USA TODAY articles from September 2005

USA TODAY archives from September 2005

New translation of Osama rhetoric.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... Osama bin Laden became the international symbol of radical Islam on Sept. 11, 2001. Four years later, despite intense media scrutiny, his unique brand of violent, apocalyptic Islam remains baffling to many in the West. A new translation of bin...

Computer search engine thwarts terrorism.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... As part of an effort to anticipate--and thwart--the plans of potential terrorists, the Federal Aviation Administration is supporting the development of a new search engine by University at Buffalo (N.Y.) scientists that is designed to detect...

The new frontier of expanding vocabulary.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... You are reading an article, book, or newspaper and come across a word that you do not recognize. "It's something [that happens] all the time," says William Rapaport, associate professor of computer science at the University at Buffalo (N.Y.)....

As God part of "intelligent design"?(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... Eighty years after the famous Scopes "Monkey" Trial, the anti-evolution forces have regrouped. Today, the battle in school districts from Kansas to Pennsylvania is over the teaching of "intelligent design," the view that life is so complex it...

Technology's a blessing and curse to students.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... The amount of technology helping today's college students stay in touch with family and friends back home can be a blessing and a curse, cautions Glen Sparks, professor of communication at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "Twenty...

Those with ADHD need special approach.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... Teachers and parents need to learn new methods to help children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, declares a researcher from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "Fads and how-to lists are more prevalent than methods based...

Parents and states should run schools.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... In the study, "A Lesson in Waste: Where Does All the Federal Education Money Go?," Neal McCluskey of the Cato Institute, Washington, D.C., argues that giving the Federal government control over education dollars has produced no discernable...

Heatstroke alert for football players.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... Scorching temperatures across much of the nation have prompted a University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, injury specialist to issue an important warning to the nation's gridders. "Football practice [and games are underway] around the...

Training your kids in money management.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... Crippling consumer debt and bankruptcy now are common everyday occurrences in the U.S. That makes it all the more surprising that children do not get money management training in school. Until that changes, it is up to parents, advises the...

Taking charge of charging.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Mike Sullivan, director of education for Take Charge America, a national nonprofit consumer credit counseling company, says that parents should start early and talk with their children about the potential consequences of credit card debt. He...

Are college students financially prepared?(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... College campuses across the nation are hotspots for meeting new people, gaining a valuable education, and creating lifelong memories. While the college experience can be a positive one, many students who are unprepared to deal with financial...

Boating fatalities on the rise.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... The Coast Guard hopes that the latest accident statistics will convince individuals of the need to boat more safely. In a recent 12-month period, fatalities were up from 681 to 750, reversing a downward trend. Eighty-five percent of those who...

Public regards wildlife as pests.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... The public increasingly is becoming less tolerant of growing wildlife populations, asserts a nationwide survey of fish and wildlife agencies. As the number of species such as bear and deer continue to expand and contact with humans becomes more...

West Nile virus still on the move.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... More than 14,000 Americans have been diagnosed with West Nile virus since 1999 when it first was discovered in the Northeast. It now can be found coast to coast. Although the current fatality rate remains relatively low, the virus' ability to...

Downsizing on rise at computer companies.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... While telecommunications workers finally are seeing a reprieve from heavy job cutting, downsizing among computer firms is on the rise. Hewlett-Packard, for instance, plans to eliminate 14,500 positions over the next several quarters. ...

Faulty data skew bankruptcy laws.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... New bankruptcy legislation fails to account for hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs, independent contractors, and self-employed individuals who traditionally have turned to bankruptcy relief as an important safety net in their effort to...

West and southeast gain in appeal.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... The last year saw many people packing up and heading west and southeast, while Northern states, including New York and the Great Lakes area, experienced an increase in residents leaving, as measured by the business trends of United Van Lines,...

Nutrition labels dampen competition.(YOUR LIFE)
September 1, 2005... Although aimed at leveling the playing field for consumers, standardized nutrition labels actually may dampen market competition by helping large food manufacturers gain an even sharper edge over their smaller rivals, according to a study by...

Garage and yard sales move to Internet.(YOUR LIFE)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... While the average garage or yard sale is a great idea for earning extra money at any time, the critical decluttering phase of the moving process makes getting rid of unwanted items a necessity. The Internet can simplify this undertaking with...

The U.S. must step up--now!(National Affairs)
September 1, 2005... HISTORIAN Arnold Toynbee wrote that the common characteristic of the world's great civilizations has been the creative response to extraordinary challenge. He contended that civilizations "break down and go to pieces if and when a challenge...

Embracing today's global economy.(Economics)
September 1, 2005... CENTURIES AGO, a group of Peruvian Indians were looking out from the ocean shoreline. Something appeared far away that they did not recognize. Seeing the sails of Spanish invaders on the horizon, they talked about it and, lacking a better...

Terror's painful legalities.(STATE OF THE NATION)
September 1, 2005... THE WAR ON TERROR has forced Americans to examine a painful legal issue. When do the imperatives of national security and war fighting require a restriction on constitutional liberties and an alteration of due process? We have to get out a...

Making democracy work: in this age of apathy, archaic voting laws, and widespread disenfrachisement, can our Republic ever function as envisioned 225 years ago by the Founding Fathers?(American Thought)
September 1, 2005... IN A DEMOCRACY, history is the people's responsibility. In order for that responsibility to be exercised properly, the electorate must know the issues and understand how the system works. Moreover, citizens have be able to work together to be...

Seeking an involved and informed citizenry.(American Thought)
September 1, 2005... THE IDEA OF HAVING an informed citizenry making decisions in a democracy is somewhat new. In the early 17th century in England, for example, there was little interest in such a concept. The issue then was obedience to the king. Very few people...

Unmasking terrorist identity fraud.(The World Today)
September 1, 2005... PRIOR TO SEPT. 11, governments and businesses were sensitive to identity imposters, but they viewed the problem primarily as a financial matter--that is, as a significant component of fraud. Called identity theft, statistics were gathered about...

End of the American Century.(WORLD WATCHER)
September 1, 2005... THE RECENT APPOINTMENT of John Bolton as UN Ambassador only confirmed what already was apparent; the president of the U.S. no longer is the leader of the free world. That role now is being passed on to others. The U.S. has created the most...

Prison violence on the rise.(Law & Justice)
September 1, 2005... ON AUG. 23, 2003, a 37-year-old prisoner strangled fellow inmate and former priest John Geoghan to death. Since the correction system was unable to protect this high-profile inmate, people began to wonder how many others were being failed...

How speaking engagements can capture more business for consultants.(Business & Finance)
September 1, 2005... FOR YEARS, EXPERTS in consulting firms large and small have given speeches at industry conferences to get visibility, credibility, and leads for assignments. Thanks to good presentation skills and fancy PowerPoint slides, many earn applause and...

When you wish upon a star: Walt Disney's dream of a theme park in which guests could immerse themselves in fairy tales is celebrating its golden anniversary.(Going Places)(Cover Story)
September 1, 2005... "TO ALL THOSE who come to this happy place: Welcome," announced Walt Disney on July 17, 1955, as he greeted more than 28,000 guests and visitors at the opening of his new adventure park, Disneyland. That day was a dream come true for the...

The Art of The New Yorker: the 80-year-old magazine "is the only remaining wide-circulation publication that still relies on freestanding illustrated covers.".(Museums Today)
September 1, 2005... YOU MAY NOT be able to judge a book by its cover, but the reverse is true for a magazine. A magazine's over broadcasts its personality and the rest of the issue backs it up. A fascinating new exhibition, "The Art of The New Yorker: Eighty Years...

Art:21: another PBS Masterpiece: sixteen artists reveal their personal visions, inspiration, and technique in public television's only series dedicated exclusively to contemporary art and the people who create it.(Mass Media)(Television Program Review)
September 1, 2005... EVERY DAY, contemporary artists ponder questions about life, society, philosophy, psychology, race, science, technology, memory, history, and the nature of art itself. Through an astonishing range of approaches, techniques, and materials, they...

Death and laughter.(REEL WORLD)(Movie Review)
September 1, 2005... THE INITIAL STAGE PRODUCTION of Joseph Kesselring's black comedy "Arsenic and Old Lace" started its pre-Broadway run to the Great White Way 65 years ago. Eventually opening in January of 1941, the mega-hit would run until June, 1944. Today's...

They don't make war films like they used to.(Mass Media)
September 1, 2005... YOU KNOW WHAT military recruiters are--the men and women who go to high schools and colleges and tell young people about their opportunities to serve their country in the military. Well, now there also are counter-recruiters who go to these...

Cut the wisecracking.(WORDS IMAGES)(berating celebraties)
September 1, 2005... IT IS NOTHING NEW, but it still is mean and unfair--the gratuitous reference to a person who has nothing to do with the story or the disparaging aside to the audience about the person in the story. These practices are part and parcel of the...

Forget the babe, baseball's best is named Tyrus Raymond Cobb.(Athletic Arena)(Biography)
September 1, 2005... Although his lifetime average of .367 and 12 batting titles have never even been approached, his pervasive image is that "of a brutal, bigoted, friendless, haunted creature, a free-swinging, bourbon-guzzling ogre who presumably tortured small...

Schooled on the Series.(SPORTS SCENE)
September 1, 2005... "THE 100-DAY PROJECT," celebrating the first 100 days of class, is an annual kindergarten assignment at the elementary school that our children attend. It involves creating a craft or poster adorned with 100 items of the student's choosing. Of...

Whistle while you work.(Entertainment)
September 1, 2005... THE HUMAN BODY could be called the original folk instrument. Think about it: Why would anybody take a stick and drill holes to fashion a flute if somebody had not first noticed that when air is blown through a small round aperture, which some...

Reforming Medicaid.(ECONOMIC OBSERVER)
September 1, 2005... MEDICAID IS THE LARGEST single expenditure state governments face today. The country as a whole spends more on Medicaid than on primary and secondary education. We also spend more on Medicaid (for the poor) than on Medicare (for the...

Women ascend the pulpit.(Religion)
September 1, 2005... MANY PEOPLE are taken aback by the concept of women theologians. They assume this is a recent development and that females teaching the subject are few and live an embattled life in their respective schools. In fact, women have been doing...

Wanted secular miracle worker.(Life in America)
September 1, 2005... THE COUNTRY THAT became a world power with Horatio Alger in its collective book bag has evolved into a nation seeking secular miracle workers. While laughing at the implicit (and occasionally explicit) lures in advertisements, the general...

Wild fish catch hits limit.(EYE ON ECOLOGY)
September 1, 2005... AFTER DECADES OF GROWTH, the reported global wild fish catch peaked in 2000 at 96,000,000 tons, then fell to 90,000,000 tons by 2003, the last year for which worldwide data are available. The catch per person dropped from an average of 17...

It's off the races: "faster: the pomona drags" examines a remarkable head-on confrontation between two technologies that have shaped the Southern California psyche--cars and cameras.(Focus on America)(Faster: The Pomona Drags, 1960s Photographs of Pomona Drag Racing)(Critical Essay)
September 1, 2005... DRAG RACING is the ultimate expression of Southern California's cult of speed. Like Hollywood's camera culture, it is a home-grown phenomenon. The 7.000-horsepower engine of a top-fuel dragster today burns through volatile nitromethane at...

A play yard that lasts for years.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... Since babies are little for such a short time, it's wonderful to find a product that grows with them and can be used for a number of years. The Aquarium Play Yard ($99.99) from FisherPrice, East Aurora, N.Y., fits that bill. First, it can...

Walking my baby back home.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... There are times when it is difficult to transport an infant in a stroller. We've all been in crowded department stores where carriages simply cannot be maneuvered through jam-packed aisles. In buildings without elevators, even one flight of...

The indispensible changing table.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... When it comes to decorating a nursery, there are a few pieces of furniture we simply can't live without. One is a changing table. We've never understood people who drag their diapers and wipes all around the house and change the baby wherever...

Nothing beats a snug ride.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... When preparing for the arrival of a new baby, one thing you cannot be without is a car seat. Around here, they won't even let you out of the hospital without one. The most convenient way to transport a newborn is with an Infant Car...

Now here's a neat! diaper disposal system.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... There's nothing that compares to the smell of a freshly-bathed baby. The sweet scents of their shampoo, body wash, and lotions remind us of their newness and innocence. Their diapers, on the other hand, are another story. Parents forever are...

Giving kids a needed boost.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... It has been proven that the proper use of a car seat can lower a child's risk of injury or death in most crashes. The problem is that when children outgrow their car seats, they often are too small to fit properly in automobile seat belts...

Strolling through tight spaces.(WHAT'S NEW? Bringing Up Baby)(City Series Stroller from The Baby Jogger Co.)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... If you ask parents who always are on-the-go--especially those who live in metropolitan areas--what they are looking for in a stroller, they will cite two things: it must be easy to maneuver through tight spaces and collapse and fold instantly....

Gearing up for football fever.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... With fall on the horizon, football fever is in season again. For us paunchy, middle-aged fans, that means endless hours in front of the television, yelling at the screen as our favorites fail to spot the open receiver or read an oncoming blitz....

Feeding is for the birds.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... Any bird and any homeowner will enjoy and appreciate the functionality and decorative flair offered in the novel collection of Havahart Ice Tube Bird Feeders from Woodstream Corporation, Lititz, Pa. All four units have a uniquely stylish tube...

Clean indoor air--for real.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 1, 2005... Each year, Americans spend billions of dollars to make their homes smell fresh and clean. The problem is that most of these air freshener products simply mask odors without removing them from the air. To really improve indoor air quality, try...

Museum Memo.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
September 1, 2005... What's new in museums around the country? Among the more interesting exhibitions on view are: Matisse: The Fabric of Dream, His Art and His Textiles, through Sept. 25, and Vincent van Gogh: The Drawings, Oct. 18-Dec. 31, both at The...

Serve it up with Seal-a-Meal.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... The way the price of food is sky-rocketing these days, some of the most-appreciated products on the market are those that keep food fresher longer. The Holmes Group, Milford, Mass., has introduced a pair of vacuum food sealers with some welcome...

Let's go golfing GOLO style.(WHAT'S NEW?)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... While baseball and football long ago made the successful conversion from playing field to table-top board game, one wouldn't think the same possible of golf. Well, then, one would be wrong. Just ask Pat Shea, PGA member and president of Front9,...

Franklin on Franklin.(Book Review)
September 1, 2005... FRANKLIN ON FRANKLIN EDITED BY PAUL M. ZALL UNIVERSITY PRESS OF KENTUCKY 2005, 318 PAGES, $18.00 His round face and balding pate adorn the $100 bill. He was the inventor of the lightning rod, and a petitioner for the turkey, instead of the...

A Wal-Mart joy ride.(PARTING THOUGHTS)
September 1, 2005... AS ONE ENTERS THE SUPER Wal-Mart stores, an array of shopping carts can be seen, many full of kids either sitting down or standing up precariously. A few even can be found under the basket by the wheels, seeing what the world looks like from...