Let’s hop right in:

*More coverage of the new University of Minnesota research on gastric-bypass surgery and how it could help treat type-II diabetes. Here’s a report from CBS 4…in Florida (Had ya thinking WCCO there for a second, huh? Well, they have local coverage too.)

*Also from the health world, and also from WCCO, here’s a Good Question segment discussing the famed "five-second rule." Francisco Diez, an assistant professor of food safety microbiology at the University, tells Jason DeRusha that food can pick up bacteria as soon as it hits the floor. Clemson University even did research on the subject in 2007. Ok, so Good Questions aren’t the hardest-hitting news pieces out there, but I know I’m not alone with my fascination over the five-second rule.

*Lastly, here’s a story from the Star Tribune on how Thursday’s state budget forecast could be the worst in Minnesota history. Budget watchers are expecting a deficit in the $4 billion to $5 billion range for the two-year cycle ending in June 2011. Of course, with the University relying heavily on state funding, this will have a profound impact on campus. The down economy is truly a nationwide problem and if you have any solutions, you might well win a Nobel Prize.

Here’s hoping your debt isn’t quite as bad as Minnesota’s. Mike Rose Managing editor