(Page 2 of 3)

The Grooviest Lamp on Earth: Paris has the Eiffel Tower, New York has the Empire State Building — and Soap Lake, Wash., may soon have the world's largest lava lamp — a 60-foot, psychedelic blast.

Tourists once flocked to local mineral baths. If only Soap Lake could capture some of the business from nearby Grand Coulee Dam, which draws 1.5 million visitors a year.

Now, civic leaders foresee the proposed giant lamp with an observation deck, where tourists can lunch and meditate over the lamp's oozing red goo.

"We're going to ask Paul Allen for help," says Brent Blake, a local architect who proposed the project, inspired by the molten rock that flowed through Soap Lake 14 million years ago.

Allen, a co-founder of Microsoft Corp., is involved in many charitable efforts in Washington state, but has yet to comment on the lava lamp initiative, which won't come cheap.

"To do this, we have to build a giant glass vessel and nobody knows exactly how much that'll cost. It's never been attempted," Brent says. "That's what makes this totally unique, and it's getting people talking all over the world."

Calling All Cars, Wal-Mart's Got a Sale: The old police motto, "To protect and serve," may soon be, "To protect and sell." Police departments in more than 20 states are experimenting with programs to plaster squad cars with commercial ads — just like race cars.

Omaha City Councilman Gary Gernandt says a police cruiser could yield $26,000 in annual advertising revenue. The Nebraska city, looking for breathing room in its budget, is one of the largest towns considering cop ads.

"There'd obviously be restrictions," said advertising executive Ken Allison of Government Acquisitions. "We wouldn't allow ads for tobacco, alcohol, gambling."

Still, that leaves open a lot of possibilities: Your next speeding ticket might be brought to you by Dunkin' Donuts. Buy Your Way Into Prison: It's way more fun to drink in bars than be behind them. But Soon, in Valpariaso, Ind., you can do both.