Prime Minister Gordon Brown has revealed details of a programme to create 100,000 jobs as part of a new initiative to curb rising unemployment.

Mr Brown told The Observer of a programme of investment in new technologies and green projects.

He said improving the environment was part of the solution to the recession.

The government plans to bring forward £10bn of spending on public works, digital technology and environmental projects to create new jobs.

Investments will be made in eco-friendly projects such as electric cars and wind and wave power, which will create jobs.

Some 30,000 jobs are to be created in school repairs, in an attempt to help private construction firms who have suffered in the economic downturn.

Mr Brown also claimed his plans would be bigger than the multi-billion dollar "Green New Deal" planned by US president-elect Barack Obama.

"I want to show how we will be able, through public investments and public works, to create probably 100,000 additional jobs over the next period of time in our capital investment programme - schools, hospitals, environmental work and infrastructure, transport," Mr Brown said.

"We are not going to stand by and allow nothing to be done when people are facing difficulties."

Nationwide tour

But the prime minister also played down the likelihood of a further bailout for the banks, saying it is not the first thing on any agenda.

He is touring the country this week before a jobs summit involving government, business and unions, and says a further expansion of apprenticeships is also planned.

Mr Brown confirms the government is looking at ways to boost bank lending.

BBC political correspondent Carole Walker says with unemployment at its highest level for more than a decade and many workers facing an uncertain future, Mr Brown is keen to demonstrate a new focus on the problem.

But putting more taxpayers money into the banks would be politically risky, our correspondent added.

The Conservatives say another bailout would be an admission that the government's approach to the recession is not working.

Former Tory cabinet minister Michael Portillo remained unconvinced by the proposals.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Some things he's bringing forward but other things he's putting back.

"For example, two aircraft carriers have been put back a couple of years and people will know that they're very labour-intensive.

"And also of course, if these things are being brought forward that means either that taxes have to be higher or borrowing has to be higher, and both of those are bad for economic confidence and they destroy jobs elsewhere."

Between October and March, the following scene plays out in workplaces across the country.

Employee 1: "I think I'm coming down with something."
Employee 2: "Yeah, something's been going around. Everyone's got it."

Never mind how annoying it is that something's always going around, thereby robbing you of much-needed sympathy. Every flu season it does seem that at least one employee comes down with something and, by spring, everyone will have suffered from it.

Did you ever wonder why no one can seem to shake that ailment? One big reason is the constant stream of under-the-weather employees reporting to work. Yes, punctual, dependable colleagues are making you sick.

In fall and winter, expect to hear a symphony of sniffles, sneezes and groans from employees who refuse to stay home. At first you might admire their tenacity to get the job done despite their own health. Then you realize their presence might make you and everyone else feel just as bad in a few days -- suddenly they're not so admirable.

They'll be better off without you ... really
Employees have several reasons to go into work even if they're sick: a limited amount of personal days, a big project to finish, unpaid sick leave or the desire not to let down co-workers. In some instances, when you weigh the pros and cons of going into work, you might decide to clock in and hope for the best. These instances are probably rarer than you think.

Tania Hall works for 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, a service that removes unwanted items from people's homes. Although the company doesn't have an explicit policy on sick employees coming into the office, the prevailing attitude is that germs belong at home, not at the office. As bad as one sick employee is, an empty office is even worse.

"The biggest problem is when a person comes to work sick and others in that same department catch it -- if there are only three of you in a small, though important, department and you're all away, it's a concern," she says.

Camille McCaleb, vice president of operations and human resources at Creative Business Resources, cautions sick workers to think about their reputations when they groggily march into work, determined to get the job done.

"[If you're] working from home while sick [and] trying to stay on top of pressing issues, [then] making phone calls, logging in to respond to e-mails or checking voice mails could be viewed as admirable," McCaleb explains. But showing up with a runny nose and puffy eyes? "A walking germ fest."

Explore your options
Of course, simply staying home isn't an easy option for many workers. Physicians, construction workers and retail salespeople can't do their jobs from home, and during a busy season, their absence affects many people.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, ask yourself if you can perform your duties without negatively impacting others. If you come in contact with a constant stream of customers, clients or patients, you're not only exposing them to illness but you're also presenting yourself as a red-nosed, coughing representative of your business -- an image your employer probably doesn't want.

"If you're contagious, stay home," begs Mike Gugliociello, a senior account executive for The Sherry Group.

Also, from a health standpoint, can your body afford to keep working without some down time? Sick leave is a chance to sleep and rest, not just an opportunity to lie in bed pondering how scientists got moisturizer into the tissues. If your body suffers, then your job probably suffers, and you're back to harming the business and your own career.

Five parents whose children were sickened by tainted milk have been released by Chinese police after being detained for a day in an apparent move to prevent them from meeting with journalists, a lawyer said Saturday.

The parents were unhappy about a compensation plan made public this week, saying the amounts were too low and the plan was formulated without any input from families.

A group of about 10 parents planned to meet with journalists Friday. But five of the parents, including organizer Zhao Lianhai, were detained Thursday and held at a convention center, said Beijing attorney Xu Zhiyong.

They were released Friday evening after other parents who were not detained managed to meet with a few journalists, said Xu, who is part of a legal team representing 63 families with sickened children.

Zhao, who has a 3-year-old child who fell ill but has since recovered, organized other parents and created a Web site about the contamination, said Li Fangping, another lawyer for some of the parents.

Zhao could not be reached for comment.

Police did not give a specific reason for the detention, Xu said, but he thought it was to prevent the meeting with reporters.

The Communist government, which seeks to control what the public sees and hears, frequently suppresses comments about disasters. Phones in the Beijing police information department rang unanswered Saturday, a public holiday.

Dairies announced details of a 1.1 billion yuan ($160 million) compensation plan this week as at least 17 people went on trial for the contamination that killed at least six children and sickened nearly 300,000 others. The milk contained melamine, an industrial chemical that can cause kidney stones and kidney failure.

The parents "said the compensation was unilaterally set by the companies with no participation from victims' families," Li said. "They thought the amount of compensation was quite low."

Under the plan, families whose children died would receive 200,000 yuan ($29,000), while others would receive 30,000 yuan ($4,380) for serious cases of kidney stones and 2,000 yuan ($290) for less severe cases, according to state media.

Another 200 million yuan ($29 million) would go to a fund to cover bills for lingering health problems.

The scandal has battered China's reputation and set back government efforts to restore confidence in the safety of its products following warnings and recalls abroad about toxic or faulty goods.

Dairy suppliers added melamine, which like protein is rich in nitrogen, to watered-down milk to fool quality tests for protein content. Melamine is used to make plastics and fertilizer and is banned in food in China.

An independent report on American higher education flunks all but one state when it comes to affordability -- an embarrassing verdict that is unlikely to improve as the economy contracts.

The biennial study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, which evaluates how well higher education is serving the public, handed out F's for affordability to 49 states, up from 43 two years ago. Only California received a passing grade in the category, a C, thanks to its relatively inexpensive community colleges.

The report card uses a range of measurements to give states grades, from A to F, on the performance of their public and private colleges. The affordability grade is based on how much of the average family's income it costs to go to college.

Almost everywhere, that figure is up, according to the survey. Only two states -- New York and Tennessee -- have made even minimal improvements since 2000, but they're still considered to be failing. Everywhere else, families must fork over a greater percentage of their income to pay for college. In Illinois, the average cost of attending a public four-year college has jumped from 19 percent of a family's income in 1999-2000 to 35 percent in 2007-2008, and in Pennsylvania, from 29 percent to 41 percent.

Low-income families have been hardest hit. Nationally, enrollment at a local public college costs families in the top fifth of income just 9 percent of their earnings, while families from the bottom fifth pay 55 percent -- up from 39 percent in 1999-2000.

And that's after accounting for financial aid, which is increasingly being used to lure high-achieving students who boost a school's reputation but who don't need help to go to college.

The problem seems likely to worsen as the economy does, says Patrick Callan, the center's president.

Historically during downturns, "states make disproportionate cuts in higher education and, in return for the colleges taking them gracefully, allow them to raise tuition," Callan says. "If we handle this recession like we've handled others, we will see that this gets worse."

Scott Cristal of Columbia, Mo., said he wasn't surprised by the study's findings. Cristal, who has sent two daughters to college and has another two yet to pay for, says that he is trying to expand his business to help pay the tuition bills, but that it has been hard because of the slowing economy.

"We're going to play it by ear, be optimistic, hope for the best and just ride it out as best we can," Cristal says. "I think that's what everybody in America's doing right now."

States fared modestly better in other categories such as participation, where no state failed and about half the states earned A's or B's -- comparable to the report two years ago. One reason for the uptick is that more students are taking rigorous college-prep courses, the study found. In Texas, for instance, the percentage of high schoolers taking at least one upper-level science course has nearly tripled from 20 percent to 56 percent.

But better preparation for college hasn't translated into better enrollment or completion, with only two states -- Arizona and Iowa -- receiving an A for participation in higher education.

And the discrepancy in enrollment between states is still great: 44 percent of young Iowans are in college, while just 18 percent of their counterparts in Alaska -- one of three states to get an F in the category -- are enrolled.

Callan said the United States is at best standing still while other countries pass it in areas like college enrollment and completion. And as higher education fails to keep up with population growth, the specter lurks of new generations less educated than their Baby Boomer predecessors.

"The educational strength of the American population is in the group that's about to retire," Callan says. "In the rest of the world it's the group that's gone to college since 1990."

American job titles and responsibilities are constantly morphing to suit the economic and cultural transitions of our madcap age. Euphemisms are often the way recruiters dress up old job titles to narrow the field to specialists. A "hash slinger" is now termed a "culinary resource professional." Kidding aside, today's workers are often forced by marketplace realities to undergo at least one rapid job change over their adult lives. Many enroll at online colleges and trade schools to garner fresh skills that fit their experience and previous training.
Some of these hot new careers you may have never heard of are "green-collar" jobs. These jobs are on the rise as the business world responds to dramatic increases in energy costs and environmental regulation. And while disposable income seems threatened by a roller-coaster economy, other new careers are springing up to suit those who have cash to spend.

Here are six hot career fields you may not have heard of:

Eco Tourism Director

Traditional hospitality careers are increasingly marching to the ecotourism drumbeat. According to the International Ecotourism Society, ecotourism is growing at three times the rate of traditional vacationing, increasing annually up to 30 percent. If you're just preparing for the field, seek an associate's degree in hospitality, travel, or tourism. If you're already aboard, why not train to manage a hotel, bed and breakfast, spa, or resort with a graduate degree in business or hospitality? The majority of lodging managers are self-employed professionals. Top earners in 2007 averaged $83,240 for the year.

Professional Hacker

Ever hear of a certified ethical hacker? That's the professional IT certification for a computer scientist that works as a security specialist, forensic investigator, or network defense architect for corporations, the government, and law enforcement agencies to help prevent hacking or to track down perpetrators. To get into the field, you'll need more than the hacking skills you tweaked together in your garage. Begin by earning a bachelor's degree in computer science or information technology. You can get additional online college training in network security. The top 50 percent of computer scientists earned between $97,970 and $123,900 in 2007.

Pet Psychologist

Don't be so shocked. Even Sparky sometimes needs help to keep from gnawing through the neighbor's bed of prized roses. Once the local vet has ruled out physical ailments that can contribute to rude pet behavior, people who love their animals may need to call in a trained, certified behaviorist or pet psychologist. As with human patients, pets can be analyzed and taught to act contrary to destructive impulses. There are even certified applied animal behaviorists. To get into the field, you'll need a master's or doctorate degree in psychology, preferably with additional work in zoology and animal behavior. Salaries vary greatly by locale, but can be upwards of $90,000 a year.

Conservation Consultant

There are companies who are greatly concerned with increasing energy efficiency. And there are those with a conscience, striving to reduce their carbon footprint. When Yahoo! decided to go carbon-neutral by 2007, they hired a director of energy strategy and climate change. Combine your thirst for conservation with an engineering degree to prepare for this thriving field. The U.S. Labor Department predicts a hefty 25 percent increase in environmental engineers during the 2006-2016 decade. In 2007, the top 50 percent earned between $70,000 and $106,000.

Fashion Consultant/Personal Shopper

Among those who care about their appearance, many are born with amazing taste; some have to work for it. Fashion designers and consultants help those who can afford personal attention to transform their image. You can be the one to consult on hair, makeup, and fashion--and then be the one to take your clients shopping. Get career training through an associate's or bachelor's degree program in fashion design. Top earners in the fashion design trades in 2007 took home $121,640 on average.

Mobile Experience Architect

The cool streaming videos and eye-popping CD covers that get delivered to the screens of millions of cell phones and PDAs each hour are designed to make you spend money. Information architects create the structure and mind-manipulating patterns (site maps) of each mobile delivery. You'll need to learn about marketing, strategy, and user testing through a degree program in computer science, Web design, or business. There's even an IT certification for professional mobile architects. Salaries range into six figures.

As our world rapidly evolves, it's no surprise that the work landscape is evolving as well. You can prepare for and keep up with the changes by updating your training and credentials.

Were an alien to pick up our news channels, it would conclude that human civilization depended on the production and purchase of cheap plastic rubbish. First came the concern that we might talk ourselves into not spending enough, then the fear that the banks wouldn't lend us the money to spend even if we wanted to. In November, our governments borrowed money and gave it to us in the hope that we'd catch on. Are we really so dependent on consumption?

In the short run, yes. Economists worry about a sharp fall in consumer spending, because when demand for goods falls, so does demand for labor. Our desire to spend less is quickly revealed as a desire to spend less hiring each other (and our friends in China) to make things. Result: economic collapse, unemployment, misery.

In the long run, the picture is completely different. We earn—this is a very rough average—twice what our parents did when they were our age. When today's teenagers are in their 40s, there is no reason why they shouldn't decide to enjoy their increased prosperity by working less instead of earning more. Rather than being twice as rich as their parents, they could be no richer but start their weekends on Wednesday afternoon.

If this were a gradual process, mass unemployment would not result. People would simply earn less, spend less, wear a few more secondhand clothes, and spend more time reading or going for walks.

This would be perfectly possible. We are rich enough already. Even the Chinese might cope: They already devote much of their economy to making things for each other.

Here's the big question of the season, then: Why don't we do as countless moralists urge every year and focus less on money and more on leisure (or spiritual concerns, if you must)? Why haven't we all decided to work less, spend less, and consume less?

There is an anti-consumer movement with a ready answer: We're helpless, enthralled by advertisers and hooked on shopping. I've always had a slightly more optimistic view of human autonomy.

A more convincing answer is that we work hard because income is linked to our desire for status, which is collectively insatiable, because status is largely relative. A famous survey by economists Sara Solnick and David Hemenway found that many Harvard students (although few Harvard staff members) would rather have an income of $50,000 in a world where most people were poorer than an income of $100,000 in a world where most people were richer. The survey has arguably been overinterpreted in the 10 years since it was published, but it does seem to point to an important truth: It matters to us how much money other people have.

When it comes to leisure, positional concerns seem to matter less. Perhaps that is because leisure is not closely linked to status—anyone can enjoy leisure by walking out of his job. It is hard to imagine many people preferring four weeks of annual vacation in a world where most people have less to eight weeks of vacation in a world where most people have more.

This may be part of the story. The other part is that we do have more leisure. According to economists Mark Aguiar and Erik Hurst, leisure time for women has increased by at least four hours a week since 1965. Men have done even better. That may well understate the leisure gains. A hundred years ago, many people would start working at the age of 10 or 12 and work until they died. Now it is common to spend fewer than half our years working; the rest of the time we spend studying, traveling, and in retirement.

"work less, spend less" movement is winning. It's a shame it hasn't noticed.

Michael Phelps accomplished the greatest individual feat in Olympic Games history by winning a record eight golds in Beijing. In competing with the most-searched athletes of 2008, though, the American swimmer couldn't even make it onto the medal stand.

Surprisingly, in a sporting year highlighted by the three-week summer spectacle in China, the top three spots were occupied by non-Olympians: Maria Sharapova, Gina Carano and Danica Patrick. Sure, sex appeal was a factor in their popularity, but these athletes were more than just pretty faces.

In January, Sharapova captured her third Grand Slam tennis title at the Australian Open and held the No. 1 ranking going into the French Open before suffering a shoulder injury that forced her to miss the Olympics and the U.S. Open. In April, Patrick became the first woman to win an IndyCar race when she passed up a late pit stop for fuel to outsmart the field at the Indy Japan 300.

Carano's sudden emergence mirrored the rapid rise of mixed martial arts. The sport's growing popularity led to mainstream acceptance in 2008 and to its network television debut (in prime time no less) on CBS, whose executives hyped their broadcasts with Kimbo Slice, the street-fighting YouTube sensation. The fighter who ended up stealing both of CBS's shows was Carano, whose girl-next-door looks belied her devastating fight skills demonstratedd in two highly entertaining victories.

Athletic achievements weren't the main reason why Olympian heartthrobs Amanda Beard and Leryn Franco as well as golfer Natalie Gulbis got more than their share of attention on the Web. Beard didn't come close to medaling in Beijing, but the U.S. swimmer did land a spot in People's 100 Most Beautiful list. Franco, a javelin thrower from Paraguay and a beauty pageant runner-up, won the hearts of many admirers despite finishing 51st at the Olympics. Gulbis, the glamour girl of women's golf, generated more interest with her off-the-course endeavors including a gig on the upcoming "Celebrity Apprentice."

Continuing this theme of beauty, the beautiful game of soccer placed two of its biggest names in the athlete searches' top 10. Cristiano Ronaldo scored 42 goals to help the world's most popular soccer club, Manchester United, win the championships of England and Europe and earned the continent's player of the year award. Former Man United standout David Beckham proved his star power by rounding out the list despite a disappointing season with the Los Angeles Galaxy. He managed to keep himself in the soccer spotlight by joining England's exclusive club of players who've made 100 national team appearances.

No athletic effort captured the public's fascination quite like Phelps' pursuit of Mark Spitz's record of seven golds in one Olympics. Dramatic victories in the 400-meter relay and 100 butterfly further cemented Phelps' legend, but despite being a familiar face to Olympic viewers (he won six golds four years ago in Athens), users were still curious about the Baltimore native, searching for information about his age, salary, well-documented diet and double-jointed arms as well as details about his personal life, namely his father absent from the Beijing scene and dating status.

With seven world records, Phelps looked good in surpassing Spitz's 36-year-old mark. He just didn't look that good to get the Search top spot.

The box of crackers Debra Rogoff bought from the grocery store had some crackerjack in it — an envelope stuffed with $10,000.

Yet the Irvine woman was more curious than ecstatic about her daughter's find. After all, who would leave money in such a place?

"We just thought, 'This is someone's money,'" she said. "We would never feel good about spending it."

Rather than go on a shopping spree, the family called police and was initially told the money could be part of a drug drop.

Police later heard from store managers at Whole Foods in Tustin that an elderly woman had come in a few days earlier, hysterical because she had mistakenly returned a box of crackers with her life savings inside. In a mix-up the store restocked the box rather than composting it.

The Lake Forest woman, whose identity was not released, had lost faith in her bank and decided the box would be a safer place for the money.

Luckily for her, the box of Annie's Sour Cream and Onion Cheddar Bunny crackers were bought by the Rogoffs, who discovered the crisp $100 bills in an unmarked white envelope on Oct. 10.

The Rogoffs never heard from the woman and didn't receive a reward, but Rogoff did return to Whole Foods a couple weeks later.

"I asked them if I could have another box of crackers," she said with a laugh. The store obliged.

A survivor of a horrific shooting at a Christmas Eve party frantically begged an emergency dispatcher for help as she hid in a neighbor's house, her daughter wailing in the background with a gunshot wound to the face, according to a 911 tape released by police Friday.

"He's still shooting out there," the woman sobbed, describing how her ex-brother-in-law was armed and dressed in a Santa suit. "He's shooting my whole family! My mom's house is on fire!"

The tape was released two days after Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, armed with four guns and a fuel-spraying device, killed nine people at his ex-wife's parents' home during a holiday party in Covina. He later killed himself at his brother's home, police said.

The caller was at the party but escaped to a nearby home after Pardo barged in and opened fire. She told the dispatcher her name was Leticia, but her last name could not be heard through her sobs on the noisy 11-minute tape.

"I have a feeling I know who it is," she said, and identified the shooter as her former brother-in-law. "They're going through a divorce right now."

She told the dispatcher that Pardo came to the door dressed in a Santa Claus suit, started shooting and "everyone started panicking and running," diving under the dining room table to hide.

Asked who was at the party, the woman said there were at least 25 people in the house. She listed her husband and two daughters, nephews, nieces and a girlfriend - "that's half my family!" she cried.

The woman and the neighbors saw the shooter "knocking out the lights on the street" and told the dispatcher that he had changed out of the Santa suit.

"We can't allow him to come into this house. We've got to lock all the doors!" she said.

Her daughter had been shot in the side of the face and was bleeding. When the girl started to whimper and wail in pain, the woman comforted her: "It's OK, mami."

The devastation and panic she was feeling was evident in her voice.

"I can't believe that he did this to my family. I just have this feeling in my stomach," she moaned, breaking down. "I'm trying to keep it together here."

It’s time to kick your bad habits and turn over a new leaf. So take the time to sit down with a pen and paper, and outline what New Years Resolutions you will make for yourself in 2009.

No matter how successful you were in following your resolutions in previous years, go ahead and make fresh resolutions for the coming year with full determination and will. The first few days of the year are the most crucial in order to plan for the entire year. These are the days when most people make a plan for the whole year. New Year resolutions provide you with direction, helping you get the year off to a good start.

There is a right and wrong way to make a New Year's resolution. Here are a few tips to help you meet your resolution goals:

Create a Plan

Setting a goal without a plan is merely wishful thinking. In order for your resolution to have meaning, it must be translated into clear steps that can be put into action. A good plan will tell you what all of the steps required to complete the goal are. If you're like most people, then you'll have a limited window of opportunity during the first few days of January to capture your motivation. After that, most people forget their resolutions completely. Commit your resolution and plan to writing, such as in a notebook or journal.

Plan for the Entire Year

Nothing gets accomplished in one day. Your list of resolutions may be set in one day, but accomplished with many tiny steps that happen throughout the year. New Year's resolutions should be nothing more than a starting point. You must revisit your plan often, and dedicate the time to attend to it.

Remain Flexible

Expect that your plan can and will change. Life has a way of throwing unexpected things at us, and flexibility is required to complete anything but the easiest goal. Sometimes the goal itself will even change. Most of all, recognize small successes at every step along the way. Acknowledge these incremental successes as they come, and be patient with yourself.

A number of stores will be opening their doors at 0700 GMT, many of them offering huge reductions on prices.

Some High Street stores, including John Lewis and Marks & Spencer, began sales on their websites on Christmas Day.

Norman Black, from London's Brent Cross Shopping Centre, said more than 100 of its stores would be starting their sales on Boxing Day.

Others, such as M&S, John Lewis and Fenwick would begin their sales on 27 December with "significant reductions", he added.

M&S offered savings of up to 50% across most of its departments during its online Christmas Day sale.

Debenhams has announced it is cutting 70% off its prices across its stores, in what it describes as its biggest-ever sale, and will launch its online sales from 0700 GMT.

And Tesco has also announced it is launching its largest sale, which also begins later.

BBC correspondent Richard Scott says this is the time of year when many retailers must pay their next three months' rent.

This will therefore increase pressure on them, he said, with insolvency experts predicting more than 10 retail chains could go bust next month.

Research by PricewaterhouseCoopers has suggested that 82% of High Street retailers offered either sales or promotions in the run up to Christmas.

With airports across the country recovering from a blast of snow and ice storms, some unlucky holiday travelers stranded for the second night in a row prepared to wake up Christmas morning at the nation's second busiest airport.

About 500 flights were canceled at O'Hare on Tuesday, the day the Costellos arrived from their native Ireland. The weather disruptions meant the earliest flight out they could get was Thursday. Since the couple packed for California, they didn't have clothes to venture out into the city where the weather was expected to dip into the single digits Wednesday evening.

Complicating matters at O'Hare, an American Airlines plane hit an icy patch while turning onto a runway and slid sideways into the grass. There were no injuries in the Wednesday evening incident, and 54 passengers were to be put on other flights leaving the same night.

Newlyweds Tommy and Siobhan Costello were at O'Hare International Airport on Wednesday for the second night en route to their honeymoon in San Diego.

"This was supposed to be a pit stop," said 30-year-old Siobhan Costello, who wandered the terminal hallways with her husband. "But there's nothing you can do."

Improving situation
Airline officials said the Costellos were among a dwindling group of stranded passengers. About 100 flights were canceled early Wednesday, but as the day progressed and the weather improved, the cancellations dropped off and delays shortened to between 30 and 45 minutes.

City of Chicago Aviation Department spokesman Greg Cunningham said airlines at O'Hare requested 75 cots for passengers Wednesday night.

Airports across the country recovered from a barrage of snow and ice storms Wednesday, with some conditions improving, but highways remained dangerously slippery in some areas.

At least 30 people were killed in crashes on rain- and ice-slickened roads across the nation's midsection Tuesday and Wednesday.

The New York metro area's Kennedy and Newark airports reported arrival delays of up to 3 hours, the Federal Aviation Administration reported.

"The airlines are dealing with nothing but unhappy customers," said Mike Conway, spokesman for Detroit's Metropolitan Airport, where delays were reported because of conditions elsewhere in the country.