Etc...

His geography is not so good

Once in a while we read about the ways in which high-profile people misspeak at inopportune moments. Here's one: To the considerable surprise of visiting Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio, the crown prince of Norway informed him in prepared remarks at a state dinner one night last week that his country is "on the Mediterranean's warm beaches." Prince Haakon was substituting for his absent father, King Harald V, and this was his first role as a host. It may be a while until there's another. In fact, the royal palace considered it necessary to issue a public apology the next day because Portugal's entire coastline is on the Atlantic Ocean. What Haakon had meant to say, the royal spokesman explained, is that Portugal is near the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea.

Good news for college seniors: Employers expect to hire 12.7 percent more graduates this year than in 2003, according to results of a recently released survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). And although relatively few seniors probably have jobs lined up this soon, many who do are reporting starting salaries that are higher than last year's levels, the NACE report said. The 10 degree fields offering the best pay, and the average starting salary for each:

1. Computer engineering $53,100
2. Chemical engineering 52,600
3. Electrical engineering 49,900
4. Computer science 48,700
5. Industrial engineering 48,300
6. Information sciences 42,100
7. Accounting 42,000
8. Construction science 41,200
9. Management information systems/business data processing 41,100
10. Civil engineering 41,000

- CNN/Money magazine