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Health
2:02 am
Thu May 2, 2013

New York Tobacco Regulations Light Up Public Health Debate

Credit John Moore / Getty Images
The New York City Council is considering a number of regulations on cigarettes, including raising the minimum age for buying cigarettes to 21.
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Originally published on Thu May 2, 2013 9:09 am

If you're under 21, you may soon have a hard time lighting up in New York City. Public health officials in New York want to raise the minimum age for buying cigarettes.

The initiative is one of three proposed tobacco regulations the City Council will debate at a hearing Thursday afternoon.

"We think if we can prevent people from taking up the habit before they're 21, we might just be able to prevent them from taking it up at all," says New York Health Commissioner Thomas Farley.

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Music Interviews
1:59 am
Thu May 2, 2013

Iggy Pop: 'What Happens When People Disappear'

Credit David Raccuglia / Courtesy of the artist
Iggy & The Stooges just released a new album, Ready to Die.
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Originally published on Thu May 2, 2013 9:19 am

Of the many things made in Michigan that have become part of the fabric of American culture — the auto industry, Motown — punk rock is often overlooked. In 1967, years before The Sex Pistols performed incendiary anthems, Iggy Pop and his band The Stooges created an explosive new sound in Detroit that would influence generations of musicians.

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Education
1:58 am
Thu May 2, 2013

A Rhodes-Like Scholarship For Study In China

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Credit Artist's rendering courtesy of Robert A.M. Stern Architects
The Schwarzman Scholars program, planned for the campus of Beijing's Tsinghua University, is described as "a 21st century college designed to inspire interchange."
Credit Osamu Honda / AP
Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone Group, says he hopes the new scholarship program helps ease Western fears of China.
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Originally published on Thu May 2, 2013 9:09 am

If you're interested in studying in China, a new scholarship program could help you on your way. Rivaling the prestigious Rhodes scholarships, the new Schwarzman Scholars program was announced recently by Stephen Schwarzman, CEO and co-founder of Blackstone Group, one of the world's biggest private-equity firms.

The financier says he plans to raise $300 million, including $100 million of his own money, to fund a new program aimed at bringing students from around the world to study at Beijing's Tsinghua University.

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The Salt
5:40 pm
Wed May 1, 2013

Bones Tell Tale Of Desperation Among The Starving At Jamestown

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Credit Donald E. Hurlbert / Smithsonian
The four cuts at the top of this skull "are clear chops to the forehead," says Smithsonian forensic anthropologist Douglas Owsley. Based on forensic evidence, researchers think the blows were made after the person died.
Credit Donald E. Hurlbert / Smithsonian
This forensic facial reconstruction shows what the 14-year-old, nicknamed "Jane," may have looked like. Scientists say the remains found at Jamestown are evidence of cannibalism over the winter of 1609-1610.
Credit Donald E. Hurlbert / Smithsonian
Markings on the lower side of the jaw look like they were sawed with a sharp object, says forensic anthropologist Douglas Owsley.
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Originally published on Wed May 1, 2013 6:48 pm

"First they ate their horses, and then fed upon their dogs and cats, as well as rats, mice and snakes."

So says James Horn of the historical group Colonial Williamsburg, paraphrasing an account by colony leader George Percy of what conditions were like for the hundreds of men and women stranded in Jamestown, Va., with little food in the dead of winter in 1609.

They even ate their shoes. And, apparently, at least one person.

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Business
4:59 pm
Wed May 1, 2013

Deal To Protect Bangladeshi Factory Workers Still Elusive

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Credit A.M. Ahad / AP
Workers manufacture clothing in a factory near Dhaka, Bangladesh, in December. Labor activists and major clothing retailers met in Germany this week to try to hammer out a deal that would improve working conditions in Bangladeshi factories.
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By Steve Henn

Originally published on Wed May 1, 2013 6:48 pm

This week, major retailers including Wal-Mart, Gap and others met with labor activists in Germany, hoping to hammer out a deal to improve working conditions in Bangladesh.

The meeting came less than a week after a devastating building collapse in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, killed more than 400 workers. At the meeting, activists pushed retailers who use factories in Bangladesh to start spending their own money to make those workplaces safer.

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