Text Books Online

LibraryGenesis (gen.lib.rus.ec) is a completely free library of almost every textbook and college manual, cookbooks, comics, etc. You can likely retrieve all of them in pdf or epub form. Some of it is in Russian, such as magazines. Still a good source for free books.

Volunteer

Whether it is planting trees or serving food to the homeless, volunteering your time for the greater good makes a difference in the lives of many. Doing good deeds also benefits your body, too. A study from Harvard shows that people who regularly volunteer enjoy longer, happier, healthier lives.
Researchers say that people over 50 years old who volunteer for about two hours weekly have a considerably lower risk of death. They are also less likely to develop physical impairments and do exercise more frequently. All of these benefits naturally lead to a stronger overall well-being versus people who do not volunteer.
“Humans are social creatures by nature. Perhaps this is why our minds and bodies are rewarded when we give to others,” explains lead author Dr. Eric Kim, of the Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University. “Our results show that volunteerism among older adults doesn’t just strengthen communities, but enriches our own lives by strengthening our bonds to others, helping us feel a sense of purpose and well-being, and protecting us from feelings of loneliness, depression, and hopelessness.”

The researchers randomly selected nearly 13,000 participants a national study conducted between 2010-2016. Participants were split into two groups and tracked for four years each. The research team used health data, face-to-face interviews and surveys to evaluate the effects of volunteering on 34 specific physical and mental health outcomes.

Espresso and Caffeine

Espresso is a form of coffee made by grinding the beans very finely and subjecting them to hot water at high pressure. Espresso has a more concentrated flavor. Ounce for ounce, espresso does have more caffeine than a regular drip brew. A shot of espresso has 120 to 170 mg of caffeine, whereas a cup of coffee has 150 to 200 mg. It would take two or three espresso shots to equal the caffeine in a 16-ounce Starbucks coffee.

Car Production 2017

In case you were thinking the US still manufactures the most cars, here is a startling picture.

Five Interesting Car Facts

There are 1 billion cars currently in use on earth.
Volkswagen owns Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Audi, Ducati, and Porsche.
In 1924, half the cars in the world were Fords.
Half of all new cars in Norway are electric or hybrid.

95% of a car's lifetime is spent parked.

Soundbase vs. Soundbar

When it comes to speakers for TVs, some models are described as a “soundbase.” Soundbase and sound bar are similar,and they might even share identical technological feature sets, but they are not the same thing. A soundbase is specifically designed to sit on a cabinet and support the weight of a television. Their form factor means they cannot be mounted to the wall.

Normandy Cemetery

At the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, French caretakers take the sand from Omaha Beach and scrub them into the letters to give them the brown/gold coloring as a method of remembering the names as they often get washed out being engraved into bright white stone. One user said the sand does not last all too long, but it is more about the intent than the result.

YouTube Hack

If you want to watch an ad free YouTube video, just add a period (.) at the end of the URL. It should look like .com. - https://www.youtube.com.

Happy Friday

If you want to know how rich you really are, add up all the things you have that money can not buy.
Always enjoy what you have, especially on a Happy Friday!

Happy Father's Day, June 21

Father's Day always falls on the third Sunday in June. It is the day we can remember and honor our fathers.
A woman named Sonora Smart Dodd established an official equivalent to Mother’s Day for male parents. She went around to local businesses to gather support for her idea, and on June 19, 1910, the state of Washington celebrated the first-ever Father's Day.

On May 1, 1972, President Richard Nixon signed Proclamation 4127, which declared Father's Day as a national holiday, with the first official celebration on June 18, 1972. "Let each American make this Father's Day an occasion for renewal of the love and gratitude we bear to our fathers, increasing and enduring through all the years," he wrote in the document. Incidentally, we are all used to telling our mothers, "I love you." It is OK to tell dad the same.

What's in a Name, Q-tips

The Q stands for quality. Q-tips were first conceived by Leo Gerstenzang, who observed his wife stick bits of cotton to toothpicks. He decided that his wife had the right idea and decided to found the Leo Gerstenzang Infant Novelty Co. in 1923, which would manufacture ready to use cotton swabs.

USA Geography

You want to start an argument between New Yorkers and New Jerseyans, bring up this bone of contention. Even though the US Geological Survey has placed Liberty Island in New York's 8th Congressional District, the island actually resides in New Jersey's waters, and is much closer to Jersey's mainland than New York's.
The Mississippi River is the longest in the US at 2348 miles. The Missouri River is 2,341 miles.
The Aleutian Islands in Alaska cross over the 180th meridian, which means that the islands on the far side of the line are technically in the farthest eastern longitudes of the world an the easternmost point of North America. The islands on this side of the line also make Alaska our westernmost state as well.
The Florida Keys are a picturesque haven for tourists who flock to the southernmost geographical marker in Key West, but it is just the southernmost continental point. Hawaii, in fact, reaches down nearly to the 21st latitude, only 1,465 miles from the equator.

According to a 2016 census estimate, Wyoming has the fewest residents, with just below 586,000, ranking it No. 50 in state populations. Vermont comes after that with about 625,000, while Alaska is ahead at 48th, having nearly 742,000 residents.

Mobile Phone Tip

Hide a folded bill behind your phone case so you have some emergency cash if you forget your wallet or purse. In the old days, my sisters used to pin a bill to their bra, in case someone ran out of gas or had a flat tire.

Mobile Phone Facts

Most mobile phone users check their phones up to 63 times daily.
Americans spend an average screen time of 5.4 hours on their mobile phones daily.
Currently, there are 272.6 million smartphone users in America.
13% of Millennials spend over 12 hours on their phones daily.
Baby Boomers spend 5 hours using their phones.