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Former House Speaker Tom Foley has died. The Washington Democrat spent 30 years in the House until he lost his seat in the 1995 Republican revolution. He went on to serve as ambassador to Japan under Clinton. Foley was 84 years old and died of complications from a stroke.

Like many public universities before it, the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, has made the move to the top level of college football, known as Football Bowl Subdivision. The program is now in its second year of play. The team is struggling and attendance is weak. The school is pumping more money into football, and some faculty are questioning the investment. But others are calling for patience.

When Congress voted to end the shutdown, the measure also included $2 billion for a troubled lock and dam project on the Ohio River. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, a supporter of the project, has been attacked by hard-line conservatives who call it pork-barrel spending, but he says he didn't put it in the bill.

Foley, who died Friday at age 84, was in some ways ideally suited to be speaker. A generation ago he held together the regional and ideological factions of his own Democratic party while speaking calm and consistent reason to his foes across the aisle.

Both suspects work for the same ground handling company at the airport. The explosions — one on Sunday and one on Monday — did not cause any injuries, and police say there was no link to terrorism.

When Saudia Arabia cut off direct oil shipments to the U.S. 40 years ago, the country was thrown into shock. Calls for energy independence grew louder. The U.S. is now producing more of its own oil and natural gas than ever, but the commitment to efficiency has been uneven.

Solomon Northup, an African-American musician from New York, was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. He was eventually freed and wrote about his experience in Twelve Years a Slave, a memoir that has inspired a new film adaptation. But by the end of the Civil War, he dropped off the public record.

One key inning. One key at-bat. The result: St. Louis heads to its 19th Fall Classic. The Cards will face either the Boston Red Sox or the Detroit Tigers. Those teams play again Saturday night.

Fifteen-year-old Leonarda Dibrani is at the center of an emotional debate in France over the country's immigration policies. She and her family have been deported to Kosovo. The way the girl was taken into custody — during a school field trip — has caused controversy in France.

Maybe it's their love of ink. Whatever the reason, there seem to be quite a few librarians who have tattoos. And there's a bit of a trend: Sell calendars of librarians who are baring their body art to raise money for their institutions.