Climate

The average temperature of 58.1 degrees for January through October 2000 was the warmest for that period since records started being kept in 1895. All states in the contiguous United States except Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia were warmer than normal for that period, according to the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C. The South and Southeast were much drier than normal, but it was wetter than normal in the Northeast and in much of the central U.S.

Disease

» A severe malaria outbreak in Burundi has killed 818 people in the past month, including at least 100 children. The epidemic broke out in the Mwaro province of the tiny central African nation. The provinces of Gitega and Cibitoke were also hit hard. Most of the victims died "either by refusing to treat the disease and turning to traditional medicine or because they lacked money to go to a doctor," said Health Minister Stanislas Ntahomvukiye. Malaria is transmitted by the bite of the Anopheles mosquito, which carries the Plasmodium parasite.

» Panic over mad cow disease—bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)—has swept Europe, with beef being removed from menus across the continent. The European Union (EU) has stepped in, warning its governments to intensify safety controls so infected beef does not get to stores, restaurants and kitchens. It plans to extend annual testing to 170,000 animals this year. The rise in confirmed cases of BSE among French herds is largely due to improved testing rather than a spreading of the fatal, brain-wasting ailment. Scientists suspect BSE is linked to a similar human malady, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. Two have succumbed to it in France, compared to more than 80 in Britain.

European Union

The European Union's institutions and decision-making procedures need to be overhauled before expansion, says German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. Discussion of EU reform has gone on for several years, and considerable differences of opinion still exist among member states on a number of issues. Among the changes Germany desires are decision by majority vote on some issues and a vote-weighting system by population size. Negotiations on these measures will be arduous, but says Foreign Minister Joksha Fischer, "We are talking about the reunification of Europe."

Homosexuality

» German gay and lesbian couples can soon claim many of the same rights as their heterosexual counterparts. The Bundestag passed two bills on November 10 to create a "registered partnership" for same-sex couples, entitling them to many of the perks and protections of married heterosexuals, such as in taxation, insurance coverage and inheritance rights. Like a legal marriage, such a partnership can be dissolved only by a judge, and one partner can in some cases claim a kind of alimony from the other. The legislation may not be implemented as written, since the measure needs the consent of the Bundesrat, the upper house of Parliament.

» After three defeats in the House of Lords, the British government resorted to rarely used powers to pass legislation lowering the age of consent for homosexuals from 18 to 16, the age of consent for heterosexuals. House of Commons speaker Michael Martin invoked the Parliament Act to force through the Sexual Offenses Bill, which became law after Queen Elizabeth gave her Royal Assent. Earlier this year, the House of Commons overwhelmingly approved the bill that brings Britain in line with most other EU nations.

Temple Mount

One hundred rabbis of the dovish Jewish Peace Lobby declare that Judaism does not demand exclusive Jewish sovereignty over the Temple Mount. "As Jewish leaders, we do not want the site of our Holy Temple to be an obstacle to peace between our two peoples," they said. The site is considered sacred by both observant Jews and Muslims. The rabbis said they were "horrified by the shedding of blood in our Holy Land" and that they mourn the loss of Palestinian and Israelis lives in prolonged conflict between the two sides.