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To Love, Honor And Cherish ... 'Bama

Credit Dave Martin / AP

Alabama Coach Nick Saban is not alone on game day. Die-hard fans, and their families, are willing the team to victory.

Credit Monique Fields /

Monique Fields, an unofficial, unpaid football assistant, snapped this picture of her husband, Ken, standing at the goalpost at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

By editor

Originally published on Wed September 19, 2012 7:09 pm

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Let me tell you about the day my husband bolted into the room and asked, "Are you free for lunch on Sept. 21?"

It was the middle of July, and I'm not Oprah. Usually, I can be booked for lunch at a moment's notice. But I played along. I flipped through my virtual calendar, scrolled down to the very date in question, and gave it a good stare.

'Yup, I'm open!' I told him.

"Good," Ken said, 'because I got us tickets to see Coach Saban."

5:17 pm

Wed September 19, 2012

Plans For John Hinckley's Transfer Have Been Put On Hold

By Carrie Johnson

Originally published on Wed September 19, 2012 5:49 pm

Plans that would allow John Hinckley to leave a mental institution and go live with his mother are on hold. His doctors say the man who tried to assassinate President Ronald Reagan is well enough to deserve more freedom.

But a key part of the treatment plan is now up in the air.

Therapists in Virginia, near the home of John Hinckley's elderly mother, say they want to withdraw from a plan to treat him several days a week.

Hinckley's longtime defense lawyers say they want to quit too, because they're not getting paid any more.

4:40 pm

Wed September 19, 2012

Subsidies Help Get Modern Malaria Drugs To Millions In Africa

Credit Sunday Alamba / Associated Press

Ayo Bello grabs a box of malaria medication at a pharmacy in Lagos, Nigeria. A pilot project by the Global Fund has helped private pharmacies and clinics sell top quality malaria drugs at wholesale prices in Nigeria and seven other African countries.

By Michaeleen Doucleff

Originally published on Wed September 19, 2012 6:39 pm

Two years ago the United Nations' Global Fund launched an experiment that aimed to reduce the cost of malaria drugs in parts of Africa where they're needed most.

The idea was to subsidize the cost of drugs, sometimes making them available even cheaper than wholesale.

Did it work? The results for the first phase of the pilot were unveiled yesterday in Washington, and they looked pretty good — at least for the short time the project has been up and running.

4:35 pm

Wed September 19, 2012

Hungry Snakes Trap Guam In Spidery Web

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Credit Isaac Chellman / Rice University

Invasive brown tree snakes have gobbled up most of Guam's native forest birds. Without these avian predators to keep their numbers in check, the island's spider population has exploded.

Credit Isaac Chellman / Rice University

In the wet season, there are 40 times more spiders on Guam than there are on other nearby islands.

By Christopher Joyce

Originally published on Wed September 19, 2012 7:09 pm

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The Pacific Island of Guam is experiencing a population explosion — of spiders.

There are more spiders there now than anyone can remember. To get a sense of how weird the situation is, I started out in Maryland. On my front porch, overlooking the Severn River.

At 6:30 in the morning on a cool fall day, I find two spider webs in a matter of five minutes. But if I were on the island of Guam, I might find 70 or 80 spider webs in five minutes.

4:19 pm

Wed September 19, 2012

Halliburton Loses Radioactive Rod, The National Guard Is Called In to Help

By Eyder Peralta

You thought this happened only to Homer Simpson.

But, no, it happened in real life to oilfield workers in Texas: During the course of their work, they lost a radioactive rod. That's the story our friends at State Impact Texas are telling this afternoon.

We'll let you click over to get the full story about how even the National Guard has been enlisted, but here are the basics:

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5:28 pm

Wed September 19, 2012