12 arrested after Northwest Airlines turned back  —  Passengers 'looked into plastic bags, passed cell phones'  —  AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (CNN) — Dutch police said Wednesday that 12 passengers were in custody after a Northwest Airlines flight bound for Mumbai, India, returned to Amsterdam when several people on board aroused concern.

Bush: Katrina recovery will take time  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush on Wednesday cautioned against placing too much importance on the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's Gulf Coast strike, saying it will take a long, sustained effort to rebuild the area.

Report: Iran planning nuclear 'surprise'  —  A senior official in Teheran said Wednesday that in the next few days, a "surprise" was expected regarding Iran's nuclear program, Al-Jazeera reported.  —  Teheran's apparent refusal to suspend uranium enrichment set the stage for a showdown at the UN Security Council later this month.

Alaska Gov. Murkowski Concedes Defeat in GOP Gubernatorial Primary  —  ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Republican Gov. Frank Murkowski, whose perceived missteps over the past four years have turned him into one of the most unpopular governors in state history, soundly lost his bid for re-election …

E&P editor attacks bloggers over Reutersgate (Update: Zombie explodes the ambulance incident)  —  I was going to make the title, "E&P editor attacks bloggers over Reutersgate, misrepresents pretty much everything," but his article's only the first of two parts.

Don't Marry Career Women  —  Guys: A word of advice.  Marry pretty women or ugly ones.  Short ones or tall ones.  Blondes or brunettes.  Just, whatever you do, don't marry a woman with a career.  —  Why?  Because if many social scientists are to be believed, you run a higher risk of having a rocky marriage.

Asking for it: why terrorism vs. Fox TV is not news  —  It's been over a week since Fox TV newsmen Steve Centanni and Olaf Wiig were abducted in Gaza.  Until today's terrorist video by the Holy Jihad Brigade, showing them both alive and demanding the release of Muslim prisoners in America …

L'Affaire GoldFrisch III: We All Knew This Was Coming  —  This post was co-written with Tim Dreier of The One-Handed Economist; both of us are graduates of the University of Oregon in Eugene, where Deb Frisch now lives.  As a matter of full disclosure, we've had a few scrapes with Frisch of our own …

UAW Members Endorse Ned Lamont  —  Today, the UAW endorsed the Democratic Nominee for U.S. Senate, Ned Lamont, at a noon-hour press conference at their Region 9A headquarters in Farmington.  Before the August 8 Primary, members had met with both Joe Lieberman and Ned Lamont and concluded …

Marines Who Served Will Be Ordered Back  —  The involuntary return to active duty will affect up to 2,500 reservists at a time.  The Pentagon is scrambling to meet the demands of war.  —  WASHINGTON — The Marine Corps said Tuesday that it would begin calling Marines back to active-duty service …

The Battle of Baghdad  —  Rampant insecurity—and a detailed plan to combat it.  —  BAGHDAD—Although there has been much good news to report about security progress in Iraq this summer—the killing of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the handover of security responsibility for Muthanna province …

Lieberman Warns of Danger of the U.S. Pulling Out of Iraq  —  Suggesting that he sees parallels between the war in Iraq and the early struggle against fascism, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman said on Tuesday that the United States would create a dangerous world if it left Iraq too soon.

Pope sacks astronomer over evolution debate  —  Pope Benedict XVI has sacked his chief astronomer after a series of public clashes over the theory of evolution.  —  He has removed Father George Coyne from his position as director of the Vatican Observatory after the American Jesuit priest …

Comments Haunt Another Senator  —  In a moment of unusual candor for a veteran senator fighting for his political life, Conrad Burns (R-Mont.) offered this blunt self-assessment a few months ago: "I can self-destruct in one sentence," he told supporters.  "Sometimes in one word."

What Your Freshmen Don't Know  —  Beloit College has released its latest "Mindset List," to help academics understand what freshmen know — and what they don't have a clue about.  This list has been prepared each August since 1998 and past lists are available online.  —  Here is this year's list, for the Class of 2010:

Conflict of Interest Is Raised in N.S.A. Ruling  —  The federal judge who ruled last week that President Bush's eavesdropping program was unconstitutional is a trustee and an officer of a group that has given at least $125,000 to the American Civil Liberties Union in Michigan, a watchdog group said Tuesday.

The New York Times Names Chandler Burr as Its First-Ever Perfume Critic  —  Fragrances Will Be Reviewed In New Column Appearing In T: Style Magazine  —  ''Scent Strip'' Fragrance Column Will Debut on August 27  —  Issue Has Largest Total Advertising Pages Since 1984