etc...

SO, WHERE DID YOU FIND THAT?

"Needless to say, I got very excited when I saw it," Tim Keane told journalists. Saw what? Well, a necklace. But not just any necklace. The jeweler in Cork, Ireland, had just greeted a visitor to his store who hoped an unusual piece of metal he'd found could be identified. Keane knew right away that the item, a strand of twisted gold, was ancient - and therefore priceless. It dates, as nearly as experts can tell so far, to the Bronze Age, more than 3,000 years ago. The necklace, made for a child and known as a ribbon torc, now is to be displayed in the National Museum in Dublin. Usually in such cases, the finder is eligible for a reward prorated to the value of the object.

Perhaps anticipating the day he has had enough of pro basketball and his work in films, Shaquille O'Neal already is eyeing a new career field - as a cop. The massive superstar, whose uncle is in law-enforcement, is training to become a reserve with the Los Angeles port police. Ultimately, he says, he hopes to run for sheriff in Florida, his offseason home, or in his native Louisiana.

More Americans who identify with two or more races live in Western states than in any other region of the country, the 2000 Census found. Also home to large numbers of multiracial people: the biggest cities. Moreover, of the 6.8 million people who described themselves in that way, 42 percent were younger than 18. Almost two-thirds of the multiracial population lives in the following states (with the number of such residents following):

California 1.6 million

New York 590,182

Texas 521,296

Florida 383,577

Hawaii 259,268

Illinois 235,967

Washington 212,188

New Jersey 210,359

Michigan 188,830

Ohio 158,944

- Associated Press