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This year's Mardi Gras was necessary for New Orleanians to rouse themselves from their post-Katrina funk, says Crescent City resident Chris Rose. But now that the revelry has faded, residents must once again turn to the long, hard task of reclaiming their city, and their heritage.

The human spine is an elegant piece of architecture. But by middle age most people have spinal degeneration. Eight out of 10 people will suffer back pain at some point.

One of New Orleans' best-known native sons, the piano professor Mac Rebennack, a.k.a. Dr. John, was back in town for Mardi Gras this week. In a tour of devastated neighborhoods, he expresses fear that the city's unique grassroots culture has been uprooted.

The smaller-than-normal crowds at Mardi Gras this week symbolize the lingering impact of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans' economy. The city's hotels are struggling to recover, but a shortage of workers is hampering their comeback.

Under intense security, President Bush arrives in Pakistan, where he is greeted with violent protests. Bush will meet with President Pervez Musharraf on Saturday. The newly announced nuclear agreement with Pakistan's neighbor, India, could affect Musharraf's cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

An eclectic range of influences is at the heart of Latin Alternative, a music created by young players who have been raised not only on their parents' music but also on rock, hip-hop and electronica. It represents a sonic shift away from regionalism and points to a new global Latin identity.

Clifford Odets, remembered as the defining American playwright of the 1930s, would have turned 100 this year. His works -- including Waiting for Lefty, Awake and Sing and Golden Boy brought social realism to the stage. Many companies around the country are staging his plays.

On Christmas Eve, 1945, the Sodder family of Fayetteville, W.V., lost five children in a fire. Strange events that night and afterward fueled speculation, which continues to this day, that the children may have been kidnapped or murdered.

Many American soldiers spending the holiday on duty in Mosul are watching with detachment as the war in Iraq is debated back home. But some say they are a bit frustrated by calls for a swift pullout of troops.

A gunman murders a pro-rebel member of the Sri Lankan parliament in a church during midnight Mass. The attack is the latest in a string of incidents that has heightened tensions between the government and Tamil Tiger rebels, and threatens to revive a civil war.