June 1, 2002

Los Angeles Lakers defeat Sacramento Kings, 106-102, in Game 6 of Western Conference finals to tie series, 3-3; photos (M)

New Jersey Nets defeat Boston Celtics, 96-88, in Game 6 of Eastern Conference finals to win series, 4-2, and advance to NBA finals; photos (M)

Moody's Investors Service lowers Japan's credit rating by two notches, alarmed by nation's climbing debt; move affects rating on government and government-guaranteed bonds issued in local currency; Japan's Finance Ministry has been publicly battling with main credit-rating agencies--Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch--since April, when Moody's said it was considering two-notch downgrade; Finance Vice Min Haruhiko Kuroda responded by assailing three as ignoring Japanese finanical strengths; Moody's and many private economists say Japan's leaders are not doing enough to address country's mounting problems; national debt is expected to reach 139 percent of gross domestic product this year, which would be more than twice level in US (M)

US government awards IBM $224.4 million contract to build power new supercomputer as part of effort to close growing gap facing US scientists in weather prediction; machine, which is planned to reach theoretical peak speed of more than 100 trillion calculations per second by 2009, will be used to increase accuracy of forecasts of weather, floods and ocean conditions by National Centers for Environmental Prediction, part of National Weather Service (M)

Special panel of three federal judges strikes down law requiring libraries to filter Internet for material harmful to minors or lose federal subsidies for financing Internet access; rules technology blocks so much unobjectionable material that it would violate library patrons' First Amendment rights; Chief Judge Edward R Becker's opinion holds panel is 'sympathetic' to goal of using techology to shield children from Internet pornography; civil liberties advocates hail ruling, in suit brought by Multnomah County, Ore, public libraries, American Library Association, American Civil Liberties Union, variety of Web sites and library patrons; ruling does not address law's requirement that schools filter Internet; panel says libraries could use less restrictive alternatives to filters; includes Judges John P Fullam and Harvey Bartle III (M)