November 10, 1999

Tasting of fellow diners' dishes at restaurants has become so common that it is sometimes felt to be obligatory; a backlash is fast developing; photo; drawing (M)

Medical devices used for diagnostic and other tests are being reused more and more often in hospitals and clinics nationwide, despite 'single use only' labeling; experts say practice of reusing devices approved for only one-time use is not necessarily dangerous, but that it generally violates federal regulations; government, which has declined to ask companies that reprocess devices to submit evidence that they are safe and effective, is reconsidering approach because of pressure from manufacturers; some doctors and federal officials say issue is more about economics than safety, since manufacturers make less money when single-use devices are cleaned, sterilized and used again; hospitals and medical centers save money, in some cases tens of thousands of dollars annually, when devices are reused; are accused by manufacturers of putting patients at grave risk; Dr Larry Kessler, director at Food and Drug Administration, comments (M)

New York City Board of Education installs filter on its computer system that blocks students in city schools from gaining access to any web sites that include categories like news and sex education, including those of major news outlets, policy groups and scientific and medical organizations; students, parents and teachers at Benjamin Cardozo High School in Queens say that they have complained to New York Civil Liberties Union because blocking program made it almost impossible for them to do sophisticated research projects on Internet (M)

Turkey's vibrant culinary tradition is attracting growing attention from Americans, and its influence can be seen on restaurant menus in New York; many dishes Americans associate with other cuisines, including grape-leaf dolma of Greece and hummus with pita bread of Arab world, are Turkish in origin and took root elsewhere during the more than six centuries of Ottoman rule from Egypt to Central Asia; recipes (M)

State and federal officials prosecuting Microsoft antitrust case say goal in any settlement or court-imposed remedy is to break company's monopoly in personal computer operating systems or limit its ability to wield such monopoly power; several proposals include forcing Microsoft to publish proprietary code for Windows operating system to break-up of company (M)