Contents for July 9-22, 1999

• In her earliest years Vanessa Jennings sorted beads the size of pinheads for her grandmother, who sewed hundreds of thousands of them into ornate cradles. One of a dwindling number of bead artists who still make the cradles, Jennings recently repaired some of the historic treasures of her nation in preparation for their exhibition in December.

• OFF HOURS: John J. Stein, neuroscientist and bicycle racer

• Paul Phillips, the conductor of the Brown University Orchestera, is leading the quest to draw more attention to the music written by Anthony Burgess, better known for writing such novels as "A Clockwork Orange."

• The Deaf Literacy Program, housed at the Swearer Center, teaches reading skills sign by sign.

• Discover the Koetting Ethnomusicology Archive, a music menagerie that spans the globe.