Students at Harvard University were asked whether they would prefer (a) 50,000 dollars a year while others got half that or (b) 100,000 dollars a year while others got twice as much. A majority chose (a). They were happy with less, as long as they were better off than others.... posted on Aug 16 2003, 1,049 reads

Celebrities often change their names to up their star power: Maurice Micklewhite became Michael Caine, Archibald Leach became Cary Grant, Thomas Mapother IV became Tom Cruise, Prince changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol. But now a 20-something vegetarian activist has changed her name -- GoVeg.com! Why would Karin Robertson legally change her name to a website? She wants to encourage t... posted on Aug 14 2003, 955 reads

"Read me," said the sticker on 'The Catcher in the Rye'. The paperback had been left on a Santa Monica bus, where a rider noticed it and took it home. When he'd finished, he left in a hotel lobby, hoping another stranger would find it, read it, and pass it on. Ron Hornbaker, 37, wanted to make the whole world a library and started bookcrossing.com which encourages people to abandon books so oth... posted on Aug 07 2003, 2,245 reads

Experts say that each email takes an average of 30 seconds to deal with — instantly deleting some, spending 10 minutes on important ones. If you 500 emails, that's four-plus hours every day! So how do the big name handle loads of emails? Few don't read it, some have an assistant or multiple email addresses, and many have email filters while few have started utilizing any spare time (in elevat... posted on Aug 02 2003, 1,421 reads

When Bliss Browne shared a special moment with a homeless man, it hit her -- we don't need to construct our connection with others; it's already there! We just need to pay attention to it. Following that understanding and other serendipitous events, she started "Imagine Chicago," where imagination would be the movement! Over the last decade, their work is widely honored and replicated throughou... posted on Jul 17 2003, 962 reads

Compassion or competition? That was the title of the conference in Amsterdam, with European business leaders and the Dalai Lama, exploring and charting a global strategy for integrating spirit in business in our increasingly interconnected world economy. The organizing group is called 'Spirit in Business'.... posted on Jun 24 2003, 1,103 reads

In what advertising industry watchers said is a first, a Portland pizza-by-the-slice company has hired homeless people off downtown sidewalks to take part in a guerrilla marketing campaign. They are paid in pizza, soda and a few dollars. A slice of hot, fresh pizza dripping with cheese in return for 40 minutes of holding a sign.... posted on Jun 20 2003, 1,010 reads

Hello Shalom, Hello Salaam
Natalia Wieseltier, an Israeli, called a friend on her mobile phone but dialed a wrong number. A Palestinian man named Jihad answered. They talked a bit in Hebrew and said goodbye. But her number was recorded on Jihad's cell phone and he called Wieseltier back. They spoke again several times and eventually she spoke to other members of Jihad's family. Now Jihad and his relatives call her after ev... posted on Jun 17 2003, 1,508 reads

Pictures of Beauty in Guatemalan Dumps
Young lives transformed, guided by a camera lens. In Gautemala, Evelyn Mansilla joins her mother and dozens of neighbors to scavenge through the municipal dumps for valuables. But now, the 21 year old Evelyn is part of a program, "Out of the Dump," that brings photography skills and confidence to slum children. As they unblinkingly document impoverished slums that have surreal names like Hope o... posted on May 22 2003, 1,336 reads

It doesn't look like much. A drab, gray piece of plastic, about five inches long and three inches wide. Yet this "simputer" may hold the key to bringing information technology to Third World countries. Among other things, the Simputer will translate text into a local dialect so even illiterate rural communities can leverage the power of web!... posted on Apr 23 2003, 926 reads