Upon getting information about an upcoming school science fair and the need to consider a topic of interest, many students will typically have no idea where to get started. While the science fair is typically a common occurrence in any school at any grade level, there are different types of topics that should be taken a look at depending on the age of the student. After first taking a look at the many different categories of science projects, you will be able to locate a suitable choice of topic to take to the next level.There is a wide variety of categories that fall under the types of science projects that can be chosen for a school science fair. These include biology, chemistry, physics, microbiology, biochemistry, medicine, environmental, mathematics, engineering, and earth science. While you may not have yet learned very much in any of these categories, don’t be afraid to see what each one entails. Taking a good look at your interests will allow you to focus on the right direction to take.Many resources are also available for those who are unsure as to the topic they are wanting to use to create their science projects. If you take a look at the topics that fall under the biology category, you will likely notice that there are topics that deal with plants, animals, and humans. For those who are in 2nd grade or 3rd grade, an interesting topic may be to determine if ants are picky over what type of food they eat. While this topic might not be of interest to an 8th grader, it is certainly something in the biology category that an elementary school student would enjoy.Along with the biology category, a high school student may want to take a look at diffusion and osmosis in animal cells as this would be a more appropriate topic for the grade level. A student in 6th grade would be more advanced than an elementary school student, but not as advanced as a high school student. At this middle school grade level, a topic of how pH levels effect the lifespan of a tadpole may be of interest.Whichever resource is used to locate a topic for science projects, it is always a good idea to consider the grade level of the student prior to making a selection. It is always assumed to be best to have a project at an appropriate level in order to keep the attention of the student and provide a fun and enjoyable learning experience.
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Is the National Residential Real Estate Market Headed for a Depression in 2007?
At the beginning of 2006, the so named real estate “bubble” across the nation was leaking air. We read opposing views by economists, whose opinions graced the pages of national media and were dependent upon which economic theory they followed. It was difficult to know whom to believe. It is now 2007, and we know in most areas the real estate market is considered to be in a recession.A national economic recession occurs when the gross national product declines by five-to-ten percent over a six-month period. Residential home prices have dropped double digit percent points since the beginning of 2006 and inventories of used homes listed for sale doubled between 2004 and 2005, then again between 2005 and 2006.The News Isn’t All BadReal estate is only a part of the gross national product, and the Federal Reserve helped curb inflation by raising the interest rate in 2006. Overall National business activity has increased in the past year, and unemployment is fairing well, remaining at 4.5 percent. New jobs totaling 167,000 were added in December 2006. The gross national product has not declined and the national economy is in very good shape.So, what does this mean to the sellers and buyers of homes? It means business is back to normal, before the real estate “bubble” inflated so to speak — with some roadblocks to navigate.Less Available MoneyFirst, all the money that was being invested into real estate during the boom has been diverted into other non-real estate investment opportunities. This means that money once invested in mortgage-backed securities is diminishing.Additionally, large mortgage lenders are receiving more federal oversight scrutiny for lending practices used during the latest real estate boom. They continually raised the lending limits to control the market (or so a few of these lenders are accused), making mortgage access much too easy. Many of those, who took loans at only 20 percent-to-nothing down (called leveraging), now are losing their homes and defaulting on their mortgages. Even if these owners could sell their homes, afterwards, they would still owe much on the balance of the mortgage. They are being hit the hardest with default rates doubling in both 2005 and 2006, and expected to continue throughout 2007. This, too, has hit the mortgage lending industry where it hurts the most — profits.Buyers will have a more difficult time securing a mortgage than during the real estate boom, when just about anyone with any type of credit rating was approved. Less mortgage availability means less potential buyers for the home sellers, too.Before looking for new residential real estate, secure your financing first. Not only are you then confident in looking at property, but also you know exactly what you can afford.For sellers, ensure your realtor asks potential buyers if they have secured financing. Those that have, even if their offer is a bit lower, may be more attractive buyers than those who have not. You decide which offer to accept. This is especially important, if you are in a hurry to close.Prices at Practical LevelsDuring the real estate boom, home values rose by almost 500 percent between 1990 and 2005. Now, they are back to practical levels.For sellers, who purchased their homes by leveraging, they may have to take a loss or wait out the current market for better times. All sellers face a lot of competition from other homeowners wishing to sell. Some creative staging of their property (inside and out), as well as adding incentives to buyers, can make their residential real estate for sale stand out among the rest. Some Realtors have found success placing the asking price right on the “for sale” sign. Others have taken advertising and marketing into the 21st century by creating specific web sites with a gallery of interior and exterior photos of the home1. Many Realtors believe in promoting the home for sale through the media by giving the asking price (especially when it is a great deal) — buyers are more apt to be interested, when they know they can afford it. Sellers were in the lead negotiating seat during the real estate boom. They must accept that, though they still have negotiation power, they have relinquished the lead seat to the buyers. This makes a realtor invaluable to both sellers and buyers, alike.For the buyers, you will get much better real estate deals now. You can take more time to decide and make an offer than during the boom. Secure your financing first, hire a realtor and enjoy the hunt. For comments or questions please feel welcome to contact us [email protected]
How to Choose the Right Quote for Life Insurance
Before picking an appropriate quote, it is important to develop a good understanding of the different types of life insurance policies available in the market. Some provide permanent cover for the insurer, while a few others offer only temporary coverage. These policies also vary from one another in terms of price and flexibility of coverage.
Types of life insurance
Term life insurance
Whole life insurance
Universal life insurance
Variable universal life insurance
Term Life Insurance Is a form of insurance policy that offers temporary coverage to the investor with no cash value option. It can be useful when there are immediate expenses for the investor to address such as funding children’s education or covering mortgage costs.Pros and Cons of term life insurance Term life insurance is one of the cheapest forms of insurance policies available in the market. This makes it a good short-term proposition for investors to address any current or immediate financial concerns. For e.g.: A health 45 year old non smoker can easily go in for a million package with a 30 year term at the rate of $200 a month as premium costs.The aspect of offering temporary coverage can be both positive and negative attribute to term insurance. The positive aspect being that this kind of policy can come in useful to your dependents until they are old enough to earn on their own. This could include funding your spouse until retirement benefits kick in or till your children are able stand on their own feet. It is ideal for people to in for a 30 year term life insurance policy when they have new born member in the family.They are easy to buy and one of the least complicated forms of policiesSince term life provides only temporary coverage, the investor is left with no cash value option upon its expiration. Unless you have made arrangements for alternative forms of income, you could find your self in a sticky wicket once your term life policy expires at the end of 30 years. By this time you will be much older which will make other forms of insurance policies a much more expensive affair.It should not be looked upon as investment option. You are not going to generate any cash value at the end of the term. So make sure that you make arrangements for alternative income sources when you heading towards retirement.Whole Life InsuranceThis form of insurance offers permanent coverage to the investor with cash value options. It comes with fixed rate of premiums for the entire duration of the policy even though it is more expensive than term life. The cash value accumulates as you pay your premiums over time making it stable form of investment for your future that comes with guaranteed protection.The flip side is it is more expensive than term life insurance. Also there chances that you might not receive dividends, which enhance the value of your policy.Universal Life InsuranceThese too offer permanent coverage while providing more flexibility to the investor in terms of timing of payout, death benefits, premium rates and other aspects. Through this the insurer can choose to increase or decrease the value of his policy from time to time depending on financial situation.This form of policy is a little more complicated than term life or whole life owing to its flexibility. This also brings with it a certain element of risk as well. Cash value of your policy is based on fixed rates which is calculated on a periodic basis. So with falling rates the cash value of your policy could also suffer possibly leading to higher premiumsVariable universal life insuranceThis form of policy offers permanent coverage along with investment options for the insurer. It is quite similar to universal life insurance in many aspects while it also does enable the investor to indulge in investing his or her cash value on other funding options. This provides the investor with considerable growth options.This form of policy has its share of risk as well. With an investment portfolio, cash value of your policy can be substantially impacted during market downturns. Also if you happen to be late on your timely premiums, it could affect the cash value of your policy.Selecting the right kind of life insurance quote Make it a point to study in detail the different types of life insurance policies that you can find on the web. Before you start comparing quotes understand what amenities fall within the coverage for each policy and analyze your profile to better judge which type of policy would suit your requirements the best.Go online and fill out a form in any one of the many insurance forums that you find on the Internet. You will shortly be contacted by local agents to further discuss what kind of package you are looking to buy. It would also be a good idea to contact multiple agents which will help you better understand the pros and cons of each policy. By contacting multiple agents you can also compare several quotes and buy a policy that is most sound and affordable among them.Remember to take your time while settling down on a policy. With many policies being a life long commitment, it pays to properly research and pick an appropriate one.