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How Q Found Her Groove
by Jiro Adachi, New York Times
Young Japanese see New York City as a place to dance, to dare and to shine.

New-SAT Takers: Confused Yet?
by Jennifer Medina, New York Times
Beyond the bare bones lies a huge gray area.

14 Years Later, My Hollywood Ending
by Bernard Weinraub, New York Times
Only in my 14 years [in Hollywood] — most of it spend covering the movie industry, the rest covering television and music — did I come face to face with some of the more startling, and not always pleasant, truths about human behavior, my own included.

Rich Man, Poor Man
by April Witt, Washington Post
Jack Whittaker's big Powerball win cost him — and everyone around him — dearly.

Weighing Words
by Marjorie Miller, Los Angeles Times
What's really worth saying when talking is an effort?

A Matter Of Principal
by Suzanne Sataline, Boston Globe
As Boston's public schools fight to regain the faith of parents who see the suburbs or private schools as the only options for their children, a remarkable principal shows how one public school can be special for every student.

How Cold Is It? Not Very, If You Are A Statistician
by Anthony Ramirez, New York Times
As of yesterday, this January, as measured by temperatures in Central Park, has so far ranked as only the 66th coldest on record.

He Said "Penis"!
by Amy Reiter, Salon
Warning: The way a right-wing "parents" group is wasting the FCC's time might just make you (dare we say it?) "pissed."

Can I Beat A Lie Detector?
by Emily Yoffe, Slate
I always tell the truth. But not today.

The Fondue Pot Is Hot Again
by Andrea Pyenson, Boston Globe
If you didn't sell your fondue pot at your last tag sale and it's still gathering dust in the back of a cabinet, pull it out. Or go get one. Fondue is making a resurgence.

With Glass And Steel, Prolific Architect Cut A Towering Figure
by Bart Barnes, Washington Post
Few architects of the past century were so talked about as Johnson, an urbane, eloquent and wealthy eminence who built, spoke and dined very publicly. Considered brilliant by some, condemned by others, his work included some of the most discussed structures in town or country.

A Generation Lost In Its Personal Space
by John naughton, The Guardian
Dead philosophers sometimes have their uses.

Print In Sands Of Time
by Peter Carlson, Washington Post
The Local Man behind all those headlines.

Married To The Mall
by Frank Bruni, New York Times
A critic addresses some lingering questions about the upscale food court in the vertical world of the Time Warner Center in Manhattan.

Taking Liberty To Revise Famous Speeches
by Hanna Rosin, Washington Post
But then morning always comes, and with it the responsibility to, as Ali G would say, check yo-self.

Unpardonable Interruptions
by Stephen Rodrick, Slate
How television killed the newspaper sports column.

The Mac In front Of The Curtain
by Steve Martin, New York Times
Thank you for the opportunity you gave me and others, and thank you — despite divisive wars and undulating political strife — for the one hour a night across 30 years of American life when we were entertained purely, delightfully and wisely.

How To Read A Column
by William Safire, New York Times
At last I am at liberty to vouchsafe to you the dozen rules in reading a political column.

Common Sense Has Much To Learn From Moonshine
by Philip Pullman, The Guardian
It's time English teachers got back to basics — less grammar, more play.

A Gift From Above, Wrapped In White
by DeNeen L. Brown, Washington Post
Snow days are our Sabbath days. They bring with them a commandment to pause, to curl up by a fire, stay in your pajamas or go outside and catch a snowflake and marvel at its tiny beauty. Or do nothing.

Johnny Carson, Low-Key King Of Late-Night TV, Dies At 79
by Richard Severo and Bill Carter, New York Times
Someone once asked Mr Carson what he would like his epitaph to be. He thought for a moment and reached for the traditional line of a talk-show host: "I'll be right back."

Solving The Enigma Of Kryptos
by Kim Zetter, Wired News
What does it say about the Central Intelligence Agency that its agents can crack the secret codes of enemy nations but can't unravel a coded sculpture sitting outside their cafeteria window?

The Sound Of Silence
by Will Kilbum, Boston Globe
The North End has survived the clamor of the Central Artery and years of Big Dig construction, only to find itself in a quiet struggle between Old World and new.

Sex Ed At Harvard
by Charles Murray, New York Times
In the study of gender, large and growing bodies of good science are helping us understand the sources of human abilities and limitations. It is time to accept their existence, their seriousness and their legitimacy.

See No Bias
by Shankar Vedantam, Washington Post
Many Americans believe they are not prejudiced. Now a new test provides powerful evidence that a majority of us really are. Assuming we accept the results, what can we do about it?

The Making Of A Molester
by Daniel Bergner, New York Times
What allowed Roy to go from being a seemingly normal man to a man who could solicit sex from a 12-year-old? His past? His relationshiop to the truth? Or the ways in which the Web blurs the line between fantasy and the all too real?

The Invasion Of The Midsize Movie
by A. O. Scott, New York Times
Independent film may be dead, but if it is, it has been reincarnated in the shape of another much-mourned, perpetually misunderstood movie martyr, the studio system.

The Father Of Infertility
by Sabrina Prardis, Salon
When I was going through the grueling process of trying to have a baby, I longed for the comfort of empathetic women. I found it where I least expected it: From my blunt-spoken dad.

Is "Doggie Style" Hyphenated?
by Daniel Asa Rose, Salon
My stint as a copy editor at a skin mag taught me more than I ever wanted to know about the sexual proclivities of the American public.

The First Nonsmoking Nation
by Eric Weiner, Slate
Bhutan banned tobacco. Could the rest of the world follow?

One Nation, Overfed
by David Shaw, Los Angeles Times
It's no news that we're too fat. But why is it that Americans eat so much, especially as compared with Europeans?

The Lawyer Enters A Plea Of Lucky
by Frank Bruni, New York Times
"And for 15 years I've had the luxury of staying at home, being there with my kids, coaching Little League baseball." Mr. Grisham had that luxury in part because he kept writing and writing, at least a book every year, and those books kept selling and selling.

Ask Not Why Inaugural Addresses Are So Rotten
by David Greenberg, Slate
We have the answer.

How Copyright Could Be Killing Culture
by Guy Dixon, Globe And Mail
The high cost of getting permission to use archival footage andphotos threatens to put makers of documentaries out of business.

A Sophisticated Approach
by Valerie Strauss, Washington Post
Once it was a time for youngsters to master reading and math skills learned in first grade and prepare for the indpendent learning traditionally demanded in third grade. But in many public schools across the country, second grade has moved on.

How We Learn
by Alison Gopnik, New York Times
The problem for many children in elementary school may not be that they're not smart enough but that they're not stupid enough. They haven't yet been able to make reading and writing transparent and automatic.

The Book Of Jobs
by Virginia Postrel, New York Times
Over the years, "What Color Is Your Parachute?" has grown like a ramshackle house, adding resources, numbered lists and personality tests.

Gen X Dad
by Patricia Wen, Boston Globe
Luxury vacations, fast-track careers, and bigger houses used to be a priority for family men, but no longer. Today's young fathers are taking paternity leaves, rejecting overtime, and rushing home after work to do all the things many of their own fathers didn't.

For Party Planners, A Difficult Delivery
by Darragh Johnson, Washington Post
"It's gonna be fine." It's a phrase party planner Jenna Mack repeats almost hourly, soothing clients, caterers, truck drivers, dance-floor deliverers, Secret Service agents and fellow event managers.

Samurai Of Cuisine, On A New Battlefield
by William Grimes, New York Times
With "Iron Chef America," the Food Network's challenge is to translate the cult success of the original show without losing its campy, samurai ethos.

Call Me Madame Maestro
by Blair Tindall, New York Times
These artists represent a new wave of female conductors in their late 20's through early 40's.

How I Learned To Pitch
by Eric Liu, Slate
A Seattle Mariners coach teaches me to throw a change-up, and much more.

Food Bloggers Chronicle Their Delicious Obsessions
by Ethan Gilsdorf, Boston Globe
Armed with digital cameras, keyboards and easy-to-use software, gourmands can now create online shrines to beloved or dreaded aspects of the culinary realm.

Hard To Label
by Lisa Rosen, Los Angeles Times
That size 8 dress may be a 6 or even a 4 at other stores. When it comes to women's clothing, sizes are in the eye of the retailer.

A Vegetarian Haiku In Four Dishes
by Mark Bittman, New York Times
"In Japan, the idea of focusing on a small aspect of something and then exploding it into many possibilities is an appealing notion, in both life and aesthetics. Working in a limited set and not letting it inhibit you but allowing it to take you to another level is part of the pleasure."

It'd Be Easier If SpongeBob Were Hawking Broccoli
by Marian Burros, New York Times
Food marketed to children is being criticized as high in fat and sugar.

Linguists Gone Wild!
by Jesse Sheidlower, Slate
Why "wardrobe malfunction" wasn't the Word of the Year.

The Newspaper Appreciation As Death Kit
by Carlin Romano, Chronicle Of Higher Education
The instant journalistic "appreciations" of Susan Sontag after her death last month at 71 emphasized, as quick pieces must when knocked out in a race with the obituary writers, the feats that made her famous rather than the characteristics that made her Susan Sontag.

The Secret Lives Of Just About Everybody
by Benedict Carey, New York Times
Psychologists say that most normal adults are well equipped to start a secret life, if not to sustain it. The ability to hold a secret is fundamental to healthy social development, they say, and the desire to sample other identities — to reinvent oneself, to pretend — can last well into adulthood.

Playing The Old Blame Game
by John Leo, U.S. News
Almost everyone is a victim now, but some are more newsworthy than others. Here are the best of last year's victims.

Does God Want Us To Be Happy?
by David Van Biema, Time
How American believers allowed themselves everyday joy.

Thank God It's Monday!
by Jyoti Thottam, Time
If workers feel engaged and content at work, they're more productive. How to make jobs so satisfying that employees want to say...

Write Till You Drop
by Annie Dillard, New York Times
Write as if you were dying. At the same time, assume you write for an audience consisting solely of terminal patients.

Why Is Everyone Going To Bhutan?
by Jane Margolies, New York Times
This peaceful nation half the size of Indiana is emerging as a big draw, attracting those in search of a spiritual journey, a hiking adventure — or just a chance to experience a place before the rest of the world gets there.

Toxic Breast Milk?
by Florence Williams, New York Times
When we nurse our babies, we feed them not only the fats, sugars and proteins that fire their immune systems, metabolisms and cerebral synapses. We also feed them, albeit in minuscule amounts, paint thinners, dry-cleaning fluids, wood preservatives, toilet deodorizers, cosmetic additives, gasoline byproducts, rocket fuel, termite poisons, fungicides and flame retardants.

Up A Tree, For The Fun Of It
by Gary Andrew Poole, New York Times
It takes about $400 worth of equipment to climb a tree — arborist ropes, helmet, climbing saddle, branch protectors, metal loops called carabiners. But when you're 100 feet up or so and your perch is swaying in the wind, you'll be glad you came perpared.

The Rating Says PG, But Is That Guidance Enough?
by Julie Salamon, New York Times
Parents have always had a hard time drawing the line between hypocrisy and responsibility, and never more than at the present moment, when prurience and prudishness are both operating at high voltage.

Matters Of Life And Death
by Don Aucoin, Boston Globe
Caring for their aging parents inspires artists to examine mortality through their work.

Angry With God
by Jeff Jacoby, Boston Globe
Online polls are not scientific, of course, but the belief that God was uninvolved in the greatest natural calamity in years is being widely expressed.

Hiphop Turns 30
by Greg Tate, Village Voice
Whatcha celebratin' for?

A Chef's Loss Is His Gain
by Judith Weinraub, Washington Post
Weighing in past 350, Jeff Tunks knew something had to change. More than two years later and 100 pounds lighter, he has.

Artisanal, Creamy... Tofu?
by Julia Moskin, New York Times
New York's new and ambitious Asian restaurants have begun to foster the art of tofu appreciation, and more places are now serving fresh or even house-made tofu, delicacies that are soft, creamy and light.

Why Gift Cards Are Evil
by Daniel Gross, Slate
They're the best insult money can buy.

My Dinner With Sontag
by Val Wang, Salon
I crossed chopsticks with America's most ferocious intellectual — and the sushi turned to ashes in my mouth.

Arts Project Provokes Hong Kong Uproar
by Keith Bradsher, New York Times
A cultural complex several times the size of Lincoln Center sitting on a long peninsula in Hong kong has become the center of a bitter debate in the last few weeks.

Welcome To 'TEH-jas', Land Of The Alamo And The Cowboy
by Simon Romero, New York Times
Thje pronounciation of place names is one of those quiet conflicts that are played out everyday throughout the Southwest as the number of Hispaics in areas originally colonized by Spain and Mexico continue to grow — and in some cases nudge Anglos into the minority.

Endings Are A Catharsis. They Give Meaning To What Comes Before, And Change Us From The Way We Were.
by Steven Winn, San Franciso Chronicle
Endings, by their nature, are exquisitely torturous. We're all psychologically primed to crave resolving climaxes, and simultaneously inclined to doubt, mistrust, reject and even fear them.

The All Too Ready For Prime Time Players
by Dave Itzkoff, New York Times
How "Saturday Night Live" dulled its political edge and surrendered to the national obsession with celebrity scandal.

The Last Laugh
by Dave Barry, Washington Post
Thanks to all you editors for printing my column, and thanks especially to all you readers for reading it. You've given me the most wonderful career an English major could hope to have. I am very grateful. And I'm not making that up.