Russian industrialist buys 9 Faberge eggs

NEW YORK -- A Russian industrialist privately purchased the Forbes collection of historic Faberge art pieces, including nine rare Imperial Easter Eggs, for an undisclosed sum and ahead of a scheduled auction. The eggs, all commissioned by Russian czars in the late 1800s, and more than 180 other Faberge pieces were bought by Victor Vekselberg, Sotheby's said yesterday. Sotheby's had estimated the entire collection at up to $90 million. (AP)

TEXAS

University takes step to lead Los Alamos lab

BROWNSVILLE -- The University of Texas took a first step yesterday toward pursuing a contract to manage the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The lab has been under University of California management since its inception some 60 years ago. (AP)

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Hiring leeway OK'd for religious groups

The House voted yesterday to extend a program that lets religious groups restrict employment to members of their faith in hiring for community programs financed by federal grants. Democrats failed to win approval of several amendments that would have ended the practice. The Bush administration threatened a veto of the Community Service Block Grant Act if it removed "the current hiring autonomy of religious organizations." (AP)

Ex-scientist criticizes EPA on sludge data

A former government scientist accused the Environmental Protection Agency yesterday of knowingly using unreliable data when it denied a petition to halt the use of sewage sludge for fertilizer. The microbiologist, David Lewis, testified at a House subcommittee hearing that the EPA used rejected data about sludge quality at two Georgia dairy farms. (AP)

KENTUCKY

Doctor says attempt to clone embryo failed

LEXINGTON -- A fertility doctor who claimed last month he had implanted a cloned embryo in a woman said yesterday that no pregnancy resulted from the attempt. Dr. Panayiotis Zavos said he will continue his efforts to produce cloned human embryos despite criticism. (AP)