News In Brief

I REFUSE TO BE IGNORED

OK, you're about to graduate from high school but haven't been accepted yet by the college of your choice. What to do? Well, you could stew about it. Or you could emulate Emilie Dubois of North Smithfield, R.I. For three days, she trudged around the campus of prestigious William & Mary in Virginia wearing a sandwich board that read, in part: "Hi! I love this school, and I'm here to remind Admissions how thrilled I'd be to attend." The ploy worked. She was taken off an 800-applicant waiting list and granted a place in this fall's freshman class.

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A SMALL TOKEN OF MY ESTEEM

Guys, have you heard about the new research on the quickest way to a woman's heart? Social scientists from Britain's University of Hertfordshire say their study found that flowers or chocolates are nice, but modern females would rather be wooed with high-tech gifts such as - oh - DVD players. Said the survey leader: "Men should make sure they go for the coolest, shiniest gadgets."

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Hotels rated best at offering that red-carpet treatment

For the second straight year, the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand, took the top spot for best-quality service in an annual worldwide ranking by Travel & Leisure magazine. It assessed hotels based on a poll of 16,000 global travelers. The No. 2 spot went to a newcomer: Inn at Little Washington, Virginia. Hotels that provide the best service, according to Travel & Leisure's June issue:

1. Oriental, Bangkok, Thailand

2. Inn at Little Washington, Washington, Va.

3. Amandari, Bali, Indonesia (tie) The Peninsula, Hong Kong

4. Le Sirenuse, Positano, Italy

5. Mansion on Turtle Creek, Dallas

6. Ritz-Carlton, Naples, Fla.

7. The Greenbrier, White Sulphur Springs, W. Va.

8. The Regent, Hong Kong

9. Lodge at Koele Lanai, Hawaii

10. Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, Calif.

- Associated Press

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