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If the human brain is a muscle then we must exercise it just like any other muscle. But during the summer we want to do anything except engage in activity that involves giving our brain a workout. Well, what if we told you that one highly beneficial workout, involving very little stress, is reading?   

 A little reading each day can help keep your mind young, active, even relaxed.  So why not do some light, fun, maybe even educational reading. You may already read the daily news or select magazines, or perhaps you prefer to catch up with your favorite blogs or tabloids. But, have you thought about dedicating more time to long-stories? They don’t have to be heavy, think of the classics you love or never got a chance to read.  Century old literature doesn’t suit your fancy? Maybe you prefer the current bestsellers. Regardless of your interests we have put together our own reading list to help motivate you into this summer’s “workout.”   

The Great Classics:

• A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens
• The Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger
• The Complete Sherlock Holmes, by Arthur Conan Doyle
• Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
• Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
• Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte 
• Moby Dick, by Herman Melville
• Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
• Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austin
• The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen Crane
• Robinson Crusoe, by Daniel Defoe
• The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte   

For a more complete selection check out this list.   

Current Bestsellers:

• The Associate, by John Grisham
• The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest, by Stieg Larsson
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson
• The Help, by Kathryn Stockett
• Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto, by Mark Levin
• The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown
• Outliers: The Story of Success, by Malcolm Gladwell
• Shit My Dad Says, by Justin Halpern
• Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace … One School At a Time, by Greg Mortenson
• The Time Traveler’s Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger

 Other Popular Picks:

• Cross Country, by James Patterson
• Dear John, by Nicolas Sparks
• Eat Pray Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert
• I, Alex Cross, by James Patterson
• I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, by Tucker Max
• The Twilight Saga, by Stephenie Meyer

 Want to ramp-up your reading “workout”? Create your own discussion group with friends and delve more deeply into the plot, characters, symbolism and hidden meanings. Many of these books include recommended book club discussion questions. Search for these online or in the back of the book.

Excited for the new iPhone? Most AT&T users are. And many non-users are considering changing their current phone for it.  Well, before you do, here is some exciting news for those considering buying the iPhone (or any of AT&T’s smartphones): AT&T has eliminated its $30 a month unlimited data plan! I know that doesn’t sound like good news. But, after taking a closer look, it just might be a blessing after all.

This week, AT&T abandoned its unlimited pricing plans (affecting only new smartphone users) and will instead offer these two options:

1. $15 a month for 200 MB of data, or
2. $25 a month for 2 GB.

*Keep in mind this is in addition to the cell phone service plan you purchase.

Side Note: Current smartphone users can keep their plan of $30 of unlimited data usage.  But you should continue reading because you may decide you want to change your data plan anyways.

So, let’s take a deeper look at the cost-to-service ratio. 

First, the price for 2 GB of data use has decreased by $5 a month. Win! Second, according to AT&T, 98% of their customers using smartphones use less than 2 GB a month. Therefore, many users may be able to find the 200 MB of service sufficient. Using that plan would save users $15 a month. Win, win! That’s a big money save for poor college students.

And it looks like AT&T had more than users’ wallets in mind.  By incentivizing smartphone customers to select the plan that offers the least amount of data, customers will be less inclined to mindlessly stream endless videos or run other programs that use high consumption of data. This will reduce the backlog on the network thereby making the service faster for everyone.