The Benefits of Volunteerism, if the Service Is Real
Even community service done simply to build a resume for college can be a good thing, but there needs to be a connection between the work and the overall issue.

Michigan: Oil Spill Response Focuses on Wildlife
Volunteers and government officers scrambled Friday to save wildlife harmed by an oil spill in a southern Michigan river.

Stem Cell Trial Wins Approval of F.D.A.
A trial could offer the first glimpse of a technology that may hold vast medical promise but also is embroiled in controversy.

Flu Vaccines Are Approved and Urged for Most
The Food and Drug Administration approved vaccines for the next flu season, and health officials recommend vaccination for everyone 6 months old and older.

F.D.A. Clears Way for Embryonic Stem Cell Trial Using Patients
Using human embryonic stem cells, the trial will be tested in patients with new spinal cord injuries.

Medicare and Mayberry's Finest
A new television advertisement featuring Andy Griffith, and a Webcast by the administrator of Medicare and Medicare Services mark the day.

House Inquiry on Waters Tied to Bank
An ethics trial of Representative Maxine Waters will involve communication she had with federal officials that touched on OneUnited bank, in which her husband owned stock.

Taking Calls From Veterans on the Brink
Critics call it a Band-Aid, but supporters say a suicide hot line is a gateway into government services.

In Arkansas, a Castle Rises
Ozark Medieval Fortress is a new project in northwest Arkansas to build a 13th-century-style French castle using feudal-era technology and resources.

Old Weapons Off Hawaii Should Stay, Army Says
A university study finds that the weapons, five miles south of Pearl Harbor, pose no hazard but are deteriorating and should be monitored.

Recommended Weekend Reading
The New Yorker examines end-of-life care while Foreign Affairs reports on Castrocare, health-care under the Castro brothers.

There May Be 'No Better Place,' but There Is a Better Slogan
Leaders in Columbus, Ohio, who have long despaired that the city lacks a distinctive image, have embarked on a multiyear quest to define the city's soul.

Social Security Jitters? Better Prepare Now
If the government has to change Social Security, people may need to put aside a lot more money to make up for any reduction in benefits.

The Big Day: Chelsea Clinton's Wedding
The Caucus is in Rhinebeck, N.Y., for the former first daughter's wedding day. "We don't know who we're looking at," one bystander complained. "Seriously, I want to see Oprah."

Video Shows Michigan Oil Spill
Almost as soon as oil spilled into a creek in Michigan this week, local residents began documenting the disaster on YouTube.

Firing Line
Is the Appleseed Project just a rifle course with attitude or a symptom of a growing hostility toward government?

Oregon: No Prosecution for Gore
Former Vice President Al Gore will not face prosecution over accusations by a masseuse that he groped and assaulted her in his Portland hotel room in 2006.

New Trouble for Terrorist Who Helped Prosecutors
Abdel Ghani Meskini, who received a short prison term for his role in a failed plot in Los Angeles, has been rearrested.

Boy Scouts Seek a Way to Rebuild Ranks
The group is working to redefine itself amid falling numbers, a push for diversity and a knock on the door from girls.

Despite Directive, BP Used Oil Dispersant Often, Panel Finds
The Coast Guard approved requests to use dispersants despite an Environmental Protection Agency rule that they be used rarely, a Congressional analysis said.

After Stroke Scans, Patients Face Serious Health Risks
Among patients tested for strokes with a complex type of brain scan, radiation overdoses were more widespread than previously known, a New York Times examination has found.

Old Debts That Won't Die
Collecting old consumer debts has become a labyrinthine industry involving buyers of secondhand debt, muddled statutes of limitation, lawsuits and, sometimes, abusive tactics.

Economic Indicator: Even Cheaper Knockoffs
Criminals are discovering there is money to be made in faking the more ordinary — like $295 Kooba bags and $140 Ugg boots.

Billionaire Brothers Long Suspected of Tax Evasion
Sam and Charles Wyly had been investigated by the I.R.S. and Congress years before the S.E.C. filed its suit.

Missouri Voters to Have Say on Health Care Law
The first plebiscite on the Obama health care law seems likely to be a low-turnout affair among an electorate dominated by Republican primary voters.

Army Broadens Inquiry Into WikiLeaks Disclosure
Investigators were focusing on a group of Pfc. Bradley Manning's friends and acquaintances in Massachusetts.

Taliban Study WikiLeaks to Hunt Informants
A Taliban spokesman said that the insurgent group is scouring classified American military documents posted online by the group WikiLeaks for information to help them find and "punish" Afghan informers.

David Alexander, Overseer of Rhodes Selection, Is Dead at 77
Mr. Alexander, a former president of Pomona College who changed the face of that campus and its student body, also pressed the Rhodes Trust to grant scholarships to women.

A College Freshman's Proud Independence Melts in Summer
Having completed her first year at Northwestern, a student asks: "Is it possible to come home and live the same way you did at college?"

Arizona: Movement, Perhaps, on Immigration Law
Gov. Jan Brewer is asking legislators to consider whether they should change the state's immigration law in response to a judge's blocking parts of it.

Nebraska Rocker Fights Immigration Laws
Conor Oberst, a singer-songwriter best-known for his role in Bright Eyes, has brought musicians together for a concert in Nebraska on Saturday to fight a city ordinance designed to crack down on illegal immigrants.

Many Indigent Refugees to Lose Federal Assistance
The Social Security Administration is about to terminate Supplemental Security Income for thousands of indigent refugees who are severely disabled or over the age of 64.

Debate Heats Up About Mosque Near Ground Zero
The Anti-Defamation League announced its opposition to a proposed Islamic center and mosque, intensifying a fierce national debate about the limits of religious freedom.

Massachusetts: Lawmakers Hope to Expand Gambling
State lawmakers proposed to allow casino gambling in Massachusetts with a plan to allow three resort casinos and to let the state's racetracks compete for two slot-parlor licenses.

Hot Summer, Cold Economy, Weak Concert Sales
Some ticket prices are being sharply reduced as summer concerts often fail to sell out.

In Maine Village, Lobster Goes Briskly; Traffic, No
Traffic near a seafood shack is so infamous, officials approved $100 million to build a bypass around the town.

For One Senate Seat in Illinois, Two Elections on the Same Day
On Nov. 2, voters will pick a replacement for the remaining weeks of President Obama's original term and choose a new senator to begin a full term on Jan. 3.

Officials Optimistic That Cement Will Kill BP Well
An effort known as a static kill is part of a two-pronged strategy to kill the well in the Gulf of Mexico by cementing it shut twice, from above and below.

Taking It to the Banks
The Democratic congressman talks about financial regulation and when it makes sense to team up with a libertarian.

Tennessee: Returned Boy Back in Russian Orphanage
A lawyer for an adoption agency said a Russian boy who was sent back to Moscow by his American adoptive mother has been placed back in an orphanage.

Turbines Too Loud? Here, Take $5,000
In Oregon, a company is offering checks to residents if they promise not to complain about noise from turbines.