Formula

It's down to Vettel versus Alonso, Red Bull versus Ferrari. Sebastian Vettel took a big step toward his third consecutive Formula One world championship Sunday with the Red Bull driver's third consecutive win, at the Korean Grand Prix on the Yeongam Circuit in South Korea. The victory vaulted the 25-year-old German to a six-point lead over Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, himself a two-time champion, who finished third Sunday, 14 seconds behind Vettel. Mark Webber, Red Bull's other driver, finished second.

When seven-time champion Michael Schumacher announced he would come out of retirement and rejoin Formula One with the Mercedes GP team in 2010, it electrified the sport. But Schumacher largely has struggled ever since he returned, and Thursday he confirmed what many expected: That the German driver would retire -- again -- after this season. "I can be happy with my performance and the fact that I was continuously raising my game," Schumacher, 43, said in a statement. "But then, at some point it is time to say goodbye.

Former champion Lewis Hamilton will move to Formula One's Mercedes team next year from McLaren, leaving seven-time champion Michael Schumacher without a confirmed ride in 2013. Separately, Formula One announced its 2013 schedule that includes two U.S. races: The inaugural Grand Prix of America at Port Imperial in New Jersey on June 16, and the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 17. Hamilton signed a three-year contract with Mercedes. The British driver, who won the 2008 championship, is fourth in this year's title standings.

Even The Man With No Name can change his mind, and a good thing too. Clint Eastwood told the world he was finished with acting after 2008's "Gran Torino," but "Trouble With the Curve" has lured him in front of the camera one more time. This amiable, old-fashioned film is no world-beater, but it underlines why, appearances with empty chairs excepted, it is always a pleasure to see this man on the screen. Eastwood plays Gus Lobel, a venerable scout for the Atlanta Braves baseball team who finds it increasingly difficult to mask the creeping ravages of age. Gus is a cantankerous coot who trips over furniture, has urinary problems and mutters "I don't need easier" whenever anyone makes the mistake of trying to help him out. It is not only the 82-year-old Eastwood's gift for making acting look relaxed and natural that stands out here, it is how unusual it is for Hollywood to place someone with more lines than the DMV front and center in a major motion picture.

I was disturbed but not surprised to read that central to retiring California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed's " new Master Plan ," as he wrote in his Times Op-Ed article last Tuesday, is a push for "year-round, online" education. As a full-time professor at Cal State Northridge, I am getting a bit worn out by this push (or should I say "shove"). What bothers me most about Reed's promotion of online education as part of the state's Master Plan for Higher Education is his absolute lack of candor.

The Galaxy has been the best team in Major League Soccer over the last two months. On Friday it got better, adding Swedish midfielder Christian Wilhelmsson. And Wilhelmsson needed little more than a half to make his presence felt, scoring his first MLS goal in the 58th minute of a 2-0 win over the Colorado Rapids before an announced crowd of 20,204 at the Home Depot Center. Robbie Keane got the other goal, scoring in the opening half. Then in what has become a familiar pattern, the Galaxy turned the game over its defense, which posted its third consecutive shutout and fourth in five games - thanks in large part to midfielder Marcelo Sarvas' sliding save of Conor Casey's shot at an open net in the 79th minute.

Child welfare agencies call them the "milk ladies. " For nearly 30 years, the women have trekked the Chicago area dropping off cases of brand-name baby formula for mothers who can't afford to feed their infants. The original eight women have been friends for years, gathering once a month to rehash high school memories and share stories about their own children while making the deliveries. Now, the founders are joined by their daughters and relatives. Together, they have raised $2.6 million through donations and grants.

NEW YORK - Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman's debut feature, the offbeat comic book adaptation "American Splendor," was greeted with so much success when it came out in 2003 that the filmmaking duo couldn't imagine things going any other way. "We had this level of delusion that a lot of first-time filmmakers have but maybe multiplied because of the reception," Pulcini said of the Paul Giamatti movie, which HBO's film division allowed them...

At first glance, it seems innocent enough that Diet Pepsi is tweaking its formula to stay sweet a little while longer. The soda's current sweetener -- aspartame -- loses its potency faster than high fructose corn syrup, the sweetener that's used in most regular sodas. To remedy that, PepsiCo is reportedly experimenting with other sweetener mixes. A new-and-improved version could be unveiled next year. The company told the Associated Press that it's "always looking at ways to provide the best consumer experience.

The Los Angeles Unified School District has been carrying out one of the biggest construction projects in U.S. history -- second only, as a public works project, to the creation of the nation's interstate highway system -- using billions of dollars in bond funds to build well over 100 new schools and relieve cramped, aging campuses. Twenty new schools are opening this week with the start of the school year. Now a study out of UC Berkeley finds that this massive effort is yielding (pardon the pun)