Carrot cake might not be a standout if it wasn’t for the cream cheese frosting that graces its top and separates its layers. The more layers a carrot cake has, the more surfaces you can decorate with frosting. Read more...

PHILADELPHIA, PA “”mdash; The West Coast was well represented at the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s restrospective exhibition marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Salvador Dalí, the Spanish surrealist known for his iconic painting of melting clocks. Read more...

Like the mind-altering combination of characters and the resulting allure of perverse normality should, Eric Bogosian’s new novel leaves you satisfied and wanting more. The playwright will read from his newest novel, “Wasted Beauty,” at the UCLA Hammer Museum as part of its Readings series on May 15 at 5 p.m. Read more...

Few things make you feel more out of place than being smack in the middle of a music scene you just don’t belong in. Such was the case last Friday, when I found myself in an auditorium of high schoolers moshing like possessed animals to heavy metal. Read more...

State budget cuts over the past two years have affected nearly every inch of the UCLA campus in some way or another. But these cuts have hit the university’s performing arts departments especially hard and, in turn, have forced department chairs to devise innovative ways to raise additional funds and support for their programs, especially for student and faculty concerts. Read more...

They flew out all the way from Florida. Ten hours, two layovers and one crappy on-flight bag of peanuts later, a conservatively dressed middle-aged housewife and her balding husband had arrived at their final destination: a live taping of “America Idol.” OK, I know I wrote about “American Idol” in my last column, but I can’t help it; I’m obsessed. Read more...

The statistics are accessible to anyone these days. Numerous female college students will be victims of completed or attempted rape during the academic year. Up to nine out of 10 offenders will be known to the victims, usually boyfriends, ex-boyfriends, classmates, friends, acquaintances or co-workers. Read more...