Journal Newspapers

Major discoveries in medical science are the most elusive of events. Magical advances like penicillin and the Salk polio vaccine do appear. But, in fact, the so-called breakthrough is rare. No subject is a better example of the deliberate pace of medical research than spinal-cord injury, once considered a dead end for researchers. For years, doctors believed that damaged nerves in the spinal cord never grew back.

On Sept. 12, 20 Los Angeles civic leaders sent a letter to Tribune Co., owners of the Los Angeles Times. The letter, signed by former U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher and other prominent citizens, warned that continued cuts and staff reductions were threatening to erode the quality of journalism at The Times. The letter called on the company and its stockholders "to resist economic pressures to make additional cuts." On Monday, Tribune's chairman, Dennis J.