Topic: Washington State University

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Everyday heroes: Seven tales of American heroes

Victor Perez stopped the abduction of an 8-year-old girl. Two teenage boys rescued a couple from a burning car wreck in Florida. New Yorker Kashmir Singh goes the extra mile to help a Swiss couple. Here are seven stories of everyday American heroes who responded to trying circumstances with extraordinary grace or courage.
Top 10 cities where house prices are rising

House prices continue to fall nationwide, but here and there they’ve begun to turn up as Americans return to the housing market. Which 10 metropolitan areas have seen the biggest increase in the past year? The winners, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), include a state capital, a furniture-making center, and a resort that was once America’s foreclosure capital. Can you guess who they are?
What makes a planet livable? Five things scientists look for.

Scientists have so far detected at least 550 planets outside the solar system – and another 2,000-plus await confirmation. But how to pick out the ones that may be Earth-like havens for life? Here's what one team looks for in assessing any planet's potential habitability and its similarity to Earth's properties.
Photos of the Day: Photos of the day 12/20
Persistent achievement gap vexes education reformers: Six takeaways

No education issue has received more attention in recent years – but with less apparent progress – than the achievement gaps for minority and low-income students. The Center on Education Policy released a study Tuesday that looks at trends in all 50 states. Read our list of a few of the study’s major findings.

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Modern Parenthood
Aishwarya Rai, breastfeeding, tanning: parent etiquette lessons

Aishwarya Rai criticized for her post-baby weight, Patricia Krentcil for her tan, Jamie Lynne Grumet for suckling her 3-year-old on the cover of Time – plus a kid punched out for being noisy in a movie and a first-grader suspended for singing a popular song. What's an etiquette-minded mom to do?
Diggin' It
Great garden flowers: A gaillardia with plenty of moxie

Gaillardia, or blanket flower, is an easy-to-grow perennial for hot, sunny spots. Here's a new cultivar, Commotion Moxie, that has much to offer flower gardeners.
Robert Reich
Forget gay marriage. America's real problem is in its boardrooms.

In pushing legislation to ban same-sex marriage and limit women's reproductive rights, Republicans are avoiding a much bigger issue: what's going on in the country's corporate boardrooms.
White supremacist behind murders-suicide in Arizona, police say

Four people died Wednesday at the hand of Jason 'J.T.' Ready, one of the most visible white supremacists in the US, who then killed himself, police in Gilbert, Ariz., say. Those who track neo-Nazi groups cite a culture of violence, including domestic violence.
How one man may have foiled a devastating cyberattack against America

Researcher Justin W. Clarke discovered a vulnerability in an industrial networking system used by American power grids and the Pentagon. Now, after public pressure, the manufacturer is promising a fix.
Mad cow: Latest episode raises questions about cattle feed

The riskiest parts of rendered cows aren’t supposed to be fed back to other cows. But they are fed to chickens, whose waste can be fed back to cattle in what one critic calls ‘cow cannibalism.’
America's Stuxnet? Weakness found in systems used by Pentagon, power grid.

An amateur enthusiast has found evidence that hackers could exploit a security vulnerability in the systems of a company that serves power plants and military installations.
Mad cow: US 'confident' beef is safe, food-safety experts aren't sure

This week's incident of 'mad cow' disease presents no threat to human health, USDA officials say. But it does put a spotlight on beef safety practices, including how many cattle are inspected.
Mad cow disease: Big deal abroad. US? Not so much. (+video)

Mad cow disease has hit the US only four times since regulators took steps to control it 15 years ago. Although the latest announcement of mad cow disease may alarm American consumers, the biggest reaction may come from nations that decide to ban US beef.
$1 felony: Florida man charged over soda bill at McDonald's

$1 felony: Local authorities in Florida say a man faces felony charges after refusing to pay for a cup of soda at a McDonald's restaurant.
Chapter & Verse
Festival of Faith and Writing: the conference that brought John Updike, Salman Rushdie to western Michigan

This year's Festival of Faith and Writing at Calvin College included Jonathan Safran Foer, Marilynne Robinson, Chimimanda Ngoze Adichie, Luis Alberto Urrea, and Leila Aboulela.
Panetta says US ready on Syria if required

The Secretary of Defense insisted, however, that diplomacy was the best option.
Everyday heroes: Seven tales of American heroes

Victor Perez stopped the abduction of an 8-year-old girl. Two teenage boys rescued a couple from a burning car wreck in Florida. New Yorker Kashmir Singh goes the extra mile to help a Swiss couple. Here are seven stories of everyday American heroes who responded to trying circumstances with extraordinary grace or courage.
Cover Story
Home again in Mexico: Illegal immigration hits net zero

Tiny Tamaula is the new face of rural Mexico: Villagers are home again as the illegal immigration boom drops to net zero
Cover Story
Gun nation: Inside America's gun-carry culture

Why Americans now carry handguns in so many public places, from parks to college campuses. Is it making the country safer or more dangerous?
The Vote
Super Tuesday mystery: Will Ron Paul win his first state?

Super Tuesday could hand Ron Paul his first victory of the GOP presidential campaign. North Dakota presents the most fertile ground, with its caucus format and independent streak. Other promising turf: Alaska and Idaho.
Can Mitt Romney carry his ‘Big Mo’ through Super Tuesday?

Mitt Romney is leading the GOP presidential pack in election wins, delegates, and nominations. But Super Tuesday and its ten contests – especially Ohio – could be the key to whether he keeps his momentum.
Washington State caucuses could foreshadow Super Tuesday

The Republican presidential caucuses in Washington State are being held Saturday, three days before Super Tuesday. Mitt Romney is leading in polls, but Rick Santorum is strong there too.
GOP candidates need to debate legalizing marijuana

As GOP candidates debate values, I have not heard them address legalizing marijuana. The words of a narcotics agent ring in my ears: 'I can’t say every pot smoker goes on to get hooked on the hard stuff. But I can say every addict I know on the hard stuff got started on pot.'
Top 10 cities where house prices are rising

House prices continue to fall nationwide, but here and there they’ve begun to turn up as Americans return to the housing market. Which 10 metropolitan areas have seen the biggest increase in the past year? The winners, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), include a state capital, a furniture-making center, and a resort that was once America’s foreclosure capital. Can you guess who they are?
US officials urge 'stay the course' in wake of Afghan violence

As attacks on allied forces in Afghanistan continued Sunday in the wake of Quran burnings, US officials reaffirmed their commitment to preventing Al Qaeda advances.
Oil nears $110 a barrel, gas prices jump 12 cents a gallon in a week. Eek!

Tensions with Iran have markets 'convinced there will be some type of confrontation,' says an energy analyst. Oil buyers are starting to 'horde,' and nervousness is affecting gas prices.
Rick Santorum and more: How social issues intruded on 2012 campaign

In an election year that was supposed to be all about economic recovery, social values having to do with sex – birth control, abortion, and gay marriage – are playing prominent roles.
What makes a planet livable? Five things scientists look for.

Scientists have so far detected at least 550 planets outside the solar system – and another 2,000-plus await confirmation. But how to pick out the ones that may be Earth-like havens for life? Here's what one team looks for in assessing any planet's potential habitability and its similarity to Earth's properties.
Washington State headed toward gay marriage: a sign of shifting attitudes

Lawmakers voted to make Washington the seventh state to allow gay marriage. Opponents vow to force the measure onto the November ballot, but obtaining a voter veto of the new law will be an uphill battle.