Research and development needs permanent tax credits to build the technology that spurs our growth. But no government programs alone can get America's students to study more science and math parents must push and help their children to meet this goal.

But if you observe children learning in their first few years of life you can see that they can and do learn on their own - we leave them alone to crawl walk talk and gain control over their bodies. It happens without much help from parents.

As regards parents I should like to see them as highly educated as possible and I do not restrict this remark to fathers alone.

As a child I had to get up early for school or work. I'd get ready by myself. I'd set my alarm to wake me up very early in the morning and be off to work the family driver driving me every morning. I did it alone my parents never coming in to wake me up.

My parents were really really cool about supporting what I wanted to do at a really young age. I think I was about 10 when I caught the bug. They would drive me down to New York if there were auditions. When I was 12 I did this show on Broadway called 'High Society ' so we moved to New York for the run of that.

My parents got married late and they had kids late so I never felt a social or cultural thing to be married or pregnant or a homeowner by a certain age.

My acting career began at age three and my parents got me into it. I was in a McDonald's commercial.

It's not always possible to sit down and eat at home in this day and age of fast-paced living but if you are going to eat out do so as a family and support all the great local places in your areas. I'll still eat at the same diner I did as a kid with my parents.

My mother was 45 when she had me so when I was in high school my parents were the same age as my friends' grandparents.

About the time I turned 50 I experienced the profound biological change that often accompanies women at that age. Also I put two kids in college and lost both of my parents so I'm no longer somebody's daughter.