Environment

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A 4-foot crack on the west side near the pyramid top of the Washington Monument and other earthquake damage will keep the monument closed to the public for some time. (AP Photo/National Park Service)

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Associated Press New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, seen here Aug. 17 at a Princeton, N.J., orchard after signing a farmland-preservation bill, said Thursday, "The decision on whether to ban fracking outright or regulate it for environmental protection must be developed on the basis of sound policy and legitimate science."

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Ranked No. 1 for much of the season, Virginia baseball lost to South Carolina in the College World Series in June. (Associated Press)

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The exhibit: "George Ault and 1940s America" will be at the Smithsonian American Art Museum through Sept. 5

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A Libyan rebel fires at soldiers loyal to Col. Moammar Gadhafi in Tripoli, Libya, on Aug. 25, 2011. (Associated Press)

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Seawright Homes is building 104 single-family homes on sites of 7,500 to 10,000 square feet at the Orchard at New Market in New Market. The York model, with 2,384 square feet, is priced from $417,690 to $437,030.

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In an image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and made by the GOES East satellite, Hurricane Irene moves over the Bahamas on Thursday, Aug. 25, 2011. (AP Photo/NOAA)

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Pratik Shah/The Washington Times Juan Juarez of Concord Construction disassembles a damaged chimney in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Northwest Washington on Wednesday. The damage was a result of the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that hit the region Tuesday.

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In this Wednesday, July 13, 2011 photo, young men herd cattle through the mud-caked streets of Pibor, South Sudan. Cattle raiding between some of the south's dozens of tribes, many of them cattle herders by culture and occupation, has plagued the Texas-sized region, now Africa's 54th nation, on and off for decades. (AP Photo/Maggie Fick)

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Juan Juarez of Concord Construction disassembles a damaged chimney in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Washington on Aug. 24, 2011, a day after a 5.8-magnitude earthquake hit the East Coast. (Pratik Shah/The Washington Times)

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A stone cherub which used to sit atop the center tower's corner spire of the National Cathedral in D.C., lays shattered on the roof on Aug. 24, 2011, a day after a 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck the East Coast. (Andrew S. Geraci/The Washington Times)

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Mason foreman Joe Alonso explains Aug. 24, 2011, how much damage was done to the center tower at the National Cathedral during a 5.8-magnitude earthquake the day prior. (Andrew S. Geraci/The Washington Times)

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The sun sets behind a damaged building in Mineral, Va., a small town close to the epicenter of 5.8-magnitude earthquake that struck the East Coast on Aug. 23, 2011. (Associated Press)

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Vice President Joseph R. Biden greets survivors of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami at a temporary-housing complex in Natori, Japan, on Tuesday, two days after making controversial remarks in Chengdu, China. (Associated Press)

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Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann's campaign promise to get gas back down to $2 a gallon if she's elected has created skepticism among energy industry experts. "Many [politicians] will say or do just about anything to get elected," said Robert Rapier of Consumer Energy Report. (Associated Press)