Erica Hill | BIO
AC360° Correspondent

Erica Hill talks to Casey Margenau friend of the White House "party crashers" and Ronald Kessler Secret Service expert.

Erica Hill | BIO
AC360° Correspondent

If you’re not a working woman, you don’t need to look far to find one. Women now account for half of the U.S. workforce, and they are increasingly a major economic force within their families, as more women take on the role of “breadwinner.” Despite their solid place in the workforce alongside men – and most families’ need for women to work - it is impossible to ignore the wage gap. Women make 77 cents for every dollar a man brings home. Seventy-seven cents. It is a sobering figure, and a telling one.

Fortune illustrates the chasm in simple numbers from some of the nation’s top earners. The magazine put together lists of the 25 highest-paid women and the 25 best-paid men. Below are the salaries of the top three on each list – I’ll let you guess which salaries belong to the female execs, and which belong to the males.

LIST 1:
1. $42.4 million

2. $23.9 million

3. $20.3 million

LIST 2:
1. $112.5 million

2. $104.5 million

3. $84.5 million

Interesting the difference in those numbers, no? There are other factors that need to be taken into account if one is to compare salaries, among them experience, health of the company and the industry, but still, you can’t ignore the paychecks.

Certain areas of the economy are much more female-friendly. The National Association of Female Executives has its own list of top companies for women. Interestingly, many of the places where women are seeing the greatest advancement and opportunity are in the technology, IT and manufacturing sectors. Financial companies and Wall Street, seen by many as the ultimate “boys' club,” do not score nearly as well.

Women have, of course, made great strides in just the past few decades. The fact that we have these lists is a major improvement. There was a time when few women even dreamed of running a major company, let alone working in the upper echelon of management. I vividly remember my mother – who was the first in her family to earn a college degree – telling me when she went to college, there were basically three career options for women: nurse, secretary, or teacher. She said very matter-of-factly how wonderful it was that my sister and I had so many choices available to us, both in school and after graduation. She loved the fact that we never thought to limit ourselves to three professions.

Indeed women can now be found in nearly every industry and trade. We build homes and roads, cure the sick, deliver babies (funny how that was mainly a man’s job for so long – telling a woman how her body works and would react during childbirth), teach our children, invent mind-boggling technology, run companies, states, cities and even a few government offices. When Fortune magazine premiered its Most Powerful Women in Business list eleven years ago, only two of the women on that lists ran Fortune 500 companies. Today, 13 are at the helm. Yet, interestingly, in 2008 the top three professions for women, were nurse, secretary/administrative assistant and teacher, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

So how do women break into the “Boys' Club” while avoiding the other label that begins with a “B”? That’s just one of the questions we will answer Monday night on AC360°, in addition to asking our panel how – and when! – women will see that extra 23 cents on the dollar in their paychecks. Among the voices weighing in Monday, acclaimed personal finance expert Suze Orman, former White House Press Secretary and author of Why Women Should Rule the World, Dee Dee Myers, and Dr. Katrina Firlik, author of Another Day in the Frontal Lobe. While we wait to hear from them, let us know what you think about women in the workplace and in the “Boys' Club."

Richard Strandlof says he didn't mean to cause harm when he lied about being a military veteran.

Erica Hill | BIO
AC360° Correspondent

It’s been a while, dear blog readers… but I’m still kicking around the 7th floor offices. While more desks may be empty than usual, our rundown isn’t showing signs of Columbus Day.

And since I’m not assigned to a story today, I thought I’d hop back on the blog with a “news Note”; thanks for indulging me.

Sadly, every day provides ample opportunity for disappointment and outrage when you skim the headlines. But sometimes, there is a silver lining in those stories – today’s can be found in a long overdue arrest.

Richard Strandlof’s name may not be familiar, but his story is difficult to forget. Earlier this year, he admitted to Anderson – on the air – that he had lied about surviving the September 11th attacks. Lied about surviving a roadside bomb while serving in Iraq. Lied about the injuries he sustained in that fictitious blast. And he used those lies to make a name for himself, founding the “Colorado Veterans Alliance” and campaigning for politicians, all the while touting his 9/11 and battle field scars.

He even lied about his name.

On Friday, the FBI arrested Strandolf – aka Rick Duncan – on the charge of “stolen valor” and held him for “false claims about receipt of military decorations or medals.”

The first step, perhaps, toward some justice.

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A Delaware first grader was so excited about becoming a Cub Scout, he wanted to bring some of his new camping knowledge to school with him. He took his snazzy new fork/knife/spoon camping tool to school, with plans to use it at lunch. Instead, he’s been suspended and is now facing 45 days in reform school, according to the New York Times. This was the first story I read in the paper this morning – who could ignore those tidbits? His family has started a website, complete with an online petition, to plead this 6-year-old’s case.

The school tells the paper it has a strict “zero tolerance” policy when it comes to weapons in schools…understandable, but it also makes one wonder if maybe a case-by-case basis isn’t such a bad thing.

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Let’s end this on a positive note, shall we? Amidst all the stories of higher fees for everything from checked bags to pretzels, a silver lining for air travel: lower ticket prices. No, your eyes are not playing tricks on you. One airline ticket research site says you could see holiday airfare as much as 15 percent below 2008 prices. But you may want to book your tickets sooner rather than later, since we all know prices seem to change with no rhyme or reason not only from one day to the next, but one minute to the next. Good luck, bargain hunters!

Erica Hill | BIO
AC360º

Erica Hill and Ali Velshi
AC360º

Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright talks to AC360's Erica Hill about increasing violence in Pakistan.

CNN's Erica Hill profiles homeless teenagers who have been impacted by the recession.

Creative students at University of California, Merced lobbied the White House and pushed hard to get Michelle Obama to speak at their graduation.

Program Note: Tune in tonight for more on Ikaria and to hear more clues for a longer life on AC360° at 10 p.m. ET.

The island of Ikaria, Greece, where residents may have some secrets to living longer, healthier lives.

Erica Hill
AC360° Anchor/Correspondent

Forget counting calories, crunches and laps around the track. What if the secrets to a long life involved a lot less work and a much more enjoyment? Turns out, sex and sleep could be just as important to a long, healthy life as omega-3s and cardio. I know, you’re thinking, “This is too good to be true!” Followed by, “I can barely find time for the little sleep I get right now.” Stick with me – I promise it’s worth it.

All this week, we’ll help you find ways to make these simple secrets to a long life work for you. An active sex life and plenty of rest are just two reasons scientists think people on the remote Greek island of Ikaria are living longer, healthier lives. Of course, I’m guessing living on a Greek island doesn’t exactly lead to depression, but for those of us who can’t pack up and move to a Mediterranean paradise, we can reap the benefits of Ikarian culture at home.

Clearly, more time in bed is part of the equation, but it’s far from the only piece of this puzzle. People often live well into their 90’s and – perhaps most importantly - they have fewer years of disease and poor health. If you think about your friends and loved ones, many who have died in their “old age” probably weren’t in great shape those last few years. Maybe it was cancer, dementia, Alzheimer’s… the list of potential health problems is endless and almost expected in the US. Rarely do we hear about people living nearly disease-free until their final days. Yet, on this 99-square mile island, people require far less medical care and tend to have more “good years”. If you’re thinking Ikarians simply hit the good gene jackpot, it’s a nice try but not that simple. Only about 20 percent of our longevity is determined by genes; the rest is up to us.

Dan Buettner, the best-selling author of "THE BLUE ZONES: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest" just named Ikaria the world’s fifth “Blue Zone.” He’s there right now to get some firm answers for us about what makes Ikarians so special, and to share those tips with us. Do sex and sleep play a big role? I’ll ask Dan tonight. In the meantime, you could always do a little research of your own – naptime, anyone?

Cast your vote here to determine where Dan and his team go next in their quest for longevity.

And are you curious about how long you’ll live? Check out Dan’s vitality compass and find out what your biological age is, how old you’ll be when disease is likely to kick in and how long you’ll most likely be on this planet.

For more information on the Blue Zones Quest, go to: http://www.aarp.org/bluezones.