Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Drink plenty of fluids. Have a hot toddy. Drink herbal teas. Get relief from other herbal products. Consider taking ginseng. Take elderberry, eucalyptus, and licorice. Review the facts on Echinacea.

Answer: Drinking water or other fluids helps to keep the mucus loose. While you may want to stop the runny or stuffy nose immediately, drinking fluids makes the mucus loose and runny. The fluids can help your body to get rid of the mucus you have so you can get back to normal.  Drinking warm fluids helps in two ways. You are providing the recommended extra fluid intake, and, also, you will breathe in more moisture since the beverage you are drinking is warm or hot. Anything that is warm works fine, such as coffee, hot tea, or even a cup of broth or soup. Recipes to make a hot toddy include using hot water, a shot of whiskey or other alcohol, fresh lemon, and an added spoonful of honey.  Scientific evidence suggests that a hot toddy may be of some benefit in treating nasal congestion, mucous buildup, sinus pressure, sore throats, and sinus symptoms associated with a cold. Limit your alcohol intake since excessive alcohol can cause your sinus passages to become more swollen, causing the stuffy feeling to worsen and increase the buildup of mucus. Consuming alcohol in large quantities, or repeatedly, is not good for your overall health and should be avoided. Make a non-alcoholic hot toddy by using your favorite tea instead of the water and alcohol. Still add the fresh lemon and honey. Along with the benefit of breathing in extra moisture from a cup of hot tea, adding some herbs may help to provide additional relief from your sinus problems.  Try adding peppermint to a cup of warm tea. Peppermint contains menthol and works well to help relieve sinus pressure, congestion, and mucus when it is inhaled and by drinking a cup of tea that contains peppermint. Peppermint is commonly used to help treat the excessive mucus and sinus conditions. Peppermint and menthol can also help to treat coughs and chest congestion. Do not consume peppermint oil by mouth. Do not use peppermint or menthol on infants. Green tea and green tea-derived supplements have been shown to contain ingredients that are overall helpful in maintaining good health and can help to treat some of the sinus symptoms that are most commonly associated with a cold. Increase the amount of green tea you drink gradually to avoid any unwanted effects such as stomach upset or constipation.  Green tea contains caffeine among other active compounds. People that have any medical conditions, and women that are pregnant, should consult their physician before starting a regular regimen of green tea. Green tea can interact with common medications. Examples include antibiotics, birth control pills, cancer medications, asthma medications, and stimulants. Always check with your doctor before making changes to your regimen or diet, especially when the changes involve herbal supplements. Use caution if you choose to use herbal products and always check with your doctor before starting a treatment regimen that includes herbal supplements.  Some evidence suggests that a combination of herbs may be helpful in treating sinus problems. Available over-the-counter herbal sinus products contain a mixture of herbal ingredients. Look for products that contain cowslip, gentian root, elderflower, verbena, and sorrel. Stomach upset and diarrhea may be a side effect of this combination of herbal ingredients. The North American variety of ginseng root is being studied to learn more about its properties to treat medical conditions. The research includes promising evidence in the treatment of sinus and nasal symptoms most often associated with the common cold.  Ginseng root is categorized as “possibly effective” in adults in reducing the frequency, severity, and duration of symptoms experienced with the common cold, including sinus symptoms. No results are known involving the use of ginseng root in children. Side effects reported with the use of ginseng root include blood pressure changes, hypoglycemia or low blood sugar, GI problems such as diarrhea, itching, and skin rashes, sleep difficulty, headaches, feeling nervous, and vaginal bleeding. Drug interactions are common with ginseng and include medications used to treat schizophrenia, diabetes, depression, and blood thinners such as warfarin. People preparing for surgery and receiving some types of chemotherapy should not use ginseng or ginseng root products. These herbal remedies are commonly used to treat excessive mucus and sinus problems. Interactions are possible with existing prescribed medications so check with your doctor before you begin.  People with medical conditions should not take some herbal remedies listed. Talk to your doctor first if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, have diabetes, high blood pressure, autoimmune diseases, kidney disease, liver disease, low potassium levels, hormone sensitive cancers or related illnesses, heart disease, or conditions that require regular use of aspirin or blood thinner drugs such as warfarin. Elderberry can be helpful with excessive mucus and sinus problems. Standardized Elderberry extract products that contain vitamin C and other herbs are used to help clear congestion. Eucalyptus oil is a more concentrated form of eucalyptus and is poisonous if consumed by mouth. However, eucalyptus is contained in many manufactured products, particularly those that are designed to help control coughs. Products containing eucalyptus are either applied topically, such as a chest rub or is used in very small amounts in some throat lozenges. You can also use them in a humidifier as the vapor helps relieve congestion. Licorice root is commonly used. However, there is little scientific evidence to support the use of licorice in treating sinus congestion and excessive mucus. Many people use echinacea, an herbal supplement, to treat nasal congestion, stuffiness and mucus buildup, and to treat the symptoms associated with a cold.  Scientific research has not shown any significant benefit for the use of echinacea is treating sinus congestion or mucus drainage, or the nasal symptoms associated with colds.  Echinacea is available in a wide variety of products made from different parts of the plant itself. The manufacturing of the products is not regulated or standardized. It is not always clear which part of the plant was used, and the resulting potency of the product may not be known.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Decide how much work you want to do. Evaluate how much time you have to complete the project. Brainstorm your favorite characters. Think about current events. Start with your accessories. Decide on an individual or group costume.

Answer: Before you decide what you’re going to be for Halloween you have to decide how much work you’re willing to do on your costume. Do you want something you can just throw together or are you planning on making something elaborate? If you are attempting to make a costume the day before Halloween, you probably want to create a last-minute costume that can easily be thrown together using items, clothing, and supplies that you already have lying around your house. Once you know you how much time you want to spend on a costume, you’ll need an idea. A good place to start is to make a list of your favorite characters: from books, movies, or TV shows. Dressing up as your favorite character always make a great costume. Another good place to find inspiration for your costume is in current events. Recent news stories, celebrity mishaps, or current pop culture references always make a great costume. If you’re still stumped for a costume idea, start by picking up some great costume accessories that you love – a hat or a cape or a tiara – and build a costume around the accessory. You might consider building your costume around a DIY latex mask if you are up to the challenge or want a unique look. Costumes that require multiple people can be fun and impressive if they are executed well.  A few examples of group costumes include: bands, superhero groups, celebrity couples, or a set of characters from a book, movie, etc. Make sure everyone in your group is committed to the group costume. If anyone backs out, it might ruin the costume.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Try Inform 7. Use Adrift for easy game creation on Windows. Consider TADS 3 if you know some programming. Explore other mainstream options. Try a browser-based option.

Answer:
Inform 7 is a popular and powerful tool for creating text games, more often called interactive fiction. Its programming language is designed to look like simple English sentences, while still allowing full functionality. Inform 7 is free and available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. Adrift is another popular, easy to use interactive fiction language and compiler. Because it relies on a graphical interface instead of coding, it may be the easiest tool for a non-programmer to use. Adrift is free and available for Windows only, although games created with it can be played on any operating system or in a browser. If you'd rather approach text game creation as a coding project, TADS 3 may be the most comprehensive software of this type. It will be especially easy to pick up if you are familiar with C++ and/or Javascript. TADS 3 is free and available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.  The Windows version (only) of TADS 3 comes with a "Workbench" addition that makes it much more accessible to non-programmers, and more convenient to use in general.  Programmers may be interested in this in-depth comparison between Inform 7 and TADS 3. The tools above are by far the most popular, but there are several others that have strong followings in the interactive fiction community. If none of the tools above interest you or you want to explore more options, try these next:  Hugo ALAN You can jump in and get started without any downloads using one of the following tools:   Quest (more similar to the IF tools above)  Twine (easy to use visual editor) StoryNexus (the player clicks options instead of guessing what to type; StoryNexus hosts your game online)