'King's Speech' was Oscar's big winner -- but you might be surprised at which film came in second

"Going into the night with 11 nominations, Best Picture Oscar victor 'The King's Speech' walked away as the big winner at Sunday night's 83rd annual Academy Awards. But it wasn't the only big winner of the night."

Click here for a breakdown of who won what.

Is it Alzheimer's? Maybe not

"Alicia Harper spent years as a missionary, working in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Mexico, but she faced her greatest challenge six years ago when, at age 69, her mind and body began to falter."

For more on how other diseases can mimic Alzheimer's, click here.

Water and sanitation: World Water Day is March 22

"Water is one of the world’s most precious natural resources. However, 80 countries regularly experience serious water shortages. Children’s tiny bodies are particularly dependent on clean water and susceptible to water related diseases and parasites.

When clean water is scarce, all aspects of life are impacted:..."

Click here for more on this important resource.

Joyous families greet soldiers at Logan as they return from Iraq

"Hundreds of jubilant families, many waving American flags and welcome home signs, were on hand today at Logan International Airport to greet loved ones with the Massachusetts Air National Guard 102nd Security Forces Squadron, which returned from a six-month deployment in Iraq."

Click here for more on the homecoming.

A horse-drawn trek toward a 'do-over' in life

"Bridles jingle and heavy hooves tap a metronomic clip-clop as the ungainly wagon claims yet another mile.

It glides past a row of Main Street houses, past roadsigns touting this business, that fraternal group, the local team who were champions. Vehicles, horseless ones, slow to take in the outlandish muscles of the four giant draft horses, two white, one dark, and one dapple gray."

Click here for more on this amazing journey.

Top 10 fictitious presidents in movies

"In honor of Presidents' Day, we asked our readers what fictitious Hollywood president would be fit for the Oval Office. After all, if some of these celebrated chief executives were real, we could be celebrating them on this holiday, along with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Click through and check out the top 10 fictitious presidents on the silver screen."

To see if you agree with the Boston Globe's choices, click here.

John Besh announces new scholarship program for NOLA culinary students

"Chef John Besh's new foundation is offering a scholarship to a New Orleans minority culinary student.

The John Besh and Bride Mayor Scholarship will include full tuition to attend a nine-month career program at The French Culinary Institute in New York City; an eight-week paid internship, upon graduation, at a John Besh restaurant, and guidance and mentoring from Besh."

Click here to read more about Besh's new program.

What is Advocacy Day? Well, I was asking that same question about a year ago

"To get more information about attending Advocacy Day on March 1, 2011, or to register for the event, go to Save the Children’s website.

Read about Kristina Horner's experiences at last year's event here."

Book Review - 'Lioness Arising' by Lisa Bevere

"Lisa Bevere wears many hats: conference speaker, author, advocate and pastor's wife, among others. With the publication of “Lioness Arising: Wake Up and Change Your World,” she adds student of wildlife to the list. In her new book, Bevere compares today’s Christian women to the lionesses of the wild and calls on them to be even more like their jungle counterparts."

For more on this book, click here.

International Space Station Comes Together

"From the first module in 1998, the International Space Station has grown over the years. Pieced together by the member nations from compartments and solar arrays, the station looks more like an overgrown outrigger than the sophisticated engineering triumph it is. Watch a time line of the station's construction and marvel anew."

Click here to watch the time-lapse assembly of the International Space Station.

Why we age, and how to slow the process

"Ever wonder why some of the old buddies you see at your high school reunion look like they could be your parents? Or why, perhaps, you look like you could be theirs? Blame it on telomeres, caps at the end of your cells' chromosomes that appear to hold the key to aging."

Click here for more.

How Love Happens: Stories of Marylanders' marriage proposals

"A surprise sprung on shoestring. Another orchestrated at 30,000 feet with a crew of flight-attendant co-conspirators. And a couple of conclusions reached jointly, wordlessly — and no less romantically.

Just in time for Valentine's Day, we asked a handful of well-known Maryland couples how they got engaged."

Click here for more on this romantic story.

Who Needs Marriage? Reviving the Marriage Culture

"Is traditional marriage really that important? Only if we want to avoid economic and social collapse.

That was the title of a recent Time magazine cover story about how the institution of marriage has changed in recent decades."

To read more on the importance of marriage, click here.

Coalition launches human trafficking PSA campaign in New York’s Times Square

"The Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking (ATEST), a coalition of 11 leading human rights and anti-slavery organizations in the U.S., announced a public campaign to raise awareness of modern-day slavery and encourage support for a key anti-trafficking law as it comes up for renewal."

Click here for more on ATEST's campaign.

Procter & Gamble provides 3 Billionth Liter of Clean Drinking Water in collaboration with World Vision in Rwanda

"Families in World Vision’s program areas in Rwanda have benefited from the 3 billionth liter of clean drinking water in the developing world, thanks to Procter & Gamble (P&G) which marked the milestone of its Children’s Safe Drinking Water (CSDW) Program."

For more on this lifesaving partnership, click here.

Chicago-area firefighters help Latin America

"It was still dark outside when the Rev. Henoch Fuentes rose from his bed one morning last February to the sounds of people screaming.

Moments earlier, an 8.8-magnitude earthquake had rocked Chile."

For more on this story, click here.

Drought, lack of food threaten millions in Horn of Africa, says World Vision

"World Vision says years of unrelenting drought in many parts of the region have thrown the Horn of Africa into a humanitarian crisis that is threatening the lives of millions of families living in the region, including more than 6 million people in Kenya and Somalia. Children under five are particularly vulnerable. Lack of food, malnutrition, access to water, and the general health of livestock are key concerns for the international relief agency."

Click here for more on the situation.

Nutrition Lab: Should I add these foods to my diet?

"New federal dietary guidelines urge Americans to eat less -- and cut back on salt and sugar. The overall goal is to eat more healthy foods. Nutrition Lab examines five food products and how they score on the healthy scale."

Click here for the results.

Is the Super Bowl really named after a 1960s children's toy?

"It seems too much like an urban legend to be true that the Super Bowl was named after a children's novelty toy that was popular in the mid-1960s."

For the real story, click here.

The Faith of Ronald Reagan

“'Whatever happens now I owe my life to God and will try to serve him in every way I can.'

Seventy days into his presidency, Ronald Reagan, press secretary Jim Brady, and two members of the President’s protective detail were shot outside the Washington Hilton Hotel. The bullet that struck the President narrowly missed his heart and lodged in his lung."

Click here for more on the role of faith in the life of Ronald Reagan.

Aaron Chang, Jedidiah Clothing to launch new T-shirt line at photo exhibit to benefit World Vision recovery center for sexually abused children

"World-renowned surf photographer, Aaron Chang and surf apparel line Jedidiah, will launch a joint collection of T-shirts featuring Chang’s photography at an exhibit this Saturday at Chang’s gallery in Solana Beach. Proceeds from the sales of the shirts all season, as well as from the sale of Chang’s prints at the event, will benefit World Vision’s recovery work with children freed from the commercial sex trade in Cambodia."


Click here for more on the story.

Seniors use computer program to try to stay sharp

"Imagine being able to improve your brain health and fight memory loss and dementia by playing a series of games on a computer.

Fifty seniors, ages 65 to 95, who live independently at the Beacon Hill retirement community in Lombard are doing just that."

For more on this strategy, click here.

Information and Freedom: The Two Go Hand in Hand

"As I’ve been watching the TV news showing thousands upon thousands of Egyptians marching through the streets of Cairo, demanding political freedom, I’ve had an eerie feeling that I had seen something like this before."

Click here for more on Chuck Colson's commentary.