News Koplak

Feb

‘Melrose’ actress gets 3 years for deadly NJ crash

SOMERVILLE, N.J. (AP) — A former “Melrose Place” actress who was drunk when her SUV plowed into a car and killed a woman was sentenced Thursday to three years in prison, infuriating the victim’s relatives, who had hoped for the 10-year maximum.“What a travesty!” the victim’s husband, Fred Seeman, yelled after the sentence was read.“This is not justice,” the victim’s 26-year-old son, Ford Seeman, told...

Doctor and Patient: Afraid to Speak Up to Medical Power

Label: Health

The slender, weather-beaten, elderly Polish immigrant had been diagnosed with lung cancer nearly a year earlier and was receiving chemotherapy as part of a clinical trial. I was a surgical consultant, called in to help control the fluid that kept accumulating in his lungs.During one visit, he motioned for me to come closer. His voice was hoarse from a tumor that spread, and the constant hissing from...

Buffet, 3G to buy Heinz for $23B

Label: Business

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and private equity firm 3G Capital will buy ketchup and baby food maker H.J. Heinz Co for...

Feb

Chicago Public Schools narrows its closing list to 129

Label: World

Chicago Public Schools has narrowed the number of schools it will consider for closing to 129.The preliminary list will be culled...

Phys Ed: Getting the Right Dose of Exercise

Label: Health

Phys EdGretchen Reynolds on the science of fitness.Fitness TrackerMarathon, half-marathon, 10k and 5K training plans to get you race ready.A common concern about exercise is that if you don’t do it almost every day, you won’t achieve much health benefit. But a commendable new study suggests otherwise, showing that a fairly leisurely approach to scheduling workouts may actually be more beneficial than...

Sources: American, US Airways boards approve merger

Label: Business

The boards of AMR Corp and US Airways Group Inc separately met on Wednesday to approve a merger that would value the combined...

Feb

Ex-cop shootout: Smoke, flame amid 'tactical operation'

Label: World

A person believed to be the fugitive ex-Los Angeles cop sought...

Well: Straining to Hear and Fend Off Dementia

Label: Health

At a party the other night, a fund-raiser for a literary magazine, I found myself in conversation with a well-known author whose work I greatly admire. I use the term “conversation” loosely. I couldn’t hear a word he said. But worse, the effort I was making to hear was using up so much brain power that I completely forgot the titles of his books.A senior moment? Maybe. (I’m 65.) But for me, it’s complicated...