In a recent article entitled "Checking Up On Your Spring Break Reveler," the New York Times (always ahead of the curve) describes spring break thus:

Spring break can be a stressful time for parents of college students. Not surprisingly, students on spring break outings with friends dramatically increase their alcohol consumption, the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs reported this fall. Last year, the medical journal Chronobiology International published a study tracking patterns of sexually transmitted disease. Among the trends they found were prominent peaks in March and May. The authors speculated these increases could be associated with the sexual activities of young adults during spring break, which commences as early as late February and concludes as late as mid-April.

What's that you say? College students are getting wasted and being promiscuous whilst gallivanting around the tropics? Have they no shame?!

But it gets worse for these irresponsible undergraduates, according to the Times, because now their parental units might be watching in real-time as their precious Lit majors engage in assorted acts of deviousness and debauchery. That's thanks to Earthcam, a free site dedicated to 24-hour live-broadcasting of popular spring break destinations on the web.

I know what you're thinking: "So, in other words, 'Girls Gone Wild' is now available via free live feeds?" Well, not exactly. Says the Times, "The scenes they show are largely uneventful, and the images are transmitted in a choppy, time-lapse format. From time to time rain, ocean mist or nightfall dims the view." So I guess spring break isn't ruined after all--thankfully, since doing whatever it is we've all done on spring break is precisely what prevents people from becoming president 30 years down the line. Oh wait, no it's not!

Don't forget to check out our guide to partying like it's spring break without leaving the Isle of Manhattan.

(Photo borrowed from BreakNow.com)