The trial of Zacarias Moussaoui has provided opportunities for followers in the courtroom to discuss which moment in the regularly odd proceeding is the oddest. The prize-winning occasion may have occurred when Mr. Moussaoui took the stand for the second time last week.

He quickly became embroiled in an argument with Gerald T. Zerkin, one of his court-appointed lawyers, who, despite Mr. Moussaoui's skepticism, is trying to prevent the Justice Department from executing him. The bizarre moment: the chief prosecutor, Robert A. Spencer, who is without doubt trying to have Mr. Moussaoui executed, rose to Mr. Moussaoui's defense, objecting that Mr. Zerkin was badgering the witness.

Of course, the upside-down nature of Mr. Moussaoui's status as a witness exists because Mr. Zerkin and his team are eager to demonstrate that Mr. Moussaoui is mentally unstable, and they are content to have an argument with him that may demonstrate that to the jury.

Mr. Spencer, on the other hand, is reluctant to have the jury — which will soon decide whether to order Mr. Moussaoui's execution — be shown signs that Mr. Moussaoui may not think in a logical manner.

Judge Leonie M. Brinkema has presided over the trial, now in its seventh week, with the tolerant air of a veteran high school teacher trying to maintain order in the pre-law club.

Logic Turns Upside-Down During Moussaoui Trial

Interscope Records has struck a deal with Hasbro, the toy maker, to create a line of fashion dolls modeled on the six members of the Pussycat Dolls. The toy line — which aims to mimic the act's playfully risqué style — is expected to be on sale by this year's holiday season. Hasbro executives estimate the dolls, intended for children aged 6 to 9, will be priced around $15, with the label receiving a royalty on sales.

Managing to score at toy retailers would illustrate how elastic the aura of a manufactured pop act can be, as the Pussycat Dolls straddle the image of late-night lounge dancers and child-friendly pop singers at the same time.

Music executives have been eager to appeal to fans who are (they hope) too young to download music illegally.

"Once it's branded as a tween thing, it's very hard to flip it up. But what the older sister and older brother like definitely trickles down to the kids. That's what's happening to the Pussycat Dolls."

As Pop Music Seeks New Sales, the Pussycat Dolls Head to Toyland

Along the way, he also developed a reputation for directness that could be a little rough. Mr. Riccitiello said that Mr. Ward "can run certain people over" with his big voice and strong point of view.

"My sense is if you took the average executive with a 50- to 80-hour workweek, they spend about 50 percent of their time just being nice," said Mr. Riccitiello. "Jim doesn't deal with that. He picks up half a week right there."

At LucasArts, No Playing Around in Quest to Be No. 1

Why does this lovely record seem destined for some kind of long cult life, and what is it doing in a column devoted to pop and jazz?

It is the new volume of "Ethiopiques," an astounding series of folkloric and pop music from Ethiopia.

Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou

"Reports about plans for an American attack on Iran are incorrect," former President Hashemi Rafsanjani said in an appearance before Kuwait's parliament. "We are certain that Americans will not attack Iran because the consequences would be too dangerous."

Rafsanjani Scoffs at Talk of US Attack

Recent human deaths due to infection by highly pathogenic (H5N1) avian influenza A virus have raised the specter of a devastating pandemic like that of 1917–1918, should this avian virus evolve to become readily transmissible among humans.

We introduce and use a large-scale stochastic simulation model to investigate the spread of a pandemic strain of influenza virus through the US population of 281 million individuals for R0 (the basic reproductive number) from 1.6 to 2.4.

We model the impact that a variety of levels and combinations of influenza antiviral agents, vaccines, and modified social mobility (including school closure and travel restrictions) have on the timing and magnitude of this spread.

Our simulations demonstrate that, in a highly mobile population, restricting travel after an outbreak is detected is likely to delay slightly the time course of the outbreak without impacting the eventual number ill.

For R0 < 1.9, our model suggests that the rapid production and distribution of vaccines, even if poorly matched to circulating strains, could significantly slow disease spread and limit the number ill to < 10% of the population, particularly if children are preferentially vaccinated.

Alternatively, the aggressive deployment of several million courses of influenza antiviral agents in a targeted prophylaxis strategy may contain a nascent outbreak with low R0, provided adequate contact tracing and distribution capacities exist.

For higher R0, we predict that multiple strategies in combination (involving both social and medical interventions) will be required to achieve similar limits on illness rates.

Mitigation strategies for pandemic influenza in the US

If you read "The Desert One Debacle", you may be interested in Mark Bowden's new book, about which Publishers Weekly said:

He puts you there, in the Persian desert with Delta Force and its commander, the charismatic and mercurial Col. Charlie Beckwith. All in all, Guests of the Ayatollah is a monumental piece of reportage, deserving a wide readership.

Guests of the Ayatollah : The First Battle in America's War with Militant Islam

Madeleine Albright has a new book.

From Publishers Weekly:
Starred Review. Secretary of State under President Clinton and a devout Catholic (with recently discovered Jewish roots), Albright (Madam Secretary) is especially qualified to tackle the thorny subject of the role of faith in international relations. In a remarkably accessible, even breezy style, she looks at these issues in light of recent history both abroad and at home, from the religious fundamentalism that led to the ouster of the shah of Iran to the invasion of Iraq and American hope that a political culture can emerge there that integrates democracy and Islam. But Albright also looks critically at President Bush, an evangelical Christian who invokes God in the name of fighting "evil." In this ambitious, thoughtful, and wide-ranging treatment, Albright deftly balances the pragmatic need to confront religious-based unrest and the idealistic need to temper one's own personal beliefs in the public realm. While fully acknowledging the threat al- Qaeda poses, Albright rejects the notion that a "clash of civilizations" is in progress and wisely calls for care and nuance in how America approaches international confrontations that are tinged with religion.

The Mighty and the Almighty : Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs

In the next decade, single-celled animals might be some of the most important figures in high technology.

"We always overestimate the immediate impact and underestimate the long-term ones. The truly revolutionary stuff will take some time to mature."

Playing science's genetic lottery | CNET News.com

"Afghanistan's Uncertain Transition" argues that Afghanistan is still far from stability. While the country has reestablished basic institutions of government, it has barely started to make them work. The government and its international supporters are challenged by a terrorist insurgency that has become more lethal and effective and that has bases in Pakistan, a drug trade that dominates the economy and corrupts the state, and pervasive poverty and insecurity. The Afghanistan Compact, approved in January 31, 2006, provides a road map for security, governance, and development over the next five years. The United States should take the lead in ensuring full funding and implementation of the Afghanistan Compact, and develop a coherent strategy toward the Afghanistan-Pakistan relationship. This strategy would entail pushing the Pakistani government to arrest Taliban leaders whose locations are provided by intelligence agencies and taking aggressive measures to close down the networks supporting suicide bombers.

Afghanistan's Uncertain Transition from Turmoil to Normalcy