Paul Alien

Last week, as the Gates Foundation announced a $40 million gift to help area homeless people, Paul Allen announced an $11.5 million donation to help look for extraterrestrial aliens. Construction begins immediately on the Allen Telescope Array, a high-powered telescope named after the former Microsoft co-founder. The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute boasted that the telescope will be "the world's most powerful instrument, designed to seek out signals from civilizations elsewhere in our galaxy." PAT KEARNEY


Weekly Turnover

Seattle Weekly Editor in Chief Knute Berger gave notice last week. His announcement, which came the same week that a new publisher started working at the paper, will make him the seventh bigwig to leave the Weekly since it was sold last January. In addition to Berger, the Weekly's publisher, controller, executive assistant, ad director, classified manager, and promotions person have also signed off this year. Berger, who was the long-time Eastside Week editor before doing his three-year stint as Seattle Weekly's editor, is said to be leaving because of health reasons. He'll be staying at the Weekly another two months while the paper does a national and local search to replace him.

The Weekly is part of a seven-paper chain starring New York's famous Village Voice. An $18 billion investment management firm called Weiss, Peck & Greer, L.L.C. bought the chain from Stern Publishing for an estimated $150 to $200 million eight months ago.

The paper's brand-new publisher, Alisa Cromer--most recently the publisher at Florida's Orlando Weekly--says Berger did a great job as editor, and called the Seattle Weekly "a newspaper in transition." JOSH FEIT


Return of the Living
Napster

Don't worry, Napster junkies, if the recording industry gets their way and shuts Napster down, there are still plenty of places to get free digital music. Check out napigator.com, gnutella.wego.com, angrycoffee.com, scour.net, imesh.com, fileswap.com, carracho.com, gigabeat.com, cutemx.com, and junglemonkey.net. PAT KEARNEY