Briefing
LONDON
The Sex Pistols reunite for a seven-date U.K. tour
OCEAN BEACH, CALIF.
Oil spill closes more than two dozen beaches
REDGRAVE PARK FARM
Bird flu breaks out in Britain
GAZA CITY
Thousands mark anniversary of Arafat's death
MOGADISHU, SOMALIA
About 80 people are killed in heavy fighting
KANSAS CITY, MO.
The U.S. observes Veterans Day
INDEX
Global Gender Gap
1 SWEDEN
2 NORWAY
3 FINLAND
4 ICELAND
5 NEW ZEALAND
6 PHILIPPINES
7 GERMANY
8 DENMARK
9 IRELAND
10 SPAIN
11 U.K.
12 NETHERLANDS
13 LATVIA
14 LITHUANIA
15 SRI LANKA
16 CROATIA
17 AUSTRALIA
18 CANADA
19 BELGIUM
20 SOUTH AFRICA
21 MOLDOVA
22 CUBA
22 BELARUS
24 COLOMBIA
25 BULGARIA
26 LESOTHO
27 AUSTRIA
28 COSTA RICA
29 NAMIBIA
30 ESTONIA
31 U.S.
32 KAZAKHSTAN
33 ARGENTINA
34 TANZANIA
35 MACEDONIA
36 ISRAEL
37 PORTUGAL
38 PANAMA
39 JAMAICA
40 SWITZERLAND
41 UZBEKISTAN
42 VIETNAM
43 MOZAMBIQUE
44 ECUADOR
45 RUSSIA
46 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
47 ROMANIA
48 EL SALVADOR
49 SLOVENIA
50 UGANDA
51 FRANCE
52 THAILAND
53 BOTSWANA
54 SLOVAK REPUBLIC
55 VENEZUELA
56 SURINAME
57 UKRAINE
58 LUXEMBOURG
59 AZERBAIJAN
60 POLAND
61 HUNGARY
62 MONGOLIA
63 GHANA
64 CZECH REPUBLIC
65 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
66 ALBANIA
67 GEORGIA
68 HONDURAS
69 PARAGUAY
70 KYRGYZSTAN
71 ARMENIA
72 GREECE
73 CHINA
74 BRAZIL
75 PERU
76 MALTA
77 SINGAPORE
78 URUGUAY
79 TAJIKISTAN
80 BOLIVIA
81 INDONESIA
82 CYPRUS
83 KENYA
84 ITALY
85 MAURITIUS
86 CHILE
87 MALAWI
88 ZIMBABWE
89 MADAGASCAR
90 NICARAGUA
91 JAPAN
92 MALAYSIA
93 MEXICO
94 BELIZE
95 GAMBIA
96 KUWAIT
97 SOUTH KOREA
98 CAMBODIA
99 MALDIVES
100 BANGLADESH
101 ZAMBIA
102 TUNISIA
103 SYRIA
104 JORDAN
105 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
106 GUATEMALA
107 NIGERIA
108 ALGERIA
109 QATAR
110 ANGOLA
111 MAURITANIA
112 MALI
113 ETHIOPIA
114 INDIA
115 BAHRAIN
116 CAMEROON
117 BURKINA FASO
118 IRAN
119 OMAN
120 EGYPT
121 TURKEY
122 MOROCCO
123 BENIN
124 SAUDI ARABIA
125 NEPAL
126 PAKISTAN
127 CHAD
128 YEMEN
INDEX
Global Gender Gap
The Swiss-based World Economic Forum releases an annual list that ranks countries on the basis of gender equality. The report measures the discrepancies between men and women in four categories: 1) educational attainment, 2) economic participation and opportunity, 3) political empowerment and 4) health and survival. The U.S. slipped from 22nd place in 2006 to 31st place this year, partly because of its low political-participation rate for women. Countries of note are in red.
THE U.S. MINT
Making Cents
To mark Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday and the centennial of the Lincoln penny, the 1-c- coin is undergoing its first redesign in 50 years. Set to debut in 2009, the new look will still have the familiar portrait of the 16th President on the heads side, but tails will feature one of four scenes from his life. (Being considered is one of Lincoln speaking before the Illinois legislature.) That is, if the project survives. It was approved two years ago, before metal prices jumped. At last count, each penny cost 1.67-c- to produce.
[This article contains a diagram. Please see hardcopy or pdf.]
ARTIFACTS
Costly Collection
WESTERN WONDERS Spurs, a stagecoach and a Gatling gun were among the 800 items recently auctioned off in Dallas by Harrisburg, the Pennsylvania capital. Over the past decade its mayor, Stephen Reed, used public money to buy 3,800 objects that he hoped to eventually display in a museum honoring the city's role in supplying the Old West.
WHOA, THERE Harrisburg is now in severe debt, and city-council members are hoping the items--which Reed purchased with some $7 million in city funds without the council's approval--will wrangle in the proceeds necessary to make up for the mayor's exuberant spending.
LEGAL NOTE
California Takes On the Feds
CAR TROUBLE Despite its crackdown on vehicle emissions, the Golden State's path to cleaner air is still clogged. In 2005, California passed legislation requiring automakers to cut emissions 30% by 2016, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has yet to exempt the state from the agency's less stringent regulations. Now California is taking the EPA to court, and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says he will "sue and sue again" until the state comes out on top.
THE VERDICT The EPA has promised to act by year's end, but the state wants to give the industry time to redesign 2009 models. If California wins, about a dozen other states say they will follow suit with emissions-level laws.
ART NOTE
The Last Supper's Score
HIDDEN TUNE The true Da Vinci code may not lie with Dan Brown. According to Giovanni Maria Pala, an Italian musician and computer technician, the grand master stored a secret composition in his Last Supper masterpiece.
REVEALED Pala alleges that a 40-second requiem lies hidden beneath his brushstrokes. By drawing a five-line musical staff across the canvas, he noticed that the loaves of bread and the hands of Jesus and his Apostles form musical notes. And just like all of Da Vinci's greatest secrets, the score reads right to left.