Will Michaels

Progress Energy has reached a tentative deal with the Public Staff on the state Utilities Commission to reduce its request for a rate increase.  The agreement allows a 4.7 percent increase in June, then raises that to 5.7 percent next year.  Progress filed for an 11 percent increase in October.  Public Staff executive director Robert Gruber says it's a fair deal.

"What do they actually need in order to be able to operate reliably and attract investors?  You have to compromise that need with the impact on consumers," Gruber says.

Scientists at Duke University say a substance found in many plastics could inhibit the development of the central nervous system.  The report says bisphenol-A, widely known as BPA, can suppress the chemical chain of events that allows neurons to improve their functioning early in life.

"It disrupts this process and it corrupts this process," says Dr. Wolfgang Liedtke, lead author of the study.

A panel of judges is set to hear arguments Monday about whether to uphold or reject North Carolina's newest legislative and congressional districts.

The National Weather Service says a winter weather advisory remained in effect for central North Carolina through 10 a.m. Friday.  Forecasters say freezing rain will shift to rain through late morning in the Triangle and Triad.  Meteorologist Nick Petro says temperatures will hover around the freezing mark.

"We're going to have to watch out for local slick spots, mainly on bridges and overpasses first, and as we get to the late morning, temperatures will then rise back above freezing," Petro says.

UNC-Chapel Hill will start offering free online classes to the public this fall. The university announced Thursday it's partnering with the California-based company Coursera to provide four massive open online courses, or MOOCs.

"What we're hoping is that what we learn and what we develop through these MOOCs will help to enhance our face-to-face campus-based courses," says Carol Tresolini, vice provost for academic initatives at UNC.

A study from Duke University says adults who were bullied as children are much more likely to have anxiety or depression. 

The Carolina Hurricanes hope to extend a three-game winning streak Monday night against the Montreal Canadiens.  Coach Kirk Muller says his skaters are playing a quicker game and he expects to see a familiar set of players in Montreal.

"I find they're playing a very similar game to our game right now.  They're not afraid to come at you," Muller says.

  Holden Thorp will serve as provost at Washington University in Saint Louis after he steps down as chancellor at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Thorp announced the move in a campus-wide e-mail Monday morning.  Thorp had said he would stay at UNC to teach and conduct research in the chemistry department, but he says the new position will allow him to return to teaching and research while keeping administrative duties.

Firefighters from around the world meet Monday in Raleigh to discuss how to improve the way they battle wildfires.  The International Association of Wildland Fire hosts a conference this week that focuses on better communication and learning the behavior of wildfires as a few ways to contain them.  Organization spokeswoman Paula Nelson says those techniques can vary in North Carolina, where the landscape can shift rapidly from dense forest to peat bog.

"Each of those takes specific skills, so the local people are the ones you really turn to," Nelson says.