According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, one person was injured as a result of ingesting a contaminated Lean Cuisine dinner, although a Nestle spokesman emphasized that no injuries requiring medical attention have been reported out of a total of seven consumer complaints received. The USDA has ranked the recall as class I, the most serious of the three recall categories, indicating a potential for serious injury or death.

The Lean Cuisine products involved in the recall specifically include Cafe Classics Pesto Chicken with Bow Tie Pasta, Spa Cuisine Chicken Mediterranean, and Dinnertime Selects Chicken Tuscan. No other Lean Cuisine products are involved. USDA officials stated that the contaminated products were produced between Aug. 18 and Oct. 27 of this year and shipped nationwide.

Customers who wish to check to see if products they have purchased are affected by the recall were instructed to call Lean Cuisine at (800) 993-8625 and compare the UPC barcodes and production codes from the boxes against a list of the recalled products.

NYSE regulators ruled that ex-Morgan Stanley broker Winitch and colleague John Steigerwald made dozens of unsuitable trades in guardian accounts which had been established for children that had received settlements from medical malpractice lawsuits. Regulators stated that Winitch and Steigerwald apparently targeted the children's accounts because the firm's customers were less likely to notice the unauthorized trading; several of the malpractice victims reportedly have single, unemployed mothers with little or no investment experience.

The unauthorized transactions generated over $537,000 in commissions for Morgan Stanley from 2004 to 2005, of which Winitch and Steigerwald personally received nearly $200,000. NYSE regulators permanently barred Steigerwald last year.

In a statement, Morgan Stanley spokesmen said the firm had reimbursed all clients whose accounts were affected by the trading scam and that remedial measures had been put in place to prevent a recurrence. Last year Morgan Stanley paid $500,000 to settle NYSE claims that the firm failed to diligently supervise the affected accounts, without admitting or denying wrongdoing.

The building was closed Wednesday after a maintenance crew found a substance resembling asbestos in the building's basement during a regular cleanup. The building was closed at the time of the discovery due to the Veteran's Day holiday; combined with the closure while testing was being performed, the building was closed for just under 48 hours.

The Oneida County Office Building was officially opened in 1970, a time when asbestos-containing materials were often used in construction as a matter of course, particularly in insulation and fireproofing materials. Approximate $5.5 million has already been spent to remove asbestos from three of the building's ten floors; county officials estimate another $15.4 million worth of work will be required before work on the building is completed.

A spokesman for the United Public Service Employees Union, which represents Oneida County workers, stated that the union is having its own independent testing of the building performed. The results of the union's testing are expected next week.

Proposed Initiative Act No. 1, the Arkansas Adoption and Foster Care Act, was characterized by many of its opponents as a veiled attack on homosexual adoption, though the measure as passed will prevent any unmarried couple, heterosexual or homosexual, from adopting or fostering children. Supporters of the measure pointed to studies stating that cohabiting couples tend to provide less stable family environments and tend to divorce more frequently than couples who have not cohabited prior to marriage.

The measure was proposed in the wake of a 2006 decision by the Arkansas Supreme Court which struck down a policy barring homosexual citizens from acting as foster parents. Prior to the election, the Arkansas Family Council Action Committee gathered approximately 90,000 signatures to place the measure on the ballot.

Exit polling showed a large percentage of those voting to support the ban identified themselves as born-again Christians. Little Rock's Pulaski County voters offered strong opposition to the measure, voting to reject it by a margin of 15,000 votes, but many of the state's southwestern counties registered an overwhelming degree of support for the ban.

Previously, only the state of Utah had a similar law banning adoption by unmarried couples.

St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain reported that Thursday afternoon a girder snapped unexpectedly, sending 10 construction workers into the waters of Lake Pontchartrain along with concrete and other construction materials. Nine of the workers were swiftly rescued and reportedly incurred no injuries more serious than broken bones. However, Eric Blackmon, 44, was reportedly tethered to the girder by a lifeline when it fell, causing him to become trapped underneath.

Efforts to locate Blackmon were initially unsuccessful. Once located, a crane was used to remove the girder and retrieve his body from the lake Thursday evening. Blackmon and the other nine men involved in the accident were all employed by New Orleans-based Boh Bros. Construction Co.

The causes of the accident were not immediately known. Representatives of Boh Bros. are currently looking into the accident along with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; all work on the project has been halted until the investigations have been completed. The new bridge, scheduled for completion in 2011, is intended to replace the old Twin Span bridge, which sustained major structural damage due to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and is scheduled to be dismantled.

SRT1720, a chemical cousin of red wine extract resveratrol, was tested on mice over a 10-week period. In low doses, the mice were partially protected from weight gain when fed a high-fat diet; in higher doses, the drug completely blocked weight gain. Additionally, the mice involved in the tests also demonstrated heightened athletic ability along with improved blood sugar tolerance and insulin sensitivity -- crucial factors for preventing the onset of diabetes. No side effects were noted.

SRT1720, which functions by shifting the body to a fat-burning mode which is generally used only when energy is low, was developed after reservatrol tests on mice showed some fat-burning effects via the protein SIRT1, although humans would have to consume gallons of red wine to achieve similar results. SRT1720 was created to specifically target the SIRT1 protein; many other drug companies are also said to be developing similar SIRT1-activator weight loss drugs.

The scientists involved in the study noted that more study of SRT1720 is needed before the drug is tested for use on humans.

The case, Wyeth v. Levine, No. 06-1249, involves Vermont guitarist Diana Levine, who lost part of her right arm due to an improperly administered dosage of an anti-nausea drug called Phenergan, manufactured by Wyeth. A Vermont court awarded Levine nearly $7 million from Wyeth, saying the manufacturer should have placed stronger warnings on the drug's label.

Lawyers for Wyeth argue that the company fully complied with U.S. Food and Drug Administration labeling requirements. At issue in the case is whether pharmaceutical companies should be liable for injuries caused by drugs which carry warnings approved by the FDA. However, the case may have implications far beyond drug liability cases due to the court's assessment of the implied doctrine of pre-emption based on federal approval. Should the court broadly endorse implied pre-emption based on regulators' actions rather than on Congressionally-enacted laws, the decision could affect thousands of currently pending personal injury lawsuits, including those involving not only drugs but also motor vehicles, consumer products, and household chemicals.

A decision in the case is expected by the end of June.

The study's lead author, Cornell University economist Michael Waldman, was prompted to investigate a possible link between precipitation levels and incidence of autism by a 2003 U.S. Department of Education survey which showed Massachusetts, Minnesota, Indiana, Maine, and Oregon had the highest autism rates.

The new study gathered data from Washington, Oregon, and California and plotted autism rates from 1987 to 1999 against precipitation reports for the same period. The data analysis suggested that counties in each of the three states with higher precipitation levels also had higher rates of autism.

Waldman and other scientists involved with the study speculated that the correlation may possibly be due to environmental pollutants carried within the precipitation triggering autism in genetically susceptible children. Other potential explanations include the possibility that activities common during rainy periods such as watching television may contribute to the development of autism, or that factors such as increased exposure to household chemicals or decreased levels of vitamin D may trigger the condition.

According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates, approximately one in every 150 children has been diagnosed with autism or autism-related disorders.

The seven states involved include the six New England states -- Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont -- along with New York, working in conjunction with the nonprofit New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC).

In the 237-page petition filed Tuesday with the EPA, the states requested that the EPA take measures to reduce the amounts of mercury deposited in the Northeast from sources outside the region, in accordance with the results of studies which have demonstrated that the overwhelming majority of mercury deposited in the states' waters originates from out-of-region sources, such as coal-fired power plants.

High levels of mercury such as can be found in contaminated freshwater fish can cause a wide range of medical issues when consumed by humans, from impaired cognition and sleep disturbances to severe nervous system impairment including psychotic reactions, hallucinations, and suicidal tendencies.

The bridge's support structure reportedly gave out unexpectedly around 1:15 PM, causing debris to crash to the ground and possibly shifting support footings for other bridge sections. Although several construction workers, all employed by Graham Construction and Management of Spokane, Washington, fell as much as 30 feet during the incident, none of the injured 14 were seriously hurt, suffering primarily from lacerations and broken bones. The injured workers were taken to area hospitals Mercy Medical Center in Nampa, St. Luke's in Meridian, and St. Alphonsus in Boise.

The construction is part of a project to replace two bridges, the Black Cat Road and Robinson Boulevard overpasses, and widen sections of Interstate 84 from Meridian to Nampa. The bridge portion that collapsed was part of the new Robinson Boulevard Overpass.

A spokesperson for the Idaho Transportation Department stated that work at the site has been postponed indefinitely. ITD engineers and OSHA investigators are currently looking into the causes of the accident.

In a statement issued by Waltham Police, the deceased worker was identified as 40 year-old Peter Marchese of Nashua, New Hampshire. The name of the injured worker was not released, although his age was given as 30. The injured man was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center for treatment; his injuries were described as potentially fatal. Both men were employed by Lymo Construction of Merrimac, New Hampshire.

According to reports, at the time of the incident the two men were working in the basket of the hydraulic construction lift, engaged in the process of installing metal panels on a building located on AstraZeneca's campus. Due to unknown reasons, the lift destabilized and tipped over, plunging both men over 30 feet to the ground below.

Construction at the site was halted for the day in the wake of the fatal accident. An AstraZeneca spokesman expressed the company's condolences to the families of the workers and noted that the project's prior safety record was excellent.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigators are currently looking into the causes of the incident with the assistance of the police and the Middlesex County District Attorney's office.

In a written statement, DOJ regulators stated that following a six-month investigation during which they interviewed a wide range of airline industry figures, including representatives from each of the two companies as well as competing airlines along with travel agents, corporate customers, and others, they have determined that the proposed merger will not significantly reduce competition in the marketplace and is likely to create cost efficiencies beneficial to U.S. consumers.

Eagan, Minnesota-based Northwest Airlines Corp. and Atlanta, Georgia-based Delta Air Lines Inc. announced their intentions to merge operations in April of this year. The tentative deal was approved by shareholders in October. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Delta will acquire Northwest in exchange for stock shares valued at approximately $3.1 billion at current prices. The combined operation will retain the Delta name, be headquartered in Atlanta, and will boast a combined $35 billion in revenue, 75,000 employees, and an 800-plane fleet. Current Delta CEO Richard Anderson will head the new organization, presiding over a leadership team comprised of 4 senior officers from each company.

Under the law, children as old as 18 can be abandoned by parents at any state-licensed hospital without fear of prosecution. Since the law took effect July 18 of this year, a total of 24 children have been dropped off by parents seeking to take advantage of the law.

Republican state Sen. Arnie Stuthman, co-author of the bill, stated that the intention behind it was to protect newborn infants from abandonment, but that the scope of the bill was changed in order to gain enough support for passage. All 50 US States currently have some form of safe haven law, though no other state allows abandonment of any child older than 1 year old. Not one child abandoned under Nebraska's current law has been an infant; most have been between the ages of 11 and 15.

The special session is currently scheduled to commence on Nov. 14. According to Nebraska Legislative Speaker Mike Flood, 40 of the 49 state senators have already agreed to support an amendment limiting the scope of the law to apply only to infants up to three days old.

Israel, the former head of the collapsed Bayou Group LLC hedge fund, received a 20-year sentence in April of this year for his role in a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors out of approximately $450 million. Israel currently stands accused of jumping bail by attempting to fake his suicide on the day he was scheduled to report to prison.

After surrendering to authorities on July 2, Israel forfeited his $500,000 bail, and currently faces up to 10 years added onto his 20-year sentence. However, Judge Karas refused to take Israel's plea of guilty on Aug. 6, stating that he was unconvinced that Israel was fit to enter the plea due to concern over Israel's mental state as well as use of methadone to treat an addiction to pain medication.

According to a spokesman for Manhattan U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia, Israel will now undergo a thorough physical and mental evaluation during a 90-day stay at a medical prison located in Butner, North Carolina.

Judge Karras has scheduled Israel's next hearing for Feb. 27 of next year in White Plains, New York.

A spokesman for the Caddo Parish sheriff's department stated that the explosion occurred at the Dixie Interconnect, a gas transmission station located approximately 12 miles north of Shreveport in the 7000 block of Highway 3049, also called the Dixie-Shreveport Road. The incident occurred about 1:30 PM this afternoon, when many residents in the area heard a loud blast and quickly rushed to the area offering assistance. Caddo Parish Fire Districts 1 and 7 also responded to the explosion.

The injured man was airlifted to a local hospital by Life Air Rescue. Neither the man's name nor his condition has yet been released by authorities.

Highway 3049 was closed to traffic following the explosion. CenterPoint Energy is currently investigating the cause of the explosion.

According to the FDA, Bayer's products Bayer Aspirin with Heart Advantage and Bayer Women's Low Dose Aspirin + Calcium each contain dietary supplements which have not been proven. Bayer Aspirin with Heart Advantage contains the plant extract phytosterois, which is claimed as a cholesterol-lowering supplement, while Bayer Women's Low Dose Aspirin + Calcium includes calcium carbonate intended to help fight osteoporosis.

The text of the warning letters indicated to Bayer that all new treatments for heart disease and osteoporosis must be reviewed by FDA officials before marketing and that neither product has received the necessary approvals. The letters specified a timeframe of 15 days for Bayer to respond to the warnings.

FDA warning letters are not legally binding, but companies that do not comply with the warnings may face legal action.

While Bayer had not officially responded to the warnings as of Tuesday morning, a Bayer spokesman stated that the company stands behind both of the indicated products as well as all marketing claims made on their behalf.

A current investigation by the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee is looking into whether Bayer misled the public in its marketing of Bayer Aspirin with Heart Advantage.

The accident occurred at the Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo at the Westfield Sportsman's Club in Westfield, Massachusetts. Witnesses reported that the boy's father, Charles Bizilj, was supporting his son from behind at the time of the accident; a police spokesman stated that as the boy fired the Uzi, the front end of the gun went up with the weapon's backfire, causing a round fired from the gun to penetrate the boy's head. Christopher Bizilj was taken to Baystate Medical Center where he died later Sunday.

Police also stated the boy was with a certified instructor when the shooting occurred, and that it is legal in Massachusetts for children to fire a weapon under supervision of a properly certified and licensed instructor with permission from a parent or legal guardian.

The event was organized by C.O.P. Firearms & Training, a Massachusetts-based company that organizes machine gun shoots throughout New England. It is unclear whether charges will be filed over the incident. The event is currently under investigation by police and the Hampden district attorney's office.

The Sheriff's Department plane was able to make a hard landing at Grand Junction Regional Airport and reportedly suffered damage to its front end, either from the force of the landing or the midair crash. The Cessna 180 was able to make an emergency landing in a remote area approximately 10 miles south of the airport and came to rest on its top.

No possible causes of the crash have yet been reported. A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman stated that FAA and National Transportation Safety Board investigators will conduct interviews with all involved parties along with air traffic control personnel on duty at the time of the accident, and will consider whether bad weather, pilot error, air traffic control, or the flight plans of the planes played into the crash.

The study, known as the Tumor Sequencing Project and funded by the National Institutes of Health, analyzed DNA sequences obtained from 623 genes from tumor samples taken from 188 patients suffering from adenocarcinoma. Researchers identified 26 genes that were commonly altered in the tumor samples and mutated at high frequency, including 6 of the 10 which were previously known. Of the 10 already known genes, only half had previously been shown to mutate at high frequency.

Spokesmen for the Project stated that the study's finding may help medical professionals identify which patients might benefit most from which cancer treatment drugs, as well as aid in the development in new drug treatments. Some estimates of the potential market for non-small cell lung cancer drugs indicate that sales could top $4 billion between 2010 and 2015.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths, killing over 160,000 Americans each year and over a million worldwide. Adenocarcinoma accounts for 40 percent of annual lung cancer deaths, with an average five-year survival rate of 15 percent.

The fatal medical chopper accident was the eighth nationwide in the past 12-month period, prompting comment from the National Transportation Safety Board noting that the accident rate for such flights is far too high and that the incidence of such accidents has been increasing in recent years.

The NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration are currently investigating the cause of the crash. However, it was noted that the pilot radioed for help twice due to foggy weather before crashing about 1:15 a.m. Sunday, about three miles from Andrews Air Force Base, where the craft had been diverted due to inclement weather. Killed in the accident were pilot Stephen Bunker, 59; emergency medical technician Tanya Mallard, 39; flight paramedic Mickey Lippy, 34; and 18-year-old Ashley Younger, who was one of the auto accident victims picked up by the chopper.

In a 2006 report on EMS crashes between January 2002 and January 2005, NTSB researchers found that 54 fatalities resulted from 55 EMS crashes, 29 of which could have been prevented via implementation of standard safety recommendations. Since the publication of the 2006 study, 52 people have died in EMS crashes -- about 30 in the last 12 months alone.

The study, co-authored by Dr. Donald Redelmeier of the University of Toronto and Robert Tibshirani of Stanford University, examined statistics for U.S. traffic-related deaths ranging from the 1976 election of Jimmy Carter to the 2004 re-election of George W. Bush -- a total of eight election Tuesdays. The researchers' analysis showed that Americans were approximately 18 percent more likely to suffer a fatal traffic accident during polling hours on presidential election days than on other Tuesdays -- a greater increase than that of either New Year's Eve or Super Bowl Sunday, traditionally thought of as high-risk traffic days.

The scientists theorized that the increased incidence of traffic fatalities could be attributed to drivers who are distracted by consideration of the candidates or their vote, traveling unfamiliar routes, or rushing to reach polling places either before or after work.

Redelmeier suggested that in order to minimize chances of being involved in a fatal traffic accident this Election Day, drivers should adhere to all traffic laws and avoid distractions by not speeding, properly wearing a seat belt, and avoiding use of alcohol.

The report authored by Daniel Levinson, inspector general of the Department, additionally stated that approximately 17 percent of nursing homes had violations that placed patients at risk of harm or in jeopardy. By category, 94 percent of for-profit nursing homes surveyed were cited for violations of federal standards, while 88 percent of not-for- profit nursing homes and 91 percent of government nursing homes were cited. Approximately two-thirds of American nursing homes are operated for profit, while just over one quarter are run by nonprofit organizations and 6 percent are operated by U.S. government organizations.

Among the common violations cited were improper storage and distribution of food, poor nutrition, medication mix-ups and errors, accident hazards, infected bedsores, lack of services necessary for residents' well-being, and abuse and neglect of patients. Additionally, many cases were identified in which homes billed Medicare and Medicaid for services that were not actually provided, or were provided in such a manner as to effectively amount to no care at all.

In response, American Health Care Association president Bruce A. Yarwood acknowledged that many nursing homes need to do a better job caring for their patients and specifically identified the inspection system as being unreliable and ineffective.

Glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate supplements are often taken by people suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee, particularly in combined form: glucosamine chondroitin is currently the sixth-highest-selling dietary supplement in the United States, with sales in 2007 topping $831 million.

However, the study of 572 volunteers suffering from knee arthritis demonstrated that those given the supplements had about the same amount of cartilage loss as those taking a sugar pill placebo over a 24 month period. In the study, funded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and published in the October issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, volunteers were administered glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, a combination of both supplements, celecoxib (a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug marketed under the name Celebrex) or a placebo. None of the options demonstrated any significant advantage in cartilage retention.

Nearly 21 million Americans suffer from osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis; factors which play a role in the development include age, gender, genetics, obesity, and joint injuries.

The analysis showed that out of approximately 64,000 patients who were prescribed statins, only nine were diagnosed with ALS during the time period of the studies, compared with 10 of approximately 56,000 patients given placebos. Based on the findings of the analysis, FDA officials recommended no change in prescription or use of statin drugs.

The analysis was begun when FDA officials noted that the agency's Adverse Event Reporting System received a higher than expected number of reports of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, appearing in patients who received with cholesterol-lowering statin drugs. Statins are a class of medications which are frequently prescribed to lower cholesterol and reduce risks of heart disease, and are considered among the most effective in reducing elevated levels of LDL cholesterol. Among the most common statin drugs are Pfizer's Lipitor, AstraZeneca's Crestor, Merck & Company's Zocor, and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company's Pravachol. In terms of overall sales, statins were the top-selling class of drugs in 2007.

About two per 100,000 people are diagnosed each year with ALS, a generally fatal neurodegenerative disease that attacks motor neurons which control voluntary movement, leading to muscle weakness, atrophy, and degeneration of the brain and spinal cord.

The new study, which combines data from available studies on inhaled anticholinergic drugs used for the treatment of COPD, appears in this week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association and found a combined 58 percent higher risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack, or stroke in participants receiving inhaled anticholinergics for a period of 30 days or more. Broken down by category, the risk of heart attack was 53 percent higher, cardiovascular death was 80 percent higher, and stroke was 46 percent higher.

Inhaled anticholinergic drugs, such as Spiriva, co-marketed by Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer Inc., and Boehringer Ingelheim's Atrovent, are the most commonly prescribed once-daily treatment for COPD. Spiriva is the most widely prescribed COPD drug with more than $2 billion in sales last year to more than 8 million patients worldwide.

COPD is a progressive lung condition usually connected to smoking in which lung passages become increasingly constricted, causing breathing difficulties. COPD is currently the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S. and the sixth leading cause worldwide.

In a statement, Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer said that they disagree with the findings of the study.