Region

Ron Zook takes over Illinois' struggling football program

By Alyson Brodsy and Jim Paul · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 1:06 a.m.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Ron Zook was a winner in each of his three seasons at Florida, though he didn't win often enough for Gators fans accustomed to Steve Spurrier's gaudy record. Early expectations won't be quite so high at Illinois, where Zook was named Tuesday to take over a program that has won only four games in two seasons.

Pacers drop 5th-straight game

By Alyson Brodsy and Jon Krawczynski · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:49 a.m.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Michael Redd scored 28 points to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to their first road win of the season, 89-86 over the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night. Desmond Mason added 21 points and seven rebounds for the Bucks, who opened with seven straight road losses before breaking through against Indiana thanks in large part to a 48-34 rebounding advantage.

Players authorize union to reach new steroid testing agreement

By Alyson Brodsy and Beth DeFalco · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:43 a.m.

PHOENIX -- Baseball players gave their lawyers the go-ahead Tuesday to reach an agreement with owners on tougher testing for steroids.

Experienced Hoosiers familiar with national title setting

By Alyson Brodsy · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:39 a.m.

The IU men's soccer team's one-sided 4-0 victory over the unseeded University of Tulsa in Sunday's national quarterfinal match resembled the Hoosiers' 5-0 victory over Virginia Commonwealth University in the third round of last year's NCAA Tournament. Against VCU, five different IU players scored goals, all coming in the second half, much like Sunday's win, which saw all four goals against Tulsa coming in the second half.

on the SIDELINES

By Alyson Brodsy · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:36 a.m.

Garciaparra resigns with Chicago Cubs CHICAGO -- Nomar Garciaparra enjoyed his brief stay with the Chicago Cubs so much he's coming back, agreeing Tuesday to a one-year contract.

Barry, prepare for an asterisk kicking

By Matt Mattucci · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:35 a.m.

It's about time you confessed, Barry Bonds. What took so long, huh? He must not have thought we would all notice how quickly those biceps grew in just a few years or how the home runs he hit just exploded off his bat.

IU faces many options for new coach

By Josh Weinfus · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:34 a.m.

With only one week having passed since the firing of former IU football coach Gerry DiNardo, speculation has begun about who his replacement will be. Among possible candidates rumored for the IU job is former Washington Huskies coach Rick Neuheisel.

Lilly Library finally to be handicapped-accesible

By Laura Kruty · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:27 a.m.

Students walking in front of the Lilly Library will soon no longer have to dodge yellow caution tape, walk around makeshift fences and avoid construction workers. The construction, which began in early July, will be over "in the next few weeks," said Jim Champion, IU libraries' facilities operations and renovations officer.

Junior finds family in fellow troops

By Jessica Levco · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:23 a.m.

When the United States declared war on Iraq, a military priest sprinkled holy water on junior Nick Rossano's tank in the Middle East. "It was a defining moment," Rossano said. "I thought to myself: 'OK, here we go.' It was pretty nuts. All I had was myself and the guys next to me." Rossano was not confident about the military equipment, especially his tank, which had been "deadlined" (not combat operational) seven times before it was given to him.

Somewhere over the rainbow

By Maura Halpern · Wednesday, Dec. 8,2004 12:09 a.m.

When Doug Bauder walked along the creaky wooden floor and into his office for the first time, only a touch-tone telephone and bare wooden desk awaited him.

Karzai sworn in as first democratically elected president

By Alyson Brodsy and Stephen Graham · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:51 p.m.

KABUL, Afghanistan -- President Hamid Karzai took the helm Tuesday of a country whose revival is threatened by a surging opium trade and a persistent Taliban insurgency, pledging to bring stability and prosperity to Afghanistan even as rebels staged attacks near the Pakistani border.

Ohio officially certifies Bush win

By Alyson Brodsy · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:50 p.m.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- While Ohio has certified a 2 percentage-point election victory for President George W. Bush, scrutiny of the vote is expected to continue for several more days. Independent candidates are prepared to demand recounts in all 88 counties Tuesday, an action that election boards say they are ready for but do not believe is necessary.

Ambassador praises Saudi attack response

By Alyson Brodsy and Faiza Saleh Ambah · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:50 p.m.

JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia -- Islamic militants who shot their way into the heavily fortified U.S. Consulate, killing five employees, clearly had studied how cars entered the compound, the U.S. ambassador said Tuesday, praising actions that stopped the assault, but acknowledging room for improvement.

Author reveals truth behind 9/11

By Lyssa Rebholz · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:49 p.m.

Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist and managing editor of the Washington Post Steve Coll exposed what he calls the truth behind the CIA's involvement in the 9/11 attacks in front of a crowd of students and faculty Tuesday night in the Whittenberger Auditorium. In his book, "Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001," Coll chronicles the past 20 decades of U.S. relations with Afghanistan.

Prison life gives women new perspective on drug addictions

By Alyson Brodsy · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:46 p.m.

FRANKLIN, Ind. -- When relatives pour into Atterbury Correctional Facility for Sunday afternoon visits with female offenders, Anita Emery finds a quiet place to write letters to her sons. She has not seen her children, Brandon, 18, and Caylan, 14, for 13 months. "That's the hardest part," Emery says tearfully, "when you don't get to see or touch or smell your children or hug them or tell them you love them every night."

Exploring the 'Accidental Rapture'

By Patrick Doolin · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:44 p.m.

Does God exist? Why do people believe in God without any concrete evidence that he or she exists? On the other hand, why are those who do not believe in God so quick to discount phenomena that science cannot explain? And how do such beliefs -- or lack thereof -- manifest themselves socially?

Grammy nominations span all genres

By Anthony Breznican · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:43 p.m.

LOS ANGELES -- Producer-turned-rapper Kanye West collected a leading 10 Grammy nominations Tuesday, including album of the year, for his innovative debut, "The College Dropout."

Noun seeking plurality

By Brandon S Morley · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:37 p.m.

Meeting people isn't a problem for me. I know plenty of them because I'm an extrovert who thrives off the energy I get from other people. If I walk the 20 yards from my office in Ernie Pyle Hall over to the Union to get a cup of coffee, I have to plan on taking at least 30 minutes roundtrip because of all the people on my "Say Hello To" list.

Who smokes Fruity Pebbles?

By Matt Glenesk · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:36 p.m.

One semester. One semester of my college career remains. One semester left with life as I know it. And over my three and a half years in Bloomington, I have come to this conclusion, maybe even, dare I say it, a thesis: College might just be the greatest oxymoron of all time.

Pawing our way through school

By Elisha Sauers · Tuesday, Dec. 7,2004 11:35 p.m.

Somebody's pet cat has a higher grade point average than I have. That's not to say my grade point average is shockingly low; it's just that this cat's GPA is so very high. According to an Associated Press article published Tuesday, a Pennsylvania deputy attorney general's pet cat, Colby Nolan, received his Master of Business Administration degree from Trinity Southern University in Texas, although he never stepped paw in a classroom.