NATIONAL BRIEFS

MIAMI: Super Bowl security tweaked

The massive, multimillion-dollar security operations for the Super Bowl and Winter Olympics are being adjusted in light of recent breaches such as the attempted Christmas Day bombing of an airliner and the White House gate-crashers. Sports and government officials say such lapses, in which individuals got past guards on the ground, are leading to increased screening efforts at major upcoming events, including the NFL championship game between the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints in Miami next Sunday, and the Vancouver Games starting Feb. 12. Part of the $6 million or so the NFL spends each year for Super Bowl security - on top of tax dollars spent by the government - has been devoted to what an NFL official called "several hours of extra training" for screeners by the Secret Service and the Transportation Security Administration. Meanwhile, Royal Canadian Mounted Police Cpl. Bert Paquet, a spokesman for the Olympics security task force, acknowledged that the failed bombing prompted intensive reassessments.

WASHINGTON: Nuclear energy shift aimed at GOP

President Barack Obama is endorsing nuclear energy like never before, trying to win over Republicans and moderate Democrats on climate and energy legislation. He singled out nuclear power in his State of the Union address, and his spending plan for the next budget year is expected to include billions of more dollars in federal guarantees for new nuclear reactors. This emphasis reflects both the political difficulties of passing a climate bill in an election year and a shift from his cautious embrace of nuclear energy. He's now calling for a new generation of nuclear power plants. Energy Secretary Steven Chu has been criticized for his slow rollout of $18.5 billion in loan guarantees to spur investment in new nuclear power plants.

NATION: Amazon gives into e-book prices

Amazon.com says it will give in to publishing giant Macmillan and agree to sell electronic versions of its books even at prices it considers too high. Saturday, Amazon had pulled Macmillan titles in a surprising reaction to the publisher's new e-books pricing model, which begins in March. Amazon told customers in a posting on its online Kindle Forum on Sunday that it "expressed our strong disagreement" with Macmillan's determination to charge higher prices. Under Macmillan's model, e-books will be priced from $12.99 to $14.99 when first released and prices will change over time. "We are in discussions with Amazon about how to resolve our differences," Macmillan chief executive John Sargent told AP yesterday. He declined to comment further.