Article# 24

Marlins' Ramirez Has Shoulder Surgery

Miami, FL .Florida Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez underwent left shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum Wednesday, and expects to be fully recovered in time for spring training.
Ramirez played through soreness for the final month of the season despite expecting to have surgery, and still finished with a .332 batting average and a club-record 125 runs scored.
The 23-year old native of the Dominican Republic has never spent any period of time on the disabled list in his two-year career, although he has experienced issues with the same shoulder in the past. In May 2006, Ramirez mildly dislocated the shoulder while swinging, and then aggravated the injury during Winter League play in the Dominican.
The 2006 National League Rookie of the Year, Ramirez was one home run shy in 2007 of becoming only the third player in major league history to total 30 homers and 50 stolen bases in a season.

Article# 23

Another Gene Linked To Breast Cancer
NEW YORK - Researchers say they've discovered a major reason why women who inherit a mutated version of the gene BRCA1 run a high risk of breast cancer - and that finding might aid the search for new treatments.
A second gene, called PTEN, plays a key role, scientists said in a study released Sunday.
Scientists have long known that BRCA1 normally repairs damage to other genes. So if it's crippled by mutations, the unrepaired damage could be expected to lead to cancer. But the specifics of that story have been murky.
The new study fingers PTEN, which normally acts as a brake on cancer. The researchers found evidence that in breast cancers associated with a BRCA1 mutation, PTEN is often broken and doesn't get repaired. That sets off a chemical cascade that leads to malignancy.
This is "probably a major way" that defects in BRCA1 can produce breast cancer, said Dr. Ramon Parsons of Columbia University, who reports the work with colleagues on the Web site of Nature Genetics.
PTEN was discovered about 10 years ago, and scientists know a lot about it and the chemical pathway that gets activated when PTEN is disabled, he said. Drug companies have been testing drugs in animals that seek to treat tumors by interrupting that cascade, and they've gotten some encouraging results, he said.
Breast cancers associated with the BRCA1 gene are generally aggressive and have a poor prognosis. BRCA1 and its cousin BRCA2 account for less than 15 percent of all breast cancers.

Article# 22

Dog Set On Fire; Owner Pleads Guilty

DETROIT - A dog owner has plead guilty to what Humane Society employees said was the worst case of torture they have ever seen.
Investigators said John Delmar Fladger, 44, of Detroit, poured gasoline over his dog and set him on fire last month.
One witness said the owner first tried to burn the dog inside a convenience store.

"Yes, inside the store. He was pouring gas," said Evon Yusef, who witnessed the attack. "There was gas all over the place. Customers were scared. They were backing away from him."
Another witness told investigators from the Michigan Humane Society that the owner later seemed to be showing off in front of a group of children.
"He was walking down the street, spilling gas at the dog. He was trying to light the dog at the same time he was walking," the witness said.
Natatia Nix of the Michigan Humane Society called it one of the worst cases she has ever been a part of.
"The (Humane Society) staff sees everything that comes in. We see the hit-by-a-car dogs, the gunshot dogs, the neglected dogs -- every type of abuse," Nix said. "But this ... We were just looking around the room. We were in there with the dog -- each of us were crying."
Nix said the dog, a shepherd mixture, was so badly burned that treatments did not help, so the animal had to be euthanized.
During the investigation, the owner originally denied hurting the dog, but pleaded guilty last week to animal torture and the killing of an animal.
The owner is scheduled to be sentenced later this month. He faces up to four years in prison.

Article# 21

Evel Knievel To Be Buried Monday

BUTTE, Mont. Evel Knievel is to be buried in his hometown of Butte on Monday, with a service that's expected to attract thousands.
The legendary stuntman died Nov. 30 in Clearwater, Fla. He was 69 and had been in frail health for years.
Knievel's hometown honored him with fireworks Sunday as his body was brought back. There's to be a public viewing Monday, followed by a service at the Butte Civic Center, the largest indoor space in town. The Rev. Robert Schuller of California's Crystal Cathedral will preside.
Knievel's funeral procession will wind its way through Butte along a six-mile loop known as Evel Knievel Way. The graveside service will be private.
During his daredevil days, Knievel was known for spectacular and sometimes near-fatal motorcycle stunts, which led him to conclude it's better to try and fail than not try at all.
Every year, Butte holds an Evel Knievel Days festival that draws tens of thousands of visitors.

Article# 20

Fed Expected To Cut Interest Rates Again

WASHINGTON -- Policymakers at the Federal Reserve are expected to cut a key interest rate at their meeting Tuesday.
The rate is now 4.5 percent, and analysts are looking for another drop of one-quarter of a percentage point.
There's some speculation that the central bank could chop it by a half point.
The Fed has cut rates twice this year, but the credit crunch and housing stress have snowballed, leading Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to signal that one more cut might be needed.
Banks, financial companies and other investors have lost billions from loans made to people with spotty credit or from putting money into securities backed by those subprime mortgages.
Investors in the United States and abroad have grown more wary of buying new debt, thereby making the credit crunch worse.
All that has added to the turmoil on Wall Street.

Article# 19

Broward School 'Super' Job Comes With Perks

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. After serving as Broward County's interim school superintendent since November of last year, James Notter has been asked to take on the role on a full-time basis.
On Tuesday, the Broward School board voted unanimously to appoint Notter to the role of Broward Superintendent of Schools.
Local 10 reported that Notter will be paid $290,000 a year through 2010. He will also receive a $900 a month car allowance and a monthly expense account of $500. The contract also includes a $250,000 life insurance policy and a fully wired Internet network at his home.

Article# 18

Teen Birth Rate Rises After 14 Years
4,265,996 Babies Born In 2006

The nation's teen birth rate has risen for the first time in 14 years, according to a new government report.
The teen birth rate had been dropping since 1991. The decline had slowed in recent years, but government statisticians said Wednesday it jumped 3 percent from 2005 to 2006, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.
Overall, 4,265,996 babies were born in the U.S. in 2006.
The increase in births by teen mothers was based on the 15 to 19 age group, which accounted for about 99 percent of the more than 440,000 births to teens in 2006.
The rate rose to 41.9 live births per 1,000 females in that age group, up from 40.5 in 2005.
The all-time peak, in 1991, was 61.8 births per 1,000. At its lowest point, the rate had dropped 34 percent.
"It took us by surprise," said Stephanie Ventura of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a co-author of the report.
The birth data for 2006 also showed births to unmarried mothers hit a new record high, as part of a trend that started in 2002.
Also, the overall birth rate has climbed to its highest level since 1971, with the rate per woman climbing for women in their 20s, 30s and 40s.