Investors, however, drummed down Wachovia's stock 6.7 percent on news of the acquisition, worried that California's housing market is poised to cool.

Chief Calls Deal a Dream for Wachovia

The investigation of a slain human rights worker has widened to include the whereabouts of hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars.

Killings in Iraq Spawn Search for Missing Funds

On the days Pedro Martínez pitches, he prepares by spending time among his daffodils and petunias.

Off Mound, Mets' Ace Loosens Up in His Garden

Dubai Sports City, costing $2.5 billion and sprawling over 50 million square feet, aspires to be a bustling mini-metropolis devoted to sports.

It's Not a Mirage: Dubai Is Building a Sports Oasis

Many Americans who planned on real estate as their path to wealth are beginning to find that there are limits to how high is up.

A Chill Is in the Air for Sellers

Iranians in Los Angeles hope for change but dread the consequences of more sanctions or military action.

Exiles in 'Tehrangeles' Are Split on Iran

The price may be too high to compete with Xbox 360.

Sony to Sell PlayStation 3 for $499

The Bush administration moved forcefully to quell opposition to Gen. Michael V. Hayden.

White House Begins Push for C.I.A. Pick

Despite 51 witnesses, some of the most important ones may well be those who never appeared. 

What Remains Unanswered at Enron Trial

Randy Johnson is more concerned about the number of runs he has allowed in his last two starts than he is about his Tuesday matchup with Josh Beckett of the Red Sox.

A Marquee Matchup (but Don't Tell Johnson)

It's not clear that women concerned strictly about breast cancer will line up for the preventative benefits of the drug raloxifene.  

Sorting Out Pills to Reduce Breast Cancer Risk

The U.S. bans drilling for oil and gas in coastal waters, but nearby, Cuba is letting China and other countries do so.

Cuba Plans Offshore Wells Banned in U.S. Waters

Intellectuals in the center and on the left are debating how to present a clear alternative to conservatism.

Optimistic, Democrats Debate the Party's Vision

It may sound like a science fiction project designed for a dystopian future climate, but the North American Monsoon Experiment is going on now.

India? No, Arizona, and That's a Monsoon

The company said the lowered expectations were a result of price cuts aimed at stemming the decline in its market share for personal computers.

Dell Lowers Forecast for Quarter

 Angry Refugees Riot in Darfur; Bush Presses U.N.  An African Union interpreter was hacked to death by protesters soon after a visit from a top United Nations official. The demonstrators want the United Nations to replace the ineffectual peacekeepers from the African Union, and President Bush urged the Security Council to act promptly.   PAGE A10    Guilty Plea in Lobbying Case  Neil G. Volz, former chief of staff to Representative Bob Ney of Ohio, pleaded guilty to conspiring with the lobbyist Jack Abramoff to corrupt public officials.   PAGE A24    Breast Cancer and Pills  Intended to reduce the risk of breast cancer, some pills never quite catch on.   SCIENCE TIMES, PAGE F1    Nets Are Off to Fast Start  The Nets routed Miami, 100-88, in Game 1 of their N.B.A. second-round playoff series.   PAGE D1    No Cards for These Mothers  As much as we may like to believe that mother animals are designed to protect their young, nature abounds with mothers that defy the maternal instinct.   SCIENCE TIMES, PAGE F1

INSIDE

Like other banking executives these days, Wachovia's chief executive, Kenneth Thompson, has been doing some California dreaming.      He realized those ambitions late Sunday, when he announced that his bank would acquire the Golden West Financial Corporation, a giant in the California mortgage business, in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $25.5 billion.  

National Cancer Institute announcement that new drug raloxifene will reduce invasive breast cancer risk in women with fewer serious complications than preventive drug tamoxifen is not widely accepted by experts in breast cancer field; critics say that use of raloxifene as purely preventive measure still carries too many health risks for typical woman; hold that it is not as effective as tamoxifen in reducing non-invasive growths; graph (M)

Alessandra Stanley reviews TV movie Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America; Joely Richardson stars; photo (M)

Bird Flu Comes to America, at Least in a TV Movie

Caryn James Critic's Notebook on career of actress Lindsay Lohan; holds that off camera image of Lohan as out of control party girl may damage her blossoming career; notes Lohan's upcoming projects, all more serious films than her past teenage comedies; photos (M)a

Lindsay Lohan: Portrait of the Party Girl as a Young Artist

If the Federal Reserve stops raising interest rates later this year, will the rest of the world go along?     When Fed policy makers meet on Wednesday to set overnight interest rates, they will almost certainly increase them by another quarter-point, to 5 percent. And investors will search for any clues about a pause in further rate increases.  

Will a Fed Pause on Rates End at the Water's Edge?

Research examining motherhood characteristics in variety of animals finds that moms are generally less than maternal and will sometimes take part in death of at least part of their brood; mothering habits of several animals described; siblicide, which is killing of one sibling by another, is also very common in animal world and has been found to be supervised by parent; researchers hold that most acts of infanticide and maternal abuse are part of natural reproductive plan; photos (L)

One Thing They Aren't: Maternal

Sony said on Monday that it planned to sell the base model of its PlayStation 3 video game console for $499, a price that industry analysts said could put it at a competitive disadvantage to rival Microsoft and its Xbox 360.      Sony said that it also planned to sell a higher-priced model with a larger hard drive for $599.  

Voters will select mayors and city council members in nonpartisan elections today in Belleville, Clifton, Irvington, Newark, Orange, Paterson, Trenton, West Orange and many other New Jersey municipalities. The polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.     Updates on the Newark races and results will be available at nytimes.com/newark06.  

New Jersey Mayoral and Council Elections Today

New York City Rent Guidelines Board proposes rent increase of 3 percent to 6.5 percent on one-year leases and 5 percent to 8.5 percent on two-year leases for the one million rent-stabilized apartments in city; tenant advocates criticize decision; landlords insist past increases have not kept up with costs; photo; map and graph of rent stabilized apartments in New York City (M)

May 9, 2006

Headlines from May 9, 2006

Chief Calls Deal a Dream for Wachovia

Killings in Iraq Spawn Search for Missing Funds

Off Mound, Mets' Ace Loosens Up in His Garden

It's Not a Mirage: Dubai Is Building a Sports Oasis

A Chill Is in the Air for Sellers

Billboard 200

Me And My Gang

NOW 21

High School Musical

White Trash With Money

King

Historical Context for May 9, 2006