Photo: NASA/Tony Landis Retiring NASA Dryden Flight Research Center Director Kevin Petersen got an April Fools’ Day surprise when he drove in to work on April 1 – the HiMAT remotely piloted research aircraft sitting in his parking space in front of Dryden's main building. Most people will laugh at... Read more →
Photo: City of San Luis Obispo Although only about a quarter of baby boomers want to move when they retire, one thing that those relocating are looking for are communities where cultural opportunities abound. Here are Smithsonian magazine’s picks for intriguing places to live: Portland, Ore. Oakland, Calif. San Luis... Read more →
Are you experiencing pain that’s giving you problems in your daily life? Prevention offers information on eight mistakes that consumers make in their pain treatment: 1. You’re trying to tough it out. One in four pain sufferers waits at least six months before seeing a doctor. 2. You’ve seen multiple... Read more →
About 4,300 Konrad and Loft office chairs are being recalled, reports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Distributed by Cost Plus Inc., of Oakland, Calif., the chairs have backs that can come loose from the seat base, posing a fall hazard to consumers. No incidents or injuries have been reported.... Read more →
Which consumer happenings cheered you recently and which ones made you want to scream or weep? Here are my best and worst consumer experiences this week: My best: Finding greeting card envelopes at Michaels in Bellingham and Tacoma I’ve been unable to find transparent envelopes for selling my photo greeting... Read more →
Where do the most well off people in the country live? Using the U.S. Census Bureau's report of median household incomes for 2008, Forbes magazine compiled this list of the top 10 wealthiest countries in America. 1. Loudoun County, Va. – $110,643 2. Fairfax County, Va. – $106,785 3. Howard... Read more →
Chain restaurants with 20 or more outlets will be require to include calorie labeling on menus, menu boards, and drive-through displays, as well as on vending machines. They'll also be required to provide additional nutrition information on request. These requirements are part of the recently signed health care reform law... Read more →
About a third of the funeral homes in the Spokane, Wash., area violated federal regulations I discovered when I did a survey in the early 1980s of the funeral practices used in the homes. How did I find this out? I interviewed consumers from 30 families who had lost a... Read more →
Investigators working undercover in nine states and the District of Columbia found significant violations of Federal Trade Commission consumer protection rules at 52 of 175 funeral homes they visited during 2009. FTC inspections last year revealed significant violations in: One of 12 funeral homes in Chicago, Ill. 19 of 59... Read more →
What are the major provisions of the health care reform bill that passed the House of Representatives yesterday? According to The New York Times article "Obama Hails Vote on Health Care as Answering ‘the Call of History,’" the new law: Requires many employers to offer coverage to employees or pay... Read more →