diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/README.md b/reproduction/Summarization/README.md new file mode 100644 index 00000000..6431e736 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,57 @@ +# Summarization + +## Extractive Summarization + + +### Models + +FastNLP中实现的模型包括： + +1. Get To The Point: Summarization with Pointer-Generator Networks (See et al. 2017) +2. Extractive Summarization with SWAP-NET : Sentences and Words from Alternating Pointer Networks (Jadhav et al. 2018) +3. Searching for Effective Neural Extractive Summarization What Works and What's Next (Zhong et al. 2019) + + + + +### Dataset + +这里提供的摘要任务数据集包括： + +- CNN/DailyMail +- Newsroom +- The New York Times Annotated Corpus + - NYT + - NYT50 +- DUC + - 2002 Task4 + - 2003/2004 Task1 +- arXiv +- PubMed + + +其中公开数据集(CNN/DailyMail, Newsroom, arXiv, PubMed)预处理之后的下载地址： + +- [百度云盘](https://pan.baidu.com) +- [Google Drive](https://drive.google.com) + +未公开数据集(NYT, NYT50, DUC)数据处理部分脚本放置于data文件夹 + + + +### Dataset_loader + +- SummarizationLoader: 用于读取处理好的jsonl格式数据集，返回以下field + - text: 文章正文 + - summary: 摘要 + - domain: 可选，文章发布网站 + - tag: 可选，文章内容标签 + - labels: 抽取式句子标签 + + + +### Performance and Hyperparameters + + +## Abstractive Summarization +Still in Progress... \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/config/deeplstm.config b/reproduction/Summarization/config/deeplstm.config new file mode 100644 index 00000000..839ab0b8 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/config/deeplstm.config @@ -0,0 +1,12 @@ +{ + "n_layers": 16, + "layer_sum": false, + "layer_cat": false, + "lstm_hidden_size": 300, + "ffn_inner_hidden_size": 2048, + "n_head": 6, + "recurrent_dropout_prob": 0.1, + "atten_dropout_prob": 0.1, + "ffn_dropout_prob": 0.1, + "fix_mask": true +} \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/config/seqlab.config b/reproduction/Summarization/config/seqlab.config new file mode 100644 index 00000000..cb92a2ed --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/config/seqlab.config @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +{ + +} \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/config/transformer.config b/reproduction/Summarization/config/transformer.config new file mode 100644 index 00000000..5ab3ed4d --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/config/transformer.config @@ -0,0 +1,9 @@ +{ + "n_layers": 12, + "hidden_size": 512, + "ffn_inner_hidden_size": 2048, + "n_head": 8, + "recurrent_dropout_prob": 0.1, + "atten_dropout_prob": 0.1, + "ffn_dropout_prob": 0.1 +} \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/data/dataloader.py b/reproduction/Summarization/data/dataloader.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..55688c4d --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/data/dataloader.py @@ -0,0 +1,188 @@ +import pickle +import numpy as np + +from fastNLP.core.vocabulary import Vocabulary +from fastNLP.io.base_loader import DataInfo +from fastNLP.io.dataset_loader import JsonLoader +from fastNLP.core.const import Const + +from tools.logger import * + +WORD_PAD = "[PAD]" +WORD_UNK = "[UNK]" +DOMAIN_UNK = "X" +TAG_UNK = "X" + + +class SummarizationLoader(JsonLoader): + """ + 读取summarization数据集，读取的DataSet包含fields:: + + text: list(str)，document + summary: list(str), summary + text_wd: list(list(str))，tokenized document + summary_wd: list(list(str)), tokenized summary + labels: list(int), + flatten_label: list(int), 0 or 1, flatten labels + domain: str, optional + tag: list(str), optional + + 数据来源: CNN_DailyMail Newsroom DUC + """ + + def __init__(self): + super(SummarizationLoader, self).__init__() + + def _load(self, path): + ds = super(SummarizationLoader, self)._load(path) + + def _lower_text(text_list): + return [text.lower() for text in text_list] + + def _split_list(text_list): + return [text.split() for text in text_list] + + def _convert_label(label, sent_len): + np_label = np.zeros(sent_len, dtype=int) + if label != []: + np_label[np.array(label)] = 1 + return np_label.tolist() + + ds.apply(lambda x: _lower_text(x['text']), new_field_name='text') + ds.apply(lambda x: _lower_text(x['summary']), new_field_name='summary') + ds.apply(lambda x:_split_list(x['text']), new_field_name='text_wd') + ds.apply(lambda x:_split_list(x['summary']), new_field_name='summary_wd') + ds.apply(lambda x:_convert_label(x["label"], len(x["text"])), new_field_name="flatten_label") + + return ds + + def process(self, paths, vocab_size, vocab_path, sent_max_len, doc_max_timesteps, domain=False, tag=False, load_vocab=True): + """ + :param paths: dict path for each dataset + :param vocab_size: int max_size for vocab + :param vocab_path: str vocab path + :param sent_max_len: int max token number of the sentence + :param doc_max_timesteps: int max sentence number of the document + :param domain: bool build vocab for publication, use 'X' for unknown + :param tag: bool build vocab for tag, use 'X' for unknown + :param load_vocab: bool build vocab (False) or load vocab (True) + :return: DataInfo + datasets: dict keys correspond to the paths dict + vocabs: dict key: vocab(if "train" in paths), domain(if domain=True), tag(if tag=True) + embeddings: optional + """ + + def _pad_sent(text_wd): + pad_text_wd = [] + for sent_wd in text_wd: + if len(sent_wd) < sent_max_len: + pad_num = sent_max_len - len(sent_wd) + sent_wd.extend([WORD_PAD] * pad_num) + else: + sent_wd = sent_wd[:sent_max_len] + pad_text_wd.append(sent_wd) + return pad_text_wd + + def _token_mask(text_wd): + token_mask_list = [] + for sent_wd in text_wd: + token_num = len(sent_wd) + if token_num < sent_max_len: + mask = [1] * token_num + [0] * (sent_max_len - token_num) + else: + mask = [1] * sent_max_len + token_mask_list.append(mask) + return token_mask_list + + def _pad_label(label): + text_len = len(label) + if text_len < doc_max_timesteps: + pad_label = label + [0] * (doc_max_timesteps - text_len) + else: + pad_label = label[:doc_max_timesteps] + return pad_label + + def _pad_doc(text_wd): + text_len = len(text_wd) + if text_len < doc_max_timesteps: + padding = [WORD_PAD] * sent_max_len + pad_text = text_wd + [padding] * (doc_max_timesteps - text_len) + else: + pad_text = text_wd[:doc_max_timesteps] + return pad_text + + def _sent_mask(text_wd): + text_len = len(text_wd) + if text_len < doc_max_timesteps: + sent_mask = [1] * text_len + [0] * (doc_max_timesteps - text_len) + else: + sent_mask = [1] * doc_max_timesteps + return sent_mask + + + datasets = {} + train_ds = None + for key, value in paths.items(): + ds = self.load(value) + # pad sent + ds.apply(lambda x:_pad_sent(x["text_wd"]), new_field_name="pad_text_wd") + ds.apply(lambda x:_token_mask(x["text_wd"]), new_field_name="pad_token_mask") + # pad document + ds.apply(lambda x:_pad_doc(x["pad_text_wd"]), new_field_name="pad_text") + ds.apply(lambda x:_sent_mask(x["pad_text_wd"]), new_field_name="seq_len") + ds.apply(lambda x:_pad_label(x["flatten_label"]), new_field_name="pad_label") + + # rename field + ds.rename_field("pad_text", Const.INPUT) + ds.rename_field("seq_len", Const.INPUT_LEN) + ds.rename_field("pad_label", Const.TARGET) + + # set input and target + ds.set_input(Const.INPUT, Const.INPUT_LEN) + ds.set_target(Const.TARGET, Const.INPUT_LEN) + + datasets[key] = ds + if "train" in key: + train_ds = datasets[key] + + vocab_dict = {} + if load_vocab == False: + logger.info("[INFO] Build new vocab from training dataset!") + if train_ds == None: + raise ValueError("Lack train file to build vocabulary!") + + vocabs = Vocabulary(max_size=vocab_size, padding=WORD_PAD, unknown=WORD_UNK) + vocabs.from_dataset(train_ds, field_name=["text_wd","summary_wd"]) + vocab_dict["vocab"] = vocabs + else: + logger.info("[INFO] Load existing vocab from %s!" % vocab_path) + word_list = [] + with open(vocab_path, 'r', encoding='utf8') as vocab_f: + cnt = 0 + for line in vocab_f: + cnt += 1 + pieces = line.split("\t") + word_list.append(pieces[0]) + if cnt > vocab_size: + break + vocabs = Vocabulary(max_size=vocab_size, padding=WORD_PAD, unknown=WORD_UNK) + vocabs.add_word_lst(word_list) + vocabs.build_vocab() + vocab_dict["vocab"] = vocabs + + if domain == True: + domaindict = Vocabulary(padding=None, unknown=DOMAIN_UNK) + domaindict.from_dataset(train_ds, field_name="publication") + vocab_dict["domain"] = domaindict + if tag == True: + tagdict = Vocabulary(padding=None, unknown=TAG_UNK) + tagdict.from_dataset(train_ds, field_name="tag") + vocab_dict["tag"] = tagdict + + for ds in datasets.values(): + vocab_dict["vocab"].index_dataset(ds, field_name=Const.INPUT, new_field_name=Const.INPUT) + + return DataInfo(vocabs=vocab_dict, datasets=datasets) + + + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/model/Encoder.py b/reproduction/Summarization/model/Encoder.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..8a30fd29 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/model/Encoder.py @@ -0,0 +1,566 @@ +from __future__ import absolute_import +from __future__ import division +from __future__ import print_function + +import numpy as np + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +import torch.nn.functional as F +import torch.nn.init as init + +from fastNLP.core.vocabulary import Vocabulary +from fastNLP.io.embed_loader import EmbedLoader + +# from tools.logger import * +from tools.PositionEmbedding import get_sinusoid_encoding_table + +WORD_PAD = "[PAD]" + +class Encoder(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps, embed): + """ + + :param hps: + word_emb_dim: word embedding dimension + sent_max_len: max token number in the sentence + output_channel: output channel for cnn + min_kernel_size: min kernel size for cnn + max_kernel_size: max kernel size for cnn + word_embedding: bool, use word embedding or not + embedding_path: word embedding path + embed_train: bool, whether to train word embedding + cuda: bool, use cuda or not + :param vocab: FastNLP.Vocabulary + """ + super(Encoder, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # word embedding + self.embed = embed + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + print("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + print("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def forward(self, input): + # input: a batch of Example object [batch_size, N, seq_len] + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + input = input.view(-1, input.size(2)) # [batch_size*N, L] + input_sent_len = ((input!=0).sum(dim=1)).int() # [batch_size*N, 1] + enc_embed_input = self.embed(input) # [batch_size*N, L, D] + + input_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, sentlen + 1), np.zeros(self.sent_max_len - sentlen))) for sentlen in input_sent_len]) + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding + +class DomainEncoder(Encoder): + def __init__(self, hps, vocab, domaindict): + super(DomainEncoder, self).__init__(hps, vocab) + + # domain embedding + self.domain_embedding = nn.Embedding(domaindict.size(), hps.domain_emb_dim) + self.domain_embedding.weight.requires_grad = True + + def forward(self, input, domain): + """ + :param input: [batch_size, N, seq_len], N sentence number, seq_len token number + :param domain: [batch_size] + :return: sent_embedding: [batch_size, N, Co * kernel_sizes] + """ + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + sent_embedding = super().forward(input) + enc_domain_input = self.domain_embedding(domain) # [batch, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.unsqueeze(1).expand(batch_size, N, -1) # [batch, N, D] + sent_embedding = torch.cat((sent_embedding, enc_domain_input), dim=2) + return sent_embedding + +class MultiDomainEncoder(Encoder): + def __init__(self, hps, vocab, domaindict): + super(MultiDomainEncoder, self).__init__(hps, vocab) + + self.domain_size = domaindict.size() + + # domain embedding + self.domain_embedding = nn.Embedding(self.domain_size, hps.domain_emb_dim) + self.domain_embedding.weight.requires_grad = True + + def forward(self, input, domain): + """ + :param input: [batch_size, N, seq_len], N sentence number, seq_len token number + :param domain: [batch_size, domain_size] + :return: sent_embedding: [batch_size, N, Co * kernel_sizes] + """ + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + # logger.info(domain[:5, :]) + + sent_embedding = super().forward(input) + domain_padding = torch.arange(self.domain_size).unsqueeze(0).expand(batch_size, -1) + domain_padding = domain_padding.cuda().view(-1) if self._hps.cuda else domain_padding.view(-1) # [batch * domain_size] + + enc_domain_input = self.domain_embedding(domain_padding) # [batch * domain_size, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.view(batch_size, self.domain_size, -1) * domain.unsqueeze(-1).float() # [batch, domain_size, D] + + # logger.info(enc_domain_input[:5,:]) # [batch, domain_size, D] + + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.sum(1) / domain.sum(1).float().unsqueeze(-1) # [batch, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.unsqueeze(1).expand(batch_size, N, -1) # [batch, N, D] + sent_embedding = torch.cat((sent_embedding, enc_domain_input), dim=2) + return sent_embedding + + +class BertEncoder(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps): + super(BertEncoder, self).__init__() + + from pytorch_pretrained_bert.modeling import BertModel + + self._hps = hps + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + self._cuda = hps.cuda + + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # word embedding + self._bert = BertModel.from_pretrained("/remote-home/dqwang/BERT/pre-train/uncased_L-24_H-1024_A-16") + self._bert.eval() + for p in self._bert.parameters(): + p.requires_grad = False + + self.word_embedding_proj = nn.Linear(4096, embed_size) + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def pad_encoder_input(self, input_list): + """ + :param input_list: N [seq_len, hidden_state] + :return: enc_sent_input_pad: list, N [max_len, hidden_state] + """ + max_len = self.sent_max_len + enc_sent_input_pad = [] + _, hidden_size = input_list[0].size() + for i in range(len(input_list)): + article_words = input_list[i] # [seq_len, hidden_size] + seq_len = article_words.size(0) + if seq_len > max_len: + pad_words = article_words[:max_len, :] + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._cuda else torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size) + pad_words = torch.cat([article_words, pad_tensor], dim=0) + enc_sent_input_pad.append(pad_words) + return enc_sent_input_pad + + def forward(self, inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len): + """ + + :param inputs: a batch of Example object [batch_size, doc_len=512] + :param input_masks: 0 or 1, [batch, doc_len=512] + :param enc_sent_len: sentence original length [batch, N] + :return: + """ + + + # Use Bert to get word embedding + batch_size, N = enc_sent_len.size() + input_pad_list = [] + for i in range(batch_size): + tokens_id = inputs[i] + input_mask = input_masks[i] + sent_len = enc_sent_len[i] + input_ids = tokens_id.unsqueeze(0) + input_mask = input_mask.unsqueeze(0) + + out, _ = self._bert(input_ids, token_type_ids=None, attention_mask=input_mask) + out = torch.cat(out[-4:], dim=-1).squeeze(0) # [doc_len=512, hidden_state=4096] + + _, hidden_size = out.size() + + # restore the sentence + last_end = 1 + enc_sent_input = [] + for length in sent_len: + if length != 0 and last_end < 511: + enc_sent_input.append(out[last_end: min(511, last_end + length), :]) + last_end += length + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._hps.cuda else torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size) + enc_sent_input.append(pad_tensor) + + + # pad the sentence + enc_sent_input_pad = self.pad_encoder_input(enc_sent_input) # [N, seq_len, hidden_state=4096] + input_pad_list.append(torch.stack(enc_sent_input_pad)) + + input_pad = torch.stack(input_pad_list) + + input_pad = input_pad.view(batch_size*N, self.sent_max_len, -1) + enc_sent_len = enc_sent_len.view(-1) # [batch_size*N] + enc_embed_input = self.word_embedding_proj(input_pad) # [batch_size * N, L, D] + + sent_pos_list = [] + for sentlen in enc_sent_len: + sent_pos = list(range(1, min(self.sent_max_len, sentlen) + 1)) + for k in range(self.sent_max_len - sentlen): + sent_pos.append(0) + sent_pos_list.append(sent_pos) + input_pos = torch.Tensor(sent_pos_list).long() + + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding + +class BertTagEncoder(BertEncoder): + def __init__(self, hps, domaindict): + super(BertTagEncoder, self).__init__(hps) + + # domain embedding + self.domain_embedding = nn.Embedding(domaindict.size(), hps.domain_emb_dim) + self.domain_embedding.weight.requires_grad = True + + def forward(self, inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len, domain): + sent_embedding = super().forward(inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len) + + batch_size, N = enc_sent_len.size() + + enc_domain_input = self.domain_embedding(domain) # [batch, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.unsqueeze(1).expand(batch_size, N, -1) # [batch, N, D] + sent_embedding = torch.cat((sent_embedding, enc_domain_input), dim=2) + + return sent_embedding + +class ELMoEndoer(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps): + super(ELMoEndoer, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + from allennlp.modules.elmo import Elmo + + elmo_dim = 1024 + options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_options.json" + weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_weights.hdf5" + + # elmo_dim = 512 + # options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_options.json" + # weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_weights.hdf5" + + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # elmo embedding + self.elmo = Elmo(options_file, weight_file, 1, dropout=0) + self.embed_proj = nn.Linear(elmo_dim, embed_size) + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def forward(self, input): + # input: a batch of Example object [batch_size, N, seq_len, character_len] + + batch_size, N, seq_len, _ = input.size() + input = input.view(batch_size * N, seq_len, -1) # [batch_size*N, seq_len, character_len] + input_sent_len = ((input.sum(-1)!=0).sum(dim=1)).int() # [batch_size*N, 1] + # logger.debug(input_sent_len.view(batch_size, -1)) + enc_embed_input = self.elmo(input)['elmo_representations'][0] # [batch_size*N, L, D] + enc_embed_input = self.embed_proj(enc_embed_input) + + # input_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, sentlen + 1), np.zeros(self.sent_max_len - sentlen))) for sentlen in input_sent_len]) + + sent_pos_list = [] + for sentlen in input_sent_len: + sent_pos = list(range(1, min(self.sent_max_len, sentlen) + 1)) + for k in range(self.sent_max_len - sentlen): + sent_pos.append(0) + sent_pos_list.append(sent_pos) + input_pos = torch.Tensor(sent_pos_list).long() + + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding + +class ELMoEndoer2(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps): + super(ELMoEndoer2, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self._cuda = hps.cuda + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + from allennlp.modules.elmo import Elmo + + elmo_dim = 1024 + options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_options.json" + weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_weights.hdf5" + + # elmo_dim = 512 + # options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_options.json" + # weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_weights.hdf5" + + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # elmo embedding + self.elmo = Elmo(options_file, weight_file, 1, dropout=0) + self.embed_proj = nn.Linear(elmo_dim, embed_size) + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def pad_encoder_input(self, input_list): + """ + :param input_list: N [seq_len, hidden_state] + :return: enc_sent_input_pad: list, N [max_len, hidden_state] + """ + max_len = self.sent_max_len + enc_sent_input_pad = [] + _, hidden_size = input_list[0].size() + for i in range(len(input_list)): + article_words = input_list[i] # [seq_len, hidden_size] + seq_len = article_words.size(0) + if seq_len > max_len: + pad_words = article_words[:max_len, :] + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._cuda else torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size) + pad_words = torch.cat([article_words, pad_tensor], dim=0) + enc_sent_input_pad.append(pad_words) + return enc_sent_input_pad + + def forward(self, inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len): + """ + + :param inputs: a batch of Example object [batch_size, doc_len=512, character_len=50] + :param input_masks: 0 or 1, [batch, doc_len=512] + :param enc_sent_len: sentence original length [batch, N] + :return: + sent_embedding: [batch, N, D] + """ + + # Use Bert to get word embedding + batch_size, N = enc_sent_len.size() + input_pad_list = [] + + elmo_output = self.elmo(inputs)['elmo_representations'][0] # [batch_size, 512, D] + elmo_output = elmo_output * input_masks.unsqueeze(-1).float() + # print("END elmo") + + for i in range(batch_size): + sent_len = enc_sent_len[i] # [1, N] + out = elmo_output[i] + + _, hidden_size = out.size() + + # restore the sentence + last_end = 0 + enc_sent_input = [] + for length in sent_len: + if length != 0 and last_end < 512: + enc_sent_input.append(out[last_end : min(512, last_end + length), :]) + last_end += length + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._hps.cuda else torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size) + enc_sent_input.append(pad_tensor) + + # pad the sentence + enc_sent_input_pad = self.pad_encoder_input(enc_sent_input) # [N, seq_len, hidden_state=4096] + input_pad_list.append(torch.stack(enc_sent_input_pad)) # batch * [N, max_len, hidden_state] + + input_pad = torch.stack(input_pad_list) + + input_pad = input_pad.view(batch_size * N, self.sent_max_len, -1) + enc_sent_len = enc_sent_len.view(-1) # [batch_size*N] + enc_embed_input = self.embed_proj(input_pad) # [batch_size * N, L, D] + + # input_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, sentlen + 1), np.zeros(self.sent_max_len - sentlen))) for sentlen in input_sent_len]) + + sent_pos_list = [] + for sentlen in enc_sent_len: + sent_pos = list(range(1, min(self.sent_max_len, sentlen) + 1)) + for k in range(self.sent_max_len - sentlen): + sent_pos.append(0) + sent_pos_list.append(sent_pos) + input_pos = torch.Tensor(sent_pos_list).long() + + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/model/Loss.py b/reproduction/Summarization/model/Loss.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..24f10748 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/model/Loss.py @@ -0,0 +1,55 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +import torch +import torch.nn.functional as F + +from fastNLP.core.losses import LossBase +from tools.logger import * + +class MyCrossEntropyLoss(LossBase): + def __init__(self, pred=None, target=None, mask=None, padding_idx=-100, reduce='mean'): + super().__init__() + self._init_param_map(pred=pred, target=target, mask=mask) + self.padding_idx = padding_idx + self.reduce = reduce + + def get_loss(self, pred, target, mask): + """ + + :param pred: [batch, N, 2] + :param target: [batch, N] + :param input_mask: [batch, N] + :return: + """ + # logger.debug(pred[0:5, :, :]) + # logger.debug(target[0:5, :]) + + batch, N, _ = pred.size() + pred = pred.view(-1, 2) + target = target.view(-1) + loss = F.cross_entropy(input=pred, target=target, + ignore_index=self.padding_idx, reduction=self.reduce) + loss = loss.view(batch, -1) + loss = loss.masked_fill(mask.eq(0), 0) + loss = loss.sum(1).mean() + logger.debug("loss %f", loss) + return loss + + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/model/Metric.py b/reproduction/Summarization/model/Metric.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..54b333f8 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/model/Metric.py @@ -0,0 +1,171 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== +from __future__ import division + + +import torch +from rouge import Rouge + +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.core.metrics import MetricBase + +from tools.logger import * +from tools.utils import pyrouge_score_all, pyrouge_score_all_multi + +class LabelFMetric(MetricBase): + def __init__(self, pred=None, target=None): + super().__init__() + + self._init_param_map(pred=pred, target=target) + + self.match = 0.0 + self.pred = 0.0 + self.true = 0.0 + self.match_true = 0.0 + self.total = 0.0 + + + def evaluate(self, pred, target): + """ + + :param pred: [batch, N] int + :param target: [batch, N] int + :return: + """ + target = target.data + pred = pred.data + logger.debug(pred.size()) + logger.debug(pred[:5,:]) + batch, N = pred.size() + self.pred += pred.sum() + self.true += target.sum() + self.match += (pred == target).sum() + self.match_true += ((pred == target) & (pred == 1)).sum() + self.total += batch * N + + def get_metric(self, reset=True): + self.match,self.pred, self.true, self.match_true, self.total = self.match.float(),self.pred.float(), self.true.float(), self.match_true.float(), self.total + logger.debug((self.match,self.pred, self.true, self.match_true, self.total)) + try: + accu = self.match / self.total + precision = self.match_true / self.pred + recall = self.match_true / self.true + F = 2 * precision * recall / (precision + recall) + except ZeroDivisionError: + F = 0.0 + logger.error("[Error] float division by zero") + if reset: + self.pred, self.true, self.match_true, self.match, self.total = 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 + ret = {"accu": accu.cpu(), "p":precision.cpu(), "r":recall.cpu(), "f": F.cpu()} + logger.info(ret) + return ret + + +class RougeMetric(MetricBase): + def __init__(self, hps, pred=None, text=None, refer=None): + super().__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self._init_param_map(pred=pred, text=text, summary=refer) + + self.hyps = [] + self.refers = [] + + def evaluate(self, pred, text, summary): + """ + + :param prediction: [batch, N] + :param text: [batch, N] + :param summary: [batch, N] + :return: + """ + + batch_size, N = pred.size() + for j in range(batch_size): + original_article_sents = text[j] + sent_max_number = len(original_article_sents) + refer = "\n".join(summary[j]) + hyps = "\n".join(original_article_sents[id] for id in range(len(pred[j])) if + pred[j][id] == 1 and id < sent_max_number) + if sent_max_number < self._hps.m and len(hyps) <= 1: + print("sent_max_number is too short %d, Skip!", sent_max_number) + continue + + if len(hyps) >= 1 and hyps != '.': + self.hyps.append(hyps) + self.refers.append(refer) + elif refer == "." or refer == "": + logger.error("Refer is None!") + logger.debug(refer) + elif hyps == "." or hyps == "": + logger.error("hyps is None!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug("pred:") + logger.debug(pred[j]) + logger.debug(hyps) + else: + logger.error("Do not select any sentences!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug(original_article_sents) + logger.debug(refer) + continue + + def get_metric(self, reset=True): + pass + +class FastRougeMetric(RougeMetric): + def __init__(self, hps, pred=None, text=None, refer=None): + super().__init__(hps, pred, text, refer) + + def get_metric(self, reset=True): + logger.info("[INFO] Hyps and Refer number is %d, %d", len(self.hyps), len(self.refers)) + if len(self.hyps) == 0 or len(self.refers) == 0 : + logger.error("During testing, no hyps or refers is selected!") + return + rouge = Rouge() + scores_all = rouge.get_scores(self.hyps, self.refers, avg=True) + if reset: + self.hyps = [] + self.refers = [] + logger.info(scores_all) + return scores_all + + +class PyRougeMetric(RougeMetric): + def __init__(self, hps, pred=None, text=None, refer=None): + super().__init__(hps, pred, text, refer) + + def get_metric(self, reset=True): + logger.info("[INFO] Hyps and Refer number is %d, %d", len(self.hyps), len(self.refers)) + if len(self.hyps) == 0 or len(self.refers) == 0: + logger.error("During testing, no hyps or refers is selected!") + return + if isinstance(self.refers[0], list): + logger.info("Multi Reference summaries!") + scores_all = pyrouge_score_all_multi(self.hyps, self.refers) + else: + scores_all = pyrouge_score_all(self.hyps, self.refers) + if reset: + self.hyps = [] + self.refers = [] + logger.info(scores_all) + return scores_all + + + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/model/TForiginal.py b/reproduction/Summarization/model/TForiginal.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..9bcec292 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/model/TForiginal.py @@ -0,0 +1,144 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +from __future__ import absolute_import +from __future__ import division +from __future__ import print_function + +import numpy as np + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn + +from .Encoder import Encoder +# from tools.Encoder import Encoder +from tools.PositionEmbedding import get_sinusoid_encoding_table +from tools.logger import * + +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.modules.encoder.transformer import TransformerEncoder + +from transformer.Layers import EncoderLayer + + +class TransformerModel(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps, embed): + """ + + :param hps: + min_kernel_size: min kernel size for cnn encoder + max_kernel_size: max kernel size for cnn encoder + output_channel: output_channel number for cnn encoder + hidden_size: hidden size for transformer + n_layers: transfromer encoder layer + n_head: multi head attention for transformer + ffn_inner_hidden_size: FFN hiddens size + atten_dropout_prob: dropout size + doc_max_timesteps: max sentence number of the document + :param vocab: + """ + super(TransformerModel, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + + self.encoder = Encoder(hps, embed) + + self.sent_embedding_size = (hps.max_kernel_size - hps.min_kernel_size + 1) * hps.output_channel + self.hidden_size = hps.hidden_size + + self.n_head = hps.n_head + self.d_v = self.d_k = int(self.hidden_size / self.n_head) + self.d_inner = hps.ffn_inner_hidden_size + self.num_layers = hps.n_layers + + self.projection = nn.Linear(self.sent_embedding_size, self.hidden_size) + self.sent_pos_embed = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained( + get_sinusoid_encoding_table(hps.doc_max_timesteps + 1, self.hidden_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + self.layer_stack = nn.ModuleList([ + EncoderLayer(self.hidden_size, self.d_inner, self.n_head, self.d_k, self.d_v, + dropout=hps.atten_dropout_prob) + for _ in range(self.num_layers)]) + + self.wh = nn.Linear(self.hidden_size, 2) + + def forward(self, words, seq_len): + """ + + :param input: [batch_size, N, seq_len] + :param input_len: [batch_size, N] + :param return_atten: bool + :return: + """ + # Sentence Encoder + + input = words + input_len = seq_len + + self.sent_embedding = self.encoder(input) # [batch, N, Co * kernel_sizes] + + input_len = input_len.float() # [batch, N] + + # -- Prepare masks + batch_size, N = input_len.size() + self.slf_attn_mask = input_len.eq(0.0) # [batch, N] + self.slf_attn_mask = self.slf_attn_mask.unsqueeze(1).expand(-1, N, -1) # [batch, N, N] + self.non_pad_mask = input_len.unsqueeze(-1) # [batch, N, 1] + + input_doc_len = input_len.sum(dim=1).int() # [batch] + sent_pos = torch.Tensor( + [np.hstack((np.arange(1, doclen + 1), np.zeros(N - doclen))) for doclen in input_doc_len]) + sent_pos = sent_pos.long().cuda() if self._hps.cuda else sent_pos.long() + + enc_output_state = self.projection(self.sent_embedding) + enc_input = enc_output_state + self.sent_pos_embed(sent_pos) + + # self.enc_slf_attn = self.enc_slf_attn * self.non_pad_mask + enc_input_list = [] + for enc_layer in self.layer_stack: + # enc_output = [batch_size, N, hidden_size = n_head * d_v] + # enc_slf_attn = [n_head * batch_size, N, N] + enc_input, enc_slf_atten = enc_layer(enc_input, non_pad_mask=self.non_pad_mask, + slf_attn_mask=self.slf_attn_mask) + enc_input_list += [enc_input] + + self.dec_output_state = torch.cat(enc_input_list[-4:]) # [4, batch_size, N, hidden_state] + self.dec_output_state = self.dec_output_state.view(4, batch_size, N, -1) + self.dec_output_state = self.dec_output_state.sum(0) + + p_sent = self.wh(self.dec_output_state) # [batch, N, 2] + + idx = None + if self._hps == 0: + prediction = p_sent.view(-1, 2).max(1)[1] + prediction = prediction.view(batch_size, -1) + else: + mask_output = torch.exp(p_sent[:, :, 1]) # # [batch, N] + mask_output = mask_output * input_len.float() + topk, idx = torch.topk(mask_output, self._hps.m) + prediction = torch.zeros(batch_size, N).scatter_(1, idx.data.cpu(), 1) + prediction = prediction.long().view(batch_size, -1) + + if self._hps.cuda: + prediction = prediction.cuda() + + # logger.debug(((p_sent.size(), prediction.size(), idx.size()))) + + return {"p_sent": p_sent, "prediction": prediction, "pred_idx": idx} + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/model/TransformerModel.py b/reproduction/Summarization/model/TransformerModel.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..0a30f36d --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/model/TransformerModel.py @@ -0,0 +1,138 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +from __future__ import absolute_import +from __future__ import division +from __future__ import print_function + +import numpy as np + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn + +from .Encoder import Encoder +from tools.PositionEmbedding import get_sinusoid_encoding_table + +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.modules.encoder.transformer import TransformerEncoder + +class TransformerModel(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps, vocab): + """ + + :param hps: + min_kernel_size: min kernel size for cnn encoder + max_kernel_size: max kernel size for cnn encoder + output_channel: output_channel number for cnn encoder + hidden_size: hidden size for transformer + n_layers: transfromer encoder layer + n_head: multi head attention for transformer + ffn_inner_hidden_size: FFN hiddens size + atten_dropout_prob: dropout size + doc_max_timesteps: max sentence number of the document + :param vocab: + """ + super(TransformerModel, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self._vocab = vocab + + self.encoder = Encoder(hps, vocab) + + self.sent_embedding_size = (hps.max_kernel_size - hps.min_kernel_size + 1) * hps.output_channel + self.hidden_size = hps.hidden_size + + self.n_head = hps.n_head + self.d_v = self.d_k = int(self.hidden_size / self.n_head) + self.d_inner = hps.ffn_inner_hidden_size + self.num_layers = hps.n_layers + + self.projection = nn.Linear(self.sent_embedding_size, self.hidden_size) + self.sent_pos_embed = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained( + get_sinusoid_encoding_table(hps.doc_max_timesteps + 1, self.hidden_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + self.layer_stack = nn.ModuleList([ + TransformerEncoder.SubLayer(model_size=self.hidden_size, inner_size=self.d_inner, key_size=self.d_k, value_size=self.d_v,num_head=self.n_head, dropout=hps.atten_dropout_prob) + for _ in range(self.num_layers)]) + + self.wh = nn.Linear(self.hidden_size, 2) + + + def forward(self, words, seq_len): + """ + + :param input: [batch_size, N, seq_len] + :param input_len: [batch_size, N] + :param return_atten: bool + :return: + """ + # Sentence Encoder + + input = words + input_len = seq_len + + self.sent_embedding = self.encoder(input) # [batch, N, Co * kernel_sizes] + + input_len = input_len.float() # [batch, N] + + # -- Prepare masks + batch_size, N = input_len.size() + self.slf_attn_mask = input_len.eq(0.0) # [batch, N] + self.slf_attn_mask = self.slf_attn_mask.unsqueeze(1).expand(-1, N, -1) # [batch, N, N] + self.non_pad_mask = input_len.unsqueeze(-1) # [batch, N, 1] + + input_doc_len = input_len.sum(dim=1).int() # [batch] + sent_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, doclen + 1), np.zeros(N - doclen))) for doclen in input_doc_len]) + sent_pos = sent_pos.long().cuda() if self._hps.cuda else sent_pos.long() + + enc_output_state = self.projection(self.sent_embedding) + enc_input = enc_output_state + self.sent_pos_embed(sent_pos) + + # self.enc_slf_attn = self.enc_slf_attn * self.non_pad_mask + enc_input_list = [] + for enc_layer in self.layer_stack: + # enc_output = [batch_size, N, hidden_size = n_head * d_v] + # enc_slf_attn = [n_head * batch_size, N, N] + enc_input = enc_layer(enc_input, seq_mask=self.non_pad_mask, atte_mask_out=self.slf_attn_mask) + enc_input_list += [enc_input] + + self.dec_output_state = torch.cat(enc_input_list[-4:]) # [4, batch_size, N, hidden_state] + self.dec_output_state = self.dec_output_state.view(4, batch_size, N, -1) + self.dec_output_state = self.dec_output_state.sum(0) + + p_sent = self.wh(self.dec_output_state) # [batch, N, 2] + + idx = None + if self._hps.m == 0: + prediction = p_sent.view(-1, 2).max(1)[1] + prediction = prediction.view(batch_size, -1) + else: + mask_output = torch.exp(p_sent[:, :, 1]) # # [batch, N] + mask_output = mask_output * input_len.float() + topk, idx = torch.topk(mask_output, self._hps.m) + prediction = torch.zeros(batch_size, N).scatter_(1, idx.data.cpu(), 1) + prediction = prediction.long().view(batch_size, -1) + + if self._hps.cuda: + prediction = prediction.cuda() + + # print((p_sent.size(), prediction.size(), idx.size())) + # [batch, N, 2], [batch, N], [batch, hps.m] + return {"pred": p_sent, "prediction": prediction, "pred_idx": idx} + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/model/__init__.py b/reproduction/Summarization/model/__init__.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..e69de29b diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/test/__init__.py b/reproduction/Summarization/test/__init__.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..e69de29b diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/test/test_dataLoader.py b/reproduction/Summarization/test/test_dataLoader.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..987f8778 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/test/test_dataLoader.py @@ -0,0 +1,24 @@ + + +import unittest +from ..data.dataloader import SummarizationLoader + + +class TestSummarizationLoader(unittest.TestCase): + def test_case1(self): + sum_loader = SummarizationLoader() + paths = {"train":"testdata/train.jsonl", "valid":"testdata/val.jsonl", "test":"testdata/test.jsonl"} + data = sum_loader.process(paths=paths) + print(data.datasets) + + def test_case2(self): + sum_loader = SummarizationLoader() + paths = {"train": "testdata/train.jsonl", "valid": "testdata/val.jsonl", "test": "testdata/test.jsonl"} + data = sum_loader.process(paths=paths, domain=True) + print(data.datasets, data.vocabs) + + def test_case3(self): + sum_loader = SummarizationLoader() + paths = {"train": "testdata/train.jsonl", "valid": "testdata/val.jsonl", "test": "testdata/test.jsonl"} + data = sum_loader.process(paths=paths, tag=True) + print(data.datasets, data.vocabs) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/test.jsonl b/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/test.jsonl new file mode 100644 index 00000000..42ad6a6f --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/test.jsonl @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +{"id": "1815744", "text": ["Even before the Metropolitan Opera 's Saturday matinee of Mozart 's `` Magic Flute '' began , this family-friendly version of Julie Taymor 's 2004 production looked to be a huge success .", "Children were everywhere , a rare sight at the venerable institution .", "They were having pictures taken in front of the house , dashing up and down the stairs of the Grand Promenade and , before long , sitting up in their seats all over the auditorium .", "Peter Gelb , the Met 's new general manager , whose multifaceted outreach efforts have already become a model for opera companies everywhere , has rightly stated that the major impediment to making this art form accessible to children is that most operas are simply too long .", "So besides translating the text from German into English , the solution here was to cut the production , which normally lasts 3 hours 10 minutes , down to 100 minutes without an intermission .", "Actually the matinee clocked in at close to two hours , but few of the children seemed to mind .", "The audience was remarkably attentive and well behaved .", "Of course one strict Met protocol -- if you leave the auditorium , you are not allowed re-entry until intermission -- was wisely ditched for the day , so children could take restroom breaks .", "Shortening the score involved what must have been painstaking decisions .", "The overture and several entire arias and ensembles were cut .", "Other arias were abridged through some very deft trims .", "Otherwise the Met went all out .", "The cast was excellent , and James Levine conducted .", "The very free English translation by the poet J . D . McClatchy was clever and singable .", "Papageno , still without a girlfriend and miserable , asks forlornly : `` Is my face just one big puddle .", "Are n't I cute enough to cuddle .", "`` The Papageno , Nathan Gunn , was certainly cute enough .", "This dynamic baritone exuded charm and cavorted about the stage like an acrobat .", "At one point he tried to flee danger by scurrying up the side of a huge plastic tube he was trapped in , only to slide back down , landing with the floppy-limbed aplomb of a Charlie Chaplin .", "He seemed the darling of every child in attendance -LRB- and the audience included Mr. Gunn 's five -RRB- .", "The stupendous bass Ren\u00e9 Pape was Sarastro .", "A lovely , clear-voiced lyric soprano , Ying Huang , in her debut role at the Met , was an alluring Pamina .", "Matthew Polenzani brought his sweet tenor voice and wholesome appeal to Prince Tamino .", "The agile coloratura soprano Erika Miklosa was a vocally fearless and aptly chilling Queen of the Night .", "As the wicked Monostatos , the trim tenor Greg Fedderly was unrecognizable with his flabby , fake pot belly , which induced giggles every time he exposed it .", "I am on record as being no fan of Ms. Taymor 's production , which to me is a mishmash of imagery , so cluttered with puppets , flying objects and fire-breathing statues that it overwhelms Mozart 's music .", "But this show was not presented with me in mind .", "So let me offer the reactions of three young attendees .", "Amitav Mitra , my neighbor , who is 8 , came as my guest .", "And Kira and Jonah Newmark , 9 and 7 , the children of friends , were also glad to share their critiques afterwards .", "For Amitav , this was his first opera .", "Though Jonah had seen opera videos at home with his sister , he too was trying the real thing for the first time .", "Kira , a burgeoning opera buff , has attended , as she put it , `` real three-hour operas , '' most recently `` The Barber of Seville '' at the New York City Opera .", "Not surprisingly Ms. Taymor 's fanciful sets , costumes and puppets won raves from this trio of critics .", "But their most revealing comments were about the singing and the story .", "The singing `` was loud , '' Amitav said .", "Jonah added , `` It was too loud . ''", "Kira more or less agreed .", "I pressed them about this .", "Today , when children hear amplified music everywhere , often channeled right into their ears through headphones , how could unamplified singing seem too loud .", "Amitav clarified their reactions when he said that the singing was `` too loud for human voices , '' adding , `` I never thought voices could do that . ''", "So their reaction was not a complaint about excessive volume , but rather an attempt to explain the awesome impression made by Ms. Miklosa 's dazzlingly high vocal flights as the Queen of the Night , or Mr. Pape 's unearthly powerful bass voice , or the amassed chorus in the temple scenes .", "It takes a while for young opera neophytes to adjust to such mind-boggling voices , to realize that this strange , unamplified `` loudness '' is actually amazing .", "The other common reaction concerned the story , which all three children enjoyed .", "Kira , though , was struck by the gravity of Prince Tamino 's dilemma .", "`` Tamino was a little too serious for me , '' she said , adding : `` He never does anything that 's funny .", "He takes things seriously . ``", "I think Mr. Levine , who conducted a glowing and elegant performance , would be pleased by Kira 's reaction .", "Mr. Levine made certain that some of the opera 's most somber episodes were included , like the long scene in which the confused Tamino is confronted by the austere Speaker -LRB- David Pittsinger -RRB- , a stalwart member of Sarastro 's brotherhood , at the entrance to the temple .", "Like most fairy tales `` The Magic Flute '' is a mysterious story of good and evil .", "Naturally , Ms. Taymor 's production makes the opera 's monsters quite charming , like the puppet bears who are enchanted by Tamino 's magic flute .", "And the boys singing the kindly Three Spirits -LRB- Bennett Kosma , Jesse Burnside Murray and Jacob A . Wade -RRB- are turned spectral and eerie , with their bodies painted white and Methuselah beards .", "This `` Magic Flute '' was the first Met opera that was transmitted live in high-definition video to some 100 movie theaters around the world .", "Ultimately the point of this technological outreach is to entice newcomers into attending opera performances .", "The children I spoke with are likely to be back .", "Summarizing his reactions to `` The Magic Flute , '' Jonah said , `` I do n't think it 's going to be the best opera I 'm going to go to in my life . ``", "What he meant , explaining further , was , `` I 'm , like , going to go to others that will be even better . ``", "MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Julie Taymor family friendly production of Mozart 's The Magic Flute at Metropolitan Opera features libretto translated into English and has been cut from nearly four hours to less than two .", "Is filled with puppets and elaborate costumes that appeal to children .", "Production is part of Met general manager Peter Gelb 's initiative to expand opera audience .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3, 6, 33], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1815747", "text": ["When it comes to spectacle , Hollywood enjoys nothing better than a nasty legal battle between two determined and egotistical adversaries : Bette Davis meets Joan Crawford , in a courtroom .", "In the past such face-offs have featured prominent figures like the former Disney chairman Michael D . Eisner , the DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg , the superagent Michael S . Ovitz , the humorist Art Buchwald and the actress-writer Joan Collins .", "Many of them cringed to hear their private comments and inner thoughts offered up for public consumption .", "And so may it go if the headline-making book publisher Judith Regan proceeds with a lawsuit her lawyers have threatened against the News Corporation , which owns HarperCollins , the publishing house that fired her in December after the O . J . Simpson book and television project imploded .", "In an interview last week Ms. Regan 's lawyer , Bert Fields , said he was preparing to file a lawsuit for libel and wrongful termination against the News Corporation shortly after the New Year because of allegations that she had been fired after making anti-Semitic remarks during a heated phone conversation with a company lawyer .", "`` My present thought is that we would sue not just for breach of contract but for libel , '' he said .", "`` They issued false and defamatory statements about Judith .", "This has been terribly destructive to her career , and I think the damages could be huge . ``", "A News Corporation spokesman declined to comment officially because the matter involved an imminent lawsuit , but he provided what he said was the company view : the News Corporation was confident about its case and not worried that a third party , a temporary worker who was briefly Ms. Regan 's assistant , had emerged to support Ms. Regan 's account of the conversation that led to the dismissal .", "`` We 're very confident that what we said is not false , `` said the company executive , who added that the News Corporation chairman , Rupert Murdoch , was taking an active interest in the matter .", "`` But this seems to be heading more toward a public relations war than a litigation . ''", "Well , naturally so .", "In Hollywood battles a war of words often precedes legal formalities , and Mr. Fields has plenty of experience .", "He has played legal counselor in headline-grabbing cases like Mr. Katzenberg versus the Walt Disney Company in the mid-1990s , and two Tom Cruise defamation cases , in Britain in 1998 and in California in 2003 , both over allegations that he was homosexual .", "In those instances Mr. Katzenberg and Mr. Cruise got satisfaction , either financial or legal , although they had to suffer through headlines that , in Mr. Cruise 's case , repeated the unsupported allegations and , in Mr. Katzenberg 's case , unearthed a nasty remark about his diminutive height .", "But a case involving Ms. Regan may well prove to be uglier and more prurient .", "Legal scholars and prominent litigators said that proving libel is extremely difficult , but it opens the door to a public airing of the litigants ' private affairs .", "`` Libel is a very , very high mountain of proof to climb , and you can get destroyed in the process , '' said Pierce O'Donnell , a leading litigator who successfully sued Paramount in the 1980s for Mr. Buchwald , who contended that the studio had stolen his screenplay idea in its movie `` Coming to America . ''", "Ms. Regan , whose lively personal life is already well-worn fodder for tabloid gossip , will find lawyers poring over every off-color remark she may have made , Mr. O'Donnell said .", "Former colleagues have already emerged to confirm that she was reprimanded in the past for making an anti-Semitic remark at work .", "Mr. O'Donnell said : `` She will open herself up to every scurrilous allegation .", "She will not enjoy one minute of this litigation .", "They 'll hire a bulldog , and it 'll be a bloodletting . ``", "Meanwhile HarperCollins , which owns ReganBooks , would probably face uncomfortable questions about why it tolerated Ms. Regan for so long if the company found her behavior so objectionable .", "And executives would also have to submit to a detailed examination of their decision-making process in the Simpson project , a book titled `` If I Did It '' and a television interview conducted by Ms. Regan , which unleashed such a cascade of public outrage that both were canceled .", "`` Everything that went on will get into evidence , '' Mr. Fields promised .", "`` What really happened with that interview , what Jane Friedman , '' the president of HarperCollins and Ms. Regan 's former boss , `` is really like . ''", "A significant issue for a jury , Mr. O'Donnell said , would be whether the accusations of anti-Semitism were merely a pretext for getting rid of the controversial publisher .", "HarperCollins `` may say that this was the straw that broke the camel 's back , but the other side may say the straw was really the embarrassment over O . J . , `` he said .", "The breach-of-contract matter might be considered a garden-variety case , except for the accusation of anti-Semitism .", "With four years remaining on her contract , Ms. Regan would have been paid several million dollars had she not been fired for cause , a general term that usually includes behavior like dishonesty , failure to carry out orders or sexual harassment .", "But the charge of anti-Semitism itself is not a clear-cut one for either side , legal experts said .", "In its termination letter News Corporation did not specify the reason for Ms. Regan 's dismissal , though the company did later release its account of the allegedly anti-Semitic remarks to the news media .", "Mr. Fields said he planned to argue that a HarperCollins lawyer , Mark Jackson , knew that Ms. Regan never said that a `` Jewish cabal '' was in league against her during that phone conversation .", "`` He stated it , knowing it was false , '' Mr. Fields said .", "`` These days people do n't want much to do with an anti-Semite or an anti-black person . ``", "Others said it was more complicated .", "`` It really is a he said-she said , '' said Alan R . Friedman , a leading New York entertainment lawyer .", "`` Both sides have their reasons .", "Both witnesses have reason to be less than objective .", "And you have to show that it has an impact on her reputation .", "Will this really change anyone 's opinion of Judith Regan , a ` Jewish cabal ' .", "This is n't like denying that the Holocaust occurred .", "That 's just a burden . ``", "David R . Ginsburg , who is executive director of the entertainment law program at the University of California , Los Angeles , said that if a jury believed she made the remark , it would be a basis for firing .", "`` Taking it in the abstract , it is damaging for a company to take no action while a senior executive purportedly makes anti-Semitic remarks , '' he said .", "Several lawyers said they imagined that the matter would never have received this much attention if not for the furor over O . J . Simpson .", "And they said they believed it would be settled quietly once the media noise died down because the negative implications for both sides were so great .", "On the eve of the new year there were indications that a window might open toward conciliation .", "Mr. Fields suggested an apology : `` In my view they should retract what they said .", "If they did , it might limit the damages .", "We 'd still sue for breach of contract , but we might not sue for libel . ``", "The News Corporation executive said the company would prefer to settle the matter quietly .", "`` We 'd like this to go away quickly , amicably and professionally , `` he said .", "`` We 're not going to settle at any price .", "We have a very strong case .", "But having the winning case does n't mean you want to go to court . `` ."], "summary": ["Judith Regan says she is preparing to file lawsuit against News Corp , Rupert Murdoch-owned media giant that owns Harper Collins publishing house , which fired her after O J Simpson book project imploded .", "Regan 's lawyer Bert Fields says libel and wrongful termination suit is related to allegations that Regan had been fired after making anti-Semitic remarks during heated phone conversation with company lawyer .", "News Corp declines to comment officially .", "Photos .", "Chart of other face-offs between famous names and large corporations ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 3], "tag": ["Arts", "Books"]} +{"id": "1815756", "text": ["Last year 's debut of Howard Stern 's radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio put the technology on the map , raising the public 's awareness of satellite radio and helping to boost significantly subscriber totals for Sirius and its larger rival , XM Satellite Radio .", "Today , thanks in part to the outsize radio personality , the Stern Effect has increased Sirius 's base to about six million subscribers , up 80 percent from one year ago .", "XM has increased its numbers by more than 30 percent , ending 2006 with 7.7 to 7.9 million customers .", "`` There is a tendency to view satellite radio as if the glass is half empty , and that it is a failure or disappointment , '' said Craig Moffett , senior cable analyst for Sanford C . Bernstein .", "`` In fact , nothing could be further from the truth , '' he said .", "`` Satellite radio is growing faster than any consumer product except for the iPod . ''", "But Sirius and XM shares have taken a battering on Wall Street , with prices for both off about 50 percent from their year-ago levels .", "On Friday , Sirius closed at $ 3.54 , while XM ended the year at $ 14.45.", "And now , the industry may be getting ready to try an even more dramatic third act -- a possible attempt to merge the two services .", "The benefits of a merger have been promoted by the chief executive of Sirius , Mel Karmazin , for a number of months , and Sirius officials continue to say that a merger would be a good thing .", "XM has not commented on the possibility , and neither company has said whether they have actually discussed the issue .", "`` When you have two companies in the same industry , we have a similar cost structure .", "Clearly , a merger makes sense from an investor 's point of view to reduce costs , and to have a better return , `` said David Frear , the chief financial officer for Sirius .", "Both companies have continued to lose hundreds of millions of dollars because of marketing and other subscriber acquisition expenses .", "During the year , XM sharply lowered its expectations for 2006 subscriber levels , from January 's predicted end-of-year total of 9 million to a maximum of 7.9 million .", "-LRB- Sirius reduced its subscription projection by about 100,000 . -RRB-", "Nate Davis , XM 's president , said his company believed that the slower-than-expected growth rate was of its own making and not a result of any market indifference .", "`` We did not stimulate the market with new products , '' he said .", "XM 's most talked-about receivers , the Pioneer Inno and Samsung Helix , were first announced one year ago .", "Several new receiver models will be introduced later in 2007 .", "In addition , production of some receivers was temporarily halted to stop a condition that was allowing satellite signals to be picked up by neighboring vehicles .", "The hiccups typical of fledgling industries appear to be over .", "Both companies have their programming lineups largely in place and a wide range of receivers available in retail stores .", "In addition to Howard Stern , Sirius features personalities like Deepak Chopra , Judith Regan , Richard Simmons and Martha Stewart .", "Sports programming includes N.B.A. , N.F.L. , and N.H.L. games .", "Nascar programming begins this year .", "XM has shows with hosts including Bob Dylan , Ellen Degeneres , `` Good Morning America '' personalities , and Oprah Winfrey .", "XM broadcasts every Major League Baseball game as well as P.G.A. golf .", "Yet the vast majority of programming remains duplicative .", "Each company offers a wide variety of rock , pop , folk , and other musical genres , as well as the same news channels , which include the BBC , CNN , Fox , and MSNBC .", "Sirius and XM each claim that their music channels are more compelling than the competition 's , but most casual listeners would be hard-pressed to tell the difference .", "`` The services mirror each other tremendously , '' said Richard Doherty , an analyst with the Envisioneering Group , a research firm .", "`` More people know that one service has Howard Stern than know which one has him . ''", "Except for a relatively small handful of viewers looking for particular programs , consumers searching for a satellite service in a retail store often make their decision not on the merits of one over the other , but which one is more convenient to buy .", "`` For the subscriber , it all comes down to which one of the two is closer to the cash register .", "Customers can not tell the difference between the two services , `` Mr. Moffett said .", "Customer choice will play an even smaller role in the coming years as both companies come to rely more on selling satellite radio as a factory-installed option on new cars , and less on receivers sold at retail stores .", "Both companies have exclusive agreements with the automobile companies .", "Customers typically get free service for a number of months , and then must pay $ 12.95 a month to continue listening .", "XM has exclusive arrangements with General Motors , Honda , Hyundai , Nissan and Porsche .", "Sirius has similar alliances with BMW , DaimlerChrysler , Ford , Kia and VW-Audi .", "Today , about 63 percent of XM 's subscribers are buyers of new cars , and Sirius 's new subscribers are derived equally from new car and after-market sales .", "As more cars are equipped with satellite radios , the new car market could grow to as high as 70 percent of sales in the next few years , Mr. Moffett said .", "`` We see greater and greater demand in the car market , '' said Mr. Davis of XM .", "`` And we think the used car market will be an opportunity to sell to new subscribers . ''", "Used car subscribers incur no additional hardware costs if the receiver is already in place .", "And if the companies were to merge and effectively double their subscriber base , the new company could reduce programming costs through increased negotiating clout , removal of duplicative channels and elimination of redundant employees .", "Whether Sirius and XM attempt to merge , a number of variables that will determine the size of the industry 's success remain unknown .", "They include the number of new cars that will be equipped with satellite radio receivers .", "The percentage of new car owners who will subscribe after the free trial period ends .", "And whether purchasers of used cars equipped with satellite radio will be more or less likely to subscribe than new car owners .", "The business may also be vulnerable to subscription overload , Mr. Doherty said , if consumers find that monthly recurring expenses from cellphone bills , cable TV , and other services are too high .", "Yet even if that is true , there is little doubt that the concept of satellite radio is no longer alien to consumers .", "According to Sirius , 83 percent of consumers aged 18 to 55 are now aware of the technology .", "Mr. Frear became personally cognizant of that when he tried to rent a car with a Sirius radio recently but found they were all taken .", "`` Every year , satellite radio just sinks deeper and deeper into the public consciousness , '' he said .", "Correction : January 16 , 2007 , Tuesday An article in Business Day on Jan . 1 about the increase in subscribers for Sirius Satellite Radio and its rival , XM Satellite Radio , misstated one news channel that is offered by both companies .", "It is CNBC , not MSNBC ."], "summary": ["Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio may try merger .", "Benefits of merger have been promoted by Sirius chief executive Mel Karmazin and Sirius officials continue to say that merger would be good thing .", "XM has not commented on possibility , and neither company has said whether they have actually discussed issue .", "Both companies have continued to lose hundreds of millions of dollars because of marketing and other subscriber acquisition expenses .", "Graphs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 13, 10], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1815757", "text": ["The business of grain marketing has not been its usual sleepy self lately in Western Canada .", "Plans by the government to strip the Canadian Wheat Board of its monopoly control over most of the country 's wheat and barley exports have provoked a fight that is pitting farmer against farmer and the agency against the government .", "The wheat board , founded 75 years ago as part of a wave of cooperative ventures for improving farmers ' lives , is now one of the world 's largest grain traders , with annual sales of $ 4 billion to $ 6 billion .", "The board is , in many respects , among the last of the cooperative projects that remains true to its original goals .", "But those goals now have little in common with the open market philosophy of the minority Conservative government that came to power just under a year ago .", "Shortly before Christmas , that clash resulted in an unusual cabinet order to fire the wheat board 's president , Adrian Measner .", "The fate of the board will be eagerly awaited in the United States , where farm groups have unsuccessfully challenged the Canadian board 's monopoly .", "Among the companies likely to move into Canada 's export market , if it is opened , are commercial grain traders like Cargill of Minneapolis and Archer Daniels Midland of Decatur , Ill .", "`` There is absolutely no doubt that part of the reason the Conservative government is pushing as hard as it is pushing is , I suspect , that they are feeling pressure from the Americans , '' said Murray Fulton , an agriculture economist who directs a center for the study of cooperatives at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon .", "The wheat board concept is simple .", "In exchange for its monopoly over wheat destined for export from Canada 's three prairie provinces , as well as a small part of British Columbia , it pays every farmer the same average sale price .", "Overall , Professor Fulton said , price averaging has provided most farmers with greater stability and higher prices than they would have obtained in an open market .", "A study commissioned by the wheat board on barley prices released in December gives more specifics .", "The report , by Richard S . Gray of the University of Saskatchewan , Andrew Schmitz of the University of Florida and Troy G . Schmitz at Arizona State University , concluded that farmers ' barley revenue from the wheat board was 59 million Canadian dollars higher from 1995 to 2004 than it would have been in an open market system .", "Wheat board supporters argue that the board also helps farmers by negotiating terms with railways and ports .", "The system seems to have supporters on the buyers ' side as well .", "It provides a more uniform grading of grains than is available in the United States , for instance .", "But averaging prices has a significant drawback for some farmers .", "By definition , an average price is often lower than what individual farmers who live near the United States border could obtain by directly trucking their harvest south .", "The province of Alberta , home to Prime Minister Stephen Harper , has long opposed the board for that reason , among others .", "Chuck Strahl , the minister of agriculture , has repeatedly said that all he wants is to give farmers the choice of pooling their risk through the wheat board or going out on their own .", "`` We are trying to get more marketing choice for farmers , '' he told the House of Commons in December .", "`` We want to put more money in their pockets .", "We want them to take advantage of their own expertise . ``", "Professor Fulton argued in a separate study published last month that the wheat board can not survive in an open market .", "Indeed , its history before it was granted a monopoly supports that idea .", "The operation floundered as farmers chose the open market when prices were high , returning to the board only during hard times .", "Mr. Strahl has not found it easy to end the board 's monopoly .", "A 1998 law gave farmers control of the board by letting them directly elect 10 of its 15 directors , with the balance , including the president , being appointed by the government .", "-LRB- Because the government guarantees the board 's finances , however , it retained the power to issue cabinet orders . -RRB-", "The Conservatives , in the minority , have been unable to get any of the other parties to support changes in the wheat board .", "An attempt earlier this year to amend the board 's legislation was resoundingly defeated by opposition parties .", "And when five wheat board positions came up for election this fall , the government heavily promoted candidates who backed its plan .", "Farmers , however , responded by electing four candidates who favor the current monopoly .", "Now Mr. Strahl plans a vote on creating an open barley market early in 2007 .", "But he has also made it clear that the government will not be bound by its results .", "The level of support for the government 's open market plan is unclear .", "Even Mr. Strahl said during recent committee testimony : `` I think I 've had 4,500 letters on wheat board issues since I 've been in office .", "They are almost equally divided . ``", "Mr. Measner , a 34-year veteran of the wheat board , had become something of a minor celebrity by rebuffing orders from Mr. Strahl and his staff to stop promoting the monopoly system and start backing the government 's plan .", "Before his dismissal on Dec . 22 , Mr. Measner began a court challenge of a cabinet order requiring the board to support the government , arguing that it is unconstitutional and outside the government 's power over the board .", "`` The government has a direction they 're taking the wheat board , and it does n't matter what people say or what people want , `` Mr. Measner said in an interview from his home after his firing .", "`` My position is that it should be farmers making the decision . ''", "Ken Ritter , a farmer from Saskatchewan who is the board 's chairman , said the legal challenge of the government 's orders will continue as will the board 's campaign to keep the current system .", "`` This is very , very divisive , '' Mr. Ritter said .", "`` This has gone on for 40 years . ''", "Professor Fulton said that by firing Mr. Measner and attempting to gag the board , the government runs the danger of alienating even some of the farmers who back its open market position .", "`` The view seems to be shifting , '' Professor Fulton said .", "`` Even farmers who might support a change in the wheat board are saying , why do it this way . '' ."], "summary": ["Plans by Canada to strip Canadian Wheat Board of its strict control of wheat and barley exports provokes fight between farmers and government .", "Board , founded 75 years ago , pays all farmers average sale price over market value in exchange for monopoly .", "Supporters say system helps farmers negotiate terms with buyers while critics say some living near United States border could potentially generate profits higher than average price .", "Vote is planned on creating open market .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 18, 34, 14], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1815760", "text": ["In brand-new offices with a still-empty game room and enough space to triple their staff of nearly 30 , a trio of entrepreneurs is leading an Internet start-up with an improbable mission : to out-Google Google .", "The three started Powerset , a company whose aim is to deliver better answers than any other search engine -- including Google -- by letting users type questions in plain English .", "And they have made believers of Silicon Valley investors whose fortunes turn on identifying the next big thing .", "`` There 's definitely a segment of the market that thinks we are crazy , `` said Charles Moldow , a partner at Foundation Capital , a venture capital firm that is Powerset 's principal financial backer .", "`` In 2000 , some people thought Google was crazy . ''", "Powerset is hardly alone .", "Even as Google continues to outmaneuver its main search rivals , Yahoo and Microsoft , plenty of newcomers -- with names like hakia , ChaCha and Snap -- are trying to beat the company at its own game .", "And Wikia Inc . , a company started by a founder of Wikipedia , plans to develop a search engine that , like the popular Web-based encyclopedia , would be built by a community of programmers and users .", "These ambitious quests reflect the renewed optimism sweeping technology centers like Silicon Valley and fueling a nascent Internet boom .", "It also shows how much the new Internet economy resembles a planetary system where everything and everyone orbits around search in general , and around Google in particular .", "Silicon Valley is filled with start-ups whose main business proposition is to be bought by Google , or for that matter by Yahoo or Microsoft .", "Countless other start-ups rely on Google as their primary driver of traffic or on Google 's powerful advertising system as their primary source of income .", "Virtually all new companies compete with Google for scarce engineering talent .", "And divining Google 's next move has become a fixation for scores of technology blogs and a favorite parlor game among technology investors .", "`` There is way too much obsession with search , as if it were the end of the world , '' said Esther Dyson , a well-known technology investor and forecaster .", "`` Google equals money equals search equals search advertising .", "It all gets combined as if this is the last great business model . ``", "It may not be the last great business model , but Google has proved that search linked to advertising is a very large and lucrative business , and everyone -- including Ms. Dyson , who invested a small sum in Powerset -- seems to want a piece of it .", "Since the beginning of 2004 , venture capitalists have put nearly $ 350 million into no fewer than 79 start-ups that had something to do with Internet search , according to the National Venture Capital Association , an industry group .", "An overwhelming majority are not trying to take Google head on , but rather are focusing on specialized slices of the search world , like searching for videos , blog postings or medical information .", "Since Google 's stated mission is to organize all of the world 's information , they may still find themselves in the search giant 's cross hairs .", "That is not necessarily bad , as being acquired by Google could be a financial bonanza for some of these entrepreneurs and investors .", "But in the current boom , there is money even for those with the audacious goal of becoming a better Google .", "Powerset recently received $ 12.5 million in financing .", "Hakia , which like Powerset is trying to create a `` natural language '' search engine , got $ 16 million .", "Another $ 16 million went to Snap , which has focused on presenting search results in a more compelling way and is experimenting with a new advertising model .", "And ChaCha , which uses paid researchers that act as virtual reference librarians to provide answers to users ' queries , got $ 6.1 million .", "Still , recent history suggests that gaining traction is going to be difficult .", "Of dozens of search start-ups that were introduced in recent years , none had more than a 1 percent share of the United States search market in November , according to Nielsen NetRatings , a research firm that measures Internet traffic .", "Amassing a large audience has proved to be a challenge even for those with a track record and resources .", "Consider A9 , a search engine owned by Amazon.com that received positive reviews when it began in 2004 and was run by Udi Manber , a widely recognized search specialist .", "Despite some innovative features and early successes , A9 has captured only a tiny share of the market .", "Mr. Manber now works for Google , where he is vice president of engineering .", "The setback apparently has not stopped Amazon or its chief executive , Jeffrey P . Bezos , from pursuing profits in search .", "ChaCha said it counts an investment company owned by Mr. Bezos among its backers , and Amazon is an investor in Wikia .", "An Amazon spokeswoman said Mr. Bezos does not comment about his personal investments .", "Some start-ups are similarly bullish .", "`` We expect to be one of the top three search engines , '' said Riza C . Berkan , the chief executive of hakia .", "It is a bold claim , given that hakia 's technology is not yet ready for prime time , and Mr. Berkan readily concedes it will take time to perfect it .", "The dream , however , is quintessential Silicon Valley .", "`` It is hard for me to believe that anybody thinks they can take Google 's business from Google , `` said Randy Komisar , a venture capitalist who was once known as Silicon Valley 's `` virtual C.E.O. '' for his role as a mentor to scores of technology firms .", "`` But to call the game over because Google has been such a success would be to deny history . ''", "In some ways , the willingness of so many to make multimillion-dollar investments to take on Google and other search companies represents a startling change .", "In the late 1990s , when Microsoft dominated the technology world , inventors and investors did everything they could to avoid competing with the software company .", "Yet many of today 's search start-ups are putting themselves squarely in the path of the Google steamroller .", "Most explain that decision in similar ways .", "They say that Google 's dominance today is different from Microsoft 's in the late 90s when its operating system was a virtual monopoly and nearly impossible to break .", "In the Internet search industry , `` you earn your right to be in business every day , page view after page view , click after click , '' said Barney Pell , a founder and the chief executive of Powerset , whose search service is not yet available .", "They also say that the market for search simply is too large to resist .", "Google , which , according to Nielsen , handles about half of all Internet searches in the United States , is valued at an astonishing $ 141 billion .", "So , the reasoning goes , anyone who can grab even a small slice of the search market could be well rewarded .", "`` You do n't need to be No . 1 to be worth billions of dollars , `` said Allen Morgan , a partner at Mayfield Fund , a venture capital firm that invested $ 10 million in Snap .", "The company is also backed by Bill Gross , an Internet financier who pioneered the idea of linking ads and search results , only to see Google seize the powerful business model and improve on it .", "Almost all of today 's search entrepreneurs also say that Google 's success lends credibility to their own long-shot quest .", "When Lawrence Page and Sergey Brin first started tinkering with what would become Google , other search engines like AltaVista and Lycos and Excite were dominant .", "But the companies that owned them were distracted by efforts to diversify their businesses , and they took their eye off the ball of Internetsearch and stopped innovating .", "Some now say that search has not evolved much in years , and that Google is similarly distracted as it introduces new products like word processors , spreadsheets and online payment systems and expands into online video , social networking and other businesses .", "`` The more Google starts to think about taking on Microsoft , the less it is a pure search play , and the more it opens the door for new innovations , '' said Mr. Moldow , the Foundation Capital partner .", "`` That 's great for us . ``", "But at the same time , Google , Yahoo and Microsoft have thousands of engineers , including some of the world 's top search specialists , working on improving their search results .", "And they have spent billions building vast computer networks so they can respond instantly to the endless stream of queries from around the world .", "Search `` is becoming an increasingly capital-intensive business , '' said Marissa Mayer , Google 's vice president for search .", "That makes it harder for start-ups to catch up to the giants , she said .", "That is not stopping entrepreneurs from betting that they can .", "Powerset has search and natural-language experts among its two dozen employees , including former top engineers from Yahoo and a former chief linguist from Ask Jeeves , Ask.com' s predecessor .", "They are the kind of people who could easily land jobs at Google or Microsoft or Yahoo .", "Steve Newcomb , a Powerset founder and veteran of several successful start-ups , said his company could become the next Google .", "Or , he said , if Google or someone else perfected natural-language search before Powerset , then his company would make a great acquisition for one of the other search companies .", "`` We are a huge story no matter what , '' he said .", "Ms. Dyson , the technology commentator and Powerset investor , captured the optimism more concisely and with less swagger .", "`` I love Google , '' she said , `` but I love the march of history . '' ."], "summary": ["Search-engine companies such as Powerset , hakia , ChaCha and Snap are trying to be next Google .", "Wikia Inc , company started by founder of Wikipedia , plans to develop search engine that , like popular Web-based encyclopedia , would be built by community of programmers and users .", "These ambitious quests reflect renewed optimism sweeping technology centers like Silicon Valley and fueling nascent Internet boom .", "It also shows how much new Internet economy resembles planetary system where everything and everyone orbits around search in general , and around Google in particular .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 9, 8], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]} +{"id": "1815761", "text": ["As the Jewel of the Seas , a luxury cruise ship owned by Royal Caribbean , steamed down the coast toward Bermuda in late October , there were plenty of distractions , including two Olympic-size pools , Latin dance lessons and Boozer Bingo .", "But Birdie Jaworski was having none of it .", "Ms. Jaworski , a single mother who sells Avon products in tiny Las Vegas , N.M. , instead spent much of her time inside the ship 's lounges and meeting rooms with other book enthusiasts , listening to authors like Elinor Lipman -LRB- `` My Latest Grievance '' -RRB- , Terri Jentz -LRB- `` Strange Piece of Paradise '' -RRB- , and Lynnette Khalfani -LRB- `` The Money Coach 's Guide to Your First Million `` -RRB- .", "`` I was having so much fun hanging out with people with the same literary interests as me , '' said Ms. Jaworski , who runs a book club in her hometown and is herself an aspiring author .", "Ms. Jaworski was one of about 150 book lovers aboard the ship for a five-day literary-themed cruise out of Boston .", "Known as Book It to Bermuda , it is just the latest example of a growing genre of cruises that could be called Ship Lit .", "Often sponsored by publishers , the cruises , aboard commercial liners , feature popular authors who give readings and seminars -- even knitting lessons -- to boatfuls of book lovers .", "Ms. Jaworski was particularly impressed with a presentation by Ms. Jentz , whose book recounts a brutal attack she survived in Oregon 30 years ago , and subsequent journey back to the scene to investigate .", "The seas were rough that day , according Ms. Jaworski , so Ms. Jentz delivered her presentation sitting down .", "`` I enjoyed it , even though I was feeling a little queasy , '' said Ms. Jaworski .", "For authors and their publishers , the cruises offer an opportunity to promote their books to a captive audience of hundreds of enthusiastic readers .", "People tend to read a lot on cruises , and the profile of a typical Ship Lit cruise customer -- older and female -- is an especially good match for romance , health and fitness books , publishers say .", "`` It 's become increasingly difficult to create and build a book and make it successful , `` says Keith Fox , president of McGraw-Hill Professional , the division of the McGraw-Hill Companies that published Ms. Khalfani 's financial advice book .", "Literary cruises , he said , are `` an opportunity for us to get our authors in front of a demographic that loves books . ''", "Authors say the environment makes for a special experience .", "`` You get to connect with people in a way that you never would at a bookshop , '' Ms. Khalfani said .", "`` I had people stopping me in the bathroom , in the spa .", "I probably gave another three or four minisessions just sitting around talking shop . ``", "The feeling was mutual .", "`` Bermuda was stunning , but the authors made the cruise , '' says Julie Rogers , a self-described `` crazed reader '' from San Jose , Calif . , who was on the cruise .", "The company that has done the most to promote Ship Lit , however , is Levy Home Entertainment , a book distributor with thousands of retail accounts , including Wal-Mart Stores , Target , and Kmart .", "With the support of major publishers , Levy has organized two Authors at Sea cruises that each featured more than two dozen authors .", "Mary Higgins Clark , Paul Levine , a mystery writer , and Arthur Frommer , a travel expert , have been headliners on the cruises , while Jackie Collins and Dean Koontz have lent their star power to bon voyage parties .", "The next cruise is tentatively scheduled for 2008 .", "Levy has long sought novel ways to spur sales of mass market paperbacks , which the company says account for a third of its sales , such as organizing bus tours and driving groups of authors from city to city to do signings .", "The idea for a literary cruise grew out of that experience , says Pam Nelson , director of promotions for Levy .", "Publishers say it is difficult to measure the direct impact of the cruises , but they say participating authors see an increase in sales .", "Harlequin Enterprises sent a half dozen of its writers on the Authors at Sea cruise last spring .", "Craig Swinwood , executive vice president for sales and marketing at Harlequin , notes that those authors , including Debbie Macomber and Carla Neggers , had record years .", "Still , `` you could do five cities in that same week , '' on a regular book tour , he said .", "Books by participating authors are sold onboard .", "Levy sold about 2,500 books on its last cruise .", "And the marketing starts months beforehand .", "In Levy 's case , featured books are distributed with an Authors at Sea logo on the covers , and tucked inside each book is a coupon for $ 250 toward the price of the cruise .", "But the real payoff may come from the word-of-mouth after vacationers return home , telling their friends and posting their thoughts on one of the many book-oriented Web sites and blogs .", "`` These are not just readers .", "These are power readers that can really drive trends in the book business , `` says John Lindsay , a vice president at Levy .", "Indeed , the Internet has changed the dynamics of the book business in profound ways .", "Ms. Macomber , who has written dozens of mass market novels , keeps in touch with her fans through her own Web site .", "`` We 're used to being in that celestial cloud , `` she said .", "`` Now authors are out there .", "You have to be . ``", "As a featured author on the Levy cruise , Ms. Macomber gave knitting lessons to attendees -LRB- knitting features prominently in her 2005 novel , `` A Good Yarn '' -RRB- .", "After the cruise , she added the readers she had met to her mailing list , and many have left messages on her online guest book , she said .", "Kate Duffy , editorial director of the Kensington Publishing Corporation -LRB- whose author , Beverly Barton , was on the last Levy cruise -RRB- , courts these readers , whom she affectionately calls `` the big mouths , '' sending them manuscripts and soliciting their opinions .", "After attending the Authors at Sea trip , she said , `` I added 10 more big mouths to my list . ''", "MEDIA ."], "summary": ["Literary cruises give authors and their publishers opportunity to promote books to captive audience of enthusiastic readers .", "Environment provides connection with readers that authors can not achieve through bookstore appearances or other events .", "Cruises are becoming popular as it becomes icreasingly difficult to successfully market new books .", "Photos d ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 35], "tag": ["Business", "Books"]} +{"id": "1815789", "text": ["When Ban Ki-moon takes over as secretary general of the United Nations on Monday , he may quickly have to grapple with the crisis in Darfur , fighting in Somalia and the continuing strife in the Middle East .", "But he will have to wait to enjoy one of the more glamorous trappings of his new post : the secretary general 's official residence on Sutton Place , the exclusive Manhattan enclave off the East River .", "The General Assembly recently approved a $ 4.5 million renovation of the residence , a 14,000-square - foot neo-Georgian attached town house with four floors and a basement .", "Until October , when the work is expected to be completed , Mr. Ban and his wife will sleep and entertain in a suite at the Waldorf-Astoria , where they have been living since November .", "Choi Soung-ah , who has been serving as a spokeswoman during Mr. Ban 's transition , said that while he would have preferred to move directly into the Sutton Place residence , `` it 's just essential refurbishment that 's been pushed off for years . ``", "`` He would rather , of course , be in the official residence and not living in a hotel where he ca n't really unpack his own things , his own belongings , `` Ms. Choi said .", "`` There is such a thing as the official residence of the secretary general .", "Of course that would be better , and it would be very convenient . ``", "The residence was once home to Anne Morgan , the daughter of J . P . Morgan , the financier .", "It was donated to the United Nations in 1972 and has not been significantly refurbished since 1950 , according to a September report prepared by the secretary general 's office .", "The report estimated that the renovation effort would cost $ 4.49 million .", "Of that , $ 650,900 would go toward security upgrades , including $ 137,700 for a digital video-recording system and additional cameras .", "The price includes $ 200,000 to upgrade the kitchen , $ 100,000 to redo the restrooms and $ 2.1 million for a central heating , ventilation and air-conditioning system .", "The upgrades that are not related to security total $ 255 per square foot .", "The General Assembly also approved $ 202,500 for temporary accommodations for the incoming secretary general and his family .", "Details in the report hint at the sort of domestic annoyances the departing secretary general , Kofi Annan , has dealt with since he took up the post in 1997 .", "The house currently `` poses safety hazards '' and is prone to `` severe malfunctions , requiring increasingly frequent emergency repairs , '' the report says .", "Specifically , it describes a `` technologically obsolete '' telecommunications system , an 85-year-old electrical wiring system unequipped to handle the phalanx of communications and security technology required by a modern world leader and an elevator that violates New York City 's safety code .", "The building is heated with steam , which frequently leaks from `` heavily corroded '' pipes and fittings , the secretary general 's report says , damaging walls and furniture .", "The high-powered fans that are used to address the leaks sometimes make matters worse , by overloading the electrical circuit and causing power failures .", "The General Assembly has also approved a separate , extensive renovation of the United Nations headquarters , which is expected to cost $ 1.9 billion and take seven years .", "In the meantime , Mr. Ban , the former South Korean foreign minister , will not have to wait to move into his new office , on the 38th floor of the gleaming Secretariat building .", "He will do so starting Monday , but not a moment sooner , Ms. Choi said , noting , `` Kofi Annan is still the secretary general until the 31st of December . '' ."], "summary": ["Ban Ki-moon , new secretary general of UN , will have to wait to enjoy one of more glamorous trappings of his new post : secretary general 's official residence on Sutton Place .", "General Assembly recently approved $ 4.5 million renovation of residence .", "Ban and his wife are staying at Waldorf-Astoria until Oct , when work is expected to be completed ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 3, 2], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1815792", "text": ["As a New Year 's deadline arrived , Russia 's natural gas monopoly , Gazprom , struck a deal early Monday to supply gas to Belarus for the next five years , averting a price dispute that threatened to disrupt supplies to Europe , the company said in a statement .", "The agreement , reached as the Russian capital celebrated the New Year with rolling displays of fireworks , more than doubled the price that Belarus will pay for natural gas this year and raised it significantly in the years to come .", "For Belarus , a close ally of Russia , the price of gas would rise to $ 100 per thousand cubic meters in 2007 , from $ 46 now , and increase steadily to the level paid by European countries by 2011 , the company said .", "Gazprom , Russia 's largest company , succeeded in achieving , at least in part , what its officials had described as a central goal : ending subsidized supplies of energy to the countries of the former Soviet Union .", "Belarus , led by its autocratic president , Aleksandr G . Lukashenko , has for years benefited from the comparatively inexpensive supply of natural gas , a vital part of its sclerotic economy , still mostly managed by the state .", "The agreement headed off a shutdown of supplies to Belarus and beyond , avoiding the disruptions of last year , when the effects of a price dispute with Ukraine rippled throughout Europe and raised concerns about Russia 's reliability as an energy supplier .", "Gazprom , closely allied to the Kremlin , threatened to cut off gas supplies again beginning Monday at 10 a.m. if Belarus did not agree to the higher prices .", "At least 20 percent of Russian natural gas destined for Europe passes through Belarus , less than the amount that transits Ukraine but enough to raise new concerns in Europe .", "The agreement was reached after months of negotiations -- and a final week of threats and counterthreats .", "Belarus 's prime minister , Sergei S . Sidorsky , arrived in Moscow on Sunday for a last round of negotiations and announced the deal with Gazprom 's chairman , Aleksei B . Miller .", "Mr. Miller had suggested that Belarus should ultimately pay the going market price , now roughly $ 260 per thousand cubic meters of gas .", "The agreed price , $ 100 per thousand cubic meters , was less than the $ 105 that Gazprom had demanded in the past few days .", "But under the deal announced on Monday , Gazprom , in keeping with its stated goals of expanding its export empire , will acquire 50 percent of Beltranzgaz , the Belarussian gas-transit monopoly that distributes gas through the country .", "Mr. Lukashenko , whose rule has been described as the last dictatorship in Europe , had previously vowed never to give up control of those pipelines .", "On Friday , he vowed that Belarussians would rather live in unheated dugouts than pay the higher prices that Gazprom was demanding .", "`` All this means destruction of our relations , '' he said .", "A statement by Mr. Sidorsky early Monday appeared to reflect his government 's unease with the agreement .", "`` The Belarussian side , in a difficult atmosphere on the eve of the new year , signed an agreement on unfortunate terms , '' he said , according to Agence France-Presse .", "Russia has long been the country 's most reliable partner , shielding it from efforts by Europe and the United States to isolate Mr. Lukashenko , who won re-election to a third term as president in balloting in March that was denounced as unfair .", "But the negotiations suggested that Russia 's political priorities had been surpassed by Gazprom 's economic ones ."], "summary": ["Russia 's natural gas monopoly , Gazprom , strikes deal to supply gas to Belarus for next five years , averting price dispute that threatened to disrupt supplies to Europe .", "Agreement more than doubled price that Belarus will pay for natural gas in 2007 and raised it significantly in years to come ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1815795", "text": ["City , state and federal agencies granted final approvals last month to a half-dozen wide-ranging projects in a political aligning of the stars that will promote New York City 's most ambitious economic development agenda in decades .", "Approval or financing was given to a Second Avenue subway .", "An extension of the Flushing Line to the Far West Side .", "A spur to connect the Long Island Rail Road to Grand Central Terminal .", "Financing for tens of thousands of apartments for low - and moderate-income residents .", "The Atlantic Yards complex near Downtown Brooklyn , which includes a new home for the basketball Nets .", "And even the bus-stop shelters and public toilets that New Yorkers and visitors have demanded for years .", "Some of the approvals were prompted by legal deadlines and last-minute efforts by departing Pataki administration officials -- including Charles A . Gargano , the chairman of the Empire State Development Corporation .", "Peter S . Kalikow , the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority .", "And the governor himself -- to stake out their legacy .", "But two more enduring forces also converged : the beginning of the last 1,000 days of the Bloomberg administration , and a climate that some urban planners suggest signals at least a lull in the nearly half-century backlash against the bulldozer diplomacy of Robert Moses .", "`` It 's a pretty amazing list , `` said Robert D . Yaro , the president of the Regional Plan Association , a group that studies transportation and development issues .", "`` It 's the Bloomberg administration pushing hard .", "There 's a pro-growth , long-range theme behind all this . ``", "Kenneth T . Jackson , the Columbia University urban historian , said that Mr. Bloomberg 's speech in December outlining the challenges posed by a growing population `` signaled that New York had to fight for its place at the table , that real estate and commercial rents and housing prices are getting out of hand .", "The only way the city can prosper is to make that more reasonable and the only way to do that is to increase the supply .", "`` I think they 're beginning to move , `` Professor Jackson said .", "In the months ahead , the Bloomberg administration 's development agenda includes rezoning in Harlem as well as in Jamaica and Willets Point in Queens .", "The administration also wants to make another effort to gain approval for the transformation of the James A . Farley general post office building in Midtown Manhattan into a commuter rail hub called Moynihan Station -- one proposal that appears to be in political limbo .", "`` After 9/11 , a spirit of cooperation -- not perfect -- prevailed that enabled people to aim farther than they had in decades , '' said Daniel L . Doctoroff , the deputy mayor for economic development , who was instrumental in winning many of the approvals .", "`` The mayor really encouraged that kind of thinking -- repositioning New York City 's economy to compete with other cities in the 21st century . ``", "Several of the approved projects still face court challenges .", "Some others are bound to raise concerns over displacement and congestion .", "And the promise of a Second Avenue subway has been dangled before skeptical New Yorkers for nearly 80 years .", "But even if some projects are delayed , the others would change the city 's face and , arguably , help fend off competition from New Jersey and from other world capitals .", "`` I think you probably would have to go back to the late 1930s to see anything like that , '' Mr. Doctoroff said .", "`` I do n't think any mayor has had an agenda like this , not since La Guardia . ``", "On Dec . 6 , the city sold $ 2 billion in bonds to extend the No . 7 subway line 1.1 miles west and then south from Times Square to 11th Avenue and 34th Street to help transform the largely fallow Far West Side .", "On Dec . 18 , the federal government agreed to grant $ 2.6 billion to link Long Island Rail Road commuters directly to the East Side of Manhattan and $ 693 million for the Second Avenue subway from 96th to 63rd Streets .", "On Dec . 19 , Mr. Pataki presided over the installation of the first two huge steel columns to mark the perimeter of the Freedom Tower at the World Trade Center site .", "The same day , Mr. Bloomberg announced the installation of the first 24 of 3,300 bus-stop shelters by a company that will also replace 330 newsstands and install and operate 20 public toilets .", "The `` street furniture '' will help pay for the city 's tourism campaign .", "On Dec . 20 , the City Council , in a compromise supported by the mayor , voted to overhaul a tax break to induce developers to build tens of thousands of apartments for New Yorkers making less than 80 percent of the median household income , or $ 56,720 for a family of four .", "That day , a state oversight board gave final approval to the $ 4 billion Atlantic Yards project , a mostly residential complex with a basketball arena , offices and retail space near Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues .", "In addition , new stadiums are being built for the Yankees and the Mets .", "Brad Lander , the director of the Pratt Center for Community Development , a planning group , said : `` My guess is , we are only just now settling into the general sense that the city 's growth and development are long-term trends , not a short-time , business-cycle flash . ``", "Dick Dadey , the executive director of Citizens Union , said that the city , bolstered by a robust economy , was trying to meet pent-up demand .", "`` Say what you want about the scope and size of development , '' he added , `` the projects that are being approved are more sensitive to the current communities and neighborhoods or to creating new ones -- like the new Downtown Brooklyn -- than Moses ever was . ''", "Moreover , Mr. Dadey said , `` the community boards no longer have the sway they once did over stopping local projects , '' and some local groups are even supporting development -- `` trying to encourage it responsibly in ways that benefit a greater number of people . ''", "In `` The Power Broker , '' Robert A . Caro in 1974 wrote that without the approval of Robert Moses , who oversaw virtually all public works in New York until he was eased out in 1968 , the city was `` utterly unable '' to build anything .", "Mr. Caro said in an interview that he , too , was struck by the plethora of projects approved in December .", "`` Does this alignment of stars show that this is may be a problem that democracy can solve .", "`` he said .", "`` For the first time in 40 years , I 'm hopeful . `` ."], "summary": ["New York City , New York State and federal agencies grant final approval to half-dozen large projects that will transform some areas of city and help bring it competitively into 21st-Century .", "Wide-ranging projects signal lull in climate of nearly 50-year backlash against ` bulldozer diplomacy ' of Robert Moses .", "Developers are more sensitive to needs of communities and some communities welcome changes that can improve neighborhoods .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1815801", "text": ["For a half-century , he has been the center of a heartbreaking mystery , this boy of 4 or 5 who lies buried beneath a black granite stone in the shade of rhododendrons .", "Visitors to his grave in Ivy Hill Cemetery here pray and leave toys , perhaps bestowing more love on this child than he ever had in his life , which was marked by sickness and hunger and ended in a beating .", "The boy 's body , bruised and naked , was found in a cardboard box in a patch of woods off a dirt road on the city 's outskirts in February 1957 .", "He was a symbol of child abuse at its worst .", "Yet all these years later , he has no name .", "William H . Kelly , a retired Philadelphia detective , and his friend Joseph McGillen , a retired investigator for the medical examiner 's office , visit the boy 's grave often .", "`` My little friend , '' Mr. Kelly calls him .", "The men , both 79 , dream of giving the boy an identity before they die .", "Still officially an open homicide investigation , the case is `` one of the very few in which we ca n't say who it is , `` said Capt . Benjamin Naish , a Philadelphia police spokesman .", "Elmer Palmer was the first officer on the scene that drizzly Feb . 26 , 1957 .", "`` It looked like a doll , '' he recalled recently .", "`` Then I saw it was n't a doll . ``", "The boy 's hair had been cut , crudely , either just before or just after death , so his body was flecked with hairs .", "Mr. Palmer , now 79 , was a young husband and father then .", "He recalled shivering in his raincoat , thinking , `` What a shame . ''", "At least this will be solved quickly , he thought .", "`` They had so many leads . ''", "But there were problems .", "A college student had spotted the body on Feb . 25 , but did not call the police until the next day , after confiding in a priest .", "Cold slows decomposition , so it was impossible to tell how long the boy had been dead .", "An autopsy showed that the child had been beaten to death and that he had been ill and undernourished .", "His baby teeth were intact , and he had apparently never been to a dentist .", "His body bore several small scars that looked like surgical incisions .", "Yet a survey of local doctors and hospitals turned up nothing .", "Photographs of the boy 's face were printed in the newspapers , hung on storefronts and mailed with utility bills throughout Philadelphia and beyond .", "Orphanages and other child-care institutions were checked .", "Still nothing .", "Detectives even dressed the corpse and photographed it in a sitting position , then distributed the pictures in the hope that the more `` lifelike '' appearance would jog someone 's memory .", "A man 's corduroy cap found near the body was traced to an area store .", "The owner recognized it from the strap the buyer had her sew on .", "She recalled him as a man in his 20s who had come into the store alone .", "There was nothing special about him .", "He was never found .", "The police traced the cardboard box to another store .", "It was one of a dozen that had held bassinets sold from Dec . 3 , 1956 , to Feb . 16 , 1957 .", "Investigators tracked down all but one buyer -- quite a feat , considering the store 's cash-only policy -- but found no link to the boy .", "Among the many tips and theories : the boy was a refugee who came to America after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 .", "He was the son of wandering carnival workers , several of whose children had died under odd circumstances .", "He was the son of an itinerant roofer who had worked in the Philadelphia area .", "More than 11,000 Hungarian passports were checked .", "The carnival workers were cleared .", "The roofer was found , along with his son , safe and sound .", "Finally , the boy was buried in a potter 's field , with detectives as pallbearers .", "His grave was the only one with a stone , donated by a local monument maker .", "Years went by .", "The patch of woods was bulldozed for houses .", "The dirt road became a busy street .", "Investigators who had worked on the case acquired paunches and pensions .", "But for all the big-city death and mayhem they had seen , they could not forget the little boy .", "The Vidocq Society , a Philadelphia group composed largely of law enforcement professionals who investigate long-unsolved crimes , adopted the case .", "Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen are members .", "-LRB- The society is named after a famed 18th-century French detective , Eug\u00e8ne Fran\u00e7ois Vidocq . -RRB-", "Another member was Remington Bristow , an investigator in the medical examiner 's office who had been deeply affected by the case .", "His own son had died in early childhood .", "Mr. Bristow worked on the case practically full time , even in his retirement , spending thousands of dollars of his own to chase leads across the country .", "He carried a death mask of the child in his briefcase .", "Until his death in 1993 , Mr. Bristow theorized that the child was the son of an unmarried daughter of a couple who ran a foster home in an old mansion .", "He even suggested that the child might have died accidentally .", "The boy 's D.N.A. was obtained when the body was exhumed in 1998 and reburied in Ivy Hill , in a plot donated by the cemetery .", "Those close to the case hold out hope that a match will turn up one day .", "Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen say the key to the mystery may lie in the memory of a woman who grew up in Philadelphia and says that when she was a child her parents brought a boy home and kept him in the basement .", "One day , the woman says , her mother battered the boy to death , then drove with her to the patch of woods to dispose of the body .", "The woman told her story to Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen several years ago , in the presence of her psychiatrist .", "She said she decided to come forward after a television reprise of the case , one of several in recent years .", "`` We think she 's the real deal , `` Mr. McGillen said .", "But William Fleisher , a former Philadelphia police officer and F.B.I. agent who is the president of the Vidocq Society , is not so sure .", "`` Nothing she says has been proved , nothing she says has been disproved , '' said Mr. Fleisher , now a private investigator .", "And if the boy remains without a name and the crime goes unpunished .", "Sooner or later the killer will be `` in a place where there 's no appeal , `` Mr. McGillen said .", "`` And I feel good about that . '' ."], "summary": ["Bruised and naked body of unidentified boy , 4 or 5 , was found in patch of woods on outskirts of Philadelphia in February 1957 .", "Autopsy showed that child had been beaten to death and that he had been ill and undernourished .", "Vidocq Society , Philadelphia group composed largely of law enforcement professionals who investigate long-unsolved crimes , adopted case .", "Yet all these years later , boy has no name .", "William H Kelly , retired Philadelphia detective , and Joseph McGillen , retired investigator for medical examiner 's office , visit boy 's grave often .", "They dream of giving him identity before they die .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 49, 20, 4, 2, 7], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1815802", "text": ["Darlene Bishop , the nationally renowned evangelical preacher , begins her book about how God cured the cancer afflicting one of her brothers with a Biblical verse : `` And the prayer of faith shall save the sick , and the Lord shall raise him up . ''", "The book , `` Your Life Follows Your Words , '' is sold in the gift shop of Solid Rock Church , the 4,000-member congregation in Monroe , Ohio , where Ms. Bishop is a co-pastor .", "She has promoted it on her television show , `` Sisters , '' which is modeled after ABC 's `` The View '' and is broadcast on four cable networks nationwide .", "On her Web site , Ms. Bishop promises that the book reveals `` how God healed her of breast cancer '' and a brother of throat cancer .", "Nowhere , though , does she mention , that the brother , Darrell Perry , a successful country music songwriter whom everyone called Wayne , died from the cancer a year and a half ago .", "In a sworn deposition responding to two lawsuits filed by Mr. Perry 's four children , Ms. Bishop stated that no doctor ever diagnosed the breast cancer she referred to prominently in her book .", "Instead , Ms. Bishop testified , she thought that she had cancer in 1986 and that it was cured .", "`` She 's lying to people and exploiting my father for her own financial gain , `` Mr. Perry 's eldest son , Bryan Perry , 36 , said in an interview .", "One lawsuit accuses Ms. Bishop of wrongful death because , it says , she convinced Mr. Perry to pray rather than to seek medical care .", "The other accuses her of mismanaging and misusing his estate , which the Perry children say could be worth millions .", "The estate case is to be argued in Butler County Probate Court on Friday .", "Mr. Perry 's death at age 55 left some of country music 's most popular performers , including Toby Keith and Tim McGraw , without one of their most trusted and prolific writers .", "Now the battle over who caused his death , who owns his assets and how best to interpret his legacy is dividing a once-close family whose members climbed from Appalachian poverty to prominence in the music industry and the evangelical movement .", "Ms. Bishop would not answer questions about the suits .", "On her Web site , she says that the allegations `` are complete lies '' and that she never discourages anyone from seeing doctors .", "She also says she is a trustworthy steward of Mr. Perry 's estate , which , she said in the deposition , could be worth nothing after his many debts are paid .", "Long before she gained fame as a preacher , Ms. Bishop was her family 's spiritual leader , Bryan Perry said .", "One of Mr. Perry 's two former wives , Janet Perry-McCormick , said that he often sought the religious counsel of his older sister , whom he called Sissy , and that his children grew up attending her church .", "`` I put my faith in Darlene , '' Bryan Perry said .", "`` We all did .", "We thought she was a holy , pure woman . ``", "Wayne Perry fathered four children with three women , two of whom he married , his sons said .", "He abandoned his family when Bryan was 2 to pursue his songwriting career , which produced such hits as `` A Woman 's Touch , `` recorded by Mr. Keith , and '' Not a Moment Too Soon , `` by Mr. McGraw .", "He earned millions of dollars , said a music industry lawyer , Rush Hicks , who is advising the children .", "After doctors diagnosed his throat cancer in December 2002 , Mr. Perry moved into Ms. Bishop 's mansion on her $ 2.6 million horse farm in Monroe to re-commit his life to God , his sons said .", "According to Ms. Bishop 's book , when her brother arrived at her front door , he confirmed that he had cancer , and she replied , `` Let that be the last time those words ever come from your mouth . ''", "In her deposition , Ms. Bishop said Mr. Perry had decided on his own to disregard doctors ' advice that he immediately begin chemotherapy and radiation treatments .", "But Mr. Perry 's children contend that their aunt persuaded him to forgo medical treatment and rely on a process of faith healing that , Ms. Bishop wrote in her book , God had explained to her in a revelation .", "`` He was laying in bed dying , and she had him convinced that he was healed , '' said Mr. Perry 's son Justin Jones , 28 , who lived in Ms. Bishop 's house for a year caring for his father .", "As his throat tumors swelled to the size of tennis balls , Mr. Perry stopped eating , Mr. Jones said .", "His weight dropped to 84 pounds .", "He did consent to chemotherapy , Mr. Jones said , but only after the tumors had restricted his breathing to the point that he collapsed .", "The chemotherapy shrank the tumors , Mr. Jones said , and his father began eating again .", "In her book , Ms. Bishop describes her brother 's spiritual awakening and the improvement in his condition , but she does not mention his chemotherapy .", "As Mr. Perry regained strength , he and Ms. Bishop went on a nationwide tour of evangelical churches , promoting Ms. Bishop 's book about his miraculous recovery , his children said .", "Against his doctor 's advice , Mr. Perry stopped chemotherapy , Mr. Jones said .", "On Oct . 13 , 2004 , an oncologist , Dr. Albert Malcolm , wrote a letter telling Mr. Perry that his cancer was terminal .", "Mr. Perry forwarded the letter to Janet Perry-McCormick , his former wife , after writing across the top , `` Destroy this letter after you read it , '' and , `` Only you and Darlene know this . ''", "The note is proof that Ms. Bishop knew her brother was dying but concealed it from the public while continuing to promote her book , Mr. Perry 's children said in interviews , but in her deposition , Ms. Bishop said she learned of Dr. Malcolm 's diagnosis after Mr. Perry died in May 2005 .", "Mr. Perry 's death raised questions about the ownership of his royalties , his catalogs of songs and his `` hook book , '' which his children describe as a loose-leaf notebook stuffed with lyrics and musical riffs , most of which had not been recorded .", "The children accused Ms. Bishop 's son Lawrence Bishop II , a musician , of recording two albums that contained a total of five songs copyrighted by Mr. Perry without paying royalties to his estate .", "Copyrights are not strictly followed in the Christian country music business , Ms. Bishop said in her deposition .", "She also said Mr. Perry 's notebook was missing .", "Their father 's songs could be worth millions of dollars , the children said , but only if they can be marketed , an impossibility given no hook book and a dispute over song rights .", "Ms. Bishop said Mr. Perry 's catalogs of songs belonged to the record companies that recorded and promoted them , not the family .", "Also in dispute is Mr. Perry 's life insurance policy , worth $ 260,000 .", "Ms. Bishop was named the policy 's sole beneficiary , but the children claim it was meant for them .", "One point on which both sides agree is that Mr. Perry died believing he had been healed by God .", "`` The only thing he told me , '' Ms. Perry-McCormick said , `` was , ' I 'm going to show Sissy that I can be healed just like she was . ' `` ."], "summary": ["Darrell Perry , successful country music songwriter died from cancer year and half ago .", "Perry 's four children have filed two lawsuits against their aunt , Darlene Bishop , renowned evangelical preacher .", "One lawsuit accuses her of wrongful death , claiming that she convinced Perry to pray rather than to seek medical care .", "Other accuses her of mismanaging and misusing his estate , which Perry children say could be worth millions .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 8, 4], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1815811", "text": ["This college town received what it wanted when , during the 1980s and 90s , it sought to reverse the decline of its downtown and to create a more vibrant civic center that would draw people at night and on weekends .", "Since then , thousands of young professionals , retirees and former suburbanites have moved to glistening condominium buildings in the shadow of the state Capitol 's dome and only a few blocks from the University of Wisconsin 's main campus .", "And there is hardly a bad night for business near State Street , where university students and tourists pack restaurants and bars to capacity even on freezing weeknights .", "But as downtown 's population and revelry have grown , so have overcrowding on the streets , vandalism and , most significantly , the police say , alcohol-related crime .", "Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and other officials find themselves grappling with a problem that is a direct result of Madison 's successful transformation : how to tone down downtown .", "As an urban issue , the downsizing of downtowns has little precedent because many cities , particularly in the Midwest , are struggling mightily to bring people back to their cores , not send them away .", "Of course , many college towns deal with problems related to drinking .", "In the Midwest alone , La Crosse , Wis . , and East Lansing and Ann Arbor , Mich . , are struggling with how to cope with the public mayhem often fueled by inebriated students .", "In Madison , two Common Council members , convinced that much of what ails downtown can be traced to the proliferation of bars and restaurants known more for drinking than dining , introduced a plan intended to reduce the number of such establishments , and to restrict the approval of new liquor licenses .", "The plan , which has the support of Mayor Cieslewicz -LRB- pronounced chess-LEV-ich -RRB- , is preliminary and does not detail , for example , how many or which places may be closed .", "A final plan is expected to be ready for a Council vote in the spring .", "That area of nearly one square mile -- between Lake Mendota , Lake Monona and Blair and Lake Streets -- has 120 places that serve only or mostly alcohol .", "They have a capacity of more than 11,000 people , city officials said .", "The proposal has its critics , many of whom call it nothing less than modern-day Prohibition , and an assault on personal freedom and the free market that flies in the face of Madison 's traditional liberalism and Wisconsin 's entrenched drinking culture .", "Some Council members say they worry that limiting the number of bars will only increase the number of drinkers who turn to house parties and makeshift taverns , where binge drinking and bad behavior often go together but behind closed doors .", "`` A lot of the activists on this issue revile alcohol , and their logic is equally fallacious as the original Prohibitionists ' , `` said Austin King , the president of the Common Council and a member of its Progressive caucus .", "`` From a safety perspective , '' Mr. King said , `` I would much , much rather have young people drinking in the regulated environment of bars . ''", "College students , not surprisingly , also oppose the plan .", "`` A proportion of students drink irresponsibly , but the majority do n't , `` said Katrina Schleitwiler , 21 , a political science major at the University of Wisconsin .", "`` This would just drive students into other places to drink and not affect the problem at all . ''", "Although Ms. Schleitwiler acknowledged a spate of crimes around campus and downtown , she said she did not think alcohol abuse by students or anyone else was at its root .", "`` Madison is becoming a big city with more crime , '' she said .", "`` How different is that from any other city .", "`` The police see things differently .", "According to a recent police department analysis of attacks in which someone was injured downtown , about 75 percent of the victims and perpetrators were intoxicated .", "The analysis also found that after midnight on Thursdays , Fridays and Saturdays , police officers , paramedics and firefighters often spent half to all of their working hours responding to alcohol-fueled fights and disorderly conduct .", "Noise , public urination and vandalism are constant concerns .", "The University of Wisconsin has tried many initiatives to curtail under-age drinking and older students ' overconsumption .", "Most recently , the city and the college jointly paid for a municipal alcohol policy coordinator -- referred to as the `` bar czar '' -- to redouble those efforts .", "`` Frankly , nothing has worked very well , and there 's still a culture of binge drinking , `` Mayor Cieslewicz said .", "For the last five years , Madison , formerly a sleepy college town , has grown by about 2,500 people a year into a medium-size city with a population of about 230,000 .", "In the last decade , 1,950 apartments -- rental and condominium units -- have been built downtown .", "But the arrival of so many newcomers has produced a culture clash .", "Stefanie Moritz , a retired librarian , moved with her husband from Phoenix into a downtown condominium about three years ago , drawn by pedestrian-friendly streets , a university job for her husband and the community 's progressive politics .", "`` We decided that we definitely wanted to live downtown , so we could get rid of one of our cars , my husband could walk to work and we could enjoy the downtown experience , '' Ms. Moritz said .", "`` The reality is a little bit different . ''", "She said she quickly grew irritated at being awakened at 2:30 a.m. , when the noisy bar crowd usually begins to make its way home , dropping empty beer cans and other trash along the way .", "One morning she woke to find that garbage had been torched and the flames had charred a tree .", "`` I want to live downtown , but I also want a decent quality of life , '' Ms. Moritz said .", "`` And I feel that that is being denied by the present level of alcohol use . ''", "About 18 months ago , Ms. Moritz became active in a relatively new residents ' group , Capitol Neighborhoods , which is at the forefront of the push for stricter drinking rules .", "Hawk Schenkel , the owner of one of the biggest restaurants on State Street , Hawk 's Bar and Grill , pointed out that residents who criticized the downtown scene had `` moved downtown in a university town . ''", "`` Do they know where all the revenue comes from downtown , why we have a downtown that 's alive and worth being in .", "`` Mr. Schenkel asked .", "`` All that could change . ''", "`` If the ordinance as written were to pass , my bar would automatically be worth at least $ 100,000 more , overnight , and it 's clear that I personally stand to gain financially , `` he said .", "`` But I 'm against this on principle , and I do n't think it helps the problem .", "My argument is that there are n't enough bars .", "It 's the overcrowding that leads to violence . `` ."], "summary": ["Madison , Wis , college town that sought to reverse decline of its downtown in 1980s and 1990s to draw people at night and on weekends , is now facing overcrowding on streets , vandalism and , most significantly , alcohol-related crime .", "Officials are grappling with how to scale down downtown .", "Map . Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1815830", "text": ["For Sunni Arabs here , the ugly reality of the new Iraq seemed to crystallize in a two-minute segment of Saddam Hussein 's hanging , filmed surreptitiously on a cellphone .", "The video featured excited taunting of Mr. Hussein by hooded Shiite guards .", "Passed around from cellphone to cellphone on Sunday , the images had echoes of the videos Sunni militants take of beheadings .", "`` Yes , he was a dictator , but he was killed by a death squad , '' said a Sunni Arab woman in western Baghdad who was too afraid to give her name .", "`` What 's the difference between him and them .", "`` There was , of course , a difference .", "Mr. Hussein was a brutal dictator , while the Shiite organizers of the execution are members of the popularly elected Iraqi government that the United States helped put in place as an attempt to implant a democracy .", "It was supposed to be a formal and solemn proceeding carried out by a dispassionate state .", "But the grainy recording of the execution 's cruel theater summed up what has become increasingly clear on the streets of the capital : that the Shiite-led government that assumed power in the American effort here is running the state under an undisguised sectarian banner .", "The hanging was hasty .", "Laws governing its timing were bypassed , and the guards charged with keeping order in the chamber instead disrupted it , shouting Shiite militia slogans .", "It was a degrading end for a vicious leader , and an ominous beginning for the new Iraq .", "The Bush administration has already scaled back its hopes for a democracy here .", "But as the Iraqi government has become ever more set on protecting its Shiite constituency , often at the expense of the Sunni minority , the goal of stopping the sectarian war seems to be slipping out of reach .", "`` We speak about the crimes of Saddam Hussein , but now here we are behaving in the same way , '' said Alaa Makki , a prominent Sunni politician .", "`` We fear that nothing has been changed .", "On the contrary , we feel it is going in a worse direction . ``", "After the invasion , Sunni Arabs , bitter at losing their place , refused to take part in Iraq 's first elections , allowing Shiites and Kurds to sweep to power .", "Americans here spent the following months persuading the Shiites to let the Sunnis back in .", "The idea , at the time , was that involving Sunnis in politics would drain the insurgency of its violence .", "Instead , the violence got worse , and in February , the long-abused Shiites struck back , using the force of the state ministries and agencies that they now control .", "Now , American officials are pressing Iraqi leaders , both Sunni and Shiite , to reconcile and have made it a central demand for continued support of the Iraqi government .", "But the prospects for mutual agreement seem ever more distant .", "`` I ca n't think of any good reason for any level-minded person to be interested in reconciliation , `` one secular Sunni politician said .", "That unwillingness , shared by most of the Shiite political elite , is a serious challenge to any new American strategy proposal that President Bush may announce soon .", "Indeed , the Sunni political class is getting smaller .", "Many of the Sunni politicians once ubiquitous during the broad discussions of the Iraqi Constitution two years ago are now gone .", "Virtually none of the members of the Association of Muslim Scholars , a hard-line Sunni Arab religious group , are left in Iraq -- most of them have gone to Jordan and Syria .", "Out of more than 50 members of the Baghdad council that runs the city , only one is Sunni .", "The reason is that Shiites , who had been driven from their homes and relentlessly slaughtered by Sunni suicide bombers , are now pushing back .", "The taunting during Mr. Hussein 's execution capped months of advances by Shiite militias , which have forced Sunnis farther back into western Baghdad .", "But as the Shiites gain the upper hand , they also seem to be abandoning any hint of compromise .", "The video , Sunnis said , was a startling symbol of that .", "In the images , the guards taunt Mr. Hussein .", "They damn him .", "They cheer their Shiite heroes so persistently that one observer makes a remark about how the effort to rein in militias does not seem to be going well .", "Immediately after they let him drop , in the midst of repeating a prayer , the voices rise in urgency and begin talking excitedly .", "Then several others chime in , telling those present to step back from the body and to wait three minutes before touching it .", "The video was particularly disturbing for Sunni Arabs , who accuse the government of willfully allowing militias to remain in the ranks of its security forces .", "It left the impression that the government cared more for revenge than for justice , Sunnis said .", "`` Either it 's terrible incompetence or it 's an act of revenge -- a vendetta , `` said Adnan Pachachi , a respected Sunni whose political career began long before Mr. Hussein took power .", "`` That was the impression people had . ''", "One of the problems was the timing .", "The execution was rescheduled a number of times , as Iraqi officials raced through a checklist of requirements put forth by the Americans .", "Two legal conditions -- that it not be held on a holiday and that the Iraqi president and his two deputies be given 30 days to sign off on the sentence first -- were ignored .", "The fact was not lost on Sunni political leaders , including Mr. Makki , who said the execution was a step backward for the country .", "`` This is a political mistake , '' he said .", "`` We lost a lot with this . ''", "To make matters worse , it fell just as the first day of the Id al-Adha holiday dawned for Sunnis -- a day before the Shiites ' observance was to begin .", "Shiite politicians did not apologize and some even reveled in the timing .", "That did a major disservice to reconciliation , many argued .", "`` Why could n't they have waited for a few more days .", "`` Mr. Pachachi said .", "`` It was a deliberate insult to so many people .", "It helped Saddam 's friends . ``", "Yusra Abdul Aziz , a Sunni teacher in Mansour , had a blunter analysis : `` They changed him from a criminal into a martyr . ''", "In a strange twist , Sunni insurgents did not seem to care .", "Sunni Jihadist Web sites had virtually no messages about Mr. Hussein 's death , aside from two re-released statements , old debates by militant sheiks over whether he should be considered a martyr .", "`` The feeling is that they do n't care about him , `` said Rita Katz , who runs the SITE Institute , a group that tracks militant Islamist Web sites .", "For the more hard-line Sunni Arabs , the execution simply confirmed their view that joining the Shiite government could never work .", "Sheik Hakam Abdullah al-Shahiri from the Obeid tribe in Kirkuk is an example .", "`` Iraq is occupied now by the U.S. and Iran and a puppet government for both sides , '' he said .", "`` With the execution of Saddam the Arab identity of Iraq and its unity have ended . ''", "That has left moderate Sunnis -- those who still seek reconciliation -- to ponder the danger of a Shiite hegemony that seems too scarred from past abuses to govern lightly .", "`` Governing a country should not be done by reflexes , '' Mr. Makki said .", "`` It should be wisdom first .", "A panoramic view . ``", "`` Not behaving from one side , '' he added , `` like what we saw here . ''", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ : NEWS ANALYSIS ."], "summary": ["Saddam Hussein 's hanging was supposed to be formal and solemn proceeding carried out by dispassionate state , but recording of execution 's cruel theater summed up what has become increasingly clear on streets of Baghdad : that Shiite-led government that assumed power in US effort is running state under undisguised sectarian banner .", "It was degrading end for vicious leader , and ominous beginning for new Iraq .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 7, 11], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815834", "text": ["He drew pictures of himself with angel wings .", "He left a set of his dog tags on a nightstand in my Manhattan apartment .", "He bought a tiny blue sweat suit for our baby to wear home from the hospital .", "Then he began to write what would become a 200-page journal for our son , in case he did not make it back from the desert in Iraq .", "For months before my fianc\u00e9 , First Sgt . Charles Monroe King , kissed my swollen stomach and said goodbye , he had been preparing for the beginning of the life we had created and for the end of his own .", "He boarded a plane in December 2005 with two missions , really -- to lead his young soldiers in combat and to prepare our boy for a life without him .", "Dear son , Charles wrote on the last page of the journal , `` I hope this book is somewhat helpful to you .", "Please forgive me for the poor handwriting and grammar .", "I tried to finish this book before I was deployed to Iraq .", "It has to be something special to you .", "I 've been writing it in the states , Kuwait and Iraq .", "The journal will have to speak for Charles now .", "He was killed Oct . 14 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his armored vehicle in Baghdad .", "Charles , 48 , had been assigned to the Army 's First Battalion , 67th Armored Regiment , Fourth Infantry Division , based in Fort Hood , Tex .", "He was a month from completing his tour of duty .", "For our son 's first Christmas , Charles had hoped to take him on a carriage ride through Central Park .", "Instead , Jordan , now 9 months old , and I snuggled under a blanket in a horse-drawn buggy .", "The driver seemed puzzled about why I was riding alone with a baby and crying on Christmas Day .", "I told him .", "`` No charge , '' he said at the end of the ride , an act of kindness in a city that can magnify loneliness .", "On paper , Charles revealed himself in a way he rarely did in person .", "He thought hard about what to say to a son who would have no memory of him .", "Even if Jordan will never hear the cadence of his father 's voice , he will know the wisdom of his words .", "Never be ashamed to cry .", "No man is too good to get on his knee and humble himself to God .", "Follow your heart and look for the strength of a woman .", "Charles tried to anticipate questions in the years to come .", "Favorite team .", "I am a diehard Cleveland Browns fan .", "Favorite meal .", "Chicken , fried or baked , candied yams , collard greens and cornbread .", "Childhood chores .", "Shoveling snow and cutting grass .", "First kiss .", "Eighth grade .", "In neat block letters , he wrote about faith and failure , heartache and hope .", "He offered tips on how to behave on a date and where to hide money on vacation .", "Rainy days have their pleasures , he noted : Every now and then you get lucky and catch a rainbow .", "Charles mailed the book to me in July , after one of his soldiers was killed and he had recovered the body from a tank .", "The journal was incomplete , but the horror of the young man 's death shook Charles so deeply that he wanted to send it even though he had more to say .", "He finished it when he came home on a two-week leave in August to meet Jordan , then 5 months old .", "He was so intoxicated by love for his son that he barely slept , instead keeping vigil over the baby .", "I can fill in some of the blanks left for Jordan about his father .", "When we met in my hometown of Radcliff , Ky . , near Fort Knox , I did not consider Charles my type at first .", "He was bashful , a homebody and got his news from television rather than newspapers -LRB- heresy , since I 'm a New York Times editor -RRB- .", "But he won me over .", "One day a couple of years ago , I pulled out a list of the traits I wanted in a husband and realized that Charles had almost all of them .", "He rose early to begin each day with prayers and a list of goals that he ticked off as he accomplished them .", "He was meticulous , even insisting on doing my ironing because he deemed my wrinkle-removing skills deficient .", "His rock-hard warrior 's body made him appear tough , but he had a tender heart .", "He doted on Christina , now 16 , his daughter from a marriage that ended in divorce .", "He made her blush when he showed her a tattoo with her name on his arm .", "Toward women , he displayed an old-fashioned chivalry , something he expected of our son .", "Remember who taught you to speak , to walk and to be a gentleman , he wrote to Jordan in his journal .", "These are your first teachers , my little prince .", "Protect them , embrace them and always treat them like a queen .", "Though as a black man he sometimes felt the sting of discrimination , Charles betrayed no bitterness .", "It 's not fair to judge someone by the color of their skin , where they 're raised or their religious beliefs , he wrote .", "Appreciate people for who they are and learn from their differences .", "He had his faults , of course .", "Charles could be moody , easily wounded and infuriatingly quiet , especially during an argument .", "And at times , I felt , he put the military ahead of family .", "He had enlisted in 1987 , drawn by the discipline and challenges .", "Charles had other options -- he was a gifted artist who had trained at the Art Institute of Chicago -- but felt fulfilled as a soldier , something I respected but never really understood .", "He had a chest full of medals and a fierce devotion to his men .", "He taught the youngest , barely out of high school , to balance their checkbooks , counseled them about girlfriends and sometimes bailed them out of jail .", "When he was home in August , I had a baby shower for him .", "One guest recently reminded me that he had spent much of the evening worrying about his troops back in Iraq .", "Charles knew the perils of war .", "During the months before he went away and the days he returned on leave , we talked often about what might happen .", "In his journal , he wrote about the loss of fellow soldiers .", "Still , I could not bear to answer when Charles turned to me one day and asked , `` You do n't think I 'm coming back , do you .", "`` We never said aloud that the fear that he might not return was why we decided to have a child before we planned a wedding , rather than risk never having the chance .", "But Charles missed Jordan 's birth because he refused to take a leave from Iraq until all of his soldiers had gone home first , a decision that hurt me at first .", "And he volunteered for the mission on which he died , a military official told his sister , Gail T . King .", "Although he was not required to join the resupply convoy in Baghdad , he believed that his soldiers needed someone experienced with them .", "`` He would say , ' My boys are out there , I 've got to go check on my boys , ' `` said First Sgt . Arenteanis A . Jenkins , Charles 's roommate in Iraq .", "In my grief , that decision haunts me .", "Charles 's father faults himself for not begging his son to avoid taking unnecessary risks .", "But he acknowledges that it would not have made a difference .", "`` He was a born leader , '' said his father , Charlie J . King .", "`` And he believed what he was doing was right . ''", "Back in April , after a roadside bombing remarkably similar to that which would claim him , Charles wrote about death and duty .", "The 18th was a long , solemn night , he wrote in Jordan 's journal .", "We had a memorial for two soldiers who were killed by an improvised explosive device .", "None of my soldiers went to the memorial .", "Their excuse was that they did n't want to go because it was depressing .", "I told them it was selfish of them not to pay their respects to two men who were selfless in giving their lives for their country .", "Things may not always be easy or pleasant for you , that 's life , but always pay your respects for the way people lived and what they stood for .", "It 's the honorable thing to do .", "When Jordan is old enough to ask how his father died , I will tell him of Charles 's courage and assure him of Charles 's love .", "And I will try to comfort him with his father 's words .", "God blessed me above all I could imagine , Charles wrote in the journal .", "I have no regrets , serving your country is great .", "He had tucked a message to me in the front of Jordan 's journal .", "This is the letter every soldier should write , he said .", "For us , life will move on through Jordan .", "He will be an extension of us and hopefully everything that we stand for .", "I would like to see him grow up to be a man , but only God knows what the future holds .", "THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ : AN APPRECIATION ."], "summary": ["Dana Canedy , in appreciation of her late fiance , First Sgt Charles Monroe King , holds that he boarded plane for Iraq in Dec 2005 with two missions -- to lead his soldiers in combat and to prepare their boy for life without him .", "Notes that he wrote what would become 200-page journal for their son in case he did not make it back .", "Says that Charles was killed on Oct 14 , and journal will have to speak for him now .", "Photo shows Charles with their young son , Jordan ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 3, 11, 33], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1815835", "text": ["Jordan W . Hess was the unlikeliest of soldiers .", "He could bench-press 300 pounds and then go home and write poetry .", "He learned the art of glass blowing because it seemed interesting and built a computer with only a magazine as his guide .", "Most recently , he fell in love with a woman from Brazil and took up digital photography , letting both sweep his heart away .", "Specialist Hess , the seventh of eight children , was never keen on premonitions , but on Christmas of 2005 , as his tight-knit family gathered on a beach for the weekend , he told each sibling and parent privately that he did not expect to come home from Iraq .", "On Nov . 11 , Specialist Hess , 26 , freshly arrived in Iraq , was conducting a mission as the driver of an Abrams tank when an improvised explosive device , or I.E.D. , blew up with brain-rattling force .", "The blast was so potent it penetrated the 67-ton tank , flinging him against the top and critically injuring his spine .", "His four crewmates survived .", "For three weeks , he hung on at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio , long enough to utter a few words to his loved ones and absorb their kindness .", "On Dec . 4 , Specialist Hess slipped onto the ever-expanding list of American military fatalities in Iraq , one that has increased by an average of more than three a day since Oct . 1 , the highest three-month toll in two years .", "On Sunday , with the announcement of the death in Baghdad of Specialist Dustin R . Donica , 22 , of Spring , Tex . , the list reached the somber milestone of at least 3,000 deaths since the March 2003 invasion .", "The landmark reflects how much more dangerous and muddled a soldier 's job in Iraq has become in the face of a growing and increasingly sophisticated insurgency .", "Violence in the country is at an all-time high , according to a Pentagon report released last month .", "December was the third deadliest month for American troops since the start of the war , with insurgents claiming 111 soldiers ' lives .", "October and November also witnessed a high number of casualties , 106 and 68 respectively , as American forces stepped up combat operations to try to stabilize Baghdad .", "`` It escalated while I was there , '' said Capt . Scott Stanford , a National Guard officer who was a commander of a headquarters company in Ramadi for a year , arriving in June 2005 .", "`` When we left this June , it was completely unhinged .", "There was a huge increase in the suicide car bombs we had .", "The I.E.D. ` s were bigger and more complex . ''", "`` And it was very tense before we left in terms of snipers , '' said Captain Stanford , a member of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America .", "`` I do n't know if there were more of them , or if they were getting better . ``", "This spike in violence , which has been felt most profoundly by Iraqi civilians , who are dying by the thousands , has stoked feverish debate about the nation 's presence in Iraq .", "Many Democrats in Congress are urging a phased withdrawal from the country , and the Bush administration is leaning toward deploying additional troops in 2007 .", "If the conflict continues into March , the Iraq war will be the third longest in American history , ranked behind the Vietnam War and the American Revolution .", "President Bush did not specifically acknowledge reaching the milestone of 3,000 American deaths , but a White House spokesman , Scott Stanzel , said the president `` grieves for each one that is lost '' and would ensure that their sacrifices were not made in vain .", "The campaign against terrorism , Mr. Stanzel said , will be a long struggle .", "Specialist Hess had volunteered for his mission to spare another soldier the danger of going outside the wire that day .", "Like so many of his fallen comrades , he had become the victim of an inescapably dangerous roadside landscape .", "`` It was the type of injury you rarely recover from .", "In past wars you would n't have gotten out of theater , `` said his father , Bill Hess , a Boeing engineer and retired Air Force man .", "`` So that was a blessing , that he could talk to us .", "He mouthed words and we were able to say we loved him .", "There is a lot to be said for that . ``", "A Steady Toll of Deaths In many ways , the third 1,000 men and women to die in Iraq faced the same unflinching challenge as the second 1,000 soldiers to die there -- a dedicated and ruthless Iraqi insurgency that has exploited the power of roadside bombs to chilling effect .", "These bombs now cause about half of all American combat deaths and injuries in Iraq .", "Over all , the casualty rate has remained relatively steady since 2005 , dipping only slightly .", "It took 14 months for the death toll to jump to 2,000 soldiers from 1,000 .", "It took about two weeks longer for it to rise to 3,000 from 2,000 , during the period covering Oct . 25 , 2005 , to this week .", "`` It is hugely frustrating , tragic and disappointing that we ca n't reduce the fatality rate , `` said Michael O'Hanlon , a military analyst for the Brookings Institution .", "The service members who died during this latest period fit an unchanging profile .", "They were mostly white men from rural areas , soldiers so young they still held fresh memories of high school football heroics and teenage escapades .", "Many men and women were in Iraq for the second or third time .", "Some were going on their fourth , fifth or sixth deployment .", "But in other ways , the situation has changed in the past year .", "Improvised explosive devices -- the kind that killed Specialist Hess -- have grown deadlier , despite concerted Pentagon efforts and billions of dollars spent trying to counteract them .", "Insurgents are now more adept at concealing bombs , booby-trapping them and powering them to penetrate well-armored vehicles .", "They are also scattering more of them along countless roads using myriad triggers and hiding spots -- under garbage and tires , behind guardrails , inside craters .", "At the same time , Iraqi citizens have grown less inclined to tip off soldiers to the presence of these bombs .", "About 1,200 roadside bombs were detonated in August .", "The toll of war has fallen most heavily this year on regular Army soldiers , at least 544 of whom died in this group of 1,000 , compared with 405 in the last group .", "This increase was the result of fewer National Guard soldiers and reservists being deployed to Iraq in 2006 .", "Considering the intensity of the violence in Iraq this year , it is remarkable that the casualty rate did not climb higher , analysts and officers say .", "Long-awaited improvements in body and vehicle armor have helped protect soldiers , and advances in battlefield medicine have saved many lives .", "New procedures , like leaving wounds open to prevent infection , and relaying soldiers to hospitals faster than ever , have kept more service members alive .", "Troops now carry their own tourniquets .", "During World War II , 30 percent of all wounded soldiers died of their injuries , a number that dipped to 24 percent during the Vietnam War and then to 9 percent for the Iraq conflict .", "Though this is a positive development , it also means that more soldiers are coming home with life-changing injuries , including amputations and brain trauma .", "More than 22,000 soldiers have been wounded in Iraq .", "`` There is no question that the number of dead should have been far higher , '' said Dr. William Winkenwerder , the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs , referring to the Iraqi conflict .", "`` Some of these blast injuries are very powerful . ''", "Bombs and bullets are not the only things that can kill soldiers .", "Nearly 20 percent of those who die in Iraq do so outside of combat operations .", "Sometimes it is the hazard of driving too quickly on badly rutted roads to avoid danger .", "Humvees , weighted down with armor , can easily flip if maneuvered too quickly .", "Many of Iraq 's roads are not built to hold heavy vehicles , and the ground can give way , tossing multi-ton machines into narrow canals where soldiers have drowned .", "Helicopters are sometimes strafed by sandstorms or crippled by mechanical malfunctions .", "Accidents make up two-thirds of the nonhostile deaths .", "With so many soldiers carrying so many weapons , unintentional casualties occur , sometimes while handling firearms .", "Fire from one 's own side is another inevitability of war , as is suicide .", "Since March 2003 , 93 soldiers have died from self-inflicted wounds in Iraq .", "In a way , these deaths , coming not at the hands of the enemy , but as a consequence of inferior roads and turbulent weather , can be even more difficult for parents to accept .", "Sometimes they wait months for official reports , since all noncombat deaths must be investigated .", "`` I do n't think I ever thought something like this could happen , `` said Shelley Burnett , whose son , Lance Cpl .", "Jason K . Burnett , 20 , died in May after his tank toppled into a canal .", "`` We talked a lot about the I.E.D. ' s and the dangers out there , but Jason kept saying , ' There is not a whole lot they can do to a tank . '", "`` Death at Roadside Over the last two years , the Pentagon has worked frantically to harden body armor and the armor on its Humvees and other vehicles .", "And the insurgents in Iraq have responded just as forcefully with deadly innovations in roadside bombs , and a fury of sniper bullets .", "The most lethal development is the use of the `` explosively formed penetrators , '' which pierce armor and stay intact when they explode .", "Roadside bombs are often detonated from a distance -- with garage door openers , for example -- or automatically , from pressure-sensitive devices , like a simple rubber air hose .", "Motion detectors and infrared devices are also used .", "The vast majority of these bombs do not kill soldiers , or even injure them seriously .", "Four out of five I.E.D. ` s that detonate do not cause casualties , an improvement over previous years , the Pentagon says .", "But those devices that do cause casualties are killing more soldiers .", "An analysis by The New York Times of military records found that in 2003 , the devices accounted for 16 percent of troop fatalities .", "This year , they accounted for 43 percent .", "And an increasing number are killing more than one soldier .", "`` Unfortunately , when there is a fatal I.E.D. attack , there often are multiple wounded and casualties , '' said Christine DeVries , a spokeswoman for the Pentagon 's Joint I.E.D.", "Defeat Organization .", "`` The enemy has had some success in adapting to what we are doing . ''", "Lance Cpl .", "Jon Eric Bowman , 21 , affectionate and angel-faced , was typical of many of the soldiers and marines who found their calling in the military .", "He was raised in rural Dubach , La . , far from the razzmatazz of New Orleans , and could not wait to join after the Sept . 11 attacks .", "He was first sent to Iraq early in 2005 .", "When he came home later that year , he had changed .", "Three days before he was set to redeploy this September , he sat with his wife in their truck and talked for six hours .", "`` He was crying , he was so scared , '' said his wife , Dawn Bowman , 26 .", "`` He was having dreams that he was n't coming back . ``", "In fact , Corporal Bowman had been having blackouts , migraines and a tic , new ailments from his time in Iraq , his wife said .", "The diagnosis was Tourette 's syndrome , and he was then told by doctors in in Louisiana that fluid had built up in his brain .", "He wound up back in Iraq , anyway .", "`` They felt he was just trying to get out of Iraq , '' said Johnny Bowman , the corporal 's father , of his son 's superiors .", "`` That there was really nothing wrong with him .", "That 's what he told me on the phone . ``", "Corporal Bowman did not push the issue , feeling guilty about abandoning his fellow marines .", "On Oct . 9 , his Humvee ran across a roadside bomb , killing him instantly .", "He had been manning the machine gun .", "`` Jon Eric was not just my only son , '' his father said .", "`` He was my best friend . ''", "Lance Cpl . Jeromy D . West , 20 , a mortar man who loved to fish as much as he hated to study , was killed on Nov . 25 by a sniper bullet as he stood guard on a roof in Haditha .", "It was his second deployment .", "In December , shortly after word of his death , his family honored his wishes and held a memorial for him on the football field at Hamilton High School , near San Diego , where he had been a star player .", "A thousand people showed up .", "`` Everybody liked him , '' his stepfather , Ron Klopf , said .", "`` People would say , ' God , your son is polite . '", "And I would say , ` My kid .", "` I called him Eddie Haskell -- so polite at everybody else 's house . ``", "Corporal West was goofy in the best way .", "Not long before he joined the Marines , he and his friend would compete to see who could get a bigger freeze headache from eating too much ice cream .", "They would writhe in pain .", "Then they would do it again .", "He was 17 when he decided to get serious and join the corps , something his parents tried to talk him out of .", "`` ` You can get killed doing this , ' '' Mr. Klopf remembers saying .", "`` And he said , ' Should we send some other parent 's kid out there .", "` And that 's how he was . ``", "For Corporal Burnett , death came not from bullets or bombs but from riding in a tank in a country crisscrossed with irrigation canals and crumbly roads .", "Just two years after graduating from high school in St . Cloud , Fla . , where he spent his summers building houses for the poor and four-wheeling on back-country roads , Corporal Burnett 's tank fell off a bridge and plunged into a canal , in which he drowned .", "His mother can not forget the day Jason and his younger brother tossed her back and forth in the yard to make her scream with laughter .", "`` He was a fun-loving kid , '' Mrs. Burnett said .", "`` If you heard laughter , you knew Jason was around . ''", "Optimism was Specialist Robert F . Weber 's indelible quality .", "A gunner from Cincinnati , he had warned his mother , Cathy , that the roads in Iraq were wretched .", "She worried a lot during his first deployment , particularly after he sent home a roll of film to develop .", "The first print she saw was of a missile hitting a barracks .", "But he made it back to America and bought a blue Kia , the color of his eyes , before redeploying three weeks later .", "The Army had been a good fit .", "`` He was proud of himself , '' she said of Bobby , her only child .", "`` I was very proud .", "It was like he found his niche . ``", "On his second deployment , though , the situation in Iraq had become grimmer .", "`` Mom , things are getting worse over here , more dangerous , '' he said , from his base near Mosul the Saturday before he died .", "`` The roads are bad .", "You do n't run over anything even if it looks like a piece of paper . ``", "But the lumbering armored Humvee he was on never hit a bomb on Sept . 30 .", "It swerved somehow and flipped , killing him .", "Mrs. Weber said she can not imagine seeing the troops walk away from Iraq now , when democracy seems as unattainable as ever .", "`` For what did all these guys get killed over there .", "`` she asked , incredulously .", "`` What for .", "`` Seven Days from Home Back in America , countless families and friends have waited and worried and tried their best these past years to keep themselves busy until their husbands , sons , wives , daughters , fathers , mothers or buddies returned home safely .", "For 3,000 of them , the reunion never came .", "In too many cases , the homecoming was tantalizingly near , a few more X 's on the calendar and the vigil would be over .", "A number of soldiers were killed just days and weeks from the end of their deployment , a date close enough to allow those back home to lower their guard a trifle , making the deaths all the more devastating .", "`` It 's almost like Christmas is here , and you wake up Christmas morning and there is no Christmas , `` said Col . Bill Rochelle , a retired National Guard commander of the 42nd Division support command .", "Gunnery Sgt .", "John D . Fry , a 28-year-old marine from Lorena , Tex . , was seven days from scooping up his wife , Malia , and his three kids into a group hug back in America .", "`` My plans , '' Sergeant Fry told his commander , `` are to go home and wrestle with my kids . ''", "He and Mrs. Fry were only 15 when they went on their first date , to see `` A League of Their Own , '' and then to eat ice cream at the mall .", "Mom and Dad drove them home .", "A year later , he plopped her on his lap and proposed .", "They kept their engagement a secret .", "Not long after , he was named salutatorian at Heritage Christian Academy .", "Another student bested him for the top title .", "It was the future Mrs. Fry , the valedictorian .", "`` We were soul mates , '' Mrs. Fry said .", "On Nov . 15 , 1995 , five days after he graduated from boot camp , they were married .", "Mr. Fry , who liked a challenge , specialized in defusing explosive devices , a nerve-racking skill he brought with him to Iraq .", "`` Babe , '' Mrs. Fry recalled his saying when he chose the specialty , `` it 's dangerous , but I want to do it .", "And I said , ` Let 's go . '", "`` A team leader , Sergeant Fry , who shipped out to Iraq in September 2005 , disarmed 73 bombs , including one of the biggest car bombs found in Falluja .", "Once he helped defuse a suicide vest that insurgents had belted to a mentally handicapped Iraqi teenage boy .", "The boy had been beaten and chained to a wall .", "Another time , he spotted a bomb from the roof of a house .", "A little boy popped into the yard , hovering dangerously close to it .", "Sergeant Fry won his confidence by playing peekaboo , then got him to move away .", "He was in `` very high spirits '' in March , calling his wife to say that his duties were done , his paperwork filed and his anticipation impossible to stifle .", "`` He had made it , '' she said .", "Then a mission came down , and commanders were preparing to send a team of mostly inexperienced men to defuse bombs along a road in Al Anbar province .", "He volunteered for the job , instead .", "`` That is how he led , '' Mrs. Fry said .", "Sergeant Fry found three bombs that night and defused them .", "But the insurgents had hidden a fourth bomb under the third one , a booby-trap .", "It blew up and killed him .", "An Army team stayed with his body for six hours , fending off enemy fire in the dark until soldiers with mortuary affairs arrived to take his body away .", "The war never scared him , Mrs. Fry said .", "`` It was hard , but he felt he was making a difference , '' she said .", "`` He believed truly , that if he was n't over there , they would be trying to harm us here . ``", "Estimates of Iraqi Civilian Deaths Unlike the tally for American service members , no official count is available for the number of civilians killed in Iraq .", "Estimates based on mortuary tallies , news reports and household surveys vary widely .", "Using figures provided by the Iraq Ministry of Health , which counts violent deaths at hospitals across the country , and Baghdad 's central morgue , the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq has estimated that more than 28,000 Iraqi civilians were killed during the first 10 months of 2006 , a number 40 times higher than the number of American service members killed during that time .", "The American military has criticized the civilian count as high , but it has not released statistics of its own .", "In its quarterly reports to Congress , the Pentagon has provided a rough estimate of the number of Iraqi civilians and security forces killed or wounded by insurgents .", "That number has risen sharply , to an average of more than 90 a day since last May .", "In an off-the-cuff estimate during an official visit to Vienna in November , Iraq 's health minister , Ali al-Shimari , said that 150,000 Iraqis had been killed in violence since the war began in 2003 , the Associated Press has reported .", "Iraq Body Count , an independent group that monitors news reports of deaths , has recorded the deaths of more than 52,000 Iraqi civilians .", "The highest estimates of the civilian toll come from a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health .", "In a study published in The Lancet , a British medical journal , they estimated 600,000 Iraqis died from violence between March 2003 and July 2006 , basing their analysis on a survey of 1,849 households in 47 neighborhoods across Iraq .", "That study was widely criticized -- the sample interviewed may not accurately represent the entire country -- but it emphasized both the difficulty of tracking deaths in a war zone and the need for a reliable count .", "There were three , not four ."], "summary": ["List of US military fatalities in Iraq has reached milestone of 3,000 deaths since March 2003 invasion .", "Number reflects how much more dangerous soldier 's job has become in face of growing and increasingly sophisticated insurgency .", "Pentagon reports that violence in country is at all-time high .", "No official count is available for number of civilians killed .", "Estimates based on mortality tallies , news reports and household surveys vary widely .", "Brief sketches of several US servicemen killed in Iraq .", "Graphs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 187, 186, 12], "tag": ["World", "Front Page"]} +{"id": "1815836", "text": ["Eliot Laurence Spitzer takes the oath of office as New York 's 54th governor in a capital desperately in need of a new moral authority figure .", "Whether or not he succeeds in fulfilling the soaring expectations that led to his landslide victory , his political timing is fortunate .", "After making ethical reform one of the central pledges of his campaign , Mr. Spitzer has watched from the sidelines in recent weeks as scandal has engulfed the upper reaches of state government .", "`` This is a crisis that I do n't want to waste , `` Mr. Spitzer said in an interview before he was sworn in early today .", "-LSB- Page B4 . -RSB-", "`` If there is a result of this momentary concentration on ethical dilemmas and failures , an opportunity to galvanize support for reform , we better seize it . ''", "Since the November election , Comptroller Alan G . Hevesi , a Democrat , has resigned and pleaded guilty to a felony .", "The Senate majority leader , Joseph L . Bruno , a Republican , has revealed that federal authorities were investigating his outside consulting work .", "State Senator Efrain Gonz\u00e1lez Jr . , a Democrat , has been charged with stealing more than $ 400,000 in state money .", "And a state court judge has forced a recalcitrant Legislature to reveal how it spends hundreds of millions of dollars worth of taxpayer funds on pet projects .", "In his effort to change the culture of Albany , Mr. Spitzer said that upon taking office , he would issue `` a slew '' of executive orders `` relating to ethics , procurement and the behavior of the leadership in the agencies where a governor has unilateral control . ''", "The orders will mirror those he recently outlined for his own staff , which included a ban on gifts of more than nominal value and a prohibition on members of the executive branch from lobbying any part of the executive branch for two years after they leave their posts .", "More daunting will be his efforts to push lawmakers to pass a number of measures early in the legislative session as he seizes on his landslide victory and the recent corruption scandals to push his agenda .", "`` He has talked about redistricting reform , he 's talked about campaign finance reform , he 's talked about ending pay to play and he 's talked overall about a transparent and accountable state government , `` said Blair Horner , the legislative director of the New York Public Interest Research Group .", "`` If he accomplishes all of that , that 's probably more reform than we 've seen in New York for the last 200 years . ``", "Mr. Spitzer is trying to reshape a state government notoriously resistant to change .", "Voters re-elected Mr. Hevesi as their comptroller after he admitted using state employees to chauffeur his wife .", "And while nearly a dozen lawmakers faced criminal charges in the last few years , many were subsequently re-elected .", "Mr. Spitzer will probably gain more traction from voters by delivering on his other priorities , including lowering property taxes and revitalizing the upstate economy .", "As attorney general , Mr. Spitzer made his name by taking on Wall Street corruption as the bull market of the late 1990s unraveled and the Securities and Exchange Commission had a limited appetite for enforcement , giving him an opening to redefine his job and make himself a nationally known figure .", "But he now must learn to work by consensus instead of by subpoena , and close watchers of the Albany scene say Mr. Spitzer must act fast so as not to lose momentum .", "Still , while reform proposals have stalled for years in the legislature , lawmakers are aware that Mr. Spitzer was elected by a record margin .", "`` Right now the Legislature is on its heels , '' Mr. Horner said .", "`` They know the public and the new governor wants action , and I think the Legislature will want to accommodate him , but if he gets bogged down in the first session , it makes it harder to achieve the things he wants to do . ''", "Already , Senate Republicans have embraced Mr. Spitzer 's proposal to delineate all spending items in the state budget , ending the practice by the Legislature and Gov . George E . Pataki of writing large blank checks into the budget that they could later spend , largely in secret .", "Certainly , the new governor has a much more caffeinated style than the old one .", "There were titters in political circles when Mr. Pataki recently escorted a group of former Republican governors to the Broadway show `` The Drowsy Chaperone . ''", "The play 's title echoed the criticisms frequently lobbed at Mr. Pataki -- that he has been rarely seen or heard in Albany as its problems have festered .", "Mr. Spitzer has the on-the-offensive style of a former prosecutor and is well known for rattling rich and powerful cages .", "He made a campaign slogan of changing Albany `` on Day 1 '' of his administration , but sought to set a new tone even earlier .", "Shortly before the election , he withdrew his endorsement of Mr. Hevesi , even though the two had been close political allies .", "Mr. Spitzer said that after the election he would begin adhering to a set of campaign finance guidelines far stricter than those required by state law .", "There have been , however , some steps that have raised eyebrows , including Mr. Spitzer 's appointment of a Cablevision lobbyist to be his new secretary of state .", "But many of his closest advisers will be veterans of the attorney general 's office or of his campaign .", "In his inaugural address , Mr. Spitzer will strive to flower his litigator 's prose with rhetorical flourishes .", "Along those lines , he said he would `` hearken back to the great transformations New York has gone through -- the Erie Canal is everybody 's favorite metaphor , and there will be some passing reference to it -- and Teddy Roosevelt 's effort to bring a new ethic of governance to the capital . ``", "`` The theme of the inaugural speech is clearly going to be that we are turning a corner , '' he said .", "`` We have to think of ourselves through a different prism , both in terms of ethics and as an entire state .", "We have to think of ourselves as one New York and not a series of interests that are spoken to , appealed to and mollified . ``", "Brass tacks will probably wait until Wednesday , when Mr. Spitzer delivers his first address to the Legislature , and until Feb . 1 , when his first executive budget is due .", "`` Somebody told me an inaugural is values , a State of the State is principles and the budget is the bad news , '' he said .", "The bad news starts with the multibillion-dollar deficits projected for the state in future years .", "`` The surplus we had at the end of the year is no different than an advance on a credit card bill that will come due on our next statement , '' he said .", "`` There is an increasing series of deficits as we proceed to Year 2 , 3 and 4 .", "The deficit increases by several billion dollars a year thereafter , and this is a consequence of prior budgets having pushed costs into the out years .", "That will make it tough , and tough choices have to be made . ``", "But Mr. Spitzer has some costly promises to keep , and conversely , some politically risky cuts to make .", "During the campaign , he outlined a complicated set of priorities , including reining in state spending to offset escalating future deficits , but also increasing spending on education and cutting by half the number of New Yorkers without health insurance .", "In his speech , he said , he will touch on his three overarching goals .", "At the forefront are his plans for ethical reforms , which include exploring changes to the quasi-independent public authorities that control much of the state 's spending but act , as he has said , as a `` shadow government '' with little accountability .", "A second focus will be investing in the state 's infrastructure , including large transportation projects like replacing the Tappan Zee Bridge and building the Second Avenue subway .", "He also wants the state to take a much more assertive role in creating lower-cost housing .", "`` We have n't had an aggressive state housing policy for how long .", "`` he said .", "`` The state has to participate if we 're going to build the housing stock we need . ``", "Perhaps the most complicated part of his three-pronged agenda is his plan for economic revitalization .", "Reviving the economy of upstate New York , and particularly the Buffalo area , is of such concern that he split the leadership of the Empire State Development Corporation in half , with leaders for upstate and downstate .", "He also wants to rein in state spending overall , in part by overhauling the Medicaid system , but also by lowering property taxes and providing relief to businesses on issues like workers ' compensation policies .", "At the same time , he wants to increase education spending by billions of dollars .", "With so much to do , he hopes to move quickly .", "`` Delay is the enemy of progress , '' he said .", "`` If you do not lay out the agenda early on and lay out the framework for change , we wo n't get there . `` ."], "summary": ["Eliot Spitzer is sworn in as New York 's 54th governor , after making ethics reform central pledge of landslide victory in his election campaign and watching in recent weeks as scandal reached upper reaches of state government .", "Spitzer says that he will issue slew of executive orders relating to ethics , procurement and behavior of leadership in agencies where governor has unilateral control .", "Orders will mirror those he recently outlined for his own staff , which included ban on gifts of more than nominal value and prohibition on members of executive branch from lobbying any part of executive branch for two years after they leave their posts .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 10, 2], "tag": ["Front Page", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1815837", "text": ["The Democrats taking over Congress this week are promising sweeping changes to ethics and lobbying laws , pledging to clean up after a spate of corruption scandals under Republican rules .", "So far , however , their proposals are not as comprehensive or far-reaching as changes already adopted by many state legislatures .", "Democrats in both chambers are proposing new restrictions on gifts , meals or trips paid for by lobbyists .", "They say they plan for the first time to require lawmakers to disclose their sponsorship of the pet items known as earmarks that they insert into major bills .", "House Democrats also want to require members to certify that they will not personally profit from the projects .", "Several states , responding to the federal scandals as well as their own statehouse imbroglios , have already adopted more sweeping gift and travel bans , broader measures to end the central role of lobbyists or government contractors in financing campaigns and new public campaign financing intended to reduce lawmakers ' dependence on big donors .", "To enforce their rules , about half the states have also created independent ethics watchdogs , outside the control of the lawmakers they police -- something federal lawmakers have so far resisted .", "House Democrats recently said they would create a panel to study the idea .", "John Hurson , a former member of the Maryland General Assembly and president of the National Council of State Legislatures , remembers marveling at the goings -on just a few miles away in the United States Capitol .", "He was barred from letting a lobbyist buy him a cup of coffee under rules enforced by the Maryland Ethics Commission .", "Meanwhile , congressmen were flying across the country for golf trips with lobbyists and enlisting them as major fund-raisers for their re-election campaigns .", "`` It was amusing in a sad kind of way , '' said Mr. Hurson , who now works as a Washington lobbyist himself , for a cosmetics industry trade group .", "`` At the state level in Maryland a lobbyist ca n't even have his name on a campaign flier .", "And at the federal level some of these guys are basically running campaigns . ``", "Democrats say their proposals are significant first steps , especially given the customary opposition of most incumbents toward rules that would restrict their fund-raising edge .", "The Democrats argue that their proposals go further than anything Republicans managed to pass .", "`` It is an important step forward from where we have been , let 's put it that way , `` said Representative Chris Van Hollen , the Maryland Democrat who is taking over the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and is a proponent of several more drastic changes .", "Still , some Democrats say they hope the Congress will go beyond the party leaders ' current proposals .", "They argue that their party took control of Congress in part because of backlash against the corruption scandals under the Republicans , that many new members campaigned on ethics reform and that a failure to deliver meaningful changes could hurt the party in the 2008 elections .", "Lawmakers say the Supreme Court made it difficult to regulate campaign spending by ruling in 1976 , in Buckley v. Valeo , that it is a protected form of free expression .", "States , however , are testing the limits of that decision .", "More than a dozen states , including New Jersey and Connecticut , have enacted so-called pay-to-play laws that block contractors or executives of their companies from making campaign contributions to officials who could influence state contracts .", "Connecticut , reeling from a payoff scandal that unseated its governor , recently passed a pay-to-play law that takes aim at a time-tested tactic for evading contribution limits : funneling money through dependents .", "The law bans campaign contributions not only from lobbyists and contracting executives but also from their children and spouses .", "To make enforcement easier , lobbyists and contractors would be required to disclose the names of their family members on a public Web site .", "-LRB- No Congressional proposal does the same . -RRB-", "On Tuesday , a federal district court judge in Connecticut will hear a challenge to the law .", "Connecticut has also borrowed some aspects of a decade-old Maryland law that seeks to restrict the most valuable gift that lobbyists give lawmakers : campaign fund-raising .", "At the federal level , caps on individual or corporate campaign contributions have placed a premium on `` bundlers , '' who solicit and collect donations to turn over in bulk to a candidate 's campaign .", "Many Washington lobbyists are among the biggest bundlers , and even help run re-election campaigns .", "Across the District of Columbia border in Maryland , state law bars lobbyists from soliciting contributions for candidates or playing any roles in the campaigns .", "`` Lobbyists can no longer be the center of the fund-raising process , '' Mr. Van Hollen of Maryland said .", "Mr. Van Hollen said he planned to introduce a measure requiring federal lobbyists to disclose whom they ask for the contributions that they bundle and how much those people give .", "A similar measure was deleted from a bill by the Republican leadership before it reached the floor .", "States are also adopting new forms of public campaign financing .", "Congressional candidates receive no public financing , and there is no limit on what they can spend .", "And the public financing system adopted for presidential campaigns after the Watergate scandal is on the brink of obsolescence .", "For the first time in three decades , the major 2008 presidential candidates are expected to reject the system in favor of raising unlimited private funds .", "Several states , however , are expanding the idea .", "Maryland and New Jersey are among those considering a system enacted in Arizona and Maine .", "The new Connecticut law includes a modified form of the idea , known as `` clean elections . ''", "Participating candidates who get a certain amount of small contributions -- as low as $ 5 in some places -- receive large lump sums of public campaign money early in the race if they agree not to raise or spend private funds .", "And , up to a limit , the state pledges to give participating candidates enough money to match the campaign spending of any rival candidate outside the system .", "No state , of course , has eradicated the influence of money .", "In Maryland , for example , lobbyists can not take individual lawmakers to dinner but can treat whole legislative committees , a rule lobbyists say favors the well-financed .", "Even so , some Annapolis lobbyists appreciate the fund-raising ban .", "`` Legislators can call and say they need your help , '' said Minor Carter , a Republican lobbyist .", "`` And you have the absolute defense of saying , ' I 'm sorry , I ca n't . ' `` ."], "summary": ["Democrats taking over Congress are promising sweeping changes to ethics and lobbying laws , pledging to clean up after spate of corruption scandals under Republican rules .", "Their proposals are not as comprehensive or far-reaching as changes already adopted by many state legislatures .", "Several states have adopted more sweeping gift and travel bans , broader measures to end central role of lobbyists or government contractors in financing campaigns and new public campaign financing intended to reduce lawmakers ' dependence on big donors ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 0, 1], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815838", "text": ["With his plain pine coffin strapped into an American military helicopter for a predawn journey across the desert , Saddam Hussein , the executed dictator who built a legend with his defiance of America , completed a turbulent passage into history on Sunday .", "Like the helicopter trip , just about everything in the 24 hours that began with Mr. Hussein 's being taken to his execution from his cell in an American military detention center in the postmidnight chill of Saturday had a surreal and even cinematic quality .", "Part of it was that the Americans , who turned him into a pariah and drove him from power , proved to be his unlikely benefactors in the face of Iraq 's new Shiite rulers who seemed bent on turning the execution and its aftermath into a new nightmare for the Sunni minority privileged under Mr. Hussein .", "-LSB- Page A7 . -RSB-", "The 110-mile journey aboard a Black Hawk helicopter carried Mr. Hussein 's body to an American military base north of Tikrit , Camp Speicher , named for an American Navy pilot lost over Iraq in the first hours of the Persian Gulf war in 1991 .", "From there , an Iraqi convoy carried him to Awja , the humble town beside the Tigris River that Mr. Hussein , in the chandeliered palaces that became his habitat as ruler , spoke of as emblematic of the miseries of his lonely and impoverished youth .", "The American role extended beyond providing the helicopter that carried Mr. Hussein home .", "Iraqi and American officials who have discussed the intrigue and confusion that preceded the decision late on Friday to rush Mr. Hussein to the gallows have said that it was the Americans who questioned the political wisdom -- and justice -- of expediting the execution , in ways that required Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to override constitutional and religious precepts that might have assured Mr. Hussein a more dignified passage to his end .", "The Americans ' concerns seem certain to have been heightened by what happened at the hanging , as evidenced in video recordings made just before Mr. Hussein fell through the gallows trapdoor at 6:10 a.m. on Saturday .", "A new video that appeared on the Internet late Saturday , apparently made by a witness with a camera cellphone , underscored the unruly , mocking atmosphere in the execution chamber .", "This continued , on the video , through the actual hanging itself , with a shout of `` The tyrant has fallen ! May God curse him ! '' as Mr. Hussein hung lifeless , his neck snapped back and his glassy eyes open .", "The cacophony from those gathered before the gallows included a shout of `` Go to hell ! '' as the former ruler stood with the noose around his neck in the final moments , and his riposte , barely audible above the bedlam , which included the words `` gallows of shame . ''", "It continued despite appeals from an official-sounding voice , possibly Munir Haddad , the judge who presided at the hanging , saying , `` Please no ! The man is about to die . ''", "The Shiites who predominated at the hanging began a refrain at one point of `` Moktada ! Moktada ! Moktada ! '' -- the name of a volatile cleric whose private militia has spawned death squads that have made an indiscriminate industry of killing Sunnis -- appending it to a Muslim imprecation for blessings on the Prophet Muhammad .", "`` Moktada , '' Mr. Hussein replied , smiling contemptuously .", "`` Is this how real men behave .", "`` American officials in Iraq have been reluctant to say much publicly about the pell-mell nature of the hanging , apparently fearful of provoking recriminations in Washington , where the Bush administration adopted a hands-off posture , saying the timing of the execution was Iraq 's to decide .", "While privately incensed at the dead-of-night rush to the gallows , the Americans here have been caught in the double bind that has ensnared them over much else about the Maliki government -- frustrated at what they call the government 's failure to recognize its destructive behavior , but reluctant to speak out , or sometimes to act , for fear of undermining Mr. Maliki and worsening the situation .", "But a narrative assembled from accounts by various American officials , and by Iraqis present at some of the crucial meetings between the two sides , shows that it was the Americans who counseled caution in the way the Iraqis carried out the hanging .", "The issues uppermost in the Americans ' minds , these officials said , were a provision in Iraq 's new Constitution that required the three-man presidency council to approve hangings , and a stipulation in a longstanding Iraqi law that no executions can be carried out during the Id al-Adha holiday , which began for Iraqi Sunnis on Saturday and Shiites on Sunday .", "A senior Iraqi official said the Americans staked out their ground at a meeting on Thursday , 48 hours after an appeals court had upheld the death sentence passed on Mr. Hussein and two associates .", "They were convicted in November of crimes against humanity for the persecution of the Shiite townspeople of Dujail , north of Baghdad , in 1982 .", "Mr. Hussein , as president , signed a decree to hang 148 men and teenage boys .", "Told that Mr. Maliki wanted to carry out the death sentence on Mr. Hussein almost immediately , and not wait further into the 30-day deadline set by the appeals court , American officers at the Thursday meeting said that they would accept any decision but needed assurance that due process had been followed before relinquishing physical custody of Mr. Hussein .", "`` The Americans said that we have no issue in handing him over , but we need everything to be in accordance with the law , '' the Iraqi official said .", "`` We do not want to break the law . ''", "The American pressure sent Mr. Maliki and his aides into a frantic quest for legal workarounds , the Iraqi official said .", "The Americans told them they needed a decree from President Jalal Talabani , signed jointly by his two vice presidents , upholding the death sentence , and a letter from the chief judge of the Iraqi High Tribunal , the court that tried Mr. Hussein , certifying the verdict .", "But Mr. Talabani , a Kurd , made it known that he objected to the death penalty on principle .", "The Maliki government spent much of Friday working on legal mechanisms to meet the American demands .", "From Mr. Talabani , they obtained a letter saying that while he would not sign a decree approving the hanging , he had no objections .", "The Iraqi official said Mr. Talabani first asked the tribunal 's judges for an opinion on whether the constitutional requirement for presidential approval applied to a death sentence handed down by the tribunal , a special court operating outside Iraq 's main judicial system .", "The judges said the requirement was void .", "Mr. Maliki had one major obstacle : the Hussein-era law proscribing executions during the Id holiday .", "This remained unresolved until late Friday , the Iraqi official said .", "He said he attended a late-night dinner at the prime minister 's office at which American officers and Mr. Maliki 's officials debated the issue .", "One participant described the meeting this way : `` The Iraqis seemed quite frustrated , saying , ' Who is going to execute him , anyway , you or us .", "` The Americans replied by saying that obviously , it was the Iraqis who would carry out the hanging .", "So the Iraqis said , ` This is our problem and we will handle the consequences .", "If there is any damage done , it is we who will be damaged , not you . '", "`` To this , the Iraqis added what has often been their trump card in tricky political situations : they telephoned officials of the marjaiya , thesupreme religious body in Iraqi Shiism , composed of ayatollahs in the holy city of Najaf .", "The ayatollahs approved .", "Mr. Maliki , at a few minutes before midnight on Friday , then signed a letter to the justice minister , `` to carry out the hanging until death . ''", "The Maliki letter sent Iraqi and American officials into a frenzy of activity .", "Fourteen Iraqi officials , including senior members of the Maliki government , were called at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday and told to gather at the prime minister 's office .", "At .", "3:30 a.m. , they were driven to the helicopter pad beside Mr. Hussein 's old Republican Palace , and taken to the prison in the northern suburb of Khadimiya where the hanging took place .", "At about the same time , American and Iraqi officials said , Mr. Hussein was roused at his Camp Cropper cell 10 miles away , and taken to a Black Hawk helicopter for his journey to Khadimiya .", "None of the Iraqi officials were able to explain why Mr. Maliki had been unwilling to allow the execution to wait .", "Nor would any explain why those who conducted it had allowed it to deteriorate into a sectarian free-for-all that had the effect , on the video recordings , of making Mr. Hussein , a mass murderer , appear dignified and restrained , and his executioners , representing Shiites who were his principal victims , seem like bullying street thugs .", "But the explanation may have lain in something that Bassam al-Husseini , a Maliki aide closely involved in arrangements for the hanging , said to the BBC later .", "Mr. Husseini , who has American citizenship , described the hanging as `` an Id gift to the Iraqi people . ''", "The weekend 's final disorderly chapter came with the tensions over Mr. Hussein 's body .", "For nearly 18 hours on Saturday , Mr. Maliki 's officials insisted that his corpse would be kept in secret government custody until circumstances allowed interment without his grave becoming a shrine or a target .", "Once again , the Americans intervened .", "The leader of Mr. Hussein 's Albu-Nasir tribe , Sheik Ali al-Nida , said that before flying to Baghdad on an American helicopter , he had been so fearful for his safety that he had written a will .", "Bizarrely , Sheik Nida and others were shown on Iraqi television collecting the coffin from the courtyard in front of Mr. Maliki 's office , where it sat unceremoniously in a police pickup .", "After the helicopter trip to Camp Speicher , the American base outside Tikrit , the coffin was taken in an Iraqi convoy to Awja , and laid to rest in the ornate visitors ' center that Mr. Hussein ordered built for the townspeople in the 1990s .", "Local officials and members of Mr. Hussein 's tribe had broken open the marbled floor in the main reception hall , and cleared what they said would be a temporary burial place until he could be moved to a permanent grave outside Awja where his two sons , Uday and Qusay , are buried .", "At the burial , several mourners threw themselves on the closed casket .", "One , a young man convulsed with sobs , cried : `` He has not died .", "I can hear him speaking to me . ``", "Another shouted , `` Saddam is dead ! Instead of weeping for him , think of ways we can take revenge on the Iranian enemy , '' Sunni parlance for the Shiites now in power .", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["US and Iraqi officials who have discussed intrigue and confusion that preceded decision to rush Saddam Hussein to gallows have said that it was Americans who questioned political wisdom and justice of expediting execution , in ways that required Prime Min Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to override constitutional and religious precepts that might have assured Hussein more dignified passage to his end .", "New video that has appeared on Internet underscores unruly , mocking atmosphere in execution chamber .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7], "tag": ["Technology", "World", "Front Page", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815839", "text": ["It may fall short of a feel-good sequel to `` Chinatown , '' the movie based on the notorious , somewhat shady water grab by Los Angeles that allowed the city to bloom from a semi-arid desert .", "But in one of the largest river restoration efforts in the West , water is again flowing along a 62-mile stretch of the Owens River after a dry spell of nearly a century .", "That part of the river had been left mostly drained when upstream water , fed by snowmelt from the towering Sierra Nevada , was channeled 233 miles south to fill swimming pools and bathtubs throughout Los Angeles .", "The restored flow is among several long-awaited steps the city is taking to help make amends for the environmental consequences of its water maneuvering , most notably the drying up of Owens Lake , an area more than three times the size of Manhattan , here in the Owens Valley .", "Los Angeles agreed in December to expand efforts to control toxic dust storms that erupt from what is left of the lake , a 110-square-mile body that emptied when the river was diverted to Los Angeles through an aqueduct opened in 1913 .", "The lake 's salty , mineral-laced basin has been the largest single source of particulate pollution in the country .", "It looks so otherworldly that it doubled as a desolate planet in the movie `` Star Trek V : The Final Frontier . ''", "To restore the river , Los Angeles built automated gates at the point where the river veers into the aqueduct .", "The gates steer some water into the original riverbed , setting the stage for the growth of cottonwood trees and other plants and the return of waterfowl and other animals .", "Much of the water eventually returns to the aqueduct , though some of it is being used for lake irrigation and other projects .", "Environmentalists here say they are keeping an eye on Los Angeles for backsliding , but they acknowledge that the new efforts will make a significant difference .", "As winds whipped across Owens Lake on a recent afternoon , Mike Prather of the Owens Valley Committee , which along with the Sierra Club took Los Angeles to court over the environmental fallout of its water policies , marveled at sandpipers , American avocets and other birds frolicking in the shallow pools created by the irrigation .", "`` This work will bring back more and more of them , '' Mr. Prather said , savoring the twist in the battle that means water once intended for Los Angeles will feed the lake .", "`` It 's Owens Valley 's turn to stick its straw in L.A. ` s water , '' he said .", "Court rulings and the threat of legal action have largely forced Los Angeles 's hand in dealing with its past water moves , but city leaders say they are also intent on doing the right thing in keeping up a vital source of water while avoiding further damage to the Owens Valley .", "H . David Nahai , president of the board that oversees the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power , said Los Angeles was looking for less adversarial ways to resolve differences over the valley , which provides 40 percent to 60 percent of the city 's water supply , depending on the snowfall in the mountains .", "`` We ca n't change the past , but we can shape the future , `` said Mr. Nahai , one of five board members appointed by Mayor Antonio R . Villaraigosa , who promised a friendlier approach to the valley when he took office in July 2005 .", "Susan Cash , the chairwoman of the Board of Supervisors of Inyo County , where the Owens Valley is located , said animosity toward Los Angeles had lessened since the early 20th century , when the water diversion was made possible by the purchase of much of the valley by less-than-forthcoming city operatives .", "The underhanded moves , as chronicled by historians , included city representatives posing as ranchers as they bought up property .", "The questionable land dealing provided the inspiration for `` Chinatown , '' the 1974 movie starring Jack Nicholson as a private detective who stumbles across corruption on a Los Angeles water project .", "Water from the valley made possible the growth of what became the nation 's second-largest city .", "But people in the valley have long regarded the water dealings as a double-edged sword .", "Officials here have argued that the water diversion undercut the potential for growth .", "But others say that such prospects were dim anyway in such a dry and remote valley , and that Los Angeles 's keeping the water clean and the land relatively untouched has been a boon .", "Los Angeles 's policy of allowing public access to much of its land and the fact that many people here have worked for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power , one of the valley 's largest employers , or have friends or relatives there , have contributed to improved relations .", "The godfathers of Ms. Cash 's children worked for the department .", "`` The fact is , '' she said , `` we are in a marriage with no annulment in the near future , so we have to find a way to work together . ''", "Inyo officials said the city 's projects could inspire more tourism , the only real economic activity in this dry , high-desert valley .", "`` We have recreational users now but not to the extent it can be once the river is flowing and there is sufficient water for fish and wildlife , '' said Arlene Grider , president of the chamber of commerce here .", "The long-promised river restoration is a $ 24 million project , compensation won from a lawsuit by environmental groups over excessive groundwater pumping .", "It came after delays that prompted a county judge in September 2005 to impose daily fines of $ 5,000 on Los Angeles .", "The penalty has so far cost the city $ 2.3 million and will continue until a large volume of water flows through the river in the coming months .", "The work on the lake , scheduled to be completed by 2010 , will irrigate or otherwise control dust over 43 square miles .", "The improvements result from an agreement the city signed with the local air pollution control regulator in 1998 that sets a timetable to comply with federal requirements to control dust on the lake .", "The city has spent $ 400 million on dust control for just under 30 square miles of the worst pockets , and in December , through a mediator , it agreed to do 12.7 more square miles by 2010 at a cost of $ 105 million .", "A water department spokeswoman in Los Angeles , Carol Tucker , said ratepayers would see relatively modest increases in their monthly bills .", "The river restoration , for example , would amount to an increase of about 26 cents .", "Los Angeles has one of the country 's more intensive conservation programs , allowing it to use roughly the same amount of water even as it has grown by 750,000 residents in the past two decades .", "But environmentalists say they doubt the city can grow much more without finding more water .", "Mr. Nahai said the Department of Water and Power was already studying other possibilities , like using groundwater from within Los Angeles , buying water from other places and desalinating ocean water .", "But one thing is certain , he said : `` Are we going to get to a place where we are going to pump all the water out .", "No . ``", "Still , most everyone suggests there could be rough going ahead .", "Ms. Cash , the Inyo County supervisor , said officials were only `` cautiously optimistic '' about a changed relationship with Los Angeles because they had heard nice words from the city before , only to end up in court .", "Mr. Nahai acknowledged that the litigious nature of the relationship would be difficult to break .", "`` Nobody can guarantee there wo n't be litigation in the future , and litigation has its uses , `` he said .", "`` There is no denying what the City of Los Angeles has done far too often has been because of court order . ''", "He added , `` It 's like what Mark Twain said : ` Whiskey is for drinking , and water is for fighting over . ' '' ."], "summary": ["Water is again flowing along 62-mile stretch of Owens River in eastern California , in one of largest river restoration efforts in West , and after dry spell of nearly century .", "That part of river had been left mostly drained when upstream water , fed by snowmelt from Sierra Nevada Mountains , was channeled 233 miles south to Los Angeles .", "Restored flow is among several long-awaited steps city is taking to help make amends for environmental consequences of its water maneuvering , most notably drying up of Owens Lake , area more than three times size of Manhattan .", "Diagram .", "Map . Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 2, 1], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1815841", "text": ["With his wife , his children and his parents looking on , Eliot Laurence Spitzer was officially sworn in at midnight as the 54th governor of New York State during a private ceremony here at the governor 's mansion .", "A cheer rose from the guests : `` Go get ' em , Eliot ! '' And with those words , New York 's Democrats reclaimed the governor 's office after 12 years of Republican rule , and Mr. Spitzer , 47 , ascended to a historic office that has been held by Franklin and Theodore Roosevelt , Alfred E . Smith , Thomas E . Dewey and Hugh L . Carey , who was present .", "A more festive public inauguration ceremony with pomp , circumstance , food and music is scheduled to be held Monday afternoon , but Mr. Spitzer needed to take the oath of office by midnight in order to ensure the smooth transition of government as he took over from Gov . George E . Pataki , whose 12-year term ended at midnight .", "Mr. Spitzer was sworn in by Judge Robert W . Sweet , the Federal District Court judge who gave Mr. Spitzer his start in public service , hiring him as a clerk in 1984 after his graduation from Harvard Law School .", "With the new governor were his wife , Silda Wall Spitzer .", "His daughters , Elyssa , 17 , Sarabeth , 14 , and Jenna , 12 .", "His parents , Bernard and Anne Spitzer .", "And dozens of political figures and family friends .", "The party was not without drama .", "Lloyd Constantine -- Mr. Spitzer 's friend , tennis partner , onetime law partner and co-chairman of his transition team -- continued his tradition of buying Champagne for a Spitzer oath of office .", "The bottles seem to grow in size with the job .", "As Ms. Wall Spitzer put it , `` The bottles just keep getting bigger . ''", "This time Mr. Constantine went for a 12-liter bottle of Veuve Clicquot called a balthazar .", "But opening it did not prove easy -- the Champagne did not flow until Mr. Constantine attacked the giant bottle with a wrench , enlisted the help of another guest , and eventually broke the lip of the bottle , cutting his hand , and waving the bloody hand in triumph .", "Asked if it was worth it , he said , `` Yeah , sure . ''", "The public festivities later Monday were to feature New York State wines from Long Island , the Hudson Valley and the Finger Lakes , as well as regional specialties like Guss 's pickles , Junior 's cheesecake and Buffalo wings from the Anchor Bar in Buffalo .", "There was some trepidation about the weather forecast , though .", "Mr. Spitzer , who spoke about the value of optimism during the campaign , planned an outdoor inaugural for New Year 's Day in Albany -LRB- and a 6 a.m. run through Washington Park -RRB- .", "But with light rain falling , and freezing rain forecast , most of the inaugural events were pushed back an hour in the hopes that the bad weather would move through ."], "summary": ["Eliot Spitzer is sworn in as 54th governor of New York State by Federal Judge Robert W Sweet at governor 's mansion in Albany .", "Ceremony i small and private and is attended by family , friends and dignitaries .", "Larger celebration is planned for afternoon of January 2 .", "12-year regime of Gov George E Pataki ended at midnight .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 7], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1815842", "text": ["As she wrote her first inaugural speech , M . Jodi Rell turned to the remarks of Gerald R . Ford .", "Like the former president who took over after the resignation of Richard M . Nixon , Governor Rell was looking for a way to soothe nerves , not make waves .", "She was sworn in on a hot day in July 2004 after the abrupt resignation of Gov . John G . Rowland , a Republican who would be sentenced to a year in federal prison on corruption charges .", "`` People were so disappointed , they were so disillusioned , they had just lost faith , '' Ms. Rell said , apparently referring to both her own situation and President Ford 's .", "`` They just needed somebody to say it 's going to be O.K. and we are going to get past this . ``", "Now , with Mr. Ford 's death coinciding with Ms. Rell 's preparation for her first full term , she said her role as the state 's leader had evolved .", "She was no longer the accidental governor .", "`` After the election , it just felt like coming back to work .", "Nothing really changed , `` Ms. Rell , a Republican who swept 63 percent of the vote in November , said in a recent interview at the Capitol here .", "`` But it 's only in the last week or so where it 's hit me -- this is different .", "The expectations and the new session gives you pause to say all right , this is what we are going to do .", "This is my agenda . ``", "Extremely popular and perceived as honest and calm , Ms. Rell is just now beginning to form her own cabinet , dismissing nearly all of Mr. Rowland 's top assistants .", "After two years largely characterized by initiatives to `` right the ship '' in a state crippled by corrupt politicians , Ms. Rell , who will be sworn in on Wednesday , now must attack more complex problems , such as soaring health care and energy costs .", "And though she was one of only a handful of Republicans in the Northeast who managed to retain a top office this election season , Ms. Rell faces a veto-proof Democratic majority in both chambers of the General Assembly .", "The dominance of Democrats could certainly hobble Ms. Rell 's plans to cut taxes .", "Already , she has compromised one of her signature ideas : after legislative leaders indicated they would block her efforts to cut the car tax , Ms. Rell dropped the subject , saying she would choose her battles carefully .", "`` I think we are approaching a time where we have to come up with some really creative solutions , and if the governor ca n't get there it is possible the honeymoon would be over , `` said Donald E . Williams Jr . , leader of the Democrats in the State Senate .", "But for all the chatter in political circles of their party 's new power , Mr. Williams and other Democrats speak of the Republican governor in tones usually reserved for one of their own .", "`` I do n't think anyone is looking for unnecessary fights , `` Senator Williams said .", "`` The governor has sealed her popularity among voters and made people feel extremely comfortable . ''", "Confrontation and flashy speech are not Ms. Rell 's style .", "Elected to the State House of Representatives in 1984 , she earned a reputation for dealing with mundane details , picking apart legislation and knowing precisely where there was room for compromise .", "That approach helped lead to a sense of Ms. Rell , 60 , as a maternal figure , something that has stuck through her term in executive office .", "Some Democrats remark privately that when the governor admonishes them to kill or push through a bill , it is like being scolded by their mother .", "Ms. Rell cultivates that image : In a season of brutal campaign attack advertisements , one of her commercials featured the governor sitting in a chair with her grandson .", "A public service announcement encouraging drivers not to drink and drive has Ms. Rell on a playground surrounded by children .", "And when she released a health care proposal last week , half a dozen children sat on either side waving to the television cameras .", "Peering out at the audience over her bifocals , Ms. Rell resembled a teacher reading the lesson of the day .", "Ms. Rell and her supporters have always been happy to acknowledge that she was an unlikely candidate to become the state 's top political figure .", "A former homemaker who dropped out of college , Ms. Rell earned her political education on the job , working her way up to become minority leader of the House before being tapped by Mr. Rowland to run for lieutenant governor .", "The two were never particularly close , and Ms. Rell maintains that she had no clue about Mr. Rowland 's wrongdoings , something that infuriates opponents trying to tie her to the corrupt administration .", "Such criticisms have somehow yet to stick .", "Even when Ms. Rell 's chief of staff became embroiled in controversy for distributing invitations to a political fund-raiser on state time last year , voters consistently told pollsters they trusted the Rell administration .", "Some people in both parties complain that Governor Rell has done little to articulate or push her own agenda , instead favoring policies typically backed by Democrats such as stem-cell research or civil unions for same-sex couples .", "Others see that as her strength .", "`` You hear Democrats claim : ' She has n't done anything , she has n't done anything , ' `` said Chris Barnes , a pollster at the University of Connecticut .", "`` Well , the last governor did something and the something was lining his pockets .", "People are quite happy this governor is not doing that something . ``", "Instead , Ms. Rell has wisely been `` adjusting the course rather that setting it , '' Mr. Barnes said .", "`` People were not begging for grandiose plans .", "They just want the government not to mess things up . ``", "Such a modest goal aptly sums up the governing philosophy of Ms. Rell , who describes herself a steadfast moderate who believes in `` less government , less intrusive government , and less spending whenever possible . ''", "Her biggest fights with the Legislature will likely be over the budget , which Ms. Rell will present in February , and taxes .", "Also , Democrats plan to making universal health care a top priority , while Ms. Rell last week offered a far more limited proposal than what Democrats envision .", "Ms. Rell opened the health care bidding last week with a plan to let uninsured adult residents buy into a pool with a premium of $ 250 a month .", "Emphasizing that she would not support a `` big government '' subsidy , Ms. Rell said the cost of the plan to the state would be minimal .", "After decades in public office , Ms. Rell can still appear wary of the spotlight , blushing at the slightest embarrassment or standing at the back of a crowd -- and she guards her privacy .", "When she had a mastectomy to remove breast cancer two days after Christmas in 2004 , her assistants did not announce the operation until she was already at the hospital and asked well-wishers not to send flowers .", "There are signs of increasing comfort with the pageantry .", "On Wednesday , Ms. Rell will lead the first inaugural parade and ball the state has had in more than a decade -LRB- though she turned down a society reporter 's request to photograph her off-white ball gown last week -RRB- .", "`` I think you 're going to see more and more of her , `` said Robert Farr , an ally of Ms. Rell who recently retired from the General Assembly .", "`` A year ago she was the governor by accident , but she can clearly be the real thing now .", "`` She is not going to be one rushing for press conferences , '' Mr. Farr added .", "`` She is not one to go out and state a political position every day .", "But when she stakes something out , she is going to present something that can give measurable results . ``", "For her part , Ms. Rell said she is still drawing inspiration from the former president she looked to the first time she took the oath of office .", "`` Gerald Ford was not flashy , '' she said , her voice softening .", "`` He wanted to talk to people .", "And I know that 's what I want .", "I want people to feel comfortable .", "I want them to see a governor up close . `` ."], "summary": ["Gov M Jodi Rell is set to begin full term at helm of Connecticut after taking two years to right ship .", "Took office in 2004 following resignation of her predecessor John G Rowland .", "Plans to use full term to attack serious problems , such as soaring health care and energy costs .", "Dominance of Democrats in State Legislature will hinder her plans to cut taxes .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 15, 2], "tag": ["Health", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1815843", "text": ["In New York City , rapes , robberies and assaults , among other crimes , continued to decline last year , prompting the Police Department 's top official to herald 2006 as a very good year .", "Homicides , however , climbed 10 percent in the city , reversing a much-hailed decrease .", "`` We 'd like to see no homicides .", "The reality is we 're going to have them , `` said Police Commissioner Raymond W . Kelly .", "`` I think this is a very good year . ''", "He called the increase in killings in 2006 all but negligible compared with 1990 , a year with one of the highest homicide rates in recent history .", "That year , crack-fueled violence soared , and 2,262 people were killed .", "Last year there were 579 killings citywide as of Dec . 24 , an increase of 52 homicides over the same period in 2005 .", "Yet overall crime last year was down 5 percent .", "The number of reported rapes declined by 7.4 percent to 1,486 , subway crime plunged 13 percent and auto theft fell 11.4 percent .", "The police said the year 's jump in homicides was rooted largely in an unusually high number of `` reclassified '' deaths , deaths linked to injuries incurred in months or years past .", "There were 38 reclassified homicides in New York last year , compared with 21 in 2005 .", "New York 's overall fall in crime also contrasts with an increase nationwide .", "According to a report by the F.B.I. , violent crime across the country rose 3.7 percent during the first half of the year .", "Dallas remained the country 's most violent city , with 3,985 crimes per 100,000 people , according to the midyear report , while New York ranked 10th with 1,1,87 per 100,000 .", "Myriad factors account for New York 's continuing decline in crime overall , the police and criminologists say .", "They cited more effective policing , shifting drug patterns and the lowest unemployment rate in 30 years .", "Yet what is puzzling , one expert said , is that overall crime is dropping even as New York becomes an increasingly polarized city , with haves and have-nots often living side by side in luxury condominiums and public housing .", "`` Within a few blocks , people are living worlds apart , '' said Andrew Karmen , a sociology professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the author of `` New York Murder Mystery : The True Story Behind the Crime Crash of the 1990s . ''", "`` In theory , that should make the poor more dissatisfied and drive people to commit crimes , '' he said .", "`` But that does n't seem to be happening in New York . ``", "One possible explanation , Dr. Karmen said , is that the city is largely populated by immigrants , many of whom are driven by a determination to succeed .", "`` I think they still maintain a positive outlook and faith in the American dream , '' he said .", "`` But if it does n't deliver , attitudes could change . ``", "It has proven difficult to root out violent crime in the city 's toughest corners .", "One of the city 's most perilous neighborhoods is in the 75th Precinct in Brooklyn , which includes East New York .", "There the number of slayings last year was virtually unchanged from 2005 at 28 , and 3,239 crimes were reported .", "Public housing projects have a disproportionate number of crimes .", "While 5 percent of New York 's eight million residents live in public housing , Commissioner Kelly said , 16 percent of the city 's homicides take place there .", "The Police Department plans to tackle that seemingly intractable problem by redeploying personnel from other areas and opening police substations in the most troubled housing complexes , Commissioner Kelly said .", "Both homicide victims and suspects tend to have links to crime already , he said .", "Of those arrested last year in homicides , 95 percent had criminal histories .", "75 percent of the people killed did .", "Such figures point to the department 's need to continue expanding its homicide , shooting and crime databases , Mr. Kelly said .", "`` The more information we have , the greater the potential we have to prevent crimes , '' he said .", "New York 's rebirth as a safer-than-average large city since the 1990s has coincided with an increase in tourism here .", "According to city officials , about 44 million people visited last year on business or pleasure .", "`` One overarching reason why people are coming here , in a city that was attacked five years ago , it 's because they have a sense of comfort as far as security is concerned , `` Mr. Kelly said .", "The department is continuing to pour more resources into community policing , forging bonds between its officials and local leaders , especially those from new immigrant communities .", "Yet in neighborhoods where homicide rates climbed , residents seem divided about whether this recent and heightened focus was improving their lives .", "Allah B , the director of the Allah in Mecca Youth Center in Harlem , commended officers in its precinct , the 28th , for holding local forums and listening to community concerns .", "Even though slayings in the precinct more than doubled , to 11 , last year , he said the increased connection between residents and the police fostered a greater sense of ease .", "Yet a longtime resident of the St . Nicholas Homes in Harlem said police efforts to rout out criminals were having a divisive effect in her neighborhood .", "`` They caused a lot of trouble trying to play one person against the other , '' said the woman , who would give only her first name , Keisha .", "She said people in the neighborhood also felt harassed and persecuted by the police , and that such impressions heightened the tension and stress in the community .", "Still , despite a slight increase in the number of homicides in her neighborhood , she said the streets felt far less violent than in previous years .", "The sense that New Yorkers are increasingly inhabiting two different realities seems particularly strong in places like Fort Greene , Brooklyn , home to a thriving cafe scene and crime-plagued public housing complexes .", "Eleven homicides were recorded in the neighborhood last year , compared with none in 2005 .", "Strolling along a stretch of DeKalb Avenue by Fort Greene Park late last week , Cheryl Pickett , 36 , said she had no idea that murders had risen so sharply in the area .", "Ms. Pickett , who has lived in Fort Greene for five years , said her perception of the neighborhood had not changed .", "She still thinks of it as a safe , child-friendly place with charming shops and bars .", "`` When things happen , it 's really surprising , `` Ms. Pickett said .", "`` This year seems no different than last . '' ."], "summary": ["Murders in New York City rose by 10 percent in 2006 over 2005 to 579 , even as overall crime continued to decline .", "Homicides were well below 2,262 in 1990 .", "Rise reversed declining trend .", "Overall crime fell 5 percent in 2006 compared to 2005 .", "Reported rapes were down 7.4 to 1,486 .", "Subway crime plunged 13 percent and auto crime fell 11.4 percent ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 11, 8], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1815882", "text": ["Standing before a row of enlarged photographic slides of deadly viruses like Ebola and Hantavirus that decorate the new lunchroom at his office , Dr. Sherif Zaki professed himself to be uplifted .", "`` I ca n't tell you how much this has done for our morale , `` Dr. Zaki said .", "As a leader of an 11-year-old program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention here that tries to ferret out the cause of 700 or so unexplained deaths across the United States each year , Dr. Zaki spends his days on matters that could test the morale of any scientist : a boy in Mississippi who died 17 days after developing a fever and headache .", "A football player at the University of Missouri who died hours after collapsing on the field .", "A skateboarder who scraped her knee and died a few days later .", "These are among the mysteries for which Dr. Zaki and his colleagues at the Unexplained Deaths Project , or UNEX , serve as the medical detectives of last resort .", "Now , after years of toiling in the subbasement of a 1950s-era building on the C.D.C. ` s campus , Dr. Zaki 's team has moved to a futuristic-looking building nearby where the window shades automatically rise or fall depending on the amount of sunshine , a transmission electron microscope stands ready to magnify bacteria and viruses up to 740,000 times , and images of deadly pathogens pass for d\u00e9cor .", "Started in 1995 as an informal collaboration among a handful of C.D.C. scientists determined to identify outbreaks of new infectious diseases before they reached epidemic proportions , UNEX distinguished itself as an interdisciplinary group that brought together the expertise of virologists , bacteriologists , epidemiologists , veterinarians and clinicians .", "As enthusiasm for the program grew , four affiliates in state health departments opened in California , Connecticut , Minnesota and Oregon .", "Despite their success and the continuing threat of emerging infections , the state programs recently lost their financing , and enthusiasm for UNEX even within the C.D.C. was dwindling , to the point where its very future appeared to be in doubt until late December , when another year 's financing was finally approved .", "The problem , Dr. Zaki said , is that the program 's interdisciplinary nature clashes with the trend , at C.D.C. and in science generally , toward specialization .", "In fact , each researcher involved with UNEX has another position within one of C.D.C. ` s specialized departments .", "Dr. Zaki , for instance , is chief of infectious disease pathology activity .", "The hundreds of cases referred to UNEX each year by state health authorities , medical examiners and the occasional private physician represent a fraction of the true number of unexplained deaths across the country .", "Dr. Zaki estimates that there are `` tens of thousands '' of such cases each year .", "Most are presumed to be caused by infectious agents , usually carried by animals or insects , which is why UNEX is housed in the C.D.C. ` s National Center for Zoonotic , Vector-Borne and Enteric Diseases .", "`` There are so many cases where we say , ' We know this is infectious , ' where I 'd bet you anything the death was caused by a virus we ca n't find , `` Dr. Zaki said .", "In fact , UNEX is able to find the particular killer pathogen in only about 15 percent of the cases referred to the office , he said .", "On July 12 , 2005 , for instance , 19-year-old Aaron O'Neal , a reserve linebacker for the University of Missouri Tigers , collapsed on the field during a preseason workout and died soon after at a hospital .", "An autopsy found that the lining of his brain had been inflamed , a possible sign of viral meningitis .", "But even when UNEX received brain tissue samples , no virus or any other clear sign of what caused the inflammation could be detected .", "Aside from storing the remaining tissue sample on the chance that a new test might one day solve the mystery , the case was closed .", "Still , UNEX collars its share of microbial culprits .", "On Sept . 13 , 2005 , a 10-year-old Mississippi boy went to his pediatrician with a fever , headache and an itchy scalp .", "Within days he became so disoriented and agitated that he bit a family member .", "Admitted to the hospital , he grew sicker , but all tests came back negative .", "After he died on Sept . 27 , it took UNEX just eight days to detect the rabies virus in serum samples .", "They later learned , by speaking with friends and family , that dead bats had been previously found inside the boy 's home and garage , and that he had removed a live bat from his bedroom and released it outdoors in spring 2005 .", "Sometimes , finding the cause of a death means discovering a pathogen previously unknown to science .", "During the 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome , or SARS , it was a colleague of Dr. Zaki 's , Cynthia Goldsmith , who first identified the SARS coronavirus using an older-generation electron microscope at their old lab .", "`` It took my breath away when I first recognized it , '' Ms. Goldsmith said .", "Then there are the times when a probable cause of death is suspected , but local health officials are reluctant to perform an autopsy .", "On Oct . 5 , 2001 , minutes after a Florida photo retoucher for The National Enquirer died of what appeared to be inhalation anthrax , a doctor who treated the man called Dr. Zaki .", "`` The medical examiner was n't inclined to do the autopsy , `` Dr. Zaki recalled .", "`` Finally they said , ' O.K. , we 'll do it , but only if you come down . '", "`` When Dr. Zaki and a small group of colleagues flew to Florida the next morning on a private chartered jet , they learned that some of the staff at the Palm Beach County medical examiner 's office had had second thoughts about the autopsy .", "`` When we got there , '' Dr. Zaki said , `` the people in the facility told us , ' If you do that autopsy , we 're all going to leave and never come back .", "You 're going to leave spores , you 're going to contaminate the facility . '", "`` Dr. Zaki 's group explained that the spores become dangerous only if allowed to dry out -- something they would prevent through meticulous cleaning -- and that antibiotics given as prophylaxis would eliminate the slim remaining chance of infection .", "Even so , they performed the autopsy in a small room used for storage .", "`` We left that room much cleaner than when we found it , '' Dr. Zaki said .", "His own laboratory has an unequalled collection of automated testing equipment and a trove of tissue samples dating back decades .", "`` I do n't think there 's any laboratory like this in the world , `` Dr. Zaki said .", "`` And there 's nowhere else where people from so many different fields are together in such close proximity .", "It makes one very proud . ``", "Egyptian by birth , Dr. Zaki graduated third in his class of 1,200 at the University of Alexandria medical school before coming to the United States to study pathology in 1983 .", "Asked why he chose pathology , he replied : `` My mom asked me the same question .", "She said , ` Be a real doctor . '", "But pathology explains how and why a disease happens . ``", "Yet UNEX , as sophisticated as its equipment may be , is still routinely outfoxed by nature 's most archaic life forms , the viruses and bacteria whose roles in human disease , and hiding places in blood and tissue samples , continue to defy detection .", "`` We think we know everything , '' Dr. Zaki said , `` but we do n't know the tip of the iceberg .", "`` There are so many viruses and bacteria we do n't know anything about , that we do n't have tests for , `` he said .", "`` A hundred years from now , people will not believe the number of pathogens we did n't even know existed . `` ."], "summary": ["Dr Sherif Zaki , leader of 11-year-old Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Unexplained Deaths Project , describes challenges of being medical sleuth .", "Says there are about 700 unexplained deaths in US every year and it is his mission of project to try and find out why each person died .", "Program files tissue samples so they can be tested again if new information emerges .", "Case examples described .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 5, 12], "tag": ["Health"]} +{"id": "1815893", "text": ["People in the United States have gotten used to the repulsive fact that raw chicken , meat and eggs are often contaminated with dangerous bacteria .", "Scrub the cutting board , we are warned , do n't nibble the cookie dough , do n't eat burgers rare .", "In other words , handle meat like a biohazard -- and then eat it .", "But until recently , getting sick from salad was something that most Americans did n't even think about unless they were traveling to a poor country .", "At home , fruits and vegetables have been regarded as clean and safe for as long as most people can remember .", "Lately , though , produce has caused a disturbing number of disease outbreaks .", "Just since September , bacteria-tainted tomatoes , spinach and lettuce have made hundreds of people sick , and killed three .", "There have been 20 serious outbreaks in the past decade or so , and many have come from crops grown in California , not from imports .", "Fruit juices , alfalfa sprouts and almonds have also been involved -- all of them supposedly health foods , like salad , the things we feel most virtuous about eating .", "The known outbreaks are just the tip of the iceberg , health officials say .", "Far more illness is never reported .", "Most people do n't call the health department about a few days of gut trouble .", "The government estimates that over all , food-borne microbes -- not just the ones on produce -- make 76 million people a year sick , put 325,000 in the hospital and kill 5,000 .", "In a modern country , a rise in disease caused by tainted food seems like a giant step backward in public health .", "But there has n't been much public outrage or even disgust at the notion of filth seeping into the food supply .", "Among the nastiest bacteria is E . coli 0157 : H7 , which makes a powerful toxin that can cause severe illness and sometimes even kidney failure .", "This is the germ found on spinach a few months ago , and more recently on iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants .", "It comes from cow feces and was first identified in 1982 .", "Feeding the animals grain instead of hay seems to promote its growth .", "The strain is harmless to cows , but in people it is so dangerous , according to the Food and Drug Administration , that swallowing as few as 10 organisms may be enough to cause an infection .", "About 73,000 people a year get sick from this type of bacteria , and 61 die , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports .", "`` It 's gotten more attention this fall , but we 've seen these outbreaks due to lettuce and other leafy greens for a long time , `` said Dr. Christopher Braden , chief of the outbreak response and surveillance team for enteric diseases at the disease centers .", "`` We are seeing this on an ongoing basis .", "That 's not an acceptable outcome .", "We need to find ways to interrupt that contamination . ``", "Last August , the F.D.A. announced a `` lettuce safety initiative '' in response to recurring E . coli outbreaks .", "It began with last fall 's lettuce harvest and included visits by inspectors to farms and cooling and packing facilities .", "But the spinach and Taco Bell outbreaks happened anyway .", "There are several ways that bacteria can contaminate lettuce .", "Water is an obvious route , whether from unsanitary irrigation or spraying , or from flooding .", "Animals can carry bacteria onto farmland , which is apparently how the spinach outbreak occurred -- feral pigs wandered from cow pastures to spinach fields , taking E . coli with them .", "Sick workers who handle produce can also contaminate it , and so can dust blowing off pastures .", "One bad batch can spoil others when they are mixed for chopping and bagging .", "Scientists think most contamination lies on the surface of crops , but studies have shown that it is possible for bacteria to be taken up through root systems and actually wind up inside the plants , where no amount of washing could get rid of it .", "In any case , E . coli 0157 : H7 tends to be sticky and is difficult or impossible to wash off , even when it 's only on the surface of produce .", "Over the past 30 years , diseases linked to produce have increased , Dr. Braden said .", "Increased ability to detect outbreaks may explain part of the increase , but not all of it , he added .", "`` We 're convinced it 's real in large part , `` he said .", "`` We 're seeing an increased number of outbreaks , an increased number of cases in outbreaks , and an increase in the number of types of produce involved . ``", "The reason is not known for sure .", "But , Dr. Braden said : `` The way produce is farmed and processed has changed .", "It 's become more centralized , and you have these huge processors and distributors that produce tens of thousands of pounds of a particular produce in a particular day .", "If something goes wrong with that produce you 've got a big problem , whereas with small farmers , if there is a problem it 's much more limited . ``", "In addition , he said , bagged and prewashed produce did n't exist 25 years ago , and people today eat more raw vegetables than in the past .", "`` There 's probably more susceptible people eating those things , `` Dr. Braden said .", "`` We have an aging population , and more people with chronic medical conditions that might make them more susceptible . ''", "The F.D.A. is responsible for produce safety , while the Agriculture Department oversees meat , poultry and eggs .", "Some politicians have urged that a single new agency be formed to take charge of all food safety , but even if that is done , it still may not answer basic questions about how to clean up produce .", "Dr. David W . K . Acheson , chief medical officer at the center for food safety and applied nutrition at the F.D.A. , said the agency was trying to find ways to prevent outbreaks .", "But , Dr. Acheson said , it has nowhere near the resources to inspect the hundreds of thousands of facilities that handle fresh produce in the United States .", "The Agriculture Department has far more inspectors and is required by law to have one in every major meat processing plant .", "One question the drug agency is trying to figure out , he said , is how close is too close when it comes to cattle and produce .", "`` We know that 0157 is a natural contaminant of cow feces , '' Dr. Acheson said .", "`` Cow feces , if it gets on fresh produce , is not good .", "Should there be some limitation as to how close cattle should be to a leafy-greens field .", "Fifty feet , 5 miles , 50 miles .", "What 's the science .", "`` Fifty feet may be plenty if the cows are downhill and downstream of the farm , he said -- but if it 's the other way around , five miles may not be enough .", "`` What 's really going to work .", "`` Dr. Acheson asked .", "`` At this point , there are a lot of unknowns . ''", "Another approach , instead of trying to prevent contamination , is to get rid of it after the fact .", "Nuts can be heat-treated and juices can be pasteurized .", "Some experts have recommended irradiating lettuce .", "`` People in the agency are looking at the impact of that , '' Dr. Acheson said .", "`` There are two pieces : does it work , and what dose do you need .", "Then , what 's the impact of that dose on the quality of the product .", "You could irradiate anything and sterilize it , but you may end up with mush .", "It 's not quite that easy . ``", "Dr. Braden said that so far , scientists had not found any way to prevent outbreaks .", "`` Not that people are n't working on it hard , `` he said , adding that the food industry itself is under pressure .", "`` There may be some self-regulation from the industry , the growers themselves , '' he said .", "`` They have to do something themselves , or else they 're going to lose their market . ``", "SECOND OPINION ."], "summary": ["Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that E coli strain recently found on spinach from California farm is virulent enough that swallowing only 10 organisms could be enough to cause infection .", "Increased number of health alerts and outbreaks related to fruits and vegetables has generated many new guidelines , such as Food and Drug Administration 's lettuce safety initiative , but researchers point to variety of causes and methods of contamination and say they are difficult to track and stop .", "Some experts hold that bagged and prewashed produce is fairly new to marketplace and increased consumption of raw produce make outbreaks more widespread than anytime in past .", "Many researchers are working on prevention measures , but few changes have been implemented .", "Drawings ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [19, 20, 43, 63, 25, 4, 60, 56], "tag": ["Health"]} +{"id": "1815895", "text": ["The day 's coppery last light reflects off the backs of sea bass swimming in fish ponds lined in neat rows on this desert farm .", "Fish farming in the desert may at first sound like an anomaly , but in Israel over the last decade a scientific hunch has turned into a bustling business .", "Scientists here say they realized they were on to something when they found that brackish water drilled from underground desert aquifers hundreds of feet deep could be used to raise warm-water fish .", "The geothermal water , less than one-tenth as saline as sea water , free of pollutants and a toasty 98 degrees on average , proved an ideal match .", "`` It was not simple to convince people that growing fish in the desert makes sense , '' said Samuel Appelbaum , a professor and fish biologist at the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research at the Sede Boqer campus of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev .", "`` It is important to stop with the reputation that arid land is nonfertile , useless land , '' said Professor Appelbaum , who pioneered the concept of desert aquaculture in Israel in the late 1980s .", "`` We should consider arid land where subsurface water exists as land that has great opportunities , especially in food production because of the low level of competition on the land itself and because it gives opportunities to its inhabitants . ''", "The next step in this country , where water is scarce and expensive , was to show farmers that they could later use the water in which the fish are raised to irrigate their crops in a system called double usage .", "The organic waste produced by the cultured fish makes the water especially useful , because it acts as fertilizer for the crops .", "Fields watered by brackish water dot Israel 's Negev and Arava Deserts in the south of the country , where they spread out like green blankets against a landscape of sand dunes and rocky outcrops .", "At Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade in the Negev , the recycled water from the fish ponds is used to irrigate acres of olive and jojoba groves .", "Elsewhere it is also used for irrigating date palms and alfalfa .", "The chain of multiple users for the water is potentially a model that can be copied , especially in arid third world countries where farmers struggle to produce crops , and Israeli scientists have recently been peddling their ideas abroad .", "Dry lands cover about 40 percent of the planet , and the people who live on them are often among the poorest in the world .", "Scientists are working to share the desert aquaculture technology they fine-tuned here with Tanzania , India , Australia and China , among others .", "-LRB- Similar methods of fish farming are also being used in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona . -RRB-", "`` Each farm could run itself , which is important in the developing world , '' said Alon Tal , a leading Israeli environmental activist who recently organized a conference on desertification , with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and Ben-Gurion University , that brought policy makers and scientists from 30 countries to Israel .", "`` A whole village could adopt such a system , '' Dr. Tal added .", "At the conference , Gregoire de Kalbermatten , deputy secretary general of the antidesertification group at the United Nations , said , `` We need to learn from the resilience of Israel in developing dry lands . ''", "Israel , long heralded for its agricultural success in the desert through innovative technologies like drip irrigation , has found ways to use low-quality water and what is considered terrible soil to grow produce like sweet cherry tomatoes , peppers , asparagus and melon , marketing much of it abroad to Europe , especially during winter .", "`` Most development is still driven by the Zionist ethos that the desert was some mistake of God that we have to correct and make the desert bloom , '' said Uriel Safriel , an ecology professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem .", "The history of fish-farming in nondesert areas here , mostly in the Galilee region near the sea , dates back to the late 1920s , before Israel was established as a state .", "At the time , the country was extremely poor and meat was considered a luxury .", "But fish was a cheap food source , so fish farms were set up on several kibbutzim in the Galilee .", "The early Jewish farmers were mostly Eastern European , and , Professor Safriel said , `` they only knew gefilte fish , so they grew carp . ''", "Eventually they expanded to other varieties of fish including tilapia , striped bass and mullet , as well as ornamental fish .", "The past decade has seen the establishment of about 15 fish farms producing both edible and ornamental fish in the Negev and Arava Deserts .", "Fish farming , meanwhile , has become more lucrative worldwide as people seek more fish in their diet for better health , and ocean fisheries increasingly are being depleted .", "The practice is not without critics , who say it can harm the environment and the fish .", "In Israel there was a decision by the government to stop fish farming in the Red Sea near the southern city of Eilat by 2008 because it was deemed damaging to nearby coral reefs .", "Some also argue that the industry is not sustainable in the long term because most of the fish that are farmed are carnivorous and must be fed a protein-rich diet of other fish , usually caught in the wild .", "Another criticism is that large numbers of fish are kept in relatively small areas , leading to a higher risk of disease .", "Professor Appelbaum said the controversy surrounding fish farming in ocean areas does not apply to desert aquaculture , which is in an isolated , controlled area , with much less competition for resources .", "On Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade , Amit Ziv runs a fish farm , raising about 15,000 fish at a time .", "Up to 500,000 cubic meters of water from the fish ponds is recycled for irrigation every year .", "`` It 's a matter of better efficiency , `` said Mr. Ziv , who pays about 24 cents a cubic meter for water , a government-subsidized rate .", "`` In an area where there is lack of water , being able to use it twice over is a huge advantage . ''", "Mr. Ziv , 39 , said there are benefits to raising fish in the desert : the dryness translates to fewer insects and less mold and disease .", "He also said the warm air makes it easier to keep the pools temperate .", "He remembers the stories his parents , who , along with other founders of the kibbutz in 1948 , would tell of having to travel long days to get to the fields of the communal farm .", "They then tilled closer to central Israel , because at the time the local arid ground was thought to be impossible to farm .", "`` Now , '' he said , pointing toward the desert-grown crops , `` the fields are all here . ''", "Mr. Ziv and his dog turned back toward the fish ponds stretched out under green plastic hothouse canopies .", "It was time to prepare for a shipment of hatchlings that was to arrive the next day ."], "summary": ["Desert aquaculture , which was first used in Israel , has become increasingly popular way to farm crops and fish in otherwise arid and unfertile ground .", "Professor Samuel Appelbaum , Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research fish biologist and pioneer of process that pumps subsurface water up to tanks for use in fish ponds and irrigation , describes how aquaculture can transform communities .", "Double usage of water is ideal as farmers use water from fish farms , which is high in organic matter , to irrigate and fertilize fields .", "Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade , Israel , aquaculture discusssed .", "Map . Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 10, 40], "tag": ["Science", "Health"]} +{"id": "1815906", "text": ["A year after Hollywood rediscovered weighty political and social issues in movies like `` Syriana , '' `` Crash '' and `` Brokeback Mountain , '' the box office story of 2006 was that moviegoers finally said , `` Enough . ''", "They showed no appetite for a critique of their eating habits in `` Fast Food Nation . ''", "They were n't ready to fly along on `` United 93 , '' no matter how skilled its expos\u00e9 of homeland insecurity .", "They did n't care to see combat or suffer its after-effects in `` Flags of Our Fathers . ''", "And even Leonardo DiCaprio could n't interest them in touring the ravaged Africa of `` Blood Diamond . ''", "While Al Gore 's prophecies in `` An Inconvenient Truth '' produced a respectable $ 24 million for Paramount , it was the message-movie exception that proved the rule .", "The big money was to be made making people laugh , cry and squeeze their dates ' arms -- not think .", "`` What worked was classic , get-away-from-it-all entertainment , '' said Rob Moore , Paramount 's marketing and distribution chief .", "`` What did n't was things that were more challenging and esoteric . ``", "Comedy , animation and adventure , all with a PG-13 rating or tamer -- and for young adults , R-rated horror flicks -- were the escapist recipe for success .", "Reminding moviegoers of what was on the news , and in an election year at that , only turned them off .", "-LRB- Unless it was on the news nine years ago , as in `` The Queen . '' -RRB-", "While Disney 's `` Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man 's Chest `` set a new opening-weekend record and topped the box office tables with $ 423 million , the winner among studios was Sony Pictures , which said it would end the year with nearly $ 1.7 billion domestically -- besting its own industry record -- and $ 3.3 billion overseas .", "In an off year for its Spider-Man franchise , Sony managed to win a record 13 weekends , led by Adam Sandler -LRB- `` Click '' -RRB- .", "Will Ferrell -LRB- `` Talladega Nights : The Ballad of Ricky Bobby '' -RRB- .", "An animated hit -LRB- `` Open Season '' -RRB- .", "James Bond -LRB- `` Casino Royale , '' which has grossed $ 155 million , a franchise record -RRB- .", "And Will Smith -LRB- `` The Pursuit of Happyness '' -RRB- .", "Mr. Smith 's film broke $ 100 million , and he appears to have bolstered his stature as Hollywood 's man who can do no wrong , a bankable star in dramatic , romantic , comedic or action roles .", "-LRB- When actors play against type , however , it can be deadly , as Russell Crowe showed in Ridley Scott 's film `` A Good Year , '' for 20th Century Fox .", "Coming after his nose dive in `` Cinderella Man , '' Mr. Crowe 's belly-flop raised questions about his status as a top box office draw . -RRB-", "Then there was what Jeff Blake , Sony 's marketing and distribution czar , called `` that rare adult blockbuster , '' Ron Howard 's `` Da Vinci Code . ''", "Fans of the book ignored the film 's reviews , and it grossed $ 218 million .", "`` Really , we brought the adults back to the movies this year , which is part of the reason why we 're doing so much better , `` Mr. Blake said of the industry , tipping his hat to Warner Brothers ' `` Departed '' and 20th Century Fox 's `` Devil Wears Prada . ''", "Sony also got a boost from its Screen Gems unit .", "Four of its horror films opened at No . 1 .", "Typical was `` When a Stranger Calls , '' made for just $ 15 million , which grossed $ 48 million domestically .", "Over all , the top tier of the box office held its usual contours : 5 blockbusters exceeded $ 200 million , and 12 fell in the $ 100 million to $ 200 million zone .", "In addition , 39 exceeded $ 50 million , 7 more than in 2005 .", "Total domestic box office reached $ 9.4 billion , a shade shy of the 2004 record but 5 percent more than in 2005 , said Paul Dergarabedian , president of Media by Numbers , which tracks box office results .", "Attendance was up 3.3 percent .", "No . 2 Disney had its second-best year ever worldwide , with more than $ 3.27 billion internationally , and exceeded $ 1 billion domestically for the 10th time , thanks largely to `` Pirates '' and the year 's No . 2 movie , Pixar 's `` Cars , '' with $ 244 million .", "Mark Zoradi , who runs marketing and distribution for Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group , said basic entertainment had proved to be the cure for the industry 's woes .", "`` People love to go to the movies to laugh , to feel emotion and cry , '' he said .", "`` That 's why ` Cars ' is so big .", "It was n't a straight-out slapstick comedy .", "At its core , it was an emotional movie with comedy in it . ``", "The slate of movies at year 's end was much stronger than on the same weekend a year earlier : up 10 percent in the aggregate , and 12 percent when comparing just the top 12 grosses .", "Fox 's `` Night at the Museum , '' the Ben Stiller comedy , led the field , raking in $ 38 million for a total so far of $ 117 million .", "Among animated films , Fox 's `` Ice Age : The Meltdown '' came in at No . 2 , nearly hitting $ 200 million .", "Bruce Snyder , president for domestic distribution , said Fox had been wise to get its movie into theaters well before the deluge of more than a dozen other computer-animated movies about animals .", "One that suffered was Warner 's `` Ant Bully , '' which was sandwiched between Sony 's `` Monster House '' and Paramount 's `` Barnyard '' and came away with just $ 28 million in sales .", "Paramount , too , might have regretted the title of its `` Flushed Away , '' which cost $ 150 million but grossed only $ 62 million .", "`` Happy Feet '' was a much-needed big hit for Warner , which had been less than overjoyed by the $ 200 million gross of `` Superman Returns . ''", "Despite the animation glut , the potential payoffs -- Paramount 's `` Over the Hedge '' grossed $ 155 million , and `` Happy Feet '' reached $ 176 million on Sunday -- are huge enough to make this a recurring phenomenon .", "For Fox 2005 was a strong year .", "`` X-Men : The Last Stand '' was the No . 3 movie , at $ 234 million , and Meryl Streep 's performance turned a formulaic comedy into a worldwide hit in `` Prada . ''", "Fox also had the year 's most original film , `` Borat : Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan , '' which was made for less than $ 20 million and grossed more than $ 125 million .", "Among thought-provoking movies , `` Flags of Our Fathers '' showed how treacherous it can be to open an Oscar contender in September or October .", "While `` The Departed '' was a hit , `` All the King 's Men , `` `` Hollywoodland '' and `` Running With Scissors '' all bombed .", "Back-to-school audiences much preferred Lions Gate 's `` Saw III . ''", "Warner missed , meanwhile , with `` Blood Diamond , '' a big action movie that also had something to say .", "Alan Horn , the studio 's president , said he thought the film had managed the feat , but audiences did n't , and the film has grossed $ 36 million so far .", "`` The audience is telling us that either they want lighter fare , and they just do n't want to go there and have a movie as thematically heavy as ` Blood Diamond ' is , or it 's the quality of the movie , `` he said .", "Audiences apparently were n't eager to read , either .", "With directors like Clint Eastwood , Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez I\u00f1\u00e1rritu and Mel Gibson pushing for authenticity , the studios wound up releasing subtitled movies that were shot largely or entirely in Japanese , Moroccan , Mexican , Mayan and Russian .", "But even Brad Pitt could n't draw big crowds for `` Babel , '' and the Fox Searchlight release of the Russian blockbuster `` Night Watch '' proved that some cultural exchanges will remain a one-way street .", "It remains to be seen whether `` Letters From Iwo Jima , '' Mr. Eastwood 's critically adored Japanese companion piece to `` Flags , '' could lure sizable audiences once it expands from a micro-release .", "Fifth-place Paramount was cheered by the low-budget comedies `` Jackass Number Two '' and `` Nacho Libre , '' but was counting for redemption on `` Dreamgirls , '' which opened to packed houses on Christmas Day .", "In just 852 theaters , the movie grossed $ 38.5 million through New Year 's weekend , and the studio was counting on Oscar attention to make it a megahit .", "Universal , in a leadership transition , struggled to fill a gaping hole in its slate .", "The studio has n't released a movie that it made since August , and wo n't have one till April .", "-LRB- `` The Good Shepherd , '' its lone prestige release at year 's end , was financed by Morgan Creek . -RRB-", "Its biggest movie was `` The Break-Up , '' at $ 118 million , but more typical were duds like `` Miami Vice , '' `` Man of the Year , '' `` Let 's Go to Prison , `` and '' The Black Dahlia . ``", "New Line 's year , finally , was summed up by `` Snakes on a Plane , '' a trip you 'd want to forget , as long as you could survive it .", "The studio 's standout performers were `` Final Destination 3 '' and `` The Texas Chainsaw Massacre : The Beginning . ''", "New Line 's stab at exploiting the religious Christian market , `` The Nativity Story , '' cost $ 35 million , but grossed just $ 37 million .", "By comparison , a tiny proselytizing football movie called `` Facing the Giants , '' made for just $ 100,000 by a Southern Baptist congregation in Georgia , grossed $ 10 million in a limited release .", "Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday An article in The Arts on Tuesday about the most popular movies of 2006 and others that did not do as well at the box office referred incorrectly to two languages spoken in `` Babel , '' one of the films with subtitles that did not draw big crowds .", "They are Spanish and Berber , not `` Mexican '' and `` Moroccan . '' ."], "summary": ["Moviegoers favored films that were escapist fantasies in 2006 .", "Sony Pictures was winner among studios , earning nearly $ 1.7 billion domestically and $ 3.3 billion overseas .", "Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man 's Chest set new opening-weekend record and topped box office tables with $ 423 million .", "Other high grossing films included Click , Talladega Nights : The Ballad of Ricky Bobby , Open Season , Casino Royale and The Pursuit of Happyness .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 14, 17], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1815915", "text": ["Within days of convening , the new Congress will return to some of the biggest battles of the last decade as House Democrats try to rush through legislation requiring the government to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and overturning President Bush 's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research .", "The Medicare proposal highlights the profound differences between Democrats and Republicans over the future of the nation 's health care system , the proper role of government and the role of private markets in securing the best value for the huge sums spent on health care .", "State officials say they wish Congress would focus on a more immediate problem : money for the Children 's Health Insurance Program , which provides coverage for four million low-income children , is running out in more than a dozen states .", "Dr. Rhonda M . Medows , commissioner of the Georgia Department of Community Health , said , `` Our program will run out of federal money in March , and all 260,000 children in the program will lose their health care coverage if Congress fails to act . ''", "In debating the future of the children 's health program , which has broad bipartisan support , Congress will take up proposals to cover some of the 46 million people who have no health insurance .", "Dr. Mark B . McClellan , former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , said , `` Congress should consider expanding the Children 's Health Insurance Program to low-income adults . ``", "Many Democrats agree .", "But even modest proposals may collide with Democratic efforts to restore fiscal discipline and to reduce the federal budget deficit .", "Congress convenes on Thursday .", "Representative Nancy Pelosi , the California Democrat who is in line to be speaker , has said the House will , in its first 100 hours , vote on bills to authorize drug price negotiations under Medicare and to expand federal financing of stem cell research .", "Representative Tom Allen , Democrat of Maine , said he was `` giddy '' at the prospect of being able to legislate on health care after toiling for 10 years in the minority .", "`` People in Maine find it incomprehensible that the Medicare law has a provision that forbids negotiation of lower prices , '' said Mr. Allen , who introduced a bill to give beneficiaries access to drug discounts negotiated by the government in 1998 .", "By adding a drug benefit to Medicare in 2003 , Congress authorized the biggest expansion of the program since its creation in 1965 .", "The drug benefit , unlike most Medicare benefits , is delivered entirely by private insurers subsidized by the government .", "The insurers negotiate with drug manufacturers to obtain discounts , often in return for promoting the use of particular drugs .", "The 2003 law prohibits the government from interfering in those negotiations and stipulates that Medicare can not establish a list of preferred drugs .", "Most Democrats want to repeal the ban on price negotiations .", "Wendell E . Primus , an aide to Ms. Pelosi , said the Democratic proposal would require the secretary of health and human services to negotiate , but would not specify how .", "`` It will be very simple language , '' Mr. Primus said .", "`` We do not think that Congress needs to hammer out all the details .", "There are a lot of smart people in the administration , including the secretary , who can look at how we 're buying drugs -- the Medicaid program , the Department of Defense , vaccines , et cetera -- and figure out the best way of negotiating better prices with drug companies . ``", "Republicans said they welcomed the opportunity to debate the issue .", "The House Republican leader , Representative John A . Boehner of Ohio , said the Democrats ' proposal would `` take a wrecking ball to a popular program that has cut drug costs for consumers through competition . ''", "Such competition , he said , `` has kept prices lower than anyone expected . ''", "Administration officials suggested that Mr. Bush would veto a bill calling for price negotiations .", "Democrats could then exploit the issue in the 2008 campaign , as they did in the midterm elections .", "Under a bill introduced in 2005 by several House Democrats , Medicare would offer a government-run drug plan , in addition to all the plans offered by private insurance companies , and federal officials would negotiate with drug manufacturers on the prices of drugs covered by the government plan .", "But aides to Ms. Pelosi said House Democratic leaders now wanted to go further .", "Under their proposal , the government would negotiate on behalf of all people in Medicare drug plans , more than 22.5 million people .", "House Democrats assume that if the government negotiates lower drug prices , the savings will automatically be passed on to beneficiaries in the form of lower premiums .", "But they could not immediately say how they would guarantee that result .", "In the absence of detailed instructions from Congress , lower drug prices could mean lower costs and higher profits for the insurers that operate Medicare drug plans .", "Michael O . Leavitt , the secretary of health and human services , said he did not want the power to negotiate .", "`` I do n't believe I can do a better job than an efficient market , `` Mr. Leavitt said in an interview .", "Leslie V . Norwalk , acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , said that under the Democrats ' proposal her agency would have to `` hire hundreds of people to negotiate prices for 4,500 different drugs . ''", "And Ms. Norwalk said the agency would be besieged by lobbyists seeking higher Medicare payments for specific drugs .", "That , she said , is `` how Washington really works . ''", "Senator Max Baucus , the Montana Democrat who is in line to become chairman of the Finance Committee , helped shape the 2003 law .", "In March , he voted against a proposal to authorize drug price negotiations .", "But Mr. Baucus , who is up for re-election in 2008 , said he had an open mind and would hold hearings on the idea .", "Kate Leone , an aide to the Senate Democratic leader , Harry Reid of Nevada , said Senate Democrats had the same legislative priorities as House Democrats , but were not committed to the 100-hour schedule .", "Mr. Primus said the new Congress would also `` give the president another chance to veto a stem cell bill , '' like the one he vetoed in July .", "In campaign commercials in 2006 , Democrats and some Republicans boasted of their support for embryonic stem cell research as a way to find treatments for a wide range of diseases .", "Advocates of such research say that , despite gains in the elections , they still do not have the votes to override a veto .", "They are working with Senate allies on a plan to attach the stem cell bill to unrelated legislation that Mr. Bush would feel obliged to sign .", "Lawmakers are also likely to wrestle with these issues : Many Democrats will try to reduce Medicare payments to managed care plans .", "They contend such plans are overpaid by about 10 percent .", "Insurers intend to fight back , with support from the Bush administration , Republican lawmakers and beneficiaries who see the plans as a way to obtain extra benefits at an affordable cost .", "Congress faces a huge challenge in devising a new formula to pay doctors for treating Medicare patients .", "Under the current formula , doctors ' fees would be cut more than 4 percent a year for the next decade .", "Lawmakers are determined to avert such cuts , but see no easy way to pay the cost .", "Democrats have drafted legislation to speed the approval of safe , low-cost versions of expensive biotechnology drugs , which account for a growing share of spending on pharmaceuticals .", "People who pay for health care , including state officials , employers and insurers , support such legislationas a way to slow spending on biotech drugs , which can cost more than $ 10,000 a year .", "Biotech companies argue that their products , made from living organisms , are so complex that they can not be exactly duplicated by generic drug manufacturers .", "As a result , they say , a `` copy '' would rarely be interchangeable with the original .", "The Food and Drug Administration has approved thousands of generic drugs deemed equivalent to traditional brand-name medicines .", "But the agency is unsure of its legal authority to approve such versions of biotech drugs ."], "summary": ["There are profound differences between Democrats and Republicans over future of nation 's health care system , proper role of government and role of private markets in securing best value for huge sums spent on health care .", "House Democrats , now in majority , will try to rush through legislation requiring government to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and overturn Pres Bush 's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 0], "tag": ["Health", "U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815916", "text": ["When the same old irksome question popped up recently at one of his final public events here , Gov . Jeb Bush , addressing Spanish-speaking reporters , gave an atypically dramatic answer : `` Yo no tengo futuro , '' or `` I have no future . ''", "His words set off round-the-world buzz , with The Daily Telegraph of London going so far as to call them `` a recognition by the Bush family that their dynastic reign in American politics is drawing to a close . ''", "But in fact , the question lives on .", "Mr. Bush 's spokeswoman said last week that he made the comment jokingly , and when asked about it later in an e-mail message , Mr. Bush himself replied , `` I was misunderstood by a reporter . ''", "He did not elaborate , leaving the world to know only this much : Half his life after he arrived in Miami as a 27-year-old real estate salesman , Governor Bush returns here this week without the title before his name and , he insists , without knowing what his future holds .", "`` We 're in the preface of the new book in my life and I just do n't know yet , `` he told reporters last month in Tallahassee , a day after his official portrait , with a Bible and a BlackBerry in the background , was unveiled at the Governor 's Mansion .", "`` I 'm going to take some time off , hopefully do a little fishing , golfing , resting , reading , exercising .", "And I 've got to make a living , so I 'll figure it out probably in January . ``", "Florida , too , has some readjusting to do .", "After eight years in office , Mr. Bush , 53 , is leaving as one of the most popular and prominent governors in state history , not least because of his relationship to President Bush -LRB- brother -RRB- and former President George Bush -LRB- son -RRB- .", "Succeeding him is Attorney General Charlie Crist , who is Republican like Mr. Bush but otherwise starkly different .", "Despite the wishful prodding of admirers , Mr. Bush has adamantly ruled out a presidential campaign of his own next year , saying that he wants only to return to Miami with his wife , Columba , and their cat , Sugar .", "Yet rumors about his future have burst forth as regularly as exotic species in the Everglades -- among them that he would be the next commissioner of the National Football League , run for Senate or become Senator John McCain 's running mate if Mr. McCain won the Republican nomination for president in 2008 .", "`` The presidency is out of the question at this point because of Bush fatigue , '' said Peter Schweizer , a fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford who wrote `` The Bushes : A Dynasty '' with his wife , Rochelle .", "`` But the vice presidential slot is something that 's very much in play .", "He 's a successful governor of an important state , he helps shore up relations with the social conservatives and he has the Bush money machine . ``", "One of Mr. Bush 's former chiefs of staff has gone to work for Mr. McCain 's exploratory committee , but several other former aides have signed up with Gov . Mitt Romney of Massachusetts , another probable Republican contender .", "`` Jeb is a policy-driven guy , '' Mr. Schweizer said .", "`` If he can be a vice president that plays some kind of a policy role as Cheney has , as Gore did in the Clinton administration , then Jeb Bush will be interested . ''", "Many assume that for now -- at least partly at the urging of his wife , described as shy and eager to be out of the public eye -- Mr. Bush will return to the private sector .", "He reported a net worth of $ 1.4 million in 2005 , down from $ 2.4 million in 1998 .", "He was a partner in a major real estate development firm here until his first , unsuccessful run for governor in 1994 , but Mr. Schweizer predicted that Mr. Bush might now seek out work involving the bioscience industry or the Latin American economy , both of which `` he seems particularly animated by . ''", "All indications notwithstanding , ardent admirers like Grover Norquist , the president of Americans for Tax Reform , are not giving up on the prospect of Mr. Bush jumping into the presidential race next year , especially if Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York becomes the Democratic candidate .", "`` He could step in later than anybody else , '' Mr. Norquist said .", "`` You can run for president with the last name of Bush , even though there is and will be Bush fatigue , in a year that you 're likely to be running against someone whose last name is Clinton . ``", "For the time being , Mr. Bush bought a car , a Chrysler 300C , and rented a $ 5,500-per - month , 3,949-square - foot condominium in Segovia Tower , a luxury building overlooking a golf course in lush Coral Gables .", "`` I have no idea what I will be doing next , '' he wrote by e-mail from Boca Chica , Fla . , where he was vacationing with his parents .", "`` My priorities are to hang out with my beloved wife -LRB- until she ca n't take it anymore ! :", "As for the continued speculation , he wrote : `` I am flattered that all sorts of people are interested in what I am going to do and many have offered advice as well .", "That will all subside soon . ``", "Small signs suggest , however , that he will have a hard time giving up executive powers .", "He told reporters that while buying furniture recently , he had to stifle the urge to tell the store owner a better way of doing business -- a trait his adversaries say they will not miss .", "`` Bush was the type that if you did not agree with him , he really did n't have time for you , `` said State Senator Frederica Wilson , Democrat of Miami .", "`` He wanted you to rubber stamp every idea he had , and he would n't listen to reason . ``", "While Mr. Bush is internationally famous , Mr. Crist , who will be sworn in as governor on Tuesday , is a stranger to all outside Florida and , but for his native Tampa Bay region , not particularly well known within the state either .", "While Mr. Bush was ideologically driven , often making enemies in pursuit of `` big , hairy , audacious goals '' and divisive social policies , Mr. Crist seems above all a pleaser , avoiding firm opinions and promising to be `` the people 's governor . ``", "Yet despite Mr. Bush 's abrasiveness and the plunging popularity of his brother the president , he has remained well liked -- or at least respected -- to the end , a feat in a state as ethnically and politically divided as Florida .", "A poll last month by Quinnipiac University found that 57 percent of Floridians feel he did a `` good '' or `` great '' job as governor , compared with only 10 percent who said he had done a `` bad '' job .", "Howard Simon , executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida , said the poll results reflected approval of Mr. Bush 's persona more than of his policies .", "Mr. Simon pointed out that two major education initiatives during the governor 's tenure -- a costly effort to lower class size and another to provide universal prekindergarten classes -- were passed by public referendum , over the governor 's objections .", "`` It needs to be said that the personal appeal and likeability of Jeb Bush has led the press and the public to overlook the extremism of many of his policies , '' he said .", "Several of Mr. Bush 's pet initiatives in fact failed , including a school voucher program that the Florida Supreme Court found unconstitutional .", "But Mr. Bush pushed through $ 19.3 billion in tax cuts , put an unprecedented emphasis on standardized testing in public schools , privatized thousands of government jobs and ended affirmative action in public university admissions .", "He also persuaded the Scripps Research Institute and other bioscience research groups to open laboratories in Florida , which he says will makethe state economy less dependent on tourism and create more high-paying jobs .", "And he has appointed more than a third of the state 's judges , assuring that his socially and fiscally conservative beliefs will continue to hold some sway .", "While others have emoted about Mr. Bush 's departure -- including his father , who wept as he described his second son 's `` decency '' and `` honor '' in a speech in Tallahassee last month -- he has characteristically avoided introspection .", "Asked last month what he would miss most about the Governor 's Mansion , he cited its beauty , its staff -- and its towels .", "`` Fresh towels -- all you want , '' he said .", "`` Here , although I 've been trained to do otherwise , it 's just any time I want I can have many towels . `` ."], "summary": ["Jeb Bush is leaving as one of most popular and prominent governors in Florida 's history after eight years .", "Despite wishful prodding , he has adamantly ruled out presidential campaign of his own next year , but rumors about his future have burst forth .", "One is that he would become Sen John McCain 's running mate if McCain wins Republican nomination for president .", "One of Bush 's former chiefs of staff has gone to work for McCain 's exploratory committee , but several other former aides have signed up with Gov Mitt Romney , another probable Republican contender .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 12, 11], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815929", "text": ["Representative John D . Dingell , a Michigan Democrat who with more than 50 years ' tenure is the senior member of the House , is not so sure about the idea of creating an independent group to enforce ethics rules .", "But Gabrielle Giffords , a brand-new House Democrat from Arizona , considers it a no-brainer .", "Of the longstanding approach in which lawmakers are seated on the ethics committee to police their peers , Representative-elect Giffords said , `` It is like having the fox guard the henhouse . ''", "Those divergent outlooks over how best to fulfill the Democratic promise to clean up the House are just one illustration of a friction that could develop in the new Congress as the party takes control after 12 years in exile .", "While most attention will be focused on the divide between Republicans and Democrats , members of the new majority have their own differing perspectives , corresponding largely to length of service , that could ultimately prove more crucial to their success or failure .", "Of 233 Democrats who will be sworn in on Thursday , 147 -- 63 percent -- have been elected since Republicans won control of the House in 1994 , and have never served in the majority .", "Those whose service predates the 1994 revolution , on the other hand , number only 86 , or 37 percent .", "But it is this core of senior Democrats , Mr. Dingell among them , who will lead 20 of the 21 major committees and so exercise concentrated legislative power .", "The differences in tenure tend to manifest themselves geographically as well .", "The makeup of the senior membership has a more urban flavor , while those more recently elected tend to come from the suburbs and exurbs .", "These newer members have faced tougher electoral opposition than their older counterparts , who in many cases represent overwhelmingly safe Democratic districts .", "A majority of new chairmen have traditional liberal roots .", "Lawmakers , senior aides and analysts say the institutional gulf is not necessarily problematic and could even prove beneficial if Democratic leaders are able to harness the experience and skill of the chairmen to the enthusiasm and drive for reform exhibited by the newcomers .", "But they worry that it could become a distraction if the `` old bulls , '' as they are sometimes called , believe that less seasoned lawmakers are demanding too much too fast or if the newer members see the veterans as representative of Congressional inertia .", "`` The guys who have been there for a while and built up seniority saw an abuse of the system , so they know firsthand why it has to change , '' said Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois , who will be chairman of the Democratic caucus .", "`` The new members ran on an agenda of why it has to be changed .", "`` If managed correctly , you have the experience and energy to make changes .", "If not managed correctly , it has the potential to be a fault line . ``", "Leading House Democrats say the long-tenured members and those sent to Congress in recent elections broadly agree on a desire to move ahead on social programs , ethics , energy , national security and fiscal responsibility .", "The differences , they say , are subtler .", "Do issues studied in the previous Congress , for instance , need a full further examination in committee , in deference to the new chairmen .", "Is there need for a separate commission to scrutinize war contracting , or should this too be the province of the committees .", "In any event , it is clear that the lower classmen , particularly the large and celebrated group of 30 freshmen , want to move quickly .", "`` The new class coming in and some of the other newer members are absolutely committed to delivering on the agenda we talked about during the election , '' said Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland , who will lead the House Democratic campaign effort for 2008 .", "`` Now that we are in power , we want to make sure that we are changing direction in Washington , and that means following through not just on the big print but the fine print , a break with business as usual . ''", "Representative-elect Ed Perlmutter , Democrat of Colorado , agreed .", "`` I do n't think the chairs are not looking to be aggressive , `` Mr. Perlmutter said , '' but I do see in this freshman class a real desire to make changes and move things along quickly , because I think that was the direction we were given by our voters . ``", "Senior Democrats say that as the lawmakers who endured minority status for so long , they are the ones most painfully aware of a need for new direction .", "Their stake in holding on to a majority , they say , means protecting and advancing the careers of new lawmakers , who in many cases were elected with fund-raising and other help from senior Democrats .", "`` It is not like we are just now meeting for the first time , '' said Representative Barney Frank , Democrat of Massachusetts , who will be chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and can tick off the names of junior committee members he has worked with , as well as several freshmen he personally supported .", "`` We all campaigned for these guys . ''", "Mr. Dingell said an urge to remake the House was hardly anything new .", "`` This is a normal phenomenon which occurs in this place every two years , '' he said , `` and I have seen no class come in that could be described as different .", "We all come here just dying to do something .", "But the smart ones of us know how to get it done by working within the system .", "I have no fears they are out to burn the place down . ``", "But Norman Ornstein , a longtime Congressional observer at the American Enterprise Institute , said he saw competing drives among members of the new majority .", "`` You have a significant number of Democrats who think the major change is that the whip is now in their hands and it is the Republicans taking the lash , '' Mr. Ornstein said .", "`` A number of others want to keep the spigots running , but just into their own pockets .", "Those who genuinely want to change the House -- the way it operates , the culture of Washington -- have their work cut out for them . ``", "The Democrats ' leader , Representative Nancy Pelosi of California , the incoming speaker , has been in the House since 1987 but has never been chairwoman of a committee , and so in some respects her role may be that of an outsider free to pursue transformation .", "In one of her first tests , however , some seven weeks ago , many of those headed for chairmanships opposed her push to install Representative John P . Murtha of Pennsylvania as majority leader .", "Instead , they backed Representative Steny H . Hoyer of Maryland , at least partly because they saw him as a check on Mrs. Pelosi 's power .", "Mr. Hoyer went on to win .", "Mrs. Pelosi has told allies that while she respects the authority of the new chairmen , she will not allow them to dominate the party agenda or stall legislative initiatives that have broad support .", "And she has already indicated that she does not intend to send the party 's early legislative initiatives back through the committee process , but will instead bring a minimum-wage increase and energy and health bills , among others , straight to the floor .", "Democrats senior and junior say they are watching to see whether their ideals merge or collide .", "But they view party differences as just another factor they will have to take into account as they assume control .", "`` I think people understand it is a little bit of a bump and we have to deal with it , '' Mr. Frank said .", "Michael Arcuri , a moderate Democrat from upstate New York who won a Republican-held seat in November , said the combination of exuberance and experience should prove an advantage for the party .", "`` If we strike the balance between the two , '' Mr. Arcuri said , `` we are going to accomplish some pretty incredible things . ''", "Correction : January 9 , 2007 , Tuesday An article last Tuesday about possible divisions among Democrats in Congress misstated the number of Democratic freshmen in the House .", "It is 42 , not 30 .", "-LRB- Democrats took over 30 Republican-held seats and 12 seats that had been vacated by Democrats . -RRB- ."], "summary": ["Divergent outlooks are part of friction that may develop in new Congress as Democratic party takes control after 12 years .", "Democrats have differing perspectives , corresponding largely to length of service , that could ultimately prove crucial to their success or failure .", "Photos .", "Graph shows composition of House Democrats ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 3], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815930", "text": ["A FEW years back , while traveling in the Sierra Madre Occidental of northern Mexico , I came upon a canyon packed with cliff dwellings no one had lived in since before the time of Christopher Columbus .", "On the ground were discarded artifacts , pieces of frayed baskets , broken pottery and hundreds of desiccated corn cobs -- the ruins of an ancient civilization .", "I reached down to pick up what I thought was a dry gourd , and instead found myself cradling the skull of a human child .", "As I turned it in my hands , I noticed a deliberate hole in the back of the skull , directly above the spine .", "The skull was not cracked around the hole , which means the child had most likely been alive when a spike or some other implement had been slammed into his or her head from behind .", "This is not the only skull like this .", "Excavations from elsewhere in northern Mexico have turned up other children killed the same way , human sacrifices to an ancient water deity , their bodies buried under pre-Columbian ball courts or at the foot of pillars in important rooms .", "With knowledge of such widespread ferocity , I recently saw Mel Gibson 's movie `` Apocalypto , '' which deals with the gore of the Mayan civilization .", "I had heard that the movie 's violence was wildly out of control .", "But even as I winced at many of the scenes , as a writer and researcher in ancient American archaeology , I found little technical fault with the film other than ridiculous Hollywood ploys and niggling archaeological details .", "Indeed , parts of the archaeological record of the Americas read like a war-crimes indictment , with charred skeletons stacked like cordwood and innumerable human remains missing heads , legs and arms .", "In the American Southwest , which is my area of research , human tissue has been found cooked to the insides of kitchen jars and stained into a ceramic serving ladle .", "A grinding stone was found full of crushed human finger bones .", "A sample of human feces came up containing the remains of a cannibal 's meal .", "It could be argued that `` Apocalypto '' dehumanizes Native Americans , turning their ancestors into savage monsters , but I think it does the opposite .", "Oppressed hunter-gatherers in the movie are presented as people with the same , universal emotions all humans share .", "And urban Mayans are portrayed as politically and religiously savvy , having made of themselves a monumental , Neolithic empire , something more akin to ancient Egypt than the trouble-free agrarians who come to most people 's minds when they think of native America .", "To further shatter that popular notion of Native Americans , there 's the scene in which a turquoise-jeweled priest stands atop a staggering temple yanking out one beating human heart after the next .", "That 's an image that nearly every archaeologist working in Central America has played in his or her head many times , only now it 's on the big screen for everyone to see .", "Being told by screenwriters and archaeologists that their ancestors engaged in death cults tends to make many Native Americans uneasy .", "In Arizona , Hopi elders turn their eyes to the ground when they hear about their own past stained with overt brutality .", "The name Hopi means people of peace , which is what they strive to be .", "Meanwhile , excavators keep digging up evidence of cannibalism and ritualized violence among their ancestors .", "How do we rectify the age-old perception of noble and peaceful native America with the reality that at times violence was coordinated on a scale never before witnessed by humanity .", "The answer is simple .", "We do n't .", "Prior to 1492 it was a complex cultural landscape with civilization ebbing and flowing , the spaces in between traversed by ancient lineages of hunters and gatherers .", "To the religious core of pre-Columbian Mayans , a beating heart ripped from someone 's chest was a thing of supreme sacredness and not prosaic violence .", "If `` Apocalypto '' has a fault , it is not with its brutality , but with us in the audience who cringe , thinking the Mayans little more than a barbaric people .", "The fault lies in our misunderstanding of a complicated history , thinking we can lump a whole civilization into a single response and walk out of the movie saying , `` That was disgusting . ''", "Op-Ed Contributor Craig Childs is the author of the forthcoming `` House of Rain : Tracking a Vanished Civilization Across the American Southwest . '' ."], "summary": ["Craig Childs Op-Ed disagrees with those who argue that Mel Gibson movie Apocalypto dehumanizes Native Americans , turning their Mayan ancestors into savagely violent people .", "Says oppressed Mayans in movie are presented as people with universal emotions shared by all humans .", "Says problem with movie is with audience who finds Mayans barbaric .", "Says fault lies in misunderstanding of complicated history that lumps entire civilization into simplistic response ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 14, 29], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1815938", "text": ["After Somalia 's Islamist forces abandoned their final outpost on Monday , the transitional government moved aggressively to assert control , setting a three-day deadline for all weapons to be turned in and calling for international peacekeeping troops to be sent immediately .", "Somalia was already a place where military-grade weaponry was casually flaunted on its streets , but the Islamists ' swift collapse has created such a surplus of guns that the average price of a Kalashnikov assault rifle , one of the world 's most popular killing machines , has dropped to $ 15 .", "Ali Mohammed Gedi , the former veterinarian who is the transitional prime minister , said at his daily news conference that he would not tolerate the situation and gave instructions for turning in the weapons .", "`` Individuals or groups of people who have trucks mounted with antiaircraft guns , known as ' technicals , ' should bring those battlewagons to Mogadishu 's old port , `` he said .", "Clan leaders were skeptical about whether he would succeed , and many Somalis seemed dead set against it .", "`` They 're trying to neuter us , `` said Muhammad Duudo , an unemployed car mechanic .", "`` And it 's not going to happen .", "Just wait until the full moon passes and the darkness comes . ``", "Whatever lies ahead , encouraging or ominous , most Somalis seemed to agree that after a week of fast-moving events , the rough outlines of a new reality were emerging .", "For the first time since the former dictator , Mohamed Siad Barre , fled the country in 1991 , casting Somalia into 15 years of anarchy , there is a credible government based in Mogadishu , the capital , with serious outside support and no organized military threat from within .", "True , countless gunmen still roam the streets , heavily armed warlords still command authority and the seeds of a possible guerrilla movement may be taking root .", "But so far no major force has emerged to challenge the authority of the transitional government .", "The only rival , the Islamists , lost their last conventional military battle on Monday .", "The Islamists had steadily lost ground since Dec . 24 , when Ethiopia unleashed a punishing series of airstrikes and pushed ground troops deep into Somali territory .", "Ethiopian officials justified their intervention in Somalia 's messy , violent internal politics by saying the Islamist movement was a regional threat with terrorist connections and ambitions to invade their country .", "Ethiopia commands one of the most powerful militaries in Africa , and within days of its entrance into the war , Burhakaba , a pivotal inland town , fell from Islamist control -- then Jowhar , another key town , and then Mogadishu , the Islamists ' former stronghold .", "By Sunday , the last remnants of the Islamist forces , which just a few weeks ago controlled a large swath of Somalia , were cornered in Kismayo , a port city on the south Somali coast .", "Thousands of Ethiopian and transitional government troops were closing in on them , and on Sunday night , the Ethiopians began pounding away with heavy artillery .", "At the same time , Kismayo clan elders were pleading with the Islamists to leave .", "The elders said the Islamists did not stand a chance , and they were worried that their city was about to be flattened .", "Clan elders in Mogadishu similarly decided last week that the Islamists were a losing cause and pulled their troops and weapons out of the movement .", "As in Mogadishu , the Islamists in Kismayo , after many fiery speeches about fighting to the death , simply fled .", "By Monday morning , many of the Islamists ' fighters in Kismayo had shed their uniforms and melted back into the population while others headed south toward a thickly forested area along the Kenyan border .", "`` I ca n't tell you how happy people were that they disappeared , `` said Adam Ragay , a businessman in Kismayo .", "As soon as the Islamists left , looters rushed into the streets and smashed up stores and ran away with televisions and cellphones .", "But by midafternoon , the brief burst of anarchy was over and transitional government troops had arrived on the outskirts of town .", "Residents of Kismayo said the remaining Islamists were heading toward Ras Kamboni , a small town in an isolated area on the Kenyan border that the Islamists had used before as a hide-out .", "Ethiopian intelligence officials say operatives of Al Qaeda , invited by the Islamists , planned the 1998 attacks on American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania from Ras Kamboni .", "Kenyan officials say they have increased border security to keep the Islamists from escaping .", "`` Anyone who ventures to enter Kenya will have to go through a very serious vetting process , '' Alfred N . Mutua , a Kenyan spokesman , said in a statement on Monday .", "Mr. Gedi has acknowledged that he needs a lot of outside help .", "Security in Mogadishu is still uncertain , with just a light presence of soldiers .", "Mogadishu 's ports and airport remain closed , strangling the flow of goods and sending prices for rice , sugar , oil and gasoline through the roof .", "The schools remain closed .", "One of the Islamists ' first steps after beginning their ill-fated attack on the transitional government was to close all schools to funnel more teenagers to the front .", "Their move backfired both militarily and politically after countless teenage soldiers were summarily mowed down by better-trained Ethiopian troops .", "Abdi Sallah , a pharmacist in Mogadishu , said he thought that the new government was heading in the right direction but that it needed to step gingerly .", "`` So , we ask all the militia to turn in their weapons and then what happens .", "`` he said .", "`` Do they become part of a national army or do they become unemployed .", "Have these guys thought all this through .", "`` ."], "summary": ["Transitional government in Somalia moves aggressively to assert control after Islamist forces abandon their final outpost .", "Transitional prime minister Ali Mohammed Gedi sets three-day deadline for all weapons to be turned in and calls for international peacekeeping troops to be sent immediately .", "Clan leaders are skeptical about whether he would succeed , and many Somalis are dead set against order to surrender firearms .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 4], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1815939", "text": ["Having enjoyed a year that was better than average in the stock market and a much weaker one in housing , home owners and investors appear neither exuberant nor glum about 2007 .", "In fact , they are decidedly ambivalent , according to a recent New York Times / CBS News poll .", "They are split , for instance , almost evenly on whether it is a good time to buy a new home or better to wait , even though a sizable majority expects home prices to stay steady or rise , especially in their neighborhoods .", "The poll also showed that Americans had regained some faith in stocks as a safe investment since the market 's crash in 2000 , but they were less confident that stocks would rise next year than they were during the depths of the last bear market , in 2002 .", "The telephone survey was conducted from Dec . 8 to 10 and included 922 adults nationwide and has a sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points .", "The seeming confusion and anxiety is not entirely new or limited to average Americans .", "Similar worries abounded in late 2005 , when some economists and market experts predicted the nation 's long housing boom would come to a screeching halt and inflict damage on the economy and the stock market .", "While home sales did plummet from record levels , the stock market rebounded to new heights after a brief stumble last summer .", "The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index posted a 14 percent gain last year , its best showing since 2003 .", "The American economy also put up stronger-than-expected performance as job growth and business investment made up for the faltering real estate market .", "Still , in follow-up interviews , several of those polled last month said that while they were confident about their personal financial positions , they were preparing themselves for tougher times by either changing their spending and investment patterns or by not taking as many risks .", "Christopher J . Pujol , an account manager at a pharmacy benefits company in Texas , said he planned to shift some of the assets in his 401 -LRB- k -RRB- account to cash from stock-based mutual funds because he did not think the market would match its 2006 performance .", "`` The good times ca n't go on forever , `` he said .", "`` I take a conservative approach and take money off the table . ''", "Mr. Pujol is not alone .", "Skeptical market experts have raised concerns about the durability of the recent rally .", "More broadly , economists are significantly divided about the outlook for the year , from the most pessimistic among them predicting a recession and the most optimistic saying economic growth could be so strong that it may force policy makers to resume raising interest rates to fight inflation .", "`` People seem to have a fairly balanced view about things , '' said Robert T . McGee , chief economist at U.S. Trust , who reviewed results of the poll .", "`` We have had a relatively strong housing boom and people recognize that is over , but at the same time the disappointment in stocks that occurred after 2000 and 2001 is dissipating some . ''", "The poll is in line with other recent surveys that show Americans are slightly more cautious , even though most of them have stable employment and are seeing their paychecks increase , said Lynn Franco , director of the consumer research center at the Conference Board , which produces a widely followed consumer confidence index .", "`` Over all , it 's this glass half-full / half-empty scenario , `` she said .", "Mr. Pujol , who lives in Keller , Tex . , near Fort Worth , with his wife and their two young sons , thinks that the economy will moderate in 2007 .", "The family bought a new home four years ago and is not planning to move but Mr. Pujol and his wife have other real estate investments in Texas that he thinks will fare better than property on the coasts .", "Mr. Pujol reflected the view of most Southerners , 57 percent of whom said local housing prices would increase in the coming year and the same number said it was a good time to buy a house .", "Only 47 percent of people surveyed nationally said it was a good time to buy a house and 45 percent said local prices would increase .", "The difference may reflect the relative strength of housing in Texas , on the Gulf Coast and in the Carolinas .", "Not surprisingly , home owners were also more upbeat on housing -- 52 percent said it was a good time to buy a home -- than renters , 60 percent of whom felt it would be better to wait .", "-LRB- Similarly , 65 percent of people who owned stocks or mutual funds said the stock market would go up next year compared with 39 percent of people who did not have investments . -RRB-", "Laura Koepnick , a lawyer for the state of Massachusetts , said she and her partner would like to move to a bigger home from their condo in Boston but think home prices may fall further still .", "`` It 's more of a buyers market , but it has been so up and down that I am not comfortable making a huge investment at this time , `` said Ms. Koepnick , 36 , who is still paying off law school loans and owns a mutual fund in a retirement account .", "Darla K . Bundy , who works for the state of Pennsylvania , would also like to move but she faces an entirely different set of challenges .", "So many homes are on sale in Ridgway , the small industrial town two and a half hours northeast of Pittsburgh where she lives , that Ms. Bundy said she could not make as much as she and her husband , a welder , owe on the property .", "In 2001 , Ms. Bundy lost an $ 18-an-hour job making specialty light bulbs for Sylvania when the company moved some production to Mexico .", "After taking a two-year computer training course paid for by the government , she has a $ 12-an-hour clerical job at the state transportation department .", "`` My husband and I would love to make financial investments to prepare for retirement , '' Ms. Bundy , 42 , said .", "`` But to even take $ 20 out of our budget and put it somewhere else is unthinkable . ''", "Like several other people , Ms. Bundy pointed to Sept . 11 , 2001 , as a critical turning point for her family -- she lost her job shortly before the attacks of that day and her husband has had a hard time finding work ever since .", "The brief recession that followed the technology bust in 2000 ended before the attacks of 2001 , but many Americans view the attacks as an important historical marker in the nation 's and their personal economic lives .", "That may be a function of the weak employment and wage growth that characterized the economic recovery from 2002 to 2004 .", "The economy was `` pretty good until 9/11 , and then it took a major dive , '' said Dawn E . Owsley , a 33-year-old who owns a spa business in Olympia , Wash .", "`` And then it picked up a little .", "But I feel that we have not yet caught up . ``", "Over all , a majority , 52 percent , said they were making enough to pay bills and obligations and a sizable minority , 35 percent , said they earned enough to save and buy extras , while 12 percent said they did not make enough to meet their household expenses .", "By comparison , 17 percent of those who answered that question in early 2005 said they did not make enough , 48 percent said they did and 33 percent said they could save and buy extras .", "Most Americans , 71 percent , said if they had extra money to invest they would put it in real estate rather than stocks , which were favored by 22 percent of the respondents .", "By comparison , during the peak of the housing boom in the spring of 2005 , an NBC News / Wall Street Journal poll found that 80 percent preferred real estate and 13 percent stocks .", "Of those polled , 77 percent said they owned their own home and 21 percent said they rented .", "But only 44 percent said they owned stocks or mutual funds , down from 56 percent in the first half of 2000 .", "That shift away from stock ownership is not surprising given that many investors are still smarting from the technology-led crash of 2000 and the two-year bear market that followed .", "And in spite of the recent rally , mutual fund flows indicate that investors remain skeptical of American stocks .", "As of Dec . 27 , investors poured $ 15 billion into domestic equity funds in 2006 , compared with $ 134 billion in nondomestic funds and $ 305 billion in money market funds , according to AMG Data Services .", "Edward A . Kellerhals , a retired municipal electrical inspector who lives near Fresno , Calif . , said his investments in stocks and real estate had provided a comfortable retirement for him and his wife .", "Though he has long thought that land is a better investment than stocks , he became convinced that real estate prices in California had become outlandish when he and his wife were looking to buy a home at the end of 2005 .", "`` This piece of junk we saw was selling for $ 300,000 , '' Mr. Kellerhals , 76 , said .", "`` The roof was leaking all over the place and there was a trailer with a caved-in roof in the back . ''", "He has become more bullish on stocks , but says that at their age he and his wife `` do n't buy much stock anymore . ``", "`` We are just slowly going to sell it all , '' he said .", "How the Poll Was Conducted The latest New York Times / CBS News poll is based on telephone interviews conducted Dec . 8 through Dec . 10 with 922 adults throughout the United States .", "The sample of telephone exchanges called was randomly selected by a computer from a complete list of more than 42,000 active residential exchanges across the country .", "Within each exchange , random digits were added to form a complete telephone number , thus permitting access to listed and unlisted numbers alike .", "Within each household , one adult was designated by a random procedure to be the respondent for the survey .", "The results have been weighted to take account of household size and number of telephone lines into the residence and to adjust for variation in the sample relating to geographic region , sex , race , marital status , age and education .", "In theory , in 19 cases out of 20 , overall results based on such samples will differ by no more than three percentage points in either direction from what would have been obtained by seeking out all American adults .", "For smaller subgroups , the margin of sampling error is larger .", "Shifts in results between polls also have a larger sampling error .", "In addition to sampling error , the practical difficulties of conducting any survey of public opinion may introduce other sources of error into the poll .", "Variation in the wording and order of questions , for example , may lead to somewhat different results .", "Complete questions and results are available at nytimes.com/ polls .", "THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS ."], "summary": ["New York Times / CBS News poll shows that home owners and investors are ambivalent about 2007 .", "They are split almost evenly on whether it is good time to buy new home or better to wait , even though sizable majority expects home prices to stay or rise .", "Poll shows also that Americans had regained some faith in stocks as safe investment since market 's crash in 2000 , but they are less confident that stocks will rise in 2007 than they were during last bear market in 2002 .", "Also shows that those interviewed are preparing themselves for tougher times by either changing their spending and investment patterns or by not taking as many risks .", "52 percent say they are making enough to pay bills and obligations and 35 percent say they earn enough to save and buy extras , while 12 percent say they do not make enough to meet household expenses .", "Graphs .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 2, 42, 10, 1], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1815941", "text": ["Five years ago , the United States economy went through a recession that did virtually no damage to the housing market .", "In 2007 , the question is whether the economy can emerge unscathed from a housing recession .", "As 2006 ended , the opinion of stock market investors could not have been clearer : there are blue skies ahead .", "The Dow Jones industrial average , which was up 16.3 percent for 2006 , was setting new highs in the final week of the year , and even the shares of home builders had rallied sharply from their midyear lows .", "In the bond market , however , the outlook was cloudy at best .", "Prices in the futures market showed that investors expected that the next move by the Federal Reserve would be to reduce the interest rate it has raised 17 times since mid-2004 .", "That indicates worry about a slowing economy .", "And another traditional indicator -- the yield curve -- says the same thing .", "When short-term interest rates exceed long-term rates , as they do now , a recession often follows .", "Nonetheless , there are other indicators in the bond market to show a complete lack of worry .", "In a recession , less creditworthy borrowers are more likely to default as business turns bad , so investors who fear a downturn are expected to demand higher interest rates from them .", "But investors are not doing that .", "The spread between Treasury bonds and BB-rated bonds -- the best level of junk -- has shrunk to historic lows of less than two percentage points .", "And while very bad junk bonds -- those rated CCC or lower -- pay much more , spreads there fell to their lowest ever in 2006 , although they drifted up a bit late in the year .", "So the stock market says a boom is here and is going to stay , housing notwithstanding .", "And the bond market expects a recession -- but one that does not damage those who are financially stretched before it begins .", "`` We think of markets as forecasters , '' said Robert J . Barbera , the chief economist of ITG .", "`` But it is very hard to come up with a model '' that makes sense of the current forecasts .", "The answer to that conundrum is probably to look at markets from a different perspective .", "They move because money comes in or goes out , and money now is easier and more plentiful than ever .", "So most asset prices have risen , whether stocks or long-term bonds or commodities .", "An exception is short-term debt .", "There is no upside to a Treasury bill that matures in a few months , and thus little attraction to it .", "There is a perception that central banks tightened in 2006 , and that was true of the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank .", "But it is anything but accurate about the central banks that matter the most now .", "`` We are in a global market , with the central banks of Japan and China very , very easy , '' Mr. Barbera said .", "`` Two central banks are pumping it out hand over fist . ''", "Where is the money going .", "Into consumption in many countries , and into a bidding war for assets as well .", "The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which generally contains the largest public companies in the United States , now has eight companies in it that have announced plans to go private , often with a lot of borrowed money involved .", "And companies that are awash with cash are putting a lot of that money into dividends and even more into stock buybacks , at least among S . & P . 500 companies , reports Howard Silverblatt , an analyst with Standard & Poor 's .", "He estimates that those 500 companies spent $ 425 billion on capital in 2006 , up 3 percent from the prior year , and spent $ 437 billion on stock buybacks , up 25 percent .", "It was the first year ever that more money was spent on buybacks than capital spending .", "Dividends climbed 11 percent , to $ 224 billion .", "Stock of Exxon Mobil , the largest company in the country by market value , rose 36 percent , but because of share buybacks the company 's market value climbed only 28 percent , leaving it at $ 447 billion .", "That is still well below the record year-end value for an American company , the $ 603 billion valuation for Microsoft at the end of 1999 .", "Microsoft , its stock up 14 percent in 2006 , ended the year as the fourth-largest company , with a market value of $ 258 billion , trailing General Electric and Citigroup .", "Among all companies , not just those in the index , S . & P . counted 221 special dividends in December , the most for a single month since 1978 .", "Some stocks went down , of course , but not that many .", "All of the 10 sectors in the S . & P . 500 showed gains , with the best performance coming from telecommunications services , which rose 32 percent , and the worst from health care , which managed a gain of 6 percent .", "The overall index managed a gain in 11 of the 12 months , the exception being May .", "The last time the index managed that was in 1958 .", "For what it 's worth , the year that followed , 1959 , was a respectable year with a rise of more than 8 percent .", "But as good as the market was in the United States , it was better almost everywhere else .", "The S . & P . 500 rose 13.6 percent .", "But in dollar terms , virtually every major market in Europe was up at least 20 percent , and some grew much more .", "The Asian performance was more mixed , with Japan 's leading index rising just 5.7 percent , but many of those markets did much better than the United States did .", "The vast majority of American stocks have surpassed the highs they set in the great bull market that ended in 2000 , but that is not true of many of the most prominent stocks .", "That bull market was kindest to technology stocks .", "Many of them have not come close to recovering to their old peaks , and may never do so .", "It was also kind to large stocks in general , as a lot of money poured into index funds that tracked the S . & P . 500 index , and some of the largest , such as General Electric and Merck , are well below where they were .", "That index , calculated the traditional way that gives the highest weight to the largest companies , ended the year at 1,418.30 , still 7.1 percent below its 2000 high of 1,527.48 .", "But the index is also calculated on an equal-weighted basis , in which each of the 500 stocks counts as much as any other .", "For the year , that index did only a little better than the regular S . & P . , but it ended the year 52 percent above its 2000 high .", "The Dow , of course , set records in the year .", "But just 8 of the 30 Dow stocks -- Boeing , Exxon Mobil , Altria , American Express , Procter & Gamble , United Technologies , Caterpillar and Citigroup -- set new highs in 2006 .", "Two of them , Eastman Kodak and International Paper , have never risen above the highs they set in 1997 .", "The dollar , widely forecast to weaken , did so against the euro , and the Chinese yuan was allowed to float upward against the dollar , gaining 3.4 percent during the year .", "But the dollar actually showed a small gain against the Japanese yen .", "That the dollar held up as well as it did in the face of growing trade deficits reflects that people around the world continue to be happy to hold dollar-denominated assets , including Treasury securities .", "That willingness has also helped to hold down interest rates in this country .", "Those low interest rates helped support home prices .", "As home prices rose , lenders became more willing to lend on homes with little equity , or to people whose ability to repay seemed suspect , and that lending also provided money to keep consumption strong .", "Mortgage defaults were few and far between , which was hardly a surprise given that virtually any home could be sold for more than had been borrowed against it .", "But that started to change in 2006 .", "Some subprime loans -- a polite way of saying loans to people with poor credit -- defaulted soon after they were issued .", "The banking regulators , who had watched without action as the mortgage market heated up , finally put out guidelines aimed at restricting risky borrowing just as the market was turning lower .", "That could make it hard for homeowners under financial stress to refinance their existing home loans .", "With prices falling in some regions , home builders reported a surge of cancellations of purchase contracts .", "Housing starts plunged , and although starts showed a reassuring increase in November , newly issued permits to build new homes continued to decline .", "Oddly enough , rising home sales could be a bad sign in 2007 , particularly if prices continue to sag .", "A surge in sales of existing homes could be an indication that people were being forced to sell , and that could have a depressing effect on purchases of other things .", "In the past , when home prices fell , the number of homes sold also fell , as homeowners hung on to wait for good times to return .", "That could be harder this time , at least for those with mortgages that allow large increases in monthly payments .", "But even with housing in many areas of the United States on the ropes , much of the rest of the world seems to be humming along .", "There is strong economic growth in most of the developing world , and many commodities prices continue to be strong .", "Still , it was in commodities that the perils of a liquidity-driven market were exposed .", "Crude oil ended the year at virtually the same level as a year earlier , but spot natural gas was down 44 percent .", "It is no coincidence that a bet on natural gas led to the most notable hedge fund blowup of the year .", "Reality , in the form of warmer weather and higher inventories than expected , sent prices plunging .", "No such disasters have befallen most other markets , and with earnings strong , perhaps they will be averted .", "Easy money is driving up asset prices , and that could continue in 2007 .", "THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS ."], "summary": ["Whether economy can emerge unscathed from housing recession in 2007 is unclear .", "Investors expect stock market to continue to rally as it did in 2006 .", "Outlook for bond market is cloudy because investors expect Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates as economy slows .", "Spread between Treasury bonds and BB-rated bonds -- best level of junk -- has shrunk to historic lows of less than two percentage points .", "Stock market says boom is going to stay , housing notwithstading .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 14, 1, 64], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1815943", "text": ["The United States and its allies in Europe , in a tacit acknowledgment that sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council in late December are too weak to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions , have embarked on a new strategy to increase the financial and psychological pressure .", "The plan is to use the language of the resolution to help persuade foreign governments and financial institutions to cut ties with Iranian businesses , individuals in its nuclear and missile programs and , by extension , the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps , said Stuart Levey , under secretary of the treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence .", "The Guard and its military wing are identified as a power base for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad .", "Under his administration , American officials said , the Guard has moved increasingly into commercial operations , earning profits and extending its influence in Iran in areas involving big government contracts -- including building airports and other infrastructure , oil production and the providing of cellphones .", "Bush administration officials , who asked not to be identified because they were discussing diplomatic plans , said envoys would soon head abroad to press officials of foreign governments and banks to interpret the Security Council resolution equally aggressively .", "The new strategy builds on the Treasury Department 's efforts over the past few months to get Western banks to scale back business with Iran or risk running afoul of American laws .", "In 2006 , the European banks Credit Suisse First Boston and UBS said they would not do any new business with Iran .", "It is hard to assess how deeply the financial actions may cut , since the most willing parties to the effort -- the United States and Europe -- have few business dealings with Iran .", "The United States does have laws that give it considerable leeway to impose financial restrictions on banks and companies doing business in Iran , while European law does not .", "That said , Britain is also backing the new push , as is France , although to a lesser extent .", "Germany , with far more business interests in Iran , is not quite as eager .", "Japan is not a member of the Security Council , and the country is heavily dependent on the Persian Gulf for oil .", "But Japanese government officials have recently indicated their willingness to limit some of their business dealings with Iran .", "Last month , the Japan Bank for International Cooperation announced that it would not issue any new loans for Iranian projects until Iran resolved the nuclear impasse with the West .", "In addition , Japan has reduced its stake in an initial $ 2 billion deal to develop Iran 's largest onshore oil field at Azadegan to 10 percent from the originally agreed 75 percent , citing concern about Iran 's nuclear program .", "While United States officials have discussed what they are trying to do with their Russian and Chinese counterparts , the belief is that they have gone about as far as they are willing to go with the Security Council resolution that passed Dec . 23 .", "Russia fought to keep certain entities off the list and to keep the list as narrow as possible .", "Mr. Levey noted that the resolution cited three people as off limits to outside commercial transactions , and , in another section , prohibited transactions with agencies `` owned or controlled '' by them .", "The three , he said , are Maj . Gen . Yahya Rahim Safavi , commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps .", "Gen . Hosein Salimi , who is in charge of the air force branch of the corps .", "And Ahmad Vahid Dastjerdi , who runs the Aerospace Industries Organization .", "Thus , an effort to bar future foreign commercial or government involvement , including bank transactions , affecting missile programs and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is authorized by the resolution , Mr. Levey said .", "`` This resolution will be a big step forward in getting governments and financial institutions to pay more attention to Iran 's use of deceptive financial practices to facilitate its dangerous conduct and to stop doing business with the I.R.G.C. , `` Mr. Levey said , referring to the Revolutionary Guard .", "The resolution says that `` all states '' will `` take the necessary measures '' to bar `` financial assistance '' and `` financial resources or services '' related to nuclear and ballistic missile programs .", "The resolution 's appendix cites several government and private groups and 12 people as involved in those programs .", "Interrupting foreign involvement with those groups and individuals is also part of the new campaign .", "But American officials have no figures on the value of international business done with those cited in the resolution .", "The United States and European officials said they had also begun trying maneuvers aimed at undermining the self-assurance of Iranian officials , especially those who travel abroad .", "The recent arrests of four Iranian diplomats by American troops in Iraq , the officials said , played into that strategy .", "Pentagon officials said the Iranians were suspected of transferring improvised explosive devices from Iran to Iraq .", "Iran complained loudly that the men were diplomats and that their arrest violated accepted diplomatic rules .", "The diplomats , two of whom American officials said were probably members of the Revolutionary Guard , were eventually released .", "But their arrests are `` precisely the type of thing that will chip away at their confidence , '' one European official said .", "Most of the Western officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the issue .", "Even before the new effort began , the slowdown in international business was already emerging as a problem for Iran , which has vast oil fields but relatively little refining capacity .", "It imports 43 percent of its gasoline , according to the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security , a Washington-based nonprofit group that follows energy issues .", "In a rare acknowledgment of difficulty , the Iranian oil minister , Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh , told the ministry 's news agency , Shana , recently that Iran was encountering obstacles in financing oil projects .", "`` Currently , overseas banks and financiers have decreased their cooperation , '' Mr. Vaziri-Hamaneh told the agency .", "Iran is already seeking to secure gasoline imports from its allies , including Venezuela , and shifting some dependency from gasoline to natural gas .", "`` Definitely , the Iranian economy is suffering a great deal as a result of the economic punishment , '' said Gal Luft , the executive director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security .", "But he added that Mr. Ahmadinejad `` is not just sitting on his hands and waiting . ''", "The new strategy comes in part because few believe that the sanctions resolution that passed Dec . 23 has the muscle to sway Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions , which it insists are focused on energy production , not weapons .", "The road to sanctions was a tortuous one , filled with wrangling between the United States , which pushed for tough measures , and Russia , which advocated weaker measures .", "United States and European officials said they might still try to include tougher sanctions through the United Nations in the months ahead .", "But they say the West will need to use other measures as well .", "Specifically , the United States will press France , Germany , Italy and other European countries to halt credits that encourage doing business in Iran .", "The German Ministry of Economics , in a credit program called Hermes , says on a Web site that Iran is among `` risky markets , which are also growth markets , '' identified for such credits ."], "summary": ["United States and allies in Europe embark on new strategy to increase financial and psychological pressure on Iran , in tacit acknowledgment that sanctions imposed by United Nations Security Council in late Dec are too weak to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions .", "Plan is to use language of resolution to help persuade foreign governments and financial institutions to cut ties with Iranian businesses , individuals in its nuclear and missile programs and , by extension , Iranian Revolutionary Guard , which is identified as power base for Pres Mahmoud Ahmadinejad .", "It is hard to assess how deeply financial actions may cut , since most willing parties to effort -- US and Europe -- have few business dealings with Iran .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 7, 1, 2], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1815949", "text": ["By the end of 2006 , Wall Street had every reason to celebrate .", "A second-half rally propelled the stock market to its best year since 2003 .", "Companies reported strong profits , and some , like oil producers and investment banks , had record-shattering earnings .", "Yet the year had a more precarious beginning .", "Worries were rampant that a slowdown in housing would hurt the overall economy and that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates and stall growth .", "But the economy proved resilient , withstanding a housing slump .", "The Fed halted its campaign for higher interest rates .", "Profits accelerated , and there was a huge wave of mergers and acquisitions .", "Nonetheless , Wall Street economists are looking at 2007 with some caution .", "They expect at least some slowdown in economic growth .", "And many worry that housing 's slump will spread to other corners of the economy .", "The analysts surveyed predicted that the Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which closed 2006 at 1,418.30 , would end 2007 at 1,440 to 1,570 .", "Richard Bernstein Chief Investment Strategist Merrill Lynch Though concerns mount that the world is suffering from global warming , Richard Bernstein is content to call himself a `` bipolar bear . ''", "While he foresees returns rising 12 percent over the coming year -- and the S . & P . hitting 1,570 by the end of the year -- Mr. Bernstein expects increased volatility .", "That is in large part because the Fed will not ease , or lower rates , in January , he says .", "`` As the uncertainty about the Fed easing has gone up , you 've found that the market has become choppier , `` he said .", "Mr. Bernstein cautioned that he expected growth in gross domestic product to be a full percentage point below other estimates , citing in part a `` money illusion '' over the growth in the Dow and even in energy prices .", "Investors should watch earnings carefully , he said .", "`` There 's sort of an embedded assumption that earnings will be going great forever . ``", "Mr. Bernstein recommends a mix of 50 percent stocks , 30 percent bonds and 20 percent cash for investors ' portfolios .", "Among sectors to watch , Mr. Bernstein rated telecommunications as a growth sector , aided by increasing attractiveness in European and Asian companies .", "`` It 's one of our turnaround sectors , `` he said .", "He is bearish on energy and commodities , citing their cyclical nature .", "Abby Joseph Cohen Chief Investment Strategist Goldman Sachs The coming year looks to be reasonable , if a little slow , said Abby Joseph Cohen , long one of Wall Street 's optimists .", "`` We are assuming profit growth is in the process of deceleration , '' she said .", "`` Especially in the case of energy companies , we expect that they will show gains for 2007 , but they will not show as much of a boost as in previous years . ''", "Still , Ms. Cohen said , her team 's research indicates that the S . & P . is underpriced , pointing to a 12-month target of 1,550 .", "Buoyed by the Fed 's halt in raising interest rates , merger activity should keep rolling , but with more of a focus on international expansion .", "With the slowdown in housing , the economy will rotate toward discretionary consumer services , like travel , restaurants and entertainment , she said .", "Large-capitalization industrials and information technology may also see favorable growth .", "Over all , Ms. Cohen said , the economy should run well , with no real bumps in the way .", "David Bianco Chief U.S. Equity Strategist UBS Investment Research David Bianco remembers a scary moment from last summer , as he and others feared that the Fed might tighten interest rates .", "Since then , the stock market has recovered and that forward momentum should carry over into 2007 , he said .", "`` We 'll continue to see P / E expansion , `` Mr. Bianco said of price-to-earnings ratios , '' mostly driven by everybody 's fears of a weakening economy not taking place . ``", "Mr. Bianco said that he expects the Fed to cut interest rates in March , setting a fairly steady metronome for slowing but solid growth and a target S . & P . of 1,500 by year-end .", "Like Ms. Cohen , Mr. Bianco said that he sees the S . & P . as relatively undervalued .", "Despite the flurry of merger activity in 2006 , he believes that the S . & P . has been using less than half of its debt capacity , something he expects to be corrected .", "Housing will continue to slow and prices will fall further , taking consumer-related spending and industries like autos along with it , he said .", "Abhijit Chakrabortti Chief U.S. and Global Equity Strategist J . P . Morgan Chase Last year can be summed up in one phrase , according to Abhijit Chakrabortti : Value killed growth .", "`` If you had that the S . & P . would be up for the year , you would have said that tech , industrials and health care would kill value stocks , '' he said .", "`` But telecoms and utilities were the big winners . ''", "Coming off a surprisingly good 2006 , however , Mr. Chakrabortti is distinctly bearish .", "He sees slower growth in the United States compared with Asia and Europe .", "Volatility will pick up as earnings slow down , he added , and the dollar will weaken .", "The Fed will hold steady , Mr. Chakrabortti said , but other central banks will tighten .", "He predicts the S . & P . will rise to 1,440 -- the low end of targets among the analysts surveyed .", "`` I very much suspect that there will be a time when a 1,440 valuation looks good , '' he said .", "`` The market will be disappointed with the Fed , and we 'll see a significant correction sometime in the first half . ``", "Ethan S . Harris Chief U.S. Economist Lehman Brothers Ethan S . Harris said he was less surprised than most by the resilience of the stock market last year .", "He expects 2007 to be a growth year , albeit one without the boom that marked the last half of 2006 .", "`` There 's still room for the market to rally , `` he said .", "To that end , he staked an S . & P . price target of 1,570 , thanks in large part to the economy shrugging off the housing slump .", "But he also said he did not expect a completely rosy economic picture .", "Alone among economists surveyed , Mr. Harris talked about the possibility of `` a very mild version of stagflation . ''", "Moreover , he gave recession a 20 percent chance to appear in 2007 .", "THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS ."], "summary": ["Wall Street economists Richard Bernstein , Abby Joseph Cohen , David Bianco , Abhijit Chakrabortti and Ethan S Harris are cautious about economy in 2007 .", "They expect at least some slowdown in economic growth .", "Many are concerned that housing 's slump will spread to other parts of economy .", "Analysts surveyed predict that Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which closed 2006 at 1,418.30 , will end 2007 at 1,440 to 1,570 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 9, 10, 8], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1815950", "text": ["Hundreds of people emerged from tents beside this city 's Canal St . - Martin to greet the chilly New Year with a hot lunch from a nearby soup kitchen .", "But not all of them were homeless .", "Dozens of otherwise well-housed , middle-class French have been spending nights in tents along the canal , in the 10th Arrondissement , in solidarity with the country 's growing number of `` sans domicile fixe , '' or `` without fixed address , '' the French euphemism for people living on the street .", "The bleak yet determinedly cheerful sleep-in is meant to embarrass the French government into doing something about the problem .", "`` Each person should have the minimum dignity in a country as rich as this , '' said Bleunwenn Manrot , a 28-year-old with a newsboy cap on her head and a toothbrush in her hand .", "Ms. Manrot drove more than six hours with friends from her home in Carhaix , Brittany , to spend New Year 's Eve along the canal .", "The demonstration has drawn enough media attention over the holidays for President Jacques Chirac to acknowledge it during his traditional New Year address to the nation on Sunday .", "He asked the government to work in the coming weeks to `` put in place a truly enforceable right to housing '' that would give the homeless the legal means to demand a place to live .", "Given France 's well-financed social services , the country 's homeless problem is relatively mild -- the national statistics bureau estimated the number of people living without a fixed address on any one night at 86,000 for all of France in 2004 , about equal to the number of homeless in Los Angeles alone .", "But even that number is disturbing for the socially active segment of France 's population .", "In December 2005 , the French affiliate of the international charity Doctors of the World began distributing nylon pup tents to people who sleep on Paris 's sidewalks and beneath its bridges .", "The movement took hold , and since then the tents have become a fixture in odd corners of the city .", "In an effort to increase pressure on politicians , another group , Don Quixote 's Children , marshaled some of the tent dwellers last year to set up their tents along the Canal St . - Martin , in the heart of `` bobo '' -LRB- short for bourgeois bohemian -RRB- Paris .", "The canal was dug by Napoleon to supply Paris with clean drinking water .", "Since mid-December , the encampment has become a happening in one of Paris 's most happening neighborhoods .", "`` There are 250 tents now , '' said Jean-Baptiste Legrand , the organization 's president .", "`` The people keep coming , and the tents are full . ''", "The protest has started to spread to other cities , including Orl\u00e9ans , Toulouse and Lyon , and has been picked up by politicians as the presidential campaign gets under way .", "Fran\u00e7ois Hollande , the leader of the Socialist Party , and Bertrand Delano\u00eb , the mayor of Paris , have signed the group 's petition calling for a solution to the housing problem .", "Both of the leading presidential candidates -- Nicolas Sarkozy , of the governing Union for a Popular Movement , and S\u00e9gol\u00e8ne Royal of the Socialists -- support the cause .", "Catherine Vautrin , the minister for social cohesion , met with Mr. Legrand and other members of his group and last week announced a tenfold increase in spending to help the homeless , to $ 92 million from $ 9 million .", "She said the money would allow homeless shelters to stay open around the clock on weekends and extend their weekday opening by three hours a day .", "But a legally enforceable right to housing is the biggest prize sought by housing activists , including Don Quixote 's Children , and they remain skeptical of Mr. Chirac 's New Year promise .", "France already has a hard time housing new immigrants and asylum seekers .", "Fires in overcrowded , substandard lodgings have caused scandals in recent years .", "Finding a place for the hardcore homeless is certain to complicate those problems .", "`` Chirac 's speech means nothing , `` said Ms. Manrot , the Brittany protester .", "Such comments suggest that the long camp-out will continue .", "Organizers have arranged portable toilets and a soup kitchen to keep the ad hoc village operating .", "Vans of blankets and other supplies arrive regularly , much of the material donated by Parisians .", "Volunteers sweep the canal-side cobblestones to keep the area clean .", "`` I like the protest because it 's nonviolent , `` said another protester , Renaud Huv\u00e9 , 39 , a photographer .", "`` It 's a citizens ' call . ``", "So far , the authorities have been tolerant , though they have quietly evicted tent dwellers before , when the news media were not watching .", "The police broke up one encampment under a bridge farther north along the canal in October .", "Magali Marx , 23 , a sales assistant in a clothes shop , expressed the laissez-faire attitude of the neighborhood 's residents as she passed by .", "`` It 's a bit of a pain for the people who want to walk along the side of the canal , `` she said .", "`` But then , these people do n't have a roof . ``", "Not all of the homeless are down-and-out French .", "A group of immigrants continues to live farther up the canal beneath what people in the area have dubbed `` the bridge of the Afghans . ''", "The government says that a third of the country 's homeless hold jobs .", "The homeless who make up the bulk of the canal-side campers are thankful for the attention .", "`` Let 's hope it makes a difference , `` said Jean , a middle-aged man who said he had been living on the streets of Paris for eight years .", "But staying on the street is anything but restful for those who have a warm bed waiting at home .", "Rain and high winds dampened the canal-side New Year 's Eve celebration .", "Ms. Manrot and her boyfriend , Franck Renardineau , ended up sleeping in their car .", "`` I sleep in one of the tents , '' Mr. Legrand said , rubbing his pale , exhausted face .", "`` But I 've stayed at home a couple of times .", "We 've got a lot going on . ``", "PARIS JOURNAL ."], "summary": ["Dozens of middle-class French people have been spending nights in tents along canal in Paris in solidarity with country 's growing number of homeless people .", "Demonstration has drawn enough media attention over holidays for Pres Jacques Chirac to acknowledge it during his traditional New Year address to nation .", "Given France 's well-financed social services , country 's homeless problem is relatively mild .", "But even small number of homeless is disturbing for socially active segment of France 's population .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 2, 9], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1815974", "text": ["Public School 64 , a vacant building with a leaky roof , broken windows and a colony of pigeons , sits on East Ninth Street near Tompkins Square Park at the center of one of the last fights against gentrification in Manhattan .", "Since 1998 , it has touched off pitched battles in the neighborhood , embroiling two mayoral administrations and employing a legion of lawyers and fixers , all for naught .", "In November , vandals broke in and painted the walls with another layer of anti-landlord graffiti .", "Gregg Singer , the small-time developer who bought the building , which runs from Ninth Street to 10th Street , for $ 3.15 million at a city auction , says he has been stymied at every turn from renovating the building for elderly tenants , nonprofit organizations or college dormitories .", "He said he was the victim of a political deal between Mayor Michael R . Bloomberg and a former city councilwoman , Margarita L\u00f3pez .", "Mr. Singer 's opponents view him as an interloper with little respect for the needs of the community or the building 's history as a political and cultural center for the East Village and Lower East Side .", "They say his secret intention is to build luxury housing .", "The opponents include not only neighborhood activists but nearly every local elected official , the pro-development Bloomberg administration and the owner of the penthouse next door at the Christadora House , a 1980s symbol of encroaching gentrification where protesters once chanted , `` Kill yuppie scum . ''", "The 16-story , 79-year-old apartment building originally housed a charity by the same name that helped immigrants adjust to life in New York .", "More than eight years after Mr. Singer bought the building , there is no end in sight .", "P.S. 64 is a blight even as Tompkins Square Park , the site of a homeless encampment and riot in 1988 , has been transformed into a quiet oasis for the white-collar professionals who live nearby .", "`` It 's an amazing tale , `` said Steven Spinola , president of the Real Estate Board of New York .", "`` Whatever you believe , the fact that this has dragged on so long is amazing .", "The property continues to be an eyesore and a wasted opportunity in the neighborhood . ``", "Last year , the city declared the building a landmark , an example of the French Renaissance Revival style .", "It now plans to change the zoning to eliminate most development options .", "`` For the government to sell me the building and then landmark it , it 's like bait and switch , `` Mr. Singer said .", "`` Complaints from the community do n't bother me .", "It 's the government that 's the problem .", "They 've blocked me from doing any useful development here . ``", "City officials called his claims nonsense and have asked that the suit be dismissed .", "Virginia Waters , a city lawyer , said that Mr. Singer could use the building for a medical or community center , or a dormitory , so long as the city is assured it would be occupied by students .", "`` The city has in no way prohibited those uses from going forward , '' she said .", "`` However , we have read that he wants an exorbitant rent .", "That may be his problem . ``", "Ms. L\u00f3pez , who was appointed last April to the city 's Housing Authority by Mr. Bloomberg , did not return calls about the controversy .", "The atmosphere is poisonous .", "One flier likened Mr. Singer 's dormitory design to a Nazi concentration camp .", "Another invited people to toss dog droppings over the construction fence .", "More recently , Mr. Singer put up his own posters announcing that the `` Christotora Treatment Center , '' for the homeless , drug addicted and recently paroled , was `` coming soon . ''", "And he set off a furor when he used an old permit to alter the outside of the building to buttress his suit challenging landmark designation .", "`` Singer 's been combative from the beginning , `` said David McWater , the chairman of Community Board 3 , which includes Ninth Street .", "`` He thinks it 's his God-given right to make as much money as he can . ``", "There was little question that Mr. Singer had stepped onto a minefield when he outbid a dozen rival bidders in July 1998 at an city auction .", "Police officers offered to escort him past an angry group of protesters .", "It took a year to close on the property , which Mr. Singer says is now worth $ 51 million , though the effect of landmark status is unclear .", "The building came with a deed restriction : It must be used as a `` community facility , '' including a library , nursing home or clinic , or for social service or arts groups .", "The original opposition to the sale was led by Armando Perez and Chino Garcia of Charas , a community group that established the El Bohio Cultural and Community Center in the building after P.S. 64 closed in 1977 .", "Over time , it became a home for housing activists , artists , theater groups , a bicycle repair shop and the Latin Kings , a notorious street gang .", "The school is `` symbolic of the struggle in our community , '' said Councilwoman Rosie Mendez , Ms. L\u00f3pez 's successor .", "`` When everyone else fled the community during the 1970s , we took out the rubble and created community gardens , affordable housing .", "He can move forward on developing this as a community facility , or he can decide to sell it . ``", "In 1997 , Antonio Pag\u00e1n , who had clashed with Charas and who was then the local city councilman , urged the Giuliani administration to auction the property .", "The fight to `` save '' P.S. 64 became a cause c\u00e9l\u00e8bre among local groups , the Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund , the actress Susan Sarandon and Ms. L\u00f3pez , a friend of Mr. Perez 's who later succeeded Mr. Pag\u00e1n on the Council .", "Mr. Singer 's first move was to evict Charas .", "That took more than two years and 110 police officers to haul away protesters who had chained themselves together .", "`` The anger was n't at Gregg , per se , `` said Lyn Pentecost , executive director of the Lower East Side Girls Club .", "But he had `` stepped into the thick of community politics . ''", "At one point , Ms. Pentecost said , she offered to buy a third of the building for the Girls Club for $ 3 million .", "She said Mr. Singer was interested only in leasing it .", "`` He 's an opportunist , `` said Valerio Orselli , a member of Charas .", "`` I do n't believe for a minute that Mr. Singer intended it to be the community center we envisioned . ``", "The developer tells a different story : He says that Ms. L\u00f3pez warned the Girls Club , and many other nonprofits , not to get involved with him .", "He said 108 schools and nonprofit and social service organizations responded to an appeal he sent to 1,000 groups , but they all backed out .", "No doubt some potential tenants who visited the building were scared off by the frequent protests outside , so perhaps New York University , the New School and the New York Society for the Deaf decided to sidestep a volatile situation .", "John Caizzo , a vice president at the DeMatteis Organization , who decided on a different site for his company 's project , acknowledged that the building `` seems like a hot potato . ''", "But no city officials told him to stay away , he said .", "But Cecilia Abrilla , a director of the Puerto Rican Alliance , on the Lower East Side , wrote to Mr. Singer in 2003 saying Ms. L\u00f3pez `` has cast a warning to the nonprofit community to stay away from Mr. Singer '' by threatening to withdraw financial support for the organizations .", "And a top city official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the litigation made it clear that the local community effectively has veto power .", "`` At the end of the day , '' the official said , Mr. Singer `` will have to find an accommodation with the community . ''", "After a series of meetings in 2004 with Robert B . Tierney , chairman of the Landmarks Commission , Mr. Singer devised a plan to preserve the Ninth Street side of the old school while building a 19-story dormitory tower at the rear .", "He said as much as $ 2 million a year in excess revenue would flow to local groups .", "In return , according to the lawsuit , Mr. Tierney promised to refrain from landmarking and support a building permit .", "But the proposal ignited broader opposition , and the Buildings Department denied him a permit after imposing what Mr. Singer called `` an unprecedented requirement '' that he prove that he had a contract with a specific school for the housing .", "City officials said they imposed the rule after unscrupulous developers had tried to convert `` dormitories '' into market-rate housing .", "Days later , Mr. Singer said , Ms. L\u00f3pez , a Democrat , announced her endorsement of Mr. Bloomberg , a Republican with whom she had quarreled , rather than the challenger , Fernando Ferrer .", "Michael Rosen , who lives in the penthouse at Christadora House , formed a new group that lobbied to designate the school a city landmark .", "`` The thought of a dormitory , tall or short , was out of place in this neighborhood , '' he said , adding , `` My hope is that the building comes back to serve people who are in need . ''", "Mr. Singer scoffed , saying Mr. Rosen did not want his views blocked .", "In June , the Landmarks Commission voted to designate P.S. 64 a landmark , over the objection of the Real Estate Board , a powerful lobbying organization .", "`` The building should never have been landmarked , '' Mr. Spinola , the board 's president , said .", "Further , he said , the city 's new requirement for dormitories was tantamount to `` telling a commercial developer he must have leases before they 'll give him a permit . ``", "City lawyers denied many of Mr. Singer 's assertions .", "`` Landmarks never had a deal with him , '' said Gabriel Taussig of the Law Department .", "`` He had nothing in writing . ''", "Mr. Singer sued over the permit denial and lost .", "He is appealing .", "The first , and so far only , attempt at a settlement came in July , when Mr. Singer met with Ms. Mendez , United States Representative Nydia Vel\u00e1zquez and a lawyer for the city .", "The two sides explored a proposal for Mr. Singer to provide space for community groups while he built apartments in the rest of the building .", "The talks quickly collapsed , with each side blaming the other .", "That is when Mr. Singer stripped terra cotta elements and copper cornices from the building 's exterior , a move the politicians saw as a breach of faith .", "`` I 'm disappointed that all the negotiations have broken down , `` said William Jones , pastor of the Gospel Fellowship Church nearby .", "`` I would 've been thrilled if there was a compromise that allowed residential development and community space . `` ."], "summary": ["Developer Gregg Singer and New York City 's East Village community continue eight-year running battle over development plans for former Public School 64 .", "Singer says city has stymied his plans to renovate building for elderly tenants , nonprofit organizations or college dormitories .", "Community says Singer secretly intends to build luxury housing .", "Singer has filed three suits against city .", "One suit contends Mayor Michael R Bloomberg made political deal with former councilwoman Margarita Lopez to block Singer development plans .", "Singer expresses anger over city 's declaring building landmark and plans to rezone area to eliminate most development options ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 4, 15, 6], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816052", "text": ["Logan Fox ca n't quite pinpoint the moment when movies and television shows replaced books as the cultural topics people liked to talk about over dinner , at cocktail parties , at work .", "He does know that at Micawber Books , his 26-year-old independent bookstore here that is to close for good in March , his own employees prefer to come in every morning and gossip about `` Survivor '' or `` that fashion reality show '' whose title he ca n't quite place .", "`` It kills me , '' Mr. Fox , 53 , said over coffee on Friday afternoon , shaking his head .", "`` The amount of time spent discussing culturally iconic shows has superseded anything in the way of books that I can detect .", "Discussing books is very much one on one .", "It just hurts me . ``", "Mr. Fox is bracing himself for an emotionally wrenching few months .", "In December Micawber announced that it would close , after years of fighting not only the tyranny of other media but also the steady encroachment of big-box retail competitors and the Internet .", "Independent bookstores , of course , have been under siege for nearly two decades by the megachains and the Web retailers , and have been steadily dropping away , one by one .", "Now , though , the battle is reaching some of the last redoubts .", "Mr. Fox said that Micawber 's first chain competitor , Encore Books , arrived in the mid-1990s , and his sales plummeted 25 percent , nearly putting him out of business .", "Soon after , Barnes & Noble and Borders came to town .", "And then there was Amazon.com.", "But beyond those factors , Mr. Fox said , he blames a change in American culture , in the quickening pace of people 's lives , in the shrinking willingness to linger .", "During the 1980s , in the store 's early days , customers would come in and stay all afternoon , carefully inspecting the books that were packed tightly together , spine to spine .", "No longer .", "`` The driving force of all of this is the acceleration of our culture , '' Mr. Fox said .", "`` The old days of browsing , the old days of a person coming in for three or four hours on a Saturday and slowly meandering , making a small pile of books , being very selective , coming away with six or seven gems they wanted , are pretty much over .", "If you go to the Strand or to Micawber Books today , it 's a whole different gear , where society wants satisfaction and fulfillment now . ``", "The other crisis for independent booksellers , Mr. Fox said , is the current state of publishing .", "The job of building writers ' reputations and nurturing them has fallen to agents , he said .", "Publishers are concerned only with the bottom line , he added , looking for the home run instead of the single .", "And there is the question of quality .", "Though Micawber carries a few , Mr. Fox laments the rapid growth of the celebrity cookbook genre .", "Children 's books , in particular , are driven by marketability instead of creativity , said Bobbie Fishman , the children 's books buyer at Micawber .", "`` It 's either pirates , wizards , one of a series , or written by Katie Couric , `` she said .", "Independent bookstores across the country are suffocating , squeezed by Amazon.com and the chain bookstores that deliver deeper discounts and wider variety than independent shops .", "According to the American Booksellers Association , a trade group of independent bookstores , there are about 2,500 such stores in the United States , down from about 4,700 in 1993 .", "And that is not counting those that sell only used books .", "Micawber opened in 1981 , when Princeton was an old-money kind of place , with independently owned shops lining Nassau Street , adjacent to the picturesque Princeton University campus .", "`` When we first came , every store on this street was a 15 - , 20-year entrenched old-family business , '' Mr. Fox said .", "Today that same thoroughfare is dominated by chain stores like Ann Taylor and Foot Locker .", "Micawber Books , with its purple walls and its alien name , which comes from Dickens ' novel `` David Copperfield , '' is the one that sticks out now .", "Half the store is devoted to secondhand books and other vintage publications , like a stack of Archie comics on the register .", "The other half is new books , a well-edited mix that includes fiction , history , children 's books and the occasional concession to popular taste , like Rachael Ray 's `` Express Lane Meals . ''", "-LRB- There are also stalwarts , evidenced by the back wall of shelves lined with Penguin Classics . -RRB-", "Mr. Fox is proudly from the old school of bookselling .", "He says he has only been inside a Barnes & Noble store three times .", "-LRB- `` I ca n't do it , `` he said , grimacing . -RRB-", "In the mid-1990s , when the struggling Micawber took on Margaret Griffin as a partner , she insisted that Mr. Fox abandon his system of 3-by-5-inch index cards in boxes and become computerized .", "The new Sony Reader , a handheld device that stores dozens of titles electronically .", "Never tried it .", "`` I do n't want to sound corny about it , `` Mr. Fox said .", "`` But there is something transformative about the book . ''", "Mr. Fox began as a bookseller in the ` 70s at the Strand Book Store in Manhattan , and moved to Princeton to open Micawber , then a store devoted entirely to secondhand books from his own personal library .", "His father , Joe Fox , was an editor at Random House , nurturing the careers of John Irving and Truman Capote .", "His childhood was sprinkled with the romantic stuff of traditional New York publishing , with swanky book parties attended by famous authors and writers for The Paris Review .", "In her 1998 film , `` You 've Got Mail , `` Nora Ephron used the name of his father , who , as it happens , was also a former boyfriend of hers .", "Joe Fox was the name she gave the character played by Tom Hanks , a chain bookstore owner who swiftly puts Meg Ryan and her tiny shop around the corner out of business .", "Of course , in the Micawber story , Logan Fox is in the Meg Ryan role , the person who champions the mom-and-pop store and derides the corporate behemoth .", "In Micawber 's case , Mr. Fox said there was no imminent financial crisis , only the recognition that years from now , selling the business would be a far more difficult task .", "`` Ten years down the road , we could n't imagine who would buy us at all , `` he said .", "After Micawber quietly put out the word that it was for sale , Princeton University offered to buy the building that houses the store for an undisclosed sum , and promised to bring in Labyrinth Books , a scholarly chain with stores in New Haven and Manhattan .", "All the architectural details incorporated into Micawber , Mr. Fox pointed out sadly , will be bulldozed .", "And he has no idea what he will do next .", "Still , Mr. Fox said he was trying hard not to be cynical .", "`` I consider this a success story , '' he said .", "`` Our intention was to be a good townspeople store . '' ."], "summary": ["Logan Fox has sold his independent bookstore Micawber Books in Princeton , NJ . Laments cultural shift away from books .", "Holds that fast pace of life and shrinking attention spans have made customers less eager to linger and search for books in store that forgoes commercial push of best sellers at front of store .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 13, 0], "tag": ["Arts", "Education", "Books"]} +{"id": "1816057", "text": ["Diane Sawyer , whose continued commitment to `` Good Morning America '' has been the subject of speculation since Charles Gibson departed the show in June , has in recent weeks left some executives at ABC with the impression that she intends to remain with the program until at least early summer , according to one executive briefed directly on Ms. Sawyer 's status .", "By sending signals that she intends to stay with `` Good Morning America '' -- at least through the end of the current prime-time television season , and perhaps longer still -- Ms. Sawyer has prompted some exhaling in the upper echelons of both the news division and the network as a whole .", "That is because she remains ABC 's biggest news star in the morning -- and perhaps the evening as well -- on a program that is by far the news division 's most valuable , with annual profits believed to be well in excess of $ 100 million .", "The executive , who spoke yesterday on condition of anonymity because of the delicate diplomacy involved , said Ms. Sawyer had met before Christmas , as she does periodically , with David Westin , the president of ABC News .", "Separately , the official said , she had also had a holiday lunch in New York with Robert A . Iger , the president and chief executive of the Walt Disney Company , ABC 's corporate parent , though that get-together was characterized as more social than business .", "By staying put , Ms. Sawyer , 61 , also promises to keep `` Good Morning America '' competitive with `` Today '' on NBC , the ratings leader for more than a decade , at a moment when that program and its audience are continuing to adjust to a new co-anchor , Meredith Vieira , who replaced Katie Couric in September .", "-LRB- Since Mr. Gibson 's departure for `` World News , '' `` Good Morning America '' has gone through some growing pains of its own , as it introduced Chris Cuomo as its news reader and Sam Champion as its weatherman , while pairing Robin Roberts with Ms. Sawyer as lead anchors . -RRB-", "In the most recent November sweeps period , `` Today '' had an average daily audience of 5.8 million , about 735,000 more than `` Good Morning America , '' which drew an audience of about 5.1 million , according to Nielsen Media Research .", "During the same period a year ago , the lead of `` Today '' over `` Good Morning America '' was about 5,000 viewers larger , although both shows have lost viewers over the last year .", "In June an ABC spokesman said Ms. Sawyer remained committed to `` Good Morning America '' through at least early 2007 .", "When asked in September how much longer she planned to stay with the program , she told a reporter that she was not ready to entertain that question .", "`` ` I 'm sorry if it sounds like a dodge , `` she said at the time .", "`` I truly am looking ahead and enjoying this part .", "And there is plenty of time to think about what remains after -- when and whether . ``", "When asked yesterday about Ms. Sawyer , Jeffrey Schneider , a senior vice president of ABC News , dismissed any notion of a timetable for her tenure on the program .", "He added : `` Diane is having a great time on ' G.M.A. '", "She loves the new team .", "And she has had an unrivaled run of groundbreaking reporting which has her passionately engaged . ``", "Ms. Sawyer 's current contract with the network extends for at least two more years , said the executive with knowledge of her situation .", "But Ms. Sawyer has always characterized her tenure on `` Good Morning America '' as temporary -- and the network has regarded it as such -- even if it has been eight years since she joined the show , at a moment of crisis , after the network had just jettisoned a new , low-rated anchor team ."], "summary": ["Diane Sawyer indicates that she will stay with ABC morning program Good Morning America until at least early summer .", "Decision prompts sigh of relief from upper echelons of news division and network as whole , who have relied on Sawyer for star power since departure of Charles Gibson .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1816064", "text": ["SOMETHING made me uneasy when I dropped a box of gluten-free EnviroKidz organic Koala Crisp cereal in my shopping cart .", "But it 's hard to suspect a cartoon koala , so I moved on .", "The unsettling sensation came back when I bought a bag of my favorite organic frozen French fries .", "Why did the verdant fields in the Cascadian Farm logo make me feel so smug .", "Then I got really suspicious .", "A bag of natural Cheetos seemed so much more appealing than the classic cheese puff .", "Why .", "Was it the image of a subdued Chester Cheetah rising gently from a farm field bathed in golden sunlight .", "Like clues to a murder that suddenly point to a single culprit , the mystery in my shopping cart revealed itself .", "Wheat sheaf by wheat sheaf , sunrise by sunrise , the grocery store shelves had been greenwashed .", "And I was falling for it .", "The kind of greenwashing I 'm talking about is not just a fake environmental ethos .", "Greenwashing , it seems to me , can also describe a pervasive genre of food packaging designed to make sure that manufacturers grab their slice of the $ 25 billion that American shoppers spend each year on natural or organic food .", "As a design shorthand , it makes subtle use of specific colors , images , typefaces and the promise of what marketers call `` an authentic narrative '' to sell food .", "Especially in recent years , greenwashing has spilled out well past the organic section of the grocery store .", "Even the snack aisle at the gas station is n't immune .", "`` Somebody becomes successful with a specific point of view , and the consumer begins to identify with it and it spreads like a virus , '' said Paula Scher , a partner in Pentagram , an international design firm .", "From there it 's only a matter of time before Cap 'n Crunch shows up in a hemp jacket , raising money to save the manatees .", "Buy a greenwashed product and you 're buying a specific set of healthy environmental and socially correct values .", "If the package does its work , then the food inside does n't actually have to be organic , only organic-ish .", "The right cues on a package free mass-market consumers from doing any homework , said Elizabeth Talerman , a branding analyst .", "They can assume that a group she calls the green elite -- those early adopters who pushed for organic food laws and who helped make Whole Foods markets a success -- have done the work for them .", "`` The mass market wants an instant identifier , '' said Ms. Talerman , a longtime New York advertising consultant .", "So what are the identifiers .", "After shopping for dozens of products in places as varied as food co-ops and convenience stores , I 've uncovered the essential elements of a greenwashed product .", "Start with a gentle image of a field or a farm to suggest an ample harvest gathered by an honest , hard-working family .", "To that end , strangely oversize vegetables or fruits are good .", "If they are dew-kissed and nestled in a basket , all the better .", "A little red tractor is O.K. Pesticide tanks and rows of immigrant farm laborers bent over in the hot sun are not .", "Earth 's Best , a baby and toddler food company , offers a delicious example .", "Its whole grain rice cereal features two babies working the rice fields .", "One is white and one is black .", "-LRB- A greenwashed package would never show the black child working in the fields alone . -RRB-", "A sign that looks hand-hewn declares `` No GMO 's . ``", "There is a barn , a butterfly and a typeface that could have come from the back room of a general store .", "A good greenwashed product should show an animal displaying special skills or great emotional range .", "Some Organic Valley packages feature a sax-playing , environmentally friendly earthworm .", "Jaunty cows on Stonyfield Farm yogurt wear sunglasses and headbands .", "The cows on Horizon 's milk cartons dance a bovine jig , despite challenges by organic purists that some Horizon cows see precious little pasture .", "A little family history helps , too .", "My Family Farm of Fort Thomas , Ky . , sells packaged cookies and crackers and promises to give some of the money to charity .", "On the back of the box is a story that begins , `` With careers as licensed social workers , my sister and I are committed to improving the lives of children . ''", "A carton of Country Hen omega-3 eggs , which cost $ 3.69 for six , had a fuzzy black-and-white photograph inside showing the company 's owner , George Bass , and the entire Country Hen family , along with their favorite eggnog recipe .", "A cause is important .", "Nature 's Path , the maker of Koala Crisp , promises that 1 percent of sales will be spent saving endangered species .", "Barbara 's Bakery , maker of Puffins cereal , pays for the National Audubon Society 's live `` puffin cams '' in the Gulf of Maine .", "Buy a box of Peace Cereal 's raspberry ginger crisp , and a percentage of the profit helps pay for International Peace Prayer Day in New Mexico .", "The actual health benefits of a product do n't always matter .", "A package of organic Naturepops from College Farm shows a field of lollipops and a barn , suggesting a well-educated farmer tending her candy .", "The sugar might come from cane juice and tapioca syrup , but it 's sugar just the same .", "And although `` organic '' is losing its power as a code word for certain cultural values , it does n't hurt to flaunt it if you 've got it .", "The word appears 21 times on a box of Cascadian Farm Vanilla Almond Crunch .", "Having established a design paradigm that succeeds in selling food that is often more expensive than conventional groceries , the design world should perhaps rejoice .", "This is not the case .", "Some top brand and package designers find the cartoonish animals and bad hippie typefaces as grating as a self-righteous vegan at a barbecue .", "But then , they did n't like American food package design that much to begin with .", "`` It 's the bottom of the barrel , `` said Ms. Scher , who works in the New York office of Pentagram design .", "Riskier designs , like the clean lettering and curvy bottle of Pom Wonderful pomegranate juice , are rare .", "Food manufacturers usually agonize over changing the size of a box or shifting the background color from teal to aquamarine .", "But when a trend starts to show success , it 's a design pileup .", "That 's what happened with the natural and organic category , which makes up about 10 percent of the food at the grocery store and has been growing by more than 20 percent a year since 2000 .", "In the grocery business , a 4 percent jump is considered a victory .", "`` It 's aisle after aisle of design desperation , `` said Brian Collins , chairman and chief creative officer of the design group at Ogilvy , the international advertising and public relations company .", "He called the look `` phony na\u00efvet\u00e9 '' and predicted that its demise was close because consumers are wising up .", "There is value in telling a story , but it must be true , he said .", "Merely dressing up the package is not enough , he said .", "Nonetheless , manufacturers are eager to project a wholesome image .", "`` It 's the halo effect , `` said Caren Wilcox , executive director of the Organic Trade Association .", "`` That 's why we encourage consumers to look for the U.S.D.A. organic seal . ``", "But even the organic seal does n't necessarily offer assurances that the item is produced in a way that jibes with consumer expectations for something that comes in a greenwashed package .", "`` All the ingredients being used in items with the organic seal are produced using the organic system , '' Ms. Wilcox said .", "`` It does n't mean they do n't sometimes end up in products some people think other people should n't eat . ``", "Design and packaging experts fix the start of sincerity and authenticity in food package design in the 1970s .", "Mo Siegel began selling Celestial Seasonings tea in boxes with sleepy bears .", "Tom and Kate Chappell gave up the corporate life to create Tom 's of Maine toothpaste .", "Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield sold ice cream in Vermont , using goofy hand-rendered graphics to tell their story .", "The trend grew in the 1980s , when corporate America entered a noncorporate phase .", "`` Companies began to try to not look like big companies , '' Ms. Scher said .", "By the late 1990s , anything with a hint of natural organic goodness sold in big numbers .", "Today , many companies that started with a humble story line have been purchased by larger interests .", "Unilever owns Ben and Jerry 's , the Hain Celestial Group is traded on Nasdaq and Tom 's of Maine is controlled by Colgate-Palmolive .", "The kind of imagery that once marked a brand as an alternative to corporate food conglomerates has now been incorporated into Lay 's potato chips .", "Consumers can buy classic Lay 's in the shiny yellow bag , or Natural Lay 's , with a thicker cut , expeller-pressed oil and sea salt .", "The package has a brown harvest graphic design , old-timey typefaces and a matte bag .", "The natural chips cost about 10 cents an ounce more than the classics .", "A handful of either still offers 150 calories and 10 grams of fat .", "`` When it gets to Lay 's , `` Ms. Scher said , '' its time to change . ``", "Ms. Talerman , the New York advertising consultant , predicted that the fascination with what she called the green identifiers will last about five years longer .", "Then , she said , green-elite food consumers will push companies for even more information about environmental impact , labor practices and community involvement , and mass market consumers will start reading labels instead of just searching out easy identifiers .", "Food manufacturers might begin to copy the new nutrition-style labels that Timberland is putting on its shoe boxes .", "Each one lists the amount of energy it took to make the shoes , how much of that was renewable , whether child labor was used and how many hours per pair Timberland dedicated to community service .", "`` As soon as the mass market starts to understand these issues more , '' Ms. Talerman predicted , `` we 'll get away from the fields and the giant vegetables and get back to better design . ``", "It 's More or Less Natural , And It 's Getting Bigger by the Day EACH year grocery manufacturers roll out tens of thousands of products , ever hopeful that a new box of crackers or a frozen entree will be a hit with consumers .", "In 2006 , 17,779 food products were introduced , according to Mintel International , a market research company .", "That 's a jump of almost 2,000 items over the previous year .", "Of those products , 3,761 either were organic or had an all-natural claim on the label .", "`` It seems now that everybody is getting into organics , '' said Lynn Dornblaser , a new-products industry analyst at Mintel .", "She predicted that in 2007 , a shakedown will occur in the organic industry as its products become accessible to larger numbers of people .", "One key indicator of this shift is that Wal-Mart is selling organic products for less money than many competitors .", "Other fast-growing categories last year were baby food , with 116 new products , and ready-to-eat meals or meal-replacement products , with 1,125 items , up from 791 in 2005 .", "Desserts , ice cream and candy came out at a healthy clip , but fruits and vegetables were not so lucky .", "The number of new products in that category dropped by 13 percent .", "`` We 're also seeing more of a focus on authentically ethnic foods , `` Ms. Dornblaser said .", "`` It 's not just pasta sauce : it 's pasta sauce from Tuscany . ``", "Indian food , in particular , is beginning to catch on .", "Although the numbers are small -- only 143 new Indian food items appeared last year -- the figure is almost double the number brought out the year before .", "KIM SEVERSON ."], "summary": ["Food manufacturers are greenwashing their packaging , using specific colors , images and typefaces to convey message that product is healthy .", "In recent years , greenwashing has spilled out past organic section , even into snack section .", "Packaging often displays fields , farms , animals or allegiance to worthy cause , and includes words like ` natural ' and ` healthy ' .", "Photos .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [14, 13, 43, 66], "tag": ["Arts", "Dining and Wine"]} +{"id": "1816065", "text": ["DREW NIEPORENT still remembers the afternoon in the 1970s when Warner LeRoy ordered him to turn off the Barbra Streisand eight-track .", "Mr. Nieporent , who today operates restaurants from Louisville to London , was tending the bar for Mr. LeRoy at Maxwell 's Plum on the Upper East Side .", "He cued up the Streisand tape every day at lunch .", "It 's no longer clear if it was the warble of the tape or of `` Evergreen '' that set Mr. LeRoy off , but he ordered the eight-track turned off and pronounced that from that moment on , music was forever banned during lunch at Maxwell 's Plum .", "Silent , strident or Streisand , there 's no consensus on what should play on the dining room hi-fi . Without an easy recipe for success , chefs and restaurateurs turn to consultants , D.J. ` s , enthusiastic staff members and their own record collections , seeking a mix that works .", "`` Music in restaurants is a sore issue in general , '' said Andrew Carmellini , who , when he 's not manning the stoves at A Voce , is working on his second recording with his band , the Crown .", "`` Pre-opening , I thought my list was brilliant , '' he said .", "`` But you name the complaint -- the jazz is too boring , the horns are too shrill , there 's too much bass -- and we 've gotten it . ``", "Many restaurateurs try to avoid such complaints by seeking professional help .", "Food service establishments make up `` a significant portion '' of the 400,000 locations into which Muzak pipes music , according to Karen Vigeland , a company spokeswoman .", "The bulk of those are quick-service places , but Muzak 's roster also includes more elite clients , like ` Wichcraft , the sandwich chain Tom Colicchio has an interest in .", "Dean & DeLuca 's cafes .", "And Emeril Lagasse 's restaurants .", "-LRB- Apologies to anyone who had illusions that Doc Gibbs , Mr. Lagasse 's musical sidekick on `` Emeril Live , '' is selecting the discs at Emeril 's . -RRB-", "Many of Muzak 's clients purchase one of the company 's 90 or so `` core programs , '' themed mixes with titles like `` Rock Show '' or `` Concrete Beats , '' each of which is about 1,200 songs long .", "For others , the company generates custom soundtracks , which may be a core program with advertising spliced in -LRB- touting breakfast sandwich deals in the morning , for example -RRB- or a mix that 's tailored to a restaurant 's particular vibe .", "Part of the appeal of services like Muzak or Digital Music Xperience , another large music consulting firm , is that they make life easier : No iPods to lose , no CDs to scratch .", "The bulk of Muzak 's customers stream the company 's musical feed over the Internet or through a satellite dish .", "Jeremy Abrams , managing partner of the New York-based music consulting company Audiostiles , said that a large percentage of his clients come to him from the larger companies `` looking for something a little more customized and up-to-date . ''", "Daniel Boulud 's restaurant group , Dinex , left Muzak three years ago to become Audiostiles 's first restaurant client .", "Since then , Thomas Keller 's restaurants in New York , California and Las Vegas , and the Four Seasons hotel group have signed on .", "Mr. Abrams said he tailors playlists to the time of the day they 'll be heard .", "To determine exactly what will work for each place , he polls clients on the tempos and genres they want , asking them whether they prefer instrumentals or vocals , new music or something familiar .", "Some restaurants , looking for an even more intimate approach , turn to D.J. ` s .", "Nemo Librizzi started out choosing the music for the restaurants at the Maritime Hotel and has since added Barbuto , Employees Only , Thor and more to his roster .", "Describing himself as the kind of guy who shows up to meetings without business cards or much of a plan , he said : `` I like to tell clients that they can have me come in and do a mix for them for a few thousand dollars , but that 's like an off-the-rack suit , like buying music by the yard .", "I prefer to do multiple fittings , to tailor the music after hearing feedback from the staff . ``", "His basic strategy might include `` a little jazzy after work music '' for the cocktail hour and late-night montages in which he will slip samples of Jack Kerouac reading from `` On the Road '' between cuts of pygmy music .", "`` Sometimes when I look at a place I hear this kind of music being played , '' he said .", "`` Certain music likes to live in certain rooms .", "I do n't understand it .", "It 's like magic . ``", "Muzak or magic , some restaurateurs ca n't abide the thought of having an outsider select a soundtrack .", "`` Just like I would n't outsource one of my restaurants ' wine lists , I would never outsource the music , `` said Danny Meyer , whose Union Square Hospitality Group operates nine venues in New York .", "Both Mr. Nieporent and Mr. Meyer rely on managers to fine-tune the mix .", "`` Getting it right is a function of watching the guests , '' Mr. Meyer said .", "`` In a restaurant setting , music is a little like air-conditioning -- no one 's going to tell you when the air-conditioning is perfect , but when it is , the conversations in the room will be more energetic . ``", "-LRB- Digital Music Xperience developed a high-tech system to manage the Panera Bread chain 's `` aural strategy '' -- the music -- with microphones in the ceilings of the company 's stores that measure noise level in the room and adjust the volume of the music accordingly . -RRB-", "Sometimes the music program is a group effort .", "Gabriel Stulman , who owns the Little Owl with the chef Joey Campanaro , said the eclectic mix of music played there is `` mine , Joey 's , the servers and all . ``", "Sometimes it 's a solo show : regulars at Babbo are accustomed to having plates of black spaghetti with rock shrimp served with an audible side of whatever Mario Batali likes , as loud as he likes , whenever he likes .", "-LRB- These days his iPod is more likely to be dishing up the plaintive croon of Michael Stipe than the mix of Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix that dominated the restaurant 's dining room in its early years . -RRB-", "At the Great Jones Cafe in NoHo , the manager , Bill Judkins , stocks the restaurant 's jukebox with seven-inch singles from his own personal and obsessively manicured collection .", "On Dec . 26 , he replaced part of the jukebox 's holiday lineup with a selection of James Brown and James Brown side project records , to honor the Godfather of Soul .", "But not all restaurant folks have 45s of `` Hot Pants '' at their fingertips .", "Some even choose the most radical soundtrack of all .", "Grant Achatz , the chef of Alinea in Chicago , says he has `` great appreciation for but limited knowledge '' of music , and that that is one reason he has chosen not to play any in his dining rooms .", "Beyond that , he said , he has not yet found a way to match the acoustics to the food in a restaurant full of people , each of them at different points in his lengthy tasting menus .", "He did experiment with speakers above each table that would deploy `` audio spotlight '' technology , which can project a very precise beam of sound into a narrowly delineated area .", "But the noises bounced off the hardwood tabletops and reverberated throughout the space .", "Hearing a crunch during a creamy course , he said , just did n't seem right .", "The system , he said , is `` back on the drawing board '' for now .", "And until that changes , his customers will just have to eat Mr. Achatz 's `` white truffle explosion '' to the sounds of silence .", "Correction : January 10 , 2007 , Wednesday An article last week about music in restaurants misstated the relationship between Muzak and ` Wichcraft restaurants .", "Muzak provided stereo equipment for a ` Wichcraft restaurant in San Francisco .", "It does not provide the chain with recorded music .", "Correction : January 15 , 2007 , Monday An article in Thursday Styles on Dec . 7 about holiday music in retail stores and an article in Dining on Jan . 3 about the debate over playing music in restaurants misstated the name of a music consulting company that sells audio systems and programming to such businesses .", "It is DMX -- not Digital Music Express or Digital Music Xperience ."], "summary": ["Chefs and restaurant owners sometimes turn to consultants or even staff members for suggestions on type of music to play , but often hear complaints from customers .", "Muzak offers themed mixes or can generate custom soundtracks tailored to specific restaurant .", "Other companies that offer music to restaurants noted .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 54, 45, 12], "tag": ["Arts", "Dining and Wine"]} +{"id": "1816069", "text": ["Capitalizing on Manhattan 's robust real estate prices , the Museum of Modern Art is selling its last vacant parcel of land in Midtown for $ 125 million to Hines , an international real estate developer based in Houston , the museum 's director said yesterday .", "As part of the deal Hines is to construct a mixed-use building on West 54th Street that will connect to the museum 's second - , fourth - and fifth-floor galleries , said the director , Glenn D . Lowry .", "He said the project would afford about 50,000 square feet of additional exhibition space for the Modern 's painting and sculpture collections .", "A Hines spokesman said it was too early to say what the building 's other uses would be .", "The property is one of several the Modern acquired during the last decade in mapping out an ambitious expansion .", "A glass-and-steel addition designed by the architect Yoshio Taniguchi was completed in November 2004 .", "Hines also plans to provide about 10,000 square feet in the new building 's basement for museum storage .", "After construction expenses for the new galleries are covered , the Modern estimates that some $ 65 million will go to its $ 650 million endowment .", "`` This is a Christmas present , '' Mr. Lowry said .", "`` It 's a tremendous boon to enhancing what is already an extraordinary collection . ``", "The 10 percent addition to the endowment will go toward caring for the collections and acquisitions .", "No firm timetable for construction has been set , he added , but he estimated that completion of the new building was at least five years away .", "In 1996 the museum bought the Dorset Hotel , a 19-story building from the 1920s next door on West 54th Street , along with two adjacent brownstones in a $ 50 million transaction .", "Much of that land was used for Mr. Taniguchi 's addition .", "That expansion , including an increase in MoMA 's endowment to cover operating expenses , cost $ 858 million in total .", "The museum also quietly purchased other parcels on West 54th Street , including what had been the City Athletic Club , a brownstone and a sliver building next door .", "Over the years , Mr. Lowry said , the museum has been inundated with offers from developers interested in buying the land , but did not seriously consider selling until recently .", "`` But as the market went into overdrive it seemed like the right move to make , '' he said .", "The Modern put out the word that it was open to offers and the response was overwhelming .", "Hines was the highest bidder , Mr. Lowry said .", "`` We ultimately settled on Hines because of its financial offer and because it has a good reputation for working with architects , '' Mr. Lowry said .", "He added that no architect had been selected to design the new building or the Modern 's additional galleries .", "When Mr. Tanaguchi conceived his design he took into consideration a possible future expansion to the west , Mr. Lowry said , making it structurally easy to break through to what will be the new building and extend each of the three gallery floors by about 17,000 square feet .", "Jerry I . Speyer , a Modern trustee and real estate developer who is president and chief executive of Tishman Speyer , helped negotiate the sale .", "-LRB- He was instrumental in the purchase of the Dorset Hotel , too . -RRB-", "`` The museum is not in the real estate business , but in the business of showing art , collecting art and educating people about art , '' Mr. Speyer said .", "`` Because of the figuration of the land , there was a limit to the amount of space we could use for galleries . ''", "He said that the entire board agreed that now was the time to act .", "`` Everyone felt great about the decision , '' he said of the sale .", "`` There were no issues in anyone 's mind . ``", "The parcel as a whole consists of about 200,000 square feet of buildable space , Mr. Lowry said .", "The addition also opens the way for the museum to address wide criticism of the exhibition spaces in the Taniguchi building .", "When the Modern reopened in 2004 many faulted its curators for showing fewer artworks in its expanded galleries than it had before .", "`` The goal has always been to display the collection better , '' Mr. Lowry said .", "Responding to the criticism , he said the display of art in the museum 's previous incarnation was `` overly dense , '' which people felt was `` too much like a textbook . ''", "Trying to anticipate the museum 's needs for contemporary art display is not easy .", "Mr. Lowry said the new galleries would be designed to be flexible .", "`` We envision them to include space that will deal with the unanticipated changes of the future , '' he said .", "And whereas MoMA had to close its doors on West 54th Street during the 2002-04 building project , operating a temporary museum in Queens , Mr. Lowry said that would not be necessary this time .", "`` The construction of these galleries will not entail closing the museum again , '' he said ."], "summary": ["Museum of Modern Art will sell its last vacant parcel of land in Midtown for $ 125 million to real estate developer Hines .", "As part of deal , Hines will construct mixed use building on West 54th Street that will connect to museum 's galleries and afford about 50,000 square feet of addition exhibition space .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 2], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1816070", "text": ["`` I did n't go there to make a point , `` said Laura Poitras , a documentary filmmaker , about traveling in Iraq to make '' My Country , My Country , `` one of four documentaries about the war contending for Oscar nominations this year .", "`` I do n't think I would risk my life to make a point , `` she added , seated in her comfortable TriBeCa office early last month .", "`` But I did feel it was important to understand this war -- and to document it -- and I did n't think that the mass media was going to do it . ``", "Ms. Poitras , 42 , used her own camera and recorded sound herself as she followed an Iraqi physician for eight months .", "An outspoken Sunni critic of the American occupation , he was seeking a seat on the Baghdad Provincial Council during the national elections in January 2005 , but did not win .", "`` My Country , My Country '' may not capture the best-documentary Oscar , or even be selected as one of the five nominees , to be announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Jan . 23 .", "-LRB- The awards ceremony is on Feb . 25 . -RRB-", "But its presence on the highly competitive feature-length documentary shortlist -- 14 other films are on that list -- highlights a shift toward gritty , guerrilla filmmaking , a willingness to tackle controversial subjects , no matter the obstacles .", "Issue-oriented documentaries dominate the shortlist , chosen by the 138 members of the documentary branch of the academy .", "Eighty-one films met the eligibility requirements .", "Of those , the members who voted selected 15 and will further narrow the field to the 5 nominees .", "`` This is the year of the angry documentary , of the ' Take back America ' documentary , `` Sheila Nevins , president of HBO Documentary Films , said in a telephone interview .", "`` The theatrical documentary , '' she added , `` has replaced the television documentary in terms of talking back to the administration .", "That 's one of the only places where one can do it . ``", "But one pioneering filmmaker , Albert Maysles , did not seem enthusiastic about the trend .", "`` I am a strong advocate of distancing oneself from a point of view , '' he said recently .", "`` What is good for the documentary world in ' Fahrenheit 9/11 , ' '' -- Michael Moore 's 2004 film -- `` is that Michael 's heart was in the right place `` for viewers who agreed with him , he said .", "`` But he damages his cause because he is out to get people .", "He 's using people in a nonloving fashion to serve the purpose of his argument .", "If what you think is correct , what do you have to fear in telling the full story .", "`` Stanley Nelson , the director of another shortlisted film , '' Jonestown : The Life and Death of Peoples Temple , `` said that while Mr. Moore was '' over the top , `` his work occupied a significant position within the genre .", "Speaking at an Upper West Side coffee shop , Mr. Nelson said , `` What 's fascinating about documentary today is the different ways to approach it . ``", "Referring to his own film about Jim Jones , who led the mass suicide in which more than 900 people died in Guyana in 1978 , Mr. Nelson said : `` It was essential for us not to say that this guy was only evil .", "Just by being somewhat objective , we were being revolutionary . ``", "Mr. Nelson 's comment reflects a climate in which the pursuit of objectivity in documentaries is hardly the norm , as it had been during the 1950s and ` 60s .", "In that period , American filmmakers like Mr. Maysles advocated `` direct cinema , '' where the camera was thought of as a fly on the wall , capturing but not commenting on life .", "Still , some of the shortlisted documentaries adopt this approach more than others in treating subjects like these : Global warming : Davis Guggenheim 's box office hit , `` An Inconvenient Truth , '' with former Vice President Al Gore .", "Religion : Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing 's `` Jesus Camp , '' about born-again Christian children at an evangelical summer camp in North Dakota .", "Amy Berg 's `` Deliver Us From Evil , '' about Oliver O'Grady , a former priest and convicted pedophile .", "And Mr. Nelson 's film about Jim Jones .", "Race : Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg 's `` Trials of Darryl Hunt , '' about a wrongly convicted African-American man .", "Free speech : Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck 's `` Shut Up & Sing , '' on the fallout after Natalie Maines , of the Dixie Chicks , publicly criticized President Bush on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq .", "The political campaign process : Frank Popper 's `` Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore . , '' which follows the 2004 grass-roots campaign of Jeff Smith , a Missouri Democrat , for Congress .", "The two-party political system : Henriette Mantel and Steve Skrovan 's `` Unreasonable Man , '' a profile of Ralph Nader .", "In addition to Ms. Poitras 's film , the three other shortlisted documentaries on the Iraq war are James Longley 's `` Iraq in Fragments , '' Deborah Scranton 's `` War Tapes '' and Patricia Foulkrod 's `` Ground Truth . ''", "Ms. Kopple , a two-time Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker who once worked for Mr. Maysles , said more people were seeing documentaries because they wanted to watch passionate stories about unforgettable characters .", "`` Audiences are smart enough to decide for themselves if they agree with the point of view onscreen , '' she said .", "`` I 'm not sure that ` distance ' is a positive thing in nonfiction filmmaking .", "I think there 's a time and place for distance .", "In television journalism , for example . ``", "She agreed with Mr. Maysles about letting a story unfold naturally .", "`` The most important factor , in my opinion , '' she said , `` is not do we grow too close to our subjects , it 's are we willing to go on a journey with them that may not end up as we first envisioned it .", "`` One director who took such a journey was Mr. Guggenheim with '' An Inconvenient Truth . ``", "Speaking from Los Angeles , he recalled the beginning of his own transformation after watching a presentation by Mr. Gore on climate change , which became the centerpiece of the film .", "`` All movies are personal , '' Mr. Guggenheim said .", "`` When I make a movie , I do n't have activism in mind .", "I have an experience in mind .", "Before I saw Al 's slide show , I was not an environmentalist .", "But when I saw it , it shook me to the core . ``", "In a telephone conversation in New York with Ms. Ewing and Ms. Grady , the directors of `` Jesus Camp , '' Ms. Grady said their film was as `` balanced as humanly possible for us . ''", "`` It 's unattainable to have no point of view at all , `` she said .", "`` We 're human , and we did the best we could . ``", "With its concentration on national politics , the academy passed over a clutch of well-made films that in other years might have fared better : for example , Christopher Quinn 's `` God Grew Tired of Us : The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan '' .", "Doug Block 's `` 51 Birch Street , '' an exploration into the lives of his parents .", "And Ward Serrill 's `` Heart of the Game , '' about girls ' basketball .", "Similarly , the three remaining shortlisted movies , all set in foreign countries other than Iraq , may face an uphill battle .", "They are Lucy Walker 's `` Blindsight , '' about six blind Tibetan children .", "Yael Klopmann 's `` Storm of Emotions , '' about the Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip .", "And Kim Longinotto and Florence Ayisi 's `` Sisters in Law , '' a profile of two Cameroon women -- a judge and a prosecutor -- fighting for women 's rights .", "However the academy members vote , Ms. Poitras said she already considered `` My Country , My Country '' successful .", "She cited a scene she had shot at the Abu Ghraib detention center : a 9-year-old Iraqi boy is being held for some unspecified reason by American Army officers who call him a dangerous juvenile .", "Moments such as these , she said , `` will bring a sense of questioning and shame about some of the things we are doing in Iraq . ''", "So even a filmmaker like Ms. Poitras , who by her own account employed a subtle and patient approach , may have made a point after all .", "In the current climate for documentaries , she certainly is not alone ."], "summary": ["Documentary films on shortlist for Oscar nominations are all issue based .", "Films My Country , My Country , An Inconvenient Truth , Jesus Camp , Deliver Us From Evil , Trials of Darryl Hunt , Shut Up & Sing , Can Mr Smith Get to Washington Anymore . , An Unreasonable Man , Iraq in Fragments , War Tapes and Ground Truth noted .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [34, 32, 28, 30], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1816074", "text": ["In a moment of presidential empathy , former President George Bush recalled a skill he had learned from Gerald R . Ford : how to handle being ridiculed on `` Saturday Night Live . ''", "`` I remember that lesson well , since being able to laugh at yourself is essential in public life , '' Mr. Bush said in his eulogy for Mr. Ford on Tuesday .", "`` I 'd tell you more about that , but as Dana Carvey would say : ` Not gon na do it .", "Would n't be prudent . '", "`` As the 82-year-old former president imitated his own impersonator , there were only three people in the audience who knew exactly how it felt to be ridiculed , as a sitting president , on late-night television .", "Former President Bill Clinton responded with a hearty laugh from his seat in the Washington National Cathedral , while former President Jimmy Carter , in a neighboring pew , looked on with a smile .", "Seated nearby was President Bush , who has been relentlessly skewered by TV comics as well .", "With Mr. Ford 's death last week , the group of living former presidents has shrunk to three , down from five in the early 1990s .", "Since 1994 , Richard M . Nixon , Ronald Reagan and , now , Mr. Ford have left the stage , while Mr. Clinton has joined the ranks of former chief executives .", "The dynamic among the former presidents is perpetually evolving , as people age , rivalries fade and former political opponents discover they share more similarities than differences .", "The current club has at its core two presidents in different parties -- Mr. Clinton , 60 , and the elder Mr. Bush -- who have become companions in traveling and fund-raising for causes around the world .", "The two at times appear more friendly than Mr. Bush is with his son , or than Mr. Clinton is with Mr. Carter , 82 , a fellow Democrat .", "And on Tuesday it was Mr. Carter , not either of the Bushes , who accompanied Mr. Ford 's coffin back to Grand Rapids , Mich . , for burial .", "Though Mr. Ford and Mr. Carter squared off in the 1976 election , they became friends after both were out of office .", "On a flight home from Cairo in 1981 , after the funeral of the Egyptian leader Anwar el-Sadat , they found common ground discussing their presidential libraries .", "Similar kinship has grown between Mr. Clinton and the first President Bush , in contrast to the rocky relationship between Mr. Clinton and Mr. Carter .", "Though the two Southern Democrats are from similarly humble backgrounds , they have been at odds repeatedly over the years .", "In 1993 , Mr. Carter said he was `` very disappointed '' in the Clintons for sending their daughter , Chelsea , to private school rather than public school , as the Carters had done with their daughter , Amy .", "After the Monica Lewinsky scandal , Mr. Carter said he had been `` deeply embarrassed by what occurred . ''", "In more recent years , the Clinton-Carter relationship has had a tinge of rivalry , as both men have sought to become global statesmen .", "The funeral also provided a stage for those thinking about the politics of tomorrow , as well as those of yesterday .", "Along with the three former presidents sat several of those who may aspire to the job , including Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York , former Mayor Rudolph W . Giuliani of New York and Representative Dennis J . Kucinich of Ohio .", "And it was a reminder that while the nation elects only the president , the White House becomes home to a whole family whose members have to cope with the spotlight .", "At the cathedral on Tuesday , Rosalynn Carter was seen talking intently with Nancy Reagan .", "One row behind them , Chelsea Clinton spoke animatedly with a fellow Stanford University alumna , Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice .", "Tom Brokaw , the former NBC News anchor , said in his eulogy that when Mr. Ford brought his family to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue , `` he brought the humanity that comes with a family that seemed to be living right next door . ''", "For neighbors of the Fords in Alexandria , Va . , from the 1950s until they moved into the White House in 1974 , they were in fact the family next door , with four independent-minded children whose public indiscretions Mr. Ford sometimes had to confront .", "His son Jack admitted in a newspaper interview in 1975 that he smoked marijuana and lived a rowdy bachelor 's life .", "His daughter , Susan Ford Bales , was a headstrong teenager when her father became president and was married for a time to a Secret Service agent who had been assigned to guard the family .", "Mr. Ford and Ms. Bales , now middle-aged , walked hand in hand down the center aisle of the cathedral before the service , and each read a passage from the Bible .", "Ms. Bales 's reading came from James 1:19 - 25 , chosen by the family to help illuminate the former president 's humble approach to the bitter times in which he served .", "`` Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness , and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls , '' Ms. Bales read .", "`` But be doers of the word , and not merely hearers who deceive themselves . ''", "THE 38TH PRESIDENT Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday An article on Wednesday about the funeral of former President Gerald R . Ford drew an erroneous comparison between Chelsea Clinton and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice , who sat next to each other .", "Ms. Rice received degrees from the University of Denver and Notre Dame .", "She is not an alumna of Stanford University , where Ms. Clinton received a bachelor 's degree .", "-LRB- Ms.", "Rice is a former Stanford provost . -RRB- ."], "summary": ["Former Pres Gerald R Ford 's death brings group of former living presidents to three : George Bush , Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton .", "Dynamic among former presidents continually evolves , as people age , rivalries fade and former political opponents discover they share more similarities than differences .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 7], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816075", "text": ["In a soaring tribute to a modest man , Gerald R . Ford was remembered on Tuesday as bringing the ordinary virtues of decency , integrity and humility to mend a broken government after the pain of war and scandal .", "`` Amid all the turmoil , Gerald Ford was a rock of stability , '' President Bush told the gathering of generations of Washington 's powerful at Washington National Cathedral .", "`` And when he put his hand on his family Bible to take the presidential oath of office , he brought grace to a moment of great doubt . ''", "The cathedral 's grand setting and the pomp of a state funeral provided a counterpoint for the unassuming character praised by the eulogists .", "President Bush 's father called Mr. Ford `` a Norman Rockwell painting come to life '' .", "Tom Brokaw , the former television anchor , described `` Citizen Ford '' as a `` champion of Main Street values '' .", "And Henry A . Kissinger said the man he served as secretary of state `` had the virtues of small-town America . ''", "When the cathedral 's limestone arches echoed , it was with the drums and brass of Aaron Copland 's `` Fanfare for the Common Man , '' and the ushers directing the capacity crowd of 3,700 to their seats were uniformed Boy Scouts , a tribute to Mr. Ford 's youthful achievement of the rank of Eagle Scout .", "Among the hymns was `` Eternal Father , Strong to Save , '' known as the Navy Hymn , a particular favorite of Mr. Ford , who served in the Pacific during World War II .", "President Bush , overseeing a deeply unpopular war in Iraq and perhaps pondering his own legacy , lauded Mr. Ford 's `` firm resolve '' in sending the Marines to rescue the crew of the American merchant ship Mayag\u00fcez when it was seized by Cambodia .", "He suggested that some acts widely condemned during Mr. Ford 's administration in the 1970s had come to look wiser in historical perspective , including his pardon for his immediate predecessor , Richard M . Nixon .", "In addition , Mr. Bush noted that Mr. Ford was criticized for signing the Helsinki Accords , the 1975 agreement that ratified borders in Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe while also setting new standards for human rights .", "`` History has shown that document helped bring down the Soviet Union as courageous men and women behind the Iron Curtain used it to demand their God-given liberties , '' Mr. Bush said .", "Mr. Ford 's coffin arrived at the cathedral by motorcade from the Capitol , a final journey through the city where he served as 13-term congressman , vice president and finally president , the only person to hold the nation 's top two offices without being elected to either .", "After the 90-minute Episcopal funeral service , Mr. Ford 's body was flown from Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington to his hometown , Grand Rapids , Mich . , for a burial service on Wednesday in a plot beside the museum that bears his name .", "In Washington , the Gothic cathedral where Mr. Ford helped dedicate the nave in 1976 , became for the morning a crossroads of the capital 's past and present , with Supreme Court justices and members of Congress in the south transept facing scores of foreign ambassadors and former foreign leaders in the north transept .", "Across an aisle from the diplomats sat Mr. Ford 's honorary pallbearers , including in the front row Mr. Kissinger .", "Donald H . Rumsfeld , who served as defense secretary to both Mr. Ford and the current President Bush .", "Alan Greenspan , the former Federal Reserve chief who was Mr. Ford 's top economic adviser .", "James A . Baker III , who ran Mr. Ford 's unsuccessful 1976 campaign for president .", "And Brent Scowcroft , Mr. Ford 's national security adviser .", "Facing the altar , where Mr. Ford 's coffin , draped by a flag , sat , were Mr. Ford 's widow , Betty , who was escorted in and out of the cathedral by President Bush , and the Ford children , Steve , Jack , Mike and Susan .", "Across the nave from the Ford family sat President Bush and Laura Bush , and Vice President Dick Cheney , who served Mr. Ford as chief of staff , with his wife , Lynne .", "Several current cabinet members and three former presidents -- the elder Mr. Bush with his wife , Barbara .", "Jimmy Carter and his wife , Rosalynn .", "And Bill Clinton and his wife , Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton , and their daughter , Chelsea .", "With them was Nancy Reagan , the former first lady .", "Like much of the outpouring of affection for Mr. Ford since he died at his home in Rancho Mirage , Calif . , on Dec . 26 at the age of 93 , the service focused on what President Bush called the `` calm and healing '' the former president brought to `` one of the most divisive moments in our nation 's history . ``", "Mr. Ford , the House minority leader , succeeded first Vice President Spiro T . Agnew and then President Nixon after both men were forced from office by scandal .", "`` Gerald Ford brought to the political arena no demons , no hidden agenda , no hit list or acts of vengeance , '' said Mr. Brokaw , who explained that Mr. Ford had asked him to address the funeral as a representative of the press corps .", "`` He knew who he was , and he did n't require consultants or gurus to change him . ``", "Mr. Kissinger in particular emphasized the substantive achievements of Mr. Ford in foreign policy , saying the `` deserved commentary '' on Mr. Ford 's character `` has sometimes obscured how sweeping and lasting were his achievements . ''", "In remarks perhaps intended to reflect on his own record as well as Mr. Ford 's , he credited the former president with keeping ethnic conflicts in Cyprus and Lebanon from spiraling out of control , producing the first peace agreement between Israel and Egypt and presiding over `` the final agony of Indochina with dignity and wisdom . ''", "Historians , Mr. Kissinger added , will find `` that the cold war could not have been won had not Gerald Ford emerged at a tragic period to restore equilibrium to America and confidence in its international role . ''", "A few hours after the service , the plane carrying Mr. Ford 's body circled over the University of Michigan football stadium , where he had been a standout center and linebacker , then landed at the airport named for him in Grand Rapids .", "The university 's marching band , which arrived on a red-eye flight from California after the Rose Bowl game on Monday , solemnly played its fight song , `` The Victors . ''", "About 200 friends and local dignitaries invited by Mr. Ford 's family attended the brief ceremony before the 13-mile motorcade to his presidential museum in downtown Grand Rapids , passing thousands of residents who lined the streets , some holding signs that said `` Welcome home . ''", "Billboards around the city declared `` Gerald ' Our ' Ford : 1913-2006 . ``", "Despite a fierce , bitter wind blowing off the Grand River , Tim Micho waited with his video camera and 7-year-old daughter , Tessa , for two and a half hours to watch the motorcade pass by .", "`` She 'll probably never get to see something like this again , `` Mr. Micho , 43 , said .", "`` It 's so moving to see this many people out here to support him . ``", "A single bagpiper played `` Amazing Grace '' as Betty Ford and the rest of the family made their way slowly behind the coffin into the museum , a geometric , glassy structure along the water .", "Inside , they held a brief service for family and honored guests , including former President Carter .", "Like many along the streets in Grand Rapids , Gov . Jennifer M . Granholm spoke of Mr. Ford 's deep roots in the region .", "Here , Ms. Granholm said , Mr. Ford had learned from his family `` some good Midwestern values likehard work and sportsmanship and integrity and honesty . ''", "Here , he had played high school football -LRB- with a few men , now frail , in attendance on Tuesday -RRB- , had married and had been elected to Congress .", "`` Welcome home , '' Ms. Granholm said , `` to the people that you reflected so well when you were in Washington . ''", "THE 38TH PRESIDENT ."], "summary": ["Former Pres Gerald R Ford is eulogized as modest man bringing virtues of decency , integrity and humility to mend broken government after pain of war and scandal .", "Washington National Cathedral 's grand setting and pomp of state funeral provide counterpoint for unassuming former president .", "Capacity crowd of 3,700 attends .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816077", "text": ["A parolee who has served more than 30 years in prison for two separate homicides and other violent crimes in New York City was arrested yesterday by the Suffolk County police and charged in the shooting deaths of a 52-year-old woman and her 30-year-old son over the weekend .", "The man , Fernando DeCampoamor , 59 , of Mount Sinai , N.Y. , was scheduled to be arraigned today on two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of the woman , Amelia Garcia , and her son , Ferneliz Cruz , the authorities said .", "They were found shot once in the head in the basement apartment in Coram where they lived with Mr. Cruz 's wife and their two small children .", "According to the police , the suspect told investigators he had lent money to Ms. Garcia , whom he described as his companion of six months , and became enraged Saturday evening over what he said was a delay in repayment .", "Mr. Cruz and his family had spent that early evening at a nearby self-service laundry .", "He had returned home first with a few loads of clean clothes .", "His wife , Yessenia Hernandez , and their children , an 8-year-old and a 2-month-old , returned to the apartment 20 minutes later to find Ms. Garcia dead and Mr. Cruz severely wounded .", "He died on Sunday night , about 24 hours later , at Stony Brook University Medical Center .", "It was unclear whether Mr. Cruz had returned to the apartment , on Marie Lane , before his mother was shot or after , the police said .", "Detective Lt . Jack Fitzpatrick of the Suffolk police said that according to state records , Mr. DeCampoamor was convicted of a murder in Brooklyn in 1961 and paroled in 1967 .", "In 1968 , he was convicted in connection with a nonfatal shooting and sentenced to 15 years in prison .", "He was paroled in 1975 .", "In 1985 , he was sentenced to 81/3 to 25 years in prison for manslaughter in connection with a killing in Queens .", "He was paroled in 2003 and had been working recently as a tow truck driver .", "Lieutenant Fitzpatrick said he did not know whether Ms. Garcia had any knowledge of Mr. DeCampoamor 's criminal background .", "Neighbors and friends said Ms. Garcia and Mr. Cruz immigrated from the Dominican Republic about 12 years ago .", "Ms. Garcia helped care for her son 's children while he and his wife worked .", "Neighbors said he worked full time for a bakery and bread distributing company , and might have held other part-time jobs , including one as a waiter .", "His wife worked part time at a local fast-food restaurant .", "A neighbor , Darlene Kennedy , 32 , described the family as close-knit and unfailingly polite .", "She said the 8-year-old , Yerneli , who played with her children , was cheerful and very bright and seemed to love learning new games .", "From the open door of the family 's basement apartment , which was covered in black dust left by police fingerprint technicians on Monday , a chess board and chess pieces could be seen on the kitchen table .", "Blood was pooled on the linoleum ."], "summary": ["Fernando DeCampoamor is charged with murdering Amelia Garcia and her 30-year-old son Ferneliz Cruz in Coram , NY . Police say he lent money to companion Garcia and became enraged over delay in repayment .", "Was on parole for 1985 murder in New York City .", "Previous record noted ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816079", "text": ["Indonesian officials reversed themselves on Tuesday and admitted that they did not know what had happened to a passenger jet that disappeared from radar screens in bad weather on Monday shortly after issuing a distress signal .", "On Monday , Indonesian Air Force and Transport Ministry officials told local and foreign news services that wreckage from a 17-year-old Boeing 737-400 operated by Adam Air had been found strewn on jungle-covered mountainside on Sulawesi island .", "They also said 12 of the 102 people on board had survived .", "But later they said reports that the wreckage and survivors had been found were wrong .", "Officials said they had been misled by incorrect information from villagers and local officials in the remote area where the reports had originated .", "`` We apologize for the news that we released earlier , '' said Eddy Suyanto , an air force official , The Associated Press reported .", "`` It was not true . ''", "Indonesian officials said they planned to resume the search for the plane on Wednesday .", "The presumed crash was another loss for the Indonesian aviation industry , which boomed after deregulation in 1999 led to the founding of several low-cost airlines but which has had a long history of accidents .", "It was a particularly bitter blow to Adam Adhitya Suherman , 26 , the president of Adam SkyConnection Airlines .", "In an Indonesian industry known for bankruptcies and safety problems , Mr. Suherman and his family of Chinese traders had aimed to create a reliable and relatively inexpensive airline for a rapidly growing pool of Indonesian travelers .", "And they seemed to be succeeding .", "From a shoestring domestic operation , started in 2003 with three leased Boeing 737s , the airline grew by 2006 into a $ 300 million-a-year business , flying 19 planes to 25 domestic and international destinations and harboring big ambitions for growth .", "The family 's goal for 2006 was to carry six million to eight million passengers .", "It was courted by big investors , including Qantas and Tiger Airways .", "While emphasizing safety , the airline has had its share of troubles .", "On Feb . 11 last year , an Adam Air flight to Makassar from Jakarta lost its way , making an unscheduled landing hundreds of miles off course in eastern Indonesia .", "The pilots blamed a malfunction in the navigation equipment but Mr. Suherman said it had been working properly .", "On May 31 , 2005 , part of the landing gear of a Boeing 737 operated by Adam Air collapsed on landing at the Jakarta airport .", "More Rescued After Ferry Sinking REMBANG , Indonesia , Jan . 2 -LRB- AP -RRB- -- Fishing boats rescued dozens of people from the sea on Tuesday , four days after a ferry sank in a storm off Indonesia , but 400 people remained missing .", "The ferry Senopati Nusantara foundered after being pounded by heavy waves for more than 10 hours as it neared the end of a two-day journey to Java , Indonesia 's main island , from the Indonesian section of Borneo island .", "Officials said the bad weather caused the sinking .", "About 200 survivors have been found , and officials say the search will continue until Sunday .", "Thirteen bodies have been recovered and scores more have been seen floating at sea .", "Susilo , 35 , was picked up by fishermen and taken to a hospital with chest pains and respiratory problems after drifting four days in a life raft .", "`` Six among us died , one by one , '' said Mr. Susilo , who like many Indonesians uses one name .", "Some who died drank seawater , he said ."], "summary": ["Indonesian officials reverse themselves and say they do not know what happened to passenger jet that disappeared from radar screen on Jan 1 after issuing distress signal .", "They say initial reports that wreckage was found on Sulawesi island along with 12 survivors was wrong .", "They say search will resume on Jan 3 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1816080", "text": ["The Israeli chief of staff , Lt . Gen . Dan Halutz , conceded Tuesday that the military had made serious errors during last summer 's war against Hezbollah in Lebanon but said he would not resign his post .", "General Halutz said Israel had badly damaged Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and killed `` hundreds of terrorists . ''", "But he said Israel was `` not successful in reducing the short-range rocket fire on Israel 's north until the cease-fire , `` which came after 34 days of fighting .", "Critics of General Halutz and of the Israeli government of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert have said the military relied too heavily on air power and delayed too long sending in ground troops in the numbers needed to push back the Hezbollah fighters and supporters who were firing Katyusha rockets into Israel .", "Critics have also said that the military should be led by a ground forces commander -- General Halutz spent his career in the air force -- and that reserves were not called up in time , were badly trained and equipped , and often faced contradictory orders .", "`` We attacked the Katyushas , but unsuccessfully , '' General Halutz said .", "He spoke Tuesday at a Tel Aviv news conference summing up the army 's own investigation of its behavior during the war .", "He said he would stay on `` to correct what can be corrected , '' and said to resign now would be `` running away . ''", "He said Mr. Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz had not asked him to go .", "`` I have not heard my superiors calling on me to resign , '' he said .", "`` If they do , I will respond . ''", "He suggested that discipline had broken down to some degree .", "`` There were cases in which officers did not carry out their assignments , and cases in which officers objected on moral grounds to their orders , '' he said , an apparent reference to resistance against attacking southern Lebanese towns and villages .", "He said that those instances of refusal `` ran counter to the army 's basic values `` and that a senior officer was suspended as a result .", "During the war , as criticism mounted , General Halutz effectively demoted the commander of the northern front , Maj . Gen . Udi Adam , putting the deputy chief of staff , Maj . Gen . Moshe Kaplinski , alongside him .", "General Adam later quit the army .", "Previously , General Halutz has said the army fired some cluster munitions , with the `` bomblets '' placed in artillery shells , into southern Lebanon in contradiction of his orders that they be aimed only at specific targets .", "The United States is investigating whether the Israelis used cluster munitions made and paid for in America in ways that contravene American regulations for the weapons ' use .", "General Halutz implicitly criticized Mr. Olmert for setting as a goal of the war the release of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah in a cross-border raid on July 12 , an act that set off the fighting .", "The Winograd committee , which is led by a retired judge , Eliyahu Winograd , and was appointed by the government , is still investigating the conflict and its outcome .", "General Halutz said that if the committee called for his resignation , `` of course '' he would comply .", "Defense Minister Amir Peretz has made the same pledge .", "The war ended with a cease-fire on Aug . 14 , after a United Nations Security Council resolution mandated an enlarged and strengthened international peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon and supervision of Lebanon 's seacoast and border with Syria to prevent the rearming of Hezbollah .", "The fighting left more than 1,000 people dead on both sides .", "Israel says more than 500 of the dead were Hezbollah fighters , but Hezbollah disputes that .", "Israel counted 159 fatalities , including 39 civilians who were killed by the more than 4,000 rockets Hezbollah fired into Israel .", "In Gaza on Tuesday , Palestinian security forces were searching for a Peruvian photographer for Agence France-Presse , Jaime Razuri , 50 , a day after his abduction .", "The Palestinian Authority president , Mahmoud Abbas , said he was hopeful .", "`` We 're sure he will soon be released , `` Mr. Abbas told a delegation from the news agency and French and Peruvian diplomats .", "`` In past incidents of this kind , hostages have been freed after one or two days . ''", "In the latest in a string of foreigner abductions , several unmasked gunmen abducted Mr. Razuri in the center of Gaza City on Monday as he was returning from an assignment with an interpreter and a driver .", "Separately , warring Hamas and Fatah factions returned 14 fighters kidnapped on Monday after mediation from representatives of Islamic Jihad , Palestinian officials said .", "The violence resumed Monday when Hamas gunmen shot at a brother of a senior Fatah militant in the northern Gaza Strip , violating an earlier deal for a general truce ."], "summary": ["Israeli chief of staff , Lt Gen Dan Halutz , says that military made serious errors during 2006 war against Hezbollah in Lebanon but says he will not resign his post .", "Halutz suggests one problem was discipline and cites cases in which officers refused assignments and objected on moral grounds .", "Critics of Halutz say military relied too heavily on air power and delayed too long sending in sufficient ground troops .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1816081", "text": ["Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia said Tuesday that his country , one of the poorest in the world , could not afford to keep troops in Somalia much longer and that it was ill equipped to play the role of peacekeeper there .", "Two hours after he spoke , two Ethiopian soldiers were gunned down in an ambush in southern Somalia in one of the first strikes of an anticipated anti-Ethiopian guerrilla campaign .", "According to residents in Jilib , about 250 miles southwest of Mogadishu , Somalia 's capital , a fighter for the Islamist forces , who were routed last week by Ethiopian-led troops , had shot two Ethiopian soldiers while they were crossing a bridge .", "Witnesses said the fighter then dashed into town and was quickly surrounded by Ethiopian troops , who killed him .", "`` It was a suicide mission , '' said Mohammed Subiye , a farmer in Jilib .", "The Islamist forces , which in the span of one week went from ruling much of Somalia to fleeing into the bush , have vowed to fight a guerrilla insurgency against the Ethiopians , whom they consider infidel invaders .", "But Mr. Meles said he did not plan to have his troops to remain in Somalia for much longer , possibly only a few more weeks .", "The troops were dispatched to neutralize the rising regional threat posed by the Islamists , he said , and now international peacekeepers are needed to bring order to a country that has been synonymous with anarchy for 15 years .", "`` We do n't have the money to take this burden individually , `` Mr. Meles said during a speech to Ethiopia 's Parliament .", "Diplomats in the region are hurrying to cobble together an African peacekeeping solution , but despite murmurs of commitment from several countries , including Uganda , South Africa and Nigeria , a force has yet to materialize .", "Somalia is far from stable , with many heavy weapons still in the hands of warlords , and the country 's turmoil is likely to dissuade many nations from volunteering troops .", "On Tuesday , Ali Mohammed Gedi , Somalia 's transitional prime minister , reiterated his plea for the nation 's many gunmen to turn in their weapons .", "But few seemed to be listening .", "The collection points across Mogadishu remained empty , and many young men defiantly vowed to keep their guns .", "Meanwhile , the remnants of the once-fierce Islamist army continued to flee south from Kismayo , the port city 100 miles from the Kenyan border that had been a final stronghold until the Islamist military definitively collapsed there on Monday .", "Kenyan authorities said 10 fighters were apprehended on Monday as they tried to slip through the border disguised as refugees .", "Eight had Eritrean passports while two had Canadian passports , said Alfred Mutua , a spokesman for the Kenyan government .", "All of them were carrying briefcases packed with cash .", "`` They definitely did n't look like refugees , `` Mr. Mutua said .", "Mr. Mutua said that the suspects remained in Kenyan custody and that they would probably be returned to Somalia to face charges under the transitional government , though it has not yet set up a justice system .", "The Islamists tried to improve their military prospects by calling for a global jihad against Ethiopia , a country with a long Christian history .", "But in the end , American officials said , only a few hundred foreign fighters answered the call , the bulk of them from Eritrea , Ethiopia 's archenemy .", "Still , the Islamists were widely believed to have been sheltering several wanted terrorists , and American officials said they were hoping to use the swift collapse of the Islamist forces as an opportunity to capture men they have been chasing for years .", "Ships from the Fifth Fleet of the United States Navy , based in Bahrain , have increased patrols off Somalia 's coast to prevent any suspects from escaping .", "`` Yes , we have a presence out there , '' said Lt . Denise Garcia , a spokeswoman for the Fifth Fleet .", "So far , though , no suspects have been apprehended .", "Somalia continues to be a work in progress .", "The country 's transitional president , Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed , has yet to set foot in the capital , and only a select few officials of the transitional government have returned to it .", "Many of them seem to be pulling in wildly different directions .", "On Tuesday , Hussein Mohammed Aideed , the interior minister and son of a notorious warlord , announced that he would like to erase the 1,000-mile long border between Somalia and Ethiopia .", "`` We should unite , just like the Europeans , '' Mr. Aideed said at a news conference .", "`` One money .", "One passport .", "One security . ``", "Many Somalis consider Ethiopia a historic enemy and were appalled by the suggestion .", "`` All I can say is that the interior minister is entitled to his opinion , '' said Abdirahman Dinari , the spokesman for the transitional government .", "`` But he does not speak on behalf of the government . '' ."], "summary": ["Prime Min Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia says that his country can not afford to keep troops in Somalia much longer and that it is ill equipped to keep peace there .", "Several countries in region have spoken of committing troops , but force has yet to materialize .", "Somalia 's instability may prevent many nations from volunteering troops .", "Islamist forces have vowed to fight guerrilla insurgency against Ethiopians .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 5], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1816083", "text": ["Ali Saleem may have devised the perfect , if improbable , cover for breaking taboos in conservative , Muslim Pakistan .", "In a country where publicly talking about sex is strictly off limits , Mr. Saleem has managed not only to bring up the subject on his prime-time television talk show -- but to do so without stirring a backlash from fundamentalist Islamic clerics .", "And he has done so as a woman .", "When Mr. Saleem takes to the airwaves , he is Begum Nawazish Ali , a coquettish widow who interviews Pakistan 's glitterati and some of its top politicians .", "A real woman could not possibly do what Mr. Saleem does .", "In the unlikely event a station would broadcast such a show , the hostess would be shunned .", "And taking on the guise of a married woman -- whose virtue is crucial to her whole family -- would be equally impossible .", "But apparently a cross-dressing man pretending to be a widow is another matter entirely .", "It is something of a mystery why a man who openly acknowledges he is bisexual is a sensation here .", "Traditional Islamic teaching rejects bisexuals and gays , and gay Pakistanis have few outlets for a social life .", "The gay party scenes in Lahore and Karachi are deep underground .", "Mr. Saleem has his own theory for his popularity : he thinks Pakistan has always been more open than outsiders believed .", "It is true that Pakistan is , in a sense , two countries .", "There is urban , and urbane , Pakistan , where Western mores are more accepted , although nudity would never be seen on television or scantily clad women on billboards .", "And then there is rural Pakistan , where Islam is generally practiced with more fervor .", "It is also true that the Pakistani president , Gen . Pervez Musharraf , is relatively tolerant about what the media can show and cover , including politics .", "Although General Musharraf came to power in a bloodless coup by the military in 1999 , he has been more open to political criticism in the press than some of his democratic predecessors .", "Mr. Saleem , 28 , is thrilled with his success for reasons that are both political -LRB- he is proud to be breaking ground in bringing up tough subjects -RRB- and profoundly personal .", "`` My biggest high is to see myself gorgeous in the mirror '' he said recently while reclining in a makeup-room chair .", "As a beautician outlined his eyes , adding glitter and eye shadow , he said , `` Maybe , yes , I am a diva . ''", "It is hard to judge how successful Mr. Saleem 's show is -- there is no form of Nielsen ratings here .", "And there are clearly people who find the show revolting .", "But by many measures , it is a success .", "Television critics have been generally supportive , and the show , which has been on a year and a half , has a prime-time slot despite its name , `` Late Night Show With Begum Nawazish Ali . ''", "Mr. Saleem said it was named for its racy content , usually shown late , but he said the network scheduled it earlier hoping for a hit that would bring in more advertising revenue .", "Urbanites , meanwhile , seem not to be able to get enough of the once-a-week show , which is rerun twice each week .", "They have showered praise on Mr. Saleem 's portrayal of a middle-aged widow who , in glamorous saris and glittery diamonds , invites to her drawing room politicians , movie stars and rights advocates from Pakistan and India .", "With fluttering eyelids and glossy lips , Begum Nawazish Ali -LRB- Begum means Lady or Mrs. in Urdu -RRB- flirts with male guests using suggestive banter and sexual innuendo .", "With female guests , she is something of a tease , challenging them about who looks better .", "Questions are pointed and piercing .", "Politics , democracy and saucy gossip are enmeshed in her conversation .", "Mr. Saleem sees the show 's acceptance and commercial success as a testimony to the tolerance and moderation of Pakistan , a country often seen by the outside world as teetering on the edges of militancy and extremism .", "Colorful and witty , Mr. Saleem is open about his own sexuality and sprinkles his conversation with gender-bending phrases .", "`` My life fluctuates between two extremes , '' he says .", "`` I always say this : I am a man and I am a woman .", "It is two gender extremes , and I am constantly trying to balance it . ``", "He is unabashed at the criticism that his show often borders on raunchiness .", "`` Sitting senators have sent requests to be on the show , '' he says .", "Mr. Saleem has also been willing to take on tough political subjects .", "He is openly critical of the army 's role in ruling Pakistan , for instance .", "His show is not the only one pushing the envelope on that and other touchy subjects .", "In another network television program , `` Aalim Online , '' religious scholars from Shiite and Sunni sects sat side by side and responded to viewers ' queries on different issues from their respective viewpoints .", "Television talk shows and news programs have also openly criticized the policies of previous governments on their support for the Taliban and on their policies in Kashmir , which both India and Pakistan claim .", "President Musharraf 's policies and the role of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence , or ISI , have come under fire on talk shows and analysis programs , something unimaginable some years ago .", "That is not to say that anything goes .", "The restrictions on print media are generally tougher than for broadcast journalists , and some subjects are considered clearly off limits .", "Owais Aslam Ali , secretary general of Pakistan Press Foundation , an independent media research center in Karachi , said that `` on things of consequence , restrictions remain . ''", "He said that included reporting on the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan , where the Taliban and Al Qaeda are taking refuge .", "Mr. Ali said there also were unstated restrictions on reporting about Baluchistan , the southwestern province where a low-level civil insurgency has long simmered .", "`` This is a big black hole as far as media is concerned , '' he said .", "`` Parameters have been set .", "You cross those parameters at your own peril . ``", "Mr. Saleem , who in the guise of Begum Nawazish Ali often gets away with questions to politicians that print journalists might be wary of , said his show would not have been a possibility earlier .", "`` I owe Begum Nawazish Ali 's existence , in a certain way , to General Musharraf , `` he said .", "But he appears to know his own limits .", "He shrugged when asked if he should not invite the general himself on the show , appearing to indicate that he knew that was one taboo he could not break .", "But it did not stop him from flirting with the idea , especially after General Musharraf made himself so open to the media during his book tour of the United States last year .", "`` I would love it if Musharraf would come on the show , '' he said .", "`` If he can go on Jon Stewart 's show , then why not .", "`` KARACHI JOURNAL ."], "summary": ["Ali Saleem is cross-dressing man who portrays flirty widow on Pakastani television .", "Television critics have been generally supportive and show , which features interviews with country 's celebrities and politicians , has prime-time slot .", "Saleem says show 's acceptance is symbol of Pakistan 's tolerance and moderation .", "Some media researchers say that restrictions on print media are tougher and that some subjects are still off limits .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [23, 45, 3, 44], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1816085", "text": ["It would be an ambitious project even in a Middle Eastern country not embroiled in war : build an American-style university where classes are taught in English , teachers come from around the world and graduates compete for lucrative jobs in fields like business and computer science .", "Yet some of the leading lights of Iraq 's political and intellectual classes are doing exactly that , even as the bloodshed widens .", "Their planned American University of Iraq is modeled after the famous private universities in Cairo and Beirut .", "The project 's managers have a board of trustees .", "A business plan recently completed by McKinsey & Company , an international consulting firm .", "Three candidates for university president .", "And $ 25 million , much of it in pledges from the American government and Kurdish sources .", "To fulfill their dream , they need much more : $ 200 million to $ 250 million over 15 years , said Azzam Alwash , the board 's executive secretary .", "But if it does become a reality , the university will not be built in Baghdad , which for centuries was a beacon of learning in the Arab world .", "Instead , it is slated for what is the most non-Iraqi part of Iraq .", "The site is on a windswept hilltop along the outskirts of Sulaimaniya , the eastern capital of Iraqi Kurdistan , 150 miles north of Baghdad and far from the car bombs and death squads that are tearing apart the Arab regions of Iraq .", "Because of its relative safety so far , Kurdistan can more easily attract aid and reconstruction money .", "With doctors , engineers , businesspeople , academics and students among the hundreds of thousands fleeing to neighboring countries or the West , the university raises hopes of stanching the country 's enormous brain drain and pushing Iraq forward .", "`` You really need to develop the political elite of the future , the educated elite of the future , '' said Barham Salih , the project 's Kurdish founder , a deputy prime minister who received a doctorate in statistics and computer modeling from Liverpool University in Britain , and whose daughter attends Princeton .", "`` The focus is also to stimulate reform in the Iraqi education system . ''", "However , some Arab education officials in Baghdad , the capital , have argued that the university should be built there , not in a part of Iraq where secessionist ambitions are well known .", "Baghdad first achieved fame for its schools and scholars during the Abbasid caliphate , which reached its height in the eighth century .", "Even in the 20th century , before the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s and international economic sanctions of the 1990s , students from the region flocked to Baghdad .", "But because of security threats , many universities in Baghdad have been closed since October .", "Up to 150 employees from the Ministry of Higher Education were abducted by men in commando uniforms in mid-November .", "Jihadist groups have threatened to kill students on campuses .", "So intellectuals like Kanan Makiya , the prominent former exile and writer who strongly advocated for the American invasion , say they plan to move their research projects to the American University .", "Mr. Makiya founded the Iraq Memory Foundation , an organization based in the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad that is documenting Saddam Hussein 's atrocities .", "`` The problem is nobody can thrive in Baghdad anymore , '' said Mr. Makiya , who teaches Middle Eastern studies at Brandeis University and sits on the new university 's board of trustees .", "`` The north is much more stable , growing , prosperous . ''", "`` There is a sadness that we 're being driven out of Baghdad , `` he added .", "The university 's planners plan to make Mr. Makiya 's documentary project the core of the humanities department .", "Mr. Alwash , an environmental scientist , has said he will use the university as a base for his research project , which is about rejuvenating the southern marshlands .", "Other prominent intellectual and political figures , many of whom supported the American invasion , are on the board .", "They include Fouad Ajami , a professor of Middle Eastern studies at Johns Hopkins , and John Agresto , an education adviser in the Coalition Provisional Authority who , as he ended his tenure there in 2004 , told a reporter he was `` a neoconservative who 's been mugged by reality . ``", "The planners have sketched a rough schedule .", "Construction would start in the spring , and the first 15 to 30 students could begin a six-month intensive English course , to be taught in rented space here in Sulaimaniya , before they start a two-year master 's program in business administration .", "The first class to earn bachelor 's degrees would start in fall 2008 .", "The program would take five years , with the first devoted to the study of English , Mr. Alwash said .", "Although the university has regional aspirations like its counterparts in Cairo and Beirut , the first undergraduate class would be mostly Iraqis , Mr. Alwash said , and a majority probably Kurds .", "In the university 's first five years , degree programs would focus on subjects that the board judges to be crucial to Iraq 's development : business , petroleum engineering and computer science , for example .", "`` This has to have immediate practical consequences for the economy of Iraq and the politics of Iraq , '' Mr. Salih , the founder , said .", "After five years , the university may add humanities degree programs .", "`` We want them to study the ideas of Locke , the ideas and writings of Paine and Madison , '' Mr. Alwash , the executive secretary , said .", "`` We want them to understand what democracy is -- not only majority rule , but also the rights of minorities .", "They should be well rounded . ``", "Projected undergraduate enrollment is 1,000 students by 2011 and 5,000 by 2021 .", "The numbers are small compared with enrollment at Baghdad University , the country 's flagship public university , which has 70,000 students .", "Sulaimaniya University here has about 12,000 students .", "In total , about 475,000 Iraqis are pursuing college-level degrees across the country , in 21 public universities or colleges , 18 private ones and about 40 technical institutes , according to the American Embassy .", "Tuition at American University would be $ 8,500 to $ 10,000 a year , Mr. Alwash said .", "That places the university beyond the reach of the average middle-class Iraqi family .", "But Mr. Salih said the school planned to give loans and scholarships .", "Zalmay Khalilzad , the American ambassador and an alumnus of the university in Beirut , has promised that American agencies will give the school $ 10.5 million , possibly the largest donation by the United States to any single education project in Iraq , if American officials approve the business plan .", "Mr. Khalilzad , a native Afghan , helped found the American University of Kabul after the American military ousted the Taliban from Afghanistan in 2001 .", "Some Kurds fear that the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan , the governing party of eastern Kurdistan led by Mr. Talabani and Mr. Salih , could end up diverting money from the university for its own purposes .", "Among many Kurds , the main Kurdish parties have a reputation for corruption and authoritarian rule .", "`` I hope this will not just be party propaganda , because we need a real academic center for this society , '' said Asos Hardi , the editor in chief of a weekly newspaper here .", "`` Having a Western-style university in Iraq would help strengthen education here and across the country . ''", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Group of Iraqis are planning American University of Iraq , American-style university with international teachers and classes taught in English .", "Prominent intellectual and political figures support university and its chosen site in Sulaimaniya , area that is relatively safe so far .", "Some education officials in Baghdad argue that university should be built there instead .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 28, 2], "tag": ["World", "Education"]} +{"id": "1816095", "text": ["In 1997 , Jonathan T . Taplin , a veteran film and television producer , stood up at a cable industry convention and asserted that in the future all movies would be distributed over the Internet .", "He recalls being laughed out of the room .", "Mr. Taplin may laugh last .", "Online distribution of movies has arrived , at places like Apple Computer 's iTunes Store .", "And even though Mr. Taplin 's own video-on-demand company , Intertainer , shut down operations five years ago , it says it deserves some credit -- and cash .", "Last week , Intertainer filed a broad lawsuit asserting that Apple , Google and Napster are infringing on a 2005 patent that covers the commercial distribution of audio and video over the Internet .", "Founded by Mr. Taplin and two other Hollywood entertainment executives in 1996 , Intertainer developed technology to distribute movies on demand through cable and phone lines for viewing on televisions and personal computers .", "It gained investors including Intel , Microsoft , Sony , NBC and Comcast .", "`` Intertainer was the leader of the idea of entertainment on demand over Internet platforms before Google was even thought up , '' said Mr. Taplin , now an adjunct professor at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California .", "He and a secretary constitute the entire remaining staff of Intertainer .", "Theodore Stevenson , a partner at McKool Smith , the Dallas firm representing Intertainer , said the company filed suit against Apple , Google and Napster because they were perceived as leaders in the market for digital downloads .", "He declined to specify the damages that Intertainer was seeking .", "Apple , Google and Napster all declined to comment on the lawsuit .", "Intertainer 's tale is somewhat different than other intellectual property suits brought by technology licensing firms .", "By 2002 the company seemed to have a growing business , with 125,000 Internet subscribers for its servers and 35,000 TV subscribers through the Comcast cable system .", "But in the fall of 2002 , the company shut down its service and filed a lawsuit against some of the backers of Movielink , a competitor backed by five Hollywood studios , including Sony , Universal and Warner Brothers .", "At the time Mr. Taplin said the studios were using Movielink as a price-fixing vehicle to kill Intertainer .", "An antitrust investigation by the Justice Department into Movielink was dropped in 2004 .", "The studios settled the lawsuit last March for an undisclosed sum , and Mr. Taplin said in a phone interview Tuesday that Intertainer would henceforth pursue a patent licensing business .", "The company holds nine patents , including United States Patent No . 6,925,469 , which was issued in 2005 and is intended to cover the management and distribution of digital media from various suppliers .", "Despite initial backing from Microsoft and Intel , Mr. Taplin said the two companies were not involved in the decision to bring the Apple , Google and Napster lawsuit .", "He said that decision was made by Intertainer 's board and that none of his original corporate backers have board seats .", "Several of the company 's original investors have taken patent licenses , he said , but he would not name the companies .", "Despite the company 's decision to file the case in a federal district court in Texas that has traditionally looked favorably on plaintiffs in patent lawsuits , several digital media experts said that Intertainer might have a difficult time enforcing its patent because of its relatively recent filing date of 2001 .", "By that time , for example , Real Networks , the Seattle-based pioneer in streaming digital media , had begun an Internet subscription service for digital content .", "Legal experts said it was difficult to handicap Intertainer 's claims .", "`` There are so many of these lawsuits nowadays , '' said Eric Goldman , director the High-Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University School of Law .", "`` It is hard to figure out which ones are a serious threat and which ones are not . ''", "Mr. Goldman also said it was unclear what specific technology or service was covered by the Intertainer patent .", "`` I have the same problem with this patent as so many of the patents of the dot-com boom days : I do n't know what it means , `` Mr. Goldman said .", "Mr. Stevenson , the Intertainer lawyer , said the patent covers a system that can be used by content owners to upload their content and used by consumers to download it .", "`` It is pretty basic to the architecture of digital content delivery nowadays , '' he said .", "Mr. Taplin , who once worked as a road manager for Bob Dylan and produced several movies , including `` Mean Streets , '' `` The Last Waltz '' and `` To Die For , '' has a history of activism on technology issues .", "In 2002 , he encouraged those attending a technology conference to urge the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that broadband providers would not be able to block specific Web sites -- an early version of a hot-button issue that has become known as network neutrality .", "Earlier that year , he testified before the Senate against legislation that would have forced high-tech manufacturers to incorporate technology to prevent piracy in their software and hardware .", "Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday A headline in Business Day yesterday about a lawsuit brought by Intertainer , a digital media company , against Apple Computer , Google and Napster misstated the nature of the litigation .", "It involves a patent , not a copyright ."], "summary": ["Intertainer files broad lawsuit against Apple Computer , Google and Napster for infringing on 2005 patent covering commercial distribution of audio and video over Internet .", "Claims to be leader of concept of entertainment on demand over Web platforms .", "Founder Jonathan T Taplin has history of activism on variety of technology issues .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]} +{"id": "1816100", "text": ["A government effort to cool Ireland 's roaring economy by encouraging people to save is threatening to backfire .", "In 2001 , Ireland encouraged citizens to set money aside each month in special accounts by offering to match a portion of those savings .", "The catch was that savers had to lock up their money for five years .", "About 1.1 million Irish savers -- or 40 percent of the adult population -- amassed 16 billion euros -LRB- $ 21 billion -RRB- in savings , a sum that is about 10 percent of the country 's annual gross domestic product .", "But now that the five years are over , the wealth is being unleashed , and the plan may do exactly what it was meant to prevent : add fuel to the economy of one of the most competitive and fastest-growing countries in Europe .", "The expected outcome underscores the trickiness in taming surging economies -- a task that the authorities in China are grappling with .", "It could also serve as a case study for countries , like the United States , which are looking for ways to motivate spendthrift consumers to save more to rebalance their economies .", "Edel Byrne , 30 , an operations director for a large chain of restaurants in Dublin , is looking forward to spending the 20,000 euros she will have accumulated when the five-year lockup ends in the spring .", "She has her eyes on a Marni handbag -- the line sells on the Internet for 280 to 1,060 euros -- and airline tickets to Rio de Janeiro , Milan and Paris .", "She plans to spend some of what is left on a house that she recently bought in the Dublin suburbs .", "In 2002 , Ms. Byrne would never have dreamed of setting aside as much as 254 euros each month for five years if the government had not made it worth her while : It gave her one euro for every four she paid into her so-called Special Savings Incentive Account , or S.S.I.A.", "For Ms. Byrne , the government incentive was worth 63.50 euros each month .", "Her own monthly payments , the government bonus and the interest she earned were not accessible as the savings accumulated .", "Some of the accounts have already matured since the program opened in May 2001 .", "But most savers , who on average have accumulated 15,000 euros , according to industry estimates , delayed opening the accounts until the months before enrollment ended in April 2002 .", "The freed savings will come on top of an estimated 5 billion euros in increased public spending and tax cuts that the Irish government plans to pump into the economy in 2007 , an election year .", "If the Irish choose to spend their savings over a few months rather than tap the personal wealth pool over two or three years , inflation , especially for services like hotels and restaurants , could accelerate at a time when prices are already rising rapidly .", "`` The 16 billion euros is a phenomenal amount of money , '' said Jim Power , chief economist at Friends First , a pension and investment firm in Dublin .", "`` There is of course an inflationary risk .", "There is already an inflationary risk notwithstanding the S.S.I.A. effect . ``", "The savings plan was devised by Charlie McCreevy , the Irish finance minister at the time and now the European Union 's commissioner for the internal market , who wanted to tame a potential threat of inflation to the Irish economy .", "In 2000 , consumer prices in Ireland rose 5.6 percent .", "That figure had moderated to 2.5 percent for 2005 , but it started creeping up again in 2006 , to a 4.4 percent pace in November , and is expected to stay relatively high at about 3.5 percent in 2007 , according to some economists who fear the bounty from the savings accounts could inject too much money into the economy over a short period .", "But nobody really knows what will happen , which is why there have been widespread surveys of the intentions of savers like Ms. Byrne .", "Banks eager to hold on to the large sums are offering new but less generous saving products .", "Savers whose special accounts have already matured appear to be taking their time in deciding what to do with the money .", "Similar savings plans by other European governments have not been as popular , probably because the cash incentives were much less generous than those offered by the Irish plan .", "In Britain , for example , tax-efficient savings plans like Individual Savings Accounts , or I.S.A. ` s , operate through the tax system rather than with cash incentives .", "Consumer spending in Ireland is less than 50 percent of gross domestic product , low by European standards , according to Dan McLaughlin , chief economist at Bank of Ireland .", "According to the Irish Central Statistics Office , the country had a household savings rate of 11.9 percent of income in 2003 , compared with 2.1 percent in the United States and 11.1 percent in France .", "On Grafton Street , one of central Dublin 's main shopping streets , evidence of the usual seasonal surge in spending has not been hard to detect .", "But whether spending will be further fueled as Irish consumers anticipate tapping their savings is difficult to judge , said Stephen Sealey , a buying director for the department store Brown Thomas .", "It sells Herm\u00e8s handbags for as much as 10,000 euros -LRB- $ 13,200 -RRB- and Chanel watches for 7,500 euros -LRB- $ 9,940 -RRB- .", "`` Over the last four years , we have seen a steady growth in luxury goods , '' he said , adding that buoyant consumer spending `` is driving double-digit year-on-year growth across the business . ''", "Mr. McLaughlin , at Bank of Ireland , said that surveys by his bank indicated that a slice of the special accounts would be spent on foreign holidays and home renovations .", "He forecast that spending from the accounts would help support the economy over the next three or four years at a time when rising interest rates are adding to the costs of housing .", "But if Ms. Byrne is any indication , not all the money will be spent .", "`` The Irish are good at treating themselves these days , but I would feel guilty to spend over half the amount on luxuries , '' she said .", "`` I do not think you should just throw away five years of hard savings . '' ."], "summary": ["Five years after Ireland encouraged citizens to save money in special accounts designed to slow roaring economy , government officials fear spending spree will do exactly what plan was meant to prevent .", "Underscores problems in taming surging economies .", "Inflation could accelerate at rapid pace if Irish choose to spend 16 billion euros -LRB- $ 21 billion -RRB- in savings that are just now becoming available .", "Analysts are uncertain how savings will be spent , if at all ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 4, 1, 36], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816123", "text": ["The steeply rising cost of preventing and suppressing wildfires , which burned more of the American landscape in 2006 than in any other year since at least 1960 , is creating a rift between Washington and state and local governments over how the burden ought to be shouldered .", "A study issued in November by the inspector general 's office of the United States Department of Agriculture , the parent agency of the Forest Service , said the nature of the wildfire threat was changing as private homes and communities pushed ever closer to the boundaries of once-remote public lands .", "Those communities and landowners , rather than federal taxpayers , should have to pay for more of their own fire protection , the report concluded .", "States and local governments are gearing up to fight back in Congress , arguing that decades of federal mismanagement of national forests and open spaces , not development , created the threat and that little communities with few resources are neither responsible for it nor equipped to make a difference .", "The pattern of wildfire distribution during the recently ended fire season , which charred more than 9.8 million acres , supports either side .", "According to federal statistics , more state , county and private lands burned than in any other year since 1997 -- about half the total 2006 losses -- primarily because of monstrous blazes in Oklahoma , in Texas and across the Upper Plains , regions where most property is privately owned .", "That finding , though also driven by broader factors like drought and heat that have little to do with residential development in fire-prone areas , supports the federal contention that the government has had to shift an increasingly large share of its resources from the task of protecting its own forests to firefighting elsewhere .", "In some places , though , the issue is more complex .", "In Stillwater County , Mont . , north of Yellowstone National Park , for example , the small , long-established towns of Nye and Fishtail are bordered on two sides by national forest .", "In early July , the first of two huge fires erupted in the forest and roared into those communities , where 100,000 acres of mostly private land and 32 homes were burned .", "The blaze was the worst in the county 's history , local officials say .", "`` The forest is very dry and primed for fires started by lightning , and when that occurs in a forest not managed as well as it could have been , it soon gets out of control and meets the community , '' said Ken Mesch , the Stillwater County disaster and emergency services coordinator .", "`` If the federal government started pulling back money for fire suppression , they would be hanging us out to dry . ''", "Federal land managers say protection of private land at the boundaries of public space -- called the wildland-urban interface -- is the fastest-growing component of the nation 's firefighting budget .", "In 2003 and 2004 , the inspector general 's report estimated , the Forest Service spent at least half a billion dollars , and perhaps as much as a billion , protecting private property in such areas .", "The trend is similar at the Interior Department , which oversees hundreds of millions of acres of public lands in the West through the Bureau of Land Management , the Fish and Wildlife Service , and the National Park Service .", "Fire prevention activities -- controlled fires or thinning of burnable vegetation -- have shifted there toward the interface lands , said Lynn Scarlett , deputy interior secretary .", "Ms. Scarlett said that almost half the 1.1 million acres treated by the Interior Department for fire-risk reduction in 2006 were in interface zones , about double the proportion as recently as 2002 .", "She said her department , too , was considering that it demand increased cost-sharing by state and local governments , though she emphasized that any outcome would have to be collaborative .", "`` One of the last things you want in an emergency is people squabbling over who 's going to pay , `` she said .", "The report from the Agriculture Department 's inspector general said a major problem was simply the weight of accumulated assumptions : fire response in the West has long meant federal authorities ' riding to the rescue , with no questions asked and no cost too great to bear .", "`` Public expectations and uncertainties about protection responsibilities , '' the report said , `` compel the Forest Service to suppress fires aggressively and at great expense when private property is at risk , even when fires pose little threat to National Forest system land . ''", "About 8.5 million homes were built at the wildland-urban interface within the interior West in the 1990s alone , according to the Forest Service .", "But state and local officials say they already pay their share to protect those communities and homeowners , partly because the residential growth has coincided with years of federal budget cuts .", "Arizona , for instance , now has 12 to 14 air tanker firefighting aircraft under contract , up from 2 to 4 in 2005 , as a result of reduced federal spending on tankers , said Lori Faeth , a policy adviser to Gov . Janet Napolitano .", "`` Our forests are in the condition they are because of poor federal management , '' Ms. Faeth said .", "`` They 've put us in this position , and they have the responsibility to pay for it . ``", "The Forest Service 's director of fire and aviation management , Tom Harbour , said the agency would follow up on the inspector general 's recommendations .", "`` We 're not going to walk away , `` Mr. Harbour said , '' but we will engage in a vigorous debate with our partners about the right way to split the pie . ``", "Still , money is only part of the issue , he said .", "Communities and developers in the West should be thinking in new ways as well , he said , including the use of fire-wise construction techniques and preparedness plans that involve residents in their own defense even before fires start .", "Many land experts say hardly anyone is addressing the most tangled and emotional question raised by the debate : how much or how little voice federal land managers should have in land-use decisions .", "`` Thinking through in advance the fire implications of a new subdivision next to a national forest boundary -- that does n't happen , `` said James L . Caswell , administrator of the Idaho Office of Species Conservation .", "Given the property rights issue and the tension between local governments and Washington that has shaped the West 's culture for the last century , a system of planning that allows federal officials veto power would seem unlikely .", "Mr. Caswell said better planning must be part of the solution .", "`` A thousand houses next to a boundary could overwhelm all the other cost-control issues , '' he said .", "`` But , '' he added , `` that 's a very emotional topic , so it 's really hard to deal with . `` ."], "summary": ["Steeply rising cost of preventing and suppressing wildfires is creating rift between Washington and state and local governments over who should pay .", "Agriculture Dept report says private homeowners and communities , rather than federal taxpayers , should pay more of their own fire protection .", "State and local governments are fighting back .", "Recent fire season burned 9.8 million acres .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1816124", "text": ["Massachusetts , the only state where same-sex marriage is legal , took a first step toward possibly banning it Tuesday when legislators voted to advance a constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman .", "The amendment now requires the approval of at least 50 legislators in another vote in the 2007-8 session .", "Then it would be placed on the November 2008 ballot as a referendum question .", "If it passed , the amendment would not invalidate the more than 8,000 same-sex marriages that have taken place since they became legal in May 2004 .", "But it would prevent future marriages of gay men and lesbians .", "`` This is democracy in action , '' said Kris Mineau , president of the Massachusetts Family Institute , which sponsored the amendment .", "`` It 's giving people the opportunity to vote on the most essential institution in human existence -- marriage . ``", "Arline Isaacson , co-chairwoman of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus , choked back tears .", "`` The price that our children and families will pay is so severe that we simply have to recommit ourselves to fight this some more , '' she said .", "The swiftness of the vote on Tuesday surprised people on both sides of the issue , taking place without any debate , just minutes after the constitutional convention had been gaveled into session .", "Proponents of the amendment needed just 50 of the legislature 's 200 lawmakers to support it .", "The final vote was 61 in favor of the amendment and 132 opposed .", "Later in the day , supporters of same-sex marriage persuaded lawmakers to reconsider the amendment , but the second vote , 62 to 134 , only affirmed the results of the first .", "National groups on both sides of the issue said they would commit resources to help advocates wage battle here .", "This past Election Day , the tide had seemed to be turning slightly in favor of supporters of same-sex marriage , with the defeat of an opposition amendment in Arizona and passage of seven others by slimmer margins than similar amendments in 2004 .", "Just two months ago , at an earlier constitutional convention , the legislature appeared to have essentially killed the proposal to allow a vote .", "During that session , legislators recessed without voting on the amendment , tabling it until Jan . 2 , the last day of the legislative session .", "Both sides said they expected that lawmakers would then vote to end the session without taking up the measure .", "But last week , the state 's Supreme Judicial Court , which three years ago ruled that same-sex marriage should be legal , threw a wrench into things .", "The court chided lawmakers for their maneuvers to avoid a vote on the amendment , saying the legislature had demonstrated `` indifference to , or defiance of , its constitutional duties . ''", "The court said it was not empowered to order the legislature to vote on the amendment , which petitioners , including Gov . Mitt Romney , had asked it to do .", "But the court 's criticism appeared to be enough to make some lawmakers , including some supporters of same-sex marriage , decide to allow a vote .", "`` Certainly , the court ruling changed the atmosphere this week , '' said Mr. Mineau , whose organization had gathered a record 170,000 petition signatures to get the amendment before the legislature .", "Ms. Isaacson said , `` The S.J.C. decision really tipped the scales against us . ''", "Tuesday 's vote was considered a victory for Governor Romney , a Republican who has used his opposition to same-sex marriage as a conservative rallying point as he has laid the groundwork for an expected run for the presidency in 2008 .", "In a statement Tuesday , Mr. Romney called the marriage vote `` a huge victory for the people of Massachusetts . ''", "By contrast , the vote was something of a rebuke to the incoming governor , Deval L . Patrick , a supporter of same-sex marriage who on Thursday will be sworn in as the first Democrat to occupy the governor 's office in 16 years .", "On Tuesday , before the constitutional convention , Mr. Patrick met with the House speaker and the Senate president , both Democrats , to urge them to find a way to defeat the amendment , even if it meant adjourning without voting on it .", "`` I believe that adults should be free to choose whom they wish to love and to marry , '' Mr. Patrick said , adding that he objected to using the constitutional amendment process `` to give a minority fewer freedoms than the majority . ''", "After the vote , Mr. Patrick said in a statement , `` We have work to do over the next year to turn this around . ''", "The new legislature taking office this month includes more supporters of same-sex marriage .", "But people on both sides of the issue said it was not clear if the balance had tipped enough to sideline the amendment .", "Ms. Isaacson and other gay rights activists have said that , should the initiative get on the 2008 ballot , they fear losing to an expensive campaign that would draw opponents from around the country .", "Polls in Massachusetts have generally found that just over half of the citizens surveyed supported same-sex marriage , but about the same number wanted the constitutional amendment to come before voters .", "On Tuesday , scores of demonstrators lined the street outside the Statehouse and spilled into the building .", "`` I think it is going to get defeated next time around , '' said Lea Roy , 38 , a supporter of same-sex marriage from Fitchburg who hopes to marry her girlfriend .", "`` It 's something you always dream about growing up -- getting married .", "Then it 's like , I 'm gay and we 're not allowed to get married . ``", "But David Wilson , who , along with his partner , Rob Compton , was a plaintiff in the original lawsuit that legalized same-sex marriage , was less optimistic .", "`` It feels like the rug has been pulled out from under us , '' said Mr. Wilson , who has married Mr. Compton .", "`` Maybe I 'll feel better tomorrow , but today I feel like I 've been shot . ``", "Bea Martins , 63 , an opponent of same-sex marriage from Fall River , said she was `` very pleased '' by the vote .", "As the initiative winds its way through the rest of the process , Ms. Martins said , `` my counsel is we continue praying to the dear Lord for justice to be done . '' ."], "summary": ["Massachusetts Legislature votes to advance constitutional amendment defining marriage as union between man and woman .", "Amendment now requires approval of at least 50 legislators in another vote in 2007-8 session for it to be placed on ballot as referendum .", "If passed , amendment would not invalidate same-sex marriages that have taken place since becoming legal in 2004 , but would prevent future marriages .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1, 0, 2], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1816125", "text": ["The Delaware River , which separates New Jersey and Pennsylvania , is putting distance between the Democratic governors of the two states , who are at a standoff over the financing and environmental implications of a plan to deepen the river for larger cargo ships and oil tankers .", "After a yearlong impasse over the $ 300 million project , which requires approval and money from both states , Gov . Edward G . Rendell of Pennsylvania has halted the work of the Delaware River Port Authority , a bistate agency he heads that regulates activity along the river , blocking construction projects and increasing debt .", "He warned at a recent news conference that `` our patience is running out . ''", "But Gov . Jon S . Corzine of New Jersey said that officials in his state are not yet convinced that Pennsylvania 's recent promises to accept the bulk of the waste from the riverbed and cover any cost overruns would allay their concerns .", "Moreover , Mr. Corzine , who has yet to offer a definitive position on the project , has expressed doubts about it from an environmental standpoint .", "`` I understand his frustration , '' Mr. Corzine said in an interview .", "`` We have people who are frustrated also about the environment , and I 'm certain with all the details , some of the conceptual ideas that have been framed , we 'll work through it . ``", "The debate over the Delaware predates both governors , and for many of those who have followed it -- environmentalists and developers alike -- the stakes are high .", "Backers say the proposal to deepen more than 100 miles of the river , from the mouth of Delaware Bay north to Philadelphia , to 45 feet from 40 feet , is critical to the revitalization of the Port of Philadelphia .", "Critics contend the dredging could shake free contaminated sediments that could be absorbed by fish or make their way into the water supply .", "`` It 's a giant waste of money that 's going to hurt the environment and waste taxpayers ' resources , `` said Jeff Tittel , executive director of the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club .", "Mr. Tittel challenged Mr. Rendell 's contention that the dredging would make the Philadelphia port more competitive with other major East Coast ports .", "`` The port will still be 100 miles from the ocean , '' Mr. Tittel pointed out , `` and will still not be competitive with Port of Newark , Norfolk , or even Halifax . ''", "Governor Rendell continues to push for the project as a potential economic development engine .", "He pointed to a similar , if more costly , dredging project effectively undertaken at the Port of New York in the last six years , asking in a recent interview , `` Why is it good enough in the north and not good enough in the south .", "`` Meanwhile , his refusal to take action to reduce the interest rates on bonds issued by the Delaware River Port Authority has increased the agency 's debt by $ 7 million .", "In addition to agreeing to handle waste and extra costs , Governor Rendell has also promised to appoint a committee to examine the environmental impact of the 10-year project .", "But Governor Corzine dismissed these concessions , saying , `` It would be an overreading of that to say we 've come to an agreement . ``", "Those who know both men and understand the dispute said that they are dismayed that the governors of neighboring states , both from the same political party , have been unable to have a meeting of the minds .", "`` Hopefully , the two governors will sit down and resolve this , '' said State Senator Stephen M . Sweeney , a Democrat from Gloucester County in southern New Jersey and an opponent of the plan .", "`` Honestly , I have n't heard anything about this in a year . ``", "Mr. Rendell and Mr. Corzine , who have both played roles in the national Democratic Party , have enjoyed a cordial if not particularly deep friendship .", "But their styles are as different as the environs of the well-heeled New Jersey suburb of Summit , where Mr. Corzine lived while he was chief executive at Goldman Sachs , and the rough-and-tumble , in-your-face attitude of South Philadelphia , in Mr. Rendell 's adopted hometown .", "The garrulous Mr. Rendell , who will be 63 this week , is a former prosecutor and Philadelphia mayor who once instigated spectators to throw snowballs on the field at a pro football game .", "The earnest Mr. Corzine , who just turned 60 , is a multimillionaire and former Wall Street trader who successfully tackled fiscal problems in his first year but sometimes struggled to get along with state legislative leaders from his own party .", "Despite his frustration , Governor Rendell said the issue has not affected his friendship with Mr. Corzine , a relationship that he said dates to his successful 1991 campaign for mayor of Philadelphia , when Mr. Corzine , then a trader at Goldman Sachs , was a significant campaign contributor .", "`` I think he 's a great , great , great public servant , `` said Mr. Rendell , a native New Yorker , who before becoming governor in 2003 served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee .", "`` I believe that Governor Corzine has acted in good faith and does intend to resolve this . ''", "Mr. Corzine , the former head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee , declined to discuss how the dispute had affected his rapport with Mr. Rendell .", "Indeed , he was reluctant to talk about the matter .", "Days after Mr. Rendell 's acerbic comment that New Jersey officials are `` running out of excuses , '' Mr. Corzine would say only , `` I actually think it 's better for us to have private conversations about it . ``", "Mr. Rendell said that he has tried to be accommodating with New Jersey officials , who over the past 14 months had asked to delay talks on the dredging project while political campaigns were going on in both states .", "Also , Mr. Corzine was trying to work out the details of his first budget , which led to a seven-day shutdown in July of the state government .", "He said that he and Mr. Corzine were scheduled to meet this month on the issue .", "`` I do n't know what reason they 'll find now , `` Mr. Rendell said of the prospect of any future delays .", "David P . Rebovich , director of the Institute of New Jersey Politics at Rider University , said the showdown has highlighted Mr. Rendell 's `` feisty , quick-witted , can-do style '' and the fact that Mr. Corzine is `` much more thoughtful and deliberative . ''", "`` The impasse is n't doing either state much good , `` Professor Rebovich added ."], "summary": ["New Jersey Gov Jon S Corzine and Pennsylvania Gov Edward G Rendell head for showdown over financing and environmental issues of plan to deepen Delaware River .", "Corzine expresses concern that dredging could shake free contaminated sediment .", "Says he is not convinced by Pennsylvania 's promises to accept bulk of waste from river and cover cost overruns .", "Rendell sees project as critical to revitalization of Port of Philadelphia .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 8, 9], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816127", "text": ["Sale prices for Manhattan apartments fell in the last quarter of 2006 , while the pace of sales was reported to be strong and the backlog of unsold apartments fell , according to several market studies released yesterday by large real estate brokerage firms .", "The new quarterly numbers led brokers and market analysts to conclude that the Manhattan real estate market -- with its legendary high prices -- appeared to have so far escaped the worst of the real estate market excesses , like large price cuts by developers , reported across the country .", "`` It shows us that we hit the soft landing that a lot of people were hoping for , '' said Gregory J . Heym , an economist who prepared market studies for two brokerage firms , Brown Harris Stevens and Halstead Property .", "The new figures were also reported in a series of competitive and sometimes contradictory studies .", "One report , released by Prudential Douglas Elliman , reported a 5 percent decline in the average apartment sale price , compared with the previous quarter , while one by the Corcoran Group put the decline at 1.5 percent .", "Both put the average sale price for all apartments at more than $ 1.2 million .", "A third study by Mr. Heym showed that average apartment prices actually increased by 5 percent from the prior quarter .", "But even this study showed weakness in the market .", "It found that prices for co-ops , the older apartments that make up most of Manhattan 's residential real estate , declined by 5 percent , with these declines offset by increased sale prices for condominiums .", "He said more than half the sales were in new luxury buildings that command premium prices .", "Yet what heartened many market watchers was the market 's overall stability , and the rising sales , according to the Prudential report , in what is traditionally a weak quarter .", "Average prices were higher last quarter than they were in the same quarter a year ago .", "For all of 2006 , average prices were also higher than the previous year , which included the peak quarters of the recent real estate boom .", "At the end of December , the Prudential report found that the backlog of unsold apartments had dropped to 5,934 from 7,623 , a decline of 22 percent and slightly below the inventory reported a year before , as apartments were sold and overpriced apartments were taken off the market .", "At the same time , the Prudential report tracked 2,441 sales in the last quarter of 2006 , an increase of 15.5 percent from the prior quarter and a 55 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2005 .", "Jonathan J . Miller , an appraiser and president of Miller Samuel Inc . , prepared the Prudential report .", "He said some of the increase in sales might be exaggerated because of improved reporting by New York City , which last summer began providing sales information for previously undisclosed co-op sales .", "But he said that the increase in reported sales was the largest he had seen in several years , especially in the fourth quarter when sales typically decline an average of 8 percent .", "But he said that he believed the market was strengthening and that it was now `` just barely '' a buyer 's market , but one in which buyers were frustrated because sellers were not making significant concessions .", "He found that the average discount from the final asking price for an apartment fell to 2.8 percent from 4 percent in the previous quarter .", "Pamela Liebman , president of the Corcoran Group , said that sellers are now generally pricing their apartments realistically , and that with the economy strong and Wall Street bonuses high , `` the psychology of the market is very positive . ''", "`` The big story here is the story that never happened , '' she said .", "`` The story was supposed to be that prices would crash in 2006 , and a strong buyer 's market will emerge .", "Buyers can certainly pick and choose , but those who think they are going to have a field day out there right now are mistaken . ``", "Ms. Liebman said the fear of a price collapse caused by a construction boom has not been borne out so far , and the outlook remained good for this year .", "She said several thousand planned condominiums have instead been turned into hotels and office buildings , as hotel profits and office rentals have risen .", "The trends in the Manhattan real estate market have always been something of a puzzle , since the average and median prices tend to move up and down with the changing mix of large and small apartments and of apartments in old and new buildings .", "In addition , the various market studies augment public records of sales with private databases compiled by brokers and appraisers of recent closings that have not yet been reported by the city .", "New building sales also distort the data , since sales often close up to a year or more after they go to contract .", "Ms. Liebman predicted that average sale prices would rise next year as contracts already signed at new expensive luxury buildings with multiple sales of more than $ 10 million , like 15 Central Park West and the Plaza on Fifth Avenue , are completed .", "Several reports showed significant price increases in very large apartments with four or more bedrooms and in studios .", "The reports generally showed the largest increases in very large apartments with four or more bedrooms , with declines in average prices for two-bedroom apartments , which still averaged above $ 1.5 million per apartment .", "Overall , 2006 ended with an average price increase of 6 percent over the previous year 's sales , Mr. Miller said , while the median went up by 11 percent .", "Mr. Heym , the economist at Halstead and Brown Harris Stevens , attributed the continued strength of the market to the local economy , which he said has produced more jobs last year than in any year since the 2000 boom , and that interest rates that have remained low .", "Mr. Heym said , `` 2006 turned out to be a really good year , much better than people thought . '' ."], "summary": ["Prudential Douglas Elliman reports 5 percent decline in average apartment sale price in last quarter .", "Corcoran Group puts decline at 1.5 percent .", "Both reports put average sale price for all apartments at more than $ 1.2 million .", "Results of Brown Harris Stevens and Halstead Property study noted ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816129", "text": ["The dollar slumped yesterday and the euro climbed to a three-week high against the currency .", "A steady slide in the value of the dollar since late 2005 , primarily against the euro and the British pound , has steepened over the last month amid indications that interest rates will rise in Europe , while the Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates this year .", "At the same time , countries with large dollar holdings are showing a new willingness to dump the dollar in favor of the rising euro , though the current activity is seen as posing little long-term risk to the dollar .", "Late last month , the United Arab Emirates became the latest country to shift more of its currency reserves away from the dollar , joining Russia , Switzerland , Venezuela and others .", "Those moves coincide with ambiguous signals from China about possibly pulling back from the dollar , and recent word from Iran , the world 's fourth-largest oil producer , that it would prefer euros as payment for oil , which is typically priced in dollars .", "But currency experts say that this turn away from the dollar is not likely to do any long-term damage to the currency 's value for a number of reasons .", "First , the motives of central banks that are adding other currencies to their reserves do not appear to be driven by the belief that the euro will eventually supplant the dollar as the world 's key currency .", "Rather , these central banks are doing what investors do to cut risk : diversifying their portfolios .", "Moreover , the amount of currency moved so far has been relatively small in a global market that trades trillions of dollars a day -- only about $ 2 billion in the case of the United Arab Emirates , for example .", "`` There is some indication that central banks are moving to diversify reserves , but it 's at a very slow pace , `` said David Powell , a currency analyst with IDEAglobal .", "`` Is it the start of a massive shift out of the dollar .", "I would say no . ``", "Yesterday , the euro traded at $ 1.3272 , up from $ 1.3198 late Friday in New York .", "The British pound was at $ 1.9721 , up from $ 1.9586.", "The United States dollar index , a measure of the dollar 's strength against a basket of currencies , fell to 83.23 from 83.65 on Friday .", "In February 2002 , the index was at 120 .", "But trading was thinner than usual yesterday as financial markets were closed in the United States , as were markets in Tokyo and Singapore .", "In 2006 , the euro appreciated more than 11 percent against the dollar , while the British pound rose nearly 14 percent against the dollar .", "But the dollar is not likely to start flowing with great speed out of central banks because foreign countries risk devaluing their investments if they do so .", "Even the slightest suggestion that a country is thinking about swapping dollars for euros risks sending the value of the dollar falling , and in turn hurts all foreign investors in American securities .", "The case of China , which holds more Treasury securities than any other foreign nation except Japan , offers an example of why countries would be reluctant to dump their dollar reserves .", "In October , the most recent month for which figures are available from the Treasury Department , China held $ 345 billion in Treasury securities .", "That was up from $ 301 billion a year earlier .", "Its currency holdings total $ 1 trillion .", "About $ 700 billion of that , economists estimate , is in dollars .", "So in many ways , it is in China 's best interest not to let the dollar 's value slip .", "Heavy sales of the dollar could make it harder for the People 's Bank of China to manage its gradual appreciation of the yuan against the dollar .", "Anything more abrupt , Beijing fears , would make Chinese goods less competitive in the United States and pose problems domestically for some of the loans from its state banks .", "And if the dollar drops too much , the value of China 's holdings would decrease , limiting the lending ability of its banks .", "Nonetheless , the rising euro is not something the United States or foreign investors can afford to ignore .", "`` You have to start to thinking that the euro can be of some risk to the dollar , '' said Shaun Osbourne , chief currency strategist at TD Securities in Toronto .", "`` Over the course of the next 5 or 10 years , I do n't think there 's any danger that the dollar 's pre-eminence is threatened .", "But in the long run , there is certainly the risk that does happen . ``", "One issue driving investors from the dollar is the possibility that interest rates in the United States and Europe may move farther apart .", "Financial markets are currently expecting at least one interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve sometime next year .", "That contrasts with predictions of further rate increases by the European Central Bank .", "`` A lot of foreign investors think the Fed is going to cut rates in 2007 , and that 's a rather dollar-bearish thing , `` said Julia Coronado , senior economist with Barclays Capital .", "Some economists predict the dollar will fall further in 2007 .", "The euro finished 2006 at $ 1.31 , and some economists see it climbing near $ 1.40 -- a high in its seven-year history .", "`` We believe that the dollar 's decline versus the euro has further to run , with $ 1.38 a possible destination for the pair over the next six months , `` said Tom Levinson , a foreign exchange strategist with ING Wholesale Banking in London .", "Still , many economists are unwilling to predict that the dollar faces an inevitable demise .", "`` The dollar is still the world 's No . 1 currency , and it 's going to stay that way , `` said Nigel Gault , chief United States economist for Global Insight .", "`` The euro is gradually going to become more important , but I do n't see it becoming more important than the dollar . `` ."], "summary": ["Steady slide in value of United States dollar since 2005 continues as Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates this year and currencies such as British pound and euro are rising .", "United Arab Emirates joins Russia , Switzerland , Venezuela and other countries that have shifted reserves away from dollar or have hinted at similar plans .", "Experts do not expect long-term damage to US currency 's value .", "Graph ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 3, 5], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816130", "text": ["College stinks .", "Just ask Emily Watson , a sophomore at Dartmouth , who sprays her dorm room once a week and her clothes two to three times a week with fresheners , usually in citrus or other fruity flavors .", "Ms. Watson did not grow up using air fresheners , but a Febreze commercial two years ago changed all that .", "`` If you 're in a frat basement or something , you kind of stink afterwards , and you want to wear your jeans the next day , `` Ms. Watson said .", "Younger customers like Ms. Watson are at the forefront of the boom in air fresheners , which have grown up since the first Air Wicks and Glade sprays hit the shelves two generations ago .", "Glade 's first sprays in evergreen and blossom scents appeared in 1956 and were marketed to suburban families as a way to banish cooking and tobacco smells .", "Since then , thousands of new products have made their debuts -- plug-ins , fragrance fans , diffusers , flashing light shows -- becoming pricier and fancier every year .", "These days , air fresheners are selling to a wider range of customers , as companies pour more money into advertisements that show people of all ages , male and female , euphorically smelling their `` clean '' air .", "Procter & Gamble introduced Febreze air products in 2004 , after sensing a growing market , and put its marketing heft behind them .", "Sales across the industry have soared as a result , up 50 percent , or nearly $ 600 million since 2003 , according to Kline & Company , a market research firm in New Jersey .", "Total sales are expected to reach $ 1.72 billion in the United States this year , the firm said .", "`` P . & G . came from nowhere , '' said William Schmitz , a senior analyst with Deutsche Bank .", "`` And they expanded the category . ''", "Febreze has become popular with young people who go barhopping and come home with smelly sweaters , Mr. Schmitz said .", "Indeed , Procter & Gamble sought such customers by creating offbeat Febreze ads featuring young 20-somethings -- men and women -- making air fresheners seem cool .", "The company used much the same approach to marketing for its Swiffer cleaning products , with one of them appearing in the hands of Jessica Simpson on a Rolling Stone cover in 2003 .", "One of the first Febreze air freshener products was designed to look like a CD player .", "Febreze Scentstories , released in 2004 , features `` stop '' and `` play '' buttons and `` discs '' that radiate scents rather than music .", "The disc titled `` Wandering Barefoot on the Shore '' features scents like `` splashing in the waves '' and `` sailing in the bay . ''", "`` Teenage girls are very scent-involved , generally speaking , '' said John Paquin , executive vice president and global account director for Febreze at Grey Worldwide , a WPP Group agency .", "`` You ca n't have enough scent with teenage girls . ``", "Shoppers looking to brighten their air will find plenty of options .", "More than 1,000 new fresheners hit the market last year , exceeding the number for 2005 and 2004 combined , according to the Productscan Online service of Datamonitor .", "Companies that make air fresheners , like SC Johnson , maker of Glade .", "Reckitt Benckiser , maker of Air Wick .", "And Procter & Gamble say they are responding to consumer demand .", "Scent , they say , has become more important to consumers .", "`` Fragrance for some people is a natural expression of themselves , '' said Tammy Maier-Jones , category manager for Glade .", "`` They want their friends to come over and say , ' That 's Linda 's scent , ` or ' Mary 's scent . '", "`` SC Johnson spent only $ 31 million on Glade ads in 2003 , before Febreze .", "It has since increased its spending by more than $ 30 million a year , bringing Glade to Febreze 's level , according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus , a unit of VNU .", "`` There 's an explosion of activity in this segment , `` said Michelle Dauchy , category manager for Glade .", "Febreze commercials now account for about 30 percent of air freshener commercials , and about 40 percent of the money spent buying TV air time in the category .", "Procter & Gamble spent $ 58 million for Febreze commercials in the first nine months of 2006 , overshadowing Reckitt Benckiser 's $ 31 million and just above SC Johnson 's $ 55 million in that period , Monitor-Plus numbers show .", "SC Johnson released a Glade product in August directly for tweens , or girls 8 to 12 years old , and teenage girls .", "Its Scented Oil Light Show plugs into walls and beams bright colors and scents like Berry Burst , Watermelon Rush and Vanilla & Cream .", "Glade commercials for the Light Show feature a teenage girl in a bathrobe complaining that her mother bought the freshener for her younger brother rather than for her .", "The company developed a tween-focused Web site for the Light Show and ran a contest online for teenagers to win `` the ultimate slumber party '' with Vanessa Anne Hudgens , star of the Disney show `` High School Musical . ''", "Ten pairs of best friends won the contest and hung out with Ms. Hudgens in Hollywood in November .", "The Glade Create-a-Scent PlugIn , released in 2004 , also appeals to young shoppers .", "Tweens have long made their own perfume potions , and the Glade product provides suggested combinations of its scents .", "Air Wick introduced a new look for some of its fresheners last July with animated commercials , featuring elephant and octopus characters .", "These new products tend to be pricey .", "The Febreze `` players '' cost $ 27.49 and discs are $ 5.99 apiece .", "The Glade Light Show costs $ 11.99.", "But then teenagers today have more discretionary money than those of past generations , analysts said .", "`` The teenager today is purchasing what prior generations have looked to buy when they became young career professionals , '' said Marshal Cohen , chief industry analyst at the NPD Group , a retail research company .", "`` Younger consumers are much older today , in terms of what they 're buying . ``", "Mothers and older consumers remain important to air freshener companies , and many advertisements continue to be directed at people with families .", "About three-quarters of households bought air fresheners last year , according to an ACNielsen Homescan Consumer Facts report .", "Ad executives said there had also been significant growth in the last few years among those traditional customers .", "`` It used to be that home environment stopped at d\u00e9cor , and now scent is brought in as another dimension , '' said Tammy Anthony , executive director for client services in the Cincinnati office of Landor Associates , a WPP Group agency that works with Procter & Gamble on Febreze .", "`` Today 's consumers crave experiences that touch all of their senses . ``", "About 40 percent of people who buy air products started buying them in the last six years , according to a recent survey by MarketTools , a firm based in San Francisco that does consumer research for Procter & Gamble and other packaged goods companies .", "About half of the people buying air scents said they were now putting them in more rooms than they used to .", "The living room , kitchen , bathrooms and master bedroom are the most popular , but fresheners are also showing up in the oldest child 's room , the survey found .", "Teenagers are sometimes encouraged to make their rooms smell better by their parents , but they are also seeking out the scents themselves .", "About a third of teenagers with scented air in their rooms buy the fresheners themselves , a third ask their parents to buy them , and the other third said their parents put the freshener in , according to a survey by Weekly Reader Research , a research firm in Stamford , Conn . , that specializes in teenagers .", "The survey , while not scientific , interviewed 1,500 teenagers online and found that two-thirds used air fresheners .", "Of those , about a third said advertisements had convinced them their rooms could smell better .", "Jessica Ray , a freshman at Williams College , said she liked having a dorm room scent that could be smelled all the way down her hallway .", "She has been using an apple-cinnamon-scented Glade PlugIn , but in the spring , she says , she 'll switch to something flowery .", "Her family in Virginia did not use fresheners when she was growing up , but Ms. Ray said she was likely to continue to buy them throughout her life .", "Even specialty retailers are seeking young buyers .", "Anne Taintor Inc . , a specialty retailer for women that uses vintage images and a playful sense of attitude in its products , has found that a lemon-gelatin-scented freshener sells well among college students .", "`` Young people are more oriented towards the inside than the outside , '' said Christina White , the company 's senior vice president for marketing .", "`` They 're in front of their computers .", "They 're not taking long walks in the woods .", "The idea of scent tended to be a personal thing , but younger people are seeing it in a much broader way .", "They want to control everything around them in their own spaces . ``", "It is not just teenage girls who are enjoying scented rooms .", "Boys , too , are customers .", "Unilever has had success selling its Axe line of body sprays aimed at young men in the last few years , and Weekly Reader Research found that about 60 percent of its male respondents used fresheners , just 10 percentage points fewer than the teenage girls surveyed .", "Mohammad Usman , a freshman at Dartmouth , said that most of his friends of both sexes were scent savvy .", "He showed up for college this fall with about a dozen fresheners he brought from home , he said .", "He sprays them about once a week .", "`` I go to the gym every day , and I come back and it always smells because my laundry bag is there , '' Mr. Usman said .", "`` Tonight , I 'm throwing a movie night , so before I clean my room , I 'm going to spray some Febreze . ``", "ADVERTISING ."], "summary": ["Makers of air fresheners are responding to increased demand as scent becomes more important to consumers .", "College students are fueling growth in new generation of air fresheners .", "Companies such as Procter & Gamble , S C Johnson and Reckitt Benckiser have increased spending to capitalize on trend .", "Older consumers remain important to air freshener makers as indicated by focused advertising in segment .", "Photos .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [48, 25, 24, 23, 26, 0], "tag": ["Education", "Business"]} +{"id": "1816131", "text": ["Eugen David , a small-time farmer with a chipped tooth and muddy boots in this obscure wrinkle of Transylvania , is an unlikely man to attract the attention of movie stars and moguls .", "But he counts Vanessa Redgrave , George Soros and Teddy Goldsmith among his backers in a land battle with a Canadian gold mining company .", "The company , Gabriel Resources , owns the rights to mine the hills here and wants Mr. David , 41 , to leave his 50 acres of land so that the company can carve out what would be Europe 's largest open-pit gold mine .", "Mr. David says he is n't budging .", "`` We do n't want to move , `` he says , staring across at the brown-gray stain of Rosia Montana 's defunct gold mine , which would be swallowed by Gabriel Resource 's huge project .", "In the old days , a pipsqueak like Mr. David would n't stand a chance fighting powerful and sophisticated adversaries like Gabriel Resources and its minority partner , the Romanian government .", "But this is the Internet age , when local activists like Mr. David can tap into an increasingly well-oiled global network of non-governmental organizations for financial and political support on a long list of causes and emerge with almost as much clout as any corporation .", "Mr. David 's stubbornness has struck a chord with the anti-globalization movement .", "Gabriel Resources ' proposed open-pit , cyanide-leaching mining process has also drawn the ire of international environmentalists who are now trying to stop it .", "They just might win .", "Mining is one of the world 's most unpopular pursuits these days , particularly the gigantic gouging that leaves the earth pocked with moonscape-like craters a mile or more wide .", "Gold mining is disdained even more because of the perceived frivolity of its end : to provide lucre for the rich , status for the everyman and hidden stores of wealth for nations .", "But it also has a strong allure , particularly for resource-rich countries like Romania that are struggling to develop impoverished communities that need jobs .", "The $ 3.7 billion project would plow more than $ 2 billion into the Romanian economy and could earn Gabriel Resources and its shareholders profits of $ 1 billion or more .", "And the company involved here , a Toronto-based corporation with market capitalization of $ 1 billion , is run by savvy mining executives , many of them highly experienced from cutting their teeth building the Barrick Gold Corporation , the largest gold mining company in the world .", "The allure is perhaps stronger in Romania because the country was created , in a way , by gold mining .", "Early in the second century A.D. , Emperor Trajan extended Roman territory to include what is now Transylvania , in the western half of Romania , to mine Europe 's most important gold deposits .", "The mines helped finance the expansion of the empire to its peak .", "When the Romans abandoned the territory almost 200 years later , they left behind colonists who are the ancestors of Romanians today .", "When the Romans left , the mining did not stop .", "The eventual ruling dynasty , the Hapsburgs , and the Communists , who turned to open-pit mining , continued the process , though with dwindling efficiency .", "The mine was finally shut in early 2006 .", "Gabriel Resources was born in the breakup of the state-owned economy after Communism 's collapse when Romanian businessmen with little mining experience and suspected ties to the former secret police won a vast concession to exploit mineral deposits .", "Mr. David and his neighbors realized six years ago that the company planned to expand the old mine and formed an association called Alburnus Maior -- Rosia Montana 's Roman name -- to try to stop the project .", "They were engaged in an ineffective letter-writing campaign when the founders of Gabriel Resources moved the company 's listing from Vancouver , British Columbia , to the more respectable Toronto Stock Exchange .", "Mr. David 's opposition might have withered had it not been for an ill-advised plan to build a Dracula theme park near the picturesque Romanian town of Sighisoara , once home to Vlad Dracula , the notorious Romanian ruler and inspiration for `` Dracula , '' the Bram Stoker novel .", "Prince Charles of Britain , fond of Romania 's old Saxon villages , was outraged .", "So was Teddy Goldsmith , the aging anti-globalist environmentalist and scion of a wealthy business family .", "A Swiss-born environmental journalist named Stephanie Roth , who wrote for Mr. Goldsmith 's magazine , The Ecologist , moved to Romania to help defeat the project .", "With such powerful forces aligned against it , the theme park for Sighisoara died .", "While in Romania , Ms. Roth heard about the Gabriel Resources ' plan for Rosia Montana and went to meet Mr. David in April 2002 .", "Within months , she had introduced him to some of the most powerful environmental organizations in the world .", "`` When I came there was no computer , no Web site , '' Ms. Roth said .", "`` I tried to empower the local organization . ''", "Ms. Roth started by helping Mr. David 's group obtain a grant for a few hundred dollars from an American environmental organization , Global Greengrants Fund .", "They organized a public hearing in Rosia Montana that drew 40 non-governmental organizations with Romanian operations , including Greenpeace , and catapulted Mr. David 's dispute onto the national stage .", "Then Ms. Roth took to the road .", "By the time Gabriel Resources ' founders turned the company over to more professional management in 2005 , the company had an international coalition of nongovernmental organizations arrayed against it .", "But the mining industry does n't easily back down .", "Hoping to extract an estimated 300 tons of gold and 1,200 tons of silver from the mine , Gabriel Resources introduced a public relations campaign with Madison Avenue-style television commercials and community sponsorships to win over 960 Rosia Montana families that it needed to relocate .", "It cast itself as an economic savior .", "It even countered a critical documentary with its own film , `` Mine Your Own Business . ''", "Some efforts backfired .", "Gabriel Resources helped sponsor the Transylvanian International Film Festival in nearby Cluj-Napoca .", "But when its organizers invited Ms. Redgrave to receive a lifetime achievement award , Ms. Roth quickly put the actress and Mr. David together .", "Ms. Redgrave 's acceptance speech became a rallying cry against Gabriel Resources ' project .", "The anti-Gabriel Resources ' movement had its mascot and the European press began covering the story .", "Word of the movement had by then reached the Open Society Institute of George Soros , which has been working for years for more accountability from Romanian public officials .", "`` When guys in S.U.V. ' s with bags full of cash show up in a poor locality in Romania , they can really make the law there , '' said Radu Motoc , project director of the Open Society Foundation-Romania .", "Nearly all members of Rosia Montana 's former and current council are either employed by Rosia Montana Gold , Gabriel 's local subsidiary , or have family members who are , according to the foundation .", "The foundation , which has already given $ 35,000 to the cause , says it plans to spend as much as $ 240,000 next year fighting the project and helping Mr. David .", "Because of the polarizing debate surrounding open-pit gold mining , it is hard to find an unbiased commentator to assess the risks and benefits of Gabriel Resources ' proposed mine .", "A major focus of contention is the use of large quantities of highly toxic cyanide to separate gold and silver from the ore .", "In 1999 , Aurul , a joint venture of the Australian mining company , Esmeralda Exploration , and a Romanian national company , Remin , began a leaching operation to recover gold from old tailings in Baia Mare , or Great Mine , roughly 80 miles north of Rosia Montana .", "Like Gabriel Resources , the company promised a state-of-the-art , self-contained project that would not pose risks to the environment .", "But less than a year later , the dam holding back a lake of cyanide-laced water burst , sending 100,000 cubic meters of contaminated water downstream to the Danube , killing more than 1,200 tons of fish in Hungary .", "Gabriel Resources says it would build in safeguards that were missing at Baia Mare .", "It has promised to convert most of the cyanide into a nontoxic compound before discharging it into the mine 's tailing pond .", "It also promises to clean up pollution left by past mining operations and spend $ 70 million to do as much as possible to repair the altered landscape after its project is done .", "`` Arsenic , cadmium , nickel , lead , '' said Catalin Hosu , a public relations official for Gabriel Resources , ticking off just a few of the heavy metals that leach from ancient mines to give this valley its name .", "Rosia Montana means red mountain .", "`` We help the biodiversity .", "We help the environment , `` said Yani Roditis , Gabriel Resources ' chief operating officer .", "That 's difficult for many people here to believe .", "The new project will grind down several hills , leaving four deep pits in their place , and slowly fill an entire valley with wastewater and tailings that will take years to solidify .", "Robert E . Moran , a mining expert hired by the opposition to evaluate the impact of Gabriel Resources ' plans , said that the mine , despite detoxification , would inevitably produce other toxic byproducts damaging to the environment , including heavy metals .", "The controversy , meanwhile , has splintered the town , its buildings divided between those with signs that read , `` Property of Rosia Montana Gold Corp . '' and others that say , `` This Property Is Not For Sale . ''", "`` I was born here , so why should I leave .", "`` said Gabriela Jorka , 38 , who runs a small general store in Rosia Montana .", "`` I 'd rather kill myself . ``", "Eugen Bobar , 60 , the school principal , says that the dispute is pitting parents against children , husbands against wives .", "But only about 40 percent of the families to be relocated remain , and Mr. Bobar predicts that most of them will leave .", "`` Most of the people who talk about the environment are just making an excuse , '' Mr. Bobar said , sitting in the school 's office late one night .", "`` They will leave for a good price . ''", "Mr. David , however , insists there is a committed core of opponents who will not sell , whatever the offer .", "In that case , Gabriel Resources warns , it may ask the state to step in and move people out by force .", "But that could lead to years of legal wrangling .", "The company has told its shareholders that it expects to receive final approval for the project from the Romanian government this year and will start producing gold by mid-2009 .", "Gabriel Resources , which is based in Toronto , is , meanwhile , trying to win over the remaining holdouts .", "It is sponsoring education for underprivileged children in Rosia Montana through a nongovernmental organization run by Leslie Hawke , the mother of the actor Ethan Hawke and a celebrity herself in Romania .", "She supports the project .", "`` It 's probably better that nothing happened , but the gold is there and if they do n't do it , somebody else will , `` Ms. Hawke said .", "`` And I 'd rather that they do it than somebody else . `` ."], "summary": ["Eugene David refuses to leave home in Romania where Gabriel Resources wants to build largest open-pit gold mine .", "Gabriel owns rights to mine hills in area but not 50 acres of land David lives on .", "David has taken fight to Internet , where he has gained support from celebrities , environmentalists and members of anti-globalization movement .", "Company launches campaign to convince town of economic benefits and safety of proposed mine .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 7], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]} +{"id": "1816141", "text": ["Advisers to former Mayor Rudolph W . Giuliani said yesterday that someone infiltrated the Giuliani camp last fall and stole a document about his presidential prospects and political liabilities .", "It was then leaked , they said , as a `` dirty trick '' to embarrass Mr. Giuliani and highlight such headaches as his controversial former aide , Bernard B . Kerik , and one of his ex-wives , Donna Hanover .", "The Daily News was given the 140-page document recently by someone `` sympathetic to one of Giuliani 's rivals for the White House , `` The News said in an article published yesterday .", "According to the article , the document proposes a $ 100 million fund-raising effort for 2007 , names an array of potential donors , and warns that Mr. Giuliani might face `` insurmountable '' problems , including questions about Mr. Kerik and Ms. Hanover .", "Mr. Giuliani is expected to decide over the next few months whether to run for president , his advisers say , and he has already formed an exploratory committee to raise money .", "A Giuliani spokeswoman , Sunny Mindel , said yesterday that the document belonged to a staff member and did not reflect official strategy , but `` simply someone 's ideas which were committed to paper over three months ago . ``", "Ms. Mindel said the document was apparently stolen from a piece of luggage during a Giuliani political trip last fall , then photocopied and replaced in the luggage .", "Ms. Mindel said she did not know if her office would seek a criminal investigation of the alleged theft .", "The public disclosure of the document is potentially damaging for Mr. Giuliani , not least because since 9/11 , he has built a business as a private consultant on security issues while creating an image as a political leader capable of combating terrorism .", "Indeed , an adviser to one of his possible rivals in 2008 , Senator John McCain of Arizona , half-joked yesterday that it was interesting that Mr. Giuliani 's businesses included security consulting .", "`` I 'm surprised that something like that would ever leave the custody of a campaign , and that such raw and frank information would be around the countryside , `` said the McCain adviser , John Weaver .", "`` That said , a lot of the information was predictable . ''", "The document outlines a fund-raising effort to bring in at least $ 25 million by the end of March , and to spend more than $ 21 million this year .", "The News said it included notations that named Mr. Giuliani 's chief fund-raiser , Anne Dickerson , and a senior political aide , Anthony Carbonetti .", "Ms. Mindel would not say to whom the document belonged .", "Among the sections that appear outdated are the prospective donor lists .", "The document proposed New Jersey fund-raisers Lewis M . Eisenberg and Larry Bathgate , financier Henry R . Kravis , and FedEx executive Fred Smith .", "The first three men were named last month as leaders of Mr. McCain 's fund-raising operation , and Mr. Smith is expected to join the roster shortly .", "Assessing the document , which includes printed text , handwriting and spreadsheets , The News drew the conclusion that Mr. Giuliani appeared torn between seeking the White House and continuing his business endeavors , which include consulting on leadership and security issues , a law practice and an investment concern .", "One page in the document , according to The News , says Mr. Giuliani might `` drop out '' of the race as a result of `` insurmountable '' personal and political concerns .", "On that page was a list of bullet points that seem to highlight those concerns : Mr. Giuliani 's consulting practice .", "His former police commissioner , Mr. Kerik , who has struggled with personal and professional controversies .", "Ms. Hanover , with whom he had a stormy breakup .", "His third and current wife , Judith Nathan Giuliani .", "And `` social issues '' -- apparently a reference to his support for abortion rights , gay civil unions , and gun control , some or all of which are opposed by many Republican voters .", "`` All will come out -- in worst light , '' the document stated .", "`` $ 100 million against us on this stuff , `` it continued , apparently a reference to likely efforts by Giuliani opponents to draw public attention to his liabilities .", "It also suggests that Mr. Giuliani would categorize and honor his donors with terms from baseball .", "While President Bush referred to his best financial supporters as `` Rangers '' and `` Pioneers , '' Mr. Giuliani would call them `` Team Captains , '' `` MVPs , '' `` All-Stars , '' and `` Sluggers . ''", "He would focus his fund-raising operations in New York , Washington , and California , the document indicates .", "Ms. Mindel called the document `` very outdated , '' but at least some of the ideas reflect current strategy discussions in the Giuliani camp , according to Republican Party figures who are familiar with the discussions and who spoke to The New York Times recently on condition of anonymity .", "Specifically , these Republicans say , Giuliani advisers believe that he is broadly popular enough to be able to raise money quickly for a presidential bid , and that he would need more than $ 100 million by the end of 2007 .", "According to Giuliani advisers , the document was a notebook compiled by one staff member whose luggage was not immediately located after a private plane flight last fall .", "They said it was not an official dossier that all Giuliani political aides shared .", "`` Voters are sick and tired of dirty tricks , '' Ms. Mindel said .", "Referring to the document , she added : `` It 's about as relevant today as a grocery list written in early October -- in pencil . `` ."], "summary": ["Advisers to former New York City Mayor Rudolph W Giuliani say someone infiltrated Giuliani camp and stole document about his presidential prospects and political liabilities .", "Daily News was given document recently , and reports it proposes $ 100 million 2007 fundraising effort , names potential donors , and cites other issues .", "Giuliani is expected to decide whether to run for presidency in next few months .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 4], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1816142", "text": ["Iraq 's Shiite-led government said Tuesday that it had ordered an investigation into the abusive behavior at the execution of Saddam Hussein , who was subjected to a battery of taunts by official Shiite witnesses and guards as he awaited his hanging .", "Officials said a three-man Interior Ministry committee would look into the scenes that have caused outrage and public demonstrations among Mr. Hussein 's Sunni Arab loyalists in Iraq , and widespread dismay elsewhere , especially in the Middle East .", "In an unofficial cellphone video recording that was broadcast around the world and posted on countless Web sites , Mr. Hussein is shown standing on the gallows platform with the noose around his neck at dawn on Saturday , facing a barrage of mockery and derision from unseen tormentors below the gallows .", "As the shock of those scenes reached a new crescendo in Iraq , American officials said that they had worked until the last hours of Mr. Hussein 's life to persuade Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to delay the execution .", "The officials , who spoke on condition that they not be identified , said they appealed to Mr. Maliki not to execute Mr. Hussein at dawn on Saturday because of the onset of a major Islamic festival , and because of constitutional and legal questions that the Americans believed threw the legitimacy of the execution into doubt .", "But when Mr. Maliki decided to go ahead with the hanging , the Americans said they made no further attempts to stop it , having concluded that they could advise the Iraqis against the execution , but not prevent it if the Iraqis persisted , out of respect for Iraqi sovereignty .", "When asked if that decision had been made in the White House , the Americans refused to say , noting only that it came some time before the final exchanges on Friday night .", "Mr. Hussein was hanged at 6:10 a.m. on Saturday , about seven hours after what the officials said was their final attempt to postpone the hanging .", "`` We told the prime minister that going forward on the first day of Id would have a negative reaction in the Islamic world , and among the Iraqi people , '' a senior American official said , recounting a telephone conversation with Mr. Maliki that began at 10:30 p.m. Baghdad time on Friday .", "The reference was to the Id al-Adha holiday , which began for Sunnis on Saturday , marking the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca .", "`` Therefore , '' the official said , `` we said we thought it would be better if they delayed until after Id , and use the delay to resolve the legal issues . ''", "The American official said that Mr. Maliki had never fully explained his urgency in carrying out the death sentence , which was upheld last Tuesday in an appeals court ruling that set off a 30-day countdown for executions to be carried out after a final appeal has been turned down .", "But the prime minister gave one explanation that appeared to weigh heavily on his mind , the American said , and that was his fear that Mr. Hussein might be the subject of an insurgent attempt to free him if the procedural wrangling over the execution were protracted .", "`` His concern was security , and that there was a danger that if it continued , maybe there would be a mass kidnapping to bargain for Saddam Hussein 's release , `` the official said .", "`` He was concerned that he might somehow get free . ''", "The American decision to confirm that they had opposed the quick execution came after days of silence from the American Embassy and the United States military command in Baghdad , which appeared to have been shocked , like so many others , by the unofficial video recording that showed the bedlam at the gallows .", "With some Iraqi politicians raising fresh demands for Mr. Maliki 's dismissal , the Americans , in offering to have a senior official discuss the matter in a telephone interview with The New York Times , appeared eager to protect the Bush administration from a fresh surge of criticism for its handling of events in Iraq .", "The official said that among American officials in Iraq who had tried to stop Mr. Maliki from rushing Mr. Hussein to the gallows , the reaction to the scenes of abuse had been one of dismay .", "`` Well , yes , when I think of the behavior of the people who were there , I 'm disappointed and distressed , that 's true , `` the official who spoke in the telephone interview said .", "He said he had been one of the Americans who intervened with Mr. Maliki on Friday night and earlier last week to try to delay the hanging .", "Mr. Maliki seemed equally eager to ward off the opprobrium stirred by the execution .", "Attempts to reach Mr. Rubaie were unsuccessful .", "The prosecutor , Munkith al-Faroun , said the other man holding a cellphone above his head was also an official , but he could not recall his name .", "The government inquiry was ordered as a groundswell of protest grew at Sunni population centers across Iraq .", "The protests , sporadic in the first 72 hours after the hanging , appeared to be building in intensity as Iraqi and American troops relaxed security cordons that had been thrown around centers of diehard support for Mr. Hussein , including his hometown , Tikrit , 100 miles north of Baghdad , and Awja , the village where he was born , a few miles away .", "The protesters carried portraits of Mr. Hussein , chanted his name , and fired weapons in the air .", "Thousands of mourners flocked to Awja , where Mr. Hussein 's body has lain in a reception hall .", "The body , in a plain wood coffin draped in an Iraqi flag , has become a point of pilgrimage for loyalists .", "Many of those reaching Awja have wept as they filed past the coffin , shouting slogans of fealty of the kind that were universal in Iraq when Mr. Hussein was the country 's dictator .", "`` Maliki , you coward , you are an American agent , '' cried one demonstrator in Tikrit , referring to the prime minister .", "`` Iran , out , out ! '' another man shouted , echoing anger among Sunnis at the rise to power in Baghdad of Shiite religious groups backed by Iran , including Mr. Maliki 's Dawa Party .", "After Mr. Maliki made it clear to the Americans in Baghdad that his decision was final , the official who discussed the events on Friday night said , American commanders were told to deliver Mr. Hussein to an execution bloc in the Kadhimiya district of northern Baghdad that Mr. Hussein 's military intelligence agency used to execute countless opponents of his government .", "At 4 a.m. , Mr. Hussein was flown by an American military helicopter from an American detention center and handed over to the Iraqis .", "He was hanged with only Iraqis present , in a group of about 25 , including executioners and guards , according to accounts by American and Iraqi officials .", "A postponement of the execution until after the holiday would have delayed it at least until Thursday of this week .", "But the American officials said they had made no stipulation as to how long the delay should be , since their concern , beyond respecting the sanctity of the Id al-Adha holiday , had been that Mr. Maliki should await a formal judicial ruling resolving the legal issues before going ahead with the hanging .", "The Americans said Mr. Maliki had agreed , as the Americans had urged , to ask the chief judge of Iraq 's Supreme Judicial Council , Midhat al-Mahmoud , to issue a formal written judgment saying that the uncompleted legal procedures that concerned the Americans were not necessary to the lawfulness of the hanging .", "But Judge Mahmoud refused , the Americans said , and around midnight on Friday the Iraqi leader decided to go ahead with the execution , signing a decree ordering that Mr. Hussein be `` hanged by the neck until dead . ''", "The legal issues the Americans said they urged Mr. Maliki to resolve before the hanging centered on a constitutional provision requiring Iraq 's three-man presidency council to affirm all executions before they are carried out .", "That posed a potential obstacle to the hanging because Iraq 's president , Jalal Talabani , is opposed to the death penalty .", "One of the other members of the council , Tariq al-Hashemi , is a Sunni from a moderate party that has disavowed Mr. Hussein , but has been careful not to endorse his trial and execution .", "Mr. Maliki , in pushing ahead with the hanging , relied on a provision in the statute that established the Iraqi High Tribunal , which convicted Mr. Hussein , which said that the tribunal 's verdicts , once upheld by its own appeal bench , were final and not subject to presidential review .", "It was that conflict the Americans said they wanted resolved by a written ruling from Judge Mahmoud .", "`` Mr. Maliki said that Judge Mahmoud had given that opinion orally , but we said it would be better for everybody if he said it in writing , '' the American official who discussed the standoff said .", "Sami al-Askari , a political adviser to Mr. Maliki who attended the hanging , said in a telephone interview that the committee would question everyone present at the execution .", "He said those who used their cellphones to record the event would be one focus of the inquiry .", "He said his own observation was that the worst sectarian taunts had come from a guard he described as a poorly educated Shiite man with a thick Arabic accent .", "`` It was horrible , it was terrible , it was a mistake , '' he said .", "`` We were supposed to sit there quietly , just looking at what 's going on . ``", "The first images of the execution that were released were in the form of an official video recording without sound .", "The unofficial cellphone images showed Mr. Hussein , with the noose around his neck , facing shouts of `` Go to hell ! '' and taunts of `` Moktada ! Moktada ! Moktada ! '' in reference to an unruly Shiite cleric , Moktada al-Sadr , who has become a populist hero among Shiites .", "Speaking of those protesting the abuse of Mr. Hussein , Mr. Faroun , the prosecutor , asked , `` Where were these critics when Saddam 's people were executing whole prisons full of innocent people .", "`` He said he had been deeply offended by the taunting of Mr. Hussein , and had tried to stop it .", "`` You heard my voice on the cellphone recording , '' he said .", "`` I was the one shouting , ' Please , no .", "The man is about to be executed . '", "`` THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday A front-page article yesterday about an Iraqi government investigation of the abusive behavior at the execution of Saddam Hussein , including the unauthorized cellphone camera recording of it , misstated the account of a witness who said he saw two others there holding cellphone cameras aloft to record Mr. Hussein 's final moments .", "While the witness , Munkith al-Faroun , a prosecutor at Mr. Hussein 's trial , said both of the others were officials , he did not identify one of them as Mowaffak al-Rubaie , the national security adviser .", "Mr. Rubaie , who could not be reached for comment in the article , said yesterday that he had handed his cellphone to security officials an hour before the hanging and had not recorded it ."], "summary": ["Iraq 's Shiite-led government orders investigation into abusive behavior at execution of Saddam Hussein , who was taunted by witnesses to his hanging .", "Unofficial cellphone video recording of execution that was broadcast around world has caused public demonstrations in Iraq and widespread dismay elsewhere .", "United States officials say they worked to persuade Prime Min Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to delay execution until Islamic holiday passed and legal questions could be answered .", "US official says Maliki was worried that insurgents might try to free Hussein if execution was delayed .", "Some Iraqi politicians are raising new demands for Maliki 's dismissal .", "Government inquiry is ordered as protests build in intensity .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3, 1], "tag": ["World", "Front Page", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816168", "text": ["Have you ever made a profit from a catering business or dog walking .", "Do you prefer to work alone or in groups .", "Have you ever set a world record in anything .", "The right answers could help get you a job at Google .", "Google has always wanted to hire people with straight-A report cards and double 800s on their SATs .", "Now , like an Ivy League school , it is starting to look for more well-rounded candidates , like those who have published books or started their own clubs .", "Desperate to hire more engineers and sales representatives to staff its rapidly growing search and advertising business , Google -- in typical eccentric fashion -- has created an automated way to search for talent among the more than 100,000 job applications it receives each month .", "It is starting to ask job applicants to fill out an elaborate online survey that explores their attitudes , behavior , personality and biographical details going back to high school .", "The questions range from the age when applicants first got excited about computers to whether they have ever tutored or ever established a nonprofit organization .", "The answers are fed into a series of formulas created by Google 's mathematicians that calculate a score -- from zero to 100 -- meant to predict how well a person will fit into its chaotic and competitive culture .", "`` As we get bigger , we find it harder and harder to find enough people , '' said Laszlo Bock , Google 's vice president for people operations .", "`` With traditional hiring methods , we were worried we will overlook some of the best candidates . ''", "Google is certainly not alone in the search for quantitative ways to find good employees .", "Employers use a wide range of tests meant to assess skills , intelligence , personality and honesty .", "And the use of biographical surveys similar to Google 's new system is on the rise .", "Such tools , however , have mainly been the trademark of large corporations recruiting armies of similar workers , like telephone service representatives or insurance sales agents .", "They are rarely used in Silicon Valley , which is built on a belief in idiosyncratic talent .", "`` Yahoo does not use tests , puzzles or tricks , etc. , when interviewing candidates , '' Jessie Wixon , a spokeswoman for Yahoo , said .", "-LRB- Google is known for hazing prospects in interviews with intractable brain teasers .", "And it once tried to attract candidates by placing some particularly difficult problems on billboards . -RRB-", "Google 's growth is staggering even by Silicon Valley standards .", "It is constantly leasing new buildings for its overflowing campus here and opening offices around the world .", "Google has doubled the number of employees in each of the last three years .", "Even though the company now has about 10,000 employees , Mr. Bock says he sees no reason the company will not double again in size this year .", "That would increase the number of hires to about 200 a week .", "As a result , Mr. Bock , who joined Google from General Electric last spring , has been trying to make the company 's rigorous screening process more efficient .", "Until now , head hunters said , Google largely turned up its nose at engineers who had less than a 3.7 grade-point average .", "-LRB- Those who wanted to sell ads could get by with a 3.0 average , head hunters said . -RRB-", "And it often would take two months to consider candidates , submitting them to more than half a dozen interviews .", "Unfortunately , most of the academic research suggests that the factors Google has put the most weight on -- grades and interviews -- are not an especially reliable way of hiring good people .", "`` Interviews are a terrible predictor of performance , '' Mr. Bock said .", "Mr. Bock said that he wanted the company 's human resources department to bring the iconoclastic style as its Web site developers to the normally routine function of interviewing job candidates .", "`` The level of questioning assumptions is uniquely Googly , '' Mr. Bock said .", "So Google set out to find out if there were any bits of life experience or personality it could use to spot future stars .", "Last summer , Google asked every employee who had been working at the company for at least five months to fill out a 300-question survey .", "Some questions were factual : What programming languages are you familiar with .", "What Internet mailing lists do you subscribe to .", "Some looked for behavior : Is your work space messy or neat .", "And some looked at personality : Are you an extrovert or an introvert .", "And some fell into no traditional category in the human resources world : What magazines do you subscribe to .", "What pets do you have .", "`` We wanted to cast a very wide net , '' Mr. Bock said .", "`` It is not unusual to walk the halls here and bump into dogs .", "Maybe people who own dogs have some personality trait that is useful . ``", "The data from this initial survey was then compared with 25 separate measures of each employee 's performance .", "Again there were traditional yardsticks -- the employee 's reviews , both by supervisors and peers , and their compensation -- and some oddball ones .", "One score was what the company called `` organizational citizenship , '' said Todd Carlisle , an analyst with a doctorate in organizational psychology , who designed the survey .", "That is , `` things you do that are n't technically part of your job but make Google a better place to work , `` Dr. Carlisle said , such as helping interview job candidates .", "When all this was completed , Dr. Carlisle set about analyzing the two million data points the survey collected .", "Among the first results was confirmation that Google 's obsession with academic performance was not always correlated with success at the company .", "`` Sometimes too much schooling will be a detriment to you in your job , '' Dr. Carlisle said , adding that not all of the more than 600 people with doctorates at Google are equally well suited to their current assignments .", "Indeed , there was no single factor that seemed to find the top workers for every single job title .", "-LRB- And pet ownership did not seem to be a useful predictor of anything . -RRB-", "But Dr. Carlisle was able to create several surveys that he believed would help find candidates in several areas -- engineering , sales , finance , and human resources .", "Currently about 15 percent of applicants take the survey .", "It will be used for all applicants starting this month .", "Even as Google tries to hire more people faster , it wants to make sure that its employees will fit into its freewheeling culture .", "The company boasts that only 4 percent of its work force leaves each year , less than other Silicon Valley companies .", "And it works hard to retain people , with copious free food , time to work on personal projects and other goodies .", "Stock options and grants certainly encourage employees to stay long enough to take advantage of the company 's surging share price .", "Google 's hiring approach is backed by academic research showing that quantitative information on a person 's background -- called `` biodata '' among testing experts -- is indeed a valid way to look for good workers .", "Michael Mumford , a psychology professor at the University of Oklahoma who specializes in talent assessment , said that this sort of test was effective , but he cautioned that companies should not rely on oddball factors , even if they seemed to correlate to good performance .", "`` You have to know or at least have a hypothesis why having a dog makes a good computer programmer , '' Professor Mumford said .", "`` If you ask whether someone started a club in high school , it is a clear indicator of leadership . ''", "At Google , it is too early to tell if the system is working .", "The surveys have been in use in about a dozen areas for several months .", "Indeed , there is some resistance even at Google to the idea that a machine can pick talent better than a human .", "`` It 's like telling someone that you have the perfect data about who they should marry , `` Dr. Carlisle said .", "But even before the results are in on the new survey , Mr. Bock says he is already seeing success in easing the company past its obsession with grades .", "`` More and more in the time I 've been here , we hire people based on experience as a proxy for what they can accomplish , `` he said .", "`` Last week we hired six people who had below a 3.0 G.P.A. ''", "Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday A picture caption on Wednesday with the continuation of a front-page article about the hiring practices of Google reversed the names of the two employees looking over a job application .", "Laszlo Bock , a Google vice president , was at right .", "Todd Carlisle , an analyst at the company , was at left ."], "summary": ["Google has created extensive survey to screen for well-rounded job candidates .", "300-question survey asks job applicants about their attitudes , behavior , personality and is meant to predict how well person will fit into company 's hectic and competitive culture .", "Such hiring tools are more often used by large corporations and not Internet companies , which pride themselves on finding unique talent .", "Google has traditionally hired people with excellent academic records but it says academic success does not always correlate with success at company .", "Google has 10,000 employees and is growing so rapidly that company wants to make screening process more efficient .", "Some hiring experts say Google 's new approach is valid way to look for good workers and better indicator of job performance than interviews .", "Photo .", "Graphic of application survey ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 60, 7, 49, 25], "tag": ["Technology", "Front Page", "Business"]} +{"id": "1816226", "text": ["IN a high school locker room in Worthington , Ohio , Sam Maniar handed a piece of string tied to a washer to each of the field hockey players sitting around him .", "He told the athletes to use their minds to move the washer from side to side , and he watched as each girl 's washer started to swing .", "`` By thinking about moving the washer , we send a message from the brain to the nerve receptors in our fingers to move the string attached to the washer , '' said Dr. Maniar , a sports psychologist .", "`` Most people are in total amazement .", "I use it show the connection between our thoughts and our bodies . ``", "Every athlete and coach knows that harnessing one 's mind can lead to feats of coordination and finesse on the field .", "But what many are just learning is that taking care of an athlete 's emotional health -- and managing stress in particular -- can help prevent injury .", "`` The research is there showing that high stress levels do increase the risk of getting injured , but few lay people realize the connection , '' Dr. Maniar said .", "Iona MacKenzie , 35 , a triathlete and adventure racer in Boulder , Colo . , believes that a period of undue tension in 2001 led to her back-to-back injuries .", "Ms. MacKenzie had just started a highly stressful job in Vancouver , was rowing competitively and was also dealing with a long-distance relationship that was financially and emotionally draining .", "`` I 'd been rowing for about seven or eight years completely injury free , `` she said .", "`` But during that year I fractured a rib and soon after that healed , I injured my lower back .", "Both are fairly common injuries for female rowers , but I do n't feel like either would have happened if my body had n't been so weakened by how much stress I was under . ``", "The American College of Sports Medicine recently issued a consensus statement -- a joint effort by about a dozen sports medicine practitioners , team doctors and sports psychologists -- to inform team physicians , coaches and athletic trainers about the important link between stress and injury .", "`` This concept is not always welcomed with open arms in the sports community where athletes are taught to be tough , '' said Dr. Stanley A . Herring , chairman of the consensus statement committee , a team physician for the Seattle Seahawks and a consultant to the University of Washington 's sports medicine department .", "`` But you ca n't tough your way through mental issues . ``", "Stress is an omnipresent problem , and the word is used to describe situations ranging from a long wait at Starbucks to fear of a terrorist attack .", "So why , one may argue , is n't every athlete collapsing to the ground .", "While the research has shown a consistent connection between significant negative life events -- the end of a relationship , a death in family , the loss of job , failing in school -- and the increased risk of injury , the key is n't so much the stressful event itself , but how a person handles it .", "`` One man 's stress is another man 's vacation , `` Dr. Herring said .", "`` Those at risk are the ones whose stress exceeds the resources they have to cope with it . ''", "There are several explanations for how stress leads to injuries .", "According to Frank M . Perna , a psychologist and associate professor at Boston University , there may be multiple causes .", "`` Studies have shown that when you 're stressed you do n't pay enough attention to visual cues , `` he said .", "That , for example , could cause a football player to miss something in his peripheral vision and be blindsided and injured .", "Physiologically , more stress means more stress hormones flowing through your body .", "Cortisol , a stress-related hormone , decreases the immune response , Dr. Perna said .", "`` Athletes who are training hard are breaking down muscle , '' he said , `` and cortisol will impede the body 's ability to repair muscles , making them more likely to get injured or exacerbate a chronic injury . ``", "STRESS also increases muscle tension , and tense muscles are more susceptible to tearing or can throw a person off balance and affect coordination .", "Studies have shown that during a single school year , one in six athletes is likely to suffer an injury serious enough to miss games .", "Other studies have reported that high stress levels make athletes at least twice as susceptible to injury .", "The key to recognizing athletes at risk , the researchers agreed , is simply bothering to probe deeper .", "`` When the athlete gets a preseason physical , it should n't be just about the ` physical , ' '' Dr. Herring said .", "`` Ask about what 's going on at home , how are things with their girlfriend , do they feel overwhelmed .", "And if the answers are concerning , it 's an opportunity to help them out . ``", "Dr. Margot Putukian , director of athletic medicine at Princeton University , said , `` Most coaches do n't perceive mental health as something they have to worry about . ``", "For coaches who do n't have a sports psychologist on call , it is still easy enough to implement some stress-management techniques .", "Dr. Maniar said there was no reason a coach could not learn a few relaxation tips .", "The American College of Sports Medicine recommends methods such as progressive muscle relaxation , a sequence of movements to tense and release muscle groups to bring tension levels down .", "Visual imagery , which involves picturing certain images to create a different physical state , can also be employed .", "`` For example , imagining being on a beach in the warm sand is likely to produce a physical shift that makes you feel more relaxed , '' said David B . Coppel , a sports psychologist in Kirkland , Wash .", "And doing deep , abdominal breathing helps change shallow breathing -LRB- a symptom of stress and tension -RRB- into deeper , rhythmic breathing .", "MOST high school and college teams may not be sitting down for group yoga and meditation sessions in place of practice , but a few forward-thinking coaches are already heeding the College of Sports Medicine 's recommendations .", "Terri Simonetti Frost , who coaches the field hockey team at Thomas Worthington High School in Worthington , Ohio , brought Dr. Maniar in teach her players imagery techniques .", "He also encouraged the girls to better communicate about what was causing tension in their lives .", "`` Communication is our biggest technique for coping with stress , '' Ms. Frost said .", "`` If a kid seems off during practice , I 'll call her aside and we 'll talk about what 's going on in her life . ``", "Ms. Frost gives her players an extra day off each week -- they practice only four days -- to help reduce stress .", "She also talks to them about their study habits and what is going on in their academic schedules so that they wo n't feel overwhelmed by school and sports simultaneously .", "`` I think on a sort of subconscious level it may play a role in keeping the players healthy , '' she said .", "Although it is impossible to prove cause and effect , she noted that none of her players were injured this last season , and the team was undefeated in the regular season .", "The doctors who put together the College of Sports Medicine consensus statement also said that common emotional reactions to injury -- like loss of identity , fear , anxiety and depression -- could affect a player 's recovery .", "`` But people who have learned coping strategies for dealing with setbacks in life can better handle the stress of being on the sideline , '' Dr. Perna said .", "Stephanie Heinsons , 21 , a senior at Ohio State University who competes in equestrian events , regularly practices controlled breathing and imagery to help cope not only with the stress of competition but also with everyday life .", "`` These techniques help to calm me down and force my focus back into the present , '' she said .", "If she skips her relaxation techniques , she is more likely to feel anxious and tense up .", "`` When I take a deep breath and tell myself to focus on the present , I become calm , '' Ms. Heinsons said .", "`` That helps me like magic . '' ."], "summary": ["Research shows that high stress levels in athletes increase risk of getting injured .", "American College of Sports Medicine releases consensus statement advising team physicians , coaches and athletic trainers on link between stress and injury .", "Researchers say key to finding athlete at risk is to probe deeper and discover how person is handling stressful event .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 31], "tag": ["Health", "Style"]} +{"id": "1816229", "text": ["DR . FRAN E . COOK-BOLDEN , a dermatologist in Manhattan , is an advocate of skin-care minimalism .", "When a patient recently arrived for an appointment toting 20 different products she was using regularly -- including an eye cream , a vitamin C cream , a wrinkle serum , a pigmentation cream , a mask , a peel , a scrub and `` some sort of special oxygen detoxifying cream '' -- Dr. Cook-Bolden said she confiscated all but three .", "`` It gave me a headache just to look at all of those products , '' Dr. Cook-Bolden said .", "`` Just two products , a gentle cleanser and a good sunscreen , are enough daily skin care for most people , and you can buy those at a drugstore or a grocery store . ''", "Dr. Cook-Bolden is part of a back-to-basics movement among dermatologists .", "At a time when beauty companies are introducing an increasing number of products marketed for specific body parts -- including necks , creases around the mouth and eyelids -- or for apocryphal maladies like visible pores or cellulite , these doctors are putting their patients on cosmetics restriction diets .", "They are prescribing simplified skin-care routines requiring at most three steps : soap .", "Sunscreen every day , no matter the weather or the season .", "And , if necessary , a product tailored to specific skin needs , whether a cream for pimples or pigmented spots , or a vitamin-enriched moisturizer for aging skin .", "Each product , they say , can be bought at drugstores for $ 30 or less .", "Among those doctors who have become experts at uncluttering their patients ' vanity tables and medicine cabinets is Dr. Sarah Boyce Sawyer , an assistant professor of dermatology at the School of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham .", "`` My New Year 's beauty resolution for patients is : cut down on skin-care products and cut your skin-care budget , `` Dr. Sawyer said .", "`` Cut down on those $ 100 potions . ''", "For some doctors , simplifying skin-care routines is a way to make patients follow a regimen or a means to soothe irritated skin .", "But some dermatologists are also suggesting patients use fewer , less expensive products because they believe there is little scientific research to justify buying an armload of pricey cosmetics , Dr. Sawyer said .", "`` We have good medical evidence on prescription products , '' she said .", "`` But the science is fuzzy with a lot of cosmetics . ''", "Unlike drugs , cosmetics are not required to prove their efficacy .", "Prescription medications like Accutane for acne and over-the-counter drugs such as sunscreen ingredients must undergo rigorous clinical testing before they gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration .", "But cosmetics are not subject to the agency 's scrutiny before they go on sale .", "The F.D.A. defines cosmetics as topical products that do not alter the structure or function of the skin .", "Dr. William P . Coleman III , the vice president of the American Academy of Dermatology , said consumers should view moisturizers and wrinkle creams as no more than superficial treatments .", "`` You have to think of cosmetics as decorative and hygienic , not as things that are going to change your skin , '' said Dr. Coleman , who is a clinical professor of dermatology at Tulane University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans .", "`` A $ 200 cream may have better perfume or packaging , but as far as it moisturizing your skin better than a $ 10 cream , it probably wo n't . ``", "According to F.D.A. regulations , beauty manufacturers are responsible for the safety of their cosmetics and for their own marketing claims .", "Although many beauty companies perform studies on their products , they are not required to conduct clinical trials on the level of medical research or to make their proprietary research available to the public .", "Dr. Mary Ellen Brademas , a clinical assistant professor of dermatology at New York University Medical Center , said the paucity of rigorous published science on cosmetics makes it difficult to determine how well creams work , whether they cost $ 10 , $ 100 or $ 1,000 .", "`` People are spending $ 450 on a jar of cream just because it is made out of something exotic like salmon eggs or cocoons , '' Dr. Brademas said .", "`` But the cheapest products work just as well as the more expensive ones . ''", "A study of wrinkle creams published last month by Consumer Reports concluded that there was no correlation between price and effectiveness .", "The study , which tested nine brands of wrinkle creams over 12 weeks , also concluded that none of the products reduced the depth of wrinkles by more than 10 percent , an amount `` barely visible to the naked eye . ''", "The Consumer Reports study found , for example , that a three-step regimen of Olay Regenerist products costing $ 57 was slightly more effective at reducing the appearance of wrinkles than a $ 135 tube of StriVectin-SD or a $ 335 combination of two La Prairie Cellular lotions .", "`` I am seduced by fancy packaging as much as the next person , '' Dr. Brademas said .", "`` But I have a theory that all these skin-care things come out of the same vat in New Jersey . ''", "John Bailey , the executive vice president for science of the Cosmetic , Toiletry and Fragrance Association , an industry trade group in Washington , said that skin care varies widely in price because of amounts spent on research and development of ingredients and product formulas , and the cost of manufacturing and packaging .", "But , he said , it is difficult to measure performance differences among products .", "`` Cosmetics do n't have the same quantitative analysis as drugs , so you do n't have a set gauge you can use to determine perceived and actual benefits , `` said Dr. Bailey , who has a Ph.D. in chemistry .", "`` Ultimately , consumers will have to try products out and find what works best for them . ''", "THE back-to-basics skin-care regimen is based on practicality rather than marketing claims .", "It does not rely on exotic ingredients grown on far-flung islands hand-picked by natives only under a full moon .", "Dr. Diane C . Madfes , a clinical instructor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine , said that basic skin care requires washing one 's face to remove dirt , sweat and bacteria , and using sunscreen to impede sun damage .", "People who worry about wrinkles , pimples , dry spots or pores may want to add one or two treatment products , she said .", "Dr. Cook-Bolden , who has been a paid consultant for several mass-market cosmetics brands , suggested a mild liquid cleanser for the face .", "Instead of using toners , which may strip skin , or gritty exfoliation beads and microdermabrasion systems , which may irritate skin , she recommended using a washcloth to slough off dead skin cells .", "`` If you have dry , sensitive skin , you just pat the washcloth on your face gently in a circular motion , '' she said .", "`` If you do n't have irritated skin , you can put more speed and pressure on the washcloth . ``", "Dermatologists disagree whether a moisturizer is then needed .", "Dr. Brademas said it is superfluous .", "`` Moisturizer is optional unless you are in the Arctic , '' said Dr. Brademas , who favors Vaseline petroleum jelly for dry hands , feet , knees and elbows .", "`` I 'm not sure moisturizers do very much except for creating a smooth surface so that makeup can go on without drag . ``", "Dr. Cook-Bolden took a more agnostic position .", "`` If you need a moisturizer , moisturize , '' she said .", "`` If you want less moisture , use a lotion .", "If you want more , use a cream .", "And if you have acne-prone skin , use a gel or a spray . ``", "Although the dermatologists interviewed for this article disagreed about moisturizer , they agreed on one point : the importance of sun protection , including hats , avoidance of midday sun and the use of an effective sunscreen .", "They recommended that consumers look for formulas that include ingredients -- like zinc oxide , titanium dioxide or Mexoryl SX -- that impede damage from the sun 's longer wavelength UVA rays , a protective effect that is not indicated by a product 's SPF rating .", "Beyond soap and sunscreen , Dr. Madfes said that one or two additional products might be added to personalize a skin-care routine .", "`` People who see wrinkles around their eyes are going to reach for an eye cream , '' Dr. Madfes said .", "`` Someone who looks in the mirror and sees large pores may want to use a cleanser with salicylic acid , which can reduce clogged pores . ''", "She is also a proponent of night creams that combine retinol , a form of vitamin A that may help speed up the turnover of skin cells , and antioxidants such as vitamin C , vitamin E or lycopene that may help thwart environmental damage to the skin .", "People with skin conditions like severe acne or people interested in topical anti-wrinkle drugs should consult their doctors about prescription medications , she said .", "On an expedition last week to a CVS Pharmacy at Columbus Circle with a reporter , Dr. Madfes examined the product labels on skin-care items from a variety of mass-market brands and recommended a few basic products , including Cetaphil cleanser and La Roche-Posay Anthelios SX sunscreen .", "`` Higher end , more expensive products may look better in the box and feel better on your face , but they do n't necessarily work better than less expensive products as long as you look for ingredients that are known for efficacy , `` Dr. Madfes said .", "But she did see one benefit to splurging .", "`` The thing is , when someone buys a $ 200 cream , they are going to use that cream , '' Dr. Madfes said .", "`` So , in the end , their skin may benefit . ''", "Drugstores Bank on Snob Appeal -LRB- But Can You Pronounce It .", "-RRB- By NATASHA SINGER LUMENE .", "Lierac .", "Ol\u00ed . Arnaud .", "Proraso .", "No , these are not race-car drivers competing in the Dakar Rally .", "They are imported skin-care brands now competing for consumers ' attention on the shelves at Target , Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy .", "To try to attract brand-conscious beauty consumers who are wont to buy their cosmetics at department and specialty stores , drugstore and big-box chains are starting to introduce niche European skin-care lines .", "These imported products , some of which include retinol , peptides or antioxidants derived from exotic plants , aim to rival prestige brands in formula , texture , packaging and fragrance .", "`` You are no longer necessarily getting a better product assortment , better products or better service at a department store , '' said Karen R . Young , the chief executive of the Young Group , a consulting firm for the beauty industry .", "`` It is a massive leveling of the playing field . ''", "In the last few years , for example , CVS , with 6,200 stores nationwide , has upgraded its cosmetics aisles in 300 stores by introducing beauty departments called Healthy Skincare Centers .", "The displays are stocked with French skin-care brands like Av\u00e8ne and La Roche-Posay , a line that was previously sold in the United States through dermatologists ' offices .", "The centers are staffed by beauty advisers .", "These products cost more than mass-market skin care .", "Janice Jacobs , director of proprietary and limited-distribution brands for CVS , said the chain 's most expensive skin-care product now costs about $ 60 , up from about $ 20 in 1999 .", "`` Consumers are looking for convenience and accessibility , '' Ms. Jacobs said .", "`` If we can give her the tools and the testers of a department store , and the skin-care advice on her terms when she needs it , then she is willing to buy in our stores . ''", "Last year , Target created a department called Bath & Body , a range of 20 skin-care brands including Ma Provence , a fragrance line , and Proraso , an Italian shaving line , that are now sold in almost 1,500 stores .", "Walgreens recently introduced its European Beauty Collection , a group of seven skin-care brands including Institut Arnaud Paris and Skincode , a line from Switzerland .", "And drugstore.com just added Cl\u00e9o , a brand made in Italy whose key ingredient is yogurt .", "`` The drugstores are saying , ' We are not Saks , but if we have our own Spanish or Finnish brand , we 'll attract consumers with our own exclusive products , ' `` Ms. Young said ."], "summary": ["Many dermotologists are advising patients to restrict use of cosmetics even as beauty companies are introducing an increasing number of products marketed for specific body parts -- including necks , creases around mouth and eyelids -- or for apocryphal maladies like visible pores or cellulite .", "Are prescribing simplified skin-care routines -- soap , sunscreen and , if necessary , products tailored to specific skin needs .", "Chain drugstores are attempting to attract brand-conscious beauty consumers by introducing imported skin-care lines .", "Photos -LRB- M ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 6, 8], "tag": ["Health", "Style"]} +{"id": "1816230", "text": ["FOR those who have failed in a decade or three 's worth of New Year 's resolutions to become better workers , spouses , parents , athletes or lovers , there is a new frontier in personal growth -- or at least a proliferation of products , mostly hawked over the Internet , that promise to help turn the last bit of untrammeled downtime -LRB- sleep -RRB- into an opportunity for improvement .", "New health products have emerged , often from the margins of commerce .", "Old self-help approaches like subliminal `` sleep learning '' have evolved and found new life on the Web .", "`` While you sleep ! '' has become an Internet marketing catchphrase .", "The idea plays on two classic , if contradictory , American impulses : the desire to get ahead , and the compulsion to avoid the slightest expenditure of effort .", "There are diet pills sold under names like Lose and Snooze and Sleep ` n Slim , which contain collagen and which the makers say can help maximize the body 's metabolism .", "There are foot pads from Japan that look like tea bags and promise to drain toxins and restore energy while you sleep .", "On one Web site , hypnotictapes.com, besides recordings designed to improve public speaking or break addiction to alcohol or heroin , there are programs promising to help you , at least partly while sleeping , `` Overcome Fear of Clowns '' and `` Master the Bagpipes . ''", "`` The grow-yourself revolution started in the ' 50s , '' said David Allen , a productivity consultant who wrote `` Getting Things Done : The Art of Stress-Free Productivity '' -LRB- Viking , 2001 -RRB- , and it `` is the one industry that has never faltered in the last 40 years .", "All they have done is give you more clever ways of getting it without having to give anything . ``", "Products marketed for nocturnal self-transformation often target outward appearance .", "Ortho-K contact lenses , which reshape the cornea to correct vision and are typically worn only at night , have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration .", "But the claims of many other products are more nebulous .", "Nancy Clark , a registered dietician and the author of the best-selling `` Nancy Clark 's Sports Nutrition Guidebook `` -LRB- Human Kinetics , 2003 -RRB- , said that she had never heard of collagen -- the supposed magic bullet in some nocturnal diet pills -- used as a weight-loss aid .", "`` If it were true , '' she said , `` it would be front-page news . ''", "The products with perhaps the broadest potential market , and often the most extravagant promises , are designed for so-called sleep learning .", "Professionals who think the boss has been a little slow with that promotion -- and who have left their skepticism in their other briefcase -- can try to kick-start their careers with the Wealth & Success Power Affirmations subliminal program -LRB- `` start advertising to your own mind '' -RRB- .", "Sold through sleeplearning.com, it can be played through stereo pillow speakers available on the same Web site for $ 29.95.", "Not everyone selling self-improvement while sleeping promises overnight miracles .", "James Schmelter , a certified hypnotherapist who runs hypnotictapes.com out of San Francisco , said sleep learning on its own is often of only marginal benefit , which is why it is only one of four elements in his hypnosis-at-home programs , many of which he records individually for customers and sells for $ 98 .", "The other three parts of the program are to be listened to awake .", "Hypnosis is generally accepted as a legitimate technique to facilitate other forms of treatment , like cognitive behavior therapy , said Guy H . Montgomery , a clinical psychologist at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in Manhattan .", "But unlike the hypnotized brain , which is receptive to spoken suggestions , the sleeping brain is not so suggestible , said Dr. Michael J . Sateia , the head of the sleep disorders program at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon , N.H.", "`` Generally , '' he explained , `` sleep is considered to be a state of being relatively ' offline , ' as it were , with respect to extrasensory input . ''", "Sleep learning is a self-empowerment concept that dates back at least to Aldous Huxley 's `` Brave New World , '' published in 1932 , but for most of the intervening years it could be found mainly on cassette programs tucked away on self-help shelves in bookstores alongside volumes on astral projection .", "That all changed with the Internet .", "Marc VanDeKeere , for example , is one seller of sleep-learning self-improvement products who said he has noted a spike in business in recent years .", "Mr. VanDeKeere , a hypnotherapist who operates the Web site brainwave-entrainment . com , said he had seen sales of subliminal problem-solving and meditation products , which he recommends that customers use while sleeping , increase by a third in the last few years .", "And he proudly points to 17,000 positive feedback responses for his products on eBay .", "`` Fifteen years ago , '' he said , `` nobody would be able to find these products . ''", "Eldon Taylor , the founder of Progressive Awareness Research , a company in Medical Lake , Wash . , that has marketed a line of hypnosis CDs to be used awake and asleep under the InnerTalk brand since 1984 , said demand has grown noticeably in the last five years .", "He attributes that growth in part to economic anxieties that have increased people 's desire to wring productivity out of the wee hours .", "`` How many times do people change jobs .", "`` asked Mr. Taylor , whose Web site , innertalk.com, offers CDs titled '' Excel in Exams `` and '' Natural Breast Enlargement . ``", "`` We live in a society full of more information than we can absorb , '' he said , `` but we 're required to absorb it , because if we do n't absorb it , we fall out `` of the race .", "This apparent renewed interest in learning while snoozing comes at a time of increased academic research into the topic .", "Last year , for example , researchers at the University of L\u00fcbeck in Germany found that gently stimulating the brain during sleep with an electrical current at a certain frequency improved the ability of test subjects to remember a string of words they had learned before a nap .", "Still , Dr. Jerome M . Siegel , a professor of psychiatry at the Center for Sleep Research at the University of California , Los Angeles , said that most research he has seen indicates that subliminal sleep learning is of little or no value because `` the sound had to actually wake you before you would benefit . ''", "Dr. Siegel recalled rigging a speaker system under his own pillow in junior high school in a failed effort to learn French .", "`` Even when you 're sleepy , but not asleep , `` he added , '' you do n't learn very well . ``", "A study in 1992 by the British Psychological Society dismissed the concept of sleep learning , finding that it can `` only occur if the sleeping person is partly awakened by the message . ''", "But such findings did not kill off interest in the concept and its seductive , something-for-nothing allure .", "For Candace Kinsella , a retired nurse in Largo , Fla . , who wanted to reduce by a few sizes , diet pills were not enough , so she turned to a weight-loss sleep program that is not subliminal , but consists of spoken messages like `` eat more vegetables , '' she said .", "Despite the potential distraction of someone talking while you 're trying to sleep , she said the program , which is sold on the Web site robert-egby . com , is relaxing .", "`` It 's like going to sleep with the TV on , `` she said .", "She credits it with helping her lose 50 pounds over one year , starting from a weight of 345 , simply by providing constant reminders to go to the gym , drink water instead of soda and eat better .", "`` All of this augments '' a commitment during waking hours to healthy living , she explained .", "Then again , the typical middle-aged American gets as little as 6.1 hours of sleep a night , according to a recent University of Chicago study , instead of the commonly accepted optimum of eight .", "So people who fail to transform themselves suitably during the wee hours can always fall back on using their sleep to obtain one thing that doctors believe is crucial to a life of happiness and productivity : rest ."], "summary": ["Web gives new life to products that promise to transform you ` while you sleep , ' and those with broadest market and most extravagant promises are designed for so-called sleep learning .", "Most research shows that people learn only when awake and suggest that people use sleep to rest .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 6], "tag": ["Technology", "Education", "Style"]} +{"id": "1816249", "text": ["WILLIAM LEININGER is not your typical environmental zealot .", "A Navy commander who works as a doctor at the Naval Medical Center San Diego , he is a Republican and lives in one of California 's most conservative counties , in a development of neat lawns and Spanish-style houses .", "His 2,400-square - foot , single-level house -- `` the usual Southern California design , '' he said recently -- is barely distinguishable from its neighbors , apart from one detail : the red-tile roof is crammed with solar panels .", "Dr. Leininger , 42 , is one of thousands of Californians , many of them unlikely converts to the cause of alternative energy , who have installed solar power systems in their homes in just the last year .", "Spurred by recent legislation that provides financial incentives -- and by rising energy costs and , perhaps , by a lingering distrust of power companies in the aftermath of the California electricity crisis at the start of the decade -- homeowners across the state have come to see solar power as a way to conserve money as well as natural resources .", "Architects in California are routinely designing solar systems into custom homes , and developers are offering solar systems and solar-ready wiring in new spec houses and subdivisions .", "Solar power is also emerging as a kind of status symbol , a glamorous mark of personal responsibility .", "Celebrities , including Leonardo DiCaprio , Alicia Silverstone , Carlos Santana and Tom Seaver , have installed solar systems .", "-LRB- Edward Norton runs a campaign in Los Angeles , encouraging his fellow celebrities to install solar panels on their homes and to make donations for systems in low-income housing . -RRB-", "The vogue began in earnest a year ago , when the state legislature approved the California Solar Initiative , one of the most ambitious solar programs in the world .", "The legislation took effect at the start of this month but was preceded by a stopgap measure with similar terms that ran throughout 2006 , offering homeowners a rebate on top of the federal tax credit of up to $ 2,000 that has been available nationwide since 2006 .", "The theory was that supplanting the year-to-year incentive programs in place since 1998 with the long-term certainty offered by the initiative 's 10-year , $ 3.2 billion program of rebates -LRB- one-third of which would likely go to homeowners -RRB- would stimulate the development of a robust solar sector -- which could then be weaned from subsidies as its growing scale brought down prices .", "If it works as planned , said J . P . Ross , the policy director for Vote Solar , an organization that advocates for large state-level solar projects , the initiative will stimulate the installation of 3,000 megawatts of solar electrical generating capacity in the state over the next decade .", "That would be an increase by a factor of more than 20 , Mr. Ross said , equivalent to 30 small natural-gas-fired power plants .", "Given the enthusiasm homeowners have shown for the initiative , filing nearly twice as many plans for solar systems with the California State Energy Commission in 2006 than in previous years , this goal may not be far-fetched .", "Other states are considering the future of their solar programs -LRB- several states in the Northeast and the Southwest have less ambitious ones in place , including New York , New Jersey and Connecticut -RRB- , and they are closely watching California 's .", "As the rebate program has made it less expensive to install a home solar system -- and as banks , which consider a solar system to be an improvement that increases a house 's value , have made financing readily available -- the solar industry has grown .", "There are now 434 companies registered to install solar systems by the state energy commission , which together installed just under 50 megawatts of solar electric generating capacity in 2006 , the most in a single year .", "-LRB- California 's total capacity by October was 180 megawatts , enough energy to power about 135,000 homes .", "At the end of 2005 the nationwide solar photovoltaic capacity was 425 megawatts . -RRB-", "While much of the total came from industrial and utility installations , more than 7,000 homeowners filed plans with the state energy commission in 2006 , up from about 4,000 in each of the previous two years .", "The companies are responding not only to an increase in demand , but also to a change in the type of consumers interested in going solar .", "Unlike the do-it-yourself tinkerers who once made up much of the home photovoltaic market , the people fueling the current growth spurt are interested in hands-off user friendliness .", "`` I more or less set it up and then I forgot about it , '' said Nicky Gonz\u00e1lez Yuen , an instructor in political science at De Anza College in Cupertino , who hired a company called NextEnergy to install the modest three-kilowatt system in his 100-year-old Berkeley duplex .", "`` I 'm a really busy person , and I did n't need to know that level of information . ``", "Companies like NextEnergy provide homeowners with a complete package that includes system design , permit applications , rebate processing , installation , maintenance and warranty .", "`` It was a seamless , painless process , '' said Mr. Yuen , whose system cost $ 16,000 after the California rebate and the federal tax credit , which together saved him $ 10,000 .", "It was `` comparable to having a sprinkler system put in , '' he said .", "Mr. Yuen , 47 , was the first on his block to install a solar system : `` In my circle I 'm the eco-nut , `` he said .", "But , he said , less than a year later they are quite common in his neighborhood .", "`` A lot of people are really paying attention and beginning to think about the whole environmental cycle , '' he added .", "But even as these solar adopters re-evaluate their relationship to the power grid , virtually all of them remain connected to it , which is contrary to the go-it-alone image of the early solar pioneers .", "Though the connection means a house will lose power in a blackout , most home users find the ease of operation makes up for the loss of independence .", "`` All I see is an e-mail from the system once a month , '' said Robert Felton , chief executive of TenFold , a software company , of the report of how much power his mansion in the Oakland hills is using and producing .", "As recently as 10 years ago it was unheard of and , in fact , illegal for solar-powered houses in California to connect to the grid .", "Now power companies are legally required to credit their customers for the excess power they produce .", "The grid , in effect , serves to store power , replacing the bank of batteries that is a component of off-grid systems .", "At the end of the year , credits for solar power added to the grid are applied against charges for power taken from it , helping homeowners `` zero out '' their electricity bills .", "According to Borrego Solar Systems , the company that installed the long rows of solar panels on a hill next to Mr. Felton 's house , two-thirds of its customers manage to do so .", "Excess credits are lost at the end of the year , so homeowners , at least for now , can not make a profit from their solar systems .", "Even so , the savings can be substantial : in 2005 Mr. Felton paid Pacific Gas and Electric about $ 2,500 a month for electricity .", "-LRB- `` I have a whole bunch of fountains and water features and stuff like that , '' he said . -RRB-", "In California residential electricity rates are tiered , and large users like Mr. Felton pay rates about three times higher than more modest consumers , making solar power even more attractive .", "While the average home solar system is about five kilowatts , Mr. Felton 's is 45 kilowatts , and he seldom sees an electric bill .", "Borrego Solar estimated the system could save Mr. Felton almost $ 2 million over 30 years -- far more than the $ 255,000 the system cost him after a $ 134,000 rebate .", "Mr. Felton , 67 , said that a solar system did not make sense when he built his house in 2000 , but that the rebate , as well as rising electricity prices , persuaded him to install the system last year .", "His pragmatic concerns were also informed by broader issues .", "`` I 'm not a hippie greenie , `` he said , pointing out that with a background in nuclear engineering , he strongly supports nuclear power .", "`` But solar is certainly a way to get off foreign oil . ''", "As a member of the military who has been deployed to the Persian Gulf three times , Dr. Leininger has been affected by the nation 's foreign oil habits more than most .", "`` The need for stable oil supplies is the big reason that we spend so much time in the Persian Gulf , '' he said .", "`` Decreasing our national energy consumption is in my self-interest . ''", "His neighbors in the San Diego suburb of Escondido , most of them politically conservative , have responded well to the solar panels of the eight-kilowatt system that he and his wife , Suzann , a cartographer , installed last year on their roof .", "The neighborhood association , which was required to approve the plan by California law , did so happily , he said .", "Lately , the Leiningers have noticed at least one other photovoltaic system in the immediate area and a number of solar heating systems for swimming pools .", "-LRB- Meanwhile , in Orange County , which is known for its political conservatism , about 250 solar installations were approved from January to November last year , more than twice the 2005 figure . -RRB-", "The Leiningers , who paid Borrego Solar $ 39,000 for their system after a $ 24,000 rebate , figure their system will pay for itself in a dozen years -- assuming residential electricity rates do not increase , as they have by 37 percent since 1998 .", "Dr. Leininger estimated that his system had reduced his household carbon emissions by nearly 30 tons since it was installed in June , and that it was well on its way to zeroing out .", "`` It comes down to personal responsibility , '' he said .", "`` If I can go electricity-neutral on my house , that 's that much less coal we have to burn . ``", "And much less money .", "`` One of the most gratifying things is on a sunny day when the meter is spinning backward , '' Dr. Leininger said .", "`` We have a guaranteed return on the system because we know we 're not going to have an electric bill from now on . ``", "Chasing Solar Power in the Northeast HOME solar systems in the Northeast can produce up to 90 percent of the electricity generated by those in California , said Michael Hall , chief marketing officer for Borrego Solar Systems , a company in California .", "It is not surprising , then , that some California installers are expanding nationally .", "They include PowerLight and Akeena Solar , which opened offices in New Jersey in the last two years .", "The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority 's Web site , powernaturally.org, explains the state 's incentive program , which has been in place since 2002 .", "It covers 40 percent to 70 percent of the cost of a home system , depending on its size and other factors .", "State-approved installers are listed at the site as well .", "New Jersey has been offering rebates to homeowners for photovoltaic systems since 2001 , and it is now the second-largest solar market in the country .", "The state offers rebates up to $ 3.80 per watt for home systems .", "While this is less than New York 's rate , New Jersey makes it possible for system owners to sell renewable energy credits and earn continuing revenues , unlike New York and most other states .", "Details and contact information for dozens of installers are at the New Jersey Clean Energy Program 's Web site , njcep.com.", "Connecticut 's rebate program pays up to $ 25,000 per solar photovoltaic installation , depending on the components used and how they are configured .", "Information is at ctinnovations.com/ funding / ccef / solar -- rebates.php.", "GREGORY DICUM ."], "summary": ["Solar industry has grown in California in year since state legislature approved homeowner rebates for installing solar electric generating systems .", "Banks , which consider solar systems to be improvement that increases house 's value , are making financing readily available .", "Architects are routinely designing solar systems in custom houses , and developers are offering solar systems and solar-ready wiring in new spec houses and subdivisions .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 16], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1816254", "text": ["After the peppered beef carpaccio and before the pan-fried sea bass there were raucous toasts and the clinking of wine glasses in the V.I.P. room of New Heights , a jazzy restaurant in this city 's most luxurious location , overlooking the Bund .", "Wang Guangyi , one of China 's pioneering contemporary artists , was there .", "So were Zhang Xiaogang , Fang Lijun , Yue Minjun , Zeng Fanzhi and 20 other well-known Chinese artists and their guests , many of whom had been flown in from Beijing to celebrate the opening of a solo exhibition of new works by Zeng Hao , another rising star in China 's bubbly art scene .", "`` We 've had opening dinners before , `` said the Shanghai artist Zhou Tiehai , sipping Chilean red wine , '' but nothing quite like this until very recently . ``", "The dinner , held on a recent Saturday night in a restaurant located on the top floor of a historic building that also houses an Armani store and the Shanghai Gallery of Art , was symbolic of the soaring fortunes of Chinese contemporary art .", "In 2006 Sotheby 's and Christie 's , the world 's biggest auction houses , sold $ 190 million worth of Asian contemporary art , most of it Chinese , in a series of record-breaking auctions in New York , London and Hong Kong .", "In 2004 the two houses combined sold $ 22 million in Asian contemporary art .", "The climax came at a Beijing auction in November when a painting by Liu Xiaodong , 43 , sold to a Chinese entrepreneur for $ 2.7 million , the highest price ever paid for a piece by a Chinese artist who began working after 1979 , when loosened economic restrictions spurred a resurgence in contemporary art .", "That price put Mr. Liu in the company of the few living artists , including Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons , whose work has sold for $ 2 million or more at auction .", "`` This has come out of nowhere , '' said Henry Howard-Sneyd , global head of Asian arts at Sotheby 's , which , like Christie 's , has just started a division focusing on contemporary Chinese art .", "With auction prices soaring , hundreds of new studios , galleries and private art museums are opening in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai .", "Chinese auction houses that once specialized in traditional ink paintings are now putting contemporary experimental artworks on the block .", "Western galleries , especially in Europe , are rushing to sign up unknown painters .", "Artists a year out of college are selling photographic works for as much as $ 10,000 each .", "Well-known painters have yearlong waiting lists .", "And the Solomon R . Guggenheim Museum and the Pompidou Center in Paris are considering opening branches in China .", "`` What is happening in China is what happened in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century , '' said Michael Goedhuis , a collector and art dealer specializing in Asian contemporary art who has galleries in London and New York .", "`` New ground is being broken .", "There 's a revolution under way . ``", "But the auction frenzy has also sparked debate here about whether sales are artificially inflating prices and encouraging speculators , rather than real collectors , to enter the art market .", "Auction houses `` sell art like people sell cabbage , '' said Weng Ling , the director of the Shanghai Gallery of Art .", "`` They are not educating the public or helping artists develop .", "Many of them know nothing about art . ``", "But the boom in Chinese contemporary art -- reinforced by record sales in New York last year -- has also brought greater recognition to a group of experimental artists who grew up during China 's brutal Cultural Revolution -LRB- 1966-1976 -RRB- .", "After the 1989 government crackdown in Tiananmen Square , avant-garde art was often banned from being shown here because it was deemed hostile or anti-authoritarian .", "Through the 1990s many artists struggled to earn a living , considering themselves lucky to sell a painting for $ 500 .", "That has all changed .", "These days China 's leading avant-garde artists have morphed into multi-millionaires who show up at exhibitions wearing Gucci and Ferragamo .", "Wang Guangyi , best-known for his Great Criticism series of Cultural Revolution-style paintings emblazoned with the names of popular Western brands , like Coke , Swatch and Gucci , drives a Jaguar and owns a 10,000-square - foot luxury villa on the outskirts of Beijing .", "Yue Minjun , who makes legions of colorful smiling figures , has a walled-off suburban Beijing compound with an 8,000-square - foot home and studio .", "Fang Lijun , a `` Cynical Realist '' painter whose work captures artists ' post-Tiananmen disillusionment , owns six restaurants in Beijing and operates a small hotel in western Yunnan province .", "If China 's art scene can be likened to a booming stock market , Zhang Xiaogang , 48 , is its Google .", "More than any other Chinese artist Mr. Zhang , with his huge paintings depicting family photographs taken during the Cultural Revolution , has captured the imagination of international collectors .", "Prices for his work have skyrocketed at auction over the last two years .", "When his work `` Bloodline Series : Comrade No . 120 '' sold for $ 979,000 at Sotheby 's auction in March , many art insiders predicted the market had topped out and prices would plummet within months .", "But in October , the British collector Charles Saatchi bought another of Mr. Zhang 's pieces at Christie 's in London for $ 1.5 million .", "Then in November at Christie 's Hong Kong auction , Mr. Zhang 's 1993 `` Tiananmen Square '' sold to a private collector for $ 2.3 million .", "According to Artnet.com, which tracks auction prices , 16 of Mr. Zhang 's works have sold for $ 500,000 or more during the past two years .", "Are such prices justified .", "Uli Sigg , the former Swiss ambassador to China and perhaps the largest collector of Chinese contemporary art with more than 1,500 pieces , calls the market frothy but not finished .", "`` I do n't see anything at the moment that will stop the rise in prices , `` he said .", "`` More and more people are flocking to the market . ''", "Mr. Goedhuis insists that this is the beginning of an even bigger boom in Chinese contemporary art .", "`` I do n't think there 's a bubble , `` he said .", "`` There 's a lot of speculation but no bubble .", "That 's the paradox .", "In China there are only a handful of buyers -- 10 , 20 , 30 -- out of a billion people .", "You only need another 10 to come in and that will jack up prices . ``", "He added : `` Another astonishing fact is there is not a single museum in the West that has committed itself to buying Chinese art .", "It 's just starting to happen .", "Guggenheim , the Tate Modern , MoMA , they 're all looking . ``", "Representatives from those museums , as well as others , have made scouting missions to China .", "A growing number of international collectors are looking at Chinese art too .", "`` After the 2005 Sotheby 's show I just jumped in , `` said Didier Hirsch , a French-born California business executive who has long collected American and European contemporary art .", "`` People said the next big run-up in prices would be at Sotheby 's in March so I said , ` Now or never . '", "`` Mr. Hirsch purchased nearly his entire collection -- about 40 works -- by phone after doing research on the Internet .", "He said he went first for what he called the titans -- the original group of post - ` 79 painters -- including Wang Guangyi and Liu Xiaodong .", "Some critics here say the focus on prices has led to a decline in creativity as artists knock off variations of their best-known work rather than exploring new territory .", "Some are even employing teams of workers in assembly-line fashion .", "Christopher Phillips , a curator at the International Center of Photography in New York , has become a regular visitor to China , scouting young artists for the center and other places .", "On a recent trip `` I went to visit the studio of a well-known Beijing painter , '' Mr. Phillips said .", "`` The artist was n't there , but I saw a group of canvases being painted by a team of young women who seemed to be just in from the countryside .", "I found it a little disconcerting . ``", "There are also complaints that some artists are ignoring international standards by selling works directly into the auction market , rather than selling first to collectors .", "And many experts here say that some gallery officials and artists are sending representatives to the auctions to bid on their own works to prop up prices , or `` protect '' the prices of some rising stars .", "But Lorenz Helbling , director of the ShanghART Gallery here , said Chinese artists continue to produce an impressive array of works , and that talk about the market being overrun by commercialism is exaggerated .", "`` Things are much better than they were 10 years ago , '' he said .", "`` Back then many artists were commissioned to simply paint dozens of paintings for a gallery owner , who went out and sold those works .", "Now these artists are thinking more deeply about their work because they 're finally getting the recognition they deserve . `` ."], "summary": ["Soaring prices for Chinese contemporary art have led way for opening of hundreds of new studios , galleris and private art museums in cities like Beijing and Shanghai .", "Chinese auction houses that once only dealt in traditional art have now begun to put contemporary pieces on block .", "European galleries are also clamoring to sign unknown Chinese artists , some of whom been able to sell their works for large sums .", "Auction and gallery frenzy has sparked debate in China about whether sales are artificially inflated to encourage speculators , rather than real collectors , to enter art market .", "There are also complaints that some artists are ignoring international standards by selling works directly into auction market , rather than selling first to collectors .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [63, 19, 10, 11], "tag": ["Travel", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1816258", "text": ["Christopher Wheeldon , one of the world 's most sought-after choreographers , who recently announced an end to his residency at New York City Ballet , has formed his own company , a major event in the dance world .", "The company , Morphoses the Wheeldon Company , is to make its debut in August at the Vail International Dance Festival in Colorado , followed by four to six performances at the Sadler 's Wells Theater in London in September and roughly the same number at City Center in New York in October .", "The company is named after a 2002 dance that Mr. Wheeldon created for City Ballet .", "In an interview yesterday Mr. Wheeldon said performances would include a mix of his own choreography and works by others , performed by stars on loan from City Ballet and the Royal Ballet in London .", "`` We 're still kind of at the hopes-and-dreams stage , `` he said , adding that he had approached no one to become a permanent member .", "`` I do n't really believe in poaching , `` he said .", "`` I do n't even know at this stage whether I can offer them the security they need . ``", "At Vail , he said , he planned to cast couples from the Hamburg Ballet , Pacific Northwest Ballet , San Francisco Ballet and City Ballet to dance the four pas de deux from his `` Polyphonia . ''", "Among the dancers tentatively scheduled to participate in his first season are Wendy Whelan , S\u00e9bastien Marcovici , Maria Kowroski , Sofiane Sylve and Edwaard Liang from City Ballet , and Darcey Bussell , Alina Cojocaru and Johan Kobborg from the Royal Ballet , where Mr. Wheeldon has danced and choreographed .", "`` None of these dancers reflect the dancers that are necessarily going to be in the company when it 's formed in a more concrete way , `` he said .", "Mr. Wheeldon said he would concentrate on the artistic side and focus on new works , including those by contemporary choreographers .", "For now Lourdes Lopez , a former City Ballet principal , is handling administrative matters .", "The company is expected to have about 20 members and an annual budget of about $ 5 million .", "Mr. Wheeldon declined to discuss specifics on how the company would be financed , saying only that some potential donors had shown interest .", "The initial performances are being presented by Vail , City Center and Sadler 's Wells , which will cover the dancers ' fees and serve as long-term partners of the company .", "He said he hoped those performances would attract interest from potential company members and donors .", "The arrival of a new dance company is always an unusual event , given the funds needed to support an essentially money-losing endeavor .", "It is even rarer for an individual to establish a private company , as opposed to one sponsored by a city .", "But Mr. Wheeldon 's stature and substantial body of work , especially at his tender age of 33 , appear to be enough to attract backers .", "Mr. Wheeldon said in November that he would leave City Ballet as its first resident choreographer when his contract expires in 2008 .", "He is scheduled to choreograph two more works for it .", "Peter Martins , the City Ballet 's ballet master in chief , said at the time that he was happy to see Mr. Wheeldon spread his wings .", "Mr. Martins was in rehearsals and could not be immediately reached for comment yesterday .", "Inevitably Mr. Wheeldon 's company will compete for attention , donations and dancers , something Mr. Wheeldon indirectly acknowledged .", "He said Mr. Martins gave his blessing , yet `` he understands also that this may mean some dancers will decide to come to me , '' Mr. Wheeldon said .", "`` That 's just the way life is and the way things go . ``", "He continued , `` I 'm sort of stepping into an area where people might think , ` Why does New York need another ballet company when we 've already got two .", "' `` -LRB- In addition to City Ballet , New York is home to American Ballet Theater . -RRB-", "Answering his own question , he said , `` Maybe it does n't , but I 'm going to do it , and we 'll see if I 'm foolish or not . ``", "Mr. Wheeldon said he wanted to give dancers a greater voice , which is sometimes difficult in large companies like City Ballet .", "Referring to leaders of large companies in general , he said that casting decisions were not `` always handled in a perfectly sensitive way . ''", "`` My mission is to create an environment that is collaborative in all respects , '' he said .", "In an earlier recent interview he said he could make a `` change for the better in the ballet world '' by starting a company from scratch .", "`` I want to be in complete control of my personal artistic vision and goals , '' he said , `` and am not really interested in inheriting a legacy , but rather taking the opportunity to forge my own . ''", "Starting fresh also meant bypassing the `` big politics '' and bureaucracy of a large company , he said .", "The idea began taking shape last summer when the San Francisco Ballet presented one of his pieces at the Lincoln Center Festival .", "The choreographer William Forsythe had a work on the same program , and the two spoke at length .", "`` He basically told me that I needed to take a step forward on my own and do something different , and coming from him -- he is a man who has continued to invent himself -- it was immediately resonant , '' Mr. Wheeldon said .", "Mr. Wheeldon received a boost from an old friend at City Ballet , Damian Woetzel , who had recently become artistic director of the Vail festival and agreed to give him a springboard there .", "`` We 're going to work together to further the ideas that we 've been kicking around all these years , `` Mr. Woetzel said .", "`` It 's a chance to make a real solid contribution . ``", "While mainly making dances for City Ballet -- itself long a vehicle for George Balanchine 's work -- the British-born Mr. Wheeldon has been sought out by companies around the world , including the San Francisco Ballet , the Royal Ballet , the Bolshoi Ballet and the Philadelphia Ballet .", "News of his plans have been percolating through the dance world but were not widely known .", "`` What a good idea , '' said George Steel , the executive director of the Miller Theater at Columbia University , which began expanding its dance offerings after an evening of Wheeldon choreography in the fall of 2005 .", "`` More dancing is wonderful , '' Mr. Steel said .", "`` It 's a huge opportunity for him to have a company he can run . ``", "Dance Correction : January 9 , 2007 , Tuesday An article in The Arts on Thursday about the formation of a new dance company by the choreographer Christopher Wheeldon misstated the name of one of the companies that asked him in the past to choreograph for it .", "It is the Pennsylvania Ballet -LRB- based in Philadelphia -RRB- , not the Philadelphia Ballet ."], "summary": ["Christopher Wheeldon , one of world 's most sought-after choreographers who recently announced end to his residency at New York City Ballet , has formed his own company Morphoses the Wheeldon Company .", "Company will make debut in August at Vail International Dance Festival in Colorado and will perform at Sadler 's Wells Theater in London and at City Center in New York City .", "Wheeldon comments .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1816262", "text": ["In a rare reprise to a rare trial , the jury that convicted a Long Island man of murder by depraved indifference last October in a drunken-driving crash that killed a limousine driver and a 7-year-old girl may be brought back to court for hearings on whether some members acted improperly during deliberations .", "In an answer submitted on Dec . 29 to a defense motion , Robert Hayden , an assistant Nassau County district attorney , agreed that a hearing should be held to determine if jurors discussed what they believed were prior drunken-driving charges against the defendant , Martin Heidgen , 25 .", "Such accusations were not included in the evidence introduced in the five-week trial , and could be considered a contamination of the jury proceedings .", "Beyond that , Mr. Hayden said in his answer , that the belief of a previous drunken-driving arrest was `` not true , '' as far as he knew .", "Mr. Hayden said the hearing should be limited to that issue , and rebuffed as `` irrelevant '' several other claims of impropriety raised by Mr. Heidgen 's lawyer , Stephen LaMagna , as causes for setting aside the guilty verdict .", "Mr. LaMagna also claimed that some jurors felt pressured to vote to convict Mr. Heidgen of the most serious charge , that some discussed the case outside the jury room , and that one said she planned to write a book about it .", "The Heidgen case was unusual because the defendant was prosecuted for a fatal drunken-driving crash under laws treating his crime as the functional equivalent of intentional murder .", "Such prosecutions , while not unprecedented , are considered rare and are usually brought only in the most horrific cases .", "Mr. Heidgen , whose blood-alcohol level was three times the legal limit , was driving the wrong way on the Meadowbrook Parkway when his pickup truck crashed head -on with a limousine taking a family home from a wedding .", "The crash killed the limousine driver , Stanley Rabinowitz , 59 , and Katie Flynn , who had been the flower girl .", "The girl 's parents and grandparents , who were also in the limousine , suffered minor injuries .", "After three days of deliberations , the jury told Acting Justice Alan R . Honorof of State Supreme Court that it was deadlocked , but after he sent them back for more deliberations , reached a verdict on the fifth day .", "Within days of the verdict , though , the jury forewoman said she had felt pressured to vote for the charge of `` murder by depraved indifference '' that Mr. Heidgen was convicted of , even though she believed he was guilty of the lesser crime of manslaughter .", "Based on the depraved indifference conviction , Mr. Heidgen faces a minimum of 25 years in prison .", "Manslaughter carries a minimum of 15 years .", "Mr. Heidgen 's lawyer , who could not be reached for comment on Wednesday , has said that based on interviews with other jury members , he believed that some jurors browbeat the last two holdouts who thought Mr. Heidgen was guilty of manslaughter , rather than murder .", "`` It is fairly rare for hearings like these to be held , '' said George Goltzer , vice president of the New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers .", "`` The general rule is that you do n't let a jury impeach its own verdict .", "But if the charges are serious -- say that racism or serious misconduct was involved in the decision or something like that -- the courts have allowed it . ``", "Mr. Goltzer said he was not too familiar with the case , but added that evidence of `` extra-record information '' -- not part of the evidence introduced at the trial -- might qualify as serious enough to review a jury 's verdict .", "Justice Honorof is expected to decide in the next few days if and when hearings should be held .", "A spokesman for the district attorney , Kathleen Rice , said it was expected that with the district attorney 's assent , the hearings would be scheduled ."], "summary": ["Assistant Nassau County , NY , District Attorney Robert Hayden agrees that hearing should be held to determine whether jurors discussed what they thought were prior drunken-driving charges against Martin Heidgen before convicting him of murder .", "Heidgen crashed his vehicle into car , killing 7-year-old Katie Flynn and driver Stanley Rabinowitz .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 9], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816274", "text": ["President Bush is all but daring Democratic leaders to attack his signature tax cuts as they take over Congress .", "But Democrats , perhaps to his frustration , are having none of it .", "In an opening salvo on Wednesday , Mr. Bush proclaimed that he would present a budget next month that manages to project a balanced budget by 2012 while permanently extending more than $ 1 trillion in tax cuts .", "`` It is also a fact that our tax cuts have fueled robust economic growth and record revenues , '' Mr. Bush wrote in an op-ed article for The Wall Street Journal .", "`` We met our goal of cutting the deficit in half three years ahead of schedule . ''", "The implicit message , which Republican lawmakers reinforced later , was that their tax cuts were popular with voters , that Republicans had proven the economic benefits of tax cuts and that Democrats would court disaster if they even hinted at rolling them back or repealing them .", "But even as Democratic leaders continue to accuse Mr. Bush of having a reckless fiscal policy , they have refused to discuss dismantling his tax cuts or even to engage in a debate with him about the best way to stimulate economic growth .", "`` It 's always the same old tired line with them -- ` Tax and spend , tax and spend , tax and spend , ' '' said Senator Kent Conrad , the North Dakota Democrat who is chairman of the Senate Budget Committee .", "`` We 're not going there . ``", "At least not now .", "Democratic leaders say they see no need to revisit Mr. Bush 's tax cuts for several years because they are not set to expire until the end of 2010 .", "And they contend that the government could increase revenues as much as $ 100 billion a year simply by closing the `` tax gap , '' taxes that are owed but not paid .", "When asked about their tax plans , as they have been again and again since Nov . 7 , Democratic leaders insist they want to preserve many of the middle-class tax cuts like the child tax credit and a reduction in the so-called `` marriage penalty '' for two-income households .", "The Democrats ' coyness is less than candid .", "Although it is true that Mr. Bush 's tax cuts have four more years of life , it is also true that Congress faces serious fiscal headaches that can not be postponed for even a full year .", "One of those challenges is the Iraq war .", "The conflict is likely to cost far more than $ 100 billion this year , even if the United States began reducing troop levels .", "So far , Mr. Bush has kept war spending out of the regular budget request that he sends to Congress each February , instead seeking the money on an expedited as-needed basis .", "Democrats say , however , that they will not accede to such requests , as their Republican predecessors did , because they sidestep the process by which Congress normally debates spending priorities .", "Perhaps the bigger and more enduring problem is the alternative minimum tax , a tax that was originally intended for the richest households but that has been not adjusted for inflation and is rapidly engulfing tens of millions of middle-class families every year .", "To prevent the alternative tax from becoming a de facto tax increase , Congress has been passing temporary fixes for the last several years .", "Those fixes now cost more than $ 50 billion a year , and the cost is expected to climb sharply for the rest of the decade .", "Repealing the alternative minimum tax , a goal shared by Democrats and Republicans , would reduce government revenues by about $ 1 trillion over the next 10 years and would be a huge drain on the Treasury that nobody in either party has figured out how to finance .", "Democrats , meanwhile , have a wish list of their own .", "House Democrats plan to reduce interest rates on student loans by half as part of their plan to pass measures that they have long favored in the first 100 legislative hours .", "Democrats also want to funnel more money to develop alternative energy sources , domestic security and the Children 's Health Insurance Program .", "House Democrats plan to reintroduce tough new `` pay-go '' budget rules as early as this Friday .", "Under `` pay-go , '' which governed spending measures in the 1990s but expired in 2002 , new entitlement programs or new tax cuts have to be matched by comparable spending cuts or tax increases .", "Politicians in both parties may be feeling a temporary reprieve from fiscal pressures because the budget deficit has indeed declined sharply in the last two years .", "Largely because of big back-to-back increases in tax revenue for the last two years , the deficit shrank to $ 248 billion in 2006 from a peak of $ 412 billion in 2004 .", "Measured as a share of the total economy , the approach economists view as more meaningful than the deficit size in dollars , the shortfall is 1.9 percent of the gross domestic product , modest by historical standards .", "But many budget analysts remain highly skeptical about Mr. Bush 's promise to eliminate the deficit , noting that the balanced budget would not occur until four years after he had left office .", "One reason for the skepticism is that the government would be renewing all of Mr. Bush 's tax cuts at precisely the time that the 76 million baby boomers have begun pouring into retirement and claiming government benefits from Social Security and Medicare .", "White House budget forecasts have also proven wildly wrong in both good years and bad , as tax revenue plunged far more than officials predicted from 2001 through 2004 and climbed faster than predicted in 2005 and 2006 .", "Despite the recent jump in tax receipts , moreover , federal tax collections are still low as a share of the total economy .", "Spending , on the other hand , climbed sharply as a share of the economy and remains high by historical standards .", "Mr. Conrad of the Budget Committee acknowledged on Tuesday that higher taxes , especially on wealthier families , would eventually have to be part of a comprehensive plan that included tough spending restraint and an overhaul of entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare .", "`` I believe that if Americans are told the truth they will support actions necessary to address the budget , '' he said .", "`` If we 're going to be honest about this , it 's going to require both sides ' giving up some of their fundamental positions . ``", "But other Democratic lawmakers say it would be almost pointless to lead an unpopular fight over raising taxes until Republicans are willing to share some of the political pain .", "With Mr. Bush almost certain to fight almost any effort to revisit his tax cuts , and Republicans in Congress unlikely to rebel against the president , Democrats are inclined to wait until after Mr. Bush is gone .", "THE 110TH CONGRESS : NEWS ANALYSIS ."], "summary": ["News analysis notes even as Democratic leaders continue to accuse Pres Bush of reckless fiscal policy , they refuse to discuss dismantling his popular tax cuts or even engage in debate about best way to stimulate economy .", "Still , Congress faces serious fiscal problems that can not be postponed ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816278", "text": ["The sleek , bulbous-nosed new bullet trains here look like they are designed to whisk passengers across wide-open spaces .", "But on this congested island , they represent the start of a 180-mile-per-hour commuter train system .", "After a quarter century of planning and construction , the system is scheduled to open on Jan . 5 .", "It will tie together cities and towns where 94 percent of Taiwan 's population lives , offering an alternative to clogged highways and the air pollution the vehicles on them produce .", "For some urban planners and environmentalists , the project is an example of how Asia may be able to control oil imports , curb fast-rising emissions of global-warming gases and bring a higher standard of living to enormous numbers of people in an environmentally sustainable way .", "Passengers who travel on a fully loaded train will use only a sixth of the energy they would use if they drove alone in a car and will release only one-ninth as much carbon dioxide , the main gas linked to global warming .", "Compared with a bus ride , the figures are half the energy and a quarter of the carbon dioxide , train system officials said .", "But the system 's enormous cost -- $ 15 billion , or $ 650 for every man , woman and child on Taiwan -- has made it a subject of dispute .", "And a series of commercial disputes since the project began in 1980 has produced a remarkable hodgepodge : French and German train drivers who are allowed to speak only English with Taiwanese traffic controllers while operating Japanese bullet trains on tracks originally designed by British and French engineers .", "The system has become so complex that the leader of Taiwan 's consumer movement is calling for citizens to boycott it entirely until extensive safety data is released .", "`` Cherish your life , do n't be a guinea pig , `` Cheng Jen-hung , the chairman of the Consumers ' Foundation , said in an interview , repeating his group 's slogan .", "With 900 passengers on a fully loaded train , he warned , `` if there is an accident , there will be very heavy casualties . ''", "Arthur Chiang , the vice president for administration at Taiwan High Speed Rail , said the system was completely safe .", "But he acknowledged that the project had been bedeviled by opposition .", "`` Pandora 's box has already opened and everything has come out except hope and mutual trust , `` he said during a recent test run on one of the new trains from the capital , Taipei , in the north , to the city of Taichung , in west-central Taiwan .", "`` We just wanted to make it simple , but we failed , '' he added .", "`` Politics is one of the factors . ''", "Using overhead electric lines instead of diesel locomotives , the trains will run from Taipei down through western Taiwan to Kaohsiung , the main industrial city in the south .", "That is a distance of 215 miles , about the same as between New York and Washington .", "The system will start with 19 trains in each direction daily and eventually will be able to handle 88 trains daily in each direction .", "Planning started in 1980 , when Taiwan was still under martial law .", "The route was preliminarily picked in 1991 , as Taiwan was starting on the path to become the vibrant , even tempestuous , democracy that it is today .", "Every large city and town along the route lobbied to have its own stop and new railway station , and a succession of governments agreed .", "Three trains a day will travel from Taipei to Kaohsiung in 90 minutes , with just one stop , in Taichung .", "But most of the trains will make six intermediate stops , lengthening travel time to two hours and seven minutes .", "That is still 38 minutes faster than Amtrak 's Acela Express between New York and Washington , which also has up to six intermediate stops but a lower top speed .", "But flights between Taipei and Kaohsiung take just 40 minutes .", "Enormous stations resembling state-of-the-art airport terminals have been built on the outskirts of each city along the route except Taipei , where the existing main rail station is being used .", "The new stations can not be in most downtown areas because of the difficulty in acquiring land for tracks : the high-speed trains travel almost entirely on specially built , 60-foot-tall viaducts to avoid the need to cross roads .", "Smaller trains and buses will link the new stations to downtown .", "Although many urban planners see systems like this one as positive for the environment , Lee Schipper , the research director at Embarq , an environmental transport research group in Washington , said the system could eventually increase the use of energy , rather than save it , if the ease of using the trains encouraged people to move farther away from work .", "The expectation in Taiwan is that the train system will attract a lot of users at first , notwithstanding Mr. Cheng 's call for a boycott .", "The consumer movement here is not as big or visible as it was even 10 years ago .", "A French train driver sporting a magnificent handlebar mustache , who declined to give his name , sent Mr. Chiang 's train hurtling down the tracks on the recent test run .", "The driver said the trains were actually simpler to operate than those in France .", "`` It 's easier , it 's all automatic , `` he said in French .", "But the requirement that all communications take place in English is a complication , he added .", "The electronic displays in the cabs of each train are also in English .", "The Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation is training Taiwanese drivers to replace the European drivers and plans to switch the entire system to spoken Chinese and Chinese-language computer displays in about three years , Mr. Chiang said .", "The consortium had expected to hire experienced Japanese drivers , but the Japanese companies that made the trains were unable to persuade Japan 's rail system operators to transfer any of their drivers to Taiwan .", "Whether the train system becomes a commercial success will partly depend on how many people use its somewhat inconveniently located stations , how quickly the land is developed around these stations and how much the tickets cost .", "The initial price for a one-way , coach ticket from Taipei to Kaohsiung will be $ 44 , or two-thirds the price of a typical airline ticket .", "Riding the train is much like a very low-altitude flight , and very quiet .", "Chen Chi-cheng , a 5-year-old invited on the test run , watched with fascination as the rooftops of houses flashed past .", "`` It 's like a plane , `` he said breathlessly .", "TAIPEI JOURNAL ."], "summary": ["Taiwan 's new bullet train system is scheduled to open on Jan 5 .", "It will tie together cities and towns where 94 percent of its population lives and offer alternative to clogged highways and air pollution vehicles on them produce .", "System 's enormous cost -- $ 15 billion -- has made it subject of dispute .", "Some environmentalists worry that system could eventually increase use of energy , if ease of using trains encourages people to move farther away from work .", "Project 's decades of planning and construction recalled .", "Photos .", "Map ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 7, 2, 30], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1816286", "text": ["A soldier from the 101st Airborne Division is scheduled to plead guilty next Tuesday to a reduced charge for mercy killing in connection with the death of three unarmed Iraqi men shot by American infantrymen last spring , according to lawyers for other defendants in the case .", "The terms of the plea arrangement will allow the soldier , Specialist Juston R . Graber , originally charged with capital murder , to be convicted of aggravated assault and to receive a nine-month prison sentence in exchange for his testifying against three other members of his squad , the lawyers said .", "The three other soldiers , members of the same company as Specialist Graber in the division 's Third Brigade , still face courts-martial on premeditated-murder charges , making them eligible for the death penalty or , barring that , life in prison .", "Army prosecutors have accused them of carrying out an impromptu plan , following a raid on a marshy island northwest of Baghdad , to kill the three Iraqis after cutting off their plastic handcuffs and forcing them to run , still blindfolded , from the squalid hut where they had been discovered .", "The two soldiers accused of firing on the men as they fled -- Specialist William B . Hunsaker and Pfc . Corey R . Clagett -- have said they shot in self-defense after the three broke free from the thin `` zip-tie '' handcuffs and attacked them .", "A third soldier , Staff Sgt . Raymond L . Girouard , the squad 's ranking member , is accused of devising the plan to kill the men , then punching Private Clagett and cutting Specialist Hunsaker to give the appearance that they had been attacked .", "None of these three defendants have entered a formal pea .", "The guilty plea by Specialist Graber , to be entered before an Army judge at Fort Campbell , Ky . , and his testimony against the other soldiers will make gaining their acquittal far more difficult than it would have been had all four kept a unified legal front , lawyers for the three others said .", "`` It changes the complexion of the entire case and makes the case much stronger against Clagett , Hunsaker and Girouard , '' said Paul Bergrin , a lawyer for Private Clagett who said he had not expected Specialist Graber to get `` such an outstanding deal . ''", "`` It gives the government 's case credibility and corroboration where they did n't have it before , `` Mr. Bergrin added .", "`` It requires us to rethink our strategy . ''", "Specialist Graber 's two military lawyers , Capt . Shaun Lister and Capt . Will Suddeth , did not reply to e-mailed requests for comment or phone messages left with military officials at Fort Hood , Tex . , where both are based .", "Their client 's willingness to testify for the prosecution , though , was bitter news to the three other defendants .", "Michael Waddington , a lawyer for Specialist Hunsaker , said Specialist Graber 's plea arrangement felt like a betrayal , `` especially when we 've been disclosing our strategy `` to his lawyers for months .", "Specialist Graber 's legal team had joined with Mr. Waddington , Mr. Bergrin and Capt . Ted Miller , a lawyer for Sergeant Girouard , in a collaborative pact known as a joint defense agreement , which lawyers often create if their clients face similar charges in the same incident .", "Defense lawyers said Specialist Graber 's plea was not particularly surprising , given the disparity between the evidence against him and the charges he had faced .", "According to the evidence , Specialist Graber made a last-second decision to shoot the dying man after a squad medic declared him beyond help and , according to sworn statements from soldiers not charged in the case , after Sergeant Girouard said , `` Put him out of his misery . ''", "But Army prosecutors nonetheless charged Specialist Graber , 21 , with premeditated murder , creating an enormous incentive , defense lawyers for the three other soldiers said , for him to plead guilty to a lesser charge that more closely fit the crime .", "The first court-martial in the case will be Private Clagett 's , scheduled to begin Jan . 15 at Fort Campbell , Mr. Bergrin said .", "Two other soldiers , Sgt . Leonel Lemus and Pfc . Bradley Mason , are expected to testify for the prosecution that they heard Sergeant Girouard conceive a plan to free the Iraqi men from their handcuffs and have Private Clagett and Specialist Hunsaker kill them .", "But Mr. Bergrin said he would call a powerful witness of his own : Col . Michael Steele , the brigade commander , who , according to several soldiers ' sworn testimony , told some soldiers to `` kill all military-age males '' they encountered during the raid , on May 9 .", "Colonel Steele 's lawyer , Lt . Col . Raymond A . Jackson , said on Wednesday that Colonel Steele had never given such an order , a denial putting him at odds with several soldiers under his command .", "The Army has granted Colonel Steele immunity to testify , Mr. Bergrin said , and once on the stand and under oath , `` he 's going to have to tell the truth . ``", "Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday An article yesterday about a guilty plea by Army Specialist Juston R . Graber to a reduced charge of mercy killing in connection with the deaths of three Iraqi men misstated the original charge against him and the maximum punishment three other soldiers could receive if convicted .", "Specialist Graber was charged with noncapital murder , not capital murder .", "The three other soldiers scheduled for courts-martial face life in prison -- not the death penalty -- if convicted ."], "summary": ["Specialist Juston R Graber is scheduled to plead guilty to reduced charge for mercy killing in connection with death of three unarmed Iraq men shot by US soldiers in 2006 .", "Will testify against squad members Specialist William B Hunsaker , Pfc Corey R Clagett , and Staff Sgt Raymond L Girouard ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1816293", "text": ["The Iraqi prime minister 's office on Wednesday mounted its first public defense of the way the government carried out the execution of Saddam Hussein , and said that Iraqi authorities had detained a guard who they believed was involved in recording the moment in a macabre and unauthorized video that has generated revulsion around the world .", "Iraqi officials , in their effort to dampen the video 's impact , tried to challenge the impression it conveyed that Mr. Hussein , for all his brutal crimes , had behaved with far more dignity in his final minutes than his seemingly thuggish executioners .", "`` The execution operation has been mischaracterized for political purposes , '' said Sadiq al-Rikabi , an adviser to Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki , who was present at the execution .", "Mr. Rikabi asserted that it had been carried out properly .", "`` What has happened is not an insult or degradation , '' he said .", "But even as Mr. Maliki 's government tried to defend its actions , the United States military , which had held Mr. Hussein in custody until it transferred him to Iraqi authorities about an hour before he was hanged , sought to distance itself from any responsibility for the scenes revealed in the video .", "`` You know , if you 're asking me , ` Would we have done things differently , ' yes , we would have , '' said Maj . Gen . William B . Caldwell IV , an American military spokesman in Baghdad , at a news briefing on Wednesday .", "`` But that 's not our decision , `` he added .", "`` That 's an Iraqi government decision . ``", "The reaction from the American military seemed to widen a rift that has been opening recently between the Shiite-led government of Mr. Maliki and its American supporters on a range of issues .", "They include the government 's tolerance of militias , the recent discovery of the unofficial presence of Iranian military officers in Baghdad and the swiftness with which the Iraqis put Mr. Hussein to death after his appeals had been exhausted .", "Mr. Maliki 's office confirmed Wednesday that until Mr. Hussein 's final hours , the American Embassy had sought to delay the execution long enough to avoid having it on a Muslim holiday and to resolve some remaining legal issues .", "`` The Americans wanted to postpone it , '' said Maryam al-Rayas , a legal adviser to the prime minister .", "The decision to go ahead , Ms. Rayas said , was `` a victory for the Iraqi government . ''", "The prime minister had decided that beginning the new year with Mr. Hussein dead trumped all other considerations , including the advice of the embassy , said Ms. Rayas , who also characterized the time frame as reasonable .", "`` There was no rush , '' she said .", "The Iraqi government 's detention of one of the guards generated some skepticism , with some Iraqi officials suggesting that Iraq was seeking a low-level scapegoat to blame for the almost Gothic display of intimidation and death that the images depict .", "Mr. Rikabi refused to name or otherwise characterize the guard who had been arrested other than to say that he was being held in Baghdad after an investigation had determined that he had shot the video with a cellphone camera .", "But Munkith al-Faroun , who was the prosecutor at Mr. Hussein 's trial and was present at the execution , has said publicly that 2 of the 14 Iraqi officials and court representatives flown in by American helicopters to witness it were openly videotaping the event with cellphones .", "When asked about Mr. Faroun 's statements , Mr. Rikabi said , `` I do not have this information . ''", "On Wednesday , The New York Times erroneously quoted Mr. Faroun as saying that one of the officials he had seen holding up a cellphone during the execution was Mowaffak al-Rubaie , Mr. Maliki 's national security adviser .", "Mr. Rubaie , in a telephone interview from London , said that along with all the Iraqi officials who were flown to the execution block by American helicopter , he had been searched at the Green Zone helipad and that his cellphone and even his keys were taken from him .", "`` I did not have a cellphone in the execution chamber , '' he said .", "But , further undermining the assertion that only a single guard had videotaped the execution , Mr. Rubaie said he had seen `` two or three '' others in the official contingent who did have cellphones .", "He suggested that they might have been among officials who arrived at Camp Justice , the American camp in northern Baghdad where the hanging took place , by car .", "The failure to call more senior officials to account raised suspicions among some Iraqis .", "`` They want to blame it on a guard , '' one senior Iraqi official said .", "Mr. Rubaie told CNN that there could have been as many as two others in the guard contingent who were associated with that scheme .", "In the wake of the video 's release , there were continuing condemnations of the way justice was meted out to Mr. Hussein after he lost his case in a court specially set up to judge crimes committed during his rule .", "On Wednesday , the United Nations high commissioner for human rights , Louise Arbour , renewed a previous call for restraint in carrying out the executions of two of Mr. Hussein 's co-defendants who were also sentenced to death .", "The manner of Mr. Hussein 's execution appeared to give a boost to the remnants of his outlawed Baath Party .", "In the town of Huwaish , north of Baghdad , hundreds of people led by gunmen calling themselves the `` mujahedeen of the Baath Party '' marched in protest , and in the once prosperous Baghdad neighborhood of Monsour , a large black banner proclaimed that Mr. Hussein 's death would set off fighting against `` the Americans and their followers . ''", "The banner was signed , in nicely printed lettering , `` Baath Party . ''", "At the same time , one of Mr. Hussein 's most ruthless enforcers , Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri , who has eluded his American pursuers for nearly four years , was named the Baath Party leader on one of its Web sites .", "Although the claim could not be independently verified , Mr. Douri has long been considered a leader of the Baathist insurgency .", "Asked repeatedly to describe how the American military would have carried out the execution differently , General Caldwell declined to elaborate , saying that the question was hypothetical , since the Iraqis were in control once they received custody of Mr. Hussein outside the execution block .", "`` It was not our decision as to what occurred at that point , but we would have done it differently , '' General Caldwell said .", "Still , Mr. Rikabi , the prime minister 's political adviser , said that the government rejected all criticism of the execution , including the point at which one of the guards shouted , `` Moktada ! Moktada ! Moktada ! '' as Mr. Hussein stood on the trapdoor of the gallows -- a reference to Moktada al-Sadr , the radical Shiite cleric who leads the militia called the Mahdi Army .", "The exclamation came at the end of a standard Muslim prayer that both the guards and Mr. Hussein were saying aloud , Mr. Rikabi said .", "But the guards were from the Shiite south , where Mr. Sadr is popular , and the prayer there typically ends with the reference to him , Mr. Rikabi said .", "`` If you go to any mosque in Karbala or Najaf you will hear them shouting like that , '' he said .", "`` This is their habit . ''", "Seemingly contradicting his own government , Mr. Rubaie said he was ashamed of what had happened during the execution , which he described as `` unacceptable '' and `` disgusting . ''", "`` It is not professional , it 's the wrong thing to do , and it should not have happened , `` he said .", "`` But it should n't divert the mind of the people from the crimes that Saddam has been condemned to death for . ``", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Iraqi Prime Min Nuri Kamal al-Maliki ` s office mounts its first public defense of way government carried out execution of Saddam Hussein , saying Iraqi authorities have detained guard who they believe was involved in recording moment in macabre and unauthorized video that has generated revulsion around world .", "Iraqi officials seek to challenge impression that Hussein , for all his brutal crimes , behaved with more dignity in his final minutes than his seemingly thuggish executioners .", "United States military , which had held Hussein in custody until it transferred him to Iraqi authorities hour before he was hanged , seeks to distance itself from any responsibility for scenes revealed in video ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 5, 1], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816302", "text": ["I have a dream , my friends .", "I have a dream that we are approaching the day when a ranch-owning millionaire Republican like George Bush will make peace with a vineyard-owning millionaire Democrat like Nancy Pelosi .", "I have a dream that Pelosi , who was chauffeured to school as a child and who , with her investor husband , owns minority shares in the Auberge du Soleil resort hotel and the CordeValle Golf Club , will look over her famous strand of South Sea Tahitian pearls and forge bonds of understanding with the zillionaire corporate barons in the opposing party .", "Furthermore , I dream of a great harmonic convergence among the obscenely rich -- between Randian hedge fund managers on the right and helipad environmentalists on the left .", "I dream that the big-money people who seem to dominate our politics will put aside their partisan fury and discover the class solidarity that Karl Marx always said they shared , and their newfound civility will trickle down to the rest of us .", "I dream that Berkeley will make peace with Buckhead , Streisand with DeVos , Huffington with O'Reilly .", "I have my dreams , but of course , I am realistic too , for I am aware that at present there is no peace among the secluded island villas .", "I look out across the second homes of America and its surrounding tropical regions and I see polarization among the Kate Spade devotees and bitterness among the Rolexes .", "And I know that both Bush and Pelosi are part of an upper-income whirlwind of strife .", "Some people believe that Pelosi is an airhead , but that is wrong .", "Some people believe she is a radical San Francisco liberal , but that , too , is wrong .", "The main fact to know about Pelosi is that she is a creature of the modern fund-raising system .", "Some politicians rise because they run political machines .", "Some rise because they are great communicators .", "Pelosi has risen because she is a master of the thousand-dollar-a-plate fundraising circuit .", "Living amid a web of investors , venture capitalists and West Coast technology tycoons , she raised heroic amounts of money for the Democratic Party before she ever thought of running for anything herself .", "In 1984 , she was the state party chairwoman .", "In 1986 , she was the national fund-raising chairwoman for the Senate Democrats .", "Since coming to the House , she has discovered what many a savvy pol has discovered -- that the fastest way to ascend in Congress is to raise a lot of money and give it to your peers .", "She paid her dues selecting party favors , arranging seating charts -LRB- after that , legislation is easy -RRB- , and laying thick dollops of obsequiousness on cranky old moguls and their helmet hair spa-spouses .", "She has done what all political fund-raisers do : tell rich people things they already believe , demonize the other side , motivate the giving with Manichaean tales of good versus evil .", "It is no wonder The Los Angeles Times calls her a `` rabid Democrat '' or that Time magazine calls her `` hyperpartisan . ''", "It is not a surprise , as The Washington Post reported this week , that despite campaign promises about changing the tone in Washington , Pelosi has decided to exclude Republicans from the first burst of legislation -- to forbid them to offer amendments or alternatives .", "She is part of the clash of the rival elites , with the dollars from Brookline battling dollars from Dallas , causing upper-class strife that even diminutive dogs , vibrant velvets and petite salades ca n't fully soothe .", "It pains me to see plutocrats fight , because it sets such a poor example for those of us in the lower orders who fly commercial .", "It pains me even more because politicians from the rival blueblood clans go to embarrassing lengths to try to prove they are most authentically connected with working Americans .", "Think of John Kerry visiting a Wendy 's or Bill Frist impersonating a Bible thumper .", "This week , witness Pelosi going on her all-about-me inauguration tour , which is designed to rebrand her as a regular Catholic grandma from Baltimore .", "Members of the middle classes never have to mount campaign swings to prove how regular they are , but these upper-bracket types ca n't help themselves , and they always lay it on too thick .", "So I harbor my dreams of reconciliation , but in the meantime , why oh why ca n't we have a decent overclass in this country -- a group of highly attractive dimwits who spread bland but worthy stability over our political scene .", "Why oh why do we have to have this endless canap\u00e9 war -- the people of the vineyard against the people of the ranch .", "Op-Ed Columnist ."], "summary": ["David Brooks Op-Ed longs for wealthy politicians to put aside their partisan fury and discover civility .", "Says House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is example of rich politician who rose to power by mastering fund-raising system .", "Says despite campaign promises to change tone in Congress , Pelosi has excluded Republicans from first burst of legislation ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [22, 4, 31], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1816308", "text": ["Robert L . Nardelli 's rich compensation and poor performance at Home Depot have long been cited by shareholder activists as a prime example of what they view as excessive executive pay .", "Some union members dressed up in giant chicken outfits to protest the board 's reluctance to clip Mr. Nardelli 's wings .", "What did all their outrage get them .", "Mr. Nardelli 's removal -- and at least a $ 210 million bill for a golden handshake on his way out the door .", "Yesterday , Home Depot 's board ousted Mr. Nardelli as chairman and chief executive in a surprising move that highlights the growing influence of investors pressuring boards to rein in executive pay .", "But it also illustrates another point : Even when their voices are heard , shareholders often wind up holding the bag .", "At Home Depot , Mr. Nardelli is expected to receive an exit package worth more than $ 210 million on top of the nearly $ 64 million he was paid during his six years at the helm .", "That equals about $ 45 million a year .", "Over that same period , Home Depot 's stock has fallen from over $ 50 a share early in his tenure to $ 41.16 just before Mr. Nardelli 's resignation was announced .", "By contrast , Home Depot 's chief competitor , Lowe 's , has paid its chief executives about one-third of what Mr. Nardelli made during the same time , while investors have enjoyed a healthy increase in their holdings .", "Mr. Nardelli 's compensation may have a prominent place in the pantheon of pay-for-failure , but his arrangement is by no means unique .", "`` The company is big , the underperformance is significant and the numbers are very large , '' said Lucian Bebchuk , a Harvard Law School professor who is an outspoken critic of executive pay .", "`` But each of the pieces that lead to the decoupling of pay from performance are very common to the executive compensation landscape . ''", "Across corporate America , chief executives have been walking away with lavish riches even when their companies fail to perform , according to an analysis by the Corporate Library .", "At Pfizer , Henry A . McKinnell left with an exit package worth $ 213 million , including an $ 82 million pension , after the pharmaceutical giant he ran for six years lost over $ 137 billion in market value on his watch .", "Jay Sidhu , the former chairman and chief executive of Sovereign Bank , received $ 44 million last fall when he was removed after a bitter proxy fight .", "Morgan Stanley 's board awarded Philip J . Purcell an exit package worth more than $ 95 million when he was forced out in July 2005 .", "Tom Freston , who was ousted at Viacom in September , and Carleton S . Fiorina , who was forced out by Hewlett-Packard in February 2005 , were handed tens of millions of dollars when they abruptly stepped down .", "`` You can call them pay-for-failure packages , '' said Jesse M . Fried , a law professor at the University of California , Berkeley , who has been critical of excessive compensation packages .", "`` You get what you pay for . ''", "The reason highlights the `` Heads I win .", "Tails I win `` nature of executive pay -- especially for chief executives hired to orchestrate a turnaround .", "Over the last decade , many boards and big investors bought into the belief that a celebrity C.E.O. or corporate savior was vital for success .", "There have certainly been a number of examples of chief executives who delivered outsize gains to their shareholders , enjoying big rewards themselves .", "As a result , most executives have been able to take advantage of the perception that they would deliver big rewards to negotiate employment contracts that guaranteed them bonuses when they arrived , paid them handsomely with stock options during their careers -- and in many cases , ensured severance contracts providing millions more once they left .", "`` The justification that is given for these big executive pay packages is that we have to give them very strong incentives to create shareholder value , '' Mr. Fried said .", "`` But if you are allowing them to walk away with hundreds of millions of dollars even if they do extremely poorly , you are undermining that case . ''", "That appears to be what happened at Home Depot .", "When Mr. Nardelli was hired in December 2000 , he was seen as a strong leader who could help restore Home Depot to the luster it enjoyed in its early years .", "Home Depot 's board offered him a contract that would pay him well if times were bad and even more if the company 's performance was better .", "Mr. Nardelli received $ 63.5 million in salary , bonuses , and other compensation , including $ 21 million in forgiven loans and company-paid taxes during his career at Home Depot .", "In that time , however , he failed to turn the company around .", "Yesterday , details of his $ 210 million exit package were released .", "As part of the negotiated arrangement , Mr. Nardelli is expected to take home a severance payment of $ 20 million , a $ 32 million pension , a $ 2 million 401 -LRB- k -RRB- and $ 139 million in deferred equity awards and stock options that he now will be able to cash early .", "That amount could grow if Home Depot 's shares rebound under a new leader .", "Mr. Nardelli also stands to receive another $ 18 million in `` other entitlements , '' which the company did not disclose , but will be paid over the next four years so long as he does not violate a noncompete contract .", "Under his employment contract , Mr. Nardelli was eligible for benefits like life insurance , and dental and medical coverage for several years after his departure .", "It is unclear whether he will still receive them .", "`` When you guarantee income to an executive regardless of performance , you end up paying and you rarely get performance , '' Mr. Hodgson said .", "`` The board could have saved themselves hundreds of millions of dollars and still have their reputations intact . ''", "Representative Barney Frank , the Massachusetts Democrat who is the new chairman of the House Financial Services Committee , called Mr. Nardelli 's exit package `` confirmation of the need to deal with a pattern of C.E.O. pay that appears to be out of control . ''", "Some investors were so happy to see Mr. Nardelli leave that they declared victory -- no matter how hollow .", "They are holding out hope that his ignominious exit will serve as an example to others .", "William C . Thompson Jr . , New York City comptroller , said he hoped `` all the attention that has been focused on him -- with his excessive pay and his underperformance -- will lead to change within this company and send a message to other companies . ''", "Still , he conceded that the $ 210 million exit package was something `` we would have preferred not happen . ''", "A CHAIRMAN 'S FALL ."], "summary": ["Robert L Nardelli 's $ 210 million exit package from Home Depot highlights expensive ` pay-for-failure ' golden handshakes executives tend to receive after being pressured to leave companies .", "Amounts seem unaffected by poor performance .", "Incentives to attract high-profile talent undermines shareholder value and do little to improve business .", "Recent exit packages of prominent executives are shown .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 32, 27], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816325", "text": ["Coming home from their respective tours of duty in Iraq , John Reid and Alina Gutierrez had never met but they had a lot in common .", "Both were sergeants in the 42nd Infantry Division of the Army and were deployed in Iraq from autumn 2004 to autumn 2005 .", "And both had a strong interest in running their own businesses when they got home .", "Ms. Gutierrez is an owner of a Glass Doctor franchise , and next month , Mr. Reid will open his own Glass Doctor in a neighboring New Jersey county .", "They are the beneficiaries of an innovative private-sector business plan aimed at encouraging and supporting military veterans .", "The Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative , or VetFran , a program sponsored by the International Franchise Association , offers veterans a discount on financing prospective franchises as a way of thanking them for serving the country .", "Nearly 200 participating franchise companies provide qualified veterans `` the best deal '' in acquiring a new franchise , a deal not available to other franchise investors , according to Dina Dwyer-Owens , president of the Dwyer Group , a franchise organization in Waco , Tex .", "Franchises have become an increasingly appealing route for many would-be entrepreneurs .", "According to a 2004 study by PricewaterhouseCoopers , franchise businesses employ more than 18 million Americans and generate more than $ 1.5 trillion , or nearly 10 percent of private-sector economic output .", "The study noted that there were more than 760,000 franchise businesses in the United States and franchising continues to be a fast-growing business opportunity .", "VetFran was conceived by Don Dwyer Sr . , Ms. Dwyer-Owens ` father , after the Persian Gulf war .", "When Mr. Dwyer died suddenly in 1994 , the VetFran program foundered .", "After 9/11 and the invasion of Afghanistan , Ms. Dwyer-Owens decided that the program ought to be revived and , in 2002 , she turned it over to the franchise association .", "VetFran is open to all veterans , not just those returning from Afghanistan and Iraq .", "Since the program began , more than 600 veterans have received discounts in starting franchise businesses .", "Among the participating franchise companies are Dunkin ' Donuts , Midas , the UPS Store , Gold 's Gym and Aamco Transmissions .", "Ms. Gutierrez , 26 , said she received a 10 percent discount on her Glass Doctor franchise fee , which saved her several thousand dollars in much-needed capital for her outlet in Mercer County .", "But as with Mr. Reid and other veterans who have participated in the VetFran program , the money was not as significant as the meaning of the gesture .", "`` I was very excited when I heard about the program , '' Ms. Gutierrez said .", "`` When you come home from your deployment , you are not sure if everyone appreciated what you had done .", "I thought it was very cool that they recognized that we risked our lives in Iraq and they appreciated our sacrifice . ``", "Mr. Reid , who views Ms. Gutierrez as a colleague , not a competitor , said that the VetFran discount was a big influence on his decision to pursue a Glass Doctor franchise .", "`` The less capital you have to lay out , the better , '' he said .", "`` You need as much start-up money as you can get . ''", "He was also impressed that Glass Doctor , one of eight franchise businesses owned and operated by the Dwyer Group , was willing to be flexible with his deal , offering him an additional four months before he has to start repayments .", "Because of their military training , returning veterans are highly regarded as prospective franchise operators by franchise companies .", "As with the military , successful franchises operate within a specific system and a set of guidelines , created by the franchiser .", "`` Someone coming back from the military is a great fit for a franchise business , '' said Jim Blasingame , a small-business consultant and host of the `` The Small Business Advocate Show '' on radio .", "`` They not only know what it 's like to work hard but they know how to operate within a system .", "With a franchise , you ca n't think outside the box .", "You have to color inside the lines . ``", "The military is apparently good training for all types of entrepreneurs .", "According to William D . Elmore , associate administrator for veterans business development at the Small Business Administration , there are 25 million veterans in the United States and one in seven of them is successfully self-employed .", "`` Veterans have the highest rate of successful self-employment of any group of Americans , '' Mr. Elmore said , noting the 14 percent success rate in self-employment .", "He attributes this success to the discipline and training every soldier acquires during their service .", "`` There is an enormous resource going into the training and deployment of soldiers and out of that comes a skill set , discipline and worldliness that most citizens do n't have at a young age . ``", "Mr. Reid , 40 , says that Iraq gave him an opportunity to save $ 60,000 while he was deployed and he was intent on using that money to set up his own business .", "`` As a noncommissioned officer in charge of a logistics section , I was responsible for 45 people , '' he said .", "All 45 came back .", "`` So I thought , ' Let 's see how I do in business . '", "`` His Glass Doctor franchise in Somerset , N.J. , which is set to open Feb . 5 , gives him exclusive rights to all of Somerset County .", "`` They told me , ' We have a system .", "If you follow it , you 'll be successful . '", "That sounded like the business for me , `` he said .", "The VetFran program is allowing Brett Cooper to start a Lawn Doctor franchise in Boonville , Mo . , while keeping his full-time job as a sales representative for Graybar Electric .", "As an 18-year member of the Missouri Army National Guard , Mr. Cooper was called up for a tour of duty in Afghanistan in 2004 and spent a year deployed in and around Kabul .", "`` I looked into a Lawn Doctor franchise six years ago , but I was n't financially able to do it , `` Mr. Cooper said .", "`` While I was in Afghanistan , I saved my salary .", "I 'm a major so the pay was very good .", "and it gave me a cushion .", "I e-mailed Lawn Doctor from Afghanistan and was made aware of the VetFran program . ``", "He received a 5 percent discount on his start-up costs for the franchises , which is significant given that Lawn Doctor franchises cost $ 90,000 .", "As with other veterans starting franchises , Mr. Cooper does not hesitate to let customers know he is a veteran .", "`` I 've absolutely used my veteran status , `` he said .", "`` People are very grateful that you have served your country , especially in the current conflict .", "Doing that kind of service for your country builds trust and respect . ``", "Ms. Dwyer-Owens is pleased by the response to the VetFran program thus far .", "`` The veterans are so grateful that we are there to say thanks , '' she said .", "`` I 'm proud of it .", "There 's no government funding .", "It 's all done by private businesses . ``", "Mr. Elmore praised the VetFran program as a strong private-sector initiative that opened doors for veterans seeking small-business opportunities .", "He also cautioned that veterans should seek expert advice available through S.B.A. business development centers before signing any agreements -LRB- www.sba.gov / vets -RRB- .", "Jerry Pyle , a retired Marine sergeant in Mineola , Fla . , is among those who appreciate the VetFran gesture .", "After a 22-year career in the Marines ended in 1999 , Mr. Pyle tried his hand in corporate retail and found himself ill suited to that atmosphere .", "He began his own business as a handyman and home remodeler and when he moved from South Carolina to central Florida , he heard about the Dream Maker Bath and Kitchen Worldwide franchise , another Dwyer Group company .", "`` It resonated with me that a corporation would actually take my service to the country into consideration , '' he said .", "`` It felt like a belated payback for 22 years of service . ''", "The VetFran program emphasizes that veterans not only make excellent franchisers but employees as well .", "Mr. Pyle said that he gravitated toward the qualities and values of veterans and all of his five full-time employees are either veterans or wives of veterans .", "`` Their qualities of teamwork , ethics and enthusiasm make us a better company , '' he said .", "SMALL BUSINESS ."], "summary": ["Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative offers veterans assistance in setting up prospective franchises in deals not available to other investors .", "Business plan is aimed at encouraging and supporting military veterans .", "Study by PricewaterhouseCoopers shows franchises have become increasingly appealing route for entrepreneurs , employing more than 18 million Americans and generating more than $ 1.5 trillion .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 7, 4], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816327", "text": ["The dictator sat alone in his cell , three years in American custody .", "His beard had gone gray , his sons were dead and the gallows were being readied .", "Saddam Hussein in those final days turned to poetry , so often his source of solace in times of difficulty , inspired by his vision of himself as inseparably tied to those he led .", "The poem , `` Unbind It , '' is his rallying call to be sounded from the grave .", "It is a mixture of defiance and reflection , but no remorse .", "No mention of the tens of thousands of lives he was responsible for taking .", "No expression of guilt or sadness or regret .", "The poem , flush with florid phrases that were his trademark , begins with what sounds like a paean to the love between himself and his people , who were about to lose him .", "Unbind your soul .", "It is my soul mate and you are my soul 's beloved .", "No house could have sheltered my heart as you have .", "He moves quickly to more aggressive language .", "He refers to the foreigners who swept him from power and to the Iraqis who rose to rule here in his place .", "The enemies forced strangers into our sea And he who serves them will be made to weep .", "Here we unveil our chests to the wolves And will not tremble before the beast .", "The verses were written by Mr. Hussein after he was sentenced to death and , according to his relatives , are believed to be his last written words .", "A handwritten copy of the poem was passed along by the Iraqi authorities to his family in Tikrit , along with his final will and testament , according to Mr. Hussein 's cousin Muayed Dhamin al-Hazza .", "Mr. Hazza read the poem on the telephone , saying he hoped Mr. Hussein 's farewell would underline the manner in which the execution was carried out .", "Iraqi and American officials confirmed that a poem left among Mr. Hussein 's belongings at the American military detention center was delivered to his family .", "In the poem , Mr. Hussein praises those who continue to fight for the Iraqi nation and condemns the `` wolves '' who have brought ruin through their invasion .", "He portrays himself as a martyr .", "His poetry , like his speeches at decisive moments of his dictatorship , was often obscure , highly alliterative and difficult , even for Arabic speakers , to comprehend fully .", "At the height of his power , Iraqis brave enough to discuss the subject would shake their heads at his rambling speeches and convoluted verse .", "Some would suggest , with glances over their shoulders , that in his efforts to show himself as a scholar of Arab history and literature , he inadvertently revealed some of the darker recesses of his mind .", "According to news reports , Mr. Hussein even made gifts of his poetry to his American captors .", "Iraqis familiar with his style helped translate his death cell poem .", "Sections that would have been unintelligible in a literal translation have been interpreted loosely in an attempt to reveal the meaning Mr. Hussein intended .", "He is most clear when talking about how he sees himself in light of his impending death .", "I sacrifice my soul for you and for our nation Blood is cheap in hard times .", "Mr. Hussein told his official biographer that he cared little what people thought of him when he was alive , but that he hoped to be revered as one of the giants of history -- as a Nebuchadnezzar or Saladin -- 500 years from now .", "He ordered that one in every 10 bricks used in reconstructing the ancient palace at Babylon be stamped with his name or an eight-pointed star to symbolize the eight letters in his name in the Arabic alphabet .", "For a man whose vanity was in proportion to his brutality , he appears , from the poem , to have seen himself as dying for a greater good .", "It was a theme he returned to repeatedly in the courtroom where he was condemned to death for crimes against humanity , telling the judges that he was speaking to history .", "Many Iraqis viewed the thousands of portraits of Mr. Hussein erected around the country -- in business suits , as warrior , as Arab sheik -- as a sort of guidebook to his illusions about himself .", "Even as his secret police murdered tens of thousands , he sealed himself off with the conviction that he was widely loved .", "One of his favorite books was `` The Old Man and the Sea , '' but his style could not be mistaken for Hemingway .", "No short crisp sentences for Mr. Hussein .", "While still in power , he wrote , at least in part , two romantic novels .", "`` Zabibah and the King , '' which is set in a fanciful Arabia of long ago , tells of a lonely king who , while powerful , feels cut off from his liegemen .", "He encounters Zabibah and is entranced by her beauty and wisdom .", "But outsiders soon invade the kingdom , which is described as the cradle of civilization , and Zabibah is raped -- on Jan . 17 , a reference to the beginning of the Persian Gulf war of 1991 .", "When the book was released , Central Intelligence Agency analysts reportedly pored over it searching for clues into Mr. Hussein 's mind .", "But they could just as easily have turned to `` The Old Man and the Sea , '' which Mr. Hussein had first read as a young man in a different prison : `` A man can be destroyed not defeated . ''", "In that spirit , he urges his followers to be fierce and noble , saying : We never kneel or bend when attacking But we even treat our enemy with honor .", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in final days before his execution turned to poetry , often his solace in times of difficulty , inspired by vision of himself as inseparably tied to those he led .", "Final poem , ` Unbind It , ' compares Iraqi people to his soul mate .", "Florid poem is mixture of defiance and reflection .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 4, 8], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816340", "text": ["When boards of directors go shopping for a new chief executive , their first stop is often General Electric .", "After all , its disciplined approach to management , the `` G.E. Way , '' has been chronicled in a shelf 's worth of books , including `` Winning , '' by its former chief executive , John F . Welch Jr . , who gets much of the credit for his system of building a deep bench of talent .", "That system included rotating executives through many jobs , teaching them productivity and quality-control tools like Six Sigma , and training them at the company 's vaunted management school .", "G.E. executives were in such demand that just one week after Mr. Welch tapped Jeffrey R . Immelt as his successor in late 2000 , the two runners-up were immediately lured away .", "Home Depot recruited Robert L . Nardelli , and 3M took W . James McNerney Jr .", "But the ouster of Mr. Nardelli from Home Depot raises anew the question of whether G.E. executives are so bankable when they switch to new companies .", "The answer , many management experts say , is not necessarily .", "Though Mr. McNerney has succeeded at both 3M and then at Boeing , Mr. Nardelli joins Lawrence R . Johnston , another high-flying G.E. executive who left in 2001 for a troubled tenure at Albertson 's , among the alumni who did not live up to expectations .", "`` G.E. is still the best training ground on the planet , but that still does n't mean that everyone is going to succeed , `` said Noel M . Tichy , a professor at the University of Michigan Business School who has written extensively about G.E.", "If there is any pattern , experts say , it is that G.E. executives succeed when they switch to companies that are , well , a lot like G.E. -- big industrial firms that are dominant in their fields , or that need an infusion of manufacturing and research discipline , or that must grow by acquisition .", "By contrast , they tend to have more trouble in companies , retailers like Home Depot , that require more fingertip feel to manage .", "`` G.E. people are good at getting structure , system and strategy right , but they do n't always understand the soft issues like culture , `` said Boris Groysberg , an assistant professor at the Harvard Business School who recently studied 20 star G.E. managers who went on to run other companies .", "Many management experts say that the very command and control management style that has characterized many successful G.E. executives may have led to Mr. Nardelli 's downfall .", "They note that he shifted Home Depot 's emphasis to the commercial market , installed all sorts of productivity tools and otherwise `` G.E. - ified '' the company .", "But , they say , he did not recognize that sales associates react differently than white-collar managers to change , and thus need different incentives to embrace it .", "He closed stores and moved people around , which meant that many sales staff found themselves with new bosses .", "He insisted that shelves be stocked during off hours , and he instituted formal inventory control and performance evaluation systems .", "`` He was foisting all this change on people who are n't necessarily looking to rise to higher levels in the organization , and so did n't see any upside for themselves in any of it , `` said Batia M . Wiesenfeld , associate professor of management at the Leonard N . Stern School of Business at New York University .", "The style did not necessarily work for ambitious managers either , said Anthony J . Mayo , a lecturer at the Harvard Business School .", "`` He brought a classic G.E. top-down , autocratic command and control approach and style , which just did not work out of the context of G.E. , '' he said .", "Mr. Mayo includes Mr. Welch , Stanley Gault , Lawrence Bossidy and several other former G.E. executives in his coming book , `` In Their Time : The Greatest Business Leaders of the 20th Century . ''", "But he said that his research turned up many ex-G . E executives who ignored `` context-based management , '' his term for tailoring management approaches to specific situations .", "The G.E. way was particularly out of place in a retail operation , said James E . Schrager , clinical professor of entrepreneurship and strategy at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business .", "`` Boards get overenthusiastic about the G.E. glow , '' he said .", "`` They forget that there 's a big divide between selling light bulbs and appliances to stores and running the stores that sell them to consumers . ``", "Mr. Nardelli is not the first G.E. alumnus who took on another company amid much fanfare , only to leave under a cloud .", "John B . Blystone left G.E. to run the SPX Corporation in 1995 .", "At first , shareholders applauded his cost-cutting methods .", "But revenue stalled .", "Mr. Blystone resigned in 2004 `` to spend more time with his family , '' amid controversy over his sale of SPX shares before the release of lackluster quarterly results .", "Shares of Conseco leaped in 2000 when Gary C . Wendt , then the head of GE Capital , became its new chief .", "He was unable to turn the company around , and two years later he relinquished the chief executive slot .", "Conseco soon filed for bankruptcy protection .", "Mr. Johnston left G.E. to run Albertson 's in 2001 .", "He closed stores and cut jobs , but still could not compete with the Wal-Mart juggernaut .", "Albertson 's sales and stock plunged , and the company was eventually sold .", "`` G.E. people bring a great tool kit with them , but they really need the global learning centers , the diverse product portfolio , the access to capital , all of the resources of G.E. to maximize its value , '' said Nicholas P . Heymann , who follows G.E. for Prudential Securities .", "There are many success stories too , of course .", "Mr. Bossidy , one of Mr. Welch 's hand-groomed executives , was considered a savior at Allied Signal -LRB- later Honeywell -RRB- , as was Mr. Gault at Rubbermaid .", "Kirk Hachigian continues to get high marks at Cooper Industries .", "John Trani ran into problems with Stanley Work 's unions toward the end of his tenure , but he nonetheless is credited with whipping the company 's costs and operations into shape before he retired in 2003 .", "And , of course , Mr. McNerney , who left G.E. to run 3M at the same time that Mr. Nardelli left for Home Depot , got 3M 's sales and stock price way up .", "He recently left to head Boeing , and most analysts expect him to do well there , too .", "The success stories , experts say , have several things in common : The companies were manufacturers that needed to cut costs , pump up product innovation and grow by acquisition -- all skills that are finely honed at G.E.", "In contrast , Albertson 's and Home Depot are retailers , an area that G.E. has not touched save for a brief and unrewarding stint owning Montgomery Ward .", "SPX needed to expand businesses it already owned -- something that was emphasized far less by Mr. Welch than it is by Mr. Immelt , G.E. ` s current chief .", "And Conseco was foundering -- a company G.E. would never have bought , and probably would have sold .", "`` The errors come in when G.E. people feel they learned all the secrets at G.E. , '' said Ms. Wiesenfeld of New York University .", "They become enamored of their own knowledge , she added , `` and do n't feel they have to learn about the business they are going into . ``", "Mr. Immelt , G.E. ` s current chief , has not been cheered by shareholders throughout much of his tenure .", "He took over from Mr. Welch in September 2001 , just in time for the terrorist attack of Sept . 11 to wreak havoc with G.E. insurance , aircraft leasing and other businesses .", "And he also suffered through two years of share price stagnation , which ended just last month .", "Shareholders did not clamor for his resignation , though .", "One reason , analysts say , was that Mr. Immelt seemed to understand the problems , and was installing innovation processes and product lines to fix them .", "Another reason was that his total compensation package -- $ 8,534,829 in 2004 and $ 3,400,769 million in 2005 -- was well below the sums paid to other chief executives like Mr. Nardelli .", "A CHAIRMAN 'S FALL ."], "summary": ["Ouster of Home Depot chairman-chief executive Robert L Nardelli , former executive at General Electric , raises anew question of whether GE executives are so bankable when they switch to new companies .", "Many management experts say answer is not necessarily .", "Nardelli joins Lawrence R Johnston , another high-flying GE executive who left in 2001 for troubled tenure at Albertson 's , among alumni who did not live up to expectations .", "Gary C Wendt tapped in June 2000 to run Conseco Inc after building GE Capital Services .", "Conseco filed for bankruptcy protection two months after Wendt stepped down in October 2002 .", "Jeffrey R Immelt started at GE in 1982 .", "He has sold off lackluster business and prodded managers to focus on ` organic growth ' since taking over as chief executive in 2001 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 5, 6, 30, 32, 33, 4], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816344", "text": ["At first , the psychiatric drug Zyprexa may have saved John Eric Kauffman 's life , rescuing him from his hallucinations and other symptoms of acute psychosis .", "But while taking Zyprexa for five years , Mr. Kauffman , who had been a soccer player in high school and had maintained a normal weight into his mid-30s , gained about 80 pounds .", "He was found dead on March 27 at his apartment in Decatur , Ga . , just outside Atlanta .", "An autopsy showed that the 41-year-old Mr. Kauffman , who was 5 feet 10 inches , weighed 259 pounds when he died .", "His mother believes that the weight he gained while on Zyprexa contributed to the heart disease that killed him .", "Eli Lilly , which makes Zyprexa , said in a statement that Mr. Kauffman had other medical conditions that could have led to his death and that `` Zyprexa is a lifesaving drug . ''", "The company said it was saddened by Mr. Kauffman 's death .", "No one would say Mr. Kauffman had an easy life .", "Like millions of other Americans , he suffered from bipolar disorder , a mental illness characterized by periods of depression and mania that can end with psychotic hallucinations and delusions .", "After his final breakdown , in 2000 , a hospital in Georgia put Mr. Kauffman on Zyprexa , a powerful antipsychotic drug .", "Like other medicines Mr. Kauffman had taken , the Zyprexa stabilized his moods .", "For the next five and a half years , his illness remained relatively controlled .", "But his weight ballooned -- a common side effect of Zyprexa .", "His mother , Millie Beik , provided information about Mr. Kauffman , including medical records , to The New York Times .", "For many patients , the side effects of Zyprexa are severe .", "Connecting them to specific deaths can be difficult , because people with mental illness develop diabetes and heart disease more frequently than other adults .", "But in 2002 , a statistical analysis conducted for Eli Lilly found that compared with an older antipsychotic drug , Haldol , patients taking Zyprexa would be significantly more likely to develop heart disease , based on the results of a clinical trial comparing the two drugs .", "Exactly how many people have died as a result of Zyprexa 's side effects , and whether Lilly adequately disclosed those risks , are central issues in the thousands of product-liability lawsuits pending against the company , and in state and federal investigations .", "Because Mr. Kauffman also smoked heavily for much of his life , and led a sedentary existence in his last years , no one can be sure that the weight he gained while on Zyprexa caused his heart attack .", "Zyprexa , taken by about two million people worldwide last year , is approved to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder .", "Besides causing severe weight gain , it increases blood sugar and cholesterol in many people who take it , all risk factors for heart disease .", "In a statement responding to questions for this article , Lilly said it had reported the death of Mr. Kauffman to federal regulators , as it is legally required to do .", "The company said it could not comment on the specific causes of his death but noted that the report it submitted to regulators showed that he had `` a complicated medical history that may have led to this unfortunate outcome . ''", "`` Zyprexa , '' Lilly 's statement said , `` is a lifesaving drug and it has helped millions of people worldwide with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder regain control of their lives . ''", "Documents provided to The Times by a lawyer who represents mentally ill patients show that Eli Lilly , which makes Zyprexa , has sought for a decade to play down those side effects -- even though its own clinical trials show the drug causes 16 percent of the patients who take Zyprexa to gain more than 66 pounds after a year .", "Eli Lilly now faces federal and state investigations about the way it marketed Zyprexa .", "Last week -- after articles in The Times about the Zyprexa documents -- Australian drug regulators ordered Lilly to provide more information about what it knew , and when , about Zyprexa 's side effects .", "Lilly says side effects from Zyprexa must be measured against the potentially devastating consequences of uncontrolled mental illness .", "But some leading psychiatrists say that because of its physical side effects Zyprexa should be used only by patients who are acutely psychotic and that patients should take other medicines for long-term treatment .", "`` Lilly always downplayed the side effects , '' said Dr. S . Nassir Ghaemi , a specialist on bipolar disorder at Emory University in Atlanta .", "`` They 've tended to admit weight gain , but in various ways they 've minimized its relevance . ``", "Dr. Ghaemi said Lilly had also encouraged an overly positive view of its studies on the effectiveness of Zyprexa as a long-term treatment for bipolar disorder .", "There is more data to support the use of older and far cheaper drugs like lithium , he said .", "Last year , Lilly paid $ 700 million to settle 8,000 lawsuits from people who said they had developed diabetes or other diseases after taking Zyprexa .", "Thousands more suits are still pending .", "But Ms. Beik is not suing Lilly .", "She simply wants her son 's case to be known , she said , because she considers it a cautionary tale about Zyprexa 's tendency to cause severe weight gain .", "`` I do n't think that price should be paid , `` she said .", "Mr. Kauffman 's story , like that of many people with severe mental illness , is one of a slow and steady decline .", "Growing up in DeKalb , Ill . , west of Chicago , he acted in school plays and was a goalie on the soccer team .", "A photograph taken at his prom in 1982 shows a handsome young man with a messy mop of dark brown hair .", "But in 1984 , in his freshman year at Beloit College in Wisconsin , Mr. Kauffman suffered a breakdown and was found to have the most severe form of bipolar disorder .", "He returned home and , after medication stabilized his condition , enrolled in Northern Illinois University .", "He graduated from there in 1989 with a degree in political science .", "For the next year , he worked as a bus driver ferrying senior citizens around DeKalb .", "In a short local newspaper profile of him in 1990 , he listed his favorite book as `` Catch-22 , '' his favorite musician as Elvis Costello , and his favorite moment in life as a soccer game in which he had made 47 saves .", "A few months later , he followed his mother and stepfather to Atlanta and enrolled in Georgia State University , hoping to earn a master 's degree in political science .", "`` He wanted so much to become a political science professor , '' Ms. Beik said .", "But trying to work while attending school proved to be more stress than Mr. Kauffman could handle , Ms. Beik said .", "In 1992 , he suffered his most severe psychotic breakdown .", "He traveled around the country , telling his parents he intended to work on a political campaign .", "Instead , he spent much of the year homeless , and his medical records show that he was repeatedly admitted to hospitals .", "Mr. Kauffman returned home at the end of 1992 , but he never completely recovered , Ms. Beik said .", "He never worked again , and he rarely dated .", "In 1994 , the Social Security Administration deemed him permanently disabled and he began to receive disability payments .", "He filed for bankruptcy that year .", "According to the filing , he had $ 110 in assets -- $ 50 in cash , a $ 10 radio and $ 50 in clothes -- and about $ 10,000 in debts .", "From 1992 to 2000 , Mr. Kauffman did not suffer any psychotic breakdowns , according to his mother .", "During that period , he took lithium , a mood stabilizer commonly prescribed for people with bipolar disorder , and Stelazine , an older antipsychotic drug .", "With the help of his parents , he moved to an apartment complex that offered subsidized housing .", "But in late 1999 , a psychiatrist switched him from lithium , whichcan cause kidney damage , to Depakote , another mood stabilizer .", "In early 2000 , Mr. Kauffman stopped taking the Depakote , according to his mother .", "As the year went on , he began to give away his possessions , as he had in previous manic episodes , and became paranoid .", "During 2000 , he was repeatedly hospitalized , once after throwing cans of food out of the window of his sixth-floor apartment .", "In August , he was institutionalized for a month at a public hospital in Georgia .", "There he was put on 20 milligrams a day of Zyprexa , a relatively high dose .", "The Zyprexa , along with the Depakote , which he was still taking , stabilized his illness .", "But the drugs also left him severely sedated , hardly able to talk , his mother said .", "`` He was so tired and he slept so much , '' Ms. Beik said .", "`` He loved Shakespeare , and he was an avid reader in high school .", "At the end of his life , it was so sad , he could n't read a page . ``", "In addition , his health and hygiene deteriorated .", "In the 1990 newspaper profile , Mr. Kauffman had called himself extremely well-organized .", "But after 2000 , he became slovenly , his mother said .", "He spent most days in his apartment smoking .", "A therapist who treated Mr. Kauffman while he was taking Zyprexa recalls him as seeming shy and sad .", "`` He was intelligent enough to have the sense that his life had n't panned out in a normal fashion , `` the therapist said in an interview .", "`` He always reminded me of a person standing outside a house with a party going on , looking at it . ''", "The therapist spoke on the condition that her name not be used because of rules covering the confidentiality of discussions with psychiatric patients .", "As late as 2004 , Mr. Kauffman prepared a simple one-page r\u00e9sum\u00e9 of his spotty work history -- evidence that he perhaps hoped to re-enter the work force .", "He never did .", "As Mr. Kauffman 's weight increased from 2000 to 2006 , he began to suffer from other health problems , including high blood pressure .", "In December 2005 , a doctor ordered him to stop smoking , and he did .", "But in early 2006 , he began to tell his parents that he was having hallucinations of people appearing in his apartment .", "On March 16 , a psychiatrist increased his dose of Zyprexa to 30 milligrams , a very high level .", "That decision may have been a mistake , doctors say .", "Ending smoking causes the body to metabolize Zyprexa more slowly , and so Mr. Kauffman might have actually needed a lower rather than higher dose .", "A few days later , Mr. Kauffman spoke to his mother for the last time .", "By March 26 , they had been out of contact for several days .", "That was unusual , and she feared he might be in trouble .", "She drove to his apartment building in Decatur the next day and convinced the building 's manager to check Mr. Kauffman 's apartment .", "He was dead , his body already beginning to decompose .", "An autopsy paid for by his mother and conducted by a private forensic pathologist showed he had died of an irregular heartbeat -- probably , the report said , as the result of an enlarged heart caused by his history of high blood pressure .", "Ms. Beik acknowledged she can not be certain that Zyprexa caused her son 's death .", "But the weight gain it produced was most likely a contributing factor , she said .", "And she is angry that Eli Lilly played down the risks of Zyprexa .", "The company should have been more honest with doctors , as well as the millions of people who take Zyprexa , she said .", "Instead Lilly has marketed Zyprexa as safer and more effective than older drugs , despite scant evidence , psychiatrists say .", "Ms. Beik notes that Stelazine -- an older drug that is no longer widely used even though a federally financed clinical trial showed it works about as well as Zyprexa -- stabilized Mr. Kauffman 's illness for eight years without causing him to gain weight .", "`` He was on other drugs that worked , '' she said .", "Correction : January 6 , 2007 , Saturday A front-page article on Thursday about the side effects of the psychiatric drug Zyprexa misstated the name of a older drug tested against Zyprexa in a federally sponsored clinical trial .", "It was perphenazine -LRB- also called Trilafon -RRB- , not Stelazine ."], "summary": ["Mother suspects that weight gain from psychiatric drug Zyprexa may have contributed to heart disease that killed her 41-year-old son .", "John Eric Kauffman took drug for five years for symptoms of acute psychosis , and gained 80 pounds before being found dead last year at his home in Decator , Ga .", "Eli Lilly , which makes Zyprexa , issues statement noting that Kauffman had other medical conditions that could have led to his death .", "Claims Zyprexa is ` lifesaving drug ' .", "Weight gain is common side effect of Zyprexa .", "For many patients , side effects are severe .", "But connecting them to specific deaths can be difficult , because people with mental illness develop potentially life-threatening diseases more frequently than other adults .", "In 2002 , statistical analysis conducted for Eli Lilly found that compared with older antipsychotic drug Haldol , patients taking Zyprexa would be significantly more likely to develop heart disease .", "Whether Lilly adequately disclosed risks are central issues in thousands of product-liability lawsuits pending against company , and in state and federal investigations .", "Kauffman 's mother Millie Beik describes her son 's illness .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 17, 5, 15, 0, 14, 12, 4], "tag": ["Front Page", "Health", "Business"]} +{"id": "1816345", "text": ["A laboratory that has tested most of the nation 's electronic voting systems has been temporarily barred from approving new machines after federal officials found that it was not following its quality-control procedures and could not document that it was conducting all the required tests .", "The company , Ciber Inc . of Greenwood Village , Colo . , has also come under fire from analysts hired by New York State over its plans to test new voting machines for the state .", "New York could eventually spend $ 200 million to replace its aging lever devices .", "Experts on voting systems say the Ciber problems underscore longstanding worries about lax inspections in the secretive world of voting-machine testing .", "The action by the federal Election Assistance Commission seems certain to fan growing concerns about the reliability and security of the devices .", "The commission acted last summer , but the problem was not disclosed then .", "Officials at the commission and Ciber confirmed the action in recent interviews .", "Ciber , the largest tester of the nation 's voting machine software , says it is fixing its problems and expects to gain certification soon .", "Experts say the deficiencies of the laboratory suggest that crucial features like the vote-counting software and security against hacking may not have been thoroughly tested on many machines now in use .", "`` What 's scary is that we 've been using systems in elections that Ciber had certified , and this calls into question those systems that they tested , `` said Aviel D . Rubin , a computer science professor at Johns Hopkins .", "Professor Rubin said that although some software bugs had shown up quickly , in other instances `` you might have to use the systems for a while before something happens . ''", "Officials at the commission and other election experts said it was essential for a laboratory to follow its quality-control procedures and document all its testing processes to instill confidence in the results .", "Commission officials said that they were evaluating the overall diligence of the laboratory and that they did not try to determine whether its weaknesses had contributed to problems with specific machines .", "Computer scientists have shown that some electronic machines now in use are vulnerable to hacking .", "Some scientists caution that even a simple software error could affect thousands of votes .", "In various places , elections have been complicated by machines that did not start , flipped votes from one candidate to another or had trouble tallying the votes .", "Until recently , the laboratories that test voting software and hardware have operated without federal scrutiny .", "Even though Washington and the states have spent billions to install the new technologies , the machine manufacturers have always paid for the tests that assess how well they work , and little has been disclosed about any flaws that were discovered .", "As soon as federal officials began a new oversight program in July , they detected the problems with Ciber .", "The commission held up its application for interim accreditation , thus barring Ciber from approving new voting systems in most states .", "Ciber , a large information technology company , also has a $ 3 million contract to help New York test proposed systems from six manufacturers .", "Nystec , a consulting firm in Rome , N.Y. , that the state hired , filed a report in late September criticizing Ciber for creating a plan to test the software security that `` did not specify any test methods or procedures for the majority of the requirements . ''", "The report said the plan did not detail how Ciber would look for bugs in the computer code or check hacking defenses .", "A spokeswoman for Ciber , Diane C . Stoner , said that the company believed that it had addressed all the problems and that it expected to receive its initial federal accreditation this month .", "Federal officials said they were evaluating the changes the company had made .", "Ms. Stoner said in a statement that although the Election Assistance Commission had found deficiencies , they `` were not because Ciber provided incomplete , inaccurate or flawed testing , but because we did not document to the E.A.C. ' s liking all of the testing that we were performing . ''", "She added that the test plan cited in New York was just a draft and that Ciber had been working with Nystec to ensure additional security testing .", "The co-chairman of the New York State Board of Elections , Douglas A . Kellner , said Ciber had tightened its testing .", "But Mr. Kellner said yesterday that Nystec and Ciber continued to haggle over the scope of the security testing .", "New York is one of the last states to upgrade its machines , and it also has created some of the strictest standards for them .", "Mr. Kellner said only two of the six bidders , Diebold Election Systems and Liberty Election Systems , seemed close to meeting all the requirements .", "Besides Ciber , two other companies , SysTest Labs of Denver and Wyle Laboratories , in El Segundo , Calif . , test electronic voting machines .", "Ciber , which has been testing the machines since 1997 , checks just software .", "Wyle examines hardware , and SysTest can look at both .", "The chairman of the Election Assistance Commission , Paul S . DeGregorio , said SysTest and Wyle received interim accreditations last summer .", "Mr. DeGregorio said two other laboratories had also applied to enter the field .", "Congress required greater federal oversight when it passed the Help America Vote Act of 2002 .", "Since then , the government also put up more than $ 3 billion to help states and localities buy electronic machines , to avoid a repeat of the hanging punch-card chads that caused such confusion in the 2000 presidential election .", "The commission was never given a substantial budget , and it did not finish creating the oversight program until last month .", "Until then , the laboratories had been at the heart of the system to evaluate voting machines , a system that seemed oddly cobbled together .", "While the federal government created standards for the machines , most of the states enacted laws to make them binding .", "The states also monitored the testing , and much of that work was left to a handful of current and former state election officials who volunteered their time .", "As a result , voting rights advocates and other critics have long been concerned about potential conflicts of interest , because the manufacturers hire the laboratories and largely try to ensure confidentiality .", "Michael I . Shamos , a computer scientist who examines voting machines for Pennsylvania , said about half had significant defects that the laboratories should have caught .", "Besides certifying the laboratories , the Election Assistance Commission will have three staff members and eight part-time technicians to approve test plans for each system and check the results .", "The manufacturers will be required to report mechanical breakdowns and botched tallies , and Mr. DeGregorio said those reports would be on the agency 's Web site .", "Dr. Shamos said , `` This is not the sea change that was needed . ''", "He said he was disappointed that the commission had hired some of the same people involved in the states ' monitoring program and that it never announced it had found problems with Ciber operations .", "Dr. Rubin of Johns Hopkins said the laboratories should be required to hire teams of hackers to ferret out software vulnerabilities .", "And the laboratories will still be paid by the voting machine companies , though a bill now in Congress could change that to government financing .", "A recent appearance in Sarasota , Fla . , by the SysTest Labs president , Brian T . Phillips , also raised eyebrows .", "After a Congressional election in the Sarasota area ended in a recount last month , the victorious Republican candidate hired Mr. Phillips as a consultant to monitor the state 's examination of whether there had been a malfunction in the voting machines .", "Several critics questioned whether Mr. Phillips should have taken such work , either because of its partisan nature or because it represented such a public defense of the industry .", "Mr. Phillips said he did not see any conflict because his laboratory had not tested the software used in Sarasota .", "And the project does not appear to have violated the ethics rules of the election commission ."], "summary": ["Federal Election Assistance Commission bars Ciber Inc from testing nation 's electronic voting systems after finding flaws in its quality-control procedures and lack of required documentation on tests it conducted .", "Ciber is largest tester of voting machine software and has tested most of nation 's electronic voting systems .", "It has also come under fire from analysts hired by New York State over its plans to test new voting machines for state .", "Experts say Ciber problems underscore longstanding worries about lax inspections in secretive world of voting-machine testing .", "Say deficiencies of Ciber laboratory suggest that crucial features like vote-counting software and security against hacking may not have been thoroughly tested on many machines now in use .", "Ciber says it is fixing its problems and expects to gain certification soon .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 1, 7, 3], "tag": ["Technology", "Front Page", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1816348", "text": ["In 1997 , as the government listened in on their phone call , Adham Hassoun , a computer programmer in Broward County , Fla . , proposed a road trip to Jose Padilla , a low-wage worker there .", "The excursion to Tampa would be his treat , Mr. Hassoun said , and a chance to meet `` some nice , uh , brothers . ''", "Mr. Padilla , 36 , a Brooklyn-born Puerto Rican who had converted to Islam a few years earlier , knew Mr. Hassoun , an outspoken Palestinian , from his mosque .", "Still , according to a transcript of the conversation obtained by The New York Times , Mr. Padilla equivocated as Mr. Hassoun exhorted .", "`` We take the whole family and have a blast , '' Mr. Hassoun said .", "`` We go to , uh , our Busch Gardens , you know You wo n't regret it .", "Money-back guarantee . ``", "Mr. Padilla , laughing , suggested that they not discuss the matter over the phone .", "`` Why .", "`` Mr. Hassoun said .", "`` We 're going to Busch Gardens .", "What 's the big deal ! `` That conversation took place five years before Mr. Padilla , a United States citizen accused of plotting a '' dirty bomb `` attack against this country , was declared an enemy combatant .", "Given that Mr. Padilla and Mr. Hassoun are now criminal defendants in a terrorism conspiracy case in Miami , it sounds suspicious , as if Mr. Hassoun were proposing something more sinister than a weekend at the amusement park .", "He well may have been -- but maybe , too , he was sincere or joking about a Muslim retreat .", "Deciphering such chatter in order to construct a convincing narrative of conspiracy is a challenge .", "Yet , prosecutors say , the government will rely largely on wiretapped conversations when it puts Mr. Padilla , Mr. Hassoun , and a third defendant , Kifah Jayyousi , on trial as a `` North American support cell '' that sent money , goods and recruits abroad to assist `` global jihad . ''", "Tens of thousands of conversations were recorded .", "Some 230 phone calls form the core of the government 's case , including 21 that make reference to Mr. Padilla , prosecutors said .", "But Mr. Padilla 's voice is heard on only seven calls .", "And on those seven , which The Times obtained from a participant in the case , Mr. Padilla does not discuss violent plots .", "But this is not the version of Mr. Padilla -- Al Qaeda associate and would-be bomber -- that John Ashcroft , then the attorney general , unveiled in 2002 when he interrupted a trip to Moscow to trumpet Mr. Padilla 's capture .", "In the four and a half years since then , as the government tested the limits of its power to deal with terrorism outside the traditional law enforcement system , Mr. Padilla is the only accused terrorist to have gone from enemy combatant to criminal defendant .", "His criminal trial , scheduled to begin late this month , will feature none of the initial claims about violent plotting with Al Qaeda that the government cited as justification for detaining Mr. Padilla without formal charges for three and a half years .", "Those claims came from the government 's overseas interrogations of terrorism suspects , like Abu Zubaydah , which , the government said , Mr. Padilla corroborated , in part , during his own questioning in a military brig in South Carolina .", "But , constrained by strict federal rules of evidence that would prohibit or limit the use of information obtained during such interrogations , the government will make a far more circumscribed case against Mr. Padilla in court , effectively demoting him from Al Qaeda 's dirty bomber to foot soldier in a somewhat nebulous conspiracy .", "The initial dirty bomb accusation did not disappear .", "It quietly resurfaced in Guant\u00e1namo Bay , Cuba .", "The government filed the dirty bomb charges against Mr. Padilla 's supposed accomplice , an Ethiopian-born detainee , at about the same time it indicted Mr. Padilla on relatively lesser offenses in criminal court .", "A Change in Strategy The change in Mr. Padilla 's status , from enemy combatant to criminal defendant , was abrupt .", "It came late in 2005 as the Supreme Court was weighing whether to take up the legality of his military detention and the Bush administration , by filing criminal charges , pre-empted its review .", "In a way , Mr. Padilla 's prosecution was a legal maneuver that kept the issue of his detention without charges out of the Supreme Court .", "After apprehending him at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago in May 2002 , the Bush administration made a choice : to detain Mr. Padilla militarily , in order to thwart further plotting , rather than to follow him in order to gather evidence that might serve a criminal prosecution .", "Now that Mr. Padilla has ended up a criminal defendant after all , the prosecution 's case does not fully reflect the Bush administration 's view of who he is or what he did .", "Senior government officials have said publicly that Mr. Padilla provided self-incriminating information during interrogations , admitting , they said , to undergoing basic terrorist training , to accepting an assignment to blow up apartment buildings in the United States , and to attending a farewell dinner with Khaled Sheikh Mohammed , the suspected master planner of the Sept . 11 attacks , before he flew to Chicago in 2002 .", "But any confessions by Mr. Padilla while he was detained without charges and denied access to counsel -- whether or not he was mistreated , as his lawyers claim -- would not be admissible in court .", "And it is unlikely that information obtained during the harsh questioning of Al Qaeda detainees would be admissible , either -- and , further , the government is disinclined to expose sensitive intelligence or invite further scrutiny of secret jails overseas .", "Probably as a consequence , the current criminal case zeroes in on what the government sees as an earlier stage of Mr. Padilla 's involvement with terrorism .", "It focuses primarily on the other defendants ' support during the 1990s for Muslim struggles overseas , especially in Bosnia , Kosovo and Chechnya .", "Mr. Padilla , who was appended to their pre-existing case , in which he had been an unnamed co-conspirator , is depicted as their recruit .", "Although prosecutors have declined to discuss the government 's strategy , their filings and statements in court provide a picture of the case they are expected to present at trial .", "The most tangible allegation against Mr. Padilla is that in 2000 he filled out , under an alias , an Arab-language application to attend a terrorist training camp .", "That application is expected to be offered into evidence alongside the wiretapped conversations , but Mr. Padilla 's lawyers say they will contest its admissibility , challenging the government 's assertion that the `` mujahideen data form '' belonged to their client .", "Robert Chesney , a specialist in national security law at Wake Forest University , called the prosecution a pragmatic one , analogous to `` going after Al Capone on tax evasion . ''", "But Deborah Pearlstein , a lawyer with Human Rights First who has consulted with Mr. Padilla 's defense , said that his will never be an ordinary , pragmatic prosecution .", "`` If Jose Padilla were from Day 1 just charged and tried , then maybe , '' she said .", "`` But this is a case that comes after three and a half years of the most gross deprivation of human rights that we 've seen in this country for a long time . ``", "Further , Ms. Pearlstein noted , the government has reserved the option , should the prosecution fail , of returning Mr. Padilla to the military brig .", "This , she said , `` casts a shadow '' over the current prosecution .", "The Bush administration 's military case against Binyam Mohamed , 28 , the Ethiopian detainee at Guant\u00e1namo , put the current proceedings in a different light , too .", "In December 2005 , Mr. Mohamed was referred to the military commission in Guant\u00e1namo on accusations that he conspired with Mr. Padilla on the dirty bomb plot .", "It was little noticed at the time .", "But accusations against Mr. Padilla that are nowhere to be found in the indictment against him filled the pages of Mr. Mohamed 's charging sheet , with Mr. Padilla repeatedly identified by name .", "The sheet referred to the two men meeting in Pakistan after Sept . 11 , 2001 , studying how to build an improvised dirty bomb , discussing the feasibility of a dirty bomb attack with Al Qaeda officials and agreeing to undertake the mission to blow up buildings .", "Mr. Mohamed 's lawyer , Clive Stafford Smith , said that these charges were based on a forced confession by Mr. Mohamed , who , he said , was tortured overseas into admitting to a story that was fed to him .", "`` Binyam was told all along that his job was to be a witness against Padilla , Abu Zubaydah and Khaled Sheikh Mohammed , '' Mr. Stafford Smith said , adding that his client `` has no conscience knowledge that he ever met '' Mr. Padilla .", "The charges against Mr. Mohamed and other Guant\u00e1namo detainees who were headed for prosecution there have been suspended temporarily as a result of the Military Commissions Act passed by Congress in October .", "Those charges are likely to be reinstated , a Pentagon official said yesterday .", "That Mr. Mohamed faced dirty bomb charges and Mr. Padilla does not speaks to the central difference between being a terrorism suspect in Guant\u00e1namo and a criminal defendant charged with terrorism offenses in the United States .", "In Guant\u00e1namo , the military commission system that deals with foreign-born terrorism suspects is expected to allow , with some exceptions , the use of information obtained through coercion .", "`` Federal court rules are restrictive , '' Professor Chesney of Wake Forest University School of Law said .", "`` The very essence of why they 're trying to have that separate military system was to create rules to use information that is deemed by the intelligence community to be trustworthy but would n't make it under the federal rules of evidence . ``", "David Cole , a professor of law at Georgetown University and author of books on terrorism and civil liberties , sees the difference between the two systems more critically : `` What this says clearly is that they feel that they can get away with using tainted evidence in the military commission system that they ca n't use in the criminal court system . ``", "The Wiretapping Case The criminal case against Mr. Padilla has its roots in the prosecution of Sheikh Omer Abdel Rahman , the blind Egyptian cleric who was convicted in 1995 of conspiring to blow up the United Nations and other New York landmarks .", "In the early 1990s , Sheikh Rahman 's telephone was tapped , and Mr. Hassoun and Dr. Jayyousi , a Jordanian-born American citizen who holds a doctorate in civil engineering , came to the government 's attention through phone calls to or from his line .", "Then the government , under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act , began to eavesdrop on them , which eventually pulled Mr. Padilla into their net , too .", "The government presents the three defendants as `` joined at the hip , '' as one prosecutor put it in a hearing last summer .", "But Judge Marcia G . Cooke of Federal District Court , noting that Mr. Padilla was appended to a case well under way , asked the government , `` If they are so joined at the hip , why is Mr. Padilla so late to the dance .", "`` Dr. Jayyousi , a former school system administrator in both Detroit and Washington , D.C. , never met Mr. Padilla , his lawyer , William Swor , said .", "It is Mr. Hassoun , the government said , who recruited Mr. Padilla .", "But both Mr. Hassoun 's and Mr. Padilla 's lawyers deny that Mr. Padilla was recruited .", "Seven Taped Phone Calls Mr. Padilla 's lawyers and relatives say that he left South Florida for Egypt in September 1998 on a spiritual journey .", "A former juvenile offender , he converted to Islam as part of an effort to straighten out his life , they say .", "His mosque in Fort Lauderdale sponsored his travel , he told friends , relatives and F.B.I. agents who interviewed him in 2002 .", "Mr. Hassoun belonged to that mosque , and the telephone transcripts seem to indicate that Mr. Hassoun helped , at the least , with Mr. Padilla 's travel plans .", "The seven taped phone calls that bear Mr. Padilla 's voice involve conversations with Mr. Hassoun from 1997 to 2000 .", "On those calls , Mr. Padilla , unlike some of the other defendants , does not employ what the government says is coded language .", "According to the government , other defendants refer to their jihad-related plans as `` getting some fresh air , '' `` participating in tourism , '' `` opening up a market , '' `` playing football , '' and so on .", "This leads to silly-sounding exchanges where `` the brothers '' discuss going on `` picnics '' in order `` to smell fresh air and to eat cheese '' or using $ 3,500 to buy `` zucchini . ''", "In contrast , Mr. Padilla 's seven conversations with Mr. Hassoun range from straightforward -- Mr. Hassoun tells Mr. Padilla that his grandmother has died .", "Mr. Padilla tells Mr. Hassoun that he has found himself an 18-year-old Egyptian bride who is willing to wear a veil -- to vaguely suggestive or just odd .", "In one phone call , the two men talked about a dream .", "It appeared to be the dream that Mr. Padilla , according to his relatives , cites as having played a crucial role in inspiring him to convert to Islam : the vision of a man in a turban , surrounded by the swirling dust of a desert .", "Mr. Hassoun brought it up and told Mr. Padilla that he himself had experienced the same vision .", "`` What do you mean you saw the same dream .", "`` Mr. Padilla asked .", "`` I saw the dream of the uh person with the turban , '' Mr. Hassoun said .", "Mr. Hassoun explained how , in his dream , the turban was wrongly wrapped and so he thought the man might be a spy , in which case , he was prepared `` to split his body apart . ''", "But then , he said , he understood that `` the brother was a good one . ''", "`` Yeah .", "`` Mr. Padilla said .", "In three of the seven conversations , Mr. Padilla made statements that the government has identified as `` overt acts '' in furtherance of the accused conspiracy .", "In the first , Mr. Hassoun asked , `` You 're ready , right .", "`` and Mr. Padilla said , '' God willing , brother , it 's going to happen soon . ``", "That was the summer of 1997 , a year before Mr. Padilla left South Florida for Egypt .", "In the second , Mr. Padilla told Mr. Hassoun , during a 1999 conversation from Egypt , that he had asked his ex-wife in the United States to arrange for him to receive an army jacket , a book bag and a sleeping bag , supplies that he had requested because `` there was a rumor here that the door was open somewhere . ''", "In the third , Mr. Padilla told Mr. Hassoun in April 2000 , that he would need a recommendation to `` connect me with the good brothers , with the right faith '' if he were to travel to Yemen .", "Prosecutors say Mr. Padilla is mentioned , although by his Muslim name Ibrahim or by another alias , on 21 additional tapes .", "One of them refers to Ibrahim as being `` in the area of Usama , '' which the government takes to mean that he was near Osama bin Laden .", "But Mr. Padilla 's lawyers contest that interpretation .", "`` That is just nonsensical , Your Honor , that these men who for years , according to the government , have been talking in code all of a sudden are going to throw Osama bin Laden 's name around , `` Michael Caruso , a federal public defender , said in court .", "Mr. Padilla has pleaded not guilty .", "But before his case goes before a jury , his fitness to stand trial will be evaluated .", "On the basis of Mr. Padilla 's lawyers ' assertion that he is mentally damaged as a result of his prolonged isolation and his interrogation in the brig , Judge Cooke has ordered a psychiatric evaluation by a Bureau of Prisons doctor to be completed this week .", "Friday in The Times : The only person on the American mainland still held asan enemy combatant .", "Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday A front-page article yesterday about wiretapped conversations in the case against Jose Padilla , who is accused of plotting a `` dirty bomb '' attack , omitted two lines at the continuation in some copies .", "The sentence should have read : `` In the four and a half years since then , as the government tested the limits of its power to deal with terrorism outside the traditional law enforcement system , Mr. Padilla is the only accused terrorist to have gone from enemy combatant to criminal defendant . '' ."], "summary": ["Prosecutors say government will rely largely on wiretapped conversations when it puts Jose Padilla , Adham Hassoun and Kifah Jayyousi on trial as ` North American support cell ' that sent money , goods and recruits abroad to assist ` global jihad ' .", "Say 230 recorded conversations form core of government 's case , including 21 that make reference to Padilla .", "But Padilla , who is American citizen , does not discuss violent plots on any of seven calls on which his voice is heard .", "Padilla 's criminal trial will feature none of initial claims about violent plotting with Al Qaeda that then-Atty Gen John Ashcroft cited as justification for detaining him without formal charges for three and half years .", "Those claims came from government 's overseas interrogations of terrorism suspects like Abu Zubaydah .", "Government claims that Padilla corroborated them , in part , during his own questioning , but strict federal rules of evidence prohibit or limit use of information obtained during such interrogations .", "Government will make far more circumscribed case against Padilla in court , effectively demoting him from Al Qaeda 's dirty bomber to foot soldier in somewhat nebulous conspiracy .", "Case recalled .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [24, 15, 22, 23, 17, 18], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1816363", "text": ["In May , in a nearly empty basement ballroom at the Hotel du Pont in Wilmington , Del . , Robert L . Nardelli , the chairman and chief executive of Home Depot , stood between huge timers , intended to limit questions from the handful of shareholders present .", "After dismissing questions about his compensation or the independence of the board , Mr. Nardelli abruptly ended the meeting after only 30 minutes .", "Time ran out on Mr. Nardelli on Tuesday , after the board , at a hastily arranged meeting , decided that he should go -- with a $ 210 million exit package .", "It was a surprising turnaround for Home Depot 's board , which had publicly supported Mr. Nardelli as recently as two weeks ago even as questions about his compensation , business strategy and autocratic management style mounted .", "What ultimately divided the board and its chief executive appeared to have been Mr. Nardelli 's compensation .", "Over six years as chief executive , he had taken home $ 64 million and was on track to earn hundreds of millions more .", "In recent months , people close to the board say , directors sought to rein in the compensation under the terms of his current contract .", "Mr. Nardelli , these people said , had challenged that effort .", "`` He was brought down by his compensation , '' a person close to the board said .", "`` It was an erosion of relationships over several months .", "He lost the confidence of the board . ``", "In the end , the debate over cutting Mr. Nardelli 's pay may not have revolved around large numbers .", "It would have been possible , for example , for the board to give Mr. Nardelli a minimum bonus of $ 3 million under the terms of his contract , rather than the $ 7 million he received in 2005 .", "A director , however , speaking on the condition of anonymity , insisted that compensation was not the reason for Mr. Nardelli 's departure and that there was no `` smoking gun '' behind his resignation .", "The fall of Mr. Nardelli is the latest illustration of chief executives and boards coming under pressure when rich executive pay yields few apparent returns in the form of a rising stock price or improving profits .", "Outsize executive pay has increasingly become a flash point for investors , lawmakers and regulators .", "Still , critics of executive pay practices were incensed by Mr. Nardelli 's gold-plated exit , the terms of which were largely laid out in his 2000 contract .", "The pay package includes severance and retirement pay , restricted stock , stock options and other forms of deferred compensation .", "The package is `` further confirmation of the need to deal with a pattern of C.E.O. pay that appears to be out of control , '' said Representative Barney Frank , Democrat of Massachusetts , who will be chairman of the House Financial Services Committee .", "When he was hired , Mr. Nardelli was a prized former manager under John F . Welch Jr . at General Electric , running its $ 15 billion power systems division .", "Since he became chief executive , however , Home Depot 's stock price has languished and the company has lost market share to its chief rival , Lowe 's .", "But the seeds of Mr. Nardelli 's ouster were sown that day in May , according to several people close to the board .", "The angry outcry over how Mr. Nardelli conducted the annual meeting was compounded by the humiliation board members felt because they had been persuaded to stay away from the May meeting , departing from usual practice .", "That discontent grew in recent months as large shareholders threatened a revolt at Home Depot 's annual meeting this spring .", "Yesterday , Home Depot , the nation 's largest home-improvement chain , named Frank Blake as its new chairman and chief executive .", "Mr. Blake , another former General Electric executive , joined Home Depot in 2002 and helped develop business strategy at the company .", "Mr. Blake already appears to be distancing himself from Mr. Nardelli and his rigid style .", "In an address to Home Depot employees over an internal television system yesterday , Mr. Blake advised them to `` lighten up '' and `` have fun again , '' according to one worker .", "Mr. Blake 's current employment agreement is in force , Home Depot said , and the board is working out details of a new employment contract .", "Shares of Home Depot rose 2.3 percent , or 91 cents , to $ 41.07 yesterday .", "Messages for Mr. Nardelli were not returned yesterday .", "For Kenneth G . Langone , a director and co-founder of Home Depot , Mr. Nardelli 's resignation carries a particular sting .", "A onetime member of the G.E. board , Mr. Langone played an instrumental role in bringing Mr. Nardelli to Home Depot .", "And when it became clear that Mr. Nardelli would come aboard only as chief executive , he persuaded his old friend , Arthur Blank , then the chief executive , to step aside .", "Mr. Nardelli was the first chief executive plucked from outside of Home Depot since its founding in 1978 .", "He immediately drew fire over his lack of retail experience .", "Inside the company , his hands -on , severe management style rubbed against a more casual culture that gave store managers autonomy .", "By contrast , Mr. Nardelli was an obsessive workaholic who rose at 4 a.m. , logged 14-hour days and routinely worked through the weekend , splitting his time between Home Depot 's headquarters in Atlanta and shuttling from store-to-store in a chauffeured black Chevy Suburban .", "He earned the nickname `` general '' -- and , as if to underscore the point , he hired dozens of former military officers to run stores , a recruitment strategy he introduced at G.E.", "Mr. Nardelli never won over the chain 's store managers , current and former company executives said .", "After touring stores , he frequently inflamed managers by sending critical e-mail messages about cluttered aisles and poorly lighted displays .", "The result was a high level of manager turnover .", "In the last 18 months , three senior merchandise executives -- Tom Taylor , John Costello and Carl C . Liebert III -- left the company , leaving Mr. Nardelli with very few experienced retail executives in his top ranks .", "`` The long-term retailers never felt he integrated himself into the retailing piece of the business , '' said Harold Reiter , chairman and chief executive with Herbert Mines Associates , an executive recruitment firm .", "Outside of the company , many shareholders , angry at how the annual meeting in May was conducted , struggled to embrace the bold strategic course Mr. Nardelli was setting for Home Depot that steered it further away from its bread-and-butter business of selling hammers and nails to consumers .", "For instance , Mr. Nardelli was betting big on Home Depot Supply , a new unit that supplied professional contractors with lumber , cement and pipes .", "He spent $ 7 billion in recent years to buy about 40 companies , turning Home Depot Supply into a $ 12 billion business , whose sales now account for 13 percent of the company 's $ 90 billion in revenue .", "Mr. Nardelli also planned to move aggressively overseas , particularly into China , where the company acquired a retail chain in December .", "During his tenure , Home Depot doubled its sales and sharply increased its earnings per share .", "Yet while the board backed his vision for the company , shareholders were less enthused .", "The stock has barely budged over his tenure .", "Because of that lackluster performance , critics sought to make Mr. Nardelli Exhibit A for chief executives who receive millions and millions of dollars in pay for weak performance .", "Many of those critics took aim at Home Depot 's board , which they argued was cozy and tight-knit , with close ties between one another and with G.E. Sitting at the center of Home Depot 's board is Mr. Langone , who has been the longstanding chairmanof the board 's nominating committee and who some critics say has loaded up the board with many of his friends and former business associates .", "A proponent of paying chief executives well for their performance , Mr. Langone has long supported Mr. Nardelli 's generous contract .", "As chairman of the compensation committee at the New York Stock Exchange , Mr. Langone also signed off on Richard A . Grasso 's largest pay days as chairman and he remains embroiled in a civil suit over Mr. Grasso 's $ 139.5 million pay package .", "Mr. Langone did not return calls for comment .", "The lawyer who represented the New York exchange was the same lawyer who represented the board of Home Depot : Martin Lipton , the takeover lawyer who founded Wachtell , Lipton , Rosen & Katz .", "Mr. Lipton , a longtime friend of Mr. Langone , was originally hired to help defend Mr. Nardelli and the board against Relational Investors , an owner of Home Depot shares that has challenged Mr. Nardelli 's strategies in regulatory filings .", "Mr. Lipton has often found himself in the middle of sticky situations where the chief executive is ousted and paid an enormous golden parachute .", "Mr. Lipton also worked for Morgan Stanley 's board when Phillip Purcell was fired .", "He did the same for Disney when Michael D . Eisner was terminated .", "While many of Home Depot 's critics were elated that Mr. Nardelli was leaving the company , they expressed shock at the size of his departure pay package .", "`` We 're aghast at the level of compensation that Nardelli is walking away with -- this is money directly out of shareholders ' pockets , `` said Richard Ferlauto , the director of pension investment policy for the American Federation of State , County and Municipal Employees , whose pension fund owns shares in the company .", "Furthermore , if Home Depot is trying to distance itself from Mr. Nardelli , Mr. Blake is a strange choice , some Wall Street analysts said .", "Like Mr. Nardelli , Mr. Blake has little retail experience .", "He spent much of his career at G.E. and helped develop the Home Depot supply business .", "`` There will be some pushback to his appointment , '' said Stephen C . Chick , an analyst with J . P . Morgan Securities .", "Analysts said the performance of Home Depot 's retail business , which has lagged behind that of its main rival , Lowe 's , for several years , lay at the heart of Mr. Nardelli 's troubles .", "Mr. Nardelli 's original strategy of sharply cutting costs -- by reducing employees ' hours and hiring more part-timers -- alienated loyal customers , who relied on experienced store staff for advice .", "`` Home Depot was managing the company for Wall Street 's earnings expectations and that came at the expense of the investment needed in their retail business , `` Mr. Chick said .", "Mr. Nardelli `` has to take the blame for that , '' Mr. Chick said .", "Far from cooling down shareholders angry over Mr. Nardelli 's pay and other corporate governance issues , Mr. Nardelli 's departure seems to have instead inflamed them .", "`` It 's not enough to shuffle the deck chairs .", "They have n't changed their strategy and there is n't any fresh blood on the board , `` said Ralph Whitworth , who heads Relational Investors , which owns about $ 1 billion of Home Depot 's stock , or about a 1.2 percent stake .", "About three weeks ago , Mr. Whitworth notified Mr. Nardelli in a letter that he was intending to call on shareholders to create a committee to study Home Depot 's direction and performance and planned to submit at least two candidates for the board .", "Yesterday , Mr. Whitworth said those plans had not changed .", "`` There 's clearly some big , big corporate governance issues here and I do n't expect that to change without fresh blood on the board , `` he said .", "A CHAIRMAN 'S FALL Correction : January 6 , 2007 , Saturday A picture in Business Day on Thursday of the home of Robert L . Nardelli , who was ousted as chairman and chief executive of Home Depot , carried an incorrect credit .", "It was by Chris Rank of Bloomberg News , not by Home Depot ."], "summary": ["Home Depot board dismisses chairman and chief executive Robert L Nardelli with $ 210 million exit package .", "Surprise move comes only two weeks after board publicly supported him amid mounting questions about his compensation , business strategy and autocratic management style .", "Nardelli reportedly challenged efforts of directors who sought in recent months to rein in his compensation under terms of his current contract .", "Over six years as chief executive , he has taken home $ 64 million and was on track to earn hundreds of millions more .", "His fall is latest illustration of chief executives and boards coming under pressure when rich executive pay yields few apparent returns in form of rising stock price or improving profits .", "Outsize executive pay has increasingly become flash point for investors , lawmakers and regulators .", "In Nardelli 's case , critics are also incensed by his gold-plated exit .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [14, 5, 3, 15, 6], "tag": ["Front Page", "Business"]} +{"id": "1816366", "text": ["Drivers crossing the George Washington Bridge must contend with 18-wheelers , infuriating delays and noxious exhaust .", "Soon , they will also have advertisements from Geico .", "The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is expected to announce an arrangement with Geico , the auto insurance giant , that will include the posting of a huge billboard on top of the toll plaza in Fort Lee , N.J. , that says `` Geico Drive Safely . ''", "Drivers will also see Geico signs with the company 's mascot , a gecko , on the tollbooths and electronic signs on the approach roads .", "Geico 's message will also be integrated into the Port Authority 's direct mailings and its Web site , and costumed gecko mascots will appear at Port Authority bus stations .", "The arrangement , first reported in The Wall Street Journal , will provide the agency with $ 3.2 million over two years .", "It is the first of its kind for the Port Authority , which has been trying to find new sources of revenue to offset rising costs , said Stephen Sigmund , the agency 's chief of public and government affairs .", "Geico is not the first company to think about buying a bridge -- or at least the advertising rights to one .", "And other public agencies have been exploring unconventional ways to bring in more money , even if it means toying with long-held taboos about commercializing public spaces .", "The Golden Gate Bridge , Highway and Transportation District , for instance , is exploring how to sell sponsorships in San Francisco .", "Mr. Sigmund said the Port Authority had been looking for the right advertisers since at least 2005 , adding that Geico was a natural since it is one of the country 's largest and best-known auto insurers .", "In a world where consumers can fast-forward through television advertisements , subscribe to commercial-free satellite radio and block pop-up ads on the Internet , companies like Geico are continually looking for fresh ways to get in front of consumers .", "In that context , getting in front of about 57 million eastbound drivers who cross the George Washington Bridge each year could amount to a gold mine , especially because it is not uncommon for cars to spend 15 or more minutes creeping toward the toll plaza in New Jersey .", "`` This is more than just eyeballs .", "It 's about reinforcing a message about a bridge that people have an endearing feeling to , `` said Drew Sheinman , chief executive of Axcess Partners Worldwide , a marketing company hired by the Port Authority to develop new advertising .", "Mr. Sheinman said that under the agreement , no other signs can compete with Geico 's at the bridge , which may allay fears that the toll plaza will become overrun with ads .", "`` This is not going to be left field at Yankee Stadium , '' he said .", "Still , the new signs could irritate drivers who view their cars as a refuge from media messages , as well as preservationists who see the bridge , a landmark , as unfit for commercial advertisements -- even if they appear only on the tollbooths .", "`` It 's a city icon that should not be tampered with in this way , `` said Vanessa Gruen , of the streetscape committee at the Municipal Art Society , which deals with street and sidewalk advertising .", "`` It 's not really worth the amount of money they 'll get out of it to block the view of the span . ``", "Brand experts also questioned whether Geico , which has won plaudits for its imaginative advertising campaigns , may turn off customers and dilute its name by making it too prominent .", "`` Since advertisers have generally lost some degree of control over what messages get into people 's lives , consumers resent getting them foisted on them , `` said Robert Passikoff , the president of Brand Keys , a brand consultant .", "But , Mr. Passikoff added , consumers may warm to the Geico ads as well as others on prominent public buildings and bridges if they know the proceeds are being used to improve service .", "The Port Authority has set a goal of generating $ 100 million in advertising and sponsorships , about three times more than it currently brings in , Mr. Sigmund said .", "He said , though , that the new advertising must match the surroundings and not jeopardize safety .", "Last month , for instance , the Port Authority announced an agreement with Samsung , the electronics giant , to install power outlets at Kennedy International Airport that travelers with laptop computers will be able to use ."], "summary": ["Auto insurer Geico will sign advertising deal with Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to post billboard at toll plaza on New Jersey side of George Washington Bridge and electronic signs on approach roads .", "Deal is worth $ 3.2 million over two years .", "It is agency 's first attempt to find new sources of revenue .", "Agreement permits no other signs to compete with Geico 's .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 5, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816367", "text": ["Gov . Eliot Spitzer vowed yesterday to make health insurance available to all children and enroll all eligible adults in Medicaid .", "If carried out fully , his pledges would cut the number of uninsured New Yorkers in half .", "But those promises may not turn out to be as ambitious as described .", "How far they go will depend on details the governor and his staff said would not be made public until late this month .", "At their most far-reaching , the governor 's plans would give New York the lowest percentage of uninsured people in the country , and would mark a sharp increase in coverage for the poor .", "Even so , such promises would not be as hard or as expensive to carry out as most people would guess , according to people who study the politics and economics of health care .", "People who have no health insurance tend to be young and healthy , cheaper to care for and cheaper to cover than those who are currently covered .", "As a result , the United Hospital Fund , a policy research group , has estimated that covering all of the uninsured in New York would cost $ 4.1 billion a year -- less than one-tenth of what the state already spends on Medicaid , the health plan for the poor .", "Most of the uninsured are also poor , and already qualify for Medicaid or a similar program , Child Health Plus , so experts said that easier enrollment and more aggressive recruitment in those programs would almost certainly be at the center of Mr. Spitzer 's plans .", "The biggest obstacle , they said , could be new federal requirements that people signing up for Medicaid produce birth certificates or other proof of citizenship .", "In his first address to the Legislature , Mr. Spitzer said , `` We will introduce a budget that in the very first year , guarantees access to health insurance for all of New York 's 500,000 uninsured children . ``", "But to guarantee access to insurance and to guarantee actual coverage could be two very different things .", "Many people have access to government programs , at least in theory , but do not take advantage of them .", "Again , the governor did not say precisely what he meant by his promise .", "In New York , children qualify for free health insurance through either Medicaid or Child Health Plus , in households that earn up to 160 percent of the federal poverty line -- about $ 21,000 a year for a family of four .", "Above that limit , up to 250 percent of the poverty line -- about $ 33,000 for a family of four -- they are eligible for Child Health Plus for a premium of $ 15 a month or less .", "About two-thirds of New York 's uninsured children already qualify for one of the programs on those terms .", "Danielle Holahan , senior health policy analyst at the United Hospital Fund , said , `` That , plus the fact that children are pretty cheap to insure , '' suggests that getting most of them enrolled `` is something we could tackle pretty easily . ''", "State law also says that any child , no matter how high the family income , can be enrolled in Child Health Plus by paying a premium that averages less than $ 200 a month , much less than a commercial insurance policy .", "Officials in the Pataki administration argued that that means New York already guarantees access to coverage for all children .", "Ms. Holahan said the state could draw middle-income children into Child Health Plus by putting the premiums on a sliding scale as incomes rise , rather than having an abrupt jump up from $ 15 a month .", "Mr. Spitzer said that within four years , `` we will enroll the 900,000 Medicaid-eligible adults '' by simplifying the paperwork .", "That promise could be tougher to keep , experts said , because he is promising not mere access but actual coverage .", "Each year , about one-third of the people on Medicaid in New York fail to renew their enrollment , though they remain eligible , so policy analysts say that an easier renewal process would keep some people enrolled .", "They also proposed tying Medicaid enrollment to food stamps , welfare , schools and other public services .", "But some people are reluctant to sign up , particularly immigrants who mistrust the government or just can not be bothered .", "`` The only way you ever get to really universal coverage is with some sort of individual mandate requiring people to enroll , '' said Diane Rowland , executive director of the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured .", "Almost 14 percent of New Yorkers are uninsured , according to the Census Bureau , below the national average of nearly 16 percent but well above Minnesota , with the lowest rate , less than 9 percent .", "If Mr. Spitzer succeeds in insuring all children and all people eligible for Medicaid , the number of uninsured in New York would drop below 7 percent .", "Medicaid spends more than $ 45 billion a year to insure 4.2 million New Yorkers , but most of those costs are spent on older and disabled patients .", "An estimated 1.2 million people qualify for Medicaid or Child Health Plus but are not enrolled .", "They are disproportionately healthy young adults and children .", "`` Low-income people who have serious health needs end up in a hospital emergency room , and they enroll in Medicaid at that time , if they 're not enrolled already , `` Ms. Rowland said .", "`` So the remaining uninsured tend to be healthier than those who are insured . ''", "CHANGEOVER IN ALBANY ."], "summary": ["New York Gov Eliot Spitzer vows to make health insurance available to all children and enroll all eligible adults in Medicaid .", "United Hospital Fund , policy research group , estimates that covering all uninsured people in state would cost $ 4.1 billion annually , less than one-tenth what is already spent on Medicaid .", "Health care experts say Spitzer plan will include easier enrollment and more aggressive recruitment for Medicaid and Child Health Plus program .", "Say biggest obstacle would be federal requirement that people seeking Medicaid produce proof of citizenship ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 0, 9], "tag": ["Health", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816369", "text": ["The 20-year building boom on Staten Island , long the city 's fastest-growing borough , is decelerating drastically , thanks largely to a reining-in of the island 's freewheeling zoning laws , officials say .", "According to city figures released yesterday , permits for new buildings plunged by 43 percent last year .", "So substantial was the decline that Staten Island almost single-handedly accounted for a 10 percent dip in building permits citywide last year , which was the first drop in the city in a decade .", "In the other four boroughs , permits fell by 1.6 percent , the figures from the City Buildings Department show .", "Of course , the real estate market has been cooling all over the city and the country , but city officials and real estate professionals attributed the disproportionate chill on Staten Island to zoning and tax changes .", "New zoning rules passed in 2004 , which were aimed at stemming a flood of town house developments that residents complained were disfiguring communities and overloading streets with traffic , require larger lots and yards and more parking .", "A tax abatement for new one - and two-family homes was also rescinded last year , further discouraging construction .", "`` It 's one of these perfect-storm situations , `` said Sandy Krueger , chief executive officer of the Staten Island Board of Realtors .", "`` Everything kind of came together at once : the downzoning , the tax abatement removal and the change in the market .", "I think everybody is sort of taking a breath here and waiting this out a little bit to see what happens . ``", "Last year , 826 permits for new buildings were issued in Staten Island , compared with 1,441 in 2005 and nearly 2,000 in 2003 .", "Permits for new units of housing also declined more than 40 percent through November , compared with a 1 percent drop elsewhere in the city , according to census statistics .", "The downturn was broadly welcomed in a place where for years development appeared to proceed with pile driver and shoehorn .", "A one-acre parcel where 18 units of housing could once be built is limited to 7 .", "`` I do n't want Staten Island to stop growing , `` said the borough president , James P . Molinaro , who helped lead the drive for the zoning changes , '' but I want proper growth . ``", "The decline in new housing permits issued on Staten Island affected multifamily dwellings as well as smaller buildings .", "Permits for one-family homes fell 49 percent .", "City officials pointed to several developments planned for the island that they said would be more carefully managed , including a 700-unit waterfront complex in Stapleton , north of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge , which is expected to bring new life to a vacant port .", "As for the slight citywide drop in new building and housing permits outside of Staten Island , the city 's deputy mayor for economic development , Daniel L . Doctoroff , said he saw little cause for concern .", "New housing construction is slowing dramatically across the country , he said , and total construction spending in New York City is increasing as builders focus on commercial projects .", "`` Particularly relative to the overall national housing market , '' Mr. Doctoroff said , `` and taking into account the fact that through much of the year interest rates were rising , I think by every indicator the market here was very resilient . ''", "Frank Naso , one of Staten Island 's biggest builders and the former president of the Building Industry Association of New York City , a trade group , said that zoning changes had been long overdue .", "`` We needed some kind of reform , '' he said .", "`` We 'll continue to build , but instead of building 10 you might build 6 .", "It 's not the end of the world . ``", "Mr. Naso was more upset about the loss of the tax abatement , which cut a homeowner 's property taxes for the first eight years after purchase and allowed many first-time buyers into the market .", "Jeff Gallo , an opponent of sprawl and a member of the Preservation League of Staten Island , who lives in a turn-of-the-century Victorian house in Stapleton , said he had noticed a slight calming in the air .", "`` There 's a feeling out in Staten Island now that you just ca n't get away with everything , `` said Mr. Gallo , a real estate broker who works in Brooklyn .", "Ever since the Verrazano-Narrows bridge was completed in 1964 , linking Staten Island to the rest of New York City , people have flocked to the island , developers have worked frenetically to accommodate them , and longtime residents have bemoaned the disappearance of open space and the strain on the island 's infrastructure .", "During the 1990s , Staten Island 's population grew by 17 percent and civic discontent skyrocketed .", "Eventually the clamor brought results .", "Before the zoning change , you were permitted to build a house with a 4-foot backyard , `` Mr. Molinaro said .", "`` Now you have to have a minimum of 30 feet .", "You were able to buy a house on Staten Island where your bottom step was the street -- there was no sidewalk .", "That was legal ! You ca n't do it no more . ``", "Staten Island , still by far the least-populous borough in the city , was the fastest-growing county in the state , according to the 2000 census .", "It is not even the fastest-growing borough in the city anymore , having fallen into a virtual tie with Manhattan .", "From 2003 to 2005 , the population in both boroughs grew by about 0.9 percent , according to census estimates .", "Helen Siegel , 52 , a schoolteacher who lives in New Springville , in the center of the island , thought back yesterday to the days when cows and pigs from nearby farms used to stroll across her yard .", "`` It might have been better had they done this sooner , '' she said .", "`` It 's all built up on every spare inch of land already . `` ."], "summary": ["New York City officials say 20-year building boom on Staten Island has drastically declined , with new building permits falling by 43 percent in 2006 .", "Say Staten Island decline accounted for 10 percent drop in building permits citywide .", "Declines in other boroughs noted .", "Officials attribute Staten Island decline to zoning and tax abatement changes .", "Graph ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 0, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816482", "text": ["PATTI LuPONE was playing Mrs. Lovett in `` Sweeney Todd '' early last year when she looked out from the stage of the Eugene O'Neill Theater and saw something she had never seen before in a Broadway theater : a popcorn war .", "`` There were two people in the front row sharing a bag of popcorn , '' she said recently .", "`` When she stuck her hand in , he immediately stuck his hand in .", "They were wrestling for the last few kernels of popcorn while we were performing .", "Everyone around them was distracted . ``", "While eating at your seat at a Broadway theater used to be universally forbidden , theaters are increasingly allowing patrons to take their drinks , candy and even crunchy munchies to their seats during a show .", "This let-them-eat-snacks philosophy has been embraced at the Helen Hayes , Hilton , New Amsterdam , Eugene O'Neill and Walter Kerr Theaters , as well as at all nine houses owned by the Nederlander Organization -LRB- the Brooks Atkinson , Gershwin , Lunt-Fontanne , Marquis , Minskoff , Nederlander , Neil Simon , Palace and Richard Rodgers -RRB- .", "`` It 's a reflection of changing audience habits , `` said Jim Boese , the organization 's vice president .", "`` As the audience for Broadway expands , there are changing audience needs .", "This is part of a broader attempt to enhance the audience experience . ``", "It also helps the bottom line for theater owners , who profit from sales at the concession stands .", "And when people can eat at their seats , they tend to buy more .", "To make purchases easier , machines to process credit-card sales -- provided by Visa as part of its sponsorship of Broadway -- were recently installed at bars in the New Amsterdam and Nederlander Theaters .", "There are also plans to create cafe areas with tables and chairs and higher-end products , like high-quality chocolates , in some theaters .", "One has just been constructed at the Minskoff .", "Rosa Hires , the general manager of concessions for the Hilton Theater , owned by Live Nation , said most audience members seemed delighted by the new rules .", "`` If anything , people want more food , '' she said .", "`` They 're asking for wraps and salads `` to be available at the concession stands , she added .", "`` Recently we 've had people asking for hot dogs . ``", "Concession sales there have more than doubled since the Hilton began allowing products other than bottled water to the theater 's seats about three years ago , Ms. Hires said .", "The other theaters mentioned above have seen significant increases as well .", "Some of them have taken steps to minimize distractions and guard against spills .", "The New Amsterdam , home to `` Mary Poppins , '' serves all drinks -- even Champagne -- in spillproof keepsake plastic cups that muffle the sound of clinking ice , Some Nederlander theaters have begun using similar items , though at these you have to pay for the privilege of taking beverages back to your seat .", "Wine at the Richard Rogers , where `` Tarzan '' is playing , costs $ 7 if you drink it in an open cup in the lobby , but is $ 12 for a spillproof commemorative cup that you are allowed to take back to your seat .", "All the theater owners whose houses serve food said they were investigating packaging that would reduce wrapper noise .", "There is no hiding the smell and sound of freshly popped popcorn at the the Neil Simon or the Hilton however .", "In West End of London , where eating and drinking in the theater has long been allowed , quieter foods , including ice cream , are on the menu .", "Baz Bamigboye , an arts writer for The Daily Mail , said in an e-mail message that in his experience London theatergoers `` try and be considerate , '' while New York audience members often take a contrasting stance .", "`` I think the view is , ' If we 're paying $ 100 or so for a ticket , we can do what we like , ' `` he said of Broadway 's audiences .", "At a recent performance of the child-friendly musical `` Hairspray , '' most of the 50 people interviewed said they were unaware of the rule change .", "They thought bringing food to a seat had always been allowed .", "Theatergoers at `` Grey Gardens , '' which attracts a metropolitan crowd , were more familiar with past rules and did n't like the present ones .", "Only 4 out of 50 audience members surveyed said they thought allowing food inside the theater was a good idea .", "`` I came to hear Christine Ebersole , not a Skittles wrapper , '' Jacquelyn Zimbowne of Newark said after the show .", "Gerald Schoenfeld , the chairman of the Shubert Organization , agreed with Ms. Zimbowne .", "`` It annoys many patrons , '' he said .", "`` It causes a refuse problem .", "It damages our carpets .", "It can be disconcerting to the performers . ``", "No midshow snacking is allowed at any of the Shuberts ' 17 Broadway theaters .", "They restrict drinks and snacks to the lobby area .", "And that 's the way it should be , Ms. LuPone said .", "`` Broadway is about a theatrical experience , '' she said .", "`` It 's not about pulling out Marie Callender 's chicken pot pie and a Sterno .", "Would you go to church and pull out a ham sandwich .", "I do n't think so .", "Then why would you do it at the theater .", "`` ."], "summary": ["Many Broadway theaters have changed rules to allow audience members to bring food to their seats as attempt to cater to changing audience desires and also bring in more profit for theater .", "Actors and many seasoned theatergoers object .", "Chart of snacks with ratings on package noise , chewing noise and odds of dropping on floor .", "Drawings ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 32, 20, 8, 10, 35], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts", "Theater"]} +{"id": "1816485", "text": ["`` Mothers of America , let your kids go to the movies ! '' Always good advice , but the exhortation has dated a bit since 1960 , when Frank O'Hara made it the first line of his poem `` Ave Maria . ''", "`` Going to the movies '' has a quaint ring in the age of the plasma-screen home entertainment system , the iPod and video-on-demand .", "The movies are more than willing to come to us , which has inspired some sages , in and outside the film industry , to prophesy the obsolescence , or at least the increasing marginality , of paper tickets , bags of popcorn and big dark rooms lighted by a projector beam : the cultural ritual known dispassionately in the business as `` theatrical distribution . ''", "According to this vision , children are leading the slow exodus from the theaters .", "From an essay in the current issue of The New Yorker , for example , one learns that , when it comes to visual entertainment , kids these days are `` platform agnostic , '' perfectly happy to consume moving pictures wherever they pop up -- in the living room , on the laptop , in the car , on the cellphone -- without assigning priority among the various forms .", "David Denby , the author of the article and one of The New Yorker 's film critics , is an unapologetic adherent to the old-time religion , as am I , and his survey of the current technological landscape is colored by nostalgia for the old downtown movie palaces and the studio system that fed them .", "Of course , as Mr. Denby acknowledges , children have hardly disappeared from the movie audience .", "On the contrary , adolescents and their younger siblings are the most sought-after segments of the demographically segmented universe of potential viewers .", "The movies that make the most money , and therefore those on which the most production and advertising money is spent , are the ones that simultaneously reach down into the primary grades and up into the ranks of young adults .", "And there is special commercial potency in those movies that parents will be eager to see -- sometimes more than once -- with their children .", "Usually animated , always featuring big stars and wholesome lessons , these films are the ones pointedly aimed at the whole family : cute animals -LRB- and product tie-in toys -RRB- for the little ones , semi-naughty humor and exciting action for their older brothers and sisters , enough in the way of topicality or sophistication to keep mom and dad from losing their minds .", "In many ways the ascension of these movies is an encouraging development .", "Because entertainment aimed at children occupies a bigger share of the marketplace , the level of quality tends to be higher than it was , say , back in the heyday of Walt Disney live-action comedies .", "And the phenomenon of family viewing -- the mothers and fathers of America taking their children to the movies -- has become a central cultural activity consistent with the highly participatory style of parenthood currently in vogue .", "I would not wish it otherwise , but I also worry that the dominance of the family film has had a limiting , constraining effect on the imaginations of children .", "The point of Mr. O'Hara 's poem is that the movies represent a zone of mystery and cultural initiation : `` it 's true that fresh air is good for the body , `` he writes , '' but what about the soul / that grows in darkness , embossed by silvery images `` .", "Never mind that he also reminds his mothers that their offspring `` may even be grateful to you for their first sexual experience , which only cost you a quarter and did n't upset the peaceful home . ``", "How are they going to grow , if the images they see are carefully vetted for safety and appropriateness by the film industry .", "In other words : Parents of America , take your children to the movies you want to see ! Within reason , naturally .", "I cringe at the sight of strollers at `` Apocalypto '' or `` Saw III . ''", "But I also cringe at the timidity and cautiousness -- the hypersensitivity -- that confines family viewing to movies with a plush toy or fast food advertising tie-in .", "At their best , movies not only offer glimpses of fantastic imaginary worlds , but also inklings of what is , for children , the most intriguing and enigmatic world of all : the world of adulthood .", "For the last six months or so , in the guise of a civilian moviegoer , I have been conducting -LRB- with the sometimes unwitting assistance of my wife -RRB- a cautious , intermittent experiment .", "Ignoring the advice of the Motion Picture Association of America and the studio marketing departments about what my children , who are 10 and 7 , should see , I have taken them to revival houses and museums as well as to multiplexes .", "To musicals and subtitled films as well as to risqu\u00e9 action blockbusters and not-too-explicit love stories .", "This experiment has proceeded along two tracks , with two distinct but complementary intentions .", "I want them to learn to appreciate the varieties of this incomparably rich art form , which means learning to endure and even enjoy being occasionally bored , confused or scared .", "I also hope they will develop a taste for the act of moviegoing .", "The recent releases they have seen include `` Casino Royale , '' `` The Illusionist '' and `` The Pursuit of Happyness , '' none of which bored them or troubled their sleep and all of which seemed to me to be much better suited for their age cohort than mine .", "`` The Illusionist , '' in particular , with its star-crossed romance , its theatrical effects and its carefully turned plot twists , struck me as the kind of thing that would delight a bookish , intellectually curious fourth or fifth grader , and I was startled to see it in a theater full of adults .", "But I was gratified to hear my own children , on the subway ride home , puzzling out the intricacies of the plot and arguing about its ambiguities , just as the grownups did .", "Our house is full of DVDs , many of them acknowledged classics , reissued and remastered for rediscovery .", "And we have watched Charlie Chaplin and John Wayne , `` Casablanca '' and `` Frankenstein . ''", "But we also comb through the weekend movie listings in search of those dwindling numbers of screens that will show us old movies the old-fashioned way .", "On Saturdays we frequently find ourselves in sparsely peopled rooms staring at ancient shadows .", "Some adjustment of expectations is required : in the old movies people frequently talk faster and move more slowly .", "They burst into song without self-consciousness .", "There are fewer cuts , longer scenes and occasional visual anomalies .", "`` Why is he purple .", "`` my daughter asked in the middle of '' West Side Story , `` noticing the effects of an aging Technicolor print on Tony 's face .", "In `` The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance '' the tint would periodically switch from sepia to silver and back again .", "My son , noting each shift , wanted to know why it was happening : a question about aesthetics that I could only answer with a whispered lecture about chemistry .", "Most of the old movies he had seen were delivered by means of new technology .", "This one was old in the physical as well as the cultural sense .", "What he made of it I do n't know .", "-LRB- He was amused that Lee Marvin , as the titular villain , calls Jimmy Stewart 's character `` dude . '' -RRB-", "But he watched with an unusual intentness , the same quality of attention he brought to `` Monty Python and the Holy Grail , '' `` Oliver '' and `` Samurai Rebellion , '' some of the other stops on our haphazard tour of movie history .", "I 'm convinced that these films ' beguiling strangeness was magnified by the experience of seeing them away from home and its distractions , with the whir of the projector faintly audible in the background and motes of dust suspended in the path from projector to screen .", "Moviegoing , though unlikely to disappear , will probably never again be the universal rite it once was .", "This is not a catastrophe , just a change of habit .", "Going to the movies may survive as an acquired taste , and also , therefore , as an activity through which taste is acquired .", "FILM ."], "summary": ["A O Scott encourages bringing children to films other than family friendly movies approved by Motion Picture Association .", "Asserts that allowing children to view adult films , within reason , aids in cultivation of their imagination and helps them to become life-long moviegoers .", "Describes experience of taking his children to film The Illusionist and screenings of West Side Story and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [40, 18, 39], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1816495", "text": ["A survey by researchers at Villanova University has found that 85 percent of Roman Catholic dioceses that responded had discovered embezzlement of church money in the last five years , with 11 percent reporting that more than $ 500,000 had been stolen .", "The Catholic Church has some of the most rigorous financial guidelines of any denomination , specialists in church ethics said , but the survey found that the guidelines were often ignored in parishes .", "And when no one is looking , the cash that goes into the collection plate does not always get deposited into the church 's bank account .", "`` As a faith-based organization , we place a lot of trust in our folks , '' said Chuck Zech , a co-author of the study and director of the Center for the Study of Church Management at Villanova .", "`` We think if you work for a church -- you 're a volunteer or a priest -- the last thing on your mind is to do something dishonest , `` Mr. Zech said .", "`` But people are people , and there 's a lot of temptation there , and with the cash-based aspect of how churches operate , it 's pretty easy . ``", "Specialists in church ethics said they believed this was the first study to assess the extent of embezzlement in a denomination .", "Officials at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said they had seen the study , which was released just before Christmas and was first reported in the National Catholic Reporter , and were considering ways that parishes could tighten their financial controls .", "`` The Villanova study does not come as a surprise , '' said Bishop Dennis M . Schnurr , treasurer of the bishops ' conference .", "`` This is something that the bishops in this country have been looking at for some time .", "They are aware of a need to look for mechanisms that can assist parishes in accountability and transparency . ``", "Mr. Zech and his co-author , Robert West , a professor of accounting at Villanova , did not set out to look for embezzlement .", "They were conducting a study of internal financial controls in Catholic dioceses and sent a battery of questions to chief financial officers in the nation 's 174 Catholic dioceses .", "78 responded .", "Mr. Zech said he was surprised that so many dioceses had detected embezzlement .", "In 93 percent of those cases , police reports were filed .", "He said the survey did not ask who stole the church money .", "But it did ask who detected the theft , and found that it was most often the parish priest , followed by the bookkeeper , an internal auditor or the parish finance council .", "In October alone , three large cases of embezzlement surfaced , including one in Delray Beach , Fla . , where two priests spent $ 8.6 million on trips to Las Vegas , dental work , property taxes and other expenses over four decades .", "In the survey , 29 percent of the dioceses reported thefts of less than $ 50,000 .", "Most denominations have had cases of embezzlement , sometimes by top officials .", "In June , the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. fired its second-ranking financial officer , Judy Golliher , after she admitted stealing money that church officials put at more than $ 132,000 .", "Many nonprofit organizations that accept cash donations experience theft , and churches are particularly vulnerable , said John C . Knapp , director of the Southern Institute for Business and Professional Ethics , at Georgia State University in Atlanta .", "`` Churches have a tendency to be in denial about the potential for this conduct in their midst , '' Mr. Knapp said .", "`` When ethics seminars or ethics codes are proposed in churches , they are often met with resistance from people who say , ' Why in the world would we need this .", "After all , this is the church . '", "Whereas in business , people readily recognize that this sort of thing can happen . ``", "The Salvation Army is widely considered exemplary among nonprofits in handling cash collections .", "The red buckets in which bell ringers collect donations are covered and locked , and all buckets must be returned to a central location , where at least two people count the number and type of bills , coins and checks , said Major George Hood , the charity 's national spokesman .", "The money must be deposited in the bank within 24 hours , and different people reconcile the initial tallies with bank records , Major Hood said .", "In the Catholic Church , parishes and high schools handle many cash transactions , making them vulnerable to theft , the Villanova report notes .", "Canon law requires each parish to have a finance council to provide oversight .", "But Bishop Schnurr , who heads the diocese in Duluth , Minn . , said there were no standards for how finance council members were chosen or whether they should have any expertise in accounting or finance .", "Only 3 percent of the dioceses said they annually conducted an internal audit of their parishes , and 21 percent said they seldom or never audited parishes , the survey found .", "This lack of scrutiny is at the core of the problem , said Francis J . Butler , president of Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities , a nonprofit organization independent of the church .", "`` You 're taking a lot of risk , `` Mr. Butler said , '' and these days the church can not afford to take these kinds of risks . ``", "Bishop Schnurr said the study 's findings on lack of parish oversight contradicted his experience .", "But both he and Kenneth W . Korotky , chief financial officer for the bishops ' conference , said a committee could soon consider writing guidelines for the composition of parish finance councils and how often dioceses should audit parishes .", "But they cautioned that the bishops ' conference could not make guidelines mandatory , because each bishop was in charge of administering his own diocese .", "Jack B . Siegel , a tax lawyer and expert on nonprofit management who has commented on church fraud on his blog , charitygovernance.com, said he kept a tally of church frauds and was surprised by how many occurred at Catholic churches .", "`` I got interested because I thought , wait , I 've heard a lot about pedophilia , why are n't I hearing about these financial problems , `` Mr. Siegel said .", "He said he was impressed with the guidelines that the bishops ' conference and other Catholic organizations have offered .", "But he said , `` How those standards and guidelines get put into practice is what really matters . '' ."], "summary": ["Survey by researchers at Villanova University finds 85 percent of Roman Catholic dioceses that responded discovered embezzlement of church money in last five years , with 11 percent reporting more than $ 500,000 had been stolen .", "Specialists in church ethics claim Catholic Church has some of most rigorous financial guidelines of any denomination .", "But survey finds guidelines were often ignored in parishes .", "Officials at United States Conference of Catholic Bishops say they are considering ways that parishes could tighten their financial controls .", "Survey did not ask who stole money ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 7, 16], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1816506", "text": ["Book publishers braced themselves for a financial blow this week after a bankruptcy filing by Advanced Marketing Services , a book distributor .", "The company filed for bankruptcy protection last Friday , reporting more than $ 200 million in debt to dozens of publishing companies .", "Its creditors included publishers large and small , among them Random House , which is owed $ 43.3 million , and Good Books of Intercourse , Pa . , which specializes in books about the Amish and the Mennonites and is owed nearly $ 1 million .", "A publishing executive said that while authors and readers were unlikely to be affected by the bankruptcy filing , many publishers might not recover much of what they were owed .", "`` This is a huge disruption in this business , '' said the executive , who declined to be further identified because he was not authorized to speak for his company .", "`` The publishers are going to end up taking a big loss . ''", "According to the bankruptcy filing , Advanced Marketing Services has been looking for additional financing or a buyer for the last 18 months , enlisting the investment bank Jeffries & Company in the search .", "Advanced Marketing Services also owns Publishers Group West , a distributor for a consortium of publishers including Grove / Atlantic , which may be hit hardest by the bankruptcy filing .", "`` It 's a mess , `` said Morgan Entrekin , the publisher of Grove / Atlantic , adding that he had been meeting with lawyers for days and was scrambling , trying to figure out how to deal with the situation .", "Advanced Marketing Services was granted $ 75 million of debtor-in-possession financing by creditors so it could continue to function for the next several months .", "Simon & Schuster immediately suspended shipments to Advanced Marketing Services , a Simon & Schuster spokesman , Adam Roth-berg , said .", "Publishers would not give details on their business relationships with Advanced Marketing Services , but the company accounts for as much as 10 percent of some publishers ' sales .", "`` We 're exploring ways to keep working with them , `` a spokeswoman for HarperCollins , Erin Crum , said .", "A spokesman for Random House declined to comment .", "The bankruptcy filing came over the New Year 's weekend , catching many publishing executives by surprise .", "The book industry is largely shut down the week between Christmas and New Year 's Day , and some executives were still trickling back to work late this week .", "Advanced Marketing Services , founded in 1982 , has headquarters in San Diego .", "It acts as a middleman between publishers and booksellers , obtaining books directly from the publishers and distributing them to retailers like Sam 's Club , Costco and BJ 's Wholesale Club .", "The company operates three distribution centers , in Indianapolis .", "Hanover , Md .", "And Woodland , Calif .", "Advanced Marketing Services ' financial difficulties were widely known in the industry , after an accounting scandal in 2003 resulted in the ouster of several senior managers .", "A lawyer for the company did not return calls seeking comment .", "The distributor has near-exclusive access to the discount retailers known as price clubs , including Costco and Sam 's Club .", "The price clubs can produce lucrative returns for the right books , like cookbooks and mass-market reading , and can allow publishers to reach people who do not shop at bookstores .", "Books are a relatively small part of the price clubs ' total business , but they have one attribute that retailers love : the suggested retail price is printed directly on the book jacket .", "Because the books are then discounted by at least 20 or 30 percent , this promotes the feeling among buyers that the stores are offering them a bargain ."], "summary": ["Bankruptcy filing by book distributor Advanced Marketing Services deals financial blow to book industry .", "Advanced reports more than $ 200 million in debt to dozens of publishers , both large and small , such as Random House and Good Books .", "Filing means that publishers might not recover much of what is owed .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 1, 0, 3], "tag": ["Business", "Books"]} +{"id": "1816507", "text": ["One of the biggest proposed law firm mergers of the last year has been called off , the victim of too many insurmountable issues .", "The two firms , Dewey Ballantine and Orrick , Herrington & Sutcliffe , announced the news yesterday .", "The two had been in talks since last fall to join their specialties in mergers and acquisitions and debt financing .", "The new firm would have been one of the nation 's largest legal advisers , with 1,500 lawyers based in New York and San Francisco .", "Unlike most merger talks , which are conducted in secrecy , the firms announced in October that their top committees had given preliminary approval to the proposal .", "At every step in the process after that , the firms expressed confidence that the deal would go through .", "The two had already decided upon the name Dewey Orrick for the combined firm .", "Dewey 's chairman , Morton A . Pierce , and Orrick 's chairman , Ralph H . Baxter Jr . , would have served as co-chairmen , with Mr. Baxter taking on the additional title of presiding partner .", "Partners were to have voted on the deal last month .", "But as several obstacles proved intractable , those elections were postponed to this month .", "`` While both firms tried their best to work through these challenges , we were unable to bring the merger to completion , '' the two firms said in a statement .", "`` No one issue led us to this point . ''", "Among the most visible distress signals was the departure of 10 partners from Dewey since merger talks began .", "Most ominous were the exits of three lawyers from Dewey 's mergers and acquisitions team , including Michael J . Aiello and Jack S . Bodner , who had been considered prot\u00e9g\u00e9s of Mr. Pierce .", "People familiar with the negotiations said the talks had continued as recently as last weekend .", "The chairmen of both firms said in interviews that the decision to part ways was mutual .", "`` We reached a point where we decided it was in the best interest of both organizations to go our separate ways , '' Mr. Pierce said .", "Both chairmen said that they would look for future growth opportunities , but that neither was looking for another merger partner right now .", "`` When you look at how law firms grow , while mergers have great advantages , it 's the statistically least likely way to do it , `` Mr. Baxter said .", "Unlike mergers in other sectors , law firm consolidation involves the joining of companies whose main assets are their people .", "Orrick is acquainted with such situations , having undertaken merger talks with several firms in recent years , including Coudert Brothers in 2005 and Donovan , Leisure , Newton & Irvine in the late 1990s .", "None of those talks came to fruition , though Orrick subsequently hired lawyers from those firms .", "The dilution of brand names , unclear lines of authority and unfunded pensions are among some of the issues that may have played a role in the talks ' demise , said Peter Zeughauser , a law firm consultant who did not work on the deal .", "Unfunded pensions have long been a concern in the merger of law firms because partners inevitably bristle at taking a pay cut to help new colleagues ' retirement plans .", "Several consultants and lawyers at other firms previously questioned whether Dewey 's unfunded pension system would pose problems for the deal .", "`` It 's not at all uncommon for an unfunded retirement plan to be a deal breaker , `` Mr. Zeughauser said .", "A person familiar with the negotiations also pointed to questions over management authority .", "Though the deal had been labeled a merger of equals , it was clear that Orrick would retain control over crucial matters , the person said .", "Both Dewey and Orrick have long histories .", "Dewey is a storied New York adviser whose name comes from Gov . Thomas E . Dewey .", "Orrick is one of San Francisco 's oldest law firms , founded in 1863 .", "Both have prominent corporate deal-making and litigation practices .", "Dewey , a 550-lawyer firm , is known as a specialist in mergers and acquisitions , having advised on major deals like the hospital operator HCA 's $ 33 billion leveraged buyout .", "And Orrick , with more than 950 lawyers , is considered a leader in debt financing and capital market transactions and restructurings .", "Last year proved profitable for the two firms , with both claiming profits of about $ 1.4 million per equity partner .", "Dewey earned $ 408 million in gross revenue and Orrick pulled in $ 666 million for the 2006 fiscal year , both showing improvement over 2005 ."], "summary": ["Law firms Dewey Ballantine and Orrick , Herrington & Sutcliffe end talks for proposed merger .", "New firm would have been one of country 's largest legal advisors , with 1,500 lawyers .", "Firms say they could not agree on variety of issues and were unable to agree on terms of merger ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1, 8], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816510", "text": ["For deal makers , does it get any better than this .", "A heady cocktail of rapidly growing emerging markets , floods of private equity and hedge fund money , buoyant chief executive confidence and a hungry debt market that seems willing to snap up nearly everything that banks can dish out has created an environment so fertile that mergers in 2006 surpassed all records .", "Globally , there were $ 3.79 trillion worth of deals last year , up 38 percent from 2005 , according to data from Thomson Financial .", "Deals were even up 11 percent from the heights of 2000 , the year of the AOL-Time Warner merger that has come to symbolize the dangers of a mergers and acquisitions bubble .", "Many of the deals of that year left a hangover of bad debt and broken companies .", "Records were also broken last year for hostile deals and European deals .", "Dealogic , a competing statistics firm , says that 2006 deal flow was even higher , at $ 3.98 trillion .", "Gavin MacDonald , head of European mergers and acquisitions at Morgan Stanley , acknowledged that he had `` seen a few cycles '' in more than 20 years as a banker , but never one like this .", "`` We thought in 2000 we might not see its like again , but we 've surpassed even that , `` he said .", "No one can agree on what happens next .", "Steven A . Baronoff , the global head of mergers and acquisitions at Merrill Lynch , said , `` The question a lot of people are asking themselves is , ' Last time it ended relatively badly , so will we see the same kind of problems in the future .", "' `` Many bankers , perhaps not surprisingly , insist the answer is no .", "After all , deals during this boom have been happening throughout many industries , not concentrated in just telecommunications and new media as they were in 2000 .", "They are being financed by fast-growing cash flows and forgiving capital markets , not overpriced stock .", "`` This time around it is a very different environment , '' Mr. Baronoff said .", "`` It 's a much more balanced boom . ``", "And although deal volume is up , the prices that companies are paying are still well below what they were in 2000 , said David Kirshenbaum , chief operating officer for global mergers and acquisitions at Citigroup .", "`` We 're seeing lower premiums and much higher identifiable synergies , and a positive reaction from the stock market , `` he said .", "Others , however , see a slowdown in deals coming this year .", "Phil Isherwood , an equity strategist with Dresdner Kleinwort , said to `` prepare for a peak in 2007 . ''", "One of the symptoms , he said , is the prevalence of cash deals .", "Through mid-December , some 70 percent of announced mergers were cash instead of stock , he said , compared with a 10-year average of 40 percent .", "`` This use of cash is a symbol and symptom of a bubble , not an argument against it , '' he said .", "Too much money is chasing too few deals , driving up prices , Mr. Isherwood said .", "`` Bigger deals , bigger borrowing and bigger prices equals bigger risk , not bigger fun . ''", "Indeed , the ever-bigger buyouts of 2006 have raised concerns about the amount of debt used to do the deal .", "`` Given current leverage levels and recent developments in the economic / credit cycle , the default of a large private equity backed company or a cluster of smaller private equity backed companies seems inevitable . ''", "the Financial Services Authority , the British markets regulator , said in a November report .", "Private equity buyers accounted for nearly a fifth of all deals in 2006 , according to Thomson .", "The volume of these deals doubled in the United States in 2006 , as they aggressively outbid corporate buyers .", "For example , a group including Blackstone and the Texas Pacific Group bought the medical device company Biomet for $ 10.9 billion last month , snatching it from the jaws of a larger rival , Smith & Nephew of Britain , which had courted the company for months .", "To win the day , they are taking out larger and larger loans .", "Over all , $ 183.3 billion in high-yield debt was issued in 2006 , according to Thomson , up 52 percent from a year before .", "The key to keeping the merger mania going is liquidity -- or the willingness of banks to lend money .", "So far , the door has been wide open for most borrowers , thanks in part to the exponential growth of new products like credit derivatives and credit default swaps , which allow lenders lay off some of the risk to other buyers .", "That door , of course , could slam shut if a deal goes sour , predict bankers and investors .", "But so far , there is no sign the party is ending : Private equity funds raised about $ 400 billion in 2006 , and as of December had about $ 700 billion available to do deals .", "Morgan Stanley predicts that 2007 will bring even more large leveraged buyouts , including some huge European deals in the $ 25 billion to $ 35 billion range .", "If there is a slowdown on the horizon , many bankers predict it will not happen until at least the second half of the year .", "`` You 've seen a lot of activity in the fourth quarter , and that is a good harbinger for the first half of 2007 , `` Mr. Kirshenbaum of Citigroup said .", "There will continue to be a lot of activity in buyouts , emerging markets , and in Japan and the Middle East , he added .", "New market participants are adding to the trend , helping to smooth the way for hostile deal makers .", "`` Hedge funds have become the kingmakers , '' deciding at what price they will sell out , Mr. MacDonald of Morgan Stanley said .", "Chief executives can no longer rebuff takeover offers easily , because once one is made , their stock is often snapped up by hedge funds looking for a quick buck .", "This impact has been keenly felt in Europe , where such investors helped Mittal Steel take over a reluctant Arcelor , and may be pushing the London Stock Exchange into the hands of Nasdaq .", "That may not be the case in 2007 , though .", "`` The hedge funds have a lot of money , but it is yet unclear that they are getting great returns out of this , '' Mr. Baronoff of Merrill Lynch said .", "`` If they find other higher return activities , maybe they will focus a little less on activism , '' he said .", "Yet as Michael Tory , head of British investment banking at Lehman Brothers , said : `` As long as the liquidity is there and the sources of liquidity remain healthy , there is no reason this ca n't continue . ``", "STREET SCENE Correction : January 11 , 2007 , Thursday A chart on the Street Scene page of Business Day last Thursday that listed the leading merger and acquisition advisers misstated the value of the deals in 2006 .", "For Goldman , Sachs , the sector leader , it was $ 1.088 trillion , not $ 108.8 trillion .", "For the industry as a whole , the value of the deals was $ 3.805 trillion , not $ 380.5 trillion .", "A corrected chart can be found at nytimes.com/ business ."], "summary": ["Thomson Financial reports that 2006 mergers surpassed all records with $ 3.79 trillion worth of deals , up 38 percent from 2005 .", "Deals were up 11 percent from heights of 2000 mergers and acquisitions bubble that left much bad debt and many broken companies .", "Analysts are uncertain what future holds for fast-growing markets , but insist current boom is more balanced .", "Photo .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 3, 4, 15], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816520", "text": ["Democrats realized their political and legislative dream Thursday .", "Now they must face reality .", "As they take control of the House and Senate , members of the new majority must reconcile diverse ideological factions within their ranks and make a fundamental choice .", "They can spend their energy trying to reverse what they see as the flaws of the Bush administration and a dozen years in which conservative philosophy dominated Congress .", "Or they can accept the rightward tilt of that period and grudgingly concede that big tax cuts , deregulation , restrictions on abortion and other Republican-inspired changes are now a permanent part of the legislative framework .", "The competing drives were on display amid the constitutional hoopla Thursday and the emotion surrounding Representative Nancy Pelosi 's election as speaker , a position filled until now by the likes of Sam Rayburn , Joseph Cannon and Nicholas Longworth -- men whose names adorn nearby House office buildings .", "`` We have broken the marble ceiling , '' Mrs. Pelosi said after she was handed the gavel .", "In a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus earlier in the day , Mrs. Pelosi made her own allusions to the competing tugs on Democrats , noting the party was rooted in its traditions but not hostage to the past .", "She promised a new direction `` for all the people , not just the privileged few , '' a reflection of the leadership 's political and policy calculation that Democrats need to champion the average guy .", "`` The agenda we have is about restoring economic security to a very vulnerable middle class , '' said Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois , chairman of the Democratic Caucus .", "`` The real activity will be in those areas . ''", "Yet many Democrats contend that President Bush and the Republican-led Congress that was his partner moved the dial too far to the right in many cases .", "And they believe it will be the work of Democrats to make a significant course correction .", "`` I think there are a lot of things the people of America want changed , '' said Senator Patrick J . Leahy , Democrat of Vermont , the new chairman of the Judiciary Committee and a tough critic of some Bush policies .", "Mr. Leahy and others made clear that the new direction had to begin with American policy in Iraq .", "But their domestic legislative agenda suggests that they are picking selected fights rather than going for wholesale change .", "On the economy , they will move swiftly to increase the minimum wage .", "On social policy , they will challenge Mr. Bush by calling for expanded stem cell research .", "They will try to pass legislation increasing college aid for the middle class .", "All of those issues have the twin advantages of broad popular appeal tied to measurable economic impact on individuals .", "But Democrats are in no rush to engage in a fight with Mr. Bush over the ideological centerpiece of his domestic policy , his tax cuts .", "And they have showed no inclination to wade back into the abortion issue , despite its potency among many of their supporters .", "`` We have to keep our eye on the average American family and sort of push aside the interest groups left , right and center , '' said Senator Charles E . Schumer , Democrat of New York .", "`` The world has changed , and it demands new solutions , not the old Democrat and Republican nostrums . ''", "But there is no dispute that Mr. Bush 's legislative and executive record will get a microscopic examination via a renewed emphasis on oversight , a Congressional function Democrats say was all but abandoned in recent years .", "And the results of those inquiries could determine what policies Democrats try to unravel if they uncover a strong case against them .", "`` The Bush administration has passed an entire architecture of laws that are going to be reviewed , '' said Representative Dennis J . Kucinich of Ohio , one of the most liberal members of the House .", "Republicans are waiting to see what develops , uncertain if Democrats sincerely want to join hands and produce some consensus on public policy .", "Or , as one senior Republican asked , will Democrats hostile to the Bush administration be more like the scorpion in the fable with the frog , unable to resist the urge to sting even if they hurt themselves .", "Democrats acknowledge that with their minuscule majority in the Senate and one in the House that is not much larger , they lack the political muscle to go too far in reversing Bush policy even if that was their chief goal .", "And they already have their hands full with delivering on their own ambitious legislative agenda , following through on their pledges of bipartisanship and ethics overhaul and avoiding anything that costs the party its chance at the White House in 2008 .", "Leading Democrats say their best direction is forward , concentrating on establishing a new party legacy rather than obsessing with the perceived failings of Republican rule .", "The test for the party 's newly empowered leadership and the Congressional membership will be whether they can stick to that path .", "THE 110TH CONGRESS : NEWS ANALYSIS ."], "summary": ["News analysis : Democrats taking control of Congress must reconcile diverse ideological factions and make fundamental choice .", "They can focus new power on undoing Republican policies , or concede that GOP changes are permanent part of legislative framework , and move to set new policies .", "Leading Democrats say best direction is forward , concentrating on establishing new party legacy ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [31, 2, 4], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1816523", "text": ["Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt on Thursday evening in an effort to give momentum to the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations .", "But the meeting was overshadowed by an Israeli raid in the West Bank in which four Palestinians were killed and 20 wounded .", "Mr. Mubarak was clearly embarrassed by the timing of the raid , hours before the meeting of the two leaders in an Egyptian Red Sea resort town , Sharm el Sheik .", "He called it a hindrance to peace efforts and told Mr. Olmert that Egypt `` rejects and is indignant at the military operation . ''", "`` Israel 's security can not be achieved through military force but by serious endeavors toward peace , `` Mr. Mubarak added at his news conference with Mr. Olmert .", "Mr. Olmert said that he was sorry that innocent Palestinians were hurt , but that Israel would defend itself and was acting to arrest `` terrorists who had killed Israelis . ''", "He gave no explanation for the timing of the daylight raid , a vain attempt to arrest a wanted militant , which used unusual force in normally quiet Ramallah .", "He said Israeli troops returned fire , but did not initiate it .", "`` Things developed in a way that could not have been predicted in advance , '' he said .", "`` If innocent people were hurt , this was not our intention . ''", "The Palestinian Authority president , Mahmoud Abbas , with whom Mr. Olmert met last week , condemned the raid , saying in a statement that it `` proved that the Israeli calls for peace and security are fake . ''", "Palestinians have been calling for an extension of a Gaza truce with Israel to the West Bank .", "`` The continued aggression will only lead to the destruction of all efforts aimed at realizing peace , '' Mr. Abbas said .", "Mr. Olmert and Mr. Mubarak said Egypt was continuing its efforts to secure the release of an Israeli corporal captured in June by militants , offering in exchange several hundred Palestinian prisoners held by Israel .", "There had been speculation that the two men might be able to announce more concrete progress on the matter , which is blocking more substantive discussions with Mr. Abbas .", "Egyptian officials said that they were discussing another Olmert-Abbas meeting with Egyptian and Jordanian leaders present .", "Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is to visit the region this month .", "It was an unusual and emotional day for Mr. Olmert , during which he commemorated two legendary Israeli political figures , both of whom he succeeded in their jobs .", "Earlier , in Jerusalem , he spoke at the state funeral for the city 's fabled former mayor , Teddy Kollek , who died Tuesday at 95 and was buried in the area of the Mount Herzl cemetery reserved for Israel 's leaders .", "Mr. Olmert defeated Mr. Kollek to become Jerusalem 's mayor in a bitter political fight in 1993 .", "He said Israel 's first leader , David Ben-Gurion , had declared Jerusalem to be Israel 's capital in 1949 , but `` Teddy Kollek made it so . ''", "Thursday also marked a year since Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a second extensive stroke , which left him in a deep coma from which he is not expected to awaken .", "Mr. Olmert , Mr. Sharon 's deputy , was chosen to lead the Kadima Party in his stead and became prime minister , and he acknowledged Mr. Sharon 's tragedy at his news conference in Egypt .", "In general , Mr. Olmert has been regarded as inferior to Mr. Sharon and Mr. Kollek .", "In the latest opinion poll , conducted by the Dahaf Institute and reported Thursday in the newspaper Yediot Aharanot , nearly 70 percent of Israelis polled said they disapproved of Mr. Olmert 's performance as prime minister .", "Israelis are unhappy with the way he managed the summer 's war against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and do not much like his personality , contrasting him with the more stolid and experienced Mr. Sharon .", "Still , Mr. Olmert has proved himself a skilled politician , and early on Thursday Parliament quietly passed his $ 68 billion budget , a crucial test of his government 's ability to survive .", "The budget battle was always a great drama under Mr. Sharon , but Mr. Olmert , who has expanded his governing coalition to include parties ranging from Labor to the right-wing Israel Beiteinu Party of Avigdor Lieberman , had little difficulty .", "Mr. Olmert 's office is being rocked , though , by a new corruption scandal .", "He has not been touched by this scandal , though he has been under investigation for smaller cases of improper use of influence .", "But his longtime office director , Shula Zaken , has been put under house arrest and ordered not to contact Mr. Olmert as the police investigate whether she and the director of the Tax Authority , Jackie Matza , tried to help Ms. Zaken 's brother and two other businesspeople through the appointment of cronies to key jobs in return for tax breaks .", "About 30 people are under some form of detention in the spreading scandal .", "The operation in Ramallah by Israeli forces , with armored vehicles , bulldozers and helicopter support , was carried out hours before Mr. Olmert met with Mr. Mubarak .", "Palestinians and news reports said the operation was to arrest Rabiah Hamad of Fatah , a senior member of Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades .", "The army would not confirm that Mr. Hamad was the target , but said the man it wanted was armed and was wounded , but escaped .", "The army arrested four other wanted Palestinians , a spokesman said .", "It was a rare incursion into the heart of Ramallah , and it prompted an angry response .", "Youths on rooftops threw stones , metal trash barrels , a refrigerator and blocks of concrete at the Israeli Army vehicles .", "There were mortars fired at the Israeli soldiers , and an exchange of gunfire .", "Palestinian medics said four men -- Yussef Abdel Khader , 23 .", "Khalil al-Badawi , 20 .", "Jamal Jawela , 29 .", "And Ala al-Himran , in his 20s -- died at a Ramallah hospital from gunshot wounds .", "In Gaza there was continuing violence , with three more men killed in fighting between Fatah and Hamas .", "The fighting centered around the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza after gunmen surrounded the houses of known political or security figures .", "In Beit Lahiya , a senior Fatah commander , Col . Muhammad Gharib , was killed and his wife severely wounded when Hamas militants attacked his home with rifle fire and rocket-propelled grenades .", "Two of his bodyguards were also killed .", "About 25 others were wounded in Jabaliya , and local radio was filled with appeals to the gunmen to restore calm .", "On Wednesday five Palestinians , including a woman who was a passer-by , were killed and 12 wounded in Fatah-Hamas gun battles , which broke a weeklong lull .", "Other militant factions arranged a truce overnight and kidnapped members of Hamas and Fatah were released by the other sides , but the truce broke down on Thursday .", "The Palestinian prime minister , Ismail Haniya , returned to Gaza on Thursday from hajj , his pilgrimage to Mecca , Saudi Arabia .", "His entourage underwent a special inspection in El Arish , Egypt , to ensure that he was not carrying large amounts of cash back to Gaza , which has been deprived of most Western aid since Hamas won parliamentary elections last January .", "-LSB- Early Friday , Mr. Haniya said he and Mr. Abbas had agreed at emergency talks to keep gunmen from their parties off Gaza 's streets . -RSB-", "For the fourth day there was no word about a kidnapped Peruvian photographer for Agence France-Presse , Jaime R\u00e1zuri , 50 , who is said by colleagues to be lacking a required heart medication .", "Palestinian security services have warned foreign journalists to keep out of Gaza for now , because of the kidnappings and chaos .", "A leader of the Palestinian People 's Party , Bassam al-Salhi , said the security chaos could be resolved only with political agreement .", "`` The weakness of the Palestinian political system and the situation of the current Hamas-led government have contributed to this state of lawlessness , '' he said ."], "summary": ["Israeli Prime Min Ehud Olmert 's meeting with Pres Hosni Mubarak of Egypt in effort to advance Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiationsis is overshadowed by Israeli raid in West Bank that kills four Palestinians and wounds 20 others .", "Mubarak , clearly embarrassed by timing of raid , tells Olmert that Egypt ` is indignant ' at military operation .", "Olmert voices regret that innocent Palestinians were hurt , but says Israel was acting to arrest ` terrorists who had killed Israelis ' .", "Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas also condemns raid .", "Olmert and Mubarak say Egypt is continuing its efforts to secure release of Israeli corporal captured in June by militants .", "Earlier in day , Olmert speaks at state funeral for Jerusalem 's fabled former mayor Teddy Kollek , who died at age of 95 .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 5, 18, 1, 0, 3], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1816545", "text": ["The foot was balanced on a shopping bag after being scooped up off the dirty street by a man in a track suit .", "There was no person to go with the limb .", "Nearby a charred body was still smoldering , smoke coming off the black corpse 45 minutes after the attack .", "For 50 yards , the dead were scattered about , some in pieces , some whole but badly burned .", "This violence on Thursday involved two bombs timed to go off one after another in the formerly upscale neighborhood of Mansour , which continues to be ripped apart by sectarian violence .", "Thirteen people were killed and 22 wounded , just a small fraction of the civilians killed across the country this week .", "The first device went off at 10:15 a.m. , probably a roadside bomb set on a timer , officials said .", "The attack was apparently aimed at a gasoline station .", "Cars were lined up around the block waiting for fuel , and dozens of people , grasping large plastic jugs , hoped to buy heating fuel .", "Just moments after the first explosion , a second , larger , car bomb detonated .", "The neighborhood has traditionally been a mixed Sunni and Shiite one .", "Although the Abu Jaffar gas station , where the attack was centered , is in what is considered a Sunni area , the method of the attack -- multiple bombs timed to explode in succession -- is usually thought of as a trademark of Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia , a Sunni insurgent group .", "An hour after the explosion , there was still a strong stench of burning gasoline and fire .", "The road was slick with sludge from the water used to douse the fire .", "Blood pooled in areas .", "Scores of armed men were running about , including members of the Iraqi Army and the police .", "Some of those with machine guns had no uniforms at all .", "Shots rang out , mostly in warning .", "Neighbors gathered outside , oddly calm and seemingly accustomed to such carnage .", "A tanker truck filled with fuel was parked near the station , having escaped the blast .", "Not surprisingly , residents living near the area blamed everyone from the government to the Americans to terrorists for what had happened .", "`` We are just innocent people , '' said Nafia Abdul Jabbar .", "`` The people killed were poor , in need of kerosene that they can not afford to buy on the black market because the price is 10 times more than it is at the station . ''", "Elsewhere , a mortar attack was directed at the Shiite neighborhood of Huriya , wounding three people , officials said .", "Clashes on the outskirts of the Sunni neighborhood of Ghazaliya left two people dead and 25 people wounded , Iraqi officials said .", "A grenade attack in the Amin neighborhood killed five people .", "Across the city on Thursday , officials said , 47 bodies were found mutilated -- 4 of them with their heads cut off .", "An interview with the family of a man recently mutilated and killed , a prominent sheik considered to be the prince of the Tamim tribes , gives a glimpse into the complicated underworld that is , in part , responsible for the trucks full of bodies collected around this city every day .", "The man , Sheik Hamid Mohammed al-Suhail , 75 , was found Wednesday in the Shuala neighborhood of Baghdad , a Shiite redoubt , by members of his tribe , which is mixed Shiite and Sunni , who were searching for him .", "He disappeared last Sunday , and his mutilated body was found wrapped in a blanket , covered in blood .", "The search party recognized his body by the distinctive way the beard was trimmed .", "He had been an outspoken critic of the sectarian fighting and participated in a recent conference in Cairo on national reconciliation .", "The kidnappers , whom his relatives hinted they knew but would describe only as `` militiamen '' for fear of reprisal , initially called his family asking for $ 100,000 , said a nephew , Sheik Ali Sammi al-Suhail .", "The family told the kidnappers they did not have the money , the nephew said .", "`` The body was mutilated in a brutal way , '' he said .", "`` They used a drill on him and perhaps other tools . ''", "One hand and one leg were almost completely severed .", "The nephew said he had been told by people who said they witnessed the killing that after his uncle was tortured , his body was thrown from a two-story building .", "He survived the fall but was brutalized further before finally being killed .", "Another prominent Iraqi figure , Sheik Akram al-Zubeidi , was killed Thursday in Karbala , a Shiite holy city where there has been little sectarian strife .", "Sheik Zubeidi was assassinated when he was stopped at a fake checkpoint , a local hospital official said .", "Three other people in the car with him were also killed by the gunmen , whose motive was unclear .", "There was continued fallout Thursday from the execution of Saddam Hussein , as Sunnis , from Kashmir to Libya , used his death as a rallying point .", "The Libyan government announced that it would erect a statue of him to stand next to one of Libya 's own national heroes , news agencies reported .", "At least nine people were hurt in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir when the police fired rubber-coated bullets to break up a large group of people protesting the execution , Reuters reported .", "Two Iraqi officials involved in the investigation of the distribution of a graphic video of the hanging said Thursday that a second guard was being held for questioning .", "Officials announced the arrest of the first guard on Wednesday .", "There is increasing pressure , including from the White House , on the Iraqi government to proceed with caution in carrying out the execution of Mr. Hussein 's two co-defendants , Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti , Mr. Hussein 's half brother , and Awad al-Bandar , a former judge .", "Despite the international reaction directed at the government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki , Mr. Maliki 's popularity among Shiites in southern Iraq seems to have increased .", "In Basra , Iraq 's second largest city , hundreds of demonstrators representing Islamist parties rallied in the streets , praising Mr. Maliki and setting photos of Mr. Hussein on fire .", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Two bombs go off in formerly upscale Baghdad neighborhood of Mansour , killing 13 people and wounding 22 others .", "Method of attack -- multiple bombs timed to explode in succession -- is seen as trademark of Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia , Sunni insurgent group .", "Elsewhere , mortar attack is directed at Shiite neighborhood , wounding three people .", "In Baghdad , trucks full of bodies are being collected every day .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 23], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1816553", "text": ["Responding to the shooting death of an unarmed Queens man by police officers nearly seven weeks ago , New York City 's Police Department has commissioned a six-month independent review of its firearms training , of instances in which officers have fired their guns and of the phenomenon of so-called contagious shooting , the department 's top official said yesterday .", "The study , which police officials said was the first of its kind commissioned by the department , will be done by the RAND Corporation , a private nonprofit organization that has reviewed police practices in other major cities , Police Commissioner Raymond W . Kelly said .", "The announcement came amid continuing bitterness since the death of Sean Bell , who was killed in a hail of 50 police bullets in Jamaica , Queens , hours before his wedding on Nov . 25 .", "`` Questions have arisen as to the quality and effectiveness of our training '' Mr. Kelly said at a news conference .", "`` We thought it would be appropriate to bring in a recognized world-renowned nongovernment organization to take a look at all of our firearms training . ''", "Mr. Kelly said a team from RAND would assess five aspects of firearm use by police officers .", "They include initial , continuing and tactical firearms training , investigations of police-involved shootings , and situations in which shots fired by one officer spur other officers to shoot , a phenomenon that may have played a role in Mr. Bell 's death .", "The organization will delve into the details of shootings in which the police are involved , examining an officer 's experience , the nature of the threat , the environment in which they fired their guns and other issues .", "Comparisons will be drawn to firearms training in other law enforcement agencies , Mr. Kelly said .", "RAND will not be looking into the death of Mr. Bell , which is under review by a grand jury in Queens , Mr. Kelly said .", "K . Jack Riley , the acting director of the RAND Center on Quality Policing , said the organization had previously evaluated training in the Los Angeles Police Department , investigated racial profiling among Oakland police officers , and examined ways to improve recruitment and retention among the police in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina .", "`` This is a very proactive step the N.Y.P.D. is taking , '' Mr. Riley said .", "`` I think there is an honest interest in having a dispassionate third party take an objective look at their training , and see if there 's anything they 're not getting right -- or can improve -- with regards to firearms training . ``", "News of the New York study , which will cost about half a million dollars and be paid for by the New York City Police Foundation , a charity that supports the Police Department , drew mixed responses from experts in firearms and police tactics .", "Thomas A . Reppetto , a former president of the Citizens Crime Commission , said that bringing in an outside organization like RAND would likely inspire more public confidence , which has wavered of late , than an in-house Police Department review would .", "But Dean Speir , who writes about firearms and tactics , asked why the Police Department had not undertaken such a review before , citing the death of Amadou Diallo , the unarmed West African immigrant whom officers shot at 41 times .", "Another expert suggested that the money would be better spent on hands -on tactical training .", "`` If you talk to cops , they 'll tell you people on the front line are starved for operational training , `` said Eugene O'Donnell , a professor of police studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice .", "But Paul J . Browne , a spokesman for the department , said that one purpose of the review was to determine whether the current training needed to be revamped .", "He also noted that Mr. Kelly was not the police commissioner during the Diallo shooting .", "`` What the commissioner wants is an independent assessment , '' Mr. Browne said .", "`` If the training needs to be improved , he wants an independent assessment of what improvements are needed . '' ."], "summary": ["New York City Police Dept commissions Rand Corp to do $ 500,000 independent review of its firearms training .", "Will study instances when officers fire their guns , focusing on ` contagious shootings , ' or why one officer 's shot spurs others to shoot .", "Police Comr Raymond W Kelly hopes to improve quality and effectiveness of training .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1816555", "text": ["For decades , activist shareholders were an entertaining , but largely ignored , Wall Street sideshow .", "Disgruntled investors would attend annual meetings to harangue executives , criticize strategies -- and protest that their complaints were being ignored .", "One agitator appeared in face paint and a red nose after executives called him a clown .", "Today , however , it seems that activists have captured the center ring and are directing the main event .", "On Wednesday , shareholder advocates could claim one of their biggest prizes yet when Home Depot announced the resignation of its chairman and chief executive , Robert L . Nardelli , long a target of shareholder ire for his large compensation and the company 's flagging stock price .", "The main investor who pressed for the overthrow at Home Depot might at first glance seem an unlikely rebel : Ralph V . Whitworth , a lawyer educated at Georgetown and a former campaign worker for President Ronald Reagan who in December announced he had bought about $ 1 billion of the retailer 's stock , or a 1.2 percent stake , through his fund , Relational Investors .", "But the rapid success of Mr. Whitworth 's campaign against the management and strategy of Home Depot demonstrates how thoroughly activists have moved into Wall Street 's inner sanctum .", "Mr. Whitworth has said he still intended to nominate himself and at least one other candidate to Home Depot 's board at its shareholder meeting in the spring .", "`` There 's a lot more respect for investors like me now , `` said Mr. Whitworth , 51 .", "`` I still have to make threats , but now everyone wants to deal with us fast .", "They realize we 've got real power and we 're here to stay .", "`` The shake-up at Home Depot may be just a taste of things to come as shareholders and management at a number of companies , including Brink 's , the Borders Group and Applebee 's International , square off for battle at annual meetings this spring .", "As those fights begin , expect few clown noses .", "`` Activist shareholders have a power and audience beyond what they 've ever enjoyed , `` said Howard Steinberg , a lawyer who advises corporate boards and deal makers .", "`` They 're developing a credible track record , and as a result , more and more managers are forced to engage with them .", "Activists ' time has come . ``", "Since July , activists have pressed successfully to push out chief executives at Pfizer and Sovereign Bank .", "Institutional investors and mutual funds have set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to invest in underperforming companies with the intention of demanding new board seats or alternative strategies .", "Much of that newfound influence is owed to recent legal changes and heightened attention to issues like executive compensation .", "But it also draws on the fact that many activists have now amassed the wealth , knowledge and networks critical for success .", "`` For years these guys were seen as politically motivated oddballs or annoying attention seekers , '' said Nell Minow , editor of the Corporate Library , a research group that rates corporate governance practices .", "`` Now some of those same people control hundreds of millions of dollars and have been around longer than many C.E.O. ' s '' Before the 1980s , much shareholder activism was directed by ideological agitators , including unions , religious organizations and populist figures like Ralph Nader , who bought shares in companies as platforms for urging social , environmental or political changes .", "The United Shareholders Associations , which Mr. Whitworth helped found in 1986 with the corporate raider Boone Pickens , was one of the first major efforts to organize shareholder activists around profit-minded goals .", "Every spring the group would select about 50 companies and begin asking embarrassing questions at shareholder meetings .", "In 1993 , the last year of the group 's operation , 25 of 43 of the companies , including I.B.M , reached agreements with Mr. Whitworth .", "`` The head of General Mills once called me a socialist , '' Mr. Whitworth said in an interview .", "`` I told him I was the ultimate capitalist .", "Business people would return my calls for the first time , and it was giving me an entree into a world I otherwise could n't access . ``", "Foremost among the goals successfully sought by United Shareholders were regulatory changes that made it possible for dissidents to nominate only one or two directors to a board , rather than an entire slate .", "By the mid-1990s , corporate raiders realized the rule offered a less expensive way to stage a takeover rather than buying a company outright .", "When the California Public Employees ' Retirement System began looking for a fund that would use activism to increase returns in 1996 , Mr. Whitworth and a colleague , David H . Batchelder , founded Relational Investors .", "The fund today oversees about $ 7 billion , all invested in only nine companies that are chosen with an eye toward activist intervention .", "In most cases , Mr. Whitworth forces his way onto a company 's board , either by threatening or staging a proxy fight .", "Investors say the fund has averaged a return of about 25 percent annually over the last nine years .", "Activist shareholders like Relational were further aided by changes in the law .", "In particular , they say that regulations passed in 2004 requiring money managers and mutual funds to disclose how they vote in proxy elections have forced once-passive managers to become activists .", "`` There was a sense before that mutual funds in particular just voted with management , '' said Ann Yerger , executive director of the Council of Institutional Investors .", "`` But post-Enron and Tyco , investors expect money managers to justify their votes now , and to be listening to anyone warning about dangers . ''", "Moreover , money managers and hedge funds are beginning to advertise their activist intentions , bragging that aggressiveness gives them an edge .", "In November , the noted investor Robert A . Olstein announced formation of an activist fund .", "`` We want to have an edge , '' said Eric R . Heyman , co-manager of the new Olstein Strategic Opportunities Fund .", "`` Our skill is approaching companies and persuading management to adopt certain decisions , sometimes aggressively , and that 's why people invest with us . ``", "Another important shift is a court ruling last year making it easier for shareholders to challenge directors nominated by companies .", "`` Shareholders ' toolboxes are getting more and more robust every year , `` said Ms. Minow of the Corporate Library .", "Moreover , as the number of activist investors grows , a vast ad hoc network has formed that makes it more difficult for companies to win a fight .", "The universe of activist investors has expanded to include hedge funds like Pirate Capital , which is fighting to add its executives to the board of the security company Brink 's , and investors like Carl C . Icahn , who failed to gain board seats after a public spat with Time Warner 's chief executive , Richard D . Parsons .", "When two activist investors , Pershing Square Capital Management and Nelson Peltz , bought large amounts of stock in Wendy 's International in 2005 , many other like-minded buyers jumped in , according to analysts .", "As a result , the board had no choice but to accept activists ' suggestions , said James V . Pickett , Wendy 's chairman .", "Ultimately , three representatives of Mr. Peltz 's fund joined the board .", "`` Most of the issues the activists raised at Wendy 's were things we were already dealing with , `` Mr. Pickett said .", "`` They just increased the intensity .", "But when they own that much of the company , you have to listen to them even if you do n't want to . ``", "For Mr. Whitworth , who has grown so wealthy that he once gave a charity $ 1 million in exchange for PaulMcCartney 's playing at his wife 's 50th birthday party , that kind of access has increased his effectiveness , he says .", "After forcing his way onto the board of Mattel , Mr. Whitworth was given a gold-plated Barbie in appreciation by other directors when he left .", "But such shifts have also increased his ambitions .", "`` I was a firebrand .", "Now I 've mellowed a lot , `` he said .", "`` But I 'm still young .", "I look forward to helping a lot more companies become more efficient , whether they like it or not . `` ."], "summary": ["Rapid success of activist shareholder Ralph V Whitworth to get Home Depot 's former chief executive Robert L Nardelli to resign demonstrates how thoroughly activists have moved into Wall Street 's inner sanctum .", "Whitworth has said he still intends to nominate himself and at least one other candidate to Home Depot 's board at its shareholder meeting in spring .", "Shake-up at Home Depot may be just beginning as shareholders and management at many companies battle at annual meeting this spring .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 6, 11], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816557", "text": ["For a half-century , the blue oval logo atop Ford Motor 's headquarters has served as a kind of beacon for the American automobile industry , a signpost for local motorists on area highways and a guidepost for pilots landing at Detroit 's airport nearby .", "But lately , blue is the only word for the malaise surrounding Ford , which is rapidly seeing its position in the industry and in its hometown eroded by its failure to combat foreign competition .", "This year , Ford expects to permanently lose its grip on second place in the American market to Toyota , which passed it twice in monthly sales in the last six months , including December .", "As many as half its blue - and white-collar employees have decided to take voluntary buyouts from a company where jobs were long seen as lifetime guarantees .", "Ron Cimino , 44 , used to regret not landing a job at Ford , where his father worked for 52 years .", "Turned down in 1984 because he lacked a master 's degree , Mr. Cimino of Dearborn wound up starting his own import-export business .", "`` I 'm glad I did n't end up working at Ford , `` he said .", "`` I never thought I 'd say that . ``", "To be sure , General Motors and Chrysler have their own problems that are weighing on this city .", "Their headquarters are here , too , as are some of their car plants , and thousands of their employees have their own worries as each company struggles financially .", "But Ford 's troubles , arguably , are felt more acutely here .", "After all , G.M. placed a good bulk of its manufacturing 60 miles north , in Flint , Mich . , and once had factories from Massachusetts to California as well as the Midwest .", "Chrysler , though still a big local employer , has had German owners for nearly a decade .", "Ford , by contrast , is woven more into the fabric of Detroit , with the Ford name on office buildings , museums , high schools and highways , as well as the football stadium , Ford Field , which opened downtown in 2002 .", "Now , as the annual Detroit auto show prepares to open to the media this weekend , much of this city 's bedrock is unexpectedly at risk .", "In November , Ford disclosed it had pledged nearly all its assets , including the trademark on its 100-year-old logo , as collateral against $ 25 billion in loans needed to fund its restructuring .", "Ford has generated a particular sense of sympathy , bewilderment and fear here that its crosstown rivals have not .", "There is sympathy , analysts say , because more of a human element is involved , namely the Ford family .", "Puzzlement because Ford seemed to be the one Detroit auto company that had an answer for Japanese competition in the 1980s and 1990s with its profitable sport utility vehicles .", "And fear that if a once-powerful company like Ford could falter , no one in Detroit may be safe .", "The sentiment is readily voiced in places like Miller 's Bar , where the red leather barstools and colored Christmas lights evoke the watering hole in `` It 's A Wonderful Life . ``", "It has been a Dearborn gathering spot since 1941 .", "`` Dearborn , '' said the owner , Mark Miller , `` is Ford . ''", "Judy Dolan , a secretary for the Detroit Building Trades Council , said during an interview at her home , `` I feel horrible about the situation they 're in . ``", "She drives only Ford vehicles in support of her hometown company .", "Concern over Ford 's future bubbled up late last month in conversation at the holiday cocktail parties held by the Detroit and foreign car companies and their parts suppliers .", "Given the attention to Ford 's situation , the company 's new chief executive , Alan R . Mulally , who arrived in September from the Boeing Company , is already recognized wherever he goes .", "Mr. Mulally said in an interview that he was recently lost in a local supermarket when another shopper came up to him .", "`` Oh , Mr. Mulally , we 're so glad you 're here , `` he recalled her saying , before she helped him find shampoo .", "His predecessor was William Clay Ford Jr . , who became the face of the company in television ads over the last four years as he struggled to fix Ford 's problems -LRB- he remains chairman -RRB- .", "The family is the reason many company employees past and present refer to the automaker as Ford 's .", "It is not a grammatical error , as visitors here might assume , but a nod to the fact that it is a company built by the original Henry and all the Fords that followed him .", "`` The Fords have a relationship with the American people , '' said James P . Womack , the author and expert in manufacturing efficiency who advised Mr. Mulally at Boeing .", "They include Kevin Boyle 's retired father , also named Kevin , who immigrated to Dearborn from Ireland in the 1950s , drawn by the chance to work for a company founded by the most famous man in the auto business .", "`` People came to Detroit with an intense connection with that name , and then their lives became tied up with that name , '' said Mr. Boyle , a professor of history at Ohio State who has written extensively about the automobile industry .", "`` It was a badge of honor to work for Ford . ''", "Numerous families here boast multiple generations of Ford employees , some who worked on the assembly line , others -- fathers and sons , mothers and daughters -- who toiled in company offices .", "`` I started there when I was 19 , and my whole family worked there , '' said Karen Kenniburg , who manages the vehicles driven by Ford executives .", "The Fords , for their part , have given back , not just in jobs but also in charities .", "Guests at a Nissan holiday party last month at the New Detroit Science Center drank wine and munched crab cakes beneath a wall of donors dotted with names of various Fords .", "The same was true for Honda , whose event took place in an atrium outside Orchestra Hall .", "That seeming omnipresence , however , makes the departures from Ford more poignant .", "Last month , more than 30,000 blue-collar workers accepted deals to give up their jobs .", "About half were ready to retire , but the rest were workers who did not have enough seniority to begin drawing pensions .", "They accepted payments of up to $ 140,000 apiece to leave .", "Ford 's white-collar employees are not exempt .", "The company has already cut 4,000 managers , and 10,000 more are set to go by spring .", "Last month , one of every three salaried employees was called in by their boss to be told Ford was giving them the opportunity for a buyout .", "If they did not accept , their jobs might not be safe , some were told .", "Altogether , more than 45,000 people , or half the number employed by the company at the beginning of the year , will not be working at Ford in 2007 .", "That is likely to hurt business at Miller 's Bar , where 60 percent of the patrons work for Ford , and 18 of 25 cars in the parking lot on a recent afternoon bore Ford logos .", "Others will be affected , as well .", "At a Starbucks on Michigan Avenue , a mile away from Ford 's headquarters , and once a hangout for Mr. Ford , one customer , Shelley Boda , 32 , said she was unable to land a job at the company , where her father , grandfather and numerous relatives worked .", "Instead , she chose the health care field , now less of a safe haven than she had hoped .", "With Ford cutting so many jobs , and the rich benefits that went with them , `` there wo n't be anyone here who can afford health care , `` she said .", "Professor Boyle said Ford employees and the community were now realizing that what they thought was a `` safe bet '' was not .", "`` The funny thing is , people did n't see it as a bet , `` he said .", "`` You would have parents who worked the line and have enough to send kids to college .", "They would go off and get engineering degrees , marketing degrees and work for the companies .", "`` That has crumbled .", "There are few things more terrifying than that . ``", "And yet , many still believe in the power of the Fords themselves to save their company .", "Ms. Kenniburg said they gave Ford an advantage over G.M. and Chrysler as they devise a comeback plan .", "`` The Ford family , '' she said , `` they 're going to do everything in their power to keep this company going . `` ."], "summary": ["Much of bedrock of Detroit , Mich , is unexpectedly at risk as annual Detroit auto show prepares to open to media .", "Ford in November disclosed it had pledged nearly all its assets , including trademark logo , as collateral against $ 25 billion in loans needed to fund its restructuring .", "Ford has generated particular sense of sympathy , bewilderment and fear in Detroit that its crosstown rivals have not .", "Analysts say there is sympathy because of human element is involved , namely Ford family .", "Puzzlement because Ford seemed to be one Detroit auto company that had answer to Japanese competition in 1980s and 1990s with its profitable sport utility .", "Fear that if once-powerful company like Ford could falter , no on in Detroit may be safe .", "Some residents comment .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 18, 16, 19, 17, 14], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816558", "text": ["Everyone who knows him says it : In a tough fight , Kenneth G . Langone is a guy you want in your corner .", "But when Robert L . Nardelli , the former chief executive of Home Depot , refused to bend to the will of an exasperated board and accept a pay cut , he lost the crucial support of a friend who as lead director not only recruited him but presided over his compensation contract that would later draw so much fire .", "For Mr. Langone , a voluble man whose passions include Italian meatballs , golf and the Roman Catholic Church , it was a surprising reversal .", "Mr. Langone prides himself on his loyalty to his friends and , as a director who has served on the compensation committees of General Electric , Yum Brands and the New York Stock Exchange , he has never been shy about paying his chief executives well .", "Now , people who have spoken with him in recent days say , he is angry with Mr. Nardelli over his unwillingness to have his pay reduced .", "In an era of escalating pay , with chief executives on Wall Street taking in $ 50 million a year and former General Electric executives like David Calhoun getting $ 100 million compensation deals from private equity investors , being paid well was a way for Mr. Nardelli , a scrappy former football player , to keep score .", "In light of Mr. Langone 's vocal and unyielding support for the $ 190 million pay package that was awarded to Richard A . Grasso , the former chief executive of the New York Stock Exchange , he might have been expected to fight to the bitter end to save Mr. Nardelli .", "But as friends who have served on boards with him say , beneath the bluster and occasional histrionics lies a more pragmatic man well aware of his fiduciary duties as a director -- especially at Home Depot , a company that he helped found and that has made him a billionaire .", "`` Ken does not back down , but he also has a strong sense of propriety , '' said Gary E . Earlbaum , a real estate executive who introduced Mr. Langone to Bernard Marcus , a founder of Home Depot , more than 30 years ago .", "`` His loyalty is to the enterprise . ''", "Mr. Langone declined to comment .", "Mr. Nardelli did not return messages left for him .", "At age 71 , when many corporate executives start slowing down a bit , Mr. Langone continues to manage a full schedule of corporate , political , legal and philanthropic activities .", "He is a top financial supporter of Rudolph W . Giuliani , who is weighing a possible run for the White House , and he is the chairman of New York University Medical Center .", "Mr. Langone also still devotes considerable time and energy to contesting the lawsuit brought against him and Mr. Grasso by Eliot Spitzer , the former attorney general for New York who is now the state 's governor .", "That 's all in addition to his day job , running Invemed Associates , the small investment bank he founded .", "But it has been his passionate and unstinting defense of Mr. Grasso 's pay , much of which was set during his time on the exchange 's compensation committee , that has come to define Mr. Langone 's public image .", "His detractors see him as a living symbol of the excesses of runaway executive compensation , a bullying old-school titan whose tendency to befriend his chief executives blinds any objective ability he might have had to keep a ceiling over their pay .", "Mr. Grasso 's huge compensation package , and , according to the lawsuit brought by Mr. Spitzer , his efforts to keep other directors in the dark about it , are perfect examples of this , they say .", "`` Ken Langone is the root of the problem .", "His philosophy is that you can never pay a C.E.O. too much money , `` said Richard Ferlauto , the director of pension investment policy at the A.F.L. - C.I.O.", "`` That was revealed in his defense of Grasso .", "Now we are focusing on the role of Langone `` at Home Depot , he said .", "`` We blame him and his cronies for the original contract . ''", "His defenders , on the other hand , point to his long experience as a director and his acute knowledge of a director 's responsibilities , honed from more than 30 years ' experience as an independent investor .", "Yes , he has a big heart and an inclination to overpay at times , they say , but his ethics are beyond dispute .", "`` I do n't care what kind of a battle I 'm in but I would want Ken Langone on my side , because he is on the side of honor and righteousness , `` said Frank Borman , a former director at Home Depot .", "Mr. Langone 's pursuit of Mr. Nardelli , whom he met in 1999 , when he became a G.E. director , was infused with a sense of glee at the prospect of landing such a corporate star .", "Mr. Nardelli , well aware of the value of the G.E. pedigree , drove a hard bargain .", "A result was the 2000 contract , which , with its guarantees and perks , may well be an anachronism today as rich pay packages come under increasing scrutiny .", "At Home Depot , Mr. Langone is a particularly involved director .", "He is chairman of the nominating committee and has played a significant role in shaping the current board .", "He is also a member of the executive and audit committees .", "He would frequently start his mornings with a call to Mr. Nardelli , and he thrilled in digesting the latest sales data as well as updates about Lowe 's , the retailer 's main competitor .", "And , while walking the floors at store outlets was a responsibility for directors , Mr. Langone did more than his share , as well as inspiring the Home Depot sales force at the frequent pep rallies he attended .", "Still , when it became clear that a combination of the poor performance of Home Depot 's stock and Mr. Nardelli 's obstinate demeanor had made his position untenable , Mr. Langone threw his support with the rest of the board .", "In a 2004 interview for an article about Mr. Langone and his role in the Grasso controversy , Mr. Nardelli said : `` Change is difficult .", "But it is the only constant in today 's environment .", "It takes courage and leadership . ``", "`` I think Ken stands by good business judgment . '' ."], "summary": ["Home Depot 's former director Robert L Nardelli 's refusal to bend to will of exasperated board and accept pay cut lost him crucial support of friend Kenneth Langone , co-founder and director of company , who not only recruited him but presided over his compensation contract that would later draw so much fire .", "Langone is believed to be angry over Nardelli 's unwillingness to have his pay reduced .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 30], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1816559", "text": ["Gap 's board , it appears , has had enough .", "After a dismal holiday season -- the third in a row -- the chain 's directors are participating in a broad review of the company 's strategy , intensifying pressure on the chief executive , Paul S . Pressler , to pull it out of a protracted sales slump .", "Gap said yesterday that sales plunged 8 percent in December after a return to the simple fashions that fueled the chain 's meteoric rise in the 1990s , like T-shirts and hooded sweaters , failed to lure customers back into stores .", "In an admission that the back-to-basics approach has not worked , the company cut its earnings forecast for 2006 , blaming deep discounts -- like $ 100 off a fur-lined parka -- required to sell left-over piles of winter clothing .", "`` We are clearly disappointed , '' Mr. Pressler said in a statement .", "Gap 's results in December contrasted sharply with that of its competitors .", "The nation 's retailers reported respectable sales increases for the month , according to several industry groups , even as warm weather hurt winter clothing sales and higher fuel prices pinched consumer spending .", "Sales at stores open a year rose 3.1 percent in December , compared with the period in 2005 , according to the International Council of Shopping Centers , which predicted a 2.5 percent gain .", "For November and December combined , sales rose 2.8 percent , within the group 's forecast .", "As they have for much of the year , department stores like Saks -LRB- up 11.1 percent -RRB- , Federated -LRB- up 4.4 percent -RRB- and J . C . Penney -LRB- up 2.6 percent -RRB- posted strong gains .", "But smaller clothing chains like Abercrombie -LRB- down 1 percent -RRB- .", "Express , a unit of Limited -LRB- down 5 percent -RRB- .", "And Ann Taylor -LRB- down 5.3 percent -RRB- struggled to stand out .", "`` A lot of these retailers limped across the finish line , '' said John D . Morris , a senior retail analyst at Wachovia Securities , who speculated that bargains on flat-screen TVs captivated consumers in a season when there were few must-have fashions .", "Wal-Mart , which heavily promoted flat-screen TVs , said sales rose 1.6 percent , beating its own predictions of a meager 1 percent increase .", "`` Flat-screen TVs flogged fur-lined hoodies , '' Mr. Morris said .", "There were plenty of those hoodies at Gap , which heavily discounted much of its winter clothing in the days immediately before and after Christmas .", "-LRB- The fur-trimmed parka , originally $ 169 , was marked down to $ 68 several days before Christmas . -RRB-", "As a result of the deep discounting , Gap profit margins for the fourth quarter will be `` significantly below '' those of last year , said Sabrina Simmons , senior vice president for corporate finance at the chain .", "The board 's decision to intervene in a review of Gap 's brand strategies suggests that the directors are fed up with the chain 's poor results and the executives who have failed , season after season , to turn it around .", "`` This is a clear judgment coming down on the leadership of the Gap brand , '' Mr. Morris said .", "Revenue in December dropped 4 percent , to $ 2.34 billion , from $ 2.44 billion a year ago .", "The worst performance was at the Gap and Old Navy brands , where monthly sales dropped 9 percent and 10 percent , respectively .", "As a result , Gap yesterday reduced its earnings forecast to 83 cents to 87 cents a share , down from $ 1.01 to $ 1.06.", "Even at Gap , which often describes its sales as `` disappointing , '' the December results appeared to jolt executives .", "The word `` disappoint '' was used at least four times yesterday in a prerecorded phone message and news release describing December sales .", "Mr. Pressler said that he and the board would review brand strategies at Gap and Old Navy and that he was `` committed to making the necessary changes to improve performance . ''", "Banana Republic will not be included in the review because that chain 's sales are improving .", "As the division introduced pricier , preppier fashions , like an $ 88 silk-cashmere half-zip pullover , December sales rose 2 percent , making Banana a bright spot for the company .", "The strategic review would be the second in the last year for the beleaguered Gap division , which has struggled to recapture business after several years of changing missions and fluctuating fashions .", "Over the summer , after months of brainstorming , Gap 's brand president , Cynthia Harriss , introduced the back-to-basics strategy to investors and analysts , even bringing back the lower-case Gap logo used for the chain 's first store in 1969 .", "But the trip down memory lane did not win over shoppers .", "`` We did not gain the traction we had expected , '' Mr. Pressler said ."], "summary": ["Gap says sales dropped 8 percent in December .", "Cuts its earnings forecast for 2006 .", "International Council of Shopping Centers says sales at stores open one year rose 3.1 percent in December compared with period in 2005 .", "Combined sales rose 2.8 percent for November and December within group 's forecast .", "Department stores posted strong gains in December , while smaller clothing chains struggled .", "Wal-Mart says sales rose 1.6 percent , beating its own predictions of 1 percent increase .", "Graphs .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 8, 14], "tag": ["Business"]} diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/train.jsonl b/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/train.jsonl new file mode 100644 index 00000000..3e70cad6 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/train.jsonl @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +{"id": "1453065", "text": ["Rita Bank helped run her family 's real estate business and , as a hobby , collected antiques , always dreaming of having an antiques shop .", "She died before that could happen , but her son , Ted , opened one in her honor , Rita 's Antiques Cafe , 167 Eighth Avenue -LRB- 18th Street -RRB- .", "It is filled with his mother 's crystal , china , paintings , light fixtures and furniture , and you can also sip a coffee or a glass of wine with a sandwich -LRB- $ 6 to $ 7 -RRB- or pastry -LRB- $ 1.75 to $ 5.50 -RRB- in the brick-walled store .", "And if you like the table you 're sitting at , you can buy it .", "Most of the food comes from purveyors like Chelsea Souk in the Chelsea Market .", "FOOD STUFF ."], "summary": ["Rita 's Antiques Cafe serves light food in antiques shop .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Dining and Wine", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453069", "text": ["Pissaladi\u00e8re , the onion and anchovy tart that is a specialty of Nice , is usually made with a simple bread dough enriched with olive oil .", "But the Oliviers & Company shops sell a flour specially for making pissaladi\u00e8re : spelt flour , or farine de petit \u00e9peautre .", "It 's $ 6 for 8.9 ounces , enough for a generous crust for six to eight people .", "The recipe on the package , requiring eggs , cornstarch , olive oil and salt , in addition to the spelt flour , makes a sturdy , if not particularly elastic , dough .", "The pastry that results has a nutty , rustic flavor to balance the sweet onions , salty anchovies and olives in the topping .", "FOOD STUFF ."], "summary": ["Oliviers & Company shops sell flour specially for making rustic tart pissaladiere .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Dining and Wine", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453070", "text": ["I am not a big fan of soy-protein meat pretenders , but as the French say , `` You must n't die an idiot . ``", "So I tried Karma ' Licious Veggie Bolognese pasta sauce , and was pleasantly surprised .", "It tastes like a rich meat sauce , with no soy flavor , and the texture could fool any card-carrying carnivore .", "Tama Herman , with tongue in cheek , named her company Mad Cow , and took a year to develop the sauce .", "She also makes a mushroom version , but the evidence of mushrooms was fleeting .", "The sauces are low in sodium as jarred sauces go -LRB- 170 milligrams in a half-cup , less than half that of a typical jar -RRB- .", "They are $ 7 for a 24-ounce jar at Westerly Natural Market , 911 Eighth Avenue -LRB- 54th Street -RRB- .", "LifeThyme Natural Market , 410 Avenue of the Americas -LRB- Ninth Street -RRB- .", "And the Amish Market at 49th Street and Ninth Avenue .", "The sauces are $ 5.99 plus shipping from www.veganstore.com.", "A new product for those who like the taste of Worcestershire sauce but not its hidden ingredient , anchovies , is Annie 's Naturals Organic Worcestershire Sauce .", "It has the sauce 's sweet-sour-spicy flavor but no fish .", "It is sold at many supermarket chains for $ 3 for 6.5 ounces .", "FOOD STUFF ."], "summary": ["Pasta sauces using meat substitutes by Karma ' Licious and Worcestershire sauce by Annie 's Naturals offer meaty taste suitable for vegans .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 1], "tag": ["Dining and Wine", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453083", "text": ["IN professional kitchens there is a longstanding rule : there can be only one head chef .", "In French , the word chef means chief .", "And having two seems as harmonious as having two kings -LRB- remember the War of the Roses : two kings , one crown , much bloodletting . -RRB- .", "Yet there are teams of executive chefs around the country who bravely go where others fear to tread : into small restaurant kitchens , full of sharp , heavy and hot objects that would make good projectiles .", "These bravehearts include Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger , who seem more like sisters than co-workers , though they have worked together at Border Grill in Santa Monica , Calif . , since they opened it in 1981 .", "One of the first chef teams since the country 's restaurant scene greatly expanded in the 70 's , Ms. Milliken and Ms. Feniger typify the overworked , overachieving chef : from 1995 to 1999 , they were the hosts of `` Too Hot Tamales '' and `` Tamales World Tour , '' on the Food Network .", "They have opened five more restaurants and written five cookbooks .", "As the job description of executive chefs grows beyond the kitchen -- building restaurant empires , being television hosts , writing cookbooks -- chefs are finding that sharing the glory as well as the toil can be a beneficial exchange .", "That is , for the right pair of chefs -LRB- micromanagers and control freaks need not apply -RRB- .", "Co-chefing is not simply a matter of two people sharing brilliant culinary insights while stirring the same pot .", "It 's a complicated balancing act based on mutual respect , compromise , a clear-eyed assessment of both parties ' strengths and weaknesses and a whole lot of trust .", "`` We clicked ever since we first met , working in a Chicago restaurant in 1978 , '' Ms. Milliken said of Ms. Feniger .", "`` For some reason my weaknesses and her strengths and vice versa were very compatible , and it felt natural to work as a team . ''", "`` She 's persistent and positive and hopeful , `` Ms. Milliken said , '' and I get discouraged and am skeptical and worry a lot .", "She helps get us through that way .", "But she 's also pretty disorganized and scattered , and I 'm a little better that way .", "I think neither of us separately would have built what we have together , nor even half of what we have . ``", "Sometimes , they concede , they wonder if their co-chef relationship borders on co-dependence .", "After all , Ms. Milliken married Ms. Feniger 's ex-boyfriend , and Ms. Feniger was in the delivery room when Ms. Milliken had her first child .", "`` No matter what happens , what tensions arise , we work it out , '' Ms. Milliken said .", "For them , working it out has meant couples therapy at times .", "Odd .", "`` We are in California , '' Ms. Milliken said .", "Sharing the kitchen duties at Blue Hill in Manhattan works well for Dan Barber , allowing him to divide his time between the restaurant , catering and planning other projects .", "But Alex Ure\u00f1a , his co-chef when the restaurant opened , left after a year to become the executive chef of Marseille restaurant .", "Now Michael Anthony fills that slot .", "`` I learned a lot working with Alex , '' Mr. Barber said , `` and I can now apply that to working with Mike . ''", "One key lesson was about communication : the more of it , the better .", "This means being open to criticism and suggestion , and taking the other chef 's feelings and ego into account .", "`` I 'm a little sensitive , `` Mr. Barber acknowledged .", "`` If Mike 's forgotten to tell me that he put yellow watermelon in the tomato coupe on my night off , and I come in the next day and find out from one of the cooks , it stings me .", "I think , ` What did he go and change it for .", "` But ultimately if it improves the dish , we both win . ''", "But not everyone is enthusiastic about being a member of such a team .", "Pino Maffeo worked as Patricia Yeo 's chef de cuisine at AZ .", "She promoted him to co-chef when she opened Pazo in Midtown a few months ago .", "`` The whole thing was her idea , and I go along to support her , '' Mr. Maffeo said , `` but I do n't like to put myself out front .", "At this point , I 'm happy helping to propel someone else 's career . ``", "Ms. Yeo prefers to give credit where it is due , unlike many of her peers , who simply hire chefs de cuisine or sous-chefs to run their kitchens when they are not there .", "`` Anyone who thinks they can run more than one restaurant at a time is either kidding themselves , or they just are n't there , `` she said .", "`` The sous-chefs do all the work but do n't get the credit . ``", "One recipe for happy co-chefdom is separate but equal spheres of responsibility .", "Ms. Yeo comes up with the dishes , and Mr. Maffeo executes them .", "He 's also the enforcer , firing people if need be , and making sure the kitchen 's workings are as smooth as cr\u00e8me fra\u00eeche .", "For Diane Forley and Michael Otsuka , co-chefs of Verbena for two years and also husband and wife , sharing credit was never an issue .", "The part that gave them pause was whether their marriage could survive the stress .", "`` That 's the first thing people say to us , `` Mr. Otsuka said , '' ` I could never work with my husband , we 'd be divorced in a year , ` but it 's been good for us . ``", "The best part , for them , is coming up with dishes together , bouncing ideas off each other and melding their two distinct styles .", "In their signature gravlax , the cured salmon is something Ms. Forley has made for years but the blinis now have buckwheat flour at Mr. Otsuka 's suggestion , along with a very Otsukian garnish : shredded daikon and tobiko caviar .", "`` That dish is a perfect example of our two styles complementing each other , '' Ms. Forley said .", "`` But we do n't go overboard with that .", "We 're not going to put soy sauce on ratatouille just to prove a point . ``", "Mr. Otsuka works in the kitchen during meals , doing the prep lists and ordering .", "Ms. Forley trains much of the staff , takes care of the phone calls , the press , events and , lately , the couple 's young daughter , Olivia .", "But neither would agree that being co-chefs gives them more free time .", "`` Now , we are actually able to see projects to completion , '' Ms. Forley said .", "`` Before , we tried to do everything at once , and there was always something we would have to let drop . ''", "Mr. Otsuka added , `` We 're not necessarily working less , but we are getting more done . ``", "Mr. Barber of Blue Hill noted : `` Most people would think it 's easier to work with a co-chef because you would only have to do half the work .", "But it does n't actually happen that way .", "When you 're working by yourself , you can quickly make all the hundreds of decisions that need to be made every day without having to stop and discuss every little thing .", "It takes more thought and energy than working by yourself . ``", "Not all co-chefs share that view .", "Part of the appeal for Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr , co-chefs of Balthazar , is being able to have a life beyond the kitchen .", "They both work only five days a week instead of six like many chefs , giving Mr. Hanson more time with his wife and daughter .", "`` It 's a very stable , sane way to work in a kitchen , `` he said .", "But , as in marriage , not all partnerships work out .", "Raphael Lunetta and Josiah Citrin had been best friends since they were teenagers but after three years as co-chefs at JiRaffe in Santa Monica , Calif . , more than their restaurant was at stake .", "It was unclear whether their friendship would survive .", "`` It was tough when we realized it was n't working , `` Mr. Lunetta said .", "`` There were a few big blowouts .", "Once I threw a piece of medium rare salmon right out of the frying pan and onto the wall behind him , and he probably threw some salmon back at me , but it never really got violent . ``", "The two have since made up , with Mr. Lunetta remaining at JiRaffe and Mr. Citrin moving on to his own restaurant , Melisse .", "Now , they are even godparents to each other 's children .", "`` It was a great thing to have done , '' Mr. Citrin said .", "`` We were best friends who wanted to open a restaurant together , so for us it was a childhood dream come true .", "But I do n't understand why anyone else would do it . ``", "Golden Guidelines HERE is a guide to successful co-chefdom from those who have been there .", "DO Adopt a state of Gandhian nonviolence .", "Be diplomatic , even when presented with a menu suggestion that you would normally veto .", "Become comfortable saying `` we '' instead of `` I . ''", "Be realistic about your strengths and weaknesses .", "Learn to let go .", "DO N'T Season the ragout when your partner 's back is turned .", "Take the other person for granted , or forget to say thanks .", "Play the martyr .", "Let the staff pit the two of you against each other ."], "summary": ["Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger of Border Grill in Santa Monica , Calif , find that sharing executive chef responsibilities can be beneficial .", "Other successful duos noted , as well as team that decided to call it quits when kitchen partnership did not work out .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 66], "tag": ["Dining and Wine", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453084", "text": ["When Joanna Sherman took her alternative theater company to Pakistan this spring to entertain Afghan refugees by dancing on stilts , one young boy in the crowd was not amused .", "`` He stared at us earnestly and asked , ' What is the meaning of this .", "' `` she recalled .", "Ms. Sherman reflected upon this incident as she embarked on her latest tour , dubbed the Balkan Peace Project .", "`` I gave him some glib response , but the question stuck in my mind , '' she said .", "`` It 's a tough one to answer . ``", "Since 1976 , when she founded Bond Street Theater in New York , her troupe has traveled through Asia , Europe , the Middle East and Latin America , seeking what she calls a `` universal physical language '' to amuse and enlighten .", "But her experience in Pakistan was a reminder that not everyone gets it .", "`` Sometimes it 's such a dire situation that you just want to go in and make a gesture , to give people some simple pleasure , `` she said .", "`` These kids did n't have access to anything fun , anything that would make them laugh .", "So we tried to offer them something . ``", "Trained as a dancer , Ms. Sherman , 48 , has created a performance style that incorporates elements of mime , martial arts , juggling and acrobatics .", "To her , Bond Street Theater is a `` cultural Peace Corps '' conveying a message of tolerance .", "It has traveled to Israel to train a street theater company of both Arabs and Jews , to Northern Ireland for workshops with Catholic and Protestant children , and most recently to the Balkans .", "Theater critics might question the merits of the play Ms. Sherman has brought to Albania : a circus-style production of `` Romeo and Juliet , '' stripped of Shakespeare 's poetic dialogue .", "But the result was an instant hit at the Fourth International Theater Festival in Elbasan , largely because everybody could understand it .", "`` We have always tried to reach the broadest and most diverse audience possible , '' Ms. Sherman explained .", "`` Originally , this meant a local audience across the United States , but over the years we 've become more interested in going to areas of conflict or recent conflict . ``", "Bond Street 's version of `` Romeo and Juliet '' reduces the play 's multiple themes to a simple core .", "`` We 're coming with a message that you can have peace if you choose , `` Ms. Sherman said .", "`` All the deaths in ' Romeo and Juliet ' are unnecessary , even the suicides .", "Nothing is inevitable unless you make it so . ``", "The slapstick comedy and rhythm of her production , reinforced by a live percussion accompaniment throughout the show , struck a chord with her audience of several hundred Albanians in Elbasan .", "Laughter and applause punctuated the performance .", "`` People are almost more impressed by the fact that we 're there , trying to help , than they are by the product or its message , `` she conceded .", "`` We 're the outsiders .", "We 're Americans .", "But we can facilitate , stimulate and encourage , even if we ca n't change things . ``", "The desire to become a catalyst for action has brought her back to the Balkans three times since her first visit in 1999 , when she sought to distract Kosovo Albanian children from the squalor of Macedonia 's refugee camps with a circus performance .", "Bond Street Theater has now performed in every country in southeastern Europe .", "It has a partnership with Theater Tsvete of Bulgaria , just one of many , which helped with the puppetry in `` Romeo and Juliet . ''", "`` Artists ' power to communicate on many levels has been put to the test in the field , `` Ms. Sherman said , '' and proven to be an essential component of any strategy to rebuild morale , re-establish cultural connections and heal the psyche of a society . ``", "Bond Street Theater 's commitment to humanitarian work has won it a MacArthur Foundation award and financing from the Trust for Mutual Understanding .", "Although the company gave up its original theater in Lower Manhattan 20 years ago , it has not turned its back on the United States .", "It regularly performs plays with strong social themes , like the provocatively titled `` Nightmare on Wall Street , '' and Ms. Sherman plans to take `` Romeo and Juliet '' on a nationwide tour next year .", "`` It 's been a tremendous learning process for me , because in the United States we 're really quite closed off from international news , `` she said .", "`` People in America need to learn more about the rest of the world .", "And they need to think more about why the rest of the world perceives us the way they do . ``", "But Ms. Sherman has few illusions about her power to do much to change that .", "`` It 's a very humbling experience doing this work , `` she said .", "`` You see the limitations of what you 're doing very clearly , that you can only go so far .", "But it 's a lot more than nothing . `` ."], "summary": ["Interview with Joanna Sherman , head of Bond Street Theater , alternative company that incorporates mime , martial arts , juggling , acrobats and slapstick in search for ` universal physical language ' .", "Troupe has performed in various locations around world since its founding in 1976 .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 29, 2], "tag": ["Arts", "Theater"]} +{"id": "1453085", "text": ["IMAGINE for a moment the following scene : Sometime tonight , beginning about 6 , between 30 and 100 people come to your home .", "They arrive in a steady stream throughout the evening until midnight or 1 in the morning .", "They expect dinner .", "And you will make it .", "Alone .", "No one will help you wash the salad greens , whisk the vinaigrette , dice the vegetables , roast the chicken , reduce the sauce or torch the cr\u00e8me br\u00fbl\u00e9e .", "Now imagine doing this as many as six days -LRB- and nights -RRB- a week .", "O.K. , you can stop hyperventilating now .", "This was just an exercise to get you in touch with the world of the solo chef , a rarity in restaurants .", "Most chefs share cooking responsibilities with a seasoned team of knife-wielding colleagues .", "Yet there are , around the country , stalwart individualists who go it alone , and like it .", "Dominic Giuliano is one of them .", "A softspoken 30-year-old with a strong build , dark eyes and a tidy goatee , he whirls around his 7-by-9-foot kitchen at Punch & Judy , a wine bar on Clinton Street in Manhattan .", "The space is leanly equipped with a sink -LRB- he washes all the dishes there -RRB- , an induction burner , a convection oven and a panini press .", "As orders pile up , he morphs into a Chef Superhero , able to dress an arugula salad with a pancetta vinaigrette , coat a disk of goat cheese in crushed cashews , sear a rectangle of ruby-red tuna , press a smoked duck and fig panino , fan out slices of rosy beef carpaccio , warm a chocolate fondue and prepare a cheese plate in a single bound .", "It is a wonder he does not wear blue tights .", "Customers would never know there is no staff behind the kitchen door .", "Plates are garnished with care , pristine ingredients shine and little details , like the selection of homemade infused oils and butters that arrive with a basket of warm bread , are never overlooked .", "Mr. Giuliano has a soul mate in Chicago , where diners line up for one of the 28 coveted seats at Lovitt , the domain of Norman Six .", "In his cozy kitchen , he pirouettes from six-burner stove to flattop griddle to tiny grill while turning out salads of tomatillo , tomato and queso fresco , plates of maple-glazed salmon with squash and zucchini , and stacks of crisp , golden scallop and salmon cakes .", "At Lovitt , B.Y.O.B. is the order of the day , which eliminates -LRB- at least -RRB- the hat of sommelier .", "And in Cobble Hill , Brooklyn , in the 10-by-10-foot kitchen of That Bar , Brent Erickson 's arms seem to multiply as he flips back and forth between his stove , flattop , panini press and a basket fryer .", "Ditto for Sean Kelly , the chef at Clair de Lune , an eight-table bistro in Denver .", "Mr. Kelly 's company in the kitchen are a small pizza oven , a standard stove and a mini-fryer .", "Why do these Lone Ranger chefs do it .", "For Mr. Kelly , the answer is simple .", "`` After 9/11 , I was looking at a lot of projects with a lot of investors , but it was n't the right time to do a big space with a lot of debt , `` he said .", "`` This was a safe rest stop .", "I own it by myself .", "To start a restaurant with no debt is unique .", "This place is all about freedom .", "It 's not about money .", "I get to cook what I want to cook and do what I want to do . ``", "Indeed , independence -- complete culinary reign over the menu -- is the solitary kitchen 's biggest draw .", "`` Cooking alone makes me the only person to depend on , '' Mr. Giuliano said .", "`` When it 's just you coming up with the idea for the dish , prepping it and making it all the way through to the table , that gives you a very personal attachment to the food . ``", "But doing it all yourself takes discipline , planning skills and resilience .", "The first rule of the solo chef is making sure the components of each dish are ready in advance , so that the time it takes from the moment the chef starts making the order to the moment it is on the plate -LRB- called the `` fire time , '' in chef lingo -RRB- is cut as thin as a potato chip .", "`` It 's like Lego , `` Mr. Erickson of That Bar explained .", "`` All my building blocks have to be ready to go at dinner . ''", "He spends his days butchering and slicing meats , chopping and blanching vegetables , whisking sauces and making a night 's worth of soup , risotto , short ribs and couscous .", "With his blocks in order , he will have only one or two steps left before the dish is on the table in front of the diner .", "Mr. Giuliano follows the same strategy .", "For his sushi-style caprese salad , he makes mozzarella from scratch a few times a week .", "He rolls it up with chopped tomatoes and basil so that it resembles a long and puffy marshmallow log .", "He wraps it in plastic until someone orders it , then simply slices it into pinwheels and finishes it with coarse salt , freshly cracked pepper and basil oil .", "Fire time : 30 seconds .", "`` Only 25 percent of this job is cooking , '' Mr. Giuliano said .", "`` Timing is everything else . ''", "He has taken a shine to soups and other dishes that can be heated up while he works on others .", "Dishes that customers can share also work to the solo chef 's advantage .", "Mr. Giuliano serves a Mediterranean platter -- hummus , tzatziki and tomato salad with feta -- that takes less than a minute to arrange and can serve six .", "`` The sharing buys me time , '' he said .", "`` I can put out one plate , and that keeps them happy and gives me time to work on a couple of other dishes . ''", "Mr. Kelly banks on his raw bar and his antipasto platter , piled high with homemade bresaola , house-cured sardines , Parmigiano-Reggiano , figs , caper berries , olives and crisp fried artichokes .", "`` I am putting out one plate that will serve three or four people , and that 's perfect , `` he said .", "Solitary chefs rely heavily on dishes that do not mind being cooked in advance , then simply and speedily reheated .", "During the day Mr. Kelly slow-roasts whole ducks , which he later halves and crisps in the high-heat pizza oven for 10 minutes , then moves to a gentler oven for a few minutes , along with a syrupy reduction of diced turnips , apples , yams , leeks and apple cider .", "`` It 's a quick pick-up that is easy for me to do , `` he said .", "In Chicago , Mr. Six pointed out another trick of the one-chef trade .", "`` The most important thing is to cook what you know , '' he said .", "`` You need to be really comfortable with what you are doing , because you do n't have an army of prep cooks to help you with food you are unfamiliar with .", "You want to focus on simplicity , and try not to overreach and get fancy with plates of perfectly julienned vegetables . ``", "But at the end of a 16-hour solitary day , nothing can change the fact that this is one demanding gig .", "Steven Hall , an owner of That Bar , went through two other chefs in a few months before finding Mr. Erickson , an energetic 27-year-old .", "Mr. Erickson said he finds the rewards outweigh the high-anxiety nights .", "`` I am probably working harder than I have in other restaurants , '' he said .", "`` But it 's my menu and my food , and I cook everything myself .", "That makes it a lot less harsh . ``", "And harsh it can be .", "`` I am cooking five mornings , five afternoons , and five nights a week , '' Mr. Kelly said .", "`` The mental pressure of doing it alone is very challenging . ''", "Yet , he added , `` I always had the dream of doing what I am doing .", "I can say that every plate served is mine , and that is tremendously rewarding . ``", "Mr. Six also finds satisfaction in the fact that his signature is on every dish .", "`` It 's a lot more personal , `` he said .", "`` The restaurant is so small that I can overhear conversations , so if someone says something nice about the food , it 's really gratifying .", "`` So far what I have heard has been really gratifying .", "I do n't know what I 'll do if I do n't like what I hear . ``", "A Tall Order HERE are some tips from chefs who cook alone : Take care of yourself physically and mentally .", "You ca n't call in sick .", "Be careful .", "If you slice your finger and have to go to the E.R. , the restaurant has to close .", "Make sure the food is good , because you are the one to blame if it is n't .", "Monitor your beverage consumption .", "There is no time for bathroom breaks ."], "summary": ["Most restaurants have chef and army of cooks to fill diners ' orders , but several stalwarts prefer kitchen all to themselves .", "Dominic Giuliano , sole chef at Punch & Judy in Manhattan has developed intricate kitchen choreography .", "Solo chefs have independence and complete culinary control .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 11, 33], "tag": ["Dining and Wine", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453087", "text": ["Early in the 19th century , as a flood of pioneers began rolling across the American West , the painter George Catlin resolved to travel there and document the unspoiled landscape and native peoples .", "Before the era of photography , few white people had ever seen the faces of Indians .", "So Catlin 's paintings created a stir when he showed them in Eastern cities and in Europe .", "He went on to become a fervent defender of Indians , even urging that the Great Plains be preserved as a `` nation 's park `` where they could continue to live their traditional lives .", "Catlin described the Indians he met as `` nature 's proudest , noblest men `` and said he hoped '' to rescue from oblivion their primitive looks and customs , `` which were being '' blasted and destroyed by the contemporary vices and dissipations introduced by the immoral part of civilized society . ``", "Many of Catlin 's portraits present Indians as stately and even regal .", "Some modern critics , however , also find troubling aspects of his art and life .", "A show at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum here puts Catlin 's contradictions on display .", "The exhibition , which runs through Jan . 20 , is the most complete display of his work in more than a century , with more than 400 paintings and artifacts .", "Indians are among those who have taken newly critical looks at Catlin 's work .", "W . Richard West , a Southern Cheyenne who is director of the National Museum of the American Indian here , wrote in this show 's catalog , `` A native person is challenged , I think , not to feel on some level a profound resentment toward Catlin .", "His obsession with depicting Indians has an extremely invasive undertone to it . ``", "Mr. West called him `` a cultural P . T . Barnum , a crass huckster trading on other people 's lives and life ways . ``", "The show raises questions about the ability of outsiders to interpret foreign cultures , and also about whether it is possible to judge the attitudes of 19th-century Americans by modern standards .", "Catlin financed his five trips to the West himself , and after each of them he tried various means to make money from his experiences .", "He staged shows of his paintings and artifacts , some of which experts now believe were of dubious authenticity , and he exaggerated his exploits .", "His celebrated claim to have been the first white person to visit the sacred quarry where Plains Indians mined stone for their pipes , for example , is now widely considered false .", "Catlin was a product of the same romantic imagination that produced European masters like Caspar David Friedrich and J . M . W . Turner .", "Like them , he worked from nature , and his works have a sense of immediacy and intimacy .", "Sometimes he produced as many as three portraits in a single day .", "Romanticism shaped Catlin 's view of the Indian as a noble savage whose life in the state of nature was endangered by the encroachment of civilization .", "His trips ranged from one in the Southeast , where he met tribes that had intermingled with whites for more than a century , to some in the Northern Plains , where he found groups that had rarely if ever been in contact with non-Indians .", "The Indians in Catlin 's paintings are often adorned with scalps or bear claw necklaces .", "Some have richly painted faces and bodies .", "There are also works depicting various forms of hunting and religious rituals .", "Scholars say that while some are highly accurate , others are suspect .", "One of Catlin 's most powerful paintings is `` Wi-jun-jon , Pigeon 's Egg Head -LRB- The Light -RRB- , Going to and Returning From Washington . ``", "It shows two views of the same man .", "On the left , emerging from the prairie , he looks dignified , carrying a pipe and wearing a long feathered headdress and a richly decorated buckskin cloak .", "On the right he staggers back toward home in a dandy 's suit and top hat , complete with high leather boots and an umbrella .", "He is smoking a cigarette , and there are bottles of whiskey in his back pockets .", "Although Catlin 's Indian Gallery at first attracted crowds in cities like Pittsburgh and New York , and later in London , Paris and Brussels , he did not sell many pictures , and attendance soon dropped .", "He tried unsuccessfully to sell his collection to the United States government .", "To make the money he staged Wild West shows that foreshadowed those of Buffalo Bill decades later .", "Catlin 's shows included performing Indians , staged battles and even live grizzly bears .", "He was bankrupt and exhausted when he died in 1872 at 76 .", "Seven years later his widow donated the bulk of his collection to the Smithsonian .", "The exhibition here includes some evocative artifacts .", "Among them are `` peace medals '' bearing the portraits of American presidents , intended as gifts for Indian chiefs , and a mask made from a buffalo head that was used in ceremonial dances .", "There is also a room with four screens , on which video scenes of the West as Catlin knew it , including sequences of wild rivers , buffalo herds and a prairie fire are projected , complete with sound effects .", "From Washington this show will travel to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City , Mo .", "The Autry Museum of Western Heritage in Los Angeles .", "And the Museum of Fine Art in Houston .", "Catlin was a self-taught artist whose fame comes as much from the unusual subjects he chose as from his painterly skill .", "He was working as a lawyer in the 1820 's when he saw a group of Indians who visited Philadelphia .", "Eager to learn more about their culture , he traveled to St . Louis and met William Clark , governor of the Missouri Territory , who had made the famous trek West with Meriwether Lewis .", "Clark encouraged Catlin 's interest in Indians and took him on his first trip up the Mississippi , where he saw what he called `` soul-melting scenery '' that would inspire him for years to come .", "Over the next half-century Catlin traveled thousands of miles and painted hundreds of portraits of Indians from nearly 50 tribes , including the Pawnee , Omaha , Mandan , Sioux , Cheyenne , Crow , Blackfoot , Osage , Choctaw and Kiowa .", "He kept a meticulous journal that is still considered an important source of information about Indian life , and he is remembered not only as a painter and showman , but also as an ethnographer , geologist and cartographer .", "His experiences led him to conclude that `` the North American Indian in his native state is an honest , hospitable , faithful , brave , warlike , cruel , revengeful , relentless -- yet honorable , contemplative and religious being . ''", "ARTS IN AMERICA ."], "summary": ["Stephen Kinzer Arts in America column on 19th century American painter George Catlin , whose works are on exhibit at Renwick Gallery of Smithsonian American Art Museum , Washington , DC .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453089", "text": ["Loan exhibitions from one big city to another tend to beat the drum from start to finish until we can hear it sounding , triple forte , through the windows .", "There is nothing like that about the exhibition of 75 French master paintings from the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow that opened here at the Museum of Fine Arts in mid-December and runs through March 9 .", "This is one of the subtlest and most seductive shows of its kind .", "From Poussin and Lorrain in the 17th century all the way to Bonnard and Matisse , just before 1914 , it has surprises to spring .", "A civilized curiosity is applied to everything from Jupiter 's seduction of Callisto -LRB- as interpreted by Boucher in 1744 in terms of a same-sex embrace -RRB- to the prison yard in St . - R\u00e9my , complete with exercising prisoners , that van Gogh painted in 1890 .", "-LRB- The subject of painting by van Gogh is still today 's news around the world . -RRB-", "Nothing in this show falls flat or goes on too long , and some of the best things in it are small .", "Room has been found , for instance , for the delicate wit with which Louis-L\u00e9opold Boilly handled scenes of domestic drama in the last years of the 18th century .", "Renoir is at his very best in his `` In the Garden '' of 1876 , where the convivial scene is stolen by a young woman in a dress that is made up from head to foot of radiant pink and blue stripes .", "Among the five C\u00e9zannes , the `` Mardi Gras '' of 1888 is a family affair , in that the model for the Harlequin was C\u00e9zanne 's 16-year-old son Paul and the Pierrot was Paul 's friend Louis Guillaume .", "C\u00e9zanne brought all his magic to the white costume of Pierrot , which turns out to harbor a host of colors derived from the curtains behind him .", "Harlequin 's sloping tread and neutral expression , though impressive , suggest that he was more attentive to his father than to the antics of the commedia dell ' arte .", "Where the pictures in this show are really big , it is for a reason .", "A place of honor is reserved for a very large painting -LRB- 76 by 70 inches -RRB- , `` The Village Lovers . ''", "It was painted by Jules Bastien-Lepage in 1882 , when the Impressionists were changing forever the way that a painting can look .", "Bastien-Lepage had been trained as a traditional painter , and he saw no reason to change .", "Style and subject were perfectly matched in this case .", "The picture is about country people and old-fashioned country ways .", "A young man loves a young woman and tells her so across a fence .", "They do not even touch hands .", "Nearby a man -- perhaps her father -- is working in the garden and can see what is going on .", "It is a painting that -- down to the last beanstalk -- speaks for an identifiable village and a specific way of life .", "Its detailing is superabundant .", "This is not , and never was , the `` cutting edge , '' but it has not outlived its uses , either .", "Among perennial favorites , Corot is in good form as a weather reporter in three studies of the French countryside .", "But it is in quite another guise that in `` Morning in Venice , '' he takes us with him to the Riva degli Schiavone at an hour when the light is perfect , the air is exhilarating and we have a nonpareil among townscapes all to ourselves .", "And Corot does it to perfection in just 10 by 15 inches .", "In the end , with just three great paintings by Matisse , all dated from just before 1914 and shown together in a room of their own , the show has a finale that no one who sees it will forget .", "The pictures in question are `` Nasturtiums and the Dance , '' `` Calla Lilies , Irises and Mimosas '' and `` Goldfish . ''", "All came from the holdings of the visionary collector Sergei Shchukin , and they have a collective exhilaration that bounces off the wall when we look at them .", "This broad , clear , comprehensive panorama of French painting is all the more remarkable because although the Pushkin Museum was opened by Czar Nicholas II in 1912 , it was not until after the death of Stalin in 1953 that it had any freedom in what could be put on the wall .", "In Stalin 's later years Soviet diehards had been heard to say that any museum director who showed Picasso or Matisse should be dismissed , flogged or shot .", "The single greatest task of museum professionals in Moscow was to preserve the inspired collections formed between 1897 and 1914 by Shchukin and his fellow collector Ivan Morozov .", "Between them , they drew a map of the advanced European art of the day that could have been drawn by a reborn Mercator .", "Shchukin owned 43 Matisses , 8 C\u00e9zannes , 5 Degas , 16 Derains , 16 Gauguins , 4 van Goghs , 13 Monets , 5 Marquets and 50 Picassos .", "Morozov owned 13 Bonnards , 18 C\u00e9zannes , 5 Derains , 11 Gauguins , 5 van Goghs , 6 Marquets , 11 Matisses and 6 Renoirs .", "Shchukin in all this was the leader , and Morozov was a younger enthusiast who had ideas of his own .", "Both wanted their collections to stay in Moscow forever .", "But in 1918 the Soviets seized both the collections and the houses in which Shchukin and Morozov had installed them .", "In 1948 the works were divided between the Pushkin Museum in Moscow and the Hermitage Museum in what was then Leningrad , on condition that nothing from either collection should be put on show .", "Advanced art was , in effect , under house arrest .", "Irina Antonova , the ever-valiant director of the Pushkin Museum since 1961 , worked consistently to get permission to put the forbidden pictures on view .", "-LRB- The Pushkin was the first museum in Russia to hang a painting by Kandinsky -RRB- .", "She succeeded , and since the 1960 's the pictures have been where Shchukin and Morozov wanted them to be -- in a place of honor in Moscow .", "ART REVIEW ."], "summary": ["John Russell reviews exhibition of French master paintings loaned by Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts , Moscow , to Houston Museum of Fine Arts .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453090", "text": ["Facing a sinking economy , opera companies and orchestras large and small across the United States report severe deficits and are starting to panic .", "As the directors of many of these institutions ponder what to do , one of their number , Pamela Rosenberg , the tenacious general director of the San Francisco Opera , is absolutely clear about what not to do .", "`` We are not going to get through this economic downturn and come out the other end by replacing quality with mediocrity , '' Ms. Rosenberg , who has set the company on course to becoming America 's most adventurous opera house , said in a recent telephone interview .", "`` If we are going to be worthy of support , we have to make a difference in people 's lives . ``", "Companies that typically react to economic uncertainty by playing it safe and catering to subscribers would be wise to heed Ms. Rosenberg 's example .", "Despite recent announcements from her office of dire budget deficits and cutbacks in some programming , she is determined to implement her bold artistic vision .", "To understand why her supporters are betting that she will prevail , consider how she came to this prominent post in the first place .", "She did n't want the job when the opera 's board approached her more than three years ago .", "Though an American , Ms. Rosenberg had spent most of her career , some 35 years , running houses in Europe .", "At the time she was winning praise and creating a buzz at the Stuttgart Opera in Germany for innovative programming rich in modernist fare , as well as for championing experimental directors and younger singers .", "For all its past glory , the San Francisco Opera had become stodgy , as Ms. Rosenberg said publicly .", "No matter what the board members were telling her , she doubted they truly wanted a shake-up .", "Moreover , accustomed to running a government-subsidized house , she did n't relish the prospect of fund-raising .", "But in the end the board convinced her .", "On taking charge last year Ms. Rosenberg , 57 , implemented `` Animating Opera , '' a five-year creative plan to present series of works related to broad themes like `` Outsiders or Pioneers .", "`` And '' Seminal Works of Modern Times . ``", "She reconstituted the rehearsal schedule to allow more time to prepare challenging operas , notably Messiaen 's visionary , complex , five-hour `` St . Fran\u00e7ois d' Assise , '' which received its American stage premiere by the company in September in a hauntingly modern production .", "An impressive cast and inspired orchestra were under the direction of Donald Runnicles .", "Far from intimidating audiences `` St . Fran\u00e7ois '' drew the strongest attendance figures of any San Francisco Opera production so far this season , even beating out `` Turandot '' with Jane Eaglen .", "The last three performances were sold out .", "And who was its biggest booster .", "Karl Mills , the president of the board .", "An investment adviser , Mr. Mills is an ebullient opera buff in his early 40 's who , company officials report , attended five out of six performances of `` St . Fran\u00e7ois . ''", "`` Actually , it was four and a half , '' he admitted in a recent interview .", "`` I was so moved .", "Lots of people who had apprehensions were just blown away , not only by its artistic impact , but its spiritual impact .", "It left a void that is hard to imagine filling . ``", "Asked whether convincing audiences to spend five hours at a modern opera was difficult , Mr. Mills responded , `` It 's better than five hours of watching CNBC these days .", "It 's better than a lot of what people spend five hours on . ``", "No sooner had the production closed when the announcement came that the company was saddled with a $ 7.7 million deficit on an operating budget of some $ 60 million for the year .", "Looked at in a national context , the gap was hardly out of line .", "For the first time in a decade the acclaimed Cleveland Orchestra is in the red , by some $ 1.3 million , roughly the same as the deficit at the Philadelphia Orchestra .", "Despite showing profits for 14 out of the last 17 seasons , the Chicago Symphony is now $ 6 million in the hole .", "Some smaller institutions are facing catastrophe .", "The San Jose Symphony , which tried to stave off bankruptcy by canceling its 2002-3 season , recently announced that there was no choice but to dissolve after operating for 123 years .", "Still , at the San Francisco Opera it did not help Ms. Rosenberg 's mission when , after the deficits were made public , Mr. Mills was widely quoted as saying that the company would have to take `` a more conservative view '' in the future .", "But Mr. Mills said he was referring to budget projections and administrative costs , not to artistic plans and commissions .", "Ms. Rosenberg asserts that the cost of mounting the Messiaen had nothing to do with the shortfall from last season 's budget .", "The debt , it would seem , is truly a case of `` It 's the economy stupid ! `` San Francisco , once a center for blue chip corporations , was pummeled by the dot-com bust .", "Most foundations in the area reported 50 percent declines in their endowments , said Elizabeth Connell Nielsen , the opera company 's director of public relations .", "The state 's deficit forced a 60 percent cut in the California Arts Council budget .", "And Sept . 11 was especially debilitating for the San Francisco Opera because of the company 's unusual schedule .", "Its house is shared with the San Francisco Ballet , and in 2001 , 9 of 11 opera productions were performed between Sept . 9 and the end of November .", "Ms. Rosenberg rightly maintains that putting on challenging and unfamiliar recent works does not necessarily cost more than sticking with the standards .", "Naturally , the rehearsals involved eat up funds .", "But so would a grandly traditional production of `` Aida . ''", "Out-of-town critics and opera buffs have been flocking to the city for intriguing offerings like the recent daring production of Janacek 's `` Kat ' a Kabanova `` with the soprano Karita Mattila in the title role .", "In an effort to keep the house full and attract new audiences , Ms. Rosenberg also instituted a student rush ticket policy that students have rushed to embrace : two hours before the performance any unsold seat goes for $ 15 .", "`` What we are doing here is not just good for the San Francisco Opera , '' Mr. Mills said .", "`` It puts San Francisco artistically on the world stage .", "It 's worth fighting for . ``", "Still , something had to give .", "So , reluctantly , Ms. Rosenberg has shelved two works for next season that would have been company firsts .", "A production of Rimsky-Korsakov ` s '' Coq d' Or `` from the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre du Chatelet in Paris , which would have had to be boosted a bit with added choristers for San Francisco 's larger War Memorial Opera House stage , will be replaced with the company 's familiar David Hockney production of Mozart 's `` Magic Flute . ''", "And Achim Freyer 's wildly inventive Stuttgart production of Weber 's `` Freischutz '' is being canceled .", "These moves should save some $ 2 million .", "Even with these cutbacks the season will still offer some unusual operas : Virgil Thomson 's iconoclastic `` Mother of Us All , '' Busoni 's monumental `` Doktor Faust , '' Janacek 's wistful `` Cunning Little Vixen '' and Shostakovich 's gritty `` Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk . ''", "This is not status-quo repertory .", "Ms. Rosenberg is staunchly committed to the `` Animating Opera '' series , which in the next few seasons will offer two daunting Berlioz works , the complete `` Les Troyens '' and `` Benvenuto Cellini , '' as well as Janacek 's seldom-heard `` From the House of the Dead . ''", "`` The Faust Project , '' a series of operas that reflect the Faust legend , still includes a commissioned work from the composer Lewis Spratlan , who won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize in Music for a concert version of Act II of his opera `` Life Is a Dream '' -LRB- which has yet to be staged -RRB- .", "And on Dec . 11 Ms. Rosenberg announced the commissioning of `` Doctor Atomic , '' an opera centered on J . Robert Oppenheimer , from the composer John Adams , the librettist Alice Goodman and the director Peter Sellars , the team that created `` Nixon in China '' and `` The Death of Klinghoffer . ''", "The new work is scheduled for a 2005 premiere .", "In comparison the Lyric Opera of Chicago , a company with a larger endowment and a smaller deficit , is also dropping two works that would have been house firsts in a `` pre-emptive strike , '' according to its recent announcement .", "But the Lyric is playing it safe , replacing `` Benvenuto Cellini '' with Gilbert & Sullivan 's `` Pirates of Penzance '' and scrapping a Montemezzi rarity , `` L' Amore dei Tre Re , '' for a Gounod war horse , `` Faust . ''", "One can only hope that the Lyric Opera is n't turning away from its bold recent history that includes presenting the premieres of two operas by William Bolcom .", "Giving a second chance to Martin David Levy , whose `` Mourning Becomes Electra '' fizzled at its 1967 Metropolitan Opera premiere but sizzled in its revised version in 2000 at the Lyric .", "Giving John Harbison 's `` Great Gatsby '' a second hearing after its Metropolitan Opera premiere .", "And presenting a knockout production of Britten 's `` Billy Budd '' last season .", "It 's interesting to note that the San Francisco Symphony , while having to contend with the same struggling economy as its neighboring opera company , is operating in the black .", "Why the difference .", "For one thing the orchestra is a less expensive enterprise .", "Last season 's budget was $ 45.5 million .", "But other factors are involved , said Karen Ames , the director of communications .", "Opera companies must plan four and five years in advance in order to secure the desired singers , directors and conductors .", "`` We 're not as hurt by an underperforming concert on an off week , `` Ms. Ames said .", "The next week may bring a surprise success , as happened recently when four performances of Wynton Marsalis 's oratorio `` All Rise '' were a `` massive sell out , '' Ms. Ames said .", "And the San Francisco Symphony 's endowment , which is three times the size of its current annual budget , provides a cushion .", "The opera company 's endowment is precariously low , just half the size of its operating budget .", "Most important , the orchestra has a dynamic public persona in its conductor , Michael Tilson Thomas , who has won audiences to innovative programming that balances compelling performances of established repertory with lots of edgy , hip and important contemporary music .", "And Mr. Thomas , who arrived in 1995 , had a crucial period during the boom years in which to introduce himself .", "Ms. Rosenberg always expected it would take her three or four years to reanimate audiences along with the company 's repertory .", "In the aftermath of 9/11 , people everywhere , including some often-obtuse arts institutions , were compelled to ask critical questions : What is this organization here for .", "How is what we do relevant .", "The economic downturn may compel company heads to ask these questions anew .", "`` Especially in times like these , '' Ms. Rosenberg said , `` challenging art can give people real sustenance .", "It can make people come together and think . ``", "CRITIC 'S NOTEBOOK ."], "summary": ["Article on financial difficulties faced by opera companies focuses on determination of San Francisco Opera general director Pamela Rosenberg to retain quality of performances , with support of board president Karl Mills .", "Compares problems of San Francisco with those of smaller Lyric Opera of Chicago .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 21, 33], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453095", "text": ["To the Editor : Verlyn Klinkenborg 's Editorial Observer about H . L . Mencken -LRB- `` Remembering the Permanent Opposition of H . L . Mencken , '' Dec . 30 -RRB- made me reflect on how outrage serves our democracy .", "Senator Trent Lott 's record on race has finally raised the ire of the Republican Party .", "But Senator Bill Frist shows that a sexist may still wander where racists fear to tread .", "Mr. Frist 's opposition to sex education , international family planning and emergency contraception demonstrates an attitude toward women that also deserves a vehement outcry .", "The discrimination against women still practiced by the Augusta National Golf Club , which did n't admit a black member until 1990 , suggests that misogyny may have even deeper roots than racism .", "I hope that I live long enough to see insensitivity to women by our leaders get the anger it deserves .", "LYNN PARRAMORE New York , Dec . 30 , 2002 ."], "summary": ["Lynn Parramore letter comments on Verlyn Klinkenborg 's Dec 30 article about H L Mencken ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453097", "text": ["To the Editor : Republicans ' `` race neutral '' goals -LRB- `` The Republicans Try to Redefine Civil Rights , '' Week in Review , Dec . 29 -RRB- are both laudable and painfully unrealistic .", "While the worst forms of racial discrimination were dealt with in the 1960 's and 70 's , their effects remain with us today , because of practices that made it disproportionately difficult for African-Americans to amass and pass down both real wealth and cultural capital .", "If the Republicans do not alter their principled opposition to race-sensitive policies , an alternative might be to support actions that help lower-income Americans across the board , as discussed in the article .", "If they fail to do so , it will be hard to believe that the principles that lie behind this opposition are not ones that were better left behind in 1948 .", "DAN SOLOMON Philadelphia , Dec . 29 , 2002 ."], "summary": ["Dan Solomon letter holds Republicans must alter principled opposition to race-sensitive policies -LRB- Dec 29 article -RRB- ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 4], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453098", "text": ["While architects have publicly proclaimed the World Trade Center site proposals displayed at the Winter Garden in Lower Manhattan as the greatest architecture show ever , many have privately expressed reservations about the designs ' details , the handling of the competition and even the spotlight in which the contestants now stand .", "`` Architecture is finally having a visible presence , perhaps too visible , '' said Ricardo Scofidio of Diller & Scofidio in Manhattan .", "The popular image of the architect as a creative genius whipping up great designs on a cocktail napkin is at odds with the reality .", "More often , architects say , great design is the result of constant , sometimes painful give-and-take between the architect and the client .", "Letting the public in on the process from the start , even as spectators , has pulled back the veil on a ritual that is most often conducted in the hush of boardrooms and private offices .", "By contrast , the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation announced that its design priorities for the site would be determined `` by conducting the most comprehensive public outreach campaign ever undertaken . ''", "The power of public opinion to sway the process was amply demonstrated in July when six initial site plans were universally rejected .", "In this , the second round , the public has been treated to front-row seats : the presentations by the seven competing architectural teams were televised live for more than three hours , and an exhibition of their models , renderings and video walk-throughs was open to the public almost immediately .", "Several architectural institutions have stepped in quickly to arrange their own forums , discussion groups and exhibitions on the process , and television networks have devoted unusual amounts of air time to explaining site plans and computer-animated design .", "Architects `` presenting on TV has never happened before , '' Mr. Scofidio added .", "`` But at this phase , letting the public say what it likes and does n't like will only make the water muddier , `` he said , explaining that what may be a great spectacle was no way to select a design .", "Bill Lacy , a design consultant and adviser to the jury on architecture 's highest honor , the Pritzker Prize , said that the Lower Manhattan redevelopment was `` far too important to be judged by public opinion poll . ''", "`` I feel sorry for these architects designing in a fish bowl , '' he continued .", "`` The first team did a credible job but was crucified by being exposed to the public prematurely .", "People are so eager for something positive to happen , but land use and massing studies are never exciting .", "You ca n't design for seven million clients . ``", "Mindful of the effort involved in preparing such complex and historically significant designs in just eight weeks -LRB- and with fees of only $ 40,000 -RRB- , the 16 architects interviewed for this article were loath to single out any team 's design .", "But they did not hesitate to criticize the process as too exposed and the requirements as too vague .", "The attention and its intensity are mixed blessings , said some architects , who worried that some of the more implausible designs might be taken literally , leaving the entire profession open to ridicule and condemnation .", "`` There is something a little grotesque in the interpretation of ground zero as a lucky break for art , '' Leon Wieseltier , literary editor of The New Republic , said last September in a debate with Daniel Libeskind , one of the competing architects , at Columbia University .", "The development corporation has frequently said that the object of the competition , a master land-use plan , is not to `` include the detailed architecture of individual structures . ''", "But many architects worry that the teams ' detailed models and impressively realistic video presentations will encourage the public to perceive them as concrete plans .", "Bernard Tschumi , a semifinalist in the competition and the dean of the Columbia Graduate School of Architecture , Planning and Preservation , described the process as backward .", "`` They are starting with a design and hope to arrive at a program , '' he said .", "`` It strikes me as unusual .", "And since each design is based on its own premises , you really ca n't compare them to each other at all .", "The ambiguity is not right . ``", "While some architects championed the competition as a way to educate the public about the importance of architecture , many faulted the proposals for the way the buildings met the ground and integrated with the city .", "`` There should be more talk about activities , not buildings , '' said the architect Denise Scott Brown of Venturi , Scott Brown & Associates in Philadelphia .", "`` A great deal of money will be spent quickly on the transit system , and that will affect what else happens .", "All those people coming up out of the subway will surely affect the design . ``", "She said she was n't sure that factor was reflected in the proposals , `` while , in fact , it should be the generator of these designs . ''", "Other architects said too much creative vision was expended on towers and not enough on street-level elements .", "`` The ground plan and infrastructure are surprisingly conservative in contrast to the boldness of the architecture , '' said Ralph Lerner , a Princeton , N.J. , architect and former dean of the Princeton University School of Architecture , who is now working on the design of several areas adjacent to the World Trade Center site .", "`` There were n't many new thoughts on how to treat ground transportation . ``", "Many architects , however , commended the building proposals for incorporating the latest innovations in energy efficiency .", "`` This will be the first time that European daring in ecological issues has been introduced at such a scale in the U.S. , '' said Raymond W . Gastil , executive director of the Van Alen Institute , a nonprofit organization devoted to increasing awareness of public architecture , `` but it will create new standards for all skyscrapers . ''", "The Van Alen Institute recently published a report , `` Information Exchange : How Cities Renew , Rebuild and Remember , '' exploring how seven cities , including Beirut , Sarajevo and Berlin , rebuilt themselves in the wake of both natural and political disasters .", "As for building height , architects ' opinions varied about what was appropriate for structures that would stand not in , but next to , the footsteps of the lanky twin towers .", "`` I 'm offended by everyone reaching to the sky again , `` said Will Bruder , an architect in Phoenix who focuses on environmental and recycling issues .", "Of the tall designs , he found Mr. Libeskind 's 1,776-foot tapering tower the most convincing .", "`` At least he reached up to the sky with sculpture instead of a bulky mass , '' Mr. Bruder said .", "Did any of the competitors succeed at reinventing the skyscraper for a new era .", "Only if you 've never seen Hong Kong , Mr. Lerner said .", "United Architects ' tall , angled structures , which combined into a single public floor high in the sky , were the only proposals suggesting a new way of thinking about large buildings in groups , he added .", "Hugh Hardy of Hardy Holzmann Pfeiffer in Manhattan , who did not participate in the competition , said he was not convinced that a new kind of skyscraper was possible at this time .", "The circumstances that created landmarks like the Chrysler and Empire State buildings were different , he said .", "`` Not in our lifetime has anyone been able to figure out what New York should be , '' Mr. Hardy explained .", "`` We 're all out of practice , and there 's no powerful leadership .", "Without someone in charge , it 's all going to have to be worked out each step of the way . ``", "All the architects wondered how the development corporation would proceed .", "The interested public , already well informed on the issues , has still more opportunities to learn .", "On Monday the Architectural League will open an exhibition that is like a continuing public tutorial .", "It will display a range of documents connected to the design proposals , from the architects ' video presentations to the reactions of the European news media .", "The exhibition is intended to be `` an archive of the process , '' said Rosalie Genevro , the league 's executive director , and it will be updated as more materials become available .", "`` The first round was so bland , there was nothing to talk about , '' she said .", "`` Now there 's so much more to look at and to sort out .", "And there 's more emotion . ``", "The exhibition will run through the end of February , when , the development corporation announced , it will adopt a final master land-use plan and undertake a competition for a ground zero memorial .", "On Tuesday Architectural Record magazine is sponsoring a forum of architects and architectural critics , including Mr. Tschumi and Richard Kahan , the former chief executive of the Battery Park City Authority , who oversaw the creation of the master plan for Battery Park City in the 1980 's .", "All the architects in the competition have been invited , along with representatives of the development corporation and Port Authority .", "`` It 's an intellectual exercise , `` said Robert Ivy , the editor in chief of Architectural Record .", "`` Have there ever been so many wonderful ideas to discuss , such depth of feeling to explore .", "My great fear is that they are trying to make a camel with three humps . ``", "But fears and criticism pale beside the excitement that most architects said they felt at the opportunity to see so much world-class architecture on display .", "`` This is a fantastic show of talent , '' said Cesar Pelli , the architect of the World Financial Center and the Winter Garden , who estimated that the architects involved must have spent as much as $ 4 million on their combined presentations .", "`` The community is getting a huge gift from these architects , '' Mr. Pelli said , adding , `` Of course , the architects are also getting phenomenal P.R. '' ."], "summary": ["Architects privately note difficulties resulting from power of public opinion in choosing design for World Trade Center site .", "Note unheard-of live TV broadcast presenting six initial site plans , which resulted in rejection of all designs .", "Interviews reveal variety of opinions among architects on unusual selection process .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 9, 15], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453100", "text": ["It 's Sunday morning and the breakfast buffet at the Sofitel Suites -- one of five international hotels at this luxury 420-acre coastal resort -- is heaving with Brazilian families , all eagerly scooping scrambled eggs onto golden brown toast .", "Just hours later , at lunchtime , the restaurant is empty .", "Most of the families have headed home , leaving the hotel -- and most of the resort on the sun-drenched Bahian coast , some 50 miles north of the state capital , Salvador -- to the handful of guests who are staying longer than a weekend .", "To a tourist , that might sound like paradise : Imagine having Sau\u00edpe 's 15 restaurants , 18-hole golf course , riding , sailing and surfing spots , exotic mangrove gardens and miles of empty beaches all to yourself .", "But for Thomas Humpert , president of Sau\u00edpe S.A. , the company that must fill the beds at the two-year-old resort , it is far from heaven .", "`` For 2002 , we will probably have a 41 percent occupancy rate , '' he said .", "`` Obviously that 's not what we would ideally like . ``", "Worse still , only 15 percent of guests are foreigners , well off the 50 percent forecast by 2005 in the resort 's initial business plan , which had the local news media hailing Sau\u00edpe as Brazil 's Canc\u00fan , a resort that would bring millions of tourist dollars to Bahia .", "In many ways , Sau\u00edpe reflects the problems faced by Brazil 's tourism industry as a whole .", "Serious investments have been made , $ 6 billion over the last eight years , and $ 200 million in the Bahian resort by the Marriott Group , Accor of France and SuperClubs of Jamaica , yet occupancy rates are way below their potential .", "Brazil still ranks only 20th among the world 's most popular destinations .", "Despite the slump in global tourism after the Sept . 11 attacks , Brazil , by rights , should have been one of the world 's hottest destinations in 2002 , said Xavier Veciana , general director of SuperClubs here .", "With the currency , the real , off more than 30 percent against the dollar in 2002 , a night at Sau\u00edpe 's luxurious Sofitel can be cheaper than a London bed and breakfast .", "Two of Brazil 's rivals as beach resorts -- Southeast Asia and Africa -- have both been hit by terrorist attacks recently , in Bali and Kenya .", "By comparison , laid-back Bahia looks positively safe .", "The problem is there are few direct flights to beach destinations here , crisis-hit tour operators are reluctant to risk adding new charter routes , and Brazil , in general , spends little abroad on promoting its coastline , historic cities and vibrant culture .", "`` Now , just when Bahia has its best chance to attract more foreign tourists , airlines and tour operators are in the deepest crisis they have seen for years , '' Mr. Veciana said .", "`` If the global economic situation were better , we 'd have airlines and charter companies waiting in line at the airport here begging for slots . ``", "Brazil 's tropical northeast coast , potentially the country 's most valuable tourist asset , is starved of scheduled international flights .", "Only TAP Air Portugal and Brazil 's troubled carrier , Varig , fly from outside Brazil directly to the regional capitals of Salvador , Recife and Natal .", "`` We have an airlift problem to Brazil in general and to Salvador in particular , '' said Eduardo Farina of the Bahian Entertainment , Culture and Tourism Cluster , a business association uniting 14 companies and institutions involved in local tourism .", "`` All the airlines are concentrating their flights in Rio de Janeiro and S\u00e3o Paulo , because they can make more profit from business travelers , '' he said .", "Not that Mr. Farina has anything against pursuing profit .", "That is exactly what his organization hopes to do , by improving the infrastructure and training in Bahia and diversifying what its resort areas can offer visitors .", "`` The main idea is to raise the quality and level of tourism here -- to show that Bahia is not just beach and sun , '' Mr. Farina said .", "`` Visitors who come here to enjoy cultural , nature and sport tourism tend to stay longer and spend more money . ''", "Strapped for cash , Brazil 's government is slashing spending on tourism promotion .", "The advertising budget for the government agency Embratur has slipped from $ 10 million in 1997 to $ 3.5 million in 2002 .", "Tiny Panama , by comparison , is spending $ 15 million a year on promotion in the United States alone .", "While President-elect Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva has promised to give the tourism industry its own ministry , the Bahian group is not waiting for government help .", "It plans an international campaign for Bahia in 2003 , and Costa do Sau\u00edpe itself has contracted with T.H.R. , the agency behind Spain 's acclaimed strategic marketing for tourism , to pinpoint its best international markets .", "`` Bahia is going to communicate aggressively all its products to specific target markets for the first time ever , '' Mr. Veciana said .", "`` We hope it will bear fruit soon . ''", "So far , Bahia 's experience in marketing itself has been restricted to small niches , like African-Americans , mainly from the Northeast , keen to learn more about their ethnic roots in a place closer to home and more familiar than Africa .", "Luciane Leite , international marketing director for state tour operator , Bahiatursa , estimates that 60 percent of the 45,000 Americans visiting Bahia in 2002 were African-Americans .", "Bahia 's population is largely descended from slaves from Mozambique , Angola and West Africa brought to work on sugar plantations .", "Ceremonies mixing African rites with Catholic tradition , like the Feast of the Good Death in Cachoeira , a Baroque town outside Salvador , are performed regularly , attracting increasing numbers of tourists .", "`` They 're looking for a bit of Africa here in the culture , the music , the religious traditions , many of which have died out in Africa but survived here , `` said Paula Santos , an ethnologist and tour guide for Tatur , a Salvador operator that caters to African-American tourists .", "Adam Carter , managing director of Brazil Nuts , a Florida-based operator , said he saw a huge potential marketing Bahia to the African-American market .", "`` In Bahia you have a fantastic product , '' he said .", "`` Salvador is easily branded as the most African city on the Western hemisphere , or the New Orleans of Brazil . ''", "African-Americans can be reached best by radio and specialty magazines like Essence , and through church communities , he said , though he added that Bahia so far has only used small-scale `` guerrilla marketing tactics . ''", "`` This is a market that 's in its infancy , `` he said .", "`` Even if you say only 5 percent of the U.S. population could be interested in such trips , it 's a market of millions . `` ."], "summary": ["Occupancy rate at luxury beach resorts at Costa do Sauipe , Brazil , is disappointing 41 percent , and only 15 percent of guests are foreigners .", "Problem is that there are few direct international flights to airports in Bahia .", "Another problem is that Brazil , in general , spends little abroad on promoting its coastline , historic cities and vibrant culture .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453101", "text": ["Russia announced today that it would shut down the mission in Chechnya of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe , ending any permanent international monitoring in the republic after the mission 's mandate expires tonight .", "Also today , a Russian military court acquitted an army colonel , Yuri D . Budanov , who was accused of murdering an 18-year-old woman in Chechnya nearly three years ago .", "The move ended a long , contentious trial that was considered a test of the country 's willingness to prosecute abuses by the military .", "Representatives of the 55-nation Organization for Security and Cooperation , which is devoted to managing conflicts and other crises across Europe and Central Asia , negotiated intensely to renew the mission .", "But Russian officials insisted that the mandate be limited to providing relief aid .", "The small mission , in the northwestern Chechen city of Znamenskoye , has overseen dozens of relief and economic projects , but the group has also criticized Russian forces for abuses against civilians .", "Human Rights Watch in New York said the Russian decision , following the closure of Chechen refugee camps in the Russian region bordering Chechnya , `` raises serious human rights concerns . ''", "`` Closing down the O.S.C.E. mission is part of Russia 's strategy to cut off scrutiny of human rights conditions in Chechnya and portray the situation as normalizing , `` said Elizabeth Andersen , executive director of the Europe and Central Asia division of Human Rights Watch .", "Rights advocates in Russia were similarly dismayed over the acquittal of Colonel Budanov , which followed a finding by psychiatrists that he was temporarily insane when he seized Elza Kungayeva from her home , took her to his quarters , cut off her clothes with a knife , beat her and then strangled her before ordering her body hidden .", "The court in Rostov , in southern Russia , ordered Colonel Budanov to undergo psychiatric treatment , but it was not clear for how long .", "`` What can be said about justice in Chechnya .", "`` Arsen Sakalov , a leader of the Chechnya Justice Initiative , a legal advocacy organization , said in an interview from the neighboring republic , Ingushetia .", "`` Everything that happens proves that there is no justice there . ''", "In a case that had attracted intense scrutiny , the verdict appeared timed to minimize public attention .", "The court announced its decision late this afternoon after many Russians had already left work to devote themselves to New Year 's Eve , the most thoroughly observed of holidays here .", "Wednesday and Thursday are public holidays .", "The parents of the dead woman did not attend the proceedings today .", "They now live in a Chechen refugee camp near Ingushetia 's capital and could not be immediately reached for comment .", "The family 's lawyer , Abdullah Khamsayev , said he would continue to press for Colonel Budanov 's prosecution , appealing to Russia 's highest court and , possibly , to the European Court of Justice .", "Russian forces have been repeatedly accused of grave abuses during the war in Chechnya , but few have ever been seriously investigated , let alone prosecuted , according to Russian and international rights groups .", "Colonel Budanov was the highest-ranking officer tried on criminal charges stemming from those abuses .", "The case against him dragged on for more than two years .", "The colonel and his lawyers acknowledged that he had killed Ms. Kungayeva but said he did so in an emotional rage , believing that she was a sniper who had killed members of his unit .", "He had been drinking heavily .", "Charges that he had also raped her were dropped early on , even though an initial autopsy concluded that she had been raped .", "Late last week , an assistant to the chief military prosecutor , Col . Aleksandr A . Derbenev , questioned the psychiatric evaluations , saying he believed that Colonel Budanov was in control of his actions .", "The Kungayev family 's lawyer also argued that the fact he ordered subordinates to bury Ms. Kungayeva 's body indicated that he knew he had committed a crime .", "Colonel Derbenev called on the court to sentence Col . Budanov to 12 years in prison for murder .", "If convicted , he faced a maximum of 20 years .", "Despite public outrage over the killing , Colonel Budanov won broad sympathy and support , especially from active and retired military leaders , who argued that he was unfairly prosecuted for extremes that occurred in war .", "Asked how an officer suffering from insanity could have been allowed to serve in the army , Arkady G . Baskayev , a former commander now in Parliament , told the Ekho Moskvy radio station today , `` The fact is that in Chechnya and the war there you have particular conditions in which very different things happen . '' ."], "summary": ["Russia will shut down mission in Chechnya of Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe , ending any permanent international monitoring in republic after mission 's mandate ends tonight ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1453102", "text": ["Any Bulletproof Cue Cards .", "Things can be confusing for an entertainer who relies on the nightlife when there is no night .", "Such is the problem faced by the Scandinavian singer SISSEL , when she is visiting the northern part of her homeland , Norway .", "In the summertime , there is only an hour or so of darkness .", "`` It gets all mixed up , '' she said .", "But with the debut of her album , titled simply Sissel , she has been traveling too much to dwell on the darkness .", "Speaking from her home in Norway , she said she had just returned from Moscow , where she sang a Christmas concert with PL\u00c1CIDO DOMINGO and JOS\u00c9 CARRERAS .", "Following the recent takeover of a Moscow theater by Chechen guerrillas , security for the concert was extremely tight , Sissel said .", "`` I saw that Pl\u00e1cido and Jos\u00e9 had these small glass things in front of them , '' she said .", "Thinking it was some kind of strange security measure , she asked Mr. Domingo why he had one and she did n't .", "He explained that it was a prompter and then asked Sissel , `` Do you think I sing so bad I need protection .", "`` She blushed .", "Before the Moscow Christmas special , Sissel , whose full name is Sissel Kyrkjebo , was serenading JIMMY CARTER at a concert to celebrate the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo .", "She said the former president was very sweet and had only one request .", "`` He asked for WILLIE NELSON , '' she said .", "So Willie Nelson he got , singing a Carter favorite , `` Georgia on My Mind . ''", "The Empire Strikes Out To the ears of an American , being named Commander of the British Empire by Her Majesty , the queen , sounds as if it would carry with it some great power .", "To wage war , perhaps , or at least to levy an unwanted tax on some far-flung subjects .", "Not so , says the actor BRIAN COX .", "`` When you are Commander of the British Empire , you are commander of an empire that does n't exist . ``", "This week , QUEEN ELIZABETH honored the Scottish-born Mr. Cox for his long career in the dramatic arts .", "Mr. Cox , who has roles in several movies out in theaters at the moment , including `` Adaptation '' and `` 25th Hour , '' said he initially did not want to accept the honor .", "`` But when I discussed it with friends , they convinced me that I should , '' he said .", "His hesitation grew out of his often outspoken criticism of the state of political affairs in Britain , particularly what he called `` a diminution of values '' and the poor condition of the national health service .", "Mr. Cox is also quick to speak out against what he sees as a dangerous brand of realpolitik .", "`` I think there is a lot of posturing going on regarding Iraq , '' he said .", "`` We do n't seem to have an independent mind on this . ``", "Mr. Cox was referring to his belief that Britain is just following America 's lead .", "As for America , he said it was often misunderstood overseas .", "`` And it is not doing itself any favors with the way it has been behaving recently , '' he said .", "`` Which is unfortunate , because I love America . ''", "Kvetching for Columbine Being MICHAEL MOORE is draining .", "Mr. Moore , who is known for ambushing his subjects , often bigwig corporate types , with cameras and crews , is tired of picking up the slack for , well , everyone .", "`` I think it 's an embarrassment that it 's somebody in a ball cap with no college education that 's going in to ask these questions , `` he said .", "`` It 's disgraceful .", "I ca n't stand to look at myself on the screen cause I look at that and I think , ` Boy if that shows there 's anything wrong with the American media , it 's that the job is left up to this guy . '", "You know .", "`` The director of '' Bowling for Columbine , `` a documentary about America 's gun culture , continued his rant .", "`` I 'm just waiting for the media to start doing their job so I can go back home and watch more sports .", "This is way too much work for me .", "I 'm a very lethargic person . ``", "But he would be up for some more TV time .", "Asked if it upset him that the conservative pundit ANN COULTER gets so much television time while he hardly gets any , he said that it was strange , considering how well his book had sold .", "`` I 've been on a total of two network shows in nine months , `` he said .", "`` What is going on with that .", "`` Has he ever spoken to Ms. Coulter .", "`` No .", "For some reason , BILL MAHER kept trying to get her on ` Politically Incorrect ' with me .", "She would never come on when I was on , `` he said .", "So does he think all the attention Ms. Coulter is getting has something to do with her looks .", "He sighed : `` I 've got good legs too . ``", "Boldface Names ."], "summary": ["Boldface Names column .", "Norwegian singer Sissel , who has released her first album , returns home from Moscow where she sang Christmas concert with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras .", "Queen Elizabeth honors actor Brian Cox by naming him Commander of the British Empire .", "Director Michael Moore says he would like to make more television appearances .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 19, 51, 41], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453103", "text": ["CONGRESS and the Bush administration are promising Americans tax cuts in the new year .", "What form those cuts take will spark fierce debate .", "Tax policy is not just an economic tool .", "It 's a partisan weapon .", "And its power , whether to improve economic performance or slay political opponents , depends on the details .", "Political considerations are already distorting two good economic ideas .", "The permanent campaign is transforming potentially significant tax reforms into flashy favors that enhance press releases more than economic growth .", "The first good idea is ending the `` double taxation '' of dividends .", "Under current law , a publicly held company calculates its pretax profit , pays its taxes , and then pays any dividends out of after-tax profit .", "Shareholders then pay income taxes on the dividends .", "This tax treatment creates all kinds of distortions .", "Because interest payments are deductible and dividends are not , the tax code encourages companies to raise capital by borrowing rather than issuing dividend-paying stock .", "The dividend tax also leads businesses to pile up retained earnings in cash -- and sometimes to use that extra cash for unwise acquisitions -- rather than turn over profits to shareholders .", "With fewer companies paying dividends , investors who want steady incomes are pushed into bonds .", "Those who want to avoid high taxes look for capital gains rather than dividends .", "This , in turn , skews the market toward growth stocks rather than steady earners .", "And by discouraging payouts that require cash profits , the tax code implicitly rewards financial funny business that only looks good on paper .", "Correcting the dividend-tax distortion is not simple , because the tax code affects both public companies and their shareholders .", "But many stockholders do not pay taxes on dividends , because their shares are in tax-sheltered pensions or retirement accounts .", "The biggest distortions are on the corporate side , where the tax code biases decisions about how to raise capital .", "To spur better decision-making and , hence , economic growth , lawmakers should make dividends , like interest payments , tax deductible for corporations .", "But getting rid of a big distortion requires a bigger tax cut than getting rid of a small one .", "Thanks to all those tax-sheltered accounts , exempting dividend income from individual taxes could cost only half as much as making companies ' dividend payments tax-deductible .", "Exempting only part of the dividend from taxation , as the Bush administration is expected to propose , would cost the Treasury even less .", "And most policy makers would rather keep the money in Washington .", "Giving individual investors a break on their dividend income already subjects politicians to demagogic attacks as friends of the rich .", "Cutting corporate taxes , even to eliminate distortions , is politically dangerous .", "In a campaign , `` my opponent supported tax breaks for giant corporations '' is even nastier than `` my opponent supported tax breaks for wealthy investors . ''", "Sounder tax policy hardly seems worth the trouble .", "The second good idea gone bad is cutting the payroll tax , which takes 6.2 percent of everyone 's paycheck from the first dollar of income up to a limit , set in 2002 at $ 84,900 .", "Employers pay an equal amount for the privilege of employing people .", "The employer tax does not show up on the FICA line of your pay stub , but it nonetheless increases the gap between what you take home and what you cost the company .", "Reducing the payroll tax would give every worker an immediate tax break and encourage companies to hire -LRB- or retain -RRB- employees .", "It 's a winning idea whether you 're looking for a Keynesian jolt to consumer spending or a supply-side boost to hiring .", "And it would particularly benefit low-income workers , who pay little or nothing in federal income taxes but still owe payroll taxes .", "The problem arises in defining what it means to `` cut the payroll tax . ''", "A permanent rate reduction , the ideal reform , is not what lawmakers have in mind .", "The most common suggestion is a one-year exemption on the first $ 10,000 or $ 15,000 of income .", "This idea has two problems .", "To spur either spending or long-term hiring , income tax cuts need to be permanent , not short term .", "Of course , employers and workers would appreciate even a one-year break , especially a large one .", "The idea is a political winner , but a temporary cut does little to encourage hiring or spending .", "Companies are n't likely to expand their permanent work force if the after-tax cost of new workers is going to shoot up a year later .", "And consumers generally base their spending on what they expect to earn over the long term .", "They save windfalls , including tax rebates , and borrow to cover temporary shortfalls .", "This principle , which is known in economics as the permanent income hypothesis , may explain why the 2001 tax rebates do n't seem to have stimulated spending as much as boosters had hoped .", "A temporary rate cut might not do much to help the economy , but at least it would n't do much harm .", "A lump-sum exemption , by contrast , could actually hurt low-wage workers .", "Instead of hiring one full-time person for $ 20,000 a year , employers would suddenly find it much cheaper to hire two half-time employees for $ 10,000 each .", "There would probably even be less paperwork -- and fewer health benefits to cover .", "A temporary lump-sum exemption may win some short-term good will among middle-income voters , who are less likely to lose their jobs to part-time workers .", "Lawmakers who care about spurring full-time employment , increasing consumer spending , or helping low-income workers would instead make a long-term commitment to lower payroll tax rates .", "But politicians , like the rest of us , respond to incentives .", "Until voters reward subtle but sound tax reforms , lawmakers will keep turning out the flashy favors that pay .", "Economic Scene Virginia Postrel is the author of `` The Future and Its Enemies . ''", "Her new book , `` Look and Feel : How Style Became Substance , '' will be published in June by HarperCollins .", "E-mail : vpostrel@dynamist.com ."], "summary": ["Congress and Bush administration are promising Americans tax cuts in New Year .", "What form those cuts take will spark fierce debate .", "Tax policy is not just an economic tool .", "It is partisan weapon .", "And its power , whether to improve economic performance or slay political opponents , depends on details .", "Photo of 1040 income tax form ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 1, 2, 0, 3], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453105", "text": ["Salvatore Pepe , a major developer of commercial real estate in Westchester County , died on Sunday at a hospital in Greenwich , Conn .", "He was 93 and lived in Bronxville , N.Y.", "Mr. Pepe was the president of Bianco & Pepe Inc . , based in Scarsdale , N.Y. , which he founded decades ago in a partnership with his father-in-law .", "It began as a construction company and evolved into a construction , development and real estate management company .", "It built the Vernon Hills shopping center in Eastchester , N.Y.", "Bianco & Pepe is the parent company for the family 's real-estate activities .", "The Pepe assets include office buildings , shopping centers and other retail and industrial sites .", "The Pepe family 's holdings include Westchester One , a building that is one of the main commercial structures in White Plains .", "Built in the 1970 's by Mr. Pepe and his son Nicholas , who has succeeded his father as president of the company , the building has 850,000 square feet of office space .", "Salvatore Pepe began in the construction business in 1931 in Mount Vernon , N.Y.", "He had been a construction worker , was laid off during the Depression and founded Bianco & Pepe .", "The company built a number of industrial structures in Connecticut and lower Westchester County .", "A native of New York City , he lived with his family in the Bronx , Mount Vernon and Los Angeles and returned to the New York City area in the late 1920 's .", "In addition to his son , his survivors include his wife , Catherine Bianco Pepe .", "Two other sons , Eugene and William .", "10 grandchildren .", "And 16 great-grandchildren ."], "summary": ["Salvator Pepe , major developer of commercial real estate in Westchester County , dies at 93 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Obituaries", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453106", "text": ["Florida State Coach Bobby Bowden stepped off the plane here the day after Christmas and was immediately fitted for a blindfold , handed a cigarette and asked if he had any last words .", "One word always suffices for Bowden when things are a little prickly around his program : dadgummit .", "Bowden , the Seminoles ' 73-year-old coach , has used up a bag full of dadgummits the last six days while pulling people off the pile that is his 9-4 team .", "Bowden is dismayed he has had to defend himself and his program after another uncharacteristically poor season on the field and several major mistakes by his players off the field .", "Suddenly , there are whispers that he should retire because he has lost his grip after consecutive four-loss seasons .", "`` This is a ballgame , '' he said with exasperation this week , `` not a guillotine . ''", "The ballgame is the 69th Sugar Bowl here Wednesday night against No . 4 Georgia -LRB- 12-1 -RRB- and Bulldogs Coach Mark Richt , the former Florida State assistant coach who Bowden says `` is like a son to me . ''", "If Florida State , No . 16 in the Associated Press poll and ranked No . 19 by the New York Times computer , had to worry about only the Bulldogs and the hype around Bowden 's facing another of his star pupils , that would be enough itself .", "But the Seminoles have other issues .", "* Quarterback Adrian McPherson was suspended indefinitely from the team over allegations he stole a blank check belonging to a Tallahassee businessman , a check that was later forged .", "* The Tallahassee police said McPherson was part of an inquiry into illegal gambling at Florida State .", "* The starting defensive tackle Darnell Dockett was suspended for the Sugar Bowl after an incident at a shopping center that the police are investigating .", "University officials and the police will not disclose the nature of the incident .", "* Quarterback Chris Rix , expected to be the Sugar Bowl starter , was suspended when he missed a final exam , as per university rules , Bowden said .", "Florida State players have sensed some urgency around their legendary coach in preparing for the Sugar Bowl .", "The senior offensive tackle Montrae Holland said practices had been very intense because a victory over Georgia would restore some of the Florida State luster .", "`` We have to win , '' Holland said .", "`` It 's a big deal .", "It will kind of lift the cloud over Florida State 's head to win this game .", "Right now , it feels like someone is bearing down on us . ``", "`` He 's made it very clear he wants to win this game , `` Holland said of Bowden .", "`` He 's demanding harder work at practice .", "He 's let us know how important this game is to him . ``", "Indeed , Bowden will not deny the significance of the game , especially with the swirl of controversy around his team .", "`` The game means a whole lot to me because it can help regain some of the prestige that we 've lost , `` he said .", "And if Florida State does n't win .", "`` If we lose , '' quarterback Fabian Walker said , `` there are a lot of doubts in people 's minds . ``", "After back-to-back four-loss seasons , there are doubts that Florida State is still able to churn out N.F.L. - caliber athletes .", "In 2000 , the Seminoles had seven players drafted by N.F.L. teams .", "In 2001 , there were nine N.F.L. draftees .", "In 2002 , only two Florida State players were drafted .", "`` It was like a mini pro team running around out there , '' said Holland , who has been in the program since 1998 .", "`` The truth is , we do n't have those type of players anymore .", "I know it 's hard to say , but it 's the truth .", "We lost a lot of great players to the N.F.L. before last season . ``", "Bowden disagrees .", "He admits the team 's quarterback situation was `` never stable , '' but he says there is talent to get back into the national championship picture in 2003 .", "`` Put Charlie Ward at quarterback with this team and we might be undefeated , '' Bowden said .", "`` It 's not like the other material is not there . ``", "Bowden said his program should be allowed room to rebuild , like other top-shelf programs of the 70 's , 80 's and 90 's .", "He can not conceal his dismay over the stubbornness of Florida State faithful to accept a slight downturn in a program that produced 14 consecutive seasons of top-five finishes to go with two national championships -LRB- 1993 and 1999 -RRB- .", "`` I look at Alabama , my school , and I ask myself , ' Whatever happened to Alabama .", "' `` Bowden said .", "`` I look at Southern Cal .", "Whatever happened to Southern Cal .", "I look at Texas , Notre Dame .", "The schools that used to be every year in the top four or five , what happened to them .", "They 've been in a down cycle .", "Some of them are pulling themselves back up .", "You do n't expect us to be in a cycle where we never lose , do you .", "`` Richt , who coached under Bowden for 15 seasons and patterns the Georgia program after Florida State 's , is almost amused by the sudden pressure on his former boss .", "`` This will drive him further from retirement , '' Richt said .", "`` When he leaves , he wants to go out in a blaze of glory . ''", "At least Bowden can still maintain his sense of humor .", "Asked about the program 's turmoil he said things could be worse .", "`` That could be Spurrier over there , '' he said referring to Steve Spurrier , his former rival Florida as the opposing coach .", "COLLEGE FOOTBALL ."], "summary": ["Florida State University prepares to face Georgia University in Sugar Bowl , hoping potential victory could compensate for what has been very difficult season fraught with controversy .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [14, 16], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453109", "text": ["Waving reams of fiscal data , a small man in a gray suit charged the barricades of Palestinian reform here today .", "It may have looked like the arid presentation of an annual budget , to the legislature of the Palestinian Authority .", "But it amounted to something more revolutionary .", "First , because there was a 2003 budget proposal at all .", "Second , because it was being disclosed publicly , in detail .", "Third , and most striking , because it included seemingly bland provisions that if enacted would have major consequences for the conduct , not only of Palestinian governance , but also of the Palestinian uprising .", "Take , for example , one apparent yawner : direct deposit of police salaries .", "This measure would strip Palestinian security chiefs of the control they now have over their forces ' pay , which some have used to build unaccountable fiefs .", "It would also twist shut what students of the Palestinian Authority say is a tap for financing some Palestinian militants .", "The man in the gray suit , Salam Fayyad , has been praised by both American and Israeli officials since he was appointed to his post as Palestinian finance minister by Yasir Arafat in June .", "That is something of a problem for the finance minister , a former official of the International Monetary Fund who was educated in Lebanon and Texas .", "Palestinians consider the Bush administration biased in favor of Israel .", "The 27-month-long conflict has made them suspicious if not contemptuous of any change -- and any Palestinian -- conforming to American and Israeli demands .", "When these concerns about outside influence were mentioned to Mr. Fayyad after his presentation , he became so exercised that he dropped his black satchel and began jabbing the air with one index finger .", "`` I 'm talking about public funds -- public money -- the people 's money ! `` he said in rapid-fire English .", "`` We should manage the funds in an honest way .", "Tell me if this is not inspired by the Palestinian people .", "Tell me if the Palestinian people do not benefit from this . ``", "Palestinian legislators , many of whom have chafed at corruption in the Palestinian Authority , said they expected the budget to pass within a month , and then for the real fight to begin : to enact its provisions against officeholders vested in the status quo .", "`` Either he will submit to their demands , or resign , '' Jamal Shobaki , the chairman of the legislature 's economic committee , said of Mr. Fayyad , expressing what he called a common fear among reformers .", "`` What we want is a third way -- that he neither submit , nor resign . ''", "Mr. Fayyad , who is 50 , smiled when told of the comment , and said he knew a third way .", "`` When you hit a wall , '' he said , `` you go through it . ''", "Mr. Fayyad , who has presented Mr. Arafat with his budget , is careful to emphasize his loyalty to the Palestinian leader .", "Yet his proposals , if enacted , would remove levers of patronage and contracting that Mr. Arafat has relied on for years to run the Palestinian Authority , the Palestine Liberation Organization , and his dominant faction , Al Fatah .", "As a result , Israeli officials reacted to the proposed budget with skepticism , along with rare praise for a Palestinian minister .", "`` Everything that Fayyad is trying to do is well appreciated and is the right thing , '' said Raanan Gissin , the spokesman for the Israeli prime minister , Ariel Sharon .", "`` But it 's like full gas in neutral , as long as the money eventually reaches Arafat . ``", "But Mr. Arafat appears to be somewhat boxed in by his finance minister .", "It would be a serious blow to the Palestinian Authority 's remaining credibility abroad -- including in Europe , which has given the Palestinians considerable funds -- if Mr. Fayyad felt forced to resign .", "Although he said he supported reform and democracy , Mr. Arafat did not speak about the budget as he addressed supporters here today , the anniversary of Al Fatah 's founding in 1965 .", "A Western diplomat said Mr. Fayyad had `` thrown down a gauntlet in front of the security services , '' adding that this `` puts the authority in a very difficult position because of Fayyad 's international credibility . ``", "In this diplomat 's appraisal , Mr. Fayyad appeared to be recruiting sidelined Palestinian institutions -- the budget , the legislature -- for wide-ranging reform , using the budget proposal to lend precision to popular but rather amorphous ideas for change .", "No budget was issued for 2002 , and before that , the details of the budgets were not disclosed .", "Mr. Fayyad made a point of posting his $ 1.28 billion proposal on a new Web site , which was also started today -LRB- www.mof.gov.ps -RRB- .", "He said his budget assumed that the Palestinian economy would contract by about 7 percent next year .", "He said the Palestinian G.D.P. now amounted to slightly under $ 2 billion .", "While he referred to the devastating impact of Israel 's offensives into Palestinian areas , he spoke more about what Palestinians could do to take control of their fiscal destiny , peppering his presentation with words like `` transparency , '' `` audit , '' and , repeatedly , `` credibility . ''", "Mr. Fayyad , who was raised in the West Bank town of Tulkarm , was for several years the representative of the I.M.F. to the Palestinian Authority , and he appears to have been storing up ideas of what he would do if he was in charge .", "Among other changes , he said he would ensure compliance by all ministries with Palestinian laws about procurement .", "He specifically referred to the purchasing body for the security services , which Palestinians call the Rock .", "Experts say the Rock is used to generate kickbacks and patronage for security officials .", "Mr. Fayyad called its relationship to the security agencies `` a clear violation of the law '' and said it `` should not , and will not , be allowed to continue . ''", "The proposal would advance several efforts he has already undertaken , like putting auditors in all the ministries and consolidating multiple investment and commercial operations in one closely watched fund .", "Mr. Fayyad , who has a doctorate from the University of Texas , served as a scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank in St . Louis and as an I.M.F. official in Washington .", "He has little popular support , but he gained some credibility in August , when he found himself trapped by a renewed Israeli siege of Mr. Arafat 's compound .", "The Israelis came in so swiftly , after back-to-back suicide bombings killed seven people besides the bombers , that he lost his cellphone and briefcase .", "They were crushed by a tank inside the taxi in which he had arrived at the compound .", "Before American pressure forced the Israelis to withdraw , Mr. Fayyad spent 10 days in the compound , sharing a small , airless bedroom with Mr. Arafat and two other officials .", "At one point , he recalled , the Israelis demanded that everyone evacuate the compound , saying they were about to demolish it .", "`` I thought to myself , ' This is it , ' '' he said .", "Contrary to Palestinian rumor , Mr. Fayyad is not an American citizen .", "Chain-smoking , as usual , in Mr. Arafat 's compound today , he said he knew some Palestinians viewed him as `` this guy who came from the I.M.F. ''", "But he shrugged that off .", "`` I know who I am , '' he said .", "`` Our people deserve respect , and if I can contribute to that , what more can I ask for .", "`` ."], "summary": ["Salam Fayyad , Palestinian finance minister who has been praised by both American and Israeli officials since he was appointed by Yasir Arafat in June , presents 2003 budget proposal to legislature of Palestinian Authority .", "Some of its seemingly bland provisions , if enacted , would bring greater accountability to Palestinian governance and , by seeing that money goes where it is supposed to go , cut of financing for some Palestinian militants .", "Photo of Fayyad ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 8, 3, 5], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1453110", "text": ["The nation 's Roman Catholic priests will not miss the year 2002 , their annus horribilis .", "A year ago , few could have imagined the disrepute into which the priesthood would slip following hundreds of sexual abuse cases involving clergy and a clueless response by bishops who misidentified exactly whom they were supposed to be shepherding .", "The anger was intense enough to destroy not just a few ecclesiastical careers but also the goodwill of parishioners and the public that priests used to take for granted .", "Almost forgotten are my former colleagues , the hard-working core of priests who are not malefactors .", "These men remain trapped in a system where they have next to nothing to say about the shape of Catholic leadership or its response to the crisis .", "Little wonder that priests ' numbers are dwindling .", "Their experience , their personal holiness and their spiritual insight often do n't seem to count .", "The hierarchy seeks only their silence and deference .", "As priests see one bishop after another imposed from above to put in place policies without input from the clergy or the laity , they become resigned , disgusted and just plain tired .", "At the same time , a smaller group of clergy ambitious for higher office have long brought all their skills to the challenging task of pleasing their omnipotent superiors rather than responding to the promptings of their subordinates or of the laity .", "In the more than two decades I spent as a priest -LRB- I left the clergy a decade ago over the issue of celibacy -RRB- , I had many opportunities to observe the ways priests are required to grovel to their superiors .", "Once , back in the seminary , as a hundred or so of us stood around waiting for His Eminence the cardinal to appear for an event , a student approached one of the monsignors .", "`` So , it seems the cardinal is late .", "`` he asked .", "`` Excuse me , young man , '' he was told , `` the cardinal is never late .", "Everyone else is early . ``", "Some years later , when I was head of the seminary 's student body , I found myself seated next to the archbishop at a dinner .", "Our student council had recently completed a study of issues affecting seminary life and our future as priests and human beings .", "I was eager to share its results with the authorities , and here I was , sitting at dinner next to Himself ! But as soon as I broached the topic , the cardinal silenced me .", "I was not to approach him directly , he said , but only through the appropriate channels so that the chain of authority would be unbroken .", "He had no desire to know firsthand what his future priests were thinking .", "Bishops anointed `` by the favor of the Apostolic See , '' as the Vatican terms it , are deferred to not because of their competence or learning , but because of that favor .", "This is true today , 40 years after the Second Vatican Council sought to encourage a more collegial style of leadership -- one seeking input from clergy and parishioners and even acknowledging the laity as part of the priesthood .", "Accustomed to this deferential thinking , today 's mismanagers of the clerical abuse scandals do not see themselves as ill-intentioned .", "Ignoring the victims of abuse grows out of an ideology that holds that clergy are different from ordinary people .", "Accountability is for lesser mortals .", "The culture of deference to the clerical mystique is deep-rooted .", "A dozen years ago , I was at a conference for priests on preaching and worship in the context of Vatican II , and the curriculum was suspended one afternoon to make room for an impromptu address by the archbishop .", "By the end of his hour-long monologue , he had effectively dismissed the newer approaches the faculty had been promoting .", "Waxing eloquent on the unique power of priests to accomplish things that not even kings and queens could do , he reminded us that even God obeys the words of a priest when he consecrates the bread and wine at mass .", "There was no rebuttal from the assembled priests .", "The trouble with deference and silence , of course , is that they encourage ignorance and denial about issues that need to be addressed .", "A few months ago , a group of New York clergy were told by a high-ranking official that he was open to discussing issues directly .", "However , some of those present told me , it was stressed that this was to be a so-called Roman dialogue , which means : I 'll do the talking , you listen .", "The seeds of the present crisis were really sown in 1968 , the year of the papal encyclical known as Humane Vitae , which began the undoing of Vatican II .", "The encyclical reasserted the church 's opposition to artificial contraception and to the principle that church teaching grows and develops .", "Catholics were not to decide for themselves , as a matter of conscience , whether to use contraception .", "After the encyclical , thousands of priests remained silent about this teaching on birth control -- one that was out of sync with the life the faithful lived .", "Many decided -LRB- as the laity had begun to do -RRB- that the church 's teaching was no real guide for their own sexual lives .", "Many resigned and sought happiness elsewhere .", "Others stayed but made their own decisions about licit and illicit sexual relationships -- and were silent about it .", "Is it possible that this silence -- combined with a culture that already valued suppression -- fostered the idea among some bad priests that they could get away with predatory behavior .", "Over the last year , however , the silence has been shattered by public outcry and the flock 's rediscovery of its voice .", "What remains to be seen is whether these voices will be joined by others from within the clergy -- and if they will be allowed to influence the course of Catholic teaching and policy .", "Paul E . Dinter , author of the forthcoming `` The Other Side of the Altar : One Man 's Life in the Catholic Priesthood , `` is development director of Care for the Homeless ."], "summary": ["Op-Ed article by Paul E Dinter , former Catholic priest , comments on crisis enveloping church over child sexual abuse by some priests .", "Says during his two decades as priest , he had many opportunities to observe ways priests are required to grovel to their superiors .", "Argues that trouble with deference and silence is that they encourage ignorance and denial about issues that need to be addressed ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [31, 10], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453111", "text": ["The fare on city-subsidized private express buses will rise to $ 4 a ride from $ 3 in April as part of a deal to preserve the service on weekends and holidays , Mayor Michael R . Bloomberg announced yesterday .", "The city also won a 90-day reprieve from a Bronx bus company that had threatened to suspend express service on Jan . 10 , a situation that would have stranded 15,000 riders a day .", "Mr. Bloomberg said the company , New York Bus Service , would keep its buses rolling while the city tried to get the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to take over the private lines .", "The fare increase surprised some City Council officials , who had reached an agreement with the mayor in November to preserve the $ 3 fare .", "The authority said `` complicated issues '' would have to be resolved before it would take over the private bus lines .", "The city spends about $ 98 million a year subsidizing seven private bus companies that operate in areas not served by the authority .", "Mayor Bloomberg said the authority , which runs its own express buses in addition to its regular city buses and the subways , is better suited to run all bus service in the city .", "The mayor has spoken of trying to persuade the authority to take over the private bus lines for months , but yesterday he appeared to be jump-starting what is likely to be a set of complicated negotiations by giving himself 90 days to close a deal .", "`` I would hope that 90 days is more than adequate , '' the mayor said .", "Mr. Bloomberg said it does not make sense for the city to continue subsidizing the private bus companies , which depend on the subsidies to turn a profit .", "`` The economics are such that you ca n't make enough money from the fares to cover all your costs and have a profit , `` the mayor said .", "`` And when it comes to the city or the state subsidizing private companies , you then have an odd mixture of public-private divided authority and responsibility .", "It has clearly not worked in this city to have the private bus companies provide service . ``", "The sticking point in the negotiations to get the transportation authority to take over the bus lines is likely to be the amount of the city subsidy .", "Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday that he hoped to negotiate a deal that would reduce the subsidies .", "But the transportation agency , a state-controlled authority , did not appear eager to assume an additional liability of $ 98 million a year .", "The authority is weighing a subway and bus fare increase to offset its own deficit .", "`` The M.T.A. is always interested in improving transportation services in the region , '' said Tom Kelly , a spokesman for the authority .", "`` There are complicated issues that must be resolved .", "Any takeover would have to be done so that it would not add a further burden to our current customers . ``", "Putting the seven bus companies under the control of the authority could yield administrative savings .", "The top executives at the seven city-subsidized companies earn a total of more than $ 1.8 million a year , according to an article in Newsday in 2002 .", "Under a takeover by the authority , most of those salaries could be dispensed with .", "Transportation experts said the authority might be able to use its purchasing power to win better deals on expenses like gas and maintenance than small companies could .", "The city has some assets it could use in the negotiations : it owns most of the 4,600 buses that the seven private companies use , and some of the bus depots as well .", "City officials and officials for the authority declined to discuss what elements might be involved in a deal to get the authority to take over the bus lines .", "Edward Arrigoni , the chairman of New York Bus Service , which serves the Bronx , said he had planned to suspend service on Jan . 10 if he could not reach an agreement with the city on covering drivers ' pensions .", "He said that he had agreed to keep the buses rolling for 90 more days at the request of the mayor .", "In the Bronx , many commuters expressed relief that the threatened shutdown had been avoided , at least for now .", "`` It 's just a relief knowing they 'll be here , `` said Evelyn Sanchez , 47 , who was waiting for a bus yesterday in Co-op City .", "`` It would 've messed up my life big time if they 'd have stopped running .", "It may sound stupid saying it , but nobody seems to understand how important one little bus can be . ``", "Daniesha Craig , 29 , who was standing next to her and was headed into Times Square for the New Year 's Eve festivities , said she would gladly pay more money to keep the buses running .", "`` That money 's in my pocket now , `` she said .", "`` I would have done almost anything to keep these buses going .", "I use them like the subway : every day , two times a day .", "I would 've been sunk if they had shut them down . ``", "In November , as part of the budget negotiations , the City Council reached an agreement with the mayor to hold express bus fares steady at $ 3 .", "The mayor said yesterday that the fare increase was needed to preserve weekend service on the express lines .", "The higher $ 4 fares will be charged every day on all seven private bus lines , city officials said , even though two of the lines do not provide weekend service .", "Fares could also go up in April for the authority 's express buses , officials said , as part of a proposed fare increase for subways , buses and express buses run by the authority .", "Christopher Policano , a spokesman for the City Council , said : `` We 're glad that weekend service and New York Bus Service will continue .", "But we have serious concerns about raising fares , as we are opposed to an overall M.T.A. fare increase .", "We 're going to be fighting that fare hike , and , if we 're successful , discussing with the mayor ways of avoiding this particular fare hike . ``", "Correction : January 3 , 2003 , Friday An article on Wednesday about plans to increase the fare on subsidized express buses included an erroneous figure provided by the city for the number of buses used by the seven private companies .", "It is about 1,325 , not 4,600 ."], "summary": ["Fare on city-subsidized private express buses will increase to $ 4 from $ 3 in April as part of deal to preserve service on weekends and holidays .", "City also wins 90-day reprieve from New York Bus Service , Bronx company that had threatened to suspend express service , stranding 15,000 riders daily .", "Mayor Bloomberg says company will keep buses moving while city tries to get MTA to take over private lines .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 2], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453112", "text": ["We 're beginning the new year in a deep fix .", "The Bush administration 's decision to refer North Korea 's revival of its nuclear-weapons program to the United Nations is a reasonable but transparent effort to sidetrack the issue in hopes of avoiding another military crisis on the eve of war with Iraq .", "It is unlikely that the United Nations will take meaningful action in this situation , since no power other than the United States possesses the means to back up words with action .", "Even if the administration 's strategy of isolating North Korea works , at best it would amount to a partial tightening of sanctions against a country whose economy is already moribund .", "The only additional threat available is the denial of food aid for the people of North Korea , an act that would take the United States into new moral territory .", "The administration now is in the awkward position of choosing to give war with Iraq priority over the most serious threat to stability in Asia since the last North Korean nuclear crisis a decade ago .", "Moreover , the North Koreans are moving to develop their nuclear stockpile with such dispatch that the administration 's delaying tactics appear to have little chance to succeed .", "With the last of the international inspectors ejected yesterday and the possibility of a mothballed plutonium reprocessing facility coming back on line in the next month or two , North Korea is giving itself the means to produce ever-greater numbers of nuclear weapons , and no subsequent agreement will be able to reverse that fact .", "There is still a lingering hope that all this will turn out to have been an attempt by North Korea to get the Bush administration to make major concessions .", "If that 's the case , either the United States or North Korea will have to give way .", "Unfortunately neither of these scenarios looks likely .", "And absent either outcome , North Korea is on course to becoming a nuclear power .", "If the North Koreans are successful , the consequences will be severe .", "North Korea already is in a position to provide nuclear technology to other states or to terrorist groups .", "In any event , we should expect that it will continue to develop the ability to deliver nuclear weapons by ballistic missile .", "And no long-term comfort can be found from the relatively limited capabilities of North Korea 's current missiles , which can still threaten our allies , including Japan .", "What 's more , North Korean weapons engineers can gradually develop longer-range rockets and lighter warheads , giving the country true intercontinental ballistic-missile capability .", "While it 's uncertain how far North Korea 's missiles will be able to travel , it is certain that the Bush administration now faces an immediate loss of credibility .", "Its report on National Security Strategy , released in September , claims the right of pre-emption as a means to deal with the type of threat that Iraq is said to represent by virtue of its efforts to build weapons of mass destruction .", "There is no sign , however , that the administration plans to use this doctrine against North Korea , which poses a danger to the vital interests of the United States by virtue of what it has already accomplished .", "The administration 's special addendum to its National Security Strategy , the `` National Strategy to Combat Weapons of Mass Destruction , '' published in December , states on its opening page : `` We will not permit the world 's most dangerous regimes and terrorists to threaten us with the world 's most destructive weapons . ``", "But there is no sign that this new unconditional doctrine will be directed against North Korea .", "Another line in the addendum states that `` effective interdiction is a critical part '' of the American strategy to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction and the missiles that deliver them .", "But , again , the administration , after seizing a North Korean vessel in the act of smuggling North Korean ballistic missiles into Yemen , elected to release the ship and its cargo .", "American officials cited reverence for international law , but such a justification , so unusual during the administration 's first weapons-proliferation case , takes the teeth out of its tough pre-emption policy .", "With what lesson for North Korea .", "So on the way to war with Iraq , the United States has been caught out by North Korea -- which apparently saw its opportunity in our distraction and seized it .", "This drama is far from over , but with each day North Korea moves closer to its goal of either forcing the administration to negotiate or enhancing its ability to produce weapons of mass destruction .", "Either way , the balance of power in the Far East is likely to be upset .", "If the president negotiates , he will send a message that the key to respectful attention from his administration is blackmail .", "If he ca n't stop North Korea from pursuing its nuclear ambitions , the only effective remedy would be military action .", "War on the Korean peninsula is almost too horrible to contemplate , although the Clinton administration certainly confronted it when dealing with North Korea 's nuclear program in the early 1990 's .", "-LRB- Then , as now , the North Koreans were preparing to begin a process that would give them enough plutonium to build nuclear weapons serially . -RRB-", "If North Korea proceeds today , we would then be faced with a ruthless government in a position to increasingly threaten its region .", "This threat could cause a number of states , including South Korea and possibly Japan , to question whether American security guarantees are still the most reliable means for their defense and survival .", "One political reminder from this episode is the danger that can come from tough talk .", "When using words as weapons , a leader must be prepared to back up his rhetoric with force .", "The president 's nomination of North Korea as a member of the `` axis of evil '' in his last State of the Union message now looks like a bluff that is being called .", "And the outcome of the administration 's diplomacy is that we are preparing to fight a war with a country that might eventually acquire nuclear weapons , while another country is closing in on the ability to go into mass production .", "Like it or not , the administration needs to test the theory that North Korea is trying to force the United States into negotiations .", "That would be bitter medicine for the administration to swallow , but in view of the alternatives it would be wise for the administration to reverse course and engage with North Korea .", "However , if such a process does n't stop the North Korean nuclear enterprise , and quickly , then the administration must either accept a monumental blow to the security of the United States , or prepare for a second major military enterprise in Korea -- one that would take place simultaneously , or nearly so , with action against Iraq .", "Leon Fuerth , national security advisor to Vice President Al Gore from 1993 to 2000 , teaches international relations at George Washington University ."], "summary": ["Leon Fuerth Op-Ed article contends Bush administration 's decision to refer North Korea 's revival of its nuclear-weapons program to United Nations is reasonable but transparent effort to sidetrack issue in hopes of avoiding another military crisis on eve of war with Iraq .", "Holds it is unlikely that UN will take meaningful action in this situation , since no power other than United States possesses means to back up words with action ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 2], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453114", "text": ["It 's Christmas all over again at Jets headquarters , where the gifts are rolling in from teams the Jets helped with their victory Sunday over the Green Bay Packers .", "From the Cleveland Browns , who got into the playoffs as a wild card , Coach Herman Edwards received a bottle of Dom P\u00e9rignon and a congratulatory letter .", "And Edwards does n't even drink .", "There are flowers and fruit baskets from members of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , who got a bye .", "Edwards has also heard from friends in Philadelphia , where he spent most of his playing career .", "The Eagles have the home-field advantage throughout the playoffs .", "`` With our win , we helped a lot of people , '' Edwards said .", "`` A lot of people stay in the sun , Philly 's headed home .", "It 's all good for them . ``", "Edwards and Dungy Reminisce Herman Edwards spoke with Indianapolis Colts Coach Tony Dungy , his friend and mentor , for about 20 minutes Monday night , the last time they will speak until they see each other at the Meadowlands on Saturday .", "There was no pregame trash-talking -- that 's not their style -- but there was plenty of reminiscing .", "`` We talked about how we started , when we were in Hawaii , how we first met , '' Edwards said .", "`` There 's a lot of water under that bridge . ``", "Edwards said the two also discussed Dungy 's firing by Tampa Bay last season .", "Edwards spoke to Dungy last year when rumors he would lose his job began even as the Bucs were preparing to play Philadelphia in the playoffs .", "`` We talked about how he was going to handle it , '' Edwards said .", "`` I figured he was going to handle it that way , like a gentleman .", "Then we had a good conversations at the White House , for the Martin Luther King celebration .", "It was a funny period for me .", "Denny Green had just gotten fired and Tony had just gotten fired .", "I 'm looking at these guys who I 've looked up to and said , ` This is crazy . '", "I was trying to convince Tony to go where he went .", "` If you go to Indianapolis , you get an e-ticket . '", "And the next thing was he was n't in the conference , so I do n't have to play him .", "That 's a good thing . ``", "Edwards remains disturbed by how Tampa Bay handled Dungy 's exit .", "`` There 's a lot of times when coaches are going to be dismissed , you can wait until the season is over to do that , `` Edwards said .", "`` Before you 're a coach , you 're still a man and your dignity is very , very important .", "When you do n't show a man dignity , after he 's been there , that bothers me a little bit . ``", "PRO FOOTBALL : NOTEBOOK ."], "summary": ["New York Jets Notebook discusses New York Jets win over Green Bay Packers , which helped many other teams clinch playoff berths or home-field advantages .", "Coach Herman Edwards and former mentor Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy reminisce as friends , not coaches who will oppose each other in playoff game ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 0], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453116", "text": ["The Rockefeller Group was most famous as the manager of Rockefeller Center , the landmark cluster of buildings that includes Radio City Music Hall in the heart of Midtown Manhattan .", "That came to an end , though , in February 1997 , when investors led by Tishman Speyer Properties bought the complex from the group 's Japanese parent , Mitsubishi Estate .", "But that did not mean the end of the Rockefeller Group -- it just moved a little to the west .", "Not included in the sale were four skyscrapers on the west side of the Avenue of the Americas between 48th and 51st Streets , which the group managed and in which it held differing levels of ownership .", "A surface parking lot at 745 Seventh Avenue .", "And some land in New Jersey .", "Since then , the parking lot has been turned into a one-million-square-foot headquarters for the Lehman Brothers investment banking company and the land in New Jersey has sprouted office buildings , stores and a distribution center .", "In the last year , some of the New Jersey buildings have been sold , and building sites have been acquired in places like Northern California and eastern and central Florida .", "And the company is in the middle of a new cycle of development .", "`` We have taken advantage of a seller 's market to find outside investors to take our positions in several properties , `` said Jonathan D . Green , president and chief executive of the Rockefeller Group .", "`` We have reaped the fruits of our developments and are about to start new buildings . ''", "He said most of the new projects would be built for specific tenants , although he did not rule out building on speculation if market conditions were suitable .", "He said the company was close to signing an agreement for an 800,000-square - foot distribution center in Central New Jersey .", "One area the company is developing is in Florham Park , an area about 40 miles west of Manhattan that was once a playground of the rich , with grand houses and expansive estates .", "Three of the New Jersey buildings were sold from this parcel to finance further development .", "They were bought by Investcorp , which represents investors from the Middle East , for an undisclosed price .", "The Rockefeller Group started the Florham Park project in 1997 by buying 140 acres in what had been a research park for the Exxon Corporation .", "The property had an existing building , occupied by AT&T , and two more were built .", "One was for AT&T Laboratories .", "The other one was built on speculation and eventually was leased by Novartis , a pharmaceutical company .", "`` We did that building without signing a tenant first , and Novartis came along in midconstruction , '' Mr. Green said .", "He said there was enough land remaining on the parcel , which was once the estate of Florence and Hamilton Twombly -- hence the township name -- to build another 220,000-square - foot building .", "The group formed a joint venture with the Gale Group of New Jersey in the autumn of 2000 to buy 473 acres in Florham Park , next to the 140-acre parcel , to be developed as an office park .", "The site will support two million square feet of office space , although no projects are under way .", "The group is also developing industrial property near Exit 8A of the New Jersey Turnpike , about 50 miles southwest of New York City , near Cranbury .", "This has been a popular area for distribution centers because it is close to major markets .", "And because it was farmland , there are few neighbors to complain about heavy truck traffic .", "The first development in the group 's 150-acre foreign trade zone there was a 900,000-square - foot distribution center for Pearson Education , a publishing company that has a large textbook operation .", "The distribution center has since been sold to a group of investors based in London , Mr. Green said , for a reported $ 68 million .", "The site can support two million square feet of development , so if the agreement is signed for the 800,000-square - foot building , only about 200,000 square feet of development will remain .", "The Rockefeller Group has another foreign trade zone in Mount Olive Township , in far western Morris County , that is nearing completion and will have 2.9 million square feet of space .", "Room for one building remains .", "The group sold land for 800,000 square feet of retail space on the south side of the tract to AIG Baker , a developer based in Alabama .", "The center includes stores like Wal-Mart , Sam 's Club and Lowe 's .", "The Rockefeller Group is placing much of its focus on the development of foreign trade zones , in which companies receive favorable import duty treatment until a product is sold in the United State or is re-exported .", "It has bought land for such zones in West Palm Beach and Homestead , Fla . , and in suburban St . Louis .", "`` Our strategy for the next few years is to do low-risk , build-to-suit projects mostly in suburban markets , '' Mr. Green said .", "COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE ."], "summary": ["Rockefeller Group , which once ran Rockefeller Center , now has real estate operations across country and is in middle of new cycle of development .", "Rockefeller Group 's New Jersey projects noted .", "Jonathan D Green , president and chief exec of company , says most of new projects will be built for specific tenants , although he does not rule out building on speculation if market conditions are suitable .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 8, 9, 5], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]} +{"id": "1453119", "text": ["Agnes Eisenberger , a manager of classical musicians who was the president and owner of Colbert Artists Management , died on Thursday at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan .", "She was 79 and lived in New York City and Pawling , N.Y.", "The cause was cancer , said Charlotte Schroeder , who succeeds Ms. Eisenberger as president of Colbert Artists .", "Ms. Eisenberger worked with Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra , the soprano Joan Sutherland , the Juilliard String Quartet , the flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal and the bass James Morris , among many others .", "She was also the manager of the pianist Alfred Brendel , starting early in his career , and was instrumental in his success in the United States .", "Ms. Eisenberger was born in Vienna to a musical family and came to the United States as a child .", "She graduated from Adelphi University and in the early 1960 's began to work for Colbert Artists as an assistant to the company 's founders , Henry and Ann Colbert .", "She became the owner and president after the retirement of Mrs. Colbert in 1991 .", "-LRB- Mrs. Colbert died in 2001 . -RRB-", "Ms. Eisenberger had recently completed `` Brahms 's Notebooks , `` a translation of a collection of poetry that Brahms admired , published in German in 1909 .", "The book , with annotations and an introduction by Ms. Eisenberger , is to be issued by Pendragon Press in 2003 .", "Her marriage to the violist Paul Doktor ended in divorce .", "There are no immediate survivors ."], "summary": ["Agnes Eisenberger , manager of classical musicians who was president and owner of Colbert Artists Management , dies at 79 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Arts", "Obituaries"]} +{"id": "1453120", "text": ["Pushing in toward glittering window displays , holiday crowds are elbowing and gaping six-deep at intriguing depictions of what so far amount to nothing more than a shrewd bet on New York 's ability to prevail , not just survive .", "`` Bad men knocked down the two big buildings and we ca n't put them back , but we 're trying to find something better , `` a mother gently explains to a child .", "The lad stares through the window glass in confusion but obvious wonder , too .", "The seasonal mechanical elves and snow scenes may be missing .", "But look : there are delightfully glowing toy buildings , nine versions of them towering elegantly and defiantly enough above a miniature Manhattan to tease anyone with an imagination , particularly the city 's young at heart .", "These are the worthy architect renderings of what might yet be in Lower Manhattan , on display just across the street from where the World Trade Center towers perished so woefully from the skyline .", "What must yet be , to judge from the enthusiasm and considered comments of the public 's reaction as they crowd in daily , from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. , at the Winter Garden .", "The glow and buzz to be witnessed at the displays signal an empowering by the people even beyond the thoughtful ideas of the architects .", "This vital hubbub amid our dim solstice days stands as a fresh attraction in itself , so near yet so far from the elegiacal footprints of the obliterated towers .", "`` It 's all bittersweet , `` a young woman says to a man equally touched and stricken as their faces glow with the idealized light of future possibilities .", "He answers , `` The site is a graveyard , but these ideas can grow on us . ''", "Amid the crowd , one theme is : Remember how we never appreciated the old towers until they fell .", "Another is : Let 's show the world a tower at least as tall -LRB- although it might take a younger office generation to dare work that high again -RRB- .", "Primal Stonehenge facets in the proposals honor the tragedy 's ineffability .", "One would use glass structures to allow no shadow to fall each Sept . 11 on where the towers stood .", "Another would create rectilinear groves of trees precisely in the towers ' final shadows .", "Visitors parse and top the architects word for word , debating the poignancy of `` The Void '' in one rendering and `` The Sacred Precinct '' in another .", "And let 's not forget `` The Stability System '' in a third , as if pre-9/11 security , like crushed city innocence , might ever be regained .", "People have until Feb . 2 to jot down their honest reactions and advice for the next planning phase in the task of resurrection .", "Daily throngs are serving notice the city will not tolerate this as a feel-good exercise .", "We are on a serious search for some post-necrotic bulwark badly needed by New York .", "There is imaginative energy and honest emotion at the windows .", "Even Rudolph Giuliani 's curmudgeonly dismissal of the initial renderings seems forgivable , a healthy sign perhaps that the city is intent on regaining its old edge .", "FRANCIS X . CLINES The City Life ."], "summary": ["Francis X Clines Editorial Observer expresses belief , as New Yorkers gaze at architects ' renderings for future of Lower Manhattan , that city is determined to regain its health and its old edge ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [22, 21], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453121", "text": ["The Zapatista rebels , after long silence , were stirring today , the eve of the ninth anniversary of their armed uprising against the Mexican government and its free trade accord with the United States .", "The North American Free Trade Agreement eliminates tariffs on most agricultural goods on Jan . 1 .", "Across Mexico , people fear that a flood of cheaper , government-subsidized American imports will ruin hundreds of thousands of Mexican farmers .", "A national coalition of farm groups called off plans today to blockade the border with the United States after the secretary of the economy , Luis Ernesto Derbez , raised the possibility of renegotiating elements of the pact .", "Mexican government officials in Tuxtla Guti\u00e9rrez , the capital of Chiapas , where the Zapatistas maintain their strongholds , said reports of planned rebel actions were rife .", "They included threats to seize a tourist ranch outside the town of Ocosingo , the scene of the heaviest fighting between the group and the Mexican Army in January 1994 , said the American owners , Glen Wersch and Ellen Jones , in telephone interviews .", "Officials from the American , British , German and Dutch Embassies in Mexico City have advised their guests to leave the site , Rancho Esmeralda , which lies a mile from both a Mexican Army base and a Zapatista community .", "`` We 're about to have everything in the world taken away from us , `` Ms. Jones said .", "`` The police are saying they ca n't come until our ranch is trespassed on .", "There is no law here . ``", "She said she and her husband were summoned to a meeting with their Zapatista neighbors 18 days ago and told that their ranch would fall `` under the authority of the Zapatistas , '' who wanted tourism banned in the area .", "The Zapatistas , she said , demanded the title to the ranch , a popular destination for American and European travelers listed as one of the top 10 places to stay in Mexico by the Lonely Planet travel guide .", "Mr. Wersch said he would sit tight .", "`` We 'll be here tonight , `` he said .", "`` I have n't seen any word from the army .", "They have a front-row seat on the problem . ``", "Other threats , unconfirmed , included plans to seize a bridge across the Usumacinta River .", "The bridge , at Boca de Cerro , near the Chiapas-Tabasco state line , is the site of a proposed hydroelectric dam that , if built , would flood peasants ' farms and unexplored sites of Mayan ruins .", "The Zapatistas also plan a march on the town hall in Ocosingo at dawn on New Year 's Day .", "The Zapatista movement rose up on Jan . 1 , 1994 , and fought pitched battles with the Mexican Army before retreating into isolated communities in the mountains and jungles of Chiapas .", "The group has said and done little since its leaders came to Mexico City last year seeking passage of an Indian rights law .", "Though President Vicente Fox strongly backed the law , the Mexican Congress eventually passed a diluted version of the bill that satisfied few .", "The group 's leader , who calls himself Subcommander Marcos , has alienated many of his supporters outside Chiapas by publishing a long and , in many eyes , bizarre attack on a Spanish judge , Baltasar Garz\u00f3n .", "The judge is best known for his legal pursuit of the Chilean dictator Gen . Augusto Pinochet , and for his drive on the Basque separatist group known as ETA .", "Subcommander Marcos called Judge Garz\u00f3n `` a grotesque clown '' in a letter published on the Internet and in a Mexico City newspaper , and ridiculed his attempts to prosecute members of ETA , which has carried out bombings and other attacks in the name of a Basque homeland for four decades .", "The judge replied with a letter accusing the Zapatista leader of standing for `` false rebellion , violence , lies , ignorance . ''", "What this spat has to do with the poverty of people in Chiapas remains obscure .", "`` The Zapatistas have nothing to gain from picking so many fights , '' said Carlos Monsiv\u00e1is , a Mexico City writer and historian sympathetic to the movement ."], "summary": ["Zapatista rebels are stirring on eve of ninth anniversary of their armed uprising against Mexican government and its free-trade accord with United States .", "North American Free Trade Agreement eliminates tariffs on most agricultural goods on Jan 1 .", "Across Mexico , people fear that flood of cheaper , government-subsidized American exports will ruin hundreds of Mexican farmers ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 2], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1453123", "text": ["An American soldier wounded in the head during a border patrol on Sunday was shot by a Pakistan border guard , and the United States responded by calling in a coalition plane that bombed the area , the United States military said today .", "The Pakistani guard was part of a unit cooperating with American forces on border control .", "It was not clear why he opened fire , but it appears he strayed over the border into Afghanistan .", "When the American patrol ordered him to move back into Pakistan , he retreated with several others to the cover of a building and opened fire , grazing the American soldier 's head , said a statement from the press center at the United States air base at Bagram , north of Kabul .", "The American patrol called in air cover after the shooting , and a coalition plane dropped a 500-pound bomb on the area , according to the statement .", "`` We are working with the Pakistanis for an accurate battlefield damage assessment of the incident , '' the statement said .", "There was no word from Pakistani officials about the incident .", "The Pakistani news media reported that planes had dropped two bombs , one hitting a checkpoint and one damaging an abandoned religious school building in a place called Bormol .", "There were no reported injuries .", "The American soldier was evacuated and later flown to Germany for further treatment .", "His condition was described as stable .", "Afghan and United States military officials say there has been an increase in cross-border attacks by small groups intent on launching rockets at United States military positions along the border areas , and then retreating into Pakistan .", "An American soldier was killed in a firefight 10 days ago in the same border area , near Shkin , in the eastern province of Paktika .", "The American patrol fired back and thought they had killed one of the attackers .", "Others fled over the border into Pakistan , an American military spokesman said the next day .", "United States forces have mounted joint operations with Pakistani forces along the border , coordinating at times when suspects flee across it .", "But there are frustrations among Pakistani officials in the border areas who have watched local tensions rise while the operations have produced little .", "Pakistan has deployed its own forces to try to stem infiltration of armed groups either way , but they are not seen as particularly effective because of the strong anti-American and pro-Taliban feeling of the local population , which allows the armed groups free movement .", "Several dozen low-level members of Al Qaeda are believed to be in South Waziristan , in Pakistan 's tribal territories , near where the border clashes have occurred , according to Pakistani officials .", "But efforts to arrest them have been thwarted as local people have tipped them off before government forces move in , they said .", "THREATS AND RESPONSES : BORDER INCIDENT ."], "summary": ["American soldier on border patrol in Afghanistan is shot and wounded in head by Pakistani border guard .", "United States responds by calling in coalition plane that bombs area .", "It is not clear why Pakistani guard opened fire , but it appears he strayed over border into Afghanistan .", "Map ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 0], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1453125", "text": ["Richard Horner , a Broadway theater owner and producer who won a Tony Award for the 1974 revival of Eugene O'Neill 's `` Moon for the Misbegotten , '' died on Saturday at his home in Palm Springs , Calif .", "He was 82 .", "By himself and with his business partner Lester Osterman , Mr. Horner produced dozens of Broadway and Off Broadway shows during the 1960 's and 70 's , including `` Butley , '' Albert Innaurato 's `` Passione '' and `` The Crucifer of Blood , '' a Sherlock Holmes story adapted from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 's `` Sign of Four . ''", "He was also a general manager for `` Da , '' the 1969 original production of `` 1776 '' and other shows .", "`` A Moon for the Misbegotten '' won three Tony Awards in 1974 , including a special award presented to the producers .", "Mr. Horner and Mr. Osterman 's Coronet Theater Corporation owned several Broadway theaters , including the 46th Street Theater -LRB- now the Richard Rodgers -RRB- , the Helen Hayes and the Morosco , which closed in 1981 .", "During the 1980 's , Mr. Horner was the executive director of the American Shakespeare Company in Stratford , Conn . , and staged productions at Jones Beach Marine Theater .", "Born in Portland , Ore . , he graduated from the University of Washington at Seattle and served in the Navy during World War II .", "Mr. Horner is survived by his wife , the former actress Lynne Stuart .", "Two sons , Lindsey Horner of New York City and Randall Horner of Portland , Ore .", "Two daughters , Robin Horner of San Francisco and Anne Cameron of Albuquerque .", "A sister , Joy Rich of Roseburg , Ore .", "And three grandchildren ."], "summary": ["Richard Horner , Broadway theater owner and producer , dies at 82 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Arts", "Theater", "Obituaries"]} +{"id": "1453128", "text": ["On one point , Michael Zeoli and local health officials agree : the large swimming pool in the side yard of Mr. Zeoli 's house on Victory Street here is most certainly not suitable for swimming -- at least not for humans .", "Bullfrogs and snakes , on the other hand , seem to like it just fine .", "What the officials and Mr. Zeoli disagree about is whether the fetid water in the 30-foot-long in-ground pool is a public health hazard , a sizable breeding ground for mosquitoes that could carry the potentially deadly West Nile virus .", "After a standoff of many months , during which Mr. Zeoli refused to clean the pool , officials decided that enough was enough .", "On Friday , Mr. Zeoli , 50 , was arrested and charged with violating the state 's public health code .", "He surrendered to the Shelton police after they telephoned him to say that a warrant had been issued .", "In doing so , he may have become the first person charged under laws that were tightened after the West Nile virus became a major public health concern in 1999 .", "Capt . Joel Hurliman of the Shelton Police Department said it had never before arrested anyone on a charge of `` maintaining an in-ground pool containing stagnant water serving as a possible breeding ground for mosquitoes , '' as the charge was worded .", "`` This is our first experience with this , '' Captain Hurliman said today .", "`` It 's not like this was a plastic wading pool left in the yard and the water turned green .", "This is an in-ground pool that has been like that for quite some time .", "It has frogs in it . ``", "The local health agency , the Naugatuck Valley Health District , obtained a a warrant in State Superior Court last week , and the police asked Mr. Zeoli to surrender .", "After his arrest , he was released and ordered to appear in court on Jan . 13 .", "If convicted , he could face up to 90 days in prison .", "Mr. Zeoli did not respond to telephone messages left at his home today , and a knock on his door went unanswered .", "But in an interview with The New Haven Register , which reported his arrest this morning , he denied that the pool posed a health risk .", "He noted that there were a dozen insect-eating bullfrogs in the pool and said he used pesticide .", "He said he could not afford to drain the pool for cleaning .", "Health officials first ordered Mr. Zeoli to clean the pool last summer after complaints from neighbors .", "Lenny Walker , 40 , who lives next door to Mr. Zeoli in a middle-class neighborhood of tidy single-family houses , said he had been complaining for years .", "Mr. Walker , a mechanic for Sikorsky Aircraft , said his three children could not use their own pool in the summer because of the mosquitoes from next door .", "`` There are trees growing out of the pool , '' Mr. Walker said .", "`` There are snakes , frogs , ducks .", "There 's millions of mosquitoes . ``", "Mr. Walker rejected the theory that bullfrogs could control the mosquitoes .", "`` That 's a hell of a job for a frog , `` he said .", "`` That frog 's on overtime . ``", "The pool is about 12 feet wide by 30 feet long and surrounded by a wooden deck covered in dead leaves and branches .", "It appears to be four to seven feet deep .", "The water , partly frozen , is black .", "The plastic pool liner is torn in places and covered in mold .", "Part of the pool 's frame appears to be collapsing .", "Last winter , a neighbor 's dog walked onto the frozen water and nearly drowned after falling through the ice , Mr. Walker said .", "While Mr. Zeoli 's house seems to be well-maintained , with Christmas lights twinkling out front , the rest of the property looks like a junkyard , with several rusted and apparently abandoned vehicles along with a couple of motorboats and other detritus .", "On the street out front is a Dumpster filled with other refuse .", "`` It 's definitely a case of blight , `` Mr. Walker said ."], "summary": ["Police in Shelton , Conn , arrest Michael Zeoli , charging that his swimming pool is breeding ground for mosquitoes that can cause West Nile virus .", "Health officials first ordered Zeoli to clean pool last summer after complaints from neighbors , but he did not comply ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [19, 2], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453129", "text": ["The Giants ' kicking units are like an improvisational comedic troupe , the characters changing constantly .", "Dan O'Leary , the long snapper , is out after tearing a thumb ligament , and Trey Junkin , a 41-year-old with 19 years of experience , is in just days before the playoff game Sunday against San Francisco .", "Junkin will become the fifth -- or is he the 50th .", "-- long snapper used by the Giants since the beginning of training camp .", "He will snap on punts , and Coach Jim Fassel indicated yesterday that he would consider using Junkin on field goals and extra points as well .", "Chris Bober , the center , has been snapping on field goals and extra points .", "He had a poor snap on an extra point in Indianapolis and another on the game-winning field goal against Philadelphia .", "On that play , Matt Allen dug out the low snap and set it in time for Matt Bryant to kick .", "Junkin has played 281 regular-season games for Buffalo , Washington , the Raiders , Seattle and Arizona since beginning his career in 1983 .", "`` I was with him Arizona , '' Fassel said .", "`` I have a lot of faith in him .", "We need a guy with experience to step in and help us right now . ``", "Junkin follows O'Leary , who replaced Bob Jones after Jones snapped a ball over Allen 's head in a game against Houston , a mistake that cost the Giants a safety in a 2-point defeat .", "The Giants have also used three holders in the regular season : Allen , Tom Rouen and Jesse Palmer before Allen got the job back .", "Bryant became the kicker the day before the regular season after a knee injury sidelined Owen Pochman .", "Confident 49er San Francisco center Jeremy Newberry produced the first bulletin board material for the playoff game .", "Using colorful language , Newberry told reporters that the 49ers would clobber the Giants .", "`` I 'm not worried about it , `` he said of the Giants ' potential reaction .", "`` There 's nobody on this team that thinks anything different . ``", "Newberry indicated that the reason he felt strongly was that all of the 49ers who had been nagged by injury would be in the lineup .", "Nevertheless , the 49ers have more physical problems than the Giants .", "Right guard Ron Stone is recovering from a sprained ankle , Terrell Owens did not play Monday because of a groin injury , and cornerback Jason Webster will probably be listed as questionable for the game because of an ankle injury .", "Mike Rumph , a rookie , could replace Webster .", "PRO FOOTBALL : NOTEBOOK ."], "summary": ["New York Giants Notebook discusses Giants injured long-snapper Dan O'Leary , who will be replaced by Trey Junkin in playoff game .", "San Francisco 49ers center Jeremy Newberry tells media team will rout Giants ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 15], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453131", "text": ["The machinists ' union at United Airlines said yesterday that it opposed the airline 's demand for short-term wage concessions because executives had not provided enough financial information for the union to make an informed decision and because the two sides had not engaged in back-and-forth negotiations .", "The union also said that United needed to return to profitability by developing a comprehensive business plan rather than by asking its employees for piecemeal cuts .", "The union , the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers , made its statements in a filing yesterday in a bankruptcy court in Chicago .", "The union , which represents 35,000 workers at United , has refused to go along with a 13 percent wage cut sought by the airline , which has obtained tentative agreements on short-term concessions from its four other big unions .", "United has asked the bankruptcy judge , Eugene R . Wedoff , to force the machinists to accept the cuts .", "The airline , a unit of the UAL Corporation , is seeking concessions that would save it $ 70 million a month while it negotiates with its unions for longer-term cuts worth $ 2.4 billion a year from 2003 to 2008 .", "The leaders of the Air Line Pilots Association and the Association of Flight Attendants have approved their shares of the cuts , which amount to pay reductions of 29 percent and 9 percent respectively .", "They would also forgo raises .", "Members of those unions are voting on the proposed cuts through Jan . 8 .", "United is also asking two smaller unions , representing meteorologists and flight dispatchers , to accept wage reductions of 13 percent .", "The machinists , though , are the most militant of the airline 's unions .", "In late November , when United was trying to wrest $ 5.2 billion in concessions from its unions to obtain a $ 1.8 billion federal loan guarantee , the machinists voted to reject their share of the cuts .", "In its filing yesterday , the union said it `` has not yet had the opportunity to engage in bilateral negotiations with United and has not yet been provided with all of the financial information needed to evaluate United 's business plan , particularly as it relates to the I.A.M. members . ``", "United has said that if it does not obtain the $ 70 million in monthly concessions from its unions , it will ask the court for the power to void its labor contracts .", "In that case , United would have to prove that it had engaged in good-faith negotiations with its unions .", "The filing by the machinists argues that the company has not been open in its talks .", "United is also under pressure to show that the union contracts are deadweights on its day-to-day business operations .", "The machinists ' filing said there was no proof of that .", "The filing said that `` the evidence , if any , does not establish that the proposed reductions are necessary or even appropriate on an interim basis . ''", "An airline spokesman , Rich Nelson , said the company had no comment on the filing .", "United is expected to file a response by next Wednesday , and Judge Wedoff has said he will make a decision by Jan . 10 .", "United is seeking the short-term concessions because it must meet monthly cash flow requirements set by its four lenders to maintain its access to financing .", "The company said the concessions were needed before a mid-February deadline set by the lenders .", "If the unions agreed to the cuts , United said it would have enough breathing room until May 1 to negotiate for long-term cuts .", "The company 's chief financial officer , Jake Brace , said in court on Monday that United expected to have a net operating loss of $ 3.2 billion in 2002 , compared with a loss of $ 2.97 billion in 2001 .", "Those figures , which are reported for income tax purposes and which take into account asset depreciation and other matters , are not the same as the net loss reported in financial statements .", "United had a net loss of $ 2.1 billion in 2001 , the largest in airline history .", "Correction : January 3 , 2003 , Friday Because of an editing error , an article in Business Day on Wednesday about opposition by the machinists ' union at United Airlines to a demand for short-term wage concessions referred incorrectly to the employees who rejected a previous request for cutbacks , in November .", "They were the mechanics , who are part of the machinists ' union , not the union 's members over all ."], "summary": ["Machinists ' union at United Airlines says it opposes airline 's demand for short-term wage concessions because executives have not provided enough financial information for union to maker informed decision and because two sides have not engaged in back-and-forth negotiations .", "Union also says United needs to return to profitability by developing comprehensive business plan rather than by asking its employees for piecemeal cuts ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453134", "text": ["PricewaterhouseCoopers , the nation 's largest accounting firm , has taken a risky public stance in favor of better , more thorough and more detailed audits .", "In recent advertisements , the firm has promised to take a tougher stance with clients and resign if it can not resolve concerns about a particular audit .", "It is a gamble strongly favored by those who want accounting firms to be more aggressive with their corporate clients , to weed out fraud before investors suffer catastrophic losses .", "And it distinguishes the firm from its three most important competitors among the largest accounting firms .", "But it is still a gamble .", "PricewaterhouseCoopers has begun to outline a yardstick by which its own performance will be judged , and if it falls short , the firm could find itself singled out for special criticism in a profession that came under heavy fire in 2002 .", "`` The talk is great , and if they walk the talk , it will be a tremendous move that will clearly differentiate them from any of the other big firms , '' said Lynn Turner , the former chief accountant for the Securities and Exchange Commission .", "`` It will be a tremendous gain for investors as well .", "But let 's see the walk first . ``", "The talk has been evident in recent full-page newspaper advertisements in which PricewaterhouseCoopers has stated its willingness `` to ask the tough questions and tackle the tough issues . ''", "The firm further pledges , `` In any case where we can not resolve concerns about the quality of the information we are receiving or about the integrity of the management teams with whom we are working , we will resign . ''", "But PricewaterhouseCoopers faces a significant challenge from continuing public scrutiny of its past work .", "For instance , it approved financial disclosures at Tyco International despite the company 's use of `` aggressive accounting that , even when not erroneous , was undertaken with the purpose and effect of increasing reported results above what they would have been if more conservative accounting were used , '' according to a report filed by Tyco on Monday with the S.E.C.", "Tyco also said it was reducing previously reported earnings by $ 382 million .", "The approval of technically permissible -- but perhaps misleading -- `` aggressive accounting '' shows the difficulty the firm faces in bridging what John J . O'Connor , a vice chairman at PricewaterhouseCoopers , called the `` expectations gap '' between what investors want from audits and what auditors do .", "Mr. O'Connor said the firm planned to close that gap .", "`` We are looking at the type of qualitative reporting that we can do , '' he said , so that investors would be informed of just how aggressive or conservative the assumptions behind a company 's financial disclosures were .", "For now , he said , `` we are clearly starting with the audit committees and management . ''", "The firm has also put together ethical guidelines that , while not new , have not been codified before .", "The code of conduct tells employees confronted with difficult judgment calls to consider , among other things , `` Does it feel right .", "`` , `` How would it look in the newspapers .", "`` and '' Can you sleep at night .", "`` The questions illustrate that many of the decisions auditors are called on to make are not strictly dictated by the rules .", "`` That 's the issue , `` said Charles A . Bowsher , a former comptroller general of the United States and head of the Public Oversight Board that used to supervise ethics and disciplinary issues for the accounting profession .", "`` In each case , unfortunately , you 've got to look at the facts .", "I 'm a great believer that if you have a client who 's pushing the envelope too far too many times -- and I believe that is how Arthur Andersen got into trouble -- then the auditor should resign from the account . ``", "Mr. O'Connor says that if the firm 's accountants ask themselves these questions and are uncomfortable with the answers -- even if a client 's preferred accounting complies with generally accepted principles -- they should not sign off on the books .", "In recent months the company has resigned from several clients , he added , but he would not identify them .", "Auditors do not often resign .", "According to Auditor-Trak , a service of Strafford Publications , an Atlanta-based publisher of legal and business information services and accounting industry data , 348 accounting firms resigned from clients in 2002 through Monday , with firms indicating in 59 cases that the reasons were concerns about independence or a company 's practices or concerns by a company about the auditor 's standards .", "The four largest firms resigned from 80 clients , and PricewaterhouseCoopers accounted for 13 of those .", "In 2001 , there were 286 resignations , 88 of them by the four largest firms and 22 by PricewaterhouseCoopers .", "But the data may understate how often companies and auditors part ways over accounting disputes because it is in neither side 's interest to make such disagreements public .", "Executives do not want their companies to suffer the increased scrutiny and decline in stock price that would probably follow an auditor 's resignation , and accounting firms do not want to attract the attention of lawyers looking for grounds for securities lawsuits .", "If PricewaterhouseCoopers does provide audits that give more information to investors , Mr. Turner said , it may actually help shield the firm from such lawsuits .", "`` The way an accounting firm has to manage its risk if it 's going to be successful -- and none of them have been in the last three or four years -- is you have to be sure that whoever you have out there on the audit team is identifying the problems , `` he said .", "Finding the problems will be easier the more thorough the audit is , he added .", "The other large accounting firms have responded to general criticism of the accounting profession with marketing campaigns of their own , but none have gone as far as PricewaterhouseCoopers and some oppose the firm 's proposals , Mr. Turner said .", "`` Will PWC be able to bring the profession along .", "`` he asked .", "`` The proof is going to be in the pudding . '' ."], "summary": ["PricewaterhouseCoopers , nation 's largest accounting firm , takes risky public stance in favor of better , more thorough and more detailed audits .", "In recent advertisements , firm has promised to take tougher stance with clients and resign if it can not resolve concerns about particular audit .", "It is gamble strongly favored by those who want accounting firms to be more aggressive with their corporate clients , to weed out fraud before investors suffer catastrophic losses ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 1, 0], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453135", "text": ["Bill Parcells never coached a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game and never took a dollar from the team .", "He gave them nothing but agita when he suddenly backed out of a four-year deal last January .", "`` We lost some credibility that we worked very hard to get , '' Tampa Bay 's general manager , Rich McKay , said at the time .", "`` We 'll get it back . ``", "Given Parcells 's lack of contribution to the Buccaneers , does the team deserve compensation if the Dallas Cowboys sign him , as is expected .", "Or is Tampa Bay 's motivation solely revenge .", "The Bucs think they are entitled to compensation , and have asked the National Football League office for just that .", "The league will hold a hearing tomorrow , during which Commissioner Paul Tagliabue will determine the validity of the contract that Tampa Bay said Parcells signed and determine if his signing by Dallas constitutes damages .", "Meanwhile , Dallas did not announce Parcells 's signing yesterday , and a Cowboys spokesman said nothing was expected today .", "`` Later in the week , if anything , '' Rich Dalrymple , the team spokesman , said .", "Parcells did not return a call seeking comment .", "All contracts must be filed with the league , but Parcells 's never was .", "This creates a murky situation , and sports lawyers interviewed yesterday had various opinions about what Tampa Bay deserved .", "Alan Vickery , a lawyer at Boies , Schiller & Flexner in Manhattan , said , `` As a matter of contract law , Tampa Bay abandoned that contract by signing someone else . ''", "When Parcells pulled out , Tampa Bay signed Oakland 's Jon Gruden , who led the Bucs to a 12-4 record -LRB- a three-victory improvement over last season -RRB- and the National Football Conference South title .", "The price for Gruden was steep : four draft choices and $ 8 million over three years .", "Kenneth Munoz , the former general counsel for Madison Square Garden , witnessed the argument for compensation from the management side after Pat Riley resigned as coach of the Knicks and Mike Keenan left the Rangers .", "In both cases , the leagues ' commissioners ordered compensation .", "`` If the facts are , indeed , that he signed an agreement with Tampa Bay for his exclusive head coaching services , then chose not to perform , then he goes to work for another employer , then Tampa Bay has a leg to stand on , '' said Munoz , now a lawyer in the Manhattan office of Sidley , Austin , Brown & Wood .", "Paul C . Weiler , the Henry J . Friendly Professor of Law at Harvard Law School , compared the situation to that of a young player who signs a pro contract but decides to return to college without playing for that team .", "`` If he decides to come back , he is not considered a free agent , '' Weiler said .", "But this is a singular case , because Parcells never worked for Tampa Bay , and never earned a cent on a four-year contract that would have paid him $ 4.25 million or $ 6 million annually .", "News reports on the salary varied .", "The situation is vastly different from when Tagliabue awarded the New England Patriots four Jets draft choices for the Jets ' right to sign Parcells in 1997 .", "Parcells was entering the final year of his contract and had just taken the Patriots to the Super Bowl but had a fractious relationship with Robert K . Kraft , the Patriots ' owner .", "Tagliabue is the judge and jury in these disputes , and he does not rely on court precedent .", "`` I suspect that he would look at the contract Parcells supposedly signed and the circumstances for why he did n't go to work for Tampa Bay , `` Gary Roberts , deputy dean of the Tulane Law School , said .", "`` But you ca n't predict what the commissioner will do .", "There are too many things we do n't know : the language of the contract , why he backed out , the relationship between Parcells and the team . ``", "How much , if any , compensation , Tagliabue may award Tampa Bay is uncertain .", "Roberts said a low-round draft pick might be appropriate .", "Weiler suggested that if Parcells , in Tagliabue 's judgment , is more valuable now than he was to Tampa Bay last January , the compensation might be a little more generous .", "Vickery said a court remedy might have meant awarding Tampa Bay the financial difference between what it paid to hire Gruden -LRB- $ 17.5 million over five years -RRB- if it was more than what Parcells would have received .", "But Parcells 's contract was more lucrative .", "Vickery added , `` Damages are mitigated by the fact that they hired someone else who did a good job . ''", "If that becomes a factor in Tagliabue 's thinking , he will have to speculate on whether Parcells might have equaled Gruden 's success .", "PRO FOOTBALL ."], "summary": ["Tampa Bay Buccaneers file complaint with NFL , seeking damages if Dallas Cowboys hire Bill Parcells as coach , to make up for significant amount of time spent pursuing and signing Parcells to coaching contract , which he abruptly backed out of ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 4, 1], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453136", "text": ["Latest fortune for Ying Liu , a Queens fortuneteller : You will be arrested , hauled into court and accused of making expensive predictions that did not come true .", "The Buddha 's eye sees many things , according to Ms. Liu , 45 , who has been peddling her psychic powers to Chinese immigrants from a storefront in Flushing for several years .", "She has predicted marriages , career advancements and births , and she has also made hypertension , cancer and other illnesses disappear , according to her advertisements .", "Among her grander forecasts is that New York City will be the host of the 2012 Summer Olympics .", "But it seems unlikely that Ms. Liu saw handcuffs in her future when she agreed to help Chung Chen Ling , 30 , who sought her supernatural services in June 2001 , according to court papers .", "Ms. Liu told Mr. Chung that for a fee of $ 8,000 she would grant him the same psychic powers that she herself had found so useful , according to investigators , who said Ms. Liu 's case was among the more unusual ones to show up in the Queens courts .", "Fortune-telling is illegal , according to the New York State penal code .", "Under the law , a fortuneteller is defined as anyone who `` claims or pretends to tell fortunes , or holds himself out as being able , by claimed or pretended use of occult powers , to answer questions or give advice on personal matters or to exorcise , influence or affect evil spirits or curses . ''", "The law does not apply to people who tell fortunes `` as part of a show or exhibition solely for the purposes of entertainment or amusement . ''", "Mr. Chung paid the $ 8,000 fee and waited almost a year , according to prosecutors , who said they were looking into whether Ms. Liu left other victims with fortunes that were paid for but never came true .", "The district attorney 's office says that even in a city where soothsayers abound , particularly in many immigrant neighborhoods , fortunetellers are seldom arrested .", "`` Prosecutions for the crime of fortunetelling are not unheard of , but they are still exceedingly rare , '' said Patrick Clark , a spokesman for the Queens district attorney , Richard A . Brown .", "It may well be that most of those who find themselves swindled out of promised rose gardens are reluctant to come forward .", "But Mr. Chung , who lives on Long Island and visited Ms. Liu at her Flushing office , said that when he finally realized he had been had , he had to do something .", "After more than 11 months , there was still nothing psychic about him , he said .", "No special powers , no ability to predict the future , no Buddha 's eye .", "So he went to the authorities , first to the state attorney general , who referred the case to the Economic Crimes Bureau of the district attorney 's office .", "After an investigation into Mr. Chung 's lack of psychic powers , detectives arrested Ms. Liu on Dec . 20 and she was charged with grand larceny in the third degree -- in effect , stealing money from Mr. Chung by not delivering the promised goods , the psychic powers -- and fortunetelling .", "She was arraigned on Dec . 21 and is due back in court on Monday .", "If convicted , Ms. Liu could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison on the grand larceny charge and up to 90 days in jail on the fortunetelling charge .", "Ms. Liu , who also runs a beauty salon in Flushing , refused to discuss the case yesterday .", "She referred calls to her lawyer , who was out of town and could not be reached .", "Last week , Ms. Liu told The World Journal , the Chinese-language daily newspaper , that she was innocent of the charges , and she has told reporters that she would hold a news conference to explain it all ."], "summary": ["Queens fortuneteller Ying Liu is scheduled to appear in court on charges of larceny .", "She promised Chung Chen Ling that for $ 8,000 she would grant him same psychic powers she has ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 18], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453137", "text": ["Stocks in the United States plunged in 2002 amid fears of war and terrorism , a weak economy , rising oil prices and dozens of corporate scandals .", "It was the third consecutive annual decline , the first time that has happened in 60 years .", "Making matters worse , the average stock fell further in 2002 than it had in either of the previous two years .", "The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index posted its worst year since 1974 .", "Many big technology stocks slipped into the single digits , and some dropped to prices below $ 1 .", "And Wall Street 's mood is bleak .", "At the end of 2000 , most investors were optimistic that a return to quick gains could not be far off .", "A year ago , many remained resolute , feeling that stocks and the United States economy had withstood the Sept . 11 attacks and were poised for recovery .", "Now that optimism has disappeared almost entirely .", "After two decades in which stocks suffered only brief and mild downturns -- interruptions in profitable years -- the depth of the bear market has shocked many investors , especially those who were not shareholders in the 1970 's , the last time stocks endured a prolonged setback .", "But even longtime professional investors say they have been dismayed by how much stocks , which were mostly flat yesterday on the last day of the year , have fallen from their peak in March 2000 .", "Since then , the Wilshire 5000 , the broadest market index , has dropped 43 percent , leaving investors $ 7.4 trillion poorer -- a potential loss in wealth of $ 26,000 for every American .", "This year , the Wilshire dropped 22.1 percent .", "The S . & P . 500 index dropped 23.4 percent .", "The Dow Jones industrial average finished down 16.8 percent , and the Nasdaq composite index -- most punished among the major gauges -- fell by 31.5 percent .", "`` To my way of thinking , this bear market , traversing almost three years , is certainly worse than the 1973-74 break , '' said James M . Weiss , former chief investment officer of State Street Research .", "Mr. Weiss , who now runs his own money management company , began working on Wall Street in 1972 .", "`` We 're at a point of maximum frustration here , `` he said .", "Hugh Mullin , co-manager of the $ 20 billion Putnam Growth and Income mutual fund , said , `` I think people are much more pessimistic than they have been in a long time . ''", "Mr. Weiss said he thought the bear market could be divided into three phases .", "The first , in 2000 , was a necessary correction to the bubble in technology stocks in the late 1990 's .", "The second , he said , in 2001 , came as a result of the broader recession and profit slowdown .", "At the end of 2001 , Mr. Weiss and many other professional investors were expecting that 2002 would be a positive year .", "`` There was every reason to believe that the factors that led to the onset of the bear market had pretty much run their course by a year ago at this time , '' he said .", "But the optimists did not anticipate the scandals that threw into question the integrity of many corporate financial statements .", "`` We have concluded a three-phase bear market and we did n't need to have the third phase , `` Mr. Weiss remarked .", "Enron had already collapsed and filed for bankruptcy protection by the beginning of 2002 .", "But despite complaints from short sellers that corporations had used accounting gimmickry to inflate their profits , many investors thought the crisis at Enron was an isolated case .", "Then , as the spring wore on , journalists , analysts and regulators began to question the accounting used by dozens of other companies , including General Electric , a market bellwether .", "The crisis peaked in June , when WorldCom announced that it had inflated its cash flow by $ 3.9 billion , a figure that has since been raised to an estimate of $ 9 billion .", "James Chanos , a hedge fund manager who played a major role in unearthing the overstated profits at Enron , said WorldCom 's announcement in June ensured that 2002 would be another losing year .", "`` The scale of the fraud which was disclosed was so massive and so blatant that it really gave rise to the idea that one could n't even rely on cash flow statements anymore to ascertain corporate health , `` Mr. Chanos said .", "`` Prior to WorldCom , I think Wall Street always felt that with enough due diligence in the cash flow statements and financial analysis , one could always be certain where the financial health of a company might lie .", "Post-WorldCom , I think we all had to reassess that . ``", "In the month after WorldCom 's disclosure , the S . & P . 500 dropped 195 points , or 20 percent , to 797.70 on July 23 , its third-lowest close of the year .", "Over the next month , stocks rallied , but by then the economy -- which had showed strong momentum during the first part of the year -- slowed sharply , in part because the market 's plunge discouraged companies from raising capital for new investments .", "Projections for corporate profits dropped quickly , and stocks followed .", "On Oct . 9 , the S . & P . 500 fell to 776.76 , its lowest close of the year .", "Since then , stocks have rallied , but only slightly .", "And Charles L . Hill , the research director for Thomson First Call , which compiles analysts ' profit estimates , said he thought that 2003 could be another disappointing year .", "In 2002 , Mr. Hill was prescient , repeatedly warning that estimates were too high and that investors would be disappointed if they expected that a big earnings recovery would support a rally .", "Looking at forecasts for 2003 , he said earnings growth would once again be weaker than investors hoped .", "Analysts are continuing to cut forecasts for the first half of this year , Mr. Hill said .", "Six months ago , they expected that corporate profits would grow 25 percent , year over year , in the first quarter of 2003 .", "Now , they have cut that forecast to 12 percent .", "By the time quarterly earnings are announced in April , Mr. Hill said , growth could be as low as 5 percent .", "Considering that profits fell 17 percent in 2001 and rose only 1.6 percent in 2002 , that level of recovery is anemic , he said .", "`` A lot of talk at the beginning of the year was , ' We do n't have three years in a row of down markets , so the odds of having a down third year are minimal , ' `` he recalled .", "`` But we 've never in our lifetime had a bubble as big as this one .", "You should n't be surprised that we had three down years , and you should n't be surprised if it turns out to be four . ``", "THE MARKETS : STOCKS ."], "summary": ["US stocks plunge in 2002 amid fears of war and terrorism , weak economy , rising oil prices and dozens of corporate scandals .", "It is third consecutive annual decline , first time that has happened in 60 years .", "Making matters worse , average stock fell further in 2002 than it had in either of previous two years .", "Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index posts its worst year since 1974 .", "Wall Street 's mood is bleak .", "Wilshire 5000 drops 22.1 percent , S & P 500 index drops 23.4 percent , Dow Jones industrial average finishes down 16.8 percent , and Nasdaq composite index falls by 31.5 percent .", "Graphs .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 0, 1, 3, 14, 13, 5, 12], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453138", "text": ["An influx of investment capital from both Arab and Israeli investors , in roughly equal proportion , has made the Middle East the second-largest source of foreign investment in United States commercial real estate this year after Europe , where changes in German pension fund laws contributed to a surge in investment in American properties .", "Within the last year , seven apartment complexes in San Antonio and six more throughout Texas were purchased by Alon U.S.A. , based in Dallas , a subsidiary of the Alon Israel Oil Company , best known to American consumers for its Fina gasoline stations .", "The company paid about $ 180 million to United Dominion Realty Trust for the complexes , which were built from 1983 to 1995 and range from 140 units to 596 .", "Oil companies are major sources of the investment in American commercial real estate , as are wealthy families that have a long history of quietly investing in commercial real estate in the United States .", "Increasingly , though , more money is coming from smaller investors and groups of investors .", "That shift is a product of a decade or so of efforts by financial institutions and money managers to create investment vehicles that can be marketed in the Middle East , especially to observant Muslims .", "Low borrowing costs and the poor performance of world stock markets have contributed to an increase in investment in American real estate from many parts of the world .", "Australian and Canadian investors , in fact , each had greater increases than those from the Middle East or even Germany on a percentage basis last year , but from much smaller bases .", "Real Capital Analytics , a research firm based in Manhattan that monitors property transfers in excess of $ 5 million , tracked almost $ 1.4 billion in commercial property sales to Middle Eastern investors in the last year , three times the $ 436 million tracked in 2001 .", "The figure for this year , which was based on closed deals through November and those in contract , accounted for about 23 percent of foreign investment in commercial real estate .", "`` These numbers are likely conservative because many foreign investors , particularly from the Middle East , operate quietly and confidentially , '' said Robert M . White , the president of Real Capital Analytics .", "Manhattan and the Washington area , typically among the most popular markets for foreign investors because they are easy to enter and manage from a distance , appear on the list of properties that Middle Eastern buyers acquired in the last 12 months , but they do not dominate it .", "The list includes St . Louis .", "Kansas City , Mo .", "Woodland Hills , Calif .", "Boulder , Colo .", "And Chicago .", "The Kuwait Finance House closed on a $ 13.7 million purchase of an industrial park in Lebanon , Tenn .", "Part of the reason these investors are spreading their money farther afield is the intense competition for premium office properties in Washington and New York , brokers and analysts said .", "The bidding wars among German pension funds are playing no small part in that .", "`` We have n't seen them very active as buyers in this market , `` said James S . Luck , a senior director of the real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield who handles investment sales in Washington and its suburbs .", "Without the restrictions on their investments that pension fund managers face , Mr. Luck said , wealthy families and oil companies from the Middle East `` have the ability to go where they think the deals are . ''", "`` They tend to be more entrepreneurial and opportunistic , '' Mr. Luck said .", "`` They 're clearly looking for higher yields than the stuff the Germans and the pension funds are bidding on . ``", "From Israel , the most active investor was Alon U.S.A.", "Others that made the list from Real Capital Analytics were the Red Sea Group , a real estate investment company best known for hotel management and shopping mall development in Israel , and one listed as an `` unidentified Israeli family . ''", "From the Arab countries , transactions that listed Investcorp as the buyer dominate the list .", "Several major international financial institutions , including UBS and Citibank , manage money for Middle Eastern families or buy properties on their behalf as a nominee , as do specialty firms like the Carlyle Group and Investcorp , according to international real estate brokers , money managers and lawyers .", "Investcorp , founded in 1982 , has offices in New York , London and Bahrain .", "Its real estate team began operations about seven years ago and oversees a portfolio with a current value of about $ 2.2 billion , according to the firm .", "Its clients , like those of the private banking divisions of multinational financial institutions and of the boutique investment firms , tend to be wealthy , private and secretive families .", "But through new investment vehicles , smaller investors , doctors and lawyers as opposed to scions of royalty and oil magnates , have become a force in commercial real estate markets now , too .", "`` A lot of these funds , the fund manager is a Western , United States company , '' said Michael J . T . McMillen , a lawyer with King & Spalding in New York whose practice concentrates on Islamic financing and project financing .", "`` They 're looking at this area , the Middle East , as a new market , and these investors are trying to get into the United States , so it 's working very well . ``", "Mr. McMillen , who has worked with institutions like HSBC Amanah Global Properties Income Fund and the Gulf Investment House of Kuwait , said Middle Eastern investors were starting to buy into offerings that require five to seven years to pay off as opposed to two - or three-year deals .", "They are focusing on commercial buildings with a single tenant and a purchase price of $ 15 million to $ 20 million , he said .", "Among the obstacles to selling investment vehicles to Muslim investors is the prohibition in Muslim law against paying or receiving interest .", "This has been approached in a variety of ways to sell real estate investments , including the formation of a broad partnership known as a mudarabah , where some investors put in effort and others put in money .", "Mr. McMillen said some funds are now working to sell debt as well as equity investments , a more difficult proposition where interest payments are forbidden by religious custom .", "`` If we went to a bank in the Middle East that does n't pay its depositors , `` Mr. McMillen said , '' we could offer the bank the ability to pay investors 3 percent , keep 1 percent , and the cost of funds to U.S. developers would only be 4 percent . ``", "He said that arrangements like the mudarabah have become particularly difficult to execute and potentially precarious since the advent of the USA Patriot Act .", "The legislation , adopted after the terror attacks of Sept . 11 , lays strict controls on financial institutions .", "The legislation is intended to spread regulation gradually across a wide swath of industries , and real estate companies are not considered first priorities .", "Still , several big domestic commercial real estate investors , especially the more sophisticated pension funds , are beginning to examine their new responsibilities and are casting a warier eye on foreign investors , especially those from the Middle East .", "Under the coming regulations , said J . William Codinha , a partner with Nixon Peabody in Boston who specializes in white-collar crime , `` they are n't going to be able to just take money in that is held in a trust .", "They have to know who the beneficiaries of the trust are . ``", "That could be a costly proposition , one that Mr. Codinha said he was trying to persuade clients to build into their transaction costs .", "Michael D . Allison , the chairman of International Business Research , a corporate security and investigations firm in Princeton , N.J. , said such research on identifying investors and transaction partners could add $ 20,000 to $ 50,000 to the cost of a real estate deal .", "`` For an investor in Minneapolis , it 's pretty easy to figure out what you need to know , `` Mr. Allison said .", "`` Some guy coming at you from Lebanon , the resources available to you to unearth who the guy is and where the money is coming from is difficult , from the language issues to the paucity of information . ''", "COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE ."], "summary": ["Influx of investment capital from both Arab and Israeli investors , in roughly equal proportion , makes Middle East second-largest source of foreign investment in United States commercial real estate this year after Europe , where changes in German pension fund laws contributed to surge in investment in American properties .", "Within last year , seven apartment complexes in San Antonio and six more throughout Texas were purchased by Alon USA , based in Dallas , subsidiary of Alon Israel Oil Company .", "Oil companies are major sources of investment in American commercial real estate .", "Photo of San Antonio apartment complex .", "Table shows leading sources of foreign investment in US commercial real estate ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453139", "text": ["Tom Daschle , the Senate Democratic leader , has told associates that he is likely to run for president in 2004 and will create a presidential exploratory committee sometime this month , Democrats close to Mr. Daschle said yesterday .", "The move , after weeks of deliberations by Mr. Daschle , would sharply alter the dynamics of the increasingly crowded competition among Democrats to challenge President Bush .", "Mr. Daschle is to return to his home in South Dakota this weekend to review his decision one more time with friends and advisers , his associates said .", "But they said that over the last few days Mr. Daschle has expressed an increasingly strong desire to challenge Mr. Bush and has concluded that he needs to move quickly to catch up with Democratic rivals who have been lining up political supporters and financial backers for months .", "Mr. Daschle would announce a decision sometime over the next few weeks and immediately begin traveling to primary states , his associates said .", "The deliberation by Mr. Daschle , who turned 55 early last month and was elected to the Senate in 1986 , has been closely watched by many Democrats who described it as the last major outstanding question about the Democratic presidential field .", "Mr. Daschle , as a face of the Democratic opposition , would presumably draw the support of experienced Democratic Party strategists and many of his fellow Democrats in the Senate who have worked closely with him over the years .", "Mr. Daschle 's advisers said that should he run for president , he would be unlikely to seek re-election as a senator , though they said he had not reached a decision on that .", "His term expires at the end of 2004 .", "They said he would probably stay on for the time being as the Senate minority leader , though he was likely to step down as the demands of a presidential campaign intensified .", "The prospective entry of Mr. Daschle would round out a field of Democratic candidates notable for being grounded inside Washington .", "Indeed , inside the halls of Congress .", "Mr. Daschle would be the fourth Democratic senator running for president in 2004 .", "Another expected candidate is Representative Richard A . Gephardt of Missouri , the former House minority leader .", "The only major Democratic candidate who would seem positioned to run the kind of successful outsider campaign run by Bill Clinton , who was governor of Arkansas , and George Bush , who was governor of Texas , is Gov . Howard Dean of Vermont .", "In addition , the Rev . Al Sharpton of New York is also running for the nomination .", "With the possible exception of Senator Joseph I . Lieberman of Connecticut , who ran for vice president with Al Gore in 2000 , Mr. Daschle is probably the best known of the Democratic candidates , party officials said yesterday .", "That is not entirely a good thing .", "It was under his watch last year that Democrats lost control of the Senate , turning Mr. Daschle from a majority leader into a minority leader .", "The other major Democratic candidates are Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts and Senator John Edwards of North Carolina .", "Two other senators -- Joseph R . Biden Jr . of Delaware and Mr. Lieberman 's Connecticut colleague , Christopher J . Dodd -- have also said they might run ."], "summary": ["Tom Daschle , Senate Democratic leader , tells associates that he is likely to run for president in 2004 and will create presidential exploratory committee ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1453141", "text": ["Merry Christmas .", "Get lost .", "That , essentially , was the message Robert Pagein received from his employers -- make that former employers -- at Verizon Communications .", "Mr. Pagein , who is married and has a year-old son , was a field technician who had worked for the phone company for four years .", "One of the lures of the job was its stability .", "The pay was n't great , but it was steady .", "If you were disciplined you could pay your bills , take a vacation every year or so , and put a little aside .", "That 's the way it works in theory .", "In reality , Mr. Pagein was one of 2,400 Verizon workers in New York who were shown the door just a few days before Christmas .", "Those workers formed the bulk of a pre-holiday wave of terminations that claimed the jobs of 3,500 Verizon employees in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic states .", "Mr. Pagein will not be destitute .", "His wife is working and he has a college degree .", "But the cold-blooded way in which he and his fellow workers were lopped off the employment rolls by Verizon , and the phenomenal gap that exists between the compensation available to the company 's ordinary workers and the fabulous , multimillion-dollar packages taken home by executives at the top of the Verizon pyramid , has shaken his faith in a system he believed in .", "`` I 'm 36 years old and grew up in Lefrak City -LSB- Queens -RSB- , `` he said .", "`` As a working-class guy I kind of accepted long ago that I was n't going to make a fortune or anything like that .", "What I figured was that if I worked hard , if I became a cop or I joined the phone company or something like that , at least I would have a regular working-class or middle-class life .", "At least you 'd make your 50 grand or 55 grand a year .", "The government would take out your taxes , but you 'd have something left over . ``", "Mr. Pagein 's comforting belief in a system that looks out for the ordinary worker evaporated with the arrival of his layoff notice .", "As a not-so-merry Christmas and then a not-so-happy New Year approached , he found himself thinking more and more about the big bucks -- the tens of millions of dollars -- being pocketed by top Verizon executives like Ivan Seidenberg and Larry Babbio .", "It 's one thing to acknowledge that there are inequities in the system , he said .", "But it 's `` really tough '' to accept that you can be thrown out of work by executives who take extraordinary sums out of a company whether their business decisions are wise or not .", "`` We were laid off , effective immediately , '' he said .", "`` ` Merry Christmas , thanks for working at ground zero and breathing the dust .", ". '", "They told us we were heroes and used the pictures of us at ground zero to sell themselves .", "Now we 're out . ``", "Last spring Verizon reported a first-quarter loss of $ 500 million .", "The company attributed the loss to a tough economy and a $ 2.5 billion write-down for bad investments .", "By the third quarter it was reporting earnings of $ 4.4 billion .", "But officials said the layoffs , the first in the history of the New York telephone company , were inevitable because the economy is still in trouble and competition is increasing .", "Company officials said the total compensation in 2001 for Mr. Seidenberg , Verizon 's chief executive , was $ 13.4 million , and for Mr. Babbio , $ 24 million .", "Figures released by the Communication Workers of America , which represents the laid-off employees , showed that from 1997 through 2001 , Mr. Seidenberg collected more than $ 56 million in salary , bonuses and stock options , and that Mr. Babbio , the company 's vice chairman , collected more than $ 78 million .", "Those numbers were on Mr. Pagein 's mind as he and his family spent Christmas at his grandmother 's home in Flushing .", "`` I kind of Scrooged on the presents , '' he said , `` Everybody knew .", "It was , like , ` Well , do n't expect Robert to bring anything because , you know , he just got laid off . '", "`` He added : '' It 's tough to take .", "These guys took their outrageous , outrageous bonuses and we 're out on the street .", "I guess you do n't notice the inequities so much when you 're working because then , at least , you 've got something . ``", "Mr. Pagein said he would go on unemployment for a while and use that time to look for a different career .", "`` Part of the pain I 'm feeling right now has to do with some of the others who were fired . ``", "he said .", "`` Some of them were the only income earners in their family .", "They seem shell shocked . ``", "E-mail : bobherb@nytimes.com Maureen Dowd and Thomas L . Friedman are on vacation ."], "summary": ["Bob Herbert Op-Ed column scores ` cold-blooded way ' in which Verizon terminated jobs of 2,400 workers in New York just a few days before Christmas .", "Notes phenomenal gap that exists between compensation available to company 's ordinary workers and fabulous , multimillion-dollar packages taken by executives at top of Verizon pyramid ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 8], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453142", "text": ["At age 7 , Lennwood Pergerson decided that New York City was the place to be .", "`` On Wednesdays , my mother and I would ride the wicker-seat trains into New York , '' he recalled .", "`` We 'd go shopping and eat at the Port Authority when it was fabulous .", "I could n't get over it . ``", "More than 40 years later , Mr. Pergerson , 50 , is still in New York .", "He still wants to live here , to thrive here .", "Only now he spends his Wednesdays looking for a job and a place to live at the Brooklyn Bureau of Community Service , one of the seven local charities supported by The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund .", "At 16 , while he was still in high school , Mr. Pergerson left the genteel Princeton , N.J. , suburb where he grew up and set out for the bright lights of the big city as the frontman for a bluesy rock ` n' roll band .", "With his husky radio-ready basso , seasoned by years of hard living and hard partying , it is easy to imagine him belting out his signature song , `` Dark End of the Street . ''", "The blues come easily to Mr. Pergerson .", "With his stories of friends laid low by Vietnam , drug addiction and AIDS , Mr. Pergerson knows the blues all too well .", "But with the highs and horrors of New York night life behind him , Mr. Pergerson , would rather sing the gospel of faith and redemption .", "`` I 'm lucky , `` he said .", "`` I lived a tragedy , but now I can see light . ''", "Back in the 1970 's , when disco was the rhythm of the night , Mr. Pergerson , was , to use his favorite word , fabulous .", "`` I was a bad boy , and a fun guy that did it to the max , '' he said .", "`` But I was prosperous because I had to pay for all those outrageous clothes . ''", "He toured as a roadie with the disco singer Gloria Gaynor for about a year .", "And Mr. Pergerson often found himself in the center of all the decadent action .", "`` In those years , we just did n't believe there could be anything more horrible than Vietnam , `` he recalled .", "`` So the bar and after-hours scene was all about rampant drugs and sex , all in the name of the beat . ''", "Until that beat started to falter .", "In the late 1970 's and early 80 's , Mr. Pergerson said , he noticed that some people were starting to get sick .", "The randomness of it all reminded him of the draft lotteries that were held on Saturdays back in his small suburb , and it seemed , as it did then , that it was only a matter of time before his number came up .", "But while many in his circle of friends died of AIDS , Mr. Pergerson never got ill .", "He was a disc jockey into the late 80 's .", "After that , during the economic boom of the 90 's , he took up bartending , serving up a good time .", "`` If someone was feeling down , I could make them feel all right , '' he recalled .", "In the summer of 2000 , he was hired as a bartender and server at Pizzeria Uno at the South Street Seaport , just east of the World Trade Center .", "He outpaced his younger colleagues , and in short order , he was doing all the big parties .", "But as with with the Vietnam War and the emergence of AIDS , Sept . 11 changed everything .", "All of a sudden , nobody was in the mood to party , certainly not within view of the devastation at ground zero .", "Like so many other New Yorkers , Mr. Pergerson lost his job .", "At first , he remained optimistic .", "He did not worry because he had never had a problem finding steady work .", "`` I 'm the comeback kid , `` he said .", "`` I thought to myself , ' I 'll be getting a job .", "I do n't need any assistance . '", "`` But in a weak economy , even comeback kids can find themselves looking for help , and for work , without finding either .", "He was out of work for six months when he turned to the Brooklyn Bureau 's Community Response Center last March .", "There , he met an employment specialist , Sharon Greenberg .", "`` Mr. Pergerson was always very upbeat and followed up on every lead , '' she said .", "He was also trying to get assistance from FEMA .", "He described that process as akin to `` digging a ditch in Bosnia and going through the long way just to get them to answer their phones . ''", "Diana Naftal , a social worker at the Brooklyn Bureau , began helping him in his effort to get FEMA aid in mid-May .", "`` Once I met Lennwood , I had an immediate bond with him , '' Ms. Naftal said .", "`` I was impressed with his creativity and his drive .", "He kept his expenses low and came to us for only basic needs . ``", "After months of wrangling with FEMA representatives , Mr. Pergerson received rental assistance in June .", "In addition , over the past year , the Brooklyn Bureau has tapped Neediest Cases to provide him $ 1,110 for emergency help with rent , utilities , food and transportation .", "Mr. Pergerson is looking for a bartending job or work in the community development sector .", "And he is looking for an apartment , because the Brooklyn building he lives in is being sold .", "But in the meantime , he says , he has been fortunate to find a supportive team of advocates .", "`` I remember my mother handing money to a stranger in the Port Authority when I was a little boy , '' he said .", "`` People have been good to me , too , and have shown me that hope and help are right here in front of all of us . ''", "HOW TO HELP Checks payable to The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund should be sent to 4 Chase Metrotech Center , 7th Floor East , Lockbox 5193 , Brooklyn , N.Y. 11245 , or any of these organizations : BROOKLYN BUREAU OF COMMUNITY SERVICE 285 Schermerhorn Street , Brooklyn , N.Y. 11217 .", "CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF NEW YORK 1011 First Avenue , New York , N.Y. 10022 .", "CATHOLIC CHARITIES , DIOCESE OF BROOKLYN AND QUEENS 191 Joralemon Street , Brooklyn , N.Y. 11201 .", "CHILDREN 'S AID SOCIETY 105 East 22d Street , New York , N.Y. 10010 .", "COMMUNITY SERVICE SOCIETY OF NEW YORK 105 East 22d Street , New York , N.Y. 10010 .", "FEDERATION OF PROTESTANT WELFARE AGENCIES 281 Park Avenue South , New York , N.Y. 10010 .", "UJA-FEDERATION OF NEW YORK Church Street Station P.O. Box 4100 New York , N.Y. 10261-4100 Donations may be made with a credit card by phone at -LRB- 212 -RRB- 556-5851 -LRB- ext . 7 -RRB- or online , courtesy of CharityWave.com, an Internet donations service , at www.nytimesneediest.charitywave.com.", "For instructions on how to donate stock to the fund , call -LRB- 212 -RRB- 556-1137 or fax -LRB- 212 -RRB- 556-4450 .", "No agents or solicitors are authorized to seek contributions for The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund .", "The Times pays the funds expenses , so all contributions go directly to the charities , which use them to provide services and cash assistance to the poor .", "Contributions to the fund are deductible on federal , state and city income taxes to the extent permitted by law .", "To delay may mean to forget .", "Previously recorded : $ 5,912,644.29 Recorded yesterday : $ 537,979.38 Total : $ 6,450,623.67 Last year to date : $ 5,660,415.27 Correction : January 2 , 2003 , Thursday A chart yesterday with the article about The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund reversed the figures for the amounts collected so far this year and by this time last year .", "Correct updated figures appear today , on Page B7 ."], "summary": ["Lennwood Pergerson , who lost his job after Sept 11 , receives emergency rental assistance from Brooklyn Bureau of Community Service , which is supported by New York Times Neediest Cases Fund .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453144", "text": ["When Herodotus Damianos bought a failed winery in this hamlet in 1994 and named it Duck Walk , it was meant as a tribute to the days when a duck in the Hamptons was more likely to be waddling on a farm than bathing in truffle oil at a local bistro .", "Nine years later , Duck Walk Vineyards produces 25,000 cases of wine a year , turning grapes planted on more than 100 acres of vineyards into chardonnay , merlot , port and dessert wine .", "Most bottles are sold in New York , and some have labels featuring flocks of white Peking ducks .", "But if a California winery has its way , Dr. Damianos 's tribute to the days when Long Island duckling was a renowned culinary treat , like Maine lobster or Maryland crabs , could go the way of most East End duck farms themselves .", "The California winery , called Duckhorn Wine Company , believes it owns the right to market wine under the duck name and label .", "`` In the wine business today , the word ' duck ' and duck designs are associated in the minds of the consuming public with Duckhorn Vineyards , `` a lawyer for the California winery 's co-founder , Daniel Duckhorn , wrote to Duck Walk in August 2000 .", "The letter laid the groundwork for what has become a bicoastal legal spar over the right to sell wine using animals commonly associated with stamps and bathtub toys .", "`` Duckhorn is concerned about Duck Walk 's use of the Duck Walk mark and marks comprised of duck designs and the customer confusion it may cause with respect to Duckhorn 's trademarks and trade dress , `` the letter continued , '' and believes it is in the best interests of both companies to avoid any such confusion . ``", "In 2001 , Duck Walk filed a pre-emptive complaint in United States District Court in Central Islip , asking a judge to declare it had every right to use the Duck Walk name and pictures of its web-footed mascot .", "Duckhorn , based in Napa Valley , responded with a lawsuit claiming Duck Walk had intentionally and maliciously violated trademark law .", "The case is still simmering in the Long Island court , and lawyers for both sides are marshalling evidence to bolster their cases .", "This fall , things got so heated that a judge forbade both parties to speak with reporters .", "But before that order was in place , Dr. Damianos , a retired internist who also owns Long Island 's largest vineyard , Pindar , on the North Fork , told Wine Spectator magazine that he thought customers would have no problem distinguishing between the two brands .", "`` It 's not confusing , `` he said .", "`` Our duck is cute .", "Theirs is ugly . ``", "Duck Walk 's array of labels includes a painting of a flock of Peking ducks , a Great Gatsby-esque couple in a convertible with a tiny silver duck affixed to the front , and a watercolor picture of daffodils , with no duck in sight .", "Duckhorn 's array of labels includes a mallard sitting contently on a pond and , for its Paraduxx -LRB- `` pair of ducks '' -RRB- brand , two birds flying in harmony , their wings outstretched .", "Duckhorn Wine Company is larger , producing about 56,000 cases of wine a year , according to court filings .", "Its wines are more expensive , ranging from $ 22 to $ 90 .", "Duck Walk 's wines range from about $ 8 to $ 25 .", "This is not the first time Duckhorn Vineyards has gone after a wine with `` duck '' in its name .", "When Cecchetti Sebastiani Cellar released a Smoking Duck brand of wine in 1999 , it also heard from Mr. Duckhorn .", "He persuaded Don Sebastiani , chairman of the board , to rename the brand Smoking Loon .", "Mr. Sebastiani also agreed to replace the label , which had featured two ducks on a pond , one savoring a cigar , with a more abstract , mosaic-like design .", "And Duck Pond Cellars , a winery in Dundee , Ore . , reached a confidential out-of-court settlement with Duckhorn , Duck Pond 's marketing director said .", "In fact , according to a transcript of an unsuccessful settlement conference in Central Islip last summer , Susan E . Hollander , a lawyer for Duckhorn , said , `` We have stopped every other winemaker in the market , or limited them in some way , that uses the word ' duck . '", "`` But here on Long Island 's East End , where the peaceful seashores and sprawling potato fields of years past have been supplanted in the popular imagination by images of seaside mansions and suburban sprawl , the duck is a symbol of pride .", "And the notion that a California company has dibs on its feathery , beady-eyed likeness has sparked outrage .", "`` I just do n't see where this guy comes off , thinking he can eliminate the duck from the Long Island pedigree , `` said Michael Hollander , president of the Long Island Convention and Visitors Bureau .", "`` It 's amazing that people can think that with all the duck farms we had , that ducks would n't be a part of our history , or a part of our belief , or a part of our culture . ``", "To press that case , Mr. Hollander has instructed his staff members to gather evidence tracing the link between Long Island and its ducks -- from the 1870 's , when Peking ducks were brought here from China , to the 1950 's , when dozens of duck farms flourished , to the 1970 's , when soaring land prices and mounting concerns about waterways polluted by duck droppings conspired to close most farms .", "Only a handful of duck farms remain here today .", "But the duck lives on , through a 20-foot concrete statue in Flanders that is on the National Register of Historic Places , the Long Island Ducks minor league baseball team and John Duck Jr . ` s Restaurant in Southampton , which serves Long Island duckling with apple raisin stuffing , Duck Walk wine and fish caught aboard a boat called the Quack Quack .", "Trademark disputes are not new to the wine business .", "In one famous case , Kendall-Jackson Winery sued E . & J . Gallo Winery for copying the design of its Turning Leaf label .", "It lost .", "But just what is it about ducks and wine .", "Certainly nothing having to do with aroma , say those who remember what it was actually like to drive through the Hamptons during the duck days .", "`` When I was a kid in the car with my parents , '' recalled John B . Westerhoff Jr . , an owner of John Duck Jr . ` s Restaurant , '' we would hold our breath . `` ."], "summary": ["California 's Duckhorn Wine Company is litigating against Long Island 's Duck Walk Vineyards over use of word ` duck , ' claiming it owns right to market wine under duck name and label .", "In 2001 , Duck Walk filed pre-emptive complaint in federal court in Central Islip , NY , asking judge to declare it had right to use name and pictures of duck mascot .", "Duckhorn cross-sued , claiming trademark violation .", "In fall 2002 , gag order was imposed on both sides .", "Details of suit noted .", "Company profiles .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 4, 10], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453145", "text": ["Some people may be upset that retail sales failed to meet expectations during the holiday season .", "Not Bill Talen .", "For the last four years Mr. Talen , also known as Reverend Billy , has been performing from the theaters of Bleecker Street to the Starbucks on Astor Place , exhorting people to resist temptation -- the temptation to shop -- and to smite the demon of consumerism .", "With the zeal of a street-corner preacher and the schmaltz of a street-corner Santa , Reverend Billy , 52 , will tell anyone willing to listen that people are walking willingly into the hellfires of consumption .", "Shoppers have little regard for how or where or by whom the products they buy are made , he believes .", "They have almost no resistance to the media messages that encourage them , around the clock , to want things and buy them .", "He sees a population lost in consumption , the meaning of individual existence vanished in a fog of wanting , buying and owning too many things .", "`` Consumerism is a dull way of life , '' he says .", "`` We 're all sinners .", "We 're all shoppers .", "Let 's do what we can . ``", "It 's an act , a kind of performance art , almost a form of religion .", "He named it the Church of Stop Shopping .", "As Reverend Billy , he wears a televangelist 's pompadour and a priest 's collar , and is often accompanied by his gospel choir when he strides into stores he considers objectionable or shows up at protests like the annual post-Thanksgiving Buy Nothing Day event on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan .", "The choir , which is made up of volunteers , includes people like David Glover and his daughter , Zena , from Brooklyn .", "There is also Beka Economopoulos , who once sang at the White House , and Meredith Manna , who came in courtesy of one of the keyboard players .", "When they erupt in song , it is hard to ignore : `` Stop shopping ! Stop shopping ! We will never shop again ! '' Other performers preach the same gospel , with their own twists .", "Ange Taggart , who lives in Nottingham , England , turns up in places like Troy , N.Y. , to go into a store , buy a lot of things , and then return them .", "She recently filled a cart with Martha Stewart products at Kmart , then put them on the conveyor in a certain order , so that when she got her receipt , she said , the first letters on the itemized list spelled `` Martha Stewart 's hell . ``", "There is also Andrew Lynn , who created Whirl-Mart last year .", "He gets a group of people together , everyone with a shopping cart , and they stroll the aisles of Wal-Mart or Kmart , putting nothing in the carts .", "When store managers tell him to take his protest elsewhere , he tells them : `` This is n't a protest .", "We 're performing a consumption-awareness ritual . ``", "There may be something to it , too .", "Psychologists at the University of Rochester and at Knox College in Illinois have published studies concluding that people focused on `` extrinsic '' goals like money are more depressed than others and report more behavioral problems and physical discomfort .", "Some economists have also addressed the phenomenon of rich people who feel poor .", "Juliet B . Schor of Harvard University , the author of `` The Overspent American '' -LRB- Basic Books , 1998 -RRB- , says people are frustrated because they compare their lives with what they see on television .", "Robert H . Frank of Cornell reached a similar conclusion in `` Luxury Fever : Why Money Fails to Satisfy in an Era of Excess '' -LRB- The Free Press , 1999 -RRB- .", "It 's not that Reverend Billy thinks no one should ever buy anything .", "On a recent afternoon , he himself was seen purchasing a ream of printer paper and a bottle of wine .", "It is the futility of shopping he is trying to address -- the futility of leaning too heavily on the material at the expense of the spiritual and emotional .", "That mission has given focus to his art , his politics and even his religion .", "Raised by what he calls `` strict Dutch Calvinists '' in Rochester , Minn . , he made his way to New York in the early 1990 's .", "He had his epiphany in 1999 , when protesters disrupted the World Trade Organization meetings in Seattle .", "He discovered the potential of drama to send a political message .", "He discussed the revelation with a friend , Sidney Lanier , an Episcopal minister and cousin of Tennessee Williams who had used theater to evoke social reform themes in the 1960 's .", "Mr. Talen soon realized that after years of producing Spalding Gray and others , he suddenly had an act of his own .", "Mr. Lanier said he suggested a man of the cloth as a vehicle for Mr. Talen 's message .", "`` I encouraged him , '' he said .", "`` I said , you have a kind of Calvinist preacher in you that wants to come out . ''", "Mr. Talen , even before he developed the character , said he admired the cadence and the poetry of good fire and brimstone .", "Child labor , environmental damage and evidence of union busting by big retail chains , all to deliver low prices to consumers , provided plenty of material for any pulpit .", "`` I sense right now that our lives are getting absurd , '' he said .", "On a recent evangelical side trip , Mr. Talen ventured into the Kmart on Astor Place , where speakers blared Elvis and Tom Petty Christmas carols .", "His own face blank , he began to look for smiley-faces , which he considers one of the most nefarious of marketing tools .", "He found them on signs , on children 's pajamas , on stickers .", "Few of the shoppers , however , were smiling , he noticed .", "And that is part of the problem .", "`` The smile has been so thoroughly appropriated by transnational capital , '' he said .", "`` They discovered that smiling makes money . ''", "When he left Kmart , he walked down Lafayette Street , bellowing now and then in character about how creeping consumerism threatens the fabric of society , in the form of chain stores , sweatshops and more .", "But to the public , it mostly just means more stuff to buy at a good price .", "Indeed , it is no surprise that Reverend Billy has not had much of an impact .", "Even this year , considered to be a particularly disappointing Christmas shopping season , Americans are still expected to spend almost $ 1 trillion at stores , restaurants and auto dealers in the last three months of 2002 , up perhaps 3 to 4 percent from the year before .", "`` They do n't care ! `` Reverend Billy shouted to no one in particular on a dark stretch of Lafayette Street , as people carrying shopping bags from J . Crew , Macy 's and the Gap poured into a nearby subway entrance .", "`` They do care , '' a bearded man beside a scaffolding replied .", "`` They just have a bad attitude . ''", "`` Hallelujah ! '' Reverend Billy said .", "He says that a lot .", "The Reverend Billy made his first formal appearance at the Disney store in Times Square , circa 1998 .", "He was driven away in a police car , his wrists still cuffed to a large statue of Mickey Mouse .", "The store has since closed .", "He has found other targets .", "In general , he selects large global companies that he feels are inappropriately seizing control .", "In 1999 , he zeroed in on Starbucks .", "He was pleased to discover later that he had become the subject of a company memo .", "`` Reverend Billy sits quietly at a table with devotees and then begins to chat up the customers , '' the memo , dated April 24 , 2000 , reads .", "`` He works the crowd with an affirming theme but gradually turns on Starbucks .", "Toward the end , he 's shouting . ``", "And it adds : `` According to a store manager , he may stand on your tables . ''", "Audrey Lincuff , a Starbucks spokeswoman , confirmed the authenticity of the memo -- and disputed the accuracy of Reverend Billy 's message , at least as it pertains to Starbucks .", "`` We consider ourselves to be locally relevant where we do business , '' she said , `` and work very hard to weave ourselves into the fabric of the community by associating and working with nonprofit groups and other community groups . ''", "The company 's goal , she added , is to `` connect with our customers not only on a business level but on things that are important to them in their lives . ''", "Reverend Billy says he tries to remain relatively low key .", "`` I 'm against a lot of political people who have become fundamentalists themselves , `` he said .", "He does n't like the anti-fur people who ridicule pedestrians in fur coats or hats , for example .", "He is a latte drinker , though he does n't order it at Starbucks .", "He wants to help awaken desensitized shoppers , he says , because `` they are underestimating the complexity and beauty of life . ''", "And besides , `` they are definitely underestimating the impact of shopping . '' ."], "summary": ["Bill Talen , also known as Reverend Billy , is street preacher who exhorts people to resist temptation -- temptation to shop -- and to smite demon of consumerism .", "He declares consumerism is ` dull way of life ' .", "Photo of Talen preaching outside Plaza Hotel in Manhattan on Buy Nothing Day ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 7, 1], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453146", "text": ["The Commerce Department ruled today that encircling dolphins with nets a mile wide to catch tuna does not significantly harm them , clearing the way for Mexico and other countries to market their tuna in the United States as dolphin-safe .", "The decision drew an immediate protest from wildlife and environmental advocates , who said the ruling was at odds with the department 's own scientific findings and appeared to be little more than a political gift to Mexico .", "They vowed to take the administration to court .", "Tuna fishermen in Mexico , Colombia and Venezuela have fought for years to put a `` dolphin safe '' label on their exports to the United States , even though their use of nets to encircle schools of dolphins to catch tuna , which often swim just below the dolphins , has been abandoned by American tuna producers .", "American consumers are familiar with the dolphin-safe label on cans of tuna from United States companies like StarKist and Bumble Bee .", "Mexican and foreign exporters have been allowed to sell their tuna on American shelves but have largely stayed away , saying they need the dolphin-safe label to compete .", "William T . Hogarth , the assistant administrator for fisheries of the Commerce Department 's National Marine Fisheries Service , said that the number of dolphin deaths had declined drastically in recent decades and that safeguards would ensure that the dolphins are not endangered in the quest for tuna .", "`` You have to look at the big picture , '' Mr. Hogarth said in an interview .", "`` I looked at all the scientific data .", "I feel very comfortable with this decision . ``", "Mr. Hogarth estimated that about 1,600 dolphins are killed each year by tuna fishermen , down from about 350,000 two decades ago .", "Dolphin and yellowfin tuna tend to run together in the eastern Pacific , with the dolphins swimming near the surface to breathe .", "Under the often criticized practice , fishermen in large vessels send helicopters aloft in search of dolphin schools , then deploy speedboats to encircle them and the tuna schools beneath with floating nets often more than a mile in length .", "While the tuna are harvested , the dolphins are supposed to escape over the floating net .", "The Commerce Department 's decision today said that fishermen using the practice can designate their product as dolphin-safe if no dolphins were injured or killed when the tuna were caught .", "Under an arrangement first reached by the Clinton administration , observers from the fishermen 's countries will be posted on the vessels .", "`` Dolphin-safe means that dolphins can be encircled or chased , but no dolphins can be killed or seriously injured in the set in which the tuna are harvested , '' Mr. Hogarth said .", "Wildlife advocates voiced outrage at the decision , which they said would place huge new strains on two varieties -- the eastern spinner and the offshore spotted dolphin -- whose numbers have declined by as much as 70 percent in recent years .", "`` This fishing method would allow harming and even killing thousands of dolphins each year in tuna nets , '' said Kitty Block , special counsel to the Humane Society of the United States .", "`` For the first time in over a decade , dolphin-deadly tuna will be sold in the United States -- and what makes this so unconscionable is that this tuna will be misleadingly labeled dolphin-safe . ''", "The wildlife advocates said the decision was at odds with a new study by the department 's own scientists .", "In a report that was leaked to the news media earlier this month , scientists at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in La Jolla , Calif . , found that depleted dolphin populations were not rebounding in the Pacific waters patrolled by Mexican , Colombian and Venezuelan tuna boats , and they cited the net-fishing procedure as a cause .", "`` Despite considerable scientific effort by fishery scientists , there is little evidence of recovery , and concerns remain that the practice of chasing and encircling dolphins somehow is adversely affecting the ability of those depleted stocks to recover , '' the study said .", "Asked about the study , Mr. Hogarth said it was not conclusive .", "But David Phillips , director of the Earth Island Institute 's International Marine Mammal Project , said the Bush administration appeared eager to placate Mexico , which has had many requests to Washington pushed aside by other matters in recent years .", "`` The State Department is saying , ' We promised the Mexicans we 're letting this tuna in , ' `` Mr. Phillips said .", "He said his group would file an injunction against the administration within days .", "The group has twice prevailed in lawsuits seeking to block a redefinition of dolphin - safe .", "Editors ' Note : January 6 , 2003 , Monday An article on Wednesday reported a Commerce Department ruling that the nets used in catching tuna did not significantly harm dolphins -- a decision that cleared the way for Mexico and other countries to market tuna in the United States as dolphin-safe .", "Environmental advocates were quoted as saying the ruling was at odds with the department 's own scientific findings and appeared little more than a political gift to Mexico .", "The seafood industry 's response was omitted when the article was edited to its assigned space .", "Industry representatives said environmentally responsible boat owners had reduced dolphin mortality .", "`` They should be rewarded for that conservation effort by being given access to the United States market , '' said Justin LeBlanc , vice president for government relations at the National Fisheries Institute ."], "summary": ["Commerce Dept rules that encircling dolphins with nets a mile wide to catch tuna does not significantly harm them , clearing way for Mexico and other countries to market their tuna in United States as dolphin-safe .", "Decision draws immediate protest from wildlife and environmental advocates ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453148", "text": ["Efforts by water officials in Southern California failed today to reach a deal on water usage from the Colorado River before a midnight deadline .", "As a result , the Bush administration said it would cut flows from the river to the state 's cities and farms beginning in January , making it the first time the federal government has imposed such a penalty .", "Even as the board of one water agency , the Imperial Irrigation District , voted here to approve a revamped proposal , other water officials said they had given up on making the deadline .", "The officials said that differences among them remained too great and that the Imperial proposal was unacceptable .", "The deadline was part of an agreement reached two years ago among seven Western states , including California , that was meant to end fighting over water supplies from the Colorado River .", "Under that agreement , the Imperial Irrigation District was to transfer 200,000 acre-feet of water it has been receiving each year from its farms to the San Diego County Water Authority .", "Gale A . Norton , the secretary of the interior , said the transfer was considered crucial to the bigger agreement because it would have signaled the willingness of farmers in Southern California to share their water with the state 's fast-growing cities .", "Currently , agricultural districts get most of the water that comes from the Colorado River , an imbalance that most water experts agree must change to address the state 's chronic water shortages .", "The president of the largest urban water district , the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California , said last-minute demands included in the Imperial district 's proposal had essentially derailed the negotiations .", "Invoking the memory of hurried decisions made during the recent energy crisis , the metropolitan district 's president , Ronald R . Gastelum , said water officials from other agencies would not be rushed .", "`` The last time an 11th-hour proposal was hastily approved , circumstances led to an energy crisis , '' Mr. Gastelum wrote in a statement .", "`` This will not be the case with water . ''", "Mr. Gastelum estimated that financial demands included in the Imperial proposal , which included $ 200 million in state financing for environmental and other needs , would cost every household in the state about $ 30 .", "The agency also had problems with provisions to allow Imperial to back out of the agreement in the first year if certain demands were not met .", "`` It also allows Imperial to essentially kill any agreement reached after the federal deadline and prolongs the uncertainty of Colorado River supplies for urban Southern California through 2003 , '' Mr. Gastelum said .", "`` Despite this setback , we hope Secretary Norton will continue to assist the parties in reaching a long-term solution . ''", "Early this morning , Ms. Norton 's top water official , Bennett W . Raley , also indicated the talks were at a stalemate when he returned to Washington from Los Angeles .", "Mr. Raley , an assistant secretary of the interior , had flown to California on Monday to join a last-minute flurry of negotiations , when they seemed to be making progress .", "In a conference telephone call with reporters from Washington , Mr. Raley said the Bush administration would make good on its threat to cut surplus water flows from the Colorado River to Southern California .", "In past years , the state has drawn as much as 800,000 acre-feet of extra water , enough to provide for about 1.6 million households .", "The biggest loser will be the Metropolitan Water District , which has relied on the Colorado River for more than half of its water , but the Imperial Irrigation District also stands to loose about seven percent of its allotment .", "Mr. Gastelum said the Metropolitan Water District , which serves 17 million people in six counties , had enough water on hand to meet demands across Southern California for the next two years and perhaps longer .", "`` In the new year , the public will see a heightened focus on voluntary outdoor water conservation that will make even more water available for storage and use in dry years , '' he said .", "At its meeting here in El Centro , the board of the Imperial Irrigation District voted 3 to 2 to approve the revamped agreement that had been drafted over the past several days by its lawyers .", "On Dec . 9 , also by a 3-to-2 vote , the board had rejected an earlier version drafted in October with the cooperation of the other water agencies involved in the talks .", "After the Dec . 9 vote , the board was criticized by other water agencies across the West for essentially derailing the larger seven-state agreement , and board member said they felt tremendous pressure from state and federal officials to change their minds .", "One of the members , Bruce Kuhn , did change his vote today , but he did so knowing the revamped agreement was unacceptable to the other agencies .", "`` If we approve this deal , we ca n't be accused of not approving this deal , `` Mr. Kuhn said before the vote today .", "`` And if they kill it , so be it .", "At least it wo n't be us who did it . `` ."], "summary": ["Water officials in Southern California fail to reach deal on water usage from Colorado River before midnight deadline .", "As result , Bush administration says it will cut flows from river to state 's cities and farms beginning in January , making it first time federal government has imposed such a penalty ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 0], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1453149", "text": ["Sitting in front of a table laden with funeral programs , where the silenced faces form a tragic tableau , the mothers of murder victims do not cry in their support-group circle .", "They argue , they yell , they preach .", "`` 9/11 last year .", "We have it going on every day , `` said Paula Drew-Williams , the facilitator of the weekly free-for-all at the offices of Save Our Sons and Daughters .", "`` Look at how many babies we do n't have .", "We had 9/11 before 9/11 .", "Where 's the hoop-de-la .", "`` Clementine Barfield , who founded the group , known as So Sad , after her son was killed in 1986 , interjected , '' There is no hoop-de-la if we do n't make it . ``", "A newcomer to the group , Sharon Nowell Neal , said she was handing out a paper she had written about the violence to everyone she could think of .", "`` When we 've had enough , then it will stop , `` said Ms. Neal , 46 , whose 9-month-old granddaughter , Tatijuana , and 3-year-old son , Nathan , were both killed , 15 years apart .", "Ms. Drew-Williams said everyone in the circle had had enough , but Ms. Neal spat back , `` I 'm doing something with my enough . ``", "The women of So Sad have had more than enough this year , as they saw the number of children 16 and under killed in Detroit jump to 25 from 19 in 2001 .", "The 31 percent increase gives this city a child homicide rate of 9 per 100,000 , higher than Chicago , Los Angeles , Boston , San Diego or Miami .", "Statistics for New York were not available this week .", "Though violent crime over all has declined by about 4.5 percent in Detroit this year , and total homicides are down to 391 from 395 , fatal shootings of children increased to 17 from 11 .", "And Detroit is not alone : New Orleans had 16 children killed this year , double last year 's 8 , giving it a child homicide rate of 13 per 100,000 .", "In Washington , 12 children were killed this year , a rate of 11 per 100,000 .", "`` It 's astounding , `` said Shikha Hamilton , president of the Detroit chapter of the Million Mom March , an antigun group that recently pressed the City Council to pass a law banning weapons in public buildings and persuaded The Detroit Free Press to stop accepting classified advertisements selling weapons .", "`` My heart is broken every time . ''", "The year of nightmares began here on Jan . 13 , when Jameise Scaife died three days after he was delivered by emergency Caesarean section after his pregnant mother jumped from a building set afire by an arsonist .", "The last child killing was on Nov . 30 , when 16-year-old Mario Smith was fatally shot on his way home from work at Skateland .", "In between , one 3-year-old was strangled by his mother and another was shot in the head by hers .", "Teenagers were killed by their friends , toddlers were beaten to death by their guardians , and an infant died after a car crash caused by a criminal suspect fleeing the police .", "Children were killed in carjackings and robberies , in gang disputes and at parties .", "Two little girls were gunned down in their homes by AK-47s in separate shootings .", "Six of the victims were 2 or younger , while 15 were under 12 .", "A 26th child , 10-year-old Charmaine Wright , died of complications from injuries sustained when she was violently shaken as a baby , although prosecutors have not officially ruled the death a homicide .", "`` It just seemed like it would never stop -- it got to the point where I did n't even want to look at the news anymore , `` said Harold Pollard , whose 7-year-old granddaughter , Ajanee , was killed on Feb . 25 in a drive-by shooting that also injured her mother and three siblings .", "`` Their wounds are healing , you know , but they still go through missing their sister . ''", "The Detroit Police Department and the Wayne County prosecutor 's office responded to the spate of killings with an intense investigative effort known as Project Destiny , named for 3-year-old Destinee Thomas , who was killed on March 23 .", "Inspector Craig Schwartz , chief of the city 's homicide division , said that all but two of this year 's fatal shootings of children had been solved , compared with only 52 percent of homicides over all , and that as of Dec . 22 nonfatal shootings of children were down to 63 from 80 over the same period in 2001 .", "He also pointed out that two of the teenage victims had been shot while committing crimes , and that a third had been involved in a shootout .", "`` That 's not quite a victim in the pure sense of the word , `` Inspector Schwartz said .", "`` As far as a preventive measure , these things are very hard to prevent .", "Many of these things involve social issues that are n't the responsibility of the police department .", "It becomes the responsibility of the entire community . ``", "At So Sad , Ms. Barfield is bemused by the renewed attention on the crisis she has been living for more than a decade .", "In 1986 , she said , 365 children were shot in Detroit , 43 of them fatally .", "This year 's number pales compared with that .", "Still , newcomers like Ms. Neal join the Monday night circle .", "`` You can lose a spouse , get another spouse .", "You can lose a sister and get another friend , `` Ms. Neal said plaintively .", "`` When you lose a child , I do n't care if you have 13 of them , that is a void that will never be filled . ``", "Ms. Drew-Williams softened and said , `` I wish I had never had any kids . ''", "`` Same here , same here , '' said Shirley Adams , whose daughter was killed in 1999 .", "`` It was just too much having that one murdered , '' Ms. Drew-Williams said .", "Ms. Neal said : `` People ask me now , ' How many children do you have .", "` I say I am the mother of three , but two are still living . ''", "They argued over capital punishment and shared coping strategies , like Ms. Drew-Williams ` s annual party , complete with sheet cake , for her son , who was killed on his birthday .", "Vickie Rose told about a dream she had recently in which her dead son called on the telephone , asking what Santa Claus had brought , what Mama was cooking for Christmas .", "As they talked , the women turned to point at the pile of funeral programs , from which their sons and daughters stared back blankly .", "A toddler in a jumper with a teddy bear .", "A baby in a bathtub .", "Sisters in braids .", "A young man in a military uniform , another in a football jersey , a third dressed for a prom .", "Then they stood up , closed the circle , and joined hands .", "`` We have lost so many kids this year , '' Rose Hunter , whose niece was murdered in 2001 , said to start the closing prayer .", "`` As we end this 2002 , we pray that next year , 2003 , we will not have a kid slaughtered , we will not have a kid hit by a car , we will not have a kid shot . '' ."], "summary": ["Mothers of murder victims in Detroit have support group , Save Our Sons and Daughters , So Sad , which tries to call attention to victims .", "Number of children 16 and under killed in Detroit jumps to 25 from 19 in 2001 , and city 's child homicide rate is 9 per 100,000 , higher than Chicago , Los Angeles , Boston , San Diego or Miami .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 11], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1453150", "text": ["North Korea strongly suggested today that it would withdraw from a treaty that prohibits it from making nuclear weapons , the latest in a series of fast-paced moves to remove its nuclear program from international controls .", "`` North Korea is not currently able to meet its commitments under the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons -- this is the fault of the United States , '' Pak Ui Chun , North Korea 's ambassador to Russia , said at a news conference in Moscow today .", "On Monday , the North Korean Foreign Ministry accused the United States of `` ditching '' a special 1994 agreement that had kept North Korea bound to the treaty .", "If North Korea abandons the treaty , which would take 90 days from a formal declaration , it would be under no obligation to allow inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency .", "Last week , the North said that it would expel the inspectors , and today they were made to leave the country .", "Without the inspectors , the outside world can now rely only on satellite photos and statements by North Korea to guess at what work is being done at the Yongbyon nuclear complex , 55 miles north of Pyongyang .", "`` We were the eyes of the world , '' Melissa Fleming , a spokeswoman for the agency , said after the two inspectors , a Chinese woman and a Lebanese man , arrived in Beijing .", "`` Now we virtually have no possibility to monitor North Korea 's nuclear activities nor to provide any assurances to the international community that they are not producing a nuclear weapon . ``", "Shortly after South Koreans elected the liberal candidate in the Dec . 19 presidential election , the North Koreans disabled cameras and broke seals that for almost a decade had restricted their access to facilities capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium .", "Nuclear technicians quickly started work on reopening two facilities : a small reactor and a fuel reprocessing plant .", "Outside experts estimate that the plant is capable of producing enough plutonium for five bombs by late spring .", "`` I do n't know what is worse : pulling out of the NPT or starting to reprocess , `` Victor D . Cha , a Korea expert at Georgetown University , said today .", "`` They may have chosen a totally new strategy : to acquire some form of nuclear deterrent as quickly as possibly , and then try negotiation from a position of strength . ''", "In Moscow , the North Korean ambassador charged today that the Bush administration , which has labeled North Korea , along with Iran and Iraq , as part of an `` axis of evil , '' had `` threatened us with a pre-emptive nuclear strike . ''", "`` In these circumstances , we also can not fulfill the nonproliferation treaty , the basic clause of which is the obligation of nuclear states not to use the nuclear weapon against states which do not possess it , '' he said .", "The North Korean ambassador recalled that in 1993 the North announced plans to pull out of the treaty .", "But , the next year , the signing of an agreement with the United States prompted the country to suspend its official withdrawal .", "Under the agreement , the United States and South Korea agreed to build two light-water power reactors in North Korea .", "It is harder to make a nuclear bomb with this technology .", "This year , however , the Bush administration confronted the North Koreans with evidence that they had secretly continued work on their nuclear weapons program despite that agreement .", "Tensions have escalated since , and the United States has met resistance from some Asian allies as it tries to contain the North .", "Last weekend , Bush administration officials floated the idea of `` tailored containment '' against North Korea , or a ring of economic sanctions by its neighbors .", "But today , South Korea 's President-elect , Roh Moo Hyun , told reporters that he opposed the policy .", "`` I am skeptical whether so-called ' tailored containment ' reportedly being considered by the United States is an effective means to control or impose a surrender on North Korea , `` said Mr. Roh , who takes office Feb . 25 .", "`` I doubt if the policy would work in controlling North Korea .", "`` Success or failure of a U.S. policy toward North Korea is n't too big a deal to the American people , but it is a life-or-death matter for South Koreans , `` Mr. Roh said at his transition committee office .", "`` Therefore , any U.S. move should fully consider South Korea 's opinion . ``", "On Monday , South Korea 's president , Kim Dae Jung , also expressed opposition , noting that four decades of economic sanctions have failed to bring down the Communist government in Cuba .", "As a measure of South Korea 's commitment to economic engagement with North Korea , Kim Yoon Kyu , president of Hyundai Asan Company , left here Monday for a five-day visit to North Korea , where he will discuss a groundbreaking date for a huge South Korean-financed industrial park at Kaesong and an inauguration date for overland bus service across the demilitarized zone to the Mount Kumgang tourism resort , owned by Hyundai .", "On Monday , the Bush administration seemed to back away from the sanctions idea .", "`` I do n't think anybody has suggested at this point imposing sanctions , `` the State Department spokesman , Philip Reeker , said at a news briefing .", "`` The secretary has not asked any nation to take economic action against this desperately poor country , North Korea . ''", "With nervousness gradually spreading to markets here , South Korea 's stock market fell 4.5 percent on Monday , its largest single-day drop in a decade .", "Tonight , in what could reflect Mr. Roh 's calming influence , turnout for an anti-American rally was far below the one million figure originally cited by organizers .", "Although the rally overlapped with New Year 's Eve festivities that traditionally bring at least 100,000 people into downtown Seoul , only about 20,000 are believed to have attended the rally .", "South Korea 's protest movement was fueled by the court martial acquittal in late November of two American soldiers of charges arising from a traffic accident that killed two teenage girls .", "President Bush has apologized several times for the incident , most recently in a telephone conversation with Mr. Kim on Dec . 13 , when he conveyed his `` deep , personal sadness and regret '' over the deaths .", "South Korean protests have prompted talk in the United States -- in Congress and on newspaper op-ed pages -- that the alliance should be reviewed , and if South Korea , a democracy , does not want the 37,000 American troops stationed here , it may be time to start withdrawals .", "During the fall presidential campaign , Mr. Roh said he wanted the American troops to stay here , distancing himself from statements he made a decade ago when he wanted the Americans to go home .", "But on Monday , Mr. Roh brought up the possibility of American troop withdrawals during a meeting with South Korea 's top military command .", "`` I hear such talks coming out again these days , '' he told the generals .", "`` I wanted to ask whether you have a long-term plan on how the South Korean military could make up for a possible reduction . ''", "THREATS AND RESPONSES : WEAPONS ."], "summary": ["North Korea strongly suggests that it will withdraw from treaty that prohibits it from making nuclear weapons , latest in series of fast-paced moves to remove its nuclear program from international controls .", "North Korean ambassador , in Moscow , charges that Bush administration has ` threatened us with a pre-emptive nuclear strike ' .", "South Korea opposes pressuring North .", "Anti-American demonstration is held in Seoul .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 13], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1453151", "text": ["Roberto Colaninno , the Italian entrepreneur who engineered the hostile takeover of Telecom Italia four years ago , has proposed to Fiat 's creditor banks an ambitious $ 8 billion plan to rescue the Fiat group , people involved in developing the plan said today .", "While the proposal is still only in its broad outlines , it calls for a group of investors led by Mr. Colaninno to put $ 2.5 billion to $ 3 billion into Fiat , with the company raising an additional $ 4 billion through divestitures .", "The plan also envisions a swap with General Motors , which owns 20 percent of the Fiat auto division , under which G . M . would be released from a requirement that it acquire the 80 percent it does not own , in exchange for G.M. ` s joining a capital increase at Fiat Auto .", "If the Colaninno group is successful -- and that is far from certain at this very early stage -- it would effectively mean that the Agnellis , for more than a century the uncrowned industrial monarchs of Italy , would at best have to share control of the Fiat conglomerate with other Italian investors , most notably Mr. Colaninno .", "The proposal , which was first reported on Monday on the Web site of the Italian daily La Repubblica , has been outlined to Fiat 's major creditor banks , which concluded a $ 3 billion convertible loan arrangement with Fiat in May , and to the government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi , the people involved in developing the plan said .", "The government was involved in recent talks with Fiat and its labor unions to soften the impact of layoffs of more than 8,000 workers as Fiat 's auto unit tries an overhaul .", "Fiat , the largest private employer in Italy , has been struggling to return its auto division to profitability .", "Fiat expects automobiles to generate a $ 1.23 billion operating loss for 2002 .", "On Monday , Mr. Berlusconi alluded to the plan at a year-end news conference , telling reporters that `` there are groups of entrepreneurs who have shown interest . ''", "Suggesting that General Motors has sought a way out of its obligation to Fiat Auto , Mr. Berlusconi said , `` With the decline in General Motors ' interest , the government hopes for an interest from Italian companies . ``", "In March 2000 , Fiat swapped 20 percent of Fiat Auto for a 6 percent stake in G . M . , and Fiat has the option to require General Motors to acquire the remaining 80 percent , starting in 2004 .", "The people involved with the plan said Mr. Colaninno and his advisers had not yet approached General Motors .", "It is also unclear what the reaction of the Agnelli family , Fiat 's biggest shareholder , would be .", "Fiat , and Mr. Colaninno , former chief executive of Olivetti , have declined to comment on reports of the plan .", "But one Fiat executive said , `` Ultimately , it is all feasible . ''", "He added , `` There is one clear point : Colaninno has the money . ''", "Last year , Pirelli , the Italian tire and cable company , teamed up with an investment firm controlled by the Benetton clothing family to buy 23 percent of Olivetti for $ 6 billion , giving the consortium effective control of Telecom Italia , where Olivetti owned 54 percent .", "The change in ownership forced out Mr. Colaninno , who had become chief executive of both Olivetti and Telecom Italia after leading an investor group that paid $ 30 billion to gain control of Telecom Italia in May 1999 .", "The size of Mr. Colaninno 's capital gain was never disclosed , but it was considerable .", "A rescue plan would come at a time when Fiat is particularly vulnerable .", "Its shares have sunk to their lowest level in nearly two decades because of its financial troubles .", "Last week , Moody 's Investors service cut the rating on $ 15 billion of Fiat debt to junk status .", "The banks , thanks to their $ 3 billion financing package , `` own Fiat , de facto , '' one person involved with the plan said , adding that `` they are tantamount to being the biggest shareholders . ''", "The four largest creditor banks are IntesaBci , Unicredito Italiano , Capitalia and Sanpaolo IMI .", "`` The banks have a problem , '' this person added .", "`` We say it is better for everybody if Fiat puts money into the business . ''", "Fiat 's chairman , Paolo Fresco , attended a board meeting in Milan today of the investment bank Mediobanca , a meeting that was also attended by Mr. Colaninno , also a director of Mediobanca .", "But the people involved in the plan said other matters , not Fiat , were on the agenda .", "Earlier this month , Mr. Fresco won a temporary lease on life when the Fiat board thwarted an effort to unseat him .", "But increasing financial troubles at Fiat and its auto unit are maintaining pressure for change .", "Under the proposal , Mr. Colaninno and a group of fellow investors would take the banks ' liabilities into a new company .", "Additional money , roughly $ 4 billion , would be raised by Fiat in a sale of assets .", "Mr. Fresco has already said he plans to sell other assets , but those sales have been going more slowly than expected .", "Earlier this month , Fiat raised more than $ 1.6 billion by selling its stake in General Motors and several lesser assets .", "The people said that General Motors would be offered a release from the purchase requirement in exchange for a participation in the capital increase for Fiat Auto .", "In all , the fresh capital for Fiat would total roughly $ 8 billion .", "It is unclear how G . M . would react to such a proposal .", "In October , G . M . ` s chief financial officer , John M . Devine , an outspoken critic of the requirement , called a put option , , told analysts on a conference call , '' If there 's a change in control of Fiat S.p.A. , then the put is automatically eliminated . `` ."], "summary": ["Roberto Colaninno , Italian entrepreneur , proposes to creditor banks ambitious $ 8 billion plan to rescue Fiat group .", "Proposal , in its broad outlines , calls for groups of investors led by Colannino to put $ 2.5 billion to $ 3 billion into Fiat , with company raising additional $ 4 billion through divestitures .", "Colaninno photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453152", "text": ["IN the movies , school principals are generally portrayed in two distinct categories .", "There is the baseball-bat-toting disciplinarian , evoked by Morgan Freeman -LRB- playing the real-life New Jersey high school principal Joe Clark -RRB- in the 1989 movie `` Lean on Me . ''", "And there is the buffoon forever running a step behind his students , epitomized by the fictional Ed Rooney -LRB- played by the character actor Jeffrey Jones -RRB- as he pursues the chronic truant Ferris Bueller .", "But the job has always been far less colorful than Hollywood would lead us to believe .", "And it has never been harder on the people in it , a circumstance that helps explain a national shortage that has left some states struggling to find a permanent principal for one of every five schools .", "In December , the New York City schools chancellor , Joel I . Klein , followed the lead of educators in Boston , Providence and elsewhere by announcing a corporate-style principal training and incentive program .", "Those New York City principals who agree to work in failing schools for three years could earn $ 75,000 in bonus pay , while a farm team of rookie principals is to be developed partly by having them shadow veterans in a leadership academy .", "Anyone considering such work would do well to consult a recent graduate of a similar program , someone like Teri Schrader , who is in her second year as principal of the Francis W . Parker Charter Essential School in Devens , Mass . , northwest of Boston .", "Depending on the time of day , Ms. Schrader can be rallying her 350 middle - and high-school students before do-or-die standardized tests , combing Massachusetts ' liability codes to assess Parker 's potential exposure in a given case , or buttonholing politicians in an effort to extend the life of her experimental seven-year-old public school , which has an annual budget of nearly $ 2 million .", "`` I 'm constantly likening it to being a theater director , `` said Ms. Schrader , 42 , who as a drama teacher previously directed perhaps 60 productions at schools in Hartford and suburban Massachusetts .", "`` You 're utterly accountable , but you 're not the one on stage .", "It 's really like directing theater surrounded by a ring of fire . ``", "In the summer of 2000 , after nearly two decades teaching drama and art , most recently at Parker , Ms. Schrader decided to enroll in what her family refers to as `` principal college . ''", "She chose the Greater Boston Principal Residency Network , a part-time one-year training program based partly at Northeastern University .", "The program follows a medical school `` residency '' model by placing 10 aspiring principals each year in a mentoring relationship with a veteran principal .", "Working under those veterans , the rookies gain hands -on experience and are eventually expected to graduate to their own principalships .", "During her apprenticeship , Ms. Schrader , shadowing the principal at Parker , Greg Sinner , embarked on a daunting project : deciding how much the school 's teachers and other employees , 62 staff members in all , would be paid .", "As a charter school exempt from union rules , Parker had no compensation policy during its first five years , and that meant that some junior members of the staff were paid more than veterans .", "The arguments were bitter , as some veterans argued for a traditional `` step system '' in which salaries would rise in automatic increments .", "Others wanted raises tied exclusively to teachers ' performance .", "Ms. Schrader was inclined to agree with the latter , until her mentor , Mr. Sinner , who had spent 30 years as a principal in Illinois , talked her down .", "He explained that far more seasoned administrators than she had failed in other districts to define how a teacher 's performance would be judged -- no one at Parker , for example , wanted to link teacher pay to students ' test scores -- and that a fair system linking wages to the subtle work of instruction would most likely be elusive .", "`` He was the oldest person in the room , '' Ms. Schrader said of Mr. Sinner , then in his 60 's .", "`` He was really good at asking big questions . ''", "In the end , a committee led by Ms. Schrader and counseled by Mr. Sinner forged a compromise : it created three experience-based categories of teacher salaries , and , within each level , a range of increases to be awarded by the principal , partly on the basis of observation in the classroom .", "`` The conversations where I have been able to inform these teachers of their adjustments , '' Ms. Schrader wrote in a paper to her colleagues in the principal training program , `` have been among the most joyous and unforgettable of my career . ''", "At the end of that school year , when Mr. Sinner retired , the job of principal was Ms. Schrader 's .", "In the 18 months since , she has had few school days that have lasted less than 12 hours .", "`` I think outsiders function on a movie model of what a school principal is , '' she said .", "`` I do n't think people have a clue how much you love your kids and how hard the work is . ``", "LESSONS E-mail : jacques@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["Jacques Steinberg Lessons column describes job of school principal , position that is part cheerleader , part theater director , very hard work , and , lately , difficult to fill in numerous school districts .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [26, 9], "tag": ["Education", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453153", "text": ["Hundreds of Pennsylvania doctors who were threatening to stop work or cut back on services because of the high cost of medical malpractice insurance appeared last night to have decided to stay at their posts after state officials promised to try to reduce , at least temporarily , their expenses .", "`` We 've averted a major crisis , `` said Andrew Wigglesworth , the president of the Delaware Valley Health Care Council , an association of 150 hospitals and health care organizations in Pennsylvania , New Jersey and Delaware .", "Twenty-two hospitals in and around Philadelphia had signaled their intention to stop many optional or elective procedures and to limit emergency room operations , Mr. Wigglesworth said .", "Many doctors in Philadelphia as well as in Scranton , in northeastern Pennsylvania , and in Chambersburg and other central Pennsylvania towns were also threatening to reduce their practices or quit medicine entirely .", "Other doctors said they were considering leaving the state , as many already have .", "But many changed their minds after Gov . - elect Ed Rendell promised to urge the Legislature to take steps that would reduce insurance costs for those in the riskiest fields , including obstetrics and neurosurgery , by up to 40 percent , and significantly reduce coverage costs for all doctors .", "Nearly two weeks ago , doctors at the Abington Memorial Hospital in Abington , an affluent suburb on the northern edge of Philadelphia , announced that they were shutting down their trauma center because doctors either could not find professional insurance or were unwilling to pay premiums that were running as high as $ 150,000 a year .", "Another trauma center at a hospital in Scranton had already closed because of insurance problems .", "Soon doctors across the state were warning that they would curtail services .", "They set a deadline of Jan . 1 , when the insurance for about 60 percent of the state 's roughly 35,000 doctors comes up for renewal .", "The spreading protests caught the attention of Mr. Rendell , who met with doctors at Abington and began working on a response .", "`` I think he heard a lot more than he was aware of , '' said Dr. Arthur M . Frankel , a general surgeon who attended the meeting .", "On Monday afternoon , Governor-elect Rendell , joined by Gov . Mark Schweiker , announced his plan .", "It would provide free , for the coming year , half the $ 1 million in coverage required to maintain a medical license in Pennsylvania for doctors in obstetrics , neurosurgery , orthopedic surgery and general surgery .", "All four categories require among the highest insurance premiums .", "Doctors currently buy this coverage from a state fund after buying the first $ 500,000 , usually at somewhat higher prices , from commercial insurers .", "Others doctors would get coverage from the fund at half of what they usually pay .", "Mr. Rendell said he would also ask the Legislature to approve a grant of $ 18 million to $ 22 million to the state 's trauma centers to help them pay for insurance and other expenses .", "He also proposed requiring anyone bringing a malpractice lawsuit to obtain certification from another doctor that the lawsuit was not frivolous .", "To pay for the shortfall to the state insurance fund , Mr. Rendell proposed taking the money from health insurers in the state .", "At the same time , he urged the health insurers to follow the lead of Independence Blue Shield in raising the amount they pay doctors for their work .", "The doctors have complained that as insurance costs have been rising , payments for their work from the federal government and private insurers has been declining .", "James Mead , the chief executive of Capital Blue Cross , another health insurer , told The Associated Press that he was `` disappointed and troubled '' by Mr. Rendell 's plan to take money from his industry to ease the burden on doctors .", "Dr. Andrew Star , the managing physician of the Orthopedic Specialty Center in Willow Grove , Pa . , said the average cost of coverage for the 12 surgeons in his group had jumped from $ 85,000 last year to $ 150,000 this year , including the payment to the state fund .", "Rather than pay the higher price , he said , they had begun cutting back on their work , and some in the group were considering retirement .", "Others were looking for jobs in states where insurance costs less .", "Dr. Star 's group was the first to pull out of the Abington Trauma Center At 6:30 a.m. yesterday , he and the other doctors met to discuss Mr. Rendell 's proposal .", "They could not come to a conclusion , but Dr. Star said he was optimistic .", "`` We want to go back to work , '' he said .", "`` We 're talking to our business advisers .", "We hope we can work it out . `` ."], "summary": ["Hundreds of Pennsylvania doctors who were threatening to stop work or cut back on services because of high cost of medical malpractice insurance appear to have decided to stay at their posts after state officials promise to try to reduce , at least temporarily , their expenses ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Health", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1453154", "text": ["Forty years ago , a team of French archaeologists decided that the best way to save the Baphuon temple was to destroy it .", "They began to take apart the fragile temple block by block , keeping meticulous records of their work , planning to put it back together again as a more stable structure .", "Then came war .", "As the Communist Khmer Rouge approached , the restorers fled the Angkor temple complex in 1972 .", "In the chaos that followed , all their written records were destroyed .", "When they returned in 1995 , all they found was 300,000 heavy stone blocks strewn among the trees -- the biggest jigsaw puzzle in the world .", "It is a puzzle without a key , but it does have a solution .", "Block by block , layer by layer , the Baphuon temple is rising again as one of the towering monuments of Angkor .", "When it was built in the 11th century , the multi-tiered sandstone pyramid was the most impressive building of its day -- `` a truly astonishing spectacle , '' according to a 13th-century Chinese traveler , Zhou Daguan .", "Like the other Angkor temples , Baphuon was consumed by the jungle after the great empire fell 500 years ago , and it was only in the last century that French archaeologists began tinkering with it .", "But the Baphuon , clumsily built on sand with a poor drainage system , was teetering and collapsing in chunks , too unstable to repair like its neighbors , Bayon , Angkor Wat and others .", "The solution : anastylosis , the sort of disassembly ambitious mechanics sometimes do with car engines .", "Work began in the 1960 's .", "Half the temple was in pieces when it was abandoned , scattered across 25 acres of land like shredded documents .", "`` So we have a puzzle , but we are missing the map of the puzzle , '' said Pascal Roy\u00e8re , an architect who heads a team of 200 working for the \u00c9cole Fran\u00e7aise d' Extr\u00eame-Orient , a cultural organization with financing from the French government .", "Philippe Peycam , executive director of the Center for Khmer Studies here , said : `` It 's really crazy , this temple , so complex and baroque .", "It 's a nightmare to restore . ``", "The French team was confronted with a variety of challenges that included the reconstruction of a reclining Buddha that was added in the 16th century and the reinforcement of the structure with a concrete core that was begun in the 1960 's and is now considered outmoded .", "But the most fascinating challenge came in the puzzle pieces themselves .", "Worn by centuries of sun , monsoon and jungle growth , the stones of Baphuon were chipped and roughened , each slightly different from all the others .", "Without mortar to cushion the construction , each block must be returned to nestle precisely among those beside , above and below it .", "`` One place for one block , one block for one place , '' Mr. Roy\u00e8re said .", "`` That 's the rule . ``", "Like any jigsaw puzzle , there is no forcing a piece into a place that is almost right , but not quite .", "`` You 'll laugh , but if you are off by ten millimeters here , 20 meters farther along , everything is wrong , `` Mr. Roy\u00e8re said .", "`` It happens regularly , but when it happens you know right away .", "That 's the difficulty and also the insurance against mistakes .", "The monument corrects itself . ``", "Apart from the temple 's own dynamic , the restorers had three things to guide them .", "Jacques Dumarcay , the French architect who had worked on the Baphuon project in the 1960 's , had since retired but was able to offer some institutional memory .", "The second guide was a cache in Paris of almost 1,000 photographs the French had taken of the temple over the years .", "Their chief value was to show which sections had already collapsed before the temple was dismantled , saving the workers from fruitless searches for missing stones .", "Third was the remaining half of Baphuon , which was to be dismantled after the first half was rebuilt .", "By studying this second half , Mr. Roy\u00e8re 's team created stylized drawings of the carved profiles of the blocks in each row of each tier of the temple .", "Early on , an attempt was made to computerize these shapes and create a reconstruction model .", "But given the eroded shapes of the stones , the computer 's generalized solutions were of little use .", "`` So we looked for a more simple solution , which was the man-made solution , '' he said .", "In other words , memorization .", "There are about 500 different shapes , Mr. Roy\u00e8re said , but by now nobody needs to refer to the drawings .", "Each team knows just what shapes it is looking for .", "`` We have people who walk around all day , '' he said .", "About 70 percent of the blocks have now been identified , and Mr. Roy\u00e8re said he was confident that none were missing .", "At times , as with any puzzle , some small sections are fitted together on their own , and the woods are dotted with what look like mini-temples awaiting their moment to be put in place .", "`` This is not a high-tech project , '' Mr. Roy\u00e8re said .", "`` It 's just a question of paying attention to what you do , and do n't sleep . ``", "Siem Reap Journal ."], "summary": ["Team of French archaeologists work at piece-by-piece reconstruction of ancient Baphuon temple in Siem Reap , Cambodia .", "Experts were restoring temple in 1972 , but fled Angkor temple complex when Communist Khmer Rouge approached ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 45, 0], "tag": ["Science", "World", "Front Page"]} +{"id": "1453156", "text": ["As labor dynasties go , few can rival the Hogans of Chicago .", "William T . Hogan Jr . took the helm of Local 714 of the Teamsters in 1990 , after his father had run the local for half a century .", "Now his son Robert heads the local .", "William Hogan said his life was so steeped in the union that he carried Teamster picket signs as an 8-year-old and wrote school papers on James R . Hoffa , the onetime Teamster leader .", "`` My whole life has been the Teamsters , '' he said .", "But a union oversight board expelled him from the Teamsters on charges that he negotiated a sweetheart deal with contractors .", "And in a move that Mr. Hogan likened to deportation to Siberia , all members of the union have been barred from having contact with him .", "The only times he can even see relatives who are Teamsters are at occasional family events , like Thanksgiving dinner .", "Even then , relatives are prohibited from discussing union business with him .", "Any Teamster who violates the sanctions runs the risk of suspension or expulsion .", "The oversight board -- a panel the union created to help settle a federal lawsuit intended to end the Teamsters ' history of corruption -- has expelled or forced out about 300 Teamsters and has banned members from associating with them .", "Of all those expelled , Mr. Hogan is putting up the biggest fight against the restrictions , asking a federal judge to overrule the board and mounting a public relations battle .", "`` I have some very good friends that I can not call on the phone , that I can not be with , '' Mr. Hogan said .", "`` I have to keep reminding myself I 'm an American citizen .", "I did n't realize that anyone could give away my rights like that . ``", "The oversight board that expelled Mr. Hogan last May ruled unanimously that he had betrayed the union 's interests by trying to cut a sweetheart deal in Las Vegas with a temporary services company that employed one of his brothers .", "The deal , which union officials blocked before it was signed , would have given convention hall jobs to nonunion workers at 60 percent of the union pay rate .", "The board said Mr. Hogan had insinuated himself into Las Vegas , even though it was far from his Chicago base , largely to help his brother 's company .", "The oversight board , known as the Independent Review Board , is the most intensive watchdog in the labor world .", "It was created as part of a consent decree that the Teamsters signed in 1989 to settle a federal antiracketeering lawsuit , which asserted that the Mafia controlled the union , which has 1.4 million members .", "The oversight efforts have largely purged the union of criminal elements , but the consent decree 's rules still apply , including the provision that says Teamsters can not associate with any expelled member , except for family-related contacts .", "`` The consent decree is quite clear , with that big catchall phrase saying no Teamster can associate with any person enjoined from participating in union affairs , '' said Patrick J . Szymanski , the union 's general counsel .", "Edwin H . Stier , director of the Teamsters ' internal anticorruption efforts , defended the ban on fraternization , saying it was needed to reform a culture of a union long dominated by organized crime .", "But , while not directly addressing Mr. Hogan 's case , Mr. Stier said the ban was especially important for Teamsters expelled for being involved in organized crime , but he said the ban might eventually be eased for others .", "`` To keep organized crime from penetrating into the union , a flat prohibition against associating with those people is important , '' Mr. Stier said .", "`` That ban should be established permanently .", "`` As for people who were thrown out for non-organized-crime activity , that 's more debatable .", "That ban should be kept at least short-term because it 's important for reforming the culture of a union that was long dominated by racketeers . ``", "Whether some Teamsters clandestinely socialize with Mr. Hogan is unclear , but Mr. Hogan , 60 , said his son Robert fears trouble if they play golf together .", "Old Teamster friends say they cross the street when they see him .", "Teamster buddies say they are too nervous to invite him to weddings .", "And he quit Local 714 's softball team because team members said they could be punished for playing with him .", "The effective banishment has enraged Mr. Hogan 's many friends .", "`` I 've known Bill Hogan for more than 20 years , `` said Pete LaRocco , a Local 714 shop steward .", "`` And if I see him at Woodfield Mall or a gas station and I approach him or anything like that , I worry I can lose my job .", "I do n't see how anything like that can happen in America . ``", "Mr. Hogan has asked the judge who oversees the consent decree , Loretta A . Preska of Federal District Court in Manhattan , to overturn his expulsion and to ease the restrictions on associating with union members .", "Asserting that the expulsion was misguided , Mr. Hogan insisted that his negotiating efforts in Las Vegas were not a sweetheart deal , but rather innocent speech protected by the First Amendment .", "He also argued that the ban on socializing with Teamsters violated his First Amendment right to freedom of association .", "But Charles Carberry , the chief prosecutor for the Independent Review Board , said the restrictions did not violate the Constitution .", "`` The First Amendment is not involved because this is not government action , '' Mr. Carberry said , citing several judicial decisions .", "`` It comes into play only when there is government restriction of speech .", "Here , the Independent Review Board is standing in the shoes of the union so it 's a restriction by the union , not by the government . ``", "A white-haired , gregarious man , Mr. Hogan can easily be mistaken for a corporate executive in his work for Chicago civic committees , but when he is in internal union battles , his venom and foul language show there is some street fighter in him .", "Years ago , Mr. Hogan uttered his most-remembered line , `` I am living proof that nepotism works . ''", "In an interview in his lawyer 's office , he said : `` Yes , I once said that .", "Nepotism can work , and at times it does n't work .", "And in this case it did work .", "My reputation speaks for itself .", "My dad retired , I took over the local and it continued to grow .", "It was n't because I was Hogan 's kid .", "It was because I had some ability . ``", "Mr. Hogan 's arguments get support from a man he long detested , Ron Carey , the Teamsters ' former president , who was expelled for breaching his fiduciary duties by failing to stop aides from diverting union money to aid his re-election campaign .", "Mr. Carey 's lawyer , Mark Hulkower , said the courts should narrow the restrictions on socializing .", "`` The associational ban against Ron Carey is absolutely ridiculous , '' Mr. Hulkower said .", "`` The ban clearly was designed to prevent union members from associating with members of organized crime , but when it applies to officials like Ron Carey it makes no sense whatsoever . ''", "In 1996 , Mr. Hogan was to be James P . Hoffa 's running mate when he challenged Mr. Carey , then the Teamster president .", "But Mr. Hogan withdrew from the race when investigators from the Independent Review Board moved to place Local 714 , which represents movie truck drivers and workers at Chicago 's convention center , into trusteeship , saying the local was rife with nepotism and favoritism .", "Investigators found that 28 Hogan family members or relatives had ties to the local .", "Mr. Hogan also stepped down from the local 's helm and the presidency of the joint council of all Chicago Teamster locals .", "When the two-year trusteeship of Local 714 ended in 1998 , his son Robert was elected the local 's principal officer .", "Robert appointed his father as the local 's organizing director .", "Recently several friends organized a fund-raiser to help Mr. Hogan pay his legal bills , but Teamsters were warned not to attend .", "`` It hurts , '' said Robert Hogan .", "`` Here 's my father , fighting for his life .", "And there is a fund-raiser , and I ca n't be with him . `` ."], "summary": ["William T Hogan Jr , longtime Teamster official , is fighting ouster from union by oversight board that accused him of negotiating sweetheart deal with contractors .", "Is angry that all members of union , even relatives , have been barred from having contact .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 5], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1453161", "text": ["In the days before 9/11 , New Yorkers were regularly treated to fierce legal battles between Mayor Rudolph W . Giuliani and groups that claimed that he was suppressing their First Amendment rights .", "The range of such controversies was considerable , and involved groups like the Ku Klux Klan , the Brooklyn Museum of Art and New York magazine .", "Now , the Bloomberg administration is preparing to defend one of the last remaining cases from that era , a trial stemming from Mr. Giuliani 's decision in 1998 to fire a police officer and two firefighters who wore blackface during a Labor Day parade in Queens .", "All three men have sued , saying the city violated their rights to free speech .", "To prepare for that trial , which is scheduled to start next week in Federal District Court in Manhattan , Mr. Giuliani has given a 137-page deposition in which he defends the city 's decision to fire the men .", "In it , Mr. Giuliani , who is expected to be called as a witness in court , comes across as most New Yorkers recall him before the terrorist attacks brought out a gentler side : candid , blunt , outspoken and combative .", "`` My opinion as mayor of the city , '' he declares , `` was that police officers and firefighters engaging in this kind of conduct disgrace the uniform , and make it impossible for them in the future to function in a fair and impartial way . ''", "At another juncture , the former mayor seems to almost take over the deposition , reading at length from a document to support his position until one of the firefighters ' lawyers asks him to stop editorializing .", "`` I 'm testifying , `` the mayor retorts , continuing to read from the document , a transcript shows .", "A deposition is a traditional part of a civil suit in which lawyers are allowed , before trial , to question witnesses under oath .", "A copy of Mr. Giuliani 's deposition was obtained from the New York Civil Liberties Union , which represents the officer who was fired , Joseph Locurto .", "The civil liberties union contends in its suit that Mr. Giuliani directed the officer 's firing in violation of his rights .", "`` You ca n't fire someone simply in retaliation for the content of their speech , `` Christopher Dunn , associate legal director of the group , said yesterday .", "`` It 's our contention that that 's exactly why they fired him . ``", "Mr. Dunn indicated in pretrial hearings that he might challenge the former mayor 's credibility on his reasons for firing the officer .", "`` We dispute his contention that he was concerned about the racial sensitivity of a police officer , '' he said yesterday , `` in light of his long history of supporting racially insensitive actions by the Police Department . ''", "Mr. Dunn acknowledged that Mr. Giuliani 's image had changed since the attacks , but he cited his `` legacy of hostility to the First Amendment . ''", "The city maintains that the firings of the men were permissible because their conduct would prove disruptive .", "A lawyer for the city , Jonathan Pines , said through a spokesman , `` We feel very confident in the strength of this case , and expect to prevail in court . ''", "A representative of Mr. Giuliani , Daniel S . Connolly , said he would not comment before trial .", "The 1998 Labor Day float , titled `` Black to the Future : 2098 , '' was part of the annual parade sponsored by the Broad Channel Volunteer Fire Department and Ambulance Corps .", "One participant , a firefighter , re-enacted the killing of James Byrd Jr . , a black man who was dragged to his death behind a pickup truck in Texas the previous June .", "Mayor Giuliani condemned the incident and said of Officer Locurto at the time , `` The only way this guy gets back on the police force is if the Supreme Court of the United States tells us to put him back . ''", "The officer , then an off-duty 30-year-old patrolman , admitted participating in the float , and apologized publicly for what he called `` a big mistake . ''", "The two firefighters -- Jonathan Walters and Robert Steiner -- denied any racist intent .", "In the deposition , which was taken last April , Mr. Giuliani said he believed that officers or firefighters who participated in such a `` vicious display of racism '' would become a serious liability to the city .", "He also said that despite his assertions that the men should be fired , had new evidence turned up , the police and fire commissioners `` would have been perfectly free to disagree and not fire them . ''", "At one point , Mr. Giuliani was asked whether controversy over the police response to that summer 's so-called Million Youth March in Harlem , influenced his response to Officer Locurto 's act .", "`` None , absolutely none , '' Mr. Giuliani said ."], "summary": ["Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is expected to be called as witness in suit stemming from firings of firefighters Jonathan Walters and Robert Steiner and police officer Joseph Locurto , who wore blackface on float in Labor Day parade in Queens ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 24], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453162", "text": ["The rapper known as 50 Cent and four other men were arrested on weapons charges in Midtown early yesterday after police officers found two loaded guns in the car they were in , the authorities said .", "The rapper , whose real name is Curtis Jackson , was a passenger in a Jeep Grand Cherokee that officers pulled over about 2 a.m. after they saw it parked in a no-standing zone at 34th Street and 11th Avenue near the Copacabana night club , the police said .", "Inside the car , which had heavily tinted windows , officers found a . 25 caliber handgun on the floor , the police said .", "A search also turned up a . 45 caliber handgun under the front passenger seat , they said .", "Three of the men in the car were wearing bulletproof vests , and one man was sitting on a fourth vest .", "Mr. Jackson , who was not wearing a bulletproof vest , was in the rear passenger side , the police said .", "The five men were each charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon , a police official said .", "Mr. Jackson 's lawyer , Charles Pringle , did not immediately respond to phone messages .", "The police briefly considered Mr. Jackson a potential target for violence last year after the Oct . 30 murder of Jam Master Jay , the popular D.J. for the pioneering rap group Run-DMC .", "One initial theory in that case was that the murder stemmed from a grudge against Mr. Jackson , who was a prot\u00e9g\u00e9 of Jam Master Jay and had used his music to criticize gangster rap .", "The police said that Mr. Jackson spent about eight months in prison in 1994 and 1995 after being arrested twice on drug charges ."], "summary": ["Police arrest rapper Curtis Jackson , known as 50 Cent , and four other men in Midtown Manhattan after finding two loaded guns in car ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453163", "text": ["Responding to intelligence information from federal authorities about a possible terrorist attack on New York Harbor , the United States Coast Guard closed the Port of New York to pleasure craft yesterday and , along with the New York Police Department , increased harbor patrols .", "Several senior law enforcement officials in New York played down the significance of the threat , which came amid heightened security for the New Year 's Eve celebration in Times Square .", "One official said the action was taken out of an `` abundance of caution , '' and another described the intelligence information as `` nonspecific , uncorroborated and of unknown reliability . ''", "Mayor Michael R . Bloomberg , speaking at a news conference in Times Square yesterday afternoon to discuss the New Year 's Eve festivities there , said in response to a question that the actions were simply prudent in an age of increased risk .", "`` I can tell you that there are no credible threats that we know of to our security here , '' he said .", "`` But New York and the N.Y.P.D. is in the business of prevention , and we take all the appropriate precautions that we should when you have large numbers of people get together . ''", "Police Commissioner Raymond W . Kelly , who appeared with Mr. Bloomberg in Times Square , said that the Coast Guard had restricted pleasure craft from coming into the harbor at 3:30 p.m. , and Coast Guard officials said the ban would continue until 8 a.m. today .", "Mr. Kelly said that along with the Coast Guard , the Police Department 's Harbor Unit would increase its patrols .", "An advisory from the New York State Office of Public Security on the threat said that the United States Department of Homeland Security had advised law enforcement authorities in New York of possible attacks at unspecified times on Dec . 31 in the vicinity of the harbor .", "The advisory said that the source that provided the information indicated that eight potential diversionary attacks would precede the harbor attack .", "`` These diversionary attacks are alleged to occur at cities located throughout New York State , '' said the advisory , which noted that the credibility of the threats was undetermined .", "The advisory came as the police and federal authorities in New York City were searching for 19 men who entered the country illegally a week ago , amid concern that , because most are from Pakistan and Persian Gulf states , they might possibly be part of a terrorist plot .", "But one senior law enforcement official said the authorities had no information to connect the men to the harbor threat .", "The men came from the Pakistani cities of Lahore and Karachi through London with forged European Union passports and crossed the border from Canada into New York State , officials said .", "The authorities learned about them during an investigation into a passport-fraud ring that operated in New York , Canada and Pakistan .", "On Sunday , the F.B.I. released photographs of five of the men , and names and dates of birth for them that they said might be fake .", "Members of the F.B.I. - N.Y.P.D.", "Joint Terrorist Task Force and Immigration and Naturalization Service agents conducted raids in Brooklyn and Queens and elsewhere on Monday , and questioned at least six men , who were later released , officials said .", "Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday cited the reports of the men crossing the border , saying they underscored her concern that there should be a specific office in the new Homeland Security Department devoted to the northern border .", "`` It is clear that we have just not paid the kind of attention or put enough resources into this , '' she said , adding that she would reintroduce a bill that would create a northern border security office in the new department ."], "summary": ["US Coast Guard closes Port of New York to pleasure craft and increases harbor patrols in response to intelligence from federal authorities about possible attack on New York Harbor .", "Law enforcement officials play down significance of threat , describing intelligence as nonspecific and uncorroborated ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453164", "text": ["The troops begin massing on the periphery shortly before midnight .", "They arrive under police escort , armed with backpack blowers and mechanical brooms .", "As the carousers head homeward , the battalion moves in -- shock troops engaged in the surgical roundup of an estimated 25 tons of New Year 's Eve trash .", "In New York City , where the extraordinary is always morphing into ordinary , even the annual Times Square confetti removal operation has become mundane -- the rough equivalent , in apartment dwellers ' terms , of vacuuming post-party potato chips off the living room rug or swabbing up spilled Champagne .", "`` This is not a big deal , '' said John J . Doherty , who came out of retirement last year to become commissioner of the Department of Sanitation , where he had worked for 38 years .", "`` I mean , we 've been doing this for years and years and years .", "So it 's pretty routine . ``", "Sure , the tonnage waxes and wanes .", "Way back when , Times Square would be littered with broken glass , back when no one much cared what anyone carried in .", "But since the city began limiting what revelers could bring with them , the quantity of New Year 's Eve trash has dropped , to 25 tons one year ago , from 50 in 2000 .", "Nearly all of it is paper .", "This year , the city added another security precaution : litter baskets were removed , since they are potential hiding places for explosives .", "-LRB- The Police Department also enlisted Sanitation Department welders to seal manhole covers , Mr. Doherty said , declining to speculate on why . -RRB-", "The plan of attack : send in a small crew to `` preclean '' the area on the afternoon of New Year 's Eve .", "The main 60-member crew follows , with police escort , around 11 p.m.", "As soon as the crowds disperse , around 1 a.m. , the workers fan out with street sweepers , blowers , shovels and brooms .", "The hours are grim , but the pay is not bad .", "Crew members earn time and a half , Mr. Doherty said .", "`` Some of them do it because they like the money , '' he said .", "`` Some of the young guys do it because they like to be there .", "And some do it because they have to . ``", "By 6 a.m. , the bulk of the cleanup is done , the trash carted away in collection trucks .", "Later , as confetti drifts off building ledges and into the streets , day-shift workers sweep it up .", "The entire operation , including 78 workers over three shifts , costs the city $ 22,000 .", "`` Where will I be .", "`` Mr. Doherty said when asked yesterday .", "`` I 'll probably be asleep , actually . `` ."], "summary": ["Job of cleaning up Times Square after New Year 's Eve celebration , which has become fairly routine , described ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453165", "text": ["Worried that their party has been outgunned in the political propaganda wars by conservative radio and television personalities , influential Democrats are scouring the nation for a liberal answer to Rush Limbaugh and the many others on the deep bench of Republican friends .", "For years , Democrats have groused about their inability to balance what they see as the increasing influence over the electorate by advocates of Republican policies .", "But they say their concerns have taken on a new urgency because of the rise to the top of the cable news ratings by the Fox News Channel , considered by many to have a conservative slant , and the loss of the Senate to the Republicans in November .", "Some Democrats say the election outcome enhanced the influence of Fox News and personalities like Mr. Limbaugh .", "The efforts among influential Democrats , particularly liberals , range from a grass-roots talent search for progressive radio hosts to the creation of research organizations to provide a Democratic spin for the news media , to nascent discussions by wealthy supporters about starting a cable network with a liberal bent .", "People working on these projects acknowledged they were venturing into territory where liberals have failed and failed again , most notably with the short-lived radio programs of Mario M . Cuomo and Jim Hightower , not to mention Phil Donahue 's struggling liberal talk show on MSNBC .", "However , they said , the recent Republican gains have perhaps set the backdrop for the emergence of an angry liberal who could claim the same outsider status that worked so well for Mr. Limbaugh in the early 1990 's .", "The hurried efforts by Democrats to find more powerful media voices come after years of carping but little action .", "`` If you start from the premise that the message was right , which we do , then the problem was that it was n't getting out to the people , `` said one official of the Democratic Party who spoke on condition that his name not be used .", "With that sentiment , there is a sense within the leadership ranks that the party erred in not building a media support system after the 2000 presidential election , when it lost the media coordination of the Clinton White House .", "`` Across the board , we need to muscle up , '' said John Podesta , the former White House chief of staff for Bill Clinton and now a law professor at Georgetown University .", "`` That means from the Congressional operations to the party committees to the think-tank world to , most significantly , beefing up our capacity to communicate with the public in all forms of media , not just through obscure Internet Web sites but on television and radio . ''", "For his part , Mr. Podesta is discussing with the Internet entrepreneur Steven T . Kirsch and others the creation of a liberal version of the Heritage Foundation , the conservative research group that , along with others of its kind , is credited with helping start the modern conservative movement .", "The foundation is part of a circuit of influential conservative groups that are credited with helping to hone a singular message , bolstered each Wednesday at back-to-back meetings held by Grover Norquist , the head of Americans for Tax Reform , and the conservative activist Paul Weyrich .", "Those meetings are monitored and at times attended by some conservative commentators , columnists and Internet writers .", "Democrats have long claimed that the circuit has corralled conservative thinkers , and more important , conservative media , into a disciplined message of the week that gets repeated attention from Web sites like the Drudge Report , Mr. Limbaugh 's radio show , Fox News 's prime-time talk shows and the editorial pages of The Washington Times and The Wall Street Journal .", "Mr. Kirsch , chief executive of the Propel Internet service and a Democratic fund-raiser , said the foundation he and Mr. Podesta envision would do the same for liberals .", "`` During the last 10 years the opposition has become more organized and the liberals have n't adapted to counter it , `` Mr. Kirsch said .", "`` We will have components that will include messaging , message delivery and coordination of progressive groups so progressives will speak with more of a unified voice . ''", "Should the organizers succeed at starting a foundation , it would not have anywhere near the number of prominent , outright partisan media voices that its conservative counterparts do .", "Democrats can point to a scant few .", "Their most prominent television advocates , James Carville and Paul Begala on `` Crossfire '' and Bill Press on CNN 's `` Buchanan and Press , '' square off each day against conservative counterparts .", "Mr. Donahue stands alone on MSNBC , but his program has struggled some against the far more watched Bill O'Reilly on Fox and Connie Chung on CNN .", "Conservatives have Mr. Limbaugh , Sean Hannity , Michael Reagan and Neal Boortz , who collectively draw an audience of at least 30 million people per week with a strictly conservative message .", "They are led , of course , by Mr. Limbaugh , with an estimated audience of up to 20 million people a week , and Mr. Hannity , with nearly 10 million .", "Democrats , most recently Al Gore , have also complained that the Fox News Channel , overseen by the former Republican strategist Roger E . Ailes , slants its coverage against Democrats , a charge Mr. Ailes denies .", "Its average nightly audience of about 1.3 million people is the largest in cable news .", "In one of the more ambitious of the ideas circulating , a group of wealthy Democratic supporters is toying with the idea of starting a liberal cable network .", "That endeavor would cost in the hundreds of millions and require the backing of a media company with enough leverage to force it onto the major cable systems .", "Democratic officials said that they had discussed a similar idea with Haim Saban , a media mogul and party supporter , a couple of years ago , as Fox News began its ascent , but that he ultimately decided against it , in large part because of the odds against success .", "Mr. Saban had no comment , but an associate played down the seriousness of the discussions .", "Still , Rob Glaser , the founder and chief executive of RealNetworks , the Internet video service , said he believed there was room to create a progressive version of Fox News .", "`` There is a hole in the market right now , '' Mr. Glaser said .", "`` From my personal standpoint , holes in the market are opportunities . ''", "Democrats said a far more readily achievable goal would be to foster national liberal radio personalities .", "The task has fallen to a newly formed group , Democracy Radio Inc .", "It is overseen by a former Democratic Congressional staffer , Tom Athens , with help from , among others , Paul W . Fiddick , the Clinton administration assistant secretary for agriculture and a co-founder of the Heritage Media Corporation .", "`` We 're going to go out and identify talent and help them to create programming and actually connect them with local stations , `` Mr. Athens said .", "`` We want to plant a thousand seeds and see how many flowers actually arise . ''", "But if history is any guide , the soil may not be fertile .", "Liberal radio programs have not worked very well in the past .", "Liberals and conservatives said they believed this was in part because the most prominent liberal hosts have tended to present policy issues in all of their dry complexity while refraining from baring fangs against conservative opponents .", "`` Most liberal talk shows are so , you know , milquetoast , who would want to listen to them .", "`` said Harry Thomason , the Hollywood producer who is close to Bill Clinton .", "`` Conservatives are all fire and brimstone . ''", "Mr. Athens said his group would encourage its hosts to be more brazen and entertaining .", "`` Progressives have this problem : They sound too erudite , it 's like eggheads talking at you , `` Mr. Athens said .", "`` We believe that progressive talk radio can be every bit as successful as conservative talk radio if people present and format a show that people like . ''", "Conservatives are skeptical that all of this planning will do the Democrats much good .", "`` It 's not a matter of packaging or meetings , it 's a matter of ideas , `` Mr. Hannity said .", "`` The public is n't interested in the kind of liberalism that the Democratic party has come to represent . ``", "Robert Novak , the syndicated columnist and part of the conservative team on CNN 's `` Crossfire , '' said the Democrats were making too much about the efficacy of the conservative research organizations .", "Mr. Novak said he sent a staff member to Mr. Norquist 's meetings .", "But , he said , while the information shared at the meetings is `` helpful , it 's hardly a decisive factor `` in what he writes in his column or says on television .", "Correction : January 4 , 2003 , Saturday An article on Wednesday about efforts by influential Democrats to counter conservative voices in the news media misidentified the network that broadcasts `` Buchanan and Press , '' with the conservative commentator Patrick J . Buchanan and Bill Press , a prominent advocate of Democratic positions .", "It is MSNBC , not CNN ."], "summary": ["Influential Democrats , worried that their party has been outgunned in political propaganda wars by conservative radio and television personalities , are scouring nation for a liberal answer to Rush Limbaugh and the many others on deep bench of Republican friends .", "For years , Democrats have groused about their inability to balance what they see as increasing influence over electorate by advocates of Republican policies .", "But they say their concerns have taken on new urgency because of rise to top of cable news ratings by Fox News Channel , considered by many to have conservative slant , and loss of Senate to Republicans in November .", "Some Democrats say election outcome enhanced influence of Fox News and personalities like Limbaugh .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2, 1, 3], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1453168", "text": ["Like so many others who have gone on to distinguished athletic careers from tiny Belle Glade , Fla . , Brad Banks grew up running in the area 's thick muck , eating sugar cane and chasing rabbits .", "`` You 've got to be on your toes to catch those rabbits , `` said Banks , the Iowa quarterback , who has become one of the most celebrated players in college football in a single storybook season .", "Banks visited his hometown on the northern edge of the Everglades shortly before Iowa assembled here for its game against Southern California in the Orange Bowl on Thursday night .", "He reminisced about his childhood , about the way the burning sugar cane fields would flush out so many rabbits .", "He could catch 30 on a good day , taking some home to eat , selling others for $ 3.50 each .", "`` It was fun to remember how it used to be for me , '' Banks said .", "`` It 's been a long ride , but it 's paying off right now . ``", "Three Belle Glade natives are in the N.F.L. : Fred Taylor of Jacksonville , James Jackson of Cleveland and Johnny Rutledge of Arizona .", "Banks intends to soon make it four .", "He is coming off a regular season during which he led the country in passing efficiency .", "He passed for 2,369 yards , with 25 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions -LRB- 2 of them off deflections -RRB- .", "Tack on his five rushing touchdowns , and that gave him a team record for combined touchdowns .", "`` He 's led our football team and he 's kept a very even , very stable demeanor through the good and the bad , `` Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz said .", "`` I think that 's something the players really respect in him . ``", "Banks came into the season as a major question mark after playing sparingly in 2001 .", "And in the Hawkeyes ' third game , when Iowa held a 24-7 halftime lead against Iowa State , he lost two fumbles as Iowa fell to its sole defeat , 36-31 .", "`` That was like a wake-up call , '' Banks said .", "`` It got me to focus a little more . ''", "With concerns high , Banks , a senior , quickly turned the doubts into one long highlight reel .", "Two of his best games came at Penn State , where he passed for 261 yards and 4 touchdowns , and at Michigan , where he passed for 222 yards and 3 touchdowns .", "`` Penn State is not an easy venue , plus the game was on national television , '' Ferentz said .", "`` We were n't quite sure how he 'd handle adversity , but he just took it and ran .", "From then on , everything 's been pretty good . ``", "Banks 's late heroics in a 31-28 victory over Purdue cemented his stature .", "He took the Hawkeyes on an eight-play , 87-yard scoring drive that ended with 1 minute 7 seconds remaining in the game .", "He began the drive with a 44-yard run on a quarterback draw , and he finished it with a 7-yard fourth-down touchdown pass to tight end Dallas Clark .", "`` He did n't do anything or say anything different on that drive , `` Clark said .", "`` I think that 's what made it so bizarre and so special .", "With all the pressure on the line , we 're behind , the season 's on the ropes and everybody 's looking at him , he was just as mild-mannered as he was when he started the game . ``", "Clark shook his head in wonder , still impressed by the memory .", "`` That just shows what kind of special quarterback he is , '' he said .", "When offensive tackle Robert Gallery described Banks as `` not a yell-and-scream guy , '' that was an understatement .", "He often talks in one - or two-sentence clips with a soft , self-effacing style .", "`` He never gets flustered in the huddle or screams at anybody , '' Gallery said .", "`` I 'd call him the strong , silent type .", "I just know he 's got everybody believing in him . ``", "Banks said he simply treated games like practice .", "`` Whatever you do on the practice field , you should be able to bring it over to the game , '' he said .", "Iowa went 11-1 for the season , including 8-0 in the Big Ten to claim part of the conference championship with Ohio State .", "And the individual honors came flooding to Banks .", "The Associated Press named him the player of the year .", "Banks also finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting to Southern Cal 's Carson Palmer , his quarterbacking counterpart in Thursday night 's game .", "Seeing him now , it is difficult to believe that he took such a circuitous route to stardom .", "He began his college career at the Central Florida but encountered academic trouble .", "That led him to Hinds Junior College in Mississippi , where there were plenty of occasions when he wondered if he had much of a future in the game .", "In particular , Banks recalled missing part of a season with a bruised quadriceps .", "`` I did a lot of praying and stayed hungry , '' he said .", "He said he felt as if the door to success `` was closed a lot of times . ''", "`` But I kept looking for that crack , because I knew I could explode through it , '' Banks said .", "Arriving at Iowa last year , he found himself playing behind the senior Kyle McCann .", "He stayed there for much of the season .", "To Ferentz , Banks stands now as a great example of waiting for one 's turn , then taking advantage when the opportunity comes .", "`` It still was a good year for me , '' Banks said of last season .", "`` It prepared me for this year . ''", "COLLEGE FOOTBALL ."], "summary": ["Iowa University quarterback Brad Banks , who was Heisman Trophy candidate , took circuitous route to success , attending two colleges before Iowa and growing up in bucolic Belle Glade , Fla .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 42], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453169", "text": ["To begin today 's final news conference before the big game , Susan Hamilton , the Gator Bowl chairwoman , gushed , `` Has this been a great week or what .", "`` Then she expressed hope that the predicted heavy rain would not wash out the festivities before Wednesday 's meeting between Notre Dame and North Carolina State .", "But her happy and hopeful words did not dispel an uneasy feeling in the room , particularly around the Fighting Irish delegation .", "Kevin White , the Notre Dame athletic director , set his jaw , shook his head and refused to discuss the most contentious of several issues : the continuing investigation into the arrest and detention of a Notre Dame player .", "Chad DeBolt , a senior safety , was held overnight in a local jail after he was arrested and charged with trespassing , the police said , when he refused to leave the Ocean Club in Jacksonville Beach early Friday morning .", "At some point , DeBolt sustained substantial facial injuries , which were visible in a photograph taken at the Duval County Jail .", "So far , there are more questions than answers about the incident .", "How did those injuries occur .", "When did they take place .", "`` We 've just moved on , that 's all I can say , `` White said .", "Is DeBolt , 22 , still with the team .", "Will he play against the Wolfpack .", "Does he have a lawyer representing him in this case .", "What is his medical condition .", "The mug shot showed swollen eyes and cuts around the mouth and nose .", "White repeated his statement that Notre Dame has `` moved on '' and said he would have no further comment .", "DeBolt has not been available for comment .", "Police officials were just as limited in their revelations .", "Greg Fields , public affairs officer for the Jacksonville Sheriff 's office , said an investigation is in progress to discover what took place between the time of DeBolt 's arrest and his release from the jail about 11 hours later .", "`` They wo n't update it , `` Fields said when asked if there were developments to announce today .", "`` They will come to a conclusion and release everything . ''", "That was just one of three recent incidents that have jolted the Fighting Irish 10-2 -RRB- as they prepare to face the Wolfpack -LRB- 10-3 -RRB- .", "The first was the announcement last week that Notre Dame would play without the seniors Jordan Black and Brennan Curtin , their first-string offensive tackles .", "They were left home because of what was termed `` a university matter . ''", "Another problem is the expected absence of Courtney Watson , a starting linebacker , who has not practiced this week because of a sprained knee and is doubtful for the game .", "These issues follow a relatively good season under Tyrone Willingham , the first-year coach , that began with an 8-0 streak and ended with a 2-2 thud .", "The final game was a 44-13 loss Nov . 30 at Southern California in which Notre Dame 's defense gave up a team-record 610 yards .", "Today , Gerome Sapp , a senior strong safety , said : `` Nobody 's perfect .", "We had a bad game .", "We 'll admit to that . ``", "That game was a good one for U.S.C. quarterback Carson Palmer , who threw for 425 yards and 4 touchdowns .", "Palmer and others said it was the pivotal factor in his winning the Heisman Trophy two weeks later .", "North Carolina State quarterback Philip Rivers , a junior , has completed 239 of 381 passes this season for 3,125 yards and 18 touchdowns .", "He threw only 10 interceptions , but he will be working against a secondary -- led by cornerbacks Shane Walton and Vontez Duff -- that intercepted 21 passes for a Notre Dame team that scored 105 points off turnovers .", "Rivers 's primary target is Jerricho Cotchery , who caught 57 passes for 1,065 yards and 6 touchdowns .", "This will be Notre Dame 's first bowl appearance since a 41-9 loss to Oregon State in the Fiesta Bowl at the end of the 2000 season .", "The Irish have lost their last five bowl games .", "Their last postseason victory was over Texas A & M , 24-21 , in the Cotton Bowl at the end of the 1993 season .", "This will be the first time Notre Dame and N.C.", "State have played .", "The Wolfpack started the season 9-0 , then lost three games before closing with a victory over Florida State .", "The North Carolina State running attack is led by the freshman tailback T . A . McLendon , who rushed for 1,083 yards and 16 touchdowns .", "The Wolfpack has won three of its last four bowl games .", "In today 's news conference , as is often the case when Notre Dame plays , there were humorous remarks about religious affiliation .", "Coach Chuck Amato of N.C.", "State , referring to the forecast for heavy rain , said : `` The priests and the nuns will have to take care of that rain .", "The Baptists I brought with me ca n't handle that . ``", "But Willingham disagreed in his reply .", "`` I am from North Carolina , '' Willingham said , `` and I do know the impact of Southern Baptists . ''", "On a more serious subject , Willingham was asked whether his players still have a bad taste in their mouths after the defeat at U.S.C.", "`` If it 's still there , we 'd like to get it out , `` Willingham said .", "`` But , sometimes , in four weeks , you can lose your taste buds . ''", "COLLEGE FOOTBALL ."], "summary": ["Notre Dame University prepares to face North Carolina State University in Gator Bowl and provides no answers about arrest of safety Chad DeBolt , who was charged with trespassing at nightclub .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 35], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453170", "text": ["His shot has started to fall .", "His defense has clamped down on two huge challenges in the post .", "But as well as center Michael Doleac has been playing lately , he was not going to play along when Shandon Anderson fired an alley-oop pass to him during the Knicks ' victory over San Antonio on Monday night .", "Doleac did not even raise his arms to try to dunk the ball that banged off the backboard .", "Even his sudden success in the rotation has not made Doleac believe he is ready for such a play .", "`` I told Shandon that if I had caught that and made it , that would 've been my first alley-oop ever -- high school , college , pro , ever in a game , `` Doleac said .", "`` I 've done it in practice but never in a game . ``", "Although Coach Don Chaney insisted he had seen Doleac and Anderson connect on the play in practice while toiling for the second unit , some Knicks joked with Anderson , saying , `` Know your personnel . ''", "Before the last three games , Doleac had struggled to justify any playing time , failing to show more than a hint of the shooting touch that inspired the Knicks to sign him as a free agent in August .", "He missed the first seven games of the season with a hamstring injury that affected him through most of the preseason .", "In his first 17 games , he averaged 3.1 points -LRB- shooting 36.5 percent from the field -RRB- and 2.3 rebounds and played little defense .", "But in Houston last Friday , when Kurt Thomas got into early foul trouble , Doleac stepped forward and helped the Knicks to victory with 15 points and 5 rebounds , shooting 6 of 9 and playing unexpectedly strong defense in 28 minutes against the Rockets ' 7-foot-6 Yao Ming .", "Against San Antonio , Doleac helped counter the combination of Tim Duncan and David Robinson , scoring 16 points , shooting 8 of 11 and grabbing a season-high 8 rebounds in 33 minutes .", "Doleac will be the first big man off the bench Wednesday night against Toronto because Clarence Weatherspoon was suspended for one game and fined $ 20,000 for fighting with San Antonio 's Kevin Willis .", "`` He 's playing with a lot of confidence , `` Chaney said of Doleac .", "`` Not just shooting , but with other things .", "Naturally he struggled earlier , but his confidence level is there .", "And I think guys are more comfortable with him now , too .", "If he 's open , they 're not reluctant to give him the ball . ``", "Perhaps they should be , at least when it comes to the lob above the rim .", "But on firm ground about 15 feet from the basket , Doleac has suddenly regained his touch and the faith of his teammates .", "`` I think the biggest thing is the way he 's shooting the ball , `` Latrell Sprewell said .", "`` When you 're able to space the floor like that with a big guy and have him knock down perimeter shots , it stretches the defense . ``", "Why has the ball suddenly begun to drop .", "`` I have no idea , '' Doleac said .", "What he does know is that it has been a hard adjustment to a new city and a new team while having little to show for his efforts .", "Doleac , who entered the league as the 12th overall draft pick after helping Utah reach the N.C.A.A. championship game as a senior in 1998 , had four inconsistent seasons with Orlando and Cleveland before joining the Knicks .", "`` It 's always tough to lose games and not play well , `` Doleac said .", "`` I mean , you want to come out there and do well and contribute to the team and try and help the team win games .", "When you 're not playing up to what you think you 're capable and losing games , it 's not much fun .", "Obviously , if I knew what it was I would have done it a long time ago . ``", "What may have turned his offense around has been the unexpected performance on defense .", "At 6-11 and 262 pounds , he is able to provide the Knicks with as close as their roster gets to a true center 's size and style .", "As much as he contributed on offense on Monday , he was just as good on defense .", "`` I usually pass up the first shot I see and try to get a rebound first , or get a stop first , '' Doleac said .", "`` A lot of times that will happen : my shot dictates my game .", "So if I miss my shot , I 'm not doing anything to help the team -- so , you know , sit down .", "I just need to get in the flow .", "If I miss , it 's ` Come on , Mike . '", "But if you 're defending and rebounding , who cares .", "I 'm doing something to help . ``", "Chaney recalled an incident a couple of weeks ago when Doleac said , `` I 'm thinking too much . ``", "`` That comes with a guy who 's not familiar with what we 're doing , `` Chaney said .", "`` The last couple of games , especially the Houston game , he did a great job of using his strength . ''", "Chaney added , `` If you have size like that , it goes to waste if you do n't use it . ``", "BASKETBALL ."], "summary": ["New York Knicks center Michael Doleac gets 15 points and 5 rebounds in win against San Antonio Spurs , finally showing signs of improvement since his signing as free agent months ago .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 2], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453172", "text": ["Ohio State tailback Maurice Clarett today disputed the contention of university officials that he failed to file the proper paperwork to allow him to return to his hometown to attend the funeral of a boyhood friend .", "Clarett said he filled out the paperwork Thursday , before the Buckeyes departed for their national title game matchup with Miami here in the Fiesta Bowl on Friday night .", "The National Collegiate Athletic Association requires the form for an athlete to qualify for emergency money , as Clarett would have needed for a plane ticket to his home in Youngstown , Ohio .", "`` They ca n't lie about that , `` Clarett , a freshman , said defiantly before a throng of reporters at Sun Devil Stadium on media day .", "`` I wo n't sit here and let them lie about that . ``", "On Monday , Clarett said university officials first ignored him , then gave him `` the runaround '' when he asked to fly home to attend services for Juaquin A . Bell , who was found fatally shot on Dec . 21 .", "His funeral was Monday .", "Ohio State 's athletic director , Andy Geiger , said that the university would have allowed Clarett to go home but that he had not filled out the proper form .", "In a statement released tonight , Geiger said Clarett had not submitted the form , Free Application for Federal Student Aid , as of Monday .", "He said the form , given to all Ohio State student athletes during orientation , requires information on family income from the previous tax year and must be filed annually .", "`` Maurice may have begun the process , '' Geiger said , `` but at the time we had to make the decision , there was no indication of a Fafsa on file for Maurice .", "We were therefore compelled to follow the N.C.A.A. rules as they apply to the situation . ``", "At a news conference Monday , Clarett , who set freshman records at the university and helped power the Buckeyes to a 13-0 record , said Ohio State officials cared more about a football game than a loss of life .", "Geiger disagreed .", "`` We care deeply about all of our student athletes , and we did everything possible to assist Maurice Clarett in this time of his personal grief , '' Geiger said .", "`` Unfortunately , given the circumstances , we had no choice other than to react in the manner in which we did . ''", "Clarett said today that he had asked Coach Jim Tressel about going home and that Tressel had referred the matter to the athletic department 's compliance section , which reviews any financial aid or benefits given to student-athletes .", "Clarett , 19 , said his mother , Michelle , filled out the form last week and submitted it to the university .", "She declined to comment today .", "Clarett did not hide being angry about missing the funeral .", "He said he was most upset that Heather Lyke Catalano , Ohio State 's associate athletic director for compliance , did not contact him after he filed his paperwork .", "`` The compliance lady said she 'd get back to me in my room , `` Clarett said .", "`` She never called back in my room or on my cellphone .", "That 's the real reason I was mad , because she did n't call me back . ``", "Catalano said she could not comment .", "COLLEGE FOOTBALL ."], "summary": ["Ohio State University tailback Maurice Clarett denies failing to file paperwork required to qualify for emergency money to fly home for friend 's funeral , as university contends ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453173", "text": ["You had one eye in the mirror as you watched yourself gavotte And all the girls dreamed that they 'd be your partner They 'd be your partner , and . .", "You 're so vain Vanity Tuna has been on the prowl again , a swinger on the football scene itching to wheel his imaginary six-shooter , wink and say , `` I 've still got it . ``", "This time , Jerry Jones gave him his number .", "But will Bill Parcells leave Dallas on hold to indulge in his own adversity cravings .", "Was Dave Campo just another coach left to fear the dark-alley footsteps of the N.F.L. ` s salvage genius .", "As they say in Tampa Bay , it 's never over until the house closing .", "No one needs this twisted intrigue , but this time every year , the coaching purge commences , along with the hunt for Tuna , turning the league into a waiting room for the paranoid .", "Who 's next to go .", "Who knows .", "For some , it 's best to pull the rip cord and escape this maddening line of work for a job field one notch -LRB- and only one notch -RRB- more forgiving .", "College life looks good on Pete Carroll .", "Standing on a practice field on Saturday beneath Windex-blue skies in Davie , Fla . , Carroll was wearing khaki pants and a U.S.C. hoodie -LRB- kid code for hooded sweatshirt -RRB- , looking more like a frat pledge than a 51-year-old coach during the countdown to the Orange Bowl tomorrow against Iowa .", "`` He 's like a 20-year-old , `` said Southern Cal quarterback Carson Palmer , he of recent Heisman Trophy glory .", "`` He is intense , really into it . ''", "He 's all but jumping on couch cushions .", "In his early days in New England , Carroll 's boyish exuberance was embraced after the exit of His Royal Tuna-ness , but soon the mocking of Opie Taylor began .", "By the time Carroll 's winning average dipped to . 500 in Year 3 of living with Parcells 's ghost , his good nature had become a symbol of softness .", "It was a rewind of the critique from his cameo as Jets coach in 1994 , and a repeat of what every man cursed as `` a player 's coach `` hears in the end .", "`` If people would go back and monitor what has been said each year , '' Carroll noted , `` it 's almost canned . ``", "Win and you 're a player 's coach .", "Lose and you 've lost your team .", "The same flip-flop in logic confronted Herman Edwards when the Jets were searching for crawl space at 2-5 .", "Was his team adrift .", "No , as it turns out .", "While Edwards should n't dilute his quality image by banging the us-against-the-cynics drum -- after all , did he really expect a warm glass of milk at 1-4 .", "-- he is among a growing number of coaches who resist publicly scolding or blaming players for his team 's predicament .", "`` Times are changing , '' Carroll said .", "`` Players want to know why , and in the old days , they did n't even think to ask why .", "This is a good thing .", "This is the evolution of a sport . ``", "Player communication is in .", "Humiliation is out .", "Where does that leave Parcells .", "Winners are in demand , no matter how combative .", "Too often , nice guys have a smaller margin for error .", "In his case , Carroll is better off for his dismissal .", "Now , he can hug his players and guide them in life , slap hands with the fans and listen to his rock music , all without ridicule .", "`` For the most part , I think there is an innocence in the following for college football that does n't exist in the N.F.L. , and that is refreshing , `` Carroll said .", "`` There 's more tolerance . ``", "He discovered this upon his arrival at Southern Cal .", "Whether he was a retread or a faith healer , no one was quite sure when the Trojans started last season 1-4 , only to win five of their last seven games .", "These days , there is little question : he has assembled a revival tent at Southern Cal .", "Given control of the program -- a situation he never had in the N.F.L. -- Carroll took one year to restore Trojan lore during a 10-2 season that has unearthed the university 's legends .", "Look , there 's O . J . Simpson .", "On Saturday , he turned up for the first time since the glove did n't fit to watch the Trojans go through drills .", "Posing for pictures with players , shaking hands with the curious , Simpson proved even a pariah can find sanctuary .", "What would you expect in the peace , love and happiness world created by the coach who grooves .", "Maybe Carroll is na\u00efve , but he finds something romantic about college football .", "`` The N.F.L. changed when guys started being paid so much money that the normal fan could n't relate , `` Carroll said .", "`` College guys are n't getting that .", "They 're going to school .", "It 's like in the old days when guys worked in the factories and played football on Sunday . ``", "The charm quotient in the modern N.F.L. depends on the finish .", "One final weekend swayed the fate of nearly a dozen coaches .", "If Tom Coughlin 's Jaguars had n't collapsed one last time on Sunday , would he still have a job .", "If Butch Davis 's Browns had run dry on miracles , would he be employed .", "`` There 's a seriousness that is out of balance in the N.F.L. , `` Carroll said .", "`` It 's a wonderful game .", "It 's too bad that the seriousness has to go so far . ``", "The business of the N.F.L. creates a thin line between pink slip and contract extension , between a coach faced with Tuna rumors and one escaping into the playoffs .", "Still , many are willing to loiter around the N.F.L. , hanging out in TV studios or as team assistants , waiting for their next chance at misery .", "Carroll has chosen joy .", "`` I would really like to grow old doing this , '' he said .", "`` I 'm just going to keep having fun , enjoying my work and listening to my songs . ``", "To be sure , Carroll is more Rolling Stones than Carly Simon .", "Sports of The Times ."], "summary": ["Selena Roberts Sports of The Times column discusses more forgiving and less serious environment surrounding college coaching , where former NFL coach Pete Carroll has found welcome refuge and success with Southern California University .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [65, 61, 19, 10, 38, 26], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453174", "text": ["CURTIS MARTIN may be the best running back in New York history .", "He may also be one of the most underrated athletes ever to play in a city that encourages and even creates celebrities .", "Martin does not make the gossip columns .", "He does his running on stairwells and empty practice fields .", "`` Curtis is under the radar , '' his coach , Herman Edwards , said as the Jets prepared to meet the Colts in the playoffs on Saturday .", "Part of the problem is that Martin does not have any exotic mannerisms to inflame the multitudes .", "He does not have a patented dance , nor has he produced an autograph-signing pen from his sock .", "He neither taunts nor struts .", "`` Some guys break off a run of 60 yards and they 're a hero , `` Edwards said .", "`` But Curtis gets you 15 yards and people go , ' Hmpf . '", "He 's like that old pair of shoes that you wear all the time , because they 're so comfortable . ``", "Edwards compared his star back to the Colts ' star receiver , Marvin Harrison , who set a league record with 143 receptions this season .", "`` They do n't have the dat-dat-dat ! `` Edwards said , mimicking the staccato theme music of televised sports shows .", "`` Harrison plays in Indianapolis , '' Edwards noted , invoking stereotypical Midwest blandness .", "`` But Curtis plays in New York , '' Edwards said , as if to wonder why the entire region is not obsessed with him .", "Martin is the 14th-leading rusher ever , with eight straight 1,000-yard seasons , five of them with the Jets .", "Why has New York not gone ga-ga over Martin .", "In the late 50 's , before the Jerseyfication of New York football , Frank Gifford and Kyle Rote were the toast of P . J . Clarke 's and other Midtown oases .", "Gifford remains the epitome of the New York running back : the fair-haired import from the University of Southern California , still fifth in Giants history with 3,609 yards and 34 touchdowns rushing , and second among receivers with 367 catches for 5,434 yards and 43 touchdowns .", "Not only that , but Gifford also scored a touchdown on a runback and kicked 2 field goals and 10 extra points .", "And to this day , Gifford says modestly that he might have been a decent defensive back if Rote had not been hurt and had to switch from rusher to receiver .", "Since the Rote-Gifford days , the Jets have produced Matt Snell and Emerson Boozer of the Super Bowl III champions , along with Freeman McNeil , and in the swamplands the Giants have had little Joe Morris and Rodney Hampton and now the engaging Tiki Barber .", "Meanwhile , Knicks fans loved or hated Patrick Ewing but never ignored him .", "Lawrence Taylor transcended the Hudson River barrier .", "Joe Namath , Reggie Jackson , Keith Hernandez , Derek Jeter , Mike Piazza and Mark Messier have all been princes of the city .", "Plus , New York has a way of hyping very good players into cult status : John Starks , Lenny Dykstra , Paul O'Neill , to name three .", "Curtis Martin , however , who actually does venture into the city for restaurants and jazz , does not attract crowds , partly because of his modest body language .", "Another part of Martin 's relative obscurity comes from where he practices and plays .", "The Islanders won four Stanley Cups a few yards from the Jets ' bunker , yet charismatic or quirky stars like Denis Potvin , Mike Bossy and Billy Smith remained essentially anonymous in the city .", "The Devils won two Stanley Cups but are anonymous east of Hoboken .", "The Nets were finalists last season but still can not sell out their arena , partly because of the absence of mass transportation .", "And even though the Jets are trying to piggyback a new West Side stadium with a potential 2012 Summer Games boondoggle on the backs of the taxpayers , the Jets are essentially strangers in the big city .", "Martin does his best to stay unnoticed .", "When he reached 10,000 yards for his career this season , he let the Jets know that he did not want any celebration during the game .", "And he does not indulge himself after touchdowns , either .", "He and Harrison both hand the ball to the official and jog back to the sideline .", "`` Most players in the league want to create more excitement , '' Edwards said .", "`` That 's the way it is in our society . ``", "Instead , Martin remains the private man who trained himself in a rural retreat in Pennsylvania before his senior season at Pittsburgh , who runs the stairs to his 35th-floor apartment in Florida , who gives away some of his salary to the needy , who has never forgotten the misery of his childhood in Pittsburgh , who says he avoids a social life because he will have time when his career is over .", "Curtis Martin does not need the dat-dat-dat .", "Sports of The Times ."], "summary": ["George Vecsey Sports of The Times column discusses New York Jets running back Curtis Martin , who seems to fly under New York media radar and receives very little public attention , despite fact that he is 14th-leading rusher ever , playing in market that loves to create civic celebrities .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 40, 0, 39, 36], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453175", "text": ["Nine Northeastern states filed a legal challenge today in federal court here to new air-pollution rules for power plants and other industries , just hours after the Bush administration published those rules .", "The states ' attorneys general said the rules , which were tentatively announced last month , constituted the most serious effort at rolling back the landmark Clean Air Act since it was enacted more than 30 years ago .", "They said they wanted to make a strong , swift objection and filed their legal petition for review after seeing the new rules on a government Web site this morning .", "The rules , published today in the Federal Register , concern a program known as New Source Review .", "The changes would allow thousands of aging coal-fired power plants and other industrial sites to upgrade without having to install costly antipollution devices .", "Eliot L . Spitzer , the New York attorney general and an organizer of the suit , said , `` The Bush administration has taken an action that will bring more acid rain , more smog , more asthma and more respiratory disease to millions of Americans . ''", "The Environmental Protection Agency , which published the rules , defended them and said the administration followed proper procedures in issuing them administratively rather than seeking legislation .", "`` We reaffirm that we strongly believe that these rules will be positive for the environment , '' Joe Martyak , a spokesman for the agency , said .", "`` We feel strongly that at the end of the day , what we 've done is the right thing as well as a valid action .", "To say this is gutting the Clean Air Act is absolutely incorrect .", "It is strengthening these provisions . ``", "The utility industry criticized the suit .", "The Electric Reliability Coordinating Council issued a statement saying that `` the Northeast attorneys general reflect a minority opinion , '' shaped more by economic concerns than by environmental problems .", "In addition to the published rules , the administration issued a new proposal that would expand an exemption allowing power plants and other industrial facilities to escape pollution controls .", "The suit filed by the states did not address that proposal .", "Their one-page petition , filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit , did not state the grounds for the challenge .", "But legal advisers in the states said they would argue that the rules violated the Clean Air Act and that they could not be made without the consent of Congress .", "The states ' legal action escalates a struggle between utilities and clean-air advocates that has been waged since the Clean Air Act was signed into law by President Richard M . Nixon .", "Industries have complained most recently to the Bush administration that the current rules , begun under President Bill Clinton , were choking off new investments in power-generating plants and discouraging energy-saving efficiencies .", "Because the administration had made its intentions clear when it announced the rules last month , the attorneys general had time to prepare their coordinated legal response .", "Expecting that the administration would publish the rules during the holidays , when few people would be paying attention , the attorneys general signed their documents in advance and delivered them to Joseph Curran Jr . , the attorney general of Maryland , whose aides filed them in court here today .", "`` We could have waited , '' said Peter Lehner , chief of the environmental protection bureau in Mr. Spitzer 's New York office .", "`` But this is the first time there has been such a major retreat on clean air , and the states believed it was very important to respond aggressively and quickly . ''", "Mr. Lehner said he expected other states to join the suit in the next month .", "The nine that filed today were Connecticut , Maine , Maryland , Massachusetts , New Hampshire , New Jersey , New York , Rhode Island and Vermont .", "The filing puts Christie Whitman , the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency , in an awkward position .", "As the governor of New Jersey , Mrs. Whitman had joined other states in seeking relief from Midwestern power plants whose smokestack pollution drifted eastward .", "Now , as head of the agency promulgating the new rules , she is in the position of defending those rules .", "Both Mr. Spitzer and Richard Blumenthal , attorney general of Connecticut , have said that the rules proposed today would undermine their hand in prosecuting and settling the dozens of enforcement cases that as governor Mrs. Whitman had joined in bringing .", "`` They feel like they 've been sold out by her now that she 's gone to Washington , `` said John Walke , a clean air expert for the Natural Resources Defense Council .", "In those enforcement cases , the states , the E.P.A. and environmental groups asked judges to order companies to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on pollution controls , based on the New Source Review program that the states says the environmental agency is now proposing to weaken .", "Mrs. Whitman said in a recent interview that the new rules did nothing to compromise the enforcement suits .", "`` Those are very important to me , '' she said .", "`` Those cases are still going forward . ''", "Industry groups , which had pushed for the rules that were published today , hailed them and attacked the attorneys general .", "The National Association of Manufacturers said the rules would `` help further clean air and boost energy security '' and `` provide business planners with greater certainty as they work to increase production and limit air pollution in a cost-effective manner . '' ."], "summary": ["Nine Northastern states file legal challenge to new air-pollution rules for power plants and other industries just hours after Bush administration publishes rules .", "Say rules constitute most serious effort at rolling back landmark Clean Air Act since it was enacted more than 30 years ago .", "Changes would allow thousands of aging coal-fired power plants and other industrial sites to upgrade without having to install costly anti-pollution devices ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 1, 0], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1453176", "text": ["Jose Hernandez had the best year of his 10-year career last season and can not find a team that will give him more than one year and $ 2 million .", "The Mets , who need to fill a hole at third base , are among four teams that have been talking to Hernandez 's agent .", "But like everyone else , they are trying to secure a player 's services at a bargain-basement rate .", "Hernandez 's experience as a free agent has not been unique .", "In recent weeks , agents have told of their clients ' receiving multiple offers , but the offers have been exactly the same or similar .", "And all have been well below any market in recent years .", "`` Years ago we called this collusion .", "Now we call it coincidence , `` one agent said facetiously yesterday .", "But he added : `` In this environment they have reason to say they have to show restraint .", "We 've been hearing the same story from everyone . ``", "Alan Nero , Hernandez 's agent , said all of the offers he had received were for one year in the range of $ 1.5 million to $ 2 million .", "The last time he was a free agent , in 1999 , Hernandez signed a contract with Milwaukee that paid him $ 10 million for three years , plus the $ 25,000 bonus he earned for making the 2002 National League All-Star team .", "`` What has happened , '' Nero said , `` is this market , from the players ' point of view , is very depressed .", "Players have to decide whether they want to take massive paycuts or wait their turn .", "In Jose 's case , he feels he 's coming off a career year , and he does n't feel he should have to take a paycut . ``", "The Mets , San Francisco , Colorado and Cincinnati are the teams that have pursued Hernandez , 33 .", "Steve Phillips , the Mets ' general manager , will not discuss negotiations with a particular player , but it is clear he wants to put together the left side of his infield as cheaply as possible .", "He signed Rey Sanchez -- for a $ 1.3 million salary and the chance to earn $ 700,000 in bonuses based on playing time -- to keep shortstop warm for Jos\u00e9 Reyes .", "He would like to get Hernandez for a similar total .", "The Mets had Bill Mueller on their list of prospective third basemen , but he lost interest in them when Phillips would offer no more than one year .", "A report circulated among general managers and agents yesterday that Mueller had agreed to a two-year , $ 4.5 million contract with Boston , but Mueller 's agent , Dave Meier , said they had no deal .", "`` We 're talking to them , but we 're not there yet , `` he said .", "Dan O'Dowd , the Rockies ' general manager , acknowledged that he had been talking with Nero about Hernandez .", "Asked about the low , similar offers Hernandez received , O'Dowd said : `` I can only speak for ourselves .", "We just do n't have a whole lot of money to work with . ``", "Referring to circumstances clubs and free agents find themselves in , he added , `` We 're getting into the beginning of January and people do n't have jobs , and we have limited resources . ``", "Agents believe the combination of the number of players still seeking jobs and the reduced amount of money available for payroll is the precise situation the clubs have strived to create .", "With spring training about six weeks away , clubs feel , players will become uncomfortable with their unemployed status and accept the lower salaries the clubs want to pay them .", "Ned Colletti , the Giants ' assistant general manager , declined to discuss any offer the Giants might have made to Hernandez .", "`` We 're looking for someone who has some versatility , and Hernandez has as much versatility as anyone out there , `` Colletti said , but added : '' We have n't really had a conversation since before Christmas .", "It 's been kind of quiet . ``", "As the day progressed yesterday , Nero spoke with O'Dowd and learned that the interest in Hernandez had been reduced by one team .", "`` It appears they 're going in another direction , `` Nero said of the Rockies .", "Jim Bowden , the Cincinnati general manager , did not return a call to discuss the Reds ' degree of interest in Hernandez .", "Phillips said Monday that patience was called for , and that he would not panic in his quest for a third baseman .", "The interested clubs might think their slow pace could spur Hernandez to grab one of the low offers , but Nero said he did not expect his client to panic either .", "`` At this point he 's not motivated to accept any of the offers that are out there , `` Nero said .", "`` We 've decided we will be very patient .", "We wo n't be rushing into something that is not quite acceptable .", "Jose Hernandez has worked a long , long time to be where he is , and we 'd like him to be treated appropriately .", "We 're going to continue to wait . ``", "BASEBALL ."], "summary": ["New York Mets pursue third baseman Jose Hernandez , along with three other teams , but he says he will wait for offer that is for more than one year ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [19], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453177", "text": ["There is a tradition among inmates serving long stretches in the nation 's houses of correction .", "The new year is rung in with a little Dick Clark and a little jailhouse juice .", "The homebrew is lovingly known as hooch in Sing Sing and called pruno in San Quentin , but the process by which it is made is the same .", "It is a fortified wine concocted from a hodgepodge of ingredients including raisins , prunes -LRB- as in pruno -RRB- , milk or anything containing sugar that can be purloined from the mess hall and fermented into alcohol .", "But the New Year 's tradition was broken this evening at the California State Prison Los Angeles County located high in the Mojave Desert about a 90-minute drive from Los Angeles .", "The warden decided two months ago that fresh fruit should be banned from all lunch boxes that are delivered daily to the cells of its 4,000 inmates .", "Without fruit , the thinking goes , there can be no wine .", "It is the first prison in the California state prison to ban fruit from the cellblocks .", "`` A good deal of the violence that goes on in these walls is alcohol related , '' said Lt . Ron Nipper , a spokesman for the prison .", "`` So this is law enforcement 101 .", "Cut your hair , behave yourself , keep your cell clean and no pruno . ``", "Prison officials acknowledge that it is difficult to curtail pruno production entirely .", "Sugar and water are all that is needed .", "Sugar is broken down into ethyl alcohol in the presence of yeast , which floats about naturally in the air .", "`` We do the best we can , '' Lieutenant Nipper said .", "`` But you ca n't trust these guys .", "Inmates working in the kitchen hide loose yeast in their shoes .", "Everything has a price in here . ``", "Humane and law-abiding citizens need not worry about an outbreak of scurvy among the incarcerated in Los Angeles County .", "State guidelines require that prisoners receive 15 servings of fresh fruit each week .", "Prisoners receive their fruit allotment at breakfast and dinner , which are served in the mess hall .", "Box lunch is served in the cellblocks .", "`` There is pruno in every prison , '' admits Margot Bach , a spokeswoman for the California Department of Correction .", "`` We see an upswing around the holidays like Christmas and New Year 's .", "Inmates are human beings after all .", "They want to ring in the new year like everybody else .", "It 's a pretty busy day for us . ``", "Indeed .", "This morning , a half-dozen correction officers swept through the beds of Cell Block A , ostensibly in search of pruno .", "Though the blend is sealed in plastic bags , it is so rancid it can be detected with a simple sniff of the nostrils .", "`` It 's a never ending battle of contraband , `` said Sgt . J . Ortiz .", "It is estimated by prison officials that more than two million cocktails are confiscated each year in California 's 33 maximum security penal facilities , which house 160,000 people .", "According to correction officers , amateur alcohol is more prevalent in California prisons than any other form of contraband .", "Possession of alcohol is considered a misdemeanor behind bars , while possession of hard substances such as methamphetamines , opiates and marijuana are felonies .", "This is a deterrent to the man with two strikes , who if caught with a marijuana cigarette , could find himself serving a life term .", "Amenities that have been banned in California prisons over the past decade include weights , indoor smoking , conjugal visits for those serving life sentences and now pruno .", "Keep this up , inmates say , and people will stop wanting to come .", "`` Everybody wants to celebrate the New Year , '' said Paul Magnen , a soft-spoken and heavily tattooed man currently serving 50 years to life for the possession of narcotics , his third strike .", "His previous two felonies , he said , were in connection with an armed robbery committed in 1980 .", "`` God knows I could use a drink , '' he said glumly as he sat at a card table in Cell Block A .", "`` I did what I did , but it does n't justify 50 years .", "There 's not much to celebrate in here really .", "One day is just like the next .", "Nothing changes inside .", "Except the day they take me out in a box . ``", "The most famous recipe for jailhouse pruno comes from Jarvis Masters , a death row inmate at San Quentin who won a PEN award for his 1992 poem `` Recipe for Pruno . ''", "Take orange peels , fruit cocktail and water and heat it for 15 minutes in your sink with hot water .", "Keep mixture warm with towels for fermentation .", "Leave hidden and undisturbed for two days .", "Add sugar cubes and six teaspoons of ketchup .", "Heat for 30 minutes .", "Wrap and leave undisturbed for three more days .", "Reheat daily for 15 minutes for three more days .", "Skim and serve .", "The poem ends , `` May God have mercy on your soul . '' ."], "summary": ["Inmates in prisons across country continue their efforts to make jailhouse alcoholic brew .", "Homebrew is lovingly known as hooch in Sing Sing and called pruno in San Quentin , but process by which it is made is same : it is fortified wine concocted from hodgepodge of ingredients , anything containing sugar that can be purloined from mess hall and fermented into alcohol .", "Correction officers say amateur alcohol is more prevalent in California prisons than any other form of contraband .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 2, 32], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1453178", "text": ["OUT of bed , you bourgeois slugs , for it 's New Year 's Day , and the Poetry Project 's Marathon Reading at St . Mark 's Church begins just about the time you are planning a late lunch .", "Certainly you remember it , from the days when you hung out in the East Village and did not own a suit .", "A fine counterculture event -LRB- oh , sorry , in those days , that would have been your culture -RRB- , featuring , over the years , poets and performers like Allen Ginsberg , Patti Smith , Gregory Corso , William S . Burroughs , John Cage and Lou Reed .", "In the 1970 's , the reading began at 7 at night and ran until 3 or 4 in the morning .", "Today , while artists like Ms. Smith , Eric Bogosian , Philip Glass and Taylor Meade are scheduled to perform , the reading is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. and run till around midnight .", "A bow to our more somber mood , says Ed Friedman , the artistic director of the Poetry Project and himself a poet .", "Mr. Friedman , it does not seem irrelevant to note , is 52 .", "And he has gone gray .", "`` Everyone is working , '' he sighs .", "`` And for a lot of people that are maybe over 35 -- well , put it this way : Getting people to come out and read at 3 a.m. is n't what it once was . ``", "Can you be saying , Mr. Friedman , that Bohemia is n't what it used to be .", "`` It 's harder , `` he says .", "`` It 's harder than it used to be in the 1970 's .", "Poets could pretty much support themselves with a part-time job .", "And there was a lot more time to write .", "Poets and pretty much everybody have to work much harder now , to assume the work of people who are fired .", "It used to be you had time at your desk that you were n't doing anything , you could write a poem , call a friend , use the copy machine . ``", "A nurturing spot for creative types , St . Mark 's Church , and if you doubt it , try to find a quiet spot to interview Mr. Friedman .", "The sanctuary of the church has an exhibit of ceramic face masks , about to come down , and if you ask that the installation be delayed for 10 minutes while a photographer shoots , the ceramics artist , feeling particularly disenfranchised , sulks .", "`` Yeah , I 'm just the artist , `` he says .", "Discussion on the second-floor balcony is accompanied by the sounds of a piano tuner , and the ringing of the church bells , a few feet away .", "It is a credit to Mr. Friedman , an easygoing , amusing man , that in this environment he can discuss Art .", "Particularly as his poems are not the `` How do I love thee '' sort .", "They are free form , often written as text , and may include references to the process of writing , so that if the poet coughs , the poem includes the words , `` big cough , '' or `` My throat is dry and full of mucus . ''", "BLONGGGG ! -LRB- Short pause . -RRB-", "BLONGGGG , BLONGGGG , BLONGGGG ! -LRB- That was a reference to the piano tuner , concentrating on the lower end of the keyboard .", "He certainly is dedicated .", "Does n't he ever go to the bathroom .", "Moreover , if those bells peal one more time the reporter will leap over the balcony . -RRB-", "`` I am isolated bourgeoisie / who would gladly write for the masses / if only I knew them as friends and co-workers , '' Mr. Friedman begins one poem .", "`` We 'd talk about families and then make plans / to renovate the world that 's crushed us for generations . ``", "A bit of poetic license there , perhaps , for the world , as Mr. Friedman tells it , did not , in the early days , crush him .", "He grew up in Los Angeles , his father a doctor , his mother a bacteriologist turned sculptor .", "There was a year and a half of pre-med at the University of California at San Diego , before graduating with a degree in poetry and literature .", "His parents were not enchanted with his decision to be a poet , but it was the 60 's , Mr. Friedman says with a laugh , when there existed this strange idea that you could be what you wanted .", "He came to New York in the fall of 1971 and was involved in poetry readings at St . Mark 's Church , at 131 East 10th Street , by January 1972 .", "Now he earns $ 40,000 a year at the Poetry Project .", "He is married to a painter who works in textile design , he has a 3-year-old son .", "Things have not always been good .", "More from his autobiographical poem , `` Isolated Bourgeoisie '' : `` The day is cold .", "The sky is blue and cloud-strewn , / my wife is recovering from alcoholism , and / we 're going to Washington to protest even one more / cent being allocated for stupid B-1 bombers instead of schools . / Would you like to come .", "I know there 's room on the / yellow bus we 're borrowing from the / neighborhood vehicle cooperative . ``", "BLONGGG ! -LRB- The piano tuner . -RRB-", "CLANG , CLANG , CLANG ! -LRB- The reverberating church bells .", "Ears hurt .", "Must get out .", "How to ask the rude question .", "-RRB- MR . FRIEDMAN , your nine volumes of poetry have been published in the smallest of the small press .", "It would appear that you are not so successful .", "`` Look at Allen Ginsberg , '' Mr. Friedman says .", "`` Who published him .", "City Lights , who did Gregory Corso , Lawrence Ferlinghetti .", "It has n't been the major houses or major university press that has spawned influential work over the last hundred years . ``", "But there was a point when Ginsberg was published by larger houses .", "`` In the last 20 years of his life , '' Mr. Friedman says .", "If that 's correct , should n't Mr. Friedman , by this time in his life , be getting published in the larger houses now , too .", "`` Gee , I hope so , '' Mr. Friedman says .", "Then grins .", "-LRB- Nice guy .", "Sweet . -RRB-", "PUBLIC LIVES ."], "summary": ["Public Lives profile of Ed Friedman , poet and artistic director of Poetry Project , which conducts annual marathon poetry reading on New Year 's Day at St Mark 's Church in East Village .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453179", "text": ["As pinup calendars go , it has many of the standard features : models in black leather perched on beefy motorcycles .", "But the men and women on display here are n't exactly firefighters , or the Girls of `` Baywatch , '' or any other known species of cheesecake or beefcake .", "They 're librarians .", "With eyeglasses here , gray hairs there , and in several portraits , a purple tote bag full of books tucked into a corner .", "The 2003 calendar , titled `` Easy Readers @ Your Library , '' introduces the Librarians of Ocean County , who came up with the idea as an eye-grabbing way to help raise the library 's $ 1.6 million share of a $ 12.9 million expansion of the library system 's main building here .", "For $ 10 -LRB- $ 15 with shipping and handling -RRB- , readers -- and nonreaders , for that matter -- can enjoy 12 months of their favorite local information specialists .", "But there was another motive behind the move .", "`` We wanted to show people we 've changed , `` said Nancy Dowd , the head of public relations for the library system , who snapped the photos with her Olympus C-3000 , a digital camera .", "`` People 's ideas of librarians is conservative , and this just blew it out of the water . ``", "Or as Miranda Sulikowski , 34 , who is Miss November , put it : `` Anyone who sees it , they 're going to say , ` wait a minute , they 're not old fuddy-duds . '", "We 're on top of things . ``", "On top of a red Harley-Davidson XL 1200 , in a black leather bustier , is the county 's library director , Elaine McConnell -LRB- Miss December -RRB- , who normally prefers Talbots ' fashions and turtlenecks .", "Miss May is Heather Andolsen , a senior librarian , who sports a choker collar and tattoo .", "Fourteen women and two men grace the pages -- some doubling up in the pictures -- and are often outfitted in do-rags , tassled gloves and sunglasses .", "Reaction has been overwhelming .", "`` Let us change the librarians ' image ! `` said a fax from one reference librarian in Elgin , Ill . , who heard about the calendar via a television broadcast .", "He wanted three signed calendars .", "Requests have come from as far away as Australia .", "On the other hand , Ms. McConnell said , a patron vexed by other recent changes was not amused .", "`` We knew your taste was in question when the coffee cart opened '' in what had been a books-only realm , he wrote in an anonymous e-mail message , `` and this confirmed it . ''", "The idea for the calendar arose when the library tried to promote a raffle for a Harley motorcycle during the fall .", "Various workers from the county 's 20 branches posed in promotional posters .", "Later , the library director and Ms. Dowd got the idea to turn the posters into a calendar .", "A thousand copies have been printed so far , and Ms. McConnell estimates about $ 3,000 worth have been sold .", "There has not been much discussion of a possible 2004 Librarians of Ocean County calendar , but Ms. Sulikowski offered this possibility : `` Hard hats , tool belts and shorts . ''", "Another librarian chimed in : `` I 'll do shorts .", "That might get more sales . ``", "Or as Becky Schoonmaker , who appears on the March page , put it , referring to her plans to wear skimpy cutoffs , `` Daisy Dukes , woo hoo ! '' ."], "summary": ["Librarians in Ocean County , NJ , pose for calendar to dispel myths about their profession 's conservatism and to help raise money to expand library .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453180", "text": ["Two counties in the Hudson Valley will begin enforcing new smoking restrictions in restaurants and workplaces on Wednesday .", "The smoking bans enacted by Dutchess and Orange Counties are not as strict as the ones recently approved by New York City and Nassau County on Long Island , but they are causing a local furor all the same .", "The new smoking law in New York City is to go into effect March 30 , and Nassau 's is to start March 1 .", "Groups representing restaurants and bars in Orange and Dutchess Counties have already filed federal lawsuits against their Legislatures .", "The suit filed by the Dutchess / Putnam County Restaurant and Tavern Association on Monday seeks to have the new law overturned and declared unconstitutional .", "`` It is overly vague and overly broad , '' said the lawyer representing the group , Kevin T . Mulhearn .", "`` Its enforcement applications do n't make sense . ``", "The president of the association , Michael J . Leonard , who owns a restaurant in Wappingers Falls in Dutchess County , said he installed an exhaust system two years ago in his bar area , which is separate from the restaurant .", "Under the new county law , smoking will be prohibited throughout his establishment , Greenbaum & Gilhooley 's .", "`` It will be devastating to my business and to my smoking customers , '' he said .", "`` It 's totally unjust . ``", "The Dutchess law bans smoking in restaurants , both their bar areas and dining rooms , as well as in bingo halls , bowling alleys and work places .", "Bars or taverns that make 60 percent or more of their gross income from selling alcohol are exempt .", "Mr. Mulhearn said the 60 percent threshold would be difficult to pin down , noting that the amount of gross income from alcohol sales fluctuated from week to week and season to season .", "The bill was the third anti-smoking proposal considered by the Dutchess County Legislature in the last few years , and squeaked by with a vote of 18 to 17 .", "The county executive , William Steinhaus , publicly criticized the bill but did not sign or veto it , and allowed the bill to become law .", "Bradford H . Kendall , chairman of the Dutchess County Legislature , said that lawmakers had `` acted within the bounds of good reason '' and that the county was likely to be judicious in enforcing the law at first , while businesses are deciding whether it applies to them .", "In Orange County , the smoking restrictions allow smoking in the bar areas of restaurants if the bars have ventilation systems , but it outlaws smoking sections in restaurant dining rooms .", "Until now , diners could smoke in designated areas if four feet of space or a six-foot partition separated smoking and nonsmoking sections .", "The restrictions that take effect on New Year 's Day are in a sense warmups for the bans planned for New York City and Nassau .", "The law Mayor Michael R . Bloomberg signed on Monday bans smoking in almost all bars and restaurants .", "A 1995 city law had forbidden smoking in all restaurants with more than 35 seats , but it exempted stand-alone bars and the bar areas of restaurants .", "The new law allows only a few exceptions : cigar bars , bars with no employees except the owners , nonprofit clubs with no employees , and some bars with enclosed smoking rooms .", "Nassau 's ban covers all bars , restaurants , bowling alleys and bingo halls .", "The only exceptions will be for businesses that derive 90 percent of their revenue from tobacco sales and for workplaces in private homes .", "Westchester and Suffolk Counties are considering their own bans ."], "summary": ["Smoking bans in restaurants and workplaces go into effect in Dutchess and Orange Counties , NY .", "Although not as strict as New York City 's ban , they are causing local furor .", "Groups representing restaurants and bars have filed federal suits to have laws overturned ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453181", "text": ["Clonaid , the company that says it has produced the first human clone , previously made astonishing claims that were not substantiated .", "And the journalist whom Clonaid has appointed to authenticate its latest claim was once an intermediary between a couple who wanted cloning services and a scientist who wanted to provide them , the scientist says .", "Clonaid was founded in 1997 by the leader of a religious sect that believes space travelers populated earth through cloning and that humanity 's mission is to clone .", "When he formed the company , the leader , who calls himself Ra\u00ebl , had an express purpose in mind , Clonaid 's vice president , Thomas Kaenzig , said in an interview this week .", "`` It was a project to create controversy , '' Mr. Kaenzig said .", "`` That was his mission , to wake people up . ''", "Though the company advertised a cloning service , it was hardly ready to provide it .", "For three years , Clonaid `` was just a post office box in the Bahamas , '' Mr. Kaenzig said .", "`` There was no research going on . ''", "But by the spring of 2001 , Clonaid 's research director , Dr. Brigitte Boisselier , who is a chemist , a Ra\u00eblian bishop and now the company 's chief executive , had begun telling of a secret Clonaid laboratory in the United States .", "`` She was very coy about it , '' said an official at the Food and Drug Administration , whose approval would have been required for any human-cloning work in the United States .", "`` She said , ' I have a lab , but I wo n't tell you where it is . '", "`` But the F.D.A. ' s office of criminal investigation soon found it , in a rented room at an abandoned high school in Nitro , W.Va.", "The environment there was hardly ideal for research , said the official , who would speak only on the condition of anonymity .", "Insects flew through the open windows , possibly from a nearby barn .", "`` There was no place where sterile conditions could be had , '' the official said , and the researcher there was a graduate student who seemed woefully unprepared .", "`` The lab notebooks were reviewed by our staff scientists , '' the F.D.A. official said .", "`` They were inadequate '' to document scientific research .", "The work under way was not even with human cells .", "The graduate student had obtained cow ovaries from a slaughterhouse and was trying to extract eggs from them .", "`` The notebooks had a sketchy page and a half : ' We went to the slaughterhouse and got some ovaries , ' '' the official reported .", "But the equipment in the lab was state of the art , the official said .", "It had been bought by a grieving father whose 10-month-old son had died of congenital heart disease and who wanted to clone him .", "The father , Mark Hunt , a lawyer and former West Virginia state legislator , had obtained the equipment from a fertility lab that was going out of business .", "Accounts of how much he paid vary , but Dr. Michael A . Guillen , the journalist appointed by Clonaid in the current case , said on an ABC News television program a year ago that Mr. Hunt had spent $ 200,000 .", "After its inspection of the Clonaid lab , the F.D.A. official said , the agency reached an agreement with Mr. Hunt that he would not proceed any further in trying to have his dead son cloned in this country without F.D.A. permission .", "Mr. Hunt , who did not return repeated telephone calls seeking comment , later sold the laboratory equipment in Nitro and shuttered the lab , the F.D.A. says .", "He also publicly broke off from the Ra\u00eblians , saying they were too avidly seeking publicity .", "The company then moved its operations out of the country , Mr. Kaenzig said .", "He added that the company had begun by learning to create cow embryo clones and that by the fall of 2001 , it had created its first cloned human embryo .", "Many learned of Mr. Hunt and his travails from Dr. Guillen , whose doctorate , from Cornell , is in theoretical physics , mathematics and astronomy .", "On Sept . 7 , 2001 , when he was a science editor for ABC News , Dr. Guillen interviewed Mr. Hunt and his wife , Tracy , on `` 20/20 Downtown '' and showed a video of their baby , Andrew , who had died in 1999 .", "Dr. Guillen did not describe the lab 's inadequacies on that program , but he did say that Dr. Boisselier was being investigated for fraud and reported that she had moved her cloning efforts out of the country .", "-LRB- Citing confidentiality concerns , federal law enforcement authorities would not confirm or deny anything Dr. Guillen said about the investigation . -RRB-", "Only seven months earlier , Dr. Guillen had reported that Clonaid was on the brink of success .", "`` I met with Dr. Boisselier , who is the scientific director , and she told me that in two weeks they 're expecting to conceive the first human clone , implant it in a surrogate mother and hoping for a pregnancy in March , `` he reported on '' 20/20 `` on Feb . 16 , 2001 .", "`` Ready or not , the technology is on its way . ''", "Soon another scientist who was interested in cloning met the Hunts .", "In an interview yesterday , that scientist , Dr. Panos Zavos , founder and director of the Andrology Institute of America , in Lexington , Ky . , said Dr. Guillen had told him that he could send the Hunts to talk to him , but that in return Dr. Guillen wanted exclusive rights to their story .", "Dr. Zavos , who says his work on human cloning is taking place outside the country , ended up seeing the Hunts , but Dr. Guillen was unable to negotiate an exclusive agreement with him because he had already made an agreement with a documentary filmmaker , Peter Williams .", "Dr. Guillen did not return repeated calls yesterday to his office and to his agent 's office .", "Dr. Zavos said he had not cloned yet and had not taken any money from Mr. Hunt .", "He said he wanted to get the technique to work first with cells taken from living people before trying it with stored frozen cells from the dead .", "`` If this technology develops in the best scenario possible , '' Dr. Zavos said , `` if we take fresh tissue and it works , then it is something we can make available to him . ''", "--- --- --- --- --- --- -- Court Petition Seeks a Guardian By The New York Times FORT LAUDERDALE , Fla . , Dec . 31 -- A Florida lawyer asked a court here today to appoint a legal guardian for the baby girl whom Clonaid claims to have produced .", "The petitioner , Bernard F . Siegel , who practices in Coral Gables , has served on the board of a children 's rights organization .", "But he said he was acting solely as a private citizen , asserting that if the baby exists , she is being exploited by Clonaid and may have birth defects ."], "summary": ["Clonaid , company that says it has produced first human clone , previously made astonishing claims that were not substantiated .", "Dr Michael A Guillen , journalist whom Clonaid has appointed to authenticate its latest claim , was once an intermediary between couple who wanted cloning services and scientist who wanted to provide them .", "Clonaid was founded in 1997 by leader of religious sect that believes that space travelers populated earth through cloning and that humanity 's mission is to clone ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 1, 0], "tag": ["Health", "U.S."]} +{"id": "1453182", "text": ["A host of new state laws take effect today , but New Yorkers may not notice many of them until income tax time in 2004 .", "That is because many are tax cuts and credits , from a decrease in the so-called marriage penalty to an increase in the percentage of college expenses that can be deducted .", "And under one of the highest-profile measures passed in Albany last year , starting today almost all health insurers in the state will be required to cover prescription contraceptives , osteoporosis screening and , beginning at age 40 , mammograms .", "City dwellers , on the other hand , have a little time to prepare for their most hotly debated new law , a sweeping ban on indoor smoking .", "Patrons will not actually have to stop puffing away in nearly all bars and clubs until the end of March , for example , although a provision that requires employers to change their written smoking policies in time to comply with the new regulations has already gone into effect .", "One city law that takes effect today amends the national electrical code that the city adopted in 2001 to conform to the city 's specific needs .", "But there are several other laws enacted in 2002 that will go into effect at various times over the next two months or so .", "One , known as the living-wage law , requires that certain health - and day-care workers employed by companies with city contracts must receive at least $ 8.10 an hour with health coverage , or $ 9.60 an hour without coverage .", "Another , the so-called predatory lending law , will bar the city from doing business with companies that issue loans to buyers who can not afford the terms or that buy such loans on the resale market .", "Under another new law , people applying for a permit for a rifle or shotgun will be barred from obtaining one if they have been convicted of domestic violence , of assault within the last 10 years , or of any three misdemeanors .", "People with certain outstanding orders of protection will also be barred .", "Another measure forbids emergency shelters for victims of domestic violence to turn people away solely because they lack official documentation like a police report or an order of protection .", "It also expands the definition of domestic violence victims to potentially include not just married people but also common-law and dating couples with access to each other 's residence .", "Sidewalk newspaper dispensers will be subject to a host of new specifications , including size , appearance and placement .", "A new law will expand the Veterans ' Advisory Board , which makes recommendations to the director of the Office of Veterans ' Affairs , to nine members from five , with five to be appointed by the mayor and four by the City Council speaker .", "It also requires that they be veterans and that there be at least one representative from each borough .", "Starting this year , the city will be required to use gender-neutral language in its documents .", "Other new state laws include an increase in the standard deduction for married couples to $ 14,600 from $ 14,200 .", "That brings spouses closer to the $ 15,000 deduction -LRB- $ 7,500 each -RRB- for unmarried couples .", "The state 's Earned Income Tax Credit will rise to 30 percent from 27.5 percent of a filer 's federal allowance , and the college tuition tax deduction will be increased to a maximum of $ 7,500 .", "Another measure cuts the gross receipts tax on natural gas and electricity , which will mean savings for industrial and residential users .", "By July 1 , cigarettes sold in New York must meet new fire safety standards .", "Other statewide measures will tighten security on debit card transactions , decrease to 7 from 10 acres the size of farmland parcels eligible for real property tax assessment and authorize some counties to give property tax breaks to volunteer firefighters and ambulance drivers ."], "summary": ["Roundup of new laws in New York State that will take effect on Jan 1 .", "Many will probably not be noticed until income tax time in 2004 because they are tax cuts and credits ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453185", "text": ["President Bush said today that he had directed the F.B.I. to issue the appeal for the public 's help in tracking down five men who the authorities believe may have illegally slipped into the United States last week .", "Mr. Bush , speaking to reporters near his ranch in Crawford , Tex . , said that the electronic communication issued by the F.B.I. on Sunday to thousands of local police agencies was an effort to investigate aggressively any potential threat of a terrorist attack .", "`` I have authorized the Federal Bureau of Investigation , the F.B.I. , to issue an all-points bulletin for five individuals who we believe have been smuggled into the country , '' Mr. Bush said .", "`` We need to know why they have been smuggled into the country , what they 're doing in the country . ``", "Later tonight , government officials said that the bureau was expanding its search .", "The officials told The Associated Press that the government had identified several more men it feared might have used fake passports to get into the country around Christmas Eve .", "The F.B.I. and Homeland Security officials were considering making the names and photos of about a half dozen more men public as early as Wednesday , the officials said .", "The search for the men , based on vague information about their possible connection to terrorism , reflected the heightened level of concern about a New Year 's terrorist attack even as the authorities acknowledged that they had received no credible threats in recent days .", "As a result , the officials said they had not elevated the threat alert level from its current Code Yellow status , which warns of an increased possibility of attack in the United States without any specific threat .", "Mr. Bush 's comments demonstrated the precautionary nature of the all-points bulletin .", "`` We do n't have any idea of what their intentions may be , but we are mindful that there are still some out there who would try to harm America and harm Americans , `` he said .", "Concern about terrorism related to the New Year 's holiday has grown since the millennium celebrations in 2000 .", "Security officials have planned measures to deter terrorism , but so far no specific threats related to any of the events have been received , officials said .", "The F.B.I. has identified the original five men , cautioning that their names and ages might be false , as Abid Noraiz Ali , 25 .", "Iftikhar Khozmai Ali , 21 .", "Mustafa Khan Owasi , 33 .", "Adil Pervez , 19 .", "And Akbar Jamal , 28 .", "Their nationalities are unknown .", "THREATS AND RESPONSES : THE INVESTIGATION ."], "summary": ["Pres Bush directs FBI to issue appeal for public 's help in tracking down five men who authorities believe may have illegally slipped into United States ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1453188", "text": ["When Tao Wucheng , a delegate to the national Legislature this year , was asked to investigate allegations of fraud and corruption at a private clinic in this provincial capital , he viewed it mostly as a headache .", "A much praised Communist Party official , he was living in a distant corner of the province , doing work on poverty relief .", "Instead , the task proved life threatening .", "On Sept . 29 , he staggered out of the Wuhan Medical Center of Tonji Hospital -- his face swollen and his bowels oozing blood from beatings that he says were ordered by the clinic 's owner and carried out by its security staff .", "He spent the next month in a hospital .", "When he contacted the local police to inquire about the assault that almost cost him his life , he learned that the investigation had been closed .", "He is now suing the police to take action .", "The entrepreneur who runs the clinic , Hang Yongming , did not answer repeated calls or questions faxed to him about the case .", "While it is extraordinary that an official with national status could be treated this way -- Mr. Tao believes he is the first -- tales of businessmen and journalists being beaten have become routine fodder for the Chinese press .", "Indeed , vigilante justice has become a serious problem for China 's leaders .", "As China 's central government pledges to quell corruption and build the rule of law , those efforts are commonly stymied by a lack of cooperation at the local level .", "Local law enforcement officials often have more loyalty to local interests than to professionalism or national authorities .", "The police , prosecutors and judges all serve at the pleasure of local officials , who are often friends , and there is little possibility of disciplining them from above .", "Likewise , central authorities -- even those from the National People 's Congress -- have little leverage to enforce the decisions they make .", "Only if top leaders mandate action , as they did in the crackdown on the banned spiritual movement called Falun Gong , can they be assured of cooperation .", "`` People have this image of the Chinese government and the Communist Party as a monolith and very powerful , '' said Kenneth Lieberthal , a political scientist at the University of Michigan .", "`` But what power do bodies like the National People 's Congress really have down the hierarchy .", "`` The answer is zilch .", "They can carry out investigations , but they ca n't compel people to act . ``", "In Mr. Tao 's case , demands from both national and provincial officials for a thorough investigation elicited only cursory responses in Wuhan .", "Mr. Tao 's beating has so far gone unreported in the state press , even though it happened in a major city of five million people and to a man with national stature .", "Mr. Tao , a former police officer who later became a businessman , gave up a comfortable life in Beijing and moved to his hometown in rural Hubei province in 1999 to work helping the poor .", "News articles praising his spirit of sacrifice have been featured in official media from The People 's Daily to China Central Television .", "Several years back , his record of good work got him appointed to China 's Legislature , the National People 's Congress .", "With a reputation for fairness and honesty , political leaders in Beijing saw him as ideal to investigate the fraud allegations that pitted the Tonji Hospital against Mr. Hang , a local businessman with good political ties who opened the plush private clinic on the hospital grounds .", "Mr. Tao , who also works as a part-time reporter for a government magazine , made an appointment to see Mr. Hang on Sept . 28 , identifying himself both as a People 's Congress delegate and a writer .", "He interviewed both sides scrupulously , he recalled in an interview in December after he ended his hospital stay .", "His investigation disclosed that the two sides signed a contract in 1995 and built a luxurious clinic , with a marble lobby , dotted by huge porcelain vases and potted palms .", "But the relationship quickly turned sour .", "The hospital said Mr. Hang failed to provide outside funds as he was legally obliged to do , and instead used the hospital 's own land as collateral for loans .", "It said Mr. Hang exaggerated the amount of land the hospital owned in order to borrow more .", "Once the hospital was opened , there were many complaints of accounting problems and suspect business practices , Mr. Tao learned .", "Mr. Hang and his associates took costly trips that were charged to the hospital , the investigation found .", "The price of new equipment was grossly exaggerated , as was the cost of medical tests .", "No one could explain where the extra money went .", "Doctors complained that they were forced to recruit patients who did not need treatment , under threat of having their salary docked .", "`` The scheme was like a shell game , '' Mr. Tao concluded after interviewing all parties .", "`` By the end of the first four-hour interview I knew enough to know he was a swindler , '' said Mr. Tao of Mr. Hang , who he said saw him to the door and offered him a payoff and a meal .", "He refused .", "When Mr. Hang offered to provide him with more materials the following day , however , Mr. Tao said he readily agreed , trying to be fair .", "That next day , as he waited to be received , seven or eight men burst into the room and beat him , he said .", "`` You 're up to no good -- Do you know where you are .", "`` he recalled Mr. Hang saying as he looked on .", "For eight hours Mr. Tao was a captive , kicked and hit , subjected to torture , denied food and drink or access to a phone .", "He said most of his assailants appeared to be civilians but at least one had a police pass and a police uniform .", "`` I was scared because they looked like members of a crime gang , '' said Mr. Tao .", "At one point , when he was given permission to use the bathroom , Mr. Tao tried to escape through a ground floor window -- only to be caught and beaten some more .", "By the time he was released , he said , `` my whole body was in pain . ''", "His hand was so badly crushed that he still can not straighten one finger .", "The head punches left him partly deaf for a time .", "His intestines were bruised and he defecated blood .", "The emotional trauma lingers on .", "From his hospital bed , Mr. Tao reported his beating to National People 's Congress officials , as well as to the local police , and both initiated inquiries .", "Mr. Hang told local investigators that Mr. Tao had sustained his injuries by jumping through a window , which was on the ground floor .", "The inquiries were mysteriously dropped .", "Although two security guards were detained , no further action was taken .", "`` Hang thought he could use money to maintain his connections and ignore the law , '' said Mr. Tao .", "`` And it worked . ''", "A woman who answered the phone in Mr. Hang 's office and identified herself only as Ms. Xian said that he was not in Wuhan and that she had not been able to contact him .", "In October , an police official from Wuhan called Mr. Tao by telephone to apologize but refused to identify himself , noting that one policeman had been detained for 10 days and another had been relieved of his duties .", "`` This is a serious crime and they were treating it as if it 's an administrative misdemeanor , `` said Mr. Tao .", "He has lodged a suit against the Wuhan police for `` administrative inaction , '' charging that they were negligent .", "He is also preparing a $ 100,000 civil suit against Mr. Hang to cover his medical bill and mental suffering .", "The party secretary of Hubei Province and other high officials `` have taken the case very seriously , but the officials below have deceived them , '' Mr. Tao said .", "`` But I 'm confident the law will bring about justice . `` ."], "summary": ["Vigilante justice has become serious problem for China 's leaders .", "As China 's central government pledges to quell corruption and build rule of law , those efforts are commonly stymied by lack of cooperation at local level .", "Local law enforcement officials often have more loyalty to local interests than to professionalism or national authorities .", "Police , prosecutors and judges all serve at pleasure of local officials , who are often friends , and there is little possibility of disciplining them from above .", "Tao Wucheng , delegate to national Legislature , was beaten by thugs when trying to investigate allegations of fraud and corruption at private clinic .", "When he contacted local police to inquire about assault , he learned that investigation had been closed .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 12, 11, 5, 9, 0], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1453197", "text": ["President Bush drew a sharp distinction today between the nuclear standoff with North Korea and his confrontation with Iraq , saying he was certain that weapons projects in North Korea could be stopped `` peacefully , through diplomacy . ''", "He said that Saddam Hussein , on the other hand , `` has n't heard the message `` that he must disarm , or face military action .", "Answering questions on his way into the only coffee shop in this one-stoplight town near his ranch , Mr. Bush issued no demands that North Korea halt the nuclear programs it has threatened to restart , and he did not mentioned the ouster today of the international inspectors who have monitored activity at the country 's primary nuclear site .", "`` I believe this is not a military showdown , this is a diplomatic showdown , '' the president said , on his way to get a cheeseburger and to chat with his neighbors here .", "But the president 's tone and his warnings changed noticeably when he turned to Iraq .", "He cited Mr. Hussein 's effort to build a nuclear weapon in the early 1990 's and said that as of now `` we do n't know whether or not he has a nuclear weapon . ``", "Assessing the nuclear capability of both North Korea and Iraq has been among the most difficult tasks facing Western intelligence agencies .", "The Central Intelligence Agency and Britain 's intelligence service have publicly estimated it would take Iraq five years to develop such a weapon -- or a single year if Mr. Hussein was provided with fissile material .", "North Korea already has two weapons , according to C.I.A. estimates , and could build five or six more in the next six months if it reprocessed its large stockpile of spent nuclear fuel into weapons-grade plutonium .", "Adding to the pressure , North Korea took another step today toward removing its nuclear program from international controls by strongly suggesting it would withdraw from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty .", "-LSB- Page A9 . -RSB-", "The signals Mr. Bush sent with his comments were particularly significant because the administration has come under increasing criticism , from Democrats and some Republicans , for playing down the significance of North Korea 's actions while plowing forward in the confrontation with Iraq .", "In The New York Times today , former Secretary of State Warren Christopher wrote that unless Mr. Bush had classified evidence of greater Iraqi military capability than was known to the public , `` the threats from North Korea and from international terrorism are more imminent than those posed by Iraq . ''", "Mr. Bush took issue with that view today .", "Asked whether the United States could afford the $ 50 billion to $ 60 billion it would cost to wage war with Iraq , an estimate his budget director offered on Monday , he said , `` an attack from Saddam Hussein or a surrogate of Saddam Hussein would cripple our economy . ''", "He added , `` A Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is a threat to the security of the American people . ''", "In contrast , he said nothing about his view of the threat posed by Kim Jong Il , the North Korean leader .", "During his presidential campaign , Mr. Bush often cited the possibility of an attack by North Korea as a reason that the United States needed a missile defense system .", "North Korea already has a significant arsenal of missiles that could reach South Korea , Japan and 100,000 American troops stationed in Asia .", "Mr. Hussein is believed to possess only Scud missiles with far more limited range .", "Nevertheless , Mr. Bush talked at some length today about his worry that Iraq could find a way to attack the United States , either directly or indirectly .", "As he spoke , a crowd of Crawford residents and curious tourists gathered around the entrance of the coffee shop .", "In his comments , Mr. Bush also addressed for the first time the F.B.I. alert issued two days ago , asking Americans to keep a lookout for five people , all of Arab descent , it is searching for in the United States .", "Mr. Bush said he had authorized the F.B.I. to put out an all-points bulletin .", "He did not refer to the men as terrorism suspects , but said , `` We need to know why they have been smuggled into the country . ''", "Mr. Bush 's comments today about North Korea and Iraq seemed to suggest that he has concluded that Mr. Kim can be persuaded to reverse course under threat of economic pressure , a method that Mr. Bush says has failed with Iraq .", "He twice noted that in a meeting at his ranch this fall with President Jiang Zemin of China , the two leaders promised to work in concert to deal with the North Korean government .", "`` Right here in Crawford , we had a dialogue where we both committed ourselves to working in a way to convince Kim Jong Il that it 's not in his country 's interests to arm up with nuclear weapons , `` Mr. Bush said , standing in front of the coffee shop in a light windbreaker , after a morning of working around his ranch .", "`` And I believe that can be resolved peacefully . ''", "China has denounced North Korea 's actions , but it has stopped short of saying it will join in any economic sanctions against the country -- a critical omission , because China is one of the North 's most important trading partners .", "In discussing Iraq , the president told reporters , `` I hope we 're not headed to war . ``", "But he quickly added : `` We 've got a military presence there to remind Saddam Hussein , however , that when I say we will lead a coalition of the willing to disarm him if he chooses not to disarm , I mean it .", "And we will continue to work to resolve the situation on the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful way . ``", "In private , some of Mr. Bush 's aides offer a more explicit explanation of the difference in the administration 's approach to the two countries .", "They argue that the North 's existing nuclear capability , and its ability to wreak enormous damage on Seoul with its conventional weapons , has led them to conclude that the United States has no viable military options , at least without risking the rekindling of the Korean War .", "Mr. Hussein , they contend , is the more dangerous of the two men , seeking regional domination rather than just survival .", "They say he must be confronted before he obtains the kinds of weapons of mass destruction that Mr. Kim already possesses .", "One of Mr. Bush 's senior national security officials argued over the weekend , however , that the United States was not putting North Korea on the back burner while it dealt with Iraq , and did not need to do so .", "`` We can handle both , '' the official said .", "Mr. Christopher 's article today suggested that no president , even in a White House as disciplined as this one , could manage that feat .", "`` Anyone who has worked at the highest levels of our government , '' he wrote , `` knows how difficult it is to engage the attention of the White House on anything other than the issue of the day . ''", "THREATS AND RESPONSES : NUCLEAR STANDOFF ."], "summary": ["Pres Bush makes sharp distinction between nuclear standoff with North Korea and his confrontation with Iraq , saying he is certain that weapons projects in North Korea can be stopped ` peacefully , through diplomacy , ' news conf , Crawford , Texas .", "Asserts that Saddam Hussein , on other hand , ` has n't heard the message ' that he must disarm , or face military action .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["World", "Front Page", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1453198", "text": ["Gov . James E . McGreevey 's chief counsel resigned today , the third member of his inner circle to leave in recent weeks as Mr. McGreevey seeks to revitalize his administration after a bumpy first year .", "The counsel , Paul Levinsohn , who had been criticized in the past month for representing a company that sought to put a billboard on state land in South Jersey , said the controversy had nothing to do with his decision to step down .", "But his departure is the latest sign that Mr. McGreevey is trying to retool an administration hampered by sagging polls numbers and embarrassing missteps .", "Since the governor took office last January , ending eight years of Republican rule in Trenton , he has had a measure of success , managing to close a $ 6 billion gap in the state 's $ 23.4 billion budget without increasing the sales or income tax .", "He assembled a plan to revamp the state 's troubled Department of Motor Vehicles , tightened environmental regulations and began to reorganize the state university system .", "But the budget crisis has given him little room to woo legislators by approving their spending projects , and Mr. McGreevey has suffered several self-inflicted wounds .", "His nominee to head the state 's Office of Homeland Security resigned after questions about his thin r\u00e9sum\u00e9 , and his State Police superintendent stepped down after being reprimanded twice by the state attorney general .", "Even Mr. McGreevey 's choice for state poet laureate , Amiri Baraka , caused a public relations disaster by writing a poem suggesting that Israel had advance knowledge of the attack on the World Trade Center .", "Mr. McGreevey was also criticized for using the state helicopter for personal business 14 times and spending more than $ 50,000 of the taxpayers ' money to entertain staff members and relatives on a trip to Ireland that was billed as a trade mission .", "Mr. McGreevey has apologized for the trips , and the state Democratic Party has reimbursed the state for the helicopter rides and the trip to Ireland , but with a recent poll showing Mr. McGreevey 's approval rating at 37 percent , many political analysts say a shake-up in his executive staff was inevitable .", "`` There 's a real disjuncture in Jim McGreevey 's performance , and I think the public senses that , `` said David Rebovich , a political science professor at Rider University in Lawrenceville , N.J.", "`` In all the polls , his personal likability is high .", "But he has n't been able to translate that into approval by the public because of all the mistakes and a failure in communicating to the press and the public .", "That 's why we 're seeing this shakedown , the recognition that he , McGreevey , had to show his stronger suit . ``", "With another budget crisis awaiting him in the new year , and legislative elections in November that could give control of the evenly divided State Senate to Republicans , Mr. McGreevey has sought to recast an administration dominated by aides who worked for his campaign or for his administration as mayor of Woodbridge .", "Mr. Levinsohn had worked on Mr. McGreevey 's campaign , and Gary Taffette , the governor 's chief of staff before he resigned last month , had worked for Mr. McGreevey in Woodbridge .", "The governor 's new chief of staff , James P . Fox , is a seasoned political tactician who served as an aide to former Gov . Jim Florio , and to Senators Frank R . Lautenberg and Robert G . Torricelli , before working as Mr. McGreevey 's commissioner of transportation .", "Mr. Fox said Mr. McGreevey was confident that his second year in office would be less tumultuous than his first .", "`` The governor walked into his job inheriting a deficit of $ 6 billion , an E-ZPass system that was a mess , debt and mismanagement .", "And he spent the first year cleaning up those problems , `` Mr. Fox said .", "`` In the upcoming year he 's looking forward to outlining his vision , including initiatives regarding education , controlling sprawl , the university system and a common-sense approach to government . ``", "Mr. McGreevey , who has been vacationing in Florida , issued a brief statement today saying he had regretfully accepted Mr. Levinsohn 's resignation , but did not comment further .", "Mentioned as a likely successor is Paul Josephson , the governor 's liaison to the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and other authorities .", "Mr. Levinsohn , 34 , said he was leaving the job to re-enter the private sector .", "Mr. Levinsohn and Mr. Taffett had been criticized for representing a company that was allowed to place a billboard in Washington Township without getting approval from a local zoning board .", "State and federal officials found no evidence of wrongdoing , but local officials complained about the arrangement , creating more embarrassing publicity for the administration .", "Administration officials insist that the contretemps played no role in either man 's departure .", "Another top McGreevey aide , Jo Astrid Glading , recently announced that she would leave as director of policy and communications to take a job in the attorney general 's office .", "The governor 's spokesman , Paul Aronsohn , also resigned , and today was his last day on the job .", "While some legislators are gleeful about the turbulence in the administration , even Republican strategists say Mr. McGreevey has the opportunity and the tools to reinvent his administration .", "New Jersey has the most powerful governor 's office in the nation .", "Democrats control the State Assembly and share control of the Senate .", "And Mr. McGreevey can refocus the agenda in mid-January , when he delivers the State of the State address .", "`` The administration has n't put its message out very well , but the State of the State lets him lay out his vision without any real rebuttal , `` said Carl Golden , who worked for two Republican governors , Christie Whitman and Thomas H . Kean .", "`` He can put the bad news of 2002 behind him . '' ."], "summary": ["Paul Levinsohn , New Jersey Gov James E McGreevey 's chief counsel , resigns .", "Is third member of McGreevey 's inner circle to quit in recent weeks .", "Resignation is seen as latest sign that McGreevey is trying to retool administration hampered by low poll numbers and embarrassing missteps ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1453199", "text": ["The State Department has accused two leading American aerospace companies of 123 violations of export laws in connection with the transfer of satellite and rocket data to China during the 1990 's .", "The Boeing Company and Hughes Electronics Corporation , a unit of General Motors , were notified of the accusations last week .", "The letter outlining the accusations was made public earlier this week by the Office of Defense Trade Controls , the State Department unit that regulates defense-related trade .", "The letter provides new details of how American companies competed for Chinese business by offering to transfer aerospace data in connection with launchings of their satellites .", "The information included responses to inquiries by the Chinese and others about failures of the rockets carrying those satellites .", "The United States stopped permitting the use of American satellites for Chinese aerospace ventures in 1999 .", "At the time , the Clinton administration had concerns over China 's aid to missile programs in North Korea and Pakistan .", "Since the technology used to launch missiles is similar to that used for civilian rockets and satellites , there are tight curbs on exports of aerospace and satellite equipment and services .", "The State Department alleges that the companies violated arms export laws and regulations when they failed to obtain State Department approval before transferring information to Chinese-related entities , some private and some governmental .", "It included data on rocket failures , guidance systems , telemetry and aerodynamics .", "The activities at issue relate to work by Hughes during the 1990 's .", "Boeing was cited because it acquired Hughes Space and Communications , a piece of Hughes , in 2000 .", "The companies have denied wrongdoing .", "Company spokesman were not available to comment yesterday .", "But the letter indicates that lawyers for the companies assert that the activities in question were lawful because the information that was transferred did not fit the definition of a licensable `` defense service '' or was constitutionally protected as `` speech . ''", "The companies face fines of up to $ 500,000 for each count -- over $ 60 million -- as well as losing the ability to obtain future approval for exports , a major part of their business .", "In the past , bans on exporting have been of limited scope and duration .", "The filing is unusual , officials said , since companies typically negotiate a settlement for lesser amounts with the government .", "One year ago , Loral Space and Communications agreed to pay $ 20 million , a record fine in a case involving one of several satellite issues in the case against Boeing and Hughes .", "If there is no settlement , the case would go before an administrative law judge .", "The letter , the civil equivalent of an indictment , was signed by William J . Lowell , director of the trade controls unit , who is leaving his job .", "Friends of Mr. Lowell , who asked not to be identified , said his resignation was related to concerns that his office is being reorganized to make it easier for American defense companies to export sensitive technology .", "State Department officials have said that the reorganization was meant to improve the defense trade unit 's performance .", "The current case is the last of a series of investigations involving American aerospace companies and entities controlled or associated with the government of China .", "In addition to the Loral case , the Lockheed Martin Corporation agreed to pay $ 13 million in fines in 2000 in connection with allegations that it provided technical aid and space-related information to a Hong Kong-based company with ties to Beijing .", "The latest State Department letter mentions three separate cases in which company officials helped Chinese-related entities determine what went wrong on failed launchings .", "Most of the counts are against Boeing , though the activities in question took place at the Hughes Space and Communications unit .", "Mr. Lowell 's letter also accuses Boeing with failing to properly disclose the 1996 hiring of the son of a top Chinese general , whom , the letter charged , the company was trying to cultivate .", "The Chinese general , Shen Rongjun , was described in a 1995 Hughes memorandum as `` the most important Chinese space official , '' according to Mr. Lowell .", "The general 's son , according to Hughes internal documents from the mid-1990 ` s cited in Mr. Lowell 's letter , provided inside information on bidding efforts by Lockheed Martin , a Hughes competitor .", "The inside information included price data and Lockheed 's negotiating strategy to `` sweeten their bid with technology transfers on launch vehicles , '' according to a 1995 Hughes memorandum cited by Mr. Lowell .", "The general 's son was described as a `` translator '' by the company in 1996 when it sought federal approval to hire him .", "But Mr. Lowell said he also functioned as an `` intermediary with his father . ''", "Lawyers for the companies told the State Department this month that there was no need to disclose more information about the general 's son and that the 1996 disclosure was proper .", "The State Department , in 1998 , initially approved the deal involving the general 's son .", "The contract was awarded to Hughes from a company with Chinese partners that wanted to build a mobile communications system with a Hughes satellite .", "The State Department killed the deal in 1999 after the role of the general 's son was disclosed ."], "summary": ["State Dept accuses two leading American aerospace companies -- Boeing Co and Hughes Electronics Corp -- of 123 violations of export laws in connection with transfer of satellite and rocket data to China during 1990 's .", "Provides new details of how American companies competed for Chinese business by offering to transfer aerospace data in connection with launchings of their satellites ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["World"]} +{"id": "1453200", "text": ["The Army is sending thousands more soldiers from the Third Infantry Division in Georgia to Kuwait in the largest single ground deployment to the Persian Gulf since the war there in 1991 , military officials said today .", "One of the division 's three combat brigades , about 4,000 soldiers , has been training in the Kuwaiti desert since September , but the unit 's headquarters at Fort Stewart , Ga . , received an order from the Army within the last day directing the rest of the more than 15,000 combat troops to join the soldiers in Kuwait , officials said .", "`` They all have deployment orders , '' Capt . James Brownlee , a division spokesman , said today .", "The Pentagon has been steadily building up forces in the Persian Gulf for months , but this deployment is the first time a full division , which includes foot soldiers , armor , aviation and artillery units , has been sent to the region as part of that escalation .", "The deployment is the latest visible signal that the Bush administration is moving toward military action to force Iraq to disarm .", "The signal is all the more sharp because the Third Infantry Division specializes in desert warfare , and its brigades have been rotating through desert-training exercises in Kuwait and in Southern California for months .", "In addition to the Army 's order , the Navy today directed the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier battle group to remain at sea for perhaps three more months and be prepared to steam to the Persian Gulf on short notice , officials said .", "The Lincoln and its seven-ship flotilla recently completed a six-month tour in the gulf region , and last week left Australia on the way home to Everett , Wash . , when the Navy ordered it to stay in the western Pacific in preparation for a possible war with Iraq , officials said .", "Officials would not discuss the precise timing of the Third Infantry Division 's movements , but they said troops would leave in the coming days from Fort Stewart , Fort Benning and Hunter Army Airfield , all in Georgia .", "Much of the division 's equipment , including many of its 4,300 vehicles , is in Kuwait , but Captain Brownlee said other equipment would be shipped from Savannah .", "The Third Infantry Division became a likely candidate to be sent to the Persian Gulf after Defense Secretary Donald H . Rumsfeld signed an order last Tuesday to activate an Army division for duty there , officials said .", "Mr. Rumsfeld 's directive also set in motion the first wave of about 50,000 reinforcements that will be dispatched to the gulf region in the next month , roughly doubling the American forces there .", "At the same time , Mr. Rumsfeld directed the Navy to keep two aircraft carriers and two Marine amphibious assault groups ready to be sent to the gulf on 96-hour notice .", "There is now one aircraft carrier in the gulf and another in the Mediterranean Sea , with the Lincoln in reserve as well as the George Washington , in Norfolk , Va .", "Last week , the Navy activated one of its two 1,000-bed hospital ships , the Comfort , to be sent for possible duty in the Persian Gulf .", "The Comfort will leave in the next few days for the Indian Ocean base at Diego Garcia , Navy officials said .", "The Air Force has ordered several units to prepare for gulf duty , a directive that could more than double the 100 combat aircraft now in the region .", "The units include the First Fighter Wing , an F-15C fighter unit based at Langley Air Force Base , Va .", "The Fourth Fighter Wing , an F-15E unit based at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base , N.C.", "The 28th Bomb Wing , a B-1B unit at Ellsworth Air Force Base , S.D. AC-130 gunships from Hurlburt Field , Fla .", "E-8C Joint Stars ground surveillance aircraft from Robins Air Force Base , Ga .", "And Predator reconnaissance aircraft from Nellis Air Force Base , Nev .", "Logistics specialists like port handlers and crane operators are also arriving in the region , officials said .", "The military 's classified war plan for Iraq calls for as many as 250,000 American troops , about half of the forces that massed for the Persian Gulf war in 1991 .", "But any American-led invasion force would be much smaller than that , with a sizable number of troops held in reserve , defense officials said .", "The Third Infantry division is the first of perhaps three or four Army and Marine divisions -- equipped with hundreds of M1 Abrams tanks , Bradley fighting vehicles and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters -- that could be sent to the region .", "The 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell , Ky . , equipped with Apache attack helicopters and Blackhawk troop transports , is likely to be deployed .", "Any ground campaign is also likely to include elements of the 17,000-member First Marine Expeditionary Force , based at Camp Pendleton , Calif .", "The current buildup is palpable in Kuwait .", "At Camp Doha , the Army has converted a Kuwaiti port packed with warehouses into major military storage .", "Hundreds of M1 Abrams battle tanks , Bradley fighting vehicles and fuel and cargo trucks are parked there .", "Some have been unloaded recently from ships normally afloat near Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean .", "And while military officials say they could start an attack against Iraq now if they had to , most planners are looking at mid-February as the optimal time for any offensive President Bush might order .", "The Army deployments came as allied warplanes bombed Iraqi air defense radars and communications facilities late Monday in one of the largest strikes against Iraqi targets in recent days in response to Iraqi violations of the no-flight zone in southern Iraq .", "Thirteen allied planes , including Air Force F-16 ` s , carrier-based FA-18 ' s and British Tornado GR-4 ' s dropped 16 precision-guided bombs on Iraqi air defense sites , including a Spoon Rest early-warning radar , in Basra , Al Kut and An Nasiriyah , a military official said .", "A few hours after the attack planes pounded their targets , an Air Force Predator surveillance aircraft , flying from its base in Kuwait , fired a Hellfire missile at a Spoon Rest radar , the official said .", "Military authorities said today that they were still assessing damage from the strikes .", "The allied airstrikes , coupled with the highly publicized troop deployments , appear to have had scant effect so far on President Saddam Hussein 's decisions on Iraqi troop movements .", "Most Iraqi forces have dug in to defensive positions around the country , but about 200 troops from the three Iraqi Republican Guard divisions stationed around Baghdad have moved south and west of the capital in recent days , a defense official said today .", "The troops , which are from some of the better trained and equipped Iraqi units , did not deploy with their heavy equipment , the official said , leaving American analysts somewhat puzzled by the activity .", "`` We 're watching them , but we 're not reading a whole lot into it , `` the official said .", "`` We expect they 'll be back in their barracks in the next day or two . ``", "THREATS AND RESPONSES : THE MILITARY ."], "summary": ["US Army acts to send thousands more soldiers from Third Infantry Division in Georgia to Kuwait in largest single ground deployment to Persian Gulf since war there in 1991 .", "One of division 's three combat brigades , about 4,000 soldiers , has been training in Kuwaiti desert since September , but unit 's headquarters at Fort Stewart , Ga , receives order within last day directing rest of more than 15,000 combat troops to join soldiers in Kuwait .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 0], "tag": ["World", "Front Page", "Washington"]} +{"id": "1453226", "text": ["On one hand , DEAN BLAIS , North Dakota 's coach , wishes the United States team success in the world junior championships .", "On the other , he sure would like three of his best players back from that team in time for a key series against Colorado College this weekend .", "`` We could lose these two games this weekend , '' Blais said , `` and it could cost us the league championship . ''", "Top-ranked North Dakota has lost the most players to the national junior team , which is competing in the 10-nation world championships in Nova Scotia .", "Four other Division I teams have two players each on the national roster .", "But the Fighting Sioux -LRB- 18-1-1 -RRB- are without their leading scorer , the freshman ZACH PARISE , and two defensemen , MATT JONES and MATT GREENE , for as long as the United States remains in the tournament .", "`` It 's one thing to miss Zach Parise , but the two defensemen have been rock solid for us , `` Blais said .", "`` We 've been averaging only 18 shots against us a game , and those guys hold the red line like it 's the blue line . ``", "Blais , who coached the United States junior team in 1993 and was an assistant coach two other years , holds international competition in high regard .", "`` I know how demoralizing it is when college coaches wo n't let their players go for selfish reasons , `` he said .", "North Dakota is 8-1-1 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association , second behind third-ranked Colorado College -LRB- 16-2-2 , 9-1-2 -RRB- .", "The Sioux won the inaugural Subway Holiday Tournament on home ice in Grand Forks last weekend .", "They edged Bemidji State -LRB- 5-6-6 -RRB- , 4-3 , in the final , after a 5-2 victory over Brown -LRB- 5-6-1 -RRB- in the first round .", "The sophomore BRANDON BOCHENSKI scored six goals in the two tournament games and was named most valuable player .", "His 25 goals are tops in Division I .", "He is third in scoring with 36 points , behind Parise -LRB- 38 -RRB- and Colorado College 's PETER SEJNA -LRB- 41 -RRB- .", "`` We would have loved to have Parise in the holiday tournament , '' Blais said .", "`` His absence probably hurts your attendance and chances of winning .", "But then , to have him display his talents to all the N.H.L. scouts and represent the country is as patriotic as can be . ``", "Another coach concerned about the effect of the world juniors on his team is TIM WHITEHEAD of second-ranked Maine -LRB- 15-1-2 -RRB- .", "The Black Bears are without forward GREG MOORE and goaltender JAMES HOWARD .", "`` The only potential negative is those guys could get burned out , '' Whitehead said .", "`` I 've seen it before . ``", "Blais , though , sees another positive .", "`` For me , losing those players to the world junior team , its a compliment to our program , '' he said .", "`` You look at the roster and see three players from U.N.D. on it -- it says something about our development and recruitment . ''", "HOCKEY EAST Eight Hockey East teams reached the championship games in holiday tournaments over the weekend , with four coming home with victories .", "The Everblades College Classic in Estero , Fla . , featured an all-Hockey East final , with Maine -LRB- 5-0-1 Hockey East -RRB- beating Massachusetts -LRB- 10-7-1 , 4-5-0 -RRB- by 8-3 .", "To reach the final , the Black Bears beat fifth-ranked Cornell -LRB- 10-3-0 -RRB- , scoring three straight third-period goals in a 3-2 victory .", "Twelfth-ranked Boston University -LRB- 11-6-2 , 5-4 -RRB- won the Great Lakes Invitational with a 4-3 victory over No . 10 Michigan -LRB- 12-5-1 -RRB- .", "Goalie SEAN FIELDS , the tournament 's most valuable player , had 37 saves .", "The Terriers also scored three straight third-period goals to pull ahead .", "Merrimack -LRB- 7-6-3 , 4-3-1 -RRB- defeated Wayne State -LRB- 6-11-0 -RRB- in the final of the Rensselaer / HSBC Holiday Tournament , 4-1 .", "JOE EXTER , Merrimack 's senior goalie , was named the M.V.P. , stopping 58 of 60 shots in two games .", "Northeastern -LRB- 6-8-2 , 1-6-1 -RRB- won the National Capitol Tournament in Ottawa with a 6-3 victory over York University of Toronto .", "C.C.H.A.", "Ninth-ranked Ohio State -LRB- 13-4-2 , 9-2-1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association -RRB- will play a nonconference game Friday against Princeton at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh , an unusual site for a college game .", "The Pittsburgh Penguins extended the invitation to play on their home ice .", "Pittsburgh has no colleges playing Division I hockey .", "Mercyhurst , in Erie , Pa . , which plays in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Association , is the closest .", "Ohio State has four players on its roster from the Pittsburgh area .", "The game was originally scheduled for 8 p.m. , but was moved to 5 p.m. because the Buckeyes ' football team will be playing for the national championship in Arizona that evening .", "MARK SCHEERER COLLEGE HOCKEY ."], "summary": ["North Dakota University has lost players Zach Parise , Matt Jones and Matt Greene to US junior hockey team and world junior championships ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3], "tag": ["Sports"]} +{"id": "1453277", "text": ["`` I was 28 , and I did n't speak English , `` Saori Kawano said about her arrival from Yokohama , Japan , 20 years ago .", "But she invested $ 2,000 in 30 cartons of Japanese porcelain , sold them from her home and in 1983 opened Korin , a Japanese restaurant supply company in TriBeCa .", "Some 4,000 restaurants , including Nobu , shop at Korin , which has 5,000 items in stock , from 60-cent chopsticks to $ 22,000 sushi robots .", "But Korin also sells to the public .", "New wares include a linen noren , or curtain , in the picture 's background , which shades from beige to pink and has abstract white cherry blossoms .", "It is 3 by 5 feet -LRB- $ 220 -RRB- .", "A silk obi , 12 by 70 inches -LRB- $ 139 -RRB- , can be used as a table runner .", "The green glass bowls , right , used at Nobu , are $ 10 -LRB- three inches -RRB- and $ 22 -LRB- six inches -RRB- .", "And those wax replicas of tuna , shrimp , fluke and mackerel sushi .", "You can buy them and more for $ 12 each .", "Korin is at 57 Warren Street , -LRB- 212 -RRB- 587-7021 or www.korin.com.", "CURRENTS : KITCHENWARE ."], "summary": ["Korin , Manhattan company that supplies chopsticks and other tableware to Japanese restaurants , sells to public as well .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 8], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453281", "text": ["When Freyer Architects , a Manhattan firm , renovated a fourth-floor apartment in an Upper West Side brownstone and added a penthouse on the roof , the firm was asked for `` sunlight , a garden and ecological friendliness , '' Warren Freyer said .", "He and William Machan , one of his architects , designed floor-to-ceiling windows at the rear of both floors , above right , and added a skylight for even more dazzling light .", "The lower floor , 870 square feet , has a living room , above , and kitchen .", "The 390-square-foot penthouse has a bedroom and a bath , plus a roof garden .", "Recessed grilles in the cherrywood floors provide heat and eliminate radiators .", "Red tiles on the roof deck are made of recycled rubber tires , $ 11.55 for a half-inch-thick tile , 24 inches square , at Environmental Molding Concepts in San Bernardino , Calif . -LRB- 909 -RRB- 383-7049 .", "The budget for the apartment renovation was $ 300,000 .", "Freyer Architects , 37 East 18th Street , can be reached at -LRB- 212 -RRB- 598-0900 .", "CURRENTS : ARCHITECTURE ."], "summary": ["Freyer Architects renovates fourth-floor apartment in Manhattan brownstone and adds penthouse on roof .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453282", "text": ["A tiny restaurant called Mr. Sushi on Houston Street was in trouble , and its owners , Edmund Liu and Winston Kulok , decided that design could save it .", "So they hired David Ling , a Manhattan architect , to transform their 900-square-foot space into a Chinese restaurant called ED .", "The budget was a minuscule $ 40,000 .", "`` We made a luminous cave , backlit in red , '' Mr. Ling said .", "`` And it culminates with a waterfall that looks like liquid mercury . ''", "The waterfall cascading over a mirror behind a sushi bar , above , is the focal point for the restaurant .", "He draped white translucent fabric , designed for rear-screen projection , on black steel gas pipes to create a taut rectangular tent .", "The floor , left , is a hand-sanded acrylic mirror .", "`` I liked the contrast between industrial materials and the handmade finish , '' he said .", "`` It makes for a murky , sandy , luminous surface , '' he said .", "-LRB- Quarter-inch-thick acrylic mirror sells for $ 6 a square foot at Industrial Plastic Supply , 309 Canal Street , 212-226-2010 . -RRB-", "On this stretch of Houston , east of Macdougal Street , the sidewalk runs two feet above the entrances to the storefronts .", "The sidewalk at Mr. Sushi 's came right up to the building , making the entrance door only 8 feet high .", "Mr. Ling excavated the sidewalk back 30 inches , to its original footprint , giving the storefront a full 10-foot height , above , and offering a pink glow that illuminates the street .", "ED is at 142 West Houston Street .", "David Ling can be reached at -LRB- 212 -RRB- 982-7089 .", "225 East 21st Street , New York City .", "CURRENTS : RESTAURANT ."], "summary": ["Tiny restaurant on Houston Street call Mr Sushi is transformed into luminous Chinese restaurant called ED on budget of only $ 40,000 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453283", "text": ["Last January , the artist Ruben Toledo returned to Cuba with his wife , Isabel .", "It was the first time he had been back since his family left the island in 1967 .", "One result of the trip is Cuban Black , a collection of seven tile murals for Ceramica Bardelli , an Italian ceramics maker .", "`` Cuba is such a bleached country , '' Mr. Toledo said .", "`` Nothing has been painted in 40 years . ''", "He called the country `` colorful in a black-and-white way . ''", "One Cuban Black -LRB- right -RRB- , made of four tiles , each eight inches square , and selling for $ 203 , shows a dog .", "Another , 18 tiles and $ 375 , depicts a cat on a chair .", "Two other designs -LRB- 18 tiles , $ 443 .", "24 tiles , $ 562 -RRB- show plants .", "They are at available at Hastings Tile and Il Bagno Collection at 230 Park Avenue South -LRB- 19th Street -RRB- .", "-LRB- 800 -RRB- 351-0038 .", "CURRENTS : CERAMICS ."], "summary": ["Ruben Toledo designs series of ceramic tile murals inspired by trip to Cuba .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453284", "text": ["The race to win the Greater New York Bridge Association 's Player of the Year title appeared to be a runaway but turned into a cliffhanger .", "When the Edgar Kaplan Regional began a week ago , Glenn Milgrim seemed to have an unassailable lead .", "But John Fout , in second place after an equally stellar year , was chasing hard and gaining ground .", "He was due to take the title if he won the final event , the Board-a-Match Teams , and was leading going into the last session .", "But that session dropped him into second place , and the Player of the Year title went to Milgrim .", "Last year 's winner , Chris Willenken , finished third .", "He won the Team Player of the Year title , with Fout second and Milgrim third .", "Milgrim 's favorite deal of the year , on which he sat South , is shown in the diagram .", "He was playing with Willenken , and they arrived in six hearts from the South side of the table .", "That was the result of the three-spade bid , a transfer to hearts by agreement , and the four-diamond bid , a retransfer .", "Six hearts from the normal North position would have been hopeless after the marked club lead .", "As it was , three intermediate cards in the North hand proved crucial : the eight-seven of hearts and the club eight .", "Milgrim won the opening diamond lead with dummy 's ace and spotted a rare safety play , little-known even in expert circles .", "He led the heart 10 , intending to run it , guarding against the possibility of a singleton nine in the West hand .", "That was exactly the position , and East covered with the jack .", "South won with the king and led his remaining heart to the ace .", "The heart seven was led , and East took his queen and shifted to a club .", "South won with the ace , crossed to the spade queen , and played the heart eight to remove East 's last trump .", "The rest needed good technique , and Milgrim demonstrated it .", "He led to his diamond king and ruffed a diamond , to reach this position : Diagram The last trump was led from dummy , and East and South discarded diamonds .", "West could not guard both black suits , and the slam was made .", "This column referred erroneously on Monday to South 's prospects in the deal shown .", "He did not have the potential to take all 13 tricks .", "With the cards West held , he was certain to take a trump trick .", "BRIDGE ."], "summary": ["Glenn Milgrim wins Greater New York Bridge Assn 's Player of the Year title .", "Diagram ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453285", "text": ["Qin Shihuang 's fearsome exercise of power 2,200 years ago has been compared to the actions of Napoleon and Stalin , and his bloody legacy remains a raw wound in today 's China .", "The Qin emperor was a military adventurer who unified the country for the first time by subsuming six warring states and began to build the Great Wall .", "Ruthless , he imposed absolute order by executing those suspected of disloyalty .", "Modern artists approach the subject with caution , in part because Mao Zedong saw the founding emperor as an inspiration and the Communist Party still views the ancient leader as a pointed allegory .", "So when Zhang Yimou , China 's best-known and arguably most talented director , chose the Qin court as the setting for his big-budget martial arts epic `` Hero , '' expectations were high .", "The director of `` Raise the Red Lantern '' and `` To Live , '' Mr. Zhang has often explored the emotional whiplash inflicted on common people by China 's tumultuous history .", "He has also infuriated the Beijing government and found himself blacklisted , while delighting many critics .", "But `` Hero , '' despite its complicated subject , has delighted Beijing 's mandarins , who are submitting it as China 's nominee for best foreign film at the Academy Awards .", "And it has infuriated some Chinese critics , who have panned Mr. Zhang 's plot for promoting a philosophy of servitude .", "`` ` Hero ' does not have the courage to present the massacres Qin Shihuang ordered in the name of peace under heaven , `` said Tou Jiangming , writing in The Sat-China Weekly .", "`` The history so often questioned by modern thinkers is ignored by Zhang Yimou . ''", "Or as a critic using the pen name Bu Tong put it in The Beijing Youth Daily : `` Zhang Yimou 's movie has a deep servility inside .", "He tried to understand what the world looks like from the ruler 's standpoint . ``", "This is a little like Fellini suddenly promoting Victorian values .", "Most of Mr. Zhang 's earthy films view the world through the powerless , people stuck in anonymous villages who rely only on inner dignity and intense passions to guide them through a world that takes them for granted .", "`` Hero '' is something new .", "Mr. Zhang , 51 , set out to prove that he could make a Hollywood-style blockbuster that appealed to both Chinese and foreign audiences , while retaining his artistic touch .", "He may have succeeded .", "But he did something else new as well , whether because he needed government support to produce a film of unprecedented cost and scale for China or because he wanted the police to do more to help him fight rampant piracy : he made a movie that those in China 's propaganda apparatus are thrilled to promote .", "After its premiere in mid-December in the Great Hall of the People , the deputy director of the state film bureau , Zhang Pimu -LRB- who is no relation to the director -RRB- , called it `` artistic , entertaining and thoughtful . ''", "The $ 31 million production has an all-star cast of Jet Li , Tony Leung , Maggie Cheung and Zhang Ziyi .", "It has aerial martial arts choreography like that in `` Crouching Tiger , Hidden Dragon , '' the runaway success directed by Ang Lee .", "Miramax backed `` Hero '' and will release it in the United States early in 2003 .", "Like Mr. Zhang 's early films , `` Hero '' is lyrical .", "From the lakes of Jiuzhaigou to the forests of Inner Mongolia , Mr. Zhang mixes spectacular natural scenery with his own cinematic vision , producing a colorful slide show of fine art .", "The moment of truth in the story , written by Mr. Zhang and two others , comes when Jet Li , playing a nameless assassin , makes a gravity-defying assault on the king of Qin .", "-LRB- The king has not finished subsuming all rival states and creating the Qin empire . -RRB-", "The assassin decides , with a split second to spare , that his highest calling is to abandon his personal quest and let the king unify China .", "The written Chinese characters `` Tian Xia , '' all under heaven , are the movie 's coda .", "The king of Qin appears as a misunderstood leader who dispatches his black-armored cavalry to slaughter his neighbors but suffers quiet agony at the pain he must inflict for the common good .", "Mr. Zhang 's king even sheds a tear for his converted assassin when , with a flick of his wrist , the king orders his execution .", "The historical Emperor Qin left little evidence of his compassion .", "He replaced feudalism with a merciless monarchy .", "He killed Confucian scholars and burned their books .", "The emperor 's ruthlessness left him few admirers until Mao .", "`` Please do n't slander Emperor Qin Shihuang , sir , `` Mao wrote in a 1973 poem .", "The Communist leader praised the emperor for suppressing Confucian orthodoxy , which Mao despised for its intricate morals .", "Today , Qin 's rule is not a forbidden subject .", "But it remains sensitive , particularly after Chen Kaige , Zhang Yimou 's peer , covered the same historical ground as `` Hero '' in his 1998 film , `` The Emperor and the Assassin . ''", "Mr. Chen portrayed the emperor as a Shakespearean tyrant whose brutality covers inner shame .", "The opening scene is of Qin soldiers exterminating a family .", "To disguise his bastard birth , the emperor does away with his father .", "Though the censors allowed it , Mr. Chen was roundly criticized for neglecting the emperor 's full record -- his unification of the nation and the building of the Great Wall .", "Mr. Zhang has offered varying explanations as to why he took a more sympathetic view .", "In interviews surrounding the national release of the film , Mr. Zhang initially disavowed any ideology .", "`` The only test of a film 's success , especially a martial arts film , is whether it can keep the audience 's attention for 90 minutes , not its metaphysics , `` he said .", "But he also explained that he aimed to break the mold of martial arts movies .", "Too often , he said , they center on the hero avenging a master 's death .", "He wanted his hero to have transcending values .", "`` I wanted to write about people with warm blood , '' Mr. Zhang said .", "`` People who have faith and ideals . ''", "So what are these ideals .", "Mr. Zhang quoted a well-known phrase attributed to a Song Dynasty official named Fan Zhongyan : `` One should be the first to worry for the future of the state and the last to claim his share of happiness . ''", "Mr. Zhang has not commented on the movie 's metaphor for modern politics .", "But Tony Leung , the Hong Kong actor who plays a peace-loving warrior in the film , made the connection .", "In an interview with B International , a Hong Kong-based magazine , Mr. Leung said he applauded the message of `` peace and human kindness '' in `` Hero , '' then reflected on the Beijing government 's suppression of a democracy movement 13 years ago .", "`` During the June 4 incident , I did n't join any demonstrations , because what the Chinese government did was right -- to maintain stability , which was good for everybody , `` he was quoted as saying .", "Mr. Leung later said that his comments had been taken out of context and that he was speaking from the perspective of his character in the film .", "`` My interest is in making movies , not politics , '' he said .", "Mr. Zhang has never been a dissident .", "But until recently he seemed to enjoy flirting with the limits of China 's artistic tolerance .", "`` Red Sorghum , '' `` Raise the Red Lantern '' and `` Ju Dou '' were all set in the pre-Communist era .", "They were all banned domestically after they were made , though all have since been released .", "Censors objected , most likely , because they portrayed China as violent , backward and capricious and suggested that the condition was not merely a byproduct of its pre-Communist politics .", "In `` To Live , '' Mr. Zhang extended the theme to Maoist China .", "The 1994 epic , which won the Cannes Palme d' Or award , is the tale of a couple tumbling through successive historical calamities of China 's civil war , the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution .", "It has never been legally shown here .", "But over the past eight years , as China 's economy became more prosperous , Mr. Zhang 's films became less provocative .", "In `` Not One Less , '' which he directed in 1998 , a young village schoolteacher goes to great lengths to retrieve a student who ventures into the big city to find work .", "The teacher 's success depends on a soft-hearted official who runs a television station and takes a Rockwellian shine to the peasant girl .", "Recently Mr. Zhang has also accepted some official duties .", "He directed movies to promote China 's bid to be host of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and its entry to stage the 2010 World Exposition in Shanghai .", "He said in a recent newspaper interview that he no longer cares what the critics say because he gets attacked no matter what he does .", "`` Only one film I 've done in my life has not been attacked , `` he said of his promotional movie for the Olympics competition .", "`` And that 's only because Beijing won . ``", "ARTS ABROAD ."], "summary": ["Latest Zhang Yimou film Hero , which is set in court of Emperor Qin Shihuang , wins praise of Chinese leaders , who have been infuriated by Zhang 's earlier films , and condemnation from some critics , who accuse film of promoting philosophy of servitude .", "Depicts Emperor Qin as far more compassionate character than historical evidence would justify , and his ruthlessness had few admirers until Mao Zedong .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 34, 31, 15, 50, 23, 59], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1453287", "text": ["From an early age , it seems , Albrecht D\u00fcrer harbored no doubts about his artistic talent .", "A remarkable self-portrait , drawn when he was 13 , could almost be interpreted as a proclamation of his genius .", "Within a few years , this German artist had made his name in Nuremberg , his home city .", "And although only 23 when he first visited Italy in 1494 , he quickly understood that he was in the same league as the Renaissance masters .", "Yet if today D\u00fcrer does not stand alongside , say , Raphael , Leonardo and Michelangelo except in Germany , this may be his own doing .", "Obsessed with winning fame and fortune , he achieved these objectives by turning his energies toward printmaking .", "His prints , marked with his famous A D monogram and sold across Europe , brought him extraordinary wealth and prestige .", "But then as now , to the public , painters outrank printmakers .", "So it is that 32 years have passed since the last D\u00fcrer exhibition was held at the British Museum , which has one of three major D\u00fcrer graphic collections .", "-LRB- The others are at the Albertina in Vienna and the Kupferstichkabinett in Berlin . -RRB-", "Now , to coincide with its 250th anniversary this year , the British Museum is making amends with `` Albrecht D\u00fcrer and His Legacy : The Graphic Work of a Renaissance Artist , '' which runs through March 23 .", "This exhibition presents a wide range of D\u00fcrer 's prints , drawings and watercolors , with one small oil added as a reminder that he was also an exceptional painter .", "Many of the works come from the British Museum 's collection and were part of Sir Hans Sloane 's donation to the museum when it was founded in 1753 .", "But there are also important loans , including his teenage `` Self-Portrait '' and his majestic `` Study for the Praying Hands of an Apostle , '' both on display in Britain for the first time .", "More than simply introducing D\u00fcrer to a new generation of museum visitors , though , the exhibition also trumpets his importance in the history of Western art by examining , in the words of Neil MacGregor , the British Museum 's new director , `` his astonishing afterlife , the absorption and adaptation of his work through the centuries . ''", "Put differently , both contemporaries and successors were not only inspired by D\u00fcrer , but they also copied him without blushing .", "D\u00fcrer is often described as the first truly commercial artist .", "He knew the value of his work , and in art history 's first recorded plagiarism dispute , he sued an Italian artist for copying his prints , even down to the A D monogram .", "D\u00fcrer also hired an agent to sell his prints outside Germanic territories .", "And in what would later become something of a tradition among leading artists , his wife , Agnes Frey , acted as his hard-nosed manager .", "The British Museum is showing many works inspired by or copied from D\u00fcrer .", "Some , including numerous portraits of a stern-looking D\u00fcrer , were made after his death in 1528 .", "Others reflect D\u00fcrer renaissances , one in the 17th century , when his engraving style influenced Rembrandt and others , and again in the early 19th century , when German writers like Goethe and painters like Caspar David Friedrich raised D\u00fcrer to mythical status as a Romantic icon .", "D\u00fcrer 's graphic work stands out for its variety and originality .", "One innovation was self-portraiture : at least 12 drawn or painted self-portraits survive .", "He even used his own image to represent Christ in some prints , notably his `` Sudarium of St . Veronica . ''", "But he was also something of an outdoors type , leaving his studio for painting and sketching forays .", "For instance , `` The Courtyard of Innsbruck Castle , '' painted immediately after his first journey across Europe to Italy , suggests he had absorbed an interest in architecture from Renaissance masters .", "His approach to nature was untypically realistic .", "In his early 20 's he painted a series of stunning watercolor landscapes , including `` Study of a Rock Face , '' which is accurate enough to illustrate a modern geology textbook .", "His drawings and paintings of animals were equally detailed .", "Among the treasures in this show are two early watercolors of the muzzle of a bull , in which every hair has been painted individually .", "Two later drawings , `` Resting Dog '' and `` Head of a Walrus , '' confirm that he remained intrigued by animals throughout his life .", "His most famous illustration from nature is `` Rhinoceros , '' from 1515 .", "Because he had never seen such an animal , D\u00fcrer based this woodcut on a description and sketch sent from Portugal , where the king had been given a rhinoceros from India .", "Remarkably , D\u00fcrer created a good likeness , capturing the platelike folds of that animal 's thick skin and its menacing appearance .", "In the process , he bequeathed an image that would be used for centuries in coats of arms , books and prints .", "But D\u00fcrer was also very much a man of his age in that , while he evidently enjoyed being a celebrity , he was also profoundly religious and open to the myths , magic , superstition and neo-paganism prevalent in Germany during the late 15th and early 16th centuries .", "He was not even 30 , for instance , when he embarked on his landmark `` Apocalypse '' woodcut series , inspired by the Book of Revelations , which eventually resulted in 15 prints .", "When the 16th-century Florentine painter and writer Giorgio Vasari referred to D\u00fcrer 's `` extravagant imagination , '' he had `` Apocalypse '' in mind .", "The most copied image , `` The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse , '' is in this show , with its three powerful riders representing Conquest , War and Famine , and the fourth , a skeletal white-haired figure on a sickly horse , representing Death .", "As much as through individual prints like `` Rhinoceros , '' D\u00fcrer spread his fame through wide distribution of major narrative series on religious subjects , notably `` Life of the Virgin , '' `` Large Passion , '' `` Small Passion '' and `` Engraved Passion , '' each of which dealt with familiar passages from the New Testament with a power and freshness that , once again , would inspire many copies .", "It is in a 1514 engraving called `` Melancholia , '' however , that many art historians have sought out the inner D\u00fcrer .", "This show 's catalog reprints a 1972 essay by G\u00fcnter Grass devoted to this print , while another German writer , Peter-Klaus Schuster , calls it `` the picture of pictures '' in his two-volume study of the work .", "Packed with symbols , the print shows a winged figure leaning her chin on her left hand and looking out at the world with despair .", "D\u00fcrer 's only engraving to match the philosophical depth of `` Melancholia '' is `` Knight , Death and the Devil , '' also in this show .", "But the public D\u00fcrer was more straightforward : hardworking and obsessed with money .", "His paintings are masterly , yet in his view they did not represent good use of his time .", "`` I can not execute this work without loss for the mere 130 florins we agreed upon , '' he once told a patron who had commissioned a painting .", "Your panel has almost 100 faces .", "I am missing out on too much other work . ``", "If his workshop in Nuremberg functioned as a cottage industry , with D\u00fcrer regarded as a prosperous artisan , his two long voyages to Italy gave him a taste for a world where artists were treated with respect .", "`` Here I am treated like a gentleman , '' he wrote during his second visit to Venice , `` whereas at home I am treated as a parasite . ''", "Well , perhaps then .", "Today , in Germany , but also by many experts beyond , D\u00fcrer is viewed quite simply as the greatest printmaker of all time ."], "summary": ["British Museum mounts exhibition of Albecht Durer prints , drawings and watercolors 32 years after its last Durer exhibition .", "Devotes space to Durer 's influence on succeeding generations of artists .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 8], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453288", "text": ["It is a remarkable display of civility that this city offers with the famous Johann Strauss concerts by the Vienna Philharmonic on New Year 's Eve and New Year 's morning .", "All the more remarkable given what comes between .", "To a midnight mob scene outside St . Stephen 's Cathedral worthy of Times Square , add the firepower of Chinatown at its new year : firecrackers and cherry bombs detonating virtually in your pocket , even full-scale fireworks , launched , it seems , by the guy next to you .", "Life and limb thankfully aside , the din proved dismaying for a musical ear , because the big bell that rings in the cathedral tower to greet the new year could simply not be heard .", "Well , solace came quickly , with the concert New Year 's morning at the Musikverein , conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt and telecast live throughout much of the world , later in the day in the United States .", "Mr. Harnoncourt , the reigning Austrian maestro , made his reputation as an early-music specialist but has carried his questing spirit into a wide range of repertory .", "Although the New Year 's concerts are formulaic affairs , steeped in tradition , Mr. Harnoncourt , working with the Strauss specialist Franz Mailer , managed to inject seven works new to the series as well as two additional composers , Brahms and Weber .", "-LRB- Three , if you count Berlioz , who orchestrated Weber 's `` Invitation to the Dance . '' -RRB-", "Brahms was a friend of Strauss 's and no stranger to this hall , and his Hungarian Dances Nos . 5 and 6 fitted comfortably into the mix in lusty yet subtly inflected interpretations .", "The Strauss novelties -- in addition to one by Johann 's brother Josef and one by their father , Johann I -- were the `` Niko-Polka '' -LRB- ending delightfully with a quiet passage for piccolo and harp that seemed to have strayed from a different piece , squelched by a big bang -RRB- and the `` Kr\u00f6nungs-Lieder . ''", "The orchestra played superbly in a way that only it can in this repertory , with polish , spirit , humor and the inimitable lilt that comes from rushing the second beat in a waltz .", "The magic lies in when , and just how much .", "The only mishap in the smoothly oiled affair came with `` Invitation to the Dance , '' which ends with a rousing climax .", "-LRB- Applause ! -RRB- No : actually it ends with a return to the quiet opening , with a cello solo , played beautifully here by Franz Bartolomey .", "But premature applause is almost a given , and everyone took it in good humor .", "While tradition may be made to be broken , these concerts are also steeped in commerce .", "-LRB- Thus the inordinate appeal of the formula : it works . -RRB-", "In addition to the television broadcasts , expected to reach some 50 million viewers , the recordings are perennial best sellers -LRB- not least , the one from Mr. Harnoncourt 's previous appearance , in 2001 -RRB- .", "This year , Deutsche Grammophon promises to have finished CD 's in European stores by Jan . 7 .", "American release is scheduled for Jan . 28 .", "So there was also the expected .", "Invariably , the first strains of the second encore , `` The Blue Danube , '' are interrupted by applause : in this case it was part of the well-oiledness .", "And invariably the conductor turns around to wish everyone a happy new year on behalf of the orchestra .", "Here Mr. Harnoncourt seemed to be reaching for something more , commenting earnestly on music 's ability to reach all and wishing the audience a `` blessed and peaceful '' new year .", "Equally predictably , the third and final encore was Johann Strauss I 's `` Radetzky March , '' with everyone clapping along heartily .", "Then it was off with the television cameras and down with civility as audience members descended on the flowers that festooned the hall -LRB- an impossibly beautiful one to begin with -RRB- , absconding with armfuls of white roses and carnations .", "Mr. Harnoncourt and the orchestra are to bring music of the Strauss brothers as part of their tour of seven American cities in February and March .", "If only they could bring the same heady atmosphere .", "MUSIC REVIEW ."], "summary": ["James R Oestreich reviews Vienna Philharmonic 's New Year 's morning concert at Musikverein .", "Concert is conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1453294", "text": ["ON a recent Sunday morning , Catherine Crier , the cool and cerebral Court TV anchor , was in her kitchen here mixing pancake batter and looking for ingredients .", "`` Cynthia , '' she called upstairs to her sister .", "`` Do we have any nuts .", "`` `` Right-hand cabinet , second shelf , '' Cynthia Crier said without missing a beat .", "There 's a reason that Cynthia Crier , who lives in Manhattan , knows what her sister 's cabinets in Westchester hold .", "And it 's not because she 's a gourmand : she is the architect who doubled the size of her sister 's 3,000-square - foot house .", "And in the two years it took , she did everything from supervising the contractor to stocking the shelves .", "Some people might say that letting your sister take over your house is folly .", "The pitfalls are obvious : childhood feuds , ancient jealousies , the threat of long-term repercussions if something goes awry .", "`` They were very similar growing up , '' said their mother , Ann Crier .", "`` Both are very competitive and goal-oriented . ''", "But for Catherine and Cynthia Crier , the renovation built not only a home but a better relationship .", "Catherine Crier left Dallas for college at 16 , when Cynthia was 12 .", "And by the time she returned , Cynthia was off to Cornell to get a degree in architecture .", "Growing up , they had shared little but competitive horseback riding .", "-LRB- Catherine keeps four horses in a barn she built on her 30 acres here . -RRB-", "`` It could be intimidating to have a sister who is both brilliant and beautiful , '' said Cynthia Crier , 44 .", "`` But it also motivated me .", "I also feel lucky that we chose different fields .", "Catherine was so political -- I was more artistic .", "I knew from the time I was a little girl that I wanted to be an architect .", "It would be a lot tougher if we were competing in the same career . ``", "Catherine 's career , in typical overachiever fashion , included a stint as a state district court judge -LRB- she was the youngest person ever elected a judge in Texas -RRB- , then high-profile positions at CNN , ABC News , Fox News and Court TV .", "Even when she moved to Westchester in 1993 , only an hour from Cynthia , their relationship was cordial rather than close .", "Who knew that talk of drainage pipes and mahogany dining room tables would provide glue for their relationship .", "In fact , Catherine Crier , 48 , initially paid another architect $ 10,000 to design an 800-square-foot guesthouse .", "`` It was a disaster , '' Cynthia said , with obvious satisfaction .", "As her sister put it : `` I 'm sure he 's a fine architect for someone else .", "I know it must have been very hard for him , because I could n't articulate exactly what I wanted . ``", "When she said she liked the idea of a cozy cottage , he gave her something she described as `` too Laura Ashley . ''", "When she elaborated and said she wanted stone and wood , to reflect the look of her property , he drew what she called `` a Swiss chalet . ''", "Then , in August 2000 , Cynthia visited from Greenwich Village .", "She had been the chief architect for the New York Fire Department from 1993 to 2000 and had previously worked for Kohn Pedersen Fox in New York .", "She sat down to sketch a guesthouse .", "She drew a house complete with beamed arches and rustic clapboards and , with Catherine 's blessing , went on to draw blueprints for a renovation of the main residence , built in 1930 .", "The design opened up the boxy rooms and made the living room into a grand space , 22 by 43 feet and two stories high .", "`` The Texas girl in me requires open space , '' Catherine said .", "Nonetheless , she had some initial reservations about working with her sister on the guesthouse .", "`` I 'm a lawyer and aware of the risks involved in working with a relative , `` she said .", "Even after that project was completed satisfactorily , it was a big step to move on to the main house .", "So , in a lawyerly way , she worked with her sister to lay down ground rules .", "The first step was a standard architectural contract , with a section on interior design that specified the percentage Cynthia would be paid on the furnishings and finish work .", "Second , Catherine knew she had to get out of the way so her sister could work .", "It was decided she would move into the new guesthouse for a year while the main residence was being torn apart and put together again .", "And they agreed that the total cost for the guesthouse , the expansion of the main house , furnishings and an art studio would not exceed $ 1.5 million .", "Then came the ground rules for their friendship .", "`` We 're both very headstrong , passionate people , `` said Catherine , who was recently divorced .", "`` But we understood that to make it work , we would have to respect our jobs and our roles .", "I 'm the owner , and have veto power over interior design , but I would defer when it came to architectural issues . ``", "Well , not always .", "Joseph Riccardi , the general contractor on the project , recalls one face-off .", "`` There was one time where Cynthia had designed a staircase in the living room that Catherine decided she did n't want , `` he said .", "The staircase would have let Catherine go directly from her bedroom to the kitchen , without going through a more public spot , the foyer .", "`` Cynthia argued for it , '' he said , `` but finally gave in , explaining , ' This is what the boss wants . '", "`` The plaster curlicue sconces in the master bedroom set the stage for another clash .", "`` I found them too ornate , '' Cynthia said .", "`` But Catherine insisted on having them , so I custom-made a fireplace frame to complement the design for a seamless effect . ''", "But Catherine deferred to her sister when she insisted on the luxury of copper rain gutters -- `` They last a lifetime , '' Cynthia said -- and gave up the brick she wanted outside so its $ 8,000 cost could be used for radiant heat for the kitchen floors .", "`` Since Cathy wanted open space , the ceilings are very high , '' Cynthia said .", "`` And heat rises , as do the heating bills .", "With heated floors , your expenses are reduced . ``", "Both sisters laughed when asked if the renovation caused any screaming brawls .", "`` No , I ca n't think of anything we argued about , `` Cynthia said .", "Catherine said : `` Some people may want a Mario Buatta-styled house , and in a way , that 's easier to interpret .", "I do n't want to feel that I 'm walking into some stranger 's house that 's been made for Architectural Digest .", "I wanted to return to a place that is an extension of me .", "And Cynthia just got it . ``", "What saved them was experience .", "Catherine had renovated houses in Dallas , Wyoming and Atlanta , but had not been totally satisfied with the results .", "`` I could never articulate exactly what I wanted because I needed someone to interpret what I needed to reflect my life , '' she said .", "As for her sister , she said : `` I saw how detailed she was in other projects , and I already had great respect for her work . ''", "And Cynthia had already handled the design of 300,000 square feet of complex office space at MTV , where she had to assess the needs of everyone from Sumner Redstone to office managers .", "She was happy to be working for one client .", "It helped that Cynthia anticipated every interior detail , including the exact position of the lights for her sister 's varied paintings , which include one by Andr\u00e9 Bourri\u00e9 and one with a Southwestern theme by Inger Jirby .", "And as they worked together , they rediscovered each other 's exacting natures .", "`` Our father still has electric bills from the 1950 's , `` Cynthia said .", "`` We get it from him . ''", "Yet Catherine 's perfectionism was channeled into her broadcast and legal work , more than into her home .", "`` Cynthia realized how schizoid I am , and how I 'm always on the go and not organized at home , `` she said .", "`` She made sure the house was designed to compensate for my failings . ''", "In addition to organizing and alphabetizing her sister 's 3,000 books , and knowing where the nuts were stashed in her kitchen , Cynthia had separate drawers made for her sister 's silver jewelry and gold jewelry and for each sweater color , and she added shoe bins to the walk-in closets , compartmentalized into anchor clothes and casual clothes .", "`` She even organized my linen closet , '' Catherine said .", "`` Well , '' said her sister , `` even after I designed the firehouses , I made the beds upstairs for the boys to make sure they were perfect . ''", "To Mr. Riccardi , the contractor , `` Cynthia was the person who took care of all aspects of this project , way beyond what architects normally do , or even interior decorators . ''", "That meant she had to come up with a way to display her sister 's collection of Asian and African artifacts -- clay water pitchers , urns , furniture and Tibetan money that looks like colored steel toothpicks .", "And she added the separate art studio .", "`` I saw what she did and screamed : ' This is amazing ! This is what I want , ' '' Catherine said .", "As with many working women , she already had her professional life , in jurisprudence , under control .", "What she needed help with was her domestic life .", "She was recently looking over copper-tufted swatches of upholstery fabric with Rebecca Boles , a Texas designer who met the sisters when they were girls on the Dallas equestrian circuit .", "Although there has already been a housewarming party , some details still have to be attended to : a geometric bedspread for the guest room , pillows for the Kravet living-room couches , custom-made rugs from Switzerland and China in olive green .", "The sisters put together a scrapbook of more than 2,000 pictures to document every step of the construction and sent it to their mother and their father , Bill .", "Their parents and their sister , Carolyn , 50 , a homemaker in Dallas , traveled to Westchester over the holidays to see the collaboration up close .", "It was the first Christmas the Crier family had spent together in 16 years , and they did it with a fresh snowfall and competitive games of pool , bridge and Scrabble .", "What impressed their mother is that Cynthia , who prefers `` small rooms that are more intimate , '' made the house so expansive , to suit her sister .", "`` They now have the friendship that they could have had in earlier years , '' Ann Crier said .", "Catherine Crier bought a house .", "Cynthia Crier made it her home .", "HOUSE PROUD ."], "summary": ["Cynthia Crier , Manhattan architect and sister of Catherine Crier , Court TV anchor , doubles size of her sister 's house in Katonah , NY , doing everything from supervising contractor to stocking shelves .", "Renovation builds better relationship between sisters as well as better home .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 5, 11, 97], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453296", "text": ["The year that just ended will be remembered as a year when the failures of America 's corporate governance and accounting procedures became widely apparent .", "But a full reckoning of the Enron-WorldCom era must also take into consideration the ways in which the business press failed , too .", "The late 1990 's witnessed an explosion of business media .", "CNBC became the most profitable cable channel in America .", "New magazines and Web sites sprang up : Business 2.0 , Red Herring , The Street.com and the publication I worked for , The Industry Standard .", "All purported to untangle the mysteries of the burgeoning Internet economy .", "Yet for all that increased attention , it 's difficult to say that the enlarged business media played a decisive role in exposing the shortcomings of American corporate practices .", "Indeed , too often the new magazines and Web sites acted as incurious cheerleaders , championing executives and innovative companies without questioning their books .", "Do a search , for example , of the word `` Enron '' in the databases of those publications prior to 2000 and you 'll find little but praise for its market innovations .", "The mainstream media , too , did its share of hyping the technology boom , but no one did as much evangelizing as the so-called new economy publications .", "They preached about how technology created new paradigms .", "But they were frequently slow to note when technology did n't work , or markets did n't exist , and they relied far too much on a handful of self-interested bankers for information .", "The billions that poured into Internet companies in the late 1990 's usually came through the hands of venture capital firms or large Wall Street brokerage houses , each of whom had a vested interest in the company 's success , or at least its rapid growth .", "But they were often among the only people who had studied the industry closely enough to have an informed opinion , and so they were the ones we called .", "With the benefit of hindsight , it 's now clear that I and others were wrong to rely so heavily on sources who had so much at stake .", "I had begun to get an inkling of this in early 1999 : while writing about the merger of two large Internet music retailers , I sought a comment from one of the bankers following the stock of the newly formed entity .", "Yes , he acknowledged , the merger had taken too long to complete , and in the meantime Amazon.com had taken the lead in online compact disc sales .", "But , he insisted , the management team was solid and the company was on track .", "I was impressed , and put his endorsement in my story .", "In a matter of weeks , I noticed , the bank had dumped all its stock in the merged retailer .", "I resolved never again to rely on analysts , but I confess that I did n't bring this epiphany to the attention of my colleagues or my readers .", "Another part of the problem was that our own businesses were too far inside the beast we were covering .", "The Industry Standard , which began publishing in 1998 , had the same start-up mentality as many of the companies it covered .", "Inevitably , some of their worldview rubbed off on us .", "At exotic conferences in Aspen and Barcelona , our management mingled with the leaders of high-flying tech firms , some of whom were simultaneously advertising in the magazine , sponsoring a section of our Web site , speaking at magazine-sponsored conferences they had helped pay for , selling us software and giving colorful quotes to our reporters .", "This was not a formula for sustained independence .", "As we grew -- The Industry Standard sold more advertising pages in the year 2000 than any magazine in America -- we inherited some of the dot-com hubris as well .", "We spent millions on television advertisements , without being able to track whether they actually brought in subscriptions .", "The magazine 's very success was sometimes a distraction that blurred the difference between us and our sources .", "Our competitors , too , acted brashly .", "Both Red Herring and Business 2.0 had so many pages of advertising that in order to publish a respectable amount of editorial content in certain issues they simply reproduced articles they had already published .", "-LRB- One editor went so far as to defend the practice , arguing that his magazine had acquired lots of new readers since the articles had first been published . -RRB-", "The storm of information surrounding the Internet boom was blinding .", "So many words and press releases were swirling around that it was impossible to know if anything anyone said made a difference .", "This depressing suspicion was made real for me one morning , when I appeared on CNNfn , the cable network 's financial channel , to discuss the state of the market for initial public offerings .", "I had specifically told the producer that while I could discuss some Internet offerings , I was not an expert on the market for I.P.O. ` s .", "No matter : when I turned up on the screen , the words `` I.P.O. analyst '' showed up beneath my head .", "As if that was n't bad enough , the anchor then asked me a question about a company called Bamboo.com that was scheduled to issue stock later that week .", "Unfortunately , I had never heard of Bamboo.com, so I found myself improvising .", "Here 's what I said , warts and all : `` Bamboo.com is a specialized technology and Internet company that does certain kinds of currency exchanges .", "Internet currency exchanges , I should say , come up with a specialized currency just for the Internet and it 's one that people are looking at .", "I 'm not convinced that 's an absolute winner . ``", "It 's not just the grammar that was off .", "Bamboo.com was an online real-estate company that specialized in a technology that allowed for 360-degree images on the computer screen .", "Could I have said no comment .", "Sure , I suppose , and I was furious with myself .", "Equally disturbing , though , was the fact that it just did n't matter .", "The stock doubled in value on its first day of trading , and no one from the company ever bothered to contact me to correct my error .", "The froth of stock trading during that period obscured the facts and , it seemed , even the need for facts .", "It would be wrong to blame the news media alone for the business debacle .", "If a company sets out to mislead regulators and investors , and finds a prestigious accounting firm willing to sign off on baked books , it 's extremely difficult for an outside reporter to uncover the truth , especially on deadline .", "And there were plenty of occasions when The Industry Standard and others did diligently expose practices of tech and financial companies that seemed less than above-board .", "We wrote about questionable sales tactics at America Online and tried to curb enthusiasm for Priceline 's discount grocery service , which has since failed .", "But on balance I think even the best new economy journalists could not shout down the hype coming from the bankers and public relations machines .", "-LRB- And when the banking and advertising money stopped flowing , journalism was not enough to keep us alive . -RRB-", "I 'd like to believe that those of us who witnessed the tech bubble will be smart enough to prick the next bubble that comes along before too many investors get duped .", "Encouragingly , some improvements have been made .", "CNBC now usually identifies whether a banker it is interviewing owns stock in or does business with the companies being discussed on the air .", "But in more skeptical moments , I fear that the rise of any boom sector in the American markets will bring with it an attending press that is at least compliant , if not out-and-out boosterish .", "Editors and reporters need to be able to resist the notion that any single development in technology or business creates a new economy that defies traditional laws of business .", "That 's not a problem that the Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress can solve .", "James Ledbetter , business editor of Time Europe , is author of the forthcoming `` Starving to Death on $ 200 Million : The Short , Absurd Life of The Industry Standard . '' ."], "summary": ["Op-Ed article by James Ledbetter says full reckoning of America 's corporate governance and accounting procedures scandals must also take into consideration ways in which business press failed , too .", "Says late 1990 's witnessed explosion of business media , yet it is difficult to say that enlarged business media played decisive role in exposing shortcomings of American corporate practices .", "Says too often new magazines and Web sites acted as incurious cheerleaders of innovative companies , without questioning the books .", "Says mainstream media also hyped technology boom .", "Fears that rise of any boom sector in American markets will bring with it attending press that is at least compliant , if not out-and-out boosterish .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [58, 7, 6, 1, 2], "tag": ["Opinion"]} +{"id": "1453300", "text": ["TOO many people are resigned to living with cruddy kitchens that have them cursing through the holidays .", "The temptation is to defer any improvements until Santa delivers $ 100,000 wrapped in a ribbon .", "But you do n't have to wait for a dream budget .", "You just have to be smart and realistic , and avoid blowing it all on a new Sub-Zero .", "Focus instead on fixes that will make the kitchen a better place to cook and commune .", "The following three kitchens were transformed with $ 5,000 , $ 10,000 and $ 20,000 , and they offer a few rules of thumb for minimizing costs .", "Whatever you do , do not blindly ape an elaborate spread from a magazine , or you 'll end up with one of those pizza and champagne depositories like those shown on MTV 's `` Cribs . ''", "Your kitchen , like the three shown here , should encourage you to pull out the pans and get busy .", "The first thing I intend to make in mine is a cenone , a traditional Italian meal to ensure prosperity for the new year .", "If you follow my lead , a little grappa will help instill courage for a renovation .", "Discount Difference : $ 5,000 A burst pipe was the best thing that ever happened to the kitchen in our home in Sagaponack .", "The blue Formica counter peeled and the cabinets delaminated .", "We had no choice but to start over .", "In most kitchens , the biggest budget-buster is the cabinetry .", "For an average kitchen , custom millwork can easily run $ 30,000 .", "To cut costs , we went to the Home Depot and picked out flat rail , one of the simplest cabinet styles .", "We ordered the cabinets unpainted , for a 10 percent savings , and used the color of our choice .", "I chose White Caf\u00e9 from Schreuder , a Dutch company that makes enamels reminiscent of glossy French storefronts : steely blues , misty whites and foamy greens -LRB- www.finepaints.com -RRB- .", "But the real savings was in confining conventional cabinets to the area under the counter .", "We replaced the `` uppers , '' the expensive cabinets that usually hang over a counter , with open shelving .", "To avoid that millwork altogether , Victoria Hagan , a designer , suggests converting a nearby closet to a pantry .", "You pay to install a couple of shelves and the result is a wealth of storage .", "As an enthusiastic but often disorganized cook , I also treated myself to hefty window-sash pulls for the drawers and doors that I incessantly open and close .", "To make those deep low cabinets more accessible , I also sprang for pull-out drawers rather than simple shelves .", "I even threw in a super-deep Elkay stainless-steel sink -LRB- the better to hide those dirty pots -RRB- .", "Cost so far : $ 2,110.26 , including tax .", "Ikea cabinetry is a designer secret so obvious as to be embarrassing .", "Sometimes a professional just has to suck it up and admit that the obvious trumps the obscure .", "Modern without looking cheap , the cabinet with frosted glass panel doors is a favorite , but I prefer to dress up cabinet fronts with special doors .", "Paul Grassfield , a contractor in Brooklyn -LRB- 718-782-8408 -RRB- , often mounts panels of plain cherry or walnut for use as doors .", "The panels can be oiled and waxed , a chore the untutored amateur can tackle with $ 100 and a Saturday afternoon .", "More adventurous alternatives include doors made of recycled sunflower seeds , paper and agricultural fiber -LRB- available from Phenix Biocomposites , www.phenixbiocomposites.com -RRB- or polycarbonates that look like clear plastic versions of corrugated cardboard -LRB- priced from $ 1.66 a square foot at www.sundancesupply.com -RRB- .", "All these products have a richness and a depth that look like big bucks .", "Drab metal cabinets can be revitalized by spraying them with automotive paint that comes in a wide range of colors -LRB- from Heavenly Bodyworks in Chelsea , 212-691-1092 -RRB- .", "For the countertops , I used white Formica -LRB- $ 600 including installation -RRB- .", "For just $ 200 more , I could have inserted a slab of honed white Carrara marble for rolling pastry or a hefty chunk of butcher block for a built-in cutting board .", "Another dress-up option is to edge the plain Jane counters in a metal trim that adds detail and coordinates with the silver hardware .", "Appliance costs can also get out of hand .", "We kept the old ones , except for the oven , which was destroyed in the flood .", "I replaced it with the sturdiest basic model I could find , a 30-inch-wide Hardwick SF9616 for $ 369.95.", "It has a gas pilot that allows it to keep working if summer storms cut off power .", "We also perked up the rusty refrigerator by replacing the front panel for $ 50 .", "To better see the new stuff , we updated some lighting , adding a few inexpensive recessed fixtures and mushroom-shaped surface-mounted ones , all from the Home Depot .", "ROOM TO IMPROVE ."], "summary": ["Three kitchens are redesigned on shoestring budgets : $ 5,000 , $ 10,000 and $ 20,000 .", "Offer a few lessons on minimizing costs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]} +{"id": "1453302", "text": ["FOR Leo Hughes , 23 , of South Weymouth , Mass . , music is a passion .", "Having suffered a brain injury at 16 months that left him physically and mentally impaired , he is confined to a wheelchair and needs care 24 hours a day .", "While home , Mr. Hughes sometimes uses a drumstick to `` conduct '' songs that are playing on the radio .", "Although these performances are in pantomime , he knows quite a bit about playing music : while at the Massachusetts Hospital School in nearby Canton , he was in a musical group with other disabled students called the Headbangers .", "The group is the brainchild of Jon Adams , an assistant technology specialist at the school , a public institution serving 120 students ages 6 to 22 with significant physical disabilities .", "About 80 students live at the school during the week .", "Mr. Adams said he teaches students how to `` use technology to access their world , usually through computers . ''", "He often helps them use computers to communicate , move their wheelchairs , open doors and the like .", "They do that with switches -- large buttons hooked up to computers that can be activated with the tap of the foot , the wiggle of a finger , a breath of air , the blink of an eye or a tap of the head .", "Mr. Adams , who holds degrees in music education and music composition from the Berklee College of Music and Goddard College , said it was only natural for him to seek a way to use the technology to enhance the students ' music therapy sessions .", "About 10 years ago he wrote a software program , Switch Ensemble , that enables a computer to play particular notes or rhythms when activated by a switch .", "Shortly thereafter the Headbangers were born .", "-LRB- The name was supplied by one of the students . -RRB-", "Each member of the ensemble is assigned a different `` instrument '' and learns to follow the conductor through weekly practice .", "The program can also be integrated with an IntelliKeys computer keyboard , which can be adapted for multiple uses and is widely used by disabled students .", "The group plays many recognizable tunes , like `` Santa Baby , '' rendered at a recent holiday performance .", "Although the music is activated with a simple rap on a switch , the tunes do not play automatically as a child 's toy might .", "Just as with a regular orchestra , the students ' actions make or break the music .", "The program , which Mr. Adams recently upgraded , simplified and renamed Super Switch Ensemble , requires that students learn about music to be successful performers , said Suzanne B . Hanser , the chairwoman of the music therapy department at Berklee , in Boston .", "`` They have to recognize the melody , '' she said .", "`` They have to match the rhythm of that melody and to make that auditory motor match so they know precisely when they need to move to create the sound that will work in the music .", "`` This is earthshaking for individuals who have been locked inside themselves , literally unable to communicate . ''", "Dr. Hanser is using Mr. Adams 's software to train music therapists .", "Traditional music therapy for the disabled involved having a child imitate humming or use an instrument adapted to the child 's disabilities to create a single set of sounds .", "Generally this does not involve performance of a work .", "`` Musical instruments just do n't work -- they do n't have the physical abilities , `` said Eve Montague , a music therapist who coordinates the creative arts program at the hospital school , referring to the limitations of traditional music therapy for the severely disabled .", "`` At some point you have to say there has to be another way . ''", "Ms. Montague said that for many students in the Headbangers , it is their first experience of working in a group .", "Because of their disabilities , group interaction had previously seemed unimaginable .", "Mr. Adams has adapted his technology for use in dramatics , at the school radio station and in the school band , where students play percussion instruments supplemented by music created by students working with switches .", "Recently students performed a dramatic version of `` Robin Hood , '' using the switch technology to `` recite '' their lines .", "The Headbangers have performed at the school , at a conference in Rhode Island and at the headquarters of the Big Dig transportation construction project in Boston .", "Mr. Hughes , who has graduated from the school and is now living in a small group home during the week , took part in those performances .", "When he left school last year , he was awarded a $ 2,000 scholarship that was used to buy a computer on which he plays music .", "`` Music is his primary focus in life right now , '' said his mother , Denise .", "`` You do n't have to have all your physical whatever to enjoy music .", "It transcends that .", "It makes him feel like a whole person . `` ."], "summary": ["Headbangers is musical group for disabled founded by Jon Adams at Massachusetts Hospital School .", "Adams has helped students use computers to communicate and move their wheelchairs and now enhances music therapy sessions using IntelliKeys computer keyboard , which can be adapted for multiple uses .", "Students must recognize melody and match rhythm to make auditory monitor match sounds that will work in music .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [14, 20, 7], "tag": ["Technology"]} +{"id": "1453303", "text": ["WHEN Michael Scantlen purchased a Sirius satellite radio system for his car , he had to buy not only the equipment but extra gasoline as well .", "`` The first week I got Sirius , I used up an extra half-tank of gas because I did n't want to stop listening to the programming , `` said Mr. Scantlen , 47 , an electrical engineer in Agawam , Mass .", "`` I have n't listened to regular radio since I bought it . ``", "Comments like Mr. Scantlen 's must come as relief to Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio , the two companies in the business of supplying an alternative to conventional AM and FM broadcast radio .", "Both have spent billions of dollars on satellites , transmission equipment , studios and programmers -LRB- and seen their stock prices plummet in the process -RRB- to create all-digital radio networks .", "Think satellite or cable television without pictures , and you will understand the digital satellite radio concept .", "Both Sirius and XM offer 100 channels of static-free radio reception in the car or at home , scores of unique and proprietary channels coast to coast and excellent sound , no matter whether you are driving through Manhattan or the Arizona desert .", "Like satellite or cable television , satellite radio requires you to sign up as a subscriber -LRB- usually through a car audio dealer -RRB- and pay a monthly fee : $ 12.95 for Sirius , $ 9.99 for XM -LRB- Sirius offers discounts for long-term subscriptions -RRB- .", "You also need to buy new equipment .", "Replacement receivers are available for cars -LRB- they also receive AM and FM broadcasts and come with the typical options like CD and tape players -RRB- , as are adapter kits that work with existing audio systems , feeding the signal through the cassette player or over an unused FM frequency .", "Starting with the 2003 model year , many auto manufacturers are including satellite radios with certain cars .", "For the home , receivers are available that connect to stereo systems , usually through an auxiliary input .", "Sirius and XM use somewhat different satellite technology .", "Three Sirius satellites orbit the earth in a figure-eight pattern , with two of the three always over the United States .", "To ensure uninterrupted programming , all three transmit the same signal , but with a four-second delay between any two satellites .", "This allows a memory buffer in the receiver to smooth over any loss-of-signal problems .", "XM 's network consists of two geostationary satellites hovering over the United States -- one over the East Coast , the other over the West -- that also employ a delay-and-buffer system .", "A small roof - or window-mounted car antenna picks up the signal .", "Since the radio signals travel by line of sight , both companies have also created a network of ground-based repeater stations to ensure that the signals can be picked up in the shadow of a mountain , in the steel canyons of New York or in other areas where the transmissions might be blocked .", "The similarity of the two services ' programming outweighs their differences .", "Both have created extensive digital studios for live broadcasts and original performances .", "Both offer at least 60 channels of music plus 30 or more channels of news , talk , variety and sports .", "An uncensored comedy channel .", "Children 's programming .", "Radio dramas .", "And news from the BBC , CNBC , CNN , C-Span and Fox News , among others .", "Fans of National Public Radio 's signature news magazine programs , `` Morning Edition '' and `` All Things Considered , '' wo n't find them on either service , although Sirius does offer NPR talk and variety shows .", "`` Our news programs are staples of public radio , and it 's important to keep them exclusive to our stations , `` said an NPR spokeswoman .", "Sirius hopes that will change .", "`` Stay tuned , '' said Jay Clark , the company 's vice president for programming .", "`` We 're having discussions with NPR about that . ``", "One difference between the services is in their policies on commercials .", "All of Sirius 's 60 music channels are commercial free .", "XM runs ads on half its 70 music channels but pledges that it will never program more than six minutes per hour of commercial spots , which is one-third the amount found on standard commercial broadcast radio .", "Both companies emphasize the abundance of offerings to encourage listeners to surf the dial .", "Beatles fans listening to the group 's songs on one channel might be directed to another channel to hear an interview with Paul McCartney .", "People who like one type of music may be advised that a similar group is playing on another channel .", "In that way , the companies hope to build loyalty to the service , not just one channel .", "Both companies offer a wide range of specialty music genres .", "Jazz and blues fans have a choice of seven channels on XM , and eight on Sirius .", "XM has separate channels playing the hits of each decade from the 1940 's to the 1990 's , while Sirius offers four similarly themed channels .", "XM and Sirius both classify 11 of their channels as rock-oriented , and both break down the genre into channels playing classic , heavy , album , alternative , soft and mainstream rock .", "Listening to the offerings is the best way to decide which service is most appealing .", "Customers can sample both services free at the companies ' Web sites -- siriusradio.com and xmradio.com.", "XM offers a three-hour loop of each music channel , and Sirius simultaneously provides each channel 's content in its entirety .", "To date , most subscribers have arranged to receive service by buying a replacement car radio or adapter .", "But both services are counting on licensing agreements they have forged with car manufacturers to push sales to their break-even point .", "BMW , Ford and DaimlerChrysler are offering integrated Sirius-compatible radios as a dealer-installed option on certain 2003 models .", "GM is offering XM-compatible radios on 25 of its models , including all Cadillacs .", "XM service will also be available as an option at many Toyota dealerships and to purchasers of Honda 's Accord , Pilot and Acura MDX models .", "Nissan plans to offer Sirius and XM to customers on select 2003 models , and Volkswagen / Audi says it plans to offer both but has not specified when .", "Sirius and XM have agreed eventually to market a radio that can receive either service , but both companies say that it will not be available any time soon .", "Meanwhile , integrated dealer-installed radios for either service typically cost $ 325 , and after-market add -on units can be purchased for $ 200 or more , including installation .", "To ease the burden for new-car buyers , manufacturers will often offer to fold the cost of the radio and a year 's service into the lease or financed purchase price .", "Is digital satellite radio worth the price .", "Some early adopters , frustrated with the limitations of regular commercial AM and FM radio , say it definitely is .", "William Dreskin , a rabbi in Greenburgh , N.Y. , keeps his children content on car trips with the youth-oriented channels on the XM radio he bought when he leased a new car .", "`` I 've set six channel presets on children 's programming for my kids , six for me and six for my wife .", "I like to listen to jazz , but with a regular jazz radio station , I never knew what I 'd hear and if I 'd lose the signal when I was driving to Queens or Long Island to serve my congregants . ``", "Brian Stafford , who owns a machine tool factory in Little Rock , Ark . , and travels 200 to 300 miles a week on business , said : `` Since subscribing to Sirius , I ca n't remember the last time I 've listened to regular radio .", "The variety 's unbelievable and I can hear the programming wherever I go .", "I have n't even bothered to reprogram my radio for the AM and FM channels I used to listen to . ``", "BASICS ."], "summary": ["Satellite radio , currently supplied by Sirius and XM , sees its fortunes rise after spending billions of dollars on equipment , studios and programmers .", "Customers must susbscribe to service , pay monthly fee and buy equpment to receive broadcasts .", "Networks offer similar programming with major difference being policies on commercials .", "Sirius music channels are commercial free , but only half of XM channels are .", "Both have abundance of offerings to meet almost every taste .", "Chart compares services , fees and offerings .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 32, 31, 34, 23, 12], "tag": ["Technology"]} +{"id": "1453307", "text": ["ROY COOPER pawed through hundreds of tapestries , searching for a fetching combination of colors and print .", "Nothing caught his eye until a tiny , toothless woman wearing a felt fedora and dozens of gold necklaces presented a black and tan rug with geometric patterns .", "`` Runners in dark shades and earth tones , that 's all anyone wants , `` Mr. Cooper , a 52-year-old Kentucky native , said in Spanish with a thick Southern drawl .", "`` The gringos wo n't pay a dime these days for the brightly colored rugs , so forget the reds and pinks . ``", "Mr. Cooper , who has lived in Quito with his Ecuadorean wife , Eulalia , for 23 years , bargained the price from $ 12 to $ 10 , purchased the Navajo-style floor runner and lit a cigarette to celebrate : The rug will likely fetch $ 30 or more at auction on eBay , where he sells tapestries , baskets and religious relics at substantial markups .", "Mr. Cooper , who devotes 15 hours a week to buying , listing and shipping eBay items , clears roughly $ 1,300 a month from his online business , and up to $ 2,500 each November and December .", "By contrast , the World Bank estimates that the average Ecuadorean earns $ 1,460 a year .", "Mr. Cooper 's business puts him in an elite group in Ecuador , not only by virtue of his income but also because of the tools with which he makes it .", "Of Ecuador 's 13 million people , only 2.7 percent have been online , according to the government-owned communications company , Conatel .", "Internet entrepreneurs flourish in Ecuador 's largest cities , but many are educated businessmen with ties to the United States .", "Thousands of households in Quito -LRB- the capital -RRB- and Guayaquil -LRB- the largest city -RRB- have Internet access , but few rural communities have telephone lines .", "The discrepancies make experts pessimistic .", "They worry that the rapid pace of change in the technology industry will cause third-world nations like Ecuador to slip further behind Europe and North America .", "`` In the late 1990 's , everyone jumped up in arms over the digital divide , but it has proven almost impossible to bridge , `` said Peter Hakim , president of the Inter-American Dialogue , a Washington-based policy-analysis center , and an expert on Latin America .", "`` It is a region of inequality .", "Why would access to technology be any different than access to education , health care , employment or financial aid .", "`` In 2000 , fewer than 1 percent of Ecuadoreans had sent e-mail or surfed the Web at home , school or work or in cybercafes .", "In August 2001 , in an effort to expand access , the government created the National Connectivity Commission .", "Public `` telecentros '' have sprung up to provide free Internet access -- under the auspices of nonprofit groups for which the commission helps find donors -- and home connections , previously timed by the minute , are now available for a flat rate of about $ 25 a month .", "`` I know that in five years , most people in Ecuador still wo n't be able to buy a computer , `` said Jos\u00e9 Pileggi , president of Conatel , which oversees the connectivity project .", "`` But my hope is that they will at least know that they have access to computers . ''", "-LSB- Help may also come from the United Nations , which on Dec . 9 began an Internet initiative in Esmeraldas , one of Ecuador 's most impoverished provinces .", "The project will be run by workers from the United Nations Volunteers and financed by the Ecuadorean government , the World Bank and Japan 's International Cooperation Agency , offering `` one-stop offices '' where fishermen , artisans and other small-business owners can use the Web to find new markets . -RSB-", "Ecuador 's government is also trying to create a hospitable environment for online businesses .", "In April , the legislature approved a bill giving electronic documents the same legal status as paper documents and making digital theft a crime .", "Still , Ecuador 's politics , economy and geography have proven formidable barriers to Internet access .", "The most ominous threats are political instability and corruption .", "The connectivity program was the brainchild of President Gustavo Noboa 's administration .", "But the program 's fate belongs to President-elect Lucio Guti\u00e9rrez , who takes office Jan . 15 .", "Mr. Guti\u00e9rrez , a military coup leader who will become Ecuador 's sixth president in six years , did not mention technology or Internet access in his campaign .", "Even if the program survives , some dismiss it as a potential hotbed of bribery .", "Ricardo Garcia Fuentes , owner of Limon y Caf\u00e9 , a cybercafe in the Galapagos Islands , said he and several partners paid about $ 50,000 to set up satellite Internet access in Puerto Ayora , 600 miles from the mainland .", "Mr. Fuentes said government officials , primarily from Conatel , the phone company , demanded an additional $ 300,000 in `` startup fees , '' which he and his partners painstakingly gathered or borrowed from investors , including some in the United States .", "He said it did not matter whether the fees were required tariffs or flagrant bribes .", "He had to pay them to open his business .", "`` We are out here on the vanguard of technology , '' Mr. Fuentes said in his bar , a tourist haunt with tiki lights and salsa tunes .", "`` But the government makes it too costly .", "They try to give us a solution but it creates an even bigger headache .", "There is already too much bureaucracy in this country . ``", "What fees the $ 300,000 represented and where the money wound up is unclear .", "Several Internet service providers here reported having paid officials similar fees .", "But the connectivity commission says it neither receives nor solicits payments from prospective Internet service providers , and Mr. Pileggi , the president of Conatel , insisted that no one had to bribe a government official to become a provider .", "In any case , some say corruption may be eroding the commission 's fundamental source of revenue -- a tax on phone companies ' revenues -- because many officials believe executives understate revenue to minimize corporate taxes .", "Whatever the integrity of the system , the cost of access is daunting .", "Mario Ort\u00edz , a Conatel executive in charge of infrastructure , estimated that providing universal Internet access -- including lines to vast tracts of the Amazon jungle -- would be at least $ 1.9 billion .", "That is more than one-third of Ecuador 's $ 5.1 billion annual budget .", "Mr. Ort\u00edz is considering the costs and benefits of connections other than land lines , including spread spectrum , a method developed by the United States military that spreads a narrow-band signal over a broader portion of the radio frequency band .", "But because of security concerns , he does not want spread spectrum in urban areas .", "In the meantime , Mr. Cooper , in his way , bridges the divide .", "In addition to selling items on eBay , he takes custom orders when clients want a statue of a specific saint or a rug of particular dimensions .", "He sees himself as a New Economy intermediary , a man who connects the haves and have-nots of cyberspace .", "`` The Indians are very happy to sell me tapestries for $ 10 , even when they know I will turn around and sell them for three times as much , '' Mr. Cooper said as he packed alpaca rugs , wooden statues and glass-framed Amazon insect collections into his sport-utility vehicle .", "`` These people do n't have computers and have never heard of e-commerce . ``", "So they are glad to have the $ 10 , he said .", "For now , at least ."], "summary": ["Only 2.7 percent of Ecuadorians have been online .", "Experts are concerned that rapid pace in technology industry will cause third-world nations like Ecuador to slip further behind Europe and North America .", "Government is trying to create hospitable environment for online businesses although many see it as potential hotbed for bribery and instances of exorbitant fees have already been reported .", "United Nations will begin program in one of country 's poorest provinces to give Internet access to small business owners to help expand markets .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 23, 30, 8], "tag": ["Technology"]} +{"id": "1453310", "text": ["AS the author of a book about piano technology and the co-curator of an exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution celebrating the 300th anniversary of the instrument 's invention , Edwin M . Good has examined and played just about every kind of piano there is .", "They all share at least one trait , he said .", "`` All pianos are always out of tune , '' said Dr. Good , a professor emeritus of religious studies at Stanford University .", "`` A piano is by definition not in tune . ''", "That sweeping statement is true : the most common piano tuning , based on what is known as the equal-tempered scale , deliberately alters the pitch of some notes to improve the instrument 's overall harmonics .", "But if all pianos are indeed out of tune , some are more out of tune than others .", "With temperature and humidity changes , it does not take long for the 88 tones of an acoustic piano to get out of whack .", "`` A very large part of the piano is wood , and wood expands and contracts with changes in humidity , '' Dr. Good said .", "While concert pianists can have their instruments tuned shortly before a performance , most pianists just put up with the problem .", "At best , they might have their pianos tuned once or twice a year .", "Don A . Gilmore , an amateur piano player and professional engineer from Kansas City , Mo . , however , has developed an electronic system that he says could allow pianists to tune their own instruments at the touch of a button .", "Most other instruments can be tuned as needed by the person playing them .", "A violinist , for example , tunes the violin before playing and can even compensate for tuning problems while playing by slightly repositioning the fingers on the strings .", "With a piano , however , Mr. Gilmore said , `` you 're at the mercy of the instrument when you play it . ``", "When he is not playing Chopin , Mr. Gilmore , 38 , spends his time designing customized industrial equipment and factory systems .", "Early in his career , while developing a machine that used servomotors , which can be commanded to start and stop very precisely , Mr. Gilmore began considering ways that they might be used in a self-tuning piano .", "The 88 tones of a piano are created by about 250 strings .", "The lower notes use single strings , while the middle and higher notes use two or three strings each , which helps increase their volume .", "But multiple strings make tuning more difficult .", "With a high note , for example , `` if any one of the three strings in a note is off a slight amount , it 's obvious , `` Mr. Gilmore said .", "While briefly unemployed about a decade ago , he developed and later patented his first tuning device .", "It could mechanically tune three strings simultaneously based on electronic analysis of their sound .", "That system had some major problems , he said .", "For one thing , because it used microphones to pick up the tones from the strings , the device could not distinguish very well between individual strings .", "It was certainly a long way from a self-tuning piano .", "Yet Mr. Gilmore resumed his efforts after he was informally contacted by QRS Music Technologies , a company that makes paper rolls for old-fashioned player pianos and systems that convert conventional pianos into electronic self-playing instruments .", "QRS also owns the piano maker Story & Clark .", "Mr. Gilmore 's said his `` epiphany '' came when he tried using separate magnetic pickups , like those found on electric guitars , for each of the strings .", "Unlike microphones , the pickups are not affected by adjacent strings or extraneous noise .", "The pickups , combined with a microprocessor , took care of figuring out how much tuning the piano required .", "But he still needed to devise some way to do the tuning .", "`` I knew anything mechanical was not going to be reliable , '' he said .", "Initially he considered making piano strings from Flexinol , a nickel-titanium shape memory wire , which flexes in specific ways in response to temperature changes .", "But the final solution was simpler : Mr. Gilmore decided to use heat provided by electricity to expand or contract conventional piano strings and alter their tuning .", "Piano strings are relatively poor conductors of electricity , and their resistance will quickly generate heat when a current is passed through them .", "Increasing the current will raise a string 's temperature and cause it to expand .", "The expansion decreases the tension of the string , lowering the pitch .", "Reducing the current makes the string cooler and causes it to contract , increasing tension and raising pitch .", "Working with technicians at QRS , which has licensed the technology , Mr. Gilmore is developing a prototype of the self-tuning piano .", "He anticipates that once the pianos are in production , their strings will be heated to 95 degrees before being tuned at the factory .", "That reference tuning would then be stored in the piano 's electronic memory .", "Once at its final destination , the piano will always have to warm up before play .", "To retune the piano , users will press a button and all of its notes will sound .", "The computer will compare the results to the reference tuning and raise or lower individual string temperatures as needed .", "Mr. Gilmore expects the process to take about 20 seconds .", "The self-tuning piano may still need manual retuning if it goes badly out of tune because of , say , a move from an extremely humid to an extremely dry place .", "Users would also be able to store the work of their own tuners as the reference if they prefer .", "Thomas A . Dolan , the president and chief executive of QRS , declined to predict when the first self-tuning piano would come to market or to estimate its price .", "He said the first product based on some of Mr. Gilmore 's technology would probably be a portable tuning aid that will still require manual adjustments of the strings .", "Mr. Dolan said that when Story & Clark makes its first self-tuning pianos , they will be grand pianos rather than uprights .", "`` You do n't want the tuning system to cost twice the value of the piano , `` he said .", "Because the pianos are likely to be expensive , he said , he believes that at first they will be purchased mainly by schools and professional musicians .", "Dr. Good , for one , is unlikely to be interested .", "`` Maybe it works , '' he said .", "`` But if it works , I 'm not sure I want it .", "Why bother with all this expense when you can just get the piano tuned every three months .", "`` WHAT 'S NEXT ."], "summary": ["Don A Gilmore , amateur piano player and professional engineer , develops electronic system that he says could allow pianists to tune their own instruments at touch of button .", "Device , which uses heat provided by electricity to expand or contract conventional piano strings and alter their tuning , will be installed in prototype self-tuning piano made by QRS Music Technologies .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 33], "tag": ["Technology"]} +{"id": "1453311", "text": ["A RESEARCHER at AT&T Labs is proposing to stop at least some spam before it starts by using e-mail addresses that expire or come with other restrictions attached in code .", "`` It came to me one day that spam works because there 's no easy way to differentiate between what 's real e-mail and what is n't , `` said John Ioannidis , a member of the research department at AT&T Labs in Florham Park , N.J.", "Dr. Ioannidis suggests adopting something he calls `` single-purpose addresses '' rather than continuing to refine software filters that try to sort the good from the bad .", "Such addresses would not replace permanent e-mail addresses , which , under Dr. Ioannidis 's plan , users would continue to give to those they trust and need to maintain contact with , like relatives or employers .", "Instead , single-purpose addresses would be used when the senders have no continuing relationship with the other parties and fear that their e-mail addresses might be sold or given to spammers .", "Online purchasing or newsgroup postings are obvious examples .", "Dr. Ioannidis will present a paper about his approach in February at a meeting of experts in computer network security .", "Under the system , users would generate single-purpose addresses with special software .", "The process could be relatively simple .", "Using an on-screen menu , the user would first select how long the address would exist .", "Currently , the shortest period with Dr. Ioannidis 's technology is one day .", "A user could also choose to have the address work only when sent from a specific domain -LRB- the part that follows the @ symbol -RRB- .", "This would prevent an unexpired address from being used by spammers .", "After those settings are made , the address software would generate a code containing the date and domain restrictions and the user 's permanent e-mail address .", "That code , in turn , would be converted into a string of 26 characters that appear to be a jumble of numbers and letters .", "Together with the user 's domain , the string would form the single-purpose address , which could be cut and pasted into forms like those used by online stores .", "When , say , the store sends a reply indicating that a user 's desired item is out of stock , software on the customer 's mail server would decode the special address and then , assuming it remains valid , forward the mail to the permanent address .", "Dr. Ioannidis acknowledges that even with his system , spammers could still get access to permanent e-mail addresses .", "A trusted relative , he said , may give someone 's full e-mail address to an online greeting card service , which could then sell it to spammers .", "But Dr. Ioannidis hopes that if his system is widely adopted , it will pollute spam mailing lists with so many invalid addresses that the lists will become increasingly useless .", "The process could take decades , however , he said .", "`` The idea is to raise the bar to make it difficult to spam my address , '' Dr. Ioannidis said .", "John Mozena , a co-founder and vice president of an anti-spam group , the Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail , said that Dr. Ioannidis 's technology would not likely change his organization 's view that legislation remains the most effective form of anti-spam protection .", "`` This technology might protect some individual users from a certain amount of spam , '' Mr. Mozena said .", "`` But it 's adding insult to injury to also have us spend time , money and effort on tools to keep spam out of our mailboxes . ``", "Mr. Mozena also said he found it unlikely that spammers would simply give up if e-mail lists became filled with worthless addresses .", "`` The quality of those lists are already so miserable that it would n't really matter , `` he said ."], "summary": ["John Ioannidis , researcher at AT&T Labs , develops idea for combatting spam .", "Suggests adopting what he calls single-purpose addresses to be used when senders have no continuing relationship with other parties and fear that their e-mail addresses might be sold or given to spammers .", "Other similar ideas discussed ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4], "tag": ["Technology"]} +{"id": "1453313", "text": ["The Oklahoma state government has begun offering an e-mail service that alerts subscribers whenever terror threat levels change at the state or national level .", "Those who sign up for the service at YourOklahoma.com can receive the updates through any device with e-mail capability .", "Jeff McCartney , general manager of YourOklahoma.com, said the service had been well received in the state , which was terrorized by a bombing seven years ago .", "`` We 've had to deal with very serious issues , `` Mr. McCartney said .", "`` My personal opinion is that others would look to Oklahoma for leadership . ''", "As far as state officials know , they are the first to set up an e-mail notification service that deals exclusively with terror threats .", "The White House Web site -LRB- www.whitehouse . gov -RRB- allows people to sign up for updates on homeland security issues but has no specific notification for changes in threat levels .", "Whenever threat levels change , subscribers to Oklahoma 's service receive a brief notification that informs them of the change and directs them to the state 's Web site for details .", "`` Just from our experience , we 've learned that communication is very critical , `` Mr. McCartney said , adding that he expects demand for the service to grow .", "Rebecca Fairley Raney NEWS WATCH : SAFETY ."], "summary": ["Oklahoma state government begins offering e-mail service that alerts subscribers whenever terror threat levels change at state or national level .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Technology"]} +{"id": "1453314", "text": ["THE dollar ended last year in a precipitous plunge , falling 5 percent against the euro and 3 percent against the yen in December , and it looks to be headed lower in 2003 .", "The question is how much .", "The dollar had been slipping against the euro and the yen since early last year , weakened by sluggish economic growth at home , a falling stock market and wary foreign investors .", "Lately , the threat of war with Iraq , rising oil prices and other geopolitical uncertainties have been dragging it lower .", "Still , the off-the-cliff acceleration in December caught many currency analysts by surprise and upset forecasts for 2003 .", "The dollar 's fall was so swift that it is already lower now against the euro and the yen than some forecasters had predicted for the end of this year .", "Before last month 's drop , forecasters predicting a 15 percent decline in the dollar this year might have seemed on the lunatic fringe , said Lara Rhame , senior foreign exchange economist at Brown Brothers Harriman .", "`` All of a sudden , that does n't look out of the range of possibilities , `` she said .", "Ms. Rhame is expecting a dollar decline , but maybe not as steep as that .", "Nor is she saying that the dollar is weak .", "It will just not be as strong as it has been .", "On a broad , trade-weighted basis , the average dollar value last year is still the third strongest it has been since the currency began to be freely traded in the early 1970 's .", "`` Until you get another major industrial economy on track with strong productivity growth and high expectations of investment returns , there is not going to be a big flow of foreign money out of the United States , '' Ms. Rhame said .", "So , she said , `` the dollar can skate through at a relatively strong value . ''", "No matter how far the dollar falls , if that happens , that would be the dollar 's first back-to-back annual declines since 1994-95 .", "But a weaker dollar is not necessarily bad .", "It could help a broader economic recovery by making American exports cheaper and more competitive abroad .", "American manufacturers that compete against foreign companies -- notably automakers -- would also benefit because the dollar price of imports would rise .", "A weaker dollar would also help Americans investing overseas by reducing losses or increasing gains when foreign holdings are translated back into dollars .", "Big stock markets abroad were in the red last year , but the weaker dollar trimmed a 43.9 percent decline in Germany 's DAX index to 33.9 percent and an 18.6 percent decline in the Nikkei index of 225 Japanese stocks to 9.8 percent .", "Foreign bond returns were also enhanced , with the total return from a portfolio of European bonds rising to 28 percent when translated into dollars as a result of a euro gain of just over 9 percent .", "The big unknown for the dollar in 2003 is President Bush 's dollar policy .", "The administration has backed a strong dollar , but the desire to ensure that the economy rebounds nicely ahead of the 2004 presidential election may encourage it to shift course and try to nudge the dollar lower .", "John W . Snow , the Treasury secretary-designate , is likely to be asked repeatedly about his views on the dollar , and each word will be weighed carefully as currency traders look for any sign of support for a weaker dollar .", "If they see one , they will pounce .", "The risk in trying to talk down the value of the dollar is that it could fall much further and faster than Bush policy makers would like .", "An orderly dollar decline , like the one that occurred last year , is easy for the economy and the financial markets to handle .", "But a rapid fall could further disrupt the economy .", "The dollar fell 15.2 percent last year against the euro , a 12-nation currency , ending 2002 at 1.0492 and giving that currency its first positive year since it was introduced into limited use in January 1999 .", "The dollar also dropped against the currencies of two other big trading partners , falling 9.8 percent against the Japanese yen , to 118.79 , and 1.3 percent against the Canadian dollar , to 1.5718 -LRB- the Canadian dollar settled at 63.62 cents -RRB- .", "Its biggest declines came against the South African rand , off 28.4 percent , and the Norwegian krone , down 22.6 percent .", "But the dollar also had some gains , including a rise of 13.2 percent against the Mexican peso , to a rate of 10.37.", "It surged against the currencies of three economically troubled Latin American nations : Brazil , Venezuela and Argentina .", "This mixed performance means that the broadest measure of the dollar 's overall value , a trade-weighted dollar adjusted for inflation , slipped just 1.5 percent in 2002 , based on preliminary Federal Reserve data .", "While recent forecasts of the dollar 's value at year-end may have been overtaken by the December decline , the predictions for the dollar-euro rate included in the December reading by Consensus Economics of London show that there is no unanimity on the dollar 's direction .", "As of Dec . 9 , the forecasts ranged from a dollar decline of 12.1 percent to a rise of 9.9 percent against the euro .", "Against the yen , the forecasts ranged from a dollar fall of 12.4 percent to a rally of 13.5 percent .", "The yen forecast is much more difficult because the economic fundamentals militate for a weaker yen and stronger dollar .", "But Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa of Japan and other government leaders made clear in December that they wanted a weak yen to help exporters and the ailing economy .", "The Brazilian real could benefit from the dollar 's weakness and rally this year if Brazil 's new president , Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva , appears to be dealing successfully with the country 's economic and debt problems .", "Mexico 's peso is likely to slip a bit further , based on the consensus forecast .", "The most interesting offbeat dollar play last year was the Norwegian krone , said Laurie A . Cameron , global currency strategist at the J . P . Morgan Private Bank .", "With the forecast of a 4 percent rise in the value of the krone against the dollar and 6.5 percent from investing in short-term government securities , this year could bring a return of more than 10 percent .", "In addition to being affected by sluggish growth here and a lackluster stock market , the dollar could also be dragged lower by concerns about the size of the United States ' current-account deficit , which rose to $ 127 billion in November , nearly a record .", "It takes an enormous flow of capital from abroad to cover the deficit , which includes red ink in trade , and that inflow may be slowing , which could weaken the dollar .", "Yet the dollar could stage a surprise rally .", "The geopolitical drag on its value could be lessened if a war with Iraq was averted or if it was successful and over quickly .", "While the forecasts of economic growth for the United States are not robust , those for Europe and Japan are still weaker .", "If the American economy and stock markets move ahead faster than expected , many investors could be drawn back to the United States , pushing up the dollar 's value .", "A narrowing of the gap in interest rates between Europe and the United States would also make the dollar more attractive .", "The European Central Bank cut its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point , to 2.75 percent , in December .", "That is more than double the 1.25 percent benchmark rate set by the Federal Reserve .", "But that gap could narrow substantially if the European bank cuts rates again and if the Fed begins to raise its benchmark interest rate as the economy finally picks up steam in the second half of 2003 .", "Money & Investing ."], "summary": ["US dollar fell against currencies of many American trading partners in 2002 , including European Union , Canada and Japan , and lackluster US economy could cause it to fall further in 2003 .", "Dollar fell 5 percent against euro and 3 percent against yen in December .", "Weaker dollar could help broader economic recovery by making American exports cheaper and more competitive abroad .", "Chart .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 0, 27], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453315", "text": ["THE dominant image of the stock market tumble that began nearly three years ago has been a bursting bubble .", "And while it was true that the worth of many companies was inflated beyond all reason , it turns out that deflating those valuations did not immediately reveal all the damage .", "Instead , the decline in stocks took its time in damaging the economy , much as a domino near the end of a line can topple long after the first ones fall .", "The first pain was felt by millions of investors , who lost billions but proved surprisingly resilient .", "The fact that consumers kept spending helped keep the 2001 recession mild .", "But it soon became clear that sales at companies that had prospered most during the boom , notably telecommunications concerns , were going to remain depressed .", "Forecasts of an early revival were consistently wrong , and now some companies have put off their hopes for growth until 2004 .", "Only in 2002 did it become clear just how far this string went -- from the federal government to city halls .", "Governments had been dependent on the revenue-producing effects of the bubble -- particularly income taxes on profits from cashed-in stock options .", "Now state and local governments are being forced to reduce spending sharply and raise taxes , moves that will slow the economy .", "What 's left to tumble .", "Consumer behavior is the area that many economists are watching .", "Reports of disappointing Christmas spending could be an indication that high debt levels are finally slowing purchases .", "But housing remains strong , and thanks to low interest rates , most consumers have ample income to pay interest charges on the money they owe .", "Productivity numbers have remained strong , providing a source of reassurance that the economy remains healthy .", "But it is possible that the good news could end in 2003 .", "`` If the productivity numbers reflected the wild and excessive investments , '' said Robert J . Barbera , the chief economist of ITG / Hoenig , a Wall Street firm , `` productivity might begin to fade '' since bubble-related capital spending has collapsed .", "He said some research showed a two-year delay in the impact of investments on productivity numbers .", "And then , of course , there are signs of a weakening dollar , high oil prices and the prospect of war with Iraq , with a possibly messy aftermath , to give investors pause .", "But to some bulls , the real issue is not so much whether the economic outlook is bright , but whether share prices fell far enough to more than compensate for the remaining risks .", "There were signs within the market , including widespread bearishness and a big increase in volatility , that a turning point was reached when stocks bottomed on Oct . 9 .", "There are also historical precedents .", "It 's been seven decades since the last time the market went down in four consecutive years -- as would happen if 2003 turned out to be a bad year .", "And it has been more than six decades since the third year of a presidential election cycle brought lower share prices .", "On the other hand , big bear markets are usually followed by bull markets with leadership that is different from the previous bull market .", "But the rebound since Oct . 9 has been led by technology and telecommunications stocks -- which also led previous rallies in the bear market that began in the spring of 2000 .", "Those earlier rallies all ended with declines that took the market to new lows .", "It is hard to remember a time when valuation levels were harder to determine , simply because earnings numbers are now in doubt .", "Part of that relates to scandals that have led to restatements , and part to a growing sense that the willingness to use numbers that leave out bad news -- so-called pro forma earnings -- created too optimistic a picture .", "But some analysts , notably Steve Leuthold of the Leuthold Group , a research firm based in Minneapolis , calculate that valuations had fallen to reasonable levels at the October lows .", "Others point out that many companies whose share prices plunged have reported lower profits , and that their stocks still trade at higher multiples of earnings than in pre-bubble years .", "That is particularly true of large technology stocks .", "For bulls , a tempting comparison is to the mid-1970 ` s , when the stock market fell roughly as far as it did during the bear market that ended -- knock on wood -- in October .", "From top to bottom in 1973-74 , the Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index fell 48 percent .", "This time , the decline was 49 percent .", "The economic problems of that era were different from today -- rising inflation and economic stagnation were the principal fears -- but the pessimism as the market hit bottom was similar .", "The pessimists then were right to forecast that the economy would do worse than it had in previous decades .", "But the stock market still took off in 1975 , with the S . & P . 500 gaining 32 percent , although prices did not climb to record levels for several years .", "The market in 2002 ended with declines in all the principal gauges for a third consecutive year , something that had not happened since 1939-41 .", "Wall Street forecasters are virtually united in saying the string will stop there , although a year ago they were forecasting that the year just ended would have increases .", "But on a historical basis , at any rate , they have more going for them now than they had a year ago .", "First , the last time that the big indexes had four consecutive declines was in 1929-32 .", "And while this economy has not been especially vibrant , no one is talking about a depression either .", "Second , there is the presidential election cycle .", "For whatever reason -- and cynics have asserted that presidents planning to seek re-election are eager to make things look good in the year when potential rivals are deciding whether to run -- the third year of the election cycle is often the best one .", "The last time either the Dow Jones industrial average or the S . & P . 500 fell in the third year of a presidential cycle was in 1939 , when World War II began in Europe .", "-LRB- In 1987 , there was a crash , but both indexes ended the year with small gains . -RRB-", "To some extent at least , 2002 was the year that Americans ' faith in the stock market was finally shaken .", "It was the first year since 1988 that Americans took more money out of stock mutual funds than they put in , a fact that is all the more impressive given the automatic investments that come from 401 -LRB- k -RRB- plans and that are counted in the numbers .", "But the Investment Company Institute , a trade group , reports that net withdrawals through November amounted to just 0.7 percent of assets , an indication that investors did not come close to panicking .", "To many , investors ' continuing faith in stocks makes perfect sense .", "With interest rates low , savings accounts and even bonds look less attractive than they did during previous market swoons .", "And even after the recent fall , the Dow has risen at a compound annual rate of 10.9 percent over the last 20 years , excluding dividends .", "That is better than any 20-year period in the Dow 's history before the late 1990 's .", "-LRB- In 1929 , the peak came with the Dow 's having risen at less than a 9 percent annual rate over the previous two decades . -RRB-", "It may not make investors who entered the market near its peak feel any better , but the recent falls have wiped out only a small part of the gains of the great bull market that began in 1982 .", "-LRB- Numerologists take note : In 1982 , the Dow bottomed at 776.92.", "Last year , on Oct . 9 , the S . & P . hit its year 's low at 776.76. -RRB-", "The declines were widespread in 2002 -- more so than during the previous years of the bear market .", "Both the Dow and the S . & P . had worse years in 2002 than they experienced in either 2000 or 2001 .", "The S . & P . 500 's decline of 23.4 percent was the steepest for any full year since the fall of 29.7 percent in 1974 , and every sector in the index posted declines .", "Just 131 of the 500 stocks rose -- the lowest number for any year since the S . & P . began tracking that statistic in 1980 .", "The Dow , which was blessed by its relatively low level of technology stocks , fell just 16.8 percent , but that was still the worst since 1977 .", "And of the 30 Dow stocks , only 3 -- Eastman Kodak , Procter & Gamble and 3M -- showed gains for the year .", "Volatility also rose to levels rarely seen before .", "About one trading day in two had the S . & P . 500 and the Dow rise or fall more than 1 percent , and on average they had moves of at least 2 percent once a week .", "For the S . & P . , volatility was the highest since 1938 .", "For the Dow , it was greater than in any year since 1933 .", "Volatility in the Nasdaq composite was even greater , with 67 percent of sessions showing moves of at least 1 percent .", "But that was down from a peak of 75 percent set in 2000 .", "Volatility often peaks around the time markets change directions , and that may have been true in 2002 .", "The S . & P . 500 showed moves of at least one percentage point in 15 consecutive sessions ended Oct . 11 , a period that included the market 's bottom on Oct . 9 .", "Since World War II , the longest such string had been nine days , ended Oct . 21 , 1974 .", "That volatility came just after the end of the 1973-74 bear market .", "The recovery since Oct . 9 indicates that the market is forecasting no new recession , even if the economy is not expected to return to the days of heady growth that investors once took for granted .", "`` I am increasingly impressed at the remarkable resilience of this economy , '' Alan Greenspan , the Federal Reserve chairman , told the Economic Club of New York last month .", "Investors hope that he will continue to feel that way ."], "summary": ["Article on whether stock market will rebound in 2003 after three years of decline .", "Says to some bulls , real issue is not so much whether economic outlook is bright , but whether share prices fell far enough to more than compensate for remaining risks .", "Holds it has been seven decades since last time market went down for four consecutive years , as would happen if 2003 turned out to be bad year .", "Adds it has been more than six decades since third year of presidential election cycle brought lower share prices .", "Says big bear markets are usually followed by bull markets with leadership that is different from previous bull market .", "Graphs .", "Charts .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [19, 22, 24, 23], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453316", "text": ["THE bankruptcies of companies like Global Crossing and Adelphia Communications helped make 2002 a tough year for junk bond investors .", "A record 14.89 percent of junk bonds outstanding were in default as of the 12 months ended Nov . 29 , according to Credit Suisse First Boston , which includes in its tally companies like WorldCom , which once had sound credit ratings .", "But with hope of a stronger economy , some investors suggest that the new year may be a good time to make some cautious bets in this volatile market .", "Junk bonds -- high-yield instruments that are rated below investment grade -- are often issued by young or fast-growing companies , which tend to borrow heavily .", "In the late 1990 's , the biggest issuers of junk bonds were rapidly expanding cable and telecommunications companies , many of which ultimately defaulted on their debts .", "When the economy is weak , defaults of these securities tend to rise sharply .", "The default record set in 2002 was a little more than six percentage points higher than the 8.8 percent default rate in 1991 , at the depths of the last recession .", "The rising defaults contributed to an unusually wide gap between the yields on junk bonds and the yields on bonds issued by the federal government , which are considered to be the safest form of debt .", "Despite these defaults , the junk bond market managed to earn a cumulative total return of 3.02 percent , through Dec . 26 , according to an index kept by Credit Suisse .", "That compares with a total return of 12.54 percent for the year on 10-year Treasuries , one of the most conservative investments , and a decline of 23.4 percent for the Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index .", "The return on a bond takes into account the interest rate paid to an investor as well as movements in price .", "When the price of a bond falls , its yield rises .", "Junk bonds typically carry higher interest rates than Treasury or investment-grade corporate debt , and their prices are more volatile than those of other bonds , particularly when the economy is bad .", "Like stocks , junk bonds do poorly when the economy is sour .", "Since the latest economic downturn began , the gap between yields on junk bonds and on government debt has widened , as it had during other times the economy was weak .", "But by the middle of October , the difference , or spread , between junk bonds and yields on Treasuries with comparable maturities reached 11.16 percentage points , an even bigger gap than in the recession of the early 90 's , when it hit 10.96 percentage points , said Sam DeRosa-Farag , co-director of leveraged finance research at Credit Suisse .", "`` This took us all by surprise , '' Mr. DeRosa-Farag said .", "The spread between junk bonds and Treasuries never grew that wide in the previous two decades , he added .", "The outlook for junk bonds improved after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by one-half of a percentage point in November .", "The spread between high-yield bonds and Treasuries has since narrowed to 9.38 percentage points .", "`` The market is back from the dead , '' said David C . Hinman , a high-yield portfolio manager for the Pacific Investment Management Company , a large bond fund specialist .", "Some investors say they are getting more confident about investing in junk bonds now than they were in recent months because they think that defaults are finally on the brink of declining .", "`` We do think the worst is over , '' said Diane Vazza , managing director of global fixed-income research at Standard & Poor 's .", "`` Entering 2003 , we expect the global default rate to remain elevated but to decelerate slowly . ''", "Defaults tend to peak two to three years after bonds are issued .", "At the height of the bull market , from 1997 to 1999 , $ 315 billion of junk bonds were issued .", "At the time of issuance , S . & P . gave 28 percent of them junk ratings of B - or lower .", "A good number of those companies have already run into trouble , Ms. Vazza said .", "In 1991 , a year after defaults peaked , junk bonds reported their best total return ever , rising nearly 44 percent , according to Credit Suisse .", "`` People should n't expect that kind of return `` in 2003 , said Mr. Hinman of Pacific Investment Management , noting that there had been extraordinary reasons for the market 's decline in 1990 , like the bankruptcy of Drexel Burnham Lambert , then the leading underwriter of junk bonds .", "But he is optimistic that this will be a good year for junk bonds .", "Still , some investors , citing worry that the economy is shaky , say they remain wary of junk bonds .", "`` We are n't sure where we are in the economic cycle , `` said John W . Ueleke , a financial planner with Legacy Wealth Management in Memphis .", "He has close to 4 percent of his clients ' assets in high-yield bonds but is reluctant to increase that percentage just yet .", "Another uncertainty is the expectation that interest rates will rise , making it more expensive for some companies to refinance their debts and hurting companies in industries that benefited from the lower rates , like suppliers to the auto industry and home builders .", "Steven A . Tananbaum , chief investment officer at GoldenTree Asset Management , a $ 3.8 billion investor in junk bonds and related securities , said he was avoiding these sectors .", "Instead , he is favoring publishing companies and some European cable operators , which , he says , have been punished too much in recent months .", "`` To figure out the outlook for high-yield bonds , you have to have a general opinion on the economy and rates , '' Mr. Tananbaum said .", "But , more important for companies that issue junk bonds , he said , a stronger economy will mean higher profits , and fewer borrowers will default on their debt .", "`` A stronger economy will make people put money into high-yield bonds instead of Treasuries , '' said Kingman D . Penniman , president of KDP Investment Advisors , a highyield bond research firm based in Montpelier , Vt .", "`` As soon as we get a clearer picture on defaults and the economy , we should finally have a good year . ''", "Money & Investing ."], "summary": ["Optimism persists for junk bonds in 2003 despite record defaults in 2002 .", "Credit Suisse First Boston says record 14.89 percent of junk bonds outstanding were in default as of 12 months ended Nov 29 .", "Graph ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453318", "text": ["ARE the good times over .", "The answer is yes .", "That 's the question -- and the answer -- for bond investors going into this year after the fixed-income market outperformed stocks in 2002 , for the third consecutive year .", "That is a three-year run not seen since 1939 to 1941 , making it a first for most investors .", "So savor the returns .", "Over the three-year span , the total return from the fixed-income market , including Treasuries and corporates , was 33.6 percent , in contrast to a negative return , including dividends , of 37.5 percent in the Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index .", "Bonds have outperformed stocks so much over the last three years that if investors had put their money into Treasury bonds as far back as March 1994 and ignored stocks , they would be even with investors who put all their money into stocks .", "The overall return for both markets was about 120 percent .", "In the third year of this run for bonds , high-quality fixed-income securities , especially high-rated corporates and Treasury bonds and notes , did the best .", "But those who had a taste for risk did well in emerging-markets bonds , despite declines in bonds from Argentina and Brazil .", "As for this year , Mary J . Miller , assistant director of the fixed-income division at T . Rowe Price Associates , the mutual fund company , said , `` It does n't have to be a disastrous year for fixed income . ``", "But to avoid disaster , she said , investors will have to take on increased risk by moving into high-yield junk bonds and lower-rated investment-grade bonds because those sectors will be hurt less if interest rates rise , as forecast .", "The Treasury market , which would suffer the most as rates climb , is a no-no .", "Jack V . Malvey , chief global fixed-income strategist at Lehman Brothers , agreed , saying , `` Lower-quality debt will be the star in 2003 . ''", "He forecasts a return of only 4 to 5 percent in the broad fixed-income market .", "That means declines in bond prices would eat into the interest investors were paid on their fixed-income securities .", "Bonds could even have a negative year , he warned , if the economy is a little stronger than expected and the Federal Reserve raises its benchmark short-term interest rate sooner than the second half of the year and more than the expected half a percentage point .", "If this forecast sounds like last year 's , it should , because this is basically what analysts were saying at the end of 2001 .", "`` We were joking internally that we could practically take the 2002 outlook and change the numbers a little and put it out again , '' Mr. Malvey said .", "He said 2002 turned out to be different from what was expected because analysts had been too optimistic about the strength of the recovery , had not expected the threat of a war with Iraq and had yet to realize how Enron and the corporate scandals that followed would undermine investors ' confidence .", "Although the economy is not expected to be robust this year , growth of 2.5 to 3 percent should preclude worries of a double-dip recession , which may make investors willing to take on more risk .", "And many forecasters are expecting growth to be steady enough by the second half of the year for Fed policy makers to push their benchmark rate , now at 1.25 percent , a little higher .", "All that spells modestly higher interest rates , with some analysts forecasting that the yield on the Treasury 's 10-year note , which ended 2002 at 3.82 percent , will be up to 4.5 percent by the end of this year .", "Shorter-term rates are expected to rise more if the Fed nudges its benchmark rate up .", "The Treasury 's two-year note , which ended 2002 at 1.60 percent , could rise to 3 percent .", "Another negative for bonds could be the stock market .", "In recent years , the two markets have moved in opposite directions , with Treasury prices falling when stock prices rose , and vice versa .", "If that relationship continues , even a modest stock rebound this year will spell trouble for bonds .", "But forecasters were fooled last year and could be again .", "One unknown is whether there will be war with Iraq .", "Stocks could fall and the bond market rise if a war approaches .", "But if the history of the Persian Gulf war is replayed , an early sign of success could send stocks higher and bonds lower .", "`` Every economist I know reserves the right to redraw the outlook when the events occur , '' said Alan D . Levenson , chief economist at T . Rowe Price .", "Another unknown is the federal budget deficit .", "The cost of any war and the cost of rebuilding Iraq in the aftermath could add a lot to the deficit .", "And if the Bush administration wins tax cuts to stimulate the economy , that could make the deficit balloon further .", "So far , analysts and investors seem unworried about the deficit , which grew to $ 159 billion in the 2002 fiscal year , which ended Sept . 30 , in contrast with a surplus of $ 127 billion the year before .", "Some deficit forecasts for this fiscal year are already over $ 250 billion .", "The belief is that these deficits will begin to shrink as the economy grows .", "But if investors begin to doubt that , more upward pressure on interest rates could follow .", "Over all in 2002 , the fixed-income market -- including Treasuries , agencies , investment-grade corporate bonds and mortgages -- had a total return of 10.4 percent , after returns of 8.3 percent in 2001 and 11.7 percent in 2000 , according to Merrill Lynch bond indexes .", "The S . & P . 500 fell 23.4 percent , 13 percent and 10.1 percent in the last three years .", "Interest rates fell to lows not seen in more than four decades as the expected economic recovery stumbled and investors worried in the summer about the possibility of a double dip into a second recession .", "Corporate accounting scandals and corruption at companies like WorldCom and Tyco International made investors wary of risk .", "That contributed , with the economic worries and the growing possibility of a war with Iraq , to a temporary seizing up of the corporate bond market in July that made trading nearly impossible .", "Finally , Federal Reserve policy makers were worried enough about the outlook to cut their benchmark short-term interest rate in November by half a percentage point , to 1.25 percent , a 41-year low .", "In this environment , the Treasury market became a haven for many investors .", "The yield on the Treasury 's 10-year note fell as low as 3.57 percent , a 44-year low for securities with maturities of 10 years .", "The two-year note 's year-end yield of 1.60 percent was a 58-year low .", "The interest rate on the average 30-year mortgage , which was dragged lower by the decline in Treasury yields , fell to 5.93 percent , the lowest since 1965 , according to Freddie Mac , the mortgage lender .", "For the year , the total return from Treasury notes and bonds was 11.6 percent , according to Merrill Lynch , up from 6.7 percent in 2001 but down from the 13.4 percent return in 2000 .", "But Treasuries were outdone by higher quality corporate bonds , which investors bought for their relative safety and higher yields .", "Investment-grade bonds rated double A -LRB- few companies are rated triple A -RRB- had a total return of 12.3 percent , well above the return of 7.1 percent for triple-B-rated companies .", "Single A corporate bonds returned 12.6 percent .", "Despite a strong recovery in November and December when the total return from high-yield bonds was 8.2 percent -LRB- annualized , that would be 59 percent -RRB- , junk bonds still had a down year .", "Yields were above 12 percent , but the sector 's total return was a minus 1.9 percent .", "Emerging-markets bonds had a return of 14.2 percent , although the return was a negative 5.6 percent for Argentine bonds and a negative 3.3 percent for Brazilian bonds , according to J . P . Morgan bond indexes .", "Two of the best-performing emerging-markets bonds were those from Russia , with a return of 35.9 percent , and Turkey , with a return of 20.7 percent .", "News Analysis Correction : February 28 , 2003 , Friday An article in the special Outlook section of Business Day on Jan . 2 misstated the history of the yield of the two-year Treasury note .", "At the end of 2002 , the yield was 1.60 percent , the lowest in 44 years , not 58 .", "-LRB- Questions about the data in a recent e-mail message from a reader uncovered the error . -RRB- ."], "summary": ["Analysis of prospects for fixed-income market , including Treasury and corporate bonds .", "Holds fixed-income bonds are not expected to outperform stocks in 2003 as they have for three consecutive years .", "Notes total return of such investment instruments was 33.6 percent , in contrast to negative return , including dividends , of 37.5 percent in Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 53], "tag": ["Business"]} +{"id": "1453319", "text": ["In his yearly report on the federal judiciary , Chief Justice William H . Rehnquist called today for higher judicial pay , more judgeships and speedier filling of existing vacancies .", "The themes were familiar , as the chief justice acknowledged in his 17th year-end report .", "`` I am struck by the number of issues that seem regularly to crop up , or perhaps they never go away , '' he said .", "Judicial pay , in particular , is close to the heart of many members of the branch of government that Chief Justice Rehnquist heads .", "Many federal judges have found it galling that the promise of regular and uncontested cost-of-living increases they received under a 1989 federal law , which barred most types of outside income for judges , has not been fulfilled .", "Congress ended its session this year without giving judges their expected cost-of-living increase or , for that matter , approving a budget for the federal courts .", "The chief justice asked Congress to approve budget requests for a modernization and security upgrade project at the Supreme Court and to address a backlog in the federal judiciary 's continuing courthouse construction plan .", "A $ 5 billion building program began in 1985 to address decades of neglect of the federal courts ' physical needs .", "The biggest federal civilian construction program since the 1930 's , it has run into some Congressional resistance .", "Judicial pay drew the most impassioned commentary in the report .", "It was `` the most pressing issue today '' for the courts , he said , adding that `` inadequate compensation seriously compromises the judicial independence fostered by life tenure . ''", "Financial considerations are driving judges off the bench and deterring highly experienced lawyers from becoming federal judges , he said .", "Federal judicial salaries range from $ 150,000 for district judges to the chief justice 's own $ 192,600 .", "These salaries are no longer competitive with the earnings of partners at major law firms , or with those of professors at major law schools , as Justice Stephen G . Breyer testified last summer when he appeared with the chief justice before a privately financed group studying problems of government service .", "The chief justice said today that he hoped the group , known as the Volcker Commission for its chairman , Paul A . Volcker , former chairman of the Federal Reserve , would find a solution .", "`` It is obvious that the current approach to judicial and other high-level salaries does not work , '' he said .", "`` We can not continue to use an arrangement for setting pay that simply ignores the need to raise pay until judicial and other high-level government salaries are so skewed that a large -LRB- and politically unpopular -RRB- increase is necessary . ''", "The chief justice noted that `` there will always be a differential between government and private sector pay for excellent lawyers , '' but added : `` But the judiciary , in particular , will be compromised if there is too wide a gap .", "At the present time there is not just a gap , there is a chasm . ``", "On other topics , the chief justice said the federal system needed 10 new judgeships for the courts of appeals , where no positions have been created since 1990 .", "In the Second Circuit , which covers New York , Connecticut and Vermont , he noted that no positions had been created since 1984 , while the circuit 's workload has risen by almost 70 percent .", "In his brief discussion of vacancies on the federal bench , the chief justice appeared to avoid apportioning blame for widely noted difficulties in the confirmation process .", "With a nod to the departing Democratic leadership of the Senate Judiciary Committee , he said , `` We appreciate the fact that the Senate confirmed 100 judges during the 107th Congress . ''", "That was a considerably faster pace than the Republicans set when they controlled the committee and were processing the Clinton administration 's nominations .", "Congress adjourned this year leaving 60 vacancies on the federal courts .", "For 29 of these , the Bush administration had not submitted nominations .", "`` Judicial vacancies must be filled in a timely manner with well-qualified candidates , '' Chief Justice Rehnquist said .", "`` It is of no concern to the judiciary which political party is in power in the White House or the Senate .", "We simply ask that the president nominate qualified candidates with reasonable promptness and that the Senate act within a reasonable time to confirm or reject them . `` ."], "summary": ["Chief Justice William Rehnquist , in yearly report on federal judiciary , calls for higher pay , more judgeships and speedier filling of vacancies ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["U.S."]} +{"id": "1453321", "text": ["IT would be hard to conjure up a worse year for Wall Street and its analysts than 2002 .", "Stock analysts and strategists were pilloried for their gauzy optimism and accused by Eliot Spitzer , the New York attorney general , of being beholden to the investment banking side of their firms .", "At the same time , the collapsing equity markets made it especially hard to sort out the winners from the losers .", "Consequently , those who survived 2002 look at this year with a cool , skeptical , as well as careful eye .", "The role of analysts has changed .", "As a result of the settlement in principle between brokerage firms and federal and state legislators , analysts can not earn their keep by doing investment banking work .", "Now it is all about stock picking , through rigorous company-specific analysis , which in theory should be good for investors .", "Two years into his easing cycle , the magic man of years past , Alan Greenspan , the Federal Reserve chairman , has lost his power to move markets with a well-timed interest rate cut .", "On the contrary , many experts now say , the market 's next bull run will be presaged by evidence that the Fed is moving toward a rate-tightening bias .", "Put simply : higher rates signal an economy on the mend , which means better earnings for companies across the board .", "Despite the market 's glum mood , investment opportunities still exist , a group of analysts say .", "Many companies in crucial sectors like retail , cable , brokerages and technology have been revamping for more than a year .", "Layoffs , store closings and other measures of cost-cutting have given a number of large companies spruced-up balance sheets .", "They will be well placed to take advantage of sector recoveries when they come along .", "From I.B.M. to Comcast , to Merrill Lynch to Gap , the names are familiar , and in all cases , they are trading well below their highs .", "These analysts , Dana Telsey of Bear , Stearns , Guy Moszkowski of Salomon Smith Barney , Laura C . Conigliaro of Goldman , Sachs , Richard Bilotti of Morgan Stanley and Richard Bernstein of Merrill Lynch , do not expect the companies to approach their past highs -- by most accounts , 2003 will be a difficult year for the markets as a whole .", "Most agree , however , that these companies will outperform the broader market .", "DANA TELSEY is the senior retail analyst at Bear , Stearns .", "Most retailers are `` overstored . ''", "A lot of companies have reached a stage of maturation where it is not possible to achieve the same level of top-line sales growth they had in the past .", "Many retailers are working to make efficiencies on expenses , distribution costs and systems to enhance returns .", "We think 2003 will show a continuation of this sort of refinement .", "Over all , retailers are faced with an environment where pricing flexibility is limited and where the consumer knows that the longer he waits , the cheaper the merchandise will be .", "To be successful , retailers must maintain positive gross margins through consistent markups and lower sourcing costs .", "The consumer is holding up pretty well .", "Keep in mind , we have tax cuts , low interest rates and low inflation .", "All of which bodes well for consumer spending .", "One company that will continue to do well is Coach .", "They do something that is special .", "By testing their products at least six months ahead of time , they are able to offer the consumer just what they like .", "Their balance sheet is also very clean , and their store base is not saturated .", "Gap is a different story -- if not a speculative one .", "There is momentum building , because their top-line growth is beginning to improve , albeit off a very depressed base .", "In addition , they have a new chief executive -- Paul Pressler , formerly of Walt Disney -- and an appealing new marketing campaign .", "The company is attracting new customers into all divisions -- Gap , Banana Republic and Old Navy .", "All of this is breathing new life into the company .", "Plus , in retailing there are not a lot of companies with market capitalizations larger than $ 10 billion .", "So Gap stands out at $ 13 billion .", "-LSB- Ms. Telsey does not own stock in Coach or Gap , nor does Bear , Stearns do investment banking business with them . -RSB-", "GUY MOSZKOWSKI is a brokerage analyst at Salomon Smith Barney .", "Business conditions remain difficult for brokerage stocks .", "Do n't forget -- the operating environment is the stock market .", "A better equity market translates into more trading volume on the retail investor side , better underwriting volume and a better mergers-and-acquisitions environment .", "Weakness in such areas has driven a decline in return on equity for the big firms to 10 percent or so from historic highs of 30 percent or better .", "When the market moves up and sustains itself , it will give investors confidence in the sector .", "But we have not seen that yet .", "Of the big firms , Merrill Lynch had the most fat to cut .", "Give them credit -- they realized in early 2000 when things were still good that they had become bloated and have laid off close to 20,000 employees in the past two years .", "Unlike other firms , they realized that we were not going to return to the late 90 's business levels for a long time .", "They have managed their costs so well that people will be surprised by the extent of their earnings power once the markets recover .", "Goldman Sachs has maintained market share in some key banking activities -- like equity underwriting and mergers and acquisitions -- during this difficult period .", "It does a few things extremely well , while others are spread more thinly .", "If there is any improvement in these areas , the stock has a lot of upside .", "With regard to the settlement in principle between brokerage firms and federal and state regulators , it clearly gets the regulatory issues behind the firms .", "Of course , the potential for civil litigation still exists , in terms of arbitration of retail client issues , if not class action .", "Given the relative size of fines levied -LSB- $ 1.4 billion -RSB- , along with e-mail evidence already released by regulators , it would appear that Merrill Lynch has the most exposure here , with Morgan Stanley , Lehman Brothers , Bear Stearns and Goldman Sachs considerably less so .", "-LSB- Mr. Moszkowski owns no shares in the firms he cites .", "Salomon has banking relationships with all of them . -RSB-", "LAURA C . CONIGLIARO is a technology analyst and strategist at Goldman , Sachs .", "For the technology sector , spending on information technology has been most affected by macroeconomic variables .", "As we have been seeing for two years now , the I.T. spending environment is weak .", "That is the feedback we get from end users in sectors like manufacturing , financial services and telecommunications .", "We are hearing that their spending patterns will be similar to the end of 2002 .", "Unfortunately , technology spending for 2002 was down , as chief investment officers cut back on their budgets .", "Typically , if profitability is improving , so will capital and I.T. spending .", "But many chief investment officers we speak to are saying it 's not just profitability .", "Cost cutting will not be enough -- they need to see a sustained pickup in revenue , and they have yet to see that .", "When we look at stocks , I.B.M. differentiates itself in a number of ways .", "First , the company never participated in the bubble .", "So its numbers never got out of whack .", "Unlike others , it was never overwhelmingly focused on the two big end markets that drove the bubble -- communications and financial services .", "In a normal spending environment , financial services and communications might represent 20 percent apiece of overall tech spending .", "During the bubble , those two sectors combined for 60 percent of end-market spending .", "That points to another key point about I.B.M. : it is very broad-based when it comes to its end market .", "The company is gaining market share .", "It is improving its product line and its execution .", "We have it rated a sector outperform , which is our highest rating .", "I.B.M. is a core holding , indeed it is both a defensive and an offensive stock .", "It is trading now at roughly 19 times earnings for 2003 -- in line with the Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index .", "Hewlett-Packard is another stock we have a sector outperform rating on .", "It is a different story : it 's a bit of a contrarian pick with an attractive risk-and-reward ratio .", "Hewlett-Packard has a lot of ground to gain on the cost-cutting front .", "They have a clear strength in printers , and are improving in PC 's and enterprise systems .", "Relative to other tech stocks , it is not one of the more expensive -- trading at 14 times 2003 earnings .", "You would expect a discount to I.B.M. , but this one is a little steep .", "-LSB- Ms. Conigliaro owns no stock in the companies mentioned .", "Goldman , Sachs has banking ties with Hewlett-Packard and I.B.M. -RSB- RICHARD BILOTTI is a cable and entertainment analyst at Morgan Stanley .", "What we expect to see in 2003 are cable companies that will have a higher strategic value than content companies like Viacom and Walt Disney .", "This has not been true since the late 70 's during the heyday of the build-out of cable in the United States .", "There are three main themes behind this evolution .", "First , after years of competition with satellite broadcasters , we are entering a period of pricing stability for cable companies .", "They are also selling value-added services to their customers and finding that it makes more sense to mine existing customer bases than to chase after new ones .", "All the major distribution companies -- Comcast , Cox Communications and EchoStar Communications -- are undervalued by 40 percent .", "Secondly , we have never seen a cable company the size of Comcast , with 22 million subscribers , provide size and scale without precedent .", "If it feels that its supplier of content is too expensive , it could conceivably launch its own replacement channel .", "Say , for example , the company does not want to carry a sports package because one of the channels is too expensive .", "They can go to the supplier of content -- the N.F.L. , for example -- and say , `` You know what , I 'll buy that football package directly from you . ``", "The cost of buying the programming rights could be less expensive when spread over the Comcast base of subscribers than the wholesale fees charged by the exisiting networks .", "What do the content companies do .", "Well , they will have to go out and buy their own distribution channels .", "And finally , for the first time since I 've been an analyst , the rate of return on reinvested capital for cable companies is higher than that of content companies : 20 percent for distribution companies , after taxes , compared with 3 to 6 percent for content companies .", "Unlike the content companies , cable and satellite companies are investing all their discretionary cash flow back into their core businesses .", "For the content companies , it is a different story .", "Because of the fragmentation of the television audience and the sheer number of channels , content companies are finding it hard to capture advertising .", "So instead of investing in their core business , they are looking to make acquisitions of television stations and cable channels .", "But that gives you a return of just 6 or 7 percent .", "Historically , robust advertising growth has camouflaged these weak returns .", "Look at Comcast , which completed its merger with AT&T Broadband in November .", "It will have discretionary cash flow -- cash flow after interest expenses , taxes and maintenance capital expenditures -- of $ 1.50 to $ 1.75 a share .", "They will choose to put that money back into their business and earn 15 to 20 percent returns .", "Comcast trades at 15 times discretionary cash flow , well below the 25 to 30 times that is common for content companies .", "-LSB- Mr. Bilotti does not own stock in the companies he cites , but Morgan Stanley does have banking relationships with them . -RSB-", "RICHARD BERNSTEIN is chief United States strategist at Merrill Lynch .", "We recently lowered our equity allocation .", "Previously , we were recommending 50 percent stock , 30 percent bonds and 20 cash .", "Now we are at 45 percent , 35 and 20 .", "We think the equity market is very speculative .", "Equities remain the asset class of choice , and that does not bode well for their future performance .", "You hear people all the time say , `` Where can you get higher returns than in equities .", "`` That was the correct thing to say in 1982 when everyone wanted to look at money market funds .", "Or 1994 , when everyone was in bonds .", "Call it the paradox of investing .", "If everyone thinks equities are the asset class of choice , the odds are they are not .", "We have the S . & P . at 29 times trailing earnings .", "My point is that the only sure thing we have these days are announced earnings .", "According to our research , forecasting earnings growth is the least predictable and most volatile it has been in 60 years .", "So why would we value the market on somebody 's forecast if this is true .", "People are assuming that earnings growth is a given .", "My argument is this : Wait a minute , future earnings are the least predictable in our lifetimes .", "With regard to the Fed , its repeated easing shows that the economy is not making the transition from the early phase to the middle phase of the economic cycle .", "Continued easing is keeping the economy on life support .", "The Fed is basically admitting that things are not working .", "Our belief is that the next bull market begins only when the Fed starts to tighten .", "That will tell you that we have moved beyond this deflationary environment .", "The View From Wall Street ."], "summary": ["Stock analysts Dana Telsey of Bear Stearns , Guy Moszkowski of Salomon Smith Barney , Laura C Conigliaro of Goldman Sachs , Richard Bilotti of Morgan Stanley and Richard Bernstein of Merrill Lynch comment on prospects for stock market in 2003 and offer opinions for specific companies , including IBM , Comcast , Hewlett-Packard , Merill Lynch , Gap and Coach .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15], "tag": ["Business"]} diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/val.jsonl b/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/val.jsonl new file mode 100644 index 00000000..af306124 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/test/testdata/val.jsonl @@ -0,0 +1,100 @@ +{"id": "1788718", "text": ["AT the end of the last season of `` The Wire , '' another battle in the drug war came to an unceremonious close .", "As an experiment the police in the show 's grim Baltimore neighborhood had decided to try drug legalization within a circumscribed area , which locals started calling Hamsterdam .", "But within weeks , political blowback forced the experiment 's cruel end .", "Hamsterdam 's seedy row houses were torn down , leaving an equally inhospitable pile of rubble .", "Amid the destruction Juan Donovan Bell saw an opportunity .", "One half of Darkroom Productions , a local Baltimore hip-hop production team , he had been avidly following `` The Wire '' since its first season .", "`` These communities they depict , I live there , '' he recently said over the telephone from his West Baltimore studio .", "He said the show had done a good job of depicting the city 's drug gangs , police officers and politicos , but it had all but ignored the city 's music .", "So he began work on a mixtape album to showcase local rappers .", "`` I knew the mixtape would blow up if I called it ' Hamsterdam , ' '' Mr. Bell said .", "`` I was like , ' If you look at the show for entertainment , do n't forget about us . '", "`` He shot the cover photograph around the corner from where the Hamsterdam episodes were filmed , as the original location was unavailable : '' When they tore the houses down , that was real . ``", "`` Hamsterdam '' became one of the more acclaimed hip-hop records to come from Baltimore last year , and one of the first to receive attention outside the city .", "It caught the ear of David Simon , the creator and an executive producer of the series .", "`` I put it in my car 's CD player and drove around with it for three days straight , `` he said recently in a phone interview .", "`` I 'd been so frustrated about not being able to be authentic in the past .", "The music they 're listening to , it should be hip-hop , and it should be the hip-hop they 're listening to in Baltimore . ``", "When the show 's fourth season begins tonight , Baltimore 's rap scene -- by no definition a national powerhouse -- will have its biggest showcase to date .", "Darkroom contributes several songs featuring several unsigned rappers , most notably Tyree Colion , Mullyman and Diablo .", "`` The amount of people in Baltimore in the last five years who 've received record contracts , `` Mr. Bell said , '' you can count on one hand , with fingers left . ``", "No national rap star has emerged from Baltimore , despite all this grass-roots activity , largely because a distinctive local black sound -- Baltimore club , or house , a thrusting , occasionally lewd form of dance music -- already existed .", "-LRB- Last season `` The Wire '' used a few songs from DJ Technics , a local club-music figure .", "The context was `` quite tasteless , the way it was supposed to be , '' DJ Technics said jokingly .", "He contributes more club tracks this season . -RRB-", "`` The Wire '' has already invigorated the city 's musicians .", "`` Even though it 's fictional , the show has influenced rappers in Baltimore , `` said Blake Leyh , the show 's music supervisor .", "`` And by using this music , there 's a sense in which these different worlds are feeding back on each other now . ``", "Mr. Simon added : `` I think the show gave Baltimore a certain pride .", "It was coming out of their ghetto .", "Forget West Philly , forget East New York .", "When it comes to drug trafficking , we 're the first string .", "There 's perverse pride in that . ``", "In one scene this season two members of the show 's primary drug crew , trying to figure out whether the new corner boys are from a rival New York set , ask about a popular Baltimore song by Young Leek .", "The guy they are interrogating replies , in an unprintable fashion , that he has never heard of it , and he is thanked for his candor with a bullet in the head .", "UNLIKE most television shows , on which pop music is used to provide broad emotional prompts , `` The Wire '' uses songs only as source music , as it would be heard by the characters themselves .", "`` We 're adding to the credibility of the moment , `` Mr. Simon said .", "`` We 're not trying to cue people as to what to think .", "The perfect song that comments on the action , that 's never on the jukebox when the moment actually happens . ``", "And so the uses of Baltimore hip-hop this season helps firm `` The Wire 's `` grip on naturalist storytelling .", "`` The attempt , '' Mr. Leyh said , `` is to make everything as real as possible .", "Our concern is verisimilitude .", "The cumulative effect of all of these choices adds up to something very powerful . ``", "Inspired by the attention now being paid to their city and their work , the Darkroom producers are at work on a second volume of `` Hamsterdam , '' as well as a documentary about the city 's rap scene .", "In a dark pun on Baltimore 's nickname of Charm City , they are calling it `` Harm City Exposed . ''", "`` The streets is a monster here , '' Mr. Bell said .", "`` It can swallow up anyone .", "That 's why I want to get this door kicked down soon , because a lot of people do n't have any options . ``", "-LRB- Mr. Colion , one of this season 's most prominently featured artists , wo n't be able to see how his work is used on the show : he 's currently behind bars . -RRB-", "Using this music , Mr. Leyh said , `` is one more way ' The Wire ' can give back to Baltimore . ``", "Already , the artists attached to the `` Hamsterdam '' project are beginning to receive major-label interest .", "`` This is for us , '' Diablo said , `` and we need to make sure that it counts .", "Our only problem has been getting heard , and now we getting heard . ``", "In the final scene of the final episode of this season , one of the show 's young characters drives down a quiet street , Mullyman 's song `` The Life , the Hood , the Streetz '' blasting from the window of his stolen car .", "From Mullyman 's `` Still H.I.M. '' mixtape , it was one of the bigger Baltimore rap records of the past year , but in this new context portends a whole new life and meaning for the song and its author .", "`` In Baltimore your hood is your whole world , '' Mullyman said .", "`` ` The Wire ' inspired me , let me know we had a voice I did n't know we had .", "It showed me I might be sitting on oil . ``", "THE NEW SEASON -- TELEVISION ."], "summary": ["Article discusses how TV series The Wire will feature music from Baltimore 's rap scene , using songs only as they would be heard by the characters themselves .", "Baltimore rap music scene described .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [34], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788720", "text": ["THE singer-songwriter Marisa Monte has one of those supple , knowing voices that make Brazilian pop so inviting .", "After a decade in which she became one of Brazil 's top stars , Ms. Monte stopped touring in 2001 to catch her breath , have a child and re-examine her music .", "She did n't disappear .", "`` Tribalistas , '' the album she made in 2002 in a two-week collaboration with fellow Brazilian songwriters , Carlinhos Brown and Arnaldo Antunes , won a Latin Grammy award and sold a million copies in Brazil .", "Now she 's back with two very different albums , being released this week by the Metro Blue / Blue Note label in the United States : `` Infinito Particular '' and `` Universo ao Meu Redor . ''", "-LRB- They 're already hits in Brazil . -RRB-", "And on Nov . 14 she will come to the Beacon Theater as part of her first American tour since 2000 .", "`` Universo ao Meu Redor '' is about heritage : the sambas that Ms. Monte grew up hearing and studied more deeply when she produced an album for the Velha Guarda da Portela , the old guard , or elder members , of the long-running Portela samba school in Rio de Janeiro .", "-LRB- Her father is one of the school 's directors . -RRB-", "She sings borrowed sambas -- reaching back as far as the 1940 's and including some that have been widely sung but never recorded -- along with a few of her own songs , and she 's backed largely by acoustic instruments in cozy but untraditional arrangements .", "It 's samba carried inward .", "`` Infinito Particular '' is even more pensive .", "It features her own songs in settings that wrap her and a small band in an aura of orchestration and electronics .", "Both albums are wonderfully introspective , and it should be illuminating to hear what she does with the songs when she brings them to the stage in November .", "THE NEW SEASON -- MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Jon Pareles article profiles Brazilian singer-songwriter Marisa Monte .", "Describes her two just-released very different albums .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788721", "text": ["LISTENING to Young Jeezy is an immersive experience .", "Not just because he plunges listeners into a world of crack-trade narratives and gun-busting threats and grim late-night parties where no one ever seems to relax .", "-LRB- Though he does that , and does it brilliantly . -RRB-", "But also because he finds musical ways to suck in his listeners .", "He gravitates toward slow tempos , so he can sink into the beats , and so listeners have no choice but to slow down and sink with him .", "And his constant ad-libs -- `` Yeeeah '' and `` Ha-haaa ! '' and `` Thaaat 's riiiight `` and all the rest -- cleverly blur the line between sense and sound .", "Last year , after an impressive run on the mixtape circuit , Young Jeezy released `` Let 's Get It : Thug Motivation 101 `` -LRB- Island Def Jam -RRB- , a major-label debut that felt like a momentous event .", "He sounded utterly untouchable when he growled , `` You better call your crew , you gon ' need help / Whole car strapped , and I ai n't talking seat belts . ``", "The album yielded a handful of hits , most notably `` Soul Survivor , '' a collaboration with Akon .", "Maybe more important , the album established Young Jeezy as one of hip-hop ` s most unimpeachable stars : an Atlanta upstart not even narrow-minded New York listeners could deny .", "A pop hitmaker who still sounded great on mixtapes .", "And you can hear Young Jeezy 's influence in Rick Ross , the Miami rapper who clearly patterned his recent major-label debut after `` Let 's Get It . ``", "Now , barely a year later , Young Jeezy is gearing up for his second proper album .", "He has plenty of motivation : his friendly -LRB- so far -RRB- Atlanta rival T I . released an impressive CD , `` King , '' earlier this year .", "And his recent collaborations and mixtape contributions suggest he has n't lost a step .", "In `` I Do This , '' he rhymes , `` S550 , yeah , the brand-new Benz / Bought two the same color , I call ' em Siamese twins . ''", "Now the only question is : Will his plan -- to release the album on Halloween -- hold firm .", "Young Jeezy may seem immovable , but major-label hip-hop release dates are anything but .", "THE NEW SEASON -- MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Kelefa Sanneh article discusses Young Jeezy , one of hip-hop ` s most unimpeachable stars .", "Barely a year after releasing his first album , he is gearing up for second one .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 9], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788722", "text": ["A JAZZ concert season can suggest comparisons to a course curriculum , a museum catalog or a tasting menu .", "The new season at Merkin Concert Hall was designed with yet another model in mind .", "It aspires to the gritty , unofficial quality of a mixtape .", "That may sound slightly out of character for Merkin Hall , which has earned a reputation for avant-gardism of a cool and cerebral disposition .", "But for Brice Rosenbloom and Simon Rentner , the season 's producers , it makes sense .", "Certainly it fits their profile .", "Mr. Rosenbloom has booked music at Makor and the Knitting Factory , and Mr. Rentner has a background in radio production .", "Their commitment to eclecticism comes across as matter-of-fact , even when it carries a whiff of youthful pretension .", "DJ Spooky was one source of inspiration for their programming concept , Mr. Rentner said in a recent phone conversation .", "The 45-concert season began on Sept . 2 with a tribute to New Orleans jazz and soul .", "Its closing jazz event , on May 7 , pairs the Ron Carter Nonet and the Aaron Goldberg Trio .", "Both concerts fall under Chamber Jazz , a six-concert subscription series that will also include the free-jazz pianist Cecil Taylor -LRB- Oct . 12 -RRB- and the Mingus Orchestra -LRB- Nov . 30 -RRB- .", "The hall 's No Minimum series no longer heeds its original dual-piano premise : its first installment on Oct . 9 will feature the pianist Robert Glasper with , separately , the guitarist Lionel Loueke and the bassist Meshell Ndegeocello .", "The Zoom : Composers Close Up series will include a Feb . 15 showcase for the Argentine composer Guillermo Klein .", "And the first concert of the new Masters Reimagined program , on Sept . 9 , will feature the music of Hermeto Pascoal as performed by the Bobby Sanabria Big Band .", "Though studded with stylish contemporary references -- like Radiohead and Bj\u00f6rk , the subjects of an interpretive concert on Oct . 19 -- the season 's most promising feature has a historic tinge .", "Reissue is a series that addresses repertory in a different fashion than Jazz at Lincoln Center , which once employed both Mr. Rosenbloom and Mr. Rentner .", "On Sept . 16 Reissue pays homage to Don Cherry 's `` Symphony for Improvisers , '' with that album 's original bassist , Henry Grimes , and the trumpeters Dave Douglas and Roy Campbell .", "On Nov . 14 it will salute Andrew Hill 's `` Passing Ships , '' with Mr. Hill leading an octet as well as his trio .", "On Dec . 19 Miles Davis 's `` Bitches Brew '' will be revisited by Animation , led by the saxophonist and producer Bob Belden .", "And on Feb . 19 , `` The Connection , '' by Freddie Redd , will be revived with the alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson filling in for Jackie McLean and , after a lengthy obscurity , Mr. Redd at the piano .", "THE NEW SEASON -- POP MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Nate Chinen article discusses highlights of 45-concert jazz season at Merkin Concert Hall , which aspires to gritty , unofficial quality of mixtape .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788724", "text": ["THERE is nothing more exciting than the premiere of a new work that seems destined to stick with you from the moment it starts .", "I may forever associate the 2005-6 season with the premiere of Peter Lieberson 's `` Neruda Songs , '' commissioned by James Levine and the Boston Symphony Orchestra and performed at Symphony Hall .", "That haunting , refined and emotionally revealing song cycle was like a love poem from Mr. Lieberson to his wife , the unforgettable mezzo-soprano Lorraine Hunt Lieberson , who sang it sublimely in what would be one of her last performances before her death in July .", "As I look ahead to the coming season , several intriguing premieres catch my interest , starting with Tan Dun 's ambitious opera `` The First Emperor , '' which was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera and receives its premiere there -LRB- Dec . 21 -RRB- .", "With Mr. Tan , an immensely skilled and eclectic composer , it 's hard to know what to expect .", "He has written works that are baffling in their banality , like `` Red Forecast , '' a multimedia piece for soprano , orchestra , a battalion of percussionists , video projections and audio tracks .", "The work is like some pretentious 60 's happening , with chanting , chaos , images of students rioting , a gaggle of voices .", "Yet other pieces have been close to entrancing , notably `` Water Passion After St . Matthew . ''", "Though though marred by exasperating stretches of meditative vamping , the work has some ethereal music and mesmerizing instrumental colors .", "And Mr. Tan 's Oscar-winning score for the 2000 film `` Crouching Tiger , Hidden Dragon '' is a knockout from start to finish : arresting , brutal , yet somehow charming .", "Mr. Tan 's new opera is set in the ancient court of Qin Shi Huangdi , the first emperor of China , a role conceived for Pl\u00e1cido Domingo .", "Count on the production by the film director Zhang Yimou -LRB- `` House of Flying Daggers '' -RRB- to be elaborate and flashy .", "How will it turn out .", "Not knowing is part of the fun .", "Perhaps the New York Philharmonic grew tired of reading about the excitement the conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen has been generating with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at its stunning new home , Disney Hall .", "Rather than just bring him here to conduct , the New York Philharmonic commissioned Mr. Salonen , an accomplished composer , to write a new piano concerto for Yefim Bronfman , which receives its premiere in New York -LRB- Feb . 1-3 -RRB- , with Mr. Salonen conducting .", "As a consolation prize the Los Angeles Philharmonic gets first dibs on recording the concerto .", "On a smaller scale , the eminent pianist Peter Serkin , whose passion for contemporary music is as intense as it was during his young rebel days as a member of the uncompromising quartet Tashi , is scheduled to give the premiere of a new chamber work by the British composer Oliver Knussen .", "Despite having written some bracing and ingenious scores , Mr. Knussen has had a woeful record of meeting deadlines .", "This work was supposed to have had its premiere when Mr. Serkin presented his Perspectives series at Carnegie Hall several seasons back .", "This time the delayed premiere by Mr. Serkin and the Zankel Band is to take place at Zankel Hall -LRB- April 13 -RRB- , with Mr. Knussen conducting .", "This season at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center is the first planned completely by the ensemble 's new artistic directors , the pianist Wu Han and the cellist David Finckel .", "They have devised many programs that intriguingly mix old and new works .", "But I 'm looking forward to an all-Leon Kirchner concert .", "The society took part in commissioning this towering American composer to write his String Quartet No . 4 .", "One way to present its New York premiere would be as part of a varied program that might place the new work in a larger musical context .", "Instead the society will present the Orion String Quartet performing all four Kirchner quartets at Alice Tully Hall -LRB- March 7 -RRB- .", "They will be played in order , starting with the first , composed in 1949 .", "Here is a chance to follow Mr. Kirchner 's exploration of the quartet genre over a span of nearly 60 years .", "Out of town , admirers of the elegant composer Kaija Saariaho are looking forward to her 60-minute oratorio , `` La Passion de Simone . ''", "The work will have its premiere in Vienna this fall , and the Los Angeles Philharmonic will give the American premiere -LRB- Jan . 12-14 -RRB- .", "James Levine , who continues to champion tough-guy modernists , presents the premiere of Charles Wuorinen 's Eighth Symphony with the Boston Symphony at Symphony Hall -LRB- Feb . 15 -RRB- .", "Those who find Mr. Wuorinen 's music too off-putting in its complexity should hear Mr. Levine perform his works .", "In recent years Mr. Levine 's palpable excitement for the music has come through in stunning accounts of daunting Wuorinen scores .", "On the other end of the contemporary-music spectrum John Adams has fashioned the `` Doctor Atomic '' Symphony from his engrossing and courageous opera `` Doctor Atomic , '' which had its premiere last season in San Francisco .", "David Robertson , who is galvanizing audiences as music director of the St . Louis Symphony , conducts the premiere in St . Louis -LRB- March 16 -RRB- , then brings it to Carnegie Hall -LRB- March 31 -RRB- .", "As always with premieres from searching composers , do not assume anything .", "THE NEW SEASON -- CLASSICAL MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Anthony Tommasini article notes some classical music and opera premieres scheduled for upcoming season , including Tan Dun 's The First Emperor at the Metropolitan Opera .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788725", "text": ["GUSTAVO DUDAMEL has quickly come a long way from his boyhood in Barquisimeto , Venezuela , when he used to conduct toy soldiers .", "He has attracted glowing praise from Simon Rattle , Claudio Abbado and Daniel Barenboim , and a reputation as a rising star of the podium .", "And he 's still just a tender 25 .", "Mr. Dudamel is one of five musicians selected here as artists on the cusp of promising futures .", "He is a product of one of the classical music world 's most extraordinary phenomena : Venezuela 's youth orchestra system .", "Financed by the government and the Inter-American Development Bank , it has yielded scores of youth orchestras and trained hundreds of thousands of players , many from poor neighborhoods .", "Mr. Dudamel conducts its jewel , the Sim\u00f3n Bol\u00edvar National Youth Orchestra .", "He was also recently appointed the principal conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony in Sweden .", "He appears in America with the Los Angeles Philharmonic -LRB- Jan . 4 to 6 -RRB- , conducting Rachmaninoff 's Third Piano Concerto -LRB- with Yefim Bronfman as soloist -RRB- , Kodaly 's `` Dances of Galanta '' and Bartok 's `` Concerto for Orchestra '' .", "And with the Chicago Symphony -LRB- April 5 to 7 and 10 -RRB- , leading Bruch 's First Violin Concerto -LRB- with Pinchas Zukerman -RRB- and Mahler 's First Symphony .", "But he will be a busy guest conductor in Europe , appearing with a dozen orchestras , including the City of Birmingham Symphony , the Philharmonia of London , the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Vienna Symphony .", "He has also been entrusted with Mozart 's `` Don Giovanni '' at La Scala Opera in Milan , Italy .", "Deutsche Grammophon , meanwhile , is about to release his recording of Beethoven 's Fifth and Seventh Symphonies with the Bol\u00edvar youngsters .", "In the vocal realm , it will be a big season for Eric Owens , 36 , a Philadelphia-born bass-baritone who took part in two of the most important opera events last season .", "He won praise for his portrayal of Gen . Leslie Groves in John Adams 's `` Doctor Atomic '' at the San Francisco Opera .", "But raves came with the title role of Elliot Goldenthal 's `` Grendel '' at the Los Angeles Opera and the Lincoln Center Festival .", "Some critics described the part as perhaps the most demanding bass-baritone role in the repertory .", "Mr. Owens was `` consistently charismatic , theatrically and vocally , '' Peter G . Davis wrote in New York magazine .", "Others said he dominated the opera .", "This season Mr. Owens continues his close association with Mr. Adams .", "He will sing in the premiere of Mr. Adams 's new opera , `` A Flowering Tree , '' inspired by Mozart 's `` Magic Flute , '' at Peter Sellars 's New Crowned Hope Festival in Vienna with the Vienna Philharmonic -LRB- Nov . 14 , 16 , 17 and 19 -RRB- .", "Other performances of the work are scheduled with the Berlin Philharmonic -LRB- Dec . 21 and 22 -RRB- and the San Francisco Symphony -LRB- March 1 to 3 -RRB- .", "Mr. Owens will sing other Adams works with the Boston Symphony -LRB- Dec . 7 to 9 -RRB- and the American Composers Orchestra at Carnegie Hall -LRB- April 27 -RRB- , and he makes his debut at the Netherlands Opera with a run of `` Doctor Atomic '' in June .", "He also has appearances with the Houston , Cincinnati and Alabama Symphonies .", "Compared with the celebrity glow of globe-trotting opera stars like Mr. Owens , contemporary composers like Michael Gandolfi lead low-key lives .", "A self-effacing 50-year-old from Cambridge , Mass . , and a friend of the much more famous composer Osvaldo Golijov , he started out in rock and jazz .", "Like many of his peers , he now survives by teaching -LRB- at the New England Conservatory and the Tanglewood Music Center -RRB- and winning foundation grants .", "His primarily tonal music , sometimes motored by Minimalism , is suffused with rhythmic vigor and vivid images .", "And he has a welcome humorous streak .", "One work is titled `` Budget Cuts : A Septet for Three Players and Conductor . ''", "Examples of his work will appear on programs by the American Composers Orchestra -LRB- Oct . 13 , Zankel Hall -RRB- and Boston Musica Viva -LRB- Feb . 4 , Tsai Performance Center in Boston -RRB- .", "Most notably his `` Impressions From ' The Garden of Cosmic Speculation , ' '' a work still in progress , will be conducted by Robert Spano with the Houston Symphony -LRB- March 16 to 18 -RRB- , the New World Symphony in Miami Beach -LRB- April 21 -RRB- and the Atlanta Symphony -LRB- May 24 to 26 -RRB- , where Mr. Gandolfi is in residence .", "Back to performers .", "The cellist Alicia Weilerstein , 24 , has been performing for nearly 20 years .", "She would probably have had an even bigger career by now if not for the small matter of college .", "She graduated with a history degree from Columbia in 2002 , an unusual stop-off for most virtuosos .", "Ms. Weilerstein also has a penchant for chamber music , performing in the Weilerstein Trio with her parents .", "One of her first major dates this season is a trio concert with Maxim Vengerov , violinist , and Lilya Zilberstein , pianist , at Carnegie Hall -LRB- Oct . 14 -RRB- .", "She performs the Elgar Concerto with the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall -LRB- Jan . 11 and 13 -RRB- and with the Baltimore Symphony -LRB- June 8-10 -RRB- , and drops in for a slew of dates in places like Kalamazoo , Mich .", "Poughkeepsie , N.Y.", "Toledo , Ohio .", "Helena , Mont .", "And Wichita , Kan .", "Among the crop of emerging young pianists , Simone Dinnerstein , 33 , has done it the hard way .", "Praised for her intelligent and sensitive music making , Ms. Dinnerstein has won no major competition and lives with her schoolteacher husband and 4-year-old child in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn .", "She raised the money for her first recording , Bach 's `` Goldberg Variations , '' on her own .", "She played the work -- a brave choice -- at her New York debut in 2005 , winning positive reviews .", "In January she was taken on by her first major manager , Columbia Artists .", "In October the Delos label will release her recording of the Beethoven cello sonatas with Zuill Bailey , and her career generally gathers steam in the 2006-7 season .", "Highlights include a performance of Liszt 's Piano Concerto No . 1 and Totentanz at the Bard Music Festival -LRB- Oct . 27 -RRB- in Annandale-on-Hudson , N.Y. , and a recital at the Metropolitan Museum of Art -LRB- Nov . 19 -RRB- .", "Just as important may be a performance for an audience of one : an audition next month for Christoph Eschenbach , the music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra .", "THE NEW SEASON -- CLASSICAL MUSIC Correction : September 17 , 2006 , Sunday An article and picture caption last Sunday about five classical music artists poised for breakthroughs misspelled the given name of one .", "She is Alisa Weilerstein , not Alicia .", "The article also misstated the date she graduated from Columbia .", "It was 2004 , not 2002 ."], "summary": ["Article profiles five musicians who are poised for a breakthrough and briefly describes their careers : conductor Gustavo Dudamel , bass-baritone Eric Owens , composer Michael Gandolfi , cellist Alicia Weilerstein and pianist Simone Dinnerstein .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [33, 24, 3, 43], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788727", "text": ["HERE 'S the bottom line about opera : Whatever the story , the music or the length , a performance rides on the quality of the singers in the principal roles .", "Verdi 's `` Don Carlo '' is a large and ambitious piece involving love triangles , political intrigue , the Spanish Inquisition and even a mysterious ghost .", "But the main difficulty in staging it is that it has six lead parts , each requiring a major singer .", "So it is rare to see a truly satisfying `` Don Carlo , '' yet this season the Metropolitan Opera is making a strong bid to provide one on Nov . 30 .", "Patricia Racette , Johan Botha , Olga Borodina , Dmitri Hvorostovsky , Ren\u00e9 Pape and Samuel Ramey onstage , and James Levine in the pit : the lineup is worthy of an opera gala in both star power and sheer musical ability .", "The one question mark is Ms. Racette : not whether this intelligent and moving artist will provide a committed performance , but what her lyric instrument will make of a role calling for a strong Verdi soprano .", "Still , when a singer as fine as Ms. Racette is your question mark , you are in good shape .", "`` Don Carlo , '' the story of the impetuous , weak crown prince of Spain -LRB- the underrated Mr. Botha -RRB- who defies his authoritative father , Philip II -LRB- the breathtaking Mr. Pape -RRB- , was written on the generous scale of French grand opera , and it underwent numerous reworkings after its 1867 premiere -LRB- including translation into Italian -RRB- as Verdi tried to get it right .", "Some of the difficulties were there from the beginning : to tailor the complex role of Princess Eboli to the voice of its first performer , Verdi ended up creating two unequal arias , one frilly , one dramatic .", "Ms. Borodina is one of the few singers alive who , with her languid , sensual voice , can hope to do justice to both .", "Some scenes simply proved intractable , like the discussion in Act II in which the Marquis of Posa speaks truth to the wrongheaded power of the autocratic Philip , a scene Verdi struggled with for years .", "The Met has found a way to curb its long-windedness .", "When Mr. Hvorostovsky , the heartthrob baritone with the never-ending breath support , and Mr. Pape are onstage together , any opera lover would be happy to watch , and listen , all night .", "THE NEW SEASON -- CLASSICAL MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Anne Midgette article on difficulties of producing Verdi 's opera , Don Carlo .", "Says Metropolitan Opera is making strong bid to solve them with good singers for all six leads .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788729", "text": ["OF the few weeds that crop up in the well-mowed lawn that is the New York Philharmonic 's coming season , one of the more welcome is native to the Midwest .", "David Robertson , left , taking a week off from his music director 's job at the St . Louis Symphony , will conduct music by Kaija Saariaho , Debussy and Sibelius -LRB- Dec . 14 to 16 -RRB- .", "He 's not a completely unfamiliar species : the Philharmonic is a co-commissioner of Ms. Saariaho 's `` Adriana Songs , '' a cycle extracted from her recent opera `` Adriana Mater '' with new connective tissue to join the various sequences .", "On the other hand , it takes visitors like Mr. Robertson to do the kind of heavy thinking that brings these three composers together in such a provocative way .", "Ms. Saariaho represents an interesting merger of Finnish music 's gray , stony aesthetic with a deep involvement in the `` spectral '' movement and its slow-moving clouds of carefully calculated overtones .", "`` Adriana Mater '' -- a story of rape and vengeance but , most of all , motherhood -- offers moments of sonic violence uncharacteristic of her earlier work , but the songs will also turn to dream sequences and Ms. Saariaho 's dramatically conciliatory ending .", "The Irish mezzo-soprano Patricia Bardon will be the soloist .", "Debussy 's `` Martyr de St . - S\u00e9bastien '' conceals his later , leaner and more ascetic style inside a lumbering multimedia vehicle crushed by its own hyperactivity .", "When Kurt Masur did a cut-down version with the Philharmonic a few years ago , spectacle was eliminated , but the arm-waving excesses of d' Annunzio 's texts were inescapable .", "Mr. Robertson performs further liposuction by presenting what he calls `` Symphonic Fragments . ''", "If Debussy 's elusiveness has made its mark on Ms. Saariaho 's music , Sibelius 's `` Night Ride and Sunrise '' helps show the door she first came through .", "Brief , curious , obsessive , complex , with strings at a gallop , it is wintry in tone , a little hard-hearted and not easy to perform .", "`` La Mer , '' Debussy 's great essay on orchestral beauty , should warm us up at the end .", "After hearing this work , subtitled `` Day in the Life of the Sea , '' Erik Satie said that he liked the part at about half-past 10 .", "We should be on our way home by then .", "THE NEW SEASON -- CLASSICAL MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Bernard Holland article on David Robertson , who will conduct the New York Philharmonic in works by Saariaho , Debussy and Sibelius .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788741", "text": ["My state does not mandate paid maternity leave , and federal law does n't cover a business as small as where I work .", "Fortunately , my generous employer offers eight weeks of paid leave and an additional four unpaid .", "I am not sure I will return to work after that .", "May I still accept this offer .", "If I accept but do not return , must I refund the money .", "Name withheld , New Mexico Maternity benefits are not an advance payment on future work .", "They are better seen as compensation already earned , akin to health-care benefits or accumulated vacation days .", "There is nothing dishonorable in your not returning or unseemly about your current uncertainty .", "Having a child , particularly a first child , is a life-changing experience .", "You can not be sure how it will affect your feelings about the job .", "But your employer is operating out of personal generosity -- and a desire to keep employees happy and on the job -- rather than legal compulsion .", "-LRB- Where maternity leave is guaranteed by law , the issue is simple : comply .", "There is no requirement that you return to work or refund money if you do not . -RRB-", "So you should discuss the matter with your employer , to ensure that both of you clearly understand the situation and that both of you gain the peace of mind of knowing you have behaved openly , honestly and fairly .", "It may be that , learning of your indecision , your employer will amend the offer , even asking you to repay part of the money if you do not come back .", "That would be an unwise business decision -LRB- or perhaps a contract issue -RRB- , however : the policy is a model of decency and justice .", "But you should not behave deceitfully , particularly toward an employer who behaves so well toward you .", "UPDATE : A week after having her baby , the letter writer told her boss she was on the fence about returning to work .", "The boss changed the offer to two weeks of paid leave instead of eight .", "Once a week I pick up donated bakery items and deliver them to the food bank to be distributed to needy families .", "One morning I helped myself to a box of doughnuts .", "The following week I took some cookies for my grandson .", "Then it was a pecan pie , etc.", "Is this wrong .", "There seems to be plenty of food for the needy .", "Marjorie S . Desimone , Lansdowne , VA .", "I see where this is going : first you swipe a few doughnuts , then it 's a whole pie and before you know it you 're shooting it out with the cops at a Sara Lee factory .", "It 's an old , old story .", "Here 's one way to think about it .", "Suppose you were collecting cash for this same charity : would you help yourself to a few bucks if there were still `` plenty '' for the needy .", "If it 's wrong to take a wad of $ 10 bills , why is it right to take a wad of doughnuts .", "-LRB- Do they come by the wad .", "-RRB- I admire your work for the food bank , but you should stop skimming pastry .", "Here 's another way to think about it : If you did n't know the answer , you would n't have asked the question .", "It is often said that if you feel uneasy about your conduct , you 're probably doing wrong .", "But is that so .", "The proddings of the conscience are unreliable .", "Some people have a hypersensitive conscience and feel guilty about nearly everything .", "-LRB- Hence all those jokes that , in different versions , Jews and Catholics tell about themselves . -RRB-", "Other people do appalling things and sleep through the night untroubled .", "There 's no consistent calibration of the conscience .", "Feelings are not a reliable substitute for thought .", "That 's why therapists flourish .", "And columnists proffering ethical advice .", "THE WAY WE LIVE NOW : 9-10-06 : THE ETHICIST ."], "summary": ["Randy Cohen Ethicist column on comments on whether you may take paid maternity leave if employer is not required to provide it and you are unsure about whether you will return to work after having child .", "Also comments on whether a food bank volunteer may take the occasional box of doughnuts or cookies for herself ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 30, 0, 32, 41], "tag": ["Health", "Magazine"]} +{"id": "1788742", "text": ["In New York City , Bohemia is determined by real estate : artists gather in raffish neighborhoods where studio space is cheap .", "The new outposts of culture and consumption they establish make the quarter desirable , thus raising the rents to prohibitive levels .", "The artists then decamp for the next shabby enclave .", "Starting in the 1960 's , what New Yorkers meant by `` downtown '' shifted from Greenwich Village to SoHo to TriBeCa to the Lower East Side .", "But Manhattan is a narrow island , and the portion of it dense enough to sustain the feeling of self-enclosure that Bohemia requires is quite small .", "And so , starting in the 1980 's , as rents skyrocketed , downtown began to migrate across the East River to Brooklyn .", "By now , those portions of Brooklyn first colonized by fleeing artists have almost completed the cycle of embourgeoisement .", "Williamsburg , the heart of Brooklyn 's gallery scene , has been thoroughly tamed by brasseries and boutiques .", "The kind of artists who are n't yet showing in those galleries are now moving to deepest , darkest Queens .", "But the middle-class householder geography of Queens offers too barren a soil for the rooting of a new Bohemia .", "Fortunately , there is lots more Brooklyn available .", "There is , of course , something wishful , or perhaps wistful , about this perpetual hunt for the urban El Dorado .", "A place that can shift around so easily sounds less like a neighborhood than a mentality , or a species of nostalgia .", "In most of America , after all , `` downtown '' simply means `` the city '' -- the place where things are close enough to one another that you can walk .", "But in New York , where every square inch feels urban , downtown is a refuge from -- a repudiation of -- the conventionality of Midtown , and mid-everything .", "Downtown is a concept , and perhaps an archaic one .", "The idea of Bohemia arose with the bourgeois city , against which it defined itself .", "In the Paris of `` La Boh\u00e8me '' -- the Latin Quarter , circa 1830 -- the artist willingly courts starvation and disease as the price of freedom .", "The poet Rodolfo may be giddy as he shovels his manuscript into the fire to keep warm , but it 's still the only source of fuel he has .", "Life was scarcely less desperate -- or less delightful -- in the downtown Manhattan of 1910 , when the poet and propagandist John Reed , according to one biographer , `` ate in obscure foreign restaurants , talked with the girls who walked the street in ' Satan 's Circus `` ` and caroused with Spanish longshoremen .", "Reed 's latter-day descendants are threatened not by penury but by gentrification .", "How can Bohemia contend with the twin baby stroller .", "The other day , walking around Fort Greene , one of Brooklyn 's current claimants to downtown cultural status , I stopped at an office building called 80 Arts .", "In the Museum of Contemporary African Diaspora Arts , or MoCADA , which occupies the ground floor , an exhibition of major black artists had just come down .", "I picked up some fliers from the counter .", "One , issued by a company called Downtown Babies , advertised `` Creative Play and Music Classes '' and `` Themed Birthday Parties '' to be held at MoCADA .", "Downtown Babies -- the end of Bohemia as we know it .", "80 Arts had been gutted and renovated as part of a `` cultural district '' established by a `` local development corporation '' organized around the Brooklyn Academy of Music , the cultural mega-institution of Fort Greene .", "Here was a planned Bohemia -- surely a contradiction in terms .", "Indeed , many locals , and local organizations , had protested the development -LRB- as they are now even more loudly protesting the Atlantic Yards , a nearby mega-project featuring skyscrapers and a basketball stadium to be designed by Frank Gehry -RRB- .", "But MoCADA owes its presence in Fort Greene to the cultural district .", "Should the project be fully implemented , a new theater and public library will be built as well .", "In short , downtown , or the idea of downtown , has become thoroughly implicated in the cultural and economic forces that it once resisted with every ounce of its scruffy integrity .", "The misfits and longhairs and revolutionaries deemed unassimilable by mainstream culture in John Reed 's day are now considered `` edgy '' .", "And edge , in turn , attracts sneaker stores and bistros and cultural entrepreneurs and even young couples with strollers .", "The derri\u00e8re-garde keeps catching up with the avant-garde .", "The avant-garde falls prey to its own lurid appeal .", "If Rodolfo 's artist pal Marcello were around today , his gallery opening would be catered by Absolut .", "And so the Bohemias of yesteryear have gone the way of Reed 's Spanish longshoremen .", "But is that so bad .", "Take a walk in Fort Greene , an ethnically and economically mixed neighborhood with tree-lined blocks of fine brick homes .", "A block away from 80 Arts , beyond the town house that the painter David Salle has lavishly rehabilitated , lies the lime-green Habana Outpost , an eco-friendly cafe where mothers push downtown babies on swings amid racks of folkloric skirts , priced to sell .", "And then , moving up Fulton Street , once a commercial swamp , there 's the wine store and the soul-food restaurant and the beloved Cake Man Raven .", "A few blocks away stands the Brooklyn Academy of Music , which has been irreproachably avant-garde since long before there was any money in it .", "Fort Greene feels less like Bohemia than what the scholar Joel Kotkin calls an `` elite urban enclave '' -- a place suited to the sophisticated tastes of the `` knowledge workers '' who now propel New York 's economy .", "But the wheel of development that brought in those young cosmopolites , and priced out a number of the area 's longtime , predominantly black residents , has not stopped turning : the Atlantic Yards project threatens to disrupt Fort Greene 's delicate ecology once again .", "We want to preserve our precious and beloved utopias like paperweight worlds .", "But the city -- at least this city -- will not permit it .", "THE WAY WE LIVE NOW : 9-10-06 James Traub is a contributing writer for the magazine ."], "summary": ["James Traub column on peculiar New York cycle by which one bohemian neighborhood after another is transformed from cheap place for artists to live , work and gather into elite urban enclave that they and other longtime residents can no longer afford .", "Says downtown , or idea of downtown , has become thoroughly implicated in cultural and economic forces it once resisted with every ounce of its scruffy integrity .", "Photos .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [32, 0], "tag": ["Magazine"]} +{"id": "1788743", "text": ["Q : In the 20-odd years since you opened your first restaurant , Union Square Cafe , in downtown New York , the area has gone from being a place to get a 25-cent cup of diner coffee into a foodie paradise .", "Would you say New York is the restaurant capital of the country .", "Absolutely .", "For its variety , quality and hospitality , no other city comes close .", "What are the up-and-coming food cities .", "There are so many ! Both Portlands -- Maine and Oregon -- are obsessed with good food .", "So are Seattle , Boston and Birmingham , Ala .", "I 'd throw in Las Vegas , but the profusion of restaurants there is more about an obsession with money and restaurant brands than it is with the soul of good food .", "Right .", "They 're too addicted to celebrity chefs , not unlike the Food Network , with Emeril and Mario Batali and Rachael Ray and the rest .", "Do you watch their various cooking shows .", "No , because I generally do n't learn anything that I did n't already know about food .", "And I 'm not even that smart .", "Is it fair to say that your contribution to the New York scene is that you helped pioneer the comfort version of high cuisine .", "Either that or the high-cuisine version of comfort food .", "As a Midwesterner , I am always looking for the middle ground .", "And I do n't mean that in a kind of wishy-washy , milquetoast way .", "You like to present yourself as a well-scrubbed , earnest guy from St . Louis who came East and made New York dining less stuffy , less French , less attitudinal .", "That 's me , although I am not sure about scrubbed .", "How much do you worry about your competition , which in the restaurant business is known to be fierce .", "When I first started , I worried hugely .", "When I opened Union Square Cafe , that neighborhood did n't have the density that it now has , and every time someone would open , I literally felt like another dog had peed on my tree .", "These days you are part owner of six restaurants downtown as well as of the Modern , your deluxe eatery at the Museum of Modern Art that is relatively uptown in geography and spirit and price .", "The chef 's tasting menu is priced at $ 125 per person .", "Down-to-earth is not limited to certain price points or architectural styles .", "Or so you contend in your forthcoming book , `` Setting the Table : The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business , '' which , surprisingly , does n't have a single recipe in it .", "What happened .", "One big debate my publisher and I had editorially was recipes or not , and the answer was no .", "Others have done narratives with recipes .", "Do something fresh , they said .", "So instead you decided to write a book on the hot new subject of hospitality .", "Yes .", "Show me three world-class art museums with equally good art and one of them will always have friendlier guards than the other two .", "That 's the one I 'm the most likely to return to .", "Have you ever been to Taco Bell .", "I went last year for the first time ever .", "I thought it was horrible .", "Whatever I am going to get in terms of a lower-priced and quicker transaction would never , ever convince me not to spend twice as much time and twice as much money getting something made by someone with a more individual point of view .", "But the price differential between Taco Bell and the Modern is not 2 to 1 .", "It 's 50 to 1 .", "Do you think that New York restaurants are overpriced .", "The Modern is not relevant to my comment .", "The value of dining at the Modern should be considered relative to dining at other luxury establishments of its ilk .", "Who cooks in your house .", "My wife , Audrey .", "To her credit , it is always fresh and always has at least four colors on the plate , and the kids are never given a choice .", "If they do n't want to experiment , they do n't eat .", "What do you see as the next food trend in New York .", "Two years ago , it was heirloom tomatoes .", "Last year it was Meyer lemons .", "It was watermelon this summer , watermelon as a replacement for tomato .", "The only ingredient that does not go out of style is hospitality .", "What about lettuce .", "Lettuce never goes out of style .", "You 've got a point .", "I 'll have to crunch on that .", "Deborah Solomon THE WAY WE LIVE NOW : 9-10-06 : QUESTIONS FOR DANNY MEYER ."], "summary": ["Deborah Solomon interview with Danny Meyer , downtown restaurateur who has ventured uptown with Modern , restaurant at Museum of Modern Art .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [22], "tag": ["Magazine"]} +{"id": "1788744", "text": ["The International Astronomical Union all but threatened to go out on strike last month unless the rest of the solar system ejected an errant , puny member from the exclusive planets ' club .", "Thus , on the vote of a few residents of the hegemonic planet Earth , Pluto -- a celestial body whose only crime was to dare to wander in orbit to the beat of a different drummer -- was stripped of its 76-year-old classification .", "Pluto is now officially downgraded to a new category called dwarf planet , and all textbooks in all languages are ordered to refer to it with that adjectival derogation .", "World media , except a few unscientific sentimentalists -LRB- and the fictional Lois Lane 's Daily Planet -RRB- are meekly complying .", "The pejorative designation decreed by the stargazers ' union presuming to represent the solar `` Club of Eight '' is bottomed on dwarf star , defined as `` relatively small , with low mass and below-average luminosity . ''", "-LRB- Our sun falls into that demeaning category , but even so , sunblock is recommended . -RRB-", "The interest of language mavens in this astronomical rejiggering is the connotation of the words dwarf and planet .", "Dwarf , as both noun and adjective , means `` shorter than the average for the species , '' sometimes `` malformed or disproportionate . ''", "Because of cruel folklore portraying those affected by dwarfism as ugly Rumpelstiltskins , many with that genetic abnormality prefer to be called `` little people '' or `` of short stature . ''", "Midget , though well proportioned , is used to describe objects like tiny cars and submarines , and many little people take offense when the word is applied to them .", "The standard plural of dwarf is `` dwarfs , '' like Snow White 's Seven , though the novelist J.R.R. Tolkien has popularized dwarves .", "Planet and planetary are rooted in the Greek planasthai , `` to wander '' -LRB- Pluto wandered too far -RRB- .", "These words are gaining a political coloration .", "A recent visit to Australia by Mikhail Gorbachev drew a headline `` Former Soviet Supremo in Brisbane to Promote Planetary Perestroika . ''", "A Boston Globe article noted Colin Powell 's visit to the U.N. three years ago `` to convince the world of the planetary threat of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein . ''", "But environmentalists have been gravitating the use of planet , substituting it for world , as others cool toward global .", "`` Worried about a potential planetary crisis , '' William Broad wrote in The Times this summer , `` these leaders are calling on governments and scientific groups to study exotic ways to reduce global warming .", ". ``", "Roger Lewis of The Washington Post reported on `` green architecture '' at the National Building Museum , referring to `` atmospheric carbon dioxide and its planetary consequences . ''", "And Al Gore 's book `` An Inconvenient Truth '' was subtitled `` The Planetary Emergency of Global Warming and What We Can Do About It . ''", "To my ear , many liberals are taking up the vogue use of planet and planetary while conservatives cling to world , worldwide and global -LRB- strategy , not warming -RRB- .", "Marshall McLuhan would probably now be writing about a planetary village .", "`` To save the planet '' connotes practical environmentalism , while `` to save the world '' connotes dreamy idealism .", "`` The growing use of planetary , '' opines Tom Pitoniak , an editor at Merriam-Webster , `` might be a symptom of a changing worldview , of people getting more conscious of our situation in a multigalactic universe .", "But there are still contexts where , if you use planetary , you 'll sound as if you 're in the realm of spaceships .", "Newt Gingrich said , a few weeks ago , that we were in World War III .", "If he had said that this was ` Planetary War III , ' you would have thought that aliens were landing . ''", "To whom , then , would the melodramatic suicide note -- `` Goodbye , cruel world ! '' -- be addressed .", "Though a planet is a physical world , the metaphoric world -- of ideas , of work , of entertainment -- is larger than the planet Earth .", "If a dwarf planet were a person , Pluto would be in a world of hurt .", "Evidence Some of our top intelligence officials are irritated at the way their analysts have been playing down reports from agents in the field of contacts between Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran 's Revolutionary Guard .", "Gun-shy after criticism about past analyses of a series of contacts between Saddam 's Iraq and Al Qaeda , they are said to be `` unwilling to make judgment calls .", ". We 're not in a court of law , `` a source identified as '' a senior United States official `` told Mark Mazzetti of The Times .", "`` When they say there is ' no evidence , ' you have to ask them what they mean -- what is the meaning of the term ' evidence ' .", "`` -LRB- Guide to sourcemanship : `` a senior United States official '' is a political appointee over 30 .", "`` A senior agency employee '' is a midlevel careerocrat looking out a Langley window and dreaming about a book contract .", "No confidential informant is ever identified as `` junior , '' which would impugn the status of the source .", "-RRB- The job of a rhetorician is to answer rhetorical questions .", "I would sharpen the question , `` What is the meaning of the word evidence .", "`` by adding '' and how is it different from proof .", "`` Here 's an answer : First , forget the clich\u00e9 modifier credible .", "When it comes to evidence , what is believable to one analyst is incredible to another .", "Evidence may be hard or soft , conflicting or incontrovertible , it may be unpersuasive or convincing , exculpatory or damning , but with whatever qualifier it is presented , the noun evidence is neutral : it means `` a means of determining whether an assertion is truthful or an allegation is a fact . ''", "But here 's the rub that rubs so many intelligence analysts the wrong way : Evidence -- from tips , taps , tapes , testimony , confessions , weapons , documents , satellite photos and the like -- is not in itself proof .", "Only the conclusion that experienced minds draw from a weighing of all the evidence can approach proof .", "With that requirement for human judgment understood , intelligence analysts can take their best shot .", "THE WAY WE LIVE NOW : 9-10-06 : ON LANGUAGE Send comments and suggestions to : safireonlanguage@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["William Safire column on term ` dwarf planet , ' new designation for Pluto , and trend among environmentalists to use terms ' planet ' and ` planetary ' instead of ` world ' .", "Also comments on distinction between ` evidence ' and ` proof ' ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 15, 33], "tag": ["Magazine"]} +{"id": "1788760", "text": ["THE 80 's are back in the first part of the season , when three notable works from that decade will be on view .", "Each represented a breakthrough for its choreographer .", "Each has been infrequently seen since its debut .", "Twyla Tharp 's 1981 `` Golden Section , '' right , to be performed by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at City Center in December , is the final part of a larger work , `` The Catherine Wheel , '' to music by David Byrne , the lead singer of that quintessentially 80 's group Talking Heads .", "Ms. Tharp 's kinetic , whiplash movement , Mr. Byrne 's jerky , compulsive rhythms and Santo Loquasto 's reworking of his original sporty gold costumes turn the dancers into superheroes , raised to a higher plane through the sheer joy of movement .", "While Ms. Tharp was first garnering critical plaudits for `` The Golden Section , '' a young Belgian choreographer , Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker , was completing a piece she had started during a year at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University .", "Her `` Fase '' -LRB- 1982 -RRB- , set to four pieces by Steve Reich , started Ms. de Keersmaeker 's career .", "A rigorously austere duet that will be performed during the Brooklyn Academy of Music 's `` Reich @ 70 '' celebration in October , `` Fase '' is minimal in its formal composition and rich in its effects .", "Simple repetitive turns and steps show two women in swirling black dresses slipping in and out of phase with each other in a tour de force of timing and memory .", "Ms. de Keersmaeker makes us hear the shifts of the musical rhythms and see the bones of her dance with a thrilling intensity .", "The French choreographer Angelin Preljocaj was hardly unknown when he created his version of `` Les Noces '' in 1989 .", "But the success of the work , to be performed by his company in November at the Joyce Theater , secured an international reputation for Mr. Preljocaj , who drew on his Albanian roots in his hard-driving vision of Stravinsky 's work .", "Five men and five women fling five dummies in wedding dresses into the air as they enact the apparently deeply instinctive rituals of courtship , marriage , sex and death with a physical energy and a violence that are at once alarming and exciting .", "Mr. Preljocaj 's chicly black-clad dancers do n't look like the peasants of Bronislava Nijinska 's 1923 original , but his piece indicates that in some ways nothing ever changes very much .", "THE NEW SEASON : DANCE ."], "summary": ["Roslyn Sulcas article describes three notable dance works from 80 's , each of which represented breakthrough for its choreographer , that will be revived in New York this season .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788761", "text": ["AFTER the August doldrums , autumn offers more dance performances than one person could possibly attend , with various come-ons promising the sublime at each .", "Yet within months -- or even weeks -- most fade from memory , as if they had never happened .", "No , dance does n't last , but once in a while the memories do , and they keep audiences coming back .", "Whether adding to the anticipation of premieres by favorite choreographers or sweetening the return of cherished works , these afterimages , as the critic Arlene Croce called them , become part of each new performance .", "Twyla Tharp 's `` In the Upper Room '' -LRB- above , with David Hallberg and Paloma Herrera -RRB- returns for American Ballet Theater 's City Center season next month after last year 's smash run .", "Driven by a propulsive Philip Glass score , it would seem too relentless to produce specific recollections : a furious blur of bodies fades in and out of billowing smoke that , for once , does n't read as a theatrical clich\u00e9 .", "But somehow , once this 39-minute blur slows and 13 dancers stand dripping and heaving before rapturous applause , distinct personalities have emerged -- for me , most memorably in Ethan Stiefel 's fist-pumping exultation .", "It 's too soon to know if Mr. Stiefel , sidelined last winter with a knee injury , will dance in this grueling ballet .", "But we can hope .", "RoseAnne Spradlin cultivates an earthier physicality , one indelibly achieved with the unprettified , desperate bodies in her 2002 `` under / world . ''", "`` Survive Cycle , '' in development for a November premiere at Dance Theater Workshop , will feature original video , music and a landscape of shredded clothing .", "Unlike `` under / world , '' it includes no nudity , but I imagine moments of naked vulnerability to haunt the mind 's eye as that work still does .", "As always in dance , you had to be there , and Barbara Milberg Fisher was .", "A member of Ballet Society and New York City Ballet from 1946 to 1958 , she has written `` In Balanchine 's Company : A Dancer 's Memoir , `` coming Oct . 3 from Wesleyan University Press .", "In the introduction , Ms. Croce writes : `` One feels that , for Barbara Milberg Fisher , nothing supersedes the memory of once having been part of a magic circle .", "That memory is the treasure she imparts to us now . ``", "THE NEW SEASON : DANCE ."], "summary": ["Claudia La Rocco article describes two ballets and book that keep memories of dance performances alive .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788762", "text": ["TALL , red-blooded words -- the kind that wrestle big ideas to the ground -- are storming the stages of New York .", "Throughout their bracingly ambitious careers Tom Stoppard , August Wilson and David Hare have always insisted that conversation be something more exalted and exhausting than a mere after-dinner diversion .", "Now Mr. Stoppard alone bids fair to make this the most dynamically verbal theater season since Shaw was a young thing of 70 .", "-LRB- Shaw , incidentally , is fittingly represented by `` Heartbreak House , '' his rueful but energetic meditation on a social class paralyzed by world-annihilating war , in a revival from the Roundabout Theater Company . -RRB-", "In `` The Coast of Utopia , '' the first installment of which , `` Voyage , '' begins performances on Oct . 17 at the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center , Mr. Stoppard has filled not one but three plays with the lives of the intellectual forebears of the Russian Revolution .", "Their discussions and arguments , which span three decades of the 19th century and consume roughly nine hours of stage time , concern mind-quaking subjects like the dialectic of history , the path of nations , the impact of literature and even the limitations of their favorite weapons , words themselves .", "When the trilogy was first produced at the National Theater of London , this talk teemed with such passion that I left -LRB- to my surprise -RRB- more energized than depleted .", "The New York version is directed by Jack O'Brien , who propitiously proved his mastery of epic scope and towering language in the first-rate Lincoln Center Theater production of Shakespeare 's `` Henry IV . ''", "With `` Utopia , '' whose three parts will open sequentially , Mr. O'Brien will be overseeing -LRB- gulp ! -RRB- more than 40 actors in 70 roles .", "The ensemble includes Billy Crudup , Richard Easton , Jennifer Ehle , Josh Hamilton , Ethan Hawke , Amy Irving , Brian F . O'Byrne and Martha Plimpton , none of whom is likely to lapse into the automatic rhythms of `` yadda yadda yadda . ''", "Mr. Stoppard 's contemporary , David Hare , is confining himself to only one play , of conventional length .", "That 's `` The Vertical Hour , '' which begins previews at the Music Box Theater on Nov . 9 .", "The British Mr. Hare , who dissected American realpolitik in his Washington docudrama `` Stuff Happens , '' continues to focus on these United States with his drama about an American academic -LRB- and former war reporter -RRB- who experiences culture shock while on vacation abroad .", "If this all sounds a tad dry , you should know that the academic is played by the luscious -LRB- and brilliant -RRB- Julianne Moore .", "The director is Sam Mendes , whose last collaboration with Mr. Hare , `` The Blue Room , '' was a concentration of commercial catnip that brought new life to the career of Nicole Kidman , whose brief appearance in the play buck-naked is still discussed by dirty old theatergoers .", "A little less conversation has never been on the agenda for the characters of August Wilson .", "Before he died last year , Mr. Wilson completed the most ambitious cycle of American plays ever written .", "A chronicle of the African-American experience in the 20th century , the 10 plays are resonant with rich talk , both earthy and celestial , that considers nothing less than the history and destiny of a people .", "In a season celebrating Mr. Wilson , the Signature is presenting three of these plays : `` Seven Guitars '' -LRB- which opened last month and runs through Sept . 23 -RRB- , `` Two Trains Running '' -LRB- Nov . 7 to Dec . 31 -RRB- and `` King Hedley II '' -LRB- next February -RRB- .", "Lend them your ears , for in Mr. Wilson 's work , talk turns into unforgettable song .", "THE NEW SEASON THEATER ."], "summary": ["Ben Brantley article on plays ` that wrestle big ideas to the ground ' that are coming to Broadway this season .", "Discusses The Coast Of Utopia trilogy by Tom Stoppard , The Vertical Hour by David Hare and three plays by August Wilson .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Arts", "Theater"]} +{"id": "1788763", "text": ["THEATER has always been in the business of recycling and renovation .", "Even ye olde Greeks were retelling oft-told tales .", "But these days , as revivals seem to outnumber new plays , at least on Broadway , it is easy to point to their preponderance as evidence of the business 's superannuated condition .", "And yet the ability to revisit classic -- or even just old -- works is one of the major glories of the theater .", "Admit too that even stuffy old Broadway has a better track record when it comes to `` remakes '' than Hollywood , which can not manage even to improve on cheesy sitcoms when it goes foraging in the past .", "Three notable productions this fall exemplify different approaches to the craft of theatrical restoration .", "The Roundabout Theater Company tends to play it sensibly , safely and respectably .", "The formula is simple : Take a classic , add a few stars and a director of stature , and mix .", "This fall the company 's slate includes a welcome revival of Shaw 's twilight comedy-drama `` Heartbreak House , '' with a cast of reliable names like Philip Bosco , Laila Robins and Swoosie Kurtz as well as Lily Rabe , the daughter of David Rabe and Jill Clayburgh , who is displaying an impressive devotion to the stage at a time when most young actors have their sights set elsewhere .", "The director is Robin Lefevre .", "And the Roundabout deserves credit for its allegiance to Shaw , particularly as the 150th anniversary of his birth year comes to a close .", "Another season , another Stephen Sondheim revival .", "No reason to complain when they are exhilarating reconsiderations like John Doyle 's `` Sweeney Todd '' from last year , which boiled the ghoulish musical down to its firm bones and rattled them beautifully .", "The satisfying partnership of Mr. Doyle and Mr. Sondheim returns this season with a new look at `` Company , '' from 1970 .", "Mr. Doyle , who won a Tony for directing `` Sweeney , '' is once again using an economy of means to unearth new riches in a much-revived musical .", "In literal terms that means that once again the cast is doubling as the orchestra .", "But the presumption that Mr. Doyle 's unique musical methodology is merely a gimmick is refuted by this sleek , compelling production , which I saw at its premiere last season at the Playhouse in the Park in Cincinnati .", "Despite its treasured score , the rap on `` Company , '' in which the roving eye of a bachelor turning 30 traces the fault lines in the marriages of his friends , is that it has been permanently stuck in its period , as a sort of musical comedy answer to `` That 70 's Show . ``", "But Mr. Doyle 's production , which stars a magnetic Ra\u00fal Esparza as the chronically unattached Bobby , cleanly ushers it into a timeless present tense without playing fast and loose with George Furth 's book .", "`` My Deah , '' a new comedy by John Epperson , better known as the voiceless drag diva Lypsinka , typifies the reliable theatrical appeal of taking a fiendishly irreverent approach to a piece of antique dramaturgy -- in this case , Euripides ' revered `` Medea . ''", "I attended a reading of Mr. Epperson 's spoof sometime around 210 B.C. , it seems to me , and have been baffled by its failure to be produced in New York .", "Treading confidently a path forged by the respected auteurs Charles Ludlam and Charles Busch -LRB- possibly in similar heels -RRB- , Mr. Epperson sends up the original by transplanting it to the Deep South .", "Lypsinka herself will not be appearing -- a voiceless Medea is inconceivable -- but Nancy Opel , a dab hand at low-down comedy , should be perfect casting for the title role , a woman who makes your garden-variety steel magnolia look like a shrinking violet .", "The production , directed by Mark Waldrop , comes courtesy of the Abingdon Theater Company .", "THE NEW SEASON THEATER ."], "summary": ["Charles Isherwood article says that ability to revisit classic works is one of major glories of theater .", "Productions of Shaw 's Heartbreak House , Sondheim 's Company and John Epperson 's My Deah , based on Medea , described .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 11], "tag": ["Arts", "Theater"]} +{"id": "1788764", "text": ["WELCOME to the new season .", "Same as the old season .", "And the season before that .", "For most of its history , Broadway was like a train station .", "Shows came and went .", "Some big hits would stick around for a few years , then leave before too long .", "But things have changed , or to be precise , stopped changing .", "September is traditionally the time when the marquees light up with new titles , productions fresh from the road tryout or from a successful run at a smaller theater .", "This year , however , 10 of the shows on Broadway have played more than 1,000 performances , 7 of them more than 2,000 .", "-LRB- Several others , like `` Spamalot , '' `` Jersey Boys '' and `` The Color Purple , '' seem capable of joining the thousand-performance club before they 're done , whenever that will be . -RRB-", "Half of the 10 longest-running shows of all time on Broadway -- `` The Phantom of the Opera , '' `` Beauty and the Beast , '' `` Rent , '' `` Chicago '' and `` The Lion King '' -- are still running , and two more -- `` Les Mis\u00e9rables '' and `` A Chorus Line '' -- are about to be revived .", "`` Somehow or other , '' said John Breglio , an entertainment lawyer and a producer of the new `` Chorus Line , '' `` Broadway has found a popular form of entertainment that keeps these shows going and going . ''", "All of which is good news for those that are already up and running , but potentially terrifying for anyone hoping to mount a new one .", "There are only 39 theaters on Broadway .", "If 10 are booked indefinitely , that means far fewer available sites for new shows , and the competition has risen accordingly .", "Nevertheless musicals or plays that are ready for the stage and have money in the bank generally find a place .", "A number of productions that proved themselves off Broadway will be making the transition this season .", "`` Spring Awakening , '' the rock musical about adolescence and its discontents that first played at the Atlantic , will open at the Eugene O'Neill on Dec . 10 .", "`` Grey Gardens , '' the musical based on the bizarre lives of Big Edie and Little Edie Beale -LRB- aunt and cousin of Jacqueline Bouvier -RRB- , will move to the Walter Kerr for a Nov . 2 opening .", "And `` The Little Dog Laughed , '' the satire of Hollywood mores that had a successful run at the Second Stage , will open on Nov . 13 at the Cort .", "Meanwhile `` High Fidelity , '' which had been moving forward in the development process without knowing exactly where it might land , got a place to go in the Imperial when `` Dirty Rotten Scoundrels '' called it quits .", "And if `` The Wedding Singer '' ca n't make it through the less maritally inclined months of fall and winter , the Hirschfeld will be ready for its next tenant , most likely the Kander and Ebb musical `` Curtains . ''", "Rocco Landesman , the owner of the five Jujamycn theaters on Broadway , dismisses the idea that there 's any shortage of stages .", "`` If you have a show that anybody has a modicum of interest in , '' he said , `` you 're going to have a theater . ``", "What you may not have , though , is the theater you want .", "In addition to the 918-seat Walter Kerr , other small and mid-size theaters -- the 1,079-seat Gerald Schoenfeld and the 1,078-seat Bernard B . Jacobs -- which have often housed straight plays are being occupied by musicals : `` A Chorus Line '' at the Schoenfeld and `` Martin Short : Fame Becomes Me '' at the Jacobs .", "Other shows have to make do in some of Broadway 's least loved theaters , like the three that sit on cross streets -- gasp ! -- east of Broadway .", "TO some , the trend toward long-running sure things suggests that Broadway has dumbed down .", "But it can also be seen as the result of an effort , over more than 30 years , to make the showpiece of American theater a more customer-friendly business .", "`` Broadway as we know it today began in the 70 's , `` said Nancy Coyne , a founder of the Broadway marketing firm Serino Coyne , which has worked for 8 of the 10 longest-running shows .", "Back then business was off .", "The city was on the verge of bankruptcy , and Times Square was a danger zone .", "And the few Broadway and Off Broadway productions that had experimented with credit cards and phone-in reservations had limited success , said Paul Libin , the producing director at Jujamcyn , who at the time was the managing director for the Circle in the Square .", "Then in 1972 American Express was accepted , for the first time , at all Broadway box offices .", "That allowed people to book tickets by telephone , instead of having to visit the box office or put a check in the mail .", "By the early 1980 's the sales were conducted through centralized offices that could be open 24 hours a day .", "The advent of computerized ticketing made purchases easier still .", "What 's more , said Robert E . Wankel , the executive vice president of the Shubert Organization , `` computerizing tickets let us put tickets on sale for a year , which we were not able to do on a hard ticket .", "And now we can actually sell as long as we want to . ``", "In the early 1990 's customers got the opportunity -LRB- despite resistance from the Shuberts -RRB- to choose their seats when ordering tickets .", "By the late 1990 's people all over the world were able to buy tickets quickly over the Internet .", "And now , with e-ticketing , an actual ticket is no longer even necessary .", "Over the same period Broadway was learning a new word .", "In 1972 `` marketing meant going to the A & P , '' recalled Harvey Sabinson , a longtime press agent who later became the executive director of the League of American Theaters and Producers .", "And television commercials , he added , `` were talking heads repeating quotes . ''", "But in 1972 Mr. Sabinson and the team behind the musical `` Pippin '' started brainstorming and got the idea to include scenes from the actual show .", "A production number from `` Pippin '' was filmed on a soundstage in New Jersey that winter , and a new way of advertising Broadway was born .", "`` Pippin '' eventually played 1,944 performances , at the time the 10th-longest run ever .", "The success of the commercial introduced a whole new form of advertising .", "`` ` Grease ' was one of the very first ones , `` Ms. Coyne recalled .", "`` It was in its fifth year , and no one expected it to go much longer than that .", "The commercial gave it another three years . ``", "`` The Wiz , '' `` Evita '' and `` Cats '' followed suit .", "Still , the television commercial that may have been the most significant factor in expanding the Broadway audience was not even for a Broadway show .", "On Feb . 14 , 1978 , the New York State Department of Commerce introduced a new `` I Love New York '' commercial that focused on Broadway as a tourist attraction .", "The impact was immediate and enormous , said George Wachtel , the founder of Audience Research and Analysis .", "Before that , Broadway `` was a little provincial . ''", "But afterward , he continued , `` it was what New Yorkers did , it was what high rollers did when they came to New York .", "` I Love New York ' made Broadway Everyman 's theater . ``", "The TKTS booth , which opened in June 1973 , also brought in the Everyman , offering half-price tickets and helping to fill out the audience for many a struggling show .", "So between 1972 and 1978 Broadway had introduced itself to the credit card market , the computerized ticketing system , telephone reservations , modern television advertising and , by way of the `` I Love New York '' commercial , the rest of the country .", "The stage was almost set for the perpetual run , long before `` Beauty and the Beast '' was a gleam in Disney 's eye .", "What arose next .", "Prices .", "When `` They 're Playing Our Song `` opened in 1979 , Mr. Wachtel said , the top ticket cost $ 27 .", "Three years later the top ticket to `` Cats '' cost $ 45 , a jump of 66 percent .", "Prices continued to rise over the next decade , albeit a bit more slowly .", "But they did not end up scaring people away .", "`` Shows used to say , ' O.K. , we get to the winter , we die , ' '' said Emanuel Azenberg , a longtime producer and manager on Broadway who also cited the importance of new , more sophisticated accounting methods .", "`` But now you could sustain the bad winter as long as spring was coming again because of the prices . ''", "Meanwhile New York was once more becoming a tourist attraction .", "Between 1991 and 2005 , according to the city 's convention and visitors bureau , the number of visitors to New York nearly doubled , to 42.7 million per year .", "And since 1985 , the league reports , attendance on Broadway has grown by almost five million , with nearly twice the proportion of out-of-towners , and a great increase in children and teenagers .", "No one took advantage of the growing -- and changing -- audience quite like the British impresario Cameron Mackintosh , who , through a combination of spectacular productions and business savvy , produced the three longest running Broadway shows in history .", "But other producers have still managed to come up with a few tricks .", "The year 2001 saw the introduction of premium-price ticketing , selling the best seats at `` The Producers '' for $ 480 .", "The Internet , and e-mail blasts , provided an advertising medium much cheaper than television .", "More complex business models evolve all the time .", "`` We have so much more sophisticated discounting , coupled with premium pricing , and we can anticipate seasonal fluctuations , '' said Kevin McCollum , a producer of the 10-year-old `` Rent , '' which created a lottery system for cheaper tickets .", "`` There 's a lot more shifting of schedules and trying to capture the audiences . ``", "And if a show does make it to the tenure track , it can take a page from the playbook of Fran and Barry Weissler , who with their 1994 revival of `` Grease '' and the 1996 revival of `` Chicago , '' perfected the star-replacement technique , giving shows that are years old a calculated injection of buzz every few months .", "-LRB- Is there a single person watching Usher 's performance as Billy Flynn who bought tickets just to see how `` Chicago '' is holding up .", "-RRB- With this ever-growing inventory of gimmicks , the question at the beginning of each season has become : Which new entry is going to join the marathoners ' club .", "This season will it be `` High Fidelity , '' the musical based on Nick Hornby 's best-selling novel .", "Or `` Mary Poppins , '' presented jointly by two heavyweights of the long run , Mr. Mackintosh and Disney Theatricals .", "Or will it be a dark horse contender , like `` Spring Awakening '' .", "After all , this time last year few could have predicted that `` Jersey Boys '' would be likely to tie up the August Wilson Theater for years .", "That 's a heartening example for producers .", "Except for the ones who want to put their shows in the Wilson .", "THE NEW SEASON : THEATER ."], "summary": ["Article on factors that have resulted in many more Broadway productions than in past running for years .", "New plays find it difficult to locate appropriate theaters .", "Reasons for long runs include new marketing techniques , television commercials and increasing percentage of audience made up of tourists .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [53, 28, 13, 15, 0], "tag": ["Arts", "Theater"]} +{"id": "1788765", "text": ["VISUAL artists who create performance works are nothing new , but Claude Wampler , a tiny woman with austere artistic intent , is a wonder .", "Ms. Wampler , who has a history of manipulating the line between audience and performer , presents her newest production , `` PERFORMANCE -LRB- career ender -RRB- '' at the Kitchen Nov . 16 to 18 .", "As usual it is full of secrets .", "The culmination of several years of experiments , the production , as she recently explained , will `` merge a kind of visual-arts experience into a performance context , or vice versa . ''", "Much of Ms. Wampler 's performance work is about the perception of power and how swiftly it can change hands .", "For `` Bucket , '' presented at Performance Space 122 in 1999 , she hired attractive people to walk out in a huff during the show to test the real audience 's commitment .", "For `` Stable -LRB- Stupidity Project Part 10 -RRB- , '' seen at P.S. 122 in 2003 , Ms. Wampler seated the audience before a ring of Rottweilers wearing western outfits as a topless cowgirl gyrated next to the sound booth .", "As the minutes ticked by , the dogs -- huge , gentle and ridiculous -- stared at us .", "We stared back .", "-LRB- Who was more stupid .", "-RRB- As the audience reached the breaking point of fatigue and frustration , a screen was revealed onstage : Ms. Wampler had been secretly videotaping the crowd , turning the audience into performers .", "`` I 'm trying to remind the audience of their part in a performance , so that there 's a moment of instability , and then maybe some spontaneity can happen , `` she said in a recent telephone interview .", "`` But I 'm not taking advantage of the audience or using it as my material .", "It 's morally for them .", "When I 'm watching dance or theater pieces , I 'm praying that someone will do that for me . ``", "It seemed odd that Ms. Wampler -- a brave , independent and transgressive force in both the performance and the art worlds -- was excluded from last year 's Performa , a biennial of visual art performance in New York .", "But for her , the very word `` performance , '' purposely crossed out in her work 's title , is both used up and a little vague .", "`` This could be my last work , and I do n't even mean in the theater , but forever , `` she said .", "`` That 's the way I have to think about it .", "I 'm suspending my own disbelief and saying , ` If I had to make a final piece , what would it be .", "` That 's the career-ender . ``", "THE NEW SEASON : DANCE ."], "summary": ["Gia Kourlas article describes newest production of Claude Wampler , PERFORMANCE -LRB- career ender -RRB- , which will merge visual arts experience into performance arts context or vice versa .", "Wampler 's previous works and philosophy of dance discussed .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788769", "text": ["FEW directorial debuts in recent years have raised such high expectations as `` In the Bedroom , '' Todd Field 's adaptation of the Andre Dubus short story `` Killings . ''", "That drama won five Oscar nominations , including best picture , actor and actress -LRB- for Tom Wilkinson and Sissy Spacek -RRB- .", "And Mr. Field received an award from the New York Film Critics Circle for best first film .", "Now , five years later , comes `` Little Children , '' his screen adaptation of Tom Perrotta 's satirically edged 2004 novel of contemporary suburban life and its discontents .", "In light of its forerunner the choice makes perfect sense .", "As he demonstrated with `` In the Bedroom , '' Mr. Field , an actor turned director , scans the depths of his characters ' souls and sees them whole .", "This psychological radar is a gift he shares with Mr. Perrotta , with whom he wrote the screenplay for `` Little Children . ''", "The double-edged title refers not only to the suburban kids who more or less run their parents ' lives , but also to the 30 - and 40-something adults whose needy inner children cry out for release .", "One of its wistful themes is that , like it or not , having children brings your own youth to a crashing halt .", "You 're no longer at the center of things .", "The story 's emotional lightning rod is Ronald James McGorvey , a damaged middle-aged man who has recently returned to live with his mother after serving time for exposing himself to children .", "He is a pariah in their suburban Boston community and a focus of its collective fears , embodied by Larry Hedges , a disgraced former cop with a violent streak who wants to hound him out of town .", "In one of the novel 's most disturbing scenes , Ronald 's presence at a public swimming pool on a brutally hot day precipitates mass panic among the assembled mothers watching over their children .", "In the film Ronald is played by the former child star Jackie Earle Haley .", "His powerfully creepy portrayal is a pointed departure from the standard screen image of the child molester or flasher as an ordinary guy with an unfortunate kink .", "Two mismatched couples fill out the rest of the film , which will be shown Sept . 30 at the New York Film Festival and is set to open on Oct . 6 .", "Kate Winslet and Gregg Edelman play Sarah and Richard Pierce , and Jennifer Connelly and Patrick Wilson are Kathy and Brad Adamson .", "Noah Emmerich plays the former cop .", "The abundance of subplots in `` Little Children '' -- more than are in `` In the Bedroom '' -- is one reason that the film incorporates a sporadic voice-over -LRB- by an authoritative male narrator -RRB- to push the story along .", "A major subplot in the novel , and its most satirical thread -- Richard 's deepening addiction to Internet pornography -- is alluded to , then dropped .", "The movie concentrates on the affair between Sarah and Brad -LRB- called Todd in the novel -RRB- , who is so handsome the women refer to him as `` the Prom King '' when he shows up at the playground with his son .", "Brad , who plays quarterback on the local football team and is entranced by teenage skateboarding culture , is a classic case of a man in the throes of Peter Pan syndrome .", "But in the movie 's kind and patient view , we all carry varying shades and degrees of arrested development into adult life .", "THE NEW SEASON : FILM ."], "summary": ["Stephen Holden article discusses Todd Fields 's new film Little Children , his screen adaptation of Tom Perrotta 's satirically edged 2004 novel of contemporary suburban life and its discontents .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts", "Books"]} +{"id": "1788770", "text": ["THE Myth of Crazy Mel began seeping out of Hollywood long before he was arrested for drunken driving six weeks ago and burst out with the ugly , anti-Semitic comments that have put him in extreme damage-control mode .", "A 2004 episode of `` South Park '' about `` The Passion of the Christ '' depicts him as a looney-tunes guy bouncing off the walls in his underwear and whooping .", "Mel Gibson is `` crazy , dude , '' one South Park kid tells another .", "`` Mel 's crazy , but I like him , `` a name-dropping billionaire says in Bruce Wagner 's latest Hollywood novel , `` Memorial '' -LRB- released this month but written pre-meltdown -RRB- .", "And Mr. Gibson 's new film , `` Apocalypto , '' was already one of the most talked-about of the season , largely because of the Crazy Mel factor .", "Even for him , the oddball quotient is high .", "An action movie set in the dying days of the Maya civilization , the 15th century , `` Apocalypto '' was made in the Yucatec dialect without a single recognizable actor , and shot in the jungles of Mexico , where heavy rains slowed production and postponed its planned release from this summer .", "Photos from the set showed that Mr. Gibson had grown a full beard and let its central white streak grow longer than the rest , as if defiantly choosing to look like an aging eccentric .", "As a director , he has been some kind of mad genius so far , anticipating what audiences want with startling clarity : making a sword-and-sandals epic when it was no longer fashionable , yet winning Oscars -LRB- including best director -RRB- for `` Braveheart '' -LRB- 1995 -RRB- .", "Turning what seemed a gigantic folly -- a gruesome , subtitled , self-financed passion play -- into a $ 600 million worldwide blockbuster with `` The Passion '' -LRB- 2004 -RRB- .", "But those photos from Mexico and the subject of `` Apocalypto '' -- the hero , called Jaguar Paw , is chosen as a human sacrifice and makes a fast-paced escape through the rain forest -- were enough to make anyone wonder whether Mr. Gibson had finally gone around the bend and turned into some cinematic Kurtz , lost in the dark jungle .", "The film is still being edited , so there 's no way to know whether `` Apocalypto '' might be crazy-brilliant or just crazed .", "But we know from his recent mug shot that Mr. Gibson has lost the beard .", "-LRB- As those things go , it 's a glamour shot , showing that some actors can play to the camera no matter how high their blood alcohol level . -RRB-", "And we know that his drunken Malibu tirade casts an inescapable shadow over the film 's opening , raising many questions , including : Will `` Apocalypto '' really arrive on Dec . 8 .", "As recently as last week Touchstone , the Disney division releasing it , insisted it would .", "That 's about all the studio will say about a movie that must have become an albatross , because the crucial question is : How can this film be marketed .", "Mr. Gibson 's name and ability to chat up `` Apocalypto '' was its only real selling point .", "Now he trails apologies and questions about bigotry wherever he goes , which will make it pretty hard to stay on message about old Jaguar Paw .", "Whatever happens with `` Apocalypto , '' it would be unfair if his personal debacle were to overshadow Mr. Gibson 's immense gifts and accomplishments as a director .", "Apart from commercial success , his films have been rich with action , emotion and visual interest .", "`` The Man Without a Face '' -LRB- 1993 -RRB- was n't the safest or easiest choice for a first-time director .", "He cast himself as a former teacher whose face is horribly disfigured on one side , and whose innocent relationship as mentor to a teenage boy is questioned .", "The film may not be as gripping as it should be , but the camera moves fluidly in this pretty-looking period piece , set in Maine in 1968 , and the delicate subject is not overplayed until Mr. Gibson gives himself one scenery-chewing monologue near the end .", "You can almost feel him finding has way as a director while yearning to burst the limits of the movie 's small scale .", "By the time he got to `` Braveheart , '' just two years later , even the logo for his production company , Icon , looked better .", "By far the best of his three pre - `` Apocalypto '' films , this epic sounds as silly as ever when described , and the warrior 's blue face paint that Mr. Gibson wears as William Wallace , the 13th-century Scottish freedom fighter , has become the laziest of Mel jokes .", "Yet `` Braveheart '' still works as a big , enormously satisfying popcorn movie .", "Mr. Gibson brings all his star power to the screen , convincingly taking Wallace from romance to brutal vengeance when his wife is killed .", "The scope and relentless pace of the battle sequences remain thrilling .", "And in hindsight we can spot two elements that have become his trademark : torture scenes on screen and controversy off .", "When Wallace is tortured and martyred before a crowd in a prolonged scene at the end , the visceral depiction of suffering leads straight to `` The Passion of the Christ . ''", "`` The Passion '' remains difficult to sit through because of its extremely graphic scenes of Jesus ' torture : we see his flesh ripped off as he is scourged .", "Early in the film one eye is swollen shut , and by the end his face glows red with blood .", "But this is exactly the film Mr. Gibson set out to make -- unsubtle , grisly and disturbing -- and it 's easy to respect him for his uncompromising vision .", "You ca n't miss how deeply felt and eccentric a project it was , with a spark of zealotry that goes beyond simple faith .", "Yet `` The Passion of the Christ '' also gives new meaning to preaching to the converted .", "The film never proselytizes .", "It simply speaks forcefully to an audience of believers .", "The charges of anti-Semitism leveled at `` The Passion , '' primarily because of a scene in which the Jewish crowd calls for Jesus ' death , have come back to haunt Mr. Gibson now .", "There were equally wrongheaded attacks calling `` Braveheart '' homophobic because of a scene in which the English king , Longshanks , pushes his gay son 's lover out a tower window .", "In both cases Mr. Gibson 's critics confused the characters with the director .", "Any homophobia in `` Braveheart '' comes from Longshanks , who also resented the political influence the lover was gaining .", "And both Caiphas , the Jewish high priest , and Pilate , the weak-willed Roman governor , bear responsibility for Jesus ' death in `` The Passion . ''", "The fault line is not between Jews and Romans but between believers and nonbelievers .", "Of course , during his highway arrest , it was Mel Gibson himself , not some character , who spouted anti-Semitic remarks .", "And in the way that news reports about Mr. Gibson 's ultraconservative Catholicism and comments by his father , Hutton Gibson , denying the extent of the Holocaust bled into the reception for `` The Passion , '' so his current off-screen problems are likely to deflect attention from `` Apocalypto . ''", "The film 's Web site , put up months ago , still heralds it as `` a heart-stopping mythic action-adventure , '' and the trailer -LRB- a notoriously unreliable guide , but all we have -RRB- suggests it is squarely aimed at fans of `` Braveheart . ''", "As Jaguar Paw races through the jungle pursued by torch-bearing warriors , the movie seems fraught with the kind of action that makes Yucatec or any other language superfluous .", "There will be subtitles , but Mr. Gibson , who wrote the screenplay with his former assistant , Farhad Safinia , has said there is n't much dialogue anyway .", "Some actors have extravagantly painted faces , while others are caked with white powder from a lime quarry .", "There is romance , or at least there has been sex : we see Jaguar Paw look tenderly at a pregnant woman .", "And a huge crowd scene at a Mayan temple is presided over by a man with clawlike nails straight from a horror film .", "More mysteriously , in May Mr. Gibson told Time magazine , `` The fearmongering we depict in this film reminds me a little of President Bush and his guys . ''", "That adds an intriguing , media-ready frisson , but now even attacks on the Bush administration ca n't displace the Mel Meltdown in any discussion of `` Apocalypto . ''", "Mr. Gibson 's drunken comments and his two public statements of apology have landed in a changed world of celebrity gossip and Internet speculation , which wo n't let this story fade .", "Internet chatter and celebrity magazines probably wo n't lead many people to decide whether to see `` Apocalypto '' or not , though .", "Loyal Gibson fans will view this as a sad story of alcoholism , forgive him and buy their tickets .", "Others will reject the apologies as mere spin and think his anti-Semitic outburst proves what `` The Passion '' led them to suspect .", "But then , any viewer incensed by `` The Passion '' was n't likely to go to `` Apocalypto '' in the first place .", "Disney 's marketing problem is more complicated : how to reach the vast middle ground of people who are simply looking for entertainment .", "`` Apocalypto '' is not as big a financial nightmare for Disney as it could have been .", "Mr. Gibson 's production company financed the film -LRB- the budget is reportedly under $ 50 million -RRB- , and Disney has only domestic distribution rights .", "But that arrangement is costly enough .", "Legally bound to release the film , the studio has no choice but to tough it out .", "And in the end , just as Mr. Gibson 's actions have made him his own worst enemy , he may have no choice but to become his own greatest asset .", "If the arrest report could travel with lightning speed , arriving on the Web site TMZ.com two days later , so a Mel Gibson apology tour could move as fast .", "-LRB- Alan Nierob , Mr. Gibson 's publicist , said plans for promoting the film have not been addressed yet , partly because the movie is n't ready to be seen . -RRB-", "In his second apology Mr. Gibson said there was `` no excuse '' for his remarks .", "And the issue of whether he is truly anti-Semitic is ultimately between him and his conscience .", "But that statement , asking for forgiveness and help from Jews in his recovery , was the shrewdest public relations gambit he could have made in a dire situation .", "It puts anyone who doubts his sincerity or refuses his apology in the camp of the unforgiving .", "Who wants to be there .", "And while the moviegoing audience might be tickled by celebrity gossip , it does n't really want to believe the worst of its stars .", "The Meltdown might even become a blip in his career .", "After all , atonement and forgiveness are as crucial to the Judeo-Christian tradition as money is to Hollywood 's .", "THE NEW SEASON : FILM ."], "summary": ["Caryn James article profiles director Mel Gibson .", "His new film Apocalypto , set in 15th century Mayan civilization and made in Yucatec dialect without single recognizable actor , is set to open in December .", "Interest in film is high not only because of its subject but because of controversies surrounding Gibson .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 4, 5], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788773", "text": ["IT was Monday at the Chateau de Versailles , the gates closed to tourists , and Sofia Coppola was camped out in a quiet corner of the grounds , resurrecting Marie Antoinette .", "A cold spring afternoon had been transformed into dawn with a spotlight that mimicked the rising sun .", "Wildflowers from an adjacent field had been replanted in the tall grass .", "Ms. Coppola arranged strands of a foot-high hairdo on the actress Kirsten Dunst , then stepped back and took a photo .", "Then the cameras started rolling , and the young queen sat on the edge of a reflecting pool , tipsily sipping the last of her Champagne with some hangers -on , her royal husband tucked away in bed .", "So this was what it must have been like for Marie Antoinette to have the place all to herself .", "Versailles administrators granted Ms. Coppola , the 35-year-old writer-director , unprecedented access to the chateau and its grounds , allowing her to film scenes for `` Marie Antoinette '' over 12 weeks in the spring of 2005 .", "Based on a best-selling book by Lady Antonia Fraser , this stylized , impressionistic portrait of the controversial French queen had its premiere this year at the Cannes Film Festival to mixed reviews .", "Even the two critics for The New York Times who saw the movie there came down on opposite sides of the fence .", "Since then , it has attracted more than a million moviegoers in France .", "It is set to open in the United States on Oct . 20 .", "`` I 'm so glad we were n't in Budapest or whatever , like , trying to fake it , `` Ms. Coppola said a few weeks after wrapping , upstairs at that Right Bank institution the Caf\u00e9 de Flore .", "Once favored by Jean-Paul Sartre and now the canteen of choice for American expatriates in the St . - Germain-des-Pr\u00e9s neighborhood , it is next door to the apartment she rented while making the movie .", "`` It 's so cool to be in the real places .", "There 's something that just gets you into the mood .", "They let us shoot in places people were n't allowed to normally , like Marie Antoinette 's private theater .", "They were like , ` This is your home . '", "`` The queenly welcome had to do with the fact that Ms. Coppola is something of a cult figure in France .", "The French admire her talent : she won a best-foreign-film C\u00e9sar , the French Academy Award , in 2005 for her last film , `` Lost in Translation , '' about a young American who spends most of a trip to Tokyo holed up in the Park Hyatt .", "But they also esteem her much-photographed , tastefully chic personal style .", "And her status as Hollywood royalty does n't hurt : her father , the director Francis Ford Coppola , is a demigod in France .", "So her decision to make Marie Antoinette the star of her latest film has resulted in a grand comeback for the much-maligned queen .", "Along with director and star , Marie Antoinette herself now ranks as a fashion icon .", "Magazines have devoted special issues to her , featuring her portrait on the cover .", "French luxury houses have issued Marie Antoinette merchandise .", "Several books have appeared , tied not to the 250th anniversary of her birth last year but to the opening of the film , filling many an hour on both high - and lowbrow talk shows .", "It is as if the French needed the hype of a Hollywood movie to get them excited about their own history .", "But Ms. Coppola said she was more interested in the emotional life of her young heroine .", "`` I wanted to make a personal story and not a big epic historical biopic , '' she said , adding that she wanted to tell the story from the point of view of a 14-year-old Austrian girl who is shipped off to France in 1770 to marry the future King Louis XVI , who is 16 .", "She used Lady Antonia 's dense , anecdotal book as her primary source .", "`` I would get bored when it would get sort of too detailed , '' she said of the book .", "`` I did n't want to get bogged down with history , but to focus on the personal relations between these people .", "Louis would n't sleep with her , so she wanted to go out and party -- like someone in a bad marriage going shopping .", "It just seemed like the same old story . ``", "This Marie Antoinette is a party girl with a gay hairdresser and a shoe fetish .", "She drowns her sorrows in bonbons and Champagne while , beyond the castle walls , the people starve .", "As for her famous response when told that the masses had no bread -- `` Let them eat cake '' -- both Lady Antonia and Ms. Coppola dismiss it as gossip .", "-LRB- In the film , Marie Antoinette herself laughs it off . -RRB-", "Speculation that she had a passionate affair with the Swedish count Axel Fersen is portrayed as fact .", "Ms. Coppola 's film takes other liberties : she eschews the often stately colors used in portraits of the French court for pastels inspired by the famous macaroons of the Parisian pastry house Ladur\u00e9e .", "She relied on the costume department to vet dress styles or advise on the appropriate size of a bow -- but only to a point .", "`` I want it to be believable , so that it does n't take you out of the story , `` Ms. Coppola said , '' but I 'd rather pick a heel that is more appealing to me that maybe was invented 50 years later .", "I 'm not a fetishist about historical accuracy .", "I 'm just , like , making it my thing . ``", "Anyway , as she points out , `` they did n't speak English in Versailles , either . ``", "The actors speak in their own mostly American voices .", "`` I was trying to make it sound normal , '' she said , `` although I 'm a little afraid of it ever sounding a little too much California Valley Girl .", "I 'm trying to get them to say ` all right ' instead of ` O.K. , ' to make it a little more formal than we would be , but not to feel like you were in a stiff period movie . ''", "For several days in April 2005 , the production moved into the H\u00f4tel de Soubise , a city palace that is now part of the National Archives in Paris .", "Hairdressers carrying 18th-century powdered wigs on plastic heads walked the narrow streets of the Marais district , on their way to and from the set .", "The actor Jason Schwartzman , who is Ms. Coppola 's cousin , was coming out of his trailer dressed as Louis XVI when a teenager in oversize shorts dropped to the sidewalk and began to bow in mock homage to the king , crying , `` Le roi ! Le roi ! '' Girls in long gowns , powdered wigs and sunglasses smoked cigarettes and talked on their cellphones between takes .", "In an ornate 18th-century salon , Ms. Coppola huddled by a monitor in wordless conference with her brother , Roman , who is also a filmmaker , and who was on the set shooting secondary scenes .", "`` I do n't have to say anything .", "He can go shoot something and he 'll get exactly what I want , `` Ms. Coppola said .", "`` It 's like having another brain . ``", "Ms. Coppola said she was just following in her father 's footsteps by hiring family members .", "Her mother , Eleanor , who filmed the `` Marie Antoinette '' making-of documentary , did the same job on Francis Ford Coppola 's `` Apocalypse Now . ''", "And he acted as executive producer for his daughter on this film .", "`` I mean , they 're just doing what they want .", "They sort of have a little bit of a bratty attitude . ``", "Mr. Schwartzman said he appreciated the mood on the set .", "`` One thing that 's really nice about Sofia is , like , you do n't realize you 're working , `` he said .", "`` And she talks to you about your character in a modern context , which you almost need .", "Because they were people -- they 're not just facts and dates and that kind of stuff -- so she gives you something you can relate to . ``", "Ms. Coppola said she wrote the lead roles for Mr. Schwartzman and Ms. Dunst -LRB- who starred in her directorial debut , `` The Virgin Suicides , '' in 1999 -RRB- .", "`` Kirsten to me has just , like , a fun , bubbly , effervescent quality , and that 's how I think of Marie Antoinette , `` she said .", "`` And she also has a depth .", "And she 's German , so I thought she had the coloring and the features . ``", "Ms. Dunst , who has been acting in films since she was 7 , said that she empathized with the young queen .", "`` She was a girl surrounded by grown-ups who wanted things from her and judged her , and she did n't exactly know what people expected from her , `` Ms. Dunst said during a lunch break , in sweats and her pink-cheeked Marie Antoinette makeup and giant hair .", "`` I could relate to that kind of loneliness . ''", "By the time the film opened at Cannes , Marie Antoinette mania had reached such a fevered pitch that the French news media -- which had helped to generate it -- seemed stunned that the movie itself might not live up to the hype .", "`` I was a little bit disappointed , '' the normally gushy Cannes veteran Laurent Weill said apologetically during one of his nightly television reports from the Croisette .", "After some of the Cannes audience booed the film , another national newscaster told her audience , with a dash of understatement , `` Sometimes the most anticipated films are not the most appreciated . ''", "For her part , Ms. Coppola calmly repeated in every interview that a strong reaction -- good or bad , anything but indifference -- was what she hoped for .", "Many critics and observers saw the film as a comment on modern celebrity youth culture , with Marie Antoinette as an 18th-century Paris Hilton .", "Others wondered aloud if Ms. Coppola 's sympathetic portrait of her heroine as a poor little rich girl had more to do with her own experience as a child of Hollywood and privilege .", "Why , they asked , did Ms. Coppola focus on the queen 's frivolous lifestyle and teenage psyche , ending the movie well before she meets her destiny at the guillotine .", "All her films have dealt with child-women during painful , alienated moments in their young lives .", "`` I see them like a trilogy , and this is the final chapter , '' she said at the Caf\u00e9 de Flore .", "`` It 's a continuation of the other two films -- sort of about a lonely girl in a big hotel or palace or whatever , kind of wandering around , trying to grow up .", "But in the other ones , you know , they 're always sort of on the verge .", "This is a story about a girl becoming a woman .", "And in this , I feel like she does . ``", "THE NEW SEASON : FILM Correction : September 17 , 2006 , Sunday An article last Sunday about the making of the film `` Marie Antoinette '' misstated the location of Caf\u00e9 de Flore , where the director , Sofia Coppola , was interviewed .", "It is in Paris on the Left Bank , not the Right ."], "summary": ["Article discusses director Sofia Coppola 's new film Marie Antoinette , which premiered at Cannes Film Festival to mixed reviews .", "Coppola was granted twelve weeks of unprecented access to chateau and grounds of Versailles for filming .", "Film portrays Marie Antoinette as party girl .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 7], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788776", "text": ["PERHAPS partly because it was made at a time when movies often threw in a little something for everyone , there 's a sappy love story tucked into the corners of `` Frankenstein . ''", "But it 's inconsequential : there could be nothing in `` Frankenstein '' more romantic than Boris Karloff 's monster , right .", "With his heavy-lidded gaze and his twisted smile , he 's not quite human and yet more human than we can almost bear .", "To honor the movie 's 75th anniversary , Universal unveils this special edition with extras that have not appeared on previous releases .", "-LRB- On the same date Universal will also release the 75th anniversary edition of `` Dracula . ''", "And Sept . 19 marks the release of the Boris Karloff Collection , featuring some of his lesser-known films , including `` Tower of London '' and `` The Strange Door , '' which co-stars Charles Laughton . -RRB-", "We learn that Karloff would entertain his fellow actors on-set with Cockney ditties , and insisted on breaking for tea .", "This charming actor , underneath layers of carefully conceived makeup , created a character whose resonance has not diminished over the years .", "The monster 's cries of anguish , frustration and finally pain are the evidence of his curse : he is allowed to walk among men but not invited to be of them .", "His clumsy underestimation of the fragility of life results in the death of a little girl , and the scene in which she drowns , cut from the version of the movie we all used to see on television , is heartbreaking and shocking even today .", "How could any of us not know how this monster feels .", "-LRB- Universal Home Entertainment , Sept . 26 , $ 26.98. -RRB-", "STEPHANIE ZACHAREK THE NEW SEASON : FILM / DVD 'S ."], "summary": ["Article discusses new DVD of film Frankenstein , starring Boris Karloff , on the 75th anniversary of film 's original release .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 1], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788778", "text": ["G . W . PABST 'S tragic fable , from two plays by Frank Wedekind about a prostitute whose love for -- and conquest of -- a married man begins her spiral of decline , is one of the most beautifully filmed of all silent movies .", "Pabst 's unobtrusive but masterly compositions and disarmingly delicate lighting effects are the stuff of rapture .", "Then again , when Louise Brooks , above , is your star , it 's your duty to place her in a context of perfection .", "Brooks plays the doomed , exquisite Lulu , who , with her sable bob and mischievous , calculating smile , became an enduring symbol of jazz-age freedom and joyousness .", "If beauty and saucy charm were all Brooks had to offer , she would have ended up a caricature .", "But this performance is so vital and so infinitely shaded that it inspires wonder each time you see it .", "Brooks 's Lulu is an image of relaxed modernity : she may be willful , petulant and manipulative , but she is also a woman striding toward an uncertain future in a world that does n't provide easy comforts .", "On the night of her disastrous wedding to the rich Dr. Sch\u00f6n -LRB- Fritz Kortner -RRB- , who believes he adores her but really wants to possess her , she stands in front of the mirror , preparing to remove her wedding finery .", "The first thing to come off is a new strand of pearls , which represent the safe , pampered life she has been striving for .", "She lets the glowing beads pool in the palm of her hand , and we see her face in the mirror , an ivory moon framed by darkness .", "The faint smile that crosses her lips is not one of greed or catlike satisfaction but of quiet relief : she has set herself up for a life without worry and strife , not yet knowing that such a life is impossible .", "We have seen how frivolous and thoughtless she can be , and we have witnessed her gentle treachery , but judging her is unthinkable .", "We ca n't trust Lulu .", "We can only believe her .", "In addition to a new , restored transfer of the film , this two-disc set has four different musical scores -LRB- two of which were commissioned for this release -RRB- and a booklet that includes an essay by J . Hoberman , the Village Voice film critic , and Kenneth Tynan 's essential Brooks profile , `` The Girl in the Black Helmet . ''", "-LRB- Criterion Collection , Nov . 10 , $ 39.95. -RRB-", "STEPHANIE ZACHAREK THE NEW SEASON : FILM / DVD 'S ."], "summary": ["Article discusses new DVD of G W Pabst film Pandora 's Box starring Louise Brooks .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788779", "text": ["KATHRYN BIGELOW made `` Point Break '' as if she were determined to show up all the big boys as sissies .", "She pumps this movie full of adrenaline like someone determined to see how much helium a balloon can hold before it bursts .", "This is the sort of picture in which the hero -LRB- Keanu Reeves , above left -RRB- is named Johnny Utah , and a bad guy about to meet his maker exclaims , `` I 'll see you in hell , Johnny . ``", "It would be ridiculous if it were n't so delirious .", "Utah is an F.B.I. agent who goes undercover to bring down a group of surfers financing their pursuit of the big waves with a string of bank robberies .", "His nemesis is Bodhi , the surfing guru-bank robber who , as played by the marvelous Patrick Swayze , above right , is like a stoned version of the chest-thumping he-man Robert Shaw portrayed in `` Jaws . ''", "The Carlos Castaneda of machismo , Bodhi is ready with a quasi-mystical justification of everything from riding a tube to planning a heist .", "Ms. Bigelow is in love with macho thrill seeking , but she ca n't resist kidding it .", "So as `` Point Break '' grows more intense , it becomes funnier .", "She keeps the movie in perpetual motion , whether speeding along in a car , gently bobbing on a surfboard or , in the movie 's stunning visual set piece , sky diving .", "The cinematographer , Donald Peterman , makes you feel as if you 're hovering beside the sky divers as they caper around in midair before pulling the rip cord .", "When the five come together to form a floating circle , it 's as if you 're looking at some wacko version of King Arthur 's knights , and it 's elating .", "This is the action movie as goofy rapture .", "-LRB- 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment , Oct . 3 , $ 19.98. -RRB-", "CHARLES TAYLOR THE NEW SEASON : FILM / DVD 'S ."], "summary": ["Article discusses new DVD of film Point Break directed by Kathryn Bigelow .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788780", "text": ["DUMPED into theaters as an exploitation cheapie in 1968 , this lyrical thriller is a minor American classic .", "As Dennis , a young man trying to get his feet on the ground after being released from a reformatory , Anthony Perkins , right , gives perhaps his richest performance , certainly his most touching .", "Just as Perkins was trying to leave behind the juvenile roles that had typecast him , Dennis , a basically decent fellow , is trying to become an adult .", "But even when he succeeds in hiding his past , he ca n't resist playing the smart aleck or slipping into a world of make-believe .", "Dennis persuades the town golden girl Sue Ann -LRB- Tuesday Weld , right -RRB- to slip into that world with him .", "The twist is that she 's every bit the psychopath people assume Dennis is .", "And since she 's bored with the small town and hates her mother , she 's ready for anything .", "Lorenzo Semple Jr . ` s screenplay is beautifully worked out , and the director , Noel Black , does a superb job of modulating the film 's conflicting elements : the coming-of-age story and the thriller .", "Sensitive and unsettling , `` Pretty Poison '' at times suggests a smaller-scale version of `` Splendor in the Grass , '' without the Freudian gush .", "And when violence breaks out in the suburban setting , Mr. Black plays it straight , not for the cheap irony that won so much praise for Terrence Malick 's phony , condescending `` Badlands . ''", "A large part of what makes `` Pretty Poison '' chilling is Ms. Weld 's amazing performance .", "It is no stretch to cast her as the prettiest girl in town , but resisting the urge to telegraph a character 's craziness takes real discipline .", "Ms. Weld pulls off the neat trick of making Sue Ann seem even more like a normal , carefree teenager after she kills .", "Pointing a gun , as she 's preparing to commit a murder she has long dreamed of , Ms. Weld 's smile has never been sweeter .", "-LRB- 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment , Sept . 5 , $ 14.98. -RRB-", "CHARLES TAYLOR THE NEW SEASON : FILM / DVD 'S ."], "summary": ["Article discusses new DVD of 1968 thriller Pretty Poison starring Anthony Perkins and Tuesday Weld .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788781", "text": ["PLENTY of Jane Austen devotees nearly fainted in horror at the liberties Joe Wright took with his 2005 adaptation of `` Pride & Prejudice '' .", "The DVD release of Robert Z . Leonard 's far more outlandish 1940 version with Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier , above , is likely to set many more Regency bonnets quivering with indignation .", "Forget that Austen 's dialogue has been zingered up and accented with a whimsical score , and that the costumes , by the Hollywood gown god Adrian , have a distinct and bizarre antebellum flair .", "-LRB- Georgian , Southern -- what 's the difference .", "-RRB- The picture is deeply , ridiculously pleasurable not in spite of its anachronisms but because of them .", "As the critic Robin Wood said , `` It is not a very good film , but at least it is alive . ''", "Garson makes a highly unbelievable Lizzy Bennet -- her satiny coolness comes off mostly as indifference -- but at least Olivier 's Darcy is there to make up the deficit .", "Olivier may be playing a matinee idol as much as a literary character , but he manages to meld the two seamlessly , playing Darcy 's propriety and reserve as a subtle , erotic mating dance .", "Maybe Austen herself would have approved of that , but even if not , this `` Pride and Prejudice '' at least has a crazy , joyful sheen .", "The trailer , included here , gives us a shot of the five Bennet girls chattering away in their drawing room as the words `` Five love-hungry sisters and how they got their husbands ! '' splash across the screen .", "Yet even the boldness of that ad campaign has a certain charm .", "Sure , MGM was trying to sell a classic to the masses , but sometimes , the movies are the crossroads where schoolgirls and scholars meet .", "-LRB- Warner Home Video , Oct . 10 , $ 19.98. -RRB-", "STEPHANIE ZACHAREK THE NEW SEASON : FILM / DVD 'S ."], "summary": ["Article discusses new DVD of 1940 film of Jane Austen 's Pride and Prejudice starring Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788782", "text": ["BEFORE the accident that paralyzed Christopher Reeve , it was all you could do to convince people that such a charming , good-looking guy was also a wonderful actor .", "After the accident he became so beloved that his performances were almost beside the point .", "It would be fitting if this eight-disc collection -LRB- two discs for each of his four Superman movies -RRB- focused attention on the beauty of Reeve 's performances as the man from Krypton and his alter ego , Clark Kent .", "Reeve was blessed with some of the best comic timing the movies have seen since the heyday of screwball .", "His Superman takes great pleasure in playacting the super nerd Kent .", "You feel a prankster 's joy behind Kent 's every klutzy move , every whinging bit of jealousy he admits to feeling over the adoration Margot Kidder 's Lois Lane , above , has for Superman .", "In `` Superman II '' -LRB- 1980 -RRB- , directed by Richard Lester and the best entry in the series , Superman gives up his powers so he can love Lois as a man .", "Reeve enacts a remarkable scene when , for the first time , Superman finds himself a vulnerable mortal after getting into a fight with a bully at a roadside diner .", "Crumpled to the ground , Kent notices the blood coming from his mouth and stares at it , giving a sick little laugh reverberating with a fear he never before felt .", "To watch it is to feel all the security ever inspired by a superhero shaken to the core .", "The extras in this set were not available for preview -LRB- nor was the cut of `` Superman II '' directed by Richard Donner , being released on a second disc .", "Mr. Donner left after disputes with the producers , and Mr. Lester was brought in to finish the movie -RRB- .", "It is a nice tribute to Reeve that in this year 's `` Superman Returns , '' the director , Bryan Singer , captures a mournful , moving spirit that keeps faith with the deepest and most painful places Reeve ventured to go during his time in the cape .", "-LRB- `` Superman : The Christopher Reeve Collection , '' Warner Home Video , Nov . 28 , $ 79.98.", "`` Superman II : The Richard Donner Cut , '' Warner Home Video , Nov . 28 , $ 24.98. -RRB-", "CHARLES TAYLOR THE NEW SEASON : FILM / DVD 'S ."], "summary": ["Article discusses new eight-DVD collection of four Superman movies starring Christopher Reeve .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]} +{"id": "1788789", "text": ["WHEN Natalie Wells bought a home in Englewood , N.J. , a year ago , she was unaware that her American pit bull terrier was illegal to own in the city .", "Shortly after moving in , she was told by one of her daughters about a city law that banned the breed , commonly called pit bulls , along with several similar breeds and Rottweilers .", "Under the 1999 law , even this year 's best-in-show winner at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show , Rufus , a colored bull terrier from Holmdel , N.J. , would be banned in Englewood .", "`` I pretty much knew in my gut it was n't right , `` Ms. Wells said .", "In July , Ms. Wells filed a challenge to the law in Bergen County Superior Court along with Mia Rodriguez , a neighbor who also owns a pit bull , and the American Dog Owner 's Association of Castleton , N.Y.", "Last month , Superior Court Judge Jonathan N . Harris agreed with Ms. Wells and ordered the city to stop enforcing the law because it was in conflict with a New Jersey statute that prohibits restricting dogs by breed .", "`` Cities do n't have the right to make laws that violate state law , `` said Flora Edwards , the lawyer who represented the plaintiffs .", "`` If the legal drinking age is 21 under state law , the City of Englewood or Montclair ca n't say it 's 25 or 18 . ``", "According to a Centers for Disease Control study , the pit bull breed was responsible for more dog-bite fatalities than any other breed from 1979 to 1998 , the latest year for which figures were available .", "The breed was responsible for 66 of 238 dog-bite fatalities during that period .", "Rottweilers were next , with 39 .", "The New Jersey Vicious and Potentially Dangerous Dog Act sets out criteria for dealing with aggressive dogs , but prohibits breed discrimination .", "New York has a similar statute .", "Connecticut 's law does not ban breed discrimination .", "Despite such laws , some communities still have restrictions on specific breeds .", "They range from outright bans to requiring property insurance coverage and the use of shorter leashes and muzzles in public .", "Tanya Ford , village clerk in Hempstead , N.Y. , said she was aware of no challenges to its law , which categorizes American pit bull terriers and several related breeds as vicious dogs , requiring that they be muzzled when walked and kept on a chain with a minimum strength of 300 pounds and not exceeding three feet in length .", "Owners must also have liability insurance of $ 100,000 .", "Mahlon Goer , a pit bull owner who tracks legislation in New York for the American Dog Owner 's Association , said the state still allowed insurance companies to drop customers or deny property insurance to prospective customers based on the breed of dog they own .", "Underwriting policies vary , according to the group , but beyond pit bulls and related breeds , the list includes Siberian huskies , Great Danes , German shepherds , St . Bernards and Dalmatians .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws because keeping tabs at the local level can be difficult unless laws are highly publicized .", "According to the American Kennel Club , last year it tracked 105 communities around the nation where breed-specific legislation was pending , enacted or defeated .", "The group had tracked another 76 through July .", "Among the municipalities in the region that have breed-specific laws are Larchmont , Sands Point and Hempstead in New York and Millville and Atlantic City in New Jersey .", "Numerous communities across the United States have such laws .", "One of the most controversial is in Denver , where authorities have euthanized more than 1,000 pit bulls since the reinstatement of a ban on the breed in May 2005 .", "The city 's animal control division had suspended enforcement of the ban in 2004 after the governor signed a bill restricting local governments from outlawing certain breeds .", "But the city successfully sued , arguing that the bill violated its home-rule authority .", "In Englewood , Douglas Bern , a lawyer who served on the City Council when the law was passed , said the council was responding to incidents in a public park where the dogs were being used to intimidate people .", "He said the police had also felt threatened by pit bulls when responding to a call at a home .", "The city argued that the municipal law complemented state statute , which was designed to address situations where `` existing local laws inadequately address the problem '' of aggressive dogs .", "`` The city of Englewood 's ordinance in this regard actually furthers and is consistent with the legislative intent , which is to address a void where local governments have not addressed the area of vicious or potentially dangerous dogs , `` the city said in a court brief .", "Under the ordinance , bull terriers , Staffordshire bull terriers , American pit bull terriers , American Staffordshire terriers , Rottweilers or `` any dogs of mixed breed which has the appearance or characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds , '' were banned from the city .", "Some summonses had been issued under the law , but city officials did not know how many .", "`` It 's like there 's a stigma for having one of these kinds of dog , `` said Ms. Rodriguez , who owns an ailing 8-year-old pit bull named Cyrus .", "The Englewood City Council will discuss the law at its Sept . 19 meeting , said Scott Reddin , the council president .", "He said he did not expect the council to challenge the court 's decision .", "`` We were profiling certain breeds and that was found to be unconstitutional , '' he said .", "`` I do n't think the council will have any problem rescinding that . ``", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations have come out against breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address the problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "`` As we like to say , punish the deed , not the breed , '' said Lisa Peterson , a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club .", "`` We think breed-specific laws are unfair to responsible dog owners . ''", "Barbara Bishop , who owns Rufus , the top dog at the Westminster show , said she was trying to use the dog 's success to highlight the unfairness of breed-specific bans .", "`` We want to let people know that every dog has teeth and every dog can bite , whether it 's a Chihuahua or a bull mastiff , `` Ms. Bishop said .", "`` Every dog will be a product of what it 's brought up to do . ``", "Ms. Bishop attributed much of the image problem of the pit bull breeds to people who train them to be vicious , including drug dealers who use them as guard dogs .", "`` We have Rufus , who 's the top winning colored terrier of all time , and we still have people stop in the street and say , ` There 's a pit bull , ' `` she said .", "For Ms. Wells , the law seemed even more absurd because her 12-year-old pit bull , Sentry , has cataracts and has had cancer , heart surgery and a hysterectomy .", "`` She is a member of the family , '' said Ms. Wells , who has two daughters , ages 34 and 32 .", "`` My kids tease me all the time and say she 's my favorite daughter . `` ."], "summary": ["Article on legal challenges pit bull owners have been making against local laws in New York City metropolitan area that ban or restrict certain dog breeds .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws .", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations oppose breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [39, 20], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788791", "text": ["HE sits in his wheelchair as the family rushes around him .", "He can not move much , or say more than hello .", "He can not participate in the summer activities that everyone pursues with great vigor day after day .", "If it 's warm enough , he goes out onto the deck and snoozes in the sun with the dogs .", "Unlike them , however , he does n't jump up and make excited noises when people come .", "At most , he slowly turns his head and smiles .", "Everyone speaks to him politely , but not for long .", "What 's the point .", "He ca n't say more than a couple of words , and it 's hard to tell how much he understands .", "He is my stepfather , Peter , an 88-year-old man who in the last decade has been transformed from a lively and dynamic person into not much more than a body occupying space .", "He has post-polio syndrome , a condition that seeps the strength from his upper body as steadily as it weakened his legs when he was a teenager .", "A couple of strokes have further debilitated him .", "As my son , Asher , said to my mother one day , it 's as if he 's hardly a person anymore .", "And yet this is n't how Asher , 14 , behaves toward him .", "He constantly monitors Peter 's feet to see if they 've slipped off the footrests of his wheelchair .", "He always asks if Peter wants something to drink .", "His recognition of the full extent of what it means to be a person goes beyond his frustration at Peter 's limitations .", "Asher is concerned with Peter 's comfort , his feeling of inclusion .", "Peter 's situation brings out Asher 's own humanity .", "Peter is certainly a person to my mother , Addy , though she has no illusions about his abilities .", "He is her third husband , the one who was finally her friend .", "She does what she can to make him comfortable and to replicate his old habits .", "Since his only real pleasure is food , she makes him good meals for lunch and dinner .", "At night they listen to Amy Goodman on NPR and then watch Chris Matthews and a couple of episodes of `` Seinfeld '' or `` Curb Your Enthusiasm . ''", "On Tuesdays , Peter 's longtime men 's lunch group comes over to eat with him and discuss books and politics .", "Peter does n't participate , but he enjoys the routine .", "Last summer he could still join them at the local restaurant .", "He would motor up the street in his Jazzy wheelchair with an orange pennant waving above his head to warn cars away .", "He is far from being able to do anything like that now .", "Peter needs to be cared for at the most basic custodial level .", "When my friend Anne visited , her 9-year-old son , Nick , was interested in what this entailed .", "Over the course of a five-day stay , Nick asked many questions of Stacey , the woman who comes in to get Peter out of bed in the morning -- the very practical questions that most adults prefer not to think about .", "Several times Stacey saw Nick looking in the window when it was changing time .", "He was n't fazed by what he saw .", "He accepted Peter 's condition and presence in the house as natural .", "He was right about that .", "My mother and Peter live on the lip of a harbor in Maine .", "All summer , family members passed through , usually for a week or so .", "I stayed the longest -- six weeks .", "On some days there were enough people staying to fulfill my old fantasy of a big house full of people , bursting with robust togetherness .", "This was a new phenomenon here .", "For many years we were only welcome to stay for a short time .", "The stepparents had limited tolerance for each other 's children , especially the noisy grandchildren .", "I often rented nearby to make visits to my mother less stressful .", "Other sons and daughters did the same .", "We rarely overlapped or had the sense of a beloved summer house , full of traditions passed down through generations .", "We each had a private relationship with Maine , and with Peter and my mother .", "But an unexpected side effect of Peter 's deterioration has been a lessening of the feeling that anyone beyond my mother and stepfather creates a crowd .", "Now Peter seems to enjoy the bustle that my mother used to believe was an imposition on him .", "He is no longer an aging intellectual who requires quiet for reading and writing .", "The grandchildren are older , and he is younger , babylike .", "After breakfast , he sleeps for a couple of hours in the kitchen , no matter the amount of dish washing or screen-door banging .", "So family life swirled around him this summer .", "We spent the kind of easy time together that I like best , quantity rather than quality .", "Just hanging out .", "Siblings , nieces and nephews trooped through with significant others in tow .", "They each had a relationship with Peter while they were there .", "Some spent time talking to him even if he could n't reply .", "Others made sure he was comfortable at the table during meals .", "Though it was easy to forget he was in the room , everyone was delighted when he broke into a conversation with a responsive remark .", "The old Peter ! It was good to see him again , if only for a moment .", "Starting the last week of July , my mother began to say fall was in the air .", "I bridled against this , though I knew what she meant .", "I felt it too , a change in the light from white to yellow , a softening of the wind , a resignation of the leaves on certain trees .", "But I did n't want to skip ahead , so I pretended not to notice .", "It 's summer , I insisted .", "This is what summer is like in Maine .", "It is tempting to make this whisper of fall a metaphor for Peter 's diminishing presence .", "September brings up memories of how the end of summer felt during childhood , a loss .", "Yet I find myself resisting the comparison .", "Peter is alive , and summer does n't officially end for 10 more days .", "I 'm still wearing white .", "GENERATIONS ."], "summary": ["Alice Elliott Dark Generations essay on summer spent in Maine with her family and her stepfather , Peter , 88 , who is debilitated with post-polio syndrome and effects of strokes .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 66, 11], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788795", "text": ["Last spring Robert Ehrlich , a restaurateur and food entrepreneur from Sea Cliff , posted a notice on Craigslist that read : `` Looking for out-of-the-box innovative sushi chefs who want to try anything and who have a sense of humor . ''", "Dhani Diastika , formerly of Nobu 57 in Manhattan , answered the call and soon installed his team of six chefs at Mr. Ehrlich 's little coffeehouse .", "The result is a curious hybrid .", "The coffeehouse , the Sea Cliff Coffee Company , offers breakfast fare like cheese omelets -LRB- $ 8.95 -RRB- and salads -LRB- $ 7 -RRB- and sandwiches -LRB- $ 7.50 -RRB- for lunch daily , just as it has done for five years .", "But now , Wednesday through Sunday evenings , it becomes the Sea Cliff Sushi Company , serving Asian fusion cuisine worthy of a big-city hot spot .", "Mr. Ehrlich also runs his snack food empire , Robert 's American Gourmet , from an office next door , selling his line of Pirate 's Booty puffed rice and corn snacks .", "`` I travel a lot and I always find a funky local place that 's kind of off the beaten path , `` he said .", "`` Now I can live that every day . ''", "Tucked away in a cul-de-sac off Sea Cliff 's main street , the cafe is washed in vibrant shades of mango and pomegranate and furnished with vintage Grateful Dead posters and about 10 mismatched tables , with more seating on the front patio .", "On sushi nights , the tiny kitchen turns out a big-flavored spicy tuna sandwich , topped with tempura crunch , avocado and tobiko -LRB- roe -RRB- -LRB- $ 14.95 -RRB- , rich marinated black cod in sweet miso glaze -LRB- $ 15.95 -RRB- and pristine yellowtail sashimi with jalape\u00f1o , yuzu-soy and cilantro -LRB- $ 15.95 -RRB- .", "Customers can bring their own wine or beer -LRB- no hard liquor allowed -RRB- , and reservations are suggested .", "Sea Cliff Coffee Company and Sea Cliff Sushi Company , 100 Roslyn Avenue , Sea Cliff , N.Y. -LRB- 516 -RRB- 671-4411 .", "SUSAN M . NOVICK ."], "summary": ["Article on Sea Cliff Coffee Co , coffeehouse in Sea Cliff , NY , that converts to Sea Cliff Sushi Co restaurant at night ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788796", "text": ["IT may have left no physical damage in its wake , but the recent communal storm in this oceanfront city over the future of its beaches has realigned the political and environmental landscape .", "Despite fears about the city 's vulnerability to a major hurricane , the five-member City Council , three Democrats and two Republicans , voted unanimously in May to reject a $ 98.5 million beach preservation project by the Army Corps of Engineers that was designed to protect Long Beach from ocean flooding .", "The plan would have placed a berm of dredged sand along the beach 10 feet high , with a 5-foot dune on top , from the western end of Long Beach to Point Lookout , more than six miles to the east .", "Point Lookout agreed to a separate plan after the Long Beach project was rejected .", "A major opponent of the corps ' plan was an environmental and surfer-advocacy group , the Surfrider Foundation , whose members said the project would create dangerous riptides and harm the look of the beach , with no guarantee that the city would be better protected , as the corps and the proponents of the plan claimed .", "The group held meetings to get its message to the public and the council alike , and produced testimony by a coastal engineer and several representatives from local communities whose beaches had undergone similar projects .", "All testified against the corps ' proposals for Long Beach .", "Jeff Kupferman , the chairman of Surfrider 's Long Beach Action Committee and a 45-year city resident , said that while rejection of the plan was a `` major victory '' for Surfrider , surfing was far from the only issue .", "`` We had concerns about swimming safety , as well as surfing , about fishing , kayaking , aesthetics -- any use of the beach , '' he said .", "James P . Hennessy , a Republican council member , agreed .", "`` It was never just about surfing , '' he said .", "`` The council does n't agree about much , but it did agree that the beach fill part of the project was wrong . ``", "What annoyed Mr. Kupferman was that Surfrider was portrayed negatively by those who favored the plan .", "`` Their attitude was we were , ' Yo , just a bunch of surfer dudes out to get a wave , ' '' he said .", "`` And they used that as the hook to try and discredit us .", "The fact that we prevailed has sent a lot of ripples out into this community . ``", "Alison Johnson , a Long Beach resident and vice chairwoman of Surfrider 's New York City chapter , which worked closely with the Central Long Island chapter in opposing the plan , said that the decision had ramifications beyond Long Beach .", "`` It will make the powers that be look at storm protection on the East Coast in a different way , '' she said , `` which is the biggest success you can ask from any project . ''", "Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg , a lifelong Long Beach resident and a vocal supporter of the Corps of Engineers ' project , was less sanguine about the outcome .", "`` How did people get elected to office that are so ignorant .", "`` he said of the City Council .", "`` I just pray hard and hope to God we do n't get hit by anything . ``", "Even with the beach issue decided , the officials ' alliance with activists may continue .", "Mr. Hennessy and the other Republican council member , Thomas R . Sofield Jr . , have proposed an alternative storm-management plan , which includes working with advisory groups like Surfrider , and the city has asked independent coastal engineers for ways to address beach protection .", "Mr. Hennessy said he still had hopes of working with the Corps of Engineers should it agree to return to Long Beach , but he is adamant about his vote to reject the project .", "`` I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of people who came up to me and said we 'd made a mistake , `` he said .", "STORM PROTECTION ."], "summary": ["Article on controversy over rejection by City Council in Long Beach , NY , to beach preservation project by Army Corps of Engineers designed to protect beach from ocean flooding .", "Surfrider Foundation contended plan to build 15-foot-high berm and dune from Long Beach to Point Lookout would create dangerous riptides and harm look of beach and would not protect beach .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788798", "text": ["ON the morning of Sept . 11 , 2001 , I was scheduled to fly from La Guardia Airport to Columbus , Ohio .", "At home in Babylon , I put on my navy blue American Airlines uniform , which made me feel as if I represented the guarantee of safety and security to all the passengers on my flight .", "I always knew that I wanted to be a flight attendant .", "As a child growing up in Queens , I would ride my bicycle down 79th Street and Astoria Boulevard , about 500 feet from La Guardia Airport , to watch the planes take off .", "Sometimes I could see people 's faces in the windows of the planes .", "I 'd imagine them going to exciting places in a jet filled with important people .", "I wanted to be on those planes .", "Training for my dream job as a flight attendant was an awesome experience .", "I learned how to evacuate an aircraft in less than 60 seconds , and how to use and find all the emergency equipment aboard different planes .", "I was trained in first aid and judged fit to withstand G-force turbulence and abrupt cabin pressure changes .", "I loved flying to all those different places .", "Still , there was nothing I loved more than flying home to Babylon , seeing Long Island 's twin forks , being thankful that I was n't stuck in the bumper-to-bumper traffic I could see on the Long Island Expressway and spotting my old elementary school , my old street and finally my old house in Queens as the pilot approached runway 13 Right .", "My mother , a security worker at MacArthur Airport in Islip , would often drive me to the airport , just as she was preparing to do on the morning of Sept . 11 .", "But on this morning , we stopped in front of the television only to learn that American Airlines Flight 77 had crashed into the Pentagon , and that American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 had already crashed into the World Trade Center .", "As the south tower collapsed , news came that United Flight 93 had crashed somewhere in Pennsylvania .", "Faces , voices and names of colleagues flashed through my mind as the television anchors spoke .", "I called my supervisor , who told me that I should stay home until further notice .", "That week was a blur and then it was time to go back to work .", "I got up and put on my blue uniform .", "My stomach tightened and my heart grew heavy , not because I was afraid to fly , but because I was afraid of being weak in front of my passengers .", "My mother drove me to John F . Kennedy International Airport .", "She looked over at me as we drove west on the Southern State Parkway .", "`` Do you want to do this .", "`` she asked .", "I said yes , but she knew better .", "I got to Kennedy barely able to control my emotions .", "Security was tight , and the airport was quiet , not because there were n't any passengers for the few scheduled flights that morning but because everyone was nervously silent .", "Like me , people seemed afraid of being forced back into the routine of living .", "The television set in the crew 's flight room ran news of box cutters found on some passengers , and rumors of breaches in security were flying around .", "That 's when I broke down .", "I thought I could control myself .", "I was supposed to be strong , yet there I was crying like a child .", "My supervisor consoled me , but she took me off the flight and told me to go home .", "I called my mother to pick me up .", "She had never left the airport and was waiting for my call .", "Silently , we drove back home to Babylon .", "I eventually did get back in the swing of things , but layoffs kicked in and my flight schedule became erratic and unpredictable .", "Eventually , I left my job .", "How do I feel about memorials and tributes and prayers for 9/11 .", "Then , as now , my way of dealing with them is simple : I can not be associated with them in any way .", "Save me from the prayers , monuments , movies and television specials .", "It 's too emotional for me , and I have too much respect for my colleagues , those who died in those planes , to pretend that I could possibly know what they went through .", "I do know , however that they worked hard that day to save lives and calm nerves .", "When I go back to 79th Street , I can still see into the windows of planes taking off from the airport .", "Maybe one day I 'll return to the airline industry , but it will never be the same -- safety and security are no longer something that I or anyone else can guarantee .", "Op-Ed Contributor ."], "summary": ["Op-Ed article by former flight attendant Michelle Henderson , as told to Prof Howard Gold , on her reaction to terrorist attacks of September 11 , 2001 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2, 45, 6], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788801", "text": ["Every year , tens of thousands of children pass through Suffolk County 's Family Court , the second busiest in New York State .", "Many of them are troubled teenagers accused of crimes , and a few hundred have to be locked up while awaiting trial or sentencing for serious offenses , or to serve time for lesser violations , like truancy or vandalism .", "Suffolk has no place of its own to put these children , and has n't since 1974 , when its juvenile detention center was shut down by the state .", "It has dealt with the issue by shipping children out of the county -- to Nassau County , whose center has troubles of its own , and as far away as Syracuse and Buffalo .", "None of this would be a problem if the only concerns were controlling costs and shuttling people from place to place .", "The juvenile court machinery has shown itself to be perfectly capable of dealing with the logistical challenges and caseloads .", "But the bureaucracy needs to remember that these cases involve children , immature by definition and often fragile .", "They need close contact with their families and lawyers and ready access to medical treatment , mental-health care and other social services .", "They are not hardened criminals , and if the goal is to make sure they stay that way , the county urgently needs to find a way to keep children in custody that is safe , humane and more accommodating to the particular needs of young defendants .", "As it is , the juveniles themselves -- last year , Suffolk held 608 of them in secure custody for a combined 4,055 days -- and their families have done most of the accommodating .", "State law requires that juvenile cases be resolved within three days of a youth 's being charged .", "This means children can be bused out of Suffolk to a detention center as much as 12 hours away , only to return in a day or two .", "The distant centers offer only a room and meals , so treatment like counseling has to be suspended while the young people are being shuffled around .", "Officials in Nassau and Suffolk have talked about building a new center together , but the classic Long Island predicament -- where do you put it . -- caused the effort to fall apart .", "One obvious solution is also close at hand : Nassau 's juvenile center in Westbury .", "That building is 50 years old and in bad shape .", "In April the state urged the county to take `` immediate action '' to fix serious deficiencies , including fire code violations , inadequate perimeter fencing and staffing shortfalls .", "A dining room ceiling was sagging and near collapse , and there was no system to open all the cell locks at once in a fire .", "Nassau has set aside $ 2.8 million in its capital budget to make repairs , and is hoping for a matching amount from Albany .", "The action is welcome but late , and we will waste no ink applauding the county for suddenly deciding , under pressure , to make sure that the center 's heating and ventilation systems , locks and fire alarms , among other absolutely essential things , are finally adequate .", "Nassau 's action on its own juvenile-center problems opens the possibility of a solution to Suffolk 's .", "Rather than build something new , and endure the predictable local resistance to choosing a location for it , the smarter tack may be for Suffolk to help Nassau put the center in Westbury into decent shape and for both counties to use it jointly .", "There may be room in Nassau 's center -- which has a licensed capacity of 32 , and 46 rooms in all -- to handle the needs of both counties .", "The shabby treatment of juvenile defendants has been ignored for too long .", "The Suffolk County executive , Steve Levy , should join his Nassau counterpart , Thomas Suozzi , in putting the needs of juvenile defendants on the front burner .", "Long Island ."], "summary": ["Editorial , scoring lack of juvenile detention facility in Suffolk County , suggests it join forces with Nassau County to renovate center in Westbury and to use it jointly ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [21], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788802", "text": ["JESSE FRIEDMAN bit into a bagel with lox last Sunday and ripped into the criminal justice system in Nassau County as if he had just been charged that morning , and not in 1987 , with hundreds of sex crimes against children .", "Convicted as a sexually violent predator -- the highest-risk category , Level 3 -- he is barred from parks and places with many children .", "Bagel stores are not off limits , so he sat in one on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and discussed his case and how it was affected by the 2003 film `` Capturing the Friedmans . ''", "`` It 's the trial I never had , `` he said of the Oscar-nominated documentary , which portrayed the decline and fall of the Friedmans of Great Neck after Jesse and his father , Arnold , were arrested in 1987 , accused of molesting children during after-school computer classes in the basement of their Picadilly Road home .", "The film contained interviews indicating flaws in the prosecution of Jesse Friedman and raising questions about his culpability , despite his guilty plea .", "Mr. Friedman has used this information to try to overturn his conviction .", "An appeal failed in the state courts earlier this year , but he retained the civil rights lawyer Ronald L . Kuby and filed another motion , in federal court , in July .", "A central claim of the motion is that prosecutors , lacking physical evidence , built their case on the false accusations of children who admitted to being abused only after investigators used `` high pressure , manipulative and result-oriented interrogation techniques with child witnesses that produced false allegations . ''", "These techniques included intimidation , threats and hypnosis to create false memories of abuse , the motion claims .", "It also contends that investigators unlawfully withheld exonerating material , including denials from students -- some of whom said in the film that they were pressured into fabricating abuse claims .", "But there are also accusers who stand by their charges and are infuriated at Mr. Friedman 's continued denials .", "Frances Galasso , who led the Nassau police sex crimes squad in the Friedman investigation , said in an interview on Wednesday that coercion was not used with the children .", "`` They gave detailed statements that upset my most hardened detectives , '' said Ms. Galasso , who is now retired .", "`` The parents were brought in as soon as we were able to break the ice , and they co-signed the statement . ''", "She called the documentary one-sided and `` a disgrace and insult to the victims and their parents . ''", "`` I 'm really happy it did n't get the Academy Award , because it was n't accurate , `` she said .", "`` Both Jesse and his father are guilty as sin .", "Remember , he pled guilty , and you do n't plead guilty to a crime like this if you did n't do it . ``", "Jesse Friedman was 17 when he and his father were arrested and charged with hundreds of counts of sex crimes against children .", "Arnold Friedman pleaded guilty to sexually abusing children .", "-LRB- He committed suicide in prison in 1995 . -RRB-", "Jesse Friedman said that he wanted to fight the charges in court but felt that a successful defense would be impossible to mount .", "His father had already decided to plead guilty , and Jesse believed that the judge and jury would be biased against him , he said .", "According to his recent motion , he was `` condemned in the press and vilified by a community hungry for retribution . ''", "Fearing life in prison , he said , he accepted a deal , admitting guilt and receiving a 6 - to 18-year sentence .", "After serving 13 years in prison , he was released in December 2001 and has since lived in Manhattan .", "He is now 37 and will be finished with his parole in three months , making him a free man , in a sense -- except for his Level 3 status , which he will always maintain , unless the conviction is overturned .", "`` That follows me till the day I die , '' he said .", "Upon release from prison , Jesse moved in with his brother , David , who works as Silly Billy , one of the most prominent party clowns in the city .", "But when the co-op board found out who Jesse was , they objected , and Jesse moved out .", "He now lives with his fianc\u00e9e , Elisabeth Walsh , in an East Harlem building with no child residents , a condition ordered by his parole officer .", "He said his landlord and neighbors accept his situation .", "He may not leave New York City and must observe a 9 p.m. curfew .", "Ms. Walsh , 27 , is also from Great Neck .", "She never knew Mr. Friedman growing up , but she knew of him , especially because she attended his alma mater , a small charter high school called the Village School .", "`` I 'm the age of his accusers , `` she said , adding that she never believed the allegations .", "After seeing the documentary , she said , she wrote him a letter of support .", "They met and are now engaged , despite her family 's misgivings .", "`` My parents love Jesse , but they feel like I 'm taking on all his problems , `` she said , nuzzling him .", "`` But for me , he 's worth it . ``", "Mr. Friedman says he and Ms. Walsh plan to move someplace where he is less likely to be recognized .", "He laughed hard when asked if he would ever settle down on Long Island .", "`` I think if I set foot on Long Island , I 'd have my house burned down , `` he said , though he added that one thing would make him welcome a return : if a federal court ordered hearings in his case .", "`` To go back there and be able to grill my prosecutors , '' he said .", "`` I 'd take that . ``", "THE ISLAND E-mail : theisland@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["Corey Kilgannon The Island column on Jesse Friedman , arrested in 1987 , along with his father , on charges of molesting children during after-school computer classes at their home in Great Neck , NY . Friedman , convicted as sexually violent predator , has filed second motion to try to overturn his conviction .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788803", "text": ["FOR failing to meet performance standards , the Clara T . O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn . , spent three years on the `` in need of improvement '' list under the federal No Child Left Behind program .", "When a new list came out last month , Connecticut had 290 elementary and middle schools on it , but the O'Connell School was not among them .", "It had achieved what no other school in the state had managed under the four-year-old program : It had worked itself off the list .", "`` For three years , the headline was that we were on the list , '' said Michael F . Audette , O'Connell 's principal .", "`` Human nature being what it is , people would ask the teachers , ' What school do you teach at .", "` And when the teachers would say , ' O'Connell , ' they 'd say , ` Is n't that the school that 's on the list .", "` And the teachers would say , ' Yeah , but we 're doing a lot of good things . '", "But nobody sticks around for the ` yeah , but . '", "Now it 's nice to have a different headline , and now we can say , ` Yes , we 're that school . '", "`` Henry Garcia , a spokesman for the State Department of Education , said O'Connell 's achievement was a testament to its hard work .", "`` It takes schools that are in need of improvement time to see the progress once they develop curriculum and other strategies that improve student achievement , '' he said .", "The number of Connecticut schools failing to meet what the program calls adequate yearly progress doubled in the 2005-6 academic year , up from 145 schools the year before .", "The results were reached using scores from the Connecticut Mastery Tests , then figuring them into a host of categories and subcategories , including the number of children living in poverty who attend a school .", "At the O'Connell School 80 percent of the students are poor , Mr. Audette said .", "The tests require that at least 74 percent of students demonstrate proficiency in math , 68 percent in reading and 70 percent in writing .", "In the 2002-3 school year , O'Connell passed all categories except reading , getting a score of 44 percent .", "It also failed to meet the reading goal in 2003-4 , but reached it the next year .", "In 2005-6 , it scored 61 percent in reading .", "That was not high enough to meet the No Child Left Behind requirements , but federal officials put O'Connell in the `` safe harbor '' category , for schools that have significantly improved , and removed it from the `` in need of improvement '' list .", "To raise the reading scores , Mr. Audette said , he and his staff reviewed the pupils ' reading data for weak areas .", "The Mastery Tests require that pupils read passages and answer questions about what they have read .", "To prepare , the children were asked to answer a reading question each day until they showed proficiency in expressing their comprehension .", "Mr. Audette also hired additional reading support staff members and trained teaching assistants , assigning them to particular grades , where they placed the children into small groups and gave them a second instructional reading period each day .", "Mr. Audette signed on with the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University .", "The Bristol School District paid for consultants from Columbia to teach faculty members at O'Connell .", "The effort paid off , especially for the third graders .", "They scored 90 percent in writing proficiency in the 2005-6 Mastery Tests .", "`` If I was to pinpoint exactly what we did , I would say we really looked at our reading instruction , '' Mr. Audette said .", "`` It 's kind of common sense .", "If you want to be a good pianist , you practice the piano . ``", "EDUCATION ."], "summary": ["Article on Clara T O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn , which spent three years on ` in need of improvement ' list under No Child Left Behind program and has managed to work itself off list .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Education", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788804", "text": ["IN the 50 years he has lived in Montclair , N.J. , Rob Bianco has seen his share of monsoon-like downpours , blizzards , ice storms , even the remnants of hurricanes .", "But Mr. Bianco , the superintendent of public works for Montclair , had never seen anything like the storm that ravaged the leafy landscape of his hometown on July 18 .", "`` We literally had trees and telephone poles , some as high as 20 to 30 feet in the air , that were sheared and cut off , '' he said .", "`` It was a treetop tornado , meaning it never hit the ground , but it still caused a great amount of destruction . ''", "The storm , which hit the northeast corner of Verona , N.J. , before blowing with a vengeance -- about a mile wide -- through a swath of Montclair for roughly a half-hour , destroyed about 200 trees on public property in Montclair , an Essex County township of about six square miles .", "The most heavily damaged areas , Mr. Bianco said , were Brookdale Park , which covers 121 acres in Montclair and Bloomfield , and the township 's Edgemont Park .", "`` We had some cars smashed and a lot of people running for cover , '' he said .", "`` It was a miracle that no one got hurt . ''", "But what about all of those damaged oak and pine trees , some of which Mr. Bianco said were 250 years old .", "`` Cleaning it all up was quite a daunting task , '' said Matthew A . Vastano , the executive vice president of Nature 's Choice Corporation , a yard-waste recycling company in Union , N.J. , hired by Montclair to clear the debris caused by the storm .", "`` Montclair is not your normal town where vegetative waste is concerned , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` The town , which has huge , huge trees , is very environmentally conscious , and it wants to keep all the trees it can . ''", "The trees it could not keep were hauled away by Nature 's Choice to a temporary storage site .", "Any piece of wood 16 to 18 inches long was put onto chipper trucks and into machines that turned it into chips .", "Anything larger was cut into logs .", "Some 25 truckloads of those logs were placed into 40-foot containers on trucks -- at a cost of $ 350 per container -- for eventual mulching .", "In the end , about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil , or 300 tons , were produced -- enough to cover about 100,000 square feet , according to Mr. Vastano .", "Mr. Bianco said that Nature 's Choice would give Montclair some of the mulch or topsoil for free if the town needed it for a special project , but that the company was free to sell it to landscapers and other businesses .", "`` We are a business , not a charity , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` We 'll take most of that mulch and turn it into hardwood mulch or dye it either black or a shade of red before selling it . ``", "Dianne Marus , the director of Montclair 's Department of Finance , said that the cost of the storm cleanup came to $ 366,950 but that the price , tallied by the Department of Community Services , did not include overtime costs for the Police -LRB- $ 74,983 -RRB- and Fire Departments -LRB- $ 4,650 -RRB- .", "All told , Montclair has spent $ 446,583 on storm-related services , and the job is not yet finished .", "`` There are still a number of stumps to be removed and lots of re-planting to do , '' Mr. Bianco said .", "`` By the time all is said and done , this entire project is going to cost us more money and continue for at least another month . ''", "STORM CLEANUP ."], "summary": ["Article on work of Nature 's Choice Corp , yard-waste recycling company hired by Montclair , NJ , to clear debris caused by July 18 storm that destroyed about 200 trees on public property .", "Company turned trees into about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 16], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788805", "text": ["DEEP into suburbia , on a sound barrier that runs along the Taconic State Parkway here , a graffiti artist announces his presence with a single word painted in yellow and black : `` Me . ''", "Officials said that graffiti had reached new heights this summer .", "And in a town that bills itself as a retreat from more urban locales , politicians and police officers are taking the problem seriously .", "`` Whether you grew up here all your life , or whether you moved here from the Bronx or Yonkers or Long Island , you do n't want to see that , `` said Linda G . Cooper , the town supervisor .", "`` And so we 're trying to take a very firm position . ``", "In June , the Yorktown police began graffiti patrols as a deterrent .", "They also began photographing graffiti they found to create a catalog of the work of local vandals for use in investigations , Lt . Donald Schuck said .", "Since July , Lieutenant Schuck said , the police have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges .", "The most recent came on Aug . 28 , with the arrest of a 14-year-old from Mohegan Lake , a hamlet of Yorktown .", "The police said he had sprayed a wall at a town-owned sports club , causing about $ 400 in damage .", "The boy , charged with making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments , both misdemeanors , was released to his mother and was scheduled to appear on Friday in Westchester County Family Court in White Plains .", "The town , which has seen stop signs , park buildings , businesses and even a police radar unit defaced this summer , is also considering new legislation .", "One proposed law would require vandals to pay restitution .", "Another would mandate that residents who discover graffiti on their property clean it within 72 hours .", "Ms. Cooper said that rapid removal discouraged vandals .", "Town officials and youth advocates said there were a number of reasons for the surge in graffiti .", "Lieutenant Schuck said increased access to the tools of graffiti had played a role .", "Young people , previously stymied by a county law forbidding the sale of spray paint to anyone under 18 , have begun ordering the paint over the Internet , he said .", "Joan Valenstein , chairwoman of the advisory board for the Yorktown Teen Center , a branch of the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester , said the increase might be the byproduct of boredom in a town that she said did not provide enough youth activities .", "Ms. Cooper said some of the graffiti included gang insignia previously seen in the southern , more urban part of the county .", "Whatever the source of the graffiti , the town seems determined to stamp it out .", "But out on the Taconic State Parkway , high above the cars rushing by , defiance is etched in yellow and black .", "VANDALISM ."], "summary": ["Officials in Yorktown , NY , say graffiti has reached new heights this summer .", "Police have begun graffiti patrols as deterrent and have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges since July .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 1, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788813", "text": ["MODERN dance from beyond the borders of the United States has always flowed into New York , but this season the flow will become a torrent as presenters all over the region place a new emphasis on internationalism , even with tighter visa restrictions .", "Some might fret that this is bad : every slot allotted to a foreigner deprives an American , they reason , and life for American dancers is hard enough .", "But the gain in cosmopolitanism will more than offset any loss , enlivening local choreographic creativity and broadening the audience 's perspectives .", "This season the mainstream midlevel New York dance theaters are augmenting their foreign offerings , and so are presenters in the broader New York region .", "Dance Theater Workshop has been emphasizing international dance of late , but now the Joyce Theater and Danspace Project at St . Mark 's Church are joining in .", "And there will be even more to come as the winter and spring schedules fill out .", "Three events this fall stand out for me , maybe in part because I 've already seen these artists or these very pieces in Europe and know they 're good .", "This month the riveting French conceptualist Boris Charmatz , in partnership with another choreographer and dancer , Dimitri Chamblas , will make one of his rare New York appearances .", "Mr. Charmatz is charming and full of ideas .", "Even when they do n't work , they 're interesting .", "He and Mr. Chamblas will be at St . Mark 's Church , in a piece called `` \u00c0 Bras le Corps , '' described as a `` private perspective on their strenuous tumbling , lunging and grappling , '' all in a boxing-ring setting , Their appearance is part of a citywide multiarts festival called European Dream .", "The French ballerina Sylvie Guillem is one of the biggest stars in the dance world .", "But partly because she 's restlessly curious and maybe also because she 's in her early 40 's now and seeking -LRB- as Mikhail Baryshnikov has done for so long -RRB- new , nonballetic challenges , she is moving into what the British call contemporary dance .", "This month she has a collaboration in London with the choreographer Akram Khan .", "Two years ago she undertook a similar collaboration with Russell Maliphant , full of stark movements seemingly designed for the leggy Ms. Guillem , angular gestures and vivid lighting .", "That program will be seen next month at City Center , the first offering in the center 's new partnership with the innovative , dance-oriented Sadler 's Wells Theater in London .", "Jedediah Wheeler , the longtime New York dance manager and producer , is making the performing-arts series at Montclair State University in New Jersey into an innovative force that , with money and persistence , may one day rival the Brooklyn Academy of Music as a beyond-Manhattan destination for new work .", "For November Mr. Wheeler has booked one of the most exciting of all the new British physical theater troupes : the Vincent Dance Theater from Sheffield , England , led by Charlotte Vincent , in a piece I saw last spring called `` Broken Chords . ''", "It is theatrically wrenching and hilarious , choreographically intense , musically compelling .", "-LRB- One of the dancers is also a first-rate violinist , and the title refers to both marital breakup and the need to arpeggiate chords in Baroque string music with a modern bow . -RRB-", "I will be curious to see if the New York dance audience shares my enthusiasm for this piece .", "Finally , a quick note on two Japanese-flavored imports .", "Yubiwa Hotel in `` Candies : girlish hardcore '' is at the Japan Society this week , part of the society 's `` Girl , Girly , Girlish '' series , and Kota Yamazaki / Fluid Hug-Hug will be at Dance Theater Workshop in November .", "Ms. Yamazaki , Japanese-born and New York-based , conducted research for her new `` Rise : Rose '' in Senegal .", "Who needs world travel .", "Titles like that are a trip all by themselves .", "THE NEW SEASON : DANCE ."], "summary": ["John Rockwell article on how flow of modern dance presentations into New York from around the world will become torrent this year .", "Notable visitors from France , United Kingdom and Japan discussed .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 24], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788814", "text": ["NEW YORK dance is a wildly inventive scene , and I would n't be surprised if sometime during the coming season we had the chance to see naked stiltwalkers expertly dancing hip-hop to Arvo P\u00e4rt on a float on the Gowanus Canal .", "But the monuments of dance , the long-standing sources from which all this recent innovation has flowed , will also be represented , and returning to them regularly will be good for the soul .", "To start , the Merce Cunningham Dance Company will perform at the Joyce Theater in mid-October , at Mr. Cunningham 's most slyly playful , it would seem , in a premiere called `` eyeSpace , '' to which audience members will be encouraged to take their iPods to hear the dance 's downloadable score by Mikel Rouse .", "-LRB- Technophobes will be provided with loaners . -RRB-", "Also on the program will be one of Mr. Cunningham 's signature site-specific `` events '' and a revival of his 1960 `` Crises , '' which John Cage once described as a harsh and erotic piece about a man and a woman bound together in part by elastic bands .", "It is hard to imagine today 's performers matching the wildness and ferocity that Mr. Cunningham , Viola Farber and Carolyn Brown once brought to it .", "Will they make it new .", "Paul Taylor 's `` Troilus and Cressida -LRB- reduced -RRB- , '' a premiere to be performed by his company in March at City Center , sounds like a typically outrageous Taylor cartoon .", "Its Shakespearean characters include a schlub of a Troilus , a worn Cressida and a swarm of macaroni-headed Cupids to egg the lovers on .", "The music .", "Ponchielli , of `` Dance of the Hours '' fame .", "Finally , this season and next will be the last time to savor the great artistry of Kyra Nichols , a ballerina of incomparable musicality and nuanced technical expertise .", "Ms. Nichols retires from the New York City Ballet in June , but she will dance in ballets including Balanchine 's `` Vienna Waltzes '' and `` Liebeslieder Walzer , '' and she 'll also play Carabosse in `` The Sleeping Beauty . ''", "THE NEW SEASON : DANCE ."], "summary": ["Jennifer Dunning article notes three monuments of dance , long-standing sources from which all recent innovation has flowed , who will be represented in New York this season : Merce Cunningham , Paul Taylor and Kyra Nichols .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788815", "text": ["BUILDINGS are looking prettier than ever , thanks to the freedom that contemporary architects have these days to play with form .", "Meanwhile , many of our cities are falling to pieces , as the infrastructure that once bound them into functioning communities crumbles from years of neglect .", "New Orleans exposed a breakdown in infrastructure and social policy that will not be repaired by a conventional formula of tourism , architectural nostalgia and gated communities .", "And the atomization of cities as diverse as Dubai , Beijing and Beirut , where the construction of glistening new urban centers masks growing social inequities at their edges , have only further exposed the hollowness of some contemporary urban-planning strategies .", "So the most promising trend this year is a renewed emphasis in architectural circles on urbanism as a field for creative exploration .", "Architects like Eyal Weisman -LRB- in London -RRB- , Teddy Cruz -LRB- San Diego -RRB- , Philipp Oswalt -LRB- Berlin -RRB- and Rem Koolhaas -LRB- Rotterdam and just about everywhere else -RRB- have been striving to bridge the gap between architectural fantasy and stark political and social realities .", "Seeking to distance themselves from the current obsession with `` star '' buildings , they proceed from the assumption that we can not create valid new architectural forms until we arrive at a deeper understanding of the era we live in .", "The 10th Venice Biennale of Architecture , which opens this weekend , is the first to focus on entire cities rather than uncovering the latest architectural trends .", "Organized by Ricky Burdett , the exposition examines the effect of design in cities as diverse as Cairo , Mumbai , S\u00e3o Paolo , Johannesburg , Mexico City and Caracas .", "Among the highlights is Al-Azhar Park in Cairo , conceived as an `` urban lung '' to provide relief for a city that has only one square meter of green space for each inhabitant , and a series of schools in S\u00e3o Paolo that function as around-the-clock community centers to help reduce violence among youths in the poorest slums .", "-LRB- Simply getting children off the streets is a starting point . -RRB-", "`` I think projects like this give a raison d' \u00eatre to architecture again , which is what the profession is looking for , '' Mr. Burdett said .", "In `` Lago : How It Works , '' a book to be published this fall , Mr. Koolhaas turns his penetrating gaze to the Nigerian city , a dense matrix of congested slums and infill markets that in many cases have devised their own court systems and electricity and water utilities .", "In the 1970 's Lagos was the nexus of a stirring intellectual renaissance and a wave of sprawling , megalomaniacal urban planning projects .", "That optimism evaporated with the drop in oil prices at the end of the decade , and the city was left to fend for itself .", "Today , the Nigerian government is trying to resurrect some of the old planning projects , clamp down on illegal street trade and rein in urban indiscipline in general .", "Yet in eight years of research , Mr. Koolhaas realized that what seems like chaos to outsiders is a complex and highly organized social organism .", "His analysis suggests that a democratic , informal urban planning model could be combined with aggressive planning to lift Lagos out of poverty without destroying the spontaneous freedom of daily urban life .", "`` In Lagos there is no choice , but there are countless ways to articulate the condition of no choice , '' Mr. Koolhaas has said .", "`` In New York , on the other hand , there 's a sense of infinite choice , but a very conventional set of options from which to choose . ``", "Of course Mr. Koolhaas , now 62 , has been known for countering conventional wisdom about how cities really work since the publication of `` Delirious New York , '' a 1978 book casting the `` city of congestion '' as an antidote to the sterility of Modernist planning conventions .", "Today , he is joined by a younger generation of architects who are no longer content to consider architecture in isolation from larger urban patterns .", "Among them is Mr. Oswalt , 42 , who has organized a show that arrives in December at the Van Alen Institute in New York and the Pratt Manhattan Gallery .", "Titled `` Shrinking Cities , '' it examines the shrinking industrial centers on the fringes of the emerging global economy .", "The show sheds light on the abysmal failure of planners to avert the gradual disintegration of cities like Leipzig , Germany .", "Ivanovo , Russia .", "And Detroit .", "The phenomenon of decay is often juxtaposed with a different form of assault : the insidious encroachment of suburban values .", "New Yorkers need only stroll through SoHo to get the point .", "The exhibition , which originally opened in Berlin 2004 , also resurrects some largely forgotten critiques of urbanization .", "It touches on the Disurbanist proposals of Soviet Constructivists like Moisei Ginzburg and Mikhail Barshch , who challenged the thinking behind Western urban traditions in favor of a more rural Russian model , and Frank Lloyd Wright 's Broadacre City , in which each family would be allotted an acre of land and the agglomeration would serve as a decentralized metropolis .", "But the show 's most penetrating attacks are reserved for more recent urban strategies , particularly the argument that the salvation of cities rests in a so-called `` creative class '' that leads the way to gentrification .", "`` Shrinking Cities '' is to travel in February to Detroit , where , a bit paradoxically , it will go on view in an abandoned 21,000-square - foot warehouse that will be the temporary home of the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit .", "Designed by Andrew Zago , the museum is being opened , in part , with the goal of revitalizing the city center .", "Finally , Mr. Weisman , an Israeli-born architect who is the recipient this year of the prestigious Stirling Prize for architecture , will open a series of lectures this fall at the Canadian Center for Architecture in Montreal .", "The talks are pegged to the release of `` Hollow Land : The Architecture of Israeli Occupation , '' a chilling book in which he explores the way the military selects targets in bombing and fortifying cities and how those strategies can re-emerge in civilian planning practices during peacetime .", "His analysis is ideally timed .", "If the Modernist mass-housing programs of a half-century ago reduced a generation of urban poor to mere numbers in a machine , many of those projects are now being wiped away to make room for an equally troubling formula : gated communities , open-air malls and sanitized tourist enclaves that have exacerbated social inequities by making destitute children invisible .", "Acknowledging the complexity of these issues is not enough .", "Thankfully , some architects have assumed the challenge of binding us back into a civilization whose fabric often seems on the verge of unraveling .", "THE NEW SEASON -- ARCHITECTURE ."], "summary": ["Nicolai Ouroussoff article says most promising trend of year is renewed emphasis among architects on urbanism as field for creative exploration .", "Says attempt is being made to bridge gap between architectural fantasy and social reality .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4], "tag": ["Arts"]} +{"id": "1788840", "text": ["FOR failing to meet performance standards , the Clara T . O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn . , spent three years on the `` in need of improvement '' list under the federal No Child Left Behind program .", "When a new list came out last month , Connecticut had 290 elementary and middle schools on it , but the O'Connell School was not among them .", "It had achieved what no other school in the state had managed under the four-year-old program : It had worked itself off the list .", "`` For three years , the headline was that we were on the list , '' said Michael F . Audette , O'Connell 's principal .", "`` Human nature being what it is , people would ask the teachers , ' What school do you teach at .", "` And when the teachers would say , ' O'Connell , ' they 'd say , ` Is n't that the school that 's on the list .", "` And the teachers would say , ' Yeah , but we 're doing a lot of good things . '", "But nobody sticks around for the ` yeah , but . '", "Now it 's nice to have a different headline , and now we can say , ` Yes , we 're that school . '", "`` Henry Garcia , a spokesman for the State Department of Education , said O'Connell 's achievement was a testament to its hard work .", "`` It takes schools that are in need of improvement time to see the progress once they develop curriculum and other strategies that improve student achievement , '' he said .", "The number of Connecticut schools failing to meet what the program calls adequate yearly progress doubled in the 2005-6 academic year , up from 145 schools the year before .", "The results were reached using scores from the Connecticut Mastery Tests , then figuring them into a host of categories and subcategories , including the number of children living in poverty who attend a school .", "At the O'Connell School 80 percent of the students are poor , Mr. Audette said .", "The tests require that at least 74 percent of students demonstrate proficiency in math , 68 percent in reading and 70 percent in writing .", "In the 2002-3 school year , O'Connell passed all categories except reading , getting a score of 44 percent .", "It also failed to meet the reading goal in 2003-4 , but reached it the next year .", "In 2005-6 , it scored 61 percent in reading .", "That was not high enough to meet the No Child Left Behind requirements , but federal officials put O'Connell in the `` safe harbor '' category , for schools that have significantly improved , and removed it from the `` in need of improvement '' list .", "To raise the reading scores , Mr. Audette said , he and his staff reviewed the pupils ' reading data for weak areas .", "The Mastery Tests require that pupils read passages and answer questions about what they have read .", "To prepare , the children were asked to answer a reading question each day until they showed proficiency in expressing their comprehension .", "Mr. Audette also hired additional reading support staff members and trained teaching assistants , assigning them to particular grades , where they placed the children into small groups and gave them a second instructional reading period each day .", "Mr. Audette signed on with the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University .", "The Bristol School District paid for consultants from Columbia to teach faculty members at O'Connell .", "The effort paid off , especially for the third graders .", "They scored 90 percent in writing proficiency in the 2005-6 Mastery Tests .", "`` If I was to pinpoint exactly what we did , I would say we really looked at our reading instruction , '' Mr. Audette said .", "`` It 's kind of common sense .", "If you want to be a good pianist , you practice the piano . ``", "EDUCATION ."], "summary": ["Article on Clara T O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn , which spent three years on ` in need of improvement ' list under No Child Left Behind program and has managed to work itself off list .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Education", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788841", "text": ["IT may have left no physical damage in its wake , but the recent communal storm in this oceanfront city over the future of its beaches has realigned the political and environmental landscape .", "Despite fears about the city 's vulnerability to a major hurricane , the five-member City Council , three Democrats and two Republicans , voted unanimously in May to reject a $ 98.5 million beach preservation project by the Army Corps of Engineers that was designed to protect Long Beach from ocean flooding .", "The plan would have placed a berm of dredged sand along the beach 10 feet high , with a 5-foot dune on top , from the western end of Long Beach to Point Lookout , more than six miles to the east .", "Point Lookout agreed to a separate plan after the Long Beach project was rejected .", "A major opponent of the corps ' plan was an environmental and surfer-advocacy group , the Surfrider Foundation , whose members said the project would create dangerous riptides and harm the look of the beach , with no guarantee that the city would be better protected , as the corps and the proponents of the plan claimed .", "The group held meetings to get its message to the public and the council alike , and produced testimony by a coastal engineer and several representatives from local communities whose beaches had undergone similar projects .", "All testified against the corps ' proposals for Long Beach .", "Jeff Kupferman , the chairman of Surfrider 's Long Beach Action Committee and a 45-year city resident , said that while rejection of the plan was a `` major victory '' for Surfrider , surfing was far from the only issue .", "`` We had concerns about swimming safety , as well as surfing , about fishing , kayaking , aesthetics -- any use of the beach , '' he said .", "James P . Hennessy , a Republican council member , agreed .", "`` It was never just about surfing , '' he said .", "`` The council does n't agree about much , but it did agree that the beach fill part of the project was wrong . ``", "What annoyed Mr. Kupferman was that Surfrider was portrayed negatively by those who favored the plan .", "`` Their attitude was we were , ' Yo , just a bunch of surfer dudes out to get a wave , ' '' he said .", "`` And they used that as the hook to try and discredit us .", "The fact that we prevailed has sent a lot of ripples out into this community . ``", "Alison Johnson , a Long Beach resident and vice chairwoman of Surfrider 's New York City chapter , which worked closely with the Central Long Island chapter in opposing the plan , said that the decision had ramifications beyond Long Beach .", "`` It will make the powers that be look at storm protection on the East Coast in a different way , '' she said , `` which is the biggest success you can ask from any project . ''", "Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg , a lifelong Long Beach resident and a vocal supporter of the Corps of Engineers ' project , was less sanguine about the outcome .", "`` How did people get elected to office that are so ignorant .", "`` he said of the City Council .", "`` I just pray hard and hope to God we do n't get hit by anything . ``", "Even with the beach issue decided , the officials ' alliance with activists may continue .", "Mr. Hennessy and the other Republican council member , Thomas R . Sofield Jr . , have proposed an alternative storm-management plan , which includes working with advisory groups like Surfrider , and the city has asked independent coastal engineers for ways to address beach protection .", "Mr. Hennessy said he still had hopes of working with the Corps of Engineers should it agree to return to Long Beach , but he is adamant about his vote to reject the project .", "`` I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of people who came up to me and said we 'd made a mistake , `` he said .", "STORM PROTECTION ."], "summary": ["Article on controversy over rejection by City Council in Long Beach , NY , to beach preservation project by Army Corps of Engineers designed to protect beach from ocean flooding .", "Surfrider Foundation contended plan to build 15-foot-high berm and dune from Long Beach to Point Lookout would create dangerous riptides and harm look of beach and would not protect beach .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788842", "text": ["IN the 50 years he has lived in Montclair , N.J. , Rob Bianco has seen his share of monsoon-like downpours , blizzards , ice storms , even the remnants of hurricanes .", "But Mr. Bianco , the superintendent of public works for Montclair , had never seen anything like the storm that ravaged the leafy landscape of his hometown on July 18 .", "`` We literally had trees and telephone poles , some as high as 20 to 30 feet in the air , that were sheared and cut off , '' he said .", "`` It was a treetop tornado , meaning it never hit the ground , but it still caused a great amount of destruction . ''", "The storm , which hit the northeast corner of Verona , N.J. , before blowing with a vengeance -- about a mile wide -- through a swath of Montclair for roughly a half-hour , destroyed about 200 trees on public property in Montclair , an Essex County township of about six square miles .", "The most heavily damaged areas , Mr. Bianco said , were Brookdale Park , which covers 121 acres in Montclair and Bloomfield , and the township 's Edgemont Park .", "`` We had some cars smashed and a lot of people running for cover , '' he said .", "`` It was a miracle that no one got hurt . ''", "But what about all of those damaged oak and pine trees , some of which Mr. Bianco said were 250 years old .", "`` Cleaning it all up was quite a daunting task , '' said Matthew A . Vastano , the executive vice president of Nature 's Choice Corporation , a yard-waste recycling company in Union , N.J. , hired by Montclair to clear the debris caused by the storm .", "`` Montclair is not your normal town where vegetative waste is concerned , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` The town , which has huge , huge trees , is very environmentally conscious , and it wants to keep all the trees it can . ''", "The trees it could not keep were hauled away by Nature 's Choice to a temporary storage site .", "Any piece of wood 16 to 18 inches long was put onto chipper trucks and into machines that turned it into chips .", "Anything larger was cut into logs .", "Some 25 truckloads of those logs were placed into 40-foot containers on trucks -- at a cost of $ 350 per container -- for eventual mulching .", "In the end , about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil , or 300 tons , were produced -- enough to cover about 100,000 square feet , according to Mr. Vastano .", "Mr. Bianco said that Nature 's Choice would give Montclair some of the mulch or topsoil for free if the town needed it for a special project , but that the company was free to sell it to landscapers and other businesses .", "`` We are a business , not a charity , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` We 'll take most of that mulch and turn it into hardwood mulch or dye it either black or a shade of red before selling it . ``", "Dianne Marus , the director of Montclair 's Department of Finance , said that the cost of the storm cleanup came to $ 366,950 but that the price , tallied by the Department of Community Services , did not include overtime costs for the Police -LRB- $ 74,983 -RRB- and Fire Departments -LRB- $ 4,650 -RRB- .", "All told , Montclair has spent $ 446,583 on storm-related services , and the job is not yet finished .", "`` There are still a number of stumps to be removed and lots of re-planting to do , '' Mr. Bianco said .", "`` By the time all is said and done , this entire project is going to cost us more money and continue for at least another month . ''", "STORM CLEANUP ."], "summary": ["Article on work of Nature 's Choice Corp , yard-waste recycling company hired by Montclair , NJ , to clear debris caused by July 18 storm that destroyed about 200 trees on public property .", "Company turned trees into about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 16], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788843", "text": ["DEEP into suburbia , on a sound barrier that runs along the Taconic State Parkway here , a graffiti artist announces his presence with a single word painted in yellow and black : `` Me . ''", "Officials said that graffiti had reached new heights this summer .", "And in a town that bills itself as a retreat from more urban locales , politicians and police officers are taking the problem seriously .", "`` Whether you grew up here all your life , or whether you moved here from the Bronx or Yonkers or Long Island , you do n't want to see that , `` said Linda G . Cooper , the town supervisor .", "`` And so we 're trying to take a very firm position . ``", "In June , the Yorktown police began graffiti patrols as a deterrent .", "They also began photographing graffiti they found to create a catalog of the work of local vandals for use in investigations , Lt . Donald Schuck said .", "Since July , Lieutenant Schuck said , the police have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges .", "The most recent came on Aug . 28 , with the arrest of a 14-year-old from Mohegan Lake , a hamlet of Yorktown .", "The police said he had sprayed a wall at a town-owned sports club , causing about $ 400 in damage .", "The boy , charged with making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments , both misdemeanors , was released to his mother and was scheduled to appear on Friday in Westchester County Family Court in White Plains .", "The town , which has seen stop signs , park buildings , businesses and even a police radar unit defaced this summer , is also considering new legislation .", "One proposed law would require vandals to pay restitution .", "Another would mandate that residents who discover graffiti on their property clean it within 72 hours .", "Ms. Cooper said that rapid removal discouraged vandals .", "Town officials and youth advocates said there were a number of reasons for the surge in graffiti .", "Lieutenant Schuck said increased access to the tools of graffiti had played a role .", "Young people , previously stymied by a county law forbidding the sale of spray paint to anyone under 18 , have begun ordering the paint over the Internet , he said .", "Joan Valenstein , chairwoman of the advisory board for the Yorktown Teen Center , a branch of the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester , said the increase might be the byproduct of boredom in a town that she said did not provide enough youth activities .", "Ms. Cooper said some of the graffiti included gang insignia previously seen in the southern , more urban part of the county .", "Whatever the source of the graffiti , the town seems determined to stamp it out .", "But out on the Taconic State Parkway , high above the cars rushing by , defiance is etched in yellow and black .", "VANDALISM ."], "summary": ["Officials in Yorktown , NY , say graffiti has reached new heights this summer .", "Police have begun graffiti patrols as deterrent and have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges since July .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 1, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788845", "text": ["Little by little , the cafe inside Atticus Bookstore in New Haven has swallowed more and more of the space .", "It began with a couple of tables , a counter and display cases in 1981 , when the cafe opened .", "There are now 20 tables occupying about a third of the store , and according to Caleb Fraser , an assistant manager , plans are slowly evolving for even more cafe space .", "The cafe has proved to be wildly popular for its hearty soups , generous sandwiches and salads , coffees and other beverages , as well as baked goods , including cookies , tarts , muffins and scones .", "A popular order is soup and half a sandwich or salad for $ 8.20.", "Half a sandwich and half a salad at the same price is also a favorite combination , with eight sandwiches or panini and seven salads to choose from .", "I 'm partial to the lemon chicken salad and grilled tomato panino with pesto , but have n't been disappointed with any of my choices .", "Black bean soup is a menu regular , and there 's always a meat soup like chicken Florentine with spinach and a vegetarian soup like lentil -LRB- or try the cold avocado-yogurt pur\u00e9e if it 's on the day 's menu -RRB- .", "The cafe is open daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and is especially crowded at lunchtime , between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.", "Throughout the day , from breakfast on , students , professors and others congregate for coffee , espresso , cappuccino and a pick-me-up nibble .", "Matineegoers to the Yale Repertory Theater down the street often drop by for a quick lunch or post-performance snack .", "But no one needs an excuse -- the sweets are incredibly delicious , whether raspberry or blackberry Danish , sticky buns , plain or whole wheat croissants , lemon tarts , bread pudding , chocolate cheesecake brownies or almond bars .", "All baked goods , like the soups and everything else at the cafe , are made at the local Chabaso Bakery , the bookstore 's parent company .", "Atticus Bookstore / Caf\u00e9 , 1082 Chapel Street , New Haven .", "-LRB- 203 -RRB- 776-4040 .", "PATRICIA BROOKS ."], "summary": ["Patricia Brooks reviews cafe inside Atticus Bookstore in New Haven , Conn , photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788846", "text": ["HE sits in his wheelchair as the family rushes around him .", "He can not move much , or say more than hello .", "He can not participate in the summer activities that everyone pursues with great vigor day after day .", "If it 's warm enough , he goes out onto the deck and snoozes in the sun with the dogs .", "Unlike them , however , he does n't jump up and make excited noises when people come .", "At most , he slowly turns his head and smiles .", "Everyone speaks to him politely , but not for long .", "What 's the point .", "He ca n't say more than a couple of words , and it 's hard to tell how much he understands .", "He is my stepfather , Peter , an 88-year-old man who in the last decade has been transformed from a lively and dynamic person into not much more than a body occupying space .", "He has post-polio syndrome , a condition that seeps the strength from his upper body as steadily as it weakened his legs when he was a teenager .", "A couple of strokes have further debilitated him .", "As my son , Asher , said to my mother one day , it 's as if he 's hardly a person anymore .", "And yet this is n't how Asher , 14 , behaves toward him .", "He constantly monitors Peter 's feet to see if they 've slipped off the footrests of his wheelchair .", "He always asks if Peter wants something to drink .", "His recognition of the full extent of what it means to be a person goes beyond his frustration at Peter 's limitations .", "Asher is concerned with Peter 's comfort , his feeling of inclusion .", "Peter 's situation brings out Asher 's own humanity .", "Peter is certainly a person to my mother , Addy , though she has no illusions about his abilities .", "He is her third husband , the one who was finally her friend .", "She does what she can to make him comfortable and to replicate his old habits .", "Since his only real pleasure is food , she makes him good meals for lunch and dinner .", "At night they listen to Amy Goodman on NPR and then watch Chris Matthews and a couple of episodes of `` Seinfeld '' or `` Curb Your Enthusiasm . ''", "On Tuesdays , Peter 's longtime men 's lunch group comes over to eat with him and discuss books and politics .", "Peter does n't participate , but he enjoys the routine .", "Last summer he could still join them at the local restaurant .", "He would motor up the street in his Jazzy wheelchair with an orange pennant waving above his head to warn cars away .", "He is far from being able to do anything like that now .", "Peter needs to be cared for at the most basic custodial level .", "When my friend Anne visited , her 9-year-old son , Nick , was interested in what this entailed .", "Over the course of a five-day stay , Nick asked many questions of Stacey , the woman who comes in to get Peter out of bed in the morning -- the very practical questions that most adults prefer not to think about .", "Several times Stacey saw Nick looking in the window when it was changing time .", "He was n't fazed by what he saw .", "He accepted Peter 's condition and presence in the house as natural .", "He was right about that .", "My mother and Peter live on the lip of a harbor in Maine .", "All summer , family members passed through , usually for a week or so .", "I stayed the longest -- six weeks .", "On some days there were enough people staying to fulfill my old fantasy of a big house full of people , bursting with robust togetherness .", "This was a new phenomenon here .", "For many years we were only welcome to stay for a short time .", "The stepparents had limited tolerance for each other 's children , especially the noisy grandchildren .", "I often rented nearby to make visits to my mother less stressful .", "Other sons and daughters did the same .", "We rarely overlapped or had the sense of a beloved summer house , full of traditions passed down through generations .", "We each had a private relationship with Maine , and with Peter and my mother .", "But an unexpected side effect of Peter 's deterioration has been a lessening of the feeling that anyone beyond my mother and stepfather creates a crowd .", "Now Peter seems to enjoy the bustle that my mother used to believe was an imposition on him .", "He is no longer an aging intellectual who requires quiet for reading and writing .", "The grandchildren are older , and he is younger , babylike .", "After breakfast , he sleeps for a couple of hours in the kitchen , no matter the amount of dish washing or screen-door banging .", "So family life swirled around him this summer .", "We spent the kind of easy time together that I like best , quantity rather than quality .", "Just hanging out .", "Siblings , nieces and nephews trooped through with significant others in tow .", "They each had a relationship with Peter while they were there .", "Some spent time talking to him even if he could n't reply .", "Others made sure he was comfortable at the table during meals .", "Though it was easy to forget he was in the room , everyone was delighted when he broke into a conversation with a responsive remark .", "The old Peter ! It was good to see him again , if only for a moment .", "Starting the last week of July , my mother began to say fall was in the air .", "I bridled against this , though I knew what she meant .", "I felt it too , a change in the light from white to yellow , a softening of the wind , a resignation of the leaves on certain trees .", "But I did n't want to skip ahead , so I pretended not to notice .", "It 's summer , I insisted .", "This is what summer is like in Maine .", "It is tempting to make this whisper of fall a metaphor for Peter 's diminishing presence .", "September brings up memories of how the end of summer felt during childhood , a loss .", "Yet I find myself resisting the comparison .", "Peter is alive , and summer does n't officially end for 10 more days .", "I 'm still wearing white .", "GENERATIONS ."], "summary": ["Alice Elliott Dark Generations essay on summer spent in Maine with her family and her stepfather , Peter , 88 , who is debilitated with post-polio syndrome and effects of strokes .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 66, 11], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788848", "text": ["FIVE years ago my brother and I spoke regularly .", "Five years ago we drank together , teased each other without mercy and , occasionally , even expressed feelings of affection .", "After 9/11 we did not .", "My brother is a 20-plus-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department , a former marine with a degree in history whose politics are conservative .", "He is four years older and quite a bit larger than me .", "I am a 20-plus-year veteran of big-agency advertising , a creative director turned fiction writer whose politics , not surprisingly , do not lean conservatively .", "Until five years ago , this was not such a big problem .", "There were plenty of other things to talk about , and we knew that despite our differences , there was still much to appreciate about each other .", "On Sept . 11 , 2001 , I was in Boca Raton , Fla . , on business accompanied by my wife , my 3-year-old daughter and my mother-in-law -LRB- yes , my mother-in-law came on business trips with us back then -RRB- at , of all things , a sales convention for a yogurt company .", "At 9 a.m. , we were granted a 10-minute respite from the executive Vince Lombardi-isms and the Roman Colosseum-inspired motivational d\u00e9cor .", "The first thing I did was check the messages on my personal communications device du jour , because in 2001 , I was convinced that the more I checked the quotidian drivel it contained the more it seemed that my ad agency , yogurt convention , frequent-flier-miles-financed-family-business-trip life mattered .", "But this time what the messages told me were hardly drivel .", "I immediately called New York to check on my brother who was not supposed to be working , but with firefighters you never know .", "He was n't working .", "He 'd soon go to the site , but luckily he would n't be one of the 343 firefighters killed .", "For the next hour , I 'm fairly sure that he watched what I watched , that he looked away when I looked away , and I am fairly sure that at 9:59 a.m. , when the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed , he felt exactly what I felt .", "What we all felt .", "I am also sure that those were the last pure , nonpoliticized thoughts any of us would have about that day , and the last time that my brother and I would feel the same way about anything for some time .", "Renting a car and driving home was our only option .", "At first I wanted to push through , to rush the family home .", "`` To what .", "`` my wife asked .", "`` To have our daughter watch her parents sit paralyzed in front of a television set .", "`` So we took our time , taking a scenic , non-traditional route back to New York .", "I got my information from fellow travelers and National Public Radio .", "I found comfort in the measured voices of `` All Things Considered , '' solace in `` I love New York '' signs in Georgia , inspiration in the words on Jefferson 's tombstone at Monticello , near Charlottesville , Va . , which noted that he was also one of the fathers of religious tolerance in this country .", "Meanwhile , my brother was getting his information from rescue workers and fellow firefighters .", "Because of his military background , his job in the years before the attack had included training recruits at the Fire Academy at Randalls Island .", "His job in the months ahead would be to coordinate funerals .", "Dozens of funerals .", "For friends and friends of friends , each with a story more tragic than the last .", "Late at night on Sept . 14 , my family slept as I drove through Pennsylvania .", "With no NPR to be had for the time being , I listened to sports guys weighing in on the Northern Alliance , D.J. ` s explaining the tenuous Pakistani-Afghani relationship .", "With each passing mile , more and more proselytizing and hate seeped into the views of the syndicated giants .", "Driving near Port Jervis , N.Y. , a state trooper pulled alongside our car and shined a spotlight inside while the rest of my family was sleeping .", "Four strangers in a red rental car with Florida plates .", "Suspects .", "To think that 9/11 drove a stake between my brother and me is as na\u00efve as thinking that it drove one through the country .", "Red and blue staters had been at each other 's throats for a while , and my brother and I had clashed on and off over lots of things for years .", "But this took it farther .", "He had been affected by it in ways I could not imagine .", "Of the 343 firefighters killed , he knew dozens .", "No one that I knew had died .", "Within a week , I would go back to work .", "For more than a year , he would go to funerals and I imagine that in addition to grief , a man with my brother 's courage and sense of duty must also have been dealing with a serious case of survivor 's guilt .", "But did that make his opinions -- which had become increasingly angry and pronounced -- right .", "Over the last five years we 've disagreed about everything from the 2000 and 2004 elections to the war in Iraq , radical Islam and of course , the liberal news media .", "For a while we tiptoed around politics but when we were together everything seemed political .", "For a while we did n't speak at all .", "But lately we 've been talking .", "I care too strongly for him to let politics destroy our relationship and I think he feels the same .", "The other day I called him .", "He had just gotten home from the hospital where a fellow firefighter , Lt . Howard Carpluk Jr . lay in critical condition from injuries suffered when the floor had given way in a burning Bronx building .", "Another firefighter , 25-year-old Michael Reilly , who had served in the Marines in Iraq , had already died .", "My brother told me he was there near Mayor Michael Bloomberg as the doctors gave them an update .", "-LRB- Lieutenant Carpluk died the following day . -RRB-", "My brother sounded tired .", "After some time , while discussing Labor Day plans , I told him that I 'd been invited to discuss my book on a conservative talk show in Boston and joked that I feared an ambush .", "He told me to tell them that my brother was a New York City firefighter , and maybe they 'd go easy on me .", "Op-Ed Contributor James P . Othmer is the author of the novel `` The Futurist . '' ."], "summary": ["Op-Ed article by James Othmer describes ways in which his relationship with his brother , veteran New York City firefighter who worked at World Trade Center site , changed after 9/11 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 59], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788850", "text": ["C . Lee Hanson , of Easton , rarely plans ahead to visit Connecticut 's memorial to the victims of Sept . 11 .", "But at odd moments he finds himself going to the site , on Long Island Sound at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport .", "There , he sees once again the three names carved in stone : those of his son , Peter .", "His son 's wife , Sue .", "And their 2-year-old daughter , Christine .", "They were passengers on United Flight 175 and died when their airplane hit the World Trade Center five years ago tomorrow .", "Paula Clifford Scott of Mystic goes there , too , mostly during annual memorial services .", "There are two familiar names etched in stone , and on her heart : those of her daughter , Ruth McCourt , and 4-year-old granddaughter , Juliana .", "They were on the same flight as Mr. Hanson 's family , and were among the 152 from Connecticut who died that day .", "States with the largest losses from the attacks have had difficulty memorializing those who died .", "New York only recently awarded the first big construction contract for the footings of a memorial at the World Trade Center site .", "New Jersey 's state memorial , under construction at Liberty State Park in Jersey City , has run into opposition because it obscures views of Lower Manhattan from the park .", "But Connecticut , at former Gov . John Rowland 's urging , moved swiftly to create a state tribute to the victims of Sept . 11 .", "Within seven months a site overlooking the Sound had been chosen .", "At the first anniversary of the attacks , the memorial was taking shape , with nearly every element donated -- including the design , done with the participation of victims ' families .", "Best of all is the location .", "In a place where sea meets sky , the memorial offers the promise of tranquillity , even in the face of loss .", "`` I like simple things , '' Mr. Hanson said , and it pleases him that the design of the memorial is not complicated .", "The names of the victims are carved in granite bricks , scattered randomly , to symbolize the senselessness of the act that took their lives .", "Beach roses bloom nearby , and benches invite contemplation .", "On a clear day , the Manhattan skyline is visible .", "It is from here that horrified Connecticut residents watched the billowing smoke from New York City after the attacks , and mobilized to help .", "Asked what the state memorial meant to her , Ms. Scott said : `` Remembrance -- and life .", "Life stopped for a little while that day .", "It was up to us to begin again . ``", "Connecticut 's lovely memorial to Sept . 11 keeps alive memories of the victims , comforts the families and offers solace to visitors .", "It stands also as a monument in proud contradiction to those who say government can not do anything right .", "Connecticut ."], "summary": ["Editorial holds Connecticut 's memorial to September 11 , at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport , keeps alive memories of victims , comnforts families , offers solace to visitors and stands as monument that contradicts those who say government can not do anything right ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [25, 26, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788855", "text": ["WHEN affluent suburbanites travel , they can be quite fussy , demanding that airplanes show up and take off like clockwork and that anything less is -- to use a word the fastidious favor -- unacceptable .", "But when they 're lounging in their backyards , they want the skies to be jet-free , or at least noise-free .", "If jets must be seen , they should not be heard .", "The problem in hubs like New York is that the two desires are fast becoming irreconcilable .", "American airlines handled 739 million passengers last year .", "By 2015 that number is expected to balloon to 1 billion .", "No one wants an airport sprouting next door , with all the attendant whines , drones and roars , so the Federal Aviation Administration has been trying to squeeze in more flights by rejiggering the way planes use air space in the corridor between Philadelphia and Connecticut .", "But the redesign has set off a fury among people living around Westchester County Airport , which includes thousands of Connecticut residents .", "It turns out that flight patterns around the airport may have to be tinkered with because of the spillover from changes in patterns at La Guardia Airport , meaning more whines and roars for those living below .", "Until recently , the issue of rerouting seldom flashed on the public 's radar , mostly because the F.A.A. had not always been forthcoming .", "In February , Janet Lockton , president of the Greenwich-based Air Conservation Trust , went to an F.A.A. slide show in Stamford and came away reassured that Westchester 's airport would be untouched , and that La Guardia flights would spend more time over the uncomplaining waters of Long Island Sound .", "But then she ordered three CD 's containing 1,226 pages of the preliminary environmental statement and discovered in the nearly impenetrable appendixes that planes taking off from the county airport would indeed loop over Westchester and Connecticut for longer periods .", "She alerted officials across the state border , and in June , County Executive Andrew J . Spano issued a letter to the F.A.A. , based on an environmental consultant 's study .", "Mr. Spano 's letter rebuffed the F.A.A. ` s preferred proposal for flight patterns because the plan would have '' a significant impact `` on places like Rye Brook , Pleasantville and Briarcliff .", "Some aircraft , Mr. Spano bristled , would `` incredibly '' be rerouted over the Indian Point nuclear plant .", "He did n't mention Connecticut , but the new flight paths would raise decibel levels in Greenwich , Stamford and New Canaan -- though how unhinging the noise would be has been disputed , with the F.A.A. minimizing any spikes in volume and the consultant , Harris Miller Miller & Hanson Inc . , saying the changes would probably be `` highly noticeable . ''", "The county airport already has limits on noise enshrined in county law .", "In any half-hour-period , no more than four commercial planes can land or take off at the airport , and those planes together can carry no more than 240 passengers .", "Flights are practically banned between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.", "The airport has intentionally been kept a backwater , with such anomalies as propeller-plane flights to Toronto .", "`` There are people who persist in talking about how Westchester could , should or would expand , '' said Robert Funicello , director for environmental projects at Westchester 's transportation department .", "`` It is n't going to happen . ``", "He and Ms. Lockton argue that planners need to think about alternatives like high-speed trains .", "The Port Authority thinks the area needs a fourth full-scale airport to go with Kennedy , Newark and La Guardia , probably at Stewart Airport outside of Newburgh , N.Y.", "Other regional planners think a day of reckoning can be put off if everybody sacrifices , including Westchester Airport and its neighbors .", "It 's hard to argue that officials should not do all they can to block noise in the suburbs , where people pay a premium for tranquillity .", "But advocates for quiet skies may have to start pondering a day not too far distant when the major airports ca n't handle any more planes , and travelers ca n't get flights they need .", "Changes will have to be made that would raise the number of flights and ratchet up the noise .", "We live in an era , after all , when flying on a plane has become almost as routine as riding a subway .", "Many of the people who can afford spreads in Westchester and Connecticut earn much of their living traveling for business , which could slow down if air travel gridlocks .", "`` We 're going to run out of room at airports or room in the skies unless people get the big picture view , `` said Kevin Mitchell , chairman of the Business Travel Coalition , a group that represents corporate buyers of travel services .", "`` The upshot is much higher business fares and even higher leisure fares . ''", "In the past half century , airplane travel has changed from an indulgence of the well-to-do to a convenience that most people can enjoy .", "If airports stop growing , travel could become far less democratic , and just visiting an aunt in Missouri may become prohibitive .", "That 's a trade-off well worth thinking about by those carrying on the worthy fight against noise .", "E-mail : joeberg@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["Joseph Berger column on dispute between Federal Aviation Administration and tens of thousands of Westchester County and Connecticut residents over FAA plan to alter flight patterns at Westchester County Airport , which has potential to increase noise .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 27], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788856", "text": ["Fans of the lyrical qualities of 19th-century paintings -- purity , serenity , sentiment -- will find a visit to the Bush-Holley Historic Site in Cos Cob immensely appealing .", "There , the latest installation in a series of exhibitions devoted to artists who lived and worked in the Greenwich area presents the work of John Henry Twachtman -LRB- 1853-1902 -RRB- , one of America 's most genteel and popular Impressionist painters .", "Twachtman is a particularly appropriate choice for this museum .", "He was a cornerstone of a lively late-19th-century art colony centered on the Bush-Holley House -- where he lived from time to time as a guest and painted and taught other artists .", "He also bought a 17-acre property in Greenwich , where he did his finest work .", "The current exhibition is a selection of paintings produced on his Greenwich property , coupled with a handful of works done on his travels to Massachusetts , California and Europe .", "The exhibition is subtitled a painter 's painter , for Twachtman was admired more by other painters than by collectors for much of his career .", "Several of the early paintings here were owned by his peers , including a lovely Venetian cityscape that once belonged to J . Alden Weir , a fellow Impressionist .", "Twachtman devoted himself to teaching , which also helped to buoy his reputation among other artists .", "The show opens with a picture of the artist 's home in Greenwich , showing a small farmhouse surrounded by acres of largely uncultivated land .", "Twachtman set the farmhouse high up in the canvass , at the crest of a hill and shaded by a light clump of autumnal trees .", "It works on all levels , being neither ponderous like his earlier tonalist pastiches nor as formulaic as some later Impressionist paintings .", "Twachtman also liked to paint the back facade of his house , viewed close up from above and below or framed through the tangled greenery of his overgrown garden .", "`` Artist 's Home Seen From the Back `` -LRB- circa 1894 -RRB- is perhaps the most accomplished of these pieces , the contrasts of color and light in the garden areas augmented with some pleasantly pedantic detailing .", "Though it shows the artist 's obvious painterly gifts , the most interesting works are views from the Bush-Holley House , looking out over the quiet bay below .", "A great deal has changed in the century since Twachtman painted here , not the least of which is the development of the shoreline .", "Gone is much of the natural beauty and tranquillity of the setting , which is what drew Twachtman and other artists to the Bush-Holley house .", "Two of the most curious paintings are also the least successful .", "They are scenes of Yellowstone Park , where Twachtman traveled to paint on commission for a patron .", "One of the works depicts a gushing waterfall , the other a ravine , but neither is entirely convincing .", "Both are painted from an implausible point of view , that of someone hovering midair or standing in the middle of a river .", "Nor do the tones of pink , lavender-gray , powder blue and green seem quite right .", "Twachtman was painting in Yellowstone in 1895 , by which time he was an accomplished and much admired artist .", "So why were his Yellowstone paintings so off the mark .", "Perhaps he had become accustomed to painting at home , focusing on the lush greenery , brooks and barns of Connecticut , and was just unsure of himself and his relationship with the new subject matter .", "Whatever the explanation for these aberrant images , they pale in comparison to his Greenwich and Cos Cob paintings , of which there are several excellent examples here .", "`` Autumn Mists '' -LRB- circa 1890 -RRB- , which depicts the pond on his property , clearly shows Twachtman 's skill at painting water .", "Passages of blue and green paint are thickened in parts with white to give the surface some texture , but they also capture subtle gradations of light .", "It is thoroughly cinematic .", "`` John Twachtman : A Painter 's Painter , `` William Hegarty Gallery , Bush-Holley Historic Site , 39 Strickland Road , Cos Cob , through Oct . 29 .", "Information : -LRB- 203 -RRB- 869-6899 or www.hstg.org.", "ART REVIEW ."], "summary": ["Benjamin Genocchio reviews works by John Twachtman at Bush-Holley Historic Site in Cos Cob , Conn .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [29], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788857", "text": ["Alma Winemiller is the old maid 's old maid .", "And Amanda Plummer is all over her like a swarm of drugged Southern bees in Hartford Stage 's heartfelt and heart-wrenching new production of `` Summer and Smoke . ''", "Tennessee Williams often said that Miss Alma , as almost everyone calls her , was his finest female character and the one most like him .", "She is a Mississippi minister 's daughter , still relatively young in the years just before World War I but already spinsterish , admiring of the `` everlasting struggle '' between good and evil represented by Gothic cathedrals , and eventually dependent on and grateful for `` little mercies , '' like her prescription for sleeping tablets .", "Ever since her mother turned into a mental infant , Alma has been responsible for the running of the household .", "She is dutiful but angry -LRB- `` You act like a child , but you have the Devil in you , '' she tells her mother -RRB- and occasionally vengeful .", "There is not an uncomplicated or stereotypical bone in Alma 's body , and Ms. Plummer adds complexities and vulnerabilities of her own .", "Alma 's problem is that she has been in love since childhood with the golden boy next door , John Buchanan Jr . , played with easy Redfordish charm by Marc Kudisch .", "That 's Doctor Buchanan .", "But John 's problem is that he is n't much interested in taking over his respected father 's medical practice .", "He prefers to spend his time drinking and carousing with fast women like Rosa Gonzalez -LRB- Stephanie Beatriz -RRB- , whose father owns the local casino .", "Williams almost always throws an exotic `` foreign '' character or two into his company of mostly genteel white Southerners .", "In this case he does n't have anything nice to say about Latinos .", "Rosa exists only as a giggly sexual object , and Papa Gonzales -LRB- Mateo G\u00f3mez -RRB- is depicted as loud , drunken , greedy and violent .", "The only two characters who really matter , however , are Alma and John .", "The obvious question is why hunky John bothers with pitiful Alma at all , so real chemistry between the two characters is crucial .", "This production , smoothly directed by Michael Wilson , delivers that in no uncertain terms .", "Mr. Kudisch 's John is sincerely fascinated by Alma , if only because of her enlightened ideals .", "Ms. Plummer 's Alma is absolutely breathless when John unbuttons her blouse to place the stethoscope on her chest .", "John 's sexual interest in her is real , too .", "At this point in his life , he wants to sleep with every woman who crosses his path .", "If `` Summer and Smoke '' is one of Williams 's lesser-known works , there are unfortunate reasons .", "Although the critic Brooks Atkinson praised it to high heaven when it opened on Broadway in 1948 , it was a flop , running only three months or so .", "Maybe that was a result of perceived overkill : Williams 's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama `` A Streetcar Named Desire '' had opened less than a year before and was playing two blocks away .", "It is also possible that Margaret Phillips was not the right Miss Alma .", "The 1952 Off Broadway revival , at Circle in the Square , with the remarkable Geraldine Page in the role , received a warmer welcome .", "Ms. Page recreated her role for the imperfect 1961 film version , opposite Laurence Harvey as John .", "-LRB- Ms. Page and Ms. Plummer starred in the 1982 Broadway production of `` Agnes of God , '' for which Ms. Plummer won a Tony Award . -RRB-", "The brilliance of `` Summer and Smoke '' lies in its final scenes -- Alma and John 's last encounter -LRB- in which his line `` It has only been three or four times '' is an almost unbearably painful realization -RRB- , followed by Alma 's unexpected conversation with a traveling salesman .", "If this were John Buchanan 's story , it becomes clear , Alma would play a very minor role , if she appeared in it at all .", "`` Summer and Smoke '' is at Hartford Stage , 50 Church Street , through Oct . 1 .", "Information : www.hartfordstage.org or -LRB- 860 -RRB- 527-5151 .", "THEATER REVIEW ."], "summary": ["Anita Gates reviews Hartford Stage production of Tennessee Williams 's play Summer and Smoke , directed by Michael Wilson .", "Amanda Plummer and Marc Kudisch star .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 16], "tag": ["Theater", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788859", "text": ["IT may have left no physical damage in its wake , but the recent communal storm in this oceanfront city over the future of its beaches has realigned the political and environmental landscape .", "Despite fears about the city 's vulnerability to a major hurricane , the five-member City Council , three Democrats and two Republicans , voted unanimously in May to reject a $ 98.5 million beach preservation project by the Army Corps of Engineers that was designed to protect Long Beach from ocean flooding .", "The plan would have placed a berm of dredged sand along the beach 10 feet high , with a 5-foot dune on top , from the western end of Long Beach to Point Lookout , more than six miles to the east .", "Point Lookout agreed to a separate plan after the Long Beach project was rejected .", "A major opponent of the corps ' plan was an environmental and surfer-advocacy group , the Surfrider Foundation , whose members said the project would create dangerous riptides and harm the look of the beach , with no guarantee that the city would be better protected , as the corps and the proponents of the plan claimed .", "The group held meetings to get its message to the public and the council alike , and produced testimony by a coastal engineer and several representatives from local communities whose beaches had undergone similar projects .", "All testified against the corps ' proposals for Long Beach .", "Jeff Kupferman , the chairman of Surfrider 's Long Beach Action Committee and a 45-year city resident , said that while rejection of the plan was a `` major victory '' for Surfrider , surfing was far from the only issue .", "`` We had concerns about swimming safety , as well as surfing , about fishing , kayaking , aesthetics -- any use of the beach , '' he said .", "James P . Hennessy , a Republican council member , agreed .", "`` It was never just about surfing , '' he said .", "`` The council does n't agree about much , but it did agree that the beach fill part of the project was wrong . ``", "What annoyed Mr. Kupferman was that Surfrider was portrayed negatively by those who favored the plan .", "`` Their attitude was we were , ' Yo , just a bunch of surfer dudes out to get a wave , ' '' he said .", "`` And they used that as the hook to try and discredit us .", "The fact that we prevailed has sent a lot of ripples out into this community . ``", "Alison Johnson , a Long Beach resident and vice chairwoman of Surfrider 's New York City chapter , which worked closely with the Central Long Island chapter in opposing the plan , said that the decision had ramifications beyond Long Beach .", "`` It will make the powers that be look at storm protection on the East Coast in a different way , '' she said , `` which is the biggest success you can ask from any project . ''", "Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg , a lifelong Long Beach resident and a vocal supporter of the Corps of Engineers ' project , was less sanguine about the outcome .", "`` How did people get elected to office that are so ignorant .", "`` he said of the City Council .", "`` I just pray hard and hope to God we do n't get hit by anything . ``", "Even with the beach issue decided , the officials ' alliance with activists may continue .", "Mr. Hennessy and the other Republican council member , Thomas R . Sofield Jr . , have proposed an alternative storm-management plan , which includes working with advisory groups like Surfrider , and the city has asked independent coastal engineers for ways to address beach protection .", "Mr. Hennessy said he still had hopes of working with the Corps of Engineers should it agree to return to Long Beach , but he is adamant about his vote to reject the project .", "`` I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of people who came up to me and said we 'd made a mistake , `` he said .", "STORM PROTECTION ."], "summary": ["Article on controversy over rejection by City Council in Long Beach , NY , to beach preservation project by Army Corps of Engineers designed to protect beach from ocean flooding .", "Surfrider Foundation contended plan to build 15-foot-high berm and dune from Long Beach to Point Lookout would create dangerous riptides and harm look of beach and would not protect beach .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788860", "text": ["HE sits in his wheelchair as the family rushes around him .", "He can not move much , or say more than hello .", "He can not participate in the summer activities that everyone pursues with great vigor day after day .", "If it 's warm enough , he goes out onto the deck and snoozes in the sun with the dogs .", "Unlike them , however , he does n't jump up and make excited noises when people come .", "At most , he slowly turns his head and smiles .", "Everyone speaks to him politely , but not for long .", "What 's the point .", "He ca n't say more than a couple of words , and it 's hard to tell how much he understands .", "He is my stepfather , Peter , an 88-year-old man who in the last decade has been transformed from a lively and dynamic person into not much more than a body occupying space .", "He has post-polio syndrome , a condition that seeps the strength from his upper body as steadily as it weakened his legs when he was a teenager .", "A couple of strokes have further debilitated him .", "As my son , Asher , said to my mother one day , it 's as if he 's hardly a person anymore .", "And yet this is n't how Asher , 14 , behaves toward him .", "He constantly monitors Peter 's feet to see if they 've slipped off the footrests of his wheelchair .", "He always asks if Peter wants something to drink .", "His recognition of the full extent of what it means to be a person goes beyond his frustration at Peter 's limitations .", "Asher is concerned with Peter 's comfort , his feeling of inclusion .", "Peter 's situation brings out Asher 's own humanity .", "Peter is certainly a person to my mother , Addy , though she has no illusions about his abilities .", "He is her third husband , the one who was finally her friend .", "She does what she can to make him comfortable and to replicate his old habits .", "Since his only real pleasure is food , she makes him good meals for lunch and dinner .", "At night they listen to Amy Goodman on NPR and then watch Chris Matthews and a couple of episodes of `` Seinfeld '' or `` Curb Your Enthusiasm . ''", "On Tuesdays , Peter 's longtime men 's lunch group comes over to eat with him and discuss books and politics .", "Peter does n't participate , but he enjoys the routine .", "Last summer he could still join them at the local restaurant .", "He would motor up the street in his Jazzy wheelchair with an orange pennant waving above his head to warn cars away .", "He is far from being able to do anything like that now .", "Peter needs to be cared for at the most basic custodial level .", "When my friend Anne visited , her 9-year-old son , Nick , was interested in what this entailed .", "Over the course of a five-day stay , Nick asked many questions of Stacey , the woman who comes in to get Peter out of bed in the morning -- the very practical questions that most adults prefer not to think about .", "Several times Stacey saw Nick looking in the window when it was changing time .", "He was n't fazed by what he saw .", "He accepted Peter 's condition and presence in the house as natural .", "He was right about that .", "My mother and Peter live on the lip of a harbor in Maine .", "All summer , family members passed through , usually for a week or so .", "I stayed the longest -- six weeks .", "On some days there were enough people staying to fulfill my old fantasy of a big house full of people , bursting with robust togetherness .", "This was a new phenomenon here .", "For many years we were only welcome to stay for a short time .", "The stepparents had limited tolerance for each other 's children , especially the noisy grandchildren .", "I often rented nearby to make visits to my mother less stressful .", "Other sons and daughters did the same .", "We rarely overlapped or had the sense of a beloved summer house , full of traditions passed down through generations .", "We each had a private relationship with Maine , and with Peter and my mother .", "But an unexpected side effect of Peter 's deterioration has been a lessening of the feeling that anyone beyond my mother and stepfather creates a crowd .", "Now Peter seems to enjoy the bustle that my mother used to believe was an imposition on him .", "He is no longer an aging intellectual who requires quiet for reading and writing .", "The grandchildren are older , and he is younger , babylike .", "After breakfast , he sleeps for a couple of hours in the kitchen , no matter the amount of dish washing or screen-door banging .", "So family life swirled around him this summer .", "We spent the kind of easy time together that I like best , quantity rather than quality .", "Just hanging out .", "Siblings , nieces and nephews trooped through with significant others in tow .", "They each had a relationship with Peter while they were there .", "Some spent time talking to him even if he could n't reply .", "Others made sure he was comfortable at the table during meals .", "Though it was easy to forget he was in the room , everyone was delighted when he broke into a conversation with a responsive remark .", "The old Peter ! It was good to see him again , if only for a moment .", "Starting the last week of July , my mother began to say fall was in the air .", "I bridled against this , though I knew what she meant .", "I felt it too , a change in the light from white to yellow , a softening of the wind , a resignation of the leaves on certain trees .", "But I did n't want to skip ahead , so I pretended not to notice .", "It 's summer , I insisted .", "This is what summer is like in Maine .", "It is tempting to make this whisper of fall a metaphor for Peter 's diminishing presence .", "September brings up memories of how the end of summer felt during childhood , a loss .", "Yet I find myself resisting the comparison .", "Peter is alive , and summer does n't officially end for 10 more days .", "I 'm still wearing white .", "GENERATIONS ."], "summary": ["Alice Elliott Dark Generations essay on summer spent in Maine with her family and her stepfather , Peter , 88 , who is debilitated with post-polio syndrome and effects of strokes .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 66, 11], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788862", "text": ["It 's exciting to wander the stalls of foreign bazaars , food halls and markets , with their stocks of rich and strange ingredients that promise , perhaps , a thrill of sweet discovery .", "Some of that excitement can also be had in White Plains , where Yaranush packs its shelves and cases with foods from the Mediterranean and the Middle East .", "Even shoppers familiar with the wares grab a basket and trawl the aisles of this small shop .", "But old-timers might head right for the clear boxes of dried fruit and shelled and unshelled nuts , just beyond the breads heaped at the entrance .", "Some wander to the back for sesame cakes and for glistening , honey-dripping baklava .", "Then there 's the refrigerated case .", "Next to items like stuffed grape leaves , eight kinds of olives , savory pastries , yogurts , hummus , tabbouleh and tzatziki are the bins of feta , why I usually come here .", "Yaranush has three types of feta bobbing in a brine bath : Greek , French and Bulgarian .", "And they 're all made from sheep 's milk .", "The crumbly Bulgarian 's sour , salty taste is good on a salad .", "The Greek style , smooth and somewhat less salty , goes well with tomatoes and in sandwiches .", "The mild and creamy French spreads nicely on crackers and can take a sweet or savory topping .", "Customers unsure of which feta to choose can request samples .", "Between the breads and the baklava , shelves burst with coffees , all sorts of preserves -LRB- including quince and pumpkin -RRB- , vegetables , herbs , spices , cookies , condiments , biscuits , candy and even mortars and pestles and sets of dainty coffee cups .", "Most labels are in English , but if a jar of mysterious syrup or a bag of Persian dried lemons catches the eye , the gracious owners are always on hand for explanations and advice .", "Yaranush Mediterranean Foods , 322 Central Avenue , White Plains .", "-LRB- 914 -RRB- 682-8449 .", "M . H . REED Westchester ."], "summary": ["Article on Yaranush Mediterranean Foods in White Plains , NY ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788865", "text": ["FIVE years ago my brother and I spoke regularly .", "Five years ago we drank together , teased each other without mercy and , occasionally , even expressed feelings of affection .", "After 9/11 we did not .", "My brother is a 20-plus-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department , a former marine with a degree in history whose politics are conservative .", "He is four years older and quite a bit larger than me .", "I am a 20-plus-year veteran of big-agency advertising , a creative director turned fiction writer whose politics , not surprisingly , do not lean conservatively .", "Until five years ago , this was not such a big problem .", "There were plenty of other things to talk about , and we knew that despite our differences , there was still much to appreciate about each other .", "On Sept . 11 , 2001 , I was in Boca Raton , Fla . , on business accompanied by my wife , my 3-year-old daughter and my mother-in-law -LRB- yes , my mother-in-law came on business trips with us back then -RRB- at , of all things , a sales convention for a yogurt company .", "At 9 a.m. , we were granted a 10-minute respite from the executive Vince Lombardi-isms and the Roman Colosseum-inspired motivational d\u00e9cor .", "The first thing I did was check the messages on my personal communications device du jour , because in 2001 , I was convinced that the more I checked the quotidian drivel it contained the more it seemed that my ad agency , yogurt convention , frequent-flier-miles-financed-family-business-trip life mattered .", "But this time what the messages told me were hardly drivel .", "I immediately called New York to check on my brother who was not supposed to be working , but with firefighters you never know .", "He was n't working .", "He 'd soon go to the site , but luckily he would n't be one of the 343 firefighters killed .", "For the next hour , I 'm fairly sure that he watched what I watched , that he looked away when I looked away , and I am fairly sure that at 9:59 a.m. , when the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed , he felt exactly what I felt .", "What we all felt .", "I am also sure that those were the last pure , nonpoliticized thoughts any of us would have about that day , and the last time that my brother and I would feel the same way about anything for some time .", "Renting a car and driving home was our only option .", "At first I wanted to push through , to rush the family home .", "`` To what .", "`` my wife asked .", "`` To have our daughter watch her parents sit paralyzed in front of a television set .", "`` So we took our time , taking a scenic , non-traditional route back to New York .", "I got my information from fellow travelers and National Public Radio .", "I found comfort in the measured voices of `` All Things Considered , '' solace in `` I love New York '' signs in Georgia , inspiration in the words on Jefferson 's tombstone at Monticello , near Charlottesville , Va . , which noted that he was also one of the fathers of religious tolerance in this country .", "Meanwhile , my brother was getting his information from rescue workers and fellow firefighters .", "Because of his military background , his job in the years before the attack had included training recruits at the Fire Academy at Randalls Island .", "His job in the months ahead would be to coordinate funerals .", "Dozens of funerals .", "For friends and friends of friends , each with a story more tragic than the last .", "Late at night on Sept . 14 , my family slept as I drove through Pennsylvania .", "With no NPR to be had for the time being , I listened to sports guys weighing in on the Northern Alliance , D.J. ` s explaining the tenuous Pakistani-Afghani relationship .", "With each passing mile , more and more proselytizing and hate seeped into the views of the syndicated giants .", "Driving near Port Jervis , N.Y. , a state trooper pulled alongside our car and shined a spotlight inside while the rest of my family was sleeping .", "Four strangers in a red rental car with Florida plates .", "Suspects .", "To think that 9/11 drove a stake between my brother and me is as na\u00efve as thinking that it drove one through the country .", "Red and blue staters had been at each other 's throats for a while , and my brother and I had clashed on and off over lots of things for years .", "But this took it farther .", "He had been affected by it in ways I could not imagine .", "Of the 343 firefighters killed , he knew dozens .", "No one that I knew had died .", "Within a week , I would go back to work .", "For more than a year , he would go to funerals and I imagine that in addition to grief , a man with my brother 's courage and sense of duty must also have been dealing with a serious case of survivor 's guilt .", "But did that make his opinions -- which had become increasingly angry and pronounced -- right .", "Over the last five years we 've disagreed about everything from the 2000 and 2004 elections to the war in Iraq , radical Islam and of course , the liberal news media .", "For a while we tiptoed around politics but when we were together everything seemed political .", "For a while we did n't speak at all .", "But lately we 've been talking .", "I care too strongly for him to let politics destroy our relationship and I think he feels the same .", "The other day I called him .", "He had just gotten home from the hospital where a fellow firefighter , Lt . Howard Carpluk Jr . lay in critical condition from injuries suffered when the floor had given way in a burning Bronx building .", "Another firefighter , 25-year-old Michael Reilly , who had served in the Marines in Iraq , had already died .", "My brother told me he was there near Mayor Michael Bloomberg as the doctors gave them an update .", "-LRB- Lieutenant Carpluk died the following day . -RRB-", "My brother sounded tired .", "After some time , while discussing Labor Day plans , I told him that I 'd been invited to discuss my book on a conservative talk show in Boston and joked that I feared an ambush .", "He told me to tell them that my brother was a New York City firefighter , and maybe they 'd go easy on me .", "James P . Othmer is the author of the novel `` The Futurist . '' ."], "summary": ["Op-Ed article by James Othmer describes ways in which his relationship with his brother , veteran New York City firefighter who worked at World Trade Center site , changed after 9/11 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 59, 2], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788867", "text": ["`` The Rising , '' Westchester County 's towering memorial to the victims of 9/11 , did not get off to a promising start .", "The drawings were lovely but the design was flawed .", "It called for 109 polished steel cables , one for each Westchester resident killed that day , to rise from a circular base and intertwine into a pillar soaring magically to the sky .", "But the plan had to be rethought when the engineers informed the architect that his vision was likely to collapse under its own weight .", "Fixing it meant spending a lot more money , and as the Board of Legislators debated the issue and a crash fund-raising effort began , it seemed possible that this project could end up stalling and floundering as badly as its hexed counterpart at ground zero in Lower Manhattan .", "That it did not -- and that a completed memorial is scheduled to be dedicated today at Kensico Dam Plaza in Valhalla -- is a testament to the virtues of flexibility and cooperative good will , and to the power of a beautiful idea .", "`` The Rising '' was the unanimous choice of a committee of victims ' family members overseeing the design competition .", "The architect , Frederic Schwartz , and his engineering team recovered quickly from the technical setback .", "They replaced the cables with thicker stainless-steel rods , adjusted the swooping profile and came up with a structure that honored the original concept while promising to stand up to wind and gravity .", "The cost overrun for the redesigned memorial was not insignificant -- its original $ 200,000 price tag ended up at about $ 770,000 .", "By all accounts , that was the only real mix-up .", "Under the leadership of County Executive Andrew Spano , who first proposed the memorial in a State of the County address in 2002 , `` The Rising '' arose in a process that seems to have been a near-miraculous convergence of vision and efficient follow-through .", "The victims ' families were consulted at every step .", "They chose not only the design but also the site , in the shadow of the mighty Kensico Dam .", "They were invited to submit messages to be etched beneath the victims ' names on the granite plaques encircling the memorial , and many did .", "The product of their collaboration is remarkable , a web of polished steel that recalls but does not mimic the elegant geometry of the World Trade Center .", "To walk around and beneath it -- to read a name and family tribute on a marker and then follow the path of a single steel strand that pulls your gaze up and into the endless depth of a blue sky -- is to participate in an act of remembrance that can upend your expectations of what a memorial can do .", "`` The Rising '' proves that adding a bit of group participation and democracy to the creation of a work of art is not always fatal to an artist 's vision -- that the work of committees is not doomed to end in blandness and incoherence .", "It shows that a memorial incorporating personal tributes -- one that lets loved ones write the text -- does not have to succumb to maudlin sentiment .", "The messages are powerful in their simple dignity , and remind us that the heroism and suffering of that September morning were not confined to a few blocks of Lower Manhattan , but radiated throughout the New York region , and beyond .", "Finally , and most strikingly , `` The Rising '' shows that a memorial necessitated by an act of mass murder need not be morbid .", "This strange , shimmering tower , which aims skyward and lifts the heart with it , seems likely to be simultaneously a place for solemn remembrance and a source of delight .", "That 's a paradox , but one we will be only too glad to puzzle over .", "Westchester ."], "summary": ["Editorial praises The Rising , Westchester County 's towering memorial to victims of 9/11 at Kensico Dam Plaza in Valhalla , NY , as testament to virtues of flexibility and cooperation and power of a beautiful idea ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 0], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788870", "text": ["TO those caught up in the loose-hipped calypso beat wafting over Peekskill this time last year , the One World Arts and Culture Fest at the Paramount Center for the Arts might have seemed little more than well-organized fun .", "But like a good many events masquerading as simple entertainment , the festival , which returns for a second run on Sept . 13 , was the beginning of a larger mission for Jon Yanofsky and his staff , who had watched the region metamorphose and had not liked what they believed was a limited cultural response to the changes .", "`` We saw a demographic that was not really respected in arts programming , '' Mr. Yanofsky , the center 's executive director , said recently in a phone interview .", "`` Looking around , we were seeing a void in the kind of really broad-spectrum festival that would meet the interests and needs of an increasingly diverse regional demographic .", "There were lots of heritage festivals , but no one that put out a really big umbrella and looked at a large spectrum of cultural and artistic expressions . ``", "And so , building upon an idea from a board member , Geneive Brown Metzger , Mr. Yanofsky and his team created what they thought was missing : a festival whose scope was vast enough to entertain the masses in one of Westchester County 's most diverse areas and to provide the Paramount with a means of more accurately defining its potential audience and ultimately connecting with it .", "`` We did n't know what to expect , `` Mr. Yanofsky said .", "`` But one of the best ways to learn about and reach your market is to offer a festival and learn everything for free . ''", "What they got was a great turnout , he said , and events , like an Afro-Puerto Rican dance and music workshop , that were attended by people aged 7 to 65 .", "`` We were able to fund-raise enough last year that we could honor our original vision that the majority of activities be free , '' Mr. Yanofsky said , noting that the festival charges admission only to films .", "`` That proved to be a really important component . ''", "This year 's festival , which has been expanded to five days from four , begins Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. with an awards ceremony and the opening of a visual arts show .", "Two films -- `` The Harder They Come , '' Perry Henzell 's 1972 cult hit starring Jimmy Cliff as a reggae singer-turned-political outlaw amid the brutal exploitation of the Jamaican music scene , and `` Calle 54 , '' Fernando Trueba 's 2000 love song to Latin jazz -- will be shown at 8 p.m. on Thursday and Friday , respectively .", "-LRB- Admission is $ 8 for adults , $ 5 for children . -RRB-", "The pianist Arturo O'Farrill , whose father , the Afro-Cuban jazz pioneer Chico , is the subject of an entire segment of `` Calle 54 , '' will introduce that film and answer questions afterward , and even play a few riffs .", "Saturday is Family and Youth Day , a new addition to the festival with seven hours of free performances and workshops in capoeira , the Brazilian martial art .", "African dancing and drumming .", "South American storytelling .", "And flamenco dance and steel drum playing , starting at noon .", "`` We wanted to specifically provide programs to bring kids to so they could experience the very diverse expressions of our region 's very diverse communities , `` Mr. Yanofsky said .", "Last year 's Free Music Day was headlined by the calypso giant the Mighty Sparrow .", "This year 's , from 1 to 7 p.m. on Sunday , features performances by Bakithi Kumalo of South Africa , the Adehye African Dance Group from Ghana , the Ecuadorian altiplano group Runahurco , and samba and capoeira ensembles , before segueing into the day 's top draw , the reggae stalwarts the Wailers .", "`` People have been coming up to me and saying : ' The Wailers in Peekskill for free .", "Are you kidding me .", "' `` Mr. Yanofsky said .", "`` And I tell them , ' Yes , it 's free . '", "Thank our sponsors when you see them . ``", "Paramount Center for the Arts , 1008 Brown Street , Peekskill .", "Information : -LRB- 914 -RRB- 739-2333 .", "Www.paramountcenter.org."], "summary": ["Article on second annual One World Arts and Culture Fest at Paramount Center for the Arts in Peekskill , NY , which is set to open on September 13 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788871", "text": ["THE Jacob Burns Film Center 's annual fund-raising awards dinner and auction is a flashy affair , featuring dignitaries from the film industry and bidders who pool together to try to win big prizes , like a ride in the Fuji blimp .", "At this year 's event , which will celebrate the nonprofit center 's fifth anniversary , the items up for auction include a weeklong vacation in Nantucket and , perhaps the most-sought-after prize , an in-home concert performed by the Tokyo String Quartet .", "Stephen Apkon , executive director of the Burns Center , said that items offered at the event generally go for $ 5,000 and up , and bidding for the quartet usually starts at about $ 10,000 .", "The Tokyo Quartet , widely considered one of the world 's premier chamber music groups , has a long-running connection with Westchester County and the Burns Center , based in Pleasantville .", "The first violinist , Martin Beaver , and the cellist , Clive Greensmith , live in Dobbs Ferry .", "The second violinist , Kikuei Ikeda , lives in Chappaqua .", "When the quartet needed a local rehearsal space a few years ago , Brian Skarstad , a Pleasantville violin maker , offered a room in his downtown workshop .", "The quartet used the space for a couple of years , and town residents would often stop outside the door to listen .", "After the Burns Center opened in 2001 , Mr. Skarstad 's wife , Louise Beach , a composer , asked the quartet if they would be willing to play a house concert for the film center 's first benefit auction , in 2002 .", "They agreed , and found the intimacy of the performance refreshing .", "`` We really love doing these concerts , '' Mr. Greensmith said in a telephone interview .", "`` More often than not , the audience is made up of incredibly interesting people , real chamber music lovers .", "The Burns Center attracts a very cultural audience . ``", "The Tokyo Quartet has performed a house concert for every Burns Center fund-raising auction .", "At the start of each year , the quartet sets aside two or three potential concert dates -LRB- the quartet 's regular touring schedule is arranged at least a year in advance -RRB- .", "Mr. Greensmith and Mr. Ikeda are also regulars at the film center , which each year presents more than 450 films from 50 different countries .", "`` It 's a different spread of films than you 'd get at the blockbuster-type places , `` Mr. Greensmith said .", "`` We live near this cultural center of New York City , but it 's important to celebrate the ingenuity of local places like this . ``", "Last year 's house concert was held at the Chappaqua home of Marvin Israelow and Dorian Goldman , classical music fans who had unsuccessfully bid on the Tokyo Quartet in two previous years .", "`` When we were outbid the first time , we were invited to join the performance , '' Mr. Israelow said in a telephone interview .", "`` After that , we became even more enchanted by the possibility of having the Tokyo in our home . ''", "On their third try , Mr. Israelow and Ms. Goldman joined forces , and funds , with six friends and won the Tokyo 's services in a lively bidding session .", "They invited nearly 20 friends for the concert and a pot-luck dinner .", "The quartet performed works by Mozart and Bartok , discussing the pieces before playing .", "At intermission , Mr. Beaver offered to let a teenage violin student in the audience play his Stradivarius -LRB- all four members of the Tokyo play Stradivariuses that were once owned by the virtuoso Niccol\u00f2 Paganini -RRB- .", "`` His parents ' jaws dropped to the floor , but he played it well , `` Mr. Israelow said .", "`` The performers were extraordinarily gracious and generous , and the living room vibrated for weeks and months afterwards with the sounds of the concert . ''", "The Jacob Burns Film Center 's Fifth Anniversary Celebration and Awards Dinner will be held on Saturday , Sept . 16 , at 7:30 p.m. , across from the center , at 364 Manville Road , Pleasantville .", "For information , call -LRB- 914 -RRB- 773-7663 or visit burnsfilmcenter.org."], "summary": ["Article on Jacob Burns Film Center 's annual fund-raising awards dinner and auction in Pleasantville , NY . Items for auction include in-home concert performed by Tokyo String Quartet .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Movies", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788874", "text": ["WHEN affluent suburbanites travel , they can be quite fussy , demanding that airplanes show up and take off like clockwork and that anything less is -- to use a word the fastidious favor -- unacceptable .", "But when they 're lounging in their backyards , they want the skies to be jet-free , or at least noise-free .", "If jets must be seen , they should not be heard .", "The problem in hubs like New York is that the two desires are fast becoming irreconcilable .", "American airlines handled 739 million passengers last year .", "By 2015 that number is expected to balloon to 1 billion .", "No one wants an airport sprouting next door , with all the attendant whines , drones and roars , so the Federal Aviation Administration has been trying to squeeze in more flights by rejiggering the way planes use air space in the corridor between Philadelphia and Connecticut .", "But the redesign has set off a fury among the tens of thousands of Westchester and Connecticut residents living around Westchester County Airport .", "It turns out that flight patterns around the airport may have to be tinkered with because of the spillover from changes in patterns at LaGuardia Airport , meaning more whines and roars for those living below .", "Until recently , the issue of rerouting seldom flashed on the public 's radar , mostly because the F.A.A had not always been forthcoming .", "In February , Janet Lockton , president of the Greenwich-based Air Conservation Trust , went to an F.A.A. slide show in Stamford and came away reassured that Westchester 's airport would be untouched , and that LaGuardia flights would spend more time over the uncomplaining waters of Long Island Sound .", "But then she ordered three CD 's containing 1,226 pages of the preliminary environmental statement and discovered in the nearly impenetrable appendixes that planes taking off from the county airport would indeed loop over Westchester and Connecticut for longer periods .", "She alerted officials across the state border , and in June , County Executive Andrew J . Spano issued a letter to the F.A.A. , based on an environmental consultant 's study .", "Mr. Spano 's letter rebuffed the F.A.A. ` s preferred proposal for flight patterns because the plan would have '' a significant impact `` on places like Rye Brook , Pleasantville and Briarcliff .", "Some aircraft , Mr. Spano bristled , would `` incredibly '' be rerouted over the Indian Point nuclear plant .", "How unhinging the noise would be has been disputed , with the F.A.A. minimizing any spikes in volume and the consultant , Harris Miller Miller & Hanson Inc . saying the changes would probably be `` highly noticeable . ''", "The county airport already has limits on noise enshrined in county law .", "In any half-hour-period , no more than four commercial planes can land or take off at the airport , and those planes together can carry no more than 240 passengers .", "Flights are practically banned between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.", "The airport has intentionally been kept a backwater , with such anomalies as propeller-plane flights to Toronto .", "`` There are people who persist in talking about how Westchester could , should or would expand , '' said Robert Funicello , director for environmental projects at Westchester 's transportation department .", "`` It is n't going to happen . ``", "He and Ms. Lockton argue that planners need to think about alternatives like high-speed trains .", "The Port Authority thinks the area needs a fourth full-scale airport to go with Kennedy , Newark and La Guardia , probably at Stewart Airport outside of Newburgh , N.Y.", "Other regional planners think a day of reckoning can be put off if everybody sacrifices , including Westchester Airport and its neighbors .", "It 's hard to argue that officials should not do all they can to block noise in the suburbs , where people pay a premium for tranquillity .", "But advocates for quiet skies may have to start pondering a day not too far distant when the major airports ca n't handle any more planes , and travelers ca n't get flights they need .", "Changes will have to be made that would raise the number of flights and ratchet up the noise .", "We live in an era , after all , when flying on a plane has become almost as routine as riding a subway .", "Many of the people who can afford spreads in Westchester and Connecticut earn much of their living traveling for business , which could slow down if air travel gridlocks .", "`` We 're going to run out of room at airports or room in the skies unless people get the big picture view , `` said Kevin Mitchell , chairman of the Business Travel Coalition , a group that represents corporate buyers of travel services .", "`` The upshot is much higher business fares and even higher leisure fares . ''", "In the past half century , airplane travel has changed from an indulgence of the well-to-do to a convenience that most people can enjoy .", "If airports stop growing , travel could become far less democratic , and just visiting an aunt in Missouri may become prohibitive .", "That 's a trade-off well worth thinking about by those carrying on the worthy fight against noise .", "E-mail : joeberg@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["Joseph Berger column on dispute between Federal Aviation Administration and tens of thousands of Westchester County and Connecticut residents over FAA plan to alter flight patterns at Westchester County Airport , which has potential to increase noise .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788875", "text": ["WHEN Natalie Wells bought a home in Englewood , N.J. , a year ago , she was unaware that her American pit bull terrier was illegal to own in the city .", "Shortly after moving in , she was told by one of her daughters about a city law that banned the breed , commonly called pit bulls , along with several similar breeds and Rottweilers .", "Under the 1999 law , even this year 's best-in-show winner at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show , Rufus , a colored bull terrier from Holmdel , N.J. , would be banned in Englewood .", "`` I pretty much knew in my gut it was n't right , `` Ms. Wells said .", "In July , Ms. Wells filed a challenge to the law in Bergen County Superior Court along with Mia Rodriguez , a neighbor who also owns a pit bull , and the American Dog Owner 's Association of Castleton , N.Y.", "Last month , Superior Court Judge Jonathan N . Harris agreed with Ms. Wells and ordered the city to stop enforcing the law because it was in conflict with a New Jersey statute that prohibits restricting dogs by breed .", "`` Cities do n't have the right to make laws that violate state law , `` said Flora Edwards , the lawyer who represented the plaintiffs .", "`` If the legal drinking age is 21 under state law , the City of Englewood or Montclair ca n't say it 's 25 or 18 . ``", "According to a Centers for Disease Control study , the pit bull breed was responsible for more dog-bite fatalities than any other breed from 1979 to 1998 , the latest year for which figures were available .", "The breed was responsible for 66 of 238 dog-bite fatalities during that period .", "Rottweilers were next , with 39 .", "The New Jersey Vicious and Potentially Dangerous Dog Act sets out criteria for dealing with aggressive dogs , but prohibits breed discrimination .", "New York has a similar statute .", "Connecticut 's law does not ban breed discrimination .", "Despite such laws , some communities still have restrictions on specific breeds .", "They range from outright bans to requiring property insurance coverage and the use of shorter leashes and muzzles in public .", "Tanya Ford , village clerk in Hempstead , N.Y. , said she was aware of no challenges to its law , which categorizes American pit bull terriers and several related breeds as vicious dogs , requiring that they be muzzled when walked and kept on a chain with a minimum strength of 300 pounds and not exceeding three feet in length .", "Owners must also have liability insurance of $ 100,000 .", "Mahlon Goer , a pit bull owner who tracks legislation in New York for the American Dog Owner 's Association , said the state still allowed insurance companies to drop customers or deny property insurance to prospective customers based on the breed of dog they own .", "Underwriting policies vary , according to the group , but beyond pit bulls and related breeds , the list includes Siberian huskies , Great Danes , German shepherds , St . Bernards and Dalmatians .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws because keeping tabs at the local level can be difficult unless laws are highly publicized .", "According to the American Kennel Club , last year it tracked 105 communities around the nation where breed-specific legislation was pending , enacted or defeated .", "The group had tracked another 76 through July .", "Among the municipalities in the region that have breed-specific laws are Larchmont , Sands Point and Hempstead in New York and Millville and Atlantic City in New Jersey .", "Numerous communities across the United States have such laws .", "One of the most controversial is in Denver , where authorities have euthanized more than 1,000 pit bulls since the reinstatement of a ban on the breed in May 2005 .", "The city 's animal control division had suspended enforcement of the ban in 2004 after the governor signed a bill restricting local governments from outlawing certain breeds .", "But the city successfully sued , arguing that the bill violated its home-rule authority .", "In Englewood , Douglas Bern , a lawyer who served on the City Council when the law was passed , said the council was responding to incidents in a public park where the dogs were being used to intimidate people .", "He said the police had also felt threatened by pit bulls when responding to a call at a home .", "The city argued that the municipal law complemented state statute , which was designed to address situations where `` existing local laws inadequately address the problem '' of aggressive dogs .", "`` The city of Englewood 's ordinance in this regard actually furthers and is consistent with the legislative intent , which is to address a void where local governments have not addressed the area of vicious or potentially dangerous dogs , `` the city said in a court brief .", "Under the ordinance , bull terriers , Staffordshire bull terriers , American pit bull terriers , American Staffordshire terriers , Rottweilers or `` any dogs of mixed breed which has the appearance or characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds , '' were banned from the city .", "Some summonses had been issued under the law , but city officials did not know how many .", "`` It 's like there 's a stigma for having one of these kinds of dog , `` said Ms. Rodriguez , who owns an ailing 8-year-old pit bull named Cyrus .", "The Englewood City Council will discuss the law at its Sept . 19 meeting , said Scott Reddin , the council president .", "He said he did not expect the council to challenge the court 's decision .", "`` We were profiling certain breeds and that was found to be unconstitutional , '' he said .", "`` I do n't think the council will have any problem rescinding that . ``", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations have come out against breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address the problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "`` As we like to say , punish the deed , not the breed , '' said Lisa Peterson , a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club .", "`` We think breed-specific laws are unfair to responsible dog owners . ''", "Barbara Bishop , who owns Rufus , the top dog at the Westminster show , said she was trying to use the dog 's success to highlight the unfairness of breed-specific bans .", "`` We want to let people know that every dog has teeth and every dog can bite , whether it 's a Chihuahua or a bull mastiff , `` Ms. Bishop said .", "`` Every dog will be a product of what it 's brought up to do . ``", "Ms. Bishop attributed much of the image problem of the pit bull breeds to people who train them to be vicious , including drug dealers who use them as guard dogs .", "`` We have Rufus , who 's the top winning colored terrier of all time , and we still have people stop in the street and say , ` There 's a pit bull , ' `` she said .", "For Ms. Wells , the law seemed even more absurd because her 12-year-old pit bull , Sentry , has cataracts and has had cancer , heart surgery and a hysterectomy .", "`` She is a member of the family , '' said Ms. Wells , who has two daughters , ages 34 and 32 .", "`` My kids tease me all the time and say she 's my favorite daughter . `` ."], "summary": ["Article on legal challenges pit bull owners have been making against local laws in New York City metropolitan area that ban or restrict certain dog breeds .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws .", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations oppose breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [39, 20], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788876", "text": ["FOR failing to meet performance standards , the Clara T . O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn . , spent three years on the `` in need of improvement '' list under the federal No Child Left Behind program .", "When a new list came out last month , Connecticut had 290 elementary and middle schools on it , but the O'Connell School was not among them .", "It had achieved what no other school in the state had managed under the four-year-old program : It had worked itself off the list .", "`` For three years , the headline was that we were on the list , '' said Michael F . Audette , O'Connell 's principal .", "`` Human nature being what it is , people would ask the teachers , ' What school do you teach at .", "` And when the teachers would say , ' O'Connell , ' they 'd say , ` Is n't that the school that 's on the list .", "` And the teachers would say , ' Yeah , but we 're doing a lot of good things . '", "But nobody sticks around for the ` yeah , but . '", "Now it 's nice to have a different headline , and now we can say , ` Yes , we 're that school . '", "`` Henry Garcia , a spokesman for the State Department of Education , said O'Connell 's achievement was a testament to its hard work .", "`` It takes schools that are in need of improvement time to see the progress once they develop curriculum and other strategies that improve student achievement , '' he said .", "The number of Connecticut schools failing to meet what the program calls adequate yearly progress doubled in the 2005-6 academic year , up from 145 schools the year before .", "The results were reached using scores from the Connecticut Mastery Tests , then figuring them into a host of categories and subcategories , including the number of children living in poverty who attend a school .", "At the O'Connell School 80 percent of the students are poor , Mr. Audette said .", "The tests require that at least 74 percent of students demonstrate proficiency in math , 68 percent in reading and 70 percent in writing .", "In the 2002-3 school year , O'Connell passed all categories except reading , getting a score of 44 percent .", "It also failed to meet the reading goal in 2003-4 , but reached it the next year .", "In 2005-6 , it scored 61 percent in reading .", "That was not high enough to meet the No Child Left Behind requirements , but federal officials put O'Connell in the `` safe harbor '' category , for schools that have significantly improved , and removed it from the `` in need of improvement '' list .", "To raise the reading scores , Mr. Audette said , he and his staff reviewed the pupils ' reading data for weak areas .", "The Mastery Tests require that pupils read passages and answer questions about what they have read .", "To prepare , the children were asked to answer a reading question each day until they showed proficiency in expressing their comprehension .", "Mr. Audette also hired additional reading support staff members and trained teaching assistants , assigning them to particular grades , where they placed the children into small groups and gave them a second instructional reading period each day .", "Mr. Audette signed on with the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University .", "The Bristol School District paid for consultants from Columbia to teach faculty members at O'Connell .", "The effort paid off , especially for the third graders .", "They scored 90 percent in writing proficiency in the 2005-6 Mastery Tests .", "`` If I was to pinpoint exactly what we did , I would say we really looked at our reading instruction , '' Mr. Audette said .", "`` It 's kind of common sense .", "If you want to be a good pianist , you practice the piano . ``", "EDUCATION ."], "summary": ["Article on Clara T O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn , which spent three years on ` in need of improvement ' list under No Child Left Behind program and has managed to work itself off list .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Education", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788877", "text": ["IN the 50 years he has lived in Montclair , N.J. , Rob Bianco has seen his share of monsoon-like downpours , blizzards , ice storms , even the remnants of hurricanes .", "But Mr. Bianco , the superintendent of public works for Montclair , had never seen anything like the storm that ravaged the leafy landscape of his hometown on July 18 .", "`` We literally had trees and telephone poles , some as high as 20 to 30 feet in the air , that were sheared and cut off , '' he said .", "`` It was a treetop tornado , meaning it never hit the ground , but it still caused a great amount of destruction . ''", "The storm , which hit the northeast corner of Verona , N.J. , before blowing with a vengeance -- about a mile wide -- through a swath of Montclair for roughly a half-hour , destroyed about 200 trees on public property in Montclair , an Essex County township of about six square miles .", "The most heavily damaged areas , Mr. Bianco said , were Brookdale Park , which covers 121 acres in Montclair and Bloomfield , and the township 's Edgemont Park .", "`` We had some cars smashed and a lot of people running for cover , '' he said .", "`` It was a miracle that no one got hurt . ''", "But what about all of those damaged oak and pine trees , some of which Mr. Bianco said were 250 years old .", "`` Cleaning it all up was quite a daunting task , '' said Matthew A . Vastano , the executive vice president of Nature 's Choice Corporation , a yard-waste recycling company in Union , N.J. , hired by Montclair to clear the debris caused by the storm .", "`` Montclair is not your normal town where vegetative waste is concerned , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` The town , which has huge , huge trees , is very environmentally conscious , and it wants to keep all the trees it can . ''", "The trees it could not keep were hauled away by Nature 's Choice to a temporary storage site .", "Any piece of wood 16 to 18 inches long was put onto chipper trucks and into machines that turned it into chips .", "Anything larger was cut into logs .", "Some 25 truckloads of those logs were placed into 40-foot containers on trucks -- at a cost of $ 350 per container -- for eventual mulching .", "In the end , about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil , or 300 tons , were produced -- enough to cover about 100,000 square feet , according to Mr. Vastano .", "Mr. Bianco said that Nature 's Choice would give Montclair some of the mulch or topsoil for free if the town needed it for a special project , but that the company was free to sell it to landscapers and other businesses .", "`` We are a business , not a charity , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` We 'll take most of that mulch and turn it into hardwood mulch or dye it either black or a shade of red before selling it . ``", "Dianne Marus , the director of Montclair 's Department of Finance , said that the cost of the storm cleanup came to $ 366,950 but that the price , tallied by the Department of Community Services , did not include overtime costs for the Police -LRB- $ 74,983 -RRB- and Fire Departments -LRB- $ 4,650 -RRB- .", "All told , Montclair has spent $ 446,583 on storm-related services , and the job is not yet finished .", "`` There are still a number of stumps to be removed and lots of re-planting to do , '' Mr. Bianco said .", "`` By the time all is said and done , this entire project is going to cost us more money and continue for at least another month . ''", "STORM CLEANUP ."], "summary": ["Article on work of Nature 's Choice Corp , yard-waste recycling company hired by Montclair , NJ , to clear debris caused by July 18 storm that destroyed about 200 trees on public property .", "Company turned trees into about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 16], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788878", "text": ["DEEP into suburbia , on a sound barrier that runs along the Taconic State Parkway here , a graffiti artist announces his presence with a single word painted in yellow and black : `` Me . ''", "Officials said that graffiti had reached new heights this summer .", "And in a town that bills itself as a retreat from more urban locales , politicians and police officers are taking the problem seriously .", "`` Whether you grew up here all your life , or whether you moved here from the Bronx or Yonkers or Long Island , you do n't want to see that , `` said Linda G . Cooper , the town supervisor .", "`` And so we 're trying to take a very firm position . ``", "In June , the Yorktown police began graffiti patrols as a deterrent .", "They also began photographing graffiti they found to create a catalog of the work of local vandals for use in investigations , Lt . Donald Schuck said .", "Since July , Lieutenant Schuck said , the police have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges .", "The most recent came on Aug . 28 , with the arrest of a 14-year-old from Mohegan Lake , a hamlet of Yorktown .", "The police said he had sprayed a wall at a town-owned sports club , causing about $ 400 in damage .", "The boy , charged with making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments , both misdemeanors , was released to his mother and was scheduled to appear on Friday in Westchester County Family Court in White Plains .", "The town , which has seen stop signs , park buildings , businesses and even a police radar unit defaced this summer , is also considering new legislation .", "One proposed law would require vandals to pay restitution .", "Another would mandate that residents who discover graffiti on their property clean it within 72 hours .", "Ms. Cooper said that rapid removal discouraged vandals .", "Town officials and youth advocates said there were a number of reasons for the surge in graffiti .", "Lieutenant Schuck said increased access to the tools of graffiti had played a role .", "Young people , previously stymied by a county law forbidding the sale of spray paint to anyone under 18 , have begun ordering the paint over the Internet , he said .", "Joan Valenstein , chairwoman of the advisory board for the Yorktown Teen Center , a branch of the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester , said the increase might be the byproduct of boredom in a town that she said did not provide enough youth activities .", "Ms. Cooper said some of the graffiti included gang insignia previously seen in the southern , more urban part of the county .", "Whatever the source of the graffiti , the town seems determined to stamp it out .", "But out on the Taconic State Parkway , high above the cars rushing by , defiance is etched in yellow and black .", "VANDALISM ."], "summary": ["Officials in Yorktown , NY , say graffiti has reached new heights this summer .", "Police have begun graffiti patrols as deterrent and have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges since July .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 1, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788879", "text": ["WHEN Natalie Wells bought a home in Englewood , N.J. , a year ago , she was unaware that her American pit bull terrier was illegal to own in the city .", "Shortly after moving in , she was told by one of her daughters about a city law that banned the breed , commonly called pit bulls , along with several similar breeds and Rottweilers .", "Under the 1999 law , even this year 's best-in-show winner at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show , Rufus , a colored bull terrier from Holmdel , N.J. , would be banned in Englewood .", "`` I pretty much knew in my gut it was n't right , `` Ms. Wells said .", "In July , Ms. Wells filed a challenge to the law in Bergen County Superior Court along with Mia Rodriguez , a neighbor who also owns a pit bull , and the American Dog Owner 's Association of Castleton , N.Y.", "Last month , Superior Court Judge Jonathan N . Harris agreed with Ms. Wells and ordered the city to stop enforcing the law because it was in conflict with a New Jersey statute that prohibits restricting dogs by breed .", "`` Cities do n't have the right to make laws that violate state law , `` said Flora Edwards , the lawyer who represented the plaintiffs .", "`` If the legal drinking age is 21 under state law , the City of Englewood or Montclair ca n't say it 's 25 or 18 . ``", "According to a Centers for Disease Control study , the pit bull breed was responsible for more dog-bite fatalities than any other breed from 1979 to 1998 , the latest year for which figures were available .", "The breed was responsible for 66 of 238 dog-bite fatalities during that period .", "Rottweilers were next , with 39 .", "The New Jersey Vicious and Potentially Dangerous Dog Act sets out criteria for dealing with aggressive dogs , but prohibits breed discrimination .", "New York has a similar statute .", "Connecticut 's law does not ban breed discrimination .", "Despite such laws , some communities still have restrictions on specific breeds .", "They range from outright bans to requiring property insurance coverage and the use of shorter leashes and muzzles in public .", "Tanya Ford , village clerk in Hempstead , N.Y. , said she was aware of no challenges to its law , which categorizes American pit bull terriers and several related breeds as vicious dogs , requiring that they be muzzled when walked and kept on a chain with a minimum strength of 300 pounds and not exceeding three feet in length .", "Owners must also have liability insurance of $ 100,000 .", "Mahlon Goer , a pit bull owner who tracks legislation in New York for the American Dog Owner 's Association , said the state still allowed insurance companies to drop customers or deny property insurance to prospective customers based on the breed of dog they own .", "Underwriting policies vary , according to the group , but beyond pit bulls and related breeds , the list includes Siberian huskies , Great Danes , German shepherds , St . Bernards and Dalmatians .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws because keeping tabs at the local level can be difficult unless laws are highly publicized .", "According to the American Kennel Club , last year it tracked 105 communities around the nation where breed-specific legislation was pending , enacted or defeated .", "The group had tracked another 76 through July .", "Among the municipalities in the region that have breed-specific laws are Larchmont , Sands Point and Hempstead in New York and Millville and Atlantic City in New Jersey .", "Numerous communities across the United States have such laws .", "One of the most controversial is in Denver , where authorities have euthanized more than 1,000 pit bulls since the reinstatement of a ban on the breed in May 2005 .", "The city 's animal control division had suspended enforcement of the ban in 2004 after the governor signed a bill restricting local governments from outlawing certain breeds .", "But the city successfully sued , arguing that the bill violated its home-rule authority .", "In Englewood , Douglas Bern , a lawyer who served on the City Council when the law was passed , said the council was responding to incidents in a public park where the dogs were being used to intimidate people .", "He said the police had also felt threatened by pit bulls when responding to a call at a home .", "The city argued that the municipal law complemented state statute , which was designed to address situations where `` existing local laws inadequately address the problem '' of aggressive dogs .", "`` The city of Englewood 's ordinance in this regard actually furthers and is consistent with the legislative intent , which is to address a void where local governments have not addressed the area of vicious or potentially dangerous dogs , `` the city said in a court brief .", "Under the ordinance , bull terriers , Staffordshire bull terriers , American pit bull terriers , American Staffordshire terriers , Rottweilers or `` any dogs of mixed breed which has the appearance or characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds , '' were banned from the city .", "Some summonses had been issued under the law , but city officials did not know how many .", "`` It 's like there 's a stigma for having one of these kinds of dog , `` said Ms. Rodriguez , who owns an ailing 8-year-old pit bull named Cyrus .", "The Englewood City Council will discuss the law at its Sept . 19 meeting , said Scott Reddin , the council president .", "He said he did not expect the council to challenge the court 's decision .", "`` We were profiling certain breeds and that was found to be unconstitutional , '' he said .", "`` I do n't think the council will have any problem rescinding that . ``", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations have come out against breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address the problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "`` As we like to say , punish the deed , not the breed , '' said Lisa Peterson , a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club .", "`` We think breed-specific laws are unfair to responsible dog owners . ''", "Barbara Bishop , who owns Rufus , the top dog at the Westminster show , said she was trying to use the dog 's success to highlight the unfairness of breed-specific bans .", "`` We want to let people know that every dog has teeth and every dog can bite , whether it 's a Chihuahua or a bull mastiff , `` Ms. Bishop said .", "`` Every dog will be a product of what it 's brought up to do . ``", "Ms. Bishop attributed much of the image problem of the pit bull breeds to people who train them to be vicious , including drug dealers who use them as guard dogs .", "`` We have Rufus , who 's the top winning colored terrier of all time , and we still have people stop in the street and say , ` There 's a pit bull , ' `` she said .", "For Ms. Wells , the law seemed even more absurd because her 12-year-old pit bull , Sentry , has cataracts and has had cancer , heart surgery and a hysterectomy .", "`` She is a member of the family , '' said Ms. Wells , who has two daughters , ages 34 and 32 .", "`` My kids tease me all the time and say she 's my favorite daughter . `` ."], "summary": ["Article on legal challenges pit bull owners have been making against local laws in New York City metropolitan area that ban or restrict certain dog breeds .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws .", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations opposes breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [39, 20], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788881", "text": ["FOR failing to meet performance standards , the Clara T . O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn . , spent three years on the `` in need of improvement '' list under the federal No Child Left Behind program .", "When a new list came out last month , Connecticut had 290 elementary and middle schools on it , but the O'Connell School was not among them .", "It had achieved what no other school in the state had managed under the four-year-old program : It had worked itself off the list .", "`` For three years , the headline was that we were on the list , '' said Michael F . Audette , O'Connell 's principal .", "`` Human nature being what it is , people would ask the teachers , ' What school do you teach at .", "` And when the teachers would say , ' O'Connell , ' they 'd say , ` Is n't that the school that 's on the list .", "` And the teachers would say , ' Yeah , but we 're doing a lot of good things . '", "But nobody sticks around for the ` yeah , but . '", "Now it 's nice to have a different headline , and now we can say , ` Yes , we 're that school . '", "`` Henry Garcia , a spokesman for the State Department of Education , said O'Connell 's achievement was a testament to its hard work .", "`` It takes schools that are in need of improvement time to see the progress once they develop curriculum and other strategies that improve student achievement , '' he said .", "The number of Connecticut schools failing to meet what the program calls adequate yearly progress doubled in the 2005-6 academic year , up from 145 schools the year before .", "The results were reached using scores from the Connecticut Mastery Tests , then figuring them into a host of categories and subcategories , including the number of children living in poverty who attend a school .", "At the O'Connell School 80 percent of the students are poor , Mr. Audette said .", "The tests require that at least 74 percent of students demonstrate proficiency in math , 68 percent in reading and 70 percent in writing .", "In the 2002-3 school year , O'Connell passed all categories except reading , getting a score of 44 percent .", "It also failed to meet the reading goal in 2003-4 , but reached it the next year .", "In 2005-6 , it scored 61 percent in reading .", "That was not high enough to meet the No Child Left Behind requirements , but federal officials put O'Connell in the `` safe harbor '' category , for schools that have significantly improved , and removed it from the `` in need of improvement '' list .", "To raise the reading scores , Mr. Audette said , he and his staff reviewed the pupils ' reading data for weak areas .", "The Mastery Tests require that pupils read passages and answer questions about what they have read .", "To prepare , the children were asked to answer a reading question each day until they showed proficiency in expressing their comprehension .", "Mr. Audette also hired additional reading support staff members and trained teaching assistants , assigning them to particular grades , where they placed the children into small groups and gave them a second instructional reading period each day .", "Mr. Audette signed on with the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University .", "The Bristol School District paid for consultants from Columbia to teach faculty members at O'Connell .", "The effort paid off , especially for the third graders .", "They scored 90 percent in writing proficiency in the 2005-6 Mastery Tests .", "`` If I was to pinpoint exactly what we did , I would say we really looked at our reading instruction , '' Mr. Audette said .", "`` It 's kind of common sense .", "If you want to be a good pianist , you practice the piano . ``", "EDUCATION ."], "summary": ["Article on Clara T O'Connell elementary school in Bristol , Conn , which spent three years on ` in need of improvement ' list under No Child Left Behind program and has managed to work itself off list .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["Education", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788882", "text": ["IT may have left no physical damage in its wake , but the recent communal storm in this oceanfront city over the future of its beaches has realigned the political and environmental landscape .", "Despite fears about the city 's vulnerability to a major hurricane , the five-member City Council , three Democrats and two Republicans , voted unanimously in May to reject a $ 98.5 million beach preservation project by the Army Corps of Engineers that was designed to protect Long Beach from ocean flooding .", "The plan would have placed a berm of dredged sand along the beach 10 feet high , with a 5-foot dune on top , from the western end of Long Beach to Point Lookout , more than six miles to the east .", "Point Lookout agreed to a separate plan after the Long Beach project was rejected .", "A major opponent of the corps ' plan was an environmental and surfer-advocacy group , the Surfrider Foundation , whose members said the project would create dangerous riptides and harm the look of the beach , with no guarantee that the city would be better protected , as the corps and the proponents of the plan claimed .", "The group held meetings to get its message to the public and the council alike , and produced testimony by a coastal engineer and several representatives from local communities whose beaches had undergone similar projects .", "All testified against the corps ' proposals for Long Beach .", "Jeff Kupferman , the chairman of Surfrider 's Long Beach Action Committee and a 45-year city resident , said that while rejection of the plan was a `` major victory '' for Surfrider , surfing was far from the only issue .", "`` We had concerns about swimming safety , as well as surfing , about fishing , kayaking , aesthetics -- any use of the beach , '' he said .", "James P . Hennessy , a Republican council member , agreed .", "`` It was never just about surfing , '' he said .", "`` The council does n't agree about much , but it did agree that the beach fill part of the project was wrong . ``", "What annoyed Mr. Kupferman was that Surfrider was portrayed negatively by those who favored the plan .", "`` Their attitude was we were , ' Yo , just a bunch of surfer dudes out to get a wave , ' '' he said .", "`` And they used that as the hook to try and discredit us .", "The fact that we prevailed has sent a lot of ripples out into this community . ``", "Alison Johnson , a Long Beach resident and vice chairwoman of Surfrider 's New York City chapter , which worked closely with the Central Long Island chapter in opposing the plan , said that the decision had ramifications beyond Long Beach .", "`` It will make the powers that be look at storm protection on the East Coast in a different way , '' she said , `` which is the biggest success you can ask from any project . ''", "Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg , a lifelong Long Beach resident and a vocal supporter of the Corps of Engineers ' project , was less sanguine about the outcome .", "`` How did people get elected to office that are so ignorant .", "`` he said of the City Council .", "`` I just pray hard and hope to God we do n't get hit by anything . ``", "Even with the beach issue decided , the officials ' alliance with activists may continue .", "Mr. Hennessy and the other Republican council member , Thomas R . Sofield Jr . , have proposed an alternative storm-management plan , which includes working with advisory groups like Surfrider , and the city has asked independent coastal engineers for ways to address beach protection .", "Mr. Hennessy said he still had hopes of working with the Corps of Engineers should it agree to return to Long Beach , but he is adamant about his vote to reject the project .", "`` I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of people who came up to me and said we 'd made a mistake , `` he said .", "STORM PROTECTION ."], "summary": ["Article on controversy over rejection by City Council in Long Beach , NY , to beach preservation project by Army Corps of Engineers designed to protect beach from ocean flooding .", "Surfrider Foundation contended plan to build 15-foot-high berm and dune from Long Beach to Point Lookout would create dangerous riptides and harm look of beach and would not protect beach .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788883", "text": ["IN the 50 years he has lived in Montclair , N.J. , Rob Bianco has seen his share of monsoon-like downpours , blizzards , ice storms , even the remnants of hurricanes .", "But Mr. Bianco , the superintendent of public works for Montclair , had never seen anything like the storm that ravaged the leafy landscape of his hometown on July 18 .", "`` We literally had trees and telephone poles , some as high as 20 to 30 feet in the air , that were sheared and cut off , '' he said .", "`` It was a treetop tornado , meaning it never hit the ground , but it still caused a great amount of destruction . ''", "The storm , which hit the northeast corner of Verona , N.J. , before blowing with a vengeance -- about a mile wide -- through a swath of Montclair for roughly a half-hour , destroyed about 200 trees on public property in Montclair , an Essex County township of about six square miles .", "The most heavily damaged areas , Mr. Bianco said , were Brookdale Park , which covers 121 acres in Montclair and Bloomfield , and the township 's Edgemont Park .", "`` We had some cars smashed and a lot of people running for cover , '' he said .", "`` It was a miracle that no one got hurt . ''", "But what about all of those damaged oak and pine trees , some of which Mr. Bianco said were 250 years old .", "`` Cleaning it all up was quite a daunting task , '' said Matthew A . Vastano , the executive vice president of Nature 's Choice Corporation , a yard-waste recycling company in Union , N.J. , hired by Montclair to clear the debris caused by the storm .", "`` Montclair is not your normal town where vegetative waste is concerned , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` The town , which has huge , huge trees , is very environmentally conscious , and it wants to keep all the trees it can . ''", "The trees it could not keep were hauled away by Nature 's Choice to a temporary storage site .", "Any piece of wood 16 to 18 inches long was put onto chipper trucks and into machines that turned it into chips .", "Anything larger was cut into logs .", "Some 25 truckloads of those logs were placed into 40-foot containers on trucks -- at a cost of $ 350 per container -- for eventual mulching .", "In the end , about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil , or 300 tons , were produced -- enough to cover about 100,000 square feet , according to Mr. Vastano .", "Mr. Bianco said that Nature 's Choice would give Montclair some of the mulch or topsoil for free if the town needed it for a special project , but that the company was free to sell it to landscapers and other businesses .", "`` We are a business , not a charity , '' Mr. Vastano said .", "`` We 'll take most of that mulch and turn it into hardwood mulch or dye it either black or a shade of red before selling it . ``", "Dianne Marus , the director of Montclair 's Department of Finance , said that the cost of the storm cleanup came to $ 366,950 but that the price , tallied by the Department of Community Services , did not include overtime costs for the Police -LRB- $ 74,983 -RRB- and Fire Departments -LRB- $ 4,650 -RRB- .", "All told , Montclair has spent $ 446,583 on storm-related services , and the job is not yet finished .", "`` There are still a number of stumps to be removed and lots of re-planting to do , '' Mr. Bianco said .", "`` By the time all is said and done , this entire project is going to cost us more money and continue for at least another month . ''", "STORM CLEANUP ."], "summary": ["Article on work of Nature 's Choice Corp , yard-waste recycling company hired by Montclair , NJ , to clear debris caused by July 18 storm that destroyed about 200 trees on public property .", "Company turned trees into about 600 cubic yards of mulch and topsoil .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 16], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788884", "text": ["DEEP into suburbia , on a sound barrier that runs along the Taconic State Parkway here , a graffiti artist announces his presence with a single word painted in yellow and black : `` Me . ''", "Officials said that graffiti had reached new heights this summer .", "And in a town that bills itself as a retreat from more urban locales , politicians and police officers are taking the problem seriously .", "`` Whether you grew up here all your life , or whether you moved here from the Bronx or Yonkers or Long Island , you do n't want to see that , `` said Linda G . Cooper , the town supervisor .", "`` And so we 're trying to take a very firm position . ``", "In June , the Yorktown police began graffiti patrols as a deterrent .", "They also began photographing graffiti they found to create a catalog of the work of local vandals for use in investigations , Lt . Donald Schuck said .", "Since July , Lieutenant Schuck said , the police have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges .", "The most recent came on Aug . 28 , with the arrest of a 14-year-old from Mohegan Lake , a hamlet of Yorktown .", "The police said he had sprayed a wall at a town-owned sports club , causing about $ 400 in damage .", "The boy , charged with making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments , both misdemeanors , was released to his mother and was scheduled to appear on Friday in Westchester County Family Court in White Plains .", "The town , which has seen stop signs , park buildings , businesses and even a police radar unit defaced this summer , is also considering new legislation .", "One proposed law would require vandals to pay restitution .", "Another would mandate that residents who discover graffiti on their property clean it within 72 hours .", "Ms. Cooper said that rapid removal discouraged vandals .", "Town officials and youth advocates said there were a number of reasons for the surge in graffiti .", "Lieutenant Schuck said increased access to the tools of graffiti had played a role .", "Young people , previously stymied by a county law forbidding the sale of spray paint to anyone under 18 , have begun ordering the paint over the Internet , he said .", "Joan Valenstein , chairwoman of the advisory board for the Yorktown Teen Center , a branch of the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester , said the increase might be the byproduct of boredom in a town that she said did not provide enough youth activities .", "Ms. Cooper said some of the graffiti included gang insignia previously seen in the southern , more urban part of the county .", "Whatever the source of the graffiti , the town seems determined to stamp it out .", "But out on the Taconic State Parkway , high above the cars rushing by , defiance is etched in yellow and black .", "VANDALISM ."], "summary": ["Officials in Yorktown , NY , say graffiti has reached new heights this summer .", "Police have begun graffiti patrols as deterrent and have arrested nine boys on graffiti-related charges since July .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 1, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788885", "text": ["HE sits in his wheelchair as the family rushes around him .", "He can not move much , or say more than hello .", "He can not participate in the summer activities that everyone pursues with great vigor day after day .", "If it 's warm enough , he goes out onto the deck and snoozes in the sun with the dogs .", "Unlike them , however , he does n't jump up and make excited noises when people come .", "At most , he slowly turns his head and smiles .", "Everyone speaks to him politely , but not for long .", "What 's the point .", "He ca n't say more than a couple of words , and it 's hard to tell how much he understands .", "He is my stepfather , Peter , an 88-year-old man who in the last decade has been transformed from a lively and dynamic person into not much more than a body occupying space .", "He has post-polio syndrome , a condition that seeps the strength from his upper body as steadily as it weakened his legs when he was a teenager .", "A couple of strokes have further debilitated him .", "As my son , Asher , said to my mother one day , it 's as if he 's hardly a person anymore .", "And yet this is n't how Asher , 14 , behaves toward him .", "He constantly monitors Peter 's feet to see if they 've slipped off the footrests of his wheelchair .", "He always asks if Peter wants something to drink .", "His recognition of the full extent of what it means to be a person goes beyond his frustration at Peter 's limitations .", "Asher is concerned with Peter 's comfort , his feeling of inclusion .", "Peter 's situation brings out Asher 's own humanity .", "Peter is certainly a person to my mother , Addy , though she has no illusions about his abilities .", "He is her third husband , the one who was finally her friend .", "She does what she can to make him comfortable and to replicate his old habits .", "Since his only real pleasure is food , she makes him good meals for lunch and dinner .", "At night they listen to Amy Goodman on NPR and then watch Chris Matthews and a couple of episodes of `` Seinfeld '' or `` Curb Your Enthusiasm . ''", "On Tuesdays , Peter 's longtime men 's lunch group comes over to eat with him and discuss books and politics .", "Peter does n't participate , but he enjoys the routine .", "Last summer he could still join them at the local restaurant .", "He would motor up the street in his Jazzy wheelchair with an orange pennant waving above his head to warn cars away .", "He is far from being able to do anything like that now .", "Peter needs to be cared for at the most basic custodial level .", "When my friend Anne visited , her 9-year-old son , Nick , was interested in what this entailed .", "Over the course of a five-day stay , Nick asked many questions of Stacey , the woman who comes in to get Peter out of bed in the morning -- the very practical questions that most adults prefer not to think about .", "Several times Stacey saw Nick looking in the window when it was changing time .", "He was n't fazed by what he saw .", "He accepted Peter 's condition and presence in the house as natural .", "He was right about that .", "My mother and Peter live on the lip of a harbor in Maine .", "All summer , family members passed through , usually for a week or so .", "I stayed the longest -- six weeks .", "On some days there were enough people staying to fulfill my old fantasy of a big house full of people , bursting with robust togetherness .", "This was a new phenomenon here .", "For many years we were only welcome to stay for a short time .", "The stepparents had limited tolerance for each other 's children , especially the noisy grandchildren .", "I often rented nearby to make visits to my mother less stressful .", "Other sons and daughters did the same .", "We rarely overlapped or had the sense of a beloved summer house , full of traditions passed down through generations .", "We each had a private relationship with Maine , and with Peter and my mother .", "But an unexpected side effect of Peter 's deterioration has been a lessening of the feeling that anyone beyond my mother and stepfather creates a crowd .", "Now Peter seems to enjoy the bustle that my mother used to believe was an imposition on him .", "He is no longer an aging intellectual who requires quiet for reading and writing .", "The grandchildren are older , and he is younger , babylike .", "After breakfast , he sleeps for a couple of hours in the kitchen , no matter the amount of dish washing or screen-door banging .", "So family life swirled around him this summer .", "We spent the kind of easy time together that I like best , quantity rather than quality .", "Just hanging out .", "Siblings , nieces and nephews trooped through with significant others in tow .", "They each had a relationship with Peter while they were there .", "Some spent time talking to him even if he could n't reply .", "Others made sure he was comfortable at the table during meals .", "Though it was easy to forget he was in the room , everyone was delighted when he broke into a conversation with a responsive remark .", "The old Peter ! It was good to see him again , if only for a moment .", "Starting the last week of July , my mother began to say fall was in the air .", "I bridled against this , though I knew what she meant .", "I felt it too , a change in the light from white to yellow , a softening of the wind , a resignation of the leaves on certain trees .", "But I did n't want to skip ahead , so I pretended not to notice .", "It 's summer , I insisted .", "This is what summer is like in Maine .", "It is tempting to make this whisper of fall a metaphor for Peter 's diminishing presence .", "September brings up memories of how the end of summer felt during childhood , a loss .", "Yet I find myself resisting the comparison .", "Peter is alive , and summer does n't officially end for 10 more days .", "I 'm still wearing white .", "GENERATIONS ."], "summary": ["Alice Elliott Dark Generations essay on summer spent in Maine with her family and her stepfather , Peter , 88 , who is debilitated with post-polio syndrome and effects of strokes .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 66, 11], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788886", "text": ["WHEN Natalie Wells bought a home in Englewood , N.J. , a year ago , she was unaware that her American pit bull terrier was illegal to own in the city .", "Shortly after moving in , she was told by one of her daughters about a city law that banned the breed , commonly called pit bulls , along with several similar breeds and Rottweilers .", "Under the 1999 law , even this year 's best-in-show winner at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show , Rufus , a colored bull terrier from Holmdel , N.J. , would be banned in Englewood .", "`` I pretty much knew in my gut it was n't right , `` Ms. Wells said .", "In July , Ms. Wells filed a challenge to the law in Bergen County Superior Court along with Mia Rodriguez , a neighbor who also owns a pit bull , and the American Dog Owner 's Association of Castleton , N.Y.", "Last month , Superior Court Judge Jonathan N . Harris agreed with Ms. Wells and ordered the city to stop enforcing the law because it was in conflict with a New Jersey statute that prohibits restricting dogs by breed .", "`` Cities do n't have the right to make laws that violate state law , `` said Flora Edwards , the lawyer who represented the plaintiffs .", "`` If the legal drinking age is 21 under state law , the City of Englewood or Montclair ca n't say it 's 25 or 18 . ``", "According to a Centers for Disease Control study , the pit bull breed was responsible for more dog-bite fatalities than any other breed from 1979 to 1998 , the latest year for which figures were available .", "The breed was responsible for 66 of 238 dog-bite fatalities during that period .", "Rottweilers were next , with 39 .", "The New Jersey Vicious and Potentially Dangerous Dog Act sets out criteria for dealing with aggressive dogs , but prohibits breed discrimination .", "New York has a similar statute .", "Connecticut 's law does not ban breed discrimination .", "Despite such laws , some communities still have restrictions on specific breeds .", "They range from outright bans to requiring property insurance coverage and the use of shorter leashes and muzzles in public .", "Tanya Ford , village clerk in Hempstead , N.Y. , said she was aware of no challenges to its law , which categorizes American pit bull terriers and several related breeds as vicious dogs , requiring that they be muzzled when walked and kept on a chain with a minimum strength of 300 pounds and not exceeding three feet in length .", "Owners must also have liability insurance of $ 100,000 .", "Mahlon Goer , a pit bull owner who tracks legislation in New York for the American Dog Owner 's Association , said the state still allowed insurance companies to drop customers or deny property insurance to prospective customers based on the breed of dog they own .", "Underwriting policies vary , according to the group , but beyond pit bulls and related breeds , the list includes Siberian huskies , Great Danes , German shepherds , St . Bernards and Dalmatians .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws because keeping tabs at the local level can be difficult unless laws are highly publicized .", "According to the American Kennel Club , last year it tracked 105 communities around the nation where breed-specific legislation was pending , enacted or defeated .", "The group had tracked another 76 through July .", "Among the municipalities in the region that have breed-specific laws are Larchmont , Sands Point and Hempstead in New York and Millville and Atlantic City in New Jersey .", "Numerous communities across the United States have such laws .", "One of the most controversial is in Denver , where authorities have euthanized more than 1,000 pit bulls since the reinstatement of a ban on the breed in May 2005 .", "The city 's animal control division had suspended enforcement of the ban in 2004 after the governor signed a bill restricting local governments from outlawing certain breeds .", "But the city successfully sued , arguing that the bill violated its home-rule authority .", "In Englewood , Douglas Bern , a lawyer who served on the City Council when the law was passed , said the council was responding to incidents in a public park where the dogs were being used to intimidate people .", "He said the police had also felt threatened by pit bulls when responding to a call at a home .", "The city argued that the municipal law complemented state statute , which was designed to address situations where `` existing local laws inadequately address the problem '' of aggressive dogs .", "`` The city of Englewood 's ordinance in this regard actually furthers and is consistent with the legislative intent , which is to address a void where local governments have not addressed the area of vicious or potentially dangerous dogs , `` the city said in a court brief .", "Under the ordinance , bull terriers , Staffordshire bull terriers , American pit bull terriers , American Staffordshire terriers , Rottweilers or `` any dogs of mixed breed which has the appearance or characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds , '' were banned from the city .", "Some summonses had been issued under the law , but city officials did not know how many .", "`` It 's like there 's a stigma for having one of these kinds of dog , `` said Ms. Rodriguez , who owns an ailing 8-year-old pit bull named Cyrus .", "The Englewood City Council will discuss the law at its Sept . 19 meeting , said Scott Reddin , the council president .", "He said he did not expect the council to challenge the court 's decision .", "`` We were profiling certain breeds and that was found to be unconstitutional , '' he said .", "`` I do n't think the council will have any problem rescinding that . ``", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations have come out against breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address the problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "`` As we like to say , punish the deed , not the breed , '' said Lisa Peterson , a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club .", "`` We think breed-specific laws are unfair to responsible dog owners . ''", "Barbara Bishop , who owns Rufus , the top dog at the Westminster show , said she was trying to use the dog 's success to highlight the unfairness of breed-specific bans .", "`` We want to let people know that every dog has teeth and every dog can bite , whether it 's a Chihuahua or a bull mastiff , `` Ms. Bishop said .", "`` Every dog will be a product of what it 's brought up to do . ``", "Ms. Bishop attributed much of the image problem of the pit bull breeds to people who train them to be vicious , including drug dealers who use them as guard dogs .", "`` We have Rufus , who 's the top winning colored terrier of all time , and we still have people stop in the street and say , ` There 's a pit bull , ' `` she said .", "For Ms. Wells , the law seemed even more absurd because her 12-year-old pit bull , Sentry , has cataracts and has had cancer , heart surgery and a hysterectomy .", "`` She is a member of the family , '' said Ms. Wells , who has two daughters , ages 34 and 32 .", "`` My kids tease me all the time and say she 's my favorite daughter . `` ."], "summary": ["Article on legal challenges pit bull owners have been making against local laws in New York City metropolitan area that ban or restrict certain dog breeds .", "Opponents of breed-specific laws say it is difficult to know how many communities have such laws .", "Numerous national dog owner and veterinarian associations oppose breed-specific laws , saying they are unfair and do not address problem of aggressive and dangerous dogs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [39, 20], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788887", "text": ["A selection of New Jersey events scheduled in honor of the victims of Sept . 11 : Bernards Township -- Memorial service .", "Monday at 7 p.m. Liberty Corner Presbyterian Church , 45 Church Street .", "-LRB- 908 -RRB- 647-0340 .", "Camden -- `` For the Healing of the Nations '' concert , featuring Nnenna Freelon , Andy Bey , Mark Johnson , Sandra-Turner Barnes , the Afro Blue Vocal Ensemble of Howard University and others .", "Sunday at 3 p.m. $ 25 .", "Walter K . Gordon Theater , Camden Center for the Arts , Rutgers University , Third and Pearl Streets .", "-LRB- 856 -RRB- 225-2700 .", "Hamilton -- Free admission to sculpture park for Sept . 11 .", "Monday , from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Grounds for Sculpture , 18 Fairgrounds Road .", "-LRB- 609 -RRB- 586-0616 .", "Manalapan -- The Heart of New Jersey Chorus , a chapter of Sweet Adelines International , will perform .", "Monday at 7:30 p.m. Monmouth County Library , 125 Symmes Drive .", "-LRB- 732 -RRB- 431-7242 .", "Montville -- `` George Washington 's Indispensable Men : The 32 Aides-de-Camp Who Helped Win American Independence , `` memorial program presented by the author Arthur Lefkowitz .", "Monday at 7:30 p.m.", "Senior House , 356 Main Street .", "-LRB- 973 -RRB- 394-0554 .", "New Brunswick -- Evensong : works by Walmisley , Handl , Williams and Bainton .", "Sunday at 6 p.m. Christ Church Episcopal , 5 Paterson Street .", "-LRB- 732 -RRB- 545-6262 .", "Oradell -- `` The Guys , '' a 9/11-inspired drama by Anne Nelson , free for survivors of Sept . 11 and members of victims ' families .", "Sept . 16 and 17 .", "Bergen County Players , 298 Kinderkamack Road .", "-LRB- 201 -RRB- 261-4200 .", "West Orange -- Remembrance ceremony , at the Essex County Sept . 11 memorial .", "Monday at 8 a.m.", "Eagle Rock Reservation , Eagle Rock Avenue .", "-LRB- 973 -RRB- 621-4404 .", "West Windsor -- `` Remembering 9/11 Through Dance , '' choreographic tribute to West Windsor victims .", "Sunday at 6 p.m. Ron R . Rogers Arboretum , Route 571 and Clarksville Road .", "-LRB- 609 -RRB- 799-6141 .", "RECALLING SEPT . 11 ."], "summary": ["Selection of New Jersey events scheduled to honor victims of September 11 .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788888", "text": ["AS Jamaica station came into view , Joe Singh of Deer Park stood by the train door and looked out the window .", "What he and other commuters on the Long Island Rail Road see these days is much different from what they saw before a $ 300 million renovation of the station that began more than five and a half years ago .", "`` It 's much better than it was before , `` Mr. Singh said .", "`` There is a better covering from the rain .", "The platforms were covered before , but it was n't as good . ``", "Mr. Singh , who was about to step off the 7:47 a.m. train from Deer Park , said he takes the Long Island Rail Road to Jamaica and then takes the E subway to his job in Forest Hills , Queens , where he is a sales representative for Quest Diagnostics .", "As part of the renovation , a new walkway was built to connect the railroad station to the E , J and Z lines .", "Mr. Singh said that he liked the walkway and had always found it clean but that the front entrance of the railroad station was `` very , very dirty . ''", "`` They never clean it , '' he said .", "`` Now they 're fixing the first-floor bathrooms behind the ticket booth .", "Let 's see how they do . ``", "Another commuter , Monte Colbert of Merrick , a certified public accountant with Marcum & Kliegman in Melville , said the station `` feels more modern . ''", "Mr. Merrick , who was waiting for a train to Pennsylvania Station , added , `` It lends itself to commuting . ''", "An estimated 98,000 Long Islanders travel through Jamaica station during the morning rush , said Susan McGowan , a spokeswoman for the L.I.R.R.", "She said that about 14 percent of the riders switch trains at Jamaica for either Brooklyn or Hunters Point Avenue trains .", "The renovation was `` substantially completed '' in April , said Richard C . Oakley , director of capital program management at the railroad , although some odds and ends must still be wrapped up , like the reconstruction of Sutphin Boulevard .", "That work , which involves installing catch basins , is being overseen by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey , Mr. Oakley said .", "The Port Authority and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority , the parent of the railroad , shared in the cost of the Jamaica station renovation .", "It included the AirTrain , an 8.1-mile light rail system that opened in December 2003 to connect the station to Kennedy International Airport .", "Mr. Oakley said a key feature of the newly renovated Jamaica station was the replacement of wooden beams , waiting rooms and mezzanines with steel beams and laminated glass .", "The result is a more open feel .", "The mezzanines , for example , are no longer enclosed , and the east-end mezzanine , formerly 16 feet wide , is now 80 feet wide .", "UPDATE ."], "summary": ["Update on $ 300 million renovation to Long Island Rail Road 's Jamaica Station .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788889", "text": ["What was supposed to have been summer 's last hurrah instead became another quest for any available stretch of sand and surf .", "Many Suffolk County residents found themselves warned off their neighborhood beaches over the Labor Day weekend , just as Long Islanders had been periodically throughout the rainy summer .", "Downpours and the elevated bacterial levels in the water that resulted led Suffolk and Nassau County health officials to close or issue warnings against swimming at a patchwork of beaches and parks for days at a stretch in June , July and August .", "Most recently in Nassau , 23 beaches were shut down on Aug . 25 .", "They reopened six days later .", "Suffolk authorities issued an advisory covering 62 beaches on Aug . 28 .", "Two days later , two beaches were closed but the advisory was lifted for 57 beaches and their waters again cleared for swimming .", "The fun was short-lived .", "On Sept . 1 , the Friday of the long holiday weekend , the remnants of Hurricane Ernesto struck .", "The arrival of Ernesto , which had been downgraded to a tropical storm before it hit Long Island , prompted Suffolk to issue a new advisory that covered 52 beaches .", "According to Suffolk 's beach hot line , that advisory was lifted Monday at 24 beaches but remained in effect at 28 -- in Centerport , Cold Spring Harbor , the Great South Bay , Huntington , Long Island Sound and Northport -- for an additional 24 hours .", "Although Nassau shut down beaches on its North and South Shores four times over the summer , Ernesto dropped too little rain there to raise bacteria counts beyond acceptable levels , said Cynthia Brown , a Nassau health department spokeswoman .", "That , however , does not mean Nassau residents can make up for lost time by spending this weekend or next at a county beach .", "`` The beaches are now officially closed until next year , '' said Ms. Brown , noting that residents ' user permits expired on Tuesday , the day after Labor Day .", "First Plant to Turn Grease Into Fuel Opens The Northeast 's first plant to convert restaurant grease into biofuel has officially opened .", "The pilot plant , which is in Bohemia , is expected at first to produce up to 1,000 gallons a day of biofuel that could be used in diesel-powered cars and trucks , as well as home-heating systems .", "North American Biofuels , founded last year by C . David Butler II and Alan Ellenbogen , opened the plant on Aug . 29 .", "By December , its output should reach about 4,000 gallons a day , the company said .", "Suffolk County 's sewage-treatment plant stopped accepting restaurant grease in 2002 after its system clogged up , and Nassau 's plant accepts grease only from restaurants inside the county .", "For the past four years , Suffolk restaurant owners have had to pay to ship their grease to New Jersey , where plants have developed their own problems , or dump it illegally down the drain .", "`` This facility takes a costly problem -- the disposal of waste grease -- and turns it into an energy solution by producing a clean , renewal energy product , which will reduce harmful emissions into the atmosphere , '' Steve Levy , the Suffolk County executive , said in a statement .", "Mr. Butler , an engineer , developed the processing system and its computerized operating technology .", "Russell Reid , a New Jersey-based waste management firm , will transport the used grease to the plant .", "Island Biofuel , based in Center Moriches , will be the major distributor of the end product , Mr. Ellenbogen said .", "Producers of biodiesel and other forms of renewable energy can be eligible for federal , state and local tax incentives .", "But North American Biofuels was not because it relies on a technology that is cheaper to build than plants that process `` virgin '' sources , like soy oil -- about $ 7 million compared with $ 20 million to $ 30 million .", "But the company will pass along a 50-cent-a-gallon federal subsidy to its customers , Mr. Ellenbogen said .", "That would lower the wholesale price per gallon to less than $ 1.90 , compared with about $ 2.25 for home-heating fuel and about $ 3.10 for biodiesel made from soy , he said .", "Bill to Penalize Inmates For Spitting at Guards Under a year-old state law , a jail inmate who throws blood , semen , urine or feces at a corrections officer can be charged with a felony .", "Now a bill , sponsored in the State Assembly by Thomas P . DiNapoli , a Democrat from Great Neck , would add saliva and phlegm to that list .", "Corrections officials in Nassau and Suffolk said inmates know that the law established tougher penalties for throwing certain bodily fluids at guards but also know that it did not include saliva , so they have spit at guards more .", "The bill , which passed the Senate in June , would make that a Class E felony punishable by one and a third to four years in state prison , not in a county jail .", "The sister bill in the Assembly , sponsored by Mr. DiNapoli , is in committee .", "The unions representing corrections officers in Nassau and Suffolk support its passage .", "`` One hundred percent , '' said Vito Dagnello , the president of the Suffolk County Correction Officers Association .", "`` It 's become part of the job that you go home at night not knowing what you 've contracted . ``", "Saliva or phlegm , particularly if it contains blood , can carry infectious pathogens , including those that cause hepatitis , tuberculosis or H.I.V. , the unions said .", "Mr. Dagnello said it was difficult to get worker 's compensation or disability payments for illnesses that guards believe were contracted from inmates , `` because the government 's position is that you could have contracted it somewhere else . ``", "John Duer , the president of the Nassau County Sheriff Officers Association , said the same compensation battle exists for corrections officers statewide .", "He said that one of his members was recently spit at by an inmate whose saliva landed in the officer 's mouth .", "`` Now he 's being tested for a whole list of contagions , `` Mr. Duer said of the officer .", "THE WEEK ."], "summary": ["The Week column .", "Remnants of Hurricane Ernesto and elevated bacterial levels in water prompt Nassau and Suffolk County health officials to close or issue warnings against swimming at several beaches and parks .", "C David Butler and Alan Ellenbogen open American Biofuels , Northeast 's first plant that converts restaurant grease into biofuel , in Bohemia , NY . State Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli sponsors bill that would establish tougher penalties against prison inmates who spit at guards .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 14, 16], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788890", "text": ["The Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts in Long Branch has unveiled its big fall exhibition titled `` Stuff It ! '' -- a riotous ensemble of artworks employing stuffed objects .", "It is a victory of a kind for this plucky institution , for in May it nearly closed for lack of funds .", "But it was saved by an anonymous donation of $ 20,000 from a famous Shore rock musician .", "It has also just received a grant of $ 22,000 from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts .", "The exhibition was organized by Doug Ferrari , an artist who founded the institute and mortgaged his home two years ago to open the nonprofit space .", "For this exhibition he has chosen artists from all over the country , drawing on submissions through an informal national open call , along with recommendations from friends and other artists .", "Most of the artists are women , and all of the contributors seem to make art that involves filling , stuffing , inflating , upholstering or padding of one kind or another .", "Stuffed sculpture goes back to the 1960 's , when pop artist Claes Oldenburg began to make oversized everyday objects -- a floor fan , a hamburger , a sofa -- with woven and sometimes painted fabric left flaccid or stuffed with soft materials .", "Some of the art here is in that vein , but there are also pieces that defy categorization -- a collection of antique sock monkeys , say , or a video by Matt Barton that shows one of his kinetic art installations with stuffed animals .", "Not surprisingly , much sewing , needlepoint , darning and embroidery is evident throughout this sweeping survey of nearly 50 works , including everything from upholstered abstract geometric canvases by Suzanne Brady of Manalapan to arch , titillating sculptures made from discarded socks by Tracey Featherstone from Hamilton , Ohio .", "There are also all kinds of stylish orchestrations of fabric and stuffing by Bethany Jean Fancher , Audrey Chibbaro and Joan Wheeler .", "Nothing is what it seems on Orly Cogan 's table of confections , for her edible-looking cakes , doughnuts , flans , slices , muffins , tarts and other treats are actually hand-sewn and crocheted from pieces of old socks , clothes and blankets .", "The subterfuge is far from obvious , but I guess that is the point behind much of this kind of trompe l' oeil sculpture .", "It is also what makes it incredibly popular with viewers , who can appreciate an act of craftsmanship that fools the eye .", "Rebeca Raney from New York City has contributed a wonderfully eccentric installation -- a tripped-out tableau of messy psychedelic wall drawings and radioactive-looking rocks encased in fake fur along with a stuffed , life-size cartoon figure in a space helmet and shimmering gold jumpsuit .", "It looks likes Versace crossed with the Wiggles crossed with `` Star Trek . ''", "Gaping in disbelief , I stood in front of the work for several minutes .", "The eccentricity of the tableau is ingratiating , but it would n't count for much if the pieces themselves were n't well made .", "Happily , they have been constructed with the utmost care , especially the central figure , whose face and hands are delineated by a jumble of colorful miniature embroidery .", "This formal detail makes for a lovely , unexpected surprise , representing hours of long , hard work by the artist .", "Not all contemporary art is as junky as it sometimes looks .", "The aim of the Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts is to increase public access to , and awareness of , the contemporary arts in central New Jersey -- visual art , music , theater and dance .", "This exhibition is another example of how the institution is meeting its mission .", "I know of no other nonprofit art center in New Jersey that does so much with so little .", "`` Stuff It ! '' is at the Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts , 20 Third Avenue , Long Branch , through Oct . 6 .", "-LRB- 732 -RRB- 263-1121 or www.sica.org.", "ART REVIEW ."], "summary": ["Benjamin Genocchio reviews Stuff It -RSB- , exhibition of artworks employing stuffed objects on view at Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts in Long Branch , NJ . Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788891", "text": ["SEAN O'CASEY 'S one-act play `` The Cooing of Doves , '' typed and marked up by the playwright , lay on a reading table at Princeton University 's Firestone Library .", "Neither yellowed by history 's aura nor piously unblemished , the unbound stack of 18 pages looked more like a term paper than a century-old artifact in the university 's new Leonard L . Milberg Irish Theater Collection .", "In fact , the manuscript , which became the second act of O'Casey 's seminal work `` The Plough and the Stars , '' looked so ordinary that Paul Muldoon , the poet and Princeton professor , at first overlooked it while perusing other samples of the collection , which was donated in his honor .", "The university announced the gift Aug . 29 .", "`` Fantastic , '' Mr. Muldoon , 55 , murmured with hushed excitement , leafing through the manuscript .", "`` Fantastic . ''", "The collection will be on public display at the library from Oct . 13 to April 22 .", "The opening of the exhibition will be observed with a series of events , including a production of Brian Friel 's `` Translations '' at the McCarter Theater .", "A symposium including the Irish actors Stephen Rea and Gabriel Byrne .", "And a lecture by Joe Dowling , the former artistic director of the Abbey Theater in Dublin , Ireland 's national theater , where many of the collection 's works were first staged .", "Irish drama provides `` a case study in the inextricability of literature and politics , '' said Prof . Michael Cadden , who teaches Irish theater at Princeton , because so many plays articulated the desire for independence from Britain .", "The collection 's 1,200 works include playbills from `` The Hostage '' and `` The Quare Fellow , '' by Brendan Behan , and a yellowed 1952 first edition of Samuel Beckett 's `` En Attendant Godot , '' in the original French , which he later translated as `` Waiting for Godot . ''", "The collection is named for its donor , the financier Leonard L . Milberg , a member of Princeton 's class of 1953 who lives in Rye , N.Y.", "Mr. Milberg had already given the university three collections of works by American poets , Irish poets and Jewish-American writers , before he was inspired by Mr. Muldoon to add Irish drama to the list .", "`` Paul is a friend , a wonderful man , '' Mr. Milberg said in a telephone interview .", "`` I 'm a fan of his poetry , and I 'm a fan of Paul Muldoon . ``", "Mr. Milberg acquired the collection over the past five years , he said , through dealers and at auction in New York , Ireland and England , with the help of a dealer , J . Howard Woolmer .", "Being in the presence of such manuscripts is a thrill and an inspiration , said Mr. Muldoon , who was born in County Armagh , Northern Ireland , and who won the Pulitzer Prize in 2003 for his collection of poems `` Moy Sand and Gravel . ''", "`` It 's quite touching , really , to be in the presence of O'Casey 's DNA , `` he said .", "`` It does help to be reminded that these plays in this case -- like poems , novels -- are indeed written by , in some profound sense , ordinary people -- people with a particular gift , of course . ''", "The manuscripts can also be insightful .", "For example , in a scene in `` The Cooing of Doves , '' O'Casey crossed out some characters ' proper names and identified them by occupation : `` Mrs. Macineely '' became `` The Orange Seller . ''", "The change stripped her of the personality or the geographic associations the name might carry , Mr. Muldoon suggested , and transformed her into a `` type . ''", "He added : `` It 's almost as if one is engaged , in some sense , in a bit of detective work , you know -- if not the scene of the crime , at least some evidence that an event has taken place here .", "In this case , the making of the play . `` ."], "summary": ["Article on Princeton University 's newly acquired Leonard L Milberg Irish Theater Collection , donated by Leonard Milberg , member of class of 1953 who lives in Rye , NY . Collection was donated in honor of poet and Princeton Prof Paul Muldoon .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 15], "tag": ["Theater", "New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788892", "text": ["THE Bridgeport Police Department has joined a handful of other departments around the state in putting officers on Segways , the futuristic-looking battery-powered upright scooters .", "Police Chief Bryan T . Norwood said the department bought four Segways last month for $ 5,500 each to use on regular patrols and at events like concerts .", "He said officers from the bicycle unit were trained to ride the Segways first .", "Chief Norwood said that besides giving officers better mobility , the scooters were good public relations .", "`` It 's phenomenal , `` he said .", "`` I 've seen officers who are normally quite reserved become animated when they 're on this vehicle .", "And the people just flock to them out of curiosity . ``", "Officer Caleb E . Lopez , a spokesman for the South Windsor Police , said the department began using its only Segway earlier this year as a test .", "If the Segway proves useful , Officer Lopez said , the department will consider buying more .", "`` The officer on it is not as physically taxed as he or she would be on a bicycle , '' he said .", "`` And anytime you have a conversation piece , it 's a great way of getting to know the public . ``", "A spokeswoman for Segway Inc . of Bedford , N.H. , said the police in Hartford and the state police at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks have Segways .", "Mayor John M . Fabrizi of Bridgeport tried one and said they were easy to ride .", "`` After about 10 minutes of practice , I was able to handle it , '' he said .", "Carla M . Vallone , a spokeswoman for Segway , said about 20 percent of the vehicle 's sales were to police departments and security agencies .", "She said they liked the scooters for a variety of reasons .", "`` They can cover twice the amount of ground that they could walking , '' she said .", "`` They 're also eight inches off the ground when they 're on the scooters , so they have a sight line that 's above a crowd .", "And when they 're working in an area with a dense population , they can move as fast or as slow as the people around them . ``", "Ms. Vallone said the model Bridgeport bought , a police edition with a front cargo bag and extra reflectors , has a top speed of 12.5 miles per hour and can travel about 24 miles on 6 to 8 hours of charging .", "Chief Norwood said he hoped to buy four new Segways , with wider tires designed for off-road use , in the next few weeks .", "NOTICED ."], "summary": ["Police Department in Bridgeport joins handful of others around state in putting officers on Segways .", "Four battery-powered upright scooters will be used on regular patrols and at events like concerts .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788893", "text": ["The remnants of Tropical Storm Ernesto hit Fairfield County last weekend , bringing winds that downed trees and knocked out power to tens of thousands of homes .", "The storm had been downgraded to a tropical depression , and its center had already veered toward Pennsylvania by the time it struck Connecticut last Saturday , but winds in some areas in the state were gusting at nearly 60 miles per hour , said Todd Miner , a meteorologist at Pennsylvania State University .", "The storm also dropped nearly three inches of rain on some parts of southwestern Connecticut , Mr. Miner said .", "More than 20,000 United Illuminating customers lost power during the storm , 5,800 of them in Fairfield .", "By Tuesday morning , power had been restored , said Al Carbone , a company spokesman .", "Last Saturday night , a peak of about 54,400 Connecticut Light and Power customers were without power , the vast majority of them in Fairfield County .", "Stamford was hit hardest , with 14,300 people losing power on Saturday .", "In Greenwich , 11,100 lost power , according to Mitch Gross , a spokesman for the company .", "On Sunday morning , 10,250 customers in Norwalk had no power .", "More than 100 crews went out over the weekend to make repairs , including outside contractors and workers from other states , Mr. Gross said .", "About two dozen poles had been snapped , he said .", "All power was restored by Tuesday night .", "Mayor Dannel P . Malloy of Stamford said he was concerned that Connecticut Light and Power has had to scramble the past few months to restore power after the failures .", "`` I think they were overwhelmed again , '' he said .", "`` They have a staffing problem in lower Fairfield County .", "I think they 're going to be overwhelmed a lot unless they place more resources here . ``", "Last month , Gov . M . Jodi Rell ordered the Department of Public Utility Control to examine the power supply in the state and review plans by power companies for handling failures .", "THE WEEK ."], "summary": ["Remnants of Tropical Storm Ernesto hit Fairfield County , downing trees , knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes and bringing heavy rains to some parts of southwestern Connecticut .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788896", "text": ["Steve Lonegan , the mayor of Bogota -LRB- the one in New Jersey , not Colombia -RRB- , began the summer on an ugly note by demanding that McDonald 's remove a billboard that is printed in Spanish .", "The fast-food giant stood by its guns -- or maybe its hamburgers -- and the billboard still stands .", "But Mr. Lonegan is not to be deterred .", "He is ending the summer season with an effort to allow local voters to say whether they want English to be the town 's official language .", "Wisely , the Bergen County clerk , Kathleen Donovan , whose office has the final say over what goes on ballots , asked for a legal opinion on whether the nonbinding referendum question was allowable under the law .", "The answer was no .", "A lawyer , John Carbone , wrote that questions on municipal ballots must pertain to a matter a town can act on .", "State law does not authorize Bogota or any other municipality to declare an official language .", "Mr. Lonegan predicts he will win when he appeals the ruling to the courts .", "Judges , he says , are reluctant `` to take away the right '' of voters to express themselves .", "He also says he will raise money privately to pay for the appeals .", "That is consistent with his belief as a conservative Republican that government spending should be kept as low as possible .", "But the entire effort , which seems like a slap in the face to Hispanics , is also consistent with his practice of seeking widespread approval from ultraconservatives whose opposition to illegal immigrants is at a fevered high .", "As Mr. Lonegan admits , even a successful referendum would change nothing in Bogota .", "The town would still be required to abide by state and federal law stipulating that some documents be printed in more than one language .", "What is likely to change is Mr. Lonegan 's reputation : he may grow in stature among bigots , while losing credibility among minorities and fair-minded citizens .", "The choice is his .", "New Jersey ."], "summary": ["Editorial opposes effort by Mayor Steve Lonegan of Bogota , NJ , to introduce referendum on making English town 's official language ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 0], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788899", "text": ["PROCLAIMING the beginning of a new era in Atlantic City gaming , Pinnacle Entertainment Inc . has agreed to buy the Sands Casino Hotel , the smallest of the 12 casinos in the city , for $ 250 million , with the intention of tearing it down and building an upscale casino-hotel complex .", "`` It 's the right thing for Atlantic City , `` said George Toth , the president of the Sands .", "`` I just think to try to run the small type of gaming house we were running no longer fits the model in a destination city .", "We did n't have shopping or a swimming pool , so we were just limited .", "Today in the gaming field , you have to offer a lot more things . ``", "Pending regulatory approvals , the deal should close by November , with demolition of the existing buildings starting then and construction taking as long as three or four years .", "The deal was announced Tuesday .", "The Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa , the most recent casino to open in Atlantic City , in 2003 , cost $ 1.1 billion to build .", "Estimates for the new Pinnacle operation , which will be on 18 acres adjacent to the Boardwalk , have run as high as $ 1.5 billion .", "`` What it does is take an afterthought of a property and suddenly makes it the talk of the town , '' said Joe Weinert of the Spectrum Gaming Group , a casino consultant that also publishes The Gaming Industry Observer .", "`` This is terrific news for Atlantic City , for it takes a property which has no impact on Atlantic City and will transform it into the next great casino here . ''", "The Sands was built 26 years ago but ran into severe debt problems before being bought by Carl Icahn in 2000 .", "After a series of transfers into holding companies , the Sands went into bankruptcy in 2005 .", "The case is in bankruptcy court in Camden .", "The Sands has 2,100 employees , and they will be out of work if the plans for demolition are completed .", "Given a statement by Daniel R . Lee , Pinnacle 's chairman and chief executive , that appears likely .", "`` The success of recent Atlantic City developments has proven that customers in the Northeast respond positively to state-of-the-art gaming resort design and amenities , '' Mr. Lee said .", "`` While we regret the necessity of closing the Sands to create an exciting new resort , we look forward to working with gaming regulators , state and local authorities on this project to create more jobs , tax revenues and other lasting benefits for the region . ''", "Pinnacle owns casinos in Nevada , Louisiana , Indiana , Argentina and the Bahamas , but not in the top two American casino cities , Atlantic City and Las Vegas .", "Mr. Lee , though , worked for Steven Wynn when he was considering opening a casino in Atlantic City in the late 1990 's , so he is familiar with that landscape , Mr. Weinert said .", "`` This is the beginning of an arms race , '' said Mr. Weinert , noting that three other potential operators are looking at sites around Atlantic City .", "`` It is only a question of which of these four groups will make the standard for the next-generation concept in Atlantic City . ''", "Jeff Vasser , the executive director of the Atlantic City Convention and Visitors Authority , which works to bring conventions to town , said he was not ecstatic about losing the 600 rooms at the Sands as the prime convention season comes around , but was happy to look at the future , with as many as 2,000 rooms planned for the new hotel .", "`` It 's a giant game of leapfrog here right now , and it is the time for Sands and Pinnacle to do the leaping , `` Mr. Vasser said .", "`` This is the Sands ' reaction to the Borgata , and now the other casino companies like Harrah 's and Trump will respond . `` ."], "summary": ["Pinnacle Entertainment Inc agrees to buy Sands Casino Hotel in Atlantic City , NJ , for $ 250 million .", "Plans to tear it down and build upscale casino-hotel complex ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788900", "text": ["IF you were an employee of a company and were disgruntled with its performance , who would you want to hold accountable .", "The chief executive , who is popular with key constituents and wields clout over your financial well-being .", "Or at least one , if not two , of the chief executive 's top lieutenants , both unpopular , and presumably easy to scapegoat .", "That , essentially , is the question that faces State Senator Thomas H . Kean Jr . as he grapples with the biggest political issue in his race to unseat United States Senator Robert Menendez : the war in Iraq .", "Mr. Kean is a Republican -- and a fairly moderate one at that , in contrast to the conservatives who run Washington .", "And as a member of the New Jersey Legislature , he had no role in any decisions related to Iraq .", "But he does say that he would have voted for the initial resolution authorizing the use of force , just as Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Joseph I . Lieberman , both Democrats , did .", "But because of his party affiliation , Mr. Kean has been flayed by Mr. Menendez and other Democrats -- and the polls show that Iraq is a problem for Republicans .", "Yet Mr. Kean ca n't join Democrats in pummeling President Bush , because he ca n't win without the backing of the national Republican Party in a traditionally Democratic state and with only a third of the money that his opponent has raised .", "So he has tried , with varying success , to distance himself from the chief executive , President Bush , without directly criticizing him , while taking issue with two key underlings , Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H . Rumsfeld .", "A few months ago , Mr. Kean experienced one of the low points of his campaign , when Mr. Cheney came to New Jersey for a fund-raiser on his behalf .", "Rather than show up at the event , where photos of the two would have been instantly transformed into Democratic red meat , Mr. Kean appeared after Mr. Cheney had left -- blaming traffic between Trenton and Newark .", "But many people wondered whether he had calculated his late arrival by traveling on Route 1 , known for its horrific traffic , rather than the New Jersey Turnpike .", "Then , a week ago , Mr. Kean became one of the highest profile Republicans to call for Mr. Rumsfeld 's resignation .", "He said that it was detrimental that Mr. Rumsfeld had `` politicized the war through some of his comments , '' including a recent speech touching on those who advocated appeasing Nazi Germany in the 1930 's -- a speech that some people interpreted -LRB- incorrectly , according to the Pentagon -RRB- to be a veiled criticism of the war 's detractors .", "But throughout a one-hour-plus interview , Mr. Kean declined to criticize Mr. Bush .", "`` I just do n't think that the president is very well served by Secretary Rumsfeld staying in that position , `` he said .", "`` I think that the president needs a constant flow of information if he 's going to have his best ability possible to make the decisions that he needs to make . ``", "Democrats have derided Mr. Kean 's attempts to blame everyone but Mr. Bush .", "It is analogous , they say , to criticizing everyone at Enron other than Kenneth L . Lay , or attributing the famines in China in the 1950 's and 1960 's to someone other than Mao Zedong .", "Indeed , in a news conference this past week , Mr. Menendez likened it to `` throwing the first mate of the Titanic overboard while standing side by side with the captain as he steers straight toward the iceberg . ''", "It is hard to tell whether people will find Mr. Kean 's balancing act credible or whether they may find him disingenuous .", "But suffice it to say , the more undecided people are about his intentions , the better it is for Mr. Kean .", "`` I think it 's very smart , I think it 's very tricky , and I think that there 's no alternative , `` said Peter J . Woolley , a professor of politics at Fairleigh Dickinson University .", "Mr. Woolley is also executive director of the university 's PublicMind poll .", "It recently found that Mr. Kean had a small lead among registered voters that widened to 11 percentage points if Iraq were not a factor .", "And while many believe that Mr. Menendez should still be considered a slight favorite because of New Jersey 's Democratic tendencies , Mr. Woolley said that Mr. Kean should be encouraged that his favorability ratings have been higher than most Republicans ' in recent statewide races and that Mr. Menendez 's ratings have been a bit lower than most Democrats ' .", "Still , Mr. Woolley says he does n't think that Mr. Kean will invite Mr. Bush to New Jersey anytime soon .", "But the Bush family is another matter .", "On Wednesday , Mr. Bush 's father , former President George H . W . Bush , stumped for Mr. Kean in Bridgewater .", "So , too , did the first lady , Laura Bush , a couple of months ago .", "So maybe Mr. Bush 's mother and twin daughters will come next .", "POLITICAL MEMO David W . Chen is Trenton bureau chief of The New York Times ."], "summary": ["David Chen Political Memo column on issue of war in Iraq as it applies to New Jersey State Sen Thomas Kean Jr , moderate Republican who is seeking to unseat Democratic US Sen Robert Menendez .", "Notes Kean has tried , with varying success , to distance himself from Pres Bush without directly criticizing him , while taking issue with Vice Pres Dick Cheney and Defense Sec Donald Rumsfeld .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788980", "text": ["The vibrant restaurant scene along Hudson Street , which includes longtime crowd pleasers like Nobu and Chanterelle , has continued to grow in the past year , with these five newcomers .", "DANI * -LSB- Rating : One Star -RSB- -LRB- 212 -RRB- 633-9333 .", "333 Hudson Street -LRB- Charlton Street -RRB- .", "$ $ .", "Review : 4/12/06 .", "Dani aims for a bit of distinction in a crowded New York marketplace of Italian restaurants by taking a few steps toward an often unexplored area of Italy : Sicily .", "That region 's fruits , nuts and proximity to northern Africa are reflected in a menu that also hedges its bets with the kind of fare found at many other New York restaurants , Italian and otherwise .", "The best dishes , like bucatini with sardines , and the desserts are very good indeed , and the noisy room is visually appealing .", "FATTY CRAB -LRB- 212 -RRB- 352-3590 .", "643 Hudson Street -LRB- Horatio Street -RRB- .", "$ .", "$ 25 and Under : 10/26/05 .", "Zak Pelaccio 's rollicking Malaysian roadhouse is done up in dark woods and reds .", "Ornately carved chairs with stiff backs are crammed around small tables that fill the tiny dining room .", "The signature chili crab consists of a Dungeness crab served in a delicious pool of spicy , crab-drenched sauce with broiled white bread to sop it up .", "MR . CHOW TRIBECA -LRB- 212 -RRB- 965-9500 .", "121 Hudson Street -LRB- North Moore Street -RRB- .", "$ $ $ .", "Review : 6/28/06 .", "Mr. Chow Tribeca opened more than a quarter-century after the Mr. Chow on East 57th Street , but it stays true to its predecessor 's formula : a mixture of familiar and less familiar Chinese food in a slick setting with formally attired servers and an aura of clubby exclusivity .", "It can be expensive , if amusing , but a few dishes , like the Peking duck , are terrific .", "NOVO -LRB- 212 -RRB- 989-6410 .", "290 Hudson Street -LRB- Spring Street -RRB- .", "$ .", "Article : 2/1/06 .", "This Latino place has Alex Garcia as chef and partner .", "The dinner menu is divided into categories like ceviches , grilled meats and fish , hot and cold tapas plates , and salads .", "The lunch menu offers sandwiches including a Cuban pressed sandwich with chicken croquettes and crispy mariquitas , and colorful limeades , smoothies and aqua fresca -- water infused with fresh fruit like melon , papaya and guava .", "SETACCI -LRB- 212 -RRB- 675-0810 .", "420 Hudson Street -LRB- Leroy Street -RRB- .", "$ $ .", "Article : 5/3/06 .", "Lisa Cannistraci , who owns Henrietta Hudson , and Joey D' Angelo , a chef , formerly of Union Square Caf\u00e9 and Esca , own this stylish Italian place in the West Village .", "The name is Italian for sift .", "The menu has crudo like oysters or clams on the half-shell , antipasti like grilled baby octopus , or house cured sardines , and entree selections that include grilled whole branzino and brick-roasted baby chicken .", "GOOD EATING / HUDSON STREET E-mail : eating@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["Excerpts from previously published reviews of restaurants along Manhattan 's Hudson Street -LRB- Good Eating column -RRB- ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788983", "text": ["That 's Mr. Gettys to You Q . `` Citizen Kane '' is my absolute favorite movie .", "I know that the Charles Foster Kane character , who builds an empire around a New York newspaper , is modeled after William Randolph Hearst , and that Susan Alexander resembled Hearst 's companion , Marion Davies .", "But which politician was Boss Jim Gettys supposed to be .", "A . That one 's not quite as obvious .", "Jim Gettys , played by Ray Collins , could have been a composite of figures from Tammany Hall and New York City politics in the early 20th century .", "There were plenty to choose from , with names like Johnny Oakley and Big Tim Sullivan .", "But one clue is the scene in which Gettys chews out Kane for printing a cartoon showing him in prison stripes .", "That really happened to Charles F . Murphy , a Tammany leader who started as a horsecar driver and owned several bars while building political power .", "Hearst , a Tammany opponent who twice ran for mayor himself , had his papers regularly denouncing Murphy as a latter-day Boss Tweed .", "One Hearst cartoon in 1903 showed Murphy dressed in striped prison clothes .", "A caption , referring to the restaurant where the Boss and his sachems often huddled , read : `` Look out , Murphy .", "It 's a short lock-step from Delmonico 's to Sing Sing . ``", "Politics has a way of uniting enemies , though , and three years later , the ever-calculating Murphy helped Hearst get the Democratic nomination for governor .", "He lost to Charles Evans Hughes .", "Sparrow Snatching Q .", "While traveling to Yankee Stadium on the D train , a friend and I noticed a woman carrying a live sparrow in a plastic shopping bag .", "The next day , in Union Square , I saw a young couple carrying a transparent take-out container with a live sparrow .", "Is there something going on that involves the sacrifice of a small bird .", "And is it legal to capture sparrows .", "A .", "We asked people at the Bronx Zoo and the New York Companion Bird Club about this , and they ruled out a cult or ritual .", "Your sightings seem to be a coincidence .", "One club member noted that while the birds may have been unprotected English sparrows , there are also dozens of sparrow species protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act , many of them in New York , and capturing them is illegal .", "One respondent added that the housing described in the note was awful .", "Another animal advocate wrote : `` I think the people were just picking up fledglings thinking they were injured or orphaned . ''", "New York City Audubon offers guidelines on how to handle injured birds and baby birds on its Web site , www.nycaudubon.org.", "Look for Project Safe Flight under Programs .", "Double Digits Down There Q . Am I misremembering , or did there use to be subway trains with names like CC , AA , BB , etc.", "What happened to them .", "A . You 're not imagining things .", "Double-letter designations survived until 1986 , when they were phased out .", "Double letters once identified local routes , and single letters meant express , but as routes and designations changed over the years , that distinction became almost meaningless .", "Unless you 're an optometrist , this all may be too much information , but in 1986 , the CC became the C , the GG became the G , the LL became the L , the QB became the Q , the RR became the R , and the AA became the K , which was absorbed two years later by the B and C .", "There also used to be a KK train on the J line , an HH train -LRB- Rockaway shuttle -RRB- , a T and TT -LRB- West End express and local -RRB- and a QT -LRB- Brighton Beach local -RRB- .", "MICHAEL POLLAK F . Y .", "I . E-mail : fyi@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["FYI column answers questions about which politician Boss Jim Gettys was modeled after in movie Citizen Kane , why people are seen in city with live sparrows in shopping bags and take-out containers and whether there used to be subway trains with double letters .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 27, 0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788984", "text": ["WHEN we first met in 2003 , Eve , to me , epitomized TriBeCa loftiness .", "I was making a hasty move from Washington to Manhattan , where I had grown up on the Upper West Side .", "All the remaining parts of my immediate family still resided there , my sister and cousins , nearly all within talking-out-the-window distance from one another , exactly like our parents ' and grandparents ' generation .", "I desperately wanted to try something new and to see if , at nearly 50 , I could become a downtown girl .", "I found a great loft to sublet in TriBeCa .", "But before I could move into the small loft building on Hubert Street near Greenwich Street , I had to pass muster with the six other people who already lived there .", "Some of them , like Eve , had been in the building for decades , when the neighborhood was filled with artists , struggling writers and illegal squatters instead of brokers with bonuses .", "For my co-op sublet interview , I was prepared to answer all manner of questions about my personal probity and financial condition , none of which got asked that night .", "Instead , Eve , a birdlike , somewhat frail-looking woman in her 60 's , had some sharp questions for me about coverage of culture and politics at The New York Times , where I work .", "I learned that she was on the faculty at Hunter College and was a teacher of poetry .", "I found I loved the old , low industrial architecture and cultural edginess of TriBeCa , even with borrowed belongings .", "It made me feel as if I were coming to live in a new city , not returning to a familiar one .", "My landlord 's library , I found , was superior to my own .", "I loved the big open space , especially the windows that faced out onto the Hudson River .", "I loved taking walks on the river with Buddy , my 13-year-old dog , whose adjustment to Manhattan life , after years spent running around our suburban yard , was immediate and joyous .", "And of course some things took getting used to , like having no front door , just an elevator that opened directly into my place .", "The elevator , in fact , played a big part in my fateful encounter with the professor , her poetry and , later , her painting .", "One winter Sunday , when I decided to run out for a manicure , Buddy became outraged that I was going for a walk without him .", "He growled as I put on my coat and boots .", "Then , suddenly , the elevator opened without warning .", "-LRB- The elevator generally came to our floor only when I summoned it , or when it was opened by a special key .", "Its opening this time is still a mystery . -RRB-", "Buddy , a sweet-tempered Westie , went into guard-dog mode and , before I realized what was happening , flew into the elevator , sensing an intruder muscling onto our turf .", "I heard a ruckus and , horrified , saw that Eve was in the elevator , barefoot and in her cotton nightgown .", "Buddy had nipped her on the knee .", "I had instant visions of lawsuits and eviction letters .", "Instead , when I followed Eve up to her loft on the top floor to help her clean the bite , I found a serene woman who felt worse about the situation than I did .", "Her loft was crammed with books and brightly colored canvases she had painted .", "Her place was a bit of a mess , and completely unrenovated .", "The floors were not buffed and gleaming the way mine were .", "Eve 's place was utterly unchic , unlike so many of the lofts I had seen elsewhere in TriBeCa , which sometimes had the look of sleek boutique hotels , stylish but coldly anodyne .", "She did , however , have stunning views of the river .", "I kept vigil over Eve , bringing her fresh Band-Aids and antibiotic ointment .", "I urged her to let me take her to a doctor .", "She reluctantly agreed , and we went uptown to see an internist friend .", "In our Town Car ride , we chatted about books and our neighbors .", "She was n't partial to the new restaurants that were constantly opening -LRB- and usually soon closing -RRB- in our neighborhood .", "She loved the graceful dowager , Capsouto Fr\u00e8res .", "`` It 's wonderful in the spring when they open all the doors , `` she told me .", "Although the bite turned out to be harmless , I found that I enjoyed checking in on Eve .", "I learned that she had grown up near Boston and gone to the University of Chicago and grad school at Columbia .", "Romantic poetry was her love , and she had a wonderful library .", "She painted .", "She alluded to a husband , but since she was always alone when I saw her , I assumed the husband was an ex .", "COME spring , Eve invited me to her retirement party .", "Some of her graduate students showed up , and so did her husband , who appeared to be much younger and was a good-looking English teacher at a military school out west .", "In fact , the two of them were heading west for the summer and intended to sublet Eve 's loft .", "By this time , the owner of my sublet had plans to return to New York , and although the prices were insane , I bought a loft two blocks from my sublet .", "After I moved , I lost track of my neighbor .", "Then , a few weeks ago , strolling with Buddy , I spotted Eve and her husband entering their building .", "She was in a wheelchair , hobbled by bad knees .", "`` I 'm having knee replacement surgery , `` Eve happily announced .", "Her husband told me they had sold the loft and were under pressure to clean out all of Eve 's belongings over the weekend .", "The next time I passed the building , there were cartons of books by the curb , including a Modern Library edition of Plutarch 's `` Lives , '' Samuel Pepys 's diaries , and a hardcover edition of Yeats 's collected poems , many with Eve 's jottings from her grad school days .", "An old paperback of Damon Runyon 's `` Guys and Dolls '' especially beckoned me .", "Eve 's name was written on the title page in fountain pen ink , with the notation `` London July , 1960 . ''", "When her husband appeared , I asked him if it was O.K. to take some of the books .", "He said that was what they were there for .", "I also told him I would love to have one of Eve 's paintings if she was n't moving them all .", "`` She would love that , '' he said in a noncommittal voice .", "Then one Saturday my cell rang .", "`` Jill , it 's Eve . ``", "She was calling from out west .", "She told me that the new owner of her loft was moving in and that she had left three of her paintings in the hallway for me to choose from .", "Two nights later , I went back and rode up to her place in the elevator in which Buddy had committed his crime .", "The loft was empty , and I imagined it would soon be completely renovated and buffed to Architectural Digest standard .", "I agonized over the canvases , all of which were large and extremely colorful oil paintings , all abstract and beautiful .", "I picked one that was heavy with sapphire and orange .", "I carried the painting over my head down Greenwich Street , past the spanking new Wolfgang 's Steakhouse filled with brokers ordering $ 50 hangers and strips .", "I went past the new Robert De Niro boutique hotel going up on the corner of North Moore .", "I thought about that scene in `` An Unmarried Woman '' in which Jill Clayburgh , at the end of the film , is carrying Alan Bates 's painting through the streets of SoHo .", "Eve 's painting has a home on one of my brick walls , not far from the bookcase with her books and Buddy 's dog bed .", "But , sadly , TriBeCa has lost one of its truly original loft girls .", "NEW YORK OBSERVED ."], "summary": ["Jill Abramson New York Observed essay on her former TriBeCa loft neighbor , Eve , somewhat frail-looking woman in her 60 's , who had wonderful library and is a painter .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788985", "text": ["JULIAN MONTAGUE has spent seven years spotting shopping carts buried in undergrowth or pond muck .", "An artist who lives in Buffalo , he has also taken thousands of photographs of carts that ended up far from their original homes .", "Mr. Montague , utterly deadpan , classifies the artifacts by location type and likely cause of demise for a Web site -LRB- www.strayshoppingcart.com -RRB- and in his new book , `` The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America : A Guide to Field Identification '' -LRB- Abrams Image -RRB- .", "His categories can be self-explanatory -LRB- `` bus stop discard , '' `` plow crush '' -RRB- or cryptic : `` open true '' -LRB- abandoned on pavement or lawn -RRB- , `` gap marginalization '' -LRB- between buildings -RRB- .", "Happier subtypes , like `` alternative usage '' and `` structurally modified , '' are for carts adapted as things like souvenir stands or driveway barriers .", "`` This language of scientific classification can be very powerful , '' Mr. Montague said .", "`` It affects your perceptions .", "It brings this peripheral stuff into focus .", "And I like to speculate on what happened to the carts .", "How many people were involved , and is it in a permanent or ephemeral state .", "`` Through Oct . 14 , 40 of Mr. Montague 's photos , taken in five cities , will be shown at the Black and White Gallery , 636 West 28th Street , near 11th Avenue .", "The two New York examples , spotted in Dumpsters in Coney Island and Brighton Beach , fall into the `` in / as refuse '' category .", "EVE M . KAHN NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT : NEW YORK IN FOCUS ."], "summary": ["Selection of photographs by Julian Montague of abandoned shopping carts .", "Exhibition of Montague 's photos will be shown at Black and White Gallery in Manhattan ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788986", "text": ["In New York , even monks face the vagaries of hectic schedules and urban congestion .", "Case in point , Pema Wangdak , a Tibetan Buddhist monk , who the other day could be found sitting in traffic that crept along the Cross Bronx Expressway at 10 miles an hour .", "A police car cruised shot by , its alarms screaming .", "Drivers glared .", "Pema Wangdak remained unrattled , smiling as if he were sitting at the edge of a mountain stream .", "`` When I 'm in the car , somehow it has a soothing effect on me , `` he said .", "`` It 's comforting . ``", "Pema Wangdak , 52 , who came to the United States from Dharamsala , India , in 1982 , drives to the city from his home half an hour away in Cresskill , N.J. , several days a week .", "His appointments are as far-flung as the city 's largely decentralized Tibetan community .", "Recently , he gave talks at Tibet House near Union Square in Manhattan and at the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art in Richmond on Staten Island , offered spiritual counseling to Tibetan friends in Sunnyside and Jackson Heights in Queens , and visited a Tibetan nun recovering from surgery in Washington Heights in Upper Manhattan .", "Between appointments , he has encountered people puzzled by the sight of a small , reedy monk in burgundy robes smiling his way through city traffic , often with a cellphone earpiece in place .", "`` I usually tell them that we lamas do n't have enough money to hire a driver , `` he said , '' so I have to drive myself . ``", "His serenity in the face of everyday frustrations has inspired some of his fellow commuters .", "`` I used to resist driving in the city , '' said Peter Arcese , an adjunct professor of literature at New York University and a student of Pema Wangdak 's .", "`` You do n't feel that enlightened on a bad day dealing with traffic .", "`` Then I saw that the lama is constantly driving .", "Driving can be its own meditation . ``", "On a recent Monday afternoon , Pema Wangdak traveled to Calvary Hospital in Pelham Bay , the Bronx , where a 32-year-old Tibetan woman had died of liver cancer that morning .", "A dozen of her relatives greeted him in the waiting room .", "By the time Pema Wangdak had finished praying for the dead woman to be reborn in the Buddha realm , it was 2:59 p.m.", "His next appointment , with a student on the Upper West Side , was at 3 .", "He got back into his car , resigned to being late .", "`` You always think , ' I have to do this or that , ' '' he said .", "`` But we forget that the process of getting there is equally important .", "Everything is a dharma teaching . ``", "JENNIFER BLEYER NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT : ON THE ROAD ."], "summary": ["Tibetan Buddhist monk Pema Wangdak comments on soothing effect he experiences while driving in New York City .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 5], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788987", "text": ["AT midnight on the evening of Thursday , Aug . 31 , WLIB-AM , one of the city 's most storied radio stations and one that for years broadcast from the fabled Hotel Theresa in Harlem , ushered in a new era .", "A staff member cued up a rousing hymn called `` High Praise , '' and with the push of a button , WLIB was now `` Your praise and inspiration station , '' playing gospel music round the clock .", "Until that moment , and for the previous two and a half years , the station had been the home of Air America , the liberal talk-radio network .", "For the previous decade , the station had broadcast Caribbean music .", "Radio stations switch formats all the time .", "But for a station like WLIB , long regarded as the `` Voice of Harlem , '' moving forward takes place in the shadow of a long and illustrious past .", "With its lively call-in shows that gave voice to the concerns of the Harlem community , WLIB spoke to and for black New Yorkers .", "The format change , first reported by The Amsterdam News , has made many avid listeners remember what this heartbeat of black life once was .", "`` Switching to gospel , I ca n't be against that , of course , `` said the Rev . Herbert Daughtry , a veteran civil rights advocate and preacher at the House of the Lord Church in Boerum Hill , Brooklyn , who used to telephone WLIB to report news of interest to the station 's listeners , like reports of police brutality .", "`` We surely need the Gospel .", "But knowing how vital it was , I feel we are missing something . ``", "In 1971 , WLIB became the city 's first black-owned radio station , and the crown jewel of Inner City Broadcasting Corporation .", "A co-founder of Inner City was Percy Sutton , a former Manhattan borough president and long one of the city 's most powerful black leaders .", "Perhaps paradoxically , the new gospel format is in keeping with the station 's history .", "WLIB played gospel in the 1950 's and 60 's .", "Even so , the new format has received a tepid response from community leaders who , like Mr. Daughtry , say that the community needs a black-talk format .", "`` We do n't really have a format right now for information on social , political and economic change in Harlem , `` said Councilwoman Inez Dickens , who represents Harlem .", "According to Deon Levingston , the station 's general manager , and Vinny Brown , the operations manager , the station will reintroduce talk shows at some point but will remain music-intensive .", "The station , which now operates out of an office at Park Avenue and 34th Street , broke ties with Air America when WLIB could not reach an agreement on the terms of a renewal of Air America 's lease , according to representatives of the station and Air America .", "`` We saw the move to gospel as a way to keep viable programming , '' Mr. Levingston said .", "`` Our goal is to serve the community , and you ca n't do that if you ca n't keep your lights on . ``", "The gospel format , he said , was in keeping with WLIB 's history and meshed well with the soul format of its sister station , WBLS-FM .", "A return to the old talk show format , he added , would not have been financially viable , especially in what is one of the nation 's most competitive radio markets .", "WLIB has an average audience of 24,900 listeners at any given 15-minute period , according to the station 's ratings report for the spring of this year .", "When WLIB was broadcasting Air America , a popular talk show , `` Mindflight , '' whose host was a D.J. , Gary Byrd , was broadcast in the wee hours .", "And on weekends , the station broadcast boisterous public affairs shows , like the Rev . Al Sharpton 's `` Sharp Talk . ''", "With the switch to all gospel , both programs are off the air , at least temporarily .", "At its peak , WLIB represented , as Mr. Daughtry put it , `` the heartbeat and the drumbeat '' of New York 's black community .", "Its era began in 1949 , when two brothers , Morris and Harry Novik , purchased the station from The New York Post .", "As general manager , Harry Novik jettisoned the station 's classical-music format , replacing it with rhythm-and-blues and gospel music and community affairs programs aimed at black audiences .", "It was during this period that the station moved to the Hotel Theresa .", "In the following years , WLIB broadcast live from conferences of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and staged music festivals at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem .", "By 1967 , the station dedicated seven and a half hours each weekday to gospel and rhythm and blues .", "The most popular program was a call-in show , `` Community Opinion , '' moderated by Leon Lewis , the station 's program director .", "During the turbulent 60 's , the station 's airwaves crackled as black listeners shared heated opinions on subjects like the civil rights struggle , the Vietnam War and the crushing poverty in the nation 's ghettos , Harlem chief among them .", "When the Rev . Dr. Martin Luther King Jr . was assassinated in April 1968 , WLIB interrupted its regular programming and served as a public bereavement forum for grieving callers .", "ITS political role continued into the 1980 's and the early 90 's .", "`` I may get up in the morning and get a call that someone in the community had been killed , '' Mr. Daughtry said .", "`` I could pick up the phone to WLIB , and the word went out . ''", "Other radio programs focus on local issues and have a call-in segment , but to WLIB fans , the station offered something more .", "`` Folks want to hear a concentrated discussion of what 's going on in the hood , `` said Bill Perkins , a lifelong Harlemite , former councilman and now a Democratic candidate for the State Senate .", "`` What 's going on in the City Council as it relates to the hood .", "How do we look at Iraq from the view of the hood .", "On these other shows , you might hear that incidentally , but it 's not the mission . ``", "On the streets of Harlem the other day , the consensus among WLIB listeners seemed to favor gospel over talk .", "`` Gospel is good every day , all day long , '' said a white-haired man named Alfred Solomon , who was standing on 125th Street .", "Was he worried about the absence from the airwaves of a black talk station .", "`` What are they going to talk about .", "`` Mr. Solomon replied .", "`` That 's been going on for years and it has n't accomplished anything .", "We need gospel music that can do something for the spirit . ``", "Radio Days November 1926 The predecessor of WLIB , called WBKN , signs on from a studio on Pitkin Avenue in Brownsville , Brooklyn , the fi rst of several homes throughout the city .", "1930 's - 1940 's The station has varied and changing offerings , including the city 's fi rst program in Chinese .", "Eventually , it becomes known as `` The Voice of the Negro Community . ''", "April 1968 When the Rev . Dr. Martin Luther King Jr . is assassinated , WLIB opens the airwaves to angry and bereaved callers , helping , in the opinion of many , to prevent rioting in the city .", "1969 As the black power movement gains strength , the Black Panthers are the host of their own program , `` The People 's Information Slot . ``", "October 1970 WLIB goes off the air for several days during a labor dispute that involves the fi ring of an employee and picketing by station workers .", "July 1971 WLIB becomes the city 's fi rst black-owned radio station when it is bought by a consortium that includes Percy Sutton , the former Manhattan borough president .", "URBAN TACTICS ."], "summary": ["Article traces history of WLIB-AM , radio station that has broadcast for years from fabled Hotel Theresa in Harlem and recently switched from call-in shows to playing gospel music round the clock .", "Timeline .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788988", "text": ["Slashing diagonally across Manhattan 's street grid , Broadway is responsible for memorable irregularities like Times Square , Union Square and of course the Flatiron Building , one of the city 's best-known and most-photographed structures .", "In Brooklyn , Flatbush Avenue follows a similar wayward course , though the lower-slung buildings on the irregular lots that line the street are more likely to be gas stations , garages and warehouses than works of architectural distinction .", "But now , in a borough where comparisons with Manhattan remain a fact of life , some optimists are saying that a building planned for a triangular lot near the Manhattan Bridge could be a flatiron building of Brooklyn 's own .", "The project 's architect , Ismael Leyva , does not shy away from the comparisons .", "`` To me , when I saw this site being triangular-shaped , the first thing that came to my mind was that this is going to be similar to the Flatiron Building , '' he said on Thursday , adding that his team had rounded off the front of the planned building in an homage to the famous skyscraper .", "Construction of Brooklyn 's flatiron building , a project of the developer Isaac Hager , is scheduled to begin in a few weeks and to be completed in the summer of 2008 .", "The differences between the buildings are considerable .", "The 22-story Flatiron Building , at 23rd Street , Broadway and Fifth Avenue , has a limestone and terra-cotta facade , while the new building , a 21-story structure at 85 Flatbush Avenue Extension , on Tillary Street , will be glass .", "Moreover , the Flatiron Building is commercial , while the new building will hold luxury condominiums .", "-LRB- Mount Hope Court , a 10-story 1914 structure on the Grand Concourse that is known as the Bronx 's Flatiron Building , is also home to apartments . -RRB-", "Most significant , the Flatiron Building of 1902 is a revered architectural icon , while the Brooklyn building , even optimistically speaking , has an uphill climb to reach such status .", "Still , the comparisons have come , beginning with those in The Brooklyn Papers , a weekly , which described the structure as looking `` like the lovechild of the Flatiron Building and a spaceship . ''", "Mr. Leyva said he was gratified that people saw similarities between the buildings but demurred .", "`` Most of the shape is dictated by the site and the zoning requirements , '' he said of his project .", "One way in which the two buildings really could be similar has to do with their role as a catalyst to development .", "The Flatiron Building helped open a heady era of construction , and in Downtown Brooklyn , Mr. Leyva 's project is one of several buildings to emerge from zoning changes made in recent years .", "A few other tall buildings are planned for the immediate neighborhood .", "Two of them , on Gold Street , are from Mr. Leyva 's designs , and a third , at Flatbush and Myrtle Avenues , will sit on a similar triangular lot that could spawn another high-rise wedge .", "In the opinion of Simeon Bankoff , executive director of the Historic Districts Council , an advocacy group , the planned building at 85 Flatbush Extension appears to be out of context with what is in the area now .", "But he added , tongue only partly in cheek , `` Maybe it 's in context with the new Brooklyn . ``", "JAKE MOONEY NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT : DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN ."], "summary": ["Article on plans by developer Isaac Hager to build luxury condominium building on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn designed to emulate Flatiron Building in Manhattan .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 8], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788989", "text": ["Over the last decade , when it came to choosing who would represent Staten Island and southwest Brooklyn in Congress , Anita Lerman has been the unchallenged standard-bearer of the Independence Party , a small but growing group with 6,703 members on the island .", "But in the primary elections on Tuesday , Ms. Lerman will face a rival for her party 's mantle , an opponent who is better known to voters : Vito Fossella , the Republican who has held the House seat in the 13th District since 1997 .", "Mr. Fossella and Ms. Lerman , the 62-year-old former host of a public access television show called `` Anita Lerman Presents News and Views for Staten Island , '' are squaring off for a line on the ballot that in the general election typically attracts 1,000 to 2,000 votes , just 1 or 2 percent of the total .", "But local officials of the Independence Party of New York -- there are others in Florida , Michigan and elsewhere -- say they are not surprised that Mr. Fossella is seeking their party 's nomination .", "`` There are going to be more and more primaries on the Independence line , '' said Sarah Lyons , chairwoman of the party 's Staten Island chapter .", "`` The party has grown , and it 's become recognized as a thing of great value .", "We 've been working at the grass roots to build a voting base underneath it . ``", "Mr. Fossella , 41 , who will run unopposed on the Republican line in November and in the past has won election by tens of thousands of votes , said he was seeking the Independence nomination because of his personal beliefs .", "`` I pride myself on being an independent fighter for people I represent , '' Mr. Fossella said last week .", "`` The core of the word ' independence ' is to step up and do what 's right , regardless of the fact that sometimes it means going against your own party . ``", "Mr. Fossella cited the examples of his battles against the Bush administration to increase homeland security funds for New York and to preserve deductions for home mortgage interest and for state and local taxes on federal income taxes .", "Ms. Lerman , who is the vice chairwoman of the local party , said her top issue was to make energy policy more environmentally friendly and to reduce consumers ' energy costs .", "As for her chances in the primary , Ms. Lerman said she did not see her campaigns in terms of winning and losing .", "Rather , she said , her campaigns are about meeting the people of Staten Island as she goes door to door and talks to them about their views .", "`` People say , ' When I was in the big party , nobody ever came to my door with a petition for a candidate , ' '' Ms. Lerman said .", "`` Every person who feels more involved and is heard , and says , ' Wait , this political process can have something to do with me ' -- that 's a victory . ``", "JEFF VANDAM NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT : STATEN ISLAND UP CLOSE Correction : September 17 , 2006 , Sunday Because of an editing error , an article last Sunday about the Congressional race for the seat that represents Staten Island and southwest Brooklyn referred incorrectly to the general election in November .", "Representative Vito Fossella will face Stephen A . Harrison .", "He will not run unopposed ."], "summary": ["Article on New York City 's Independence Party primary election that will pit party standard-bearer Anita Lerman against Republican Vito Fossella , who has held House seat in 13th District since 1997 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788990", "text": ["SHELDON GRUBER never met his grandfather Joseph Punn , a ceiling man from an era when pressed-tin ceilings could be found all over New York .", "But he has heard the stories .", "Too poor to afford a truck in the 1920 's , Mr. Punn used to hang panels of decorative tin around his waist on ropes and travel by subway across the city to install them .", "`` I think eventually he might have gotten a horse and wagon , '' Mr. Gruber said .", "A result of the labors of Mr. Punn and others in his industry was an array of baroque ceilings around the city .", "It was possible to glance upward in countless barrooms , parlors and factories and see a textured latticework of flowers , torches or other flourishes .", "Although pressed-tin ceilings are sold by stores like Home Depot , Mr. Gruber says he believes that his company , AA-Abbingdon Affiliates , is the city 's last remaining business that sells them exclusively .", "Even as recently as the 1950 's , he says , a handful of other tin-ceiling specialists could be found in New York , but no longer .", "Mr. Gruber , a ruddy 48-year-old with slick black hair , fills his orders from a small showroom and warehouse on an industrial stretch of Utica Avenue in East Flatbush , Brooklyn .", "He recently shipped pressed-tin ceiling panels to South Korea for a hotel , to the Western United States for a chain of billiard halls , and to Mexico and Ireland for restaurants .", "Pressed-tin ceilings in New York date to the 1860 's , when thin iron sheets coated with tin were used in buildings for fire protection .", "According to some accounts , immigrants from Europe began having the sheets stamped with repeating ornamental patterns to recreate the look of molded plaster ceilings popular in their native lands .", "With metal , they could do so at a fraction of the cost , using a material more durable than plaster and less likely to crack .", "The appetite for stamped metal has only increased in recent years as deteriorating pieces from the 19th century need to be restored or replaced , according to Richard Pieper , director of preservation for Jan Hird Pokorny Associates , a Manhattan-based architecture firm .", "`` There are certainly other manufacturers of metal ceilings and cornices , '' Mr. Pieper said , `` but as far as I know , Abbingdon is the only one still in New York . ''", "Though commonly described simply as tin ceilings , they are now usually panels made of steel , chrome , brass or copper , which are specially manufactured for Abbingdon outside the city .", "The ceilings come in great variety .", "Abbingdon , for instance , offers 41 ceiling designs at up to $ 12.50 a square foot , along with 15 cornice designs .", "Some make use of the same vintage patterns that Mr. Gruber 's grandfather sold 80 years ago .", "While the company ships around the world , about 15 percent of its sales are in New York , Mr. Gruber says , a proportion that may reflect New Yorkers ' appetite for decorative touches evoking the city 's past .", "Walking through his warehouse one morning recently , Mr. Gruber lifted the tops of large cardboard boxes to inspect goods being readied for shipping .", "Inside one box was a pile of shiny chrome panels decorated with concentric squares .", "The panels in the next box bore a quaint Victorian pattern .", "A third shipment featured a diamond pattern emitting sunburst rays .", "`` The main factor , '' Mr. Gruber said , `` is that what 's old is new . ``", "NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT : EAST FLATBUSH ."], "summary": ["Article on AA-Abbingdon Affiliates in East Flatbush , Brooklyn , which may be New York City 's last remaining business that sells press-tin ceilings exclusively .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788991", "text": ["WHEN the planes hit the twin towers , I was on the last day of a weeklong fishing trip in that part of the country where Montana , Wyoming and Idaho come together in a kind of north-woods wonderland , a patch of the West that is home to Yellowstone National Park , the Tetons , gleaming rivers and herds of elk .", "It is hard to imagine a place more removed from the successive horrors of that day .", "Early the next morning , the woman at the check-in counter at the small airport in Butte seemed genuinely sorry for me when she saw the Bronx address on my driver 's license .", "`` Well , you 're going right back into it , are n't you .", "`` she said , her '' it `` heavy with portent .", "I sensed that what she was really saying was : `` You poor thing .", "I sure am glad I live out here and not in that East Coast hellhole of yours . ``", "Of course , it turned out I was going nowhere that day , at least not on a plane .", "But the thought of remaining in Montana while my hometown bled was unacceptable .", "The previous day , watching those horrific images on television in the lounge of a motel just outside Yellowstone , I had felt absurdly out of place .", "I 'm not sure I had fully appreciated until that morning what a deep-dyed New Yorker I had become over the years .", "Those were my neighbors in those buildings , the people I sat with on the subway and exchanged glares with after bumping shoulders in Times Square .", "I might even have known some of them .", "It was essential to get home .", "Like many travelers stranded around the country that week , I rented a car .", "In my haste to get to New York I did n't pay much attention to the speed limits on the interstate , but every once in a while another car would leave me in the dust and I 'd wonder if it was another New Yorker hurrying home , perhaps having learned bad news .", "I wondered how many hundreds or thousands of us there were , all racing across the continent in rental cars toward the wounded city .", "So it was east through brown and yellow Montana , then south through the Crow Indian Reservation into Wyoming , then east again through the spectacular reddish emptiness of northeastern Wyoming and into endless South Dakota , where walls of rain came down in the night and lightning bolts provided eerie glimpses of the Plains .", "Then the farms of Iowa and Illinois , then Chicago and night again , the relentlessly heavy traffic of Interstate 80 in Indiana and Ohio .", "Then morning again and the most beautiful landscape since Wyoming , the densely green hills of western Pennsylvania , a green so deep in some places as to be almost black .", "Finally , that Friday afternoon , Sept . 14 , the short sprint across New Jersey and then , 2,400 miles and 49 hours after I left Butte , the smoldering hole in the skyline , the smoke and dust still rising from the rubble .", "Trifling thoughts occur even at solemn moments , and I could not help thinking how , after many years of regarding the towers as brutish and ugly , I had only recently developed a grudging fondness for them and was going to miss them .", "Some New Yorkers like to ridicule the tourists who stand gawking at the big buildings .", "But here 's a little secret : There are New Yorkers who , despite a lifelong familiarity with the city , sometimes find themselves standing in the middle of the sidewalk and staring up , momentarily whacked by the amazingness of Manhattan .", "More than once , a sidewalk hustler , observing my skyward gaze , has taken me for a rube easily separated from his money .", "As I looked at the skyline that afternoon , having driven most of the length of the country , one of the first things that came to mind was the Tetons , in whose blue-skied grandeur I had just spent a couple of days .", "The association seemed entirely natural .", "One was made by man and the other by nature , but both reached high into the sky , and both were powerful symbols of the country .", "As I look back , that seems to have been a particularly good time to drive across the United States , a chance to see the American flags breaking out on lampposts and front porches from region to region , and to listen on the car radio as people with continually changing accents struggled to understand what had happened .", "For me , Sept . 11 will always evoke certain place names along the American highway -- Billings , Rapid City , Davenport , Toledo -- and a long , fast drive from one extreme to another , from the simple joys of Yellowstone to the smoldering epicenter of the real world .", "FIVE YEARS ON : LANDSCAPE ."], "summary": ["Mitch Keller essay recalls his trip across country from fishing trip out West to return to New York City after September 11 , 2001 .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 20], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1788994", "text": ["FIVE years ago my brother and I spoke regularly .", "Five years ago we drank together , teased each other without mercy and , occasionally , even expressed feelings of affection .", "After 9/11 we did not .", "My brother is a 20-plus-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department , a former marine with a degree in history whose politics are conservative .", "He is four years older and quite a bit larger than me .", "I am a 20-plus-year veteran of big-agency advertising , a creative director turned fiction writer whose politics , not surprisingly , do not lean conservatively .", "Until five years ago , this was not such a big problem .", "There were plenty of other things to talk about , and we knew that despite our differences , there was still much to appreciate about each other .", "On Sept . 11 , 2001 , I was in Boca Raton , Fla . , on business accompanied by my wife , my 3-year-old daughter and my mother-in-law -LRB- yes , my mother-in-law came on business trips with us back then -RRB- at , of all things , a sales convention for a yogurt company .", "At 9 a.m. , we were granted a 10-minute respite from the executive Vince Lombardi-isms and the Roman Colosseum-inspired motivational d\u00e9cor .", "The first thing I did was check the messages on my personal communications device du jour , because in 2001 , I was convinced that the more I checked the quotidian drivel it contained the more it seemed that my ad agency , yogurt convention , frequent-flier-miles-financed-family-business-trip life mattered .", "But this time what the messages told me were hardly drivel .", "I immediately called New York to check on my brother who was not supposed to be working , but with firefighters you never know .", "He was n't working .", "He 'd soon go to the site , but luckily he would n't be one of the 343 firefighters killed .", "For the next hour , I 'm fairly sure that he watched what I watched , that he looked away when I looked away , and I am fairly sure that at 9:59 a.m. , when the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed , he felt exactly what I felt .", "What we all felt .", "I am also sure that those were the last pure , nonpoliticized thoughts any of us would have about that day , and the last time that my brother and I would feel the same way about anything for some time .", "Renting a car and driving home was our only option .", "At first I wanted to push through , to rush the family home .", "`` To what .", "`` my wife asked .", "`` To have our daughter watch her parents sit paralyzed in front of a television set .", "`` So we took our time , taking a scenic , non-traditional route back to New York .", "I got my information from fellow travelers and National Public Radio .", "I found comfort in the measured voices of `` All Things Considered , '' solace in `` I love New York '' signs in Georgia , inspiration in the words on Jefferson 's tombstone at Monticello , near Charlottesville , Va . , which noted that he was also one of the fathers of religious tolerance in this country .", "Meanwhile , my brother was getting his information from rescue workers and fellow firefighters .", "Because of his military background , his job in the years before the attack had included training recruits at the Fire Academy at Randalls Island .", "His job in the months ahead would be to coordinate funerals .", "Dozens of funerals .", "For friends and friends of friends , each with a story more tragic than the last .", "Late at night on Sept . 14 , my family slept as I drove through Pennsylvania .", "With no NPR to be had for the time being , I listened to sports guys weighing in on the Northern Alliance , D.J. ` s explaining the tenuous Pakistani-Afghani relationship .", "With each passing mile , more and more proselytizing and hate seeped into the views of the syndicated giants .", "Driving near Port Jervis , N.Y. , a state trooper pulled alongside our car and shined a spotlight inside while the rest of my family was sleeping .", "Four strangers in a red rental car with Florida plates .", "Suspects .", "To think that 9/11 drove a stake between my brother and me is as na\u00efve as thinking that it drove one through the country .", "Red and blue staters had been at each other 's throats for a while , and my brother and I had clashed on and off over lots of things for years .", "But this took it farther .", "He had been affected by it in ways I could not imagine .", "Of the 343 firefighters killed , he knew dozens .", "No one that I knew had died .", "Within a week , I would go back to work .", "For more than a year , he would go to funerals and I imagine that in addition to grief , a man with my brother 's courage and sense of duty must also have been dealing with a serious case of survivor 's guilt .", "But did that make his opinions -- which had become increasingly angry and pronounced -- right .", "Over the last five years we 've disagreed about everything from the 2000 and 2004 elections to the war in Iraq , radical Islam and of course , the liberal news media .", "For a while we tiptoed around politics but when we were together everything seemed political .", "For a while we did n't speak at all .", "But lately we 've been talking .", "I care too strongly for him to let politics destroy our relationship and I think he feels the same .", "The other day I called him .", "He had just gotten home from the hospital where a fellow firefighter , Lt . Howard Carpluk Jr . lay in critical condition from injuries suffered when the floor had given way in a burning Bronx building .", "Another firefighter , 25-year-old Michael Reilly , who had served in the Marines in Iraq , had already died .", "My brother told me he was there near Mayor Michael Bloomberg as the doctors gave them an update .", "-LRB- Lieutenant Carpluk died the following day . -RRB-", "My brother sounded tired .", "After some time , while discussing Labor Day plans , I told him that I 'd been invited to discuss my book on a conservative talk show in Boston and joked that I feared an ambush .", "He told me to tell them that my brother was a New York City firefighter , and maybe they 'd go easy on me .", "James P . Othmer is the author of the novel `` The Futurist . '' ."], "summary": ["Op-Ed article by James Othmer describes ways in which his relationship with his brother , veteran New York City firefighter who worked at World Trade Center site , changed after 9/11 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 59, 2], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788996", "text": ["To the Editor : In a Sept . 3 letter -LRB- `` New York Is Bike-Friendly '' -RRB- , Ryan Russo , the Department of Transportation 's director for street management and safety , states that he and his colleagues `` have to work hard to win local support for the bike lanes , as there is often significant community board and elected official opposition to these plans . ''", "We have been working for two years with Queens Community Board 9 to establish a bike path on the long-abandoned city-owned former Long Island Rail Road Rockaway Beach Branch right of way .", "Returning it to public use as a greenway would seem to be a no-brainer , especially considering it was on the city 's 1997 greenway master plan .", "The city , however , has been less than helpful .", "Last year the Department of City Planning obtained funding for a feasibility study for this proposal , but could not go ahead because they were unable to secure a required `` implementation partner , '' even though they approached the obvious choices : the Parks Department and Department of Transportation .", "We ourselves were rebuffed in a meeting with officials from the Parks Department , who suggested that we assume full responsibility for conducting a study and amassing the funds for implementation .", "Mr. Russo has our support .", "Do we have his .", "Jordan Sandke Richmond Hill , Queens The writer is chairman , Rockaway Beach Branch Greenway Committee .", "To the Editor : It 's great that the Department of Transportation is adding bike lanes to the streets of the city .", "Now if it could just persuade cyclists to use them instead of ignoring red lights , riding the wrong way on one-way streets , or on the sidewalk , and in general behaving as if traffic regulations do not apply to them .", "David Vaughan East Village ."], "summary": ["Letters from Greenway Committee Rockaway Beach branch chairman Jordan Sandke and David Vaughan on Ryan Russo 's September 3 letter on difficulty in winning local support for bike lanes in New York City ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 8, 11], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788997", "text": ["Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his schools chancellor , Joel Klein , believe there 's a great deal of savings to be had in restructuring the financial operations of the school system -- $ 200 million is a frequently quoted number .", "To obtain it , Mr. Klein has awarded a $ 15.8 , 18-month no-bid contract to a management consulting firm to do the overhauling .", "Mr. Bloomberg , who took control of the city 's schools four years ago , has always invited a `` buck stops here '' accountability for his efforts .", "We 're going to be waiting to see how well he and Mr. Klein deliver on his promise to make this questionable deal pay off .", "As of right now , the arguments that the contract could not be put out to competitive bidding seem thin .", "Mr. Klein 's choice was the consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal , a New York-based group that has stepped in to reorganize everything from the government of Orange County , Calif . , to the company that makes Twinkies .", "The firm also has experience working with school systems in St . Louis and New Orleans .", "The city 's Public Advocate , Betsy Gotbaum , is demanding an investigation of the consultants ' previous work with those two educational systems .", "That 's not unreasonable , but even if the work in St . Louis and New Orleans went well , finding ways to save money and streamline systems in a medium-sized city with completely dysfunctional schools is very different from working in New York , with its $ 15 billion budget , 1.1.", "million students and 80,000 teachers .", "For all its problems , New York 's system has also been the target of reform efforts by several different chancellors over the last decade .", "Many of the more obvious fixes have been made .", "But Mr. Klein , who first hired Alvarez & Marsal for a few months of work that was paid for by private donations , quickly signed the firm for the big project , which is being paid for by taxpayers and involves more money than all the department 's no-bid contracts awarded in the last fiscal year .", "He says the firm has already produced savings that has sent nearly $ 50 million to the schools for the hiring of more than 300 teachers and other workers .", "As they 've tackled a myriad of education problems , Mr. Bloomberg and Mr. Klein -- who both lack previous education management experience -- have frequently shown a lack of respect for the education department 's own experts .", "While both men clearly have the schools ' best interests at heart , it 's sometimes hard to tell whether their eagerness to reach outside for help is based on real need or a simple impatience with people who do n't fit the corporate model .", "And in the past they have not always been right .", "In 2003 , they rushed a no-bid contract to put Snapple soft drinks in the schools , a deal criticized by Comptroller Bill Thompson .", "It produced only a fraction of the profit promised .", "In the not-so-long-ago bad old days , whenever the Department of Education wanted to enter into a contract over $ 50,000 , an approval required a request for bids , a public hearing and a vote by the school board .", "Nobody wants to go back to that cumbersome process again .", "But in this case , the mayor and his schools chancellor have n't done the argument for expediency much good .", "The City ."], "summary": ["Editorial questions Mayor Michael Bloomberg and schools chancellor Joel Klein 's decision to award $ 15.8 million , 18-month no-bid contract to Alvarez & Marsal to overhaul financial operations of New York City school system ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 22], "tag": ["New York and Region", "Opinion"]} +{"id": "1788999", "text": ["STEPPING out of the 207th Street subway stop in Inwood , the last station on the A train , visitors from downtown Manhattan -LRB- that is , anywhere else on the island -RRB- can be forgiven for thinking they have reached the end of the earth .", "A mosaic on the station wall commemorates the end of the city 's longest subway line with the words `` At long last . ''", "And while the apartment buildings , at five or six stories , are just as tall as the ones beyond Inwood , the sky seems somehow bigger , or at least closer .", "Outside the station , the narrow strip of neighborhood is surrounded by river and parkland .", "Looming at the corner of Isham and Cooper Streets , behind a statue of Christ with a lamb on his shoulders , is the 70-year-old Church of the Good Shepherd , made of thick stone blocks that look as if they have risen out of the earth themselves .", "That is not what happened , of course .", "The Paulist Fathers , an order of Catholic priests , were there from 1911 on , there for the church 's construction , for its opening , for baptisms , weddings , funerals and everything else .", "Everything , that is , until 10 days ago .", "Shocking many parishioners , Paulist leaders announced in April that in the face of staffing problems , they would be leaving Good Shepherd behind .", "The decision led the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York to assume control of the struggling Good Shepherd School next door , replacing the principal , who had worked there for more than 20 years .", "The archdiocese has replaced the Paulists in the mostly Latino parish with members of the Capuchin Franciscan order , many of whose priests speak Spanish .", "The shift was first reported in The Manhattan Times , a bilingual weekly newspaper .", "For James Hamilton , a 34-year-old parishioner who is a member of the church 's men 's club and its Knights of Columbus chapter , the surprise was doubled .", "Late last year , he served on a committee aimed in part at helping the Paulists decide which of their churches to leave .", "At the time , the order decided to remain in Inwood .", "`` We would have understood more last year if they had made the decision as part of a process , but they decided to stay , '' Mr. Hamilton said last week .", "`` We were very shocked when this abrupt turnaround came : ' By the way , we 're leaving . '", "`` The man who made the surprise announcement at Sunday Masses in April , the Rev . John F . Duffy , president of the Paulist Fathers , said it came with '' a tremendous sense of sadness `` but was unavoidable .", "The order has dwindled to only 150 priests in the United States , Canada , Rome and Jerusalem , down from a high of 262 in the early 1960 's .", "And because the order 's priorities include evangelization and interfaith relations , he said , the everyday business of running churches is too time-consuming .", "`` The pastoral demand is such that you may have no time to do anything outside of parish work , '' Father Duffy said .", "`` Or , as in this case , you may think that in a couple more years you may not even be able to do the parish work adequately . ''", "The archdiocese hopes that the change in administration will also help shore up the school , which runs through eighth grade .", "According to Father Duffy , the school is in debt , and enrollment has dropped to barely 200 students , down from more than 1,200 in the mid-70 ` s .", "At noon on Wednesday , the sixth day of the Capuchin priests ' residence at the church , the Rev . Martin Curtin , the new pastor , celebrated Mass for about 60 people .", "They were scattered about the pews in the church 's cavernous interior , under an arching stone ceiling .", "Father Curtin was still moving his things to the church from his previous post in East New York , and the other priests in his order were moving from East Harlem , where their previous church , Our Lady Queen of the Angels , was awaiting final word on whether it will close .", "The words Father Curtin read , from the Gospel of Luke , were a goodbye of a sort that felt familiar , from Jesus to a group of his loyal followers who had tried to stop him from moving on .", "`` He said to them , ' To the other towns also I must proclaim good news of the Kingdom of God , ' '' Father Curtin read , `` ` because for this purpose I have been sent . '", "`` Street Level | Inwood E-mail : streetlevel@nytimes.com ."], "summary": ["Street Level column on decision by Paulist Fathers , order of Catholic priests , to leave Church of the Good Shepherd in Inwood section of Manhattan .", "Archdiocese of New York , assuming control of church and school , has replaced Paulists with members of Capuchin Franciscan order .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 9, 29], "tag": ["New York and Region"]} +{"id": "1789037", "text": ["Gussie Moran felt pretty before Maria Sharapova did .", "Cheekily pretty , for 1949 .", "In the face of a Wimbledon ban on all but the whitest attire , she flashed color and lace -- under her white hemline , on her naughty knickers .", "So began a decades-long line of ball-bashing beauties dressed by Ted Tinling with an eye toward putting a little after-hours into the afternoon .", "The glittery black cocktail number modeled by Sharapova in the last two weeks is less the latest mutation in the evolution of the tennis outfit than a return to the play-and-then-party frock of earlier generations .", "Which dress , then , belongs with which decade and player .", "It 's no longer a cinch to tell . a . -RRB- 1966 .", "Tinling may have loved to dress the Brazilian champion Maria Bueno most of all .", "`` She was an actress , '' he said in an interview with The Washington Post in 1989 .", "`` I would leave her alone for a few minutes and she would do her poses in front of the mirror and please herself about how the dress was going to look on her . ''", "Bueno won the Wimbledon singles title three times .", "b . -RRB- 1981 .", "Tracy Austin wore this Tinling dress when she beat Martina Navratilova to win her second United States Open singles title .", "c . -RRB- 1971 .", "Virginia Wade , the last Briton to win a Wimbledon singles title -LRB- in 1977 -RRB- , was a Tinling gal too . d . -RRB- 2006 .", "Do all Marias like to `` feel pretty , '' like the `` West Side Story '' Maria whose song accompanies Sharapova 's new Nike commercial .", "Maria Kirilenko , seeded No . 20 in the current Open , wore this pretty dress , designed by Stella McCartney for Adidas , before curtseying out in the third round .", "Answers : 1 .", "b . 2 .", "d . 3 .", "c . 4 .", "a MARY JO MURPHY The Basics ."], "summary": ["Women 's tennis outfits have evolved over past four decades .", "Photos of tennis dresses designed by Ted Tinling and Stella McCartney for Adidas ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 7], "tag": ["Week in Review"]} +{"id": "1789043", "text": ["OVER the last year , as Iran , Iraq and Lebanon have dominated headlines , hopes of gaining firmer control of a largely forgotten corner of the war on terrorism -- the lawless Pakistan-Afghanistan border region -- have quietly evaporated .", "On Tuesday , the Pakistani government signed a `` truce '' with militants who have resisted Pakistani military efforts to gain control of the region , which is roughly the size of Delaware .", "The agreement , which lets militants remain in the area as long as they promised to halt attacks , immediately set off concern among American analysts .", "Al Qaeda 's surviving leadership is suspected of using the border areas as a base of operation to support international terrorist attacks , including possibly the July 2005 London subway bombings .", "Meanwhile , the Taliban leadership is widely believed to be using another border area to direct spiraling attacks in Afghanistan .", "`` There 's a link with broader international terrorism , `` said Robert Grenier , the former top counterterrorism official for the Central Intelligence Agency .", "`` There 's a link with what is happening in Afghanistan .", "Al Qaeda , such as it is now , really has its center of gravity in the area . ``", "Last week 's truce agreement covers North Waziristan , an area on the Pakistani side of the border .", "After the Taliban fell in 2001 , senior Qaeda and Taliban leaders are believed to have fled there from Afghanistan and to other remote border areas in Pakistan .", "The locations of Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri remain unknown .", "But American officials suspect that they are somewhere along the border .", "After two attempts to assassinate President Pervez Musharraf in December 2003 were linked to the tribal areas , Pakistani officials expanded the military effort to subdue the region .", "But after suffering heavy casualties in 2004 and early 2005 , they began negotiating with local militants .", "Last year , Pakistan signed a separate agreement with militants in South Waziristan , but the move failed to slow the killing of government supporters .", "`` If you look at the number of deaths in the region , it 's not clear that they 've dropped , `` said Xenia Dormandy , former director for South Asia for the National Security Council .", "Signing such truces , she said , `` is a potentially dangerous route to take because there is little pressure that you can bring to bear to make sure they can follow through on the agreements . ''", "Two hundred miles to the south , the Taliban leadership is believed to have established a base of operations in and around the Pakistani city of Quetta , according to American analysts .", "Afghan officials say the Taliban used the area to plan and carry out sweeping attacks in southern Afghanistan in the spring .", "Pakistan has largely turned a blind eye to Taliban activities , American officials say , because it sees the group as a tool to counter growing Indian influence in Afghanistan .", "The Pakistanis have longed viewed a friendly Afghanistan as critical to their survival and fears India may be trying to encircle their country .", "At the same time , a separate uprising in Baluchistan province has tied up Pakistani soldiers .", "Ethnic Baluch tribesmen complain that Pakistan 's military government is not sharing enough of the profits from natural gas exploration with the locals .", "The killing last month of a charismatic tribal elder who was a rebel leader set off riots in several cities .", "`` Pakistan is essentially trying to put down a civil war in Baluchistan , '' said Ms. Dormandy , now an analyst at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard .", "`` At the same time , it 's trying to monitor its border with India , monitor the border of Afghanistan and bring down the Taliban and Al Qaeda . ``", "In Afghanistan , NATO forces that took control of security in the south from American forces this summer have been surprised by the size and strength of the Taliban insurgency .", "Roadside bomb attacks have doubled this year , and suicide bombings have tripled .", "Yesterday , a suicide bombing in Kabul killed at least 2 American soldiers and 14 Afghan civilians .", "All told this year , heavy clashes in eastern and southern Afghanistan have killed more than 100 American and NATO soldiers , roughly twice the number killed in the same period in 2005 .", "Since Aug . 1 alone , 28 NATO soldiers have been killed .", "Analysts say the problem in the border region is an explosive mix of conditions : a lack of government authority , a vast amount of weaponry and the rise of Islamic militancy .", "Until the 1980 's , the area was ruled by local tribes , whose brute self-government kept the population isolated and impoverished but allowed for a degree of stability .", "In the 1980 's , the American-backed anti-Soviet jihad unfolded in the region and began to wear away longstanding tribal structures .", "Huge piles of weapons and cash empowered Islamist organizations to open dozens of training camps , hard-line mosques and conservative religious schools along the border .", "In the 1990 's , the Taliban emerged there .", "Today , said Mr. Grenier , the former C.I.A. official , the only way to increase government authority in the rural areas on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border was to develop the impoverished rural areas over time .", "`` But that 's a generational process , `` said Mr. Grenier , now a managing director at Kroll Inc . , a security firm based in New York .", "This summer , local people interviewed in southern Afghanistan said they were unsure that the United States and NATO would remain committed to the long , expensive process of stabilizing the border region .", "This year , the United States cut its aid to Afghanistan by 30 percent .", "Al Qaeda and the Taliban are no doubt betting that time is on their side .", "THE WORLD ."], "summary": ["Pakistani government signs ` truce ' with militants who have resisted Pakistani military efforts to gain control of North Waziristan , lawless Pakistan-Afghanistan border region .", "Agreement allows militants to remain in area as long as they promise to halt attacks .", "American analysts are concerned because Al Qaeda 's surviving leadership is suspected of using border areas as base to support international terrorist attacks .", "Taliban leadership is widely believed to be using another border area to direct attacks in Afghanistan .", "Photo .", "Map ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 4, 1, 2], "tag": ["Washington", "Week in Review"]} +{"id": "1789044", "text": ["WHEN Steve Irwin died last week , the world lost an entertainer who could command an audience by jumping on crocodiles and manhandling snakes .", "But Mr. Irwin , who was 44 when he was killed by a stingray on the Great Barrier Reef , was more than a showman .", "For better and worse , as the star of `` The Crocodile Hunter '' and other nature programs he was the modern face of wildlife conservation .", "`` I sort of see him as the ' Mutual of Omaha ' for Generation X , `` said Eric Dinerstein , chief scientist and vice president for science of the World Wildlife Fund .", "Since 1992 , when he filmed his first wildlife special , Mr. Irwin had helped set the standard for a new genre of nature shows , one where the host shared the stage with the animals .", "Mr. Irwin poked and grabbed crocodiles , snakes and other wild creatures , often seeming to defy death in the process .", "His in-your-croc ` s-face approach was different from conventional documentary fare that typically kept the camera and the host at zoom-lens distance from the wildlife .", "`` He 's a far cry from David Attenborough , `` said Thane Maynard , interim director of the Cincinnati Zoo and host of the National Public Radio program '' 90 Second Naturalist . ``", "`` Steve Irwin 's more at the level of the kid 's wildlife program , laced with danger and adventure . ``", "Jack Hanna , the longtime host of wildlife shows , said that Mr. Irwin 's program `` was a whole new thing '' when it first appeared on the cable channel Animal Planet in 1996 .", "`` The Crocodile Hunter '' attracted younger viewers who might be bored by the staid style of `` Mutual of Omaha 's Wild Kingdom `` or an Attenborough documentary , but who would eagerly watch Mr. Irwin sloshing around with his charges .", "`` You can either like how he does it , or not like it , '' said Mr. Hanna , who added that Mr. Irwin always laced his programs with information about animals and conservation .", "Mr. Irwin 's approach was part of an evolution of how nature was portrayed on television , Dr. Dinerstein said .", "`` Twenty years ago , you almost never saw the predator catch the prey on film .", "Now , it 's a requirement . ``", "Conservationists said that in his interactions with animals , Mr. Irwin seemed to know what he was doing .", "But Steven Sanderson , president and chief executive of the Wildlife Conservation Society , said his biggest contribution was his enthusiasm .", "`` One of the greatest challenges we face as conservationists is people do n't care , `` Dr. Sanderson said .", "`` He really made people crazy about encounters with the wild . ''", "But other than inspiring viewers to care about wildlife , what kind of conservation message did Mr. Irwin deliver with his antic showmanship .", "`` There 's a circus-like atmosphere to it , `` said Eugene Linden , whose books on animals and intelligence include '' The Octopus and the Orangutan . ``", "`` How does that make for conservation .", "The implicit message is that animals are only interesting if they are dangerous or extreme . ``", "Alan Thornhill , executive director of the Society for Conservation Biology , knows how that message can sink in .", "When he was a teacher , Dr. Thornhill said , he used to travel with students to tropical rainforests .", "Before leaving he would often get calls from parents concerned about safety .", "`` They 'd have seen all the poisonous snakes on TV shows and they knew how dangerous it is , `` Dr. Thornhill said .", "`` My response always was , ' Your child is safer with me in a tropical rainforest than he is driving on the freeway . '", "`` Conservationists should be able to consider the merits of Mr. Irwin 's approach for a long time , as his shows will no doubt continue in reruns .", "But like the animals they showcase , nature shows keep evolving .", "That , Mr. Hanna said , is a problem .", "Mr. Irwin 's success has spawned imitators who have taken his approach even farther .", "In MTV 's `` Wildboyz , '' for example , the stars have been intentionally stung by a scorpion and bitten by a snapping turtle .", "`` My big concern is the Steve Irwin wannabes , '' Mr. Hanna said .", "`` I do n't know if that 's the thing we want to portray about conservation if it 's really blood and guts out there . ``", "Animal Nature ."], "summary": ["Steve Irwin was showman , entertainer and face of wildlife conservation for new generation .", "Some conservationists say his biggest contribution was his enthusiasm .", "Others say Irwin 's success spawned troubling imitators who do not have sufficient knowledge or consider safety .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 31], "tag": ["Week in Review"]} +{"id": "1789045", "text": ["THE Web site for an outfit called Term Paper Relief features a picture of a young college student chewing her lip .", "`` Damn ! '' a little comic-strip balloon says .", "`` I 'll have to cancel my Saturday night date to finish my term paper before the Monday deadline . ``", "Well , no , she wo n't -- not if she 's enterprising enough to enlist Term Paper Relief to write it for her .", "For $ 9.95 a page she can obtain an `` A-grade '' paper that is fashioned to order and `` completely non-plagiarized . ''", "This last detail is important .", "Thanks to search engines like Google , college instructors have become adept at spotting those shop-worn , downloadable papers that circulate freely on the Web , and can even finger passages that have been ripped off from standard texts and reference works .", "A grade-conscious student these days seems to need a custom job , and to judge from the number of services on the Internet , there must be virtual mills somewhere employing armies of diligent scholars who grind away so that credit-card-equipped undergrads can enjoy more carefree time together .", "How good are the results .", "With first semester just getting under way at most colleges , bringing with it the certain prospect of both academic and social pressure , The Times decided to undertake an experiment in quality control of the current offerings .", "Using her own name and her personal e-mail address , an editor ordered three English literature papers from three different sites on standard , often-assigned topics : one comparing and contrasting Huxley 's `` Brave New World '' and Orwell 's `` 1984 '' .", "One discussing the nature of Ophelia 's madness in `` Hamlet '' .", "And one exploring the theme of colonialism in Conrad 's `` Lord Jim . ''", "A small sample , perhaps , but one sufficient , upon perusal , to suggest that papers written to order are just like the ones students write for themselves , only more so -- they 're poorly organized , awkwardly phrased , thin on substance , but masterly in the ancient arts of padding and stating and restating the obvious .", "If they 're delivered , that is .", "The `` Lord Jim '' essay , ordered from SuperiorPapers.com, never arrived , despite repeated entreaties , and the excuse finally offered was a high-tech variant of `` The dog ate my homework . ''", "The writer assigned to the task , No . 3323 , was `` obviously facing some technical difficulties , '' an e-mail message explained , `` and can not upload your paper . ''", "The message went on to ask for a 24-hour extension , the wheeziest stratagem in the procrastinator 's arsenal , invented long before the electronic age .", "The two other papers came in on time , and each grappled , more or less , with the assigned topic .", "The Orwell / Huxley essay , prepared by Term Paper Relief and a relative bargain at $ 49.75 for five pages , begins : `` Although many similarities exist between Aldous Huxley 's ` A Brave New World ' and George Orwell 's ` 1984 , ' the works books -LSB- sic -RSB- though they deal with similar topics , are more dissimilar than alike . ''", "That 's certainly a relief , because we could n't have an essay if they were n't .", "Elsewhere the author proves highly adept with the `` on the one hand / on the other '' formula , one of the most valuable tools for a writer concerned with attaining his assigned word count , and says , for example , of `` Brave New World '' : `` Many people consider this Huxley 's most important work : many others think it is his only work .", "This novel has been praised and condemned , vilified and glorified , a source of controversy , a subject for sermons , and required reading for many high school students and college undergraduates .", "This novel has had twenty-seven printings in the United States alone and will probably have twenty-seven more . ``", "The obvious point of comparison between the two novels is that where Orwell 's world is an authoritarian , police-state nightmare , Huxley 's dystopia is ostensibly a paradise , with drugs and sex available on demand .", "A clever student might even pick up some extra credit by pointing out that while Orwell meant his book as a kind of predictive warning , it is Huxley 's world , much more far-fetched at the time of writing , that now more nearly resembles our own .", "The essay never exactly makes these points , though it gets close a couple of times , declaring at one point that `` the two works vary greatly . ''", "It also manages to remind us that Orwell 's real name was Eric Blair and that both he and his book `` are misunderstood to this day . ''", "The paper does makes a number of embarrassing spelling errors -LRB- `` dissention , '' `` anti-semetic '' -RRB- but William H . Pritchard , an English professor at Amherst , who read the paper at The Times 's request , shrewdly suggested that , in this day of spell check , they may have been included deliberately , to throw suspicious teachers off the track .", "If confronted with such a paper from one of his own students , he wrote in an e-mail message , he probably would n't grade it at all but would instead say `` come see me '' -LRB- shuddering at the prospect -RRB- .", "The Hamlet essay was a trick assignment , or perhaps a poorly worded one .", "Ophelia 's genuine madness , as opposed to Hamlet 's feigned craziness , has become a touchstone in Shakespeare studies , especially among feminist and gender studies scholars who read in Ophelia 's songs and fragmentary utterances a coded response to the irrationality and sexual repression of the Elizabethan patriarchy .", "The author of the four-page paper , supplied by Go-Essays for $ 127.96 , approaches the question more literally and concludes , not incorrectly , that Ophelia is literally driven crazy by her father , brother and lover -- or as the essay puts it : `` Thus , in critical review of the play , Ophelia mentally suffers from the scars of unwanted love and exploitation rather than any singular or isolated cause . ''", "The paper goes on to repeat this point with so much plot summary and quotation from the text that it soars right to the assigned length .", "It 's also written in language so stilted and often ungrammatical -LRB- `` Hamlet is obviously hurt by Ophelia 's lack of affection to his vows of love `` -RRB- that it suggests the author may not be a native speaker of English , and even makes you suspect that some of these made-to-order term papers are written by the very same people who pick up the phone when you call to complain about your credit card bill .", "He added : `` If I had paid for this , I would demand my money back . ''", "As it happens , a refund is just what Superior Papers offered , along with a 10 percent discount on a new paper .", "Term paper writing is an arduous business , we need to remember , and we should n't expect too much .", "As the author of the Orwell / Huxley essay says : `` It is so often that one wants something and in wanting romanticizes it , thus bringing disappointment when the end is finally obtained .", "They serve as a reminder that it is necessary to have pain to compare with joy , defeat to compare with victory , and problems in order to have solutions . ``", "Outsourcing Homework ."], "summary": ["Web sites claim that college students can buy customized , ` completely non-plagiarized ' term papers online .", "College instructors are becoming adept at using search engines to identify these papers .", "Three papers purchased for article are found to be poorly organized and unsubstantial ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 8], "tag": ["Technology", "Education", "Week in Review"]} +{"id": "1789046", "text": ["SOME debates are so polarized , with the competing sides so certain that any compromise would be dangerous , that it 's hard to imagine any middle ground emerging .", "The argument over how to try the 14 terror suspects recently transferred from Central Intelligence Agency prisons to military custody at Guant\u00e1namo Bay seems to be one of them .", "On one side is the Bush administration , which last week proposed that these suspects , whom it called the most dangerous in the war on terror , should be tried in military commissions under procedures that the White House asked Congress to endorse .", "Under the Bush proposal , the trials would not resemble any civilian trials or courts-martial held in the United States .", "Hearsay evidence and evidence obtained under coercion or duress could be admitted .", "And suspects could be denied access to classified evidence , although it would be disclosed to their military defense lawyers .", "On the other side of this debate are civil libertarians who insist that suspected terrorists ca n't receive fair trials unless they are given the protections of an ordinary court-martial -- including the right to exclude hearsay and coerced evidence and the right to see evidence against them .", "So , what 's a fair trial and how much due process does it require .", "Can the suspected terrorists be tried by a tribunal that lacks some of the protections that military defendants ordinarily demand .", "Surprisingly enough , this is not a debate about what the law requires .", "Short of endorsing cruel and unusual punishments for terrorists , Congress can set up whatever military commissions it likes .", "`` The administration 's proposals , if adopted by Congress , would almost surely pass muster with the Supreme Court , `` said Peter Spiro , who teaches international law at Temple University .", "`` Congress may not have complete carte blanche , but in the Hamdan case last June , four of the justices who voted against the commissions stressed that the president could always go back to Congress to get the authority he wanted . ''", "The issue , then , is more about the court of public opinion : how a trial , without the customary procedural rights , would be perceived in the United States and abroad .", "Inevitably , the military commissions , whatever form they take , will be compared to the Nuremberg trials in which Nazi war crime defendants were given due process -- up to a point .", "`` At Nuremberg , there was no secret evidence and no closed proceedings that the defendants ' counsel was excluded from , although it 's not clear how much physical access to the evidence the individual defendants had , `` said John Barrett , who teaches at St . John 's University law school .", "`` Hearsay and evidence produced by coercive methods were n't formally excluded by the Nuremberg charter , but the American interrogators did n't do rough stuff like water boarding -- although there might have been a corner or two cut that the coercion standard would find troubling . ``", "Many want the United States to meet this Nuremberg standard , which they believe gave it authority and credibility over the next half century to serve as a global model of due process .", "`` The trials should n't differ fundamentally from the fair trial provisions in any trial , especially when you have the potential death penalty or life in prison , `` said Richard Goldstone , the South African chief prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda .", "`` To exclude a defendant from any part of the trial , or to withhold evidence from the defendant , seems to me , by any civilized standard , outside what is acceptable . ''", "He added , `` The other objectionable provision is that evidence would be admitted even if obtained under duress or torture . ''", "But other legal scholars say that this is a different time .", "For one thing , they point out , the war is not over .", "`` In a war situation , international commissions often use hearsay as long as it 's reliable , `` said Jack Goldsmith of Harvard Law School , who led the Office of Legal Counsel under President Bush .", "Other scholars who defend the administration argue that national security can not be compromised .", "`` The issue of access to classified information is pivotal , '' says John Yoo , who helped the Bush administration draft an earlier version of the proposed commissions and who now teaches law at University of California , Berkeley .", "In his new book , `` War By Other Means , '' Professor Yoo argues that in the first World Trade Center bombing case in 1993 , prosecutors had to give the defense a list of 200 unindicted co-conspirators .", "The list , he writes , was `` delivered to bin Laden '' `` and '' was later found during the investigation of the African embassy bombings . ``", "Republicans in Congress are now negotiating with the Bush administration on a series of compromises .", "The military commissions may operate closer to the Nuremberg standard , but give the administration some of the authority it seeks .", "For example , one proposal would allow the use of hearsay and evidence obtained through coercion short of torture , while refusing to allow the use of evidence not disclosed to the defendant .", "Could this satisfy critics .", "Some legal scholars suggest that a trial conducted along these lines could have international legitimacy as well as meeting basic standards of due process .", "Even Mr. Goldstone , the chief prosecutor for the U.N. tribunals , says that jettisoning the use of secret evidence would remove the `` most objectionable '' part of the proposal .", "Professor Spiro of Temple University agrees .", "`` The Republican moderates ' proposal would come a lot closer to satisfying international opinion , and in part because it 's coming from the Senate and not the administration , `` he said .", "Still , the atmospherics of the trial , and the fact that the defendants face the death penalty , may make it harder for the verdict to be internationally accepted .", "`` Guant\u00e1namo is now a rallying cry in Europe , so any trials that take place there will be tainted by that fact alone , '' Professor Spiro said .", "`` The administration would be well advised to allow the proceedings to be televised to avoid the image of a show trial . ''", "But televised proceedings might give the defendants a political platform to hijack the proceedings .", "`` There 's always a danger that this will degenerate into a political circus , `` says Professor Goldsmith .", "`` Slobodan Milosevic used the trial against him as a political platform , and Saddam Hussein is doing the same thing .", "The more procedural rights you give the defendant , the more you allow him to continue the war by other means . ``", "Professor Goldsmith says the debate about what a fair trial requires will continue throughout every stage of the terrorist trials -- from the initial indictments to the actual trials to the Supreme Court appeals that would follow any death sentence .", "`` There 's a trade-off , `` he said .", "`` You can clamp down on access , but you do so at the cost of the perception of fairness , and finding the right balance of fairness and control is very hard . ''", "IDEAS & TRENDS Jeffrey Rosen 's latest book is `` The Most Democratic Branch : How the Courts Serve America . ''", "Editors ' Note : September 17 , 2006 , Sunday An article last Sunday reported on the debate over how to try 14 terror suspects recently transferred to United States military custody .", "The Bush administration has proposed that the suspects be tried in military commissions under procedures the White House has presented to Congress , including rules that would allow the admission of evidence obtained under coercion or duress .", "Civil libertarians , on the other hand , say the suspects should get the stronger due-process protections of an ordinary court-martial .", "The article included comment from Richard Goldstone , the South African chief prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda , who objected to the provision `` that evidence would be admitted even if obtained under duress or torture . ''", "The administration disputes this characterization of the proposed rules , saying they do prohibit the introduction of evidence obtained through torture .", "The article should have included this viewpoint , and should have reflected the fact that part of the debate is about how the term `` torture '' is interpreted ."], "summary": ["Polarizing debate over how to try 14 terror suspects who have been transferred to military custody at Guantanamo Bay is not only argument between Bush administration and civil libertarians , but public opinion debate over how trial would be perceived in US and abroad .", "Many people want US to meet standard of Nuremberg trials , which they believe gave it authority and credibility to serve as global model of due process .", "Some legal scholars say trials should include usual fair trial provisions .", "Others say this is different time and war is not over .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [17, 1, 21, 13, 22], "tag": ["Week in Review"]} +{"id": "1789047", "text": ["In a directive whose logic is not always apparent , the Transportation Security Administration has spelled out what airline passengers can carry on board with them , what must be placed in checked luggage , and what ca n't go on the plane at all .", "Knives must be checked but knitting needles and corkscrews are allowed in the cabin .", "Up to four ounces of eye drops can be carried aboard , with fingers crossed that multiple terrorists wo n't combine their allotments to exceed the limit .", "Laptops , digital cameras , mobile phones and other electronic devices are permitted , so never mind any warnings you 've heard that they could be used to trigger a bomb .", "The bomb ingredients themselves , notably liquid explosives , will be kept out of the cabin by a ban on liquids , gels and lotions , except for small amounts of baby formula and medications .", "The ban on liquids surely makes sense given the lack of a reliable , efficient way to detect liquid explosives on the passenger screening line .", "But the other fine distinctions in this directive make us think the best approach would be a ban on virtually all carry -on items , or at least a limit of one small personal bag per passenger to tote travel documents , keys , vital medications , reading materials and any other minimal items that are allowed .", "There 's a lot to be said for a drastic reduction in what can be carried aboard .", "Passenger security lines would move faster if there were little or nothing for the screeners to screen .", "Passengers could be boarded faster and more comfortably if they were n't clogging the aisles while stuffing bags in the overhead bins .", "Most important , security would probably be enhanced .", "If a terrorist somehow slipped onto your flight , he would n't have bomb materials with him , or much of anything else for that matter .", "And his bags would get tougher scrutiny because the machines that screen checked luggage are said to be better at detecting explosives and other dangerous materials than the metal detectors and X-ray machines used for screening passengers and their carry -on bags .", "The chief downside , from a security standpoint , is that a greater burden would be placed on the lines that screen checked baggage , which in some airports are already overstretched .", "That raises the risk that screeners will rush checked bags through with inadequate scrutiny of the images of their contents , or that bags will back up and flights will be delayed to wait for them to be loaded .", "Still , that should not be a problem beyond the ingenuity of aviation planners .", "The handful of airports that already have big explosive-detection machines integrated into their baggage conveyor systems ought to be able to handle the load easily .", "When we raised the possibility of a ban on most carry -on items a month ago , there was a chorus of complaints from travelers who count on using their laptops during the flight .", "Or fear that valuable electronic devices might be lost , broken or stolen if checked .", "Or resent long waits after a flight to get their checked bags .", "Some travelers have already shifted to trains or automobiles for short trips and more will do so if the inconvenience mounts .", "These are not trivial issues .", "Airlines , already financially strapped , depend on business fliers who are the most likely to object to a change in the rules .", "Airlines could head off some of these problems by , for example , storing valuable electronic devices in locked overhead bins where they ca n't easily be stolen , and hiring more baggage handlers to unload planes rapidly .", "Separating people from their laptops during flights would be painful , although some people could surely use the time to go over reading material , or even revert to pen and paper .", "A ban on most carry -on items need not be permanent .", "Technologies that could screen passengers and their carry -on bags rapidly to detect known dangerous materials are under development , but it is uncertain when they might be ready .", "Even then , sophisticated terrorists will always look for new tactics to evade detection .", "For now , the surest way to keep dangerous materials out of the cabin is to keep virtually all materials out of the cabin .", "Editorial ."], "summary": ["Editorial calls for ban on most airline carry -on items until technologies are developed that can screen passengers and their carry -on bags rapidly to detect dangerous materials .", "Holds that new Transportation Security Adm directive regarding carry -on is confusing and that virtual ban of carry -on items would speed passenger screening and enhance security ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [26, 25, 29], "tag": ["Opinion"]} diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/Callback.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/Callback.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..7f2e01c0 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/Callback.py @@ -0,0 +1,135 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +import os +import sys +import time +import numpy as np + +import torch + +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.io.model_io import ModelSaver +from fastNLP.core.callback import Callback, EarlyStopError + +from tools.logger import * + +class TrainCallback(Callback): + def __init__(self, hps, patience=3, quit_all=True): + super().__init__() + self._hps = hps + self.patience = patience + self.wait = 0 + + if type(quit_all) != bool: + raise ValueError("In KeyBoardInterrupt, quit_all arguemnt must be a bool.") + self.quit_all = quit_all + + def on_epoch_begin(self): + self.epoch_start_time = time.time() + + # def on_loss_begin(self, batch_y, predict_y): + # """ + # + # :param batch_y: dict + # input_len: [batch, N] + # :param predict_y: dict + # p_sent: [batch, N, 2] + # :return: + # """ + # input_len = batch_y[Const.INPUT_LEN] + # batch_y[Const.TARGET] = batch_y[Const.TARGET] * ((1 - input_len) * -100) + # # predict_y["p_sent"] = predict_y["p_sent"] * input_len.unsqueeze(-1) + # # logger.debug(predict_y["p_sent"][0:5,:,:]) + + def on_backward_begin(self, loss): + """ + + :param loss: [] + :return: + """ + if not (np.isfinite(loss.data)).numpy(): + logger.error("train Loss is not finite. Stopping.") + logger.info(loss) + for name, param in self.model.named_parameters(): + if param.requires_grad: + logger.info(name) + logger.info(param.grad.data.sum()) + raise Exception("train Loss is not finite. Stopping.") + + + def on_backward_end(self): + if self._hps.grad_clip: + torch.nn.utils.clip_grad_norm_(self.model.parameters(), self._hps.max_grad_norm) + + def on_epoch_end(self): + logger.info(' | end of epoch {:3d} | time: {:5.2f}s | ' + .format(self.epoch, (time.time() - self.epoch_start_time))) + + + def on_valid_begin(self): + self.valid_start_time = time.time() + + def on_valid_end(self, eval_result, metric_key, optimizer, is_better_eval): + logger.info(' | end of valid {:3d} | time: {:5.2f}s | ' + .format(self.epoch, (time.time() - self.valid_start_time))) + + # early stop + if not is_better_eval: + if self.wait == self.patience: + train_dir = os.path.join(self._hps.save_root, "train") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(self.model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + raise EarlyStopError("Early stopping raised.") + else: + self.wait += 1 + else: + self.wait = 0 + + # lr descent + if self._hps.lr_descent: + new_lr = max(5e-6, self._hps.lr / (self.epoch + 1)) + for param_group in list(optimizer.param_groups): + param_group['lr'] = new_lr + logger.info("[INFO] The learning rate now is %f", new_lr) + + def on_exception(self, exception): + if isinstance(exception, KeyboardInterrupt): + logger.error("[Error] Caught keyboard interrupt on worker. Stopping supervisor...") + train_dir = os.path.join(self._hps.save_root, "train") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(self.model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + + if self.quit_all is True: + sys.exit(0) # 直接退出程序 + else: + pass + else: + raise exception # 抛出陌生Error + + + + + + + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/Encoder.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/Encoder.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..f77944a6 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/Encoder.py @@ -0,0 +1,562 @@ +from __future__ import absolute_import +from __future__ import division +from __future__ import print_function + +import numpy as np + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +import torch.nn.functional as F +from torch.autograd import * +import torch.nn.init as init + +import data +from tools.logger import * +from transformer.Models import get_sinusoid_encoding_table + +class Encoder(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps, vocab): + super(Encoder, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self._vocab = vocab + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + vocab_size = len(vocab) + logger.info("[INFO] Vocabulary size is %d", vocab_size) + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # word embedding + self.embed = nn.Embedding(vocab_size, embed_size, padding_idx=vocab.word2id('[PAD]')) + if hps.word_embedding: + word2vec = data.Word_Embedding(hps.embedding_path, vocab) + word_vecs = word2vec.load_my_vecs(embed_size) + # pretrained_weight = word2vec.add_unknown_words_by_zero(word_vecs, embed_size) + pretrained_weight = word2vec.add_unknown_words_by_avg(word_vecs, embed_size) + pretrained_weight = np.array(pretrained_weight) + self.embed.weight.data.copy_(torch.from_numpy(pretrained_weight)) + self.embed.weight.requires_grad = hps.embed_train + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def forward(self, input): + # input: a batch of Example object [batch_size, N, seq_len] + vocab = self._vocab + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + input = input.view(-1, input.size(2)) # [batch_size*N, L] + input_sent_len = ((input!=vocab.word2id('[PAD]')).sum(dim=1)).int() # [batch_size*N, 1] + enc_embed_input = self.embed(input) # [batch_size*N, L, D] + + input_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, sentlen + 1), np.zeros(self.sent_max_len - sentlen))) for sentlen in input_sent_len]) + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding + +class DomainEncoder(Encoder): + def __init__(self, hps, vocab, domaindict): + super(DomainEncoder, self).__init__(hps, vocab) + + # domain embedding + self.domain_embedding = nn.Embedding(domaindict.size(), hps.domain_emb_dim) + self.domain_embedding.weight.requires_grad = True + + def forward(self, input, domain): + """ + :param input: [batch_size, N, seq_len], N sentence number, seq_len token number + :param domain: [batch_size] + :return: sent_embedding: [batch_size, N, Co * kernel_sizes] + """ + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + sent_embedding = super().forward(input) + enc_domain_input = self.domain_embedding(domain) # [batch, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.unsqueeze(1).expand(batch_size, N, -1) # [batch, N, D] + sent_embedding = torch.cat((sent_embedding, enc_domain_input), dim=2) + return sent_embedding + +class MultiDomainEncoder(Encoder): + def __init__(self, hps, vocab, domaindict): + super(MultiDomainEncoder, self).__init__(hps, vocab) + + self.domain_size = domaindict.size() + + # domain embedding + self.domain_embedding = nn.Embedding(self.domain_size, hps.domain_emb_dim) + self.domain_embedding.weight.requires_grad = True + + def forward(self, input, domain): + """ + :param input: [batch_size, N, seq_len], N sentence number, seq_len token number + :param domain: [batch_size, domain_size] + :return: sent_embedding: [batch_size, N, Co * kernel_sizes] + """ + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + # logger.info(domain[:5, :]) + + sent_embedding = super().forward(input) + domain_padding = torch.arange(self.domain_size).unsqueeze(0).expand(batch_size, -1) + domain_padding = domain_padding.cuda().view(-1) if self._hps.cuda else domain_padding.view(-1) # [batch * domain_size] + + enc_domain_input = self.domain_embedding(domain_padding) # [batch * domain_size, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.view(batch_size, self.domain_size, -1) * domain.unsqueeze(-1).float() # [batch, domain_size, D] + + # logger.info(enc_domain_input[:5,:]) # [batch, domain_size, D] + + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.sum(1) / domain.sum(1).float().unsqueeze(-1) # [batch, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.unsqueeze(1).expand(batch_size, N, -1) # [batch, N, D] + sent_embedding = torch.cat((sent_embedding, enc_domain_input), dim=2) + return sent_embedding + + +class BertEncoder(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps): + super(BertEncoder, self).__init__() + + from pytorch_pretrained_bert.modeling import BertModel + + self._hps = hps + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + self._cuda = hps.cuda + + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # word embedding + self._bert = BertModel.from_pretrained("/remote-home/dqwang/BERT/pre-train/uncased_L-24_H-1024_A-16") + self._bert.eval() + for p in self._bert.parameters(): + p.requires_grad = False + + self.word_embedding_proj = nn.Linear(4096, embed_size) + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def pad_encoder_input(self, input_list): + """ + :param input_list: N [seq_len, hidden_state] + :return: enc_sent_input_pad: list, N [max_len, hidden_state] + """ + max_len = self.sent_max_len + enc_sent_input_pad = [] + _, hidden_size = input_list[0].size() + for i in range(len(input_list)): + article_words = input_list[i] # [seq_len, hidden_size] + seq_len = article_words.size(0) + if seq_len > max_len: + pad_words = article_words[:max_len, :] + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._cuda else torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size) + pad_words = torch.cat([article_words, pad_tensor], dim=0) + enc_sent_input_pad.append(pad_words) + return enc_sent_input_pad + + def forward(self, inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len): + """ + + :param inputs: a batch of Example object [batch_size, doc_len=512] + :param input_masks: 0 or 1, [batch, doc_len=512] + :param enc_sent_len: sentence original length [batch, N] + :return: + """ + + + # Use Bert to get word embedding + batch_size, N = enc_sent_len.size() + input_pad_list = [] + for i in range(batch_size): + tokens_id = inputs[i] + input_mask = input_masks[i] + sent_len = enc_sent_len[i] + input_ids = tokens_id.unsqueeze(0) + input_mask = input_mask.unsqueeze(0) + + out, _ = self._bert(input_ids, token_type_ids=None, attention_mask=input_mask) + out = torch.cat(out[-4:], dim=-1).squeeze(0) # [doc_len=512, hidden_state=4096] + + _, hidden_size = out.size() + + # restore the sentence + last_end = 1 + enc_sent_input = [] + for length in sent_len: + if length != 0 and last_end < 511: + enc_sent_input.append(out[last_end: min(511, last_end + length), :]) + last_end += length + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._hps.cuda else torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size) + enc_sent_input.append(pad_tensor) + + + # pad the sentence + enc_sent_input_pad = self.pad_encoder_input(enc_sent_input) # [N, seq_len, hidden_state=4096] + input_pad_list.append(torch.stack(enc_sent_input_pad)) + + input_pad = torch.stack(input_pad_list) + + input_pad = input_pad.view(batch_size*N, self.sent_max_len, -1) + enc_sent_len = enc_sent_len.view(-1) # [batch_size*N] + enc_embed_input = self.word_embedding_proj(input_pad) # [batch_size * N, L, D] + + sent_pos_list = [] + for sentlen in enc_sent_len: + sent_pos = list(range(1, min(self.sent_max_len, sentlen) + 1)) + for k in range(self.sent_max_len - sentlen): + sent_pos.append(0) + sent_pos_list.append(sent_pos) + input_pos = torch.Tensor(sent_pos_list).long() + + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding + + +class BertTagEncoder(BertEncoder): + def __init__(self, hps, domaindict): + super(BertTagEncoder, self).__init__(hps) + + # domain embedding + self.domain_embedding = nn.Embedding(domaindict.size(), hps.domain_emb_dim) + self.domain_embedding.weight.requires_grad = True + + def forward(self, inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len, domain): + sent_embedding = super().forward(inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len) + + batch_size, N = enc_sent_len.size() + + enc_domain_input = self.domain_embedding(domain) # [batch, D] + enc_domain_input = enc_domain_input.unsqueeze(1).expand(batch_size, N, -1) # [batch, N, D] + sent_embedding = torch.cat((sent_embedding, enc_domain_input), dim=2) + + return sent_embedding + +class ELMoEndoer(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps): + super(ELMoEndoer, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + from allennlp.modules.elmo import Elmo + + elmo_dim = 1024 + options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_options.json" + weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_weights.hdf5" + + # elmo_dim = 512 + # options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_options.json" + # weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_weights.hdf5" + + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # elmo embedding + self.elmo = Elmo(options_file, weight_file, 1, dropout=0) + self.embed_proj = nn.Linear(elmo_dim, embed_size) + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def forward(self, input): + # input: a batch of Example object [batch_size, N, seq_len, character_len] + + batch_size, N, seq_len, _ = input.size() + input = input.view(batch_size * N, seq_len, -1) # [batch_size*N, seq_len, character_len] + input_sent_len = ((input.sum(-1)!=0).sum(dim=1)).int() # [batch_size*N, 1] + logger.debug(input_sent_len.view(batch_size, -1)) + enc_embed_input = self.elmo(input)['elmo_representations'][0] # [batch_size*N, L, D] + enc_embed_input = self.embed_proj(enc_embed_input) + + # input_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, sentlen + 1), np.zeros(self.sent_max_len - sentlen))) for sentlen in input_sent_len]) + + sent_pos_list = [] + for sentlen in input_sent_len: + sent_pos = list(range(1, min(self.sent_max_len, sentlen) + 1)) + for k in range(self.sent_max_len - sentlen): + sent_pos.append(0) + sent_pos_list.append(sent_pos) + input_pos = torch.Tensor(sent_pos_list).long() + + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding + +class ELMoEndoer2(nn.Module): + def __init__(self, hps): + super(ELMoEndoer2, self).__init__() + + self._hps = hps + self._cuda = hps.cuda + self.sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + from allennlp.modules.elmo import Elmo + + elmo_dim = 1024 + options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_options.json" + weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x4096_512_2048cnn_2xhighway_5.5B_weights.hdf5" + + # elmo_dim = 512 + # options_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_options.json" + # weight_file = "/remote-home/dqwang/ELMo/elmo_2x2048_256_2048cnn_1xhighway_weights.hdf5" + + embed_size = hps.word_emb_dim + sent_max_len = hps.sent_max_len + + input_channels = 1 + out_channels = hps.output_channel + min_kernel_size = hps.min_kernel_size + max_kernel_size = hps.max_kernel_size + width = embed_size + + # elmo embedding + self.elmo = Elmo(options_file, weight_file, 1, dropout=0) + self.embed_proj = nn.Linear(elmo_dim, embed_size) + + # position embedding + self.position_embedding = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained(get_sinusoid_encoding_table(sent_max_len + 1, embed_size, padding_idx=0), freeze=True) + + # cnn + self.convs = nn.ModuleList([nn.Conv2d(input_channels, out_channels, kernel_size = (height, width)) for height in range(min_kernel_size, max_kernel_size+1)]) + logger.info("[INFO] Initing W for CNN.......") + for conv in self.convs: + init_weight_value = 6.0 + init.xavier_normal_(conv.weight.data, gain=np.sqrt(init_weight_value)) + fan_in, fan_out = Encoder.calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(conv.weight.data) + std = np.sqrt(init_weight_value) * np.sqrt(2.0 / (fan_in + fan_out)) + + def calculate_fan_in_and_fan_out(tensor): + dimensions = tensor.ndimension() + if dimensions < 2: + logger.error("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + raise ValueError("[Error] Fan in and fan out can not be computed for tensor with less than 2 dimensions") + + if dimensions == 2: # Linear + fan_in = tensor.size(1) + fan_out = tensor.size(0) + else: + num_input_fmaps = tensor.size(1) + num_output_fmaps = tensor.size(0) + receptive_field_size = 1 + if tensor.dim() > 2: + receptive_field_size = tensor[0][0].numel() + fan_in = num_input_fmaps * receptive_field_size + fan_out = num_output_fmaps * receptive_field_size + + return fan_in, fan_out + + def pad_encoder_input(self, input_list): + """ + :param input_list: N [seq_len, hidden_state] + :return: enc_sent_input_pad: list, N [max_len, hidden_state] + """ + max_len = self.sent_max_len + enc_sent_input_pad = [] + _, hidden_size = input_list[0].size() + for i in range(len(input_list)): + article_words = input_list[i] # [seq_len, hidden_size] + seq_len = article_words.size(0) + if seq_len > max_len: + pad_words = article_words[:max_len, :] + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._cuda else torch.zeros(max_len - seq_len, hidden_size) + pad_words = torch.cat([article_words, pad_tensor], dim=0) + enc_sent_input_pad.append(pad_words) + return enc_sent_input_pad + + def forward(self, inputs, input_masks, enc_sent_len): + """ + + :param inputs: a batch of Example object [batch_size, doc_len=512, character_len=50] + :param input_masks: 0 or 1, [batch, doc_len=512] + :param enc_sent_len: sentence original length [batch, N] + :return: + sent_embedding: [batch, N, D] + """ + + # Use Bert to get word embedding + batch_size, N = enc_sent_len.size() + input_pad_list = [] + + elmo_output = self.elmo(inputs)['elmo_representations'][0] # [batch_size, 512, D] + elmo_output = elmo_output * input_masks.unsqueeze(-1).float() + # print("END elmo") + + for i in range(batch_size): + sent_len = enc_sent_len[i] # [1, N] + out = elmo_output[i] + + _, hidden_size = out.size() + + # restore the sentence + last_end = 0 + enc_sent_input = [] + for length in sent_len: + if length != 0 and last_end < 512: + enc_sent_input.append(out[last_end : min(512, last_end + length), :]) + last_end += length + else: + pad_tensor = torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size).cuda() if self._hps.cuda else torch.zeros(self.sent_max_len, hidden_size) + enc_sent_input.append(pad_tensor) + + # pad the sentence + enc_sent_input_pad = self.pad_encoder_input(enc_sent_input) # [N, seq_len, hidden_state=4096] + input_pad_list.append(torch.stack(enc_sent_input_pad)) # batch * [N, max_len, hidden_state] + + input_pad = torch.stack(input_pad_list) + + input_pad = input_pad.view(batch_size * N, self.sent_max_len, -1) + enc_sent_len = enc_sent_len.view(-1) # [batch_size*N] + enc_embed_input = self.embed_proj(input_pad) # [batch_size * N, L, D] + + # input_pos = torch.Tensor([np.hstack((np.arange(1, sentlen + 1), np.zeros(self.sent_max_len - sentlen))) for sentlen in input_sent_len]) + + sent_pos_list = [] + for sentlen in enc_sent_len: + sent_pos = list(range(1, min(self.sent_max_len, sentlen) + 1)) + for k in range(self.sent_max_len - sentlen): + sent_pos.append(0) + sent_pos_list.append(sent_pos) + input_pos = torch.Tensor(sent_pos_list).long() + + if self._hps.cuda: + input_pos = input_pos.cuda() + enc_pos_embed_input = self.position_embedding(input_pos.long()) # [batch_size*N, D] + enc_conv_input = enc_embed_input + enc_pos_embed_input + enc_conv_input = enc_conv_input.unsqueeze(1) # (batch * N,Ci,L,D) + enc_conv_output = [F.relu(conv(enc_conv_input)).squeeze(3) for conv in self.convs] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co, W) + enc_maxpool_output = [F.max_pool1d(x, x.size(2)).squeeze(2) for x in enc_conv_output] # kernel_sizes * (batch*N, Co) + sent_embedding = torch.cat(enc_maxpool_output, 1) # (batch*N, Co * kernel_sizes) + sent_embedding = sent_embedding.view(batch_size, N, -1) + return sent_embedding \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/PositionEmbedding.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/PositionEmbedding.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..985223bb --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/PositionEmbedding.py @@ -0,0 +1,41 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +import torch +import numpy as np + +def get_sinusoid_encoding_table(n_position, d_hid, padding_idx=None): + ''' Sinusoid position encoding table ''' + + def cal_angle(position, hid_idx): + return position / np.power(10000, 2 * (hid_idx // 2) / d_hid) + + def get_posi_angle_vec(position): + return [cal_angle(position, hid_j) for hid_j in range(d_hid)] + + sinusoid_table = np.array([get_posi_angle_vec(pos_i) for pos_i in range(n_position)]) + + sinusoid_table[:, 0::2] = np.sin(sinusoid_table[:, 0::2]) # dim 2i + sinusoid_table[:, 1::2] = np.cos(sinusoid_table[:, 1::2]) # dim 2i+1 + + if padding_idx is not None: + # zero vector for padding dimension + sinusoid_table[padding_idx] = 0. + + return torch.FloatTensor(sinusoid_table) \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/__init__.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/__init__.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..8b137891 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/__init__.py @@ -0,0 +1 @@ + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/data.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/data.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..f7bbaddd --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/data.py @@ -0,0 +1,479 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +"""This file contains code to read the train/eval/test data from file and process it, and read the vocab data from file and process it""" + +import os +import re +import glob +import copy +import random +import json +import collections +from itertools import combinations +import numpy as np +from random import shuffle + +import torch.utils.data +import time +import pickle + +from nltk.tokenize import sent_tokenize + +import utils +from logger import * + +# and are used in the data files to segment the abstracts into sentences. They don't receive vocab ids. +SENTENCE_START = '' +SENTENCE_END = '' + +PAD_TOKEN = '[PAD]' # This has a vocab id, which is used to pad the encoder input, decoder input and target sequence +UNKNOWN_TOKEN = '[UNK]' # This has a vocab id, which is used to represent out-of-vocabulary words +START_DECODING = '[START]' # This has a vocab id, which is used at the start of every decoder input sequence +STOP_DECODING = '[STOP]' # This has a vocab id, which is used at the end of untruncated target sequences + +# Note: none of , , [PAD], [UNK], [START], [STOP] should appear in the vocab file. + + +class Vocab(object): + """Vocabulary class for mapping between words and ids (integers)""" + + def __init__(self, vocab_file, max_size): + """ + Creates a vocab of up to max_size words, reading from the vocab_file. If max_size is 0, reads the entire vocab file. + :param vocab_file: string; path to the vocab file, which is assumed to contain " " on each line, sorted with most frequent word first. This code doesn't actually use the frequencies, though. + :param max_size: int; The maximum size of the resulting Vocabulary. + """ + self._word_to_id = {} + self._id_to_word = {} + self._count = 0 # keeps track of total number of words in the Vocab + + # [UNK], [PAD], [START] and [STOP] get the ids 0,1,2,3. + for w in [PAD_TOKEN, UNKNOWN_TOKEN, START_DECODING, STOP_DECODING]: + self._word_to_id[w] = self._count + self._id_to_word[self._count] = w + self._count += 1 + + # Read the vocab file and add words up to max_size + with open(vocab_file, 'r', encoding='utf8') as vocab_f: #New : add the utf8 encoding to prevent error + cnt = 0 + for line in vocab_f: + cnt += 1 + pieces = line.split("\t") + # pieces = line.split() + w = pieces[0] + # print(w) + if w in [SENTENCE_START, SENTENCE_END, UNKNOWN_TOKEN, PAD_TOKEN, START_DECODING, STOP_DECODING]: + raise Exception(', , [UNK], [PAD], [START] and [STOP] shouldn\'t be in the vocab file, but %s is' % w) + if w in self._word_to_id: + logger.error('Duplicated word in vocabulary file Line %d : %s' % (cnt, w)) + continue + self._word_to_id[w] = self._count + self._id_to_word[self._count] = w + self._count += 1 + if max_size != 0 and self._count >= max_size: + logger.info("[INFO] max_size of vocab was specified as %i; we now have %i words. Stopping reading." % (max_size, self._count)) + break + logger.info("[INFO] Finished constructing vocabulary of %i total words. Last word added: %s", self._count, self._id_to_word[self._count-1]) + + def word2id(self, word): + """Returns the id (integer) of a word (string). Returns [UNK] id if word is OOV.""" + if word not in self._word_to_id: + return self._word_to_id[UNKNOWN_TOKEN] + return self._word_to_id[word] + + def id2word(self, word_id): + """Returns the word (string) corresponding to an id (integer).""" + if word_id not in self._id_to_word: + raise ValueError('Id not found in vocab: %d' % word_id) + return self._id_to_word[word_id] + + def size(self): + """Returns the total size of the vocabulary""" + return self._count + + def word_list(self): + """Return the word list of the vocabulary""" + return self._word_to_id.keys() + +class Word_Embedding(object): + def __init__(self, path, vocab): + """ + :param path: string; the path of word embedding + :param vocab: object; + """ + logger.info("[INFO] Loading external word embedding...") + self._path = path + self._vocablist = vocab.word_list() + self._vocab = vocab + + def load_my_vecs(self, k=200): + """Load word embedding""" + word_vecs = {} + with open(self._path, encoding="utf-8") as f: + count = 0 + lines = f.readlines()[1:] + for line in lines: + values = line.split(" ") + word = values[0] + count += 1 + if word in self._vocablist: # whether to judge if in vocab + vector = [] + for count, val in enumerate(values): + if count == 0: + continue + if count <= k: + vector.append(float(val)) + word_vecs[word] = vector + return word_vecs + + def add_unknown_words_by_zero(self, word_vecs, k=200): + """Solve unknown by zeros""" + zero = [0.0] * k + list_word2vec = [] + oov = 0 + iov = 0 + for i in range(self._vocab.size()): + word = self._vocab.id2word(i) + if word not in word_vecs: + oov += 1 + word_vecs[word] = zero + list_word2vec.append(word_vecs[word]) + else: + iov += 1 + list_word2vec.append(word_vecs[word]) + logger.info("[INFO] oov count %d, iov count %d", oov, iov) + return list_word2vec + + def add_unknown_words_by_avg(self, word_vecs, k=200): + """Solve unknown by avg word embedding""" + # solve unknown words inplaced by zero list + word_vecs_numpy = [] + for word in self._vocablist: + if word in word_vecs: + word_vecs_numpy.append(word_vecs[word]) + col = [] + for i in range(k): + sum = 0.0 + for j in range(int(len(word_vecs_numpy))): + sum += word_vecs_numpy[j][i] + sum = round(sum, 6) + col.append(sum) + zero = [] + for m in range(k): + avg = col[m] / int(len(word_vecs_numpy)) + avg = round(avg, 6) + zero.append(float(avg)) + + list_word2vec = [] + oov = 0 + iov = 0 + for i in range(self._vocab.size()): + word = self._vocab.id2word(i) + if word not in word_vecs: + oov += 1 + word_vecs[word] = zero + list_word2vec.append(word_vecs[word]) + else: + iov += 1 + list_word2vec.append(word_vecs[word]) + logger.info("[INFO] External Word Embedding iov count: %d, oov count: %d", iov, oov) + return list_word2vec + + def add_unknown_words_by_uniform(self, word_vecs, uniform=0.25, k=200): + """Solve unknown word by uniform(-0.25,0.25)""" + list_word2vec = [] + oov = 0 + iov = 0 + for i in range(self._vocab.size()): + word = self._vocab.id2word(i) + if word not in word_vecs: + oov += 1 + word_vecs[word] = np.random.uniform(-1 * uniform, uniform, k).round(6).tolist() + list_word2vec.append(word_vecs[word]) + else: + iov += 1 + list_word2vec.append(word_vecs[word]) + logger.info("[INFO] oov count %d, iov count %d", oov, iov) + return list_word2vec + + # load word embedding + def load_my_vecs_freq1(self, freqs, pro): + word_vecs = {} + with open(self._path, encoding="utf-8") as f: + freq = 0 + lines = f.readlines()[1:] + for line in lines: + values = line.split(" ") + word = values[0] + if word in self._vocablist: # whehter to judge if in vocab + if freqs[word] == 1: + a = np.random.uniform(0, 1, 1).round(2) + if pro < a: + continue + vector = [] + for count, val in enumerate(values): + if count == 0: + continue + vector.append(float(val)) + word_vecs[word] = vector + return word_vecs + +class DomainDict(object): + """Domain embedding for Newsroom""" + def __init__(self, path): + self.domain_list = self.readDomainlist(path) + # self.domain_list = ["foxnews.com", "cnn.com", "mashable.com", "nytimes.com", "washingtonpost.com"] + self.domain_number = len(self.domain_list) + self._domain_to_id = {} + self._id_to_domain = {} + self._cnt = 0 + + self._domain_to_id["X"] = self._cnt + self._id_to_domain[self._cnt] = "X" + self._cnt += 1 + + for i in range(self.domain_number): + domain = self.domain_list[i] + self._domain_to_id[domain] = self._cnt + self._id_to_domain[self._cnt] = domain + self._cnt += 1 + + def readDomainlist(self, path): + domain_list = [] + with open(path) as f: + for line in f: + domain_list.append(line.split("\t")[0].strip()) + logger.info(domain_list) + return domain_list + + def domain2id(self, domain): + """ Returns the id (integer) of a domain (string). Returns "X" for unknow domain. + :param domain: string + :return: id; int + """ + if domain in self.domain_list: + return self._domain_to_id[domain] + else: + logger.info(domain) + return self._domain_to_id["X"] + + def id2domain(self, domain_id): + """ Returns the domain (string) corresponding to an id (integer). + :param id: int; + :return: domain: string + """ + if domain_id not in self._id_to_domain: + raise ValueError('Id not found in DomainDict: %d' % domain_id) + return self._id_to_domain[id] + + def size(self): + return self._cnt + + +class Example(object): + """Class representing a train/val/test example for text summarization.""" + def __init__(self, article_sents, abstract_sents, vocab, sent_max_len, label, domainid=None): + """ Initializes the Example, performing tokenization and truncation to produce the encoder, decoder and target sequences, which are stored in self. + + :param article_sents: list of strings; one per article sentence. each token is separated by a single space. + :param abstract_sents: list of strings; one per abstract sentence. In each sentence, each token is separated by a single space. + :param domainid: int; publication of the example + :param vocab: Vocabulary object + :param sent_max_len: int; the maximum length of each sentence, padding all sentences to this length + :param label: list of int; the index of selected sentences + """ + + self.sent_max_len = sent_max_len + self.enc_sent_len = [] + self.enc_sent_input = [] + self.enc_sent_input_pad = [] + + # origin_cnt = len(article_sents) + # article_sents = [re.sub(r"\n+\t+", " ", sent) for sent in article_sents] + # assert origin_cnt == len(article_sents) + + # Process the article + for sent in article_sents: + article_words = sent.split() + self.enc_sent_len.append(len(article_words)) # store the length after truncation but before padding + self.enc_sent_input.append([vocab.word2id(w) for w in article_words]) # list of word ids; OOVs are represented by the id for UNK token + self._pad_encoder_input(vocab.word2id('[PAD]')) + + # Store the original strings + self.original_article = " ".join(article_sents) + self.original_article_sents = article_sents + + if isinstance(abstract_sents[0], list): + logger.debug("[INFO] Multi Reference summaries!") + self.original_abstract_sents = [] + self.original_abstract = [] + for summary in abstract_sents: + self.original_abstract_sents.append([sent.strip() for sent in summary]) + self.original_abstract.append("\n".join([sent.replace("\n", "") for sent in summary])) + else: + self.original_abstract_sents = [sent.replace("\n", "") for sent in abstract_sents] + self.original_abstract = "\n".join(self.original_abstract_sents) + + # Store the label + self.label = np.zeros(len(article_sents), dtype=int) + if label != []: + self.label[np.array(label)] = 1 + self.label = list(self.label) + + # Store the publication + if domainid != None: + if domainid == 0: + logger.debug("domain id = 0!") + self.domain = domainid + + def _pad_encoder_input(self, pad_id): + """ + :param pad_id: int; token pad id + :return: + """ + max_len = self.sent_max_len + for i in range(len(self.enc_sent_input)): + article_words = self.enc_sent_input[i] + if len(article_words) > max_len: + article_words = article_words[:max_len] + while len(article_words) < max_len: + article_words.append(pad_id) + self.enc_sent_input_pad.append(article_words) + +class ExampleSet(torch.utils.data.Dataset): + """ Constructor: Dataset of example(object) """ + def __init__(self, data_path, vocab, doc_max_timesteps, sent_max_len, domaindict=None, randomX=False, usetag=False): + """ Initializes the ExampleSet with the path of data + + :param data_path: string; the path of data + :param vocab: object; + :param doc_max_timesteps: int; the maximum sentence number of a document, each example should pad sentences to this length + :param sent_max_len: int; the maximum token number of a sentence, each sentence should pad tokens to this length + :param domaindict: object; the domain dict to embed domain + """ + self.domaindict = domaindict + if domaindict: + logger.info("[INFO] Use domain information in the dateset!") + if randomX==True: + logger.info("[INFO] Random some example to unknow domain X!") + self.randomP = 0.1 + logger.info("[INFO] Start reading ExampleSet") + start = time.time() + self.example_list = [] + self.doc_max_timesteps = doc_max_timesteps + cnt = 0 + with open(data_path, 'r') as reader: + for line in reader: + try: + e = json.loads(line) + article_sent = e['text'] + tag = e["tag"][0] if usetag else e['publication'] + # logger.info(tag) + if "duc" in data_path: + abstract_sent = e["summaryList"] if "summaryList" in e.keys() else [e['summary']] + else: + abstract_sent = e['summary'] + if domaindict: + if randomX == True: + p = np.random.rand() + if p <= self.randomP: + domainid = domaindict.domain2id("X") + else: + domainid = domaindict.domain2id(tag) + else: + domainid = domaindict.domain2id(tag) + else: + domainid = None + logger.debug((tag, domainid)) + except (ValueError,EOFError) as e : + logger.debug(e) + break + else: + example = Example(article_sent, abstract_sent, vocab, sent_max_len, e["label"], domainid) # Process into an Example. + self.example_list.append(example) + cnt += 1 + # print(cnt) + logger.info("[INFO] Finish reading ExampleSet. Total time is %f, Total size is %d", time.time() - start, len(self.example_list)) + self.size = len(self.example_list) + + # self.example_list.sort(key=lambda ex: ex.domain) + + def get_example(self, index): + return self.example_list[index] + + def __getitem__(self, index): + """ + :param index: int; the index of the example + :return + input_pad: [N, seq_len] + label: [N] + input_mask: [N] + domain: [1] + """ + item = self.example_list[index] + input = np.array(item.enc_sent_input_pad) + label = np.array(item.label, dtype=int) + # pad input to doc_max_timesteps + if len(input) < self.doc_max_timesteps: + pad_number = self.doc_max_timesteps - len(input) + pad_matrix = np.zeros((pad_number, len(input[0]))) + input_pad = np.vstack((input, pad_matrix)) + label = np.append(label, np.zeros(pad_number, dtype=int)) + input_mask = np.append(np.ones(len(input)), np.zeros(pad_number)) + else: + input_pad = input[:self.doc_max_timesteps] + label = label[:self.doc_max_timesteps] + input_mask = np.ones(self.doc_max_timesteps) + if self.domaindict: + return torch.from_numpy(input_pad).long(), torch.from_numpy(label).long(), torch.from_numpy(input_mask).long(), item.domain + return torch.from_numpy(input_pad).long(), torch.from_numpy(label).long(), torch.from_numpy(input_mask).long() + + def __len__(self): + return self.size + +class MultiExampleSet(): + def __init__(self, data_dir, vocab, doc_max_timesteps, sent_max_len, domaindict=None, randomX=False, usetag=False): + self.datasets = [None] * (domaindict.size() - 1) + data_path_list = [os.path.join(data_dir, s) for s in os.listdir(data_dir) if s.endswith("label.jsonl")] + for data_path in data_path_list: + fname = data_path.split("/")[-1] # cnn.com.label.json + dataname = ".".join(fname.split(".")[:-2]) + domainid = domaindict.domain2id(dataname) + logger.info("[INFO] domain name: %s, domain id: %d" % (dataname, domainid)) + self.datasets[domainid - 1] = ExampleSet(data_path, vocab, doc_max_timesteps, sent_max_len, domaindict, randomX, usetag) + + def get(self, id): + return self.datasets[id] + +from torch.utils.data.dataloader import default_collate +def my_collate_fn(batch): + ''' + :param batch: (input_pad, label, input_mask, domain) + :return: + ''' + start_domain = batch[0][-1] + # for i in range(len(batch)): + # print(batch[i][-1], end=',') + batch = list(filter(lambda x: x[-1] == start_domain, batch)) + print("start_domain %d" % start_domain) + print("batch_len %d" % len(batch)) + if len(batch) == 0: return torch.Tensor() + return default_collate(batch) # 用默认方式拼接过滤后的batch数据 + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/logger.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/logger.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..0c6ca0e0 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/logger.py @@ -0,0 +1,27 @@ +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +import logging +import sys + +# 获取logger实例，如果参数为空则返回root logger +logger = logging.getLogger("Summarization logger") +# logger = logging.getLogger() + +# 指定logger输出格式 +formatter = logging.Formatter('%(asctime)s %(levelname)-8s: %(message)s') + +# # 文件日志 +# file_handler = logging.FileHandler("test.log") +# file_handler.setFormatter(formatter) # 可以通过setFormatter指定输出格式 + +# 控制台日志 +console_handler = logging.StreamHandler(sys.stdout) +console_handler.formatter = formatter # 也可以直接给formatter赋值 +console_handler.setLevel(logging.INFO) + +# 为logger添加的日志处理器 +# logger.addHandler(file_handler) +logger.addHandler(console_handler) + +# 指定日志的最低输出级别，默认为WARN级别 +logger.setLevel(logging.DEBUG) diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/tools/utils.py b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/utils.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..f49339ee --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/tools/utils.py @@ -0,0 +1,297 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- +import re +import os +import shutil +import copy +import datetime +import numpy as np + +from rouge import Rouge + +from .logger import * +# from data import * + +import sys +sys.setrecursionlimit(10000) + +REMAP = {"-lrb-": "(", "-rrb-": ")", "-lcb-": "{", "-rcb-": "}", + "-lsb-": "[", "-rsb-": "]", "``": '"', "''": '"'} + +def clean(x): + return re.sub( + r"-lrb-|-rrb-|-lcb-|-rcb-|-lsb-|-rsb-|``|''", + lambda m: REMAP.get(m.group()), x) + + +def rouge_eval(hyps, refer): + rouge = Rouge() + # print(hyps) + # print(refer) + # print(rouge.get_scores(hyps, refer)) + try: + score = rouge.get_scores(hyps, refer)[0] + mean_score = np.mean([score["rouge-1"]["f"], score["rouge-2"]["f"], score["rouge-l"]["f"]]) + except: + mean_score = 0.0 + return mean_score + +def rouge_all(hyps, refer): + rouge = Rouge() + score = rouge.get_scores(hyps, refer)[0] + # mean_score = np.mean([score["rouge-1"]["f"], score["rouge-2"]["f"], score["rouge-l"]["f"]]) + return score + +def eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total, match): + match_true, pred, true, match = match_true.float(), pred.float(), true.float(), match.float() + try: + accu = match / total + precision = match_true / pred + recall = match_true / true + F = 2 * precision * recall / (precision + recall) + except ZeroDivisionError: + F = 0.0 + logger.error("[Error] float division by zero") + return accu, precision, recall, F + + +def pyrouge_score(hyps, refer, remap = True): + from pyrouge import Rouge155 + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S') + PYROUGE_ROOT = os.path.join('/remote-home/dqwang/', nowTime) + SYSTEM_PATH = os.path.join(PYROUGE_ROOT,'gold') + MODEL_PATH = os.path.join(PYROUGE_ROOT,'system') + if os.path.exists(SYSTEM_PATH): + shutil.rmtree(SYSTEM_PATH) + os.makedirs(SYSTEM_PATH) + if os.path.exists(MODEL_PATH): + shutil.rmtree(MODEL_PATH) + os.makedirs(MODEL_PATH) + + if remap == True: + refer = clean(refer) + hyps = clean(hyps) + + system_file = os.path.join(SYSTEM_PATH, 'Reference.0.txt') + model_file = os.path.join(MODEL_PATH, 'Model.A.0.txt') + with open(system_file, 'wb') as f: + f.write(refer.encode('utf-8')) + with open(model_file, 'wb') as f: + f.write(hyps.encode('utf-8')) + + r = Rouge155('/home/dqwang/ROUGE/RELEASE-1.5.5') + + r.system_dir = SYSTEM_PATH + r.model_dir = MODEL_PATH + r.system_filename_pattern = 'Reference.(\d+).txt' + r.model_filename_pattern = 'Model.[A-Z].#ID#.txt' + + output = r.convert_and_evaluate(rouge_args="-e /home/dqwang/ROUGE/RELEASE-1.5.5/data -a -m -n 2 -d") + output_dict = r.output_to_dict(output) + + shutil.rmtree(PYROUGE_ROOT) + + scores = {} + scores['rouge-1'], scores['rouge-2'], scores['rouge-l'] = {}, {}, {} + scores['rouge-1']['p'], scores['rouge-1']['r'], scores['rouge-1']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_1_precision'], output_dict['rouge_1_recall'], output_dict['rouge_1_f_score'] + scores['rouge-2']['p'], scores['rouge-2']['r'], scores['rouge-2']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_2_precision'], output_dict['rouge_2_recall'], output_dict['rouge_2_f_score'] + scores['rouge-l']['p'], scores['rouge-l']['r'], scores['rouge-l']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_l_precision'], output_dict['rouge_l_recall'], output_dict['rouge_l_f_score'] + return scores + +def pyrouge_score_all(hyps_list, refer_list, remap = True): + from pyrouge import Rouge155 + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S') + PYROUGE_ROOT = os.path.join('/remote-home/dqwang/', nowTime) + SYSTEM_PATH = os.path.join(PYROUGE_ROOT,'gold') + MODEL_PATH = os.path.join(PYROUGE_ROOT,'system') + if os.path.exists(SYSTEM_PATH): + shutil.rmtree(SYSTEM_PATH) + os.makedirs(SYSTEM_PATH) + if os.path.exists(MODEL_PATH): + shutil.rmtree(MODEL_PATH) + os.makedirs(MODEL_PATH) + + assert len(hyps_list) == len(refer_list) + for i in range(len(hyps_list)): + system_file = os.path.join(SYSTEM_PATH, 'Reference.%d.txt' % i) + model_file = os.path.join(MODEL_PATH, 'Model.A.%d.txt' % i) + + refer = clean(refer_list[i]) if remap else refer_list[i] + hyps = clean(hyps_list[i]) if remap else hyps_list[i] + + with open(system_file, 'wb') as f: + f.write(refer.encode('utf-8')) + with open(model_file, 'wb') as f: + f.write(hyps.encode('utf-8')) + + r = Rouge155('/remote-home/dqwang/ROUGE/RELEASE-1.5.5') + + r.system_dir = SYSTEM_PATH + r.model_dir = MODEL_PATH + r.system_filename_pattern = 'Reference.(\d+).txt' + r.model_filename_pattern = 'Model.[A-Z].#ID#.txt' + + output = r.convert_and_evaluate(rouge_args="-e /remote-home/dqwang/ROUGE/RELEASE-1.5.5/data -a -m -n 2 -d") + output_dict = r.output_to_dict(output) + + shutil.rmtree(PYROUGE_ROOT) + + scores = {} + scores['rouge-1'], scores['rouge-2'], scores['rouge-l'] = {}, {}, {} + scores['rouge-1']['p'], scores['rouge-1']['r'], scores['rouge-1']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_1_precision'], output_dict['rouge_1_recall'], output_dict['rouge_1_f_score'] + scores['rouge-2']['p'], scores['rouge-2']['r'], scores['rouge-2']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_2_precision'], output_dict['rouge_2_recall'], output_dict['rouge_2_f_score'] + scores['rouge-l']['p'], scores['rouge-l']['r'], scores['rouge-l']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_l_precision'], output_dict['rouge_l_recall'], output_dict['rouge_l_f_score'] + return scores + + +def pyrouge_score_all_multi(hyps_list, refer_list, remap = True): + from pyrouge import Rouge155 + nowTime = datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S') + PYROUGE_ROOT = os.path.join('/remote-home/dqwang/', nowTime) + SYSTEM_PATH = os.path.join(PYROUGE_ROOT, 'system') + MODEL_PATH = os.path.join(PYROUGE_ROOT, 'gold') + if os.path.exists(SYSTEM_PATH): + shutil.rmtree(SYSTEM_PATH) + os.makedirs(SYSTEM_PATH) + if os.path.exists(MODEL_PATH): + shutil.rmtree(MODEL_PATH) + os.makedirs(MODEL_PATH) + + assert len(hyps_list) == len(refer_list) + for i in range(len(hyps_list)): + system_file = os.path.join(SYSTEM_PATH, 'Model.%d.txt' % i) + # model_file = os.path.join(MODEL_PATH, 'Reference.A.%d.txt' % i) + + hyps = clean(hyps_list[i]) if remap else hyps_list[i] + + with open(system_file, 'wb') as f: + f.write(hyps.encode('utf-8')) + + referType = ["A", "B", "C", "D", "E", "F", "G"] + for j in range(len(refer_list[i])): + model_file = os.path.join(MODEL_PATH, "Reference.%s.%d.txt" % (referType[j], i)) + refer = clean(refer_list[i][j]) if remap else refer_list[i][j] + with open(model_file, 'wb') as f: + f.write(refer.encode('utf-8')) + + r = Rouge155('/remote-home/dqwang/ROUGE/RELEASE-1.5.5') + + r.system_dir = SYSTEM_PATH + r.model_dir = MODEL_PATH + r.system_filename_pattern = 'Model.(\d+).txt' + r.model_filename_pattern = 'Reference.[A-Z].#ID#.txt' + + output = r.convert_and_evaluate(rouge_args="-e /remote-home/dqwang/ROUGE/RELEASE-1.5.5/data -a -m -n 2 -d") + output_dict = r.output_to_dict(output) + + shutil.rmtree(PYROUGE_ROOT) + + scores = {} + scores['rouge-1'], scores['rouge-2'], scores['rouge-l'] = {}, {}, {} + scores['rouge-1']['p'], scores['rouge-1']['r'], scores['rouge-1']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_1_precision'], output_dict['rouge_1_recall'], output_dict['rouge_1_f_score'] + scores['rouge-2']['p'], scores['rouge-2']['r'], scores['rouge-2']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_2_precision'], output_dict['rouge_2_recall'], output_dict['rouge_2_f_score'] + scores['rouge-l']['p'], scores['rouge-l']['r'], scores['rouge-l']['f'] = output_dict['rouge_l_precision'], output_dict['rouge_l_recall'], output_dict['rouge_l_f_score'] + return scores + +def cal_label(article, abstract): + hyps_list = article + + refer = abstract + scores = [] + for hyps in hyps_list: + mean_score = rouge_eval(hyps, refer) + scores.append(mean_score) + + selected = [] + selected.append(int(np.argmax(scores))) + selected_sent_cnt = 1 + + best_rouge = np.max(scores) + while selected_sent_cnt < len(hyps_list): + cur_max_rouge = 0.0 + cur_max_idx = -1 + for i in range(len(hyps_list)): + if i not in selected: + temp = copy.deepcopy(selected) + temp.append(i) + hyps = "\n".join([hyps_list[idx] for idx in np.sort(temp)]) + cur_rouge = rouge_eval(hyps, refer) + if cur_rouge > cur_max_rouge: + cur_max_rouge = cur_rouge + cur_max_idx = i + if cur_max_rouge != 0.0 and cur_max_rouge >= best_rouge: + selected.append(cur_max_idx) + selected_sent_cnt += 1 + best_rouge = cur_max_rouge + else: + break + + # label = np.zeros(len(hyps_list), dtype=int) + # label[np.array(selected)] = 1 + # return list(label) + return selected + +def cal_label_limited3(article, abstract): + hyps_list = article + + refer = abstract + scores = [] + for hyps in hyps_list: + try: + mean_score = rouge_eval(hyps, refer) + scores.append(mean_score) + except ValueError: + scores.append(0.0) + + selected = [] + selected.append(np.argmax(scores)) + selected_sent_cnt = 1 + + best_rouge = np.max(scores) + while selected_sent_cnt < len(hyps_list) and selected_sent_cnt < 3: + cur_max_rouge = 0.0 + cur_max_idx = -1 + for i in range(len(hyps_list)): + if i not in selected: + temp = copy.deepcopy(selected) + temp.append(i) + hyps = "\n".join([hyps_list[idx] for idx in np.sort(temp)]) + cur_rouge = rouge_eval(hyps, refer) + if cur_rouge > cur_max_rouge: + cur_max_rouge = cur_rouge + cur_max_idx = i + selected.append(cur_max_idx) + selected_sent_cnt += 1 + best_rouge = cur_max_rouge + + # logger.info(selected) + # label = np.zeros(len(hyps_list), dtype=int) + # label[np.array(selected)] = 1 + # return list(label) + return selected + +import torch +def flip(x, dim): + xsize = x.size() + dim = x.dim() + dim if dim < 0 else dim + x = x.contiguous() + x = x.view(-1, *xsize[dim:]).contiguous() + x = x.view(x.size(0), x.size(1), -1)[:, getattr(torch.arange(x.size(1)-1, + -1, -1), ('cpu','cuda')[x.is_cuda])().long(), :] + return x.view(xsize) + +def get_attn_key_pad_mask(seq_k, seq_q): + ''' For masking out the padding part of key sequence. ''' + + # Expand to fit the shape of key query attention matrix. + len_q = seq_q.size(1) + padding_mask = seq_k.eq(0.0) + padding_mask = padding_mask.unsqueeze(1).expand(-1, len_q, -1) # b x lq x lk + + return padding_mask + +def get_non_pad_mask(seq): + + assert seq.dim() == 2 + + return seq.ne(0.0).type(torch.float).unsqueeze(-1) diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/train.py b/reproduction/Summarization/train.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..c3a92f67 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/train.py @@ -0,0 +1,263 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +"""Train Model1: baseline model""" +import os +import sys +import json +import argparse +import datetime + +import torch +import torch.nn + +os.environ['FASTNLP_BASE_URL'] = 'http://10.141.222.118:8888/file/download/' +os.environ['FASTNLP_CACHE_DIR'] = '/remote-home/hyan01/fastnlp_caches' +sys.path.append('/remote-home/dqwang/FastNLP/fastNLP/') + + +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.core.trainer import Trainer, Tester +from fastNLP.io.model_io import ModelLoader, ModelSaver +from fastNLP.io.embed_loader import EmbedLoader + +from tools.logger import * +from data.dataloader import SummarizationLoader +# from model.TransformerModel import TransformerModel +from model.TForiginal import TransformerModel +from model.Metric import LabelFMetric, FastRougeMetric, PyRougeMetric +from model.Loss import MyCrossEntropyLoss +from tools.Callback import TrainCallback + + +def setup_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps): + """Does setup before starting training (run_training)""" + + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + if not os.path.exists(train_dir): os.makedirs(train_dir) + + if hps.restore_model != 'None': + logger.info("[INFO] Restoring %s for training...", hps.restore_model) + bestmodel_file = os.path.join(train_dir, hps.restore_model) + loader = ModelLoader() + loader.load_pytorch(model, bestmodel_file) + else: + logger.info("[INFO] Create new model for training...") + + try: + run_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps) # this is an infinite loop until interrupted + except KeyboardInterrupt: + logger.error("[Error] Caught keyboard interrupt on worker. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + +def run_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps): + """Repeatedly runs training iterations, logging loss to screen and writing summaries""" + logger.info("[INFO] Starting run_training") + + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + if not os.path.exists(train_dir): os.makedirs(train_dir) + eval_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "eval") # make a subdir of the root dir for eval data + if not os.path.exists(eval_dir): os.makedirs(eval_dir) + + lr = hps.lr + optimizer = torch.optim.Adam(filter(lambda p: p.requires_grad, model.parameters()), lr=lr) + criterion = MyCrossEntropyLoss(pred = "p_sent", target=Const.TARGET, mask=Const.INPUT_LEN, reduce='none') + # criterion = torch.nn.CrossEntropyLoss(reduce="none") + + trainer = Trainer(model=model, train_data=train_loader, optimizer=optimizer, loss=criterion, + n_epochs=hps.n_epochs, print_every=100, dev_data=valid_loader, metrics=[LabelFMetric(pred="prediction"), FastRougeMetric(hps, pred="prediction")], + metric_key="f", validate_every=-1, save_path=eval_dir, + callbacks=[TrainCallback(hps, patience=5)], use_tqdm=False) + + train_info = trainer.train(load_best_model=True) + logger.info(' | end of Train | time: {:5.2f}s | '.format(train_info["seconds"])) + logger.info('[INFO] best eval model in epoch %d and iter %d', train_info["best_epoch"], train_info["best_step"]) + logger.info(train_info["best_eval"]) + + bestmodel_save_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + saver = ModelSaver(bestmodel_save_path) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving eval best model to %s', bestmodel_save_path) + +def run_test(model, loader, hps, limited=False): + """Repeatedly runs eval iterations, logging to screen and writing summaries. Saves the model with the best loss seen so far.""" + test_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "test") # make a subdir of the root dir for eval data + eval_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "eval") + if not os.path.exists(test_dir) : os.makedirs(test_dir) + if not os.path.exists(eval_dir) : + logger.exception("[Error] eval_dir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it.", eval_dir) + raise Exception("[Error] eval_dir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it." % (eval_dir)) + + if hps.test_model == "evalbestmodel": + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + elif hps.test_model == "earlystop": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'earlystop.pkl') + else: + logger.error("None of such model! Must be one of evalbestmodel/trainbestmodel/earlystop") + raise ValueError("None of such model! Must be one of evalbestmodel/trainbestmodel/earlystop") + logger.info("[INFO] Restoring %s for testing...The path is %s", hps.test_model, bestmodel_load_path) + + modelloader = ModelLoader() + modelloader.load_pytorch(model, bestmodel_load_path) + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + logger.info("[INFO] Use PyRougeMetric for testing") + tester = Tester(data=loader, model=model, + metrics=[LabelFMetric(pred="prediction"), PyRougeMetric(hps, pred="prediction")], + batch_size=hps.batch_size) + else: + logger.info("[INFO] Use FastRougeMetric for testing") + tester = Tester(data=loader, model=model, + metrics=[LabelFMetric(pred="prediction"), FastRougeMetric(hps, pred="prediction")], + batch_size=hps.batch_size) + test_info = tester.test() + logger.info(test_info) + +def main(): + parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description='Summarization Model') + + # Where to find data + parser.add_argument('--data_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/train.label.jsonl', help='Path expression to pickle datafiles.') + parser.add_argument('--valid_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/val.label.jsonl', help='Path expression to pickle valid datafiles.') + parser.add_argument('--vocab_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/vocab', help='Path expression to text vocabulary file.') + + # Important settings + parser.add_argument('--mode', choices=['train', 'test'], default='train', help='must be one of train/test') + parser.add_argument('--embedding', type=str, default='glove', choices=['word2vec', 'glove', 'elmo', 'bert'], help='must be one of word2vec/glove/elmo/bert') + parser.add_argument('--sentence_encoder', type=str, default='transformer', choices=['bilstm', 'deeplstm', 'transformer'], help='must be one of LSTM/Transformer') + parser.add_argument('--sentence_decoder', type=str, default='SeqLab', choices=['PN', 'SeqLab'], help='must be one of PN/SeqLab') + parser.add_argument('--restore_model', type=str , default='None', help='Restore model for further training. [bestmodel/bestFmodel/earlystop/None]') + + # Where to save output + parser.add_argument('--save_root', type=str, default='save/', help='Root directory for all model.') + parser.add_argument('--log_root', type=str, default='log/', help='Root directory for all logging.') + + # Hyperparameters + parser.add_argument('--gpu', type=str, default='0', help='GPU ID to use. For cpu, set -1 [default: -1]') + parser.add_argument('--cuda', action='store_true', default=False, help='use cuda') + parser.add_argument('--vocab_size', type=int, default=100000, help='Size of vocabulary. These will be read from the vocabulary file in order. If the vocabulary file contains fewer words than this number, or if this number is set to 0, will take all words in the vocabulary file.') + parser.add_argument('--n_epochs', type=int, default=20, help='Number of epochs [default: 20]') + parser.add_argument('--batch_size', type=int, default=32, help='Mini batch size [default: 128]') + + parser.add_argument('--word_embedding', action='store_true', default=True, help='whether to use Word embedding') + parser.add_argument('--embedding_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Glove/glove.42B.300d.txt', help='Path expression to external word embedding.') + parser.add_argument('--word_emb_dim', type=int, default=300, help='Word embedding size [default: 200]') + parser.add_argument('--embed_train', action='store_true', default=False, help='whether to train Word embedding [default: False]') + parser.add_argument('--min_kernel_size', type=int, default=1, help='kernel min length for CNN [default:1]') + parser.add_argument('--max_kernel_size', type=int, default=7, help='kernel max length for CNN [default:7]') + parser.add_argument('--output_channel', type=int, default=50, help='output channel: repeated times for one kernel') + parser.add_argument('--use_orthnormal_init', action='store_true', default=True, help='use orthnormal init for lstm [default: true]') + parser.add_argument('--sent_max_len', type=int, default=100, help='max length of sentences (max source text sentence tokens)') + parser.add_argument('--doc_max_timesteps', type=int, default=50, help='max length of documents (max timesteps of documents)') + parser.add_argument('--save_label', action='store_true', default=False, help='require multihead attention') + + # Training + parser.add_argument('--lr', type=float, default=0.0001, help='learning rate') + parser.add_argument('--lr_descent', action='store_true', default=False, help='learning rate descent') + parser.add_argument('--warmup_steps', type=int, default=4000, help='warmup_steps') + parser.add_argument('--grad_clip', action='store_true', default=False, help='for gradient clipping') + parser.add_argument('--max_grad_norm', type=float, default=10, help='for gradient clipping max gradient normalization') + + # test + parser.add_argument('-m', type=int, default=3, help='decode summary length') + parser.add_argument('--limited', action='store_true', default=False, help='limited decode summary length') + parser.add_argument('--test_model', type=str, default='evalbestmodel', help='choose different model to test [evalbestmodel/evalbestFmodel/trainbestmodel/trainbestFmodel/earlystop]') + parser.add_argument('--use_pyrouge', action='store_true', default=False, help='use_pyrouge') + + args = parser.parse_args() + + os.environ['CUDA_VISIBLE_DEVICES'] = args.gpu + torch.set_printoptions(threshold=50000) + + # File paths + DATA_FILE = args.data_path + VALID_FILE = args.valid_path + VOCAL_FILE = args.vocab_path + LOG_PATH = args.log_root + + # train_log setting + if not os.path.exists(LOG_PATH): + if args.mode == "train": + os.makedirs(LOG_PATH) + else: + logger.exception("[Error] Logdir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it.", LOG_PATH) + raise Exception("[Error] Logdir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it." % (LOG_PATH)) + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S') + log_path = os.path.join(LOG_PATH, args.mode + "_" + nowTime) + file_handler = logging.FileHandler(log_path) + file_handler.setFormatter(formatter) + logger.addHandler(file_handler) + + logger.info("Pytorch %s", torch.__version__) + sum_loader = SummarizationLoader() + + hps = args + if hps.mode == 'test': + paths = {"test": DATA_FILE} + hps.recurrent_dropout_prob = 0.0 + hps.atten_dropout_prob = 0.0 + hps.ffn_dropout_prob = 0.0 + logger.info(hps) + else: + paths = {"train": DATA_FILE, "valid": VALID_FILE} + + dataInfo = sum_loader.process(paths=paths, vocab_size=hps.vocab_size, vocab_path=VOCAL_FILE, sent_max_len=hps.sent_max_len, doc_max_timesteps=hps.doc_max_timesteps, load_vocab=os.path.exists(VOCAL_FILE)) + + if args.embedding == "glove": + vocab = dataInfo.vocabs["vocab"] + embed = torch.nn.Embedding(len(vocab), hps.word_emb_dim) + if hps.word_embedding: + embed_loader = EmbedLoader() + pretrained_weight = embed_loader.load_with_vocab(hps.embedding_path, vocab) # unfound with random init + embed.weight.data.copy_(torch.from_numpy(pretrained_weight)) + embed.weight.requires_grad = hps.embed_train + else: + logger.error("[ERROR] embedding To Be Continued!") + sys.exit(1) + + if args.sentence_encoder == "transformer" and args.sentence_decoder == "SeqLab": + model_param = json.load(open("config/transformer.config", "rb")) + hps.__dict__.update(model_param) + model = TransformerModel(hps, embed) + else: + logger.error("[ERROR] Model To Be Continued!") + sys.exit(1) + + logger.info(hps) + + if hps.cuda: + model = model.cuda() + logger.info("[INFO] Use cuda") + if hps.mode == 'train': + dataInfo.datasets["valid"].set_target("text", "summary") + setup_training(model, dataInfo.datasets["train"], dataInfo.datasets["valid"], hps) + elif hps.mode == 'test': + logger.info("[INFO] Decoding...") + dataInfo.datasets["test"].set_target("text", "summary") + run_test(model, dataInfo.datasets["test"], hps, limited=hps.limited) + else: + logger.error("The 'mode' flag must be one of train/eval/test") + raise ValueError("The 'mode' flag must be one of train/eval/test") + +if __name__ == '__main__': + main() diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/train_origin.py b/reproduction/Summarization/train_origin.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..36a2b716 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/train_origin.py @@ -0,0 +1,706 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +"""Train Model1: baseline model""" + +import os +import sys +import time +import copy +import pickle +import datetime +import argparse +import logging + +import numpy as np + + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +from torch.autograd import Variable + +from rouge import Rouge + +sys.path.append('/remote-home/dqwang/FastNLP/fastNLP/') + +from fastNLP.core.batch import DataSetIter +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.io.model_io import ModelLoader, ModelSaver +from fastNLP.core.sampler import BucketSampler + +from tools import utils +from tools.logger import * +from data.dataloader import SummarizationLoader +from model.TForiginal import TransformerModel + +def setup_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps): + """Does setup before starting training (run_training)""" + + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + if not os.path.exists(train_dir): os.makedirs(train_dir) + + if hps.restore_model != 'None': + logger.info("[INFO] Restoring %s for training...", hps.restore_model) + bestmodel_file = os.path.join(train_dir, hps.restore_model) + loader = ModelLoader() + loader.load_pytorch(model, bestmodel_file) + else: + logger.info("[INFO] Create new model for training...") + + try: + run_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps) # this is an infinite loop until interrupted + except KeyboardInterrupt: + logger.error("[Error] Caught keyboard interrupt on worker. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + +def run_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps): + """Repeatedly runs training iterations, logging loss to screen and writing summaries""" + logger.info("[INFO] Starting run_training") + + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + if not os.path.exists(train_dir): os.makedirs(train_dir) + + lr = hps.lr + # optimizer = torch.optim.Adam(filter(lambda p: p.requires_grad, model.parameters()), lr=lr, betas=(0.9, 0.98), + # eps=1e-09) + optimizer = torch.optim.Adam(filter(lambda p: p.requires_grad, model.parameters()), lr=lr) + criterion = torch.nn.CrossEntropyLoss(reduction='none') + + best_train_loss = None + best_train_F= None + best_loss = None + best_F = None + step_num = 0 + non_descent_cnt = 0 + for epoch in range(1, hps.n_epochs + 1): + epoch_loss = 0.0 + train_loss = 0.0 + total_example_num = 0 + match, pred, true, match_true = 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0 + epoch_start_time = time.time() + for i, (batch_x, batch_y) in enumerate(train_loader): + # if i > 10: + # break + model.train() + + iter_start_time=time.time() + + input, input_len = batch_x[Const.INPUT], batch_x[Const.INPUT_LEN] + label = batch_y[Const.TARGET] + + # logger.info(batch_x["text"][0]) + # logger.info(input[0,:,:]) + # logger.info(input_len[0:5,:]) + # logger.info(batch_y["summary"][0:5]) + # logger.info(label[0:5,:]) + + # logger.info((len(batch_x["text"][0]), sum(input[0].sum(-1) != 0))) + + batch_size, N, seq_len = input.size() + + if hps.cuda: + input = input.cuda() # [batch, N, seq_len] + label = label.cuda() + input_len = input_len.cuda() + + input = Variable(input) + label = Variable(label) + input_len = Variable(input_len) + + model_outputs = model.forward(input, input_len) # [batch, N, 2] + + outputs = model_outputs["p_sent"].view(-1, 2) + + label = label.view(-1) + + loss = criterion(outputs, label) # [batch_size, doc_max_timesteps] + # input_len = input_len.float().view(-1) + loss = loss.view(batch_size, -1) + loss = loss.masked_fill(input_len.eq(0), 0) + loss = loss.sum(1).mean() + logger.debug("loss %f", loss) + + if not (np.isfinite(loss.data)).numpy(): + logger.error("train Loss is not finite. Stopping.") + logger.info(loss) + for name, param in model.named_parameters(): + if param.requires_grad: + logger.info(name) + logger.info(param.grad.data.sum()) + raise Exception("train Loss is not finite. Stopping.") + + optimizer.zero_grad() + loss.backward() + if hps.grad_clip: + torch.nn.utils.clip_grad_norm_(model.parameters(), hps.max_grad_norm) + + optimizer.step() + step_num += 1 + + train_loss += float(loss.data) + epoch_loss += float(loss.data) + + if i % 100 == 0: + # start debugger + # import pdb; pdb.set_trace() + for name, param in model.named_parameters(): + if param.requires_grad: + logger.debug(name) + logger.debug(param.grad.data.sum()) + logger.info(' | end of iter {:3d} | time: {:5.2f}s | train loss {:5.4f} | ' + .format(i, (time.time() - iter_start_time), + float(train_loss / 100))) + train_loss = 0.0 + + # calculate the precision, recall and F + prediction = outputs.max(1)[1] + prediction = prediction.data + label = label.data + pred += prediction.sum() + true += label.sum() + match_true += ((prediction == label) & (prediction == 1)).sum() + match += (prediction == label).sum() + total_example_num += int(batch_size * N) + + if hps.lr_descent: + # new_lr = pow(hps.hidden_size, -0.5) * min(pow(step_num, -0.5), + # step_num * pow(hps.warmup_steps, -1.5)) + new_lr = max(5e-6, lr / (epoch + 1)) + for param_group in list(optimizer.param_groups): + param_group['lr'] = new_lr + logger.info("[INFO] The learning rate now is %f", new_lr) + + epoch_avg_loss = epoch_loss / len(train_loader) + logger.info(' | end of epoch {:3d} | time: {:5.2f}s | epoch train loss {:5.4f} | ' + .format(epoch, (time.time() - epoch_start_time), + float(epoch_avg_loss))) + + logger.info("[INFO] Trainset match_true %d, pred %d, true %d, total %d, match %d", match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + accu, precision, recall, F = utils.eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + logger.info("[INFO] The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f", total_example_num / hps.doc_max_timesteps, accu, precision, recall, F) + + if not best_train_loss or epoch_avg_loss < best_train_loss: + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "bestmodel.pkl") + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.3f running_train_loss. Saving to %s', float(epoch_avg_loss), save_file) + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_train_loss = epoch_avg_loss + elif epoch_avg_loss > best_train_loss: + logger.error("[Error] training loss does not descent. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + return + + if not best_train_F or F > best_train_F: + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "bestFmodel.pkl") + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.3f F score. Saving to %s', float(F), save_file) + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_train_F = F + + best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt = run_eval(model, valid_loader, hps, best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt) + + if non_descent_cnt >= 3: + logger.error("[Error] val loss does not descent for three times. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + return + +def run_eval(model, loader, hps, best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt): + """Repeatedly runs eval iterations, logging to screen and writing summaries. Saves the model with the best loss seen so far.""" + logger.info("[INFO] Starting eval for this model ...") + eval_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "eval") # make a subdir of the root dir for eval data + if not os.path.exists(eval_dir): os.makedirs(eval_dir) + + model.eval() + + running_loss = 0.0 + match, pred, true, match_true = 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0 + pairs = {} + pairs["hyps"] = [] + pairs["refer"] = [] + total_example_num = 0 + criterion = torch.nn.CrossEntropyLoss(reduction='none') + iter_start_time = time.time() + + with torch.no_grad(): + for i, (batch_x, batch_y) in enumerate(loader): + # if i > 10: + # break + + input, input_len = batch_x[Const.INPUT], batch_x[Const.INPUT_LEN] + label = batch_y[Const.TARGET] + + if hps.cuda: + input = input.cuda() # [batch, N, seq_len] + label = label.cuda() + input_len = input_len.cuda() + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + input = Variable(input, requires_grad=False) + label = Variable(label) + input_len = Variable(input_len, requires_grad=False) + + model_outputs = model.forward(input,input_len) # [batch, N, 2] + outputs = model_outputs["p_sent"] + prediction = model_outputs["prediction"] + + outputs = outputs.view(-1, 2) # [batch * N, 2] + label = label.view(-1) # [batch * N] + loss = criterion(outputs, label) + loss = loss.view(batch_size, -1) + loss = loss.masked_fill(input_len.eq(0), 0) + loss = loss.sum(1).mean() + logger.debug("loss %f", loss) + running_loss += float(loss.data) + + label = label.data.view(batch_size, -1) + pred += prediction.sum() + true += label.sum() + match_true += ((prediction == label) & (prediction == 1)).sum() + match += (prediction == label).sum() + total_example_num += batch_size * N + + # rouge + prediction = prediction.view(batch_size, -1) + for j in range(batch_size): + original_article_sents = batch_x["text"][j] + sent_max_number = len(original_article_sents) + refer = "\n".join(batch_x["summary"][j]) + hyps = "\n".join(original_article_sents[id] for id in range(len(prediction[j])) if prediction[j][id]==1 and id < sent_max_number) + if sent_max_number < hps.m and len(hyps) <= 1: + logger.error("sent_max_number is too short %d, Skip!" , sent_max_number) + continue + + if len(hyps) >= 1 and hyps != '.': + # logger.debug(prediction[j]) + pairs["hyps"].append(hyps) + pairs["refer"].append(refer) + elif refer == "." or refer == "": + logger.error("Refer is None!") + logger.debug("label:") + logger.debug(label[j]) + logger.debug(refer) + elif hyps == "." or hyps == "": + logger.error("hyps is None!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug("prediction:") + logger.debug(prediction[j]) + logger.debug(hyps) + else: + logger.error("Do not select any sentences!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug(original_article_sents) + logger.debug("label:") + logger.debug(label[j]) + continue + + running_avg_loss = running_loss / len(loader) + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + logger.info("The number of pairs is %d", len(pairs["hyps"])) + logging.getLogger('global').setLevel(logging.WARNING) + if not len(pairs["hyps"]): + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + if isinstance(pairs["refer"][0], list): + logger.info("Multi Reference summaries!") + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all_multi(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + if len(pairs["hyps"]) == 0 or len(pairs["refer"]) == 0 : + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + rouge = Rouge() + scores_all = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"], avg=True) + # try: + # scores_all = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"], avg=True) + # except ValueError as e: + # logger.error(repr(e)) + # scores_all = [] + # for idx in range(len(pairs["hyps"])): + # try: + # scores = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"][idx], pairs["refer"][idx])[0] + # scores_all.append(scores) + # except ValueError as e: + # logger.error(repr(e)) + # logger.debug("HYPS:\t%s", pairs["hyps"][idx]) + # logger.debug("REFER:\t%s", pairs["refer"][idx]) + # finally: + # logger.error("During testing, some errors happen!") + # logger.error(len(scores_all)) + # exit(1) + + logger.info('[INFO] End of valid | time: {:5.2f}s | valid loss {:5.4f} | ' + .format((time.time() - iter_start_time), + float(running_avg_loss))) + + logger.info("[INFO] Validset match_true %d, pred %d, true %d, total %d, match %d", match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + accu, precision, recall, F = utils.eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + logger.info("[INFO] The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f", + total_example_num / hps.doc_max_timesteps, accu, precision, recall, F) + + res = "Rouge1:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-1']['p'], scores_all['rouge-1']['r'], scores_all['rouge-1']['f']) \ + + "Rouge2:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-2']['p'], scores_all['rouge-2']['r'], scores_all['rouge-2']['f']) \ + + "Rougel:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-l']['p'], scores_all['rouge-l']['r'], scores_all['rouge-l']['f']) + logger.info(res) + + # If running_avg_loss is best so far, save this checkpoint (early stopping). + # These checkpoints will appear as bestmodel- in the eval dir + if best_loss is None or running_avg_loss < best_loss: + bestmodel_save_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + if best_loss is not None: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f running_avg_loss. The original loss is %.6f, Saving to %s', float(running_avg_loss), float(best_loss), bestmodel_save_path) + else: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f running_avg_loss. The original loss is None, Saving to %s', float(running_avg_loss), bestmodel_save_path) + saver = ModelSaver(bestmodel_save_path) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_loss = running_avg_loss + non_descent_cnt = 0 + else: + non_descent_cnt += 1 + + if best_F is None or best_F < F: + bestmodel_save_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestFmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + if best_F is not None: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f F. The original F is %.6f, Saving to %s', float(F), float(best_F), bestmodel_save_path) + else: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f F. The original loss is None, Saving to %s', float(F), bestmodel_save_path) + saver = ModelSaver(bestmodel_save_path) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_F = F + + return best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt + +def run_test(model, loader, hps, limited=False): + """Repeatedly runs eval iterations, logging to screen and writing summaries. Saves the model with the best loss seen so far.""" + test_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "test") # make a subdir of the root dir for eval data + eval_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "eval") + if not os.path.exists(test_dir) : os.makedirs(test_dir) + if not os.path.exists(eval_dir) : + logger.exception("[Error] eval_dir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it.", eval_dir) + raise Exception("[Error] eval_dir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it." % (eval_dir)) + + if hps.test_model == "evalbestmodel": + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + elif hps.test_model == "evalbestFmodel": + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestFmodel.pkl') + elif hps.test_model == "trainbestmodel": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') + elif hps.test_model == "trainbestFmodel": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'bestFmodel.pkl') + elif hps.test_model == "earlystop": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'earlystop,pkl') + else: + logger.error("None of such model! Must be one of evalbestmodel/trainbestmodel/earlystop") + raise ValueError("None of such model! Must be one of evalbestmodel/trainbestmodel/earlystop") + logger.info("[INFO] Restoring %s for testing...The path is %s", hps.test_model, bestmodel_load_path) + + modelloader = ModelLoader() + modelloader.load_pytorch(model, bestmodel_load_path) + + import datetime + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S')#现在 + if hps.save_label: + log_dir = os.path.join(test_dir, hps.data_path.split("/")[-1]) + resfile = open(log_dir, "w") + else: + log_dir = os.path.join(test_dir, nowTime) + resfile = open(log_dir, "wb") + logger.info("[INFO] Write the Evaluation into %s", log_dir) + + model.eval() + + match, pred, true, match_true = 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0 + total_example_num = 0.0 + pairs = {} + pairs["hyps"] = [] + pairs["refer"] = [] + pred_list = [] + iter_start_time=time.time() + with torch.no_grad(): + for i, (batch_x, batch_y) in enumerate(loader): + + input, input_len = batch_x[Const.INPUT], batch_x[Const.INPUT_LEN] + label = batch_y[Const.TARGET] + + if hps.cuda: + input = input.cuda() # [batch, N, seq_len] + label = label.cuda() + input_len = input_len.cuda() + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + input = Variable(input) + input_len = Variable(input_len, requires_grad=False) + + model_outputs = model.forward(input, input_len) # [batch, N, 2] + prediction = model_outputs["prediction"] + + if hps.save_label: + pred_list.extend(model_outputs["pred_idx"].data.cpu().view(-1).tolist()) + continue + + pred += prediction.sum() + true += label.sum() + match_true += ((prediction == label) & (prediction == 1)).sum() + match += (prediction == label).sum() + total_example_num += batch_size * N + + for j in range(batch_size): + original_article_sents = batch_x["text"][j] + sent_max_number = len(original_article_sents) + refer = "\n".join(batch_x["summary"][j]) + hyps = "\n".join(original_article_sents[id].replace("\n", "") for id in range(len(prediction[j])) if prediction[j][id]==1 and id < sent_max_number) + if limited: + k = len(refer.split()) + hyps = " ".join(hyps.split()[:k]) + logger.info((len(refer.split()),len(hyps.split()))) + resfile.write(b"Original_article:") + resfile.write("\n".join(batch_x["text"][j]).encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b"Reference:") + if isinstance(refer, list): + for ref in refer: + resfile.write(ref.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b'*' * 40) + resfile.write(b"\n") + else: + resfile.write(refer.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b"hypothesis:") + resfile.write(hyps.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + pairs["hyps"].append(hyps) + pairs["refer"].append(refer) + else: + try: + scores = utils.rouge_all(hyps, refer) + pairs["hyps"].append(hyps) + pairs["refer"].append(refer) + except ValueError: + logger.error("Do not select any sentences!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug(original_article_sents) + logger.debug("label:") + logger.debug(label[j]) + continue + + # single example res writer + res = "Rouge1:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores['rouge-1']['p'], scores['rouge-1']['r'], scores['rouge-1']['f']) \ + + "Rouge2:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores['rouge-2']['p'], scores['rouge-2']['r'], scores['rouge-2']['f']) \ + + "Rougel:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores['rouge-l']['p'], scores['rouge-l']['r'], scores['rouge-l']['f']) + + resfile.write(res.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b'-' * 89) + resfile.write(b"\n") + + if hps.save_label: + import json + json.dump(pred_list, resfile) + logger.info(' | end of test | time: {:5.2f}s | '.format((time.time() - iter_start_time))) + return + + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b'=' * 89) + resfile.write(b"\n") + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + logger.info("The number of pairs is %d", len(pairs["hyps"])) + if not len(pairs["hyps"]): + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + if isinstance(pairs["refer"][0], list): + logger.info("Multi Reference summaries!") + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all_multi(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + logger.info("The number of pairs is %d", len(pairs["hyps"])) + if not len(pairs["hyps"]): + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + rouge = Rouge() + scores_all = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"], avg=True) + + # the whole model res writer + resfile.write(b"The total testset is:") + res = "Rouge1:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-1']['p'], scores_all['rouge-1']['r'], scores_all['rouge-1']['f']) \ + + "Rouge2:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-2']['p'], scores_all['rouge-2']['r'], scores_all['rouge-2']['f']) \ + + "Rougel:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-l']['p'], scores_all['rouge-l']['r'], scores_all['rouge-l']['f']) + resfile.write(res.encode("utf-8")) + logger.info(res) + logger.info(' | end of test | time: {:5.2f}s | ' + .format((time.time() - iter_start_time))) + + + + # label prediction + logger.info("match_true %d, pred %d, true %d, total %d, match %d", match, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + accu, precision, recall, F = utils.eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + res = "The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f" % (total_example_num / hps.doc_max_timesteps, accu, precision, recall, F) + resfile.write(res.encode('utf-8')) + logger.info("The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f", len(loader), accu, precision, recall, F) + + +def main(): + parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description='Transformer Model') + + # Where to find data + parser.add_argument('--data_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/train.label.jsonl', help='Path expression to pickle datafiles.') + parser.add_argument('--valid_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/val.label.jsonl', help='Path expression to pickle valid datafiles.') + parser.add_argument('--vocab_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/vocab', help='Path expression to text vocabulary file.') + parser.add_argument('--embedding_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Glove/glove.42B.300d.txt', help='Path expression to external word embedding.') + + # Important settings + parser.add_argument('--mode', type=str, default='train', help='must be one of train/test') + parser.add_argument('--restore_model', type=str , default='None', help='Restore model for further training. [bestmodel/bestFmodel/earlystop/None]') + parser.add_argument('--test_model', type=str, default='evalbestmodel', help='choose different model to test [evalbestmodel/evalbestFmodel/trainbestmodel/trainbestFmodel/earlystop]') + parser.add_argument('--use_pyrouge', action='store_true', default=False, help='use_pyrouge') + + # Where to save output + parser.add_argument('--save_root', type=str, default='save/', help='Root directory for all model.') + parser.add_argument('--log_root', type=str, default='log/', help='Root directory for all logging.') + + # Hyperparameters + parser.add_argument('--gpu', type=str, default='0', help='GPU ID to use. For cpu, set -1 [default: -1]') + parser.add_argument('--cuda', action='store_true', default=False, help='use cuda') + parser.add_argument('--vocab_size', type=int, default=100000, help='Size of vocabulary. These will be read from the vocabulary file in order. If the vocabulary file contains fewer words than this number, or if this number is set to 0, will take all words in the vocabulary file.') + parser.add_argument('--n_epochs', type=int, default=20, help='Number of epochs [default: 20]') + parser.add_argument('--batch_size', type=int, default=32, help='Mini batch size [default: 128]') + + parser.add_argument('--word_embedding', action='store_true', default=True, help='whether to use Word embedding') + parser.add_argument('--word_emb_dim', type=int, default=300, help='Word embedding size [default: 200]') + parser.add_argument('--embed_train', action='store_true', default=False, help='whether to train Word embedding [default: False]') + parser.add_argument('--min_kernel_size', type=int, default=1, help='kernel min length for CNN [default:1]') + parser.add_argument('--max_kernel_size', type=int, default=7, help='kernel max length for CNN [default:7]') + parser.add_argument('--output_channel', type=int, default=50, help='output channel: repeated times for one kernel') + parser.add_argument('--n_layers', type=int, default=12, help='Number of deeplstm layers') + parser.add_argument('--hidden_size', type=int, default=512, help='hidden size [default: 512]') + parser.add_argument('--ffn_inner_hidden_size', type=int, default=2048, help='PositionwiseFeedForward inner hidden size [default: 2048]') + parser.add_argument('--n_head', type=int, default=8, help='multihead attention number [default: 8]') + parser.add_argument('--recurrent_dropout_prob', type=float, default=0.1, help='recurrent dropout prob [default: 0.1]') + parser.add_argument('--atten_dropout_prob', type=float, default=0.1,help='attention dropout prob [default: 0.1]') + parser.add_argument('--ffn_dropout_prob', type=float, default=0.1, help='PositionwiseFeedForward dropout prob [default: 0.1]') + parser.add_argument('--use_orthnormal_init', action='store_true', default=True, help='use orthnormal init for lstm [default: true]') + parser.add_argument('--sent_max_len', type=int, default=100, help='max length of sentences (max source text sentence tokens)') + parser.add_argument('--doc_max_timesteps', type=int, default=50, help='max length of documents (max timesteps of documents)') + parser.add_argument('--save_label', action='store_true', default=False, help='require multihead attention') + + # Training + parser.add_argument('--lr', type=float, default=0.0001, help='learning rate') + parser.add_argument('--lr_descent', action='store_true', default=False, help='learning rate descent') + parser.add_argument('--warmup_steps', type=int, default=4000, help='warmup_steps') + parser.add_argument('--grad_clip', action='store_true', default=False, help='for gradient clipping') + parser.add_argument('--max_grad_norm', type=float, default=1.0, help='for gradient clipping max gradient normalization') + + parser.add_argument('-m', type=int, default=3, help='decode summary length') + parser.add_argument('--limited', action='store_true', default=False, help='limited decode summary length') + + args = parser.parse_args() + + os.environ['CUDA_VISIBLE_DEVICES'] = args.gpu + torch.set_printoptions(threshold=50000) + + hps = args + + # File paths + DATA_FILE = args.data_path + VALID_FILE = args.valid_path + VOCAL_FILE = args.vocab_path + LOG_PATH = args.log_root + + # train_log setting + if not os.path.exists(LOG_PATH): + if hps.mode == "train": + os.makedirs(LOG_PATH) + else: + logger.exception("[Error] Logdir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it.", LOG_PATH) + raise Exception("[Error] Logdir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it." % (LOG_PATH)) + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S') + log_path = os.path.join(LOG_PATH, hps.mode + "_" + nowTime) + file_handler = logging.FileHandler(log_path) + file_handler.setFormatter(formatter) + logger.addHandler(file_handler) + + logger.info("Pytorch %s", torch.__version__) + logger.info(args) + logger.info(args) + + sum_loader = SummarizationLoader() + + + if hps.mode == 'test': + paths = {"test": DATA_FILE} + hps.recurrent_dropout_prob = 0.0 + hps.atten_dropout_prob = 0.0 + hps.ffn_dropout_prob = 0.0 + logger.info(hps) + else: + paths = {"train": DATA_FILE, "valid": VALID_FILE} + + dataInfo = sum_loader.process(paths=paths, vocab_size=hps.vocab_size, vocab_path=VOCAL_FILE, sent_max_len=hps.sent_max_len, doc_max_timesteps=hps.doc_max_timesteps, load_vocab=os.path.exists(VOCAL_FILE)) + + vocab = dataInfo.vocabs["vocab"] + model = TransformerModel(hps, vocab) + + if len(hps.gpu) > 1: + gpuid = hps.gpu.split(',') + gpuid = [int(s) for s in gpuid] + model = nn.DataParallel(model,device_ids=gpuid) + logger.info("[INFO] Use Multi-gpu: %s", hps.gpu) + if hps.cuda: + model = model.cuda() + logger.info("[INFO] Use cuda") + + if hps.mode == 'train': + trainset = dataInfo.datasets["train"] + train_sampler = BucketSampler(batch_size=hps.batch_size, seq_len_field_name=Const.INPUT) + train_batch = DataSetIter(batch_size=hps.batch_size, dataset=trainset, sampler=train_sampler) + validset = dataInfo.datasets["valid"] + validset.set_input("text", "summary") + valid_batch = DataSetIter(batch_size=hps.batch_size, dataset=validset) + setup_training(model, train_batch, valid_batch, hps) + elif hps.mode == 'test': + logger.info("[INFO] Decoding...") + testset = dataInfo.datasets["test"] + testset.set_input("text", "summary") + test_batch = DataSetIter(batch_size=hps.batch_size, dataset=testset) + run_test(model, test_batch, hps, limited=hps.limited) + else: + logger.error("The 'mode' flag must be one of train/eval/test") + raise ValueError("The 'mode' flag must be one of train/eval/test") + +if __name__ == '__main__': + main() diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/train_transformer.py b/reproduction/Summarization/train_transformer.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..50d05f5c --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/train_transformer.py @@ -0,0 +1,705 @@ +#!/usr/bin/python +# -*- coding: utf-8 -*- + +# __author__="Danqing Wang" + +# +# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); +# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. +# You may obtain a copy of the License at +# +# http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 +# +# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software +# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, +# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. +# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and +# limitations under the License. +# ============================================================================== + +"""Train Model1: baseline model""" + +import os +import sys +import time +import copy +import pickle +import datetime +import argparse +import logging + +import numpy as np + + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +from torch.autograd import Variable + +from rouge import Rouge + +sys.path.append('/remote-home/dqwang/FastNLP/fastNLP/') + +from fastNLP.core.batch import Batch +from fastNLP.core.const import Const +from fastNLP.io.model_io import ModelLoader, ModelSaver +from fastNLP.core.sampler import BucketSampler + +from tools import utils +from tools.logger import * +from data.dataloader import SummarizationLoader +from model.TransformerModel import TransformerModel + +def setup_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps): + """Does setup before starting training (run_training)""" + + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + if not os.path.exists(train_dir): os.makedirs(train_dir) + + if hps.restore_model != 'None': + logger.info("[INFO] Restoring %s for training...", hps.restore_model) + bestmodel_file = os.path.join(train_dir, hps.restore_model) + loader = ModelLoader() + loader.load_pytorch(model, bestmodel_file) + else: + logger.info("[INFO] Create new model for training...") + + try: + run_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps) # this is an infinite loop until interrupted + except KeyboardInterrupt: + logger.error("[Error] Caught keyboard interrupt on worker. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + +def run_training(model, train_loader, valid_loader, hps): + """Repeatedly runs training iterations, logging loss to screen and writing summaries""" + logger.info("[INFO] Starting run_training") + + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + if not os.path.exists(train_dir): os.makedirs(train_dir) + + lr = hps.lr + # optimizer = torch.optim.Adam(filter(lambda p: p.requires_grad, model.parameters()), lr=lr, betas=(0.9, 0.98), + # eps=1e-09) + optimizer = torch.optim.Adam(filter(lambda p: p.requires_grad, model.parameters()), lr=lr) + criterion = torch.nn.CrossEntropyLoss(reduction='none') + + best_train_loss = None + best_train_F= None + best_loss = None + best_F = None + step_num = 0 + non_descent_cnt = 0 + for epoch in range(1, hps.n_epochs + 1): + epoch_loss = 0.0 + train_loss = 0.0 + total_example_num = 0 + match, pred, true, match_true = 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0 + epoch_start_time = time.time() + for i, (batch_x, batch_y) in enumerate(train_loader): + # if i > 10: + # break + model.train() + + iter_start_time=time.time() + + input, input_len = batch_x[Const.INPUT], batch_x[Const.INPUT_LEN] + label = batch_y[Const.TARGET] + + # logger.info(batch_x["text"][0]) + # logger.info(input[0,:,:]) + # logger.info(input_len[0:5,:]) + # logger.info(batch_y["summary"][0:5]) + # logger.info(label[0:5,:]) + + # logger.info((len(batch_x["text"][0]), sum(input[0].sum(-1) != 0))) + + batch_size, N, seq_len = input.size() + + if hps.cuda: + input = input.cuda() # [batch, N, seq_len] + label = label.cuda() + input_len = input_len.cuda() + + input = Variable(input) + label = Variable(label) + input_len = Variable(input_len) + + model_outputs = model.forward(input, input_len) # [batch, N, 2] + + outputs = model_outputs[Const.OUTPUT].view(-1, 2) + + label = label.view(-1) + + loss = criterion(outputs, label) # [batch_size, doc_max_timesteps] + input_len = input_len.float().view(-1) + loss = loss * input_len + loss = loss.view(batch_size, -1) + loss = loss.sum(1).mean() + + if not (np.isfinite(loss.data)).numpy(): + logger.error("train Loss is not finite. Stopping.") + logger.info(loss) + for name, param in model.named_parameters(): + if param.requires_grad: + logger.info(name) + logger.info(param.grad.data.sum()) + raise Exception("train Loss is not finite. Stopping.") + + optimizer.zero_grad() + loss.backward() + if hps.grad_clip: + torch.nn.utils.clip_grad_norm_(model.parameters(), hps.max_grad_norm) + + optimizer.step() + step_num += 1 + + train_loss += float(loss.data) + epoch_loss += float(loss.data) + + if i % 100 == 0: + # start debugger + # import pdb; pdb.set_trace() + for name, param in model.named_parameters(): + if param.requires_grad: + logger.debug(name) + logger.debug(param.grad.data.sum()) + logger.info(' | end of iter {:3d} | time: {:5.2f}s | train loss {:5.4f} | ' + .format(i, (time.time() - iter_start_time), + float(train_loss / 100))) + train_loss = 0.0 + + # calculate the precision, recall and F + prediction = outputs.max(1)[1] + prediction = prediction.data + label = label.data + pred += prediction.sum() + true += label.sum() + match_true += ((prediction == label) & (prediction == 1)).sum() + match += (prediction == label).sum() + total_example_num += int(batch_size * N) + + if hps.lr_descent: + # new_lr = pow(hps.hidden_size, -0.5) * min(pow(step_num, -0.5), + # step_num * pow(hps.warmup_steps, -1.5)) + new_lr = max(5e-6, lr / (epoch + 1)) + for param_group in list(optimizer.param_groups): + param_group['lr'] = new_lr + logger.info("[INFO] The learning rate now is %f", new_lr) + + epoch_avg_loss = epoch_loss / len(train_loader) + logger.info(' | end of epoch {:3d} | time: {:5.2f}s | epoch train loss {:5.4f} | ' + .format(epoch, (time.time() - epoch_start_time), + float(epoch_avg_loss))) + + logger.info("[INFO] Trainset match_true %d, pred %d, true %d, total %d, match %d", match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + accu, precision, recall, F = utils.eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + logger.info("[INFO] The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f", total_example_num / hps.doc_max_timesteps, accu, precision, recall, F) + + if not best_train_loss or epoch_avg_loss < best_train_loss: + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "bestmodel.pkl") + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.3f running_train_loss. Saving to %s', float(epoch_avg_loss), save_file) + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_train_loss = epoch_avg_loss + elif epoch_avg_loss > best_train_loss: + logger.error("[Error] training loss does not descent. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop.pkl") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + return + + if not best_train_F or F > best_train_F: + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "bestFmodel.pkl") + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.3f F score. Saving to %s', float(F), save_file) + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_train_F = F + + best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt = run_eval(model, valid_loader, hps, best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt) + + if non_descent_cnt >= 3: + logger.error("[Error] val loss does not descent for three times. Stopping supervisor...") + save_file = os.path.join(train_dir, "earlystop") + saver = ModelSaver(save_file) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + logger.info('[INFO] Saving early stop model to %s', save_file) + return + +def run_eval(model, loader, hps, best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt): + """Repeatedly runs eval iterations, logging to screen and writing summaries. Saves the model with the best loss seen so far.""" + logger.info("[INFO] Starting eval for this model ...") + eval_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "eval") # make a subdir of the root dir for eval data + if not os.path.exists(eval_dir): os.makedirs(eval_dir) + + model.eval() + + running_loss = 0.0 + match, pred, true, match_true = 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0 + pairs = {} + pairs["hyps"] = [] + pairs["refer"] = [] + total_example_num = 0 + criterion = torch.nn.CrossEntropyLoss(reduction='none') + iter_start_time = time.time() + + with torch.no_grad(): + for i, (batch_x, batch_y) in enumerate(loader): + # if i > 10: + # break + + input, input_len = batch_x[Const.INPUT], batch_x[Const.INPUT_LEN] + label = batch_y[Const.TARGET] + + if hps.cuda: + input = input.cuda() # [batch, N, seq_len] + label = label.cuda() + input_len = input_len.cuda() + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + input = Variable(input, requires_grad=False) + label = Variable(label) + input_len = Variable(input_len, requires_grad=False) + + model_outputs = model.forward(input,input_len) # [batch, N, 2] + outputs = model_outputs[Const.OUTPUTS] + prediction = model_outputs["prediction"] + + outputs = outputs.view(-1, 2) # [batch * N, 2] + label = label.view(-1) # [batch * N] + loss = criterion(outputs, label) + input_len = input_len.float().view(-1) + loss = loss * input_len + loss = loss.view(batch_size, -1) + loss = loss.sum(1).mean() + running_loss += float(loss.data) + + label = label.data + pred += prediction.sum() + true += label.sum() + match_true += ((prediction == label) & (prediction == 1)).sum() + match += (prediction == label).sum() + total_example_num += batch_size * N + + # rouge + prediction = prediction.view(batch_size, -1) + for j in range(batch_size): + original_article_sents = batch_x["text"][j] + sent_max_number = len(original_article_sents) + refer = "\n".join(batch_x["summary"][j]) + hyps = "\n".join(original_article_sents[id] for id in range(len(prediction[j])) if prediction[j][id]==1 and id < sent_max_number) + if sent_max_number < hps.m and len(hyps) <= 1: + logger.error("sent_max_number is too short %d, Skip!" , sent_max_number) + continue + + if len(hyps) >= 1 and hyps != '.': + # logger.debug(prediction[j]) + pairs["hyps"].append(hyps) + pairs["refer"].append(refer) + elif refer == "." or refer == "": + logger.error("Refer is None!") + logger.debug("label:") + logger.debug(label[j]) + logger.debug(refer) + elif hyps == "." or hyps == "": + logger.error("hyps is None!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug("prediction:") + logger.debug(prediction[j]) + logger.debug(hyps) + else: + logger.error("Do not select any sentences!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug(original_article_sents) + logger.debug("label:") + logger.debug(label[j]) + continue + + running_avg_loss = running_loss / len(loader) + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + logger.info("The number of pairs is %d", len(pairs["hyps"])) + logging.getLogger('global').setLevel(logging.WARNING) + if not len(pairs["hyps"]): + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + if isinstance(pairs["refer"][0], list): + logger.info("Multi Reference summaries!") + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all_multi(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + if len(pairs["hyps"]) == 0 or len(pairs["refer"]) == 0 : + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + rouge = Rouge() + scores_all = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"], avg=True) + # try: + # scores_all = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"], avg=True) + # except ValueError as e: + # logger.error(repr(e)) + # scores_all = [] + # for idx in range(len(pairs["hyps"])): + # try: + # scores = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"][idx], pairs["refer"][idx])[0] + # scores_all.append(scores) + # except ValueError as e: + # logger.error(repr(e)) + # logger.debug("HYPS:\t%s", pairs["hyps"][idx]) + # logger.debug("REFER:\t%s", pairs["refer"][idx]) + # finally: + # logger.error("During testing, some errors happen!") + # logger.error(len(scores_all)) + # exit(1) + + logger.info('[INFO] End of valid | time: {:5.2f}s | valid loss {:5.4f} | ' + .format((time.time() - iter_start_time), + float(running_avg_loss))) + + logger.info("[INFO] Validset match_true %d, pred %d, true %d, total %d, match %d", match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + accu, precision, recall, F = utils.eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + logger.info("[INFO] The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f", + total_example_num / hps.doc_max_timesteps, accu, precision, recall, F) + + res = "Rouge1:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-1']['p'], scores_all['rouge-1']['r'], scores_all['rouge-1']['f']) \ + + "Rouge2:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-2']['p'], scores_all['rouge-2']['r'], scores_all['rouge-2']['f']) \ + + "Rougel:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-l']['p'], scores_all['rouge-l']['r'], scores_all['rouge-l']['f']) + logger.info(res) + + # If running_avg_loss is best so far, save this checkpoint (early stopping). + # These checkpoints will appear as bestmodel- in the eval dir + if best_loss is None or running_avg_loss < best_loss: + bestmodel_save_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + if best_loss is not None: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f running_avg_loss. The original loss is %.6f, Saving to %s', float(running_avg_loss), float(best_loss), bestmodel_save_path) + else: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f running_avg_loss. The original loss is None, Saving to %s', float(running_avg_loss), bestmodel_save_path) + saver = ModelSaver(bestmodel_save_path) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_loss = running_avg_loss + non_descent_cnt = 0 + else: + non_descent_cnt += 1 + + if best_F is None or best_F < F: + bestmodel_save_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestFmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + if best_F is not None: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f F. The original F is %.6f, Saving to %s', float(F), float(best_F), bestmodel_save_path) + else: + logger.info('[INFO] Found new best model with %.6f F. The original loss is None, Saving to %s', float(F), bestmodel_save_path) + saver = ModelSaver(bestmodel_save_path) + saver.save_pytorch(model) + best_F = F + + return best_loss, best_F, non_descent_cnt + +def run_test(model, loader, hps, limited=False): + """Repeatedly runs eval iterations, logging to screen and writing summaries. Saves the model with the best loss seen so far.""" + test_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "test") # make a subdir of the root dir for eval data + eval_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "eval") + if not os.path.exists(test_dir) : os.makedirs(test_dir) + if not os.path.exists(eval_dir) : + logger.exception("[Error] eval_dir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it.", eval_dir) + raise Exception("[Error] eval_dir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it." % (eval_dir)) + + if hps.test_model == "evalbestmodel": + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') # this is where checkpoints of best models are saved + elif hps.test_model == "evalbestFmodel": + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(eval_dir, 'bestFmodel.pkl') + elif hps.test_model == "trainbestmodel": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'bestmodel.pkl') + elif hps.test_model == "trainbestFmodel": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'bestFmodel.pkl') + elif hps.test_model == "earlystop": + train_dir = os.path.join(hps.save_root, "train") + bestmodel_load_path = os.path.join(train_dir, 'earlystop,pkl') + else: + logger.error("None of such model! Must be one of evalbestmodel/trainbestmodel/earlystop") + raise ValueError("None of such model! Must be one of evalbestmodel/trainbestmodel/earlystop") + logger.info("[INFO] Restoring %s for testing...The path is %s", hps.test_model, bestmodel_load_path) + + modelloader = ModelLoader() + modelloader.load_pytorch(model, bestmodel_load_path) + + import datetime + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S')#现在 + if hps.save_label: + log_dir = os.path.join(test_dir, hps.data_path.split("/")[-1]) + resfile = open(log_dir, "w") + else: + log_dir = os.path.join(test_dir, nowTime) + resfile = open(log_dir, "wb") + logger.info("[INFO] Write the Evaluation into %s", log_dir) + + model.eval() + + match, pred, true, match_true = 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0 + total_example_num = 0.0 + pairs = {} + pairs["hyps"] = [] + pairs["refer"] = [] + pred_list = [] + iter_start_time=time.time() + with torch.no_grad(): + for i, (batch_x, batch_y) in enumerate(loader): + + input, input_len = batch_x[Const.INPUT], batch_x[Const.INPUT_LEN] + label = batch_y[Const.TARGET] + + if hps.cuda: + input = input.cuda() # [batch, N, seq_len] + label = label.cuda() + input_len = input_len.cuda() + + batch_size, N, _ = input.size() + + input = Variable(input) + input_len = Variable(input_len, requires_grad=False) + + model_outputs = model.forward(input, input_len) # [batch, N, 2] + prediction = model_outputs["pred"] + + if hps.save_label: + pred_list.extend(model_outputs["pred_idx"].data.cpu().view(-1).tolist()) + continue + + pred += prediction.sum() + true += label.sum() + match_true += ((prediction == label) & (prediction == 1)).sum() + match += (prediction == label).sum() + total_example_num += batch_size * N + + for j in range(batch_size): + original_article_sents = batch_x["text"][j] + sent_max_number = len(original_article_sents) + refer = "\n".join(batch_x["summary"][j]) + hyps = "\n".join(original_article_sents[id].replace("\n", "") for id in range(len(prediction[j])) if prediction[j][id]==1 and id < sent_max_number) + if limited: + k = len(refer.split()) + hyps = " ".join(hyps.split()[:k]) + logger.info((len(refer.split()),len(hyps.split()))) + resfile.write(b"Original_article:") + resfile.write("\n".join(batch_x["text"][j]).encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b"Reference:") + if isinstance(refer, list): + for ref in refer: + resfile.write(ref.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b'*' * 40) + resfile.write(b"\n") + else: + resfile.write(refer.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b"hypothesis:") + resfile.write(hyps.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b"\n") + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + pairs["hyps"].append(hyps) + pairs["refer"].append(refer) + else: + try: + scores = utils.rouge_all(hyps, refer) + pairs["hyps"].append(hyps) + pairs["refer"].append(refer) + except ValueError: + logger.error("Do not select any sentences!") + logger.debug("sent_max_number:%d", sent_max_number) + logger.debug(original_article_sents) + logger.debug("label:") + logger.debug(label[j]) + continue + + # single example res writer + res = "Rouge1:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores['rouge-1']['p'], scores['rouge-1']['r'], scores['rouge-1']['f']) \ + + "Rouge2:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores['rouge-2']['p'], scores['rouge-2']['r'], scores['rouge-2']['f']) \ + + "Rougel:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores['rouge-l']['p'], scores['rouge-l']['r'], scores['rouge-l']['f']) + + resfile.write(res.encode('utf-8')) + resfile.write(b'-' * 89) + resfile.write(b"\n") + + if hps.save_label: + import json + json.dump(pred_list, resfile) + logger.info(' | end of test | time: {:5.2f}s | '.format((time.time() - iter_start_time))) + return + + resfile.write(b"\n") + resfile.write(b'=' * 89) + resfile.write(b"\n") + + if hps.use_pyrouge: + logger.info("The number of pairs is %d", len(pairs["hyps"])) + if not len(pairs["hyps"]): + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + if isinstance(pairs["refer"][0], list): + logger.info("Multi Reference summaries!") + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all_multi(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + scores_all = utils.pyrouge_score_all(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"]) + else: + logger.info("The number of pairs is %d", len(pairs["hyps"])) + if not len(pairs["hyps"]): + logger.error("During testing, no hyps is selected!") + return + rouge = Rouge() + scores_all = rouge.get_scores(pairs["hyps"], pairs["refer"], avg=True) + + # the whole model res writer + resfile.write(b"The total testset is:") + res = "Rouge1:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-1']['p'], scores_all['rouge-1']['r'], scores_all['rouge-1']['f']) \ + + "Rouge2:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-2']['p'], scores_all['rouge-2']['r'], scores_all['rouge-2']['f']) \ + + "Rougel:\n\tp:%.6f, r:%.6f, f:%.6f\n" % (scores_all['rouge-l']['p'], scores_all['rouge-l']['r'], scores_all['rouge-l']['f']) + resfile.write(res.encode("utf-8")) + logger.info(res) + logger.info(' | end of test | time: {:5.2f}s | ' + .format((time.time() - iter_start_time))) + + + + # label prediction + logger.info("match_true %d, pred %d, true %d, total %d, match %d", match, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + accu, precision, recall, F = utils.eval_label(match_true, pred, true, total_example_num, match) + res = "The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f" % (total_example_num / hps.doc_max_timesteps, accu, precision, recall, F) + resfile.write(res.encode('utf-8')) + logger.info("The size of totalset is %d, accu is %f, precision is %f, recall is %f, F is %f", len(loader), accu, precision, recall, F) + + +def main(): + parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description='Transformer Model') + + # Where to find data + parser.add_argument('--data_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/train.label.jsonl', help='Path expression to pickle datafiles.') + parser.add_argument('--valid_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/val.label.jsonl', help='Path expression to pickle valid datafiles.') + parser.add_argument('--vocab_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Datasets/CNNDM/vocab', help='Path expression to text vocabulary file.') + parser.add_argument('--embedding_path', type=str, default='/remote-home/dqwang/Glove/glove.42B.300d.txt', help='Path expression to external word embedding.') + + # Important settings + parser.add_argument('--mode', type=str, default='train', help='must be one of train/test') + parser.add_argument('--restore_model', type=str , default='None', help='Restore model for further training. [bestmodel/bestFmodel/earlystop/None]') + parser.add_argument('--test_model', type=str, default='evalbestmodel', help='choose different model to test [evalbestmodel/evalbestFmodel/trainbestmodel/trainbestFmodel/earlystop]') + parser.add_argument('--use_pyrouge', action='store_true', default=False, help='use_pyrouge') + + # Where to save output + parser.add_argument('--save_root', type=str, default='save/', help='Root directory for all model.') + parser.add_argument('--log_root', type=str, default='log/', help='Root directory for all logging.') + + # Hyperparameters + parser.add_argument('--gpu', type=str, default='0', help='GPU ID to use. For cpu, set -1 [default: -1]') + parser.add_argument('--cuda', action='store_true', default=False, help='use cuda') + parser.add_argument('--vocab_size', type=int, default=100000, help='Size of vocabulary. These will be read from the vocabulary file in order. If the vocabulary file contains fewer words than this number, or if this number is set to 0, will take all words in the vocabulary file.') + parser.add_argument('--n_epochs', type=int, default=20, help='Number of epochs [default: 20]') + parser.add_argument('--batch_size', type=int, default=32, help='Mini batch size [default: 128]') + + parser.add_argument('--word_embedding', action='store_true', default=True, help='whether to use Word embedding') + parser.add_argument('--word_emb_dim', type=int, default=300, help='Word embedding size [default: 200]') + parser.add_argument('--embed_train', action='store_true', default=False, help='whether to train Word embedding [default: False]') + parser.add_argument('--min_kernel_size', type=int, default=1, help='kernel min length for CNN [default:1]') + parser.add_argument('--max_kernel_size', type=int, default=7, help='kernel max length for CNN [default:7]') + parser.add_argument('--output_channel', type=int, default=50, help='output channel: repeated times for one kernel') + parser.add_argument('--n_layers', type=int, default=12, help='Number of deeplstm layers') + parser.add_argument('--hidden_size', type=int, default=512, help='hidden size [default: 512]') + parser.add_argument('--ffn_inner_hidden_size', type=int, default=2048, help='PositionwiseFeedForward inner hidden size [default: 2048]') + parser.add_argument('--n_head', type=int, default=8, help='multihead attention number [default: 8]') + parser.add_argument('--recurrent_dropout_prob', type=float, default=0.1, help='recurrent dropout prob [default: 0.1]') + parser.add_argument('--atten_dropout_prob', type=float, default=0.1,help='attention dropout prob [default: 0.1]') + parser.add_argument('--ffn_dropout_prob', type=float, default=0.1, help='PositionwiseFeedForward dropout prob [default: 0.1]') + parser.add_argument('--use_orthnormal_init', action='store_true', default=True, help='use orthnormal init for lstm [default: true]') + parser.add_argument('--sent_max_len', type=int, default=100, help='max length of sentences (max source text sentence tokens)') + parser.add_argument('--doc_max_timesteps', type=int, default=50, help='max length of documents (max timesteps of documents)') + parser.add_argument('--save_label', action='store_true', default=False, help='require multihead attention') + + # Training + parser.add_argument('--lr', type=float, default=0.0001, help='learning rate') + parser.add_argument('--lr_descent', action='store_true', default=False, help='learning rate descent') + parser.add_argument('--warmup_steps', type=int, default=4000, help='warmup_steps') + parser.add_argument('--grad_clip', action='store_true', default=False, help='for gradient clipping') + parser.add_argument('--max_grad_norm', type=float, default=1.0, help='for gradient clipping max gradient normalization') + + parser.add_argument('-m', type=int, default=3, help='decode summary length') + parser.add_argument('--limited', action='store_true', default=False, help='limited decode summary length') + + args = parser.parse_args() + + os.environ['CUDA_VISIBLE_DEVICES'] = args.gpu + torch.set_printoptions(threshold=50000) + + hps = args + + # File paths + DATA_FILE = args.data_path + VALID_FILE = args.valid_path + VOCAL_FILE = args.vocab_path + LOG_PATH = args.log_root + + # train_log setting + if not os.path.exists(LOG_PATH): + if hps.mode == "train": + os.makedirs(LOG_PATH) + else: + logger.exception("[Error] Logdir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it.", LOG_PATH) + raise Exception("[Error] Logdir %s doesn't exist. Run in train mode to create it." % (LOG_PATH)) + nowTime=datetime.datetime.now().strftime('%Y%m%d_%H%M%S') + log_path = os.path.join(LOG_PATH, hps.mode + "_" + nowTime) + file_handler = logging.FileHandler(log_path) + file_handler.setFormatter(formatter) + logger.addHandler(file_handler) + + logger.info("Pytorch %s", torch.__version__) + logger.info(args) + logger.info(args) + + sum_loader = SummarizationLoader() + + + if hps.mode == 'test': + paths = {"test": DATA_FILE} + hps.recurrent_dropout_prob = 0.0 + hps.atten_dropout_prob = 0.0 + hps.ffn_dropout_prob = 0.0 + logger.info(hps) + else: + paths = {"train": DATA_FILE, "valid": VALID_FILE} + + dataInfo = sum_loader.process(paths=paths, vocab_size=hps.vocab_size, vocab_path=VOCAL_FILE, sent_max_len=hps.sent_max_len, doc_max_timesteps=hps.doc_max_timesteps, load_vocab=os.path.exists(VOCAL_FILE)) + + vocab = dataInfo.vocabs["vocab"] + model = TransformerModel(hps, vocab) + + if len(hps.gpu) > 1: + gpuid = hps.gpu.split(',') + gpuid = [int(s) for s in gpuid] + model = nn.DataParallel(model,device_ids=gpuid) + logger.info("[INFO] Use Multi-gpu: %s", hps.gpu) + if hps.cuda: + model = model.cuda() + logger.info("[INFO] Use cuda") + + if hps.mode == 'train': + trainset = dataInfo.datasets["train"] + train_sampler = BucketSampler(batch_size=hps.batch_size, seq_len_field_name=Const.INPUT) + train_batch = Batch(batch_size=hps.batch_size, dataset=trainset, sampler=train_sampler) + validset = dataInfo.datasets["valid"] + validset.set_input("text", "summary") + valid_batch = Batch(batch_size=hps.batch_size, dataset=validset) + setup_training(model, train_batch, valid_batch, hps) + elif hps.mode == 'test': + logger.info("[INFO] Decoding...") + testset = dataInfo.datasets["test"] + testset.set_input("text", "summary") + test_batch = Batch(batch_size=hps.batch_size, dataset=testset) + run_test(model, test_batch, hps, limited=hps.limited) + else: + logger.error("The 'mode' flag must be one of train/eval/test") + raise ValueError("The 'mode' flag must be one of train/eval/test") + +if __name__ == '__main__': + main() diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Beam.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Beam.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..127b14f4 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Beam.py @@ -0,0 +1,103 @@ +""" Manage beam search info structure. + + Heavily borrowed from OpenNMT-py. + For code in OpenNMT-py, please check the following link: + https://github.com/OpenNMT/OpenNMT-py/blob/master/onmt/Beam.py +""" + +import torch +import numpy as np +import transformer.Constants as Constants + +class Beam(): + ''' Beam search ''' + + def __init__(self, size, device=False): + + self.size = size + self._done = False + + # The score for each translation on the beam. + self.scores = torch.zeros((size,), dtype=torch.float, device=device) + self.all_scores = [] + + # The backpointers at each time-step. + self.prev_ks = [] + + # The outputs at each time-step. + self.next_ys = [torch.full((size,), Constants.PAD, dtype=torch.long, device=device)] + self.next_ys[0][0] = Constants.BOS + + def get_current_state(self): + "Get the outputs for the current timestep." + return self.get_tentative_hypothesis() + + def get_current_origin(self): + "Get the backpointers for the current timestep." + return self.prev_ks[-1] + + @property + def done(self): + return self._done + + def advance(self, word_prob): + "Update beam status and check if finished or not." + num_words = word_prob.size(1) + + # Sum the previous scores. + if len(self.prev_ks) > 0: + beam_lk = word_prob + self.scores.unsqueeze(1).expand_as(word_prob) + else: + beam_lk = word_prob[0] + + flat_beam_lk = beam_lk.view(-1) + + best_scores, best_scores_id = flat_beam_lk.topk(self.size, 0, True, True) # 1st sort + best_scores, best_scores_id = flat_beam_lk.topk(self.size, 0, True, True) # 2nd sort + + self.all_scores.append(self.scores) + self.scores = best_scores + + # bestScoresId is flattened as a (beam x word) array, + # so we need to calculate which word and beam each score came from + prev_k = best_scores_id / num_words + self.prev_ks.append(prev_k) + self.next_ys.append(best_scores_id - prev_k * num_words) + + # End condition is when top-of-beam is EOS. + if self.next_ys[-1][0].item() == Constants.EOS: + self._done = True + self.all_scores.append(self.scores) + + return self._done + + def sort_scores(self): + "Sort the scores." + return torch.sort(self.scores, 0, True) + + def get_the_best_score_and_idx(self): + "Get the score of the best in the beam." + scores, ids = self.sort_scores() + return scores[1], ids[1] + + def get_tentative_hypothesis(self): + "Get the decoded sequence for the current timestep." + + if len(self.next_ys) == 1: + dec_seq = self.next_ys[0].unsqueeze(1) + else: + _, keys = self.sort_scores() + hyps = [self.get_hypothesis(k) for k in keys] + hyps = [[Constants.BOS] + h for h in hyps] + dec_seq = torch.LongTensor(hyps) + + return dec_seq + + def get_hypothesis(self, k): + """ Walk back to construct the full hypothesis. """ + hyp = [] + for j in range(len(self.prev_ks) - 1, -1, -1): + hyp.append(self.next_ys[j+1][k]) + k = self.prev_ks[j][k] + + return list(map(lambda x: x.item(), hyp[::-1])) diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Constants.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Constants.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..d805b03c --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Constants.py @@ -0,0 +1,10 @@ + +PAD = 0 +UNK = 1 +BOS = 2 +EOS = 3 + +PAD_WORD = '' +UNK_WORD = '' +BOS_WORD = '' +EOS_WORD = '' diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Layers.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Layers.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..f1b45bed --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Layers.py @@ -0,0 +1,49 @@ +''' Define the Layers ''' +import torch.nn as nn +from transformer.SubLayers import MultiHeadAttention, PositionwiseFeedForward + +__author__ = "Yu-Hsiang Huang" + + +class EncoderLayer(nn.Module): + ''' Compose with two layers ''' + + def __init__(self, d_model, d_inner, n_head, d_k, d_v, dropout=0.1): + super(EncoderLayer, self).__init__() + self.slf_attn = MultiHeadAttention( + n_head, d_model, d_k, d_v, dropout=dropout) + self.pos_ffn = PositionwiseFeedForward(d_model, d_inner, dropout=dropout) + + def forward(self, enc_input, non_pad_mask=None, slf_attn_mask=None): + enc_output, enc_slf_attn = self.slf_attn( + enc_input, enc_input, enc_input, mask=slf_attn_mask) + enc_output *= non_pad_mask + + enc_output = self.pos_ffn(enc_output) + enc_output *= non_pad_mask + + return enc_output, enc_slf_attn + + +class DecoderLayer(nn.Module): + ''' Compose with three layers ''' + + def __init__(self, d_model, d_inner, n_head, d_k, d_v, dropout=0.1): + super(DecoderLayer, self).__init__() + self.slf_attn = MultiHeadAttention(n_head, d_model, d_k, d_v, dropout=dropout) + self.enc_attn = MultiHeadAttention(n_head, d_model, d_k, d_v, dropout=dropout) + self.pos_ffn = PositionwiseFeedForward(d_model, d_inner, dropout=dropout) + + def forward(self, dec_input, enc_output, non_pad_mask=None, slf_attn_mask=None, dec_enc_attn_mask=None): + dec_output, dec_slf_attn = self.slf_attn( + dec_input, dec_input, dec_input, mask=slf_attn_mask) + dec_output *= non_pad_mask + + dec_output, dec_enc_attn = self.enc_attn( + dec_output, enc_output, enc_output, mask=dec_enc_attn_mask) + dec_output *= non_pad_mask + + dec_output = self.pos_ffn(dec_output) + dec_output *= non_pad_mask + + return dec_output, dec_slf_attn, dec_enc_attn diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Models.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Models.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..d323e785 --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Models.py @@ -0,0 +1,208 @@ +''' Define the Transformer model ''' +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +import numpy as np +import transformer.Constants as Constants +from transformer.Layers import EncoderLayer, DecoderLayer + +__author__ = "Yu-Hsiang Huang" + +def get_non_pad_mask(seq): + assert seq.dim() == 2 + return seq.ne(Constants.PAD).type(torch.float).unsqueeze(-1) + +def get_sinusoid_encoding_table(n_position, d_hid, padding_idx=None): + ''' Sinusoid position encoding table ''' + + def cal_angle(position, hid_idx): + return position / np.power(10000, 2 * (hid_idx // 2) / d_hid) + + def get_posi_angle_vec(position): + return [cal_angle(position, hid_j) for hid_j in range(d_hid)] + + sinusoid_table = np.array([get_posi_angle_vec(pos_i) for pos_i in range(n_position)]) + + sinusoid_table[:, 0::2] = np.sin(sinusoid_table[:, 0::2]) # dim 2i + sinusoid_table[:, 1::2] = np.cos(sinusoid_table[:, 1::2]) # dim 2i+1 + + if padding_idx is not None: + # zero vector for padding dimension + sinusoid_table[padding_idx] = 0. + + return torch.FloatTensor(sinusoid_table) + +def get_attn_key_pad_mask(seq_k, seq_q): + ''' For masking out the padding part of key sequence. ''' + + # Expand to fit the shape of key query attention matrix. + len_q = seq_q.size(1) + padding_mask = seq_k.eq(Constants.PAD) + padding_mask = padding_mask.unsqueeze(1).expand(-1, len_q, -1) # b x lq x lk + + return padding_mask + +def get_subsequent_mask(seq): + ''' For masking out the subsequent info. ''' + + sz_b, len_s = seq.size() + subsequent_mask = torch.triu( + torch.ones((len_s, len_s), device=seq.device, dtype=torch.uint8), diagonal=1) + subsequent_mask = subsequent_mask.unsqueeze(0).expand(sz_b, -1, -1) # b x ls x ls + + return subsequent_mask + +class Encoder(nn.Module): + ''' A encoder model with self attention mechanism. ''' + + def __init__( + self, + n_src_vocab, len_max_seq, d_word_vec, + n_layers, n_head, d_k, d_v, + d_model, d_inner, dropout=0.1): + + super().__init__() + + n_position = len_max_seq + 1 + + self.src_word_emb = nn.Embedding( + n_src_vocab, d_word_vec, padding_idx=Constants.PAD) + + self.position_enc = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained( + get_sinusoid_encoding_table(n_position, d_word_vec, padding_idx=0), + freeze=True) + + self.layer_stack = nn.ModuleList([ + EncoderLayer(d_model, d_inner, n_head, d_k, d_v, dropout=dropout) + for _ in range(n_layers)]) + + def forward(self, src_seq, src_pos, return_attns=False): + + enc_slf_attn_list = [] + + # -- Prepare masks + slf_attn_mask = get_attn_key_pad_mask(seq_k=src_seq, seq_q=src_seq) + non_pad_mask = get_non_pad_mask(src_seq) + + # -- Forward + enc_output = self.src_word_emb(src_seq) + self.position_enc(src_pos) + + for enc_layer in self.layer_stack: + enc_output, enc_slf_attn = enc_layer( + enc_output, + non_pad_mask=non_pad_mask, + slf_attn_mask=slf_attn_mask) + if return_attns: + enc_slf_attn_list += [enc_slf_attn] + + if return_attns: + return enc_output, enc_slf_attn_list + return enc_output, + +class Decoder(nn.Module): + ''' A decoder model with self attention mechanism. ''' + + def __init__( + self, + n_tgt_vocab, len_max_seq, d_word_vec, + n_layers, n_head, d_k, d_v, + d_model, d_inner, dropout=0.1): + + super().__init__() + n_position = len_max_seq + 1 + + self.tgt_word_emb = nn.Embedding( + n_tgt_vocab, d_word_vec, padding_idx=Constants.PAD) + + self.position_enc = nn.Embedding.from_pretrained( + get_sinusoid_encoding_table(n_position, d_word_vec, padding_idx=0), + freeze=True) + + self.layer_stack = nn.ModuleList([ + DecoderLayer(d_model, d_inner, n_head, d_k, d_v, dropout=dropout) + for _ in range(n_layers)]) + + def forward(self, tgt_seq, tgt_pos, src_seq, enc_output, return_attns=False): + + dec_slf_attn_list, dec_enc_attn_list = [], [] + + # -- Prepare masks + non_pad_mask = get_non_pad_mask(tgt_seq) + + slf_attn_mask_subseq = get_subsequent_mask(tgt_seq) + slf_attn_mask_keypad = get_attn_key_pad_mask(seq_k=tgt_seq, seq_q=tgt_seq) + slf_attn_mask = (slf_attn_mask_keypad + slf_attn_mask_subseq).gt(0) + + dec_enc_attn_mask = get_attn_key_pad_mask(seq_k=src_seq, seq_q=tgt_seq) + + # -- Forward + dec_output = self.tgt_word_emb(tgt_seq) + self.position_enc(tgt_pos) + + for dec_layer in self.layer_stack: + dec_output, dec_slf_attn, dec_enc_attn = dec_layer( + dec_output, enc_output, + non_pad_mask=non_pad_mask, + slf_attn_mask=slf_attn_mask, + dec_enc_attn_mask=dec_enc_attn_mask) + + if return_attns: + dec_slf_attn_list += [dec_slf_attn] + dec_enc_attn_list += [dec_enc_attn] + + if return_attns: + return dec_output, dec_slf_attn_list, dec_enc_attn_list + return dec_output, + +class Transformer(nn.Module): + ''' A sequence to sequence model with attention mechanism. ''' + + def __init__( + self, + n_src_vocab, n_tgt_vocab, len_max_seq, + d_word_vec=512, d_model=512, d_inner=2048, + n_layers=6, n_head=8, d_k=64, d_v=64, dropout=0.1, + tgt_emb_prj_weight_sharing=True, + emb_src_tgt_weight_sharing=True): + + super().__init__() + + self.encoder = Encoder( + n_src_vocab=n_src_vocab, len_max_seq=len_max_seq, + d_word_vec=d_word_vec, d_model=d_model, d_inner=d_inner, + n_layers=n_layers, n_head=n_head, d_k=d_k, d_v=d_v, + dropout=dropout) + + self.decoder = Decoder( + n_tgt_vocab=n_tgt_vocab, len_max_seq=len_max_seq, + d_word_vec=d_word_vec, d_model=d_model, d_inner=d_inner, + n_layers=n_layers, n_head=n_head, d_k=d_k, d_v=d_v, + dropout=dropout) + + self.tgt_word_prj = nn.Linear(d_model, n_tgt_vocab, bias=False) + nn.init.xavier_normal_(self.tgt_word_prj.weight) + + assert d_model == d_word_vec, \ + 'To facilitate the residual connections, \ + the dimensions of all module outputs shall be the same.' + + if tgt_emb_prj_weight_sharing: + # Share the weight matrix between target word embedding & the final logit dense layer + self.tgt_word_prj.weight = self.decoder.tgt_word_emb.weight + self.x_logit_scale = (d_model ** -0.5) + else: + self.x_logit_scale = 1. + + if emb_src_tgt_weight_sharing: + # Share the weight matrix between source & target word embeddings + assert n_src_vocab == n_tgt_vocab, \ + "To share word embedding table, the vocabulary size of src/tgt shall be the same." + self.encoder.src_word_emb.weight = self.decoder.tgt_word_emb.weight + + def forward(self, src_seq, src_pos, tgt_seq, tgt_pos): + + tgt_seq, tgt_pos = tgt_seq[:, :-1], tgt_pos[:, :-1] + + enc_output, *_ = self.encoder(src_seq, src_pos) + dec_output, *_ = self.decoder(tgt_seq, tgt_pos, src_seq, enc_output) + seq_logit = self.tgt_word_prj(dec_output) * self.x_logit_scale + + return seq_logit.view(-1, seq_logit.size(2)) diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Modules.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Modules.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..c711f44b --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Modules.py @@ -0,0 +1,28 @@ +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +import numpy as np + +__author__ = "Yu-Hsiang Huang" + +class ScaledDotProductAttention(nn.Module): + ''' Scaled Dot-Product Attention ''' + + def __init__(self, temperature, attn_dropout=0.1): + super().__init__() + self.temperature = temperature + self.dropout = nn.Dropout(attn_dropout) + self.softmax = nn.Softmax(dim=2) + + def forward(self, q, k, v, mask=None): + + attn = torch.bmm(q, k.transpose(1, 2)) + attn = attn / self.temperature + + if mask is not None: + attn = attn.masked_fill(mask, -np.inf) + + attn = self.softmax(attn) + attn = self.dropout(attn) + output = torch.bmm(attn, v) + + return output, attn diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Optim.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Optim.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..8ad4458a --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Optim.py @@ -0,0 +1,35 @@ +'''A wrapper class for optimizer ''' +import numpy as np + +class ScheduledOptim(): + '''A simple wrapper class for learning rate scheduling''' + + def __init__(self, optimizer, d_model, n_warmup_steps): + self._optimizer = optimizer + self.n_warmup_steps = n_warmup_steps + self.n_current_steps = 0 + self.init_lr = np.power(d_model, -0.5) + + def step_and_update_lr(self): + "Step with the inner optimizer" + self._update_learning_rate() + self._optimizer.step() + + def zero_grad(self): + "Zero out the gradients by the inner optimizer" + self._optimizer.zero_grad() + + def _get_lr_scale(self): + return np.min([ + np.power(self.n_current_steps, -0.5), + np.power(self.n_warmup_steps, -1.5) * self.n_current_steps]) + + def _update_learning_rate(self): + ''' Learning rate scheduling per step ''' + + self.n_current_steps += 1 + lr = self.init_lr * self._get_lr_scale() + + for param_group in self._optimizer.param_groups: + param_group['lr'] = lr + diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/SubLayers.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/SubLayers.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..42b7259d --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/SubLayers.py @@ -0,0 +1,82 @@ +''' Define the sublayers in encoder/decoder layer ''' +import numpy as np +import torch.nn as nn +import torch.nn.functional as F +from transformer.Modules import ScaledDotProductAttention + +__author__ = "Yu-Hsiang Huang" + +class MultiHeadAttention(nn.Module): + ''' Multi-Head Attention module ''' + + def __init__(self, n_head, d_model, d_k, d_v, dropout=0.1): + super().__init__() + + self.n_head = n_head + self.d_k = d_k + self.d_v = d_v + + self.w_qs = nn.Linear(d_model, n_head * d_k) + self.w_ks = nn.Linear(d_model, n_head * d_k) + self.w_vs = nn.Linear(d_model, n_head * d_v) + nn.init.xavier_normal_(self.w_qs.weight) + nn.init.xavier_normal_(self.w_ks.weight) + nn.init.xavier_normal_(self.w_vs.weight) + + self.attention = ScaledDotProductAttention(temperature=np.power(d_k, 0.5)) + self.layer_norm = nn.LayerNorm(d_model) + + self.fc = nn.Linear(n_head * d_v, d_model) + nn.init.xavier_normal_(self.fc.weight) + + self.dropout = nn.Dropout(dropout) + + + def forward(self, q, k, v, mask=None): + + d_k, d_v, n_head = self.d_k, self.d_v, self.n_head + + sz_b, len_q, _ = q.size() + sz_b, len_k, _ = k.size() + sz_b, len_v, _ = v.size() + + residual = q + + q = self.w_qs(q).view(sz_b, len_q, n_head, d_k) + k = self.w_ks(k).view(sz_b, len_k, n_head, d_k) + v = self.w_vs(v).view(sz_b, len_v, n_head, d_v) + + q = q.permute(2, 0, 1, 3).contiguous().view(-1, len_q, d_k) # (n*b) x lq x dk + k = k.permute(2, 0, 1, 3).contiguous().view(-1, len_k, d_k) # (n*b) x lk x dk + v = v.permute(2, 0, 1, 3).contiguous().view(-1, len_v, d_v) # (n*b) x lv x dv + + if mask is not None: + mask = mask.repeat(n_head, 1, 1) # (n*b) x .. x .. + output, attn = self.attention(q, k, v, mask=mask) + + output = output.view(n_head, sz_b, len_q, d_v) + output = output.permute(1, 2, 0, 3).contiguous().view(sz_b, len_q, -1) # b x lq x (n*dv) + + output = self.dropout(self.fc(output)) + output = self.layer_norm(output + residual) + + return output, attn + +class PositionwiseFeedForward(nn.Module): + ''' A two-feed-forward-layer module ''' + + def __init__(self, d_in, d_hid, dropout=0.1): + super().__init__() + self.w_1 = nn.Conv1d(d_in, d_hid, 1) # position-wise + self.w_2 = nn.Conv1d(d_hid, d_in, 1) # position-wise + self.layer_norm = nn.LayerNorm(d_in) + self.dropout = nn.Dropout(dropout) + + def forward(self, x): + residual = x + output = x.transpose(1, 2) + output = self.w_2(F.relu(self.w_1(output))) + output = output.transpose(1, 2) + output = self.dropout(output) + output = self.layer_norm(output + residual) + return output diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Translator.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Translator.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..b22feabe --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/Translator.py @@ -0,0 +1,166 @@ +''' This module will handle the text generation with beam search. ''' + +import torch +import torch.nn as nn +import torch.nn.functional as F + +from transformer.Models import Transformer +from transformer.Beam import Beam + +class Translator(object): + ''' Load with trained model and handle the beam search ''' + + def __init__(self, opt): + self.opt = opt + self.device = torch.device('cuda' if opt.cuda else 'cpu') + + checkpoint = torch.load(opt.model) + model_opt = checkpoint['settings'] + self.model_opt = model_opt + + model = Transformer( + model_opt.src_vocab_size, + model_opt.tgt_vocab_size, + model_opt.max_token_seq_len, + tgt_emb_prj_weight_sharing=model_opt.proj_share_weight, + emb_src_tgt_weight_sharing=model_opt.embs_share_weight, + d_k=model_opt.d_k, + d_v=model_opt.d_v, + d_model=model_opt.d_model, + d_word_vec=model_opt.d_word_vec, + d_inner=model_opt.d_inner_hid, + n_layers=model_opt.n_layers, + n_head=model_opt.n_head, + dropout=model_opt.dropout) + + model.load_state_dict(checkpoint['model']) + print('[Info] Trained model state loaded.') + + model.word_prob_prj = nn.LogSoftmax(dim=1) + + model = model.to(self.device) + + self.model = model + self.model.eval() + + def translate_batch(self, src_seq, src_pos): + ''' Translation work in one batch ''' + + def get_inst_idx_to_tensor_position_map(inst_idx_list): + ''' Indicate the position of an instance in a tensor. ''' + return {inst_idx: tensor_position for tensor_position, inst_idx in enumerate(inst_idx_list)} + + def collect_active_part(beamed_tensor, curr_active_inst_idx, n_prev_active_inst, n_bm): + ''' Collect tensor parts associated to active instances. ''' + + _, *d_hs = beamed_tensor.size() + n_curr_active_inst = len(curr_active_inst_idx) + new_shape = (n_curr_active_inst * n_bm, *d_hs) + + beamed_tensor = beamed_tensor.view(n_prev_active_inst, -1) + beamed_tensor = beamed_tensor.index_select(0, curr_active_inst_idx) + beamed_tensor = beamed_tensor.view(*new_shape) + + return beamed_tensor + + def collate_active_info( + src_seq, src_enc, inst_idx_to_position_map, active_inst_idx_list): + # Sentences which are still active are collected, + # so the decoder will not run on completed sentences. + n_prev_active_inst = len(inst_idx_to_position_map) + active_inst_idx = [inst_idx_to_position_map[k] for k in active_inst_idx_list] + active_inst_idx = torch.LongTensor(active_inst_idx).to(self.device) + + active_src_seq = collect_active_part(src_seq, active_inst_idx, n_prev_active_inst, n_bm) + active_src_enc = collect_active_part(src_enc, active_inst_idx, n_prev_active_inst, n_bm) + active_inst_idx_to_position_map = get_inst_idx_to_tensor_position_map(active_inst_idx_list) + + return active_src_seq, active_src_enc, active_inst_idx_to_position_map + + def beam_decode_step( + inst_dec_beams, len_dec_seq, src_seq, enc_output, inst_idx_to_position_map, n_bm): + ''' Decode and update beam status, and then return active beam idx ''' + + def prepare_beam_dec_seq(inst_dec_beams, len_dec_seq): + dec_partial_seq = [b.get_current_state() for b in inst_dec_beams if not b.done] + dec_partial_seq = torch.stack(dec_partial_seq).to(self.device) + dec_partial_seq = dec_partial_seq.view(-1, len_dec_seq) + return dec_partial_seq + + def prepare_beam_dec_pos(len_dec_seq, n_active_inst, n_bm): + dec_partial_pos = torch.arange(1, len_dec_seq + 1, dtype=torch.long, device=self.device) + dec_partial_pos = dec_partial_pos.unsqueeze(0).repeat(n_active_inst * n_bm, 1) + return dec_partial_pos + + def predict_word(dec_seq, dec_pos, src_seq, enc_output, n_active_inst, n_bm): + dec_output, *_ = self.model.decoder(dec_seq, dec_pos, src_seq, enc_output) + dec_output = dec_output[:, -1, :] # Pick the last step: (bh * bm) * d_h + word_prob = F.log_softmax(self.model.tgt_word_prj(dec_output), dim=1) + word_prob = word_prob.view(n_active_inst, n_bm, -1) + + return word_prob + + def collect_active_inst_idx_list(inst_beams, word_prob, inst_idx_to_position_map): + active_inst_idx_list = [] + for inst_idx, inst_position in inst_idx_to_position_map.items(): + is_inst_complete = inst_beams[inst_idx].advance(word_prob[inst_position]) + if not is_inst_complete: + active_inst_idx_list += [inst_idx] + + return active_inst_idx_list + + n_active_inst = len(inst_idx_to_position_map) + + dec_seq = prepare_beam_dec_seq(inst_dec_beams, len_dec_seq) + dec_pos = prepare_beam_dec_pos(len_dec_seq, n_active_inst, n_bm) + word_prob = predict_word(dec_seq, dec_pos, src_seq, enc_output, n_active_inst, n_bm) + + # Update the beam with predicted word prob information and collect incomplete instances + active_inst_idx_list = collect_active_inst_idx_list( + inst_dec_beams, word_prob, inst_idx_to_position_map) + + return active_inst_idx_list + + def collect_hypothesis_and_scores(inst_dec_beams, n_best): + all_hyp, all_scores = [], [] + for inst_idx in range(len(inst_dec_beams)): + scores, tail_idxs = inst_dec_beams[inst_idx].sort_scores() + all_scores += [scores[:n_best]] + + hyps = [inst_dec_beams[inst_idx].get_hypothesis(i) for i in tail_idxs[:n_best]] + all_hyp += [hyps] + return all_hyp, all_scores + + with torch.no_grad(): + #-- Encode + src_seq, src_pos = src_seq.to(self.device), src_pos.to(self.device) + src_enc, *_ = self.model.encoder(src_seq, src_pos) + + #-- Repeat data for beam search + n_bm = self.opt.beam_size + n_inst, len_s, d_h = src_enc.size() + src_seq = src_seq.repeat(1, n_bm).view(n_inst * n_bm, len_s) + src_enc = src_enc.repeat(1, n_bm, 1).view(n_inst * n_bm, len_s, d_h) + + #-- Prepare beams + inst_dec_beams = [Beam(n_bm, device=self.device) for _ in range(n_inst)] + + #-- Bookkeeping for active or not + active_inst_idx_list = list(range(n_inst)) + inst_idx_to_position_map = get_inst_idx_to_tensor_position_map(active_inst_idx_list) + + #-- Decode + for len_dec_seq in range(1, self.model_opt.max_token_seq_len + 1): + + active_inst_idx_list = beam_decode_step( + inst_dec_beams, len_dec_seq, src_seq, src_enc, inst_idx_to_position_map, n_bm) + + if not active_inst_idx_list: + break # all instances have finished their path to + + src_seq, src_enc, inst_idx_to_position_map = collate_active_info( + src_seq, src_enc, inst_idx_to_position_map, active_inst_idx_list) + + batch_hyp, batch_scores = collect_hypothesis_and_scores(inst_dec_beams, self.opt.n_best) + + return batch_hyp, batch_scores diff --git a/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/__init__.py b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/__init__.py new file mode 100644 index 00000000..901dfa1f --- /dev/null +++ b/reproduction/Summarization/transformer/__init__.py @@ -0,0 +1,13 @@ +import transformer.Constants +import transformer.Modules +import transformer.Layers +import transformer.SubLayers +import transformer.Models +import transformer.Translator +import transformer.Beam +import transformer.Optim + +__all__ = [ + transformer.Constants, transformer.Modules, transformer.Layers, + transformer.SubLayers, transformer.Models, transformer.Optim, + transformer.Translator, transformer.Beam]