Tag Archives: national-center

U.S. students behind in math, science, analysis says

American children aren’t necessarily getting smarter or dumber, but that might not be good enough to compete globally, according to numbers cited Tuesday by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. He noted a special analysis put out last week by the National Center for Education Statistics that compares 15-year-old U.S. students with students from other countries in the Organization for Economic Development

Baby delivered prematurely from swine flu patient dies

An infant girl delivered prematurely from her mother, who has the swine flu virus, has died, hospital officials said Monday. Parker Christine Opdyke was delivered 14 weeks early by doctors at Wellington Regional Medical Center in Florida’s Palm Beach County. Her mother, Aubrey Opdyke, was placed into a medically induced coma June 3 to help give the baby as much oxygen as possible.

Monsoon season compounds refugees’ troubles

"Refugees are the most vulnerable people on Earth. They are fighting to survive." — Angelina Jolie, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees goodwill ambassador The world’s population at the end of last year included 42 million displaced people, 80 percent of them in developing nations, according to a report this week by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Many of these refugees are living in minimal standards for shelter and are exposed daily to the harshest elements of weather, the report says

Sonny and Cher’s child transitioning from female to male

Chastity Bono, gay-rights activist and child of performer Cher and the late entertainer and politician Sonny Bono, is in the early stages of transitioning from a female to a male and will be known as Chaz, his spokesman said Thursday.

Man behind Caylee dolls, Vick dog toys faces lawsuit

Consumers who bought "Caylee Sunshine" dolls and Michael Vick dog toys were misled into believing that a portion of their purchases would go to charity, according to a lawsuit filed this week. The Florida Attorney General’s Office filed a lawsuit Thursday against Showbiz Promotions and its owner, Jaime Salcedo, seeking $10,000 in penalties for each violation under the state’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.

Surveillance tape shows missing California girl skipping in alley

A surveillance video of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, missing since March 27, shows the child in the mobile home park where she lives, skipping and happily swinging her arms on the day she disappeared in Tracy, California.

Cars searched for clues to missing California girl

Police in the Northern California town of Tracy are pursuing hundreds of possible leads in the disappearance of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, a police spokesman said Wednesday. Police have received 477 tips since she disappeared Friday, 100 of them on Tuesday alone, Lt. Jeremy Watney of the Tracy Police Department told reporters.