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about the unexplained events nearly four years ago in the Australian outback. Was the huge explosion, felt hundreds of miles away, a small earthquake, a meteorite crashing or worst of all, a nuclear blast?

NPR's Barbara Mantel has the first in a series of reports on student teacher Lea Ricci (LEE-uh RICH-ee), a student teacher at Fordham College who begins her first week of student teaching at Emerson High School in Yonkers, New York. Ricci will be paired with an experienced teacher at Emerson, and she says she's looking forward to learning from a teacher who's already worked with kids. But she's also hoping to try out some of her ideas about getting the kids involved in exciting, hands-on teaching methods, and wonders whether the reality of the classroom will accommodate her ideas about teaching.

Commentator Stuart Cheifet explains that an "avatar" is the incarnation or embodiment of a spirit or concept. Now in cyberspace, you can create a "virtual you" — a graphic image representing who you are. These avatars can wander through a 3D cyber environment, meeting other avatars along the way.

Key members of Congress say they are ready to negotiate on President Clinton's proposal to take over some of the responsibilities of the District of Columbia government. The city would lose its annual 660 million dollar payment, but would be relieved of jobs like collecting city income taxes and running prisons for the most serious offenders. NPR's Kathleen Schalch reports that proponents hope the federal government can do better than the city, which they see as badly mismanaged.

Steve Young of Vermont Public Radio reports on a lawsuit filed on behalf of a young Vermont student from a relatively poor school district. The suit, like others in other states, challenges the way Vermont distributes tax funds for schools and argues that it creates huge disparities in education state-wide.

and their possible effect on election results. Again this year, there is widespread concern in western states that voters will refrain from voting in local, state, and Congressional elections, once television networks project the winner of the Presidential election, based on exit polling.

NPR'S Eric Westervelt reports on Atlantic City, whose residents voted to legalize gambling twenty years ago today. Touted at the time as an economic savior for the troubled New Jersey city...many of the promises have not held true...as Atlantic City is now undergoing a second wave of casino development.

has stirred up a row within the governing Conservative Party on European monetary union by suggesting that unless Britain joins the single European currency, it won't invest any money in new plants.

They discuss one of this season's top players, Center Tim Duncan of Wake Forest, who has resisted offers to go professional before finishing college. Wake Forest is ranked number two in the nation, largely because of Duncan. Tomorrow, he and his teammates take on the University of Maryland, which is ranked number five.

committee responsible for investigating such allegations of improper fundraising. The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee split directly along party lines this week on its first vote: how much money to spend on the investigation. Republicans supported the six-point-five million dollar supplemental budget request. Democrats opposed it as too expensive.