LIFE STYLE
ALL THUMBS
Man’s opposable thumb has survived millions of years of active use during which it has figured prominently in the development of complex tools (many of which are very sharp), helped hitchhikers travel around the world (sometimes on below-freezing nights), and battled in countless thumb wars (defying defeat with dexterous gyrations). But our sturdiest digit may have finally met its match: texting.

The toll on thumbs from texts has escalated as American teenagers sent an average of 80 texts daily last year, according to the Nielsen Company, double the previous year’s average. Physicians are starting to take notice, since the same type of repetitive use causes problems for computer users. This stress on the thumbs could lead to musculoskeletal disorders and temporary or even permanent damage, noted Peter W. Johnson, associate professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at the University of Washington in Seattle in the New York Times. However, thumbs may not even be texting’s greatest casualty, as psychologists fear its effect on adolescent development. “Among the jobs of adolescence are to separate from your parents and to find the peace and quiet to become the person you decide you want to be,” said Sherry Turkle, director of the Initiative on Technology and Self at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge in the New York Times. According to Turkle, texting compromises both these jobs, as that constant ring, ding, or vibrating is death to peace, quiet, and pondering the future. And the quick access texting gives to a parent’s opinion can prevent teens from breaking away to become autonomous adults. Psychologists also believe texting can lead to sleep deprivation and feelings of overexposure and anxiety. Hmmmm. . . . physical pain, repetitive stress injury, anxiety, and sleep deprivation. Many adults give over- texting a thumbs down.

CITIZEN SCIENTISTS
Approximately 1.8 million species populate the Earth, and researchers want to compile information on every one of them in the free Internet-based Encyclopedia of Life (EOL), which launched in February with 30,000 species covered. Started in 2007, this $100- million, 10-year project is creating an online portrait of life by amassing animal, insect, and plant databases. Dubbed a “macroscope,” the encyclopedia aims to expand our understanding of everything from aging and disease to agriculture and extinction. Unlike Wikipedia, content on the site will be vetted by professional scientists and dedicated naturalists. But in the manner of the collaborative Website, EOL plans to evolve organically with contributions from around the world and at every level of interest, including birders noting their sightings of rare species, hikers providing the date and locale of flowers first blooming in the spring, and shutterbugs uploading their favorite shots of animals in the wild. The project is led by the U.S. Field Museum, Harvard University, Marine Biological Laboratory, Missouri Botanical Garden, Smithsonian Institution, and the Biodiversity Heritage Library, including London's Natural History Museum, the Royal Botanic Garden in Kew, and the New York Botanical Garden. To post a photograph or contribute as a curator—or just to find out more about anchovies, mushrooms, grasshoppers, or kangaroos—go to www.eol.org.

Who knows how significant your scientific contribution might be? Naturalists at Mohonk Mountain House, a 6,500-acre preserve in New Paltz, NY, have recorded first flowerings and animal migrations since the late 1800s. Those observations have been used to study how animals and plants have modified their habits or cycles due to climate change. Worldwide observations of a similar nature could result in economic, health, and environmental benefits. So whether you’re a budding outdoors enthusiast or a lifelong camper, consider elevating your next hike into a scientific endeavor—by collecting raw data for the Encyclopedia of Life.

If you’re looking for something more nuanced than the standard everything-must-explode blockbuster movie this summer, try one of these summer-stock offerings from across the country. Onstage, the possibilities are endless.

THE ARTS
Atlanta
At the Georgia Shakespeare Festival, along with Macbeth, Bottom, and Titus, you’ll find Homer Simpson declaiming the Bard’s poetic lines. MacHomer (August 26 to 30) is a solo show created and performed by Rick Miller, in which he impersonates the Simpsons to enact all the roles in Macbeth. The festival’s more traditional offerings include A Midsummer Night’s Dream (through July 31), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (through August 1), and Titus Andronicus (July 9 to August 2). (404-264-0020, www.gashakespeare.org)

Chicago
For a look at new plays, along with readings, lectures, and other events, visit the Steppenwolf Theater Company for the Fifth Annual First Look Repertory of New Work (July 22 to August 9). Or see Up (through August 23), about a man trying to recapture the excitement of flying on a lawn chair attached to balloons. (312-335-1650, www.steppenwolf.org)

Connecticut
The annual National Playwrights Conference has scheduled developmental readings of seven plays at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center (through August 8) in Waterford. The lineup includes The Language Archive by Julia Cho (The Piano Teacher) and The Color of Desire by Nilo Cruz (Anna in the Tropics). The National Musical Theater Conference offers a musical adaptation of Tales of the City (July 4 to 11), based on the novels of Armistead Maupin and featuring music and lyrics by Jason Sellards, a founding member of Scissor Sisters (860-443-1238, www .theoneill.org). For Rent fans, Jonathan Larson’s Tick, Tick…Boom! is playing this month (through July 18) at the Westport Country Playhouse. Fans of British humor may prefer Alan Ayckbourn’s comedy How the Other Half Loves (July 28 to August 15). (203-227-4177, www.westportplayhouse.org)

Massachusetts
Taking on the roles of Sam Shepard’s messed-up brothers in True West, Nate Corddry (United States of Tara) and Paul Sparks (Rachel Getting Married) appear July 15 to 26 at the Williamstown Theater Festival (413-597-3400, www .wtfestival.org). At the Cape Playhouse in Dennis, America’s oldest professional summer theater, opt for Sleuth (July 9 to August 1), Forever Plaid (July 20 to August 1), or Smokey Joe’s Café (August 3 to 15). (877-385-3911, www.capeplayhouse.com)

New York City
The Lincoln Center Festival (July 7 to 26) is an annual presentation of international theater. This year’s roster features Ariane Mnouchkine’s Théâtre du Soleil in Les Éphémères, a two-part piece about the passage of time and all the minuscule moments that make up a human life. (212-721-6500, www.lincolncenter.org)

San Diego
At the La Jolla Playhouse, Restoration (June 23 to July 19), starring and written by Claudia Shear (Dirty Blonde and Blown Sideways through Life), focuses on a woman restoring Michelangelo’s David for its 500th anniversary (858-550-1010, www.lajollaplayhouse.org). The Old Globe premieres the musical First Wives Club (July 15 to August 25), based on the novel by Olivia Goldsmith. (619-234-5623, www.theoldglobe.org)

Washington, DC
Downtown Washington will be taken over July 9 to 26 by more than 100 performing arts groups representing a diverse mix of theater, dance, clowning, and mime during the Capital Fringe Festival. Productions include Count Dracula’s Café, Bad Hamlet, and Bag Lady (866-811-4111, www.capfringe.org). For musical theater, see the Kennedy Center stagings of The Color Purple (through August 9) or Spring Awakening (July 7 to August 2). (202-467-4600, www.kennedy-center.org)
-Andrew Matthius