THE GOPHER ATE IT

Animal activists are protesting AT&T's use of gophers. Live gophers, that is, not the electronic ones. AT&T has been conducting experiments in which gophers are forced to gnaw on cables for days at a time. The company says this is necessary to find a way to keep gophers from chewing up cables in the wild. In response to suggestions that the company use mechanical simulations instead, company chairman Robert E. Allen said, "Sometimes, replication of the real thing is the only way to find out."