Does technology hurt or help a long-distance relationship? That’s the very interesting question probed by writer Beth Teitell in the Boston Globe this morning. Though Skype dates, texting and even sexting put couples in almost constant contact with each other, some experts say they can also exacerbate problems like jealousy in unhealthy relationships.

Rarely do I read a review and then immediately want to buy the product being discussed. But that’s exactly what happened after reading David Pogue’s review of the new MiFi device released by Virgin Mobile this week in the New York Times. Not only is Virgin offering an unlimited plan with no contract, it’s only $40 a month. And even after some serious digging in the fine print, Pogue says he cannot find a catch.

A researcher at Northwestern University walks into a bar. Oh wait, no he didn’t—because he’s too busy spending the $712,883 he received in grant money to create joke-writing software. Yes, I’m serious. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the federally-funded project has had some conservative backlash—Sen. John McCain ranked it as 36 on his list of the 100 most wasteful stimulus projects.

He’s in no hurry. The New York Post opens their coverage of the trapped Chilean miners with this classic line: “Hey guys, take your time.” Apparently, the wife of one of the men trapped underground unearthed a secret while attending a vigil for her husband: his mistress. After hearing another woman call his name, the two compared notes and figured out, as the Post puts it, that they’d “both been shafted.”

According to the New York Daily News, the British are having a “snit fit” over some racy ads featuring a Princess Diana lookalike. The Chinese lingerie company behind the ads, Jealousy International, released a new line named ‘Diana’ to coincide with the anniversary of her 1997 death.

For James J. Lee, the world was divided into good and bad says the Washington Post. The gunman, who was killed yesterday after taking three people hostage at the Discovery Channel headquarters, held a longstanding grudge against the network for disseminating ideas he thought were “environmentally destructive.” In a self-published manifesto, Lee referenced the popular book, “My Ismael” which is about “a telepathic ape who tries to save humankind from problems such as overpopulation.” The Post called the book’s author, who said Lee misinterpreted his famous work.

LA and Portland have a long-standing disagreement about which city hired the first female police officer in the US; The LAPD says a woman was hired in 1910 and Portland says their first female hire was in 1909. But according to the Chicago Tribune, a three-year investigation by an amateur historian has found that it was in fact the Windy City that hired the country’s first female cop back in 1891.

I have to wear makeup when I’m on camera. But according to the New York Times, more and more men are turning to their wives’ makeup drawers in search of a quick way to correct their skin’s imperfections. In fact, makeup companies catering specifically to men have been posting huge rates of growth over the past year. Industry experts say men favor things like concealer and anti-shine products.

Your denim will fit better if you stop washing it. The Wall Street Journal interviews a brand director with Levi Strauss who says your jeans develop the shape of your body—until you wash them. Carl Chiara gives his jeans a complete washing only after 6 months.

I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to be a 911 operator. There’s a shining example of a job well done in today’s Oregonian. A man called the emergency line because he was stranded naked in a hot tub and wanted some towels so he could exit. Listen to the gracious dispatcher keep his calm even after the man says the only medical help he needs is “a hug and a warm cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows in it.”

Steve Jobs didn’t announce anything groundbreaking yesterday, says the San Francisco Chronicle, but he did unveil a series of improvements to existing products that “signaled a renewed push by Apple to compete in the living room and remain dominant in portable media players.” In addition, Jobs introduced Ping, a music-based social network that he described as “Facebook and Twitter meets iTunes.”

They are the new cocktail napkins. The Silly Bandz craze has hit the adult singles scene says the New York Daily News. Both women and men are using the colorful bracelets to spark conversations with strangers that, well, spark their interest. Adherents say it’s less pressure to hand over one than an actual phone number.

She really is a flower child. There’s a great photo in the New York Daily News this morning of a nine-week-old baby perched on a leaf. But this isn’t just any old leaf. Called the Victoria Amazonica, the plant takes two days to blossom and has a diameter of ten feet.