Nearly half of about 1,200 law enforcement workers who went to Mount Sinai Medical Center's program in New York to monitor medical effects from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack showed some impaired heart function on ultrasound tests. The study was released Saturday at an American College of Cardiology conference.

"This is the first study to suggest a potential link between exposure to ground zero and early preclinical heart abnormalities," said Dr. Lori Croft, who led the work. Inhaling dust particles that can cause lung and heart disease may be to blame, she said.

The finding has many caveats. Researchers did not verify workers' presence at the site, and they do not know how many may have had pre-existing heart problems. Nor is there any comparison to other New Yorkers, or to police in other urban areas exposed to pollution and similar job stress.

Read the story at USA Today

Rabid Dark Knight fans are going batty over the prospect of a third Batman movie filming in Chicago this year.

The Web site Batman on Film reports that location scouts are already out canvassing the city for Batman shooting spots.

"[They] have been out and about in Chicago's Financial District," BOF’s tipster says.

The news makes sense. First, Dark Knight, one of the highest grossing films ever, was shot almost completely in Chicago in 2007.

Also, director Christopher Nolan was reportedly asked by Syncopy Films to shift his attention from Inception, a thriller starring Leo DiCaprio, to Batman Redemption.

At this point, it's mainly rumor, but it could mean that Batman Redemption will start shooting later on this year.

• Lawyer: "Now, Mrs. Johnson, how was your first marriage terminated?"
• Witness: "By death."
• Lawyer: "And by whose death was it terminated?"

• Accused, Defending His Own Case: "Did you get a good look at my face when I took your purse?"
  The defendant was found guilty and sentenced to ten years in jail.

• Lawyer: "What is your date of birth?"
• Witness: "July 15th."
• Lawyer: "What year?"
• Witness: "Every year."

• Lawyer: "Can you describe what the person who attacked you looked like?"
• Witness: "No. He was wearing a mask."
• Lawyer: "What was he wearing under the mask?"
• Witness: "Er...his face."

• Lawyer: "How old is your son, the one living with you?"
• Witness: "Thirty-eight or thirty-five, I can't remember which."
• Lawyer: "How long has he lived with you?"
• Witness: "Forty-five years."

• Lawyer: "What was the first thing your husband said to you when he woke that morning?"
• Witness: "He said, 'Where am I, Cathy?'"
• Lawyer: "And why did that upset you?"
• Witness: "My name is Susan."

http://rinkworks.com/said/courtroom.shtml

All I can say is way to go, AT&T.  The company, evidently, has lost all personal data for all Sidekick users.  They're now sending out the warning: "Sidekick customers, during this service disruption, please DO NOT remove your battery, reset your Sidekick, or allow it to lose power."  Pretty sure this is gonna be bad for business.

Some people like a bit more than caffeine in their cups, and Starbucks is listening.

 

The coffee retailer will open a new neighborhood cafe pilot store in Seattle that will offer beer and wine as well as coffee and tea. The new store, which will be called "15th Avenue Coffee and Tea inspired by Starbucks," will also have night-time hours and live entertainment.

 

Starbucks' current stores do not offer alcoholic beverages -- just lots of java, tea and food.

Oscar G. Mayer, retired chairman of the Wisconsin-based meat processing company that bears his name, has died at the age of 95.

Mayer’s wife, Geraldine, said he died of old age Monday at Hospice Care in Fitchburg, Wisconsin.

He was the third Oscar Mayer in the family that founded Oscar Mayer Foods, which was once the largest private employer in Madison. His grandfather, Oscar F. Mayer, died in 1955 and his father, Oscar G. Mayer Sr., died in 1965.

Mayer retired as chairman of the board in 1977 at age 62 soon after the company recorded its first $1 billion year. The company was later sold to General Foods and is now a business unit of Kraft.

Mayer’s first wife, Rosalie, died in 1998. He married Geraldine Fitzpatrick in 1999.

Memorial Day weekend seems to be synonymous with alcohol, so I'm heading to O'Shaughnessy's tonight for a pub crawl.  Be there!

NEW YORK – Eartha Kitt, the self-proclaimed "sex kitten" whose sultry voice and catlike purr attracted fans even as she neared 80, has died. The singer, dancer and actress was 81.

Family spokesman Andrew Freedman said Kitt, who was recently treated at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, died Thursday in Connecticut of colon cancer.

Dubbed the "most exciting woman in the world" by Orson Welles, Kitt's career spanned six decades, from her start as a dancer with the famed Katherine Dunham troupe to cabarets and acting and singing on stage, in movies and on television.

She won two Emmys, and was also nominated for several Tonys and two Grammys.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Police say Macaulay Culkin's sister Dakota Culkin was killed after she stepped in front of a car in west Los Angeles.

Police spokesman Richard French says Dakota Culkin was struck Tuesday night after she stepped into the street. She died a day later at a Los Angeles hospital after suffering massive head injuries.

French says there is no active criminal investigation.

Police say the driver stopped and tried to help the 29-year-old. Officers determined the motorist wasn't driving drunk and followed all laws.

Macaulay Culkin's spokeswoman, Michelle Bega, said it was a "terrible tragic accident" and the family had no further comment.

The 28-year-old actor starred in the "Home Alone" films

I'm glad to see that Notre Dame managed to hold on against Navy in their game yesterday.  Unfortunately I didn't get to see it--I don't even know if it was on tv; I was out most of the day.

Freaky...their colors and uniforms are nearly identical.