March 14, 2005

Exile of Kurds from Kirkuk in late 1980's planted seeks for bitter ethnic antagonism that has grown into most incendiary issue outside of Sunni-led insurgency, and one that more than any other is delaying formation of new government; when Kurds were relocated, Arabs were settled there to exploit vast oil reserves and solidify control of region; fear is that growing struggle over Kirkuk and efforts to restore Kurds to jobs and property without disenfranchsing Arabs could ignite civil war; debate has so inflamed passions that any real decision on Kirkuk's future may be delayed; Kurdish leaders says their claim to region has historical basis; while many realize that Arabs brought into region are also victims of Saddam Hussein, there is disagreement on how to rectify situation; Americans created Iraqi Property Claims Commission to rule on restitution, but only 25 claims out of 10,044 have been decided; photos (M)

Four years after study in which doctors found that stem cells from bone marrow injected into damaged hearts of mice could morph into cells that body cannot replace after heart attack, treatment has yet to demonstrate whether it will fulfill its promise; it has touched off sharp debate among clinicians as to whether therapy is ready to be taken to people; ten human trials of marrow-to-heart approach have been conducted in clinics around world, all but one with positive results, but overall improvement in patients' heart function has been modest; original research is under criticism from scientists who have tried without success to reproduce it; approach, if it works, would be leading example of regenerative medicine, idea that best way to repair body is with its own system of cells and signaling molecules; difficulties of heart research do not dash hopes for regenerative medicine, but simply suggest that stem cell treatments may require years to come to fruition; details of various trials discussed; photo; illustration of procedure (M)

Gambling revolution on nation's college campuses is being spurred by televised poker championships and proliferation of Web sites that offer online poker games; Princeton student Michael Sandberg has won $120,000 since September, some in Atlantic City but most of it online, and now considers gambling as career option; drastic gains and losses have always been part of gambling, but access to games has never been as easy and undergraduates and students of youth gambling say interest has never been so high; ESPN's broadcast of World Series of Poker with its $2.5 million grand prize has stoked interest; experts warn that college gamblers are swallowing hype of big-stakes poker without coming to grips with dangers of addiction; photo (M)

Polar Express, digitally animated film, brings in $45 million at box office in its new wide-screen three-dimensional format for Imax theaters, about a quarter of film's total domestic box office; recent films like The Matrix: Reloaded, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones have also had successful Imax runs in addition to their initial releases, but The Polar Express is first Hollywood production in 3-D, which requires audience to wear glasses with either polarized lenses or electronic shutters; under leadership of Bradley J Wechsler and Richard L Gelfond, Imax has developed image-processing software to scan 35-millimeter movies and digitially reconstruct images, frame by frame, to eliminate grain and sharpen picture; has also developed less expensive and more compact projector that allows exhibitors to convert existing multiplex screens to Imax theaters; photos; Imax share price graph (M)

Walt Disney Company announces that its president Robert A Iger will succeed Michael D Eisner as chief executive, ending Eisner's reign one year earlier than expected; board had not planned to make announcement this soon, but when former Disney executive Meg Whitman withdrew from consideration, board hastily called meeting and decided upon Iger; appointment will be effective in September; transition will begin immediately with Eisner and Iger sharing chief executive's duties; Iger career highlights; not all board members are happy with decision; Stanley Gold and Roy Disney express scorn for decision and process although they are pleased that Eisner is leaving earlier than expected; photo (M)

Anthony Tommasini Critic's Notebook reviews Royal Danish Opera staging of Proces Kafka (Kafka's Trial) by Danish composer Poul Ruders and British librettist Paul Bentley at opera's new home in Copenhagen; photos (M)

Photo of canisters of cremated remains of 3,489 mental patients stored at Oregon State Hospital, unclaimed by families

Robert A Iger, president and chief operating officer of Walt Disney Co since January 2000, has displayed loyalty to Michael E Eisner, chairman and chief executive, since beginning, and it is thanks to that loyalty that board has now named Iger to succeed Eisner; Iger must now show both independence and his own brand of leadership while undoing any lingering resentment he incurred in carrying out his boss's vision; photo (M)

In a business in which loyalty is not always rewarded, staying true to his word paid off for Robert A. Iger, Disney's new chief. Page C1.

Newspaper Web sites have grown so popular that publishers would like to charge for access, but those who do face risky economics; only one national paper, The Wall Street Journal, and about 45 small dailies charge readers to use their Web sites; New York Times on the Web, which as more unique daily visitors than New York Times newspaper has readers, has been considering charging for years and is expected to make announcement soon about its plans; big part of motivation for newspapers to charge for their online content is not revenue it will generate, but revenue it will save by slowing erosion of print subscriptions; difficulty comes in determining what readers will pay for on Web after being conditioned to expect free online news; photo; graph (M)

Article on British artist Damien Hirst, whose latest works--macabre Photo Realist paintings--are on view in US for first time in four years, at Gagosian Gallery in Manhattan; photos (M)

NCAA seeds Illinois University, North Carolina University, Washington University and Duke University first in their regions for men's tournament; seeds Louisiana State University, North Carolina University, Michigan State University and Tennessee University first for women's tournament; photos (M)