Heat

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh put on his big boy pants Monday and fired offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. It might have been a year or two too late, but the Ravens replaced the often criticized Cameron with quarterbacks coach Jim Caldwell, who spent the three previous seasons as the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts. With this move, the Ravens are hoping to breathe some life into an offense which had no identity for the past five seasons, but it also puts more pressure on Harbaugh as well as quarterback Joe Flacco.

In a heated, narrowly divided closed-door meeting, Morgan State University's board of regents voted last week not to renew President David Wilson's contract, sources close to the board said Monday. The ouster comes amid a string of recent incidents that have caused upheaval at the Northeast Baltimore institution, including two shootings on the campus in the past three months, a student accused of cannibalism, a botched move to replace the school's football coach and a professor's indictment on charges that he obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants fraudulently.

Towson forward Jerrelle Benimon, a Georgetown transfer, had 29 points and 10 rebounds as the Tigers came back to beat host Vermont, 68-64, on Wednesday night in a nonconference game. Benimon went 11-for-15 from the field with three assists and four steals. Towson (4-4) made 26 of 52 shots from the field and had 13 steals to go with five blocks. Luke Apfeld led Vermont (4-3) with 23 points. Towson led 38-33 at halftime against the Catamounts, the defending America East Conference champs, who were coming off a loss Saturday to Rhode Island.

When a police officer operates a radar unit to check speeding cars, he is usually trained and certified to operate a radar unit and to testify in court concerning the readings it obtained ("Not so fast," Nov. 20). Usually, the radar unit is calibrated at the beginning of each shift with a tuning fork. So how can a stationary radar speed camera operate 365 days a year in extreme heat and cold and still be accurate? This does not make any sense. I bet if the speed cameras were not producing great numbers of tickets, it would make your head spin to see how fast the technicians were out checking each unit.

For years, Maryland has been giving generous rebates to families to install solar photovoltaic panels, geothermal systems and wind turbines. That's great, as far as it goes, but the rebates typically go to Maryland's wealthiest residents. Finally, Maryland has included the little guy of the renewable-energy world: wood and pellet stoves. The Maryland Energy Administration has just started the Clean Burning Wood Stove Grant Program, which could ultimately help thousands of rural Marylanders get a new stove or upgrade from their older, polluting stoves.

Maryland's state government desperately wants you to plug up your leaky house in order to use less electricity. To get homeowners on board, the Empower Maryland program is offering 50 percent rebates of up to $3,150 on retrofit projects that make your home more energy efficient. The goal is simple: reduce electricity usage while reducing Maryland's greenhouse gases. Many homeowners would be surprised at how much they can save on their utility bills - and how quickly their up-front investment gets paid back.  Under the program, Greg Baggan of Canton learned he had been heating the equivalent of three homes, when he only owns one. An energy audit revealed that all the leaks in his home, when combined, equated to a 4 square-foot hole in his small row house.

Heat impressive Shandel Richardson Sun Sentinel The Knicks are the league's only unbeaten team. But the team playing the best is the Heat. It sounds silly to say when the Knicks spanked the Heat last week, but no team has been more impressive than Miami. The Heat are leading the league in scoring, which is trouble for the rest of the NBA. Erik Spoelstra will have his team returning to its defensive identity soon as Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis adjust. Now, the league's best defensive team has an offense that has proved difficult to defend.

The Annapolis District Court building closed at noon Thursday due to a lack of heat, and the building is expected to reopen Friday morning. Officials said the courthouse, on Rowe Boulevard at Taylor Avenue, was having mechanical problems. Repairs were expected to be completed Thursday, said judiciary spokeswoman Angelita Plemmer. The problem affected only the District Court building in Annapolis. The other District Court in Anne Arundel County, located in Glen Burnie, remained open, officials said.

In a contest with national significance, longtime Republican Rep. Roscoe G. Bartlett and Democrat John Delaney are running neck and neck in the race to represent Western Maryland's 6th Congressional District, a new poll shows. Forty-two percent of likely voters said they intend to support Delaney, a Potomac financier making his first run for political office. Bartlett, a 20-year incumbent who lives in Buckeystown, was the choice of 41 percent of likely voters surveyed. One in 10 respondents said they are undecided and 6 percent refused to say whom they will support.

You can't blame federal workers if they're feeling like a punching bag for politicians these days. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney rallies supporters with claims that federal workers are overcompensated by as much as 40 percent. The Republican Party vows, in its platform, to reduce their numbers by 10 percent through attrition. President Barack Obama recently extended the federal pay freeze through next spring, at least. And some members of Congress - mostly Republicans - want to fire federal employees who are severely delinquent on their taxes.