USA TODAY articles from January 2002

USA TODAY archives from January 2002

TV and movies hamper American PR effort. (Your Life).(image tarnished through mass media)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Efforts to battle terrorism may be hampered by misperceptions about America in movies and television shows, warns Melvin Sharpe, a public relations professor at Ball State University, Muncie, Ind., and a member of the International Public...

Helping to beat those winter blues. (Your Life).(outdoor activities)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... People shouldn't hibernate just because there is a little snow on the ground, maintains Carole Oglesby, professor of kinesiology, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pa. "Many people suffer from seasonal affective disorder during these dark and...

Energy density: a new way to look at food. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Energy density is the number of calories in a given volume of food. For example, one cup of lettuce has fewer calories than one cup of ice cream, so the lettuce has a lower energy density rating. According to the Mayo Clinic Women's...

Eating right to reduce stress. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... During times of stress, people often turn to traditional "comfort" foods such as pizza, macaroni and cheese, and ice cream. Ironically, these high-fat foods are usually the worst possible choices because they can make individuals feel lethargic...

Grading the media on terrorism coverage. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... In the initial days following the Sept. 11 terrorist attack, media representatives did an excellent job covering "spot news," but now need to be careful to find middle ground in their reporting, say Steven Reese and Don Heider, journalism...

Workplace manners on the decline. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A few more "pleases" and "thank yous" in the office would definitely be welcome, a survey by Office-Team, a Menlo Park, Calif.-based staffing service specializing in highly skilled administrative professionals, suggests. Forty-four percent of...

Rebounding from a career setback. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... It's hard to avoid the occasional letdown as you climb your way up the corporate ladder. Nevertheless, Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps, an international temporary staffing service for accounting, finance, and bookkeeping professionals, and...

The emotional impact of flowers. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... With today's high-tech and fast-paced lifestyle taking its daily toll on our lives, experts advise exercising and other lifestyle changes to relieve stress. According to behavioral research conducted at Rutgers, The State University of New...

Valentine's Day gifts can bring problems. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... "Gifts can send a very strong message, and one that is easily misinterpreted," cautions Robert Billingham, associate professor of human development, Indiana University, Bloomington. "This is especially true if the giver presents a nice gift...

Chocolate: the new health food. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... For many women, chocolate cravings are a very real and very persistent companion. Yet, most diet-conscious females shy away from this beloved candy, feeling it will sabotage their healthy lifestyle. Fortunately for such people, the Mayo Clinic...

Refuting chocolate and beef's bad reputation. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Don't be timid this Valentine's Day as you open a box of chocolate treats, and don't be afraid to indulge if your date treats you to a prime-rib dinner. Researchers at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas say that...

How to feather your first nest. (Your Life).(home furnishing for newlyweds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Newlyweds are getting a head start on their new lives together by furnishing their homes early. Twenty-eight percent of married couples bought their first piece of furniture together before they stepped over the threshold, and 32% bought...

Explaining negative "mystery moods". (Your Life).(nonconscious goals)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Have you ever been in a bad mood that you couldn't explain and wondered what put you in a funk? Research by Tanya Chartrand, assistant professor of psychology, Ohio State University, Columbus, found that such negative "mystery moods" can occur...

Women's changing personality traits. (Your Life).(developing typically male traits)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Women's roles are changing, and sexual stereotypes may include beliefs about such developments. Social psychology professor Amanda Diekman, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind., and colleague Alice Eagly of Northwestern University, Evanston,...

Widowed spouses face retirement challenges. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Widowed spouses, particularly from middle-income couples, face retirement spending challenges not encountered by single retirees, and couples need to develop a sustainable spending plan for the survivor, suggests New York financial consultant...

Bullying is everyone's problem. (Your Life).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... One in seven children is involved in a bullying/victim relationship--about 15% in every school. "Bullying behavior creates a climate of fear that permeates schools," emphasizes Sally Murphy, a counselor education professor, George Mason...

Proposed: a more-effective and just response to terrorism: "by enlarging international cooperation, especially in the Islamic world, and utilizing and upholding the principles of law, we can increase the chances that the horrors of Sept. 11 will never be repeated." (American Thought).
January 1, 2002... AS WE WAGE WAR against international terrorism and the perpetrators of the Sept. 11 atrocities, we must seek to understand the nature of the enemy we face and devise effective strategies for defeating that adversary. If we are wise and...

The courts close in on the diversity rationale. (State Of The Nation).(affirmative action plans on campus)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... MORE THAN FIVE YEARS AGO, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court in Hopwood v. Texas struck down the admissions policy of the University of Texas Law School that gave an automatic advantage to African-American and Hispanic students,...

A memo to American Muslims: an Islamic scholar appeals to his fellow American Muslims in the aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. (American Thought).
January 1, 2002... IN THE NAME OF ALLAH, the most Benevolent and the most Merciful, may this memo find you in the shade of Islam enjoying the mercy, the protection, and the grace of Allah. I am writing this memo to you with the explicit purpose of inviting you to...

Oil is not a national security issue: "... America steadfastly clings to perceptions formed in the 1970s, and national policies continue to reflect oil paranoia." (National Affairs).(protecting oil interests abroad)
January 1, 2002... ECONOMIC SECURITY ISSUES have traditionally centered on health uncertainties, retirement needs, and protection against income interruption. However, over the past quarter-century, the U.S.'s civilian leadership and the military community,...

Meeting the global energy challenge: "there are no quick solutions to the energy supply and infrastructure challenge facing the U.S. specifically and the global marketplace generally." (National Affairs).
January 1, 2002... THE UNDERLYING world energy situation is neither benign nor inherently stable. In geographic terms, there is a fundamental mismatch between the location of energy supplies, especially in terms of the areas where oil and natural gas are...

Renewing the U.S.-Japan relationship: fifty years after the San Francisco Peace Treaty was signed, there is a need for a recommitment by the two nations to work together to ensure the future security, economic prosperity, and political stability of the Asia Pacific region. (Worldview).
January 1, 2002... ON SEPT. 8, 2001, Secretary of State Colin Powell and Japanese Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka signed a Joint Statement at the Opera House in San Francisco which commemorated the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty at the same location...

Mental health and refugee families: "what is needed more than political ideology is to build a family-centered approach to refugee mental health." (Psychology).
January 1, 2002... IN RESPONSE TO the catastrophic escalation of refugees worldwide, there has been a corresponding growth of America's helping efforts that focus on their mental health. These range from "clinical treatments" such as psychotherapies and...

Nation Building II. (World Watcher).(George W. Bush's foreign policy)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... GEORGE BUSH campaigned in 2000 as someone dead set against "nation building" as he saw it in Clinton/Gore terms. He regarded it as inappropriate to place trained fighting U.S. troops in danger (and debt) simply to keep combatants apart while...

Is your financial health at risk? "It's never to soon to become an effective money manager and improve your financial well-being. (Economics).
January 1, 2002... AMERICANS ARE LIVING in a financial fantasy. They are extremely confident that they will be able to live life as they choose in the future, even though they have saved very little to date and have no clear financial plan in place. A survey...

Secrets of finding and keeping good employees: "To do the best job possible, it is important for America's hiring professionals to challenge their interview processes." (Business & Finance).
January 1, 2002... EVERY JOB IN A COMPANY is important, or it wouldn't exist. In other words, there is a good job for everyone--one where each individual makes a valuable contribution, regardless of where that job is in a company's structure. Finding that person,...

So you want to be a tax cheat. (Economic Observer).(tax evasion)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... IT IS THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, and the scammers are out to get you. Don't want to pay taxes? According to some advisors, you don't have to! I can't get on the Web without someone e-mailing me new strategies to set up special personal family...

The battle against White-Collar Crime: "The exponential growth of technology and the use of computers have triggered a purposeful rethinking of the tools needed by law enforcement organizations to address internet-related crime." (Law & Justice).
January 1, 2002... ONE IN THREE American households are victims of white-collar crime, yet just 41% actually report it. Of those reported, a mere 21% made it into the hands of a law enforcement or consumer protection agency. This means that less than eight...

Teasing the news is the wrong thing to thing to do. (Words & Images).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... USING THE NEWS OF THE DAY as fodder to entice an audience to stay tuned used to be annoying and in dubious taste, but, like TV commercials, something to be endured as a necessity of commercial broadcasting. In today's world, however, where...

Art of the American West: the Amon Carter Museum's collection chronicles all aspects of western life, from the 1840s to the present. (Museum Today).
January 1, 2002... THE HISTORY of the Amon Carter Museum's collection of western American art began with the institution's founder, Fort Worth, Tex., publisher and philanthropist Amon G. Carter Sr. (1879-1955). He started his own collection in 1935 with the...

Good grief, Charlie Brown!: the art of Charles Schulz: "At the heart of Schulz's great connection with the world was his humanity." (Museum Today).
January 1, 2002... "I'LL NEVER BE Andrew Wyeth" the late Charles M. Schulz often lamented, referring to the famed American artist. This, from the man whose comic strip "Peanuts," over the course of its 50-year lifetime, grew into the most-successful and beloved...

After September. (Reel World).(violence in mass media)
January 1, 2002... FOLLOWING THE SEPT. 11 ATTACKS on New York and Washington, several media outlets contacted me for my opinion on what I thought might be the future of cinema violence after these horrendous episodes. During the same period, I kept heating...

Helping school counselors cope with violence: "[their role] in responding to a crisis varies from school to school. What is important, however, is that the safety of all students is ensured and that a plan is in place which reflects the unique characteristics of that school." (Education).
January 1, 2002... A TYPICAL DAY for an American high school counselor has changed dramatically in the last decade. Ten years ago, few of them had to deal with students so distraught and unhappy that they would bring guns to school or threaten to blow up the...

Social HMOs can ensure senior's health and independence: "it is clear that Medicare needs to be updated, but the question is how. What type of program will meet the needs of the 21st century?" (Medicine & Health).
January 1, 2002... TAKE A MOMENT to think about a situation you or a loved one may be facing now or in the near future. Imagine that you are over 65, on Medicare, and develop a chronic, debilitating disease. Your doctor prescribes a drag to keep the disease under...

The "Contraction" quagmire. (Sports Scene).(eliminating struggling teams)
January 1, 2002... TWO ABSOLUTELY LUDICROUS NOTIONS surfaced before the celebratory champagne was even dry following the Arizona Diamondbacks' dramatic ninth-inning, seventh-game snatching of the World Series from the three-time defending champion New York...

Is "TEAM" a four-letter word? "Losing tends to exacerbate conflicts that may be simmering, but remain dormant while a team is enjoying success." (Athletic Arena).
January 1, 2002... FOR MANY PEOPLE, memories of team experiences are positive ones. For others, though, they bring "four-letter words" to mind. The word "team" can be defined (Webster's Unabridged Dictionary) as "a number of persons associated in some joint...

What lies ahead for the Federal Communications Commission? Under Chairman Michael Powell, the FCC will be pushing a conservative agenda concerning regulation and deregulation in telecommunications. (Mass Media).
January 1, 2002... WITH ADVANCED technology on the horizon, the future holds great promise for telecommunications. However, the Federal Communications Commission will determine what technology and when it will reach the public. Three newly appointed members will...

Exploring the frontiers of the future: "One of the central challenges for the future is that we don't know what we don't know." (Science & Technology).
January 1, 2002... AS AN AMERICAN on a long trek overseas in 1996, I was surprised at each stop--Italy, Germany, Egypt, Great Britain--to discover that much of the fare on television consists of old American movies, more specifically, old westerns. Each movie was...

Classics, sequels, noir, and guilty pleasures. (Entertainment).(DVD releases)
January 1, 2002... AS DVD CONTINUES to make inroads in the video market, with prices dropping to make the discs more and more attractive as collectibles, the flood of new releases is becoming split between appealing to wide audiences and catering to niche...

Cars drive up the costs of urban sprawl: "In addition to eating up more human time and motor fuel, car-centric cities require greater expenditures on transportation and other infrastructure--expenses that chip away at a region's economic potential." (Ecology).
January 1, 2002... AS GOVERNMENT POLICIES have fostered sprawling cities, some problems with car-dependent development have become clear. Cities prosper when they can take advantage of their concentration of human talent and energy. Sprawling cities diminish that...

So you want to buy a home: "... with proper planning and the help of qualified professionals, the home-buying experience can be a triumph, not an ordeal." (Life in America).
January 1, 2002... OWNING A HOME continues to be the American dream. While most people understand some or all of the benefits of home ownership, purchasing a home can be an overwhelming process for first-time buyers as well as those with experience. Indeed, it...

Snowboarding in style. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... * If you're planning on going snowboarding this winter, there are three S's to keep in mind--safety, style, and, of course, snow. The Burton Snowboard Company, Burlington, Vt., can't do anything about the latter, but sure can guarantee that,...

Leather bound. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... * Did you ever want something for what seems like your whole life and never really understand why? And did you ever unexplainably let the years roll by without quenching your long-held desire? Well, the wait is over. We finally own a leather...

Olympic odd lot. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Winter Olympics merchandise)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The Winter Olympics are about to overrun Utah in February, and already the hucksters are pushing tie-in merchandise to support the U.S. Ski Team. The sweaters and T-shirts make sense, but some of the other items trigger serious headscratching...

Plush pajamas. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... While government interference can be vexing, the end result can be (surprise!) a good thing. Three years ago, the Consumer Product Commission deemed that children's sleepwear had to change--either it had to be flame retardent or it had to be...

Side by side. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(dual control electric blanket)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... * Winter months often bring strife when it comes to weather conditions in the bedroom. Invariably, one member of a couple likes the window open; the other, closed. With coverings, it's often the same--thick down comforter vs. lightweight wool...

The butcher always rings twice. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food fFst).(mail order meat)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... It's not all that many years ago that a revolutionary idea emerged in the meat industry: Premium steaks could be sold by overnight express delivery. With dry ice or freezer packs to preserve the meat, the idea took off. This, in turn, sparked...

Creole cookin'. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... * For fantastic regional cooking, it is hard to beat the food of New Orleans and the surrounding Louisiana counties. Whether it's the cooking methods or the spices that go into the distinctive Creole and Cajun dishes that make it so distinctive...

The spice of life. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(wide range of spices)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Kitchen spice racks used to be simple things, with a few jars of items like paprika, caraway seed, garlic powder, and cinnamon for more-adventurous cooks moving away from the old standbys, salt and pepper. Nowadays, spice rules the kitchen, as...

Veggie burgers. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Okay, so you're not a carnivore. What are you going to have while everyone else is filling up on beef and chicken from the grill or out of the oven? You can sit around picking at the side dishes that accompany the meal, or latch on to the...

Fresh off the vine. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(pasta sauce)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Imagine a pasta sauce so fresh-tasting that you could pass it off as homemade. Imagine as well that, with this sauce, you could bring a fabulous meal to the table in 20 minutes or less. With the introduction of eight new jarred sauces from...

Striking oil. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(flavored oils)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... As people get more and more into healthful cooking, flavored oils are replacing old-fashioned shortening. The result is dishes that are lighter in fat content without the taste suffering. Sun Olive Oil, Templeton, Calif., uses cold-pressed,...

Oriental accents. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Asian sauces)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Somehow, when you think of Oriental food products, the name Myron Becker doesn't immediately leap to your mind. That's a pity, because the half-dozen products from Myron's Fine Foods, Orange, Mass., are all you could ask for when it comes to...

A bevy of beverages. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... In few areas do Americans' taste vary as widely as in drinks. Once they have reached the point where milk is not the only game in town, choices provide an almost unending assortment of beverages, each category having a wide selection within it....

Nose vs. Palate. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(onion, garlic products)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Many people are turned off by the aromas of garlic and onions, but few can deny how they enrich flavor. As complements to a vast variety of dishes, or even eaten alone, they do wonders for any meal. Accordingly, put us solidly in the palate...

One potato, two potato. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(potato chips)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The days when potato chips were merely potato chips is becoming a distant memory. Today's chips come in all sorts of shapes and flavors, limited only by the imagination of the manufacturers. Baked Potato Thins from William Poll, Inc., New...

Biblical tidbits. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(unleavened bread)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Of all the cookbooks around, the Bible would seem to be the most unlikely. Yet, Galilee Splendor Ltd., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is importing Bible Bread from Israel that purportedly "is baked according to the traditional recipe from the time of...

A donut not for dunking.(California's donut peaches)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Imagine your surprise when you reach for peaches in the produce section and find that they look like someone has sat upon them. After all, peaches are round, not flattish, aren't they? Well, they are unless they're donut peaches from Frieda's,...

Berry, berry good. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(blueberry products)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Who would ever guess from looking at the humble blueberries in the produce section that they are so versatile? We didn't until we ran across the products from MBG Marketing, Grand Junction, Mich., which proudly proclaims itself as The Blueberry...

I yam what I yam. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(sweet potato mixes)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Challenging the blueberry for versatility seemingly is the sweet potato. The chief evidence comes from the S&N Food Company, Mesquite, Tex., which puts out Aunt Shirley's sweet potato mixes. They come in five packages, designed, respectively,...

Frozen ecstacy. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(new ice cream flavors)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... If there's a single food that Americans most identify with, it's arguably ice cream, whether strolling with a cone, hunched over a heaping banana split at a soda fountain counter, or raiding the refrigerator in the middle of the night....

Sophisticated or childlike? (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(candy and chocolate products)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... When it comes to sweet tooths (sweet teeth?), the folks at Tom & Sally's Handmade Chocolates, Inc., Brattleboro, Vt., cater to a wide variety of tastes--and personalities. Sophisticated, serious chocolate lovers are well aware of the superior...

Sugar-free delights. (What's New? Winter Gear & Food Fest).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Valentine's Day looms but a few weeks away, meaning that wives, moms, and sweethearts can anticipate an outpouring of chocolates from their loved ones. What, though, do diabetics and, for that matter, those watching their weight have to look...

The Unfinished Bombing: Oklahoma City in American Memory. (Books).
January 1, 2002... THE UNFINISHED BOMBING: Oklahoma City in American Memory BY EDWARD T. LINENTHAL OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 2001, 325 PAGES, $30.00 Sept. 11, 2001, changed much in America, including what and how we read. Not long after commercial airliners...

Traveling Route 66. (Books).
January 1, 2002... TRAVELING ROUTE 66 BY DAVID FREETH UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA PRESS 2001, 408 PAGES, $14.95 (PAPERBACK) Remember the song? "If you ever plan to motor west/Travel my way, take the highway that's the best/ Get your kicks on Route 66!/It winds...

God and the terrorist attacks. (Parting Thoughts).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... IN THE AFTERMATH of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Americans flocked to their places of worship, much to the delight of the clergy, whose business had been on the downside. It always is when times are good,...