Dorothy Abernathy, The Associated Press bureau chief for West Virginia and Virginia, shares the 10 things you need to know today, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2013. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items, upcoming events and stories in West Virginia newspapers:

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1. OBAMA: U.S. CONCLUDES SYRIAN GOV’T BEHIND CHEMICAL ATTACK

The president says he’s still evaluating possible military retaliation, but said any American response would send a “strong signal.”

2. SUSPECTED GAS ATTACK SURVIVORS DESCRIBE HORRORS

“I ran out to see what was going on and saw people in various stages of suffocation and convulsions,” says one resident.

3. FORT HOOD GUNMAN SENTENCED TO DEATH

Maj. Nidal Hasan could become the first American soldier executed in more than half a century, but a lengthy appeals process is expected.

4. PRESIDENT SAYS KING’S DREAM NOT YET REALITY

Speaking on the 50th anniversary of the Rev. King’s speech, the president also challenged new generations to seize the cause of racial equality.

5. FAST-FOOD WORKERS WANT FRIES WITH THAT

They’re planning walkouts to push for higher wages_$15 an hour_but the National Restaurant Association says it would hurt job creation.

6. AMONG ILLEGAL DRUGS, POT IS TOPS

The global survey also found that addictions to painkillers like Vicodin, Oxycontin and codeine kill the most people.

7. SCIENTISTS FIND CLUE TO AGE-RELATED MEMORY LOSS

Researchers discover that a gene in part of the brain’s memory center starts producing less of a key protein.

8. MONTANA JUDGE APOLOGIZES FOR COMMENTS IN RAPE CASE

He described the teen victim as “older than her chronological age” when he handed down her rapist’s sentence.

9. DOCTOR SAYS JACKSON SOUGHT PROPOFOL EARLIER

She refused the singer’s late 1990s request and told him it wasn’t appropriate to use anesthesia as a sleep aid.

10. VENUS WILLIAMS RUNS OUT OF SOLUTIONS AT U.S. OPEN

The two-time champion tried to dig herself out after a poor start, but lost a 3rd-set tiebreaker to 56th-ranked Zheng Jie of China.