Food supplies for 4th of July cookouts are down 3% from last year, says American Farm Bureau

The average cost of supplies for a 4th of July cookout is 3 percent cheaper this year, now an average of about $5.58 per person when accounting for a party of 10 featuring barbecue favorites, reports the American Farm Bureau. to comply the data, 88 AFB members compared average prices in 30 states.

Ground round is up 2.1 percent, and ketchup and lemonade have also increased in price, but most other barbecue favorites are down, AFB reports. Pork spare ribs are down 3.4 percent, hot dogs 1.8 percent, potato salad 2.5 percent, baked beans 6.6 percent, corn chips 3.3 percent, chocolate milk 6 percent, watermelon 7.1 percent, hot dogs buns 3.7 percent, hamburger buns 10.7 percent, mustard 8.8 percent and American cheese 8.3 percent. (Read more)

Yahoo Travel picks top 10 small town 4th of July celebrations

Bristol, R.I., is the best small town in America to celebrate the 4th of July, reports Sophie Forbes for Yahoo Travel, which has assembled a list of the top 10 small town 4th of July celebrations. Bristol, referred to as "the most patriotic town in the country," is believed to have the nation's oldest 4th of July celebration, dating back to 1785. (Flickr photo by H.C. Williams: Kentish Guards marching in the Bristol 4th of July parade)

Following Bristol are: Cooperstown, N.Y.; Sonoma, Calif.; Bisbee, Ariz.; Southport, N.C.; New Hope, Penn.; Boulder, Colo.; Seguin, Texas; Capitan, N.M.; and Brunswick, Ga. (Read more)

UFO sightings increase around the 4th of July

Two weeks from today is the 4th of July, when fireworks fill the sky, and loud bangs send skittish dogs into a frenzy. It's also the time of year when UFO sightings are on the rise, Abby Ohlheiser reports for The Washington Post. While some of those sightings could be attributed to a neighbor shooting off a Roman candle, it might not always be the case. (Metrocosm graphic: Rate of UFO sightings)

For those wondering if anyone else saw the same strange lights they saw, or where in the U.S. the most people claim to see UFO's, Max Glaka of Metrocosm has created interactive maps that chart UFO sightings and has a detailed list of the cities and regions with the most corroborated sightings. That would be Tinley Park, Ill., where in 2004 a total of 77 reports were made of a UFO sighting. Tinley Park is also third and sixth on the list, with 72 reports of a sighting in 2005 and 45 sightings on a different day in 2004. Two of the top 10 incidents occurred on July 4.

While six of the top 10 most reported sightings were at least partially in Illinois, Washington and Vermont have the most sightings, with 37 sightings per every one million people. Montana is third, followed by Oregon, Alaska, New Hampshire, Maine, Arizona, Idaho and New Mexico. The least number of sightings are in the South, led by Mississippi, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Georgia. (Metrocosm map: For an interactive version, click here)