Marks & Spencer Gets Bid That Investor Says Is Final

Colleges are so intent on getting not just enough applicants, but best ones, that some are lavishing perks on high school guidance counselors who advise students and their parents in evaluating colleges; this raises questions about difference between merely promoting university and currying favor with guidance counselors; colleges themselves seem uncertain as to what is, or is not, appropriate; some treat visiting counselors to theater, fancy dinners, waterfront cruises and golfing; many college and high school officials contend that perks having nothing to do with gaining knowledge of university cross ethical boundary; say accepting gifts from very universities they are paid to assess poses conflict of interest that undermines covenant between counselors and students; photo of day's itinerary for counselors visiting one college, including spa visit, snowmobile ride, shopping and skiing; photo (M)

Wooing of Guidance Counselors Is Raising Profiles and Eyebrows

Article on Dearborn Arab International Festival in Dearborn, Mich, home of one of US's largest Arab-American communities, which featured Arab-American rapper Iron Sheik (William Youmans); photos (M)

Drawing a Rap Refrain From a U.N. Resolution

 BUSH IN NORTH CAROLINA -- In a trip scheduled weeks ago, President Bush campaigned in the home state of Senator John Edwards, finding time to help out at a lemonade stand.   PAGE A14    A NEW BREED OF POLITICAL WIFE -- Elizabeth Edwards, the senator's wife, is a professional woman in her own right and her husband's most trusted adviser -- Nancy Reagan and Hillary Rodham Clinton all in one.   PAGE A16

THE 2004 CAMPAIGN

Swimmer Michael Phelps wins 400-meter individual medley at US Olympic trials and breaks his own world record; photos (M)

In First Final, Phelps Breaks Another Record

Taiwan had its first trade deficit in four years in June; deficit of $203 million comes after $1.2 billion surplus in May; export growth slowed to 25 percent (S)

World Business Briefing | Asia: Taiwan: First Trade Deficit In 4 Years

Russia's farmland in Far East is drawing reverse migration as Russian youths abandon farm villages for city; there are five South Korean commercial farms on leased land and 2,390 Chinese farm workers and sharecroppers in Primorye, or Maritime province; Russia is still net food importer from China, but trend is shifting fast; Russian land tenure law that went into effect last year allows foreigners to sign 49-year leases for farmland; map; photos (M)

New Face of Farming in Russia's Far East

Plans to turn 50-acre Ridgewood Reservoir on Brooklyn-Queens border into park means that Luis Rodriguez will no longer be able to camp there, as he has continuously for past three years; Rodriguez says he was driven to live in woods by rising rents and his discomfort around people; survives on donations from family members and regulars at nearby Highland Park, sometimes rummaging for food and drinks left by picknickers there; photos; map (M)

As Old Reservoir Becomes a Park, a Camper Gets an Eviction Notice

New survey to be released by National Endowment for the Arts, based on data from 2002 Census Bureau survey, finds that fewer than half of Americans over 18 now read novels, short stories, plays or poetry, that number of consumers reading any kind of book has diminished and that pace at which US is losing readers, especially young ones, is quickening; graph (M)

Fewer Noses Stuck in Books In America, Survey Finds

World Business Briefing | Africa: South Africa: Iscor To Raise Pay

Enron Corp's former chairman and chief executive Kenneth L Lay is indicted by federal grand jury examining financial fraud that led to collapse of onetime energy giant; specific charges in sealed indictment are expected to become known July 8; Justice Dept's Enron Task Force has so far filed criminal charges against 30 people, including former executives and advisers who are charged with aiding Enron in its deceit; majority of charges against Lay are said to center on series of what government believes are false statements he made to investors, employees and accountants that painted positive picture of company's finances at time when he was selling Enron stock; he is also expected to face civil charges for securities law violations brought by SEC, which is conducting its own inquiry; case recalled; photos; timeline showing Lay's activities in his last days at Enron (L)

Enron Ex-Chief Indicted by U.S. In Fraud Case

David Pogue State of the Art column on Microsoft's efforts to remake its search page to be more like Google's; photo; drawing (M)

Microsoft On the Trail Of Google

US drug makers are trying to fix industry's tarnished image; Merck & Co's former chairman Roy Vagelos, who was one of industry's most prominent boosters, now condemns drug makers for 'exorbitant' prices of new medicines and 'galloping' annual increases of old ones; predicts government price controls are almost inevitable; Pfizer holds news conference to announce effort to provide discounted drugs to working poor and anyone without health insurance; drug companies are concerned that Congress will pass legislation that would legalize drug imports or allow government officials to bargain for discounts, either of which could put big dent in industry's profits and investments; photos (M)

Drug Makers Seek to Mend Their Fractured Image

As guardian of the city's finances, Comptroller William C. Thompson Jr. produces audits that take note of every misplaced jot and tittle on the books of municipal agencies -- last month he raised questions about the purchase of $4.99 orange socks for prison inmates.      But when it comes to reporting the details of his campaign's finances, Mr. Thompson, a Democrat and a possible candidate for mayor next year, has often been less than thorough.  

Gaps in Reports By Campaign Of Comptroller

Yahoo Inc's profit more than doubled in second quarter, driven by acquisitions and surging online advertising market; net income rose to $112.5 million compared with $50.8 million year earlier; revenue more than doubled, to $832 million from $321 million; chief executive Terry S Semel comments (M)

Yahoo's Quarterly Earnings Double but Disappoint Investors

Chinese regulators take away Pfizer Inc's patent there for Viagra in case that Bush administration considers important test of China's commitment to international trade agreements; Consumer Project on Technology director James Love says Chinese decision is sensible and consistent with international rules; Pfizer received so-called use patent for Viagra from Chinese in 2001, decision that was challenged by producers of generic drugs; Pfizer will appeal ruling; ruling may have little effect in China because genuine Viagra sales there are minimal; Viagra imitation drugs are widely available in much of Asia; photo (M)

Pfizer Reports China Has Lifted Its Viagra Patent

French electrical engineering company Alstom says orders were up 41 percent, to 3.94 billion euros ($4.84 billion), in quarter ended June 30, up from 2.80 billion euros year earlier; sales declined 6 percent, to 3.31 billion euros ($4.07 billion) (S)9

World Business Briefing | Europe: France: Alstom Orders Increase

Defense Dept, hoping to head off flood of litigation after Supreme Court ruling, says it will allow detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to challenge their status as enemy combatants from war in Afghanistan and campaign against terrorism; it is not clear whether Pentagon's hastily devised new procedures, which will keep process in military courts, will satisfy court's desires; some officials concede that some of details are likely to end up in litigation; under new review process, 600 Guantanamo detainees would be provided with personal representatives, but not lawyers, to help them consider their legal options; detainees would be permitted to challenge their legal standing before panel of three military officers on newly created Combatant Status Review Tribunal; legal advocates say measure would do nothing to bring continued detention of foreign nationals at Guantanamo Bay into compliance with Constitution or international law; say most problematic matter is that process does not permit detainees access to legal counsel (M)

Pentagon Will Permit Captives At Cuba Base to Appeal Status

Paul Rudolph, influential dean of Yale architectural school who died in 1997, left project of converting building on East 58th Street, which is now finished as last in series of glamorous apartments Rudolph designed in New York; modern duplex is now home of his friend Ernst Wagner and headquarters of Paul Rudolph Foundation; photos (M)

An Architect's Last Word

World Business Briefing | Europe: Britain: Boeing Wins Airliner Orders

 Forest Service Proposes Off-Road-Vehicle Limits  The Forest Service for the first time proposed a rule that could eventually limit the use of off-road vehicles in the 155 national forests. The move came in response to mounting fiscal and environmental costs from damage incurred by the vehicles, but no money was set aside to enforce the proposed regulation.   PAGE A12    2 Charged in Girl's Slaying  Two men face second-degree murder charges in the strangling death of 13-year-old Tyisha McCoy in Harlem last week.   PAGE B1

INSIDE

Public transportation departments begin offering wireless Internet access; providing access in moving vehicle is complex; trials, which are being underwritten by grants and sponsors, are under way in several countries to determine technical feasibility of offering mobile Internet access and whether commuters will pay for privilege; photo (M)

Destination Wi-Fi, By Rail, Bus or Boat

PetroEcuador will raise oil production 2.4 percent by year-end as it drills new wells and overhauls existing ones; output will increase to 205,000 barrels per day, from 200,154 barrels; PetroEcuador produces about 40 percent of country's daily outputof 500,000 per day (S)l

World Business Briefing | The Americas: Ecuador: Oil Production To Rise

Internal investigations find that financial problems at Legal Aid Society in New York City are due in great part to gross fiscal mismanagement by its executives, indifference of its board to financial details and questionable ethics of its top financial officer; Patricia M Hynes, board chairwoman since December, acknowledges need for tighter financial control and reporting; stresses that investigation uncovered no malfeasance; investigation has resulted in resignation of Daniel L Greenberg, agency's president, chief executive and attorney in chief, and Theresa deLeon, its top financial officer, who acknowledges spending $30,000 in personal expenses to company's credit card, later repaid in full; agency says no negative impact on services to clients has been reported, but does not rule out possibility of diminished services for poor in civil legal matters; photos (L)

How a Lax Eye on Money Pushed Legal Aid to the Brink

American and Iraqi officials say decision in April to pull back American forces from Falluja inadvertently created safe haven for terrorists and insurgents there; say sending American troops back into city might touch off another uprising; say they would prefer to re-enter city with sizable force of Iraqi soldiers, backed up by Americans, but concede that Iraqi force capable of mounting assault on city of 250,000 people is months, even years away; result is that Americans and Iraqi government are faced with growing danger that they are nearly powerless to confront; American and Iraqi intelligence reports suggest that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Jordanian believed responsible for scores of attacks, is in Falluja, working with dozens of hard-core Islamist fighters, some from outside country and some former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party; Americans say they could regain control of Falluja by military means, but it would cost hundreds of Iraqi lives and risk sparking same sort of backlash as in April; photo (M)

Falluja Pullout Left Haven Of Insurgents, Officials Say

Paula Danziger was an American children's author who wrote more than 30 books, including her 1974 debut The Cat Ate My Gymsuit, for children's and young adult audiences. At the time of her death, all her books were still in print; they had been published in 53 countries and translated into 14 languages.

July 8, 2004

Headlines from July 8, 2004

Marks & Spencer Gets Bid That Investor Says Is Final

Wooing of Guidance Counselors Is Raising Profiles and Eyebrows

Drawing a Rap Refrain From a U.N. Resolution

THE 2004 CAMPAIGN

In First Final, Phelps Breaks Another Record

Billboard 200

Kiss Of Death

Confessions

To The 5 Boroughs

JoJo

Musicology

Notable Deaths

Historical Context for July 8, 2004