THE LEFT LANE
'Star Trek' DVDs out

Besides the shows, the first season set will feature four documentaries, including one examining efforts to create a new series to expand the world of the original "Star Trek" TV show and movies. Documentaries feature interviews with "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry, "Next Generation" stars Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes and other cast members.

On the Internet: startrek.com

She's "not a girl and not yet a woman," but Britney Spears is a Fun Fearless Female — according to Cosmopolitan magazine, which chose the 20-year-old singer to top its annual list of awe-inspiring women and appear on its February cover. "Britney Spears exemplifies that a woman can be sexy, smart and powerful all at once," says editor in chief Kate White.

Other honorees include actresses Christina Ricci, Alicia Silverstone and Jill Hennessy, newscaster Ashleigh Banfield, singers Beyonce Knowles and Nelly Furtado, model Niki Taylor, and Malika Oufkir, who wrote the memoir "Stolen Lives: Twenty Years in a Desert Jail."

Get started in media

An increasing number of creative Hawai'i residents are emerging in films and TV, from both sides of the bright lights, so it's prudent for wannabes to search for available training.

A Pacific New Media brochure, available by calling 956-7221 or on the Web (www.outreach.hawaii.edu/pnm), lists a number of choices in a variety of disciplines, from writing for film and television to fund-raising for film and video projects, from DVD production "hows" to strategies for e-commerce success, led by practitioners here and from abroad.

Besides workshops and classes, the brochure lists a number of free talks by experts throughout the year.