Elite colleges transform online higher education with free, worldwide reach

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - When the Massachusetts Institute of Technology offered its first free online course this spring, Ashwith Rego jumped at the chance to learn from some of the world's leading researchers - without leaving his home in India.

Red flag warnings have firefighters on high alert thanks to dry Sierra lightning

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Forecasters predicted another day of thunderstorms producing lightning but dropping little rain, which put firefighters in California on high alert again Sunday as crews lost ground on an expanding wildfire in the Plumas National Forest.

Bill seeks to tighten assault weapons law

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Legislation that has the backing of California's attorney general would close a loophole in the nation's toughest assault weapons law, making it more difficult for guns to be swiftly reloaded with high-capacity magazines.

Officer who revealed corruption gets job back

BELL (AP) - A police sergeant from the city of Bell who was forced to retire after reporting corruption in local government has been given his job back, along with a $400,000 settlement.

Boy Scout files reveal repeat child abuse

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Internal documents from the Boy Scouts of America reveal more than 125 cases in which men suspected of molestation allegedly continued to abuse Scouts, despite a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators.

State news briefs

• SUV plummets from SD mall parking garage : SAN DIEGO (AP) - A woman was injured when an SUV crashed through a barrier and plummeted three stories from a parking structure at a San Diego County mall, landing on its roof onto two parked cars.

Yosemite’s lost valley will be subject of vote in San Francsico

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK (AP) - This fall San Franciscans will vote on a local measure with national implications: It could return to the American people a flooded gorge described as the twin of breathtaking Yosemite Valley.

Lightning storms this weekend raise Sierra Nevada fire danger

SONORA, Calif. (AP) - A series of dry lightning storms could spark wildfires throughout the Sierra Nevada mountains this weekend, officials warned Friday. The National Weather Service has issued a fire weather watch starting Saturday for the parched mountains between the Sonora Pass and the Oregon border. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said the agency ...

Illegals to pay $465 for temporary work permits

USDA: Number of farmers markets up due to demand

Bay Area briefs

AUTHORITIES FIND GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE CLIMBER: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The search for a man who apparently spent the night atop San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge is over.

Report: Mad cow in Hanford is documented as isolated case

Special funds: No more deceptions

Nurses union gives Brown tax initiative campaign on November ballot $1 million

Pepper spray incident officer fired

DAVIS (AP) - The police chief at the University of California, Davis, overruled an internal affairs panel's recommendation and fired a lieutenant who soaked demonstrators with pepper spray - an incident that sparked protests after it was recorded and posted online, according to documents obtained by a newspaper. The Sacramento Bee reports that investigators concluded Lt. John Pike acted reasonably during the ...

Bay Area briefs

NO BACKPACKS ALLOWED AT 2013 BAY TO BREAKERS IN SF: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - No backpacks, large bags or containers will be allowed at this year's Bay to Breakers footrace in San Francisco as officials heighten security in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings.

Vulnerable inmates ordered out of 2 Central Valley prisons

Nesting swallows could delay Petaluma bridge work

State news briefs

SANTA CLARA THREATENS AMBULANCE TERMINATION: SAN JOSE. (AP) - Santa Clara County officials are threatening to terminate the contract of an ambulance company that they say has repeatedly responded too slowly to emergencies.

Killer on the loose: Valley Springs on lockdown

Lawmakers consider moratorium on oil fracking in San Joaquin Valley

3 divers killed over weekend abalone diving off California