Portions of today's programming are reproduced by means of electrical transcriptions or tape recordings

In what was clearly the most important piece of news to come out of CBS this week, the cast members of "Survivor: Palau" have been announced. This go-round, we're going to be treated to not the old standby of 16 castaways...no...not even the newer standard of 18 castaways...in fact we're going to be forced to endure 20, that's right, TWENTY cast members. Thankfully Mark Burnett promises that he's cutting them down fast and furious in the first episode.

Instead of the usual 16 castaways, Survivor: Palau will pit 20 would-be millionaires against one another. However, by the end of episode one, only 17 will remain.
"They're given very little instruction about what to do, and some of them are genuinely lost," Burnett told Variety. "Two people don't make it to the first challenge. That's how tough it is. It's very emotional."

It's also being reported that the average age of the castaways has dropped, with 11 under the age of 30. Of course, that is due to the necessity of eye candy on the beach.

There's also token eye-candy for all. Graduate student Kimberly Mullen, 25, represented Ohio in the 2002 Miss USA Pageant and has worked as a model. Waiter Bobby Jon Drinkard, 27, was voted Alabama's Most Eligible Bachelor in 2003 by Cosmopolitan magazine and is currently pursuing a modeling career. (Bring on the swimsuit shots.)

Finally, the quick rundown of all the new wanna-be millionaires:

- Coby Archa, 32, hairstylist from Athens, Texas
- Ashlee Ashbee, 22, student from Easley, South Carolina
- Gregg Carey, 28, business consultant from Chicago
- Bobby John Drinkard, 27, waiter from Santa Monica
- Katie Gallagher, 29, advertising exec from Merced, California
- Caryn Groedel, 46, civil rights attorney from Solon, Ohio
- Angie Jakusz, 24, bartender from New Orleans
- Jolanda Jones, 39, lawyer from Houston
- Stephenie LaGrossa, 25, pharmaceutical sales rep from Philadelphia
- Jonathan Libby, 23,works in sales and marketing in Dallas
- Jennifer Lyon, 32, nanny from Encino, California
- James Miller, 32, steel worker from Mobile, Alabama
- Kimberly Mullen, 25, grad student from Huber Heights, Ohio
- Ibreheim Rahman, 27, waiter from Birmingham, Alabama
- Ian Rosenberger, 23, dolphin trainer from Key Largo, Florida
- Wanda Shirk, 55, English teacher from Ulysses, Pennsylvania
- Willard Smith, 57, lawyer from Bellevue, Washington
- Janu Tornell, 39, Las Vegas showgirl
- Tom Westman, 41, firefighter from Sayville, New York
- Jeff Wilson, 21, personal trainer from Ventura, California

[I've taken the liberty of putting interesting professions in bold. Three lawyers, a showgirl and a dolphin trainer...seems like there should be a joke in there somewhere.]

All quotations from "Survivor: Palau" Cast Revealed