OUTGOING Alaska governor Sarah Palin has laid the groundwork to take on a larger, national role after leaving state government, citing a “higher calling” with the aim of uniting the country along conservative lines.

John McCain’s running mate Sarah Palin said today that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter was five months pregnant.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS in Alaska have found the remains of a whalebone mask believed to be about 3,000 years old.

A hunter has been attacked by a grizzly bear he had shot and left for dead the day earlier.