JFK Plans Pet Terminal; Jobless Rate Drops; Alien Investment

Things you need to know on July 21.

Thanks to MetroNews Source for the following.

Connecticut's unemployment rate is below 6 percent for the first time in years. State labor officials say the unemployment rate in June was 5.7 percent, down three-tenths of a percentage point from May's statistics. Good news,but Connecticut still lags behind the national unemployment rate, which was 5.3 percent in June.

Every state in the nation now has first responders and survivors who are sick from 9-11-related illnesses. The New York Daily News reports that in all 50 states, there are people suffering from cancer or other illnesses related to the 9-11 terror attacks.

For the love of pets! Travelers will soon be able to drop their pets off at what is billed as a luxury pet terminal at New York's Kennedy Airport and they're going to call it ARK. Horses and cows who are quarantined for three days upon arrival will have stalls and showers. There's even going to be a special private place for penguins. Cats and dogs are expected to be the main animals visiting the ARK. Cats will have trees to climb and the dogs can enjoy a splashing pool, message therapy and flat screen TVs. Their owners can check in on them with a webcam. The ARK costs $48 million dollars and is expected to open next year .

Hoping E.T. will really "phone home." Billionaire technology investor Yuri Milner is putting $100 million of his personal fortune toward a new effort to search for alien life. Milner was joined by Stephen Hawking in London Monday to announce the 10 year plan. The project involves two of the world's most powerful telescopes and a competition to create digital messages representing humanity. The program will scan the galaxy and listen for messages from other life forms. Milner's donation marks the largest given to the search for extraterrestrial intelligence since Microsoft's Paul Allen gave$ 30 million back in 2009.