Shorts (left)
President Obama signed an executive order on Thursday to create a revamped White House office for religion-based and neighborhood programs, expanding an initiative started by the Bush administration that provides government support — and financing — to religious and charitable organizations that deliver social services.
Scientists Study Possible Link Between Dam, Quake in China
Nearly nine months after a devastating earthquake in Sichuan province, China, left 80,000 people dead or missing, a growing number of American and Chinese scientists are suggesting that the calamity was triggered by a 4-year-old reservoir built close to the earthquake’s geological fault line.
Caterpillars Infest West Africa, Menacing Crops
A bizarre swarm of caterpillars is munching its way through the forests, cocoa and coffee fields of Liberia, threatening crops and forcing thousands to leave their homes because the bugs have contaminated the drinking water from rivers and lakes.
Chilly Ring Premiere, Weekend Warm-Up
Sophomores waiting in line for the Class of 2011 Ring Premiere tonight will have to endure cold temperatures as the chilly weather the region has experienced this week continues. While continued high pressure will present clear, sunny skies, the high temperature this afternoon will reach only the mid 20s˚F and proceed to fall to around 16˚F overnight. However, a relative improvement in conditions can be expected over the weekend, as sunny skies will persist with temperatures rising steadily through Saturday and Sunday. Highs in the low to mid 40s˚F can be expected for Saturday, while Sunday could see highs nearing 50˚F. Don’t get too comfortable, however, as temperatures will drop below freezing once again when school resumes on Monday.
Obama’s Promise of Ethics Reform Faces Early Test
During almost two years on the campaign trail, Barack Obama vowed to slay the demons of Washington, bar lobbyists from his administration and usher in what he would later call in his Inaugural Address a “new era of responsibility.” What he did not talk much about were the asterisks.
Internet Money in Fiscal Plan: Wise or Waste?
Perhaps no line item in the nearly $900 billion stimulus program offers a better window into the tricky balancing act of how best to jolt the economy than the billions pegged to expand broadband Internet service to rural and underserved areas.
Shorts (left)
Sea explorers probing the depths of the English Channel have discovered what they say is a legendary British warship that sank in a fierce storm in 1744, losing more than 900 men and possibly four tons of gold coins that could be worth $1 billion.
Obama Set to Add Republican To Cabinet
If a new political breeze is blowing in the capital, perhaps the best evidence can be found in this: A Democratic president selects a Republican senator to serve in the Cabinet. The Democratic governor with the power to fill the Senate seat signals that he will leave it in Republican hands, depriving his party of a chance to reach 60 votes, a magic number when it comes to passing legislation.
Daschle Apologizes Over Taxes as Allies Give Support
Tom Daschle offered a public apology on Monday evening for his failure to pay income taxes on use of a luxury car and driver, and Senate Democrats rallied behind him, saying they intended to win his confirmation as secretary of health and human services.
Shorts (right)
Boron is a simple atom: five protons, five or six neutrons, five electrons. It is not as ubiquitous as hydrogen. It does not, as helium does, make your voice sound like Donald Duck. It is not as famous as carbon, its neighbor to the right on the periodic table.
Predictions of the Future and Never Materialized Scenarios
What would have happened if you went to Caltech instead of MIT? What would life be like if that hobby or activity you’ve spent years pursuing was never introduced to you? Just like in real life, the track of weather systems has a full spectrum of various, but plausible, scenarios, and we generally focus on what actually transpired. But every so often, we ask ourselves, what would have happened? What would have happened if I had asked that guy or girl out on a date? In the version of today’s weather the question is: what would have happened if the jet stream shifted less? For about 5 days last week, all weather models had a major storm debilitating the northeast today. Forecasts of three feet of snow and wind gusts in excess of 80 mph were plentiful.
Outcry Over a Plan to Sell Brandeis Museum’s Holdings
The Massachusetts attorney general’s office said on Tuesday that it planned to conduct a detailed review of Brandeis University’s surprise decision to sell off the entire holdings of its Rose Art Museum, one of the most important collections of postwar art in New England.
‘Mini-Madoffs’ Ran Their Own $100 Million Ponzi Schemes
Their names lack the Dickensian flair of Bernie Madoff, and the money they apparently stole from investors was a small fraction of the $50 billion that Madoff allegedly lost of his clients’ savings.
Murder-Suicide Leaves 7 Dead in California
A man shot and killed his wife and five young children before taking his own life Tuesday, apparently out of despair after the couple lost their jobs at a hospital, the police and city officials said.
Clinton Sees Possible Progress On Iran and North Korea
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said on Tuesday that Iran had a “clear opportunity” to engage with the international community, amplifying the conciliatory tone struck a day earlier by President Barack Obama toward Iran and the rest of the Muslim world.
Shorts (left)
John Updike, the kaleidoscopically gifted writer whose quartet of Rabbit novels highlighted a body of fiction, verse, essays and criticism so vast, protean and lyrical as to place him in the first rank of American authors, died on Tuesday in Danvers, Mass. He was 76 and lived in Beverly Farms, Mass.
Obama Tells Muslims, ‘Americans Are Not Your Enemy’
In one of his first interviews since taking office, President Barack Obama struck a conciliatory tone toward the Islamic world, saying he wanted to persuade Muslims that “the Americans are not your enemy” and adding that “the moment is ripe for both sides” to negotiate in the Middle East.
Shorts (right)
An explosive device killed an Israeli soldier just outside Gaza on Tuesday, and Israel retaliated with incursions that killed one Palestinian and wounded another, in the first serious confrontations between Hamas and Israel since each declared a tentative cease-fire 10 days ago. With the new American envoy to the region, George J. Mitchell, set to arrive in Jerusalem on Wednesday, the fighting here underlined the urgency of his mission.
Snow!
A storm that just left the South and Midwest hits us today, bringing the Boston area snow, freezing rain and sleet within the next 12–24 hours. This storm affected many communities from Texas to Ohio yesterday. Arkansas, Kentucky and Oklahoma were especially hard hit by ice from the storm; power lines and tree branches were downed, and many lost electricity. Snow fell to the north of the ice belt, with white accumulations from Illinois to Ohio. The storm moved our way into the northeast early in the am. The commute this morning should be hit by the hardest of the snow and sleet from this storm. This afternoon, Boston should see the snow changing into sleet and freezing rain as warmer air will be move in. How much snow and how much frozen stuff will we see? Expect from 3–6 inches of snow, with more emphasis on the lower side of this estimate. After 3 p.m., rain and sleet could total as much as a half of an inch or more.