1. Slate Summer is seriously winding down. We’re heading back to our desks in droves and it’s hard to sit still after so many weeks of adventuring. I need some good reasons to return to the screen and Slate is one of them. It was founded in 1996 so in web years this online news magazine is positively ancient. The editors offer “analysis and commentary about politics, news, business, technology, and culture” with just the right dose of wit and humor. Where to start: The Wrong Stuff’s Kathryn Schulz’s interview with Barry Marshall. Then go through all her posts – being wrong was never so interesting.

2. Deadline Hollywood Vanity Fair just placed Nikki Finke, the editor and founder of the Hollywood-centric news and gossip blog, 93rd on its list of the 100 most influential people. Finke breaks stories before they hit mainstream media so the blog makes a great gossipy read over morning coffee. Nice way to ease yourself into the work day. Where to start: It’s news driven so start at the top and just dip in as it interests you.

3. Gadget Lab Wired magazine’s tech review blog. Great in-dpeth analysis from guys you trust. Where to start: A nice post on the Documents To Go app for the iPad.

4. Hatch Design Public’s blog covers good design from all angles. Where to start: Today’s home office is pretty cool.

5. Make it Right OK, os I admit it was Brad Pitt’s involvement in this New Orleans housing project that first drew me in. But it is the great architecture that kept me coming back. 200 people have now been housed and 50 homes are completed. Where to start: Check out the designs from some of the world’s best architects here.