Of Human Interest: News lite

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND BREAKFAST

The common breakfast of calcium-fortified orange juice and mineral-fortified cereal with milk might prevent potent antibiotics -- often prescribed for treatment of respiratory infections -- from working to combat diseases.

Pharmacy specialist Guy Amsden of Bassett Healthcare Corp. says, "People may be doing exactly what their doctors recommend and may not be getting benefit of the drugs."

Studies show blood levels of the new fluoroquinolone antibiotics -- gatifloxacin and levofloxacin -- were reduced by 14 percent and 16 percent respectively when healthy volunteers took the medication with calcium-fortified orange juice.

Amsden says Bassett now suggests doctors tell patients to take these medications on an empty stomach.

'MOSEX' IN NEW YORK

The nation's first museum devoted to the history and psychology of sex will open next weekend on New York's Fifth Avenue, in a building that may once have housed a discreet bordello. You have to be 18 to get in and it's no cheap thrill at $17 a ticket.

The Museum of Sex -- known to New Yorkers as MoSex -- is the dream-come-true of Daniel Gluck, a 34-year-old Computer Age success story who sold his software development company to devote full time to developing the museum. It is divided into six sections covering prostitution, abortion, birth control, burlesque entertainment, commercialized obscenity, fetishes, and censorship.

The goal is education, not titillation and profits will be shared with several groups, including AIDS Community Research Initiative of America and the Kinsey Institute.

WHAT'S KEEPING KIDS UP?

New research is debunking the myth that watching television and working on the computer help children calm down and get ready for bedtime.

Dr. John Herman of UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas says these sleep saboteurs' secret weapons are the bright lights behind the television and computer screens that act as stimulants on the brain.

Herman says, "Bright lights on television sets and computers can actually reset the circadian clock so that even small amounts can change the sleep/wake cycle so that the person goes to sleep later and thus wakes up later."

He advises parents to shut down all electronic stimulation at least 30 minutes before bedtime to allow sleep to arrive in a more timely fashion. The best time to work on a computer or watch TV is very early in the morning, when the stimulation will help kids get ready for a day of learning.

WINTER WEATHER PICTURE

Minneapolis-based Meteorlogix's national long-range 2002-2003 winter weather outlook finds the latest El Nino already is under way but will be considerably weaker than its 1997-1998 record-setting predecessor.

The forecast calls for a stormy winter for California, along with periodic heavy coastal rains and coastal mountain snows -- plus plenty of snow for the Sierra Nevada. Drought conditions for the Pacific Northwest and northern Continental Divide remain the biggest concern for the 2003 spring season.

The central Great Plains also is in a dry-to-drought condition but the winter forecast indicates much-needed precipitation will not arrive. The Great Basin will be the only colder-than-normal spot, while the central United States northward into Canada can expect a milder-than-normal winter, including a January thaw.

Northeastern states will see a seasonably cold winter while the Great Lakes to northern New England will experience milder-than-normal temperatures. Coastal storms also are expected to be in large supply to ease the drought.

Expect a lot of snow in the interior New England states, New York State and the northern Appalachian Mountains. The southeast can expect a normally cool-to-cold winter season with active storm track that will keep much of Florida wetter than normal.