are built in a controlled factory environment, implementing the latest construction technologies is easier, assembly is more efficient, and greenhouse gas emissions and materials waste is greatly reduced. All these factors directly contribute to the greater affordability of today’s manufactured homes. Read more »

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CONNECTIONS™ Summit: Lowe’s to showcase Iris platform and connected home solutions during networking reception

DALLAS, Jan. 3, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Parks Associates today announced Lowe’s as the exclusive sponsor of the CONNECTIONS™ Summit networking reception, January 8 at 2013 International CES in Las Vegas. The reception starts at 6:00 p.m. following a full day of sessions addressing connected CE, home systems, tech support, and value-added services. The reception will showcase Lowe’s Iris platform and feature networking opportunities to discuss strategies to engage consumers with new home controls and management solutions. Read more »

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Man’s best friend gets the royal treatment, despite recessionary woes

CHICAGO, Nov. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – Pets are not only a man’s best friend, they are often looked upon as a four-legged member of the family. As a result, the retail sales of pets and related supplies and services have produced consistent gains from 2007-12, despite a turbulent economy. Mintel’s latest report estimates the pet market is worth more than $49 billion in 2012, up 15% since 2007. Read more »

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Can parents share child-raising responsibilities equally?

The new parenting ideal looks a lot like Katherine and Roger Kranenburg. Professionals who have achieved enough career success to earn both good money and work flexibility, they are raising two children, 5 and 3, who are healthy, energetic and even ask for extra grilled zucchini with their lunch.

In their roomy Washington house, with deck and swimming pool nestled among leafy trees, the Kranenburg family’s mornings look like an upscale version of what more and more American parents strive for: parity in parenting. Dad cooks and Mom untangles hair. Both parents arrange their schedules to make the parent-teacher conference. Dad clicks the kids into car seats; Mom drives them to school. Read more »

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Arthur’s Blog: The Six Most Common Travel Questions

What are the queries most frequently posed to this blog by readers, or phoned in to the Travel Show? There are six of them repeated over and over most weeks, each reflecting a widespread travel concern.

1. Is it safe to travel to _____? It’s the most frequent query of all and the most difficult to answer. In a pinch, I direct them to the U.S. State Department’s list of nations to avoid (www.travel.state.gov) and also point out that a similar list maintained by the British Foreign Office (www.fco.gov.uk) is regarded, by some, as containing even better advice. Read more »

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Bow & Truss North Hollywood: Modern design, to go

Bow & Truss bar screen

Bow & Truss, the new North Hollywood restaurant and lounge crafted from what had been an auto body garage, may not sound like the kind of place with design elements that could translate to a residential environment. But as envisioned by Beth Holden, principal of the West Hollywood architecture studio New Theme, in collaboration with her client, Morgan Margolis of Knitting Factory Entertainment, the updated 1930s building will indeed hold some design solutions with high visual impact that diners just might bring home. Read more »

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36 Hours in Dubrovnik, Croatia

FIRST, the bad news: Dubrovnik is no longer anyone’s best-kept secret. Some 17 years after the end of Croatia’s war of independence, the city’s medieval walled Old Town is gridlocked with tourists during the summer. Yet go in the fall and you’ll quickly see what the fuss is about. Jutting out on a peninsular chunk of the Dalmatian coastline, the former Republic of Ragusa is a Venetian Gothic marvel. Columned porticoes and loggias rim marble-paved Renaissance squares buffed to a sheen by centuries of foot traffic. Yes, many businesses unabashedly cater to cruise ship passengers and other mainstream tourists, but there are plenty of creative local standouts. Read more »

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Top Deals for UK Travellers

Top Deals for UK Travellers including Lake Garda, Barbados, Gascony, Tanzania and Reykjavik.

Deal 1: Lazing by the lake

Inghams has sliced a tempting £306 off its Lake Garda holidays for early July and is offering seven nights surrounded by olive groves and cypress tress for £359 per person. This is the ideal location for lazing by the water, strolling along the tree-lined promenades and road-testing Italian dishes in the many restaurants. The deal for the Northern Italy lakeside break is on a half board basis at the three-star Palme Hotel and includes return flights from Gatwick to Verona and resort transfers. Departure is on 11 July. The deal is also available from Birmingham and Newcastle for an extra £29 and £49 respectively.

Lake Garda, Italy, Nancy Beja Read more »

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Heads Up: In a Swedish Park, Art Co-Stars With Nature

AMID a thicket of beech trees and moss-covered stones, I spied a giant red ball wedged high in the branches of a tree. A few yards away, there was another ball stuck in a tree — similar to the way a basketball occasionally gets lodged between a rim and the backboard. Farther along the path, there was yet another. This was no ordinary forest. Read more »

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