USA

Nearly one-fifth of school-age children in America speak a language other than English at home, according to a Census Bureau report. The survey also showed that more than 30.5 million Americans were born outside the US, and 13.3 million immigrants came to America between 1990 and 2000. Of the children who spoke a foreign language at home, close to 7 in 10 spoke Spanish, and two-thirds of that group rated themselves as speaking English very well. The Census 2000 Supplementary Survey, conducted separately from the official 2000 census, also gathered information on topics such as income, education, fertility, and commutes. (Story, page 4.)

Emergency crews worked to clean up chemicals yesterday after a train derailed in Pinehurst, Texas. The freight train dumped thousands of gallons of chemicals and forced the evacuation of about 70 families. No injuries were reported.

The American Bar Association is considering new ethics rules that would change the relationship between lawyers and clients. Under current ABA rules, a lawyer should try to persuade a client not to break the law and quit if the client refuses. The proposed change would free lawyers to go to authorities if the client insists on breaking the law. Critics say the overhaul would give attorneys too much leverage over their clients and expose them to lawsuits if they don't report wrongdoing. The ABA's policy-making House of Delegates began debate on the rules yesterday.

A variant of the "Code Red" computer virus may be spreading, experts warned. The new strain, Code Red II, reportedly opens a "back door" on infected computers, making them available to anyone who wants to access them. Website administrators can download Microsoft's patch from the company's website to protect against the virus.

More drivers are heeding safety warnings and keeping children out of front seats. A study by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis found that in more than 28,000 fatal crashes, the proportion of vehicles carrying children aged 12 and under in the front seat dropped from 42 percent to 31 percent between 1990 and 1998. The researchers said the trend was encouraging, but warned there was still a tendency to place children in the front seat when they were the only passenger.

Scientists sent 18 Aleutian Canada geese to Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula to take part in a captive-breeding program aimed at reestablishing the birds in their former habitat. The geese, part of a now-thriving Alaska population once on the verge of extinction, should give new vitality and genetic diversity to the Russian program, said biologists.