Experts disarm WW II bomb

VIENNA (AP) — Demining experts have disarmed a World War II bomb found at a major Vienna construction site.

Police say the bomb was discovered during excavation work at the site where the …

Summary Box: Stocks retreat from last week's rally

PULLBACK: Stocks pulled back as traders retreated from a rally that brought indexes to their highest levels since the peak of the 2008 financial crisis last week. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 37 to close at 11,406.

GOLD HITS $1,400: Gold crossed $1,400 an ounce …

THE 2005 AMS MEMBERSHIP SURVEY

Insights into a Professional Society

How does the AMS better serve its membership? One way is to better understand who belongs to the Society. Since 1975, this understanding has in part been obtained through a membership survey. The survey responses provide a contemporary snapshot of the AMS and offer a fascinating historical perspective on how the Society, and the atmospheric and related science community in general, have evolved.

Drafted principally by members of the AMS Board on Women and Minorities, the most recent survey, conducted in 2005, was the first to be administered electronically. The response rate of 66% is exceptionally large compared to previous AMS mail …

House Panel Questions High Pay for CEOs

Lawmakers confronted corporate executives Friday about how they managed to take home hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation while their companies were taking a financial nosedive from the subprime mortgage crisis.

"It seems that CEOs hit the lottery when their companies collapse," House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said at the opening of the hearing. "Any reasonable relation between their compensation and the interests of their shareholders appears to have broken down."

Appearing before the panel were Angelo Mozilo of Countrywide Financial Corp., the nation's largest mortgage lender; …

Leaders of France, Brazil aim for unity on G-20

The presidents of France and Brazil are to try to forge a united front going into the G-20 summit by building on the two nations' common call for tighter regulation of financial markets.

France's Nicolas Sarkozy and Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva are slated to meet Wednesday in Paris hours before the opening of the London summit, at which the world's richest countries are to take on the economic crisis.

Silva's spokesman, Marcelo Baumbach, told reporters the Brazilian leader believes that Brazil and France are well placed "to propose a systemic reform that would allow the financial institutions to respond to the present challenges."

…

Nation/World BRIEFINGS

SOVIET UPHEAVAL: There are fears within the White House that thebreakneck unraveling of the Soviet Union is leading to even moreturmoil and a dangerously unstable situation - including uncertaintyover who controls Soviet nuclear weapons. Stories on Pages 1, 21-24,48. ABORTION PROTESTS: While some anti-abortion groups say they areembarrassed by confrontational tactics, others say such protests areneeded to promote their point of view. Story on this page. MARRIAGE DATA: U.S. marriage rates have fallen to their lowest pointin two decades, largely because young people are delaying their firstmarriage and those who divorce are waiting longer to remarry. Storyon Page 7. CIRCLE CLOSES: …

Ben & Jerry's unveils Schweddy Balls ice cream

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Ben & Jerry's is unveiling a new flavor, and it doesn't sound too tasty.

"Schweddy Balls" is an homage to an old "Saturday Night Live" skit featuring Alec Baldwin as bakery owner Pete Schweddy, whose unique holiday offerings included something called "Schweddy Balls."

Sean Greenwood, a spokesman for the Vermont ice cream maker, said Thursday that …

TLC's 'Jon & Kate' is soon to be 'Kate Plus Eight'

"Jon & Kate Plus 8" is about to be rechristened "Kate Plus Eight."

That's the word from the cable network TLC, announcing Tuesday that its hit reality show will be adapting to changes in the Gosselin household, which for months has been disrupted by the split up of Jon and Kate.

The renamed "Kate Plus Eight" begins Nov. 2. It will continue to focus on the lives of the young …

Wall St. Likes AT&T Spin-off // Lucent Jumps 13% in Biggest U.S. IPO Ever

NEW YORK A large chunk of AT&T broke off Thursday, becomingLucent Technologies Inc. and setting off an investor stampede for astake in the biggest initial public offering of a U.S. company.

Investors pushed Lucent's value up 13 percent, proof not only ofinterest in the growing communications equipment industry but astrong stock market.

Lucent's 112 million shares were initially priced at $27 each,making the total offering worth $3.02 billion. Lucent's stockreached $32 in the morning but drifted lower through the day to closeat $30.62 1/2. It was the most active issue on the New York StockExchange. AT&T stock closed down $1.25 to $62.87 1/2, also on …

Summary Box: Kodak posts narrower 3Q loss

RESULTS: Eastman Kodak Co. posted a third-quarter loss of $43 million, or 16 cents per share, compared with a loss of $111 million, or 41 cents a share, in the July-September period of 2009. Sales dipped 1 percent to $1.76 billion.

REASONS: The photography pioneer benefited particularly from a $210 million gain from a licensing …

Vettel takes pole at European GP

Sebastian Vettel posted the fastest time in qualifying Saturday to clinch Red Bull's eighth pole position of the season at the European Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver drove a fastest lap of 1 minute, 37.587 seconds. Vettel's teammate Mark Webber was second in 1.37.662, with Lewis Hamilton third for McLaren.

"It was a tight qualifying session in the end, not much between us all," Vettel said. "I won pole so I'm very happy for today."

Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher was eliminated after the second qualifying round, meaning he was unable to compete for pole.

Home favorite Fernando Alonso of Ferrari was …

Obama plan would provide health care for all

President Barack Obama says he's open to requiring all Americans to buy health insurance, as long as the plan provides a "hardship waiver" to exempt poor people from having to pay.

Obama opposed such an individual mandate during his campaign, but Congress increasingly is moving to embrace the idea.

In providing the first real details on how he wants to reshape the nation's health care system, the president urged Congress on Wednesday toward a sweeping overhaul that would allow Americans to buy into a government insurance plan.

Obama outlined his goals in a letter to Sens. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Max Baucus, D-Mont., chairmen of the two committees writing health care bills. It followed a meeting he held Tuesday with members of their committees, and amounted to a road map to keep Congress aligned with his goals.

"The plans you are discussing embody my core belief that Americans should have better choices for health insurance, building on the principle that if they like the coverage they have now, they can keep it, while seeing their costs lowered as our reforms take hold," Obama wrote.

Obama has asked the House and Senate each to finish legislation by early August, so that the two chambers can combine their bills in time for him to sign a single, sweeping measure in October. In a statement Baucus welcomed the assignment.

"I will stop at nothing to deliver a health reform bill that works for families and businesses to the president this year," Baucus said.

Covering 50 million uninsured Americans could cost as much as $1.5 trillion over a decade, and cost is emerging as a major sticking point. Obama didn't offer new solutions to that problem in his letter Wednesday but did say he'd like to squeeze an additional $200 billion to $300 billion over 10 years from the Medicare and Medicaid government insurance programs for the elderly, disabled and poor.

He said he'd do it through such measures as better managing chronic diseases and avoiding unnecessary tests and hospital readmissions. Savings from such measures are uncertain.

Medicare benefits cost the federal government about $450 billion a year and Medicaid about $200 billion. Obama already has targeted the programs for some $300 billion in cuts over 10 years in the 2010 budget he released in February.

He also said he's open to congressional proposals to let an independent commission identify cuts to Medicare which would take effect unless Congress rejected them all at once, similar to how military base closures are handled.

The president said he supports a new health insurance exchange that Congress is crafting, a sort of marketplace that would allow Americans to shop for different plans and compare prices.

All of the plans should offer a basic affordable package, and none should be allowed to deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions, Obama said _ big changes from how private insurance companies operate today.

"I strongly believe that Americans should have the choice of a public health insurance option operating alongside private plans," Obama wrote, weighing in firmly on one of the most controversial issues in the debate. "This will give them a better range of choices, make the health care market more competitive and keep insurance companies honest."

Republicans strongly oppose a public plan, as do private insurers, who contend it would drive them out of business.

"A government-run plan would set artificially low prices that private insurers would have no way of competing with," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday on the Senate floor.

The idea of what Obama called a "hardship waiver" for individual Americans too poor to buy care splits the difference between where he was during the presidential campaign and where Congress appears to be heading.

In the campaign, Obama did not support requiring everyone to buy insurance, putting him at odds with then Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton. Congress is looking at doing so. The hardship waiver idea is under consideration by the Senate Finance Committee, which also is considering giving tax credits to certain individuals so they can afford health care. Kennedy and House Democrats are looking at giving subsidies to the poor to help them buy coverage.

The letter didn't address the issue of taxing health care benefits. Obama opposed that during his campaign but Congress is now considering it, and Obama hasn't shut the door on it.

Life in Slow Lane Leaves Cubs, Bullinger Deep-Sixed

Padres 8 Cubs 3

SAN DIEGO Just think of all the things that could have beenaccomplished during the Padres' five-run fifth inning against pitcherJim Bullinger and the Cubs on Thursday:

Watching a rerun of "The Munsters" on TV, for instance. Orgetting the oil changed at one of those 12-minute service shops. Ontwo cars.In a spooky 34-minute episode in the Padres' 8-3 victory - whichran the Cubs' losing streak to six games - Bullinger continuallystepped off the rubber to regroup, checked baserunners with throws tofirst, was visited by catcher Brian Dorsett four times, stepped offthe mound to tie his shoelace and was booed by the Jack MurphyStadium matinee crowd of 18,736 for taking so long."He gets into a funk and he can't get out," Cubs pitching coachFergie Jenkins said. "You've got to be able to sit back and observewhat the heck is going on.""He had a good rhythm, and next thing you know it was `raindelay,' " Cubs first baseman Mark Grace said. "He lost all rhythm,and that makes your defense lose its rhythm. Your defense goes backon its heels. The game just absolutely stopped. It's tough. Idon't know what happened."What the Cubs (10-12) do know is that most facets of their gamehave bogged down in the six-game skid, their longest since droppingseven in a row last July. They are batting .226 and have a 5.01 ERAin that stretch as they head for Los Angeles for four games beginningtonight (9:05 p.m., Ch. 9, 720-AM).Bullinger (1-2), who has failed to get through the fifth inningin each of his last four starts, retired Padres starter Bob Tewksbury(3-0) to begin the fifth but walked Steve Finley, allowed an infieldsingle to Jody Reed and a smash RBI single to Ken Caminiti, hit WallyJoyner in the foot with a pitch and walked Marc Newfield with thebases loaded before manager Jim Riggleman finally pulled him with hissecond visit of the inning."Last year I let everybody steal on me who wanted to steal,"Bullinger said in defense of his slow pace. "If I don't step off andthrow, that's going to keep happening."After being charged with six runs (five earned) on six hits andfour walks (one intentional) in 4 1/3 innings, Bullinger's ERA jumpedto 7.11."I pitched four pretty good innings, but I beat myself in thefifth with the walks," he said. "My stuff is too good to be gettinghit around like this. It comes back to getting behind in thecount."After Mike Perez replaced Bullinger, shortstop Jose Hernandezmishandled a routine grounder by Archi Cianfrocco that scoredCaminiti, Andujar Cedeno singled in Joyner, and Tewksbury walked withthe bases loaded to give the Padres a 6-2 lead.Bullinger had launched a 1-0 pitch by Tewksbury for a home runto break a 1-1 tie in the top of the fifth. Bullinger, who homeredagainst the Rockies April 10 at Coors Field, became the first Cubspitcher since Dennis Eckersley in 1986 to hit two home runs in aseason."He hits a home run, motivates the team and goes back and can'tdo anything," Jenkins said.Cubs hitters didn't do much after that, either, except for asingle by Luis Gonzalez (2-for-3, RBI), who raised his team-leadingaverage to .391, and a double by Brian McRae, who scored on agroundout by Grace.

National League

W L Pct GB

Philadelphia 62 53 .539 _

New York 61 54 .530 1

Florida 61 55 .526 1 1/2

Atlanta 54 62 .466 8 1/2

Washington 44 72 .379 18 1/2

Central Division

W L Pct GB

Chicago 70 46 .603 _

Milwaukee 65 51 .560 5

St. Louis 64 54 .542 7

Houston 56 59 .487 13 1/2

Pittsburgh 53 62 .461 16 1/2

Cincinnati 52 65 .444 18 1/2

West Division

W L Pct GB

Arizona 59 57 .509 _

Los Angeles 58 57 .504 1/2

Colorado 53 65 .449 7

San Francisco 48 66 .421 10

San Diego 44 72 .379 15

___

Friday's Games

Chicago Cubs 3, St. Louis 2, 11 innings

Pittsburgh 2, Philadelphia 0, 12 innings

N.Y. Mets 3, Florida 0

Houston 9, Cincinnati 5, 10 innings

Milwaukee 5, Washington 0

Colorado 6, San Diego 3

Atlanta 11, Arizona 6

L.A. Dodgers 6, San Francisco 2

Saturday's Games

St. Louis at Chicago Cubs

Washington at Milwaukee

Pittsburgh at Philadelphia

Florida at N.Y. Mets

Houston at Cincinnati

San Diego at Colorado

Atlanta at Arizona

L.A. Dodgers at San Francisco

Kurt Busch becomes a player in Cup Chase

DOVER, Del. - Kurt Busch stormed into contention for a second Cupchampionship, holding off fellow Chase drivers Jimmie Johnson andCarl Edwards to win Sunday at Dover International Speedway.

Edwards and Kevin Harvick share the points lead in the Chase forthe Sprint Cup championship standings after three rounds. Harvick isseeded first because of a tiebreaker.

Round 4 of the Chase is at Kansas Speedway.

Busch pulled away from Johnson after a late restart to win hissecond race of the season. Johnson, the five-time defendingchampion, was second and Edwards was third. Busch moved from ninthto fourth in the standings, only nine points out of first.

Chase drivers Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch were fifth and sixth.Harvick was 10th.

Tony Stewart lost the points lead he built after winning thefirst two Chase races and finished 25th. He fell to third.

Only 15 points separate the top eight drivers. The 400-mile raceonly tightened the leaderboard and no driver has emerged as clear-cut favorite.

Johnson's reign was considered by some to be on the ropes afterfinishing 10th and 18th in the first two Chase races. But his strongfinish on a track where he usually dominates moved him only 13points behind the leaders with seven races remaining.

"Are we out of this?" said Johnson, rubbing his chin with asmile.

Not yet. Not by a long shot.

Non-Chase drivers filled four of the top-10 spots. Kasey Kahnewas fourth, AJ Allmendinger was seventh, Clint Bowyer eighth, andMarcos Ambrose ninth.

Busch made his move off the final restart with 43 laps, leavingJohnson behind on the bottom of the track.

"Giving up a win by not getting a good restart, I'll think aboutit tonight," Johnson said. "But big-picture wise, we'll take it."

Edwards, who won the Dover Nationwide race on Saturday, dominatedmost of the race until a pit road speeding penalty cost him a lap.Without that infraction, Edwards just might have won the race andmade it a weekend sweep.

"I definitely took myself out of position to fight for the win bydoing that,' Edwards said. "It's something that's painful."

Busch opened the Chase with a solid sixth at ChicagolandSpeedway, but struggled at New Hampshire and finished 22nd. He No.22 Dodge started second at Dover and he carried that over intoVictory Lane - and up the standings.

Busch, the 2004 champion, won his 24th career race and for thefirst time at Dover.

AP-WF-10-02-11 2222GMT

Bills TE Has Surgery After Spinal Injury

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. - Kevin Everett had surgery Sunday evening, hours after the Buffalo Bills reserve tight end showed no signs of movement after sustaining a cervical spine injury in the team's season opener against Denver.

Bills spokesman Scott Berchtold said he was informed by the team's medical staff the player went into surgery at about 8 p.m. Berchtold said he had no further information, and didn't know whether Everett had shown any signs of movement since he was driven off the field in an ambulance.

At 9:45 p.m., as he was leaving Millard Fillmore Gates Hospital, Bills' tight end Ryan Neufeld told Buffalo's WIVB-TV the surgery "went well as far as we can tell and he's recovering right now."

Bills general manager Marv Levy said doctors informed the team that it's too early to determine the severity of the injury and they will know more after monitoring the player overnight.

"Certainly, we feel the injury is serious, but I don't want to speculate, and that's what the doctors told us," Levy told The Associated Press. "They told us to wait to hear from them before making any speculative announcement."

Coach Dick Jauron said immediately following the game that the player sustained a cervical spine injury, but wouldn't discuss the severity of the injury.

Everett's agent, Brian Overstreet, was not immediately available for comment.

Everett fell to the ground and never moved after a helmet-to-helmet hit when he tackled Denver's Domenik Hixon during a kickoff to open the second half. Everett was placed on a backboard with his head and body immobilized, and carefully loaded into an ambulance at the Broncos 30.

The game was delayed for about 15 minutes, and the Bills gathered at the sideline while doctors attended to the player.

Everett's injury cast a pall over the Bills following a season-opening 15-14 loss, with several players expressing concern about their teammate.

"It was real hard," cornerback Terrence McGee said. "I watched the whole thing and he never moved. ... It's real sad to see him go off on a stretcher, but we hope he's OK."

"It's real sad," added receiver Roscoe Parrish, who played with Everett at the University of Miami. "When something like that happens to a close friend of yours, and you know how much he loves football, it bothers you."

Denver players expressed concern, including kicker Jason Elam, who kicked the winning field goal as time ran out.

Before taking questions after the game, Elam said: "What we heard is not good, so for our whole team, our prayers go out to him."

Buffalo's third-round draft pick in 2005, Everett missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury, and spent most of his second season limited to special teams duty.

The Bills liked Everett's 6-foot-4 frame, and were counting on him to play a role in their passing attack this season.

Buffalo also lost three defensive starters to injury.

Free safety Ko Simpson is out indefinitely after breaking his left ankle. Cornerback Jason Webster is out indefinitely after breaking his forearm in the fourth quarter. Linebacker Coy Wire, filling in for injured starter Keith Ellison, sprained his knee in the first quarter.

Simpson was hurt when he had his feet cut out from beneath him by teammate Jason Webster as the two were attempting to tackle Broncos receiver Javon Walker. Simpson fell immediately to the ground and was unable to put any weight on his left foot.

Buffalo's fourth-round pick in the 2006 draft, Simpson started 15 games last season, and was a member of the NFL's youngest safety tandem, playing alongside rookie first-round pick Donte Whitner.

Third-year player Jim Leonhard took over for Simpson.

Wire was examined on the sideline, but made his way to the locker room on his own. Reserve Mario Haggan replaced Wire.

It's unclear when Webster was hurt. The Bills signed the seven-year NFL veteran last spring to take over as starter after losing Nate Clements to San Francisco in free agency.

Governor Ryan concerned about educational opportunities for troubled students

Governor Ryan concerned about educational opportunities for troubled students

SPRINGFIELD - Governor George H. Ryan today vetoed legislation regulating the way school districts deal with expelled or suspended students entering an alternative education program or seeking admission to a new school.

Ryan's main concern was that the legislation does not mandate alternative education programs for expelled or suspended students.

Under the provisions of Senate Bill 1426, an expelled or suspended student would not automatically be required to attend an educational program at a facility other than the school where the offense occurred.

In vetoing the legislation, Ryan said that he agrees that school districts should have options to protect the children enrolled in their school from problem students. However, he raised concerns that affected students may not be required to attend alternative schools.

"I am deeply concerned that alternative education is not assured for students who are suspended or expelled," Ryan said. "I believe alternative education should be a mandatory condition of any suspension or expulsion from a public or private school in Illinois. I believe signing this legislation would send the wrong message that problem students are better off on the streets than in an alternative school environment."

Article Copyright Sengstacke Enterprises, Inc.

A system for tracking gaze on handheld devices

Many of the current gaze-tracking systems require that a subject's head be stabilized and that the interface be fixed to a table. This article describes a prototype system for tracking gaze on the screen of mobile, handheld devices. The proposed system frees the user and the interface from previous constraints, allowing natural freedom of movement within the operational envelope of the system. The method is software-based, and integrates a commercial eye-tracking device (EyeLink I) with a magnetic positional tracking device (Polhemus FASTRAK). The evaluation of the system shows that it is capable of producing valid data with adequate accuracy.

In natural environments, eye movements are made toward task-relevant targets even when high spatial resolution is not required. This set of eye movements, directing visual attention without conscious intervention, can reveal attentional mechanisms and provide a window into cognition. Thus, monitoring observers' eye movements during a task can provide better understanding of visual perception (PeIz & Canosa, 2001).

The study of eye movements has been utilized widely in multiple areas, including vision and oculomotor research (Carpenter & Robson, 1999), cognitive and psychological research (Hy�n�, Radach, & Deubel, 2003; N�s�nen, Ojanp��, & Kojo, 2001), reading research in healthy and dyslexic subjects (Eden, Stein, Wood, & Wood, 1994; Rayner & Pollatsek, 1989), providing assistance for the disabled (Barea, Boquete, Mazo, L�pez, & Bergasa, 2000; Majorante & R�ih�, 2002), and, at least to some extent, usability research (Crosby & Peterson, 1991; Stanford Poynter Project, 2000).

The term "eye movements" is commonly used to describe ocular movements used to fixate targets in the environment. This article uses the term "gaze tracking," defined as tracking the point of view currently fixated on a target surface.

In spite of the inherent complexity of visual perception, the majority of past studies have been carried out with subjects performing relatively simple tasks under constrained laboratory conditions. So far, researchers have been content with the study of eye movements in isolation, excluding head movements. This has been inspired, in part, by a reductionist attitude, but has been dictated, even more, by the equipment available (PeIz & Canosa, 2001).

A number of eye-tracking devices exist on the market. An old, but still accurate review of the techniques used in eye tracking can be found in Young and Sheena (1975). A comprehensive list of currently available commercial eyetrackers can be obtained from Oyekoya (2004). Many of the current systems impose strict restrictions on the freedom of movement of the subject and the interface, typically resulting in nonrealistic use scenarios and studies of gaze and eye movements without natural head, hand, and body movements.

Eye-tracking devices can be roughly divided into two categories: head-mounted devices and remote devices. Head-mounted devices have the sensory element, typically video camera(s), attached to a helmet or a headband worn by the user, whereas remote systems use remote cameras fixed near the user. Remote systems track the user's gaze and report gaze position calibrated on a planar, stationary stimulus surface, typically a computer monitor. Head-mounted devices come in two varieties: Devices with scene video have a camera pointing forward, delivering roughly the same view of the world as the user sees. These devices report the point of gaze as an overlaid cursor on the scene video. This gives more freedom to the user, because the gaze is not recorded in relation to any fixed coordinate system, but this type of device also requires laborious, subjective evaluation of the test sessions. Other head-mounted devices have a method of compensating for a limited amount of head movement in relation to the target stimulus surface, reporting the point of gaze as coordinates on that surface.

Although some manufacturers-for example, Tobii (www.tobii.se), SmartEye (www.smarteye.se), and seeingMachines (www.seeingmachines.com.au)-offer equipment that allows for moderate subject movement by using model-based tracking of the subject and the subject's eyes, these systems are unable to track a moving user interface device or stimulus. In addition, with the current configurations and camera technology, the accuracy of these systems varies between 1� and 5� of visual angle.

Applied Science Labs (www.a-s-l.com) offers a somewhat similar approach with their mobile systems. These systems can also be equipped with a magnetic tracker to measure the gaze hi relation to predefined areas in 3-D space, such as monitors and the surrounding environment. However, these systems require the use of a heavy helmet that carries the camera, and lack the capability to track moving areas of interest.

From a methodological point of view, some of the most similar approaches (in comparison with the system presented in this article) have been made in the research field of gaze tracking in virtual environments. These include the work of Duchowski et al. (2000) and Christou (2001). Also related is the work of Babcock and PeIz (2004) and PeIz and Canosa (2001), who have built a lightweight eye-tracking system to track eye movements in complex tasks and natural environments. However, their system records eye movements as an overlaid pointer on a scene video, and therefore provides data only for subjective evaluation.

Small interfaces nave been described as the blind spot of academic research-likely, in part, due to the lack of proper research equipment (Kuutti, 1999). The typically small viewing area of the moving display, differences in input devices, and changing lighting conditions affect user performance and user experience on mobile devices. The rapid increase in the number of mobile devices with complex user interfaces-used both in work situations and during free time-makes further research in this area necessary. The proposed system is an attempt to develop appropriate equipment with which to carry out this research.

The present article describes a prototype of a novel research system developed for tracking the gaze point of a subject using a mobile, handheld device, without placing restrictions on the natural movements of the subject.

Structure of the System

The system is implemented as software, and integrates a head-mounted video-oculography device with a magnetic positional tracker. The current implementation uses a head-mounted video-oculography device (EyeLink I, SR Research, Mississauga, ON) for measuring binocular gaze direction, and a magnetic positional tracker (Polhemus FASTRAK, Polhemus, Colchester, VT) to measure the position and orientation of two magnetic sensors attached to the head frame and the screen frame (hereafter referred to as the "head sensor" and "screen sensor").

The current system components were chosen from equipment readily available to the laboratory. Both components place technical limitations on the current prototype that could possibly be removed or alleviated by using different components. The EyeLink system requires the use of headgear, and the Polhemus tracker reports positional coordinates only within a given operational envelope. (The current transmitter works up to a distance of 75 cm.) Both components currently restrict user movement to a relatively small area. Although this is adequate for the present purposes, the need for possible modifications has been taken into consideration in the design of the system: Both trackers have been abstracted in the software, so that changing the underlying equipment has been made as easy as possible.

The system communicates with the EyeLink tracker through the programming interface (API) provided by the manufacturer, and with the Polhemus tracker through a standard RS-232 serial interface.

The system is implemented as an object-oriented program, with Borland Delphi running on a Windows platform. A simplified schematic of the system is presented in Figure 1. The tracker components of the software (i.e., Eye Tracker and Pos Tracker) communicate with the actual trackers, abstracting their functionality, and provide data to the Data Processor. The Data Processor takes care of the calibrations and calculations during the measurement. The Data Processor feeds the processed data to the Visualizer for drawing an onscreen representation of the measurement, and to the File I/O component for data storage. The Playback component deals with saved recordings, feeding the data to the Visualizer for later review.

METHOD

3-D Gaze Points

Calculating the binocular gaze points in 3-D space requires knowledge of (1) the position of the eyes, (2) the direction of gaze for both eyes, and (3) the position and orientation of the gaze target (see Figure 2). A gaze point is defined, then, as the intersection point of the gaze vector and the gaze target surface (the screen).

The positions of the eyes are defined as the positions of the eye sighting centers (see definition below). The gaze vectors have their origin in the sighting center of the corresponding eye, and their direction is determined with data from the eyetracker. A positional tracker is used to obtain the position of the head and the eyes (i.e., the sighting centers of the eyes) of the subject, and the position of the target surface.

Calibration Process

To provide accurate data, the system variables must be calibrated to the individual measurement setup. The calibration has three stages. First, the EyeLink tracker is calibrated through the calibration procedure provided with the device. Next, the eye sighting centers are calibrated as described below. Finally, a transform array of gaze reference vectors is formed for transforming the gaze angle values given in eyetracker coordinates to gaze vectors in world coordinates.

Sighting Center

The sighting center is defined as the point within the eye through which all gaze vectors, or lines of sight, pass. The concept has been described in previous work (Epelboim et al., 1995; Park & Park, 1933). In Park and Park, this point was found to be approximately 13.5 mm behind the front surface of the cornea, along the line of sight. Epelboim et al. used a pointing procedure: A pointer was positioned to touch the surface of the subject's eyelid while his or her head was stabilized on a bite bar. The subject's gaze vector was then aligned with the centerline of the pointer.

Here, the sighting center is defined for each eye by using the pointing procedure presented in Figure 3, which requires the subject to look through an aiming apparatus at different angles. The sighting centers for each eye are then calculated using the intersection or near-intersection point (see definition below) of the vectors defined by the centerline of the aiming apparatus in the acquired positions.

To calibrate the sighting centers, the subject points a narrow tube (AIM, in Figure 3) attached to a magnetic sensor (AIMREF) toward his or her eye so that the vector (AVl, AV2), defined as the centerline of the tube, effectively points at the sighting center (that is, so that the subject can see the background light through the tube). The centerline vector of the tube is known, in relation to the magnetic sensor. This position is then recorded in relation to the head sensor (HEADREF). Another line-of-sight vector is obtained in a similar manner after moving the tube approximately 30�0 -40� of visual angle in relation to the eye. The procedure is repeated for both eyes.

The sighting center, then, is defined as the intersection or nearintersection point of the two line-of-sight vectors for each eye. Because the two vectors seldom actually intersect, the near-intersection point is typically used. The near-intersection point is the middle point of the shortest distance vector (SDL, orthogonal to both AVl and AV2) between two vectors. In Figure 3, the two aim vectors do not intersect; the gray field shows the projection of AV1 on AV2. The goodness/validity of the calculated eye sighting center can be evaluated with the length of the shortest distance vector, representing the uncertainty in pinpointing one exact location in space. The sighting centers are calibrated relative to the head sensor so that when the subject moves, the sighting center positions move, respectively.

Gaze Vectors

The gaze vectors have their origins in the sighting centers of the corresponding eyes. The direction of the gaze vector is determined with the eyetracker. The current system, using EyeLink I, uses a set of calibrated reference vectors to resolve the direction of gaze in the world coordinate system through a linear transformation from the proprietary coordinate system provided by EyeLink.

Headgear

The EyeLink headband proved to be relatively unstable, moving around on the subject's head when the subject turned his or her head. The problem was probably largely caused by the tug of the heavy wire leading from the back of the unit. This necessitated the development of a more stable headset, which was then constructed from modified scuba-diving glasses. The headgear supplies a rigid frame for holding the EyeLink cameras and the Polhemus sensor steady, in relation to the eyes of the subject. (see Figure 4.)

The current headgear, however, makes the system quite uncomfortable for the user. Because this significantly limits the use of the system, a better solution is now under development.

Measurement Cycle

For each gaze point sample, the system goes through the measurement cycle presented in Table 1.

First, the system samples the current head and screen sensor positions from the positional tracker. Then, using calibration information, the system calculates the eye sighting center positions, and the position and orientation of the screen surface. Next, the system polls EyeLink for the current head-referenced gaze angles, and transforms those values to world coordinate gaze vectors. Then, the gaze point is calculated as the intersection point of the gaze vectors and the screen surface. Finally, that position is projected to the screen coordinate system, resulting in an (x,y) gaze position on the screen.

RESULTS

Performance and Evaluation

The system provides gaze point data. The actual output parameters are user configurable and can include a time stamp, the onscreen gaze point (x, y), the 3-D eye position, the 3-D gaze vector, and the 3-D screen position and orientation values. The system is capable of presenting recorded data in Playback mode. However, the system does not include a data analysis module for gaze data, so the data should be subjected to a separate data analysis method if fixation data are required.

Because the system is implemented as software, the temporal resolution is largely affected by the underlying equipment. Currently, when using a 1.6-GHz Pentium 4 processor, the time required by the sampling from the trackers and the calculations in the measurement cycle is less than 4 msec, enabling a sampling frequency of over 200 Hz. However, the test measurements for this work were made with a more moderate sampling frequency of 30 Hz, because the visualizing component had not been thoroughly optimized (but was essential for observing the operation of the system in early development).

The system was evaluated using two pilot experiments. The first experiment evaluated the accuracy of the data produced by the system. The subjects were asked to fixate back and forth between two diagonal fixation points while changing their position freely, moving both their head and the handheld device.

The second experiment was a standard reading task, in which the subjects were asked to read a passage of text from the handheld device, which allowed them to change their position freely. The data were then used to subjectively evaluate the validity of the data against typical reading data from the literature.

In both tasks, the user sat in a comfortable position in a typical office chair. The handheld device was held at an average viewing distance of 60 cm during the test, the typical posture being with the user's hand resting on his or her lap and the head tilted forward so that the device in the user's hand was within the central viewing area. While the subject moved the device, it was brought to about 20 cm from the nose, at the closest, and was at an arm's length, at the farthest. During the task, the user was also instructed to turn around and move the device horizontally and vertically so that the test data would cover most of the space surrounding the user.

The users moved much more extensively in the first task; in the second task, they concentrated more on reading. The pilot tests were performed with 3 subjects, and all of these produced similar data.

Experimental Results

Example data from Scenario 1 are presented in Figure S. The figure shows the fixation targets and the superimposed gaze samples on the screen of the handheld device. The histograms on the left-hand and upper side show the horizontal and vertical distribution of the gaze samples. The bar beneath the histogram shows the span of 1 � of visual angle in the average viewing distance (60 cm) during the test. In the example data, the user made 22 back-and-forth cycles between the fixation targets. The fixation targets were located at points (70,235) and (160, 80), in screen pixels from the lower left corner. The mean fixation locations and their standard deviation were (71 � 12; 232 � 17) and (160 � 21; 100 � 20), respectively.

The data show that 80% of the samples (74% vertical, 82% horizontal) were within 1� of the fixation targets. It should be noted that these were raw data and had not been subjected to a fixation analysis. Therefore, some of the gaze points were sampled during a fixation on a target and some during a saccade between the targets. Blinking, and the resulting loss of eye data from EyeLink, currently results in the gaze vector pointing at the coordinate system origin, which explains the data momentarily drifting outside the screen. Subjecting the data to a fixation analysis algorithm would remove the individual saccade points, at least, thus improving the percentages noted above and decreasing the amount of dispersion of the data points. One possible reason for the larger vertical deviation in the data for the lower right fixation point could be the narrow linear range of the EyeLink tracker: If the lower part of the screen had been held more than 20� below the primary line of gaze, the data probably would have been "squeezed," as in the example data.

Figure 6 shows example data from Experiment 2. The picture on the left-hand side shows the PDA screen as the user saw it. The passage of text was displayed with a resolution of 240 � 320 pixels and a letter height of 3 mm. The figure shows a typical gaze path in a reading task, with the text lines being fixated relatively accurately. When the data are compared with characteristics of reading provided in Rayner and Pollatsek (1989), it seems that the system produces valid data.

The amount of scatter in the data from the first experiment, when compared with the relatively steady gaze path of the second experiment, could be the result of the user having moved quite a bit more during the first experiment. The larger range of movements in the first experiment took the screen beyond the linear range of the EyeLink tracker.

DISCUSSION

A prototype system for tracking gaze on a handheld device has been presented. Evaluation shows that the system is capable of producing valid data.

The static accuracy of the currently used Polhemus FASTRAK system is reported as 0.8-mm RMS for the sensor position (x, y, z) and 0.15� RMS for receiver orientation (Polhemus, 2000). It should be noted that these values are valid only within the operational envelope of the tracker, which, with the current transmitter, has a radius of 75 cm. By using different types of transmitters available from Polhemus, this range can be extended to up to 5 m.

With a trained subject, the definition of the sighting centers gives submillimeter accuracy values for pinpointing the sighting centers as single points in space. The accuracy of the total system depends largely on the successful calibration of the EyeLink system. Even with good calibration, the output of EyeLink seems to be linear on a relatively small area, extending to about 30� horizontally and about 20� vertically, effectively limiting the usable area of the system.

Because the system uses EyeLink for tracking the eyes, it produces binocular data. Although binocular data are not essential for tracking gaze (because the eyes usually fixate on approximately the same spot), these data could be used to study convergence, when looking at targets at different depths. Also, eye dominance could be of significance in certain types of tests, and measuring binocular data gives the option to select the eye used as the data source if monocular data are needed.

The present approach could also benefit the field of research on augmented reality (AR). In addition to a detailed description of the scene around the user, the AR systems need an accurate description of the location and optical properties of the viewer (in this case, the user's eyes) for realistic merging of virtual objects with the real scene. These should also be tracked over time when the user moves and interacts with the scene (Azuma et al., 2001).

As noted above, the system is designed so that either of the trackers can be replaced with a substitute. Using an optical tracker, rather than the Polhemus tracker, would tree the system from wires, and possibly extend the operational envelope. Also, using a remote system for eye tracking would free the user from wearing headgear, but this would result in reduced freedom of movement, because the user would have to stay in view of the gaze-tracking cameras. In either case, the basic operational principle of the system would not be affected by the use of other types of trackers.

Although the present system operates only within an area defined by the operational envelope of the positional tracker and the wiring of the trackers, it makes new kinds of studies possible. These studies could also be extended-for example, studying mobile use while walking could be accomplished using a treadmill, which would allow the user to walk without drifting outside the operational range.

The future development of the system will concentrate on three things: (1) improving (possibly removing) the headgear worn by the subject, reducing stress and discomfort without compromising stability, (2) improving the calibration, with the objective of a quicker and easier method, and (3) extending the use of the system from a moving-screenbased to a 3-D-model-based environment.

[Reference]

REFERENCES

AZUMA, R., BAILLOT, Y., BEHRINGER, R., PEINER, S., JULIER, S.. & MAClNTYRE, B. (2001). Recent advances in augmented reality. IEEE Computer Graphics & Applications, 21, 34-47.

BABCOCK, J. S., & PELZ, J. B. (2004). Building a lightweight eyetracking headgear. Proceedings of the 2004 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications (pp. 109-114). New York: ACM Press.

BAREA, R., BOQUETE, L., MAZO, M., LOPEZ, E., & BERGASA, L. M. (2000). E.O.G. guidance of a wbeelchair using spiking neural networks. Proceedings of European Symposium on Artificial Neural Networks (pp. 233-238). Evere, Belgium: D-side.

CARPENTER, R. H. S., & ROBSON, J. G. (Eds.) (1999). Vision research: A practical guide to laboratory methods. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

CHRISTOU, C. (2001, August). iTrade Integrated eye. head and finger tracking in virtual environments. Paper presented at the 12th European Conference on Eye Movements, Dundee, Scotland.

CROSBY, M. E., & PETERSON, W. W. (1991). Using eye movements to classify search strategies. Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 35th Annual Meeting: Vol. 2 (pp. 1476-1480). Santa Monica, CA: Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.

DUCHOWSKI, A. T., SHIVASHANKARAIAH, V., RAWLS, T., GRAMOPADHYE, A. K., MELLOY, B. J.. & KANKI, B. (2000). Binocular eye tracking in virtual reality for inspection training. Proceedings of the 2000 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications (pp. 8996). New York: ACM Press.

EDEN, G. R, STEIN, J. F, WOOD, H. M., & WOOD, F. B. (1994). Differences in eye movements and reading problems in dyslexic and normal children. Vision Research, 34,1345-1358.

EPELBOIM, J. L., STEINMAN, R. M., KOWLER, E., EDWARDS, M., PIZLO, Z., ERKELENS, C. J., & COLLEWUN, H. (1995). The function of visual search and memory in sequential looking tasks. Vision Research, 35,3401 -3422.

HY�N�, J., RADACH, R., & DEUBEL, H. (Eds.) (2003). The minds eye: Cognitive and applied aspects of eye movement research. Amsterdam: Elsevier.

KUUTTI, K. ( 1999). Small interfaces: A blind spot of the academical HCI community? In H.-J. Bullinger & J. Ziegler (Eds.), Human-Computer Interaction: Vol. I. Ergonomics and user interfaces, (pp. 710-714). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

MAJARANTA, P., & RAIHA, K.-J. (2002). Twenty years of eye typing: Systems and design issues. Proceedings of the 2002 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications (pp. 15-22). New York: ACM Press.

N�S�NEN, R., OJANP��, H., & KOJO, I. (2001). Effect of stimulus contrast on performance and eye movements in visual search. Vision Research, 41. 1817-1824.

OYEKOYA, O. K. (2004). Overview of available commercial eye trackers. Retrieved November 8, 2004, from University College London, Electronic and Electrical Engineering Web site: http://www.ee.ucl .ac.uk/~ooyekoya/CommercialEyeTrackeis.pdf.

PARK, R. S., & PARK, G. E. (1933). The center of ocular rotation in the horizontal plane. American Journal of Physiology, 104,545-552.

PELZ, J. B., & CANOSA, R. (2001 ). Oculomotor behavior and perceptual strategies in complex tasks, Vision Research, 41,3S87-3S96.

POLHEMUS, INC. (2000). 3SPACE FASTRAK user's manual. Colchester, VT: Author.

RAYNER, K,, & POLLATSEK, A. (1989). The psychology of reading. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

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(Manuscript received December 9,2004; revision accepted for publication September 1,2005.)

[Author Affiliation]

KRISTIAN LUKANDER

Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland

[Author Affiliation]

This project was funded by the National Technology Agency of Finland (Tekes). Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to K. Lukander, Brain Work Research Center, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Topeliuksenkatu 41 a A, FIN-00250 Helsinki, Finland (e-mail: kristian.lukander@ttl.fi).

Draft focus has shifted from big men to speed

A year ago, the Bears' first-round selection of safety MarkCarrier was the most criticized pick in the NFL draft. This year, itwas the most emulated pick.

In 15 years from 1975 through 1989, only two safeties weretop-10 picks: Kenny Easley and Bennie Blades. After Carrier, thesixth pick last year, was the NFL's interception leader and Rookie ofthe Year, the 1991 draft had two safeties in the top 10. Eric Turnerwent to Cleveland on the second pick, Stanley Richard to Houston onthe ninth.

Carrier wasn't the only strong influence on this year's draftand safeties weren't the only beneficiaries. For years, the draftinggospel for the first round was, when in doubt, take a big man.Lately, though, teams have been drifting toward speed over size.

In 1980-87, eight years, 80 first-round picks played on theoffensive or defensive lines, the size positions. Only 51first-round picks played the downfield speed positions: safety,cornerback and wide receiver. But in the last four years, 1988-91,that 8-5 ratio of size to speed has shrunk to almost 1-1. There were24 linemen in the first round, 21 downfield speed players.

The change is even more dramatic in the first 10 picks of thedraft. In 1980-87, 29 linemen and only 13 downfield speed playerswent that high. Since 1988, nine linemen and seven downfield speedplayers have been in the top 10. This year alone, speed outnumberedsize 5-4. The draft's strength at wide receiver was partlyresponsible, but it might have been 6-3 for speed if Raghib Ismailhadn't signed with the Toronto Argonauts.

Later in the first round, after Miami took wide receiver RandalHill and his 4.3 time in 40 yards, the Buffalo Bills thought abouthaving to play against him twice a year. Their biggest need suddenlychanged from a physical lineman to someone who could cover Hill.They took Illinois cornerback Henry Jones, who might project to aCarrier-type free safety.

Even later in the draft, the Bears felt fortunate to come out ofthe fourth round with cornerback Joe Johnson. After him, personneldirector Bill Tobin said, there was only one more corner with betterthan a 10th-round grade.

Twenty-one defensive backs were drafted in the first fourrounds. The next most popular positions were wide receivers anddefensive linemen, with 18 each. Downfield speed players outnumberedlinemen 39-33. Just one year ago, despite the 1990 draft's weaknessin offensive linemen, the linemen outnumbered downfield speed players38-29. That's an 11 percent swing.

"They're looking for people to cover four wideouts," Tobinexplained.

They still want players who can sack and protect thequarterback, too, but offenses don't leave much time for pass rushesanymore. The action, and the focus of scouts, has moved downfield.

Israeli airstrike against Gaza police post kills one; Hamas say they're taking precautions

An Israeli airstrike against a Hamas police position in the southern Gaza Strip killed one and injured three early Saturday, Palestinian officials and the army said.

Hamas said one of its men was killed in the attack near the former settlement of Morag in southern Gaza. Palestinian medics said three others were injured.

The army said it struck a Hamas position following repeated rocket and mortar fire from Gaza toward towns in southern Israel. Four mortars were launched Friday against Israel, the army said.

Most of the rocket fire toward Israel has been carried out of the small, radical Islamic Jihad movement. But Gaza's Hamas rulers, who overtook the strip by force in June, have done nothing to stop the daily fire.

Hamas police were seen taking precautions on Saturday after the attack, with many leaving their posts, working from makeshift locations and with a smaller visible presence on the streets.

Ehab al-Ghussen, a spokesman for the Hamas-run interior ministry, however, said the police would not be deterred by the airstrike.

"There is a serious escalation by the occupation against the Palestinian security establishment in Gaza," he said. "These threats are not going to block our efforts to achieve our goals. We have alternative plans, and we are working to protect our personnel and our establishment."

He did not elaborate what kind of measures Hamas may take.

FIRESTONE TRIAL PAYOUT: $7.5 MIL. Firestone SETTLEMENT GOES TO FAMILY OF WOMAN PARALYZED IN SUV CRASH

McALLEN, Texas--The first trial to come out of the Firestone tiredebacle ended abruptly in a settlement Friday, with Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. agreeing to pay a reported $7.5 million to the familyof a woman paralyzed in the rollover crash of a Ford Explorer.

The settlement was announced shortly after the jury began a fourthday of deliberations in the closely watched $1 billion federallawsuit.

The amount was not disclosed, but two sources familiar with thesettlement told the Associated Press that it was $7.5 million.

"Our mission here, for our family, was to make sure no otherperson suffered like our family did," said Dr. Joel Rodriguez, whosewife, Marisa, 39, was paralyzed and brain-damaged when the Explorercrashed on a Mexican road last year. "We feel that our objective hasbeen met."

Bridgestone/Firestone had blamed the accident on the Explorer,saying design flaws made it prone to rolling over.

In settling the case, the tire maker admitted no liability.

It was not immediately known which way the jurors were leaningbefore deliberations were cut short. They were escorted out of thecourtroom, and their names were sealed by U.S. District Judge FilemonVela, who recommended that they not talk about the case because itcould affect other lawsuits.

The case was the first Firestone lawsuit to go to trial since therecall last summer of 6.5 million of the tires. Federal officialshave linked more than 200 deaths to accidents involving Firestones onExplorers.

Bridgestone/Firestone has settled about 200 cases and has about300 still pending. Ford settled with the Rodriguezes for $6 millionbefore trial.

With more cases pending, the Texas trial had drawn intensescrutiny as the industry and personal-injury lawyers watched to seewhether Bridgestone/Firestone could persuade a jury to assign atleast some of the blame for the accident to Ford.

Rodriguez's brother Jorge Rodriguez was driving the Explorer on afamily trip in March 2000 when the steel belt and tread on the rightrear tire tore apart. The vehicle rolled over three times, crushingthe roof.

Rodriguez testified that his once-vibrant wife now spends her dayssitting at a table or watching television.

Firestone attorney Knox Nunnally said he believes the companyillustrated that Ford was to blame. "The message anyone I believewould get out of this trial if they sat through all of the evidenceis that [the Rodriguezes'] Firestone tire was not the problem," hesaid.

A Ford spokeswoman declined comment.

Afghan lawmaker's relative killed in night raid

NATO and Afghan forces raided a lawmaker's home and fatally shot the woman's brother-in-law in eastern Afghanistan during a nighttime operation, sending hundreds of people into the streets shouting "Death to America!" in protest, the lawmaker said Thursday.

The military operation tapped into a well of resentment about raids by American and local troops that have been known to wound or kill civilians as well as insurgents. After a storm of complaints from Afghan people, NATO's top commander in Afghanistan issued a directive earlier this year to avoid night raids when possible.

Safiya Sidiqi, the member of parliament whose brother-in-law was killed, said family members told her that about 100 NATO soldiers stormed her home, near the city of Jalalabad, about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday. She was not home at the time.

Hundreds gathered on streets near Jalalabad on Thursday, burning tires and shouting anti-U.S. slogans. A crowd gathered around the body, covered in a white sheet, and cried "Long live Islam!"

NATO said Thursday that a joint operation with Afghan forces killed "one armed individual while pursuing a Taliban facilitator" on Wednesday night. The person killed ignored demands given in English and through an Afghan interpreter to lower his weapon, NATO said, without giving details of the person's identity.

Sidiqi said the soldiers broke the windows of her home, entered and pulled out 15 members of her family who were then photographed and fingerprinted. Eventually, she said, they opened fire on her brother-in-law.

She called the raid "barbaric."

Sidiqi did not respond specifically to questions about whether her brother-in-law was armed.

"Whatever happened, it was the mistake of NATO," she told The Associated Press. "They have abused my family."

Police are investigating the raid, said Nangarhar provincial police spokesman Ghafor Khan.

Civilian deaths at the hands of U.S. and other international forces are highly sensitive in Afghanistan. Public outrage over such deaths prompted the top commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal last year to tighten the rules on the use of airstrikes and other weaponry if civilians are at risk.

In January, McChrystal ordered coalition forces to avoid night raids when possible, and to bring Afghan troops along with them if they do enter homes after dark.

Though McChrystal's order fell short of the complete ban on night raids sought by President Hamid Karzai, it reflects new sensitivities by NATO at a time when the coalition is pursuing a strategy of gaining Afghan public trust in a bid to rout Taliban extremists.

On Thursday, the French military said embattled French troops mistakenly killed four Afghan civilians and seriously injured one during a clash with insurgents east of Kabul on April 6.

The military investigated the bloodshed, which came as a section of French Mountaineer Brigade troops were fighting insurgents in Bedraou, part of the strategic Tagab Valley in the foothills of the Hindu Kush just 30 miles (45 kilometers) of the capital, the military said.

During the prolonged fight, French observer troops spotted seven insurgents hiding behind a wall to prepare an ambush, said Adm. Christophe Prazuck, the French military spokesman.

"There were no civilians visible around, so they got clearance to shoot," Prazuck said on the telephone. But it turned out five young men, civilians, were huddling undetected under trees nearby, he said. Four died from shrapnel from the surface-to-surface missile that French troops fired, Prazuck said. One young man is recovering at a Kabul hospital, he said.

Families are being compensated in cash and other benefits according to NATO policies in Afghanistan, he said.

Also Thursday, a joint NATO-Afghan operation captured members of the Haqqani network, an autonomous Afghan Taliban faction closely tied to al-Qaida, and two other militants in Khost province.

NATO said the two Haqqani members were responsible for arming fighters and placing roadside bombs.

In Laghman province, deputy police chief Najibullah Hotak said a suicide bomber traveling on foot targeted a military convoy, killing one Afghan soldier and wounding two.

___

Associated Press Writer Elizabeth A. Kennedy contributed to this report.

Olmert calls for world to stop Iran nuclear bomb

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday that Iran is still trying to build nuclear bombs and the world must make a concerted effort to stop the project.

"Iran has not terminated its pursuit of nuclear weapons," Olmert told a gathering of North American Jewish leaders in Jerusalem. "Iran cannot become nuclear. Israel cannot afford it...the free world must not accept it. We must all do whatever we can to prevent it."

Israel considers Iran a strategic threat because of its nuclear program, its development of long-range missiles and repeated threats to destroy the Jewish state.

Olmert did not give specific warnings about possible Israeli actions against Iran.

Iran denies its nuclear program is aimed at producing weapons.

Obituaries

Edith Upton Bailey

Edith Upton Bailey, 94, of Hurricane passed away Dec. 31, 2002, inMorris Memorial Nursing Home, Milton.

She was a retired supervisor for New Jersey State Hospital, ownerand operator of Bailey's Truck Stop and Restaurant.

She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Sadie and SamuelE. Ashworth of Hurricane; grandsons, Bill and Katherine Ashworth ofScott Depot, Steven and Donna Ashworth of Nashville, Tenn.; fivegreat-grandchildren.

Service will be 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Cunningham Memorial ParkUpper Mausoleum Chapel, St. Albans, with Pastor Paul Romineofficiating. Burial will be in Cunningham Memorial Park, St. Albans.

Friends may call one hour prior to service at the mausoleum.

Casdorph & Curry Funeral Home, St. Albans, is in charge ofarrangements.

Wanda Lee Balser

MONTGOMERY - Wanda Lee Balser, 75, of Montgomery died Tuesday,Dec. 31, 2002, in Montgomery General Hospital following a longillness.

She was a resident of Rivermont Presbyterian Homes in Montgomery.Born April 7, 1927, in Marting, she was the daughter of the lateAugust and Sadie Goodwin Roat.

She is survived by her children, Bartley Balser of Maryland,Barbara Chapman of Kimberly, Joey Wayne Balser of Cincinnati, Ohio,Mary Kelly of South Carolina, Sadie Coon of Rand, Ida Miller fo CedarGrove, James Balser of Montgomery, and Jackie Balser of Cedar Grove;brothers, George Roat of Cannelton and Freddie Roat of Oak Hill;sisters, Libby Myers of Cannelton, Katherine Dozier of Cannelton andEvellyn Stevens of North Carolina; 27 grandchildren; and 35 great-grandchildren.

Funeral service will be 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at O'Dell FuneralHome, Montgomery with the Rev. Donald Lanham officiating. Burial willfollow in Kanawha Valley Memorial Gardens at Glasgow, W.Va.

Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.

Billie Sue Belcher

CONCORD, N.C. - Billie Sue Belcher, 38, of Concord, N.C., formerlyof Gordon, W.Va., died Dec. 30, 2002.

She was a housewife and was preceded inn Mont death by her father,William Miller, and stepfather, Billy Hastings Sr.

She is survived by her husband, Steve Belcher of Concord;daughter, Holly Heavener of Euless, Texas; son, Ben Cummings ofConcord; mother, Sue Hastings of Gordon; brother, Billy Hastings ofGordon; sister, Delena Toler of Greenwood; grandson, Austin Heavenerof Euless.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Gordon Union Church,Gordon, with the Rev. Phil Rowe officiating. Burial will be inDanville Memorial Park.

Friends may call after 6 p.m. Thursday at the church.

Handley Funeral Home, Danville, is in charge of arrangements.

Mary Doris Boso

SUMMERSVILLE - Mary Doris Boso, 86, of Summersville died Dec. 29,2002, in Grant Memoiral Hospital, Petersburg, after suffering astroke Nov. 24, 2002, at her home in Summersville.

Bron Feb. 22, 1916, near Snow Hill, Nicholas County, the daughterof Mary Richardson O'Dell and Oscar H. O'Dell, she was a graduate ofNicholas County High School, received a Bachelor of Arts degree frdedinn Mom Marshall College, taught at Nicholas County High School andwas a social worker with the West Virginia Department of HumanServices.

She was optimistic, compassionate and loved learning. She was manythings to many people: Loving wife, mother, and grandmother,dedicated homemaker, a friendly and concerned neighbor, Bible scholarand member of Summersville Memorial Methodist Church, where shetaught Sunday school for several years.. She was happiest when givingof herself to improve the lives of others. She was preceded in deathby her husband of 64 years, Roy Boso, on June 11, 2002.

She is survived by a son, Roy Boso Jr., who will now makes hishome with his sister, or Moorefield; daughter, Patricia L. Williamsand her husband, Edward Williams, of Moorefield; three grandsons,Scott, Doug and Jeff Williams; four nieces; one nephew.

At her request, her body has been donated to the Human GiftRegistry of West Virginia University at Morgantown. A memorialservice will be held at a later date. Memorials may be made toSummersville Memorial Methodist Church.

White Funeral Home, Summersville, is in charge of arrangements.

Brenda F. Brewer

SANDYLEVEL, Va. - Brenda F. Brewer, 52, died Dec. 30, 2002.Service will be 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, 2003, at Liberty House ofPraise, Houfnagle Road, Lewisburg, W.Va. Friends may call from 6 to 9p.m. Thursday at Longanacre Funeral Home, Fairlea.

James D. Calderis

BECKLEY - James D. Calderis, 74, of Beckley died Jan. 1, 2003, inBeckley VA Medical Center.

Rose & Quesenberry Funeral Home, Beckley, is in charge ofarrangements.

Joseph P. Cogar

Joseph P. Cogar, 64, of Glasgow, formerly of Belle, died Dec. 29,2002, in CAMC Memorial Hospital after a long illness.

Joe was a truck driver for McCowen Meat Co. He was a Marine Corpsveteran and a 1957 graduate of DuPont High School, where he excelledin basketball and football.

He is survived by a brother, Steve Carpenter of Point Pleasant;sister, Peggy C. Jackson of Fayetteville, N.C.; nephews, K at a laterdate. Memorials meith A. Carpetner of Charlotte, N.C., Charles R.Carpenter of Switzerland; great-nephew, Benjamine Carpenter ofCharlotte.

Memorial service will be 10 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7, at TylerMountain Memory Gardens Mausoleum Chapel, Cross Lanes, with the Rev.Charles Melton officiating. There will be no visitation. The bodywill be cremated. Fidler & Frame Funeral Home, Belle, is in charge ofarrangements.

Wallace W. Coleman

BRADLEY - Wallace Wayne "Squats" Coleman, 48, of Bradley died Dec.31, 2002. Service will be 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at Rose &Quesenberry Funeral Home, Beckley. Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m.Friday at the funeral home.

Donald Clark Davis

ST. MARYS - Donald Clark Davis, 44, of St. Marys died Dec. 29,2002. Service will be 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Stump Funeral Home,Grantsville. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at thefuneral home.

Leola Cook Edwards

PINEVILLE - Leola Cook Edwards, 92, of Pineville died Dec. 30,2002, in Cedar Ridge Nursing Home, Sphews, K at a later date.Missonville, after a long illness.

Born July 30, 1910, in Rockview, she was the daughter of the lateJames and Manerva Jane Laxton Cook.

Mrs. Edwards was a former member of the Pineville Women's Club andan active member of the Rockcastle Baptist Church. She formerlyworked for Colony Drug, Beckley, for 17 years and Holloway Drug,Pineville, for 12 years. She was a lifelong resident of Wyoming andRaleigh counties.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Ray Edwards, in 1987.

Leola is survived by her only son, Robert Dinkler and his wife,Betty R., of Charleston; two grandchildren, Dan Dinkler ofCharleston, Barbara Price and her husband, Darren, of Acworth, Ga.;two great-grandchildren, Sarah and Matthew Price of Acworth.

Service will be 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Calfee Funeral Home,Pineville, with the Rev. Donald "Doc" Adkins officiating. Burial willfollow in Cook Cemetery, Keyrock. Friends will serve as pallbearers.

Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Robert E a later pperly

MOUNT HOPE - Robert Epperly, 56, of Mount Hope died Dec. 30, 2002.Service will be 2:15 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at High Lawn Memorial Park,Oak Hill. Friends may call one hour prior to service Friday at TyreeFuneral Home, Mount Hope.

Arty J. Franzello Sr.

RUPERT - Arty J. Franzello Sr., 88, formerly of Bradenton, Fla.,and Rupert died Dec. 31, 2002. Service will be 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan.4, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Rainelle. Friends may call from 6to 8 p.m. Friday at Wallace & Wallace Funeral Home, Rainelle.

Robert W. Given

COWEN - Robert Wilson "Bob" Given, 63, of Cowen passed awayMonday, Dec. 30, 2002, at West Virginia University Ruby MemorialHospital, Morgantown, after a short illness.

He was born Dec. 25, 1939, at Upper Glade, a son of the late S.Dewey and Goldie G. Morris Given.

He was a Headstart and school bus driver in Webster County, theformer director of Camp Ceasar and a veteran of the United StatesArmy.

He was a member of American Legion Post No. 62, Knhome.

Robert E aights of Pythias Glade Lodge No. 205, Cowen VolunteerFire Department, 4-H All-stars and the American Bowling CongressBowler for over 40 years.

He is survived by his wife, Claudia E. Greene Given; sons, SamuelE. and his wife, Teri Given of Cowen and Matthew R. Given of Oakton,Va.; sisters, Sorothy A. Dalyai of South Port, N.C., Marjorie Cirilloof Cleveland, Ohio, June Miller of Cowen and Jane McCourt ofDeerfield, Ohio; and two grandchildren, Hunter A. and Logan D. Givenof Cowen.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a brother,Samuel E. Given; and a sister, Dorma L. Given.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Morris Funeral Home,Cowen with the Rev. Cofer "Bud" Cochran officiating. Burial withmilitary graveside rites conducted by VFW Post 3738, Webster Springs,will be in the Handschumacher Cemetery, Upper Glade.

Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 2, 2003, at thefuneral home.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to theCowen Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 186, Cowen, WV 26206.

Rev. Bryce W. Griffith

PARKERSBURG - Rev. Bryce W. Griffith, 79, of Parkersburg died Dec.30, 2002, in Camden Clark Memorial Hospital.

He was born in Looneyville, son of the late George L. and BessWright Griffith.

He graduated from Toccoa Falls Bible College, Toccoa, Ga., andalso graduated from West Virginia Tech and did graduate work atMarshall University.

In 1950, he was ordained by the First Baptist Church, Spencer,then pastored churches for 25 years in Reedy, East Bank, Huntingtonand Buckhannon. From 1975 until his retirement in 1986, he served asMinister of Communications for the West Virginia Baptist Convention.He also served as secretary to the West Virginia Baptist Conventionfor many years.

He is survived by two sons, David W. Griffith of Washington,W.Va., and Richard A. Griffith of Parkersburg; brother, Brooks D.Griffith of California; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Beverly Pet VolunteeitGriffith; daughter, Rev. Saundra Heizer, and two brothers, E. Blakeand L. Dan Griffith.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Emmanuel BaptistChurch, Parkersburg, with Dr. Kurt Busiek and the Rev. DavidCarpenter officiating. Graveside services will be 2:30 p.m. at CloverCemetery, Roane County.

Friends may call from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday atLeavitt Funeral Home, Parkersburg.

H. Leon Hager

HAMLIN - H. Leon Hager of Hamlin died Jan. 1, 2003, in St. Mary'sHospital, Huntington.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Marcella "Sally" HatfieldHager, parents, A.G. "Doc" and Hattie Ballard Hager, brothers, HomerK. and Opie C. Hager.

Leon was born June 27, 1917, in Danville. He was an automobiledealer in Hamlin for 40 years. When he opened his dealership, he wasthe youngest Ford dealer in the United States. Leon was a formerdirector of the West Virginia Automobile Dealer's Association,director of the Bank of Danville for 28 years, represented LincolnCounty for 10 yerly Pet Vars in the West Virginia House of Delegates,served as treasurer of the Lincoln County Demcorat ExecutiveCommittee, was a Lincoln County Chief Deputy Sheriff, Wing Commanderof the Civil Air Patrol of West Virginia in 1958 and won the covetedCol. D.H. Byrd Award for outstanding Wing Commander in the UnitedStates.

He is survived by two sons and daughters-in-law, Harry and LindaHager of Barboursville, Henry and Iris Hager of Hamlin; grandson,Henry "Hank" Hager and wife, Beth, of Charleston.

Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Handley FuneralHome, Hamlin. Service will be 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at HandleyFuneral Home, Hamlin. Burial will be in Ridgelawn Cemetery,Huntington.

Susan Cobb Harshbarger

Susan Cobb Harshbarger, 54, of Dunbar passed away Dec. 23, 2002.

Susan was born June 5, 1948, in Richmond, Va., and moved to Dunbarwith her parents, the late Dr. Ward Jr. and Edna BarthlowHarshbarger. She was also preceded in death by her sister, ElizabethAnn Broodus.

Susan graduator 10 yerlyed from Dunbar High School and MorrisHarvey College. She attended West Virginia State College and thePresbyterian School of Christian Education. She was a graduate ofGarnet Career College where she received certification as a licensedpractical nurse.

Susan was employed at Thomas Memorial Hospital, St. FrancisHospital and Loved Ones In-Home Care. She was a member of FirstPresbyterian Church, St. Albans.

Susan's hobbies included medieval history and revivals, Celtichistory and music and family genealogy.

Surviving are her sister, Lynn Williams of Birmingham, Ala.;brother, Ward Harshbarger III of Dunbar; and aunts, DorothyHarshbarger of St. Albans, Elizabeth Hurt of Roanoke, Va.

Memorial service will be 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at KellerFuneral Home, Dunbar, with the Rev. Paul Romine officiating. Burialwill follow in Cunningham Memorial Park, St. Albans.

Friends may call one hour prior to service at Keller Funeral Home,Dunbar.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Kanawha Hospice Care,1143 Dunbar Ave., Dunbar, WV 25064.

John W. Hawks

BECKLEY - John W. Hawks, 53, died Dec. 31, 2002. Service will be 1p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Rose & Quesenberry Funeral Home, Beckley.Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Nealy Jones

CRAB ORCHARD - Nealy Jones, 78, of Crab Orchard died Dec. 31,2002. Service will be 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at Rose & QuesenberryFuneral Home, Beckley. Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday atthe funeral home.

Donald W. Kesselring

MOUNDSVILLE - Donald W. Kesselring, 89, died Dec. 30, 2002.Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Koontz Funeral Home,Hamlin. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Koontz FuneralHome.

Linda Mae White Kidd

Linda Mae White Kidd, 55, of Tad, Kanawha County, W.Va., died Dec.31, 2002, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident atGallagher, W.Va.

Born Jan. 3, 1947, in South Charleston, she was the daughter ofthe late Harry and Lucille Patton White. She wasations may be made toKanawha Hospice also preceded in death by a sister, Mary Jane Savage.

She was a member and organist at First Baptist Church of Standard,was a homemaker and was previously employed in the mail department atShawnee Hills.

Her survivors include her husband, Harold "Bubby" Kidd; daughters,Joyce Paxton of Grafton, Cheryl Brown of St. Albans and BrendaMarmino of Bethhalto, Ill.; stepson, Darrell Kees of Chelyan; sister,Gerldine Norman of Indianapolis, Ind.; sister and brother-in-law,Louise and Bobby Snodgrass of Charleston; and brother and sister-in-law, the Rev. Ernest and Freda White of Charleston; fourgrandchildren; several cousins, nieces, nephews and a host offriends.

Funeral service will be 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at O'DellFuneral Home, Montgomery with the Rev. Clarence Hutton officiating.Burial will follow in Kanawha Valley Memorial Gardens at Glasgow.

Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.

Frances G. Lavinder

Frances G. Lavinder of Kanawha City passed away Dec. 31, 2002, aoKanawhat her residence of a sudden illness.

She was born at Eight Mile on Campbells Creek to the late Hermonand Atha Brown Belcher. She was a former employee for SS Kresge Co.,and the Charleston Town Center. She was also a U.S. Marine veteran.

Her husband, Billy Green Lavinder; two brothers, William V. andCharles F. Belcher, preceded her in death.

She is survived by sons, Charles Lavinder of Kanawha City, WilliamG. "Billy" Lavinder of St. Albans; stepson, Greg Lavinder of Marmet;sisters, Eleanor Hissom and Dora Wallis Belcher, both of Charleston,Freda Wentz of Kanawha City; one grandchild; sister-in-law, HelenBelcher; and one nephew, Michael Belcher.

Service will be 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at Stevens & GrassFuneral Home, Malden with the Rev. Byron Hissom officiating. Burialwill follow at Floral Hills Garden of Memories, Sissonville.

Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Stevens & GrassFuneral Home, 4203 Salines Drive, Malden, WV 25306.

Ethel McCallister

Ethel Chandler McCalliste 2002, ao Kr, 91, a beloved mother,grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother,peacefully went to be with the Lord on Dec. 30, 2002, in SunbridgeNursing Home, Dunbar, with family by her side.

She was a true pioneer woman who knew how to live off the land.Although she endured hard times in her life, she managed to overcomeit all. There will never be another like her.

Mrs. McCallister was preceded in death by her sons, Darrell andPhillip McCallister, daughter, Violet Deel, and granddaughters, KathyWalker and Kathy Jean McCallister.

She is survived by daughters, Rosie Fields, and husband John, ofTornado, Rebecca Sue and Dorothy McCallister, both of Dunbar; son,Mike McCallister and wife, Linda, of South Charleston; grandchildren,Doris Tabor of Sumner, Wash., Gail Dye and husband, Charles, ofRavenna, Ohio, Edward Fields and wife, Charlotte, of Clayton, Del.,Diana Sowards of St. Albans, Barry Fields of South Charleston, DennisFields and wife, Nika, of Farmington, Denise Davis and husband,Da00vid, of Tornado, Michael McCallister and wife, Cindy, of SouthCharleston, Leslie Ferrell and husband, John, of Barboursville,Clifford Deel of Clendenin, Sandra Holt of Walton, Clarence, Ronaldand Gary Adkins, all of Cleveland, Shirley, Sharon and DarellMcCallister Jr., also of Cleveland; grandson-in-law, Jim Walker ofSt. Albans; numerous great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

Service will be 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Graceland Memorial Park,South Charleston, with the Rev. Juanita Eads officiating.

Friends may call from noon until 1:30 p.m. Friday at Good ShepherdMortuary, South Charleston.

Bernice Godbey Miller

Bernice Godbey Miller, 90, of Ravenswood, formerly of Salineville,Ohio, died Dec. 31, 2002, at home following a lengthy illness.

Bernice was a retired waitress from Charleston area restaurantsand a Methodist. For years, she lived in the Pine Grove area ofSalineville, Ohio, where she was an avid gardener and caretaker ofmany animals.

She was born May 10, 1910, i husband, Dn Sugar Creek, JacksonCounty. She was preceded in death by her husband, Orval Miller, whodied June 8, 1978, father, Everette Godbey, stepfather, Bert H.Marion, mother, Etta Shamblin Godbey Marion; brothers, Oley "Jiggs"Godbey and Orville J. Godbey; half sister, Alice Marion Brinkley;half brother, Thomas Franklin Marion.

Family and friends will be received from 11 a.m. until time offuneral services at 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, 2003, at Pleasant ViewMethodist Church, Fishers Ridge, Kenna, with the Rev. Forest Kinderofficiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.

Gatens Funeral Home, 147 Main St., Poca, and Everhart FuneralService, Richmond, Ohio, is in charge of arrangements. Condolencesmay be e-mailed to the family at www.gatensfuneralhome.com.

Cleava M. Moles

GOSHEN, Ind. - Cleava M. Moles, 82, of Goshen, Ind., formerly ofMiami, W.Va., died Dec. 30, 2002, in Lakeland Rehabilitation Center,Milford, Ind., after a long illness.

Born Nov. 20, 1920, in Izard, Ark., daughter of the lat0, i husbeSamuel and Bertha Blevins Box, she was a homemaker and member ofLeewoo Baptist Church.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Arnold Moles, and son,Charles.

She is survived by three daughters, Sharron Lehman and husband,William, of Middlebury, Ind., Kathy Fraker and husband, Michael, ofLeewood, Pam Stanley and husband, Kevin, of Poca; son, Bobby Molesand wife, Judith, of Miami; brother, Cecil Box and wife, Lorene, ofWichita, Kan.; five grandchildren; five great-grandchildren.

Service will be 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Pryor Funeral Home, EastBank, with the Rev. Herman Freeman officiating. Burial will be inKanawha Valley Memorial Gardens, Glasgow.

Friends may call two hours prior to service at the funeral home.

Pryor Funeral Home, East Bank, is in charge of arrangements.

Phyllis Jean Monk

PARKERSBURG - Phyllis Jean Monk, 80, of Parkersburg died Dec. 30,2002, in St. Joseph Hospital.

She was born in Kanawha County, a daughter of the late Albert andPribble Rollins Clark. She was a ge lat0, iraduate of SouthCharleston High School. She was retired from The Bureau Public Debtand attended New Hope Baptist Church.

She is survived by two sons, Dale S. Monk of Huntington andWilliam H. Monk Jr. of Jacksonville, Fla.; four grandchildren, BethAnne Zoller of Jacksonville, Racher Herrod of Parkersburg, JacobPlate and Sarah Monk, both of Huntington; four great-grandchildren,Katelyn and Andrew Herrod of Parkersburg, Samuel Plate of Huntington,and Nicholas Zoller of Jacksonville; one brother, Charles Edwards ofSt. Albans; and three sisters, Virginia Nester of South Charleston,Ruth Bloss of Huntington and Mary Thompson of Detroit, Mich.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by herhusband, William H. Monk; three brothers, Thomas, Robert, and WilliamEdwards; two sisters, Thelma Williams and Mildred Edwards.

Funeral service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Lambert-TatmanFuneral Home, Green Street, Parkersburg, with the Rev. William Thomasofficiating. Burial will be in Cunningham Memorial Park at St.Albans, W.Va.

Friends may call from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at thefuneral home.

Joseph Lee Nelon Jr.

Baby boy, Joseph Lee Nelon Jr., died at Women and Children'sHospital on Dec. 30, 2002.

He is survived by his parents, Joseph and Kimberly Dawn Nelon ofWinfield; sisters, Amanda Dawn and Allison Nichole; also surviving,maternal grandparents, Paul and Judy Stewart of Dunbar; paternalgrandparents, Claude and Lillian Nelon of Hurricane; James and LindaSmith of South Charleston.

Private graveside service will be held on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2003,at Spring Hill Cemetery, Huntington.

Barlow-Bonsall Funeral Home, Charleston, is in charge ofarrangements.

Vesta D. Tyree O'Dell

CRAIGSVILLE - Vesta D. Tyree O'Dell, 89, of Craigsville died Dec.31, 2002, in Richwood Community Hospital.

Born March 17, 1913, on Phillip's Run, Nicholas County, she was adaughter of the late Edward and Sarah Martha McClung Tyree.

She was a member of the First Baptist Church, Craigsvill be inCunninghalle, and was a homemaker. She was preceded in death by herfirst husband, Floyd "Skinny" Rock and by her second husband, HarryO'Dell, six brothers, and three sisters.

She is survived by one sister, Georgia Woods of Summersville;several nieces and nephews.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at White Funeral Home,Craigsville, with the Rev. David Sommerville officiating. Burial willfollow in Craigsville Cemetery.

Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Curtis O'Neal Patterson

Curtis O'Neal Patterson, 85, of Chelyan died Dec. 31, 2002, athome of a sudden illness.

He was retired from Appalachian Power Co., and was a member ofSlaughters Creek Memorial Freewill Baptist Church.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Icie Ilene Patterson; andone infant son.

He is surivived by three daughters, Barbara Allen and Betty Allen,both of Nicut and Ilene Allen of Canvas; one sister, Pauline Richardsof Sturgis, Mich.; 12 grandchildren; 21 great-grandchildren.

Service will bill be ine 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at SlaughtersCreek Memorial Freewill Baptist Church with the Rev. John Hudsonofficiating. Burial will be in Massey Cemetery, Winifrede.

Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at Pryor Funeral Home,East Bank.

Pryor Funeral Home, East Bank, is in charge of arrangements.

Virgil Pedro

Virgil Pedro, 89, of Boomer died Jan. 1, 2003, in MontgomeryGeneral Hospital after a long illness.

He was born April 7, 1913, in Boomer, and was the son of the lateJohn and Orandi Casteena Petrella.

He was a member of St. Anthony's Shrine Catholic Church, Boomer.He was also a retired miner from Cannelton Coal Co. and was a memberof UMW.

He is survived by his wife, Edith Perkins Pedro; children,Patricia Halsey of Woodbridge, Va., Charles Pedro of Woodbridge,Karen Sue Carnes of Elkview; brother, John Petrella of SouthCharleston; sisters, Mary Leonard of Detroit, Nell Petrella of Rand;nine grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren.

Mass of Christian burial will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jace will bn. 3,at St. Anthony's Shrine Catholic Church, Boomer, with Father PaulWharton as celebrant. Burial will follow in Kanawha Valley MemorialGardens, Glasgow.

Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at O'Dell Funeral Home,Montgomery, where a Christian Wake service will be held at 7:30 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to ImmaculateConception/St. Anthony Shrine Endowment Fund, c/o West VirginiaCatholic Foundation, Box 209, Wheeling, WV 26003.

Matilda Phillips

MALLORY - Matilda Phillips, 87, of Mallory died Dec. 30, 2002.Service was 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 3, at Krantz-McNeely Funeral Home,Man. Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday and one hour prior tothe service Friday at the funeral home.

Christopher R. Ramsey

GASSAWAY - Christopher Ramsey Ramsey, 23, died Dec. 29, 2002.Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Richard M. Roach FuneralHome, Gassaway. Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at thefuneral home.

Elizabeth O. Richard

ROSEDwill be 11 a.m. Friday, JacALE - Elizabeth O'Connor Richard,77, of Rosedale died Dec. 30, 2002. Service will be 11 a.m. Saturday,Jan. 4, at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, Glenville. Friends may callfrom 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Stump Funeral Home, Arnoldsburg.

Georgia Frances Sanson

Georgia Frances Sanson, 88, of Charleston went home to be with theLord Dec. 31, 2002, in Cedar Ridge Nursing and Rehabilitation Centerafter an extended illness.

She was a homemaker and attended North Charleston ApostolicChurch.

Georgia was preceded in death by her husband, Deward Sanson, andgrandson, David Fields.

She is survived by her son and daughter in law, Roy Earl andMildred Shamblin of Sissonville; daughter and son-in-law, Opal andBob Fields of Sissonville; brothers, Gruder Tanner of Clendenin, RoyTanner of Duck; grandchildren, Larry, Danny and Kevin Shamblin, SandyStroup, Becky Nelson, Mark Fields, Beth McClanahan, Leah Ballard,Jonathan, Adam and Rachel Fields; nine great-grandchildren.

Service will be 1 p.m. Friday, Jan.11 a.m. Fri 3, at Cunningham-Parker-Johnson Funeral Home, Charleston, with the Rev. Travis Bradleyand the Rev. Bob Fields officiating. Burial will be in Nebo BaptistChurch Cemetery, Nebo.

Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

James Eslie Sharp

CASS - James Eslie Sharp, 62, of Cass died Dec. 31, 2002. Servicewill be 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at Wallace & Wallace Funeral Home,Arbovale. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at the funeralhome.

Edward L. Sherwood

Edward Leighton Sherwood, a longtime Charleston resident and lastchief executive of The Diamond Department Store, died Monday at hishome, in St. Louis, Missouri.

Mr. Sherwood, who was eighty-five years old, died following a longillness, according to family members.

Mr. Sherwood was raised in St. Louis, born on September 26, 1917,the youngest of three sons of Arthur Sherwood, a manager of MortonSalt Company, and Laura Sherwood. After completing high school, Mr.Sherwood attended Washington Universm. Friday, Jan.11 a.ity,graduating in 1940. He was a business major and a member ofthe SigmaChi fraternity.

Mr. Sherwood married Dolores Pitts (Dolly) Sherwood, also ofSt.Louis, in May 1941.

He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the Army Air Corps.After the war, he began his career in the retail business, workingwith J.C. Penny Company. He moved into executive positions at FredandClark Haas, & Co. in Omaha, Nebraska, B. Siegel & Co. in Detroit and,in 1957, The Diamond, a May Company store. He retired as actingpresident of The Diamond in 1984, when he supervised the populardepartment store's closing. He later was named a federal trustee inthe bankruptcies of other Charleston retailers.

His career included orchestrating an Italian fashion exposition inCharleston, for which he received a Legion of Merit award from theItaliangovernment. He was also an active and respected board memberfor several organizations, including Highland Hospital and SunriseMuseum. An avid golfer, he once scored a hole-in-one on the thirdgreen at Edgewood Country Club. Mr. and Mrs. Sherwood returned to St.Louis in 1997, residing in the Gatesworth Retirement Community. Theywere active members of the First Presbyterian Church, in Charleston,and of Ladue Chapel, in St. Louis.

Mr. Sherwood is survived by his wife, Dolly, five children andtheir spouses-Sally and Allen P. McDaniel, of Atlanta; Susan andWesley D.Wedemeyer, of St. Louis; Leslie and John Carothers, ofChicago; Robert E. and Alice Sherwood, of St. Louis; and Topper andKatja Sherwood, of Martinsburg -and 12 grandchildren.

A memorial Service will be held at Ladue Chapel PresbyterianChurch on Thursday at 4:00 p.m. Memorial donations be made totheSherwood Family Fund of the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation.

Rosa M. Shoffner

Rosa M. Shoffner, 83, of Charleston died Dec. 30, 2002. Servicewill be 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at J.E. Scott Memorial FuneralHome, Charleston. Friends may call one hour prior to service at thefuneral home.

Treva M. Smith

Tred a hole-in-one oeva M. Smith, 91, of Charleston passed awayDecember 31, 2002 in St. Francis Hospital after a short illness.

She was a member of Trinity United Methodist Church and retiredfrom the State of West Virginia.

She is survived by a son and daughter-in-law, K.C. Jr. and LindaSmith of Elkview; and a daughter and son-in-law, Connie Jean andMichael Schubert of West Seneca, N.Y.; seven grandchildren and sevengreat-grandchildren.

Service will be 2 p.m. Saturday, January 4, 2003 at Tyler MountainFuneral Home, Cross Lanes, with Rev. Geraald Dotson officiating.Entombment will be in Tyler Mountain Memory Gardens.

Friends may call one hour prior to the service on Saturday.

In lieu of flowers, donations made be made to Trinity UnitedMethodist Church at 2626 Pennsylvania Ave., Charleston, WV 25302.

Tyler Mountain Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Robert I. Thomas

Robert Irvin "Shorty Bob" Thomas, 76, of Scott Depot died Jan. 1,2003, at home after a battle with a long illness. He was surroundahole-ined by his loving wife and family as he moved from this earthto his heavenly mansion.

Bob was a member of the Good Shepherd Southern Baptist Church,Scott Depot, where he was thrilled to be a choir member. Bob hadattended Apollo Beach Baptist Church, Apollo Beach, Fla., while helived in Ruskin, Fla., for 12 years. Bob surrendered his heart andlife to God after he retired from FMC Corp., South Charleston Plant,with 23 years' service. Before beginning employment at FMC, he workedat Owens-Illinois for 18 years.

Bob and his family and friends enjoyed many years of camping andfun at Westvaco Sportsman's Club. As a youth, Bob attained the rankof Eagle Scout. He later served as scoutmaster in St. Albans. Bob andhis two sons were active scout members in St. Albans, where he wasscoutmaster for several years. He was an active member of the OwnizdClub. Bob was born Aug. 25, 1926, in Thacker, son of the late RobertFloyd and Dora Lee Harris Thomas. He was also preceded in death byhis sisters, Ruth McClaidan, Dreama Hartwell and Rosa Lee Edwards,and brother, Kenneth Thomas.

He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Margaret Edwards Thomas;daughters, Karen Thomas Hodges of Scott Depot, Donetta Thomas ofCharleston; sons, Robert Randall Thomas of Logan, Roger Allan Thomasof Huntington; 12 grandchildren, including his beloved buddy, JacobMason Thomas, and eight great-grandchildren.

Service will be 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Good Shepherd SouthernBaptist Church, Scott Depot, with Pastor Ken Stidham officiating.Burial will be in Cunningham Memorial Park, St. Albans.

Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Chapman FuneralHome, Hurricane. You may e-mail condolences to the family atchapmanfuneralhome@charter.net.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to KanawhaHospice Care, 1143 Dunbar Ave., Dunbar, WV 25064. The family wouldlike to extend a special thank you to Kanawha Hospice Care for alltheir help and support.

Larry Alan Tilley

CHARLTON HEIGHTS - Larry Alan Tilley, 56, of Chath McClairltonHeights died Dec. 28, 2002.

He was a master electrician for UMWA and a Vietnam veteran.

Surviving are his wife, Teresa Munro Tilley; his parents, DanielTilley, and mother, Martha Akers Tilley of Charlton Heights;daughters, Camellia Snover of Charlton Heights and Lee AnnPoniatowski of Falls View; sister, Susan Sult of Columbus, Ohio;grandchildren, Cassandra Tilley and Zachary Tilley of CharltonHeights; and Mollie Lemasters of Falls View.

Memorial service will be Friday, Jan. 3, 2003, at Kanawha ValleyGardens, Glasgow, W.Va., at 11 a.m. with the Rev. Albert Fanninofficiating.

Bessie G. Waggoner

Bessie Gay Tunning Waggoner, 92, of Massillon, Ohio, died Dec. 31,2002. Service will be 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Parsons-WaybrightFuneral Home, Ripley. Friends may call two hours prior to the serviceat the funeral home.

Iva P. Cochran Wilkinson

Iva P. Cochran Wilkinson, 96, of Charleston died Dec. 30, 2002, inWebster County Memorial Hospital after an extended illness.

Born illey, 56, of Chath in Webster Springs, she was the retiredowner/operator of Iva's Beauty Shop for 23 years and was a Postmasterat Curtin. Iva attended Charleston Mountain Mission and was a memberof the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

She was preceded in death by her husbands, Pete Thurmon Cochranand Robert "Hank" Wilkinson; children, Ardeth Cochran, Pete ThurmondCochran Jr., Hillard V. Cochran.

She is survived by son and daughter-in-law, Harold C. and KayCochran of Webster Springs; daughters and son-in-law, Eleanor andShirley P. Ramsey and Louise B. Wellborn, all of Charleston;stepdaughter, Joyce Kelly of South Charleston; daughter-in-law,Muriel Cochran of Charleston; brothers, Alva Brooks of Rupert, VanceSalisbury of Tennessee; sister, Virginia Badzek of Morgantown; 19grandchildren; 24 great-grandchildren; 10 great-great-grandchildren.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Cunningham-Parker-Johnson Funeral Home, Charleston, with Bishop Chester McCutcheonofficiating. Burial will be in Cogar Cemetery, Guardian.

Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Naomi L. Williams

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Naomi Lytton Williams Williams, 91, ofLouisville, Ky., formerly of Charleston, W.Va., died Dec. 28, 2002,in the Rose Ann Hughes Home after a short illness.

She was retired from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Herhusband, Henry, preceded her in death.

She is survived by one sister-in-law, Virginia Lytton ofCharleston; nephews, Norris Nolan Lytton of Charleston, KennethKermit Lytton of South Charleston, Gregory Kent Walker and JeffreyScott Walker of Louisville, David Cleon Groff of Scott Depot, DanielFloyd Groff and Richard Clayton Groff of Hurricane, Keith Owen Groffof Poca; nieces, Sandra Louise Kurtz of Chattanooga, Tenn., Rose AnnAffolter and Bonnie L. Penn, both of Charleston, Sharon Rebecca Whiteand Judith Naomi Romano of Hurricane.

Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Cooke Funeral Home,Nitro.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Cunningha in Cogar CmMemorial Park, St. Albans, with Minister Harold White officiating.

Garold O. "Jerry" Wilmoth

Mr. Garold O. "Jerry" Wilmoth, 78, of Charleston died Dec. 31,2002, in CAMC Memorial Hospital after a long illness due tocomplications of an automobile accident.

He was born Jan. 10, 1924, in Phillipi, W.Va., son of the lateAlbert and Orpha Wilmoth Sticklin.

He was a former automobile mechanic for 40 years who worked forGene Byrd Chevrolet, Tag Galyon Chevrolet, Team Chevrolet and retiredwith Bert Wolfe Ford.

He was a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II.

He was preceded in death by a grandson, Kenneth Lovejoy; sister,Kathleen Turley; brothers, Chester, Jackie, Ronald, and Donald; andcompanion, Lorna Stalnaker.

He is survived by his wife, Oreda L. Casdorph Wilmoth; fourdaughters, Yvonne Russell, Bonnie E. Lovejoy, Trena L. Kinison andDiana Bays, all of Charleston; one son, Craig A. Wilmoth ofBradenton, Fla.; nine grandchildren and six-greatgrandchildren.

Service will be 11 a.m. Friday, nningha in Jan. 3, at Bartlett-Burdette-Cox Funeral Home, Charleston with the Rev. Mike Longofficiating. Burial will follow in Floral Hills Garden of Memories,Pocatalico.

The family will receive friends from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at thefuneral home.

Bartlett-Burdette-Cox Funeral Home, Charleston, is in charge ofthe arrangements.

Florence M. Wilson

GRANTSVILLE - Florence May Riddle Wilson, 93, of Grantsville diedDec. 30, 2002, at her residence.

She was the daughter of the late Charlie and Maud Gay MerrittRichards. She was a member of the Pennsboro Church of Christ.

She is survived by four sons, Junior Riddle of Grafton, Ohio, HoyRiddle and Harold Riddle, both of Elyria, Ohio, and Eugene Riddle ofPennsboro, W.Va.; one daughter, Bernice Talhamer of Grantsville; sixgrandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her first husband, William A. Riddle;and her second husband, Russell K. Wilson; two brothers; and threesisters.

Funeral service will be 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3, at Sriday, nntumpFuneral Home, Grantsville with th eRev. Randy Wilson officiating.Interment will be in Chestnut Grove Cemetery.

Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

Lillian Opal Yoh

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Lillian Opal Yoh, 93, of Charlotte, N.C., diedDec. 30, 2002, in the Wesley Care Center.

Born Feb. 4, 1909, in Elliott County, Ky., Opal was the daughterof the late William Everett Robinson and Molly Pennington Robinson. Alongtime resident of Hurricane, W.Va., she owned and operated arestaurant and later owned the Mom & Pop's Hotel. She was anaccomplished cook and pastry chef, and had worked as a chef on alocal river barge line.

In 1981, Mrs. Yoh relocated to Charlotte, N.C., where she becamean active member at Bible Baptist Church and the Super Saints SeniorGroup. She was preceded in death by her three husbands, GeorgeFannin, Wallace Davis and Clarence Yoh.

Mrs. Yoh is survived by her daughter, Roberta Fannin Bostic ofHarrisburg, N.C.; grandchildren, Jim P. Bostic and wi 3, at Srfe,Kathryn, of Gallup, N.M., Natalie Bostic Bellamy and husband, Revel,of Weddington, N.C., Todd C. Bostic of Midland, N.C.; great-grandchildren, Brooke C. Bostic, Sarah E. Bostic, J. Tyler Bostic andDillion J. Bostic; sisters, Lora Rose and husband Russell of Ashland,Ky., Alice Holbrook and husband, the Rev. Frank Holbrook ofLouisville, Ky., Laura McCoy and husband, Harry, of Spring Hill,Fla.; brother, George L. Robinson of Ashland, Ky.; several nieces andnephews.

Graveside service will be 11 a.m. Thursday at Forest Lawn EastCemetery, Matthews, with the Rev. Dr. James Phillips officiating.

Memorials may be made to Fruitland Baptist Bible College, 1455Gilliam Rd., Hendersonville, N.C. 28792.

Carolina Funeral & Cremation Center is in charge of arrangements.eSuper