Touch

That morning shot of espresso probably tastes better in an Italian, thick-walled cup than in a burn-your-fingers paper one, reports an April study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "People always say wine tastes better in crystal glasses than in plastic glasses," says lead author Aradhna Krishna, marketing professor at the University of Michigan. "Rationally, the feel of a container should not affect taste."

Microsoft Corp. on Wednesday took the wraps off Surface, a coffee-table-shaped computer that responds to touch and to special bar codes attached to everyday objects. The machines are set to arrive in November in T-Mobile USA stores and properties owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. and Harrah's Entertainment Inc. Surface is essentially a Windows Vista PC tucked inside a shiny black table base, topped with a 30-inch touchscreen in a clear acrylic frame.

Amy Adams has a smile that plays big, taking over her face, then the room, then everyone in it. It's as if the world is suddenly bathed in sunshine. That's why it's hard to imagine anyone else as the dipped-in-happiness princess of "Enchanted," a cartoon character come to life, who sings and sews her way into Patrick Dempsey's heart. But as wonderful as that super-saturated optimism can be, and as much as Hollywood suits and moviegoers alike prefer her in those roles, she is even more interesting to watch as someone who's been hurt, betrayed by life or circumstance or someone else.

The boy wasn't allowed to play tackle football. "My mom thought I was too small," he says. "She thought I'd get hurt." No matter how long or hard he complained -- they always fell into the same argument -- she refused to give in. So all the way through elementary school and into junior high, he played two-hand touch in the street, inventing games with his friends. One of his favorites, "Juke 'em," sent a lone player twisting and dodging, trying to steer clear of everyone else.

Night-life entrepreneurs routinely fixate on the details of their new clubs -- the lighting, the furniture, the vibe. But for the team behind new West Hollywood nightspot Voyeur, the details became something of an obsession. Take, for example, the uniforms worn by the club's cocktail waitresses. "We thought it would be cool to have them all dressed like Natalie Portman from the movie 'Closer,' " said David Koral, a partner behind Voyeur. Dressed, meaning mostly undressed. Not that bare skin would be anything new at the Voyeur space, 7969 Santa Monica Blvd.

Wednesday night at the Hollywood Palladium, in the first of three concerts there, the Pixies kicked off a U.S. tour commemorating the 20th anniversary of their 1989 college-rock classic "Doolittle." So what did the band open with? A string of obscure B-sides that even bassist Kim Deal admitted she had trouble remembering. Proudly noisy and unapologetically arty, the Pixies kept mainstream success at arm's length during their original run, which ended acrimoniously in 1993 after a stint opening arena shows for U2. Yet thanks in part to postmortem praise from the likes of Kurt Cobain (who famously called "Smells Like Teen Spirit" his attempt to replicate the Pixies' sound)

Former pro skateboarder Pierre André Senizergues, founder of the footwear and apparel company Etnies, has teamed with other sports firms and interior designers to redecorate 10 suites at La Casa del Camino hotel in Laguna Beach. Senizergues collaborated with interior designer Eve Lowey of Studio Chameleon on Room 207, which features a lounge chair made from skateboard decks and a headboard made from salvaged scraps of shoe fabric. "We incorporated materials, shapes and concepts inspired by a skateboarder's daily life and blended them with green elements," Senizergues says.

Spring accessories from a quartet of L.A. designers send you out the door in style.

About 90 elementary school students in Stevensville have started a series of rabies shots after a parent let them touch a dead bat that was later confirmed to be rabid. The mother of two students gave presentations last week in five classrooms and allowed the children to touch the dead bat. She offered each student who touched it a sanitary wipe. The students will receive six shots of anti-rabies vaccine, paid for by the school and its liability insurer. The cost could exceed $150,000.