News in Brief
from the May 28, 2003 edition

Etc...


We skipped third period

"I'm relieved and excited," Joe Kavanagh said. OK, but about what? Well, the fact that he'd successfully pulled off his attempt to compete for a listing in the Guinness Book of World Records. That would be ... Most People in One Place at One Time Wearing Groucho Marx Glasses. You know, the kind with the attached nose, mustache and bushy eyebrows. But the East Lansing (Mich.) High School student clearly needed a lot of help. So he rounded up 800 others, some of them teachers, who agreed to don the novelty for at least 20 minutes. Until their effort is certified as official, the current mark is 522 people.

They get too little respect

Can you picture Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan behind the wheel of a cab on "Saturday Night Live"? Maybe not, but his former Brazilian counterpart has taped a skit for one of that nation's most popular satirical TV series in which he wows a businessman/passenger with his expertise on such weighty issues as the exchange rate. Armino Fraga said he agreed to the gig because "the people who really know about the economy - and everything else - are the taxi drivers."


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Most popular baby names? Jacob, Emily, survey says

Emily was the No. 1 name for newborn girls, and Jacob was tops for boys, for the second straight year in 2002, according to BabyCenter. The online site for new and expectant parents compiles its annual list of the top 100 baby names from Social Security card applications, with alternative spellings of same-sounding names grouped together as one. Biblical names remain popular, especially for sons. The top 10 names for boys and for girls last year:

Girls:
1. Emily
2. Madison
3. Hailey
4. Kaitlyn
5. Hannah
6. Sarah
7. Brianna
8. Ashley
9. Alexis
10. Abigail

Boys:
1. Jacob
2. Michael
3. Matthew
4. Joshua
5. Nicholas
6. Christopher
7. Joseph
8. Ethan
9. Andrew
10. Daniel

- PR Newswire




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(Mary Knox Merrill/Staff)
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