World Vignettes

The parents had decided to go ahead with the pregnancy despite the diagnosis early on that their child would be born without a brain and would only live a few days.

They said they wanted the baby to be born so they could donate the newborn’s organs, and their wish was granted on January 30 when the heart of Gabriele (the family’s surname was kept private) was transplanted into Maurizio, a baby born in Rome with a life-threatening heart defect.

Hospital officials said Maurizio’s death followed complications caused by an abdominal infection.

Italy has one of the lowest rates of organ donation in the West, and the story of Gabriele, whose mother carried to term her doomed child, touched Italians’ hearts.

"Alas, we are again in mourning," Gabriele’s father toldthe Italian news agency ANSA. "We were convinced that Gabriele would not have died another time."

The Raspberries

NEW YORK: One day before the nominations are released for Hollywood’s coveted Academy awards, several less fortunate stars have been ducking the decisions of the Golden Raspberries Committee, which annually honours the industry’s worst showings.