April 12, 2005

Allan Kozinn reviews concert by Yo-Yo Ma and Silk Road Ensemble at Carnegie Hall; photo (M)

TO SUCCEED, RANDOLPH PUTS A FOOT ON THE

Pres Bush and Prime Min Ariel Sharon of Israel differ openly over Israel's intention to expand settlement in West Bank, but Bush gives Sharon robust backing for his plan to withdraw from Gaza this summer; two meet at Bush's ranch in Crawford, Tex; Bush hails Sharon for pursuing 'courageous initiative' to pull Israeli settlers and security forces out of Gaza Strip and small portions of West Bank; his words of support come as Sharon heads toward wrenching confrontation with some Jewish settlers and their allies as he moves them, perhaps forcibly, out of Gaza; he has described political atmosphere in Israel as akin to civil war because of deep disagreements over withdrawal plan; but Sharon is adamant about plans to build new housing to establish unbroken presence from Jerusalem to West Bank settlement of Maale Adumin, community of 30,000 people; planned building could cut most north-south links between Palestinians in West Bank and make it extremely difficult for them to gain access to East Jerusalem, which they hope to make capital of their eventual state; White House says framework for peace talks, so-called road map, bars such construction; photo (M)

Dr Stephen D Simpson of University of Edinburgh leads study that shows fish use underwater noise of reef to determine where to live; study, published in journal Science, used artificial reefs with various sounds piped in to gauge reaction of fish; drawing (M)

Shares of Ford Motor Co fall to their lowest point in more than year and half after surprise announcement on April 8 that it was cutting its yearly earnings forecast in half; announcement raises questions about how candid Ford was in providing its financial guidance at start of year; Ford's shares close at $10.44, compared with $11.03 on April 8, decline of 5.4 percent; effects of Ford's falling share price hit other Detroit stocks, with automotive suppliers Visteon, Delphi and American Axle and Manufacturing all losing money; Fitch debt-rating agency revises its outlook on Ford to negative; Ford announces that its top marketing executive executive for North America, Earl J Hesterberg, is leaving after only six months on job to become chief executive of Group 1 Automotive; Steve Lyons, who led company's Ford division, will succeed Hesterberg, and Darryl Hazel, former president of Lincoln Mercury division, will succeed Lyons; graph (M)