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Ice at the North Pole melted at an unprecedented rate last week, with leading scientists warning that the Arctic could be ice-free in summer by 2013. Satellite images show that ice caps started to disintegrate dramatically several days ago as storms over Alaska's Beaufort Sea began sucking streams of warm air into the Arctic. As a result, scientists say that the disappearance of sea ice at the North Pole could exceed last year's record loss. More than a million square kilometres melted over the summer of 2007 as global warming tightened its grip on the Arctic. But such destruction could...

Researchers study hidden homicide trend Gun-related homicide among young men rose sharply in the United States in recent years even though the nation's overall homicide rate remained flat, according to a study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Between 1999 and 2005, homicide involving firearms increased 31 percent among black men ages 25 to 44 and 12 percent among white men of the same age. The study is published in Online First edition of the Journal of Urban Health. "The recent flatness of the U.S. homicide rate obscures the large increases in firearm death among...

While other states move away from giving illegal immigrant college students state benefits, the California Legislature appears to be pushing to give them more access to colleges and universities. Last month, North Carolina's community college system said it would no longer admit illegal immigrants. But in California, where illegal immigrants are allowed to enroll in state colleges, some lawmakers are backing a bill that would allow illegal immigrants to qualify for state financial aid and fee waivers. An estimated 65,000 illegal immigrants graduate from U.S. high schools each year and could potentially attend college, according to a study by the...

ATLANTA - Bucking the trend in many other wealthy industrialized nations, the United States seems to be experiencing a baby boomlet, reporting the largest number of children born in 45 years. The nearly 4.3 million births in 2006 were mostly due to a bigger population, especially a growing number of Hispanics. That group accounted for nearly one-quarter of all U.S. births. But non-Hispanic white women and other racial and ethnic groups were having more babies, too. An Associated Press review of birth numbers dating to 1909 found the total number of U.S. births was the highest since 1961, near the...

FARMERS BRANCH, Texas - This Dallas suburb could become the first city in Texas to adopt a sweeping ordinance intended to keep out illegal immigrants, a cause for concern among its large minority population. More than 50 municipalities nationwide have considered, passed or rejected laws banning landlords from leasing to illegal immigrants, penalizing businesses that employ undocumented workers and making English the local official language. But until now, that trend hasn't been matched in the Lone Star State. "This is the first town in Texas that had the guts to do what's right," Susie Hart, who grew up in Farmers...

Throw a Party for the Dogs With the Latest Luxury Dog Accessories There's a new twist on a Tupperware party that combines two of Americans' favorite pastimes -- throwing at-home shopping parties and spoiling their pets. They're called "pupperware" parties. There are new products galore to help make your dog look and feel debonair. So if Fido is going to be your date, you have to outfit him with the latest in socially appropriate gear. Maggie Gallant, a pet trend expert for Animal Planet, told "Good Morning America" about some hot, new luxury dog products that have turned up at...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 16, 2006 – The Iraqi people will need to carry forward positive trends in Baghdad, a coalition spokesman said there today. Army Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, of Multinational Force Iraq, said operations in and around Baghdad are designed to reduce murders, kidnappings, assassinations, terrorism and sectarian violence in the capital. Operations are pinpointed at the Doura, Shula and Ameriyah neighborhoods -- all areas threatened by sectarian violence. All three areas have both Sunni and Shiite populations. Iraqi soldiers and police are carrying out most operational missions, while coalition forces provide security cordons and quick-reaction forces. Operations look beyond...

Scenes from “MySpace: The Movie,” created by David Lehre. The 11-minute parody of... MySpace and its users has had millions of hits since it first appeared on the site YouTube on Jan. 31. EVEN as David Lehre’s “MySpace: The Movie,” ... spawned a high-profile feeding frenzy, some of the Hollywood agents, managers and lawyers who were clamoring to represent him didn’t know much about who he was... “It’s their fear of not being a part of it,” said Scott Vener, Mr. Lehre’s manager... ,,,“Their nightmare is a direct feed from moviemaker to audience,” said Walter Kirn ... Geoffrey Gilmore,...

Spanish Jews knew there were hard times ahead. Prime Minister Zapatero has not disappointed them Keen on populist tirades against the United States "Dickhead Bush" and "Ketchup Queen Kerry", his whole campaign did not bring much attention until the moment Al-Qaeda decided to blow up Madrid trains, killing almost 200 people and bringing to an end Spain's membership of the West. From that moment on, everybody knew nothing would be the same, and Spanish Jews knew there were hard times ahead. Prime Minister Zapatero has not disappointed them. 'Understand Nazis' Although many experts had foretold of the imminent disappearing of...

WASHINGTON, May 10, 2006 – The largest of the services, the Army is also the most heavily deployed, and with its one-year "boots-on-the-ground" deployment policy, it keeps its members away from home for the longest duration. Yet so far this year, more than 160,000 people have enlisted or re-enlisted in the Army - the equivalent to every man, woman and child in Chattanooga, Tenn., noted Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, Army personnel spokesman. April proved to be another strong month, with almost 5,700 soldiers joining the active Army and almost 5,900 joining the Army National Guard, he noted. The Army...

The Stanford University Symbolic Systems Program and the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence announced today the Singularity Summit at Stanford, a one-day event free to the public, to be held Saturday, May 13, 2006 at Stanford Memorial Auditorium, Stanford, California. The event will bring together leading futurists and others to examine the implications of the "Singularity" -- a hypothesized creation of superintelligence as technology accelerates over the coming decades -- to address the profound implications of this radical and controversial scenario. "The Singularity will be a future period during which the pace of technological change will be so rapid, its...

A new analysis of weather balloon observations from the last 30 years reveals that the Antarctic has the same 'global warming' signature as that seen across the whole Earth, but is three times larger than that observed globally. The results by scientists from British Antarctic Survey are reported this week in Science. Although the rapid surface warming in the Antarctic Peninsula region has been known for some time, this study has produced the first indications of broad-scale climate change across the whole Antarctic continent. Lead author Dr John Turner of the British Antarctic Survey says, "The rapid surface warming of...

Options for a coming singularity include self-destruction of civilization, a positive singularity, a negative singularity (machines take over), and retreat into tradition. Our urgent goal: find (and avoid) failure modes, using anticipation (thought experiments) and resiliency -- establishing robust systems that can deal with almost any problem as it arises. In order to give you pleasant dreams tonight, let me offer a few possibilities about the days that lie ahead—changes that may occur within the next twenty or so years, roughly a single human generation. Possibilities that are taken seriously by some of today's best minds. Potential transformations of human...

WASHINGTON, March 10, 2006 – Recruiting and retention statistics released today reflect continued across-the-board success and continuation of a nine-month trend, officials said. A top Pentagon official called that a testament to hard work by recruiters and broad public respect for the military in light of the economic boom under way. "February, in recruiting, was another really solid month," said Bill Carr, deputy undersecretary of defense for military personnel policy, during an interview with the Pentagon Channel. In active-duty recruiting, the Army achieved 102 percent of its February goal, bringing more than 6,100 soldiers into the force. The Navy and...

'Brokeback Mountain' sets off gay trend in Hollywood Mar 01 5:27 AM US/Eastern The awards success of a posse of Oscar hopefuls led by frontrunner "Brokeback Mountain" has made gay okay in Hollywood, where once-skittish filmmakers are embracing same-sex love. In what has been billed Oscar's "year of the queer," the romancing cowboys of "Brokeback" are joined by "Capote," the story of gay US author Truman Capote, and "Transamerica," the moving tale of a transsexual in the process of becoming a woman, starring Felicity Huffman. And as this year's pink contenders for Sunday's Academy Awards have been warmly embraced by...

Ocean temperatures might have risen even higher during the last century if it weren't for volcanoes that spewed ashes and aerosols into the upper atmosphere, researchers have found. The eruptions also offset a large percentage of sea level rise caused by human activity. Using 12 new state-of-the-art climate models, the researchers found that ocean warming and sea level rise in the 20th century were substantially reduced by the 1883 eruption of the Krakatoa volcano in Indonesia. Volcanic aerosols blocked sunlight and caused the ocean surface to cool. "That cooling penetrated into deeper layers of the ocean, where it remained for...

One of the overlooked stories of President Bush's Budget is what the President's focus is in the near-term future by his budget projection out to the year 2010. When President Bush submitted his Budget this year for Fiscal Year 2006, he also was required to submit projections four years out. It is the trend of the major categories (called "Superfunctions") which is both the most important and also the most shocking. "Human Resources" is the broadest measure of social welfare. It is also the largest expense in the USA's budget. For Fiscal Year 2006, the projection is 65.3 cents of...

Newhouse News Service Multiple-choice question: Why are more American kids allergic to foods, particularly peanuts? A) Their immune systems are confused by increasingly clean homes. B) Nervous parents wait too long to feed their children peanuts. C) We roast peanuts rather than boil them. D) Maybe one of the above, and/or something else. Unfortunately, the answer is "D." One study estimates American children's rate of allergy to peanuts and tree nuts (like walnuts and pecans) — about 1 percent of those under age 18 — has doubled in recent years. No one can say why. But whatever biological mysteries are...

At the onset of the twenty-first century, humanity stands on the verge of the most transforming and the most thrilling period in its history. It will be an era in which the very nature of what it means to be human will be both enriched and challenged, as our species breaks the shackles of its genetic legacy and achieves inconceivable heights of intelligence, material progress, and longevity. For over three decades, the great inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil has been one of the most respected and provocative advocates of the role of technology in our future. In his classic...

Small map (go to Web site for larger version): Vol. 15, No. 1 For Additional Information: Dr. John Christy, UAH, (256) 961-7763 christy@nsstc.uah.edu Dr. Roy Spencer, UAH, (256) 961-7960 roy.spencer@msfc.nasa.gov Global Temperature Report: May 2005 Global temperature trend since Nov. 16, 1978: +0.12 C per decadeMay temperatures (preliminary) Global composite temp.: +0.23 C (about 0.41 degrees Fahrenheit) above 20-year average for May. Northern Hemisphere: +0.23 C (about 0.41 degrees Fahrenheit) above 20-year average for May. Southern Hemisphere: +0.23 C (about 0.41 degrees Fahrenheit) above 20-year average for May. April temperatures (revised): Global Composite: +0.41 C above 20-year average Northern Hemisphere:...

Preliminary data indicate 2004 likely will register as the fourth-warmest year in the world’s surface temperature record. Yet despite all the gloom-and-doom scenarios, we haven’t experienced an all-time record-setter since the big El Niño back in 1998. Our planet may be warming, but not at a torrid clip. If global climate really were to respond the way climate models project it should, the ‘warmest year on record’ would be announced every other year or so after natural variation in annual average temperatures was factored in. But the ‘warmest year’ designation only is proclaimed every five years or so. At that...

Kerry is now where he is on most of the polls around 47% Bush at about 54%. The 47% is about where most polls show Kerry's ceiling. While its obvious that the extremely high numbers of the past few weeks for Bush had to come down, where do you all expect it to end up? Did the 2000 election show a change of the leader close to election day? Incidently, tradesports numbers are now very similar to these. Symbol Bid Ask Last Low High Average DEM04_G52 0.163 0.165 0.165 0.140 0.165 0.157 DEM04_L52 0.304 0.312 0.311 0.295 0.322 0.306 .476...

It's become a phenomenon on four wheels: magnets for cars, with ribbons that say "Support Our Troops." In a particularly heated election year, the magnets are one thing drivers -- and voters -- seem to be able to agree on. "Geez, they're everywhere," says Bob Fortini, proprietor of Fortini's Service Station in Somerville. "It seems like every car you get behind has one lately. I saw three of them on one car this morning. It's exploded in the last month." There are several variations on the magnet. Some of the ribbons are yellow. Some are red, white, and blue. Some...

A FEE FRENZY HAS BEEN building in California, and with last week's passage of a state budget that requires local governments to give back $2.6 billion over the next two years, things are just getting worse. In the future, San Francisco residents may pay an extra $700 to cremate the remains of loved ones. San Diego nightclub bouncers may have to pay $152 for permits. Some cities are considering flat fees for fire services. Other ideas in the pipeline throughout the state call for fees for burglar alarms and phone service to fund 9-1-1 systems. One city even thought about...

WASHINGTON, June 29 /U.S. Newswire/ -- With more than 1.3 billion people, China contains nearly one-fifth of the world's population. But revolutionary and controversial policies to slow population growth helped push its fertility level below that of the United States and many European countries. A new report from the Population Reference Bureau, "China's Population: New Trends and Challenges," explores how this rapid fertility decline has coincided with profound social changes--later marriage, longer life expectancies, new family structures, and a burgeoning elderly population. The growing proportion of elderly in China is beginning to strain both national and family resources. Lower fertility...

A group of teenagers is gathered at a party. Music's playing; smuggled booze is flowing. Two girls grin sheepishly at each other as a crowd goads them on. Finally, the teens relent, rewarding their audience with some mouth-on-mouth action. It's not an unusual scene, according to South Florida high school students, who say the newest trend for teen girls isn't wearing the latest designer jeans or driving a cool car, but declaring themselves to be bisexual.

Japan’s chilling Internet suicide pacts New trend highlights social problems, mental health crisis By Kari Huus MSNBC June 10 — The discovery Sunday of the bodies of four young Japanese men in a car at a vista point near Mount Fuji appears to be more evidence of a grim new trend in the prosperous country — group suicides of strangers who meet over the Internet. The suicide pacts, which have resulted in at least 18 deaths since February, are shocking to experts, even in a nation plagued by an astronomical suicide rate.

LOS ANGELES(AP) - "Stop the killin'. Save our children." The chant echoed through South Los Angeles on a recent night as 70 community members drove or marched, under police escort, to sites on streets and sidewalks where people died in a wave of homicides this year in the nation's second-largest city. The chant resonated up and down California as 2002 drew to a close. A number of cities had disturbing increases in homicides, many involving gangs. Some cities saw a decline in bloodshed, but even without complete statistics for the entire year, Attorney General Bill Lockyer this month acknowledged what...

<p>Joseph T. Kung of Diamond Bar, a supporter of GOP gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon, rejoices at Simon's early lead in returns Tuesday night at Simon's headquarters in Los Angeles. But later, Simon conceded to Democratic foe Gray Davis, who won re-election by about five percentage points. Republicans were thwarted by Democratic strongholds like L.A. and San Francisco.</p>