This week, I’d like to flag three items of interest to the young professional.

1. The A$$hole Rating Self Exam (ARSE). I rarely ever use foul language, so please forgive me for the title of this self-exam, which answers the question, “Are You a Certified A$$hole?” The 24-question self-exam is the creation of Bob Sutton, a Stanford University professor who is author of the book The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t. If you have a colleague who’s difficult to get along with (an a$$hole, in Sutton’s parlance), then this book may be for you. It teaches you how to deal with employees who have toxic personalities. Or if you yourself happen to be the jerk at work (and you can diagnose yourself with the self-exam), this book has plenty of advice to help you self-correct.

2. PowerPoint Contest. There are Web sites for sharing photos. There are also Web sites for sharing music. Then there are Web sites for sharing videos. And I just discovered there is a Web site for sharing all your wonderful, and not-so-wonderful, PowerPoint presentations! (If I’m the last person discover this, please forgive me, yet again.) SlideShare, a presentation-sharing start-up, is hosting the World’s Best Presentation Contest. From now through April 23, you can dust off and upload any PowerPoint presentation of yours (the subject matter is irrelevant) to enter the contest. A panel of top presentation gurus will judge the entries, and winners will receive some cool prizes.

3. BusinessWeek’s sexist body language slideshow. BusinessWeek recently had a pretty decent article about good body language. Most young professionals know good body language is crucial for effective presentations and successful interviews. But then the magazine shot itself in the foot with its accompanying slideshow of body language tips.

On Slide 7 (of 11), the advice reads, “The winning technique: Using complex hand gestures.” Then it has a photo of a man giving the “A-OK” hand signal by making a circle out of his thumb and index finger. In some parts of the world, especially in some South American countries, this sign can be mistaken for an obscene hand gesture. Given that we live in a globalized world, maybe the slideshow should have reminded us about cultural differences in body language.

And then there are slides 10 and 11. A supposedly professional woman is revealing her cleavage by wearing a shirt with a plunging neckline. And this is in a slideshow about body language and non-verbal communication? Thank you, BusinessWeek, for edifying us on what women need to do to be taken seriously.