WASHINGTON (Reuters) –
Congress will consider steps to curb speculation in the $39 trillion credit default swaps market and could prohibit investors from speculating on a borrower's credit quality, according to a U.S. House of…

The
International Space Station may feel a bit crowded with 13 people aboard, but
the population boost has also given it a multicultural flair, an astronaut said
Sunday.
NASA
astronaut Dave Wolf, who once lived aboard Russia's…

BOGOTA – Swedish-made anti-tank rocket launchers sold to Venezuela years ago were obtained by Colombia’s main rebel group, and Sweden said Monday it was demanding an explanation.
Colombia said its military found the weapons…

LONDON, EnglandFrench President Nicolas Sarkozy’s collapse while jogging and subsequent hospitalization prompted speculation and concern Monday in France over the 54-year-old’s state of health.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy shakes hands with medical staff as…

Nearly two years after he pleaded guilty to a federal charge of bankrolling a dogfighting operation at a home he owned in Virginia, Michael Vick was reinstated to the National Football League on a…

GPs ‘poor at spotting depression’
GPs have difficulty spotting depression among their patients, a review of research suggests.The overview of studies involving more than 50,000 patients found substantial numbers were missed or wrongly identified as having depression. In fact, depression…

Australia offers swine flu test case
By Nick Bryant
BBC News, Sydney
Australia is currently living through what the northern hemisphere will soon have to confront: a winter with swine flu.Public health officials in countries like the UK and US…

Dairy for children ‘extends life’
Children who eat plenty of dairy foods such as milk and cheese can expect to live longer, a study suggests.Some 4,374 UK children from a 1930s study were traced 65 years later by researchers in…

When lawmakers return home for recess in August, they can expect to hear tough questions from constituents on the economy, health care and government spending.
But Republicans are preparing for something else: the birthers.
As GOP Rep. Mike Castle…

TOMS RIVER, N.J. – A man has been charged with drunken driving following a New Jersey shore car accident that killed an “American Idol” contestant whose angry rejection rant became an Internet sensation.
Daniel…

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) –
Muslim rebels on Monday expanded their attack on Nigerian security forces to three northern states, with at least 80 people dead in two days of clashes, security sources said.
Gun…

US turns off Havana news ticker
A news ticker which broadcast from the US offices in the Cuban capital, angering authorities, has been turned off, American officials say.The 1.5m-high (five-foot) ticker ran across 25 windows in the US…

HAVANA (Reuters) –
The United States has turned off a news ticker at its diplomatic mission in Havana that long had irritated the Cuban government, the U.S. State Department said on…

Sharp jump in US new home sales
The annual rate of US new home sales jumped 11% in June, government figures have shown, a further indication that the housing sector is over the worst.The Commerce Department…

US rules on abusive short selling
US stock market regulators have made permanent a rule aimed at reducing abusive short-selling.The emergency rule on “naked short-selling” was introduced at the height of last year’s market turmoil, and was due…

Farc camps ‘had Swedish weapons’
Officials in Sweden are investigating reports that Swedish weapons were found in camps of Colombia’s Farc rebels.The Colombian government says it believes the rocket launchers had originally been bought by Venezuela. Defence journal Jane’s Intelligence…

Barack Obama did not herald in a “post-racial America.” In fact, the trope betrayed how we confine race to superficial terms. It's the same reason Stephen Colbert has made a standing joke of not being able to…

LONDON, EnglandA 23-year-old British student has designed a “super-green superyacht” built using only sustainable materials and which produces virtually no carbon emissions.
600sq/m of solar panels and three giant “wings” mean”Soliloquy” can run on…

NEW YORK – Michael Vick was reinstated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on Monday and could play in regular-season games as early as October.
Vick can immediately participate in preseason practices, workouts and meetings and can play in the final…

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A U.S. man who became an al-Qaida terrorist while attending college in Saudi Arabia and plotted to assassinate then-President George W. Bush was defiant Monday as he was sentenced to…

Phase 2 has begun. Six weeks after millions took to the streets to protest Iran’s presidential election, their uprising has morphed into a feistier, more imaginative and potentially enduring campaign.
The second phase plays out…

Tour de France winner Alberto Contador has launched a stinging attack on Astana teammate Lance Armstrong after returning as a hero to his native town of Pinto near Madrid.
Lance Armstrong (right) looks on…

NEW YORK (Reuters) –
U.S. choreographer and dancer Merce Cunningham, credited by many with revolutionizing visual and performing arts, has died at age 90, his foundation and dance company said on Monday.
Cunningham, whose long-time partner was the…

ROME (Reuters) –
Swimming's short-term experiment with hi-tech suits prompted the expected flood of records at the world championships on Sunday with Federica Pellegrini among those setting new marks which might stand for years to…