Galaxy

Galaxy Scientific Corp. has received hundreds of e-mails and calls since Sept. 11 inquiring about purchasing stock in the company. Unfortunately for investors, Galaxy is not a public corporation. The technology company, based in Atlantic County, is the first to have federal approval for a blast-proof cargo container, positioning it for lucrative contracts and government grants to satisfy what has emerged as a top demand since the hijackings - fortified cockpit doors. Founded in 1988 in Warminster, Bucks County, Galaxy has 400 employees in 11 offices around the country.

Jenny Watters takes her classmates where no second graders have gone before - an unknown planet in the galaxy. Jenny's project was part of the Benjamin Franklin Science Fair last week at the Shipley Lower School in Bryn Mawr.

Some of the distant objects that appear through the Hubble Space Telescope are so exotic and far-removed from Earthly experience that scientists struggle to find metaphors to describe them. Astronomer Francois Schweizer admits that the concept of a violent collision doesn't convey the bizarre phenomenon that created the colorful collection of stars known as the Antennae galaxy, pictured in vivid images from the telescope made public last week. The galaxy, he says, was probably born of the merging of two other galaxies, but with no explosions, no noise, and no flying debris.

A shrub shaped like an elephant attracted attention on the opening day of the Philadelphia Flower Show at the Philadelphia Civic Center yesterday. Some 200,000 visitors are expected during the eight-day run of the show, which this year has as its theme "Moments in Time - a Galaxy of Gardens. " Fifty-nine exhibitors and 700 amateur gardeners have displays on the center's six-acre floor in this 30th year.

Rex Rivolo is a mapmaker. But instead of sketching the boundaries of the Earth's continents and oceans, he is planning to map the entire Milky Way galaxy - the star system in which we live. Within the next six years, Rivolo hopes to create the first detailed map ever made of the galaxy. The multimillion-dollar project would show the nurseries where stars are born, reveal the galaxy's internal structure, and serve as a valuable navigational tool for the astronauts who someday will venture into the dark voids of space.

When it comes to youth travel soccer, Monroe Township has been a black hole. The Monroe Township Youth Soccer organization doesn't offer under-11 travel ball, forcing youngsters to stay in an in-house recreation league to sharpen foot skills. But some parents wanted players to be able to develop their skills against other top-notch teams in the area, so two years ago, Craig McDevitt and others formed the Galaxy, an independent squad that plays at an under-10 level and travels to meet other teams.

If the Catholic League baseball moguls were to present an award for Comeback Player of the Year, North Catholic's Javier Barreto would be the runaway winner. On Feb. 5, Barreto and Mastbaum Tech centerfielder Jose Dones were attacked while returning to their West Kensington homes after a Sixers game. The incident took place on a crowded subway car. Barreto and Dones, greatly outnumbered, tried to protect themselves as best they could after declining to hand over their money. Fists were all that wrecked Dones's evening.

D.C. United used a three-goal burst in the second half to beat the Tampa Bay Mutiny, 4-1, last night in the opener of a Major League Soccer playoff series. Washington broke a 1-1 halftime tie with goals by Steve Rammel in the 54th minute and Raul Diaz Arce in the 58th and 60th minutes. LOS ANGELES 2, KANSAS CITY 1 PASADENA, Calif. - Goals by Chris Armas and Greg Vanney boosted the Galaxy.

Crowds thronged the Philadelphia Flower Show at the Civic Center at 34th Street and Civic Center Boulevard yesterday to feast their eyes on the rainbow-hued blossoms and to inhale the perfume from their petals. "Moments in Time . . . a Galaxy of Gardens" is the theme of this year's show, which runs through Sunday. This year there are re-creations of gardens of ancient Rome, Shakespearean England and contemporary America, as well as new creations of Future Gardens, complete with neon.

A small Allentown software company is suing Hewlett-Packard Inc. for $100 million, alleging that the California company stole its trade secrets and software technology. Computer Aid Inc. filed the suit against Hewlett-Packard, one of the nation's largest technology firms, and two others in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia yesterday. Other defendants are AM Communications Inc., of Quakertown, and Sydney Fluck, former president of Calan Inc., a Wilkes-Barre company acquired by Hewlett-Packard in 1994.