Wire
State to shut down Atchison juvenile facility for males
John Hanna Associated Press TOPEKA (AP) — Budget pressures have led to plans by the state to suspend operations at its smallest juvenile corrections facility for male offenders. The Juvenile Justice Authority announced Monday that it will end operations at the Atchison facility on Dec. 8. Its 29 residents will be transferred to the juvenile correctional facility in Topeka, the agency said. However, the agency said it is considering hirin...
full story
Celebrities
Colbert to have his DNA sent into space NEW YORK (AP) — Should this world ever cease to exist, Stephen Colbert will live on. The comedian’s DNA will be digitized and sent to the International Space Station, Comedy Central was to announce Monday. In October, video game designer Richard Garriott will travel to the station and deposit Colbert’s genes for an “Immortality Drive.” “I am thrilled to have my DNA shot into space, as this brings me...
full story
State, WSU push engineering education
WICHITA (AP) — Looking to stave off an exodus of Kansas engineering jobs, state and industry officials and Wichita State University are looking to boost technical training in public schools. The effort could begin next fall if WSU officials are successful in getting a $2 million grant from the Knight Foundation to expand pre-engineering and other science courses, first in three Wichita public schools and then beyond. State leaders recommended...
full story
Ask Amy
Dear Amy: My friend and I watch each other’s children now and then, and we also meet for play dates frequently. The children play well together, and I enjoy our friendship. Recently, however, my friend has been really neglecting her housekeeping. Yesterday when I went to watch the kids while she went to an appointment, I saw that the floor was covered with food crumbs, the sink was overflowing with dirty dishes, there were about a dozen f...
full story
KCI changes closer to reality
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Replacing Kansas City International Airport’s three terminals with a single building may soon make the jump from idea to future reality. Airport officials and a consultant last week conducted the last of a series of public discussions on the 36-year-old airport and its long-range plan. They said they still support building a single terminal building south of the east-west runway that would have a central security che...
full story
Moore to release new film online for free
NEW YORK (AP) — Inspired by Neil Young and Radiohead, Michael Moore will release his new film online and for free. The film, “Slacker Uprising,” follows Moore’s 62-city tour during the 2004 election to rally young voters. It will be available for three weeks as a free download to North American residents, beginning Sept. 23. An official announcement of the film is planned for Friday. Moore said he considered releasing “Slacker Uprising” th...
full story
Soprano Anna Netrebko gives birth to baby boy Friday
NEW YORK (AP) — Anna Netrebko has a new tenor in her life. The soprano gave birth to a 7-pound, 13-ounce boy Friday in Vienna, Austria, New York-based publicist Glenn Petry said. Her fiance, bass-baritone Erwin Schrott, attended the birth. The name of the child wasn’t announced. “Both parents are delighted that their son has finally arrived and look forward to introducing him to family and friends in the coming days,” said her manager, Je...
full story
Electronic dump: Useless electronics create hazard
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The life span of electronics is getting shorter, computers maybe three years, cell phones only 18 months. And if your new computer breaks, it’s often cheaper just to toss it and buy another. Add up those outmoded and broken electronics including televisions, MP3 players, GPSs, BlackBerrys and video games and they become the fastest-growing stream of waste on Earth, officials say. It’s called e-waste, and it’s creat...
full story
Flagship universities have record enrollments
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The flagship universities in Missouri and Kansas continue to grow in numbers. The University of Missouri-Columbia and the University of Kansas have announced record increases in enrollment for the fall semester. The University of Missouri-Columbia welcomed its seventh straight record freshman class as 5,812 students enrolled, a 15.6 percent gain from 2007. The school’s total enrollment also climbed to 29,761, up 6 perc...
full story
Franklin County home may get official spot in history
OTTAWA (AP) — Some houses are more than homes. Some become a part of history. The Judge James Hanway House, just outside the Franklin County town of Lane, has been submitted by the Kansas Historical Society to be included in the National Register of Historic Places. “It’s cleared a major hurdle,” Deb Barker, Franklin County Historical Society director, said. The National Register nearly always agrees with the state historical society’s si...
full story
The Associated Press TELEVISION 1
The Associated Press TELEVISION 1. “America’s Got Talent,” NBC. 2. “Deal Or No Deal” (Monday), NBC. 3. “America’s Got Talent” (Wednesday), NBC. 4. “Two And a Half Men,” CBS. 5. “60 Minutes,” CBS. FILM 1. “Tropic Thunder,” Paramount. 2. “Babylon A.D.,” Fox. 3. “The Dark Knight,” Warner Bros. 4. “The House Bunny,” Sony. 5. “Traitor,” Overture Films. HOT FIVE 1. “Whatever You Like,” T.I. Grand Hustle/Atlantic. 2. “Disturbia,” Rih...
full story
New Seinfeld ad draws negative reviews online
NEW YORK (AP) — No soup for Microsoft? The software giant’s new ad starring Jerry Seinfeld has drawn largely negative reviews online after premiering Thursday night during NBC’s broadcast of the National Football League’s season kickoff game. The ad was the start of a highly anticipated $300 million advertising campaign that Microsoft is launching in attempt to rebuff Apple’s popular TV commercials, which have portrayed Microsoft and PCs a...
full story
Russell Brand brings a British twist to MTV awards
LOS ANGELES (AP) — America, meet Russell Brand. In his native England, he’s a comedy giant — instantly identifiable by his Einstein-like tousle of black hair and formfitting, chest-baring, glam-rock clothes — a television host and standup comic with his own radio show and weekly column in The Guardian. In the U.S., he’s that British guy who was in the movie “Forgetting Sarah Marshall.” But that all could change Sunday, when Brand hosts the...
full story
Celebrities
TORONTO (AP) — All Seth Rogen really wanted when he came to Hollywood was to make a movie with Kevin Smith. His dream came true, and more: Rogen got to make a dirty movie with Smith. Rogen stars with Elizabeth Banks in Smith’s “Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” a romantic comedy with a whole lot of skin showing. The 26-year-old actor recalled a meeting nearly a decade ago with a prospective agent who asked what his career goals were. That’s wh...
full story
KU whistle won’t be silenced
LAWRENCE (AP) — The steam whistle that signaled the end of class periods at the University of Kansas for nearly a century will be tooting once again. Earlier this week, university officials said they were silencing the whistle to save the $3,000 it costs each year to operate atop the university power plant. Following an outpouring of support for the whistle and criticism for ending its life, Chancellor Robert Hemenway reversed course Frida...
full story
Oddities
N.J. cops kick in door over bird’s cries for help TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Cries for help inside a Trenton, N.J., home turned out to be for the birds. Neighbors called police Wednesday morning after hearing a woman’s persistent cry of “Help me! Help me!” coming from a house. Officers arrived and when no one answered the door, they kicked it in to make a rescue. But instead of a damsel in distress, officers found a caged cockatoo with a convin...
full story
Heloise
Dear Heloise: Thanks for telling pet owners to put collars with licenses for identification on their pets. Please also continue to recommend microchips. Our animal shelter has scanners, and our kennel technicians check every dog and cat that comes through our doors. We have reunited many pets and owners because the animals had a microchip. We handle nearly 8,000 pets every year. A collar with a tag can be lost, but a microchip remains under ...
full story
5 times 50: A wedding band of brothers
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The five Wheaton brothers always shared a special kinship. Their bond showed in the way they all sneaked smokes as kids, all served in the military, all worked and played hard. Now they’re sharing something more. When Glen Wheaton danced in celebration with his wife, Dixie, on an August weekend, he became the last of the brothers to reach his 50th wedding anniversary. The five men — and their wives — credit the exa...
full story
People fight food costs by canning it
LAWRENCE (AP) — You’ve got tomatoes coming out of your ears. Okra, peppers and cucumbers, too, in a cornucopia of late summer produce. Now what? You could eat vegetables until you sprout roots, but most likely, you’ll still see a few, if not more, die a wilting death waiting to get on your plate. Or you could take that bounty and prepare it the way Irene Hain has been her whole life: in a jar. Hain, 80, has been a home canner since learn...
full story
Questions raised about money spent on Kansas schools
TOPEKA (AP) — The state’s looming budget problems are giving an unsettling edge to what educators recently described as positive news about Kansas’ public schools. One report to the State Board of Education last month said graduating Kansas high school seniors keep scoring better than the national average on the ACT college entrance exam. Another one said 94 percent of Kansas school districts and the state’s poorest schools saw sufficient i...
full story