<a href=www.crash.net>Crash Net, Venezuelan Milka Duno has found sponsorship from one of Venezuela's largest companies in order to compete in the 2003 World Series Light Division of the increasingly popular Superfund World Series by Nissan.

Duno, Venezuela's 'driver of the year' in 2000, has secured the support of Petroleos de Venezuela SA [PDVSA], the state-owned oil company for the series, which begins in earnest this weekend at Monza, after making its public debut during the last Nissan round in France. The season will also see her compete at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz, the A-1 Ring, Magny-Cours and in Barcelona, Valencia, Jarama and Albacete. "I am so very proud to have the support of such a large and respected corporation," Duno said, "That they are from my home country of Venezuela is even more special to me. As I have raced all over the world the past few years, I have been proud to be a representative of Venezuela in many countries. I will continue to do so with even more pride as a representative of PDVSA."

This season will mark Duno's third year in the series, and she will once again compete as a member of the highly-respected Italian Vergani Racing team. Duno will race the #12 Dallara, powered by a 275bhp AER engine specifically developed for the championship.

PDVSA has proven reserves of 77.9 billion barrels of oil - the most outside the Middle East - and is one of the top exporters of oil to the United States. PDVSA's exploration and production take place in Venezuela, but the company also has refining and marketing operations in the Caribbean, Europe and the US.

The Auburn Plainsman, By Rob Huffman, Staff Writer June 19, 2003

Michael Glenn Rich, 41, one of Auburn University's assistant professors in journalism, is preparing for retirement.

But then again, maybe he's not retiring at all.

"Retiring means you're not working anymore," Rich said.

It's true, Rich will in no way quit working. He is simply going to start work on a new job.

He is about to begin preparation to become a priest.

"I'm going to go to seminary, where I'll study for three years," Rich said. "After that, the intention is to lead to ordination at the Priesthood Episcopal Church."

Rich will be going to the General Theological Seminary in New York City after he moves from Auburn in August.

Rich graduated from Northwestern University in 1984 with a degree in journalism and earned his master's degree there in 1985.

He came to Auburn in the fall of 1999.

Previously he had taught two academic years at Auburn in 1990 and 1991 as a visiting professor.

"I've taught more than five years here, but not all at one stretch," he said.

Rich has also worked as a teaching assistant at the University of Iowa for one year.

Between Rich's teaching stints at Auburn, he also went to graduate school at the University of Iowa

"I also spent a lot of time working at The Huntsville Times, where I was feature editor and a few other things," Rich said.

In addition to The Huntsville Times, Rich has also worked for a number of other papers, including The Birmingham News and The Macon (Ga.) News.

Rich held many positions at the various papers he worked for, from copy editor to editorial page writer to international editor at The Daily Journal in Caracas, Venezuela.

While at Auburn, Rich has taught newspaper fundamentals, journalism history, feature writing, reporting, editing, beginning newswriting and a graduate course on international mass communication.

Casey Carpenter, a senior in public relations had Rich as her newspaper fundamentals instructor a few semesters ago.

"He was very enthusiastic," Carpenter said. "He was one of my better teachers and was always approachable."

Carpenter also added that Rich was knowledgeable about journalism in general.

Rich commented that one of the main things he will miss about Auburn is the people who have been a part of his life.

"People I've worked with, students that I know -- working with these people is by far the most rewarding thing about teaching at Auburn," Rich said.

"I have enjoyed the collegial setting of working with the people in this department."

Rich said journalism has been a large part of his life to this point, but he feels he is making the right decision by leaving.

"I've enjoyed what I've been doing, and it has been the right thing for me, and I love it, and I'm not leaving it because I dislike it," Rich said.

Nan Fairley, a member of the journalism faculty and one of Rich's closest friends, said she is saddened by Rich's upcoming departure.

"It's hard to comment about him -- I would need a long time," Fairley said. "He's been like a brother in the four years that I have known him."

Fairley believes that Rich's time at Auburn has been a success, but now he's ready to move on.

"Ministry is his calling," she said. "He'll be going from the podium to the pulpit."

Despite having to leave behind friends and loved ones, Rich is steadfast in his decision to become a priest.

"I've literally been in the process of -- that is, dealing with the church, working towards this -- for more than three years," Rich said.

Rich's commitment to becoming a priest is solid and real.

While in Auburn, Rich has been the faculty adviser at the Society of Professional Journalists, the faculty adviser and worship coordinator at St. Dunstan's Episcopal Student Center, and was volunteer at the Hospice of East Alabama Medical Center.

Rich touched many students' lives at Auburn, but his future in the priesthood looks to touch even more.

Published on Wednesday, June 18, 2003 by Inter Press Service-Common Dreams News Center, by Thalif Deen

STOCKHOLM - The war on terrorism has triggered a dramatic increase in U.S. military spending, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released Tuesday.

Jayantha Dhanapala, former UN under secretary-general for disarmament affairs, says the rising global military expenditure is not just diverting precious financial, material and human resources from productive to non-productive pursuits, but also jeopardizing the environment and the prospects for social and economic development.

The world spent $784 billion on arms last year, a sharp acceleration from $741 billion the previous year, the SIPRI report says. The U.S. accounted for almost three-quarters of that increase.

SIPRI attributes this increase primarily to the U.S. response to the terrorist attacks of September 2001.

But U.S. military spending had been rising earlier too. The figures show that U.S. military spending climbed from about $296 billion in 1997 to $335.7 billion last year.

”Our figures show clearly that the bulk of the rapid increase in spending in 2002 is accounted for by the United States alone,” SIPRI Director Alyson J.K. Bailes told IPS.

The U.S. Department of Defense has estimated U.S. military spending for 2004 at about $390 billion, rising to $400 billion in 2005. The recent war on Iraq is expected to cost the United States more than $150 billion, compared to the 1991 Gulf War, which cost about $61 billion.

Japan, the world's second largest military spender, is far behind the United States with an annual defence budget of $49 billion, followed by Britain with $36 billion. The top five spenders--the United States, Japan, Britain, France and China--account for about 62 percent of total world military expenditures.

According to the SIPRI Yearbook, the United States now accounts for 43 percent of world military expenditure.

China, Russia and Brazil have all increased defense budgets significantly. The countries with the sharpest reductions in military spending in 2002 were Argentina, Guatemala and Venezuela in Latin America and Belarus and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in Europe.

The European Union shows no sign of following the U.S. in raising defense budgets, Bailes said. And while the Russian budget has risen, its possibilities are limited, she added.

”A review of global expenditure trends shows that the rest of the world is not prepared, or cannot afford, to follow the U.S. example,” SIPRI says in the yearbook. Among the poorer nations the signs are mixed, said Bailes. ”Some nations are able to cut spending voluntarily because of the ending of local conflicts, or they are being forced to do so by economic problems,” she said. ”As the security sector reform becomes a serious focus both of international aid policy and of local security cooperation, we may also see improvements in what could be called the quality (rationality, transparency, and proper targeting) of defense spending, which can often be combined with quantitative cuts.”

Some former defense funds are not being cut so much as diverted to internal and non-traditional security aims, such as counter-terrorism, she added.

But there is pressure also to increase defense budgets because of factors such as keeping up with the latest technological advances, and the interest of developing states in peacekeeping and other interventions, Bailes said. The impact of increased military aid that the United States, in particular, is offering is also a factor, she said. The SIPRI Yearbook notes marked regional disparities in military expenditure. In 2001 the Middle East spent 6.3 percent of GDP on the military compared to a global average of 2.3 percent. Latin America spent only 1.3 percent.

Africa (2.1 percent), Asia (1.6 percent) and Western Europe (1.9 percent) spent less than the world average, while North America with 3.0 percent, and Central and Eastern Europe with 2.7 percent spent somewhat more.

The Middle East is the largest single market for U.S. weapons systems. The 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait prompted sharp increases in arms purchases by the six Gulf nations--Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Asked if arms purchases would decline following the ouster of the Saddam regime by U.S. military forces, Bailes said ”whatever uncertainties may still remain over aspects of Iraq's future and its future regime, it seems clear that for a long while at least we shall not see another belligerent Iraq with the power and the wish to threaten its neighbors.”

An international stabilizing force on Iraq's soil for some time could allow other states to reduce their level of military preparedness, Bailes said. But the results could be different if outside powers build new military ”clients” to compete with others, she added.

Jayantha Dhanapala, former UN under secretary-general for disarmament affairs, says the rising global military expenditure is not just diverting precious financial, material and human resources from productive to non-productive pursuits, but also jeopardizing the environment and the prospects for social and economic development.

Sixteen years ago the world community gathered at the United Nations for the International Conference on the Relationship between Disarmament and Development. Yet today military expenditure is rising, he told IPS.

Copyright 2003 IPS

VMU News, June 19, 2003

CHICAGO -- Dr. Ana Gil-Garcia, an associate professor at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago who received her doctoral degree from Western Michigan University, was recently notified that she will receive two Fulbright grants through 2008.

Gil-Garcia has been named to the Fulbright Senior Specialist Roster, as well as receiving a Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant. The senior specialist roster is a list of approved candidates available for short-term positions of typically two to six weeks. Gil-Garcia's name will remain on the list until 2008. She will use the Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant to return to her native Venezuela for 10 months beginning January 2004, where she will conduct research and teach at Universidad Simon Bolivar in Caracas.

"Western Michigan University provided me with one of the most solid and analytical educations I have ever received in my long academic years," says Gil-Garcia. "The educational environment I lived at Sangren Hall, the strong knowledge base offered by a well-recognized body of faculty experts, and the critical skills I expanded through the dynamic of interaction with others are some of the elements that have contributed to my successes in life."

Gil-Garcia originally came to the United States on a Fulbright Scholarship in 1987, while she was still a Venezuelan citizen. She earned a doctoral degree in educational leadership from WMU in 1991, receiving a WMU Research Award for her dissertation. Gil-Garcia, whose name at that time was Ana Gil Serafin, was a WMU Visiting Scholar and member of the educational leadership faculty in 1992-93.

For the past seven years, Gil-Garcia has been at Northeastern Illinois University, where she teaches graduate courses in the areas of educational leadership, research in education, school supervision, cultural pluralism, and curriculum development. She has been involved in education for 29 years. Most of Gil-Garcia's academic and administrative careers have been in Caracas.

In addition to a doctorate from WMU, Gil-Garcia holds a master's degree in curriculum and instruction from University of Tennessee, a specialist degree in middle school curriculum conferred by the Organization of American States, and a bachelor's degree from the Pedagogical University of Venezuela. She has additional training in the areas of reading and teaching strategies, multicultural education, brain-based learning, and teaching in multi-language and culturally diverse classroom settings.

Gil-Garcia has published two books and many articles in international and national journals and has delivered numerous papers nationally and internationally, including invited presentations in Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, France, Japan, Mexico, Spain, Peru, Hungary, Italy and Venezuela. She has been cited in several dissertations and books. The recipient of numerous merit awards, she considers her greatest honor to have been recognized as a Teacher of the Year in Venezuela for her 20 years of consecutive teaching services at all levels.

Media contact: Thom Myers, 269 387-8400, thom.myers@wmich.edu

WMU News Office of University Relations Western Michigan University 1903 W Michigan Ave Kalamazoo MI 49008-5433 USA 269 387-8400

www.wmich.edu

EurekAlert, Public release date: 19-Jun-2003

Contact: Terri Pedone terri.pedone@aventis.com 908-243-6578 Hill and Knowlton

PHILADELPHIA (June 19, 2003) – In a long-term clinical trial of Actonel® (risedronate sodium tablets), a low incidence of new vertebral fractures was maintained over 7 years of treatment. The new study, presented today at ENDO 2003, the 85th annual meeting of The Endocrine Society (ENDO), examined the long-term safety profile and sustained efficacy of Actonel in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

"Osteoporosis is treated over a number of years, so long-term protection against fractures is critical," said Jean-Marc Kaufman, M.D., PhD, Unit for Osteoporosis and Metabolic Bone Disease, Ghent University Hospital, Belgium. "This is the longest clinical trial of risedronate to date, and it provides reassurance that the fracture benefits and favorable safety profile of risedronate are sustained over 7 years."

The study measured fracture incidence in 2 groups of postmenopausal women. One group received Actonel 5 mg daily for 7 years; the other received placebo for 5 years and was then switched to Actonel 5 mg daily for 2 years. For those women treated with Actonel for 7 years, the annualized incidence of new vertebral fractures for years 0-3, 4-5, and 6-7 was 4.7 percent, 5.2 percent, and 3.8 percent, respectively. These data suggest a sustained benefit of Actonel over 7 years of therapy. In the 5-year placebo/2-year Actonel group, the annualized incidence of new vertebral fracture dropped to 3.8 percent during years 6-7 while taking Actonel, down from an incidence of 12.3 percent experienced during years 4-5 on placebo. The incidence of new vertebral fractures in these patients was reduced during years 6 and 7 to a level comparable to those of the treatment group during the 7 years of the study.

Adverse events in years 6-7, including upper gastrointestinal adverse events, were similar to those in patients taking placebo during the first 5 years of the study.

Study Details This study was the second 2-year extension of an original 3-year placebo-controlled study with Actonel 5mg daily for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis. This open-label extension study evaluated a total of 164 women: 83 patients received Actonel 5 mg daily for 7 years; 81 patients received placebo for 5 years and then were treated with Actonel 5 mg daily for 2 years. The original placebo group was switched to active therapy during years 6 and 7 for ethical reasons. Throughout the 7 years of the study, all patients received 1,000 mg daily calcium and, if baseline levels were low, up to 500 IU Vitamin D daily. The objective of the study was to evaluate the safety and tolerability of 7 years of Actonel treatment.

About Osteoporosis Osteoporosis is a skeletal disorder characterized by reduced bone strength predisposing a person to an increased risk of fracture. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, 1.2 million women suffer osteoporotic fractures in the U.S. each year. Risk factors for osteoporosis and subsequent fractures include loss of estrogen production, advanced age, preexisting fractures, and low bone mineral density. Studies show that among postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who experience a spinal fracture, one out of five will suffer their next spinal fracture within just one year, potentially leading to a fracture cascade.

Preventive measures, such as not smoking, maintaining a balanced diet supplemented with calcium and vitamin D, and engaging in weight-bearing exercise like walking, can reduce an individual's chances of developing osteoporosis. However, in some people these preventive measures may not be enough, and medications like Actonel may be beneficial.

About Actonel® (risedronate sodium tablets) Actonel is developed by Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals and co-marketed by Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals and Aventis. Actonel 35 mg Once-a-Week and Actonel 5 mg daily are indicated for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. Actonel 5 mg daily is also indicated for the prevention and treatment of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO) in men and women either initiating or continuing systemic glucocorticoid treatment (greater than or equal to 7.5 mg/d prednisone or equivalent) for chronic diseases.

In clinical trials, Actonel was generally well tolerated. Actonel is contraindicated in patients with hypocalcemia, known hypersensitivity to any component of this product, or inability to stand or sit upright for at least 30 minutes. Hypocalcemia and other disturbances of bone and mineral metabolism should be effectively treated before starting Actonel therapy. Actonel is not recommended for use in patients with severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance < 30 mL/min).

Bisphosphonates may cause upper gastrointestinal disorders such as dysphagia, esophagitis and esophageal or gastric ulcer. Patients should pay particular attention to the dosing instructions, as failure to take the drug according to instructions may compromise clinical benefits and may increase the risk of adverse events.

In clinical trials, the overall incidence of adverse events with Actonel 5 mg daily was comparable to placebo. The most commonly reported adverse events regardless of causality were infection (primarily upper respiratory, placebo 29.7 percent vs. Actonel 5 mg 29.9 percent), back pain (23.6 percent vs. 26.1 percent), and arthralgia (21.1 percent vs. 23.7 percent).

In a one-year clinical trial comparing Actonel 35 mg Once-a-Week and Actonel 5 mg daily, the overall incidence of adverse events with the two dosing regimens was similar. The most commonly reported adverse events regardless of causality were infection (Actonel 35 mg 20.6 percent vs. Actonel 5 mg 19.0 percent), arthralgia (14.2 percent vs. 11.5 percent) and constipation (12.2 percent vs. 12.5 percent). Please visit www.actonel.com for full prescribing information for Actonel.

About The Alliance for Better Bone Health The Alliance for Better Bone Health was formed by Procter & Gamble and Aventis in May 1997 to promote bone health and disease awareness through numerous activities to support physicians and patients around the globe.

About Procter & Gamble Two billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. Some of the nearly 300 P&G brands consumers know and use with confidence in over 160 countries around the world include: Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Bounty®, Pringles®, Folgers®, Charmie®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Olay®, and Clairol Nice 'n Easy®. Some of P&G Pharmaceuticals leading prescription products include Actonel® (risedronate sodium tablets), Asacol® (mesalamine), and Macrobid® (nitrofurantoin monohydrate macrocrystals). The P&G community consists of nearly 102,000 employees working in almost 80 countries worldwide. Please visit www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About Aventis Aventis is dedicated to treating and preventing disease by discovering and developing innovative prescription drugs and human vaccines. In 2002, Aventis generated sales of € 17.6 billion (US $16.6 billion), invested € 3.1 billion (US $3 billion) in research and development and employed approximately 71,000 people in its core business. Aventis corporate headquarters are in Strasbourg, France. The company's prescription drugs business is conducted in the U.S. by Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc., which is headquartered in Bridgewater, New Jersey. For more information about Aventis in the U.S., please visit: www.aventis-us.com.

Copies of this release are available on the Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals Web site at www.pgpharma.com, on the Aventis Pharmaceuticals U.S. Web site at www.aventis-us.com, or by calling 1-800-207-8049.

For P&G: All statements, other than statements of historical fact included in this news release, are forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In addition to the risks and uncertainties noted in this news release, there are certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by some of the statements made. These include: (1) the achievement of expected cost and tax savings associated with changes in the Company's organization structure; (2) the ability to achieve business plans, including growing volume profitably, despite high levels of competitive activity, especially with respect to the product categories and geographical markets in which the Company has chosen to focus; (3) the ability to manage and maintain key customer relationships; (4) the achievement of growth in significant developing markets such as China, Turkey, Mexico, the Southern Cone of Latin America, the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the countries of Southeast Asia; (5) the ability to successfully manage regulatory, tax and legal matters, including resolution of pending matters within current estimates; (6) the ability to successfully implement, achieve and sustain cost improvement plans in manufacturing and overhead areas; (7) the ability to successfully manage currency (including currency issues in Latin America), interest rate and certain commodity cost exposures; (8) the ability to manage the continued political and/or economic uncertainty in Latin America (including Venezuela) and war in the Middle East, as well as any political and/or economic uncertainty due to terrorist activities or war (including Korea); and (9) the successful acquisition, transition, integration, and operation of the Wella business. If the Company's assumptions and estimates are incorrect or do not come to fruition, or if the Company does not achieve all of these key factors, then the Company's actual results might differ materially from the forward-looking statements made herein.

For Aventis: Statements in this news release other than historical information are forward-looking statements subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially depending on factors such as the availability of resources, the timing and effects of regulatory actions, the strength of competition, the outcome of litigation, and the effectiveness of patent protection. Additional information regarding risks and uncertainties is set forth in the current Annual Report on Form 20-F of Aventis on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Additional Contact Info: Paula Koenigs Procter & Gamble 513-622-3923 koenigs.pm@pg.com