1. Money  What Are US Treasury Bonds?  Definition and Basics on
US Treasury Bonds and US Treasury Bond Funds   Definition: US
Treasury securities, also known as Treasuries, are debt
obligations issued by the United States Department of the
Treasury. When you buy Treasuries, you are financing the
operation of the United States Federal Government. In different
words, you are loaning money to the federal government, which in
turn promises to pay you a specified amount of interest until
the stated maturity date, at which time the original amount of
the bond you purchased (the principal) is returned to you, the
investor.  There are four types of Treasuries: 1) Treasury Bills
(T-Bills), which mature in 1 year or less, 2) Treasury Notes
(T-Notes), which mature in 2 to 10 years, 3) Treasury Bonds
(T-Bonds), which mature in 20 to 30 years and 4) Treasury
Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS), which are inflation-
indexed bonds.  Bond funds investing in Treasuries typically
have the word "government" in the name of the