Wes Phillips

The law of unintended consequences, that is. It seems that, as the Mega Lo Marts introduce auto-scanning checkout kiosks to feed customers through more "efficiently," people are buying fewer of those impulsive point-of-purchase items.

Fans of <I>Sandman</I> will recognize this outbreak as one of the points of departure for the story arc begun in issue #1. What they may not realize is that Neil Gaiman wasn't making up the Sleeping Sickness: there really was an outbreak of <I>Encephalitis lethargica</I> from 1916 through the '20s.

George Saunders checks out the motherland.

Over at <I>Home Theater</I>'s website, Fleischmann's arch blend of understatement and geekiness is the sort of stuff I wish I could write consistently. A recommended daily read. Yes, I know him, and yes, I share an employer with him, but this encomium comes from the heart.

The competition's fierce, but KFC's new Famous Bowls just might take the, um, cake, according to Dan Neil.

Audio professionals and "prosumers" with home studios have long sung the praises of NHT's compact powered monitor, the M-00 (affectionately called "the moo"); powered subwoofer, the S-00 (don't make us say it); and passive volume control, the PVC (a JA favorite). Until July 18, however, these products were only available at studio suppliers and professional audio sales centers. NHT, acceding to "growing demand and an evolving market," will now allow its specialty audio dealer network to offer the formerly Pro products to their clientele as part of NHT's PC Hi-Fi line.

As it has for the last 10 years, <A HREF="http://www.fatwyre.com/">The Cable Company</A>, along with many of its vendors, is dedicating August to help some of "the poorest people in the most ravaged regions of the world."