According to the 2000 census, Americans office workers spend an average of 52 hours a week at their desks or work stations. Many recent studies on job satisfaction have shown that workers who spend longer hours in office environments, often under artificial light in windowless offices, report reduced job satisfaction and increased stress levels.

“Don’t ever change” isn’t just a romantic platitude. It’s a solid evolutionary strategy. At least if you’re among the creatures that produce scads of genetically identical offspring – like microbes, plants or water fleas. These creatures provide a chance to wonder about the clones raised in near-identical environments that turn out differently than their kin.

A preliminary deal by President Nicolas Sarkozy to provide civilian nuclear technology to Libya was criticized by environmentalists and French leftists. Sarkozy announced the deal - a first step toward selling Libya a nuclear-powered plant to desalinate sea water - during a visit to the North African country on Wednesday.

Faster growth, darker leaves, a different way of branching - wild varieties of the plant Arabidopsis thaliana are often substantially different from the laboratory strain of this small mustard plant, a favorite of many plant biologists.