See if you can crack these codes. They all have the same key, so if you can figure out enough letters, you'll be able to get them all.

With a government shutdown looming, non-essential federal workers will be asked to stay home. When you think about your own job, do you think you're "essential" or not? Why/why not?

Tomorrow, we talk to the founder of a multimedia project, which asks people with African ancestry to submit photos from their family archives, along with the stories behind them, as a way to uncover and share history. It's called the Digital Diaspora Family Reunion (DDFR) and its goal is to assemble a more complete picture of African American life, as well as American life in general.

We're asking you to do the same. Whether your African American or not, reach into your family photo album and send us a photo that tells a story of your family history. You can scan it in and send it here — or if you have an iPhone, you can use our app and just snap a photo of it. See the photos you've been sending us.

States across the country are facing serious budget troubles and they're debating what they can cut. What contentious cuts are up for debate where you are?

It's hard to believe that the song, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" was considered racy when it became a hit 50 years ago. It was the first ever number one from an all-black female group — The Shirelles — and it broke new ground by portraying women as more than just objects of male desire. 

On Friday, we'll look back on the song with Beverly Lee, the original member of The Shirelles. But we've been asking you, What song was controversial when you were younger?

Here's what you've had to say:

President Obama revealed a big theme of his upcoming State of the Union address: competitiveness. In a video preview released over the weekend, the president says it will be his number one focus in order to "win the future."

On Tuesday's show, we'll look at just what the president means by this — in what area can the United States still be number one in the world? Is it education? Is it helping entrepreneurs? Or is it something else?

In advance of the conversation, we're asking you why competitiveness is the focus: Do you think America is losing its edge? And where do you think we should be most competitive?

The new political fantasy novel "O" imagines the 2012 political campaign of a candidate much like Obama. It's getting buzz mostly because of its author's unknown identity, but is it any good? We'll review the book on Monday and look at who might be behind it.

And we're asking you, if you were to write a fantasy novel about the Obama administration in 2012, what title would you give it? And if you're feeling creative, give us the first paragraph of the story.

Today, the FBI made its largest mob raid ever, arresting 127 suspects. We're talking about just how pervasive the mob is today. Have you ever had what you thought was a mob experience?

As Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in America for high level talks with President Obama, we devoted a whole hour this morning to issues surrounding China. Both leaders gave a joint press conference, where Obama called on him to loosen trade restrictions. On tomorrow's show, we'll go beyond the criticism of China's policies to look at just how the American economy benefits from China.

And we've been asking you, just how much do you rely on products made in China? Here's what some of you told us by text (sign up by texting the word START to 69866).

Chinese President Hu Jintao arrives in Washington Tuesday nigth for the start of a four-day visit. Hu will start formal meetings with President Obama on Wednesday and will take questions from American reporters — a rare event for a man used to scripted appearances.

According to the Associated Press, four questions will be allowed: Two from U.S.-based reporters and two from Chinese reporters. If you were there, what two questions would you ask?

For an MIT professor, Sherry Turkle has a contrarian take on technology: Instead of bringing us together, she says it's actually making us more distant. In a new book called "Alone Together: Why We Expect more from Technology and Less from Each Other," she argues that the kind of relationships we build using our new ways of communicating affects our understanding of intimacy and community — for the worse.

We've been asking you: Has technology ever made you feel more distant? How so?

Here's what you told us by text message (text the word START to 69866 to get in on the conversation):

Holiday dinners have another tradition that not everyone wants to celebrate: tense conversations about politics. It happened at Thanksgiving and it's likely to happen around Christmas, so we're looking at how to survive the seasonal dinner table arguments and how the issues in question have changed from last year.

Do you worry about political arguments over dinner? Do you have a strategy for surviving?

A new study says that biracial Americans of black and white ancestry are more often self-identifying as black. The study, published in the Social Psychology Quarterly, finds that the majority of black-white biracial adults surveyed said they called themselves black.

The authors of the study describe this phenomenon "reverse passing."

"Most notably, we find a striking reverse pattern of passing today—while passing during the Jim Crow era involved passing as white, these respondents more often report passing as black today."

Weigh in: If you are the son or daughter of mixed-race parents, or if your parents are of different religions, what do you call yourself? How has this changed over time?

We're looking at the pros and cons of going without the use of a bank. Do you think you could live without your bank? Have you ever done it? We've been hearing from you by text message, Facebook and Twitter. 

The backlash against new airport screening procedures is growing. Last month, the Transportation Security Administration started rolling out full body scanners that allow screeners to check for weapons concealed by clothing. If a passenger opts out of the scan, they must submit to an "enhanced" pat-down.

A group of fliers is calling for people to boycott the scanners over the Thanksgiving holiday, forcing screeners to conduct the pat-downs, causing disruptions at one of the busiest travel times of the year. The scanners take about 30 seconds, but the pat-downs last several minutes per passenger.

We'll ask Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano about the new policy, but we're asking you, Is this controversy causing you to rethink your travel plans during the holidays?

The news this week that 15 percent of U.S. internet traffic was routed through China for 18 minutes back in April has some experts warning about the increased threats of cyber warfare. This is adding to the debate over whether the president should have a so-called "kill switch" to shut off parts of the internet to protect the nation's infrastructure. Do you think the government should have this ability — to shut off the internet?

At some workplaces, it's sleeping on the job. At others, it's leaking news. What is a sackable offense at your place of work? 

We talk about this on Tuesday's show with Lewis Maltby, President of the National Workrights Institute and we started the conversation early, here. Send us your firing stories!

When the statistics for success are still grim (50 percent of marriages fail), we're asking: is marriage really worth the effort?

Whether you're married, divorced or considering either, do you have a story that made you think twice about tying the knot?

Ephron tells us that the stories of relationships ending are often as rich as the beginnings. She writes about her experiences over at The Huffington Post:

Divorce seems as if it will last forever, and then suddenly, one day, your children grow up, move out, and make lives for themselves, and except for an occasional flare, you have no contact at all with your ex-husband. The divorce has lasted way longer than the marriage, but finally it's over.

One of the hardest things for a politician to do is to ask people to give up benefits or pay more in taxes. Which is why President Obama appointed a bipartisan commission last February to come up with ideas to deal with the ever-ballooning deficit. Now the panel is releasing its suggestions and the complaints are already coming in.

The panel recommends cutting the tax deduction for mortgage interest payments. It suggests reducing some social security benefits and raising the retirement age. There's also a 15-cents-a-gallon increase in the federal gasoline tax, but a proposal to consolidate other taxes.

From the sounds of it, everyone will be affected by the sacrifices proposed.

We're asking you, What would you be willing to give up to help the government save money?

Is it "PEE-kan" or "pee-KAHN"? "MO-bill" or "mo-BYLE"? The way we pronounce words is changing all the time and we're trying to track it. In the U.K., the British Library is trying to record how British accents are evolving by sending people to special recording booths. We think think it's worth doing with American accents, and we're suggesting The Takeaway iPhone app to do the recording.

Here's the assignment: Record yourself or someone you know saying a word that you think sounds different from the way most people say it. Is there a word that people correct you on all the time? Or is it one that others have trouble understanding? Record it and send it to us.