Sampling

The hit movie Signs has managed to spin crop circles, those giant geometric formations of bent plants, into the supernatural phenomenon du jour. For most folks, the discussion is about whether crop circles are man-made -- or messages from outer space. Enthusiasts like Nancy Talbott, however, look for a scientific explanation. Based in Cambridge, Mass, the former Baltimorean is president of BLT Research Team Inc., a nonprofit organization conducting scientific inquiries into crop circles.

If the Black Eyed Susan were a race horse, it would be a sprinter. It makes one strong move, then fades quickly. The strong move occurs this weekend when the cocktail will be in demand at Pamlico Race Track, during both the running of the Black Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday and the Preakness Stakes on Saturday. Over these two days, about 25,000 servings of the libation, poured into commemorative glasses, will be sold at $8 apiece, track officials say. But as soon as Preakness weekend ends, so does the does the local thirst for the Susan.

Johns Hopkins scientists have found a way to screen for hard-to-detect endometrial and ovarian cancers in women using a routine Pap smear, a discovery they hope eventually could reduce the number of deaths caused by the deadly malignancies. The researchers from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center hope the Pap smear, a procedure in which cells are scraped from the cervix and examined under a microscope, can catch the two cancers in early stages and allow for earlier treatment. The Pap test has dramatically improved detection of cervical cancer over the years, curbing deaths by 75 percent among those who are screened.

The Baltimore City Detention Center had the nation's second-highest rate of sexual contact between jail staff and inmates, according to a U.S. Department of Justice study released less than a month after federal prosecutors accused corrections officers at the jail of sleeping with gang members. The report, released Thursday, also found higher-than-average rates of inmate abuse at the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women in Jessup. Women in prison are generally subjected to more abuse than men, and nearly 13 percent of inmates at that facility reported being abused either by a fellow inmate or staff member.

Police Blotter is a sampling of crimes in Baltimore City and Baltimore County. Baltimore City Eastern District Theft from vehicle: A laptop computer, a computer carrying bag, eyeglasses and a computer accessory, all valued at more than $3,000, were stolen Monday from a 1999 Honda Accord parked in the 100 block of Edgevale Road. Southern District Burglary: Four bicycles and lawn-care equipment, all valued at nearly $1,200, were stolen Monday from a shed in the 200 block of E. Jeffrey St. Theft: A generator and a grinder, both valued at more than $2,000, were stolen from Corrosion Repair & Services in the 3900 block of Curtis Ave. between Friday and Monday.

There are more olive trees in Puglia than anywhere else in Italy. In fact, with an estimated 50 million trees growing in the Italian boot's "heel," there's nearly one for every man, woman and child living in the entire nation. Driving south along the Adriatic Sea, as I did late last fall, I saw acre after glorious acre of Pugliese olive trees, which have gnarled and windblown trunks, making sculptural shapes that are both colossal and somehow ethereal.

How do I keep green beans bright green? They always turn an olive color on me. The key to cooking green beans - really, to cooking most green vegetables - is to cook them in three stages: blanch them, shock them, saute them. This is my preferred method for dealing with green beans, broccoli, asparagus and sugar snap peas. First, bring a large pot of water to boil. The more water you use, the less it will cool down when you add the vegetables, and the quicker it will come back to a boil.

So you live in a charming bungalow with vinyl tile floors in the kitchen and a basement full of aged, gray, insulated pipes. Or you own an apartment with '50s-style popcorn coating on one ceiling and suspended acoustical tile on the others.Yup. Sounds like asbestos, all right. Here's what you do:If you rent, call the landlord. He or she should be aware of any materials in the place containing asbestos and should be willing to make sure that they are safe.Heating insulation, popcorn ceilings and acoustical tile are friable materials.

When it comes to Chinese-American takeout, General Tso's Chicken is always at the top of the list. If you pick the right place (which is harder than it seems), your order won't be a greasy mush. Try these spots for starters. SZECHUAN RESTAURANT 1125 S. Charles St. 410-752-8409 HOURS // 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday to Friday; 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturday Szechuan Restaurant's General Tso's ($10.45) keeps the emphasis on the meat. Large chicken tenders lie in a spicy red-pepper sauce, with a couple of crisp florets of broccoli shoved off to the side.

Just when you think you know everything there is to know about Champagne, something comes along to teach you humility. Before receiving samples this fall, I had not heard of Duval-Leroy, a family-owned producer making its North American debut this year. Schedules could not be arranged for a meeting with Carol Duval-Leroy, the young widow who runs the company, so six sample wines had do the speaking for the estate. Wow! From the $25 nonvintage brut to the $79 vintage 1990 "Femme" luxury bottling, all of the wines were fabulous and competitively priced.