National News London resident and author, Emma Donoghue, has been placed on the short list of finalists for the Man Booker Prize for her recent book, room. The book was inspired by the story of Elisabeth Fritzl of Austria. Fritzl was held captive in her father's basement for 24 years, and during that time was raped by him and bore seven children. Donoghue's book is from the point of view of a boy named Jack who had spent his life in an 11-by-11-foot garden shed with his mother, kept there by her father who raped her. The book follows the boy's life as he and his mother eventually escape and how he deals with seeing life outside the shed.

Canadian women still earn less than men do — less than two-thirds, reported the Education Indicators in Canada. Despite doing better than men in academics, Canada is still behind in ensuring women earn equal pay. Reasons behind this include women still feeling responsible for childcare and the country's poor parental benefits, which means many women work part-time.

A man in the Greater Sudbury area faces two charges of aggravated sexual assault after having unprotected sex with two women. On September 1, the Greater Sudbury Police received separate complaints from two women who had had intimate relations with 26-year-old Micheil McLean, not knowing he was HIV-positive. He was charged because he had unprotected sex with both women, knowing he was infected and not disclosing his illness, and therefore jeopardizing their health and safety.

International News
The 33 Chilean miners trapped a kilometre underground in the San Jose mine since August 5 are experiencing skin infections due to the heat and humidity. The men have suffered from skin sores, fungi and abrasions. In the mine's environment, these usually minor conditions have no way to dry out, and may lead to serious infections. Earlier this week, rescuers sent down antibiotics and ointments to combat the infections, and attempted to blast cool, dry air to the mine.

Green tea-flavoured beverages are not as healthy as they seem. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued warnings to Canada Dry ginger ale and Lipton tea for making unsubstantiated claims about the health benefits of their flavoured drinks. The Toronto Star reported the ingredients in Canada Dry's product “are not nutrients with recognized antioxidant activity” in the FDA's regulations. The agency gave the companies' executives 15 days to respond to the warnings and to construct a plan to address and remedy the problems. The nutrient-enriched beverage industry is worth billions of dollars.

Saturday, September 11 marks the ninth anniversary of the World Trade Centre attacks. Memorial services will be held across Canada and the United States to honour the 2,819 people that died. Fanshawe's paramedic students will be delivering breakfast to local paramedics and 911 call centre workers in honour of those that risked and lost their lives nine years ago.

Files compiled by Jessica Ireland and Erika Faust