EAST

ARMY DOG HANDLER GETS SIX MONTHS IN PRISON

FORT MEADE, Md. – An Army dog handler was sentenced yesterday to six months behind bars for using his snarling canine to torment prisoners at Abu Ghraib.

The military jury handed down the sentence a day after convicting Sergeant Michael Smith, 24, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He could have gotten 8 1/2 years in prison.

– Associated Press

NORTHEAST

COLLEGE BOARD FINDS 27,000 UNCHECKED SATS

BOSTON – The College Board disclosed yesterday that 27,000 SAT college entrance exams missed being re-scanned following the initial discovery of scoring problems, including those of another 375 students who were given incorrectly low marks.

A College Board spokeswoman said the latest problems came to light Sunday following a request that Pearson Educational Management, which scores most of the exams, confirm all 495,000 October tests had been rescored. That request followed an earlier oversight in which 1,600 exams that had already been set aside for various reasons were overlooked.

– Associated Press

SCIENCE AND MEDICINE

U.S. SPACEWALKS HALTED WHILE SPACE STATION HANDRAILS TESTED

Officials have halted American spacewalks until they can test the strength of handrails that line the American part of the space station and are used to anchor the spacewalkers. Space station managers said yesterday they discovered some odd bubbling on the interior of some handrails that are still on the ground.

– Associated Press

FEDERAL ADVISERS REJECT STRONGEST WARNINGS ON ADHD DRUGS

A federal advisery panel on yesterday rejected recommending that popular drugs used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder should bear the strongest type of warning of the potential cardiovascular and psychiatric risks they pose.

The consensus move by the Food and Drug Administration’s pediatric advisery committee leaves in doubt whether the agency will require the so-called “black-box” labels on the drugs, which include Ritalin.

– Associated Press