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ANTONIO PEZZULLA AND 812 FELLOW MARTYRS

In 1480, some 20,000 Turkish troops overran the citadel of Otranto in what is now the southeastern Puglia region of Italy, in the "heel" of the boot-shaped peninsula. The invaders demanded that the locals, including many who took refuge in the city's cathedral, convert to Islam. The Turks took 813 men from among those refusing to convert.

Pezzulla, also known as Primaldo, was the group's leader, and the first among the martyrs to be beheaded. They are referred to as "The martyrs of Otranto."

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LAURA OF ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA MONTOYA Y UPEGUI

Colombia's first saint, also known as Mother Laura Montoya and born in 1874, worked as a teacher and spiritual mother to Colombia's indigenous peoples.

In 1914, she and five other women set out on horseback into forests for their mission. They made up the core of a new religious order, the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Virgin, who today work in 21 nations.She died in 1949.

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MARIA GUADALUPE GARCIA ZAVALA

Maria Guadalupe Garcia Zavala was a Mexican woman, born in 1878, who decided at 22 to dedicate herself to helping the sick. Her religious mission played out during a period of tension between church and state, when tens of thousands of people were killed during a 1926-1929 uprising by Roman Catholic rebels against anti-clerical laws.

She helped Catholics avoid persecution during a government crackdown on the faith, including hiding the archbishop of Guadalajara in an eye clinic for 1 1/2 years after fearful local Catholic families refused to shelter him.

Also known as Mother Lupita, she co-founded an order of nuns, the Congregation of the Servants of St. Margaret Maria and of the Poor. She died in 1963.

The , a daily record of atmospheric carbon dioxide, has been running continuously since March 1958, when a carbon dioxide monitor was installed atin Hawaii. On its first day, the observatory measured a carbon dioxide concentration of 313 parts per million (ppm). That number means there were 313 molecules of carbon dioxide in the air for every 1 million air molecules.

The number continued to climb through May 1958 and then slowly started to drop, reaching a minimum in October that year. This maximum-minimum pattern, repeated seasonally, reveals how trees withdraw carbon dioxide from the air in summer to grow and then release it through dead, decaying leaves and wood in the winter.

Upward creep

But humans release carbon dioxide into the air, too, by burning fossil fuels. This activity has caused the Keeling Curve to creep ever upward since 1958: The lows get a little higher each year, as do the highs. []

Because carbon dioxide typically peaks in May, researchers are expecting the Keeling Curve to break a milestone of 400 ppm this year. (If not, the number will almost certainly be reached in May 2014.) As of May 1 of this year, the last day data was available, the Mauna Loa observatory recorded 399.39 ppm of carbon dioxide in the air.

There will be no huge atmospheric or climatic shift once carbon dioxide hits 400 ppm, but the milestone has symbolic significance, said Michael Mann, a climate scientist at Pennsylvania State University.

"It is a reminder of just how uncontrolled this dangerous experiment we're playing with the planet really is," Mann told LiveScience.

What 400 ppm means

In the 1,000 years that occurred before the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century, atmospheric carbon dioxide held steady at around 270 to 280 parts per million.

Scientists believe that the most recent period to reach 400 ppm was the Pliocene Epoch, between 5 million and 3 million years ago, according to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, which keeps track of the Keeling Curve.

Back then, it was a different world. Global average temperatures during the period were between 5.4 and 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit (3 to 4 degrees Celsius) higher than today, and sea level was as much as 131 feet (40 meters) higher in some places. Even the least-affected regions saw16 feet (5 meters) higher than today's.

A major difference between then and now, though, is the speed at which carbon dioxide is rising today. Typically, in the last 40 to 50 years, the Keeling Curve shows increases of 2 to 2.5 ppm a year, Mann said. In the 1950s and 1960s, carbon dioxide increased by less than 1 ppm each year, according to Scripps.

"We're on course for more than 450 ppm in a matter of decades if we don't get ourunder control quite soon," Mann said.

Follow Stephanie Pappas on and . Follow us , & . Original article on .

Lucy Beck of UNHCR said Wednesday that more than 250 Congolese villagers crossed into Uganda on Tuesday alone, joining at least 1,000 more who fled in recent days.

She said the situation is "uncertain," with the agency stocking up on supplies in anticipation of more arrivals.

M23, the most prominent rebel group in eastern Congo, has been talking up its readiness to defend itself against an offensive brigade of U.N. peacekeepers set to be deployed there. According to Beck, the refugees are "fleeing M23 preparations."

Peace talks between the rebels and the Congolese government have hit a dead end.

Example: If my mom asks him how his parents are doing, without looking up from his cellphone he'll grunt and say, "They're fine" -- nothing more. When we go out to dinner, he usually doesn't join in the conversation. Instead, he just sits there with a dismissive, bored look on his face.

I have told him I don't want him to come with me when I visit them. It only takes a few times before he asks if he can come again and promises to try to behave. But after a few visits, he reverts back to his old, rude ways. It has reached a point that it's affecting our marriage. Can you offer any suggestions for how this issue can be resolved? -- TIRED OF IT IN TORONTO

DEAR TIRED OF IT: It would be helpful to know why your husband behaves this way. Does he dislike your folks? Does he have so little in common with them he doesn't know how to participate in a conversation with them? Is he this way with any other people?

Perhaps it would be better for all concerned if he saw them with you less often, say, 30 percent to 50 percent of the time. And before he does, make sure he is up to the task of being social because, as it stands, I agree his behavior is rude.

He's not a teenager with his nose buried in a cellphone; he's an adult who should know better. If he finds your parents' company less than stimulating, he should be a better actor.

DEAR ABBY: Last year my darling mother lost her battle with cancer. Aside from grief and loss, a bigger issue looms over my life. It concerns my stepdad.

Before Mom was diagnosed, my stepfather was a selfish, self-centered man. At times he was mean to her to the point that I wanted her to leave him. In fairness, once Mom was diagnosed, he stepped up to the plate and took excellent care of her until her death.

I have other issues with my stepfather. He was inappropriate with me, sharing things he should have kept to himself. It caused my mother great heartache and made me lose respect for him. I am still uncomfortable around him. Mom knew how I felt and understood.

Now that she is gone, do I have any obligation to him? He has a strained relationship with his only child. My sibling thinks I'm too hard on him, but doesn't understand the major problems our stepdad caused. I don't want to continue pretending I like him. Please help, Abby. -- SEARCHING FOR GUIDANCE

DEAR SEARCHING: You are entitled to your feelings and, no, you do not have any obligation to your stepfather. If your sibling wants to see him, that's his/her choice. Explain to your sibling your reasons for feeling the way you do -- and if you encounter your stepfather during family gatherings, be polite and don't linger. That isn't pretending to like the man; it is good manners.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

For an excellent guide to becoming a better conversationalist and a more sociable person, order "How to Be Popular." Send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby, Popularity Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Shipping and handling are included in the price.)

"The consequences of these payment cuts go far beyond the direct impact to hospitals," said CHA President/CEO C. Duane Dauner. "These cuts also will be a massive job killer, with a statewide economic aftershock."

According to CHA's analysis, which comes just five days before Gov. Jerry Brown releases his revised 2013-2014 budget, 36,000 jobs could be lost statewide. These are direct-care, well-paid positions at hospital-based skilled-nursing facilities, plus related jobs in the goods and services industries. In addition, the CHA analysis found, the overall ripple effect stemming from these cuts could result in a $2 billion economic erosion to the state's economy.

The proposed Medi-Cal cuts to health care providers stem from legislation enacted in 2011 (AB 97). Although the payment reductions amount to a 10 percent reduction for doctors and most other health care providers, the cuts are much deeper- averaging 25 percent or greater for hospital-based skilled-nursing facilities. These impacts would be felt just as our state's health care system is entering a period of tremendous change and uncertainty as California prepares to implement the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA) next January.

Among the other "hidden consequences" of these payment cuts, according to the report, is the likelihood that the expected "savings" to the state General Fund may not materialize at all. Simply cutting the payments to Medi-Cal providers does not mean that the obligation to provide care to Medi-Cal patients will go away. These patients are among the most vulnerable in our society. The state will still have to pay for their care. Because many of the affected patients need specialized, complex medical care, they may have to be placed in higher-cost acute care facilities, causing the state to lose all of its expected savings several times over.

CHA, along with a broad coalition of other health care providers, is urging lawmakers and the Brown Administration to support two bills now making their way through the Legislature - AB 900 (Alejo) and SB 640 (Lara). These two bills would reverse these devastating Medi-Cal cuts and help ensure that California's economic recovery continues to move forward.

A link to the CHA report can be found .

SOURCE California Hospital Association

That's why the fall-winter 2013-14 show saw the Belgian designer explore his usual menswear-womenswear tailoring via the frivolity of ballroom dancing, feathers and the dancing two-some Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

Wednesday's show was proof again of Van Noten's mastery when it comes to the art of clashing styles.

"I started from the menswear pants, and then the opposite is ballroom dancing ... big feathers," he said backstage at Paris' grand Hotel de Ville. "Fashion is so serious, so the hints of the Fred and Ginger story were fun."

Who better to represent the Van Noten universe, where men's and women's styles merge together, than one of the most iconic and inseparable male-female couple in Hollywood history?

Ostrich feathers in midnight blue, faded gray and tea rose billowed like 1930s boas with large vivid embroideries, vintage fur alongside men's baggy pants, club stripes and Prince of Wales check.

Some of the feathered fringing floated past wistfully, only to be reined in by the humorous juxtaposition of a menswear cut.

One fantastic look said it all: a sumptuous navy feathered skirt (Ginger), and a large tuxedo shirt (Fred.)

In Van Noten's world, like in Hollywood, there's no man without the woman, no Ginger without Fred.

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Thomas Adamson can be followed at http://Twitter.com/ThomasAdamsonAP

The zoo dwellers also sparked her desire to help improve the lives of elephants in captivity and the chances for survival of those in the wild. "An Apology to Elephants," a documentary produced and narrated by Tomlin, is one result. It debuted this week on HBO.

"I had done some animal activism" and donated money, Tomlin said, but becoming enlightened about elephants prompted her to focus on their plight.

The film is an unabashed polemic, calling for improved treatment of elephants in zoos and an end to the use of the animals as entertainment, which the film contends must invariably involve abuse. Circus operators do not have a say, although a zoo that has overhauled its elephant habitat weighs in.

"An Apology to Elephants" also outlines the animal's importance to ecosystems and the dangers faced by wild African and Asian elephants, including habitat destruction and poachers after their highly marketable tusks.

Last month, leading conservation groups warned that the illegal ivory trade is growing and is hastening the decline of Africa's already endangered elephant population.

"The elephants became so symbolic to me, the evidence (of their treatment) so clear, and I wanted to tie it together and show how inured we are to that around the planet," said Tomlin, an Oscar-nominated actress ("Nashville") and comedian.

Feld Entertainment, the parent company of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, said the film misrepresents its practices.

"Clearly, it's a distortion of the animal care we provide 24 hours a day, seven days a week for this magnificent species. We have a team of animal care professionals and veterinarians who spend their lives caring for these animals," said spokesman Stephen Payne.

The film also failed to include the company's conservation efforts that Feld said are international and done in concert with zoos and researchers. "As opposed to people who make one-off documentaries or protest, we put our money where our mouth is," Payne added.

The film's images are dramatic, some by contrast: We see a line of elephants silhouetted majestically against an orange African sun as well as a solitary pachyderm confined within a zoo enclosure. There also are disturbing shots, including elephants prodded by sharp-edged rods and footage of the 1903 death of a Coney Island elephant that, according to the film, had turned violent because of abuse. Thomas Edison agreed to electrocute the animal named Topsy to illustrate a certain type of current.

The film spotlights those who are working for elephants today, including the Oakland Zoo, which has implemented new methods of managing the animals, including more space to roam, and a Northern California wild animal sanctuary that helps remove elephants from circuses and zoos.

The grounds are home to elephants Gypsy and Wanda, who performed for the same circus before being split up. When the pair ended up 20 years later at the sanctuary, they "went crazy and are inseparable," said Pat Derby, the former animal trainer who co-founded the Performing Animal Welfare Society, or PAWS, which operates the sanctuary.

Their new life, in nature and without the demands of performing, represents her dream, Derby says in "An Apology to Elephants." The film is dedicated to Derby, who died in February of cancer at age 69.

"Knowing they have some days or even years of safety and peace and dignity, that's the big reward," said Derby in the documentary directed by Amy Schatz.

Tomlin said her hope is that people take heed of what elephants face. Her narration, written by her longtime partner, Jane Wagner, is measured and eloquent, but she's passionate in conversation as she decries "inequity and injustice and suffering" and encourages others to get involved.

"The first thing is to be conscious of the ivory trade. Don't foster anything like admiring ivory objects or people wanting them," she said. "Just to have that consciousness affects the movement of things. It takes years, but it's like getting people to wear seatbelts."

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Online:

http://www.hbo.com

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Lynn Elber is a national television columnist for The Associated Press. She can be reached at lelber(at)ap.org and on Twitter (at)lynnelber.

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - Using voice to send text messages while driving is just as dangerous as texting with fingers, with driver response times significantly delayed no matter which method was used, a study released on Tuesday showed.

The study by the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University was the first to compare voice-to-text and traditional texting on a handheld device in an actual driving environment.

"In each case, drivers took about twice as long to react as they did when they weren't texting," Christine Yager, who headed the study, told Reuters. "Eye contact to the roadway also decreased, no matter which texting method was used."

The research involved 43 participants driving along a test track without any electronic devices present. The same participants then drove while texting and again while using a speech-to-text device.

Yager said speech-to-text actually took longer than traditional texting, due to the need to correct errors in the electronic transcription.

"You're still using your mind to try to think of what you're trying to say, and that by proxy causes some driving impairment, and that decreases your response time," Yager said.

The biggest concern is that the driver felt safer while using voice-to-text applications instead of traditional texting, even though driving performance was equally affected, she said.

This may lead to a false belief that texting while driving using spoken commands is safe when in reality it is not, Yager said.

The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association says 6.1 billion text messages per day were sent in the United States in 2012. Some 35 percent of drivers admit to reading a text or email while driving in any given month, while 26 percent admitted to typing one, according to data from AAA, a national drivers' organization.

"Every day, new technologies come out, and it is important to educate the public that even these seemingly new distractions are still distractions, and it will help people be safer when they get into the vehicle," Yager said.

(Reporting by Jim Forsyth; Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Eric Walsh)

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year low stayed at 3.53 percent. That's near the 3.31 percent reached in November, which was the lowest on record going back to 1971.

The rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage stayed at 2.77 percent for a second week. The record low is 2.63 percent.

The one-year adjustable mortgage was the only rate to change this week. It averaged 2.61 percent, up from 2.53 percent last week.

Cheap mortgages are giving a boost to the slowly improving housing market.

Increased sales have helped to push home prices up, which makes consumers feel wealthier and helps to boost consumer spending. In addition, the increased housing demand is boosting new home construction.

Still, housing has a long way to go to achieve a full recovery. And many people are unable to take advantage of the low rates, either because they can't qualify under stricter lending rules or they lack the money to meet larger down payment requirements.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country on Monday through Wednesday of each week. The average doesn't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for 30-year loans was 0.8 point, the same as last week. The fee for 15-year mortgages was 0.8 point, up from 0.7 point last week. The fee for one-year adjustable rate mortgages was 0.3 point, down from 0.4 point last week.

Freddie Mac said that the average rate on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages edged up to 2.64 percent this week from 2.63 percent last week. The fee stayed the same at 0.6 point.