5/19 The Huffington Post | Full News Feed

The Huffington Post | Full News Feed         Same-Sex Marriage Legal Dream Team May Not Get Case Before Supreme Court May 18, 2011 at 3:01 PM   WASHINGTON -- The legal dream team behind the successful challenge to California's law banning gay marriage may end up having their work stalled by arcane legal processes. In a Wednesday morning briefing for reporters, lawyers David Boies and Ted Olson -- who argued against each other in Bush v. Gore -- reiterated their desire to see the U.S. Supreme Court issue a sweeping ruling determining that any law intervening on an individual's right to marry was an abridgement of the Constitution's equal protection clause. But complex hurdles that remain, and the odd-couple legal duo acknowledged that such a decision could take months if not years to materialize. More important, any decision could be confined to California. Read More... More on Prop 8         Gov. Neil Abercrombie Launches 90-Day Plan To Clear Out Hawaii Homeless May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   In Hawaii, a state that has long struggled to deal with its homeless population, the government has announced a new initiative to clear the streets and beaches of people living outdoors. At a press conference in Honolulu on May 17, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports Governor Neil Abercrombie revealed his 90-day plan to focus on moving homeless into shelters. The Associated Press notes the timing of the plan will leave the streets more presentable when the president visits the state. Read More... More on Homelessness         Newt Gingrich Glitter Prankster, Nick Espinosa, Eyes 2012: GOP Field Is 'Ripe' For More Stunts May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   WASHINGTON -- It hasn't been the best week for presidential candidate Newt Gingrich. But political activist Nick Espinosa, the man behind the prank that will leave Gingrich finding glitter in his hair for days, is having a great time. "Of all the pranks I've done so far, this has been the most fabulous," he told The Huffington Post. "Getting a Republican candidate for president is a pretty good prank." On Tuesday, Espinosa dumped colorful glitter on Gingrich and his wife, Callista, during a book-signing event at a downtown Minneapolis hotel. "Feel the rainbow, Newt! Stop the hate! Stop anti-gay politics!" said Espinosa before being escorted out of the room. Read More... More on Marriage         Fed Minutes: Most Officials Want To Raise Rates Before Selling Assets May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Most Federal Reserve officials prefer to raise benchmark interest rates before selling assets when the time comes to tighten policy, minutes of their April meeting showed on Wednesday. During an extensive discussion of how the central bank might pull back its massive support for the world's largest economy, officials agreed they would eventual shrink the Fed's much expanded portfolio over the medium term, and that getting rid of mortgage-related debt would be a priority. Read More... More on Ben Bernanke         House Chaplain Nominee Has Clear Conscience Despite 'Firestorm' May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   By Nancy Haught Religion News Service PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) Less than a week after the announcement that he had been nominated to become the next chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Rev. Patrick Conroy found himself at the center of what he calls "a firestorm." Read More... More on House Of Representatives         The Joe and Rika Mansueto Library Opens At University Of Chicago May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   Below the surface of the University of Chicago lies a facility -- concealed under an impressive piece of modern architecture -- that houses the wisdom of the ancients. At the push of a button, a visitor can utilize state-of-the-art technology to bring forth this knowledge for his or her own scholarly pursuits. It's pretty much a Batcave for the Ph.D. crowd. Read More...         Gas Pump Politics: Republicans, Democrats and Obama Suffering From Post-Deepwater Disaster Amnesia May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   Welcome to "The Watchdog," which will keep a close eye on regulatory agencies and how their actions impact the lives of everyday Americans. Though the rules and regulations they write -- from determining how much arsenic is allowable in your drinking water to whether your favorite TV show can drop the F-bomb in primetime -- affect all of us, their deliberations and the way that lobbyists influence their decisions receive very little coverage. To make sense of these debates, follow the implementation of health care and financial reform and decipher the minutia of the Federal Register, "The Watchdog" is on the case. If you have any tips, send them to marcus@huffingtonpost.com. Read More... More on The Watchdog         Pope To Speak To International Space Station May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   By Francis X. Rocca Religion News Service VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Benedict XVI will speak via satellite with astronauts on the International Space Station on Saturday (May 21), the first time a pope has conversed with astronauts in space. Read More... More on Catholic Church         Walmart in South Africa: Retail Giant May Acquiesce to Workers, Suppliers May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   WASHINGTON -- Wal-Mart, long known for its tough stance on labor, may be forced to make concessions to unions and suppliers in its bid for control of South African retail conglomerate Massmart. To help see the merger through, the companies said theywould not lay off workers for a period of two years, would honor existing union contracts and would devote about $14 million to a fund aimed at developing South African suppliers. Wal-Mart offered to buy a majority stake of Massmart last September in a $2.4 billion deal that would pave the American giant's way into the sub-Saharan region. Read More... More on Africa         United Airlines Apologizes For Reusing 9/11 Flight Numbers May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   United Airlines briefly reinstated flight numbers from two of the planes that were hijacked on September 11, 2001 and is apologizing for the move. Numbers 93 and 171 went back into use likely within the past few days, apparently due to a technical error, the Associated Press reports. Read More... More on Airlines         Tiger Woods To Fall Out Of Top 10 In World Rankings May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   VIRGINIA WATER, England — Tiger Woods will fall out of the top 10 in the world ranking next week, ending an amazing streak of being top 10 in the world for 14 consecutive years. Woods' last win was 18 months ago in Australia. He started this year at No. 2 and has been steadily dropping points. With more points coming off his two-year ledger, the highest he can be in the next ranking is No. 11. Read More... More on Tiger Woods         Jilted Chinese Bride Saved From Dramatic Suicide (VIDEO) May 18, 2011 at 2:58 PM   The bride might have worn white, but it was anything but a day to envy. Dressed in her wedding gown, a Chinese college student identified only as Miss Li leaned out from a seventh-story apartment window in China's Jilin province after her fiancé wed another woman, MSNBC is reporting. Miss Li, 22, had threatened to take her life after her boyfriend of four years broke up with her just before the big day, but she was grabbed by waiting rescuers before she could jump from the ledge, which reportedly stands 80 feet about the ground. Local community officer Guo Zhongfan, who assisted in the rescue, was modest about his efforts. "I did what anyone would have done," he told Reuters. Though she did not sustain any injuries in the incident, Miss Li was taken to a hospital. Read More... More on Video         'Bridesmaids' Sequel? Paul Feig Says There Have Been Talks May 18, 2011 at 2:29 PM   Beyond the anticipation of two hours of solid storytelling and big laughs, the buildup to the new Kristen Wiig-starring flick "Bridesmaids" put the future of women in comedy on its back. If it was a hit, the door would be open for a whole new world of raunchy, lady-centric ensemble comedies; if it failed, many people might point to it as some bizarrely conclusive proof that the world doesn't want to see women in those roles. With its beyond-expectations $26 million opening weekend haul, it looks like those doors will open. But who knew it may be the very same crew that would lead the charge once again? Speaking to NY Magazine's Vulture blog, director Paul Feig discussed how excited he was at the strong opening weekend profit, as well as the overwhelmingly positive critical success the movie has garnered. When asked about a potential sequel, he couldn't hide the good news. Read More... More on SNL         Author Explores Muslim Sense of Betrayal By U.S. Foreign Policy On Eve Of Obama Middle East Speech May 18, 2011 at 2:29 PM   WASHINGTON -- As President Barack Obama readies a speech aimed at resetting America's relationships in the Middle East, at least one social scientist would urge him to consider the deep-seated anger and sense of betrayal he says Muslims feel toward U.S. foreign policy. Steven Kull, director of the Program on International Policy Attitudes and author of "Feeling Betrayed: The Roots of Muslim Anger at America," says from Morocco to Indonesia, Muslims "are singing from the same song sheet" of feeling oppressed by an America that cares more about oil and siding with Israel than truly supporting the democratic aspirations that have flowered during the recent Arab Spring. Kull presented his key findings Wednesday at a briefing at the Brookings Institution, which published the book that draws upon five years of polling, focus groups and visits to Muslim majority countries. Although Kull conducted the research from 2006 to 2010, before the current pro-democracy uprisings, his findings track with a newly released Pew Research Center report. The report found that Obama's efforts to rehabilitate America's image among Muslims after they frayed during the Bush administration's military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq have paid few dividends. Read More... More on Obama's Mideast Trip         Michael Jordan Surprises Oprah Winfrey At Her Farewell Show May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   So Michael Jordan was among the many to "surprise" Oprah Winfrey as she taped one of her last shows, and you have to wonder if any star-studded fete to someone like Winfrey would have been legitimate had Michael Jordan not been there. I mean, come on. He's Michael Jordan. He's the Oprah Winfrey of basketball. Did I just ruin anything for you? Read More... More on NBA         Recent College Grads Are Hit Hard By The Recession May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   A new survey of college graduates from the last five years finds that the Great Recession has hit them hard, forcing them into low-paying jobs often unrelated to their educations and leaving half of them expecting less financial success than their parents. Don't blame a spoiled generation, says Cliff Zukin, a Rutgers University political science and public policy professor who was co-author of the study. Read More... More on The Recession         Bashar Assad Sanctions Announced By U.S. May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   WASHINGTON -- The United States slapped sanctions on Syrian President Bashar Assad and six senior Syrian officials for human rights abuses over their brutal crackdown on anti-government protests, for the first time personally penalizing the Syrian leader for actions of his security forces. The White House announced the sanctions Wednesday, a day before President Barack Obama delivers a major speech on the uprisings throughout the Arab world. The speech is expected to include prominent mentions of Syria. Read More... More on Syria         Over 50 And Out Of Work: 'My Wife Doesn't Love Me Anymore; My Kids Don't Love Me' (VIDEO) May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   Mike Risinger's 17-year career as a draftsman started falling apart in 2008. When the financial crisis hit, he spent a year working as a contractor, and then a few weeks working for a friend before a starting an endless stretch of unemployment. Now his wife is working two full-time jobs to pick up the slack. "We see her very little, and usually when we do see her she's dead tired and doesn't want to do anything," Risinger says in a video posted online May 9. "It's miserable." Risinger, who lives in Portland, Ore., says one of his two daughters wants to go to college next year. "I don't know how she's going to pay for it. The finger gets pointed at me," he says, his eyes weary. "I seem to have lost my edge. I can't get an interview anymore." Read More... More on Unemployment Extension         Author Jess Row Argues That The Novel Is Not Dead May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   n 1941, as Panzer divisions closed in on Moscow, as Virginia Woolf slipped stones into her pockets and disappeared into the Ouse, Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin huddled in his room at the Gorky Institute of World Literature and wrote: Read More... More on Book Publishing         AP Fighting With Government Over Bin Laden Photo FOIA Request May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   WASHINGTON — The Associated Press on Wednesday protested the Obama administration's refusal to quickly consider AP's request for military and civilian government records related to the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound in Pakistan. In a written appeal filed with the Defense Department, the AP said that unnecessary bureaucratic delays harm the public interest and allow anonymous U.S. officials to selectively leak details of the May 2 mission that resulted in bin Laden's death. Read More...         Paul Ryan Makes Fun Of Jay Cutler During Speech To Economic Club Of Chicago May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   Making fun of Jay Cutler has become fairly easy since the NFC Championship game against the Packers, even for Congressmen. Republican Congressman Paul Ryan took a shot at the Chicago Bears quarterback during his speech to The Economic Club of Chicago about his debt-reduction plan on Monday. From FoxNews.com: Read More... More on Paul Ryan         Twitter Gives Users More Control Over Third Party Apps May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   Twitter has updated its permissions process in an effort to provide users with more transparency and control over what information can be accessed by third-party applications. When a user first connects an app to her Twitter account, she will now be shown a permissions screen that details what information the app will be able to access, as well as what "activities" they can perform with her account, such as posting tweets, reading tweets, and viewing the accounts she follows. Twitter will also be limiting the access that third party apps have to direct messages. "Apps that you use to access your direct messages will ask for your permission again. By the end of the month, applications that do not need access to your direct messages will no longer have it, and you can continue to use these apps as usual," Twitter wrote in a blog post. Read More... More on Twitter         Singapore Apartment Tenants Unwittingly Drank From Corpse-Tainted Water Tank May 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM   SINGAPORE -- A corpse has been found in a Singapore apartment building's water storage tank after residents complained of yellow, foamy water. Singapore police say the body of a 30-year-old Indonesian woman was found Monday at the 15-story building and the case is being investigated as a murder. They say a 27-year-old Bangladeshi man was arrested in connection with the case. Read More... More on Crime         10 Disturbing Novels May 18, 2011 at 2:02 PM   Jezebel-writer Anna North's debut novel, America Pacifica, is out today. The story centers around an impoverished teenage girl who is struggling to survive on an increasingly toxic island in the Pacific Ocean after a future Ice Age sets in and freezes the mainland. Read More...         SEC Advances Tighter Rules For Moody's, Other Debt Rating Agencies May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   WASHINGTON -- Federal regulators advanced tighter rules Wednesday for agencies that rate the debt of companies and governments. Credit ratings can affect a company's ability to raise or borrow money. They can also influence how much investors pay for securities. Read More...         Jerome Corsi Book Satirized By Esquire, Joseph Farah Reportedly Angered May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   What happens when a satire is taken seriously? Following the release of Jerome Corsi's birther book, "Where's the Birth Certificate? The Case that Barack Obama is not Eligible to be President," Esquire posted on their website a satirical piece, "BREAKING: Jerome Corsi's Birther Book Pulled from Shelves!" The problem? The satire was so believable that within hours, Esquire had to add an update clarifying that the piece was not, in fact, true and now Esquire may face legal actions. In light of President Obama revealing his long-form birth certificate, many consider Corsi's book a rather moot point with an outdated argument. But, as HuffPost's Jason Linkins argues about birthers, "They are only limited by their imagination, and they've so far managed to create an entire alternate reality, so why stop now?" Read More... More on Birthers         Arnold Schwarzenegger Not Listed On Love Child's Birth Certificate May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   TMZ has obtained a copy of the birth certificate of the boy Arnold Schwarzenegger fathered ... and he's not listed as the father on the birth certificate. Read More... More on Maria Shriver         Dominique Strauss-Kahn Defended Witlessly By Bernard-Henri Levy And Ben Stein May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   Who would have thought there would ever be an issue in our modern lives that could possibly bring together the abundant talents of Bernard-Henri Levy and Ben Stein? The former is a louche French "public intellectual," the latter a Nixon speechwriter-turned-droning commercial pitchman, so up until recently, I wouldn't have imagined there were too many causes under whose banners the two would publicly unite. But that was all before IMF head and would-be French presidential candidate Dominique Strauss-Kahn was accused of raping a hotel maid. Now, Levy and Stein find themselves offering up the same response -- two of the World's Most Interesting Men, defending another Interesting Man, on the grounds that the privilege all enjoy makes the crime inconceivable on its face. Ahh, the vita is always dolce when you are an Interesting Man. And rape? This is not a crime that Interesting Men dismiss out of hand, necessarily. But it's a tawdry and declasse sort of thing that happens to downmarket people. It's not supposed to rile up the lives of the world's elite. Game recognizes game, after all. And shame? That's for lesser people. And so while we it can be acknowledged that the possibility exists that DSK is the perpetrator of a crime (Levy: "I do not know what actually happened." Stein: "...it's possible indeed, maybe even likely, that he is guilty as the prosecutors charge."), the important thing to do right now is remind the world that in this life, Interesting Men are never supposed to experience shame, let alone experience it publicly. Isn't that the greater indignity? Read More... More on Dominique Strauss-Kahn         'Nearly Rich' Now Spending In A 'Middle-Class Sort Of Way' May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   The nearly rich are being constrained by falling home prices, income gains that lag behind inflation, 9 percent unemployment and a reluctance to dip into savings after the recession, according to economist Robert Dye. Read More... More on The Fed         Annie Jacobsen On Daily Show (VIDEO) May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   Ever wonder what goes on at America's most secretive military base, Area 51? Investigative reporter/contributing editor at Los Angeles Times magazine Annie Jacobsen did. She talked about her new book, "Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base" last night with Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show." For her book, she interviewed 71 men with direct access to the base, 32 of whom lived and worked there. Though she debunks the alien myths that have been associated with Area 51, Stewart noted, "What is in the book is almost more disturbing than the idea that there was an alien visitation." Read More... More on Jon Stewart         CNN Series 'America's Job Hunt' Looks At Jobs Crisis May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   CNN is in the midst of a week-long look at the unemployment crisis in America. CNN's managing editor Mark Whitaker described the series, called "America's Job Hunt," as focusing on "the human and economic toll of the most prolonged unemployment crisis of recent times." In the series, many of CNN's reporters and hosts are doing reports and interviews on the search for jobs and what can be done to create more of them. "American Morning" and "CNN Newsroom" are two of the primary places where the series is being seen. In the video below, CNN's Christine Romans talks to Discovery Channel host about America's labor force. Read More... More on CNN         Planets Without Orbits? Astronomers Make 'Exciting' Discovery May 18, 2011 at 1:43 PM   NEW YORK -- Are these planets without orbits? Astronomers have found 10 potential planets as massive as Jupiter wandering through a slice of the Milky Way galaxy, following either very wide orbits or no orbit at all. And scientists think they are more common than the stars. These mysterious bodies, apparently gaseous balls like the largest planets in our solar system, may help scientists understand how planets form. Read More... More on Science         Finance Park In Fairfax, Va. Offers Middle Schoolers Lessons In Money Smarts May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   Pay the mortgage or buy a Lamborghini? Based on their purchases in a financial literacy exercise, some middle schoolers in Fairfax County, Va. would rather take the sports car, NPR reports. These decisions become learning experiences for eighth-graders in the large Washington, D.C. suburb's school system. Every student is required to explore such money management issues at an educational arena called Finance Park. Read More... More on Children         Bashar Assad Sanctions Coming From U.S.: AP Sources May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   WASHINGTON — The United States slapped sanctions on Syrian President Bashar Assad and six senior Syrian officials for human rights abuses over their brutal crackdown on anti-government protests, for the first time personally penalizing the Syrian leader for actions of his security forces. The White House announced the sanctions Wednesday, a day before President Barack Obama delivers a major speech on the uprisings throughout the Arab world with prominent mentions of Syria. Read More... More on Middle East Protests         GOP 2012 Primary Race: Still No Frontrunner May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   WASHINGTON -- On the heels of announcements by Mike Huckabee and Donald Trump that they will not seek the Republican nomination for president in 2012, a new Gallup report released Tuesday finds there is still no frontrunner for the GOP nomination. The report found that when respondents who had selected Huckabee or Trump as their first choice for the Republican nomination in Gallup's March and April polling were reallocated according to their second choices, Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin moved into a near tie for first place. Still, neither potential candidate was the favorite of more than a fifth of Republicans. Huckabee and Trump had been tied for first place, each with just 16 percent, in Gallup's April primary poll, with Romney and Palin trailing. The three candidates with the highest name recognition in Gallup's May polling -- Romney, Palin and Newt Gingrich -- made the biggest gains when second choices for Trump and Huckabee voters were reallocated, but none appeared poised to pick up enough support to vault into clear frontrunner status. Read More... More on Pollster         NJ-Christie Approval: 47% Approve, 49% Disapprove (Monmouth 5/12-16) May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   Monmouth University 5/12-16/11; 807 adults, 3.5% margin of error Mode: Live telephone interviews Read More... More on Pollster         OH-Kasich Approval: 38% Approve, 49% Disapprove (Quinnipiac 5/10-16) May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   Quinnipiac University 5/10-16/11' 1,379 registered voters, 2.6% margin of error Mode: Live telephone interviews Read More... More on Pollster         Queen Elizabeth II Seeks Irish 'Bloody Sunday' Reconcilation On 4-Day Tour May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   DUBLIN -- Queen Elizabeth II's journey of reconciliation to Ireland took her to the site Wednesday of a notorious massacre where British troops killed 14 Irish civilians in 1920. The queen's visit to Croke Park on the second day of her historic trip highlighted the mellowing in Anglo-Irish relations since those dark days. The large sports stadium is a revered spot for Irish nationalists who mourn those who died there during the conflict with Britain. Read More... More on Queen Elizabeth II         6 Intimate Details You Can Tell Just By Looking At Someone May 18, 2011 at 1:27 PM   How much would you pay to be able to read another person's mind? As superpowers go, it's a hell of a lot more of a game changer than, say, flight. Your career, your relationships -- everything would change. But experts say you can gather a whole bunch of intimate details about a person just by looking at them. No, it's not 100 percent accurate, and it's not magic. It's just science. Read More...         Peter King 2012? Republican Congressman Leaves Door Open For Possible Presidential Bid May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   GARDEN CITY, N.Y. — Rep. Peter King, whose national profile has climbed as head of the U.S. House Homeland Security panel, is leaving the door open for a possible presidential bid. The New York congressman, responding to a powerful hometown Republican's suggestion that he run for president, said he was taking a wait-and-see approach. Read More... More on Elections 2012         Mehdi Carcela, Standard Liege Player, Kicked In Face During Belgian League Playoff Match (VIDEO) May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   Standard Liege midfielder Mehdi Carcela took a brutal kick to the face in the first half of their Belgian league playoff match against Racing Genk. Carcela and Racing Genk's Chris Mavinga were both chasing after the ball and Mavinga tried to clear it. However, the Genk defender missed the ball and nailed Carcela in the face. The Moroccan immediately fell to the ground and was taken to a nearby hospital, according to the Associated Press. Mavinga was given a yellow card and the match ended in a 1-1 draw, giving Racing Genk the league title. Read More... More on Soccer         Spain Unemployment Protests Staged Ahead Of Sunday Elections May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   More than 1,000 young demonstrators packed Madrid's Puerta de Sol square to vent their anger over Spain's economic crisis and staggering unemployment rate. As the AFP is reporting, protesters carried placards reading "Make the guilty pay for the crisis," and chanted "They call this democracy but it is not." Organized via Twitter, the "Egyptian-style" demonstrations were staged ahead of Spain's regional and municipal elections Sunday, and as the BBC is notes, the atmosphere has been quite festive, with most of the crowd singing songs and playing games while they debate. They are demanding jobs and a fairer system of democracy. "We are tired of the unemployment, the corruption of politicians. It is always the same thing. I have no job and I don't see how I can get one any time soon," Madrid resident Jordi Perez, 25, is quoted by the AFP as saying. "They have to know how we feel." Read More... More on Spain         'The Curse Of The Buxom Strumpet': Judi Dench, Ian McKellan Set For 18th Century Zombie Film May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   Judi Dench and Ian McKellan are two of the finest actors of stage and screen of the 20th century, regal British nobility with careers that will stand the test of time -- and now headed back to the 1700's to fight a zombie outbreak. The film industry knows no bounds in its enthusiasm for jumping on trends and re-making -- and re-making -- the same type of stories, catching even its finest performers in each of its waves. Including Oscar and BAFTA winners. According to Screen Daily, Dench and McKellan are set to star in "The Curse of the Buxom Strumpet," the hilariously titled tale of a 18th century zombie outbreak in a British seaside town. Read More... More on Celebrities         China's Conjoined Twin Girls Are Alive And Growing Stronger May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   CHONGQING, China — In a hallway at the Xinqiao Hospital of the Third Military Medical University, Liao Guojun spends his days pacing, sleeping on borrowed beds and hoping for news. His daughters are only feet away, behind a locked door at the end of the hall, but he rarely sees them. Liao's children, unusual conjoined twins born May 5, lie behind the closed and guarded door of the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit. The room's windows have been covered with paper, preventing curious gawkers from stealing glances of China's notorious newborns. Read More...         Census: Divorces Decline In United States May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   WASHINGTON -- New census figures show the "seven-year" itch persists – couples who break up typically separate upon seven years of marriage, and divorce a year later. The 2009 data released Wednesday also show U.S. divorces are leveling off after decades of increases. The census report found that among all race groups, women who were ever married and then divorced reached as high as 41 percent among 50- to 59-year-olds. That's down from 44 percent in 2004. Read More...         WATCH: Explaining The Mystery Of Chronic Pain May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   We think of pain as a symptom of a disease -- and usually it is, often stemming from something like a tumor, an infection or an operation. But, about 10 percent of the time, the pain itself is the problem. "Pain is a disease," said pediatric anesthesiologist Elliot Krane, chief of the Pediatric Pain Management Service at the Lucille Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford. During a talk titled "The Mystery of Chronic Pain" for TED, a "nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading," Krane described how sometimes the nervous system can morph to create a "positive feedback loop" that sends pain signals to an area of your body. "It's almost as if somebody came into your home and rewired your walls so that the next time you turned on the light switch, the toilet flushed three doors down, or your dishwasher went on or your computer monitor turned off." Krane said. "That's crazy, but that's in fact, what happens with chronic pain." Read More... More on TED         Philip Morris Targets California Cigarette Tax Measure May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   Story comes courtesy of California Watch. By Christina Jewett Supporters of a proposed $1-per-pack tax on cigarettes argue lives and billions of dollars could be saved by the ballot measure. But they are being outspent by a cigarette company that has mobilized to fight the campaign. Read More...         Test Scores Emphasized In Revamped Teacher Evaluations May 18, 2011 at 1:11 PM   New state regulations finally were put into motion on Monday for evaluating New York City public school teachers. "These are not perfect tools by any means," the chancellor of the Board of Regents, Merryl H. Tisch, said. "But that being said, I believe it is important to have an objective system to evaluate teachers on a professional basis. This is the beginning of such a process." Read More... More on NY News         DIY Solar USB Charger: How To Make Your Own In An Altoid Tin May 18, 2011 at 12:54 PM   From EarthTechling's Caleb Denison: Solar chargers are a great way to power your mobile devices on the go and, because the devices are catching on, more and more varieties of them are coming available. We've covered and even reviewed a few of them in the recent past. The trouble is, one of the common denominators of these devices is that they tend to be a bit pricey. For those with a little DIY electronics inclination and some free time on their hands, may we suggest taking a look at this slick little DIY solar charger with full assembly instructions available at Instructables? Read More... More on Energy         Honest Chain Restaurant Menus May 18, 2011 at 12:54 PM   Welcome to Olive Garden! You're about to experience the kind of genuine Italian cooking that only a multi-national, publicly traded corporation founded in suburban Minneapolis could provide. 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