WASHINGTON (AP) ‘ Science is getting a grip on people’s fears. As Americans revel in all things scary today on Halloween, scientists say they now know better what’s going on inside our brains when a spook jumps out and scares us. Knowing how fear rules the brain should lead to treatments for a major medical…

(AP) ‘ In the lab, psychology professor David Zald studies how fast adults react to fear. At his home this time of year, he watches kids adjust to it. Zald, a professor at Vanderbilt University, turns his house in Nashville into a Halloween fear lab ‘ with a reward of candy for those who brave…

NASHVILLE (AP) ‘ Two senior staffers are leaving Gov. Phil Bredesen’s administration. Kim McMillan, a former House majority leader and currently a senior adviser to the Democratic governor, is leaving to work for Austin Peay State University, The Leaf-Chronicle of Clarksville reported on its Web site Tuesday. McMillan, 46, has expressed interest in running for…

BY Kathryn Lopez The Republican choice for the presidency in 2008 would be much clearer today if Chris Matthews had asked the right question last spring. On May 3, the Republican presidential wannabes — at the time minus Fred Thompson and a few third-tier candidates who have since had the sense to drop out —…

BY DUANE SHERRILL Now that the statute of limitations has passed, let me make an alleged confession regarding one of the most daring yard rolling operations in history, that being the assault five years ago on McMinnville City Hall, a masterpiece of Halloween mischief which should serve as a benchmark to all aspiring rollers even…

In a move that can be nothing but positive, McMinnville officials are in the process of preparing a 10-year plan for major city projects. And to help guide them in the right direction, city representatives have held two public meetings to receive feedback on which capital projects residents would like them to pursue. It’s a…

BY WIlliam Rusher I have had occasion, in previous columns, to deplore the decline in simple standards of civility that has recently overtaken debates in Congress. Congress is inevitably a quarrelsome place, and the House of Representatives, consisting of 435 members with wildly differing views on just about everything, has long been a hotbed where…

Brothers Leslie and Lynn Moore are praised for improving and protecting natural resources on the over 400 acres on which they farm. Pictured, from left, are John Hanson, Lynn Moore, Gary Martin, Lynn McGregor, and Leslie Moore. Three local farm operations were recognized last week by the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District for…

BY Steve C. Stubblefield USDA has announced a signup period for the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), which provides benefits to livestock producers for livestock deaths caused by natural disasters that occurred between January 1, 2005 and February 28, 2007, including losses because of blizzards that started in 2006 and continued into January, 2007. ‘The U.S.…