Watercooler Stories

NEW YEAR BRINGS NEW BAGGAGE RULES

The start of the new year means new federally mandated baggage-screening rules. Under the new plan, all baggage will be screened using high-tech equipment for the possible presence of bombs.

With the new machinery, some industry experts tell the Atlanta Journal and Constitution that there could be delays and snags in the process.

The machines, similar to CAT-scan equipment in hospitals and clinics, are the size of a small van. Installing them has been a tedious and often costly venture for airports. Many had to knock out walls, reroute plumbing and electricity and move the position of conveyer belts.

Because of the new rules, many passengers will find that they can't lock baggage going through the system. If a bag is locked and a screener "behind the scenes" believes that something is wrong, the bag will have to be opened by whatever means possible.

THOUSANDS WANT TO BE CLONED

That Florida-based company that reports it has cloned a human says the waiting list is 2,000 strong. Clonaid, a division of the Raelian religion, tells the Miami Herald that's the number of people who say they are willing to pay the $200,000 price for human cloning.

The company, founded in 1997 by Claude Vorhilhon, is offering to clone adults. It claims that its first successful attempt resulted in a baby nicknamed "Eve," born to a woman in her early 30s.

Vorhilhon says that he thinks that in about 25 years it will be possible to clone a full-sized adult from DNA material, not just a baby who would take two decades to grow into adulthood.

As for the much-publicized cloning reportedly done by Clonaid, he says that the baby was born to an American woman outside the country.

SCHOOLS URGED TO SAVE ELECTRICITY

New reports show that many schools are wasting electricity and other energy sources. The Louisville Courier-Journal is reporting that experts say that schools in Kentucky, for example, will spend about $1 billion on energy in the next decade. But conservation could trim consumption by as much as 20 percent.

This would yield tens of millions of dollars for educational programs.

The Bluegrass State ranks 8th nationally in per capita energy consumption. Neighboring Indiana is 9th on the list.

One reason for the high consumption of "juice" in those two states is that some electricity is available for consumers at half the price paid by many on the East Coast, just 500 miles away.

Kentuckians pay, on average, the least per kilowatt hour nationally: 5.7 cents.

PAY-FOR-PLAY INCREASING AT SCHOOLS

Many students have always been charged "activities fees," but the cost is quickly rising. In a recent story on the subject, the Kansas City Star profiles one family that is paying $350 in activities fees for only two children. The two are not only in sports but also in school choirs.

All this, according to the publication, comes on top of all the other costs of participation -- such as shoes and other athletic equipment.

The fees are being charged in more schools. First mainly seen in urban schools, the new "participation fees" are showing up in more rural areas.

The so-called "pay-for-play" fees have gone up by more than 70 percent in some Kansas schools in just the past two years. Some fees remain low, such as a $5 charge for use of a school locker. Other fees for "simple" items, though, have approached the $50 level at some schools.