USA TODAY articles from May 2005

USA TODAY archives from May 2005

La Nina foretells warm, dry summer.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A weak and waning El Nino, such as the one currently lingering around the international date line in the Pacific Ocean, usually means a coolerthan-normal summer for large parts of the Midwest and South. However, an atmospheric scientist at the...

Getting a handle on West Nile virus.(YOUR LIFE)
May 1, 2005... "We expect to see steady to declining numbers of clinical West Nile virus cases this summer," states Gayle Johnson, associate professor of veterinary pathobiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia....

Dogs barking in the garden.(YOUR LIFE)(foot care)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Approximately 5,000,000 gardeners are expected to experience some sort of foot pain this season as a result of overlooking the necessity to first warm-up and stretch key muscles. "Gardening is an exertive weight-bearing activity and should be...

Athletic trainers denounce steroids.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... As the principal point of contact for drug testing programs in high school, college, and professional sports, certified athletic trainers often see the first signs of chemical use among athletes. Concerned with the issue of anabolic steroids...

Is "masculinity" behind school shootings?(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In the wake of the tragic school shootings by Minnesota teenager Jeff Weise, academics and antiviolence experts have offered explanations that include family problems; poverty; Goth music and culture; violence in the media and computer games...

Americans continue to fatten up.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Ninety percent of dieters who lose weight regain all or part of it within five years. Obviously, fad and crash diets are not the answer to slimming down permanently. The intrinsic nature of our nation's dieting habits is that we all are...

Graduates should consolidate loans now.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Graduated or soon-to-graduate college students with sizable education loans may want to consider consolidating them by July 1, suggests the Financial Planning Association, Denver. The incentive to consolidate by that date stems from several...

Second home purchases booming.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... It's official. Second homes are selling like the proverbial hotcakes. According to a report by the National Association of Realtors, 23% of all homes purchased in 2004 were bought as investments. Another 13% were vacation homes. There was a...

Retirement accounts' new safety net.(YOUR LIFE)(federal regulations regarding defined contribution retirement plans)
May 1, 2005... Younger workers who frequently change jobs often undermine their own efforts to build retirement nest eggs by cashing out their qualified retirement account every time they switch employers. New Federal regulations may help them resist their...

Social security: hinders growth of families.
May 1, 2005... Policymakers and citizens pondering the merits of Social Security reform should consider new evidence showing that it adversely affects decisions to marry and have children. A University at Buffalo (N.Y.) study, examining the experience of 57...

Corporate scandals hurt job recruiting.
May 1, 2005... The almost daily reports of new corporate scandals could exact a significant toll on recruiting efforts, as mistrustful job seekers--recent college graduates in particular--avoid tainted, as well as innocent employers. The biggest area that...

Put an end to Social Security.
May 1, 2005... Social Security commonly is portrayed as benefiting most, if not all, Americans by providing them "risk-free" financial security in old age. This is a fraud, charges the Ayn Rand Institute, Irvine, Calif. Under Social Security, lower-and...

Saving Social Security.(National Affairs)
May 1, 2005... "This is a defining debate for today's leaders. Doing nothing is irresponsible and cowardly. It is in every American's interest to deal with this challenge." SOCIAL SECURITY has been one of the most important and successful government...

Labor's entitlement state.(STATE OF THE NATION)
May 1, 2005... AT THE ANNUAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL meeting in Las Vegas, AFL-CIO Pres. John Sweeney won a major battle within the ranks of labor. He faced down a challenge from the Teamsters Union and the Service Employees International Union to devote a...

A daunting triple alliance: will the Federal government ever display enough courage--or know-how--to contain the triple-headed beast of Social Security, Medicare, and Income Tax reform?(Economics)(Column)
May 1, 2005... NOW THAT THE ELECTION campaigns are well behind us, we can look at the economy in a more dispassionate way. In that light, 2004, as widely anticipated, registered the strongest economic performance in quite a while. The combination of tour...

Stocks soaring for senators: are members of congress enjoying the benefits of insider trading at the expense of taxpayers?(Economics)
May 1, 2005... "SENATORS' STOCKS beat the market by 12%" blared a headline in the Financial Times. So what? Isn't beating the market what everyone tries to do? That is the main reason most people read the Financial Times in the first place. We hire...

The IRS tackles excessive executive compensation.(Law & Justice)(United States Internal Revenue Service)
May 1, 2005... "... Where there is smoke, there is fire, and many companies are not in complete compliance while others are underreporting. " OVER THE PAST few years, there has not been a headline, outside of the war in Iraq, that has received as much...

NCLB and the lessons of Columbine.(Education)
May 1, 2005... "The development of a free, informed, productive, and engaged future citizenry depends on our ability to develop healthy children first. It is time to broaden [the No Child Left Behind Act's] narrow school reform lens. " IN THE MOUNTING...

Sports journalists' Jihad.(WORDS & IMAGES)(in defense of baseball players Pete Rose and Barry Bonds)(Column)
May 1, 2005... HAIL TO THE BURGEONING sports journalism community--a sundry group of columnists, reporters, writers, talkshow hosts, analysts, commentators, gossips, and experts on every aspect of athletics. In reality, they are little more than pig-headed...

Public speaking: the secret weapon in career development.(Business & Finance)
May 1, 2005... "Professionals who speak for notoriety find it easy to come across opportunities that carry their careers forward. They see speaking not as a source of discomfort but as a focal point to build their networks and personal reputation. " ...

Why newborns cause acrimony and alimony.(Life in America)(Cover Story)
May 1, 2005... BABIES ENTER a couple's life through birth, adoption, or remarriage, creating new relationships, responsibilities, and joys. Whether a surprise, planned, or long sought, most babies are preceded with increased excitement, careful preparations,...

No stopping the sands of time.(Life in America)(changes involved in aging)
May 1, 2005... WITH 76,100,000 AMERICANS born fight after World War II, a groundswell of baby boomers are in midlife transitional stages. A critical transition that affects all aspects of our lives is the aging and death of our parents. For one, it implies...

Ice melt alert.(EYE ON ECOLOGY)(glaciers and sea ice respond to global warming)
May 1, 2005... BY 2020, THE SNOWS OF MT. KILIMANJARO may exist only in old photographs. The glaciers in Montana's Glacier National Park could disappear by 2030. Come mid century, the Arctic Sea may be completely ice-free during summertime. As the Earth's...

Salvador Dali: the grand master of surrealism.(Museums Today)(retrospective exhibition on the artist at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
May 1, 2005... SALVADOR DALI (1904-89), among the most influential artists of the 20th century, is the subject of the first comprehensive retrospective exhibition to be organized since the artist's death and the first to be seen in the U.S. in more than 60...

Laid-back luxury in Vermont: the Woodstock Inn & Resort provides guests with first-class pampering in a beautiful country setting.(Going Places)
May 1, 2005... CHILDHOOD habits die hard. When I was a kid, lo those many years ago, we went on one family vacation a year, for which our parents scrimped and saved for 12 long months just so we all could enjoy a week away together. Back then, you didn't...

The war that started a revolution.(USA Yesterday)(exhibition at the Heinz History Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, explores the Seven Years War)
May 1, 2005... AS LITTLE AS TWO decades before the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the idea that the American colonies would unite and revolt would have been called preposterous. Ties were strong between Great Britain and its colonies. Trade...

Foreign policy as economic drag.(ECONOMIC OBSERVER)(anti-American sentiment leads to poor sales abroad for U.S. companies)(Column)
May 1, 2005... AT AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE of parliamentarians in Strasbourg, France, with delegations from some 81 countries, and subsequently at the European Parliament in Brussels, I was invited to talk about population, food, water, climate change, and...

Memories of a World at War.(The World Yesterday)(exhibition of World War II photographs from Associated Press )
May 1, 2005... "You had the same fears as the GIs, but you had to think about the picture. My camera was my shield, and I didn't even think about the idea that a bullet might hit me." On May 10, 1945, Pfc. Paul Ison from the Sixth Marine Division charges...

John Paul II: beyond his time.(WORLD WATCHER)
May 1, 2005... HE WAS A GREAT MAN in a Cold War fought by hard-nosed men. At a critical time in human history, when physical, psychological, and ideological conflict were rending human society, John Paul II stepped forward to put his credibility--and...

Move the UN to Jerusalem.(Worldview)
May 1, 2005... "Situated in New York, [the United Nations] resides in the heart of the West, detached on a day-to-day basis from the troubles of the real world." EVEN ITS MOST ardent defenders agree that the United Nations needs to be fixed, as it faces...

Enlightened self-interest propels a free society.(American Thought)
May 1, 2005... "... Americans are becoming increasingly dependent when it comes to making the decisions that most affect their [well-being].... We must find a way to return to our citizens more control over their lives." In THINKING ABOUT what kind of...

Super-size-it suicide.(Medicine & Health)
May 1, 2005... "Nearly two out of three Americans are overweight or obese, a 50% increase from just a decade ago.... More than 400,000 Americans will die this year from causes related to obesity, which is poised to overtake smoking as the leading cause of...

When plastic surgeons say no.(PSYCHOLOGY)
May 1, 2005... "Cosmetic surgery can be a powerful tool, but it cannot change who you are. It can supplement, not substitute." IN THE LAST DECADE, the number of patients undergoing cosmetic plastic surgery has increased a staggering 393%, reports the...

James Dean: 50 years after his death.(Entertainment)
May 1, 2005... The actor "was not the aimless angst-ridden youth he played in the movies.... He was not that suffering, rudderless figure in real life. " IN MANY WAYS, JAMES DEAN is the star who never died. Fifty years after his speeding sports car...

Baseball's comic all-star.(REEL WORLD)(the significance of baseball in the life of comedian and movie actor Joe E. Brown)(Biography)
May 1, 2005... COMEDIAN JOE E. BROWN (1892-1973), the oversexed millionaire who falls for Jack Lemmon's in-drag character from Billy Wilder's "Some Like It Hot" (1959), was a huge baseball fan. Not only was he a fine player, he enjoyed and excelled at the...

Spring yard work: bring it on.(WHAT'S NEW?)(gardening tools from Black & Decker)
May 1, 2005... What we hate about spring is all the yard work that needs to be done. What we love about spring is doing that yard work with a new set of Black & Decker tools--each year the Towson, Md., company always seems to come up with a series of...

Face time fit chart for sunglasses.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... It used to be we'd look for the cheapest pair of sunglasses on the rack. If they fit and looked halfway decent, we'd buy them. Today, though, eyewear has gone high fashion. For example, did you know that frames should never cover more than...

Messenger in a garden.(WHAT'S NEW?)(protein based product is the basis of Messenger)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... When flowers won't bloom, trees don't bear fruit, and grass refuses to grow green, the problem usually can be traced to the plant's immune system. Messenger from Eden Bioscience Corp., Bothell, Wash., can change all that. Messenger, by the way,...

Sweet prince of the court.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... It launched the original oversized tennis racquet in the 1970s, constant taper system in the 1980s, and the Iongbody in the 1990s. In the new century, Prince Sports, Inc., Bordentown, N.J., is at it again with [O.sup.3]. By increasing the...

Scribbling up an appetite.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... It's de rigueur at family restaurants these days. At every seating is a coloring activity sheet and crayons to keep the kids quiet--at least until the food arrives. Well, now you can keep the peace at home as well with Scribble*mats!,...

Get off the road to nowhere.(WHAT'S NEW?)(slicker line can be reused)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... We can't even begin to tell you how many maps we've been forced to toss away over the years--and not because they became outdated, ripped, worn out, or even drowned in coffee and soda. No, the trouble was that they became illegible, what with...

Don't wrestle with the restless.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... As long as we're on the road--and now know where we're going--it makes sense to keep the younger set occupied. Again, American Map is the answer. With its new line of 8" x 11" Kids Activity Books. Kids' On-the-Go U.S. Word Search has puzzles of...

Pre-schoolers finally share the wealth.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... For years, Magna-Tiles have been the exclusive province of some 7,000 preschools nationwide. No longer. Valtech Co., LaGrange, III., finally has relented and released these colorful building toys into the consumer market. We love it! ...

Monday's for washing, Tuesday's for ironing.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Now here's an idea... a space saving product for those areas where space is at a premium--the laundry room. The Mobile Laundry Center from Better Lifestyle Products, Kansas City, Kan., is an ironing board, hamper, and basket on wheels all in...

Luggage for those on the move.(WHAT'S NEW?)(luggage from EZ-Swaney)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Nothing puts a damper on travel quicker than having to lug around cumbersome luggage wherever your wanderlust may take you. Problem completely solved, say the folks at EZ-Swany, Swany America Corporation, Johnstown, N.Y. All its luggage...

The backpack grows up.(WHAT'S NEW?)(the Torque, a courier bag from Osprey Packs Inc.)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
May 1, 2005... We've always harbored a secret desire to be an economist. After all, what other job would allow us to use neat phrases like "the tenuous balance between stocks and flows" or "the invisible hand of the marketplace"? The point is, you've got to...

Better hang on to the cruiser.(WHAT'S NEW?)(the Dirt Devil Cruiser from Royal Appliance Manufacturing Co.)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
May 1, 2005... If a man doesn't own a rider mower, then he surely has a self-propelled number that zooms around the yard cutting the grass in chip-chop fashion. But what about inside? Shouldn't a vacuum power itself, picking up debris as it whisks around the...

Not a Jedi in sight but still strong with the force.(VIDEO GAME)(Star Wars Republic Commando)(Product/Service Evaluation)
May 1, 2005... It seems the market has been overrun recently by an invasion of first person shooter/squad video games. What happens to us after assuming such roles--street thug, spy, medieval knight, police officer, assassin, soldier, ninja, etc.--is that the...

Museum memo.(exhibitions)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
May 1, 2005... What's new in museums around the country? Among the more interesting exhibitions on view are: Wild Things: The Art of Maurice Sendak, The Jewish Museum, New York, through Aug, 14. Sleep in Beauty: Bed Coverings from Around the World,...

Skywriting: A Life Out of the Blue.(Book Review)
May 1, 2005... BY JANE PAULEY RANDOM HOUSE 2004, 264 PAGES, $25.95 The first woman to co-anchor a Chicago weeknight newscast, Jane Pauley was only 24 when she joined NBC's WMAQ-TV in 1974. In 1976, she began a 13-year tenure with NBC's "Today" show and,...

Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism.(Book Review)
May 1, 2005... BY BOB EDWARDS JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC. 2004, 166 PAGES, $19.95 In writing this book, Bob Edwards has contributed the most recent edition to the "Turning Points" series, in which "preeminent writers" offer fresh, personal perspectives about...

The Genius of Language: Fifteen Writers Reflect on Their Mother Tongues.(Book Review)
May 1, 2005... EDITED BY WENDY LESSER PANTHEON 2004, 241 PAGES, $23 When Ha Jin received the 1999 National Book Award for Waiting, a novel he wrote in English barely a dozen years after leaving China, his accomplishment was akin to that of a pianist...

Supermarket shockers.(PARTING THOUGHTS)(Column)
May 1, 2005... THERE CAN BE NO DOUBT that women are incredibly sophisticated shoppers. This is especially so at the grocery store or supermarket. While preferring to go alone, sometimes it is necessary to take a husband along as a beast of burden to carry the...