Virus outbreak has experts worried for dogs 76 distemper cases since April, city says

Chicago has seen an outbreak of a distemper virus that can bedeadly to dogs -- 76 cases reported in Chicago since April, whilenone were reported last year, the Department of Animal Care andControl said Thursday.

The virus is a 200-year-old killer said to be the leading cause ofdeath in U.S.-born-and-bred pets up until the 1950s when specializedimmunizations became available.

Officials don't know the cause of the outbreak but plan to meetnext month to study it.

Humans and cats cannot contract the virus, which is fatal about 50percent of the time in dogs, the department said. Pets that don'tcroak are usually prone to brain damage and other ailments, such …

Composting with a clay cap

The University of California-Riverside composts 1,700 to 2,000 tons of landscaping material every year in a system that has been used for at least four decades. The main feedstock is yard trimmings generated by maintenance of turf shrubbery and trees on the 320-acre campus. Yard trimmings are either used for mulch or taken to the almost three-acre compost site and formed into static piles about six feet high with tractors. The piles are capped with a sixto eight-inch layer of clay soil three or four times during the composting process. "You have to mix compost with soil anyway," says Robert Giese, assistant director of physical plant and landscape refuse services. Water is added once …

Miners' widows, company settle W.Va. fire lawsuit

The widows of two miners killed in a 2006 coal mine fire in West Virginia have settled a wrongful death lawsuit against Massey Energy Co.

Details of the settlement weren't released Monday. The agreement came after four days of a civil trial in Logan County Circuit Court.

The widows of miners Don I. Bragg, 33, and Ellery …

Sex up the holidays: From truffles to Kama Sutra -- 10 gift ideas for showing your love

Attention all lovers and shoppers: Lest you be caught off-guardwhen the holidays arrive in one short week, here are 10 delightfulideas for showing your love and then some.

What an inspiration it can be to receive a romantic gift fromyour partner. While women are usually better in this department, mencan pull off some surprisingly good bounty at the last minute.Remember, if you cherish your relationship, with just the right giftthis holiday season, you will reap the returns all year long:

1 Vosges Volcano Island Honey Truffles. Get twice the aphrodisiacby filling your sweetie's stocking with gourmet dark chocolatesfilled with luscious honey! If you can't go to …

What makes the 2 Gulf oil explosions different?

Here are some differences between the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster April 20 and the oil production platform explosion Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico:

TYPES OF STRUCTURES

— Deepwater Horizon, owned by Transocean Ltd. and leased to BP PLC, was a semi-submersible drilling rig, exploring for oil and natural gas.

— The structure that exploded Thursday, owned by Mariner Energy Inc., was a stationary platform, producing 58,800 gallons of oil and 900,000 cubic feet of gas per day from a proven reservoir using several wells.

SITE OF OPERATIONS

— Deepwater Horizon was drilling in …

School registration set

WINFIELD - A two-day make-up registration for incoming PutnamCounty kindergarten students will be Aug. 19-20 at Teays ValleyPresbyterian Church in Scott Depot.

Parents of children who will be 5 by Aug. 31 and have not beenregistered should call Velma Christy at 586-0500, ext. 153, for anappointment. The child's full name, birth date, Social Securitynumber, mailing address, parents' names and phone number arerequired.

Parents should bring a copy of immunization records, pertinenthealth information and a state-certified birth certificate. Ahospital certificate will not be accepted.

To request a certificate for children born in West Virginia, senda $5 check with the child's name, date and county of birth, father'sname and mother's maiden name to: Personal Vital Registrations,Building 3, State Capitol Complex, Charleston, WV 25305.

Japan Court Orders Black Lung Compensation

TOKYO - A Japanese court ordered the government to pay workers and families nearly $2.3 million in compensation for black lung disease contracted while digging tunnels in public projects, according to officials and news reports.

The Kumamoto District Court acknowledged the claims by 196 plaintiffs that the government failed to take measures to prevent the damages despite the foreseeable risk associated with the tunneling, court spokesman Kenji Imasaka said.

He refused to provide other details of the ruling. Kyodo News agency reported that the government was ordered to pay a total of $2.26 million to the victims.

The decision by the court in southwestern Japan comes just days after a similar ruling by the Tokyo District Court. That ruling, issued July 7, ordered the Japanese government to compensate 49 tunnel construction workers who developed black lung disease while working on state-ordered projects.

Black lung disease, also called pneumoconiosis, is a respiratory illness caused by inhaling mineral dust, often in mines.