Cleaning oil-soaked wetlands may be impossible

The gooey oil washing into the maze of marshes along the Gulf Coast could prove impossible to remove, leaving a toxic stew lethal to fish and wildlife, government officials and independent scientists said.

Officials are considering some drastic and risky solutions: They could set the wetlands on fire or flood areas in hopes of floating out the oil.

They warn an aggressive cleanup could ruin the marshes and do more harm than good. The only viable option for many impacted areas is to do nothing and let nature break down the spill.

More than 50 miles of Louisiana's delicate shoreline already have been soiled by the massive slick unleashed after the …

Hunt for biological mother turns into fight for millions; Woman finds she has link to Jell-O fortune

ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Elizabeth McNabb was born out of wedlock in1955 in an Oregon hospital to a biological mother who disappearedafter the birth, leaving little information about herself.

Five decades later, McNabb could inherit more than $3 millionfrom the birth mother who put her up for adoption. As it turns out,McNabb's biological mother was Barbara Woodward Piel, a descendantof the Le Roy, N.Y., family that made vast fortunes with theproduction and mass marketing of the popular treat Jell- O.

McNabb learned about her mother's name -- and wealthy lineage --only after a 14-year search that took her from her home in Oregon toNew …

Matfield: south hard hit by injuries at World Cup

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Veteran Springboks lock Victor Matfield says southern hemisphere teams have suffered more from injuries than northern hemisphere sides at the Rugby World Cup because they had less recovery time before the tournament began.

Matfield missed two of South Africa's four pool matches because of a hamstring strain he carried into the tournament and said the effects of the Super 15 and Tri-Nations seasons may be taking a toll on SANZAR teams.

Northern teams appear to be heading into this weekend's quarterfinals with fewer injury concerns than their southern rivals. For the south, New Zealand's loss of flyhalf Dan Carter and South Africa's of center Frans …

Custer, Arthur

Custer, Arthur , American composer; b. Manchester, Conn., April 21, 1923. He studied engineering at the Univ. of Hartford (1940–42). After graduating in music from the Univ. of Conn, at Storrs (1949), he pursued training with Pisk at the Univ. of Redlands in Calif. (1949–51), Bezanson at the Univ. of Iowa (1952–55), and Boulanger (1960–62). He taught at Kansas Wesleyan Univ. (1952–55) and the Univ. of Omaha (1955–58); then was asst. dean of fine arts at the Univ. of R.I. (1962–65) and dean of the Philadephia Musical Academy (1965–67). After serving as director of the St. Louis Metropolitan Educational Center for the Arts (1967–70), he was director (1970–73) …

It's official: Dorothy Brown announces her candidacy for mayor of Chicago

Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown officially announced Thursday what some Black community leaders suspected all week: she is a mayoral candidate for the city of Chicago.

Flanked by her sister, actor/comedian/activist Dick Gregory and other supporters from the circuit court and religious communities, Brown announced her intention to become Chicago's first African American woman mayor to about 350 people in a small meeting room at the Allegro Hotel, 171 W. Randolph St.

"I have heard the call from many of the citizens of the city of Chicago...," Brown told the excited crowd as they chanted "Run Dorothy Run," and "Win Dorothy Win."

"Today I am answering that …

Stock Prices Are Mixed in Early Trading

NEW YORK - Stock prices are mixed today after a slew of dealmaking news lifted some sectors, but investors remained jittery about rebounding bond yields and upcoming data on the U.S. service sector. In the opening minutes, the Dow Jones industrial average is down 34.47 at 13,542.83.

The Standard & Poor 500 index is down 1.29 to 1,523,58. But the Nasdaq Composite Index is higher by 0.25 qat 2,645.20.

The Institute for Supply Management's index of service sector activity in June, scheduled to be released at 10 a.m., is expected to slip to 58.1 from 59.7 in May, indicating that non-manufacturing industries saw slower expansion.

A much lower reading could signal …

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