If you haven't tried the foie gras torchon at the Striped Bass or foie gras and fig empanadas at Alma de Cuba, your window of opportunity has just closed. Stephen Starr, owner of 11 of the city's premiere restaurants, has removed the French delicacy, a fattened duck or goose liver, from his Philadelphia menus due to what he has called "incredible amount of protest.

The Democrats' proposal to cut interest rates on federal need-based student loans will come to a vote next Wednesday in the House of Representatives.

Penn has accepted 29 percent of early applicants for the Class of 2011, a group that will make up about 48 percent of the total class. Last year, the University accepted 28 percent of its early applicants, and this year's slight rise in the acceptance rate comes in conjunction with a 2.

Restaurant nights, themed culinary dinners and visits from Philadelphia chefs are all on the menu this month. Despite mixed student opinions about previous marketing initiatives, Penn Dining has revealed a new series of programs designed to generate student interest in meal plans.

At a University where "global" has become an administrative buzzword, a globetrotting crime specialist will soon join the faculty.

Though students may be looking forward to using the weekend to relax at home or catch up on homework, the University is hoping that they will take some time this long weekend to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King - and it is offering several programs and activities for this purpose.

For the first time since 2001, The Daily Pennsylvanian will be led by a staffer from the business side of the newspaper.

A group of students gather in an open field, at either end of which stand three hula-hoops painted gold and attached to 2x4s. They are holding brooms between their legs, and one team wears capes with black-and-white spots. One person is dressed in yellow with a lumpy sock hanging out of his shorts - he's ready to run.

Experts say a third trial for Irina Malinovskaya is unlikely to win a conviction for the prosecution - and some even suggest that the defense will have a better chance at an acquittal.

History professors with passionate views aren't usually a problem - when it comes to the cause of the Civil War or the Industrial Revolution. But when it comes to politics, some people say opinionated professors may be crossing the line. During its annual meeting last weekend, the American Historical Association - made up of leading historians across the country - took political activism to a whole new level by voting on a resolution that urges its members to oppose the war in Iraq.

Heaps of cake, a Christmas tree bedecked with hand-painted ornaments, online messages and $1 million - these are just some of the gifts that continue to pour in for Kentucky Derby-winner Barbaro, who suffered a significant setback on his road to recovery on Tuesday night.

A recent NASA project has changed the way astronomers think about comets. Before an audience of about 60 people, composed mostly of academics, at the David Rittenhouse Laboratory yesterday afternoon, University of Arizona professor Jay Melosh discussed his role in NASA's Deep Impact mission to Comet Tempel 1 and its results.

College students are notorious for spending hours on their cell phones, stalking their friends on Facebook.com and sending multitudes of e-mails per night. But when it comes to using that technology for research, Educational Testing Services officials say that many students lack the necessary skills to take advantage of all that computers have to offer.

A month ago, a bunch of frat boys could have spent the evening at Smokey Joe's drinking beer and smoking Marlboros. Happy hour might have seen a 9-to-5-er puffing cigarettes as he drowned his sorrows.

Wharton alumna Judith Bollinger and her husband, William, have donated $6 million to the Wharton School, University officials announced yesterday. Half of the Bollingers' gift will be used to establish the Judith and William Bollinger Endowed Scholarship. It will be awarded to Wharton undergraduates, with a preference given to international students.

A new Web site is about to give the University bookstore a run for its money - or so it hopes. Betterthanthebookstore.com - created by two Penn undergraduates in the fall - is providing students with a forum where they can buy and sell used textbooks at relatively inexpensive prices.