STANFORD, Calif., Feb. 15 (UPI) -- California's Stanford University has agreed to retrofit showers with high-power heads after low-flow heads installed during winter break sparked a protest.

The eco-friendly shower heads -- which reduced water flow from 2.5 gallons a minute to 1.3 gallons a minute -- led to a letter-writing campaign, an e-mail petition, newspaper editorials and multiple meetings with university officials requested by students who complained the low-flow shower heads were failing to give them the quick-clean they were accustomed to, the San Jose (Calif.) Mercury News reported.

"It is like showering under a sink faucet," said Christian Tom, a junior who circulated a petition in his West Lagunita dorm that gathered 50 signatures in a single day. "Are we hunger striking? Of course not. But it's annoying."

Nik Kaestner of Stanford Housing said the school has agreed to outfit each bathroom with a hand-held shower head that increases water flow and can be raised to allow tall students to wash their hair with less difficulty.

"We're happy, and really appreciate that they listened to us," said Tom. "I took a shower and it was great."

Gambler: Lost millions while trying stop

LONDON, Feb. 15 (UPI) -- A British gambler is suing a bookmaker for allegedly allowing him to keep betting and to lose 2 million pounds ($3.9 million) despite asking to be barred.

Graham Calvert wants the William Hill betting chain to pay back his losses on the grounds it failed in its duty. He said he had twice asked the company to close his account and stop accepting bets from him because he was addicted.

The process is called self-exclusion and normally, players who seek it are prevented from placing any bets for a minimum of six months.

Calvert, a greyhound trainer, said his marriage failed because of his gambling and when he tried to stop he was "let down" by the bookmaker.

New York's Mayor Bloomberg joins NRA

BALTIMORE, Feb. 15 (UPI) -- New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg unexpectedly joined the National Rifle Association after receiving a gift membership from an unknown donor, a report said.

Bloomberg, who appeared as Public Enemy No 1 on the front of NRA magazine, told fellow mayors about his mysterious gift membership at a Mayors Against Illegal Guns meeting in Baltimore, the New York Post reported Thursday.

The organization aims to strengthen gun laws and challenges the NRA frequently.

"I can't wait until they survey their members. I will tell them how I feel," Bloomberg said of his NRA membership.

Bloomberg attended the meeting to announce Baltimore and New York would share information about guns used in crimes, the first collaboration of this sort for the two cities.

An NRA membership card bearing the New York mayor's name was a hit at the anti-gun meeting, The Post said.

Harvard aims to educate with sexy party

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 15 (UPI) -- Professors and students at Harvard University in Massachusetts threw a combination party and educational event with the tagline "Science Is Sexy."

The Valentine's Day event, labeled LoveFest, featured lectures from three eminent Harvard professors on the science of sex, as well as a DJ, alcoholic beverages and a sexy fashion show designed to highlight the science of physical attraction, The Boston Globe reported.

"I've never seen so many jazzed-up students in my life," said Marc Hauser, one of the organizers of the event and a professor of psychology, organismic and evolutionary biology, and biological anthropology at the university. "Now, the question is, how far will they take it?"

Carmen Collyns, a 19-year-old psychology major, helped design the fashion show portion of the event. She said one of the outfits was designed to show how certain waist-to-hip ratios signal health to potential mates, while another aimed to illustrate how sexy walks can be a sign of fertility.