Tech. Entertainment Agri. Abstinence-only sex education courses ineffective: study New York (PTI): Abstinence-only sex education courses are ineffective in curbing adolescent sexual risk-taking but comprehensive programs do work, especially in reducing teen pregnancy, a new study, published on Thursday, says. The study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, concludes that teaching about contraception doesn't increase sexual activity or sexually transmitted diseases among teenagers.

Teaching abstinence-only failed to reduce teen pregnancy or to delay sexual initiation, the study says. University of Washington researchers led by Pamela K Kohler examined teens' responses to a 2002 federal study, the National Survey of Family Growth. The researchers found that teenagers receiving comprehensive sex education, including information about contraceptives, reported about half as many pregnancies as teens, who had received abstinence-only or no sex education.

It is not harmful to teach teens about birth control in addition to abstinence," Kohler said. Sci.

Important keywords of article: , sex, or, federal, kohler, increase, failed, new, but, agri

Kirk Park Lodge in Grand Haven Township. Naturalist Karin Nelis will lead the two-hour hike. There will be climbing on the dunes. There is no charge. Registration is not required. Bird watching: Meet at DeGraaf Nature Center, 600 Graafschap Rd., Cost is $2 per person.

Program on Lake Sturgeon: The Michigan Sea Grant Extension will host a meeting title "Lake Sturgeon Restoration in West Michigan" from 1 to 5 p.m. Doubletree Hotel, 650 E. 24th St. The agenda features presentations by Sturgeon for Tomorrow President Brenda Archambo, Michigan Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Biologist Kregg Smith, and Little River Band of Ottawa Indians Inland Fisheries Biologist Marty Holtgren.

A panel discussion featuring groups involved in sturgeon research and restoration in West Michigan will follow formal presentations. There is no cost if you register in advance. Registration at the door is $7.

April 5 Live animal presentation: Jim McGrath will be back with live specimens of most of Michigan's native amphibians from 1 to 5 p.m. DeGraaf Nature Center, 600 Graafschap Rd. Each presentation will focus on different species. The programs are appropriate for school age children to adults.

Spring cleanup: Volunteer to spruce up trails and gardens at DeGraaf Nature Center, 600 Graafschap Road. A pancake lunch will be provided. April 23 Hunter safety class: The North Ottawa Rod & Gun Club is holding the first of two hunter safety classes April 23, 24, 26 and 27 at its facility at 13084 160th Avenue in Grand Haven Township. There is no charge to participate, but donations will be accepted. TOP JOBS Loading.. Advertisement TOP AUTOS Loading..

TOP ADS Loading.. TOP HOMES Loading.. TOP FSBO Loading..

Important keywords of article: , to, panel, pancake, th, meeting, hike, doubletree, degraaf, holtgren

Just like William Safire or Robert Novak, I do this by taking on controversial topics including abortion, the role of religion in politics and cat poop.

I didn't realize the last one was contentious until a few weeks ago, when I wrote a column suggesting, in a deliberately cautious tone so as not to offend anybody, that cat owners are idiots. The cat people were not happy about this.

They mainly aired their grievances on The Daily Illini's comment boards ("I think I'll keep the cat and get rid of you" was a typical response), but there was even a letter to the editor published the following Monday pointing out that my column included a logical fallacy. This upset me because, in the process of writing a serious and dignified piece about cat poop, I'd never intended to dishonor the legacies of Plato and Aristotle.

But my favorite response, in the sense that it was the only one that did not refer to me as a "scum-sucking scumwad," was an e-mail from concerned reader Jessica Kubo. Jessica, a senior in Engineering, took issue with my complaint that cat-owning friends of mine have a smelly apartment. I know a family with young kids whose house smells like diapers," she wrote.

Should they get rid of their baby? I've come to the conclusion after reading this column that if cat owners are psycho, so are baby owners." My initial reaction, as I'm sure it was for many of you, was to wonder if Jessica Kubo was available. My second thought was that she might be onto something.

Cats, unlike babies, don't make their owners pay for four years of a state college for a degree in a made-up field like Rhetoric, Cultural Studies or Engineering. Cats also don't move back in with you after realizing the best job openings in the political science field involve working a deep fryer.

Jessica also felt slighted by what I wrote about Cat Genie, a product that eliminates your feline's various emissions without you having to touch anything. I would like to point out a similar product, also on Amazon, called the Diaper Genie," Jessica wrote. Like the Cat Genie, this product (which is intended for the disposal of dirty diapers) appears to have its share of problems; reviews on Amazon describe it as 'smelly' and easily broken."

Continued.. Google The Daily Illini encourages on-topic discussion through article commenting on its articles and blogs. It is our policy not to delete any comments based upon political or ideological point of view. However, we reserve the right to remove comments that are abusive, off-topic or use excessive foul language.

The posting of copyrighted material, including any and all content for which you are not the author, is illegal under Federal intellectual property laws. Such activity will not be tolerated.

Comments containing copyrighted material will be removed, and continued violation of copyright law is grounds for being banned completely from commenting on DailyIllini.com. If you feel any post meets these conditions or merits review, please e-mail our editors at meonline dailyillini.com. Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1 La belle expat posted 3 27 08 3:44 AM CST "Spins it into gold." Classic.

And props for the French! Men's wheelchair team wins championship 3 15 2008 View a slideshow. Wisconsin ends hopes for NCAA bid 3 16 2008 View a slideshow. Illini advance to championship 3 15 2008 View a slideshow. Illini upset Purdue 3 14 2008 View a slideshow. Illini win first game in Big 10 Tourney 3 13 2008 View a slideshow.

All in the Hicks Family 3 13 2008 View an interactive audio presentation. Polar plunge 3 8 2008 View a slideshow. Illini end with a win at home 3 8 2008 View a slideshow. Weekend in photos 3 9 2008 View a slideshow. Senior Day ends in loss 3 8 2008 View a slideshow. Tennis sweeps match 3 8 2008 View a slideshow. Illini fall after fast start, again 3 6 2008 View a slideshow. The week in world photos 3 3 2008 View a slideshow. An Unofficial recap in photos 2 29 2008 View a slideshow.

Important keywords of article: , view, slideshow, as, poop, wrote, in, if, our, win

Microsoft executives aren"t sure yet whether they"ll find worthwhile opportunities to sell iPhone software - but they seem eager to find out," Jon Fortt blogs for Fortune. Fortt reports, "'It"s really important for us to understand what we can bring to the iPhone,' Tom Gibbons, corporate vice president of Microsoft"s Specialized Devices and Applications Group, told Fortune on Monday.

To the extent that Mac Office customers have functionality that they need in that environment, we"re actually in the process of trying to understand that now.'

The Mac unit"s work certainly isn"t charity - it delivers millions of dollars in profit for the company with its Mac version of the Office productivity suite," Fortt repots. We'll save them the effort: It's because Microsoft wanted to force businesses to keep buying PCs instead of Macs; not on their own merits (because they lose badly), but by creating artificial lock-in. It's the Microsoft way.

And it worked - until Steve Jobs executed an end-around with Intel-powered Macs that could slum it with Windows when necessary. So, same as with our Macs, we'll install intentionally-hobbled Microsoft bloatware on our iPhones as soon as infinity rolls around, thanks. Advertisements: • Introducing MacBook Air. The world's thinnest notebook.

Apple TV! Now with movie rentals. Free shipping. Apple's New iMac: 20, 24-inch widescreen with 64-bit Intel Core 2 Duo. Starting at just $1199. Apple's revolutionary iPhone - 8GB and 16GB models. The New, Faster MacBook Pro. Vroom with a view. LED backlit and high-res displays. The updated, super-fast, do-everything-out-of-the-box MacBook. Starting at just $1099. Pod touch.

A microsoft product for the iPhone is guaranteed to break UI conventions, slow down the entire phone, and may very well introduce macro viruses to the iPhone (like they did with Office for the Mac in the 90's). The virus thing might even happen intentionally. I'm sure Microsoft engineers have been looking into that for over a year, now. Mar 25, 08 - 09:40 am Comment from: Gil I don't think 32GB would be enough.. Mar 25, 08 - 09:47 am Comment from: hardmanb There are those who accuse Microsoft of copying Apple's ideas and features in their operating systems.

It makes you wonder if they are looking at Mac OS Mobile with a view to their continuing development of Windows Mobile 7, due out in 2009. Mar 25, 08 - 09:48 am Comment from: mas "what we can bring to the iPhone" Don't they mean "copy"? Mar 25, 08 - 09:49 am Comment from: Woody Ugh. Ew.. Sorry, had to go throw up at the thought of MS-written software on my iPhone. Mar 25, 08 - 09:50 am Comment from: Blue Dream Never underestimate the power of Micro$oft to write bad and unintuitive software, even while using Apple's own SDK and Apple's hardware.

Mar 25, 08 - 09:50 am Comment from: Charles-Augustin de Coulomb "Microsoft probes Apple"s iPhone for profit opportunities" Without the courtesy of lubrication, no doubt.

Mar 25, 08 - 09:51 am Comment from: Jay-Z As much as I don't want it on MY iPhone - enterprise users will want as many Office capabilities as possible on their iPhones. And Apple obviously cares about iPhone in the enterprise. The only reason Microsoft wouldn't develop iPhone apps is if they want to cut the iPhone off at the knees.

This will just leave the opportunity for someone else to develop software that edits Office docs on the iPhone. Mar 25, 08 - 09:59 am Comment from: Synthmeister Thank God, Apple will vet all software through the App store! And if MS does manage to come up with something decent, Apple will receive a 30% cut! Apple wins both ways. Keep the crap out and make money off anything good.

In any event, it won't have anything to do with WinCe. Who knows, maybe they'll come out with a great version of Solitaire or something. Mar 25, 08 - 10:04 am Comment from: Not on My Phone, Not on My Computer I run my own business and I do it without one single Micros t product of any kind. I decided to put my money where my mouth was and remove all traces of Micros t from my life. My website has a notice on the back page. It reads, "Micros t free company.

No Micros t product was used in the production of this site." It can be done. I recommend everyone at least try. You are a Mac user and you use Micros t? Cut the cord. Mar 25, 08 - 10:20 am Comment from: LiM Would love to cut the chord, but Pages choked when I threw it a biig text file, and Numbers choked when I threw it a biig spreadsheet. I have to get my work done.. Had high hopes for Pixelmator too, until I threw it a biig scan.. Maybe in a few years..

I can leave them "behind" - MW. Mar 25, 08 - 10:25 am Comment from: megame embrace and extinguish don't trust microsoft one bit. Mar 25, 08 - 10:26 am Comment from: Macaday I'm fine with it - provided that the iPhone Applications Store has health warnings attached to all MS software. Mar 25, 08 - 10:36 am Comment from: Buster Its great that Microsoft, with its resources, will develop software for the iPhone.

MS has name brand recognition and people will flock to buy the numerous different apps that MS can quickly produce in response to consumer wishes..

Important keywords of article: , have, it, of, wrote, in, micros, just, bought, think

Answerology's schtick is that it allows users to ask anonymous questions about family, marriage, dating, and other heated subjects pertaining to relationships, and those questions can be targeted toward select age groups, genders, geographic regions, and personality types (i.e.

Most of the questions on Answerology, which seems to have an admirably active core community, pertain directly to relationships, like this one: "By 39 years of age, is it a little weird if a man is still single, no solid career path, not close with his family, and only a select few close friends?" Answer: Yes, but things will get better if you take away his Xbox.)

Other subjects of discussion fall more into a general "lifestyle" niche, for example, "When do you think you'll be able to retire?" Answer: Never! Ever!)

And it had a funny publishing-industry connection to begin with: founder Milner originally conceived of Answerology as a tie-in for a "romantic-comedy novel" he wrote, Guy Critical. Here, she explores all facets of the Web's gregarious side, as well as the unique tech culture in her home city of New York. Don't call it Silicon Alley.)

Subscribe to this blog Click this link to view this blog as XML. And Facebook is that company. The latest Googler to jump to Facebook is Ethan Beard. A jury ruled Wednesday in San Francisco that Rambus did not obtain patents for memory technology through fraud or anti-competitive means, in a blow to memory makers Hynix, Micron, and Nanya. Read more Is there such as thing as being fired for Twittering?

Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman March 26, 2008 4:06 PM PDT If you've been around the world of blogging for a while, you probably know what being "Dooced" means. If not, it means being fired for blogging, and the term comes from the real-life firing of Heather Armstrong, otherwise known as the mega-popular blogger, Dooce. PDT with more detail and context.

The latest paid-click figures for Google were up only 3.1 percent in February from a year earlier, prompting a 2.9 percent drop in Google's stock, according to Reuters. Coop's Corner by Charles Cooper Charles Cooper weighs in on Silicon Valley hijinks, and he doesn't suffer fools gladly.

Defense in Depth by Robert Vamosi Covering the latest in computer viruses and computer crime. Green Tech Fresh green tech news and commentary. One More Thing by Tom Krazit Tom Krazit takes on the tech phenomenon that is Apple, and keeps a close watch on the chip industry. Outside the Lines by Dan Farber When business and technology meet, that's when things get interesting. The Iconoclast by Declan McCullagh Exploring the intersection of politics and technology.

Underexposed by Stephen Shankland Coverage of digital photography, science, and open-source software. On CHOW: Does drinking ice water burn calories?

Important keywords of article: , the, in, if, suffer, corner, blow, means, close, stock