October 14, 1992

Vice President Dan Quayle may be no Jack Kennedy, but he was no stumblebum either in the second of the 1992 campaign debates last night. In fact, he gave a far better-focused summary of the Republican case than his boss, President Bush, managed in his first encounter with Bill Clinton on Sunday night. Right at the start, Mr. Quayle asserted that Mr. Clinton would make a bad economy worse and charged that Mr. Clinton "does not have the strength or the character to be President." His words were as crisp as a television commercial.

Gary S. Becker of the University of Chicago has been awarded the 1992 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science. It was the third economics Nobel in three years for the university, whose policy-oriented economists have had an immense impact on the profession in the last half-century. The 61-year old professor, who writes a column for Business Week along with teaching both economics and sociology, was honored by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for "having extended the domain of economic theory to aspects of human behavior which had previously been dealt with -- if at all -- by other social science disciplines such as sociology, demography and criminology." 'Not Highfaluting' And while reactions to Mr. Becker's use of disarmingly simple economics to analyze everything from child-bearing to binge drinking have ranged from adulation to rage, the award was widely applauded by scholars. "This is not highfaluting, technical stuff," Daniel Hamermesh of Michigan State University said. "But it's a way of thinking that is profoundly original."

The General Electric Company said yesterday that its profits increased 6.7 percent in the third quarter in part because of improved productivity and gains from its financial, medical and aerospace divisions. The results were tarnished, however, by restructuring charges and losses at its NBC television network because of the 1992 Olympics. Earnings rose to $1.11 billion, or $1.30 a share, from $1.04 billion, or $1.20 a share, in the third quarter of 1991. Revenues were $15.5 billion for the quarter, which ended Sept. 30, up 6.2 percent from $14.6 billion.

In a debate marked by intensely personal exchanges, Senator Al Gore and Vice President Dan Quayle delivered some of the campaign's strongest blasts last night, each asserting that the opposing Presidential candidate did not deserve to lead the nation for the next four years. Mr. Quayle assailed Gov. Bill Clinton, the Democratic Presidential candidate, as a man who "has trouble telling the truth" and who had habitually waffled on the issues of the day.

LIKE most Angelenos, Linda Burum was used to getting on the freeway and driving past every neighborhood except her own. But seven years ago, she gave up the fast track for smaller streets with meandering turns and traffic lights, streets that frequently lack signs. Her detours resulted in "A Guide to Ethnic Food in Los Angeles," which will be published this week by HarperPerennial. Ms. Burum, who appears to be as obsessed with arcane foods as she is easily confused by unfamiliar streets, was determined to map her hometown's ethnic frontiers and render its exotic tastes accessible. But would Lewis and Clark have risked so much for a meal?