USA TODAY articles from April 2009

USA TODAY archives from April 2009

Federal government cannot stop spending.(National Debt)
April 1, 2009... See if you can identify Company X by its spending habits. In 2008, its Fiscal Year net operating costs were one trillion dollars. Just for perspective, this number is triple that of its 2007 costs. Its debt comes in at 10.7 trillion dollars,...

Is enjoyment or satisfaction the goal?(Female Sexuality)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Many women think condoms undermine sexual pleasure, but those who use hormonal contraception and condoms report higher overall sexual satisfaction, according to data from the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University, Bloomington. The study...

New and "safer" forms still present risks.(Female Contraception)
April 1, 2009... Introduced in the 1960s, oral contraceptives have been used by about 80% of women in the U.S. at some point in their lives. For those without pre-existing risks for heart disease, the early formulations generally were safe, and the newer ones...

There is little safety in numbers.(Sexual Harassment)
April 1, 2009... Despite common assumptions, research suggests that women are not more likely to be sexually harassed when they are the minority or majority in a work group. Instead, sociologists at Ohio State University, Columbus, found that, in most cases,...

Why women lie even to themselves.(Life in America)
April 1, 2009... Women today constancy are comparing themselves to one another and often beating themselves up when they do not measure up. BettyConfidential.com has released the results of a survey showing that, irrespective of all the educational attainment...

Over 76,000,000 baby boomers--more than one-quarter of the U.S. population--are entering their 50s and 60s, but retirement in the traditional sense of the word apparently is not for them.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Over 76,000,000 baby boomers--more than one-quarter of the U.S. population--are entering their 50s and 60s, but retirement in the traditional sense of the word apparently is not for them. Instead, they are looking to the "s" word--"secondment"...

The next time you are looking for a job, make sure you talk with your neighbors, as a study from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, has found that neighbors on the same block successfully refer jobs to one another.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... The next time you are looking for a job, make sure you talk with your neighbors, as a study from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, has found that neighbors on the same block successfully refer jobs to one another. "Social interactions...

If you think protecting young teenagers on the Internet is important, then be sure they feel the same way, indicate researchers from the University of Maryland, College Park.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... If you think protecting young teenagers on the Internet is important, then be sure they feel the same way, indicate researchers from the University of Maryland, College Park. Preteens and early teens who are educated on the importance of...

It has been 45 years since Pres. John F. Kennedy was assassinated, yet "historians have pretty much ignored the assassination as a historical event, and they need to weigh in against the excesses of conspiracy theory as false history," urges Michael G. Smith, associate professor of history at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... It has been 45 years since Pres. John F. Kennedy was assassinated, yet "historians have pretty much ignored the assassination as a historical event, and they need to weigh in against the excesses of conspiracy theory as false history," urges...

Half of all Americans expect another country to emerge this century as the world's leader in addressing technological challenges that range from the economy to global warming, according a survey of U.S. public opinion released by Duke University, Durham, N.C.(Noteworthy)
April 1, 2009... Half of all Americans expect another country to emerge this century as the world's leader in addressing technological challenges that range from the economy to global warming, according a survey of U.S. public opinion released by Duke...

Technology changes everything.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Technology changes everything. When asked what they felt would have the biggest impact on the practice of law over the next five years, one in four attorneys polled by Robert Half Legal, Menlo Park, Calif., said electronic discovery....

In relationships built on trust, a bad first impression can be harder to overcome than a betrayal that occurs alter ties are established, suggests a study from the Fisher College of Business, Columbus, Ohio.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... In relationships built on trust, a bad first impression can be harder to overcome than a betrayal that occurs alter ties are established, suggests a study from the Fisher College of Business, Columbus, Ohio. While betraying trust in a...

We all know that one dollar is equal to 100 cents, but a study published in Psychological Science suggests that, in some situations, individuals may behave as if 100 cents actually has more value.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... We all know that one dollar is equal to 100 cents, but a study published in Psychological Science suggests that, in some situations, individuals may behave as if 100 cents actually has more value. "In some cases, money may just serve as a...

Consumers often are told that if they break an item, they must buy it, but a study from Ohio State University, Columbus, suggests that if they merely touch an item for more than a few seconds, they probably will end up buying it anyway.(Noteworthy)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Consumers often are told that if they break an item, they must buy it, but a study from Ohio State University, Columbus, suggests that if they merely touch an item for more than a few seconds, they probably will end up buying it anyway. "The...

Each month, 45,000 die in Congo.(The World Today)
April 1, 2009... Conflict and humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo have taken the lives of an estimated 5,400,000 people since 1998 and continue to leave as many as 45,000 dead every month, according to a major mortality survey released by...

Masterworks in drawing: Raphael to Renoir.(Museums Today)
April 1, 2009... "Raphael to Renoir" provides a rare opportunity to see 120 master drawings, ranging across 500 years of the history of art, from the Renaissance to 1900. Representing a wide range of artistic schools, the selection includes works by famous...

Cuba's lessons in economic hardship.(Worldview)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... There are two Cubas--one for Cubans, one for outsiders--that coexist but do not mix, and this explains how the Cuban culture we do not see was critical in sustaining the Fidel Castro regime while other socialist counties collapsed, according to...

Can Obama measure up to Lincoln?(American Presidency)(Barack Obama, Abraham Lincoln )
April 1, 2009... The connections between Barack Obama and Abraham Lincoln define Obama's image today, but these associations also influence how Lincoln will continue to be remembered, indicates a historian from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. ...

Lincoln also prevented slavery in Latin America.(American History)(Abraham Lincoln)
April 1, 2009... The 200th anniversary of Pres. Abraham Lincoln's birth has been a lime for people to learn mere about the U.S's 16th president, says a Civil War historian from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "Pres. Lincoln is on a lot of people's minds...

Obama's stimulus promotes inflation.(Economics)(Barack Obama)
April 1, 2009... The so-called stimulus bill demonstrates a stunning ignorance of how business works and how jobs are created, maintains Colin Hanna, president of Let Freedom Ring USA, Philadelphia. For example, in its more than 1,500 pages, there is not one...

Will administration spending be transparent?(Government)
April 1, 2009... The Obama Administration's promised level of transparency carries risk, but is the right way to try to build trust with the American public, maintains ethics specialist Wayne Norman, a professor at the Kenan Institute for Ethics, Durham, N.C....

Pride and passion.(Athletic Arena)(exhibit about discrimination in baseball)
April 1, 2009... BASEBALL is one of America's central institutions and long has reflected the complicated and painful history of race in the U.S. An American Library Association traveling exhibition tells the story of the country's black baseball players over...

Stimulus plan includes "virtual fence".(Illegal Immigration)
April 1, 2009... One of the many unnoticed pet projects included in the massive $800,000,000,000 economic stimulus plan is $100,000,000 for Boeing Inc. to resume work on the troubled "virtual fence"--the $8,000,000,000 2006 plan to construct a highly...

Filling potholes on road to repair.(Construction Industry)
April 1, 2009... Economic stimulus plan funds are being distributed to projects and programs across the nation, and opinions on the matter are mixed. The legislation--which includes around $48,000,000,000 in infrastructure transportation spending on everything...

Administration funds construction boom.(Infrastructure)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... The U.S. currently is facing a perfect storm of hardships: a weakened economy, an aging infrastructure that needs rebuilding, and a skilled labor shortage that threatens to continue shrinking. According to the leader of an international...

Lack of oversight could doom projects.(Infrastructure Investment)
April 1, 2009... As the U.S. is in the midst of a financial crisis and in the process of making the "largest investment in infrastructure since the National Highway System," it is essential that the country invest these dollars wisely in projects that will...

CFOs fear U.S. in for long haul.(Recession)(chief financial officers )
April 1, 2009... Chief financial officers in the U.S. and around the world say the global recession will last well into 2010. Companies plan dramatic cuts to employment and capital spending and anticipate double-digit earnings declines over the next year....

Signs: wordplay in photography.(Focus)
April 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE MODERN metropolis can be a site of sensory overload. A major contributor to the visual noise is the ubiquity of signs of every conceivable shape, size, and design, all competing with each other for attention....

Obama should have followed Reagan plan.(Stimulus Package)(Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan's Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 )
April 1, 2009... The Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 (ERTA) offers a blueprint for fiscal stimulus that would be far more effective than the package approved by Pres. Barack Obama, contends Bill Brown, a visiting professor of the practice of law at Duke...

Most believe bill will not help them.(Stimulus Beneficiaries)(Brief article)
April 1, 2009... Just 27% of likely voters are optimistic the Federal economic stimulus bill will benefit them or their family personally, a Zogby Interactive poll shows. Some 56% are doubtful the stimulus package will aid them, and 17% are unsure. While...

There really are ways to save.(Income Taxes)
April 1, 2009... What three words do people least want to hear in the middle of a recession--besides, "You're laid off," that is? Answer: "It's tax time!" Tax season is not all bad news, however, according to financial counselor and author Eric Tyson. Even if...

Credit scoring rules changing.(FICO)
April 1, 2009... It always is a good idea to be vigilant about credit scores but, if you are planning on borrowing in the coming months, you might want to monitor your credit behavior a little more closely. Fair Isaac Corporation, the company that created the...

The troubling return of Keynesianism.(Policymaking)
April 1, 2009... DECADES of macroeconomic research suggests that the Federal government's stimulus plan to return the U.S. economy to growth will not work. Indeed, the revival of old-fashioned Keynesianism to fight the recession seems to stem more from...