VALLEJO -- Noelle's given birth in Afghanistan, California and dozens of points in between. She's a lifelike, pregnant robot used in increasing numbers of medical schools and hospital maternity wards.

Grant Heflebower lived his life through the care and love of his nurses. He suffered from blindness, cerebral palsy and seizures from the very day he was born. His intense situation required 24-hour care, but that didn't stop him from enjoying things like socializing and playing music.

Editor's note: This is the second in an occasional series in which Register outdoors columnist George Carl and his wife Andi Carl chronicle their experience as George goes through a bone marrow transplant.

Lately, I'm taking plenty of deep breaths to stay calm. I feel ready to hop on to this wild roller coaster ride with my eyes and ears wide open, but, once again, I have to admit it's frightening.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A black bear caught in a forest recreation area Sunday was being sent to a veterinary school to determine if it was the same animal that attacked a family, killing a 6-year-old girl.

SANTA ROSA -- Sonoma County supervisors on Tuesday will consider new animal control regulations, including microchipping and sterilization of dangerous animals, spaying and neutering of loose pit bulls and limiting the number of hours a dog can be chained in one place.

Some Napa children considered slow learners may actually suffer from a hidden disability -- poor vision.

PURCELL, Okla. -- The man accused of killing a 10-year-old neighbor girl for an elaborate plan to eat human flesh joked about cannibalism on his online diary, discussed the effects of not taking his anti-depression medication and mentioned "dangerously weird" fantasies.

VATICAN CITY -- In his first Easter message as pontiff, Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday urged nations to use diplomacy to defuse nuclear crises -- a clear reference to worries over Iran -- and prayed that Palestinians would one day have their own state alongside Israel.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Efforts to form a unity government suffered a new setback Sunday as Iraqi leaders postponed a parliament session after failing to agree on a prime minister. Bombs targeted Shiites near a mosque and on a bus as attacks nationwide killed at least 35 people.

TORONTO -- Canada confirmed a case of mad cow disease on Sunday at a farm in British Columbia -- the country's fifth case since May 2003, when the United States closed its border to Canadian beef.