Drain

I recently had coffee with one of my top doctoral students, a woman in her late 20s. After years of slogging through data sets for her dissertation, she told me she would finish her doctorate in public policy but not pursue a career in academia. Stunned, I asked why. She was about to get married and hoped to start a family, she said, and she'd concluded that she couldn't be the mother she aspired to be and a contestant in the pressure-filled tenure-track race at the same time. Colleagues at other universities tell me similar stories of star female students either abandoning career ambitions or "underplacing" themselves -- turning down prestigious fellowships and accepting jobs at less competitive universities -- so they can focus on raising children and enjoying family life.

Bright yellow summer squash stuffed with a mixture of sauteed onions, mushrooms, cheese and chopped fresh parsley. Simple and flavorful, the dish takes just over an hour to prepare and makes for a filling light meal or a substantial side. I'd even argue the leftovers taste better reheated the next day. For more quick-fix dinner ideas, check out our video recipe gallery . Food editor Russ Parsons and Test Kitchen manager Noelle Carter show you how to fix a dozen dishes in an hour or less.

A search for two Iowa girls missing for more than three days has thus far revealed few clues, and family and friends of the girls acknowledged Monday that they've become discouraged. Elizabeth Collins, 8, and Lyric Cook, 10, who are cousins, were last seen Friday about noon when they left their grandmother's house in Evansdale on their bicycles, said family friend Renee Wrabek. The bikes, along with Elizabeth's purse, were later found near Meyers Lake, a mile and a half from the house.

It's quite a beautiful house. Original marble tile in the bathrooms, circa 1926, four bedrooms, terraced lawn. But the view - the view of Silver Lake Reservoir is priceless. Well, this one is nearly $1.4 million. Realtors Dan Ortega and Jovelle Narcise held an open house recently at the West Silver Lake Drive property. As strangers mixed with visiting neighbors, a young couple chatted about the latest question facing the community: dig or drain? In these hills northwest of Dodger Stadium, it is a no-win situation.

Just when you think you know a president, you find out the guy was also crusader against legions of undead monsters. That's the premise behind "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," based on the mash-up novel by Seth Grahame-Smith (who also wrote the script) and directed by Timur Bekmambetov ("Wanted"). Alas, Honest Abe's newly revealed line of work isn't going over so well with movie critics, many of whom are panning the film. The Times' Kenneth Turan concedes that "Vampire Hunter" offers an intriguing idea but says it fails in execution: "... [A]

In a battle that has polarized the wealthy beach town of Malibu, activists are pledging to stand in the path of oncoming bulldozers when work begins this week on a controversial effort by the state to clean up a pollution-choked salt marsh that sits next to a world-renowned surf spot. State contractors are set to begin fencing off Malibu Lagoon on Friday before draining the salt marsh and reshaping its shores and channels. Activists, who for years have fought a plan they believe is dangerously aggressive, say they will meet the bulldozers face-to-face and stage protests until the state backs off. On one side is a well-organized alliance of surfers, environmental activists, Malibu locals and celebrities such as Pamela Anderson and Red Hot Chili Peppers singer Anthony Kiedis.

Hospitalized for six days after undergoing emergency leg surgery, Dodgers second baseman Mark Ellis returned home on Thursday. Ellis injured his left leg on Friday when Tyler Greene of the St. Louis Cardinals slid into him at second base. Ellis underwent surgery the next day to drain his leg of fluid and blood. Team physician Dr. Neal ElAttrache told Manager Don Mattingly that, without treatment, Ellis was just a few  hours away from losing the lower part of his leg. A six-inch incision surgeons made in Ellis' leg wasn't immediately closed so it could continue to drain.

Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly said Sunday that the team doctor told him second baseman Mark Ellis was within several hours of possibly having his left leg amputated if Ellis hadn't had emergency surgery. "That was scary," Mattingly said of the injury, which is expected to keep Ellis out of action for six weeks. "I didn't realize how bad that was. " Ellis, 34, suffered the injury Friday when he was upended by the St. Louis Cardinals' Tyler Greene to break up a double play.

ATHENS - Eva, a well-groomed pensioner, grasps her creamy white purse, glancing impatiently at her gold Cartier watch as she waits for the manager of an Athens bank. She is offered tea, cookies and orange juice, none of which the state bank usually provides, and none of which Eva accepts. "I'm concerned," says the 82-year-old, who declined to give her last name because she was involved in a private transaction. "I'm thinking of withdrawing all my savings. " Greek banks have been bleeding money since inconclusive elections this month, and the rise of a Marxist-Leninist leader bent on bustingBerlin'sausterity crusade, plunged the country into the biggest political crisis in decades and raised the specter of a devastating default.