All the news that / Compiled by Elizabeth Applebaum Red Cross Cites 'Greatest Failure' Oh, You Beautiful Baby I ou might think sleeping new mothers wouldn't be able to hear the sound of the Empire State Building collapsing, much less recognize their babies' crying. Yet study after study has shown that mothers instinctively know the voice of their own newborn. Their children only three days old, 23 new mothers were tested in a hospital study that used the voices of 31 babies. Twenty-two of the women were "able to recognize in their sleep the crying of their own babies," writes author Desmond Morris in Babywatching. "They ig- nored the sounds of all other babies, even if these were wailing pitifully. The moment the sounds of their own babies were played, however, they were wide awake in seconds." Now a new study, conducted by re- searchers in Jerusalem, further con- firms the ties between mother and child. According to a story in the August y issue of Parents magazine, the re- searchers tested 40 new mothers still in the hospital to see if, simply by stroking the back of their baby's head, the women could identify their own child. "Participants in the study were blind- folded and their noses covered; the babies were all sleeping silently, to rule out possible identi- fication by other cues," the story says. "The re- sult: A striking 69 per- cent of the mothers - some who had spent just - wimp hours with their newbom — were able to identify their child from a small , group of same-age in- - fants. Through simply feeding and handling her baby, it ap- pears, the mother picked up identifying cues about her infant's skin texture." The importance of the findings, Par- ents reports, is that increased recog- nition between mother and child means greater bonding. E.T. Phone Mufon verybody knows about Presi- dent George Bush's recent top-secret meeting with a space alien (it was, after all, splashed across the pages of a national tabloid). So why is the U.S. government still denying the existence of extraterrestri- als? Mufon wants to know. Mufon, the Mutual UFO Network Inc., is a non-profit organization dedi- cated to "solving the riddle of Uniden- tified Flying Objects." Based in Seguin, Texas, Mufon has a new project: pro- moting National UFO Awareness Week, Aug. 9-16. According to Mufon International Di- rector Wafter Andrus Jr., some of those pesky little flying saucers have indeed been seen over Israel, though details E remain sketchy. For years, Mufon had an Israeli contact in Rishon Letzion, but the Hebrew University professor let his membership expire. Jews in the United States have not, however, alienated themselves from the organization. Mufon's director of spe- cial investigations is Stan Friedman, its public relations director is Robert Bletchman, and a leading consultant is David Jacobs, author of the new Secret Life: Firsthand Accounts of UFO Ab- ductions. "Our members come from all walks of life, from all over the world," Mr. An- drus said. "We don't care about your religion or nationality. Our only interest is UFOs." he Red Cross' inaction during the Holocaust was its "great- est failure, one which still caus- es soul-searching in Geneva today," according to a report in the upcoming Red Cross/Red Crescent magazine. Written by Rebecca Irvin, deputy head of communications at the Inter- national Red Cross (ICRC), the story considers the agency's activities dur- ing World War II. "Why did the Red Cross, one of the oldest and most respected humanitar- ian organizations in the world, fail to speak out publically against the bar- barity?" Ms. Irvin asks. Because "the committee was convinced that a pub- T Make Mine Mega Mall ext maybe they'll put in a football stadium and an of- fice for the countless Ronco — but wait, NOW how much would you pay? — products... The subject: mega malls and their worldwide proliferation. The latest target: Israel. Some 300 Canadian and American businessmen are off to Israel next month to promote Canion Jerusalem, an $80 million mega mall created by Montreal industrialist David Azrieli. The mall comprises 1 million square feet, 90 percent of which already has been leased, according to the Canadi- an Jewish News. !twill be part of a com- plex including a soccer stadium, a zoo and a high-tech industrial park. With mega malls already in Ramat Gan and Beersheva, Mr. Azrieli will next launch, following the spring opening of Canion in Jerusalem, a mall in Tel Aviv. N Chabad Opens In Zaire new Chabad House has opened in Kinshasa, Zaire, ome to 200 Jewish families. Rabbi Shlomo and Miriam Bentoulila have created daily classes, holiday awareness programs, Shabbat services and other activities. Another Jewish community resides some 2,000 miles away, in Lubumbashi. Chabad also recently opened a cen- ter in Salt Lake City, Utah. That city's Jewish community tops the 4,000 mark lic appeal would achieve nothing. They also feared a denunciation would endanger, possibly end, its work with Allied prisoners of war in Germany." ICRC's current deputy director, Francois Bugnion, reproaches the or- ganization for having "lacked firm- ness and conviction of their own moral strengths." "From the autumn of 1942 on- wards, it was clear that the ICRC had enough information to be aware of the genocide," he said. The agency "should have issued a strong appeal to the very highest level of the Nazi government." • Albert Einstein visiting with an Indian tribe. Curious Mysteries Of Jewish History ere you one of those cads who slept through Sunday school? Do you think Jewish history is about as in- teresting as watching infomercials on juicing as a way of life? Think again, bonehead. Each week, the Round Up will fo- cus on curious and compelling cas- es from Jewish history. This week's subject: Albert Einstein. • Now, Mr. Einstein, as everyone knows, was a genius. But did you know that he had difficulty recogniz- ing his own home? That he would wander around his neighborhood and W ask passersby, "Excuse me, I'm Al- bert Einstein. Where do I live?" • Born in Germany, Einstein was so slow as a child his parents feared he was retarded. • When Israel became a state, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion asked Albert Einstein to become the nation's first president. • Einstein's brain was donated to medical science following his death. A portion of it remains with one of the attending pathologists, who resides in the tiny Missouri town of West- on. Weston also is home to the world's largest ball of string. T_LIE_D.CTEVAITICIALLOILA I CIA IC 4 4