Hall was among several former Atlanta educators who appeared in Fulton County Superior Court. Hall sat quietly in the gallery, standing up as her attorney J. Tom Morgan said she would waive a formal reading of the charges. The court then entered a not guilty plea on her behalf, and she left the courthouse without speaking to reporters.

Hall's attorneys have promised to mount a strong defense, saying Hall was not aware of or involved in any cheating. Outside of court, Hall's attorney said he expects a number of the 35 defendants in the case will ask to be tried separately, although Hall would not be among them.

"So potentially you're going to have 35 defendants with over 50 attorneys. That will be the longest trial in Georgia history. The longest criminal trial for sure," Morgan said.

Attorneys may argue that being tried so that a jury can consider the charges against them without being influenced by allegations against co-defendants.

On Friday, Judge Jerry Baxter indicated he was inclined to have one trial and set the date for May 5, 2014.

Baxter also dismissed a request for an order barring attorneys from speaking to the media, but reminded them to follow ethical guidelines.

Several other educators appeared in court, and not guilty pleas were entered on their behalf. A small group of supporters gathered outside the courthouse with signs saying, "We support Dr. Beverly Hall and APS employees."

"It's not that I don't believe some irregularities occurred," said Mercehari Williams, a former Atlanta Public Schools educator who was outside the courthouse. "It's not that I don't believe that justice should be served and an investigation should occur and those guilty parties should be prosecuted, but I just believe that it's heavy-handed and I don't believe that we can get a fair trial when it has been tried in the media."

In March, Hall and the other 34 educators were named in a 65-count indictment that alleges a conspiracy to cheat, conceal cheating or retaliate against whistleblowers in an effort to bolster student test scores and, as a result, receive bonuses and accolades for improved student performance.

Each could face five to 20 years in prison if convicted of all the charges.

___

Associated Press video journalist Johnny Clark contributed to this report. Follow Christina Almeida Cassidy on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AP_Christina.

A new time-lapse video,from , takes viewers on another virtual trip to beautiful and mysterious Death Valley.

The footage, shot and edited by Gavin Heffernan, is sure to leave viewers spellbound. It includes sensational star trails, astonishing landscapes and wild photographic techniques like "moonpainting." Plus, you'll see theof Racetrack Playa, which appear to move across the desert.

[Related: ]

Perhaps most amazing is the pink aurora. According to the clip's description on , the creators didn't even know that auroras existed so far south, but think it most likely was triggered by a coronal mass ejection (CME) solar event that occurred during filming.points out this link from , which explains CME in detail.

Clickfor the equally awesome original video.

The first lady is asking children ages 8 to 12 and their parents to create nutritious lunch recipes that represent each of the food groups for "The Healthy Lunchtime Challenge."

Winners will travel to Washington to sample some of the original dishes at the second White House kids' "state dinner" luncheon this summer.

The deadline to submit recipes is May 12. Last year's challenge received more than 1,200 entries.

The contest, created by Epicurious.com, is a partnership among the food website, Mrs. Obama and the departments of Education and Agriculture.

___

Online:

http://www.recipechallenge.epicurious.com

The House cleared the way to debate the bill, which was designed to help Americans with pre-existing medical conditions while preventing the administration from using an alternate source of funding to implement its healthcare law.

But the "Helping Sick Americans Now" bill was pulled from the schedule before members could cast their votes, suggesting that Republican leaders did not have enough support from their own members. Democrats called the bill a political ploy by the Republicans.

An aide to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said Republican leaders would bring the bill back up when Congress returns after a week-long recess in May. The legislation is not expected to go anywhere in the Democrat-controlled Senate and the White House has threatened to veto it.

"We're going to continue working on the bill. We had positive conversations today and made good progress," the Republican aide said, noting that they had run out of time with some members leaving town.

Before the House debate, several Republican conservatives were openly opposing the bill and questioning why their leaders were even offering up the measure.

They said that House leaders should give first-term Republicans a chance to vote on repealing the entire Obama healthcare law. The Republican-controlled House has voted to repeal or defund the law more than 30 times since it was enacted in 2010.

"The issue I think many of us are having with this particular piece of legislation... you're replacing one big government program with another big government program," said Representative Raul Labrador of Idaho.

In January, at an annual meeting of House Republicans, party members examined how to respond to the November 6, 2012 election results in which they lost seats to Democrats.

Some Republican consultants advised the party to appear less dogmatic over budget issues, such as the need to cut government spending and domestic programs, and become more in tune with voters' day-to-day concerns.

Labrador, speaking on Wednesday at a press conference, said he agreed with House Republican leaders' goal to brush up the party's image with voters.

But he added: "Subsidizing healthcare is not what Republicans should be about. Republicans should be about managing health care" to lower costs for Americans.

The two-term Republican added, "I agree with his (Cantor's) premise that we need to do something about the struggles of ordinary Americans. Subsidizing the struggles of ordinary Americans is not the solution to the questions that we are facing."

The bill would reallocate about $4 billion from a special Prevention and Public Health Fund that the administration has been using to help finance the creation of health insurance exchanges, new state online marketplaces where low-to-middle income families can begin signing up for federally subsidized private insurance on October 1.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan, David Morgan and Rachelle Younglai; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

MONTE CARLO, April 15 (Reuters) - Relaxed and rested after a break following his successful return to the ATP Tour, Rafa Nadal said he no longer felt burdened by expectation and pressure heading into the European claycourt season.

The Spaniard put the problems with his injured left knee, which sidelined him for seven months, behind him by winning three of four events on his return to the circuit, including the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells last month.

World number five Nadal seeks a ninth consecutive Monte Carlo Masters title this week and has arrived in good shape for his European campaign leading up to next month's French Open.

"I played four fantastic weeks in Latin America and Indian Wells. After seven months, playing that much is never easy so I tried to recover well and do the right things to be here," Nadal told reporters on Tuesday.

"I don't feel the pressure that I've felt in the past."

The 11-times grand slam singles champion spent his month off since his Indian Wells triumph by strengthening his left leg on the advice of his doctors.

He would, however, much rather talk about tennis than his knee.

"There has been a lot of talk about the knee for the last year. It's not good to talk about it anymore for me because I'm here, I'm competing so I prefer to be focused on the tennis," he said.

Despite his eight Monte Carlo titles, and with world number one Novak Djokovic doubtful with an ankle sprain and Swiss Roger Federer having opted against participating in the event, Nadal does not believe a ninth crown is inevitable.

"I don't feel like I am the biggest favourite to win this tournament this year. I think I'm a candidate," Nadal said.

"It's probably not easy to understand after eight years, but I don't have to lose the perspective; it's not possible to win every year, and someday that's going to stop.

"I will try my best not to make that happen easily but that's the sport, nothing lasts forever and you have to accept that."

Asked who might take his title from him, the Mallorcan replied: "You don't need to know who are my favourites because you'd say the same as me. If you follow tennis, everybody knows who are the favourites." (Reporting by Gregory Blachier, editing by Justin Palmer)

LILONGWE (Reuters) - The Malawi government has branded pop star Madonna an "uncouth" bully who exaggerates her charitable work in the country and demands preferential treatment when she visits.

Malawi President Joyce Banda's government accused the "Material Girl" of bullying officials after she complained about her latest trip to the southern African country this month.

"Among the many things that Madonna needs to learn as a matter of urgency is the decency of telling the truth," said an 11-point statement from Malawi's State House.

Media reports said Madonna and her children were forced to join a check-in queue and go through security with ordinary passengers at a Malawi airport when they left the country.

The "Holiday" singer dismissed Malawi's comments as "lies" in a statement on the website of her Raising Malawi foundation.

"I'm saddened that Malawi's President Joyce Banda has chosen to release lies about what we've accomplished, my intentions, how I personally conducted myself while visiting Malawi and other untruths," Madonna said.

Malawi said Madonna expected the government to be forever chained in an "obligation of gratitude" towards her for adopting two Malawian children and contributing to the construction of classrooms in the country.

"Kindness, as far as its ordinary meaning is concerned, is free and anonymous. If it can't be free and silent, it is not kindness; it is something else," the statement said. "Blackmail is the closest it becomes."

The singer said she came to Malawi seven years ago with honorable intentions and returned earlier this month to view the new schools built by her foundation.

"I did not ever ask or demand special treatment at the airport or elsewhere during my visit," Madonna said.

"I will not be distracted or discouraged by other people's political agendas. I made a promise to the children of Malawi and I am keeping that promise."

She said the disagreement was rooted in her history with President Banda's sister, Anjimile Mtila Oponyo, who once headed Raising Malawi. Oponyo was fired and sued the charity for wrongful termination.

The Malawi government said in its statement the current dispute had nothing to do with Oponyo, however.

"For her to accuse Mrs. Oponyo for indiscretions that have clearly arisen from her personal frustrations that her ego has not been massaged by the state is uncouth, and speaks volumes of a musician who desperately thinks she must generate recognition by bullying state officials instead of playing decent music on the stage."

(Writing by Paul Casciato; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)

Carney, who steps down as Bank of Canada chief in June to take over at the Bank in July, said that during the 2008-09 recession in Canada, having a well-understood inflation target helped policy makers explain directly to Canadians how they planned to stimulate the economy and boosted confidence.

"I think the core lesson that was reinforced and that I have an even greater appreciation for now than I had when I started as governor, is the importance of having clearly articulated policy frameworks," Carney said when asked what lessons he would bring to the Bank.

"That's not a very snappy thing to say but it's absolutely essential," he said in his testimony to a Senate committee.

Expectations are high for Carney as he gears up for a daunting task: turn around Britain's ailing economy, fix its banks and overhaul the Bank.

Under his watch, Canada's recession was milder than that of the United States or the United Kingdom and it has since recovered. At the height of the crisis, the central bank dropped its key interest rate to an ultra-low level of 0.25 percent and, in its most innovative move, pledged to keep the rate at that level for more than a year unless inflation picked up.

Carney said Bank of Canada officials "reached over the heads of commentators and spoke directly to Canadians" about the low cost of borrowing, persuading them to spend and boost growth.

But the bank never had to resort to unconventional policy such as buying bonds, as done in the U.K., the U.S. and Japan.

Despite the differences with the U.K., Carney stressed that unconventional policy should also be guided by clearly communicated principles and frameworks that the public can understand.

"I prefer not to comment too much on the U.K. but I think the benefit of the institution to which I'm going, one of the benefits, is a tremendous amount of thought has been given ... by the institution itself but ultimately decided by the government and parliamentarians, to the framework that the Bank of England has," he said.

The Bank has much broader powers than the Bank of Canada, encompassing regulation of banks and financial stability as well as monetary policy. Each area of work should have its own separate framework, Carney said.

"And they also have to think through, and they have thought through, how the three of those interact within one institution," he said.

(Reporting by Louise Egan; Editing by Carol Bishopric)

The poll, conducted in the wake of the allegations, found that Cain’s popularity among registered Republicans declined by 9 points since the days before the allegations of the scandal were published. Among Republicans polled last week, on October 27 and 28, 66 percent said they had a favorable opinion of Cain. But just 57 percent of those polled on November 4 and 5 said they had a favorable opinion of the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza.

The drop off comes primarily from Cain’s less enthusiastic supporters. The percentage of Republicans who say they hold a ‘very favorable’ opinion of him has dropped by only 3 percentage points. The percentage of voters who say they hold a ‘somewhat favorable’ view of him has dropped by 6 points.

The sexual harassment allegations seem unlikely to go away: they have been widely reported, and 88 percent of Republicans say they have heard of them, as have 81 percent of Democrats and 64 percent of independents.

That said, Republicans remain somewhat uncertain on the whether or not there is any truth to the allegations. Thirty-two percent say they think it is likely that the allegations are true, while 27 percent they are likely untrue. Very few — 7 percent — say they strongly believe the allegations are true, and just 10 percent say they strongly believe the allegations are untrue. Twenty-four percent say they don’t know. Among independents who have an opinion, most believe the allegations to be likely true. However, over half of independents express no opinion.

Almost half of Republicans say the reported allegations have no bearing on how they feel about Cain. But 35 percent say it makes them feel less favorably about him, while just 14 percent say it improves their opinion of him.

The results suggest that while many Republicans are still giving Cain the benefit of the doubt, the longer the story stays in the news, the worse things will get for him.

An ABC/Washington Post poll conducted in the first three days after the story broke on Monday October 31 saw little change in Cain’s popularity. Most Republicans surveyed said the allegations were not serious, and Cain ran within 2 points of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney on the ballot.

Moreover, the Cain campaign reported a large outpouring of donations to the campaign in the days following the allegations, as many conservatives stood by him, calling the allegations a “high tech lynching.”

But the continuing decline suggests that the allegations are sinking into voters’ consciousness. The longer the story stays in the news and the more details that emerge, the more Cain is likely to see his support erode.

The Ipsos poll was conducted from November 4 to November 5, and surveyed 836 registered voters, including 343 Republicans.

Read more stories from The Daily Caller

NEW YORK (AP) -- A sharp decline in the price of oil this month is making gasoline cheaper at a time of year when it typically gets more expensive. It's a relief to motorists and business owners and a positive development for the economy.

Over the past three weeks, the price of oil has fallen by 9 percent to $89 a barrel. That has helped extend a slide in gasoline prices that began in late February. Nationwide, average retail prices have fallen by 27 cents per gallon, or 7 percent, since Feb. 27, to $3.52 per gallon. Analysts say pump prices could fall another 20 cents over the next two months.

The price of oil is being driven lower by rising global supplies and lower-than-expected demand in the world's two largest economies, the United States and China. As oil and gasoline become more affordable, the economy benefits because goods become less expensive to transport and motorists have more money to spend on other things. Over the course of a year, a decline of 10 cents per gallon translates to $13 billion in savings at the pump.

Diesel and jet fuel have also gotten cheaper in recent weeks, which is good news for truckers, airlines and other energy-intensive businesses.

"It makes a big difference to my bottom line," says Mike Mitternight, owner of a heating and air conditioning service company in Metairie, La. He has five pickup trucks that can burn $1,000 of gas per week when prices are near $4 a gallon. Lately he's been paying as little as $3.19, and saving $200 a week.

Gasoline prices typically rise in the late winter and spring as refiners shut down parts of their plants to perform maintenance and begin making more costly blends of gasoline required by federal clean-air regulations. The trend was earlier and less dramatic this year. Pump prices only came within 15 cents of last year's peak.

Oil production is growing quickly in the U.S. and Canada, helping boost global supplies. And some of the factors that pushed prices higher the two previous years political turmoil in North Africa and the Middle East and refinery disruptions in the U.S. haven't materialized this spring.

At the same time, demand for fuels is growing slower than expected. China, the world's biggest oil importer, is experiencing slower-than-expected economic growth. And much of Europe is in recession.

In the U.S., wintry weather in the Midwest and Northeast has kept more drivers off the roads this spring, analysts say.

The typical U.S. household will spend an estimated $326 on gasoline this April, the equivalent of 7.8 percent of median household income, according to Fred Rozell, an analyst at GasBuddy.com. That's $38 less than last April, when households spent 8.8 percent of their income on gas.

"It's the difference between going out to dinner one more time or not," says Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial. "It matters."

The U.S. government releases its initial estimate of economic output during the first three months of 2013 on Friday. Economists forecast the economy grew at an annual rate of 3.1 percent, compared with 0.4 percent in the final three months of 2012.

Philip Verleger, an economist who studies energy prices, says that many monthly household expenses are fixed, but gasoline is one of the few big expenses that varies. That means when gasoline prices rise or fall people notice.

"This is the equivalent of a pay raise," he says.

Shippers and airlines are also benefiting. Fuel is by far airlines' biggest and most volatile cost. A one-cent decline in the price of jet fuel saves the U.S. airline industry $180 million over a year, according to the industry group Airlines for America. Lower energy prices also give potential customers more money to spend on air travel.

Airlines aren't ready to celebrate yet because the relief could prove to be short-lived, says John Heimlich, chief economist at Airlines for America. "It looks promising but we're not counting our chickens," he said.

Political turmoil or refinery problems could crop up at any time. Analysts are particularly worried about the transition of power in Venezuela, a major oil exporter, after the death of President Hugo Chavez. Violence has erupted in the wake of a closely contested election, and the financial situation of the country is precarious. Analysts worry that the country's oil production could slip.

Also, refinery maintenance in the Midwest is already affecting prices there. Drivers in Ohio, Michigan and Indiana are paying only slightly less than they did last year at this time, and prices there have been creeping up over the last couple of weeks.

Gasoline prices reached a high this year of $3.79 per gallon on Feb. 27. Last year's peak was $3.94, and it came on April 6; last year's low was $3.22 on Dec. 20. The average price for all of 2012 was $3.63 per gallon. The Energy Department forecasts the 2013 average will be $3.56.

Analysts say there are limits to how far oil and gasoline prices will fall. Countries in the developing world are still growing fast and pushing world oil demand higher, perhaps to a record this year. And if oil prices fall too far drillers will be forced to cut production to try to stem the decline.

That means Mike Mitternight, the small business owner in Louisiana, won't likely get his wish: He'd like to see gasoline prices between $2 and $3 per gallon.

"I still think it's high and we could bring it lower," he says.

Jonathan Fahey can be reached at http://twitter.com/JonathanFahey.