Others say that women realize, and bemoan, the fact that the psychic payoff in reaching lifelong goals may be less than was advertised.

FORBES: Career Women And The New Definition Of Success

While the number of these proposals reaching proxy ballots is low, or less than five per year since 2005, shareholder support is relatively strong.

FORBES: Women On Boards: Moving From 'Why' To 'How'

The way Houran sees it, reaching stardom now has less to do with who has the best skills or ability than who has the best marketer or promoter.

FORBES: College Majors Of The Stars

The advent of cyberspace is less likely to destroy the university than to offer it novel ways of reaching out to more students at lower cost.

ECONOMIST: A cardinal in cyberspace

Even small domestic investors have been getting in on the market moves, with trading value from individual buyers reaching a six-year high in February and accounting for 30% of average daily volume, up from less than 20% last October, according to broker Reorient Group, which cited data from the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

WSJ: Investors Grab Japanese Shares