Fuel Consumption

Up to half the aircraft that land at Los Angeles International Airport each day now use an arrival technique that saves fuel and reduces noise and air pollution in neighborhoods along the eastern approaches to the nation's fourth-largest airport, the Federal Aviation Administration has announced. Officials said Thursday that the technique also increases the safety of landings, one of the most critical phases of a flight.

Tighter credit, depleted retirement savings and environmental concerns are among the forces reshaping the U.S. auto market into something that looks more like Europe and the rest of the world -- where people buy smaller, more efficient cars and hold on to them longer. Although every automaker is feeling the pressure, Chrysler, which filed for bankruptcy protection Thursday, and General Motors, which is on the road to taxpayer ownership, have been sideswiped hardest by careening change.