Becky Zimmerman, age 15, of New Bedford, Mass., for her     question:

WHO WAS KING TANTALUS?

King Tantalus was a great ruler in Greek mythology. All of the gods honored him above all others and he was the only human ever allowed to taste the drink and food of the gods.

But Tantalus was a wicked man. He had his own son Pelops killed and boiled, and then served at a dinner party ha gave for the gods. But the gods knew everything and would not touch the revolting meal.

The gods decided that Tantalus must be punished and they condemned him to stand forever in a pool in Hades, the underground home of the dead.

Each time Tantalus stooped to drink from the pool, the water would turn into solid earth. And each time he reached for luscious fruit from the nearby trees, pears, apples, pomegranates and figs would pull away beyond his reach.

The gods brought Pelops back to life. And Tantalus is still suffering.

Our word "tantalize" comes from this myth.