Welcome to this week's selection of Picks, where we've been busy reading Anatomy of a Murder: A Trip Through Our Nation's Legal Justice System. As its title suggests, the site teaches you about U.S. law by telling the story of a murder and subsequent trial. Each chapter of the fictional (but accurate) tale is accompanied by a related "fact sheet" where you'll learn about such matters as the hierarchy of a police force, how to conduct a homicide investigation, the process of awaiting trial, the steps of the trial itself, and more. Also included is an overview of the United States Judicial System, a glossary of legal terms and brief outlines of landmark Supreme Court cases. Oh, and lest we forget, there's also "Mood Music."
Anatomy of a Murder is part of the very cool Thinkquest project, which challenges and encourages students to work in teams to create valuable educational tools and resources on the Internet. Students in winning teams are awarded scholarships for as much as $15,000. Visit the site to see the library of previous entries and to learn more about the challenge.
There is, of course, an entirely different way of looking at the legal system that may be just as much fun. For more on this, see Don's Incredible Maze Server. Here, each intricate maze is randomly generated and no two are ever alike. All have only one path from entrance to exit. It's quite a-maze-ing, really. Don't get caught in the labyrinthine task of figuring out how to solve these puzzles on your computer. The answer: print 'em out and use a pen. (Yes, a pen.)
Why is it that when we talk of mazes and trials, of journeying from Point A to Point B without getting lost along the way, of carefully choosing your steps, of tenderly navigating each new twist and turn in life, we feel the need to stop over at Today's Bride, "the web's most friendly wedding resource"? No idea why.
Ah, the roadtrip that is life. On the way you must eat well. If not well, then at least in style. If not in style, then at least at the kind of place you'll find at EatHere.Com: Road Food for the 90's, a veritable smorgasbord of stories, recipes, reviews and tips fresh from the grille - "an interactive celebration of popular roadside eateries from coast to coast." Why, it's almost better than... better than... Creamed Beef on Toast. Yum.
In other, completely, utterly and totally unrelated matters: Do you have questions about buying a used car? A house? Are you looking for a baby safety checklist? Like to know exactly what you're eating? Want to register a trademark? Interested in telecommuting? Enough already, there's help: the Consumer Information Center recently arrived online, with "full text versions of hundreds of the best federal consumer publications available." The vast collection is searchable or you can browse through a number of worthwhile categories, including cars, health, housing, small business and employment. It's free. It's useful. It's oh so very... nice.
Not interested? More concerned about the number of seconds you've been alive? And why not, it's a timely question. You'll need to visit The Grim Reaper's Handy Clock O' Doom Clock for the answer. Don't waste another second getting there.
Finally, Robin B. Hamman, a Masters candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Essex, Colchester, U.K., wrote a dissertation called Cyborgasms: Cybersex Amongst Multiple-Selves and Cyborgs in the Narrow-Bandwidth Space of America Online Chat Rooms and put it on the web. To which we'd like to add: Thanks, Robin.
Hey, it's either that or find out why Everyone Loves a Sea Monkey. Take your pick(s).