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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 25, 2008

Hawking Plans To Retire From Cambridge Post

CAMBRIDGE, England - Famed cosmologist Stephen Hawking will retire from his prestigious post at Cambridge University next year, but intends to continue his exploration of time and space.

Hawking, 66, is Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, a title once held by the great 18th-century physicist Isaac Newton. The university said Friday that he would step down at the end of the academic year in September, but would continue working as Emeritus Lucasian Professor of Mathematics.

Hawking became a scientific celebrity through his theories on black holes and the nature of time, work that he carried on despite becoming paralyzed by motor neuron disease.

The Lucasian professorship post was founded in 1663 by Henry Lucas, who left his 4,000 books and land expected to yield 100 pounds a year to the university. King Charles II officially established the position in 1664.
Sir Isaac Newton was the second to hold the post. Paul Dirac, a specialist in quantum mechanics who predicted the existence of positron particles, had the title from 1932 to 1969.

Hawking was appointed to the chair in 1979.

2 White Men Charged In Black Man's Dragging Death

PARIS, Texas - In a gruesome case with powerful echoes of the dragging death of James Byrd a decade ago, a black man was killed underneath a pickup in East Texas and two white men have been charged with murder.
Black activists and the victim's mother are calling last month's killing of 24-year-old Brandon McClelland a racist attack, and investigators are looking into the possibility one of the defendants was a member of a white supremacist prison gang.

McClelland died after going with two white acquaintances on a late-night beer run across the state line to Oklahoma, investigators said. Authorities said he was run over and dragged as much as 70 feet beneath the truck. His torn-apart body was discovered along a bloodstained rural road on Sept. 16. His mother said pieces of his skull could still be found three days later.

Teen Allegedly Operated Chicago Commuter Train

CHICAGO - Transportation officials in Chicago say they first learned about allegations that an 18-year-old operated a commuter train after the teen apparently put pictures of the unauthorized ride on his MySpace page.

Metra spokeswoman Judy Pardonnet says someone called the agency about two weeks ago to tip them off about the pictures. She says the page has since been taken down.

Pardonnet says the engineer who allegedly let the teen operate the train had been suspended. Two other engineers who allegedly allowed the same teen to enter their locomotive cabs on other routes have also been suspended.

Pardonnet says an investigative hearing is scheduled for next month.

Metra hasn't confirmed any specifics about the incidents, including on what lines they allegedly occurred.

British Pint May Become Only Two-Thirds Full

LONDON - Britain's beloved pint may be facing a downsizing.

The office that sets measurement standards said Friday that its proposed two-thirds pint measure for draft beer and cider could be on tap as soon as April.

Proponents of the new glass size say they like it because it would give consumers more options at the bar.

The pint is so much a part of British life that it survived the European Union switch to half-liters. And there already is a half-pint glass for those who want a lighter lunch or a clearer head.

Supporters of the new-size glass hope it will appeal to female drinkers, who traditionally eschew a full pint.

A wire report

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