Topic: Cultural Institutions and Parks

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Michelle Obama: 8 food and garden tips, stories from the First Lady

8 stories and pieces of advice from Michelle Obama's new book 'American Grown'
Top 5 ways to save on your summer vacation

If you're pining for a summer vacation but worried about costs, consider how Wayne and Pat Dunlap of Del Mar, Calif., managed to tour 51 countries over two years, marvel at the Egyptian pyramids, scale a New Zealand glacier, and visit Laotian Buddhist monks all for less than $100 a day. "We often stayed at guesthouses and hostels, ate at local family restaurants, took public transportation, and in some cases, traveled on cruise ships offering reduced rates," says Mr. Dunlap, author of the travel book "Plan Your Escape." This year amid price worries and higher summer airfares, especially to Europe such ingenuity could prove essential. Here are five cost-cutting strategies that can help:
Gideon Sunback zipper Google doodle: 10 great books about zippers

From picture books to history tomes, here are 10 books about zippers – an invention we couldn't get along without.
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe: His five most famous buildings

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe revolutionized architecture. His simple dictum that 'less is more' inspired building designs around the world. No wonder he received a loving Google doodle on Tuesday, his 126 birthday. Want to move past the doodle? Click through our short slideshow for a look Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's best work.
John Updike: 10 quotes on his birthday

10 quotes to mark John Updike's 80th birthday.

All Content

New Mexico wildfire, largest ever in the state, continues to burn

The Whitewater-Baldy blaze has burned more than nearly 300 square miles in New Mexico. It's now the largest wildfire burning in the country.
Virgin Galactic spaceship cleared for test flights

Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo, a commercial six-passenger spacecraft, to begin rocket-powered suborbital test flights, the company said on Wednesday. Virgin Galactic is owned by billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Group.
Decoder Wire
George W. Bush presidential portrait is unveiled. Who paid for it? (+video)

Though no longer the 'haphazard affair' it once was, the process of creating a presidential portrait like George W. Bush's is not an easy process. But taxpayers don't pick up the tab.
Michelle Obama: 8 food and garden tips, stories from the First Lady

8 stories and pieces of advice from Michelle Obama's new book 'American Grown'
This Memorial Day, many Vietnam vets, long silent, are finding a voice

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the Vietnam war, and President Obama will pay tribute Monday. It's a sign that, at last, Vietnam vets are being and feeling embraced.
Ready for summer? Family vacation season opens with Memorial Day

The summer travel season, whether its visiting Coney Island, Disneyland or Yellowstone, opens Memorial Day weekend. Time to schedule those flights and check the highways for this year's family vacation.
Mountain lion shot in downtown Santa Monica (+video)

A mountain lion prowling in the courtyard of a Santa Monica office building was fatally shot Tuesday. The National Park Service is monitoring 22 mountain lions in the nearby Santa Monica Mountains.
Thomas Hart Benton: A Life

Biographer Justin Wolff makes a strong case that Thomas Hart Benton played a central role as American art moved into the modern era.
'Ring of Fire' eclipse delights millions in Asia, US (+video)

A solar eclipse was visible to millions Sunday when the moon hid the sun, creating a 'ring of fire.' It was the first annular eclipse seen in Japan since 1839, and it was broadcast live on TV.
Solar eclipse: How to safely watch this evening's 'ring of fire'

During this evening's 'ring of fire' solar eclipse, what should be a spectacular display will be seen across much of the American West. Here's how to watch it safely.
Solar eclipse 2012: All systems go for witnessing rare 'ring of fire' (+video)

A rare annular eclipse, where a ‘ring of fire’ outlines the moon as it crosses the sun, will greet US viewers Sunday evening. Residents of the US West will have a good shot at seeing the full fire ring.
For sale: Tyrannosaurus skeleton at NYC auction

A nearly complete Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton, the Asian cousin of the T-Rex dinosaur, is up for sale Sunday. Starting bid: $850,000.
Orhan Pamuk's Museum of Innocence opens in Istanbul

Orhan Pamuk's Museum of Innocence, based on his 2008 novel, houses thousands of objects that evoke the atmosphere of 1970s Turkey and enshrine ordinary life.
Football stadium to host world's largest solar eclipse party

The eclipse will occur in the afternoon and early evening on Sunday, during which time the moon will pass between Earth and the sun, casting a shadow on the planet.
Solar eclipse visible from 154 national parks Sunday

Sunday's solar eclipse will be the first visible in the US this century. The annular eclipse will be best seen from 33 national parks, including the Grand Canyon.
Betty White on safari in Washington for new animal picture book

Actress Betty White goes on safari to Washington National Zoo for her new animal picture book.
Global News Blog
Italian museum sets its art on fire to protest lack of government funding

Contending that it would be 'destroyed anyway' because there is no money for preservation work, the Casoria Contemporary Art Museum is burning a piece of its contemporary art collection every day.
Diggin' It
Peony season

When peonies bloom in spring, it's time to think about adding more next season. Singles or doubles may be the question.
Was ancient crocodile world's largest?

Researchers have recently unearthed what they think may have been the biggest crocodile ever to have lived on Earth.
Top 5 ways to save on your summer vacation

If you're pining for a summer vacation but worried about costs, consider how Wayne and Pat Dunlap of Del Mar, Calif., managed to tour 51 countries over two years, marvel at the Egyptian pyramids, scale a New Zealand glacier, and visit Laotian Buddhist monks all for less than $100 a day. "We often stayed at guesthouses and hostels, ate at local family restaurants, took public transportation, and in some cases, traveled on cruise ships offering reduced rates," says Mr. Dunlap, author of the travel book "Plan Your Escape." This year amid price worries and higher summer airfares, especially to Europe such ingenuity could prove essential. Here are five cost-cutting strategies that can help:
Change Agent
Public-private teamwork helps save Connecticut's threatened alewives

The once-abundant fish have played a big role in Connecticut's development. But now they need help to reach their freshwater spawning grounds.
Horizons
Keith Haring: Painter, activist, and one of the original street artists (+video)

Google doodle today honors the legacy of Keith Haring, an artist and activist who would have been 54 Friday.
'The Scream' sells for record amount at New York auction (+video)

Edward Munch's famous painting 'The Scream' sold for just under $120 million dollars at Sotheby's.
Death Valley used as stand-in for Martian landscape (+video)

A project scientist for NASA's huge Curiosity rover is leading a handful of journalists on a trip to Death Valley, whose geology and vistas resemble Mars in some places. The goal is to help reporters get a better idea of the science Curiosity will be doing when it touches down on the Red Planet on the night of Aug. 5.
Space Shuttle Enterprise flyover wows New Yorkers (+video)

Perched atop a modified 747 jumbo jet, the Space Shuttle Enterprise greeted the Big Apple by zooming past the Statue of Liberty and flying along the Hudson River.