National

Lots of New England towns have taken non-binding votes against tar sands oil, but residents of South Portland, Maine, are about to take a vote that could matter. They are considering an ordinance designed to prevent their port from being used to export tar sands to world markets via an existing pipeline that connects Maine to Montreal.

The state says the for-profit agency is not licensed to operate in the state. The agency has said that because its online ads don't originate in Illinois, it is not bound by the state's law. Still, the move could test the Internet's expanding reach in this sensitive area.

For Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee, the big question was not why isn't the HealthCare.gov website working. It was why are people being told their insurance is being cancelled when President Obama said they can keep it, no matter what. Administration officials said the new coverage will be better.

Several cases around the country have striking similarities: teenagers accused of sexual assault, followed by cyberbullying of the victims. Seeking answers is like navigating a minefield of nuance, and narrowing in on teens may be the wrong approach in the first place.

After yet more problems over the weekend, HealthCare.gov, the federal site for people to buy insurance through the Affordable Care Act, seems to be making incremental improvements. Probably the best news on the health care front is that premiums for Medicare will not increase next year.

Researchers are still learning about the effects of touch-screens on kids. But scientists say that certain kinds of screen time, involving interaction with other people, can help youngsters learn.

In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, many people created lists to try to recover some of what was swept away. A year later, Jersey shore residents are still reflecting on what they lost during the storm — and what they might have gained.

As the cuts made under the sequester continue, scientists worry that U.S. research will fall behind. Budget cuts already are delaying plans for equipment upgrades and preventing new research — and a new generation of researchers — from getting underway.

Twenty years ago, federal agents clashed with David Koresh's Branch Davidian community near Waco, Texas. The standoff ended with a raid and fire in which some 80 children, women and men perished. It's remembered as one of the darkest chapters in American law enforcement.

Relatively few people have enrolled in new health insurance plans since the Affordable Care Act exchanges launched this month. But some health care experts say it's early days yet — and that getting the right proportion of healthy, young new enrollees is just as important as how quickly people sign up.