(CNN)She's leaving. She's not leaving. Dame Maggie Smith, whose tart-tongued Lady Violet Crawley has most of the best lines on "Downton Abbey," caused a fuss this week when she implied that her beloved character won't be around much longer. "I mean, (my character) certainly can't keep going," Smith told the Sunday Times. "To my knowledge, I must be 110 by now. We're into the late 1920s." No more Dowager Countess?!? You could almost hear the genteel wails of protest on both sides of the Atlantic. The speculation about Smith was hurriedly squashed by a "Downton" publicist, who said Smith, 80, has agreed to stay with the series "for as long as the show runs." But that didn't stop rumors about the demise of "Downton" itself from continuing to crop up. Smith even hinted during her interview with the Times that the next season of the hit show would be its last. "They say this is the last one, and I can't see how it could go on," Smith let drop. Creator Julian Fellowes is developing another period drama, "The Gilded Age," for NBC and has been noncommittal about how much longer the show might endure beyond season six, which is filming now. "It won't go on forever -- I'm not a believer in that," he told The New York Times in a recent interview. "But I can't immediately now tell you where the end will be." It is hard to imagine "Downton," which just wrapped its fifth season on PBS in the United States, without the wit and wisdom of Lady Violet, whose acerbic commentary leaves few around her unscathed. So let's hope Smith just misspoke. And until season six, which airs this fall in the UK and early next year in the United States, here are some of our favorite Dowager Countess zingers. -- Isobel: "How you hate to be wrong." Lady Violet: "I wouldn't know, I'm not familiar with the sensation." -- Robert: "They do say there's a wild man inside all of us." Lady Violet: "If only he would stay inside." -- Isobel: "I admire it when young people stand up for their principles." Lady Violet: "Principles are like prayers; noble, of course, but awkward at a party." -- Lady Violet (to Cora): "I'm so looking forward to seeing your mother again. When I'm with her, I'm reminded of the virtues of the English." Matthew: "But isn't she American?" Lady Violet: "Exactly." -- Isobel: "I take that as a compliment." Lady Violet: "I must have said it wrong."

Summary: Maggie Smith causes fuss by saying next season of "Downton Abbey" may be her last . Such speculation was hurriedly squashed by a "Downton" publicist . Here are some of our favorite dowager countess zingers from the show .


(CNN)When I was a child, a pale specter used to call our house most evenings, eager to chat with my doctor father about her myriad medical concerns. We called her the "White Bread Lady," a moniker she earned for one particularly inane call in which she panicked to my father after consuming white bread. She wasn't breaking out in hives or having any adverse effects to the bread. No, she was just concerned that some future illness could befall her given that one particular dietary decision. Although we all laughed at the time, it was with a bit of shifty-eyed shame. Because most of us (including if not particularly the illustrious Ehrlich family) have lurking within us our very own "White Bread Lady," ready to convince us that each cough, sniffle and less-than-nutritious meal might be a detriment to our health. And, naturally, that White Bread Lady looms even larger when we can type our worries into a search bar and unlock a bevy of potentially distressing information. Yup, so quoth Google, we all have cancer. According to the Pew Research Center, 80% of Internet users have looked up health information online. While that practice can be beneficial in some respects, the abundance of (variably valid) information online can turn us into e-hypochondriacs. (Or, worse, can lead us to neglect getting the care we need.) Read on for five mistakes -- courtesy of a selection of health care professionals -- that people make when diagnosing themselves online. Searching blind . Your eye is twitching like an overly caffeinated college student sitting behind a pretty girl in lecture hall, twirling his pencil and hoping to catch a whiff of her lovely shining hair. You type "eye twitch" into Google and come up with a really rad website that explains that this newfound spasm is actually an indication that your third eye is fixing to open, revealing to you wonders untold. You are the chosen one. Too bad that this trove of "medical information" is actually some dude's fan-fiction site. Sure, the above is an extreme example, but, as Dr. Kevin Pho of KevinMD.com pointed out, "There's a lot of bad information on the Web and information that can be dangerous." Especially if you're not considering who put up that information in the first place. Pho urges users to favor Web addresses ending in .org and .edu when looking for reputable health-care info, and to check who is funding the collection of that information. "There's so much information from organizations trying to sell products or push their agenda on the Web," he said. He suggests turning to sites like Mayo Clinic as well as troves of information curated by doctors (like Pho's own website) when trolling the web for info. And, of course, if a site mentions trolls and third eyes, one should definitely press on. Flailing in forums . If there's one thing people like to do online, it's talk about their problems -- especially mundane things like coughs and headaches and their babies' various and sundry discharges. That's all well and good;

Summary: According to a Pew report, 80% of Internet users have looked up health info online . Sites like Mayo Clinic and others curated by doctors are safer than online forums .


Andre Spicer is Professor of Organizational Behavior, Cass Business School at City University London. The views expressed in this commentary are solely those of the writer. CNN is showcasing the work of The Conversation, a collaboration between journalists and academics to provide news analysis and commentary. The content is produced solely by The Conversation. LondonApple CEO Tim Cook has released the much-anticipated Apple watch -- his company's first new product since the iPad. Cook said the new watch, in addition to telling the time, was a "comprehensive health and fitness companion." But we're unlikely to hear much about how people will actually use this new product for some time. Our research has found that smartwatches certainly do have some benefits for users. But they also have a hidden, darker side which the companies selling them are unlikely to talk about. As part of a research project with Alberto Rizzoli, we have tried to understand what drives people to invest in smartwatches. One participant, a judge, hoped he could keep track of the deluge of emails during long hours in the courtroom when he had to pay attention -- and be seen to pay attention. The dilemma is familiar to many of us. We spend our days engaged in social interaction. Huge proportions of our time are taken up with meetings or impromptu encounters with colleagues. However when we are in these meetings, our smartphone is buzzing away reminding us that our inbox is filling up. We may want to check these incoming messages, but know it would be rude to glance at our phone. When one of the first smartwatches came to market, the judge thought he had found the solution to this problem. We found that heavy smartwatch users valued how the devices helped them track information as it arrived while still appearing socially attentive. It also saved users the hassle of having to dig through their pockets or handbags to find a buzzing phone. Surprisingly only about half the people we spoke with actually used all the health tracking technology built in to the watches. They were more interested in keeping abreast of their inbox than their calorie count. We also noticed a worrying side to these new devices as heavy users of the watches incorporate them into their daily routines -- we call it the "phantom device effect." They would compulsive check their watch not just for the time, but for a wide range of information. In some cases their new gizmo would become such an instinctive part of their life that even when not wearing one they would check their bare wrist. Some would feel a phantom buzz, notifying them of an imaginary incoming email. The phantom device effect leads us to ask about just how ingrained in our daily habits these devices might become. Recent research has suggested that average smartphone users check their phone 150 times a day, starting just minutes after waking up. We also know this has the effect of extending work into all areas of our lives -- monitoring work emails late into

Summary: Smartwatches have hidden, darker side the companies selling them are unlikely to talk about, says Andre Spicer . Spicer: Average smartphone users check phone 150 times a day, starting just minutes after waking up . We're also likely to become more anxious about things we may never have given second thought to, he adds .


(CNN)I was in Florida last year when I got a call asking me to pose for a calendar. What? A calendar? As in Sports Illustrated swimsuit? Victoria's Secret angels? Cover girls. Pinups. Movie stars. Glam. I agreed, and now I am Ms. December. But it isn't quite what you think. The caller on the other end that day was Patti Tripathi. She was an anchor at CNN Headline News at a time when there were few Indian-American women in high-profile media jobs. Tripathi has her own media company now, but more recently she launched a nonprofit called Saris to Suits. She was asking me to help. She began by telling me her story. She was 12 when her family immigrated to the United States. Indian parents often have to save a lot of money to ensure a good marriage for their daughter. Tripathi said that was a big reason why her family left. We spoke about similar experiences as Indian teenagers in America. She was not allowed to go to the prom or wear shorts, except to play tennis. She had an 8 p.m. curfew and her father expected she would be married soon after college. Tripathi felt like a burden. She did everything she could to stand on her own. And she did. My father was not as stern but he had a hard time watching his little girl become "Americanized." I, too, longed to be independent, far more so than was expected of a Bengali girl in the 1970s. At an all-girls convent school in Kolkata, I used to climb up three flights of stairs to reach my classroom. On every landing were oversized portraits of national leaders, most of them Indian. Hundreds of girls in white uniforms made the stampede-like dash up the stairwell. It was impossible to stop but I always looked up when I arrived at Indira Gandhi. There she was, in her trademark white sari and what I thought was a Cruella de Vil slice in her hair. In a nation that valued boys more than girls, I was in awe that we had a female prime minister. Gandhi's political career turned out to be less than stellar, but it was 1971 and I was not yet 9 years old. I wanted to grow up to be just like her. Regal. Smart. And most of all, in control of my destiny. I know so many other Indian girls felt the same. We had dreams. Big dreams. We wanted to be someone, do something rewarding with our lives. Yet for so many girls in India, dreams are vanquished by nightmare life scenarios. They are denied education and married off within months of their first period. I have met women who were abducted and forced into prostitution or lived with physically and mentally abusive men. Those problems are not limited to India or the rest of South Asia. They exist in the immigrant communities in the United States, in which abuse and crimes are underreported because of the stigma that still exists. Women are often ashamed to talk

Summary: CNN's Moni Basu shares her story of struggle and success as a South Asian woman . Basu was featured as part of the Saris for Suits calendar, a tool created to empower women . The Saris for Suits campaign aims to create awareness about violence against women in immigrant communities .


(CNN)If you thought Simon Cowell was mean, wait till you hear what this judging duo had to say on New Zealand's spinoff of the popular singing contest "X Factor" on Sunday. Married couple Natalia Kills and Willy Moon, who both were on the judging panel of the show, slammed the 25-year-old contestant Joe Irvine, after his rendition of Michael Buble's "Cry Me A River." But it wasn't how he sang that ticked them off. "I'm disgusted at how much you've copied my husband, from the hair to the suit," said Kills, referring to Irvine's new makeover for the show. "You're a laughing stock. It's cheesy, it's disgusting...you make me sick," the British singer added. Her husband Willy Moon called him "creepy" and likened him to Norman Bates, the killer in the horror film, "Psycho." Mediaworks, the owner of the New Zealand television channel TV3, which airs the show, has decided to sack the duo for their scathing remarks. "Last night on X Factor both Kills and Moon made comments that were completely unacceptable," said Mark Weldon, Mediaworks chief executive. "We no longer have confidence that Kills and Moon are the right people to perform the role of X Factor judges and they will leave the show, effective immediately," Weldon said in a statement on TV3's website. The couple's comments sparked outrage on Twitter. In just a day, 77,534 people signed a petition to kick the duo off the show. TV3 was quick to respond, saying that it does not condone "bullying." Irvine, who handled the comments calmly on stage, tweeted a smiling photo and thanked his supporters. Kills and Moon did not directly respond to the accusations, but Kills tweeted, thanking her fans for understanding her "passionate opinions." The native singer, Moon, who rose to fame after his song was featured in an Apple ad, was lambasted in the media earlier this week. He reportedly used abusive language at a woman in a bakery in Auckland over a parking space brawl. TV3 apologized on his behalf, saying he regretted the incident and his language, but Moon has distanced himself from the statement on social media. Thankfully, it isn't up to the judges whether or not Irvine makes it to the next round -- voters will decide his fate on Monday night's results show where fellow judges Stan Walker and All Saints singer Melanie Blatt will continue to appear. Two new judges will be announced before next week's show. CNN's Tim Hume contributed to this report.

Summary: Singing contest judges Natalia Kills and Willy Moon have been sacked for their scathing remarks to a contestant . The married couple called the singer "disgusting" and "creepy" on live television in New Zealand . Over 77,000 people signed a petition to kick the judging duo off the show .


(CNN)Daniel von Bargen, the talented character actor perhaps best known for playing George Costanza's imbecilic boss Mr. Kruger during the last season of "Seinfeld," has died. He was 64. Von Bargen, who also stood out as Commandant Edwin Spangler on the ABC sitcom "Malcolm in the Middle," died Sunday after a long illness, his friend, actor Bob Colonna, said. Cincinnati TV station WLWT also reported the news. Other details of his death were not known. In February 2012, von Bargen was seriously injured when he shot himself in the temple in an apparent suicide attempt, distraught because he had been battling diabetes and was set to have two toes removed. The versatile von Bargen rose from the dead as the satanic Nix in the Clive Barker horror film "Lord of Illusions" (1995); played a futuristic sheriff in "The Postman" (1997), directed by and starring Kevin Costner; and portrayed a Southern lawman who pursued George Clooney's character in the Coen brothers' "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" (2000). The Hollywood Reporter: Bruce Sinofsky, Oscar-nominated director, dies at 58 . An expert at playing authority figures, von Bargen was a member of the Air Force on NBC's "The West Wing" and in the 1996 film "Broken Arrow," a SWAT communicator in "The Silence of the Lambs" (1991), a cop in "Basic Instinct" (1992) and "Super Troopers" (2001), a secret service agent in "I.Q." (1994), a warden in Steven Spielberg's "Amistad" (1997) and a federal agent in "The Majestic" (2001). The Hollywood Reporter: Leonard Nimoy called "irreplaceable" by Tom Selleck . His film résumé includes the notable films "Company Business" (1991), Woody Allen's "Shadows and Fog" (1991), Jonathan Demme's "Philadelphia" (1993), "RoboCop 3" (1993), "Crimson Tide" (1995), "Looking for Richard" (1996) and "Snow Falling on Cedars" (1999). He also guest-starred on such TV shows as "Spenser: For Hire," "All My Children," "NYPD Blue," "The X-Files" and "The Practice." A native of Cincinnati who graduated from Purdue University, von Bargen joined the Trinity Square Repertory Company in Providence, Rhode Island, after college. He appeared in a David Mamet production of "Uncle Vanya" opposite Christopher Walken, then attracted Hollywood's eye in 1989 when he played Maj. Manley Battle in the Larry Gelbart satire "Mastergate" on Broadway. The Hollywood Reporter: Hollywood's 100 favorite films . On "Seinfeld," his Mr. Kruger was the incompetent owner of Kruger Industrial Smoothing (a company that tried and failed to remove the green tint from the Statue of Liberty) and the boss of George (Jason Alexander) — by then finished with the Yankees — in Season 9 of the NBC hit. And on "Malcolm in the Middle," von Bargen played the hard-nosed, eyepatch-wearing Spangler, the head of cadets at Marlin Academy. He clashed often with the troublemaking Francis (Christopher Masterson), the oldest of Malcolm's (Frankie Muniz) brothers. In 2013, von Bargen starred in "The Treatment" at the Joseph Papp Public Theater in New York. "I feel a huge wave of sorrow and relief at the passing of this remarkable man," Colonna said. "I treasure the years when I worked with him at Trinity Rep

Summary: Character actor Daniel von Bargen has died at the age of 64 . He played George's boss Mr. Kruger on "Seinfeld" He was Commandant Edwin Spangler on "Malcolm in the Middle"


(CNN)Myanmar warplanes fighting rebels dropped a bomb at a sugarcane field in China, killing four civilians, the latter's state media reported Saturday. In addition to the fatalities, nine others were wounded, according to Xinhua news agency. Shortly after the incident Friday, China sent fighter jets to patrol over their shared border. The jets are there to "track, monitor, warn and chase away" Myanmar military planes, China's air force told state media. China summoned Myanmar's ambassador in Beijing after the incident in the border city of Lincang. Liu Zhenmin, the vice foreign minister for China, called on Myanmar to investigate and bring those behind the attack to justice. Myanmar forces have been battling ethnic separatist rebels in the rugged border region across from Yunnan province. In recent incidents, stray gunfire has damaged property on the Chinese side of the border, prompting Beijing to warn Myanmar to ensure safety. There was no immediate reaction from Myanmar.

Summary: China sends fighter jets to patrol over border with Myanmar following the incident . Report: In addition to the fatalities, nine others were wounded .


(CNN)Police in Charlottesville, Virginia, will publicly discuss on Monday the results of their investigation into an alleged gang rape of a University of Virginia student, which was initially reported last year in Rolling Stone magazine. The police findings could put to rest a complicated controversy about the alleged gang rape of a female student at a fraternity party. The accusation has been controversial because of the nature of such a crime and because the accusation itself has been clouded by subsequent questions about the Rolling Stone article. After the account was published last fall, Rolling Stone magazine later apologized for discrepancies in its article about the alleged gang rape after friends of the victim expressed doubts about the woman's account and the accused fraternity chapter denied key details. CNN senior media correspondent Brian Stelter described Rolling Stone's announcement as falling short of a full-scale retraction. It remains unclear what really happened to the female student, Stelter said. "We are in the phase here where Rolling Stone is trying to figure that out," Stelter said in December. "They've apologized, but not retracted. So they're not saying the story is false. They're just saying there are some questions they need to figure out the answers to still." The Charlottesville Police Department will hold its press conference at 2 p.m. ET on Monday. Rolling Stone editors had chosen not to contact the man who allegedly "orchestrated the attack on 'Jackie' (the woman who was the subject of the article) nor any of the men she claimed participated in the attack for fear of retaliation against her," a decision the magazine said it regretted. "In the face of new information, there now appear to be discrepancies in Jackie's account, and we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced," Rolling Stone said in December. Rolling Stone Managing Editor Will Dana later tweeted that "the truth would have been better served by getting the other side of the story." University of Virginia pledges zero-tolerance in rape cases . The article chronicled the school's failure to respond to that alleged assault. It prompted an emergency meeting by the school's governing board and the announcement of a zero-tolerance approach toward sexual assault cases. According to the magazine, Jackie, who at the time had just started her freshman year at the Charlottesville school, claimed she was raped by seven men at Phi Kappa Psi fraternity, while two more gave encouragement, during a party. However, the University of Virginia's Phi Kappa Psi chapter did not have a party the night of September 28, 2012, the date when the alleged attack occurred, or at all that weekend, the chapter said. The chapter's lawyer, Ben Warthen, told CNN that is proved by email and fraternity records. Warthen said there were other discrepancies in the accuser's account. For example, the accused orchestrator of the alleged rape did not belong to the fraternity, the fraternity house has no side staircase, and there were no pledges at that time of year. Jackie told the magazine she hurried out a side staircase after

Summary: Police will discuss their investigative findings into an alleged rape of a UVA student . The student's allegations have been clouded by controversy .


Leicester, England (CNN)"God save King Richard!" A cry rings out in the bright spring air as the simple oak coffin of Richard III is carried away from the tower block-filled campus of the University of Leicester for the final time. The medieval monarch's skeleton has been kept at the university since its discovery beneath a council car parking lot in the city sparked excitement around the world in August 2012. But on Sunday the bones -- which have been studied by archaeologists and experts from all fields in the years since -- ended their tenure as scientific specimens and became, once more, the mortal remains of a king. Some 35,000 people lined the streets of Leicester and the surrounding towns and villages as the cortege wound its way through the countryside to the site of Richard's final battle, Bosworth, where he died in 1485, before returning to the city for a commemoration at Leicester Cathedral. The day began on the freshly-mown lawns in front of the university's Fielding Johnson Building, where a crowd gathered for a solemn service of farewell, dignitaries dressed in their Sunday best alongside students and local families clad in jeans and waterproof jackets in case of a March shower. Leicester University student Anna Boyer, from North Carolina, said she and her classmates had come to watch the ceremony "so I can say I was here," adding: "It's an important historical event -- we don't have things like this in the States." Leicester alumni Sara and Leeroy Paskell brought their daughters Saoirse, 6, and Orlaith, 9, to watch the cortege pass by. "We thought it would be nice for the children to see it," said Sara Paskell. "It is amazing to be part of history, it makes me really proud of the university and of Leicester." That pride is something which those who helped in the search for Richard III share. Leicester University's president and vice-chancellor Paul Boyle said the discovery of the bones had been a "defining moment" which "reshaped history," and pointed out that the university had been custodian of Richard III's remains for longer than he ruled England. Genetics expert Turi King, who proved the identity of the bones by matching their DNA to a living relative of the monarch, Michael Ibsen, said: "It has been an amazing project to be part of -- we all feel very privileged to be involved." King, who read Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken" at the university service and laid a white rose -- a reminder of Richard's heritage as a member of the House of York -- on the coffin, said she considered the commemorations the end of a chapter in his story, but not the end of the story itself; she is still working to sequence his entire genome. Michael Ibsen and another living relative of Richard III, Wendy Duldig, were there as the hearse carrying the coffin pulled away from the somber grey-brown bricks of the Fielding Johnson Building; accompanied by archaeologist Richard Buckley, who led the dig which uncovered the King's bones, they walked

Summary: Richard III will finally be laid to rest in Leicester Cathedral this week . On Sunday his remains were taken from the city's university to the site of his final battle, Bosworth . The bones, in a coffin made by a living relative of the king, are now lying 'in repose' at the cathedral .


(CNN)A documentary on the life of late singer Amy Winehouse will be released in Britain on July 3, just weeks before the fourth anniversary of her death, the film's production company says. "Amy" seeks to "truly capture not just the great artist that she was, but also the funny and loving person that most people didn't get a chance to know," the filmmakers said on Facebook after announcing the film in 2013. It will feature "extensive unseen archive footage and previously unheard tracks," Deadline reported Wednesday. No U.S. release date has been set, Deadline reported. Despite releasing just two albums before her death of alcohol poisoning at the age of 27 on July 23, 2011, the British singer's smoky voice and songwriting won widespread acclaim and six Grammy Awards. "Amy" follows a poorly received biopic, "Fallen Star," released in 2013. The film was not authorized by the family and, unlike "Amy," featured none of the star's music. Winehouse's father, Mitch Winehouse, called that film "rubbish." The team behind the new film includes Asif Kapadia, who directed the documentary "Senna," on the life of Brazilian Formula 1 racer Ayrton Senna. The film won two BAFTA awards. The Winehouse family said in a 2013 statement that it was behind Kapadia's take on the singer's life. "The award-winning producers of Senna presented a vision that would look at Amy's story sensitively, honestly and without sensationalising her," the family statement said. "We want this to be a tribute to her musical legacy." A life cut short: Remembering the tragedy of Amy Winehouse .

Summary: Film on troubled singer's life to be released in the UK on July 3 . No U.S. release date has been set, Deadline reports .


(CNN)Boko Haram, the Nigeria-based Islamist terror group, has pledged allegiance to ISIS, according to an audio message purported to be from Boko Haram's leader, Abubakar Shekau. In the audio, which was posted online Saturday, the speaker says Boko Haram is announcing its "allegiance to the Caliph of the Muslims, Ibrahim ibn Awad ibn Ibrahim al-Husseini al-Qurashi," which is another name for ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. CNN has not been able to independently authenticate the message. But Jacob Zenn, an expert on the terror group and is with the Jamestown Foundation, said the recording appeared to be authentic. He said that while other messages have been faked, the speaker in this one is Shekau. "Boko Haram joining the ISIS fold makes sense to both groups," he said from Abuja, Nigeria. "Boko Haram will get legitimacy, which will help its recruiting, funding and logistics as it expands into (French-speaking) West Africa. It will also get guidance from ISIS in media warfare and propaganda. Previously Boko Haram was a sort of outcast in the global Jihadi community. Now it is perhaps ISIS's biggest affiliate. "ISIS gets more international legitimacy as a global caliphate." Zenn said the allegiance will be official when an ISIS leader such as spokesman Abu Mohammed al Adnani issues a statement. Boko Haram has had two main factions -- one led by Shekau and the other comprising former members of Ansaru, a Boko Haram offshoot. Ansaru had been operating from around 2012 as the Nigerian wing of AQIM (al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb). After the French-led intervention in Mali in 2013, a significant number of Ansaru members re-integrated with Shekau, Zenn told CNN. The prerequisite for Boko Haram joining ISIS coalition was a coming together of two factions. ISIS connected with former Ansaru fighters within Boko Haram and pressed them to further unify the group's ranks. The result was the formation of a unity general command between the two factions. That involved bridging of some ideological differences between the al Qaeda-like Ansaru and the ultra extreme "takfiri"-like Shekau. The pledge follows a period during which Shekau's faction had been mimicking ISIS, including praising al-Baghdadi and featuring his image in their videos and photos. Zenn said that until recently there had been little feedback from ISIS, apart from a few references to Nigerian jihadis in recent issues of the English-language Dabiq magazine. It appears that a month ago ISIS set up a Twitter account on which Saturday's message was linked, Zenn said. The Twitter handle was mutually promoted by Boko Haram and ISIS. In July, Shekau voiced support for ISIS, and declared a overtaken town in northeast Nigeria to be part of an Islamic caliphate. But he also said he was praying for al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and Taliban leader Mullah Omar. U.S. intelligence officials have some doubts the two groups would get along. The CIA's analysis has been that Boko Haram is very African and rooted in that region's Islamic practices, even if they have similar fundamentalist interpretations of Islam. And ISIS's Arab leadership and membership tends to have

Summary: Audio message was released online Saturday and speaker is said to be Boko Haram leader . Expert says partnership will have benefits for both groups, including giving ISIS international legitimacy . But U.S. intelligence officials have indicated their doubts they groups would work well as partners .


(CNN)What's better than the sun on a March day in Europe, at the tail end of winter with spring on the doorstep? No sun, apparently. That was the verdict of many around the continent, who found Friday morning's solar eclipse picture perfect. Millions from around North Africa, the Middle East as well as Europe woke up with a chance to see the rare cosmic event. For some of them, it was a partial eclipse; but others -- say if you were at the North Pole, or in Svalbard or the Faroe Islands between Iceland and Norway -- got the full deal. Such eclipses are basically as old as the galaxy itself, happening when the moon and sun are at just the right distance from the Earth and they appear to be of the same apparent size in the sky -- even though the sun is actually about 400 times larger. An eclipse happens when the moon passes right in front of the sun, blocking the sunlight and casting a shadow on the Earth. That means what used to be morning suddenly looks like nighttime again, until the sun and moon get out of each other's way. Staring at the sun anytime can be a bit dangerous, even when it's there, not there, then there again during an eclipse. That's where the term "eclipse blindness" -- which is really retinal burns -- comes from. Luckily, a lot of those peering into the skies Friday came prepared. At least that was the case for famous Bayern Munich footballers Xabi Alonso and Pepe Reina, who looked cool looking up in their 3-D movie-type glasses. Or a bunch of children at Stockport Grammar, a British school not far from Manchester. One of them looked more like a welder than a stargazer but didn't seem to mind, giving a thumbs-up to the view. Not everyone was similarly enthused; not because they don't love a good eclipse, but because they don't like a bad one. CNN's Nick Thompson in London, for instance, went out hoping for an out-of-this-world experience and instead saw little more than a bunch of clouds. He wasn't alone, as many in Britain in particular didn't get the big show they'd hoped for. Clouds be damned, some folks there used a sun costume, along with an Earth-and-moon prop, to put on a show of their own. If the sun won't come out for you, then you might as well be the sun, their reasoning went. Even in the United Kingdom, whether you were Glasgow University students cheering when a glimpse of the eclipse emerged from the clouds or a bird soaring the sky, there was a lot of enthusiasm for the eclipse. And there were even more cheers elsewhere, in Berlin, Beirut and beyond. Norwegians, especially, got some of the most spectacular perspectives. Eclipses aren't everyday events, and they're getting less common. While there will be more full eclipses, they will get rarer and rarer as the moon moves away from the Earth at a rate of about 3.8 centimeters (about 1.5 inches) every year.

Summary: The moon blocks the sun, casts a shadow across parts of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East . The view of the resulting eclipse is particularly impressive in places like Norway . It's also seen around Europe, though clouds obscure the views of many in England .


(CNN)Is there anything Monopoly can't do? Over the course of its 80-year life, it's been played underwater, underground, in space (OK, just the tokens) and on giant game boards. It's used chocolate and featured real money. There have been games that barely lasted the night and marathon contests that went on for weeks. Not bad for a game that, according to lore, maker Parker Brothers originally rejected for containing "52 fundamental errors." March 19 marks the official 80th anniversary of the world's best-selling board game, now manufactured by Hasbro. Its circuitous history, like its game board, has been filled with several interesting turns. Here are a few: . Legend has it that Charles Darrow, an unemployed salesman, invented the game in his kitchen in 1930. But the roots of Monopoly actually date back a few more decades, to a game called the Landlord's Game created by Elizabeth Magie in 1903. The Landlord's Game was meant to be educational, illustrating economist Henry George's belief -- inspired by the Gilded Age -- that property ownership by individuals is inherently unfair. Magie's game was an underground success, leading to a number of offshoots, including the one that Darrow tweaked. Parker Brothers bought her patent for $500 in 1935, closing the loop. As for Darrow, he was inspired in 1932 by a version created by a New Jersey Quaker community that made Atlantic City the locale of the game. Darrow added colors and other design elements -- "a look and feel to his board that would prove immensely appealing," writes Philip E. Orbanes in "Monopoly," a 2006 history of the game. Darrow's game was initially rejected by Parker Brothers for three errors -- not 52 -- but when his independent sales took off, Parker Brothers bought the game from him. The date? March 19, 1935. The numbers are staggering. Monopoly has been translated into 47 languages. It's played in 114 countries. It's sold more than 275 million copies. Hasbro prints $30 billion in Monopoly money each year, and well more than $3 trillion has been printed since 1935. Not bad considering each standard game comes with $20,580 -- though it's in the rules that the bank can never go broke, so make up some scrip if you need it. Incidentally, the Monopoly Man -- named Rich Uncle Pennybags -- was likely based on mustachioed financier J.P. Morgan. Even before numerous editions of Monopoly were widely licensed, there were local board variations depending on the country. Boardwalk, for example, is Mayfair in Britain, Schlossallee in Germany, Kalverstraat in the Netherlands and Rue de la Paix in France, after major streets in London, Berlin, Amsterdam and Paris. Other streets have also drawn from local geography. The new "Here & Now" U.S. edition, however, opened the voting to enthusiasts -- and Pierre (population 14,000), the capital of South Dakota, won pride of place as Boardwalk. (Lima, Peru, won the World Edition.) Pierre was one of 60 cities in the running, Mayor Laurie Gill said, and was "in the bottom of the pack" when she was informed of the contest.

Summary: Monopoly celebrates 80th anniversary on Thursday . Popular board game actually has origins in early 20th century . Game has inspired catchphrases, made streets famous, prompted different rules .


(CNN)The attempts by some in the GOP to undermine President Barack Obama's Iranian policy certainly seem extraordinary. First, the Republican leadership invited Benjamin Netanyahu to speak to Congress without consulting the White House, and he duly warned against softening of the West's line on Iran. Now, 47 senators have written an open letter to the Iranian regime to advise that any deal agreed to with Obama could be reversed after the 2016 presidential election. It is an astonishing move. But this is not, strictly speaking, unique. People in both parties have done far more remarkable things in the past. Back in 1983, Sen. Edward Kennedy tried to set up a personal diplomatic channel with the Soviet Union -- effectively sidestepping President Ronald Reagan. Working through proxies, he suggested that he visit Moscow to meet with the communist leadership and offered to help them make their case to the American people as to why they preferred dialogue over confrontation. As Washington Post journalist Vincent Bzdek notes in his book "The Kennedy Legacy," this occurred close to a U.S. presidential election, and some conservatives have interpreted it as an act of treason -- perhaps even a breach of the Logan Act, which forbids private citizens from engaging in diplomacy with the goal of changing foreign policy. One might argue that the senator was motivated by high ideals: He had a clear record of campaigning to reduce Cold War tensions and thought Reagan was mishandling the Soviets. On more than one occasion, Kennedy politicized foreign policy while in the Senate. In my book on the 1980 Democratic presidential primaries, I note that Kennedy opposed Jimmy Carter's hard-line stance on the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan -- a position that was well-intentioned, prophetic and somewhat advantageous to Kennedy's campaign for the Democratic nomination. But it's not only Democrats who have done that. Step forward, Richard Nixon. In 1968, the presidential election looked close. With the Johnson administration edging toward a peace deal in Vietnam, Nixon's team rolled the dice. According to an account in Politico, Anna Chennault, a Republican activist, was given a message to pass onto the South Vietnamese government: If they undermined the peace talks by being stubborn, the Democrats would lose the election and Nixon as the next president would offer them better terms. The South Vietnamese indeed proved intransigent, and the Republicans won the White House. No evidence exists directly tying Nixon personally to the conspiracy, but we now know for sure that it happened and it's far hard to imagine that it would have gone ahead without his knowledge. There is a view that it bordered on treason and -- again -- makes the 2015 GOP efforts look tame by comparison. The extreme lengths that Kennedy and Nixon went to behind the scenes underlines the point that foreign policy has always been a deeply partisan matter that can often end in a challenge to executive authority. It's true that the spirit of the Constitution indicates that the country is expected to speak with one voice on foreign policy through the President. But

Summary: Timothy Stanley: GOP senators' letter to Iranian leaders seems extraordinary . But undermining a president's foreign policy is not at all unique, Stanley says . He says both left, right have gone around administrations to deal with foreign leaders .


(CNN)Although much of the United States has been shivering this winter, there's been another worrying sign of warming temperatures farther north. The cap of sea ice that spreads across the Arctic Ocean in winter appears to have been the smallest on record this year, according to NASA. Not only was this year's maximum extent, reached on February 25, the smallest on the satellite record, it's also one of the earliest. Barring a late spurt of ice growth -- possible but unlikely, according to a NASA news release -- this sets a new precedent. The analysis is based on data from the NASA-supported National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Arctic sea ice, frozen seawater floating on top of the Arctic Ocean and its neighboring seas, is in a state of constant flux. It increases its area in winter, usually peaking between late February and early April, and then shrinks in the warmth of spring and summer to reach its lowest extent in September. If this year's maximum extent, totaling 5.61 million square miles, was reached on February 25, it was reached 15 days earlier than the 1981 to 2010 average date of March 12, according to NSIDC. Only once before did the peak come earlier, by just one day in 1996. A peak of 5.61 million square miles is about 50,000 square miles below the previous lowest peak wintertime extent, reached in 2011, according to NSIDC. Scientists have been using satellite data to track changes in Arctic sea ice, a vital habitat for birds and marine mammals such as polar bears, seals and walruses, for over three decades. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Ted Scambos, NSIDC lead scientist, puts the potentially record low maximum sea ice extent this year down to low ice extent in the Pacific and a late drop in ice extent in the Barents Sea. Strong southerly winds in early March also played a role, according to NOAA. Only the Baffin Bay area and the waters around Newfoundland had more ice than normal this winter, it said. Scientists say it doesn't necessarily follow that a low maximum winter extent will mean a record amount of shrinkage in sea ice over the summer, however. While the winter sea ice extent was low in 2006 and 2011, neither of those years saw an unusually low summer minimum, NOAA said. "The winter maximum gives you a head start, but the minimum is so much more dependent on what happens in the summer that it seems to wash out anything that happens in the winter," Walt Meier, a sea ice scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is quoted as saying by NASA. "If the summer is cool, the melt rate will slow down. And the opposite is true, too: even if you start from a fairly high point, warm summer conditions make ice melt fast. "This was highlighted by 2012, when we had one of the later maximums on record and extent was near-normal early in the melt season, but

Summary: Scientists say Arctic sea ice appears to have set a record low maximum extent this winter . Barring an unlikely late surge in sea ice growth, the 2015 maximum is 5.61 million square miles .


Washington (CNN)Jeb Bush's money machine expectations, Al Gore's Iowa trip, Rand Paul's Iran strategy and John Boehner's next move were all topics around the "Inside Politics" table this Sunday. Jeb Bush is going to be doubling down on his contrast with Hillary Clinton on transparency, using the emails he released from his time as governor of Florida -- and maybe the U.S.'s largest e-retailer. While Bush has already released the first chapter of his e-book on his website, Ron Fournier of the National Journal reports that Bush is in serious negotiations with Amazon for a big deal that would have the full memoir published across all its platforms, including Kindle. "He'll use the emails to draw a narrative of his time in Florida -- the highs, the lows, but also some mistakes, some errors," said Fournier. Many recent presidential candidates have written books before or during their runs for the White House, but all have to prove themselves in the race for campaign cash. One of the big early tests for presidential candidates is to prove they can raise the money for the long haul. And the first lap in the money primary winds up at the end of this month, when candidates have to report their first-quarter fund-raising totals. CNN's John King reveals that there is a bit of an expectations game clash underway as we head into the final weeks of the quarter. Team Bush got a bit dismayed when several allies started talking about a record-smashing $100 million quarter for his "Right To Rise" political action committee. Now, some Bush allies are bragging that a $50 million figure would still be a big deal. Are they trying to truly lower expectations -- or just create space for a bigger number to be a bigger deal? We'll know in three weeks. After Hillary Clinton's email controversy, there's been a lot of talk about who would step in if she bowed out as a potential Democratic presidential candidate. One high-profile politician who's planning his first trip to Iowa in over a decade has a lot of Hawkeye State Democrats buzzing, according to CNN's Jeff Zeleny. "(Former Vice President Al Gore) says he's not running. I'm sure he's not, but he's doing a climate leadership workshop that's getting everyone there sort of excited," said Zeleny. "By then, Hillary Clinton will probably already be in the race, but Democrats in Iowa who are hungry for a different type of politics might be signing up for these workshops May 5 through the 7th in Cedar Rapids." As the deadline nears for a nuclear policy agreement between Iran and six world powers including the U.S., all eyes will be on Sen. Rand Paul. Paul has been trying to shore up his foreign policy credentials to satisfy the more hawkish elements in the Republican Party, but Bloomberg's Lisa Lerer questions whether his attempts are working. "This past week he signed on as a co-sponsor to legislation giving Congress final say over any deal that's struck by the administration," said Lerer. "It's unlikely to be enough to

Summary: The Bush money machine faces the expectations game . Al Gore's trip back to Iowa has some Democrats buzzing .


(CNN)The first official visit of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to Washington comes as excitement mounts over the possibility that direct peace negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban are imminent. The visit, which began Sunday, offers the opportunity for discussion and progress on a number of fronts, the coming face-to-face talks with the Taliban almost certainly among them. But while the start of such talks would certainly be a positive development, it would hardly be a sign that peace is about to descend upon a land ravaged by decades of war. The reality is that an agreement with the Taliban that is good for the Afghan government is probably impossible right now. Negotiations to end the Taliban insurgency face a series of significant challenges, and an imperfect deal could harm Afghanistan's nascent unity government, encourage the formation of splinter groups of hardened fighters, boost existing terrorist groups like al Qaeda and ISIS and plunge the country into an era of renewed violence and instability. That said, the United States should remain broadly supportive of these talks by promoting conditions that could make the possibility of success more likely down the road -- history has shown that successful negotiations most often occur when each party has some vulnerability to the other. Militarily, the Taliban is not the Afghan government's equal, but that does not mean the insurgents lack a strong negotiating position. For a start, the international presence in Afghanistan is declining, freeing the Taliban to operate more openly in the rural corners of the country. Meanwhile, Afghan security forces are being killed at rates that are probably not sustainable and civilian casualties are at an all-time high. Most troublingly, the new national unity government has yet to clearly demonstrate its ability to govern. All this means that until the new government shows that the diverse interests within it can coexist, and it articulates a cohesive strategy to counter the Taliban, the insurgents can make a strong case for postponing peace in the hopes of a better situation in the future. A second key to negotiating a path toward peace in Afghanistan is devising a strategy to contain splinter groups. Often in the course of negotiations, those unsatisfied with the peace process flock to new organizations to continue the fight. These can include so-called "bitter enders," hardened fighters who want no part of peace. The emergence of splinter groups is an expected part of any peace negotiation process, but it must be minimized for an agreement to take hold. In the case of Afghanistan, there is no shortage of groups willing to absorb fighters, from outlaw bandit groups to al Qaeda. Recently, as Ghani has highlighted, there have even been stories of fighters declaring allegiance to terrorist group ISIS. It goes without saying that the spread of ISIS's particularly violent form of extremism within Afghanistan would make an already complex and precarious security situation all the more so. Finally, negotiations must happen at a time when a peace agreement can reasonably be enforced -- it is one thing to craft a compromise

Summary: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is visiting the United States . Rebecca Zimmerman: U.S. doesn't need more boots on ground .


Beijing (CNN)When it came to the environment in China, it was hazy through much of the weekend -- literally and figuratively. As a thick layer of toxic air blanketed Beijing and much of northern China on Friday, censors smothered a wildly popular but controversial documentary on the country's air pollution, removing it from all major video streaming sites. At a standing-room-only press conference Saturday, the newly appointed minister of environmental protection ignored raised hands of foreign journalists eager to ask about the development and made no mention of the documentary that he had praised just a week earlier. Without a hint of irony, he promised to be more transparent and reassured the masses of their right to oversee the government's fight against air pollution. "Under the Dome" -- a slickly produced two-hour documentary on journalist Chai Jing's dogged quest to find the causes and solutions to China's severe smog problem -- attracted over 200 million views online in just one week, an unprecedented number even in the world's most populous nation. Supporters and detractors of Chai, a famous former anchor and reporter at state-run national broadcaster CCTV, began a war of words almost immediately after the video's release on February 28. Admirers compared it to "An Inconvenient Truth," the Oscar-winning documentary on former U.S. Vice President Al Gore's effort to raise awareness on the dangers of global warming. Critics, on the other hand, portrayed it as a piece of shoddy investigative journalism filled with bad science and biased conclusions, which blamed the problem largely on the entrenched interests of the state oil industry. Some even called it propaganda for President Xi Jinping, who had declared keeping the sky blue a top policy priority. The new environment minister's initial response to the video -- in the form of a widely reported text message of gratitude to Chai -- reinforced some doubts over Chai's claim of editorial independence for her self-funded project. Many more people, however, perceived it as an encouraging sign of the government's adoption of a more open attitude to a politically sensitive topic, as Xi and other leaders started to publicly acknowledge the severity and urgency of the issue. But such optimism was dashed 24 hours after the documentary's launch, as censors moved to reign in increasingly heated online debates surrounding air pollution and beyond, and removed all mention of the video from homepages of major websites. As the week progressed, leaked state media memos -- widely circulated on social media -- revealed ever-harsher wording from propaganda authorities as they scrambled to limit the continuing impact of the video. Finally, after millions of clicks, "Under the Dome" vanished from much of Chinese cyberspace Friday as heavy smog descended on the capital. Also in Beijing were almost 3,000 delegates who had gathered to attend the National People's Congress, China's rubber-stamp parliament that meets in full once a year to approve the ruling Communist Party's legislative proposals. Pollution has remained a hot topic at this year's session, state-run Xinhua news agency reported, adding that Xi vowed to legislators Friday "to give an iron

Summary: Film on China's air pollution problem drew praise from environment minister when it came out . A week later, after getting millions of clicks, "Under the Dome" disappeared from all major websites in China .


Kano, Nigeria (CNN)Suspected Boko Haram gunmen decapitated 23 people in a raid on Buratai village in northeast Nigeria's Borno state, residents and a politician said Saturday. Scores of attackers invaded the village at 11 p.m. Friday when residents were mostly asleep and set homes on fire, hacking residents who tried to flee. "The gunmen slaughtered their 23 victims like rams and decapitated them. They injured several people," said Ibrahim Adamu, a local politician who fled. "They burned a large part of the village and we are afraid some residents were burnt in the homes because most people had gone to bed when the gunmen struck," said Adamu, a ward councilor in the village. A paramedic at a government hospital in the nearby town of Biu said 32 people from Buratai were taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds and burns. "The injured victims said a lot of people were beheaded by the attackers," the paramedic said. Buratai now has been attacked twice by Boko Haram in the past year. In September, the Islamist insurgents launched an attack on the village that was repelled by soldiers deployed to guard the home of a Nigerian army general from the village. The soldiers killed 20 of the gunmen. It is not clear whether the attack was in reprisal over their loss in the previous attack or was linked to the Nigeria general elections that commenced Saturday. Boko Haram vowed to disrupt the elections. The militant group ISIS earlier this month said that a pledge of allegiance from Boko Haram has been accepted.

Summary: Suspected militants raid village in Nigeria . Residents describe horrible details .


(CNN)When Jeb Bush spoke last week at the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, the likely GOP presidential hopeful did better than expected. Of course, that could have been because expectations were so low. You remember "Bush Derangement Syndrome." When George W. Bush was president, it afflicted liberals who thought the chief executive couldn't do anything right. Now that Jeb might run for president in 2016, the condition vexes conservatives who believe that when it comes to choosing the GOP nominee, the former Florida governor is all wrong. During Bush's speech, a few dozen supporters of Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky -- wearing red T-shirts with the words "Stand With Rand" -- walked out and later blasted Bush as insufficiently conservative. But what should really count for a lot is that Bush is sufficiently competent. He's the grownup in a roomful of extremists who -- as they compare union members to ISIS (Scott Walker) or vow to abolish the IRS (Ted Cruz) or bash the media (Chris Christie) -- seem most interested in applause lines. Bush is a serious person with a serious shot at the presidency, something that you just can't say about all Republicans who appear to be running. As someone who is bilingual and whose wife hails from Mexico, Bush can hit Hillary Clinton, the likely Democratic nominee, where it hurts by carving into her Latino support. In his 1998 gubernatorial election, and 2002 re-election, Bush received over 60 percent of the Latino vote. And it's no secret that, for many Latinos who might vote for Bush, the make-or-break issue is immigration. That's because many Latinos see immigration as a way of determining a candidate's character. Latinos will be watching to see if Bush stands up to the pressure from extremists to join the GOP's closed border chorus. They're used to being thrown under the bus by politicians who sacrifice Latinos to gin up support from non-Latinos. And they won't put up with it. So which way is Bush going to go on immigration? For many years, he extolled the contributions of immigrants and expressed dismay that elements of his party are closed-minded and mean-spirited on the issue. He even acknowledged that, to many, the party is seen as "anti-immigrant." Lately, though, Bush has injected more nuance into his views -- and turned them mushy in the process. On the question of whether undocumented youth should have a path to citizenship, for example, Bush at first supported the idea, then he opposed it. And most recently, he has said that he could support such a path if Congress mandates it. On the Arizona immigration law, Bush apparently likes the concept of enlisting local police to be "the eyes and ears" of the border patrol. But he has also been sympathetic to critics who worry that this will lead to ethnic profiling of Latinos. Too often, Bush leaves the impression that he'll say whatever he needs to say to avoid conflict. So it was actually refreshing to see Bush use his appearance at CPAC -- which took the

Summary: Jeb Bush attended this year's Conservative Political Action Conference . Ruben Navarrette: Latinos want to see if Bush stands up to pressure from extremists .


Rome (CNN)Italy's highest court Friday will consider whether to uphold the 2009 murder conviction of American Amanda Knox, according to Judge Gennaro Marasca. The high court judge will either uphold the murder convictions of Knox and her Italian ex-boyfriend, or send the case back for another appeal, or potentially on to a different section of the court. Knox, a 27-year-old Seattle native, and Raffaele Sollecito were convicted of the 2007 killing of Knox's British roommate, Meredith Kercher. Knox and Kercher lived together in Italy at the time of Kercher's death. Sollecito and Knox were acquitted in 2011 on appeal, and then Knox returned to the United States. However, Italy's Supreme Court overturned the acquittals in 2013, and they were convicted last year after a retrial. If a new trial is ordered, Knox and Sollecito will buy a little time before a final decision is reached. But if the court upholds the conviction, the case will be closed for good -- and what happens to Knox next is uncertain. Conventional wisdom dictates that Knox will eventually face an extradition hearing or reach a deal with the Italian Justice Ministry to serve her 28-year sentence, but that could take years. The statute of limitations is double the sentence, meaning the Italians have 57 years to bring her back to the country. Knox, however, would benefit from the United States' extradition treaty with Italy -- under which the United States will not extradite a person who has been acquitted -- and from the U.S. Constitution's protection against double jeopardy. Sollecito, on the other hand, still lives in Italy, and has a lot more to lose than Knox does, at least in the short term. He would be scooped up immediately and hauled off to prison to start a 25-year sentence. All of his options will have been exhausted and he will have no choice but to go to directly to jail. Sollecito earlier said he would be in court on Wednesday to face the judge. "I've been living this for eight years," he told the Italian crime TV program "Quarto Grado." Not appearing in court would be like hiding in the corner during a tsunami -- it will take you away anyway." Rudy Guede, from the Ivory Coast, was convicted separately in a fast-track trial and is midway through a 16-year sentence for Kercher's murder. His case was confirmed by Italy's high court in 2010. Many commentators in the U.S. have reasoned that Italy may not ask the United States for Knox's extradition because it would cause a diplomatic rift between the two nations. But there could be a greater rift if it appears that Knox gets away with murder and her Italian ex-boyfriend pays for the crime. If Sollecito is languishing in prison and Knox is sipping Frappuccino in a Seattle Starbucks, Italians will not be pleased, says Alessandro Capponi, an Italian journalist for Corriere Della Sera who has been covering the case since Kercher was killed in 2007. "It will be seen as an injustice," Capponi told CNN. "You may not see people

Summary: Italy's highest court to consider verdict in 2007 murder of British student Meredith Kercher . High court says jury will take case on Friday .


(CNN)You'll see some familiar faces in the Final Four. Duke beat Gonzaga 66-52 on Sunday, giving Blue Devils' coach Mike Krzyzewski his 12th trip to the semifinals of the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Justise Winslow and Matt Jones each scored 16 to help Duke win the South Region. Gonzaga, led by 16 points from Kyle Wiltjer, was hoping to earn its first trip to the Final Four. Here's how the Final Four, to be played in Indianapolis, has shaped up: . Next Saturday, Duke will face Michigan State in the first semifinal. In the next game, top seed Kentucky will battle Wisconsin. The winners will meet on Monday, April 6, for the national championship. One other tournament game was played Sunday. Michigan State overcame Louisville 76-70 in overtime to win the East Region. The victory was sweet vindication for the Spartans, who had an up-and-down season and came into the East Region as a No. 7 seed. This will be the seventh Final Four for coach Tom Izzo, who led Michigan State to the national title in 2000. Krzyzewski has won four national championships at Duke, which was the top seed in the South Region.

Summary: The Final Four matchups: Duke vs. Michigan State and Kentucky vs. Wisconsin . Duke beat Gonzaga on Sunday and Michigan State defeated Louisville in overtime .


(CNN)Farah fled the civil war in Syria with her husband in the middle of the night, hitching rides on trucks until they finally crossed into Jordan. Two days later, she gave birth to a girl in a country where they hold no status. Like 70,000 other refugees from Syria, Iraq, Sudan and the Palestinian Territories, Farah (her name and the others in this article have been changed to protect their anonymity) now lives with her family in Zarqa, a poor Jordanian city teeming with factories and crumbling apartment blocks. Men dominate public spaces, and many women stay at home, isolated. Two years ago, Farah was a nurse and her husband a lawyer. Here, he found work tiling construction sites, but was arrested three times for working illegally. "Now my husband stays at home, depressed and afraid of being sent to the camps," Farah said. She is now the family breadwinner, working at a local organization providing educational programs to Syrian and Jordanian children. Every day she navigates the dangers of Zarqa's crime-ridden streets and ignores sexual advances from men. Yet Zarqa is also a pocket of hope. Some 384 female refugees working with the Near East Foundation have been able to re-establish savings, restore dignity, strengthen their capacity to bounce back and rebuild their lives. Many of them choose to become earners for the first time. They belong to a network of Jordanian and refugee women -- coaches, mentors and peers -- who lean on each other and offer business and social support, exchange tips and build friendships. Some 80% of the refugees in this network have chosen to invest in building a small home-based business. Fatiya, who escaped Iraq during the 2003 invasion, was surviving on charity until six months ago. Now she runs her own leather goods home-based business, making belts, wallets and key chains for tourists from the safety of her home. These days, Fatiya is busy rebuilding her life. "I make my own way,"she says. Zainab, also an Iraqi refugee, is now a hairdresser in Zarqa. On the side, she teaches the art of hairdressing to young women, walking alongside them in their first steps to become economically independent. On March 8, we celebrate International Women's Day and the empowerment of women globally -- including the nearly 6 million refugee women and girls who, like Farah, Fatiya and Zainab, continue to adapt to life in their new surroundings with determination, creativity and skill, despite increasingly limited options. Aid agencies must match the strength of these women's resilience. To truly assist them, we must empower them with opportunities and choices. Of the 10.5 million refugees registered with UNHCR, the UN's refugee agency, less than 1% are eventually resettled. The rest remain in limbo, forced to forge new lives in places where they often have no right to work. Refugees are displaced for an average of 20 years, and more than half disappear into urban sprawls where they struggle to integrate and start their lives over. Humanitarian assistance and media attention tend to fixate on "immediate" aid -- distribution of

Summary: Jina Krause-Vilmar: On International Women's Day, focus on helping refugee women adapt to new lives . She says aid agencies like hers aim to help these women build job skills and financial literacy . She says the effort includes educating men about wives' and daughters' new roles .


(CNN)The suspect behind the knife attack on the American ambassador to South Korea had a long, troubled history and often blamed the U.S. for tensions in the Korean Peninsula. Kim Ki-Jong, 55, was quickly overpowered and taken into custody after he attacked U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert with a fruit knife Thursday morning. Police say Kim's motive for the attack was to improve North-South Korean relations and to stop the annual military exercises held jointly by the U.S. and South Korea. It wasn't the first time Kim has taken drastic steps to make his point. -- In 2010, Kim was given a suspended jail sentence for hurling a concrete block at a Japanese envoy to South Korea, according to the Yonhap news agency. That incident is believed to be the first attack on a foreign ambassador in South Korea. -- Kim allegedly harbored sympathies for North Korea, according to Korean media reports. Yonhap reported that Kim had visited North Korea six times between 2006 and 2007, had attempted to erect a memorial for former North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il in Seoul, and once set himself on fire in front of the presidential office. -- He was frequently seen at protests, wearing a beret and blaming U.S. policies for straining relations between North and South Korea. Kim was a member of the Korea Council For Reconciliation and Cooperation, which hosted Lippert at the Thursday event where the attack occurred. The group advocates reunification of the Koreas as well as humanitarian aid to North Korea. Kim was one of its 181 members, but wasn't on the list of those invited for the event, according to police. But he was allowed in because an event staff recognized him from the organization. A witness who was sitting next to Lippert during the attack said Kim was known for having "unpredictable behavior" in the organization. Even though he appeared somewhat disheveled Thursday morning, he was able to enter the event because the staff was familiar with Kim, police said. Immediately after he allegedly slashed the ambassador in the face and arm, Kim was tackled to the floor. As he was transferred to a hospital Kim shouted, "The South Korea-U.S. military drills must stop." Every year, the United States and South Korea hold joint military drills, which both countries say are defensive and non-provocative in nature. But the exercises also draw criticism from the North Korean regime, which characterize the drills as rehearsals for an attack on the regime. Kim also told South Korean reporters that he had planned the attack for 10 days, and claimed responsibility for burning a U.S. flag at the embassy in the 1980s. A website associated with Kim, displayed a photo of him with protesters holding a sign that read: "Stop war exercises that block North-South Korean dialogue." The picture was taken at February 24, in front of the U.S. embassy, according to his website. It also contains a picture of an American soldier inside a red crossed-out circle. On Thursday, Kim shouted at reporters, saying that the U.S. was to blame for blocking

Summary: Suspect Kim Ki-jung was captured after U.S. ambassador was slashed in Seoul . Kim had history of anti-U.S. sentiment and sympathies for North Korea .


(CNN)Spring is in the air and streaming movies, TV shows and specials will be here to further brighten our days. From original Netflix series to new offerings from Amazon Prime, Hulu, iTunes and Acorn, there's plenty to do on rainy days and the cool spring nights. "And Now ... Ladies and Gentlemen" "Bandolero" "Barnyard" "The Beautician and the Beast" "Bound" "Buffalo Soldiers" "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course" "Down to Earth" "Leprechaun 3" "Leprechaun 4: In Space" "Leprechaun 6: Back 2 tha Hood" "Suicide Kings" "Sunset Strip" "Underworld" "Whiteboyz" "Wrong Turn at Tahoe" "Life Partners" "Sinbad: The Fifth Voyage" "All Hail King Julien" season 1 . "Derek: Special" "Starry Eyes" "The Quiet Ones" "Delta Farce" "Preservation" "Wilfred" season 4 . "Halt and Catch Fire" season 1 . "Crank" "Pioneer" "The Awakening" "Broken" "Burning Bridges" "Confusion Na Wa" "Finding Mercy" "Finding Mercy 2" "Flower Girl" "Forgetting June" "Knocking on Heaven's Door" "Lagos Cougars" "Lies Men Tell" "Mad Couple" "Mad Couple 2" "Marvel's Daredevil" season 1 . "Matters Arising" "October 1*" "Onye Ozi" "Ties That Bind" "The Identical" "Video Game High School" season 3 . "The Babadook" "Goodbye to Language" "Kink" "Hot Fuzz" "Baby Daddy" season 4 . "Chris D'Elia: Incorrigible Standup" "They Came Together" "Noah" "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night" "Sons of Anarchy" season 7 . "The Nutty Professor 2: Facing the Fear" "National Treasure" "The Brothers Grimm" "Ken Burns: The Roosevelts" "Amistad" "Death Wish 1 & 2" "Escape from Alcatraz" "French Connection II" "Mommie Dearest" "My Old Lady" (Prime member exclusive) "Suicide Kings" "The Thing Called Love" "Kicking & Screaming" "Saved!" "Leprechaun" "Leprechaun 2, 3 & 5" "Bloody Sunday" "Godzilla" "Star Trek: The Motion Picture, II, III & V" "Groundhog Day" "Tusk" (Prime member exclusive) "Little Women" "Submarine" "The Better Angels" (Prime member exclusive) "Craig Ferguson: Does This Need to Be Said?" "Ping Pong Summer" "Still Life" (Prime member exclusive) "They Came Together" "Noah" "Son of a Gun" (Prime member exclusive) "Sons of Anarchy" season 7 . "Lay the Favorite" "The Quiet Ones" "America: Imagine the World Without Her" "Louie" season 4 . "The Red Road" season 2 premiere . "Taken 3" "Big Eyes" "Cut Bank" "The Last Knights" "Electric Slide" "A.D" series premiere . "Mad Men" new episodes return . "Wolf Hall" series premiere . "If There Be Thorns" "American Odyssey" free series premiere . "Salem" season 2 premiere . "Women in Black 2" "Sonic Highways" free series premiere + complete season . "Better Call Saul" season finale . "Louie" season 5 premiere . "The Comedians" series premiere . "The Messengers" series premiere . "The Gambler" "Yellowbird" "With This Ring" "DC Batman v. Robin" "Cake" "The Marine 4: Moving Target" "Turn" season 2 premiere . "Deadliest Catch" season 11 premiere . "Justified" series finale . "Orphan Black" season 3 premiere . "Wedding Ringer" "The Boy Next Door" "The Man With the Iron Fists 2" "The Pyramid" "Beyond the Reach" "Alex of Venice" Paddington (4/17) "Girls" season 4 . "Looking" season 2 . "Inside Amy Schumer" season 3 premiere . "Jupiter Ascending" "Mea Culpa" "Black Sea" "Jupiter Ascending" "Citizenfour" "Adult Beginners"

Summary: New streaming content is coming . Netflix is premiering its original series "Marvel's Daredevil" "Ken Burns: The Roosevelts" will stream on Amazon Prime .


Boston (CNN)Bill Richard knew his son wasn't going to make it. But the father of three told his wife he couldn't stay by 8-year-old Martin's side. The boy's body was torn apart by an explosion near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. His skin had changed color. A crowd hovered over him, frantically trying to help, but he was dying. Speaking from the witness stand at Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's trial on Thursday, Richard told jurors he was faced with a heartbreaking choice. "I knew in my head that I needed to act quickly, or we might not only lose Martin," he said. "We might lose Jane, too." Moments after the blast, Richard had stumbled toward Jane, his 7-year-old daughter. His pants and sneakers were torn apart. His legs felt like they were on fire. He could barely hear. And the air smelled "vile," he said, like gunpowder, sulfur and burned hair. But he soon realized the situation was much worse for his daughter. "She tried to get up and she fell. That was when I noticed her leg," he said. "She didn't have it. It was blown off." So Richard left one son to die near the marathon finish line, and shielded his other son's eyes from the carnage as they raced to the hospital, hoping that doctors could save his daughter's life. "It was," Richard said Thursday, "the last time I saw my son alive -- barely." Richard's description of the explosion's horrifying aftermath capped a day of dramatic testimony as survivors shared their stories in the second day of the high-profile trial. Tsarnaev's attorneys admit that he carried out the 2013 attacks, which killed three people and injured more than 260 others at the marathon. A fourth person, an MIT police officer, was ambushed and killed in his patrol car three days after the bombings as Tsarnaev and his brother, Tamerlan, allegedly ran from police. Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, was killed after a gunbattle with police. And now, his younger brother sits in court facing 30 federal charges related to the bombings. His attorneys say he was influenced by his slain brother to participate in the attacks. They argued Thursday that now isn't the right time for jurors to hear the string of harrowing stories from survivors of the explosions, arguing that testimony should be part of a later phase of the trial, when jurors will decide what penalty Tsarnaev should face. But the judge sided with prosecutors, who argued the testimony was necessary to support their indictment. On Thursday, jurors relived the moments after the marathon bombings through the eyes of some of the people most affected by the blasts. Defense attorneys didn't ask them any questions. Jeff Bauman was suspicious as soon as he noticed a black backpack on the ground near the finish line. "I thought it was weird," he said Thursday. "If you are at the airport, if you see any unattended luggage, you notify authorities." But this was Boston, he thought, where stuff like that doesn't happen. Still, he told a friend they should move. An

Summary: Father describes the moment when he realized 8-year-old Martin Richard wouldn't survive . The second day of the Boston Marathon bombings trial is underway . Survivor Jeff Bauman recounts how he lost his legs in the attack .


(CNN)It's not quite from sea to shining sea, but the latest winter storm gets an "A" for effort (or is that an "E"?). For its sheer size, this one is a monster, stretching from New Mexico to southern New England. If you're keeping track on your maps at home, that's 2,000 miles of snowy misery and 94 million people under some sort of winter weather warning, watch or advisory. "Enough," cries a winter-weary nation. Enough of the sleet and ice in the Dallas area. More than 640 arrivals and departures were canceled at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on Wednesday. Another 540 have been scrubbed for Thursday. "Dear Mr. Heat Miser, please reclaim Dallas from your obnoxious half brother Snow Miser," tweets Dandy Killeen. Enough snow to hide your energy drink. "The snow is almost 1 energy shot deep in OKC," tweeted Damon Lane. Enough snow to cover the yard and street. Some areas will get 6 to 10 inches. Hundreds stranded in snow on Kentucky highway . "Snow really coming down in Lexington, KY. A solid 1"+ per hour snowfall rate!" tweets T.G. Shuck. Enough snow for a snow emergency. The federal government is closed on Thursday. "DC snow emergency to go into effect at 7 am Thursday. Move your vehicles from these routes!" tweets Fox 5 DC. Enough snow to eat ice cream. "Just celebrated the coming snow with a bowl of Moose Tracks," tweets country music legend Charlie Daniels. Enough snow to ... Actually, New Mexico is weird. Aaron Goodwin of "Ghost Adventures" fame likes the white stuff. He tweeted: "Snow :)" But he likes hunting for ghosts too so use your own judgment. Enough snow for a snow day. "Snow day tomorrow. Stay safe and stay warm, everybody," tweets Sean Nunan, the associate principal at Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft. Enough snow and rain to cause problems. The area will get up to 4 inches of rain before it turns to snow. The National Weather Service warned that flooding could be an issue, especially across the lower Ohio Valley and western Mid-Atlantic regions. CNN affiliate WCHS reports a mudslide in Mingo County, West Virginia, sent one woman to the hospital. Enough snow to go totally nuts. So far this season Boston has seen 105.7 inches -- almost 9 feet -- of snow. That's just 1.9 inches short of the record set nine years ago. More snow is expected from this system, but it's not likely to be enough to break the record as the forecast models indicate the majority of snow will stay south of the city. There is a slim chance of snow on Thursday, followed by days of sunshine and temperatures near 40 by Monday. Enough cold to wrap yourself in blankets . "Another #SnowDay? Auto-Swaddle yourself in softness," recommends Downy. CNN meteorologists Dave Hennen and Matt Daniel contributed to this report.

Summary: More than 1,000 flights into or out of the U.S. are canceled . People in Kentucky will have plenty of snowman-building material . Boston is close to a season snow record, but it's iffy this system will provide enough to top the mark .


(CNN)Police raided millionaire heir Robert Durst's home in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday, a day after he was charged with first-degree murder. Dick DeGuerin, Durst's attorney, confirmed that investigators were searching the home. It was not immediately clear what they were looking for inside Durst's 14th-floor condo, where he has lived for many years, CNN affiliate KTRK reported. The raid comes days after FBI agents arrested Durst in a New Orleans hotel. The Los Angeles County District Attorney filed a first-degree murder charge against him on Monday, accusing Durst of shooting and killing his close friend Susan Berman in December 2000. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. "I think it's ridiculous for them to be making a search 15 years after Susan Berman was killed, and they're searching a place in Houston," DeGuerin told CNN. Durst remains jailed in New Orleans, where he's facing drug and weapons charges stemming from his arrest over the weekend. Durst's alleged connections with Berman's death and two others were the focus of HBO's true crime documentary, "The Jinx." DeGuerin has claimed it's no coincidence authorities moved in to arrest Durst just as the documentary's finale was about to air. And on Tuesday, he said he wasn't surprised about the Houston raid either. "I'm not surprised they're acting like a bunch of keystone cops, particularly after being embarrassed by the TV program," he said. "And I'll be even more surprised if they find anything of any evidentiary value whatsoever." Prosecutors accuse Durst of "lying in wait" and killing Berman, a crime writer and his longtime confidante, because she was a witness to a crime. She was shot in the head shortly before investigators were coming to speak with her about the disappearance of Durst's first wife in 1982. Durst has long maintained he had nothing to do with Berman's death or his wife's disappearance, though some have questioned whether comments he made at the end of the documentary -- muttering under his breath in the bathroom that he "killed them all" -- could be interpreted as a confession. DeGuerin told reporters Monday that his client didn't kill Berman. "He's ready to end all the rumor and speculation and have a trial," DeGuerin said. But it's unclear when a trial could take place. Durst waived his right to fight extradition to Los Angeles, but because prosecutors in New Orleans are pursuing charges against him, he remains jailed there. Durst had a Smith & Wesson .38-caliber revolver on him when he was arrested, according to New Orleans Police Department records. Investigators found marijuana and a "substantial" amount of cash in Durst's hotel room, a source familiar with the investigation told CNN. He was booked in New Orleans Monday on charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm with a controlled substance. He may be moved soon to a different Louisiana prison where inmates with "an acute medical condition" are sent, DeGuerin said. Court documents filed Tuesday say Durst will receive medications while imprisoned, "including but not limited to hydrocodone as needed

Summary: Police raided Robert Durst's Houston condo, his lawyer says . The millionaire real estate heir was arrested over the weekend in New Orleans . He's charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of his longtime friend in 2000 .


(CNN)There are two main ways visitors to Ho Chi Minh City cross the streets. One approach is to step with zen-like calm into the swirl of honking scooters and serenely stride across the road without breaking step. Like locals, they're part of the flow, part of the (exhaust-choked) stream of traffic. The other is to stand anxiously on the edge of the curb, toes curled like a diver's, waiting for a non-existent stoplight, then plunge into the melee while letting out a small yelp before slaloming across the street like a demented Frogger. Some, like Steve Mueller, would question why cross the road at all. If you can't beat them, join them. Which is what the South Carolinian did -- he now runs the city's Vietnam Vespa Adventures. It's a tour company that provides two-wheel thrills on the Italian vintage scooters, Vespa, around Ho Chi Minh City, out into the Mekong Delta and beyond. Being on a scooter in Ho Chi Minh is the best way to feel a part of the city, says Mueller. "It's really an authentic experience," he says. "Being side by side with the locals." Day tours take in popular sights like the Opera House and central post office designed by Gustav Eiffel, but also stop at local eateries and offbeat locations. One popular early morning pit stop is Tao Dan park where Ho Chi Minh City's bird fanciers puff themselves up like their caged pets in a display of tweeting one-upmanship. Unfortunately/thankfully, you're not the one driving. All the mopeds are driven by local, experienced drivers who have no problem with the swarm of vehicles on the roads. A local tour guide rides along, too, to add context to the sights, smells and sounds experienced from the back of a two-stroke motor. Mueller took a circuitous route to setting up the company. After traveling around Southeast Asia in 1997 he settled in Vietnam the following year and discovered a glut of classic Italian scooters that needed a bit of TLC. He bought his first one after just three days in the country and spying an opportunity to tap into international Vespa enthusiasts' desire for authentic rides, set up a restoration and export business. It became so successful he was in danger of putting himself out of a job, so in 2006 he decided to start a tour company offering multi-day tours outside of Ho Chi Minh City. According to Mueller, his business was kick-started by Vietnam's appearance on the TV program "Top Gear," which showed the country's beautiful countryside and underused roads. Longer trips are still offered by Vespa Tours, taking willing riders as far as the Vietnam Highlands and the coastal city of Nha Trang over seven days. Most of the scooters in Mueller's garage hark back to the golden age of Vespas, the late '60s and 1970s, refurbished with replacement parts from Piaggio-licensed machinists in India. True to their reputation, the 100 or so classic scooters owned by Vespa Adventures break down frequently -- mechanics are on hand for running repairs -- but Mueller believes

Summary: American Steve Mueller started a tour company in Ho Chi Minh City offering tours on Vespa . Mueller says it's the best way to see the city and beyond, riding side by side with locals . Scooters are driven by experienced local drivers with tour guide and mechanic accompanying each tour .


(CNN)Winter will end. The sun will shine again. But if you can't stand another day of toe-numbing temperatures, start thinking about an escape to one of TripAdvisor's picks for the world's best beaches. The travel site announced 332 winners of its annual Travelers' Choice awards for beaches Wednesday. The awards are based on the quantity and quality of traveler reviews for beaches gathered over 12 months. In addition to a global winners list, top beaches are listed by regions and countries, including lists for Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, South America, the South Pacific, the United Kingdom and the United States. The world's best beach? That would be Baia do Sancho on the Brazilian island of Fernando de Noronha. For the second year in a row, the golden crescent hugged by rocky cliffs has earned the No. 1 spot on the global list. Grace Bay in Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, has also retained its ranking as the No. 2 Travelers' Choice beach in the world. Here are TripAdvisor's top 10 beaches in the world: . 1. Baia do Sancho, Fernando de Noronha, Brazil . 2. Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos . 3. Rabbit Beach, Lampedusa, Italy . 4. Playa Paraiso Beach, Cayo Largo, Cuba . 5. Playa de Ses Illetes, Formentera, Spain . 6. Anse Lazio, Praslin Island, Seychelles . 7. White Beach, Boracay, Philippines . 8. Flamenco Beach, Culebra, Puerto Rico . 9. Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Islands, Australia . 10. Elafonissi Beach, Elafonissi, Crete, Greece . TripAdvisor offers booking and rate comparisons at hotels and resorts in each location. World's most spectacular cliffside beaches . On the Travelers' Choice list for the United States, Florida made huge gains on Hawaii this year. According to TripAdvisor search traffic, interest in top 10-ranked Florida beaches is up on average 69% year-over-year. Last year's list featured Hawaiian beaches in seven of the top 10 spots, with only two Florida beaches listed in the top 10. This year, six Florida beaches ranked in the top 10, with only three in Hawaii. This year's No. 1 U.S. beach, Siesta Beach in Siesta Key, Florida, edged out last year's top ranked Lanikai Beach in Kailua, Hawaii. Here are 2015's top 10 U.S. beaches: . 1. Siesta Beach, Siesta Key, Florida . 2. St. Pete Beach, St. Petersburg, Florida . 3. Ka'anapali Beach, Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii . 4. Wai'anapanapa State Park, Hana, Maui, Hawaii . 5. Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Beach, Florida . 6. La Jolla Cove, La Jolla, California . 7. Kailua Beach Park, Kailua, Oahu, Hawaii . 8. Clearwater Beach, Clearwater, Florida . 9. St. Augustine Beach, St. Augustine, Florida . 10. Beach at Panama City, Panama City Beach, Florida .

Summary: A Brazilian beach ranks No. 1 for the second year in a row on TripAdvisor's beaches list . The best beach in the U.S. is in Florida this year, edging out last year's Hawaii winner .


(CNN)Well, I'll be the first to admit, I got caught off guard on this one. If indeed the assessment of the cockpit voice recording of Germanwings Flight 9525's final moments is an accurate one, it is shocking. It is inconceivable to me that a fellow pilot would use an airplane for his demise and the demise of his passengers. It is my hope that there is more to this uncanny, horrific tragedy than just an extraordinary suicide event. Although a report of normal breathing from the co-pilot in the moments before the crash indicates that he was not incapacitated, how can one really tell? A farfetched idea, but could he have suffered a fit of schizophrenia never diagnosed, or suffered some other mental disorder, perhaps brought on by medication? I know, it's not likely. As an airline pilot, I'm taking this incident personally. Why? A pilot betrayed the public trust. With all the other fears -- terrorism, disappearances of planes, aircraft malfunctions -- how do I reassure my passengers that they should not add medical illness, mental or otherwise, of the pilot to the list? For the moment, I'll have to believe that my customers are intelligent enough to realize that the Germanwings co-pilot is an anomaly. Sure, as with any profession, pilots have isolated cases of stress-related troubles. But we have mechanisms to deal with such problems. One mechanism is very simple: Don't fly. It is incumbent upon us to determine our own fitness for duty. As a matter of fact, on every trip, I have to confirm that status before I electronically sign the flight plan. Whether it's as simple as suffering from the common cold or suffering from the distraction of a nasty divorce, airline pilots can just say "no" to flying. As part of the hiring process, we completed a psychological evaluation. With my airline, one part of the evaluation involved a written test that asked obscure questions in different ways. Another part of the test involved pilots listening to an air traffic control recording made during the angst of a thunderstorm event while at the same time completing a battery of math and shape-orientation problems. We were then asked questions specific to the conversations between the air traffic controllers and pilots we'd heard in the recording. The test was a measure of our multitasking abilities and our abilities to deal with stress. In addition, the airline's doctor conducted an individual mental evaluation. Airline pilots in the United States are required by the Federal Aviation Administration to take a medical examination once every six months. The examination is mostly physical, but the doctor is expected to ask some basic mental health questions, most of them about depression or alcohol consumption. In addition to requiring pilots to indicate any prior health issues during the previous six months, the application for the exam also compels us to self-disclose the use of medications, specifically for the treatment of depression. If we have consulted a therapist, that also has to be disclosed. Yes, all bets are off if we deceive the system

Summary: Les Abend: Fliers should know that Germanwings crash is anomaly; airlines have procedures for vetting pilots' fitness . He says psych evaluations, medical exams, peer-oversight protocols keep such disasters rare .


(CNN)She is being called Zephany Nurse, though it is not the name with which the 17-year-old South African girl grew up. Zephany means "hidden by the Lord," a fitting name for a girl who was allegedly kidnapped at birth and found thanks to an improbable coincidence. South African Police have been mostly quiet about the case. A police spokesman, Andre Traut, confirmed that a woman was arrested last week and charged with kidnapping and falsely pretending that she was the girl's biological mother. Zephany was a newborn when she was taken from a Cape Town hospital in 1997. She is 17 and in her final year of school. In fact, according to local reports, that's how she crossed paths with her biological parents, Celeste and Morne Nurse. According to the South African Press Association, an independent news agency, students at their second daughter's school unknowingly solved the kidnapping. The second daughter, who was born four years after Zephany was kidnapped, started eighth grade at a Cape Town school this year, according to SAPA. Fellow students told her there was a girl in her final year of school who looked just like her, the news agency reported. The two girls became friends, according to SAPA, and eventually, Morne Nurse made up an excuse to meet his daughter's new friend. He, too, was taken by the similarities and contacted the police, SAPA reported. A DNA test was done, and last week police arrested the 50-year-old woman who had raised Zephany. The woman made an initial appearance before a judge who ruled that she would remain behind bars at least until her next hearing. The shocking revelation has no easy conclusion. While Zephany's biological parents have said in interviews over the years that they never lost hope of finding her, for now, the girl is in the custody of the social services. The Nurses have been allowed to visit Zephany for short periods, South African media reported. And on Tuesday, Zephany herself released a statement, via the Centre for Child Law, which is representing her. "I want to say thank you to all the people who supported me through this, for continuously praying and never giving up on looking for me," she said. "Under the circumstances, I am doing fine."

Summary: Celeste and Morne Nurse's baby was stolen from the hospital in 1997 . 17 years later, their child has been found .


(CNN)Another flight brings another complaint about an airline interfering with a passenger breastfeeding her baby. The mothers who complain about instances of airline employees interfering with their breastfeeding or pumping aren't covering up and going away; they are tweeting out their complaints in 140 characters or less, sometimes in multiple posts, other times taking pictures of longer reports. Kristen Hilderman is the latest mother to say she was hassled while breastfeeding. The Vancouver mother was returning to Canada from a vacation in Costa Rica with her family on Sunday night when, she says, there was a problem on the final leg of her trip. Hilderman was feeding her 5-month-old son on board United Airlines Flight 438 as the aircraft taxied along the runway before taking off from Houston to Vancouver. To describe what happened next, she took a picture of her typed recollections and posted it to Twitter. "A male flight attendant named Keith walked up to our row and said to my husband (loudly, so that everyone around could here ), 'Are you two together?'" Hilderman wrote. When her husband said yes, Hilderman said, the flight attendant "tossed a blanket at him ... and said tersely, 'Then HERE, help her out.' " When she twice asked what he was supposed to help her out with, she said, the flight attendant ignored her. Passengers on the plane were supportive, she said, and told her they hadn't known she was breastfeeding until the flight attendant singled her out. "I've been breastfeeding my son in myriad public places since he was born, and never has anyone made me feel so uncomfortable and ashamed for feeding my baby without putting a cover over his head," she wrote. United Airlines spokeswoman Jennifer Dohm said that the airline reached out to Hilderman on Monday night via Twitter and that airline officials "look forward to speaking more with her and to our crew member to understand what happened." "On our general approach to breast feeding, we welcome nursing mothers on board and we ask that crew members do their best to ensure their comfort and safety as they do with all customers," Dohm wrote in an email. "We also ask nursing mothers and passengers seated near them to be mindful of one another's space and comfort." Hilderman, who filed a complaint with the airline, said United had not contacted her beyond their tweeted reply but said she has found support from allies on social media. Why are we so squeamish about breastfeeding? Delta passenger Lauren Modeen, who needed her breast pump on a January flight but was forced to check it as luggage, started a Boobs on Board Facebook page that's gained over 1,100 followers in the past month. "Before social media, the majority of these harassment stories went unheard," Modeen wrote in an email. "As a result, airlines faced little pressure to improve and pave a better way for mothers and children." She wants her Facebook page encourage airlines "to publicly post their explicitly clear pro-breastfeeding/pumping policies inside every airplane so the rules are not left to

Summary: United says officials "look forward to speaking more with her and to our crew member" A woman says a United flight attendant wanted her to cover up while she was breastfeeding . All major U.S. airlines allow breastfeeding, but not all airlines post policies online .