The winners and the losers

• Winner: True sportsmen would call it an abomination. But for the rest of us, an effort by scientists to train fish to swim into a net at the sound of a tone — in effect, catching themselves — sounds pretty good. The effort, reported this week by The Associated Press out of Massachusetts, is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Scientists hope to train the fish to respond to the sound of a tone.
All of this has a serious side. Fish farms could save a lot of money by releasing their fish into the ocean, then having them return, well-fed and developed, at the sound of a bell. Of course, we assume they would follow anyone willing to strike the right note.

• Loser: Just when you thought you had heard it all, someone posted a classified ad on KUTV.com recently in hopes of selling a baby girl. The asking price was $6,560, and the child was listed as "used." The ad was removed after police got involved, but they still are looking for the person behind it. Perhaps it was a joke. That still would be disturbing, but it also would be a relief.

• Winner: A recent audit discovered that the city of La Verkin, in Washington County, has a $200,000 deficit. Because of that, the mayor and the City Council have decided to go unpaid until the books once again are balanced.

That's a noble gesture — one we wish the folks in Washington would adopt.