July 15, 2004

David Pogue State of the Art column reviews scanners from Fujitsu, Xerox and Hewlett-Packard; all include software to convert scanned pages to PDF format; photo; drawing (M)

Anne Raver interview with landscape architect Kathryn Gustafson, whose latest creation, 2.5-acre Lurie Garden, is set to open, Millennium Park, Chicago; photos; drawing (M)

American male middle distance runners prepare for 2004 Olympics and chance to win first Olympic gold in 800- or 1,500-meter event in 32 years; many consider Alan Webb to be next American hopeful, but field is inexplicably shallow and has been for decades; photos (M)

A People Adrift, first of two articles on Palestinians of West Bank and Gaza Strip after four years of Arab-Israeli conflict; contest is under way between warlords and democrats, between Islamists and secular leaders, between those who would destroy Israel and those who would live beside it; Israel's barrier against West Bank Palestinians is sign that after 37 years of occupying West Bank and Gaza, it seeks to cut itself off from Palestinians, to give up Gaza, to hold onto as much of West Bank as it can, and to retain Jewish majority in democratic state; for Palestinians there is no such clarity; they have made no national decisions, and mechanisms for making and enforcing any are breaking down; in Jenin, city of 45,000, many residents rely on themselves rather than Palestinian Authority; Mayor Waleed A Mwais blames Israel, saying it destroyed all forms of authority and now everyone has their own weapon; criticism of aging Palestinian leadership, even of Yasir Arafat, has reached new pitch; reform-minded leaders struggle to find way to start over; 3,200 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis have died violently in conflict that has become way of life; photos; map (L)

Excerpts from interview with Sacha Baron Cohen, British comic and star of Da Ali G Show, which is set to begin its second season on HBO; photo (M)