Top headlines:
Warming wreaks havoc, islanders say: Climate change is wreaking havoc in the small island states of the South Pacific and assistance is needed for those already hit by rising seawater and severe storms, an islands leader said. ›19:25 20 Aug, Wed
Gamma-ray probe gets new name and fame: NASA's new gamma-ray telescope is up and running in orbit, and going by a brand new name: the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. ›19:48 26 Aug, Tue
Stocks back off session highs, but still end up: Wall Street ended trading sharply higher Wednesday after the government reported a larger-than-expected increase in orders for big-ticket manufactured goods. ›21:52
Shopping for school can be its own lesson: For some, back-to-school shopping as a perfect way to teach their children about handling money before the first school bell rings. ›16:00
Ga. town seeks scarecrow world record: A small northeastern Georgia town's population boom is, well, scary. In a bid to break a world record, residents are building hundreds of scarecrows . ›23:20
How bacteria could help power the future: Hydrogen is the cleanest and most abundant fuel there is, but extracting it from water or organic material is currently not a very efficient process. Scientists are therefore studying certain bacteria that exhale hydrogen as part of their normal metabolism. ›16:05
No bull! Cows have a built-in compass: A study of Google Earth satellite images has revealed that herds of cattle tend to face in the north-south direction of Earth's magnetic lines. ›21:46 25 Aug, Mon
Top 10 Labor Day escapes: Labor Day weekend translates to the last hurrah of summer, when sun-lovers prepare for a bittersweet farewell to the season. Enjoy summer's last gasps at one of these close-to-home locales. ›20:41
Newsweek: Worries grow about 'fracking' for oil: Fracturing chemicals are routinely used on oil and gas wells, where they are pumped deep into the ground to crack rock seams and increase production. The problem? The chemicals are largely unregulated and may be toxic. ›22:48 20 Aug, Wed
Scientists seek to protect economy from climate: Eight agencies urged the next U.S. president to help protect the U.S. from climate change by pushing for increased funding for research and forecasting, saying about $2 trillion of economic output could be hurt by storms, floods and droughts. ›02:50 21 Aug, Thu
A new way to avoid bogus Web sites: Intercepting Internet traffic, and spying on the communication between two computers, is a gold mine for hackers. Now researchers hope new software will make it harder for criminals to hit that jackpot. ›22:02
Democratic convention schedule: The following is the schedule for the Democratic Convention, as published by the Democratic National Committee. ›12:02
'Inconsolable' baby elephant back with mother: The baby elephant appears to be in good health and its mother has begun nursing the calf in the wake of her violent initial reaction. ›15:47
GOP takes a hard platform line on abortion: Republicans went on record Tuesday with a reaffirmation of their hard line on abortion and edged toward a more moderate stance on climate change the views of both John McCain and the conservative base. ›16:28
6-figure bonus: Easy come, easy go: Oklahoma officials say a typo resulted in a state employee receiving a bonus of $850,000 but it was only temporary. ›23:57 23 Aug, Sat
Macs continue to gain home, small business share: More home users, and a growing number in the small business sphere, are opting to move to Apples computers, their interest driven by positive experiences with Apple's other products, as well as disenchantment with the Windows world. ›12:44 26 Aug, Tue
One-horse town to be no-horse town: A one-horse town in Nebraska looks like it's set to become a no-horse town. ›09:33
Advancing Atlantic swallows African village: The old shore road to Totope is now under the sea, and when developers began carving out another one, it was washed away so often they abandoned it. ›14:13 26 Aug, Tue
Cosmic Log: New rocket racer lifts off: Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: The Rocket Racing League's bigger, more powerful prototype plane gets its first flight tests. ›17:42
Auctioneers find explosives in suitcase: Auctioneers preparing for a backyard estate sale Saturday morning made an explosive discovery among the china and other items up for bid a suitcase full of military-grade explosives. ›07:24 25 Aug, Mon
Mortgage mess puts more banks at risk: The mortgage mess that has upended millions of homeowners finances is now taking a bigger bite out of the nations banking system. ›19:06
Who is the mystery 'iPhone Girl'?: Pictures of an Asian factory worker found on a new iPhone sold to a British customer have generated keen discussion on the Internet about her identity and her fate. ›15:10
Walter: What Democrat unity gap?: Contrary to popular belief, Democrats are mostly unified behind Barack Obama. ›18:08
McCain touts drilling agenda from oil platform: Republican presidential candidate John McCain visited an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday to call for increased offshore drilling that he claims would lower the cost of food and heating homes. ›20:21 19 Aug, Tue
