Nation briefs 7/29/05

Scientists find oldest dinosaur embryos

WASHINGTON -- Scientists have uncovered the oldest dinosaur embryos ever found, dating to the beginning of the Jurassic age 190 million years ago. The find is helping them understand the development of a plant-eating giant called Massospondylus carinatus. The find enables research-ers to study the animal's growth and development because they now can compare skeletons at different ages. The dinosaur eggs were discovered in South Africa in 1978, but had not come under study until three years ago.

Troops returning from Iraq develop stress-related ills

WASHINGTON -- Thirty percent of U.S. troops returning from the Iraq war have developed stress-related mental health problems three to four months after coming home, the Army's surgeon general said Thursday. The problems include anxiety, depression, nightmares, anger and an inability to concentrate, said Lt. Gen. Kevin Kiley and other military medical officials. A smaller number of troops, often with more severe symptoms, were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorde.. Soldiers are typically given a health evaluation as they leave combat, but the Army is only now instituting a program for follow-up screenings three to six months later, said Kiley.

Divers look for toddler who flew out of SUV window

GARY, Ind. -- Rescuers searched a river Thursday for a 2-year-old girl who flew out the window of her mother's sport utility vehicle and plunged 40 feet into the water after her mother lost control of the vehicle. Divers looked for Jatama Greene in the Grand Calumet River in an industrial area near the Chicago/Gary Airport, close to railroad track abutments where the water was coated with moss, algae and debris. Fire chief Mark Everett said the divers had little hope Jatama would be found alive, although witnesses said the toddler was moving after she struck the water.

-- From wire reports