November 22, 2005

Free-agent outfielder Johnny Damon's agent Scott Boras puts together binder highlighting Damon's statistics and assets in attempt to woo big-market teams and big contracts; photos (M)

Vice Pres Cheney steps up White House attacks on critics of Iraq war, declaring that those who say Americans were sent into battle based on intelligence lies engage in 'shameless revisionism'; tells American Enterprise Institute audience he considers debate healthy and calls war critic John Murtha 'good man, marine and patriot' but presses attack on those who say administration manipulated data; photos; says intelligence flaws are plain in hindsight but it is false to say Pres Bush lied to American people; says early withdrawal would be 'terrible blow' to US security and paints bleak picture of terrorists' ambition to use Iraq to overthrow other governments in region and establish radical Islamic empire from Spain across North Africa all the way to Indonesia; says Congress used same information to conclude Saddam Hussein was danger, but does not mention that administration had access to far more extensive intelligence; leading Democrats issue point-by-point rebuttal (M)

Dr Amir Raz, Columbia University clinical neuroscience professor, leads study on how processes within brain conflict with each other by conducting tests using hypnosis and imaging techniques; research, which is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, finds that brain circuits process information from top to bottom, which allows brain to override certain sensory data and past experience in favor of current primary stimulus; testing uses hypnosis and perception test known as Stroop effect; other research involving hypnosis discussed; photos; drawings (M)

General Motors workers across country meet news of plant closings and job cuts with mixture of shock, resignation and frustration at company's management; some workers comment; photos (M)

Growing number of companies are profiting from concerns--of shareholders, communities and consumers--about environmental issues; huge companies like General Electric and Chevron now have separate businesses to market what they are calling environment-friendly products; new companies and university project appear each day; products and projects at other companies and universities, including Cargill Inc, Wal-Mart, Del Monte and Cornell University discussed; photos (M)