New York Times Upfront articles from March 2008

New York Times Upfront archives from March 2008

A giant sperm whale.(NEWS & TRENDS)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A GIANT SPERM WHALE died after becoming stranded on a beach near the port of Songxia in southeastern China in January. Local fishermen believe that strong currents carried the 52-foot-long, 20-ton whale to the beach....

Double-dipping dangers.(FOOD)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Ten years after it went off the air, Seinfeld's influence is still being felt--even in the halls of academia. In a 1993 episode, George Costanza dips a chip, takes a bite, then dips again. "Did you just double-dip...

Breaking free of Facebook.(THE WEB)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... Many ex-Facebook members have found it nearly impossible to remove themselves entirety from the site. It took one user two months, several e-mail exchanges, and a threat of legal action to get most, but not all, of his information erased....

Victory in blue?(SPORTS)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... Can the color of a uniform affect an athlete s success. A study of men's judo in the 2004 Olympics in Athens suggested the answer was yes. In high-level judo, one competitor wears a white uniform and the other wears blue. The study found that...

Ireland gets even greener.(ENVIRONMENT)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] An estimated 42 billion plastic shopping bags are given out every month around the world. Because most are not biodegradable, some places are trying to cut their usage. China will soon prohibit shops from handing...

Answer keys.(TECHNOLOGY)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] During a recent pop quiz, A.P. physics students at Great Neck South High School on Long Island, N.Y., didn't need either pens or paper. Instead, they furiously pressed keys on handheld clickers, as animated...

Numbers in the news.(NEWS & TRENDS)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... 488 NUMBER OF SUSPECTED Nazis still being hunted by the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Jerusalem. (See p. 14.) SOURCE: HARPER'S 4.3 million NUMBER OF CHILDREN born in the U.S. in 2006--the largest number since the post-World War II...

In Wal-Mart we trust? After years of criticism, the nation's largest company is trying to improve its image by tackling some of the problems Washington can't seem to solve.(NATIONAL)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] OBAMA, CLINTON, MCCAIN... WAL-MART? The nation's largest private employer sometimes sounds like it's running for President these days. It's making sweeping commitments to reduce America's energy use and...

Bush-Clinton forever? If Hillary Clinton is elected President, the White House will have been occupied by a Bush or a Clinton for 24 (or 28) years. Does it matter?(OPINION)(Viewpoint essay)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] In a presidential campaign that has involved battles over everything from Iraq to driver's licenses, one sweeping topic has gone curiously unexamined: Does it diminish American democracy if we keep the presidency in...

Kenya's agony: a wave of horrific ethnic violence in the wake of a disputed election threatens to destroy one of Africa's most stable countries.(INTERNATIONAL)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Until a few months ago, Kenya was in a position that much of Africa envied. The economy was doing well, with tourism and agriculture providing a foundation for growth. The government had progressed from a one-party...

Will the Great Firewall stand? The government is cracking down on dissent in advance of the Olympics, but China's Internet users are fighting back--often at great risk to themselves.(INTERNATIONAL)
March 10, 2008... As an 18-year-old student, Zhu Nan had been itching to say something about China's extensive online censorship system, known as the Great Firewall. So when China's censors began blocking access to Flickr, the photo-sharing site, Zhu felt...

1933: Hitler comes to power: seventy-five years ago, Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany, and a 12-year reign of terror across Europe began. Could history repeat itself?(Era overview)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ON THE EVENING OF JAN. 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler, the newly appointed Chancellor of Germany, stood in a government building at an open window watching a torchlight parade of 25,000 Nazi troops march through the streets...

Talking with your doctor: follow these tips to get the most from your doctor visit.(HEADS UP: REAL NEWS ABOUT DRUGS AND YOUR BODY)
March 10, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] If there's one word that best sums up the teen years, it's "change." Your body grows more between ages 13 and 19 than at any other point in life besides infancy. Think about it. While change can be exciting, it...

The bottom line on (RED): how much money from the sale of "Red" products actually goes to the fight against AIDS?(BUSINESS)
March 10, 2008... In 2006, the rock star Bono started Red, a campaign that combines consumerism and altruism. Since then, consumers have generated more than $22 million to fight H.I.V. and AIDS in Rwanda by buying iPods, T-shirts, watches, cologne, and...

Should "don't ask, don't tell" be scrapped? Under this 15-year-old policy, gays in the armed forces must keep their sexual orientation secret.(DEBATE)
March 10, 2008... YES Allowing gays to serve openly in the military would not pose insurmountable problems for the order and discipline of the armed forces--which is why we should end the current "don't ask, don't tell" policy. "Don't ask, don't tell"...

Cartoons.(Cartoon)
March 10, 2008... MILLIONS OF AMERICANS WILL USE THEIR REBATE CHECKS TO STIMULATE THE ECONOMY... ... TOO BAD IT WON'T BE OUR ECONOMY. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] STEVE BREEN * San Diego Union-Tribune * COPLEY NEWS SERVICE IF WE CAN GET CHELSEA TO...

Teen Health: Talking with Your Doctor.(TEACHERS EDITION)
March 10, 2008... Dear Teacher: As you know, life can get pretty complicated for teens given the range of physical and emotional changes they go through. Getting teens to talk about what's going on with them, especially with a doctor or another health-care...

Creating a personal health journal.(STUDENT ACTIVITY REPRODUCIBLE)
March 10, 2008... Face it: As a teenager, you're going through more changes now than at any other period in your life outside of infancy. A personal health journal is a great way to keep track of all that's going on with you as you learn more about yourself and...

Game show.(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... USE with articles identified. The statements are answers to questions (modeled after the TV show Jeopardy!). Students must answer in the form of questions. * DIVIDE the class into teams. * READ the statements. * CALL on the...

Political cartoons.(CARTOON ANALYSIS)(Brief article)
March 10, 2008... HOW TO DRIVE A POLLSTER CRAZY... PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY I VOTED FOR THE CANDIDATE WHO PROMISED CHANGE! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ANALYZE THE CARTOON 1. Who are the two people in the cartoon, and what are they doing? 2....

Every year during Easter week, young computer enthusiasts from all over the world meet at "The Gathering" in Hamar, Norway.(NEWS & TRENDS)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... EVERY YEAR during Easter week, young computer enthusiasts from all over the world meet at "The Gathering" in Hamar, Norway. More than 5,000 techies--90 percent of them guys, and most between 16 and 20--bring their own computers (and sleeping...

Gliding to school.(MASS TRANSIT)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The large, red aluminum contraption resembles a houseboat on skis. But for residents of La Pointe, Wis., this strange vehicle, known as a windsled, is their school, bus. La Pointe (population 250) is a village on...

Olympic take-out.(FOOD)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... When 600 U.S. athletes head to Beijing for the Olympic Games this summer, they'll bring their own breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Some food in China has been found to be tainted with insecticides and illegal veterinary drugs. Last year, a caterer...

Starship kimchi.(SPACE)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Kimchi, the fermented cabbage dish Koreans have with almost every meal, is about to head into orbit. When South Korea's first astronaut, Yi So-yeon, blasts off April 8 on a Russian spaceship bound for the...

David Wilson, meet David Wilson.(FAMILIES)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Three years ago, David Wilson began making a documentary about race and his search for his family's history. Along the way, he made a discovery that startled him: He found a living descendant of the family that had...

A complex Web.(ECOLOGY)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A few years ago, when scientists tried to protect Kenya's acacia trees from leaf-munching animals like elephants and giraffes, they noticed something strange: Instead of thriving, the trees withered and died. The...

19%.(NUMBERS IN THE NEWS)
March 31, 2008... 19% PERCENTAGE OF THE U.S. population that is projected to be foreign-born in 2050, compared with 12 percent in 2005. SOURCE: PEW RESEARCH CENTER

$60 million.(NUMBERS IN THE NEWS)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... $60 million ESTIMATED COST OF launching the missile used by the Navy on February 20 to shoot down a potentially hazardous U.S. spy satellite. SOURCE: CNN

$1,885.(NUMBERS IN THE NEWS)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... $1,885 AMOUNT SPENT AT Dunkin' Donuts over a 10-month period by Hillary Clinton's campaign; Barack Obama's spent $724, while John McCain's tab was $924--plus $117 at Krispy Kreme. SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES

15%.(NUMBERS IN THE NEWS)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... 15% PERCENTAGE OF 2007 high school graduates who scored a 3 or higher on at least one Advanced Placement exam, up from 12 percent in 2002. SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES

$10.7 million.(NUMBERS IN THE NEWS)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... $10.7 million AMOUNT SPENT AT an auction in Long Beach, Calif., for 301 rare U.S. pennies, the oldest from 1793. [See Opinion, p 29.] SOURCE: TIME

Cuba at a crossroads: does Fidel Castro's decision to step down after half a century in power open the door to real change for Cuba?(INTERNATIONAL)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] When Fidel Castro seized power in Cuba in 1959, Dwight D. Eisenhower was President, John McCain had recently graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, Hillary Clinton was an 11-year-old Girl Scout, and Barack Obama...

'We say sorry': Australia apologizes for past wrongs against the continent's Aborigines.(Cover story)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Australia's Aborigines are among the world's oldest peoples: They are believed to have arrived in Australia from somewhere in Asia about 50,000 years ago. Most lived in semi-permanent communities along the coast;...

Iran: the young & restless: the Iranian government may rail against the United States, but young Iranians don't seem to pay much attention. Like their counterparts everywhere, they've got other thing to think a about.(INTERNATIONAL)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] A generation ago, in the 1970s, young Iranians filled with revolutionary fervor helped overthrow their government and establish an Islamic state. And until a few years ago, Iran's young people took the lead in...

My life as a superdelegate: Jason Rae is a junior at Marquette University. So why is he hanging out with Hillary and Barack, eating breakfast with Chelsea, and taking calls from Bill?(NATIONAL)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Four years ago, while most of my high school classmates were focused on getting their senior pictures taken and planning their summer vacations, I did something no 17-year-old had ever done before: I ran for a seat...

Supreme 180s: it doesn't happen often, but when the Supreme Court changes its mind and overturns an earlier decision, it can have a major impact. A look at key reversals of the past--and what may lie ahead.(NATIONAL)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Raised as Jehovah's Witnesses, Marie and Gathie Barnett had been taught that pledging allegiance to the flag was a form of idol worship prohibited by their religion. So when other children in their four-room...

Cracking down: Arizona's steps to make it tougher for illegal immigrants to work and go to college are also affecting legal residents and the economy.(NATIONAL)
March 31, 2008... When Marco Carillo, a naturalized American citizen and a high school valedictorian, met with his college counselor, her major worry about his future had little to do with his SAT scores or extracurricular activities. It had to do with his...

1968 America's tragic year: the 1960s was already shaping up as one of America's most turbulent decades. But in 1968, it seemed Like the nation was beginning to spin out of control.(TIMES PAST)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Long before Martin Luther King Jr., stepped onto a hotel balcony in Memphis, Tenn., on a spring evening in 1968, tensions in America were running high, especially among young people. Opposition to the war in...

A growing cloud over the planet: smoking is declining in the West, but it's on the rise in countries like China and India.(HEALTH)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Nearly half of the world's 1.3 billion smokers live in China, India, and Indonesia, the three largest consumers of tobacco products. In China alone, more people smoke than live in the United States. Those three countries and others in the...

Why it's time to retire the penny: on its 100th birthday, the penny is America's most unloved coin.(OPINION)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Not a chance, my neighborhood news dearer said. He's a friendly guy, but no way was he about to count the 75 pennies offered as payment for two newspapers. And the woman at the bakery was absolute about not accepting...

Should the U.S. end its embargo on Cuba? With Fidel Castro stepping aside, is this the moment to lift four decades of restrictions on trade and travel?(DEBATE)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] YES It's past time for the U.S. to begin easing restrictions on trade with Cuba and to lift the travel ban entirely. The embargo should not be lifted all at once, but there are good reasons to start making some...

Cartoons.(Cartoon)
March 31, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ARCADIO ESQUIVEL * La Prensa (Panama) * CAGLE CARTOONS DRINK AND DRIVE? NEVER!!! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] HOLD ON-- I'M GETTING A TEXT... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] JEFF KOTERBA * Omaha (Neb.) World...