France's sports teachers are feeling outraged by the manner in which the national football team qualified for next year's World Cup.
The sports teachers' main union said Thursday in a statement that Raymond Domenech's team advanced to the tournament following "indisputable cheating."
France secured a 1-1 draw with a controversial goal in extra time and …
Helicopters equipped with "night sun" lights and heat-seekingdevices to locate suspects will be dispatched to Chicago to bolstersecurity during the Democratic convention, state officials saidTuesday.
Together, the OH-58 helicopter provided by the Illinois NationalGuard and the Air One helicopter and four fixed-wing aircraftsupplied by the Illinois State Police offer the "potential forround-the-clock air surveillance" during the Aug. 26-29 convention,said Chicago Police Department spokesman Paul Jenkins.
The State Police also will provide a formidable groundcontingent. State troopers will escort President Clinton and VicePresident Al Gore and act as bodyguards …
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Tim Tebow is once again making Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers seem like an afterthought.
It's not hard to see why.
Tebow and the Denver Broncos are hot. Rivers and the Bolts are not. Tebow has the Broncos (5-5) winning and in second place in the AFC West, even if his play is unconventional by NFL standards. The Chargers (4-6) have bumbled their way to five straight defeats — their longest losing streak since the start of the 2003 season — and a last-place tie with Kansas City.
Sunday's matchup between original AFL teams will be big. With livid Chargers fans howling for coach Norv Turner and general manager A.J. Smith to get the heave-ho from …
The word went out early Monday morning to Miami Heat fans. Show up at 8 a.m. and welcome Dwyane Wade back to South Florida, they were told.
So they did.
Right time. Wrong location.
Wade arrived back in Miami, but instead of flying on a private jet into a charter facility _ as the Heat marketing department expected _ he took a commercial flight from Charleston, S.C., into one of the airport's main terminals. So about 50 Heat fans, as well as a handful of team employees, left without a glimpse of Wade, who is expected to decide his playing future in the coming days.
Later, Wade was seen walking into the Heat's arena with owner Micky …
* Hanson Chapel will hold special services to dedicate the newchurch steeple at 7 p.m. today.
* The JoyBeams will sing at 3 p.m. Sunday on WSCW Radio, at 7p.m. Sunday at Summit Ridge Community Church in Lincoln County, at7:30 p.m. Thursday at Jordan Mound Church and at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 8at Atkinson Memorial Church off Frame Road.
* Canaan Baptist Church, 1919 Bigley Ave., will have specialwelcome services at 10 a.m. Sunday for the church's new pastor,Brother James Warden, and his family. Morning worship begins at 11a.m. with special singing by the choir, trio and soloist.
* Gospel soloist Jim Edens will sing at 11 a.m. Sunday atChasmere Baptist Church, …
There's nothing better than putting aside a Sunday afternoon for holiday baking. Every family has their traditional favorite, whether it's gingerbread men, pumpkin pie or poppyseed cookies. But did you know that some of the same spices used in holiday cooking also have medicinal properties? Granted, it usually takes a lot more than a half teaspoon of the spice to have any effect, and eating cookies isn't the way to treat what's ailing you, but here's a look at what some of these favorite holiday flavors have to offer.
Cinnamon: (Cinnamomum verum) The spice used for culinary purposes is from the dried bark of the laurel tree. The medicinal parts, however, are the oils, extracted …
The Philadelphia Phillies have reached a preliminary agreement with outfielder Raul Ibanez on a $31.5 million, three-year contract.
Ibanez will receive a $2 million signing bonus, payable this year, a $6.5 million salary next season and $11.5 million each in 2010 and 2011.
The agreement is subject to Ibanez passing a physical, two people familiar with negotiations said Friday, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the contract was not yet finalized.
The 36-year-old, who …
Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet arrived in the area -then a swamp, now a national historic site - in 1673 while portagingtheir canoe toward Lake Michigan.
Today Lyons, located 12 miles southwest of the Loop, has littleroom for expanison.
"In recent years, there have been some small, single-lotprojects and a few multifamily developments," said George Kucharchuk,a village inspector. "But we're not really a high-growth community."
Lyons is experiencing slow but stable commercial growth. …
NEW YORK - The title of the new "Indiana Jones" movie, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Harrison Ford, has been revealed.
"Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" will be in theaters May 22, 2008.
The title of the long-awaited fourth installment of the adventure series was announced by Shia LaBeouf, who co-stars with Ford in the film, at the MTV Video Music Awards in Las Vegas on Sunday.
The new Indy adventure, which is set in the 1950s, also stars Cate Blanchett, Ray Winstone, John Hurt, Jim Broadbent and Karen Allen.
Sean Connery, who played dad to Ford's globe-trotting archaeologist in 1989's "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," …
A weak auction of Treasury notes is putting the pressure on both stocks and bonds.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 70 points Wednesday after the government sold $19 billion in 10-year Treasury notes. The government had to lure buyers with a higher yield than the market anticipated.
The 10-year note's yield, which is closely tied to interest rates on mortgages and other consumer loans, jumped to 3.99 percent, …
RABAT, Morocco (AP) — New clashes erupted in the Western Sahara between Moroccan security forces and local people seeking independence for the vast, resource-rich desert region, activists said.
People in the regional capital used rocks and sticks in street battles with Moroccan police conducting house-to-house searches on Tuesday, said Brahim Ahmed, an activist for the native Saharawi people.
"Every now and then you hear something, screams and everything," he said.
Violence exploded Monday after Moroccan forces using tear-gas and high-pressure water cannons tore down a tent camp set up by some 20,000 Saharawi outside of the territory's main city, Laayoune, to protest …
The provocative and moving new play "Grace" takes the ceaseless global struggle of faith versus reason to the domestic front. Mick Gordon and AC Grayling's work, now being presented by MCC Theater at off-Broadway's Lucille Lortel Theatre, pitches it as a battle between mother and son.
Grace Friedman, played with unflinching bravado by Lynn Redgrave, is a university professor and famous atheist. She is so committed to her ideals that she rejects the atheist description, saying it is a religious term. Redgrave is a serious, commanding presence with her cropped silver hair, conservative long sweater and black pants (costumes are by Alejo Vietti).
"The word itself gives credence to the idea it is pretending to criticize," she says. "It's pernicious. Atheist is not a description, it's advertising. I am a naturalist."
So, it naturally follows that Grace is completely appalled when her lawyer son, Tom (Oscar Isaac), announces that he's decided to become an Episcopalian priest. She is convinced that she's done something terribly wrong, and appeals for help to her secular Jewish husband, Tony (Philip Goodwin).
Goodwin is extraordinarily affecting in this role _ he is sweet-tempered and calm in the face of his wife's belligerence and his son's insistence. He tries to introduce reason and bring a bit of humor to the situation. Tony tells Grace to look on the bright side: No one is going to take a priest named Friedman seriously.
She is resolute in her disapproval and disappointment, though _ especially when Tom tells her that he has doubt and that "it's fine to be thinking, moderate, self-critical and religious." Isaac is very believable as the slightly naive son who is just as firm in his convictions as his mother. He is preaching better religion as an alternative to zealotry _ he believes it's possible to be enlightened and be religious.
For Grace, it's one or the other; she is as fundamentalist on this point as the groups she criticizes. "You can't have it both ways," she says. "It's faith or reason _ you have to choose." Her rigid philosophy drives Tom away, and after he is killed in a terrorist bombing, the relationship can never be repaired.
Tom's pregnant girlfriend, Ruth, thoughtfully and compassionately portrayed by K.K. Moggie, was never quite sure about his ambitions for the priesthood but she does know what kind of funeral he would have wanted, and when Grace opposes even this, she passionately demonstrates the consequences of her actions.
Director Joseph Hardy smoothly articulates the action as it leaps from past to present. An economical set by Tobin Ost consists of four main set pieces _ chaise lounge, kitchen table, park bench and "God Helmet" lab.
This last location frames the play: Grace has been invited to Canada to participate in an experiment where she'll wear a helmet implanted with electrodes that will attempt to identify the brain's electric pulses associated with mystical feelings. During this induced epiphany _ this mixture of spirituality and science _ Grace finds a modicum of salvation.
Insurer Allianz Cornhill is expanding its Bristol claims centre.
The centre has moved to Bridge House, Baldwin Street, and willdouble in size following a reassessment of its company claimssystems.
It will mean the company runs seven claims centres na tionwide.
Each centre will specialise in certain types of claims. TheBristol site will concentrate on motor insurance, employers'liability and public liability claims.
The new offices, in Baldwin Street, will house 63 people followinga doubling in size of the depar tment.
Many of the new staff have come from other insurers who havescaled back in the city.
The move follows a review of Allianz Cornhill's claims divisionthat has resulted in the setting up of dedicated call centres,handling specific claims.
The Bristol centre, which opened this week, is one of only sevenclaims centres run by the company following its restructuring.
Allianz Cornhill has its headquarters in Guildford but it employsmore than 400 people in its Bristol offices.
As an assignment for a peace studies course at Canadian Mennonite Bible College, student Jan Braun of Osler, Saskatchewan, analyzed Mennonite responses to the 1990 Gulf War. The following is her response to the findings.
August 2, 1990 was the day many people thought they were seeing a Hitler-like beast rear his ugly head in the form of Saddam Hussein and his invasion of Kuwait. Many people, including the Canadian government, saw military action as the only option.
Through researching responses in the Mennonite Reporter (Sept. 1990 to April 1991), it's clear that General Conference and Mennonite Church members did not take the same view as the U.S. and Canadian governments.
The Mennonite responses showed leadership and an ability not to take sides on the issue. Seeing that both sides had valid concerns, the first thing that needed to be done was to put away weapons of war. Mennonites lifted their voices and real action was taken.
Sharon Welch in A Feminist Ethic of Risk, says that one of the main problems in western society is what she calls an "all or nothing ethic." A prevailing attitude is that if complete change can not be effected, no attempt should be made at any amount of change.
In contrast, I see Mennonites as having a mentality of patience which reduces the frustration of accomplishing only small goals. My hope is that we can maintain this mentality, not matter how discouraging. Can we be a community in which small victories can be celebrated, despite the fact that we cannot stop daily bloodshed from occurring all over the world?
We can look to the model of Jesus. I believe it was not merely chance or missed opportunity that Jesus did not lead Jewish.Zealots in an armed rebellion against the oppressive Roman government; he chose not to. I believe that it was not chance or missed opportunity that Jesus didn't call down myriads of angels to eradicate the Romans; he chose not to.
Perhaps some think the Mennonite message of nonviolence and resistance/pacifism is already done to death, but I wish to support it at every opportunity because we have the model of Christ who made conscious, daily choices. This has real consequences for US.
We also have the model of our ancestors. Menno Wiebe once said in a lecture I attended, "If you say the same thing that your ancestors said, then you are not saying the same thing." It is imporant to find a way of marrying the past with the present. We are in a different position than our ancestors and can afford to practise nonviolent resistance without fearing immediate persecution.
I find it important also to remember that following Christ is a radical undertaking. To me, this means that we can no longer simply be pacifists but must be practising peace in the form of nonviolent resistance so that we do not say the same thing our ancestors said.
My hope is that a balance can be found between concentrating on peace within our own communities and in the global community where we are called to peacemakers.
CRAWFORD, Texas--President Bush has made no secret of hispreference for life on the ranch, but he has decided to return toWashington a few days early from his vacation.
Bush has been here since Aug. 4. He had tentatively planned to goback Labor Day, Sept. 3.
Instead, Bush will return to the White House Aug. 31, spokesmanAri Fleischer said Friday. The president is likely to maintain thelow profile he has kept this month, either at the White House or atCamp David, the spokesman said.
Bush plans to take a Labor Day trip, but Fleischer did notdisclose his destination.
The president plans to fly to several cities in the next two weeksto promote various initiatives.
LONDON - A Briton released by Pakistan after more than a year in custody was arrested shortly after his plane landed Friday at London's Heathrow Airport, police said.
A handcuffed Rangzieb Ahmed was pulled off the plane by armed police who boarded it as soon as its doors opened.
Manchester police, who made the arrest, said Ahmed was being held under Britain's terrorism laws.
Ahmed was arrested Aug. 25, 2006, in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province for alleged links with al-Qaida. A U.S. human rights group said he had been tortured in custody.
Pakistani officials did not charge him, and a review board headed by Supreme Court Justice Faqir Muhammad Khokhar ordered his release Aug. 31, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said.
"The fact is that during one year of detention, the Pakistanis, the British and the U.S. have been unable to unearth a shred of evidence against this person," said Ali Dayan Hasan, South Asia researcher for Human Rights Watch.
Ahmed said he was interrogated several times by U.S. law enforcement personnel from unidentified agencies and by British security services, but he denied wrongdoing and involvement with al-Qaida, Human Rights Watch said.
Ali said he did not know why Ahmed had been detained. Pakistan held Ahmed under its security powers and was not obliged to specify on what charges he was held, Ali said.
Manchester police said Ahmed was 32, while Pakistani officials said he was 30.
Ahmed, who was born in the northern England city of Manchester, traveled to Pakistan last year to visit relatives, said his brother, Mohammed Pervaiz.
Pervaiz said Ahmed was tortured in Pakistani custody and was told by a prosecutor in court that the government had "secret evidence" against him. British officials were not allowed to see Ahmed because Pakistan claimed he held joint Pakistani citizenship, he said.
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Associated Press Writer Alisa Tang in Islamabad, Pakistan, contributed to this report.
All track athletes have been waiting anxiously for the outdoorseason to start. For Micah VanDenend, that wait is just going to be alittle longer.
"People tell me I should be [patient]," the Glenbard South seniorsaid. "But I'm not."
VanDenend won the Class AA state cross-country championship andled the Raiders to the team title in November, after an injury-plagued junior year. He carried the momentum from the fall into theoffseason, until he developed pain in his left leg in late February.
I had a great winter, got a lot of miles in for a base, and thenthis happened," he said.
Doctors were uncertain whether the pain was a strained patellartendon or slightly torn calf muscle, but after three weeks of rest,VanDen-end was feeling better by mid-March and is still easing hisway back into training. He expected to be running hard again bytoday.
VanDenend had wanted to run at the Top Times meet Saturday, butGlenbard South coach Andy Preuss nixed that idea. As it is, he onlyexpects VanDenend to run in five or six outdoor meets this spring,given his history. A stress fracture in his right fibula sidelinedhim for most of his junior year. Preuss and VanDenend have targetedthe Raider Invitational April 19 at Glenbard South for his return.
"I love to race," VanDenend said. "But I know it's important tostay healthy."
VanDenend will get his chance to run soon enough; he wants todouble in the 3,200 and 1,600 at state. He qualified for both as asophomore, but pulled out of the 1,600 in prelims. As a junior, hefinished ninth in the 1,600.
VanDenend remains undecided on where he will run in college. Hehas taken visits to Iowa, Missouri, North Carolina State andWisconsin and has a visit upcoming to Illinois.
FINISHING TOUCH: Morgan Park figures to be the team to beat in thePublic League again this year. After winning the indoor championship,the Mustangs learned something at Top Times. In first place nearingthe finish of the 4x400 relay, Jean Middleton, running the anchor legfor Morgan Park, had the baton knocked out of his hand as he crossedthe finish line.
Middleton dove back across the line to get it, and wasdisqualified on the grounds that he interfered with the otherrunners. He and coach Lexie Spurlock both were upset, but Spurlock istaking it in stride now.
"As long as my team ran the best time. ..." he said. "We didn'tget the medal, but we know we won. From now on, we're going to makesure we're so far out in front, that can't happen."
TRIPOLI, Libya - Libya on Tuesday dropped death sentences against five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of infecting hundreds of children with HIV, commuting their punishments to life in prison, the foreign minister said.
The ruling came after families of the children each received $1 million, according to a victims' advocate, and agreed to drop their demand for the execution of the six, who deny having infected more than 400 children and say their confessions were extracted under torture.
Libya remains under intense international pressure to free the medical workers, and Foreign Minister Abdel-Rahman Shalqam said Tripoli was willing to consider the medics' deportation to Bulgaria. He said the negotiations would take place within "the legal framework and political context" between the two countries.
"In return (for a transfer), improving the conditions of the infected children and their families should be taken into account," he told The Associated Press.
Bulgaria's chief prosecutor, Kamen Mihov, said requests would be made Wednesday to have the medics leave Libya shortly. They have been jailed since 1999.
But the medics' main Libyan defense lawyer, Osman al-Bizant, told the Al-Jazeera television network that their deportation would depend on "whether there is the possibility of carrying out the punishment there (in Bulgaria)."
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ivailo Kalfin called the Supreme Judiciary Council's ruling "a huge step in the right direction." Asked whether it was possible the medics would be pardoned after returning home, Kalfin said: "All judicial options are real."
Libya's Supreme Court upheld the six medics' death sentences last week, but Shalqam said the country's Supreme Judiciary Council decided Tuesday to commute the sentences to life in prison. The council is a government body that can overrule the court.
"Issuing this decision automatically closes the legal case against them," Shalqam told the AP.
Speaking to journalists after the ruling, Kalfin said the case would only be closed for Bulgaria when "our citizens return to their homeland."
Experts and outside scientific reports have said the children were contaminated as a result of unhygienic conditions at a hospital in the northeastern coastal city of Benghazi. Fifty of the infected children died.
The United States and European Union welcomed the move by the Libyan judicial council, which could remove an obstacle toward rebuilding ties with Moammar Gadhafi's regime.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the U.S. was "encouraged" by the decision. "We urge the Libyan government to now find a way to allow the medics to return home," he added.
"The fact that (Libya's) High Judicial Council did not uphold the death sentence is a first relief," said a joint statement by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner.
"However, our objective is a solution which allows for the departure of the Bulgarian and Palestinian medical personnel from Libya and their transfer to the EU as soon as possible."
The husband of jailed nurse Kristiana Valcheva said he was relieved by the council's ruling.
"Thank God the death sentences were dropped," Zdravko Georgiev said in a radio interview from Tripoli. "But I cannot make any forecast how long the upcoming procedures will last."
Idriss Lagha, head of the Libyan-based Association for the Families of HIV-Infected Children, said the families had dropped their demand for the medics to be executed after each received the compensation money they were due under a settlement reached last week.
"All the families have received their cash transfer, $1 million for each infection," Lagha told AP late Tuesday.
Officials here have said the families' acceptance of a compensation settlement was key to resolving the deadlock and would allow the death sentences to be withdrawn. Gadhafi's son, Seif al Islam, had told a French newspaper that $400 million in compensation would be paid to the families and would be financed in the form of debt remission.
The younger Gadhafi, who heads the group working to resolve the standoff, told Le Figaro newspaper that the countries involved were Bulgaria, Slovakia, Croatia and the Czech Republic.
But government officials from Bulgaria and other nations reportedly involved in the deal have all denied they were sending cash to the families.
Bulgaria has said it would not pay compensation because it would imply the medics were guilty, but the country's foreign minister acknowledged Tuesday his country was considering participating in an international fund for humanitarian aid to Libya.
"Since other European countries are involved in the international fund for humanitarian aid, it would be strange if Bulgaria was not interested," Ivailo Kalfin told Bulgarian National radio. "We will consider some form of participation."
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Associated Press writers Veselin Toshkov in Sofia, Bulgaria, Maggie Michael in Cairo, Egypt and Anne Gearan in Washington contributed to this report.
Anti-government protesters have vowed to avenge those killed and injured in clashes this week with the police.
Soldiers helped maintain an uneasy calm Thursday in Bangkok, two days after two people died and more than 400 were injured when police attempted to break up protests that degenerated into Thailand's worst political violence in more than a decade.
While each side accused the other of using excess force, many pointed to the grievous wounds suffered by several demonstrators, including four who lost parts of their legs, as evidence that the police used heavy weapons. Police said they only used tear gas, and said they believed some demonstrators were hurt by explosives they themselves were carrying.
Protesters rallied in their stronghold at the compound of the prime minister's office, which they have occupied since Aug. 26.
"We will not negotiate with a man who has blood on his hands," said key protest leader Sondhi Limthongkul to loud applause. "I ask our brothers and sisters to be strong and turn your sorrow into anger so we can have our revenge!"
The protesters from the People's Alliance for Democracy say Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat is a pawn of ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in 2006 by military leaders who accused him of corruption. He now lives in exile. Somchai is his brother-in-law.
The alliance wants sweeping changes to Thailand's electoral system to prevent what they call corrupt politicians from exploiting the rural majority to take power.
Though police insisted they used only tear gas in Tuesday's clashes, Associated Press reporters said stun grenades were also employed.
Protesters claimed their gathering early Tuesday aimed at blockading Parliament was peaceful, but many had brandished iron rods, slingshots, firecrackers and bottles to attack police. An AP Television News reporter saw at least three carrying guns, and witnessed two of them firing at police. Three police officers were shot and one was stabbed with a flagpole.
Almost a dozen doctors at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn Hospital said they would refuse to treat policemen because of their actions Tuesday, and urged colleagues to join them. But the hospital's director said all patients would be treated.
A pilot on a domestic flight of Thai Airways International, the national carrier, refused to allow lawmakers from Somchai's ruling People's Power Party onto his flight.
The airline later suspended the pilot from duty, The Nation newspaper reported on its Web site.
The People's Alliance for Democracy claims Thailand's rural majority _ who gave strong election victories to Thaksin and his allies _ is susceptible to vote buying and too poorly educated to responsibly choose their representatives.
The group wants the country to abandon one-man, one-vote democracy and instead adopt a mixed system in which some representatives are chosen by certain professions and social groups. They have not explained how exactly such a system would work or what would make it less susceptible to manipulation.
Total money market mutual fund assets fell by $36.22 billion to $3.090 trillion for the week, the Investment Company Institute said Thursday.
Assets of the nation's retail money market mutual funds fell by $9.87 billion in the latest week to $1.034 trillion.
Assets of taxable money market funds in the retail category fell by $8.07 billion to $808.65 billion for the week ended Wednesday, the Washington-based mutual fund trade group said. Retail tax-exempt fund assets fell by $1.8 billion to $225.11 billion.
Assets of institutional money market funds fell by $26.35 billion to $2.057 trillion for the same period. Among institutional funds, taxable money market fund assets fell by $23.1 billion to $1.909 trillion; assets of institutional tax-exempt funds fell by $3.25 billion to $148.26 billion.
The seven-day average yield on money market mutual funds was 0.02 percent in the week ended Tuesday, unchanged from the previous week, said Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet Inc. in Westboro, Mass. The 30-day average yield was also flat at 0.02 percent, according to Money Fund Report.
The seven-day compounded yield and the 30-day compounded yield were both unchanged at 0.02 percent, Money Fund Report said.
The average maturity of the portfolios held by money funds was 48 days, unchanged from the previous week, said Money Fund.
The online service Bankrate.com said its survey of 100 leading commercial banks, savings and loan associations and savings banks in the nation's 10 largest markets showed the annual percentage yield available on money market accounts was 0.23 percent as of Wednesday, unchanged from the week earlier.
The North Palm Beach, Fla.-based unit of Bankrate Inc. said the annual percentage yield available on interest-bearing checking accounts was flat at 0.14 percent.
Bankrate.com said the annual percentage yield was 0.45 percent on six-month certificates of deposit, down from 0.46 percent the previous week. Yields were 0.73 percent on 1-year CDs, down from 0.74 percent; 1.12 percent on 2 1/2-year CDs, down from 1.15 percent; and 2.12 percent on 5-year CDs, down from 2.13 percent.
I'm shocked. Sincerely shocked. Last week I wrote that I was certain this edition's Mail section would include a few choice words for me from readers angry about the removal of movie times from BWs editorial content. So far, not one complaint. Delayed reaction, maybe? Guess we'll see next week.
The big news this week is in the center of this edition. Your quarterly Flicks calendar, which is the center four pages of this issue, is essential over the holidays. Just think how many hours of annoying conversation with your in-laws you could dodge with a family trip to the movies. That's right, we're always looking out for you.
Also in the center of this week's issue is a guide to Boise Weekly's annual Cover Art Auction. Most of you know the drill: Every week BW puts the work of a local artist on the cover, we pay them $150 for it, they donate the artwork to our annual auction, and every November we auction off the last year's lot to fund grants for artists and arts organizations. To date we've raised nearly $100,000 for the arts community this way, and this is the year to put us over that mark.
Wednesday, Nov. 17, is the big event. Doors open at the Idaho State Historical Museum at 5 p.m., and the auction starts promptly at 6 p.m. Peruse the insert in this week's issue to find a few things you think you can stare at on your walls every day. Then head down to the museum any time between now and the auction to check out those pieces in person because trust me, many of them look much different off the page.
Another BW party you don't want to miss is Tuesday, Dec. 7, when we host our BW Card members appreciation party. If you're a BW Card member, join us again at Idaho Botanical Garden for a night of free drinks and food from member restaurants, plus some time to roam Winter Garden Aglow. Card holders can also get deals on cards as gifts that night. If you're not already a card member but want to be, contact BW Office Manager Shea Sutton at 208-344-2055.
- Rachael Daigle
LUMBERTON, N.C. - Robeson County investigators continue to searchfor clues in the drive-by shooting death of an 11-year-old girl whileher family hopes prison officials will allow her mother to return tosee her laid to rest.
Nicole Deanna Oxendine, a fourth-grader, was killed Monday as sheslept in her sister's mobile home about 11:35 p.m. while visiting forthe holidays.
Investigators say at least four shots were fired into the homefrom a 1995 white Ford Taurus spotted leaving the scene. One struckNicole in the head. No one else in the home was injured.
"We are following up leads that we have, but right now we have nonew information," said Sgt. Donnie Britt of the Robeson CountySheriff's Department.
Investigators were waiting Thursday for an autopsy report toverify the type of weapon used in the shooting.
Nicole is scheduled to be buried Saturday at a family cemetery inLumberton. But it remains unclear whether her mother, CharleneOxendine will be allowed to attend.
Oxendine is serving time on a drug charge at West Virginia'sfederal Alderson Prison Camp. As of late Wednesday, prison officialshad made no arrangements for her to travel home for the funeral.
Her brother, Mickey Locklear, said that a prison counselor hadtold him that because of security concerns, it would not be inOxendine's best interest to travel home for her daughter's services.
Locklear said the counselor was not specific about the concerns.
Dawn Zobel, executive assistant of the prison, would not saywhether Oxendine would be released.
Traci Billingsley, a spokeswoman for the federal Bureau of Prisonsin Washington, said decisions on whether to furlough inmates forfunerals and other family emergencies are made by wardens at theindividual prisons.
The bureau's official policy, posted on its Web site, says that afurlough is justified "to be present during a crisis in the immediatefamily, or in other urgent situations... . Immediate family includesmother, father, step-parents, foster parents, brothers and sisters,spouse, and children."
Efforts to reach Oxendine, 43, in prison were unsuccessful. Shewas been in federal prison since 2001, when she was convicted ofdistributing cocaine and sentenced to five years.
She was furloughed for three days in November, when her fatherdied.
Her brother said he picked her up from the prison, drove her homefor the visitation and services and took her back.
Locklear said the family is frustrated by the prison's apparentrefusal to release his sister and that in telephone conversations,she has been distraught over her inability to attend the funeral.
"She's blaming herself for this, that she's locked up when sheneeds to be home," he said. "Yes, she done something she shouldn'thave done. But she's paying for that. They ought to let her out forthe funeral. It's really silly."
Norway plans to build a 5.2 billion-kroner ($812 million) research center for developing technology to capture carbon dioxide from burned fossil fuels as a way of combating global warming, the oil minister announced Friday.
"This is a milestone in developing technology for CO2 capture," said Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terje Riis-Johansen. "It is a difficult project, but it is crucial that we succeed because handling CO2 is a critical tool in fighting global warming."
The plan was presented as a proposal seeking parliament's approval to invest in the center. However, the center-left coalition government controls a majority in parliament, making that approval appear to be a formality.
The research center is to be opened at the Mongstad oil refinery and natural gas power plant in western Norway to develop systems for capturing carbon dioxide from gas burned at the site. A statement said the center would be operational in about 2 1/2 years, and that details would be settled by late 2009.
The Norwegian state will own 80 percent and the state-controlled oil company StatoilHydro ASA will have 20 percent, although additional partners can also buy into the government's stake.
Norway is a major exporter of oil and natural gas, and had been actively seeking ways to reduce its own climate-damaging emissions. The statement said Norway also hopes that technology developed at Mongstad can help reduce emissions in other countries.
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On the Net:
WASHINGTON - After decades of failed efforts to reshape thenation's health-care system, a consensus appears to be emerging inWashington about how to achieve the elusive goal of providingmedical insurance to all Americans.
The answer, say leading groups of businesses, hospitals, doctors,labor unions and insurance companies - as well as senior lawmakerson Capitol Hill and members of the new Obama administration - isunprecedented government intervention to create a system ofuniversal protection.
At the same time, those groups, which span the ideological andpolitical spectrum, largely have agreed to preserve the employer-based system through which most Americans get their healthinsurance.
The idea of a federal, single-payer system patterned on those inEurope and Canada, long a dream of the political left, is nowvirtually off the table.
Rejected as well is the traditionally conservative concept,championed by Sen. John McCain during the presidential campaign, ofreforming health care mainly by giving incentives for more Americansto buy insurance on their own.
There also is a widespread understanding that any expansion ofcoverage must be accompanied by aggressive efforts to bring downcosts and reward quality care. And key players in the health-caredebate increasingly back a massive investment of taxpayer money forhealthcare reform despite the burgeoning budget deficits.
Beyond those areas of basic agreement, the details of what wouldbe one of the most momentous changes in domestic policy since WorldWar II remain vague.
As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama embraced both expandedinsurance coverage and preservation of the job-centered system, butsince he won the White House he has provided few specifics about hisplans once he takes office.
Disagreements over specifics could again lead to a stalemate.Even the most sanguine advocates of sweeping reform concede thatdifficult negotiations lie ahead.
But what is taking shape is a debate very different from previousdiscussions about what America's health-care system should looklike.
"A lot has changed," said Karen Ignagni, president of America'sHealth Insurance Plans, or AHIP, a leading trade group whose membershelped kill the Clinton administration's healthcare campaign in theearly 1990s.
AHIP is participating in talks with other interest groups tobuild consensus before Obama takes office in January and Congressbegins debating any healthcare legislation.
Among the issues to be decided as more concrete proposals emergein the months ahead is whether the roughly 46 million uninsuredpeople in the U.S. will be pushed to buy private coverage or will beenrolled in a government insurance program, as some consumer groupswant.
Hospitals and doctors fear another public program would reducewhat they are paid, as Medicare and Medicaid have done. Insurersworry they could lose customers to the government.
Also unresolved is what mechanisms might be created to forceindividuals or businesses to get insurance, both potentiallycontentious subjects.
And few have tackled how the government will control costs andset standards of care, proposals that raise the unpopular prospectof federal regulators dictating which doctors Americans can see andwhat drugs they can take.
Republican lawmakers, still reeling from their election daylosses, have signaled discomfort with a major expansion ofgovernment spending, a position many in the GOP hope will helpreturn the party to power.
Nonetheless, the current agreement on principles contrastsmarkedly with previous reform efforts. Today, many of the keyplayers in the debate see the importance of preserving elements ofthe current health-care system that many Americans say they like.
"There is a growing understanding that you have to give peoplechoice and you can't take away what they have," said Ron Pollack,head of Families USA, an influential advocacy group for health-careconsumers that is working with a diverse collection of interestgroups to build consensus. "One of the big no-no's is that you mustnot ever threaten the coverage that people have."
Fifteen years ago, there was much less agreement about preservingan employment-based system that now insures about 177 millionpeople.
Opponents of President Clinton's plan were able to sink it byraising the specter that government would take away consumers'choices in a new system that would force them into inferior healthinsurance.
But now the prospect of bold government action to address thehealth-care crisis appears to have been accepted far more broadly bymany of those involved in the debate.
MONZA, Italy (AP) — Sebastian Vettel won the Italian Grand Prix from pole position Sunday, fighting off an audacious challenge from defending champion Fernando Alonso that thrilled Ferrari's home crowd.
Vettel's eighth victory of the year gives the Red Bull driver an opportunity to clinch his second Formula One title in the next race in Singapore later this month.
"It has been an incredible year so far, having progressed so much as a team we've got ourselves in a very good position," Vettel said.
Vettel became the youngest race winner in F1 history at Monza in 2008 at the age of 21 with Toro Rosso but his fourth-place finish last year was Red Bull's best result in six attempts at the track — until now.
The memories of the 2008 win made Vettel grow teary-eyed during the victory ceremony, as thousands of red-clad Ferrari fans rushed below.
"It was very emotional — seeing all those people down there cheering and running," Vettel said. "It means a lot to me and when I crossed the line I remembered every single moment. ... The last two years we had a great car — but not here.
"This (race) is the best podium — the only thing that could be better would be wearing a red suit," the German added, revealing a desire to race for Ferrari some day.
The key points in the race came early on, with Alonso making a risky move to take the lead on the opening straight after starting in fourth position on the grid.
Alonso put one tire of his Ferrari on the grass to get around McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and then beat Vettel to the first chicane.
Vettel wasn't about to stay second, however, and went around Alonso on the outside of the sweeping Curva Grande in the fifth lap, cruising to victory from there.
McLaren's Jenson Button eventually passed Alonso to finish second and Alonso was third at the checkered flag.
"We didn't have good starts the last few races but we knew that here in Monza that if the car is in a good position there is enough space in the run to the first corner to overtake people," Alonso said. "But obviously we were not competitive enough to fight for victory, so we fought for the podium. It was a fantastic race."
Hamilton finished fourth, five-time Monza champion Michael Schumacher of Mercedes was fifth and Ferrari's Felipe Massa crossed sixth.
Bruno Senna of Renault — nephew of the late Brazilian F1 great Ayrton Senna — finished ninth for his first points in F1.
Vettel clocked 1 hour, 20 minute, 46.172 seconds for the 53-lap race, with Button crossing 9.590 seconds behind and Alonso 16.909 back.
It was the 18th victory of Vettel's career and second at Monza. He leads the drivers' standings by 112 points, with teammate Mark Webber — who crashed out — now tied for third with Button, 117 points back.
"It's over when it's over — not before. Last year is proof that you don't know until the last lap of the last race," Vettel said, referring to how he overtook Alonso for last year's title in the final race of the season.
Vettel's eight wins is the third highest season total behind only Schumacher and Nigel Mansell. Mansell won nine races in 1992 while Schumacher registered three seasons with nine wins, one year with 11 and established the record of 13 victories in 2004.
With average speeds of 250 kph (155 mph) and top speeds of 340 kph (211 mph), Monza is the fastest circuit on the calendar, and drivers got optimal use out of their drag reduction systems (DRS) — adjustable rear wings — and the KERS power boosts, creating a race filled with overtaking.
But, as is so often the case, the race began with chaos.
Further back on the starting grid, Vitantonio Liuzzi slid his HRT across the grass and into Vitaly Petrov's Renault and Nico Rosberg's Mercedes at the first chicane, bringing out the safety car and ending the race for all three drivers.
Red Bull's Mark Webber then attempted to pass Massa on the sixth lap and made contact. Massa emerged seemingly unscathed but Webber lost his front nose and crashed later in the lap to end his race.
Hamilton and Schumacher traded places twice in a tight battle for third, with Hamilton eventually remaining in front, but the British driver then made an error that allowed Button to surge past, as Schumacher dropped back after his first pit stop.
Button passed Alonso with 16 laps to go and the Spaniard held off a pressing Hamilton on the final lap.
"It was close. Probably one or two more laps and he would have had the podium," Alonso said of Hamilton.
Added Button: "Fighting with Lewis, Michael and Fernando, it was a really good race. But not for the lead, which was a shame, but it was a lot of fun."
Alonso got Ferrari's only win this year at the British GP in July, and with the home team struggling attendance in Monza appeared slightly down from past years.
The Ferrari fans who came to the track north of Milan posted banners offering encouragement, with many saying "We'll always be with you."
Alonso bowed to the crowd during the podium celebration and received a warm applause from the fans — more affectionately known as "tifosi."
The race was held in clear and warm conditions, with the track temperature soaring to 43 degrees Celsius (110 F).
Daniel Ricciardo of HRC, Jerome D'Ambrosio of Virgin and Adrian Sutil of Force India had their races cut short, each with apparent technical problems.
WASHINGTON (AP) Pan American World Airways agreed yesterday topay nearly $2 million in penalties for safety violations uncovered bygovernment inspectors earlier this year.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the agency and Pan Amsettled on the fine after Pan Am reorganized and strengthened itsmaintenance operation, where most of the violations wereconcentrated.
FAA Administrator Donald Engen said Pan Am has taken promptaction to correct the deficiencies, including expanding itsmaintenance force by about 200 people. He said the airline isoperating safely.
Pan Am spokesman James Arey said about half the fine already hasbeen paid.
The FAA earlier this month notified Pan Am that it would seek$3.9 million in fines because of violations of federal air safetyregulations found during a two-month inspection that began last March10.
But, according to FAA officials, the fine was reduced to $1.95million after Pan Am representatives produced new informationconcerning the nature of some violations and the circumstancessurrounding them.
"We did not renegotiate the fine," said FAA spokesman BobBuckhorn. "The airline came in and provided us with added informationthat led us to re-evaluate the fine."
According to FAA officials, the inspectors who examined Pan Am'soperations last spring found hundreds of safety violations, most ofthem in the way Pan Am was conducting its maintenance and internalinspection programs.
Among the violations, according to agency inspectors, were thatPan Am: Operated planes that were not considered airworthy. For example, aBoeing 747 was flown 18 times although an aileron, a part on the wingsurface that provides lateral control, was out of alignment. Installed aircraft parts that had gone beyond their approved servicelife. In one case, a plane was flown 37 times after a landing gearshould have been overhauled. Operated aircraft with parts that needed repair and made somerepairs without using approved technical information.
The inspectors also found the airline did not make inspectionswithin required time limits and failed to keep adequate maintenancerecords or an accurate list of people authorized to performmaintenance.
Engen said that after the inspection was concluded May 9, theairline quickly moved to improve its maintenance operation and thatthe agency "is assured the airline continues to operate in a safemanner."
The settlement with Pan Am produced one of the largest finesever paid in connection with federal safety violations by a majorairline.
Last year, American Airlines agreed to pay $1.5 million inconnection with maintenance discrepancies found during a similarin-depth inspection.
Both figures, however, are dwarfed by the contested enforcementaction the FAA still has under way against Eastern Airlines. The FAAhas demanded that Eastern pay $9.5 million because of thousands ofsafety violations, mostly involving maintenance and record-keepingirregularities.
Eastern has argued that the fine is excessive and has refused topay.
ARE Shelley Moore Capito's chances for re-election helped, or arethey hurt, by the presence of her father at her campaign rallies?This is a question many ask, but not out loud.
I presume there was a strategy meeting and that Arch Moorevolunteered to make himself inconspicuous. But apparently it wasdetermined that a daughter's loyalty to her father would outweighother factors.
I tend to agree. Who among us would reject a father in similarcircumstances?
* n n
It has been informally established that while Democrats usuallyare undone by sex, Republicans are seduced by money.
An outstanding exception is provided by the late Wally Barron,faithful …
Arizona wide receiver Anquan Boldin was carted off the field after a scary helmet-to-helmet collision in the end zone with 27 seconds remaining in the Cardinals' 56-35 loss to the New York Jets on Sunday.
Coach Ken Whisenhunt said Boldin was alert and was moving his extremities. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in New York for what Whisenhunt said were precautionary reasons.
Boldin tried to catch a pass from Kurt Warner, but was hit in the back and then took a shot to his helmet from Eric Smith. Both Boldin and Smith fell to the turf, and Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald immediately waved to the sideline for help.
Trainers ran out to check …
Byline: MEL HUNTER
STRETCHED out on a bed and hooked up to a giant syringe, public relations guru Max Clifford proves liposuction is no longer the preserve of well-heeled women.
These days, the fat removal procedure is the most common form of plastic surgery and is fast becoming accessible to everyone.
With a price tag similar to an exotic holiday, more Britons are opting for the op - and increasing numbers are men. Plastic surgeon Alex Karidis, one of the first British doctors to pioneer power-assisted liposuction, treats 175 patients with the new method every year.
Forty per cent are male and come from all walks of life, ranging from actors to taxi drivers.
Health Zone joined top spin doctor Max as he underwent his op. The public relations man, who made Pamella Bordes and Antonia de Sancha household names, booked in to have two lipomas - fist-sized pouches of fat cells - removed from his back and shoulder.
Max, 58, decided to take action after five years of living with the lipomas.
According to surgeon Mr Karidis, lipomas are a common problem. Some people have up to 10 of the benign fatty lumps on their body and, in most cases, they cause few problems. But when the lumps appeared Max was alarmed, fearing they could be cancerous tumours. "I had them checked straight away," he says. "You can't take a chance with things like that. I can't stress that enough."
Max, married to wife Liz for 34 years, was soon given the all-clear and decided to have the lumps removed only when they started to become visible through his clothes.
Although they were not painful or harmful, the half-grapefruit- sized swellings were starting to …
Health Zone: Liposuction: Liposuction.. not just for the ladies; When PR boss Max Clifford found a large growth on his shoulder, he was told there was only one way to get rid of it.. liposuction1.(Features)Byline: MEL HUNTER
STRETCHED out on a bed and hooked up to a giant syringe, public relations guru Max Clifford proves liposuction is no longer the preserve of well-heeled women.
These days, the fat removal procedure is the most common form of plastic surgery and is fast becoming accessible to everyone.
With a price tag similar to an exotic holiday, more Britons are opting for the op - and increasing numbers are men. Plastic surgeon Alex Karidis, one of the first British doctors to pioneer power-assisted liposuction, treats 175 patients with the new method every year.
Forty per cent are male and come from all walks of life, ranging from actors to taxi drivers.
Health Zone joined top spin doctor Max as he underwent his op. The public relations man, who made Pamella Bordes and Antonia de Sancha household names, booked in to have two lipomas - fist-sized pouches of fat cells - removed from his back and shoulder.
Max, 58, decided to take action after five years of living with the lipomas.
According to surgeon Mr Karidis, lipomas are a common problem. Some people have up to 10 of the benign fatty lumps on their body and, in most cases, they cause few problems. But when the lumps appeared Max was alarmed, fearing they could be cancerous tumours. "I had them checked straight away," he says. "You can't take a chance with things like that. I can't stress that enough."
Max, married to wife Liz for 34 years, was soon given the all-clear and decided to have the lumps removed only when they started to become visible through his clothes.
Although they were not painful or harmful, the half-grapefruit- sized swellings were starting to …
The Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) announced its approval of "BioTuf compostable bags from Heritage, which has targeted yard waste programs and food waste diversion markets. The BPI approval continues to expand the number of compostable …
America Online rolled out AOL 5.0 last week, incorporating the capacity to deliver a video-rich version of the service to broadband subscribers.
That feature, AOL Plus, detects when the PC user has a high-speed connection. It then automatically launches a window, or "multimedia tower," enabling display of video, audio and games that otherwise would be inaccessible.
You've Got Pictures, an online photo feature developed with Kodak, and My Calendar, a personalized calendar, are among the other new features in 5.0. The new AOL also provides an enhanced search function and is able to transmit e-mail to, and use the calendar on, non-PC devices, such as 3Com's …
Byline: Aranee Jaiimsin
May 8--Karat Faucet Co, the fourth largest faucet maker in Thailand, plans to list on the Market for Alternative Investment (MAI) by the third quarter to raise between 50 million and 60 million baht.
Chief executive Akapong Nitayanont said the initial public offering (IPO) proceeds would be used to improve assembly lines and purchase new machines.
The company has no plans to expand production capacity from 400 tonnes per year for the moment, said Mr Akapong.
Nonetheless, the exact schedule for the IPO depends on the market situation, he added.
Pinnacle Advisory is serving as the financial adviser for Karat …
Byline: Tim O'Brien Staff writer
To boost an effort to build a Christopher Columbus monument, one of the state's most prominent Italian-Americans, Matilda Cuomo, lent her support Thursday.
The city's chapter of the Sons of Italy hopes to build the monument at the intersection of King and Jacob streets next year.
The design features a ship's prow facing west, as did Columbus' ships, and a map of the world measuring 32 feet in diameter showing the explorer's route to America.
Plans for the $220,000 monument were unveiled in November, but the appearance of Cuomo was meant to put wind into the project's sails.
"This is the kickoff of …
Defending champion Venus Williams scraped through a tight first set and then pulled away for a 7-6 (5), 6-1 victory over British teenager Naomi Cavaday to begin her bid for a fifth Wimbledon title.
As reigning champion, Williams was up first on "Ladies Day" on Centre Court as the All England Club enjoyed a second spell of dry, sunny weather on a day that also featured wins by Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova and an upset loss by Nikolay Davydenko.
It took a while for the seventh-seeded Williams, playing her first grass-court match of the season, to find her game and take command against a 19-year-old wild card entry playing only her third career Grand …
As a new school term gets underway, the youngest members of the family are heading off to the library to find the pick of the new crop of books.
And Macmillan Children's Books have some new and exciting titles for pre-school children who want to discover the fun of reading.
There are plenty of giggles to be found in Rebecca Patterson's fresh, funny and entertaining book Not on a School Night! (hardback, [pounds sterling]10.99) which features bedtime high jinks with a pair of boisterous brothers.
It's a perfect read-aloud story for little ones aged two and over who will enjoy the antics of the boys who should be brushing their teeth, snuggling down in bed, …
Baku, 18 June (AzerTAc) - President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan today at the President Palace received the delegation led by Nicolae Vacaroiu, President of the Romanian Senate. President Aliyev noted existence of good relations between Azerbaijan and Romania, expressing pleasure with the current inter-state links. He appraised the current visit as an example of the bilateral …
Byline: BOB GARDINIER Staff writer
A committee has crafted a new town sign ordinance that will ban flashing, fluttering and spinning gadgets, limit the amount of window glass that can be covered and require temporary sign boards be fixed to the ground.
Last September the Town Board moved to crack down on the glowing glare and proliferation of advertising signs and banners along its main business routes, particularly Main Avenue in Wynantskill.
But Michael Miner, the town's building code enforcer, told elected officials then that if they wanted him to crack down on violators of the old sign ordinance, he would have to ticket every business in town. …
Byline: Scripps Howard
House Democratic Leader Richard A. Gephardt
Born: Jan. 31, 1941, St. Louis
Education: B.A. Northwestern University, J.D. University of Michigan
Occupation: Lawyer
Religion: Baptist
Family: Wife, Jane Ann Byrnes; three children
Political career: St. Louis Board of Aldermen, 1971-76; U.S. House, 1976- present; chairman, House Democratic Caucus, 1984-88; 1988 Democratic presidential candidate.
Scarred by a year of scandals, House Democrats look to Majority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri to be the Eagle Scout he was and still resembles.
Having survived the scrutiny of a …
A prominent hard-line cleric has warned Iran's president that his legitimacy will be undermined if he continues to defy the supreme leader's order to dismiss his top deputy.
Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami told worshippers during Friday prayers that the underlying foundation of Iran's Islamic system is the acceptance of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's …
Intercorporate management fees have often been used as a tax planning strategy to shift income within a corporate group. Strictly from a tax perspective, one of the principal purposes for using management fees within a corporate group is to minimize the tax exposure of one company within the group when other companies in the group suffer losses.
Although it has been the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency's (CCRA) stated administrative policy to not challenge the reasonability of salaries and bonuses paid to shareholder employees of a corporation, the Agency is not prepared to extend this policy to intercorporate management fees. This is particularly the case when these management …
Peek inside the offices of Middleberg Euro RSCG, and you'll see 160 employees working the phones, surfing the Internet, preparing for client presentations as well as adhering to the time-honored tradition of taking clients to lunch.
But if you pay close attention, you'll soon realize that it's the Middleberg public relations professionals who are grilling the client, not the other way around. Because, increasingly, it's the PR people who are calling the shots for clients when they're choosing an advertising agency or meeting with Wall Street rainmakers.
"PR has changed fundamentally, forever and for the better," says CEO Don Middleberg, who last year sold his agency, Middleberg & Associates, specialists in communications for Internet companies, to Euro RSCG Worldwide. "To which I say hallelujah, our time has come."
Public relations, says Mr. Middleberg, is no longer the backwater refuge for journalists who couldn't cut it in the media or creatives who dropped out of advertising. The era of digital communications and the hype and buzz surrounding high-tech and dot-com companies have ushered public relations into the limelight -- so much so, the industry believes it can never again be considered the Rodney Dangerfield of marketing communications.
VALIDATION
"What all of this dot-com PR stuff has done is validate PR as a very important and vital part of the marketing mix," says Toni Lee, who has handled corporate communications for ad agencies, including Grey Advertising, and now runs her own PR agency, TL Communications, Wilton, Conn.
"Up until this point, [PR has] always been seen as a somewhat second sister or second cousin to advertising," Ms. Lee says. "Companies spent a lot …
Authors: Jimmy Lin (corresponding author) [1,2]; W John Wilbur [2]
Background
This article describes the retrieval model behind the related article search functionality in PubMed [1]. Whenever the user examines a MEDLINE citation in detail, a panel to the right of the abstract text is automatically populated with titles of articles that may also be of interest (see Figure 1). We describe
There is evidence to suggest that related article search is a useful feature. Based on PubMed query logs gathered during a one-week period in June 2007, we observed approximately 35 million page views across 8 million browser sessions. Of those sessions, 63% consisted of a single page view-representing bots and direct access into MEDLINE (e.g., from an embedded link or another search engine). Of all sessions in our data set, approximately 2 million include at least one PubMed search query and at least one view of an abstract-this figure roughly quantifies actual searches. About 19% of these involve at least one click on a related article. In other words, roughly a fifth of all non-trivial user sessions contain at least one invocation of related article search. In terms of overall frequency, approximately five percent of all page views in these non-trivial sessions were generated from clicks on related article links. More details can be found in [2].
We evaluate the
* a corpus-a collection of documents on which retrieval is performed,
* a set of information needs-written statements describing the desired information, which translate into queries to the system, and
* relevance judgments-records specifying the documents that should be retrieved in response to each information need (typically, these are gathered from human assessors in large-scale evaluations [3]).
The use of test collections to assess the performance of retrieval algorithms is a well-established methodology in the information retrieval (IR) literature, dating back to the Cranfield experiments in the 60's [4]. These tools enable rapid, reproducible experiments in a controlled setting without requiring users.
The
Before proceeding, a clarification on terminology: although MEDLINE records contain only abstract text and associated bibliographic information, PubMed provides access to the full text articles (if available). Thus, it is not inaccurate to speak of searching for articles, even though the search itself is only performed on information in MEDLINE. Throughout this work, we use "document" and "article" interchangeably.
1.1 Formal Model
We formalize the related document search problem as follows: given a document that the user has indicated interest in, the system task is to retrieve other documents that the user may also want to examine. Since this activity generally occurs in the context of broader information-seeking behaviors, relevance can serve as one indicator of interest, i.e., retrieve other relevant documents. However, we think of the problem in broader terms: other documents may be interesting because they discuss similar topics, share the same citations, provide general background, lead to interesting hypotheses, etc.
To constrain this problem, we assume in our theoretical model that documents of interest are similar in terms of the topics or concepts that they are
Let us begin by decomposing documents into mutually-exclusive and exhaustive "topics" (denoted by the set {
[math omitted]
Expanding
[math omitted]
Since we are only concerned about the ranking of documents, the denominator can be safely ignored since it is independent of
[math omitted]
Rephrased in prose,
Thus far, we have not addressed the important question of what a topic actually is. For computational tractability, we make the simplifying assumption that each term in a document represents a topic (that is, each term conveys an idea or concept). Thus, the "aboutness" of a document (i.e., what topics the document discusses) is conveyed through the terms in the document. As with most retrieval models, we assume single-word terms, as opposed to potentially complex multi-word concepts. This satisfies our requirement that the set of topics be exhaustive and mutually-exclusive.
From this starting point, we leverage previous work in probabilistic retrieval models based on Poisson distributions (e.g., [6, 8, 9]). A Poisson distribution characterizes the probability of a specific number of events occurring in a fixed period of time if these events occur with a known average rate. The underlying assumption is a generative model of document content: let us suppose that an author uses a particular term with constant probability, and that documents are generated as a sequence of terms. A Poisson distribution specifies the probability that we would observe the term
This content model also assumes that each term occurrence is …
