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Georgia 4-H is piloting an educational series aimed at teaching children how to help prevent the spread of animal diseases like swine flu, salmonella, E. coli and rabies.

A University of Georgia entomologist is asking Georgians to help track an insect that loves to stowaway in homes and has the potential to hurt the state’s cotton and blueberry crops. The brown marmorated stink bug, a native of Asia, was first spotted in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in 1998 and has since been found in 42 states and two Canadian provinces, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To date, it is classified as a nuisance pest in Georgia, but could quickly become an agricultural pest, too.

Mildew and musty odors sometimes develop during periods of damp weather. Controlling them can be as easy as buying a dehumidifier or placing a moisture barrier under the home.

Your home may be filled with an invisible, radioactive gas called radon. Radon is a naturally occurring gas that comes from the decay of uranium found in most rocks and soil. It ranks as the second-leading cause of lung cancer and is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.

As the seasons shift and people spend more time indoors, so do rodents. A University of Georgia wildlife specialist says, with a little forethought, you can rid your home of those uninvited winter guests.

Homeowners who tackle termites may think the tiny insects spend their days eating wood. But a University of Georgia entomologist says 80 percent of the time they do absolutely nothing.

Look around this week, and you may see many Georgians sporting some itchy mementoes from last weekend’s barbecue or softball game. Along with later sunsets and swimming pool temperatures, these early summer weeks have also brought mosquitoes back to Georgia in a big way.

Cotton scout trainings hosted by the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are set for June.

Some 37 percent of American 10-to-12-year olds are active members of the social network site Facebook, according to a 2010 study by McAfee. To help Georgia teens stay safe on the Internet, Georgia 4-H specialist Cheryl Varnadoe teaches youths to make wise decisions when posting information to social network sites like Facebook and MySpace.