1.   Despite reduced infant mortality and improved education, Southern children still lag the nation in several key measures, according to a new study.

2.   It lags these nations because they poured time and money into research on enriching uranium and reprocessing spent fuel to extract plutonium as part of their atomic weapons programs.

3.   Job growth in the New York region, however, lagged the nation.

4.   She said the area still lags the nation in terms of cutting-edge research and related, high-skill jobs.

5.   The U.S. also lags other nations in its rates of savings and investment, he said.