I did not know that yesterday!

I typed "www.heinz.com" into our browser's location bar, and was quickly rewarded with the Heinz web site, and clicked on the Consumer FAQs section, always my first stop when looking for an answer to this type of question. I scanned the entries and soon found a similar question:
What is the significance of "57"?.

Here's the company line:

Our corporate history tells us that in 1896, Henry John Heinz noticed an advertisement for "21 styles of shoes." He decided that his own products were not styles, but varieties. Although there were many more than 57 foods in production at the time, because the numbers "5" and "7" held a special significance for him and his wife, he adopted the slogan "57 Varieties." So, the number 57 isn't related to the number of products offered by Heinz. It is interesting to note, however, that the company currently sells 5,700 varieties in 200 countries and territories.

A Yahoo! search on "soap making" led ume to the Arts > Crafts > Soapmaking category, where we found about a dozen sites. After clicking on a few, I ended up at the informative Soap Making site. After browsing the site, I clicked on Basic Instructions and found an easy-to-follow guide for making soap from scratch.

The basic ingredients:

Water - For best results, use rain, distilled, or soft water. You should generally use 6 oz. of water to 16 oz. of fat. Lye - An extremely dangerous ingredient that should be handled with the utmost care. Fats and oils - Fats for soap making include animal fats such as tallow (fat from beef), lard (fat from pork), and the various
plant-derived oils. (Each fat requires a different amount of lye to change it to soap so visit the site's Lye to Fat Ratio Table for a list of the different fats and the amount of lye required to convert them to soap.)
You'll also need coloring dyes, fragrance oils, and some other ingredients, but the supplies above are the essentials for any aspiring soap maker.

For a long list of online retailers who sell soapmaking supplies, check out Yahoo!'s Soapmaking category, located under Business and Economy.

Check out these other soapmaking sites for instructions, recipes, and some good clean fun: About.com's Candle and Soapmaking page, the Handmade Soapmakers Resource, and SoapTeacher.com.

Despite its name, dry cleaning is not completely dry. As a matter of
fact, according to several sources I found, dry cleaning uses liquid chemicals to remove stains and clean clothes. I first visited How Stuff Works, which explained that in the early days of dry cleaning, the solvent used was often kerosene or gasoline. That has changed, and the industry now uses perchloroethylene (also
known as "perc") almost universally. Clothes are washed in this solvent, and then the solvent is recaptured so it can be reused.

The EPA's web site also offers some facts on the dry-cleaning process and how it typically works:

Spots are usually treated by hand and then clothes are placed in large machines.
Liquid solvents, detergents, and sometimes a small amount of water are added to the machines, which agitate the clothes in a manner similar to regular washing machines.
Once clean, the clothes are dried, pressed, and shaped. The solvent is separated from waste residues, such as detergents, dye, dirt, and oil, and cleaned so it can be reused.

Finally, the filters used to clean the solvent and the solvent residues are managed and disposed of as hazardous waste. They are usually sent to special facilities for recycling or incineration.

Many people oppose the use of perc, a toxic chemical with both health and environmental concerns. Both of the aforementioned sites provide information on the hazards of this chemical. So read up before your next trip to the cleaners.

Chocolate contains theobromine, an alkaloid that dogs can't metabolize quickly. If a dog ingests a large amount of chocolate, the theobromine can build up and reach a toxic level of concentration, leading to cardiac arrest. Different types of chocolate are more harmful than others, and the effects will vary, depending
upon the size and weight of the dog. However, it is potentially lethal.

If you know your dog has ingested chocolate (signs of chocolate poisoning include vomiting, diarrhea, excessive urination, a quick heart rate, and rapid breathing) take him to a vet immediately.

a quick review of some of the other household items that can cause harm to your fuzzy friend. For instance, did you know common plants such as azaleas, rhododendron, and foxglove can all cause heart failure if ingested?

Some other articles dog owners should check out include "Common Household Items Hazardous to Your Dog " from Pet Warehouse, and "Chocolate Poisoning in Dogs," by veterinarian Kevin Fitzgerald.

But why isn't theobromine poisonous to humans? To answer that question, I tried a Yahoo! search on "theobromine," which led me to an article from About.com. There, I learned that humans can break down and excrete theobromine much more efficiently than dogs, rendering it effectively harmless.

Just remember: Chocolate's a tasty treat for humans, but it can be fatal to our four-legged friends.

I did a little searching and found an answer of sorts on the web site of Crystal Geyser. In the FAQ section, someone asked why the company's bottle water has an expiration date. The answer explains that some states require all food and beverages, including bottled water, to state an expiration date on the label. The company says, "we feel that an average storage of two years will help ensure optimal quality." They go on to recommend that you store bottled water in a cool and dry
environment, away from non-food products.

I then turned to the MadSci Network for more information. Answering the question of why bottled water has an expiration date, the site states that over time, the water picks up flavors from its packaging. These flavors, combined with warm storage temperatures, contribute to the "generation of musty tastes."

According to the International Bottled Water Association, the FDA has not established a shelf life for water, so you can store those bottles indefinitely. As long as the packaging is intact and unopened, you shouldn't need to worry about any type of bacteria or microorganisms growing in the water. If the bottle has been opened, however, it can grow bacteria and algae if it is not consumed within 2 weeks.

So while it doesn't appear that unopened bottles of water actually go "bad" in the sense that they would make you sick, they might not taste the greatest after several years of sitting on the shelf collecting dust.

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in decreasing order of seniority:

Knight or Dame Grand Cross (GBE)
Knight or Dame Commander (KBE or DBE)
Commander (CBE)
Officer (OBE)
Member (MBE)

Only the two highest ranks entail admission into knighthood. There is also a related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are not members of the Order, but which is affiliated with the Order nonetheless. This is no longer conferred in the United Kingdom, but is still used in some overseas territories and Commonwealth nations.

The Order's motto is For God and the Empire. It is the most junior of the British orders of chivalry and has more members than any other.


History
King George V founded the Order to fill gaps in the British honours system: The Most Honourable Order of the Bath honoured only senior military officers and civil servants, The Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George honoured diplomats and the Royal Victorian Order honoured those who had personally served the Royal Family. In particular, King George V wished to honour the many thousands of
people who served in numerous non-combatant capacities during the First World War. Originally, the Order included only one division; soon after its foundation, in 1918, it was formally divided into Military and Civil Divisions. This Order of Knighthood has a more democratic character than the exclusive orders of the Bath or Saint Michael and Saint George, and in its early days was not held in high esteem. This changed over the years.


Composition
Queen Elizabeth II & Prince Philip in the robes of the Order of the British EmpireThe British Sovereign is the Sovereign of the Order and appoints all other members of the Order (by convention, on the advice of the Government). The next-most senior member is the Grand Master. The current Grand Master is HRH The Duke of Edinburgh.

The Order is limited to 100 Knights and Dames Grand Cross, 845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8960 Commanders. There are no limits on the total number of members of the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than 858 Officers and 1464 Members may be appointed per year. Appointments are made on the advice of the governments of the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth realms. By convention, female judges of the High Court of England and Wales are created Dames Commander after appointment. Male judges, however, are created Knights Bachelor.

Although the Order of the British Empire has by far the highest number of members of the British Orders of Chivalry, there are fewer appointments to knighthoods than in other orders. Most Knights Commander are honorary members or British subjects living abroad, with only a handful being residents of the United Kingdom. The grade of Dame Commander, on the other hand, is the commonest grade of dame in the British honours system and is awarded in circumstances where men would be created Knights Bachelor.

Most members are citizens of the United Kingdom or other Commonwealth realms ruled by the Queen. Citizens of other countries, however, may be admitted as "honorary members". They do not count towards the numerical limits aforementioned, nor are holders of the GBE, KBE or DBE addressed as "Sir" or "Dame". (They may be made full members if they subsequently become British citizens.) See List of honorary British Knights.

At the foundation of the Order, the "Medal of the Order of the British Empire" was instituted. In 1922, it was renamed the "British Empire Medal". Recipients, who are not members of the Order itself, are grouped into the Civil and Military Divisions. Only junior government and military officials are awarded the medal; senior officials are directly appointed to the Order of the British Empire. The United Kingdom's Government has not recommended the awarding of the medal since 1992, though some Commonwealth realms continue the practice.

The Order has six officials: the Prelate, the Dean, the Secretary, the Registrar, the King of Arms and the Usher. The Bishop of London, a senior bishop in the Church of England, serves as the Order's Prelate. The Dean of St Paul's is ex officio the Dean of the Order. The Order's King of Arms is not a member of the College of Arms, like many other heraldic officers. The Usher of the Order is known as the Gentleman
Usher of the Purple Rod; he does not, unlike his Order of the Garter equivalent (the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod), perform any duties related to the House of Lords.

Chapel
The chapel of the order is in the far eastern end of the crypt of St Paul's Cathedral, but it holds its great services upstairs in the main body of the cathedral. (The Cathedral also serves as the home of the chapel of The Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George.) Religious services for the whole Order are held quadrennially; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross are installed at these services. The chapel was dedicated in 1960.


Precedence and privileges
Members of all classes of the Order are assigned positions in the order of precedence. Wives of male members of all classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander; relatives of Ladies of the Order, however, are not assigned any special precedence. (As a general rule, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their mothers or wives.) (See order of precedence in England and Wales for the exact positions.)

Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander prefix "Sir", and Dames Grand Cross and Dames Commander prefix "Dame", to their forenames. Wives of Knights may prefix "Lady" to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Dames. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when the names of the former are written out in their fullest forms. Clergy of the Church of England do
not use the titles of "Sir" or "Dame" and do not receive the accolade (i.e. are not dubbed knight with a sword, as are other knights, but not dames), although they do append the post-nominal letters.

Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal "GBE", Knights Commander "KBE", Dames Commander "DBE", Commanders "CBE", Officers "OBE" and Members "MBE". The post-nominal for the British Empire Medal is "BEM".

Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commander who are not subjects of the Queen (i.e. not citizens of the United Kingdom or another country ruled by the Queen) are not entitled to the prefix "Sir" or "Dame", but may still use the post-nominal abbreviations. For example, Bill Gates was made a Knight Commander of the British Empire but is not entitled "Sir William" or "Sir William Gates III", but may use "William Henry Gates III, KBE". Honorary knights do not receive the accolade. If they later become subjects of the Queen then they are entitled to begin using the prefix as well.

Knights and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to receive heraldic supporters. They may, furthermore, encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the motto) and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter. Knights and Dames Commander and Commanders may display the circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet

According to NetAid, over a billion people, or roughly one in six,
live in extreme poverty. Extreme poverty is defined as living on less than US$1 a day. The World Bank goes on to define moderate poverty as basic subsistence living, on $1 to $2 a day. All told, nearly half the world's population lives in poverty -- that's 2.8 billion people living on less than two dollars a day.

Some other facts to keep in mind:

- Each year over 8 million people die because they are simply too poor to stay alive.
- More than 800 million people go hungry every day.
- The gross domestic product of the poorest 48 nations is less than the wealth of the world's three richest people.
- Thirty-thousand children die every day due to hunger and treatable illnesses.
6 million children die every year before their fifth birthday, as a result of malnutrition.
- You can find detailed poverty assessments of specific geographical regions on the World Bank's PovertyNet. And if you're interested in learning how the World Bank comes up with its poverty statistics, take a look at PovcalNet.

The goal of the Millennium Campaign is to reduce by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day by 2015. And the aim of the One Campaign is to direct an additional 1 percent of the United States budget towards eradicating global poverty.

Remember, you can also support the 'Make poverty History campaign' by clicking on the writband on the top right corner of this very screen.

I racked my brains, but couldn't recall ever seeing a cranberry tree, bush, or vine for that matter. A quick search on "how do cranberries grow" unearthed the answer. My first search result was a PDF file from Washington State University that addressed the very question. It stated that the tart little fruits grow on a "low, broadleaf evergreen vine." Wild cranberries are closely related to blueberries and are smaller than the cultured variety. They are also one of the few fruits native to
North America. Native Americans mashed cranberries and mixed them with deer meat to make pemmican, and they also used the berries in ceremonies and to make medicine.


The scientific name for the plant is Vaccinium macrocarpon. They grow in New England and the Pacific Northwest, but the state of Wisconsin accounts for more than half of the 70,000 tons produced annually in the U.S. The vines are cultivated in beds, called marshes in Wisconsin and bogs everywhere else.

Fresh cranberries are firm, not squishy, and will bounce if dropped. They are available from October through December, making them the perfect ingredient for many a holiday dish. We also learned that the berries contain a natural preservative called benzoic acid that helps them stay fresh for a relatively long time -- 2 to 4 weeks in the fridge, or 9 to 12 months in the freezer.

Cranberries are rich in vitamin C, and 1 cup of the fruit provides nearly a quarter of the daily requirement for the essential vitamin. Cranberries are also quite helpful in preventing and treating bladder and urinary tract infections. In addition, intensive research is currently underway to determine whether cranberry juice plays a role in preventing cancer. So the holiday season, pick up a bag at your local grocery store and join the cranberry craze

I dove into this search by typing "drink too much water" into the Yahoo! search box. I was aware that finding a category on such an obscure subject would be nearly impossible, but I was confident I could click on Web Pages and receive some answers. As I learned from the University of Florida's College of Health and Human Performance, there's a condition known as "water intoxication," or hyponatremia, which isn't uncommon among marathoners and triathletes.

As these athletes consume large amounts of water over the course of a race, blood plasma increases and dilutes the salt content of the blood. While this is happening, the athlete is also losing salt by sweating. Consequently, the amount of salt available to the body tissues decreases, and, over time, the loss interferes with brain, heart, and muscle function.

According to the experts at iVillage, consumption of large amounts of water is often associated with obsessive-compulsive behaviors. When a person consumes too much of this good thing, essential electrolytes in the blood stream become diluted and affect the control of the heart beat.

Healthy adults require approximately three quarts of fluid each day, half of which comes from food and half from beverages. Drinking 8 to 12 glasses a day should have your body working on all cylinders.

If you read this one, you should already have an idea of what is a blog, but where do they come from? I knew that "blog" was short for "weblog," so I searched on "history of weblogs" to answer that question.

A weblog is usually defined as a personal or noncommercial web site that uses a dated log format (usually with the most recent addition at the top of the page) and contains links to other web sites along with commentary about those sites. A weblog is updated frequently and sometimes groups links by specific subjects, such as politics, news, pop culture, or computer issues.

Some people are of the opinion that Mosaic's What's New page in 1993 was the first weblog. It was essentially a list of links that a few people thought were worth passing along to others. However, it wasn't until December 1997 that Jorn Barger coined the term "weblog" in his Robot Wisdom Weblog.

In 1998, only a handful of blogs existed, and many of the bloggers knew each other and linked to each other's sites. Rebecca Blood, author of The Weblog Handbook, notes that one preeminent site listed only 23 blogs in existence at the beginning of 1999. The media started noticing blogs later in 1999 and drew attention to the phenomenon. But it was the proliferation of free weblog-creation programs in 1999 that made blogging into a hugely popular pastime. Before this software was widely available, most weblogs were hand-coded by web developers and others who taught themselves HTML. The new programs made it easy for anyone to create their own weblog.

Blogger was released in August 1999 and was an immediate hit. This simple weblog application allows users to create any kind of weblog they desire. By October 2000, Blogger users were creating 300 new blogs a day, and the Blogger directory had over 5,500 blogs listed. In November of the same year, the 10,000th Blogger weblog was created. As of 2002, Blogger claimed over 750,000 users.

The rise of tools like Blogger also changed the content of weblogs. While they had begun as link-driven sites offering alternative viewpoints on news and other subjects, weblogs began to collide with online journals. Blogger-style tools allowed links and commentary to quickly grow into longer essays and diaries on the Web. Online journals had existed before this, but weblog applications made journals easier to manage for those who didn't know HTML.

Weblogs and online journals are often confused, and they can frequently overlap in content and style. But purists point out that a person writing in an online journal or diary is logging their life, not the Web. Weblogs still exist to log what's going on around the World Wide Web.