Summary: Members of a Senate committee investigating the response to Hurricane Katrina called the mobile home episode an appalling example of government stumbling. Back in Washington, members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee were learning of problems still unfolding. Richard L. Skinner, inspector general at the Homeland Security Department, told the Senate panel, many of the mobile homes might have to be sold as surplus, stored for some future disaster use, or given to another federal agency.


Summary: As it stands, Richard L. Skinner, inspector general at the Homeland Security Department, told the Senate panel, many of the mobile homes might have to be sold as surplus, stored for some future disaster use, or given to another federal agency. When asked what kind of return could be expected if they're sold as surplus property, he responded that it's certainly not going to be very high, given the way they were being stored at a spot where some are sinking into the mud.

Summary: Richard L. Skinner, inspector general at the Homeland Security Department, told the Senate panel that many mobile homes might have to be sold as surplus, stored for some future disaster use, or given to another federal agency. Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, asked Mr. Skinner that if they're sold as surplus property, what kind of return can you expected. His answer infuriated the panel members. He responded that it was not going to be very high, given the way they were being stored at a spot where some are sinking into the mud.


Summary: Mr. Chertoff and R. David Paulison, the acting FEMA director, and Frances Fragos Townsend, President Bush's domestic security adviser, also promised to revise rules on debris removal and temporary housing, so local and state governments could move faster to clean up after a disaster and house the homeless. Mr. Chertoff, Mr. Paulison, and Ms. Townsend, repeating plans Mr. Chertoff outlined last year, also said they would improve communications systems and the registration process for disaster victims, so there would be fewer delays in getting help for those most in need. Mr. Paulison said that Hurricane Katrina is a defining moment in the history of emergency management. He also said the agency was moving to order 10,000 more of the units, which cost about $10,000 each, while mobile homes cost on average $34,000.

Summary: R. David Paulison, the acting FEMA director, and Frances Fragos Townsend, President Bush's domestic security adviser, also promised to revise rules on debris removal and temporary housing, so local and state governments could move faster to clean up after a disaster and house the homeless. Mr. Paulison said at a conference, that Hurricane Katrina was a defining moment n the history of emergency management. Mr. Paulison said the agency was moving to order 10,000 more of the units, which cost about $10,000 each, while mobile homes cost on average $34,000.


Summary: Only about 2,700 of the 25,000 mobile homes ordered at a cost of $850 million have been installed, and at least 10,000 are sitting in Hope, Ark., according to documents and statements from Federal Emergency Management Agency officials. Though about 55,000 Louisiana families are still waiting for a manufactured housing unit, the mobile homes may never be used because FEMA regulations prohibit them from being installed in flood-prone coastal areas, federal officials said. It was suggested that FEMA relax the regulation to allow mobile homes near the coast.

Summary: About 55,000 Louisiana families are still waiting for a manufactured housing unit, the mobile homes may never be used because FEMA regulations prohibit them from being installed in flood-prone coastal areas, federal officials said. The report on the mobile homes, as well as widespread fraud in FEMA's emergency assistance to hurricane victims, came as the federal government's top three domestic security and disaster relief officials vowed to fix flaws in the nation's emergency response programs. FEMA officials said that they had installed both trailers and mobile homes after previous disasters and that they had no reason to believe that Hurricane Katrina would be different. They also suggested that FEMA relax the regulation to allow the mobile homes near the coast.


Summary: In San Jose, where the average house price increased 21 percent last year, Sathish Pottavathini, a programmer at eBay, said he was taking his time with the search for a new home and trying to find a good deal. Mr. Pottavathini, who is 32, said that he doesn't want to rush into things especially in this kind of situation where one hears about a slowing down everywhere. He and his wife, Madhuri, spend $1,200 a month renting an 800-square-foot two-bedroom apartment, where they live with their 21/2-year-old daughter, Siri.  He also said that if he waits, he might get a better place since buyers who had shown similar patience in the early 1990s were rewarded. He is giving his San Jose search four months. After that, he plans to take a break and wait until his daughter is a bit older and his wife returns to work.

Summary: Sathish Pottavathini, a programmer at eBay, said he was taking his time with the search for a new home and trying to find a good deal in the San Jose, Calif. ''I don't want to rush into things especially in this kind of situation,'' Mr. Pottavathini, who is 32, said, ''where you hear about a slowing down everywhere.'' He and his wife, Madhuri. Mr. Pottavathini said, ''If I wait, I might get a better place.'' Buyers who showed similar patience in the early 1990's were rewarded.


Asbury Park City Council
Asbury Park
City Council

Summary: The Asbury Park City Council, under pressure to show more progress on redeveloping 56 acres on the blighted oceanfront, has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. Deputy Mayor James Bruno, a member of the five-member City Council, said that the new deadline was established because they were sick of looking at those buildings down there, referring to the Beaux Arts Convention Hall and the other structures that the redeveloper bought from the city. For the last several years, individuals have invested heavily in the hopes of Asbury Park's rebirth and bought up sagging properties in and around the oceanfront redevelopment area at bargain prices in hopes of a future bonanza.

Summary: The Asbury Park City Council, under pressure to show more progress on redeveloping 56 acres on the blighted oceanfront, has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. The attempt to push things along comes some four years after the city entered into the agreement with Asbury Partners, the developer.


Summary: The Asbury Park City Council has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. The attempt to push things along comes some four years after the city entered into the agreement with Asbury Partners, the developer. Construction is underway on three condominium projects by major developers brought in by Asbury Partners within the redevelopment area. Since 2001, when Asbury Partners offered to take the reins of the redevelopment effort, there have been so many delays and other problems. This week, council members voted to give Asbury Partners until March 30 to amend their agreement with the city to create clear timetables for the redevelopment of the boardwalk buildings, produce a concept plan for their marketing, show clearer proof of financial ability, and set sanctions for failure to comply with the timetable.

Summary: The Asbury Park City Council, under pressure to show more progress on redeveloping 56 acres on the blighted oceanfront, has given the master developer one month to negotiate changes in its agreement with the city to speed progress and prove its financial ability to fulfill the plan. Since 2001, when Asbury Partners, a Lakewood-based real estate and development company, offered to take the reins of the redevelopment effort, there have been so many delays and other problems that they have spent only $5.5 million of an estimated $60 million in preparation work on the infrastructure of the area, city officials said. Asbury Partners have been given until March 30 to amend their agreement with the city to create clear timetables for the redevelopment of the boardwalk buildings, produce a concept plan for their marketing, showing clearer proof of financial ability, and set sanctions for failure to comply with the timetable.


Summary: In Buxton, Me., a suburb of Portland, Geof and Cheri Toner put their three-bedroom Cape Cod-style house on the market for $379,900 late last year, shortly before moving to Raleigh, N.C., for Mr. Toner's job. They have received only one offer, for $350,000, which they rejected, and recently reduced the price to $374,900.

Summary: Mr. Cheri Toner who is 48, the regional sales manager of a video equipment maker. He said he assumed that more buyers would look at the property as the weather warmed up. In Buxton, Me., a suburb of Portland, Geof and Cheri Toner put their three-bedroom Cape Cod-style house on the market for $379,900 late last year, shortly before moving to Raleigh, N.C., for Mr. Toner's job. He expects that the eventual buyer will be a transplant from elsewhere in New England who is willing to pay significantly more than $350,000.


Summary: Brian Taylor, principal of the middle school, explained that such performance was achieved by concentration on the students. He said that if kids are struggling, then they pull them out of physical ed one day or two a week and give them assistance.

Summary: Brian Taylor, principal of the middle school, explained that such performance was achieved by concentration on the students. Mr. Taylor said that if kids are struggling, they pull them out of physical ed one day or two a week and give them assistance.


Summary: Last year the organization hired a new chief executive, Theodore Mitchell, a former president of Occidental College and dean of the School of Education at the University of California, Los Angeles, now the education adviser to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.


Summary: New Schools has contributed $3.3 million to help Michael Piscal and his Inner City Education Foundation start View Park elementary, middle and high school in the poor neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Mr. Piscal, 39, was a teacher at one of Los Angeles's highest-rated private schools until 1994, when he decided to try teaching children in what is considered an underserved neighborhood. Today, with three schools open and growing, Mr. Piscal plans to start 20 more schools in the same South Los Angeles area. Mr. Piscal says that according to a foundation that supports education, the middle school grades six to eight has the highest test scores in math for African-American students in all of California.

Summary: New Schools has contributed $3.3 million to help Michael Piscal and his Inner City Education Foundation start View Park elementary, middle and high school in the poor neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Mr. Piscal, 39, was a teacher at one of Los Angeles's highest-rated private schools until 1994, when he decided to try teaching children in what is considered an underserved neighborhood. Today, with three schools open and growing, He plans to start 20 more schools in the same South Los Angeles area. He says the middle school, grades six to eight, has the highest test scores in math for African-American students in all of California.


Summary: The protesters, who included relatives and former colleagues of the dead officer, demanded that Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian leader, impose order in Gaza and called for Nasser Youssef, the Palestinian interior minister, to resign. Mr. Abbas said the participation of Hamas in the Jan. 25 parliamentary elections was a tacit recognition of the Palestinian Authority set up under the 1993 Oslo accords, which also propose a two-state solution with a Palestinian state next to Israel. How Mr. Abbas will square such comments with his own views is unclear, unless Hamas decides to limit its role to a representation in the relatively powerless Palestinian legislature. Mr. Abbas has also promised to disarm Hamas after the elections.

Summary: Mahmoud Abbas, who was the Palestinian leader, impose order in Gaza and called for Nasser Youssef, the Palestinian interior minister, to resign as the protesters, who included relatives and former colleagues of the dead officer demanded. Mr. Abbas, in an interview with Al Jazeera, said the participation of Hamas that parliamentary elections was a tacit recognition of the Palestinian Authority set up under the 1993 Oslo accords, which also propose a two-state solution with a Palestinian state next to Israel. Further Mr. Abbas said that on the basis of the Oslo accords which rule the legislative council and all the agreements that took place afterward between us and the Israelis, and subsequently the roadmap. Mr. Abbas has also promised to disarm Hamas after the elections.


Summary: In two weeks, Mardi Gras parades will begin rolling in New Orleans, bringing revelers intent on proving they can still party in the Big Easy. During Mardi Gras, 911 calls usually triple. It is frightening to think about what could happen without additional resources. So far, the city has been unable to scrape together even small additions to prepare for Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras throws the health crisis into sharper relief, but it extends beyond the party season. It will take years to get the health care system back to what it was, but there are only days until the festival begins on Feb. 18. New Orleans needs a triumphant Mardi Gras, not a dangerous one.

Summary: In two weeks, Mardi Gras parades will begin rolling in New Orleans, bringing revelers intent on proving they can still party in the Big Easy. It is frightening to think about what could happen without additional resources. So far, the city has been unable to scrape together even small additions to prepare for Mardi Gras. It throws the health crisis into sharper relief, but it extends beyond the party season. It will take years to get the health care system back to what it was, but there are only days until the festival begins. New Orleans needs a triumphant Mardi Gras, not a dangerous one.


Summary: Prime Minister Ariel Sharon remained in critical but stable condition on Saturday, a spokesman for Hadassah-Ein Kerem Hospital said. Mr. Sharon, 77, who had a major stroke on Jan. 4, was still receiving a small amount of sedatives, said the spokesman, Ron Krumer. Mr. Sharon has undergone three lengthy operations to reduce swelling and clean away clots in his brain, but his vital signs are now said to be normal.

Summary: Prime Minister Ariel Sharon remained in critical but stable condition on Saturday, a spokesman for Hadassah-Ein Kerem Hospital said. Mr. Sharon, 77, who had a major stroke on Jan. 4, was still receiving a small amount of sedatives, said the spokesman, Ron Krumer. Doctors began Wednesday to reduce the amount of sedatives they had been giving him to keep him in an induced coma. He has responded to pain in his right leg and both arms but has not regained consciousness. He has undergone three lengthy operations to reduce swelling and clean away clots in his brain, but his vital signs are now said to be normal.


Summary: Mr. Abbas, in an interview with the Arabic satellite network Al Jazeera, said the participation of Hamas in the Jan. 25 parliamentary elections was a tacit recognition of the Palestinian Authority set up under the 1993 Oslo accords, which also propose a two-state solution with a Palestinian state next to Israel. Hamas calls for Israel's destruction in its charter, but says it could abide by a long-term truce with an Israel within its 1967 boundaries. How Mr. Abbas will square such comments with his own views is unclear, unless Hamas decides to limit its role to a representation in the relatively powerless Palestinian legislature. Mr. Abbas has also promised to disarm Hamas after the elections.

Summary: Hamas calls for Israel's destruction in its charter but says it could abide by a long-term truce with Israel within its 1967 boundaries. Hamas leaders, most recently Mahmoud Zahar in an interview with The New York Times, said Hamas would refuse to disarm or to recognize Israel and would not recognize agreements between the P.L.O. and Israel in other words, Oslo or any other agreement. Israel will ban campaigning by Hamas candidates, because Hamas is a terrorist organization with an active military wing committed to Israel's destruction, and therefore should not be able to run in the elections at all based on the same Oslo accords Mr. Abbas cites.


Summary: Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. In one meeting yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority.

Summary: Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. The governor and Mr. Silverstein began closing in on a tentative deal this week. In one of a flurry of meetings yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority.


Michael R. Bloomberg
Bloomberg
Mayor Bloomberg

Summary: Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. Mayor Bloomberg has also raised the possibility that Mr. Silverstein would run out of money after building only two of the five towers, then default on his lease and realize hundreds of millions of dollars in profit. In a meeting yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority. The authority and Mayor Bloomberg have sought assurances that a final deal would be contingent on resolving these matters quickly.

Summary: Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. Mayor Bloomberg has also raised the possibility that Mr. Silverstein would run out of money after building only two of the five towers, then default on his lease and realize hundreds of millions of dollars in profit. In one of a flurry of meetings yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority. The authority and Mayor Bloomberg have sought assurances that a final deal would be contingent on resolving these matters quickly.


Port Authority of New York
Port Authority

Summary: An agreement on a major realignment of the rebuilding effort at ground zero continued to elude government officials and the developer Larry A. Silverstein yesterday, even as the Port Authority board planned to meet today to discuss the matter. So far, the support has been withheld for fear that the tentative deal would enrich the developer at the Port Authority's expense and fail to ensure that the entire project is completed. In one meeting yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg met with Governor Pataki at state offices on Third Avenue to resolve their differences over the tentative agreement that would transfer control of the Freedom Tower from Mr. Silverstein to the Port Authority.

Summary: Governor Pataki deals with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. After that, Governor Corzine, who shares control of the Port Authority with Mr. Pataki, said the financial plans ''aren't encouraging to me.'' He said the final deal should provide about $100 million for the memorial, which is over budget and having trouble raising money.


Summary: Joanna Rose, a spokeswoman for Gov. George E. Pataki, said that the talks are continuing.

Summary: ''Talks are continuing,'' said Joanna Rose, a spokeswoman for Gov. George E. Pataki.


Summary: An agreement on a major realignment of the rebuilding effort at ground zero continued to elude government officials and the developer Larry A. Silverstein yesterday, even as the Port Authority board planned to meet today to discuss the matter. Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed. Mayor Bloomberg has also raised the possibility that Mr. Silverstein would run out of money after building only two of the five towers, then default on his lease and realize hundreds of millions of dollars in profit. In contrast, Mr. Silverstein continues to insist that he can and will complete the entire job.

Summary: The Port Authority board planned to meet the discuss the matter about an agreement on a major realignment of the rebuilding effort at ground zero continued to elude government officials and the developer Larry A. Silverstein. Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Mr. Silverstein, whose annual rent will rise to $125.25 million in July, wants a rent reduction worth as much as $500 million over the length of the lease. Further, Mr. Silverstein continues to insist that he can and will complete the entire job.


Summary: But when the governor and Mr. Silverstein began closing in on a tentative deal this week, Port Authority executives, Gov. Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. So far, they have withheld their support for fear that the tentative deal would enrich the developer at the Port Authority's expense and fail to ensure that the entire project is completed. Yesterday, Governor Corzine, who shares control of the Port Authority with Mr. Pataki, said the financial plans weren't encouraging to him. He said the final deal should provide about $100 million for the memorial, which is over budget and having trouble raising money.

Summary: Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg continued questioning many of the financial aspects. So far, they have withheld their support for fear that the tentative deal would enrich the developer at the Port Authority's expense and fail to ensure that the entire project is completed. Yesterday, Governor Corzine, who shares control of the Port Authority with Mr. Pataki, said the financial plans were not encouraging to him. He said the final deal should provide about $100 million for the memorial, which is over budget and having trouble raising money.


Summary: Governor Pataki has taken the lead in dealing with Mr. Silverstein, who leased the World Trade Center from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey six weeks before it was destroyed.


Summary: Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, who is leaving office at the end of the year. Last month, Attorney General Eliot L. Spitzer suggested that wholesalers who continued supplying cigarettes lacking a tax stamp, which sell for as little as half as much as cigarettes in nonreservation stores, to Indian merchants could lose their licenses.

Summary: Attorney General Eliot L. Spitzer suggested that wholesalers who continued supplying cigarettes lacking a tax stamp, which sell for as little as half as much as cigarettes in nonreservation stores, to Indian merchants could lose their licenses. Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year. Mr. Spitzer has said that you can't announce to the world that a law will simply be ignored and not enforced.


Summary: Gov. George E. Pataki's budget proposal calls for delaying enforcement of the law, which took effect on March 1, until next year. But the Pataki administration's decision to delay enforcement of the new law has also fueled a partisan debate in Albany, where many Democrats have criticized the Republican governor for ignoring a significant source of revenue, because the state is not getting the $1.50-a-pack taxes it collects on cigarettes sold everywhere else in the state. Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year.

Summary: George E. Pataki's budget proposal calls for delaying enforcement of the law, which took effect on March 1, until next year. But the Pataki administration's decision to delay enforcement of the new law has also fueled a partisan debate in Albany, where many Democrats have criticized the Republican governor for ignoring a significant source of revenue because the state is not getting the $1.50-a-pack taxes it collects on cigarettes sold everywhere else in the state. Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, is running to replace Mr. Pataki, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year.


Summary: Across the street from Randy Chrysler's Smoke Shop on the Tuscarora reservation near Niagara Falls sits a pile of tires and wood pallets, a reminder of the fires set during American Indian demonstrations against state tax policies in 1997 that closed several Interstate highways. Mr. Chrysler said he laid off about a dozen of his 30 employees shortly after being notified by the wholesaler that it was stopping shipments last week.

Summary: Across the street from Randy's Smoke Shop on the Tuscarora reservation near Niagara Falls sits a pile of tires and wood pallets, a reminder of the fires set during American Indian demonstrations against state tax policies in 1997 that closed several Interstate highways. ''How are we supposed to live?'' said Pauline Chrysler, whose son, Randy Chrysler, is a smoke shop owner. Mr. Chrysler said he laid off about a dozen of his 30 employees shortly after being notified by the wholesaler that it was stopping shipments last week. One of Mr. Chrysler's brothers started a bottled-water supplier, while another opened a sneaker shop, both on the same property as his store.


Summary: Kevin Quinn, a spokesman for the governor, said that their goal has always been to solve this matter through cooperation instead of confrontation.

Summary: ''Our goal has always been to solve this matter through cooperation instead of confrontation,'' said Kevin Quinn, a spokesman for the governor.


Geoffrey Knoop
Savannah
Savannah Knoop
Knoop

Summary: Geoffrey Knoop is Ms. Albert's partner for the last 16 years. Mr. Knoop, whose 25-year-old half-sister Savannah Knoop was unmasked by The New York Times last month as the public face of JT Leroy, said that he had come forward out of concern for his son, family members and others affected by what he called an all-consuming web of deceit.

Summary: Geoffrey Knoop, 39, a rock musician and Ms. Albert's partner for the last 16 years. Mr. Knoop said that he played an important role in the creation of JT Leroy, who developed a cult literary following. He said that it was unexpected and did not expect it to reach such levels, but admitted that it was over now.  If Mr. Knoop is to share in any of the monies generated by JT Leroy's books and films, he might need to demonstrate that he was an integral part of the deception. Mr. Knoop's account also sheds light on one of the most confounding aspects of the Leroy story, the involvement of a Bay Area psychologist, Dr. Terrence Owens, whom JT Leroy is often credited with starting his writing career.


Summary: Mr. Knoop's account also sheds light on one of the most confounding aspects of the Leroy story, the involvement of a Bay Area psychologist, Dr. Terrence Owens, whom JT Leroy often credited with starting his writing career. Several writers, including Mr. Benderson and Patti Sullivan, a screenwriter who worked on a film script for ''Sarah,'' said that they took part in conference calls with Dr. Owens and JT Leroy when the writer was supposedly experiencing psychological problems. In a phone call, Dr. Owens said that he did not know Mr. Knoop and that patient confidentiality constrained him from speaking.

Summary: Dr. Terrence Owens, a Bay Area psychologist has the the involvement with Mr. Knoop who's account also sheds light on one of the most confounding aspects of the Leroy story whom JT Leroy often credited with starting his writing career. Mr. Knoop said that Dr. Owens himself was a dupe. Dr. Owens further said ''I know it doesn't meet the public curiosity, but it's a different obligation I'm held to''.


Summary: Kenneth A. Shea, managing director for global equity research at S.& P., said that these sneak peeks at earnings come from corporate executives' desire to let analysts down, or up, gently. Mr. Shea says some retailers are likely to make preannouncements this week, but he questions just how useful this dance of the pennies per share is. When it comes to the preannouncements, Mr. Shea's advice to buy-and-hold investors is not to get carried away.

Summary: Kenneth A. Shea is a managing director for global equity research at S.& P. said that these sneak peeks at earnings come from corporate executives' desire to let analysts down, or up, gently. Kenneth A. Shea said that Companies often solicit analysts' input in terms of expectations on earnings and they will guide up or down in the last week or two prior to the close of a quarter to make sure they are realistic in their expectations. He further said that You can argue whether corporate earnings should be such an important signal.


Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. She wore a wig and sunglasses as a disguise, an outfit that would become JT Leroy's trademark. Mr. Knoop, whose 25-year-old half-sister Savannah Knoop was unmasked by The New York Times last month as the public face of JT Leroy, said that he had come forward out of concern for his son, family members and others affected by what he called an all-consuming web of deceit.

Summary: central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. Albert write the books of JT Leroy in their San Francisco apartment. Mr. Cooper championed JT Leroy to writers like Bruce Benderson as well as several prominent Manhattan editors. As the books of JT Leroy built an audience -- the first, ''Sarah,'' was published in 2000, followed by ''The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things'' in 2001 -- Mr. Knoop said, media interest in JT Leroy and his improbable story increased.


Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. Ms. Albert conducted telephone conversations as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent. As JT Leroy, Ms. Albert also successfully solicited editorial advice from writers like Michael Chabon and Dave Eggers. As the books of JT Leroy built an audience -- the first, ''Sarah,'' was published in 2000, followed by ''The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things'' in 2001.

Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists, and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. The books of JT Leroy was written by Albert in their San Francisco apartment. A telephonic conversations was held by Albert as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent. After that Mr. Cooper championed JT Leroy to writers like Bruce Benderson as well as several prominent Manhattan editors. As the books of JT Leroy built an audience -- the first, ''Sarah,'' was published in 2000, followed by ''The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things'' in 2001 -- Mr. Knoop said, media interest in JT Leroy and his improbable story increased.


Summary: His proposal requires approval of the State Legislature, which is controlled by Mr. Corzine's fellow Democrats.


Summary: The NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency. Last Thursday, in comments at the National Space Club in Washington, Dr. Griffin said the agency must ensure that its scientists can speak freely on the implications of their work for policy -- as long as they do not imply they are representing NASA.

Summary: The NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency after the disclosure comes nearly in two weeks. Dr. Griffin, who became administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in April, have been reported to senior scientists and administrators who are assembling complaints as part of a review of communications policies. Dr. Griffin also announced the review of communications policies after complaints last month by James E. Hansen, the agency's top climate scientist, that political appointees were trying to stop him from speaking out on global warming.


Summary: According to colleagues, Ms. Cook-Anderson said that Glenn Mahone, the then assistant administrator for public affairs, had told her that a planned news conference on fresh readings by a new NASA satellite, Aura, that measures ozone and air pollution, should not take place until after the election. Mr. Mahone has since left NASA. He did not return several calls seeking comment yesterday.

Summary: In a conference call with colleagues, the colleagues said, she said that Glenn Mahone, then the assistant administrator for public affairs had told her that a planned news conference on fresh readings by a new NASA satellite, Aura, that measures ozone and air pollution, should not take place until after the election. Cook-Anderson, writer and editor of NASA said, ''While I can't discuss these matters, I won't disagree with that description of what took place.'' Mr. Mahone has since left NASA. Cook-Anderson to cut back on news releases. Dean Acosta, a political appointee previously he was Mr. Mahone's deputy and presently Dr. Griffin's press secretary said he had never pressed Ms. Cook-Anderson to cut back on news releases.


Summary: The Tax Department has indicated that it will continue with its current policy as the governor and Legislature discuss these matters. Administration officials have said they are concerned that a repeat of the 1997 protests could slow interstate commerce, divert trucks carrying hazardous loads through heavily populated communities if the Interstates are blockaded again, and cost the state millions of dollars in state police expenses. But by Friday, a lawyer for the wholesaler said he had received word from the Tax Department that shipments of unstamped cigarettes could continue.

Summary: The Tax Department has indicated it will continue its current policy as the governor and Legislature discuss these matters. Administration officials have said they are concerned that a repeat of the 1997 protests could slow interstate commerce, divert trucks carrying hazardous loads through heavily populated communities if the Interstates are blockaded again, and cost the state millions of dollars in state police expenses. But by Friday, a lawyer for the wholesaler said he had received word from the Tax Department that shipments of unstamped cigarettes could continue.


Summary: The Transportation Trust Fund collects money from the state's gasoline tax to pay for major road, bridge and rail repairs, but has been depleted by years of borrowing.

Summary: The Transportation Trust Fund collects money from the state's gasoline tax to pay for major road, bridge and rail repairs but has been depleted by years of borrowing.


Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's continuous efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains and buses came under severe criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made limited progress in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001 attack. The Transportation Committee had called a hearing to insist that transit officials account for how they would spend more than $590 million that was first committed in late 2002 to fortify the public transportation system.

Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's protracted efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains and buses came under withering criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made far too little progress in the years. The Transportation Committee had called a hearing to insist that transit officials account for how they would spend more than $590 million that was first committed in late 2002 to fortify the public transportation system. She declined to provide details, but said the authority would spend $220 million on ''hardening'' M.T.A. properties against attack.


Summary: Top political appointees in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) press office exerted strong pressure during the 2004 presidential campaign to cut the flow of news releases on glaciers, climate, pollution, and other earth sciences. The disclosure comes nearly two weeks after the NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency. The subject is likely to come up today at a NASA budget hearing before the Science Committee. A central point of division within NASA is how much ''openness'' is appropriate when such expressions conflict with administration policy.

Summary: To cut the flow of news releases on glaciers, climate, pollution and other earth sciences, top political appointees in the NASA press office are appointed, public affairs officers at the agency say. After the NASA administrator, Michael D. Griffin, called for ''scientific openness'' at the agency, the disclosure comes out. Dr. Griffin, who became administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in April demanded some of the examples which was reported to senior scientists and administrators who are assembling complaints as part of a review of communications policies. At the time, Ms. Cook-Anderson was in charge of managing the flow of earth science news at NASA headquarters.


Summary: Elvia H. Thompson, who recently retired from the NASA press office said there was this general understanding that when something in this field was written about that it was to be described as climate change and not global warming.

Summary: Elvia H. Thompson, a recently retired person from NASA said that among them there was this general understanding that if something in this field was written about it was to be described as climate change and not global warming.


Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's protracted efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains, and buses came under withering criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made little progress in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attack.

Summary: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's protracted efforts to ward off terrorist threats to the subways, trains and buses came under withering criticism yesterday from members of a City Council committee who charged that it had made far too little progress in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attack. The members of City Council said that most of the planned security improvements would be late in coming and that the contract with Lockheed Martin, approved last August after the bombing of the London subway system, might have been signed in haste.


Summary: John C. Liu, a councilman from Queens and the committee chairman asked why can't the transit authority work outside its standard procedures and get things done, levelling some of the most pointed criticism at the contract with Lockheed Martin, which has already reported cost overruns. He added that touching and feeling should have been done long before a contract was awarded.

Summary: John C. Liu, a councilman from Queens and the committee chairman asked that why the transit authority cannot work outside its standard procedures and get things done. He leveled some of the most pointed criticism at the contract with Lockheed Martin, which has already reported cost overruns. Mr. Liu said that touching and feeling should have been done long before a contract was awarded.


Summary: A central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy has come forward to say that no one named JT Leroy exists and that the books published under that name were actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert. Albert, aged  40, from Brooklyn. Geoffrey Knoop, Ms. Albert's partner for the last 16 years, said that he had seen Ms. Albert write the books of JT Leroy in their apartment and he had been present when Ms. Albert conducted telephone conversations as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers, and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent.

Summary: The book which was actually written by a San Francisco woman named Laura Albert, confirmed by a central figure in the case of the mysterious writer JT Leroy and he said that no one named JT Leroy exists. Albert's partner said in a telephone interview  that he had seen Ms. Albert write the books of JT Leroy in their San Francisco apartment. She usually conduct telephone conversations as JT Leroy with unwitting editors, writers and celebrities, using the voice of a young man with a West Virginia accent. She used to change his identity over the call and the interviews. He was 40, and originally from Brooklyn. Ms. Albert and her partner got separated because of stress caused by the deception.


Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin Corporation

Summary: Officials had announced only one major contract, a $212 million deal with the Lockheed Martin Corporation to install high-tech cameras and motion sensors in the subway system. Lockheed Martin had proposed a similar system of security equipment for the London subways years ago and was rejected.

Summary: Officials of Metropolitan Transportation Authority had announced only one major contract, a $212 million deal with the Lockheed Martin Corporation to install high-tech cameras and motion sensors in the subway system. The contract with Lockheed Martin approved last August by the council officials after the bombing of the London subway system. John C. Liu, a councilman from Queens and the committee chairman asked that Why the transit authority cannot work outside its standard procedures and get things done at times ? this councilman from Queens leveled some of the most pointed criticism at the contract with Lockheed Martin. Lockheed Martin had proposed a similar system of security equipment for the London subways years ago and which was rejected.


Summary: The Lubavitcher Hasidim have not chosen a successor to their last grand rabbi, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who died in 1994.

Summary: Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who died in 1994, was last grand rabbi, was not shoosen by The Lubavitcher Hasidim.


Summary: Aaron, the eldest son of Rabbi Teitelbaum, was first named to run the second-largest Satmar congregation, in Kiryas Joel in Orange County. He had previously named Aaron, his eldest son, to run the second-largest Satmar congregation, in Kiryas Joel in Orange County.

Summary: Moses Teitelbaum had two sons named Aaron and Zalmen Teitelbaum, both at their father's bedside, facing each other for the first time in several years, which was said by Mr. Weiss. Moses Teitelbaum had previously named his eldest son Aaron, to run the second-largest Satmar congregation, in Kiryas Joel in Orange County.


Summary: A brief report this week from the Census Bureau, highlighting how welfare programs and tax credits affect incomes among the poor, has fanned the politically charged debate on poverty in the United States and how best to measure it, with conservatives offering praise and liberals saying it underplays the extent of deprivation. Over the last decade, a host of technical studies by the National Academy of Sciences, academic scholars, and the Census Bureau have analyzed incomes and needs under varying assumptions. In a news release this week, the bureau called the report ''part of an ongoing Census Bureau effort to understand economic well-being and poverty in America,'' adding that the bureau ''has been working to streamline and simplify the many ways to consider the poverty rate.'' Bureau officials did not respond to requests yesterday by telephone and e-mail for further comment on the report and its critics.

Summary: Census Bureau releases a report stating how welfare programs and tax credits affect incomes among the poor which has fanned the politically charged debate on poverty in the United States. The incomes and needs under varying assumptions, over the last decades was analyzed by various hosts of technical studies by the National Academy of Sciences, academic scholars and the Census Bureau.


Summary: Gov. Jon S. Corzine unveiled a plan on Friday to replenish New Jersey's depleted fund for road and bridge maintenance by refinancing $1.8 billion of the fund's debt, a move that would add billions of dollars to the state debt over the next 30 years. He was elected on a promise to end the lavish spending and borrowing that has weakened New Jersey's finances and considered raising the gas tax and selling the New Jersey Turnpike rest stops and other assets. Instead, he presented a proposal that would raise $78 million a year by reclaiming for the fund the 1.5 cents a gallon portion of the gas tax that now helps pay for the state's general operating expenses. He would also add new oversight to monitor how the fund spends its money.

Summary: Jon S. Corzine who was a governor unveiled a plan to replenish New Jersey's depleted fund for road and bridge maintenance by refinancing $1.8 billion of the fund's debt. This is the first major fiscal decision of the Corzine administration to avoid the politically risky step of increasing the state's gasoline tax. He was elected on a promise to end the lavish spending and borrowing that has weakened New Jersey's finances and he considered raising the gas tax and selling the New Jersey Turnpike. Instead he claim a proposal which helps pay for the state's general operating expenses, he raise $78 million a year by reclaiming for the fund the 1.5 cents a gallon portion of the gas tax. Mr. Corzine, he was a former bond trader, would turn to the capital market to raise most of the money.


Summary: General Motors, which in the United States struggles with ballooning pension and benefits payments, among other things, has more basic troubles in Russia -- the company was without engines for 11 days this month. G.M. said Monday that it had settled a dispute with a Russian business partner over the price of engines and other parts and that production would resume Tuesday.

Summary: General Motors, which in the United States struggles with ballooning pension and benefits payments, has more basic troubles in Russia. G.M. said that it had settled a dispute with a Russian business partner over the price of engines and other parts, and that production would resume Tuesday. Its board was taken over by government officials amid a general trend toward greater state control of the Russian economy. That enmeshed G.M. in the politics of the domestic auto industry, which a few years ago embraced foreign investment but has since taken on a nationalistic bent. That could make G.M.'s cooperation with Avtovaz, which builds S.U.V.'s, leading analysts to speculate that there were larger issues at stake in the dispute over engine prices. A spokeswoman for the G.M. joint venture also declined to comment, as did a spokesman for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.


Summary: In making the announcement yesterday with Mr. Bloomberg, Linda I. Gibbs, a deputy mayor, and the Children's Services commissioner, John B. Mattingly, gave the clearest indication to date of where they now believe the system broke down in the case of Nixzmary Brown.

Summary: After a discussion with Mr. Bloomberg, Linda I. Gibbs, a deputy mayor, and the Children's Services commissioner, John B. Mattingly, gave the clearest indication to date of where they now believe the system broke down in the case of Nixzmary Brown.


Summary: In 1996, Gail B. Nayowith, the executive director of the Citizens' Committee for Children, a nonprofit research and advocacy group said that there has not been this level of interest in child protective work since the child welfare administration was created.

Summary: Gail B. Nayowith, the executive director of the Citizens' Committee for Children, a nonprofit research and advocacy group, said in 1996 that there had not been this level of interest in child protective work since the child welfare administration was created.


Summary: The joint announcement by the city's top Republican, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, and its top Democrat, the City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, underscored how serious local officials are about controlling the shadowy but increasingly prevalent dealings between lobbyists and the local officials they try to influence. Ms. Quinn has said she wants to raise the ethical standards of the Council during her term.

Summary: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, and its top Democrat, the City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, underscored how serious local officials are about controlling the shadowy but increasingly prevalent dealings between lobbyists and the local officials they try to influence. Quinn has said she wants to raise the ethical standards of the Council during her term. Quinn said she was confident that the Council would pass all of the proposed laws. Quinn said she would quickly seek the formal approvals necessary to restrict lobbyists from specific areas of her City Hall office. Quinn said she would soon build a gate system closing off her office to lobbyists, who will now be asked to make formal appointments to meet with the Council staff. Quinn also promised a new mechanism for enforcing infractions, they said the details had not yet been worked out.


Summary: Leroy Comrie, the deputy majority leader, said he could not attend Council meetings without being approached by at least a half-dozen lobbyists and advocates.

Summary: Leroy Comrie, the deputy majority leader, said that he could not attend Council meetings without being approached by at least a half-dozen lobbyists and advocates.


Summary: Press officers, who were granted anonymity because they said they were still concerned for their jobs despite Dr. Griffin's call for openness, said much of the pressure in late 2004 was placed on Gretchen Cook-Anderson. At the time, she was in charge of managing the flow of earth science news at NASA headquarters. In an e-mail message yesterday, Ms. Cook-Anderson, who now works as a writer and editor for NASA through a contractor, said While she can't discuss these matters, she won't disagree with that description of what took place.

Summary: Press officers, who were granted anonymity because they said they were still concerned for their jobs despite Dr. Griffin's call for openness, said much of the pressure in late 2004 was placed on Gretchen Cook-Anderson. Cook-Anderson was in charge of managing the flow of earth science news at NASA headquarters. Cook-Anderson, who now works as a writer and editor for NASA through a contractor, said that he couldn't discuss those matters, he wouldn't disagree with that description of what took place. Dean Acosta, a political appointee who was then Mr. Mahone's deputy and is now Dr. Griffin's press secretary, said he had never pressed Ms. Cook-Anderson to cut back on news releases.


Summary: Moses Teitelbaum, the 91-year-old grand rabbi of the Satmar Hasidim, himself was chosen by the sect's board of rabbis after a contentious interregnum in 1979, when the previous grand rabbi, his uncle Joel Teitelbaum, died childless without naming a successor. In his 27 years at the helm, Moses Teitelbaum has presided over the explosive growth of the communities that Joel established in New York after fleeing the Holocaust and helped his followers fight off the pressure to assimilate. But being severely ill, he has been hospitalized since Thursday and is on a respirator. He is being treated for spinal cancer, as well as for an infection apparently caused by radiation treatment, the failure of his one remaining kidney, and a stroke.

Summary: Moses Teitelbaum, the 91-year-old grand rabbi of the Satmar Hasidim, is severely ill. He has been hospitalized since Thursday and is on a respirator. He is being treated for spinal cancer, as well as for an infection apparently caused by radiation treatment, the failure of his one remaining kidney and a stroke. He is in critical but stable condition at Mount Sinai Hospital. One indication of the gravity of Rabbi Teitelbaum's condition is that the Satmars declared an official day of prayer for their leader yesterday, gathering in synagogues, schools and at the cemetery in Orange County where his predecessor is buried. Moses Teitelbaum himself was chosen by the sect's board of rabbis after a contentious interregnum in 1979, when the previous grand rabbi, his uncle Joel Teitelbaum, died childless without naming a successor.


Summary: Samuel Heilman, a distinguished professor of sociology at Queens College who studies Orthodox Jewish sects, said he did not expect the grand rabbi to clear up the succession issue now. He said that the Satmars were probably the largest Hasidic sect in the country and certainly the biggest in New York.

Summary: Samuel Heilman, a distinguished professor of sociology at Queens College who studies Orthodox Jewish sects, said he did not expect the grand rabbi to clear up the succession issue now. Professor Heilman said that they often have many sons and they want to keep them in the business, so succession is a real problem. He also added that Satmars were probably the largest Hasidic sect in the country and certainly the biggest in New York. In his 27 years at the helm, Moses Teitelbaum has presided over explosive growth of the communities that Joel established in New York after fleeing the Holocaust and helped his followers fight off pressure to assimilate, Professor Heilman said.


Summary: In his 27 years at the helm, Moses Teitelbaum has presided over explosive growth of the communities that Joel established in New York after fleeing the Holocaust and helped his followers fight off pressure to assimilate, Professor Heilman said. Moses Teitelbaum himself was chosen by the sect's board of rabbis after a contentious interregnum in 1979, when the previous grand rabbi, his uncle Joel Teitelbaum, died childless without naming a successor.


Summary: Referring to the beating death of Nixzmary Brown this month, Mr. Bloomberg said that they are determined to find out exactly where the system broke down and to marshal the resources to fix it. Many of the changes highlighted yesterday were aimed at more closely monitoring households in which investigators believe children could be at risk but should not necessarily be removed from their parents. In Nixzmary's case, 46 days of school were missed before an official report was made.

Summary: In making the announcement yesterday with Mr. Bloomberg, Linda I. Gibbs, a deputy mayor, and the Children's Services commissioner, John B. Mattingly, gave the clearest indication to date of where they now believe the system broke down in the case of Nixzmary Brown. ''One of the most glaring failures in the tragedy of Nixzmary Brown occurred when a social worker and a guidance counselor at her school raised red flags about possible abuse or neglect but that sense of urgency wasn't absorbed by A.C.S.,'' Mr. Bloomberg said. ''In Nixzmary's case, 46 days of school were missed before an official report was made.'' Many child welfare advocates praised the mayor's actions yesterday, and credited them as seemingly well thought out and significant.


Summary: The city will also hire 32 lawyers who will make sure that Children's Services is efficiently handling Family Court cases and will be readily available to caseworkers seeking advice.


Summary: Responding to the city's failure to prevent the death of a 7-year-old girl in a home already under investigation for abuse, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg yesterday announced that retired law enforcement workers would be dispatched to work in child welfare offices and that he would create a new mayoral office to ensure that city agencies work together to prevent abuse. He also said that the city would devote an additional $16 million to the Administration for Children's Services to hire managers and caseworkers and to give more training to current caseworkers and that the city was working to establish a more stringent series of red flags to prompt quicker action, including action at city schools.

Summary: Responding to the city's failure to prevent the death of a 7-year-old girl in a home already under investigation for abuse, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg yesterday announced that retired law enforcement workers would be dispatched to work in child welfare offices and that he would create a new mayoral office to ensure those city agencies work together to prevent abuse. He said the city would devote an additional $16 million to the Administration for Children's Services to hire managers and caseworkers and to give more training to current caseworkers. He cited faulty communication between officials at Nixzmary's school, who were urgently concerned about her well-being, and the caseworkers at Children's Services, who apparently were not. He indicated that the changes to the child welfare system would not end with yesterday's announcement. He said the city was working to establish a more stringent series of red flags to prompt quicker action.


Summary: Poetry critic, Helen Vendler takes on the poetry editor Alice Quinn of The New Yorker for editing ''Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box: Uncollected Poems, Drafts and Fragments,'' by Elizabeth Bishop, one of the most respected of American poets. Vendler's argument reflects a long-running debate about what to do with the unpublished work, ranging from manuscripts and drafts to letters and diaries of dead writers, from Keats to Kafka and beyond.

Summary: ''Had Bishop been asked whether her repudiated poems and some drafts and fragments, should be published after her death, she would have replied, I believe, with a horrified 'No,' '' she writes. In a scathing review that appeared in the April 3 issue of The New Republic, Helen Vendler, arguably the country's most prominent poetry critic, takes on Alice Quinn of The New Yorker, arguably the country's most prominent poetry editor, for editing ''Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box: Uncollected Poems, Drafts and Fragments,'' by Elizabeth Bishop, one of the most respected of American poets.


Kirk Kerkorian
Bonder Kerkorian
Lisa Bonder Kerkorian
Ms. Bonder Kerkorian
Kerkorian

Summary: Lisa Bonder Kerkorian was in a paternity and child support battle with her former husband Mr. Kerkorian. According to prosecutors, Mr. Christensen hired Mr. Pellicano in late March 2002, to wiretap Ms. Bonder Kerkorian at a heated point in her fight with Mr. Kerkorian over the paternity of, and child support for, her daughter, Kira. That January, she had sought an increase in Mr. Kerkorian's monthly support payments to $320,000, from $50,000. Later, on April 28, prosecutors say, Mr. Pellicano told Mr. Christensen of hearing Ms. Bonder Kerkorian discuss her daughter's real biological father with her lawyers.

Summary: The indictment of Mr. Christensen on wiretapping and conspiracy charges centered on his work for Mr. Kerkorian in 2002 during a paternity and child support battle with his former wife, Lisa Bonder Kerkorian. Bonder Kerkorian at a heated point in her fight with Mr. Kerkorian over the paternity of her daughter, Kira. She had sought an increase in Mr. Kerkorian's monthly support payments to $320,000, from $50,000, and in doing so made details of their freespending lifestyle public. Both sides wrangled in at least three simultaneous court cases over whether Ms. Bonder Kerkorian had duped Mr. Kerkorian, and the legal give-and-take soon took on an extralegal dimension. Bonder Kerkorian's lawyer, Stephen A. Kolodny, who had referred Mr. Christensen to the California bar association.


Summary: The so-called Son of Sam Law forbids Mr. Berkowitz from profiting from his crime, but Mr. Harmatz said that did not prevent him from publishing the letters.


Summary: Michael David Heller says that Mr. Berkowitz has become a jailhouse minister, counseling inmates and people around the world, who know him not as Son of Sam but as Son of Hope.

Summary: He says that Mr. Berkowitz has become a jailhouse minister, counseling inmates and people around the world, who know him not as Son of Sam but as Son of Hope.


Summary: Yet that ''hello'' was enough to transform Mr. Berkowitz, once a frightful symbol of the crime-filled 70's, into another example of the current obsession with the personal lives of celebrity miscreants, like Amy Fisher, the so-called Long Island Lolita, or James Frey, who chronicled his drug abuse, however mendaciously, in ''A Million Little Pieces.'' The ''Son of Sam'' was back in court not because of some new development in his case, but because he was fighting for the right to own his image.

Summary: James Frey mendaciously chronicled his drug abuse.


Summary: David Berkowitz, the man known as the Son of Sam, wanted to stop Hugo Harmatz from publishing the letters as the so-called Son of Sam Law forbids Mr. Berkowitz from profiting from his crime.

Summary: David Berkowitz, the man known as the Son of Sam, whose murder spree terrorized New York City during the long hot summer of 1977, appeared in court yesterday. ' The ''Son of Sam'' was back in court not because of some new development in his case, but because he was fighting for the right to own his image. Mr. Berkowitz's lawyer said that he has become a jailhouse minister, counseling inmates and people around the world, who know him not as Son of Sam but as Son of Hope. The so-called Son of Sam Law forbids Mr. Berkowitz from profiting from his crime, but Mr. Harmatz said that did not prevent him from publishing the letters.


Summary: Michael David Heller said a different version of Mr. Berkowitz's story. He said that Mr. Berkowitz has become a jailhouse minister, counseling inmates and people around the world, who know him not as Son of Sam but as Son of Hope. he also said that Mr. Harmatz won Mr. Berkowitz's confidence by promising to help him start an organization to rescue wayward youth but Mr. Harmatz has taken David Berkowitz's life and his memories hostage'' for his own purposes.

Summary: Mr. Berkowitz's version of the story, as told yesterday through his current lawyer, Michael David Heller, is different. He says that Mr. Berkowitz has become a jailhouse minister, counseling inmates and people around the world, who know him not as Son of Sam but as Son of Hope.


Summary: David Berkowitz, the man known as the Son of Sam, whose murder spree terrorized New York City during the long hot summer of 1977, appeared in court yesterday. He wanted to stop Hugo Harmatz, a New Jersey lawyer who once represented him, and who self-published a book, ''Dear David,'' about the serial killer, in June, from publishing a sequel or from making a movie based on the book as the so-called Son of Sam Law forbids Mr. Berkowitz from profiting from his crime. He is demanding that Mr. Harmatz return a large trove of personal items, including a bar mitzvah picture, a picture of his mother and, his lawyer said, letters from relatives of some of his victims.

Summary: David Berkowitz, the man known as the Son of Sam, whose murder spree terrorized New York City during the long hot summer of 1977, appeared in court yesterday in a dispute over his memorabilia. Mr. Berkowitz, once a frightful symbol of the crime-filled '70s, the ''Son of Sam'' was back in court because he was fighting for the right to own his image. Mr. Berkowitz, 51, wanted to stop Hugo Harmatz, a New Jersey lawyer who once represented Mr. Berkowitz, and who self-published a book, ''Dear David,'' about the serial killer. Mr. Harmatz, who did appear in court, said he had gotten to know Mr. Berkowitz in the summer of 2002, after writing him a letter, saying he was interested in writing a book about ''high-profile defendants.'' Mr. Berkowitz agreed to meet him, where Mr. Berkowitz is serving six sentences of 25 years to life.


Summary: Mr. Berkowitz, 51, wanted to stop Hugo Harmatz, a New Jersey lawyer who once represented Mr. Berkowitz, and who self-published a book, ''Dear David,'' about the serial killer. Mr. Harmatz said in court that he had gotten to know Mr. Berkowitz in the summer of 2002, after writing him a letter, saying he was interested in writing a book about ''high-profile defendants.'' And Mr. Berkowitz agreed to meet him. Mr. Harmatz said that those interviews were so facinating that he dropped his plans to interview any other defendants. Mr. Harmatz won Mr. Berkowitz's confidence by promising to help him start an organization to rescue wayward youth.

Summary: Mr. Berkowitz wanted to stop Hugo Harmatz, a New Jersey lawyer who once represented Mr. Berkowitz, and who self-published a book, ''Dear David,'' about the serial killer from publishing a sequel or from making a movie based on the book. Mr. Harmatz said that he had gotten to know Mr. Berkowitz in the summer of 2002. He wrote a letter saying he was interested in writing a book about ''high-profile defendants.'' Mr. Berkowitz, who is serving six sentences of 25 years to life for killing six people and injuring seven others, agreed to meet him and they began a series of conversations in prison. Mr. Harmatz said that Those conversations were so fascinating, that he dropped his plans to interview any other defendants. The Son of Sam Law forbids Mr. Berkowitz from profiting from his crime, but Mr. Harmatz said that did not prevent him from publishing the letters.


Summary: For example, France brokered a takeover of a huge privately owned water and power utility, Suez, by a much smaller state-run natural gas utility, Gaz de France, for $46 billion in cash and stock. The hastily arranged deal frustrated an attempt by Enel, Italy's biggest power company, to buy Suez. The hastily arranged deal frustrated an attempt by Enel, Italy's biggest power company, to buy Suez

Summary: France brokered a takeover of a huge privately-owned water and power utility, Suez, by Gaz de France, for $46 billion in cash and stock. The hastily arranged deal frustrated an attempt by Enel to buy Suez.


Summary: General Motors, Ford and the Chrysler are unit of DaimlerChrysler and all of them said that their sales slipped while Honda, Toyota and other foreign-owned companies posted gains. G.M. slipped from 24.2 percent to to 23.4 percent of the American market. G.M. will cut production by 3.7 percent and Ford by 1.8 percent

Summary: General Motors said that their sales slipped in February to 23.4 percent of the American market, from 24.2 percent a year earlier. It will make fewer cars in the second quarter this year than they did in the 2005 period and will cut production by 3.7 percent.


Summary: Contract talks held between one of the nation's biggest airlines and its pilots' union went into overtime as the company, Northwest, and its employees wrestled over how drastically the pilots' pay will be cut. Northwest was the first company to reach a deal with flight attendants, with an agreement pf $195 million in annual savings. Then in November, the company approved a temporary annual cut of $215 million.

Summary: Contract talks between NorthWest and its pilots' union went into overtime as the company and its employees wrestled over how drastically the pilots' pay will be cut. The company is operating under bankruptcy court protection as it tries to reorganize its finances and reduce its costs so it can better compete with low-cost, low-fare rivals. It could use that protection to impose salary cuts, but the pilots have threatened to strike if that happens.


Summary: Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said that they believed there were between 30 and 50 people on the sidewalk at the scene of a homicide, and no one had come forward to volunteer information. In an interview, he also said he would ask the Brooklyn district attorney to convene a grand jury.

Summary: Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said that there were between 30 and 50 people on the sidewalk at the scene of a homicide, and no one had come forward to volunteer information. In an interview, Commissioner Kelly said he would ask the Brooklyn district attorney to convene a grand jury.


Summary: Charles A. Gargano, the governor's top economic development official, said if Mr. Silverstein did not begin construction of the Freedom Tower in April, then we want him to move out of the way. In effect, he is trying to force Mr. Silverstein to begin building what may be the least economically desirable tower of the project, which some of his aides concede could be difficult to lease because of its size, its distance from public transportation and the fear that it could become a target.

Summary: Charles A. Gargano, the top economic development official of governor, said that if Mr. Silverstein did not begin construction of the Freedom Tower in April, then they want him to move out of the way. In effect, he is trying to force Mr. Silverstein to begin building what may be the least economically desirable tower of the project, which some of his aides admit could be difficult to lease because of its size, its distance from public transportation and the fear that it could become a target.


Summary: When talks on how to rebuild the World Trade Center site foundered Tuesday night without an agreement, it was more bad news for Gov. George E. Pataki. Mr. Silverstein -- who leased the World Trade Center six weeks before it was destroyed -- was given such a prominent role in deciding what gets built on the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, attack.

Summary: When talks on how to rebuild the World Trade Center site foundered Tuesday night without an agreement, it was more bad news for Gov. George E. Pataki. New York City officials have long grumbled that Mr. Silverstein who leased the World Trade Center six weeks before it was destroyed was given such a prominent role in deciding what gets built on the site of the September 11, 2001, attack.


Summary: In ''Islamic Art,'' published by Harvard University Press, Barbara Brend defines Islamic art as 'the art produced for rulers or populations of Islamic cultures'. Art from Southeast Asia meets that test, Ms. Brend also writes that Islamic art does not necessarily have to be religious, and that the artists and patrons do not necessarily have to be good Muslims, ideas the curators here agree with.

Summary: Islamic Art, which is published by Harvard University Press, Barbara Brend defines Islamic art as the art produced for rulers or populations of Islamic cultures. Ans she said that it is a complete European outlook, and it's what Western art historians have been interested in. Art from Southeast Asia meets that test, Ms. Maxwell argues, even though Ms. Brend does not mention it in her book. Brend also writes that Islamic art does not necessarily have to be religious, and that the artists and patrons do not necessarily have to be that good , ideas the curators here agree with.


National Gallery
National Gallery of Australia

Summary: The National Gallery of Australia is provoking a more worldly debate: What is Islamic art? Taking advantage of Australia's proximity to Southeast Asia, the National Gallery is venturing into new territory for a museum better known for its holdings of Australian art and its crowd-pleasing shows.

Summary: In this sleepy capital, where talk usually centers on domestic politics, the National Gallery of Australia is evoking a more worldly debate: What is Islamic art? Taking advantage of Australia's proximity to Southeast Asia, the National Gallery is venturing into new territory for a museum better known for its holdings of Australian art and its crowd-pleasing shows.


Summary: An 18th-century dark blue and white royal banner, used by the court on religious occasions, shows the sword Zulfikar, which the archangel Gabriel is believed to have given to the Prophet Muhammad, who passed it to his son-in-law Sayidina Ali. In the context of controversy over Islam's rules about depictions of the Prophet Muhammad and, more generally, the human figure, Ms. Maxwell said, this was a way to show that the Islamic courts in Southeast Asia sanctioned images of humans, if in distorted form.


Summary: Robyn Maxwell, the coordinating curator and an expert on the textiles of Southeast Asia, said that the deliberate thrust is that there is no one Islamic art. Ms. Maxwell, who also teaches the history of art at the Australian National University, said she was always astonished when the basic texts on Islamic art cover Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and India, and then abruptly stop, rarely mentioning Southeast Asia. In the context of controversy over Islam's rules about depictions of the Prophet Muhammad and, more generally, the human figure, Ms. Maxwell said, this was a way to show that the Islamic courts in Southeast Asia sanctioned images of humans, if in distorted form.

Summary: Robyn Maxwell, the coordinating curator and an expert on the textiles of Southeast Asia, said that the deliberate thrust was that there was no one Islamic art. Maxwell, who also teaches the history of art at the Australian National University, said she was always astonished when the basic texts on Islamic art cover Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and India, and then abruptly stop, rarely mentioning Southeast Asia. Maxwell said, this was a way to show that the Islamic courts in Southeast Asia sanctioned images of humans, if in distorted form.


New York State Education Department
State Education Department

Summary: In the fall, when New York State Education Department officials distributed sample questions and answers for the annual standardized mathematics exam, they fully intended to help students study and prepare for the test. What they did not intend was to give about 400,000 seventh and eighth graders an advance peek at actual test questions.

Summary: New York State Education Department officials distributed sample questions and answers for the annual standardized mathematics exam, they fully intended to help students study and prepare for the test. But unintentionally they gave about 400,000 seventh and eighth graders an advance peek at actual test questions. Education officials and testing experts said there was little choice but to ignore those questions in the tabulation of final scores.


Summary: Kelley Carpenter, a spokeswoman for CTB/McGraw-Hill, acknowledged that it had prepared both the sample tests and the actual exams. She said that they're working closely with the State Department of Education to investigate what transpired, and they'll also work closely with them on an effective solution.

Summary: A spokeswoman named Kelley Carpenter, for CTB/McGraw-Hill, brief that it had prepared both the sample tests and the actual exams. Ms. Carpenter said that they were working closely with the State Department of Education to investigate what transpired, and they will also work closely with them on an effective solution.


Summary: In a gaffe that officials acknowledged was embarrassing to the state and even more humiliating to the test publisher, CTB/McGraw-Hill, three questions on the seventh-grade sample test and one question on the eighth-grade sample test reappeared on the real exams, which are being administered this week to about 200,000 students in each grade. Officials in Albany and at CTB/McGraw-Hill in Monterey, Calif., issued concise statements last night promising to adjust for the mistake in the scoring of the exams. CTB/McGraw-Hill has a five-year, $22.5 million contact to publish the New York State exams through 2009. In 2002, New York City declined to renew a contract with CTB/McGraw-Hill, which had published the city's standardized reading exam, after a series of highly publicized disputes over possible scoring errors.

Summary: Officials in Albany and at CTB/McGraw-Hill in Monterey, California, issued brief statements last night promising to adjust for the mistake in the scoring of the exams. A spokeswoman named Kelley Carpenter, for CTB/McGraw-Hill, acknowledged that it had prepared both the sample tests and the actual exams. CTB/McGraw-Hill has a five-year contract for $22.5 million to publish the New York State exams through 2009.


Summary: Senator Arlen Specter, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, called the hearings to examine whether mergers in the oil and gas industry had resulted in higher gasoline prices at the pump. He proposed to introduce a bill that would tighten scrutiny on mergers that might hurt competition and would reconsider some of the $14.5 billion tax incentives that were granted to energy companies in last year's energy law. Senator Specter's proposed legislation would also permit the government to take legal action against the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries for fixing oil prices.

Summary: The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, named Senator Arlen Specter, called the hearings to examine whether mergers in the oil and gas industry had resulted in higher gasoline prices at the pump. Senator Specter said that they know that there have been mergers and that gasoline prices have risen, the Republican of Pennsylvania, said in his opening remarks. He proposed to introduce a bill that would tighten scrutiny on mergers that might hurt competition and would reconsider some of the $14.5 billion tax incentives that were granted to energy companies in last year's energy law.


Summary: With clipped tones and a shy, retiring manner, a convicted marijuana dealer took the stand yesterday in the trial of Louis J. Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa and told jurors that the two retired New York detectives had served as killers for the mob, murdering at least two men and kidnapping another on its behalf. It was the first time in the week-old federal racketeering trial that any witness has directly implicated the men, who stand accused of taking part in at least eight murders for Brooklyn's Luchese crime family. After the court let out yesterday Mr. Eppolito told reporters he was annoyed by Mr. Kaplan's saying that their roles might have been reversed.

Summary: In the trial of Louis J. Eppolito, a shy retiring manner, a convicted marijuana dealer took the stand, with clipped tones and Stephen Caracappa told jurors that the two retired detectives of New York had served as killers for the mob, murdering at least two men and kidnapping another on its behalf. Now he is expected to lay out a richer version of his ties to Mr. Eppolito, who is 57, and Mr. Caracappa, who is 64, and whom he said that he met after becoming familiar with Mr. Eppolito's cousin Frank Santora Jr. in the Allenwood Prison Camp. In 2004, he decided to cooperate with federal prosecutors because, as he told the jury, that he is no longer trusted that Mr. Eppolito and Mr. Caracappa were announced as ''stand-up guys,'' which is to say, that they would not betray him first.


Summary: With clipped tones and a shy, retiring manner, a convicted marijuana dealer took the stand yesterday in the trial of Louis J. Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa and told jurors that the two retired New York detectives had served as killers for the mob, murdering at least two men and kidnapping another on its behalf. It was the first time in the week-old federal racketeering trial that any witness has directly implicated the men, who stand accused of taking part in at least eight murders for Brooklyn's Luchese crime family.

Summary: In the trial of Louis J. Eppolito, a shy retiring manner, a convicted marijuana dealer took the stand with clipped tones and Stephen Caracappa and told jurors that the two retired New York detectives had served as killers for the group, murdering at least two men and kidnapping another on its behalf. It was the first time in the week-old federal crimes trial that any witness has directly implicated the men, who stand accused of taking part in at least eight murders for Brooklyn's Luchese crime family. Mr. Caracappa, prosecutors say, asked Mr. Lino what was on the seat beside him and, when he turned around, they shot him fatally at point-blank range.


Summary: Speaking concisely with his hands in his lap, the witness, Burton Kaplan, said the two detectives not only shot and killed a Gambino family captain and a jeweler from Long Island, but also passed on secret police intelligence to Anthony Casso, the Luchese underboss, who used it to track down his own murder victims. Mr. Kaplan said that if it had something to do with him and they were informants, Mr. Casso had them killed. Yesterday's testimony was merely the starter course to Mr. Kaplan's critical turn on the witness stand. Today he is expected to lay out a richer version of his ties to Louis J. Eppolito, 57, and Stephen Caracappa, 64, whom he said he met after becoming acquainted with Mr. Eppolito's cousin Frank Santora Jr. in the Allenwood Prison Camp in Pennsylvania in 1982.

Summary: Burton Kaplan, the witness, said the two detectives shot and killed a Gambino family captain and a jeweler from Long Island and passed on secret police intelligence to Anthony Casso, the Luchese underboss. He lay out a richer version of his ties to Mr. Eppolito, 57, and Mr. Caracappa, 64, whom he said he met after becoming acquainted with Mr. Eppolito's cousin Frank Santora Jr. in the Allenwood Prison Camp. He is serving a 27-year prison term for trafficking in as much as 13,000 pounds of marijuana. It was then, prosecutors say, that he gave them and Mr. Santora a $30,000 contract to kill a Long Island jeweler named Israel Greenwald, whose body was found last year. He said he gave the two men a contract to murder Edward Lino, a dapper and aggressive Gambino family soldier.


Summary: Today Burton Kaplan is expected to lay out a richer version of his ties to Louis J. Eppolito, 57, and Stephen Caracappa, 64, whom he said he met after becoming acquainted with Mr. Eppolito's cousin Frank Santora Jr. in the Allenwood Prison Camp in Pennsylvania in 1982. Moments later, he said that Mr. Santora, who was killed in front of a Bensonhurst dry cleaner in 1987, had offered to murder if Mr. Kaplan had serious problems in the street. Mr. Kaplan, who is 72 and suffers from arthritis, poor circulation and high blood pressure, does not look like an ordinary criminal. It was then that he gave them and Mr. Santora a $30,000 contract to kill a Long Island jeweler named Israel Greenwald, whose body was found last year under a Brooklyn parking garage, still in the pinstriped suit that Mr. Greenwald had worn to work almost 20 years before.

Summary: Mr. Kaplan is expected to lay out a richer version of his ties to Mr. Eppolito, who is 57, and Mr. Caracappa, aged 64, whom he said he met after becoming familiar with Mr. Eppolito's cousin Frank Santora Jr. in the Allenwood Prison Camp in Pennsylvania. He said that Frankie approached him and he said that his cousin was a detective and, if he wanted, his cousin could get him information and could help him if he had problems. After some moment, he said that Mr. Santora, who was killed in front of a Bensonhurst dry cleaner, had offered to murder Mr. Kaplan if he had serious problems in the street. Mr. Kaplan, who is 72 and suffers from arthritis, poor circulation and high blood pressure, does not look like an ordinary criminal.


Summary: Bernadette Nation, director of the Business Outreach Team for Brooklyn in the Department of Small Business Services.

Summary: The director of the Business Outreach Team for Brooklyn, Bernadette Nation, in the Department of Small Business Services.


Summary: James F. Berg, president of the Realty Advisory Board, which negotiates for the residential buildings, said that these increasing costs leave buildings with less money available to pay out.  Mr. Berg said a wage freeze was needed to offset the higher health insurance contributions that the union is seeking. He also said management hoped to follow the pattern set by the contract that Local 32BJ signed in October 2004 on behalf of 25,000 workers at more than 1,000 office buildings in New York City.

Summary: James F. Berg, president of the Realty Advisory Board, said that the increasing costs leave buildings with less money which is available to pay out, which negotiates for the residential buildings. Mr. Berg said a wage hold was needed to offset the higher health insurance contributions that the union is seeking. He further said that it is a very tough environment, with health costs and pension costs going up.


Summary: Mr. Fishman, the president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said that he thinks that this is going to be their toughest bargaining in a while. James F. Berg said management hoped to follow the pattern set by the contract that Local 32BJ signed in October 2004 on behalf of 25,000 workers at more than 1,000 office buildings in New York City. In a significant departure from previous years, Local 32BJ is proposing that the residential contract be extended by at least a year longer than usual so that it expires at the same time as the office building contract.

Summary: Mr. Fishman, the president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said that he was thinking that it will be their toughest bargaining in a while. Mr. Berg said that the management hoped to follow the pattern which is already set by the contract that Local 32BJ signed in October 2004 on behalf of 25,000 workers at more than 1,000 office buildings in New York City. In a significant departure from the last year, Local 32BJ is proposing that the residential contract will be extended by at least a year longer than usual so that it expires at the same time as the office building contract.


Summary: Mr. Fishman, the president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said that he thinks this is going to be their toughest bargaining in a while.

Summary: Mr. Michael Fishman, the president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union said they were negotiating their toughest bargain yet. Mr. James F. Berg said a wage freeze was needed to offset the higher health insurance contributions that the union is seeking.


Summary: Michael Fishman, the union president, said soaring health costs would make this round of talks the most difficult in a decade, raising the possibility of a strike when the union's three-year contract expires at 12:01 a.m. on April 21. Mr. Fishman, the president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said that he thinks that this is going to be their toughest bargaining in a while. But Mr. Fishman argued that New York's real estate market had remained so strong that the residential buildings could afford substantial raises as well as higher health care contributions.

Summary: Michael Fishman, the president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said soaring health costs would make this round of talks the most difficult, raising the possibility of a strike when the union's three-year contract expires. But Mr. Fishman argued that New York's real estate market had remained so strong that the residential buildings could afford substantial raises as well as higher health care contributions. Mr. Fishman argued that joint expiration date would help management do more to control health costs for workers in residential and commercial buildings.


Summary: The stroke connection was spotlighted when Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel was diagnosed with P.F.O. after a mild stroke on Dec. 18; he was scheduled for a closure procedure in early January. The day before the planned procedure, Mr. Sharon suffered a second stroke that put him in the coma from which he has yet to emerge. Doctors say, though, that the second stroke was not the type linked to P.F.O., so closure would not have protected him from it.

Summary: The stroke connection was spotlighted when Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel was diagnosed with P.F.O. after a mild stroke, he was scheduled for a closure procedure. The day before the planned procedure, Mr. Sharon suffered a second stroke that put him in the coma from which he has yet to emerge.


Summary: Although the maker of the implanted device that repairs a congenital heart defect can reduce the frequency and severity of migraine headaches, NMT Medical, called the preliminary findings promising, the results disappointed investors because NMT had been seeking a definitive finding that the device could stop the headaches. Shares of the company, which is based in Boston, plunged nearly 33 percent in heavy trading yesterday after the findings were announced, closing at $14.04. The clinical trial, which took place in Britain, used NMT Medical's StarFlex device to close a hole between the upper chambers of the heart that as many as 25 percent of adults have from birth.

Summary: ANMT Medical, called the preliminary findings promising, but the results disappointed investors because NMT had assured that the device could stop the headaches. Shares of the company, plunged nearly 33 percent in heavy trading after the findings were announced, closing at $14.04. The clinical trial, which took place in Britain, used NMT Medical's StarFlex device to close a hole between the upper chambers of the heart that as many as 25 percent of adults have from birth.


Summary: Dr. Peter Wilmshurst, the cardiologist who was a co-leader of the trial with Dr. Andrew Dowson, a headache specialist at Kings College Hospital in London, said that this study significantly increases our understanding of those patients who might benefit from cardiac intervention to treat these debilitating headaches. In 2000, Dr. Wilmshurst reported similar unexpected migraine relief for scuba divers who had holes in their heart closed to minimize decompression risks.

Summary: Dr. Peter Wilmshurst, a headache specialist at Kings College Hospital in London, said that that study significantly increased their understanding of those patients who might benefit from cardiac intervention to treat these debilitating headaches.


Summary: Delta Air Lines, operating in bankruptcy, originally said it planned to make a major announcement at a fancy lunch for the news media at the Rainbow Room last week in Manhattan. Delta's news was that it was adding 46 daily flights between cities in the Northeast and Kennedy International Airport in New York. The main thrust of Delta's move is to add connecting service, from Hartford and Philadelphia, to feed its growing international and domestic long-haul capacity out of Kennedy.

Summary: Other big airlines, among them American, United, Northwest, Delta and Continental, quickly raised their fares by similar amounts. Delta Air Lines, operating in bankruptcy, originally said it planned to make a major announcement at a fancy lunch for the news media at the Rainbow Room last week in Manhattan. James F. Whitehurst, Delta's chief operating officer, said that the move was mostly intended to help us to continue to build our transcontinental and international service out of New York.


Summary: Like Southwest Airlines, other big airlines like American, United, Northwest, Delta and Continental, quickly raised their fares by similar amounts.

Summary: Other big airlines, among them American, United, Northwest, Delta and Continental, quickly raised their fares by similar amounts. Major airlines have participated since Hero Miles began in January 2004, now only five -- Alaska, America West, Delta, Midwest and Northwest -- let fliers donate miles to the program, which has cashed in 190 million.


Summary: The $10 increase on longer flights means that a $299 one-way cap on fares that Southwest imposed last year is now $309, said Terry Trippler, the airfare analyst at Cheapseats.com. Last year, airlines raised fares in a series of $10 increments over many months, but Mr. Trippler said he did not expect that pattern to be repeated. In all, he predicted that domestic coach leisure fares, typically, nonrefundable fares paid in advance, would rise an average of 10 percent this year and that business fares, typically bought at the last minute, would rise 5 percent on average.

Summary: Terry Trippler, the airfare analyst at Cheapseats.com, said that the $10 increased on longer flights meant that a $299 one-way cap on fares that Southwest imposed last year was now $309, . Last year, airlines raised fares in a series of $10 increments over many months, but Mr. Trippler said he did not expect that pattern to be repeated. He predicted that domestic coach leisure fares -- typically, nonrefundable fares paid in advance -- would rise an average of 10 percent this year and that business fares, typically bought at the last minute, would rise 5 percent on average.


Summary: Thomas R. Suozzi has blamed officials from the union, the Police Benevolent Association, for the bloat in the department's budget, which accounts for a quarter of Nassau's county budget.

Summary: Mr. Suozzi blamed officials from the union, the Police Benevolent Association, for the bloat in the department's budget, which accounts for a quarter of Nassau's county budget.


Summary: For years, there has been a battle raging in Nassau County between the county executive, Thomas R. Suozzi, and the largest police union in the county, which has some of the highest-paid officers in the country and enjoys one of the lowest crime rates. Mr. Suozzi has blamed officials from the union, the Police Benevolent Association, for the bloat in the department's budget, which accounts for a quarter of Nassau's county budget. Mr. Suozzi makes $109,000 a year as the county's top elected official.

Summary: There has been a battle raging in Nassau County between the county executive, Thomas R. Suozzi, and the largest police union in the county, which has some of the highest-paid officers in the country and enjoys one of the lowest crime rates. Mr. Suozzi has portrayed the union president, Gary Dela Raba, and his executive board as fat cats lapping up tax dollars and dragging Nassau almost into bankruptcy. Mr. Dela Raba has accused Mr. Suozzi of trying to gut the Police Department, balance the county budget on officers' backs and expose this wealthy suburban county to an increase in crime.


Summary: For years, there has been a battle raging in Nassau County between the county executive, Thomas R. Suozzi, and the largest police union in the county, which has some of the highest-paid officers in the country and enjoys one of the lowest crime rates. Mr. Suozzi has blamed officials from the union, the Police Benevolent Association, for the bloat in the department's budget, which accounts for a quarter of Nassau's county budget. Nassau County recently released an audit finding soaring overtime costs and mismanagement in the department, and recommended that many jobs be taken over by civilians.

Summary: There has been a battle raging in Nassau County between the county executive, Thomas R. Suozzi, and the largest police union in the county, which has some of the highest-paid officers in the country and enjoys one of the lowest crime rates. Mr. Suozzi has blamed officials from the union, the Police Benevolent Association, for the bloat in the department's budget, which accounts for a quarter of Nassau's county budget. Mr. Suozzi has portrayed the union president, Gary Dela Raba, and his executive board as fat cats lapping up tax dollars and dragging Nassau almost into bankruptcy.


Summary: County executive, Thomas R. Suozzi won re-election handily, trouncing his Republican opponent, Greg Peterson, by more than 20 percentage points.

Summary: Mr. Suozzi still won re-election handily, trouncing his Republican opponent, Greg Peterson, by more than 20 percentage points. The suit claims that the officials were exercising their First Amendment right to support Mr. Suozzi's opponent, Mr. Peterson.


Summary: The suit claims that the officials were exercising their First Amendment right to support Mr. Suozzi's opponent and that punishing them for it is a violation of the Constitution.

Summary: The suit claims that Punishing them for it is a violation of the Constitution.


Summary: Thomas R. Suozzi has portrayed the union president, Gary Dela Raba, and his executive board as fat cats lapping up tax dollars and dragging Nassau almost into bankruptcy. In turn, Mr. Dela Raba has accused Mr. Suozzi of trying to gut the Police Department, balance the county budget on officers' backs and expose this wealthy suburban county to an increase in crime. Mr. Dela Raba led a $500,000 campaign last year against Mr. Suozzi's re-election bid, which included a plane towing a banner over Jones Beach with the message: "Tom Suozzi: Good for the bad guys, bad for the good guys."

Summary: Mr. Suozzi has portrayed the union president, Gary Dela Raba, and his executive board as fat cats lapping up tax dollars and dragging Nassau almost into bankruptcy. Mr. Dela Raba has accused Mr. Suozzi of trying to gut the Police Department, balance the county budget on officers' backs and expose this wealthy suburban county to an increase in crime. Mr. Dela Raba led a $500,000 campaign last year against Mr. Suozzi's re-election bid, which included a plane towing a banner over Jones Beach with the message:  Good for the bad guys, bad for the good guys.