Surprisingly Regular Patterns in Hurricane Energy Discovered
Scientists have discovered that this relation corresponds to a power-law, a precise mathematical formula cyclones obey in a surprising manner, regardless of where on the planet and when they appear.
Home-buying applications sink to 13-year low
Demand for loans to purchase U.S. homes sunk to a 13-year low last week, and refinancing demand also slid despite near record-low mortgage rates, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.
Deadly typhoon cuts power in Manila, aims at China
Parts of Manila may be without power until Friday after Typhoon Conson hit the Philippines' main island of Luzon, killing at least 11 people with more than 50 missing, and moved toward southern China.
Magnitude 6.5 quake hits central Chile coast
The quake's center was 61 miles north-northwest of Temuco, Chile, at a depth of 17.6 miles, the USGS said. The area is south of Chile's important copper mining region.
Stone Vessel with 'Priestly Inscription' Uncovered In Jerusalem
A rare 2,000-year-old ritual vessel made of limestone and inscribed with 10 lines of text has been discovered in an excavation near the Zion Gate of the Old City of Jerusalem. It is an unprecedented find.
Archaeologists Uncover Goliath's Hometown
The site, inhabited at times by Canaanites and at other times by Philistines, has remnants from many periods of history.
Obama Asks Religious Jew to Cure $1 Trillion Budget Disease
Obama has nominated Deputy Secretary of State Jacob (Jack) Lew, a religious Jew, as his new director of a budget that suffers from a budget deficit approaching $1.3 trillion. The appointment must be confirmed by the Senate, which may question Lew whether he can function while observing the Sabbath.
Mystery epidemic taking toll on Syrian military
The Syrian opposition asserted that an unknown disease has been raging through Syrian Army barracks, particularly in the north. The opposition said the suspected epidemic has killed several people and delayed a recruitment program. "The enrollment of new conscripts has been postponed to the beginning of next month rather than this month," the opposition West Kurdistan Society said.
Russia`s Zarubezhneft to drill Cuba oil shelf in 2011 - CEO
Russian state oil company Zarubezhneft plans to drill a shelf near Cuba in 2011, Zarubezhneft CEO Nikolai Brunich said on Wednesday. "Our plans say that shelf drilling will start in 2011," Brunich told reporters, adding he was talking about the L block.
Sanctions no impediment to Russia-Iran cooperation - ministers
International sanctions against Tehran will not affect Russian-Iranian cooperation, the countries' energy ministers said on Wednesday. ..."Sanctions will not be a hindrance," Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko said after talks with visiting Iranian Petroleum Minister Masud Mir-Kazemi. "Sanctions are not affecting Iran's economic and industrial development," Mir-Kazemi said echoing Schmatko's remarks.
President Obama, White House: Al Qaeda is racist
In an interview earlier today with the South African Broadcasting Corporation to air in a few hours, President Obama disparaged al Qaeda and affiliated groups’ willingness to kill Africans in a manner that White House aides say was an argument that the terrorist groups are racist. Speaking about the Uganda bombings, the president said, “What you’ve seen in some of the statements that have been made by these terrorist organizations is that they do not regard African life as valuable in and of itself...
Obama plans to cut up to 40 percent of nukes
A government document reveals that the Obama administration is planning to cut the U.S. nuclear stockpile by up to 40 percent by 2021. The Energy Department document provides details of the reductions that President Barack Obama has called for on a path to eliminating nuclear weapons. The reductions continue a trajectory of cuts that already has reduced U.S. stockpiles by about 75 percent since 1989.
Iran nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri 'heading home'
An Iranian nuclear scientist who once claimed he had been abducted by CIA agents is on his way back to Tehran, Iran says. Foreign Ministry officials, who claim they have evidence Shahram Amiri was abducted last year, told state media he had now left the US. The US state department has insisted he was in the US of his own free will.
Hague calls for closer ties between the UK and China
The foreign secretary has told his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi he wants to build a close working relationship between the two countries. Speaking on his first visit to China since becoming foreign secretary, William Hague also said the UK had concerns about human rights in Tibet. With the Chinese economy growing at around 10% per year, the UK is keen to increase exports to China.
NGOs slam EU-Brazil plans to develop biofuels in Africa
EU and Brazilian leaders are set to announce a new "triangular co-operation" initiative, under which they will aim to work together in some of the world's poorest countries, but NGOs say the duo's scheme is self-centred and will simply make conditions worse. ...The development of renewable energy is likely to be a central theme, and a first step will see the EU and Brazil sign an agreement with Mozambique this week to develop bioelectricity and biofuels projects, EU sources have indicated.
Cotler releases 18-point ‘road map’ against Iran
Iran should be brought before the International Court of Justice at The Hague for its state-sanctioned incitement to genocide, said former Canadian justice minister Irwin Cotler on Tuesday as he unveiled an 18-point road map designed to hold Teheran in check. At a Jerusalem press conference, Cotler called for stiffer action against Iran’s nuclear program, even as he warned that focusing solely on that threat had “sanitized” other significant threats, such as Teheran’s “genocidal incitement,” support of international terrorism and “domestic repression.”
Golan bill to second and third readings
The Golan Heights referendum bill will go to the Knesset House Committee for a second and third reading, after six members of Knesset voted for bill and two opposed. The bill states that any government decision to cede territory under full Israeli control, such as the Golan Heights or east Jerusalem, must be voted by the Knesset and undergo a national referendum within 180 days if passed.
Iron Dome test in South successful
Israel inched a step closer on Wednesday to deploying a missile defense system along the border with the Gaza Strip after the Iron Dome successfully intercepted a number of missile barrages in tests held in southern Israel this week. The tests were overseen by the Defense Ministry, the Israeli Air Force and the Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. which developed the Iron Dome, slated to become operational and deployed along the Gaza border in the coming weeks.
'Libyan ship continues to el-Arish'
The IDF on Wednesday confirmed that a Libyan aid ship, the Amalthea, had solved its reported engine problem and was continuing towards Egypt's el-Arish port. According to the Arabic newspaper Asharq Alawsat, the diversion of the Libyan ship was brought about after negotiations which were held between Israeli authorities and the aid ship organizers.