How does the biggest teen-brother band in America since Hanson fend off the screaming girls? With purity rings, of course.

-By Jeff Gordinier
-Photograph by Jason Fulford

Discuss the pop stars' purity in the comment section.

Image credit: Photograph by Jason Fulford

On a quiet Friday morning in a dressing room at Madison Square Garden, the Jonas Brothers hold out their hands to show off their purity rings. Kevin, Joe, and Nick Jonas—the teen-pop trio who stand, at this very moment, on the brink of hugeness—wear the metal bands on their fingers to symbolize, as Joe puts it, "promises to ourselves and to God that we'll stay pure till marriage." Joe is 18. His ring is silver and adorned with a cross. "It actually ripped apart a little bit, just on the bottom, here, but I didn't want to get a new one, because this one means so much to me," he says. Nick, who is 15, says, "I got mine made at Disney World. It's pretty awesome." Kevin, at 20, is the oldest of the three, and while a punk-rock purity ring from Tiffany might represent the ultimate oxymoron, that's exactly what he's going for. His silver vow of abstinence is covered with studs. "It's pretty rock and roll," Kevin says. "It's getting banged up a little bit because of the guitar."

There's a very good chance she isn't as happy with her sex life as you think.

-By Mac Montandon
-Photograph by Christian Webber

Are you past your prime or just getting warmed up? Talk about it in the comment section.

Photograph by Christian Webber

Among the universe's cruel ironies—pretty much anything having to do with puberty, say, or the career arc of Michael Bay—this has to be near the top of the heap: Women typically hit their sexual stride in their mid-thirties, just as many guys the same age are pulling up lame with the equivalent of a sex-drive charley horse.

Okay, the sprinting metaphor is a bit much, but you get the idea. Guys experience a huge surge of testosterone during adolescence, but by their late twenties, that jolt is already on the wane. A few years later, women are finally ready to join the party.

Does it get any crueler?

And this situation may be more acute than ever.