Stunning Views of Glaciers Seen From Space

To a geologist, glaciers are among the most exciting features on Earth. Though they seem to creep along at impossibly slow speeds, in geologic time glaciers are relatively fast, powerful landscape artists that can carve out valleys and fjords in just a few thousand years.Glaciers also provide an environmental record by trapping air bubbles in ice that reveal atmospheric conditions in the past....

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As Conn. story unfolds, media struggle with facts

NEW YORK (AP) — The scope and senselessness of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting challenged television journalists’ ability to do much more than lend, or impose, their presence on the scene.Pressed with the awful urgency of the story, TV, along with other media, fell prey to reporting “facts” that were often in conflict or wrong.How many people were killed? Which Lanza brother was the shooter: Adam...

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School Yoga Class Draws Religious Protest From Christians

T. Lynne Pixley for The New York TimesMiriam Ruiz during a yoga class last week at Paul Ecke Central Elementary School in Encinitas, Calif. A few dozen parents are protesting that the program amounts to religious indoctrination. More Photos »ENCINITAS, Calif. — By 9:30 a.m. at Paul Ecke Central Elementary School, tiny feet were shifting from downward dog pose to chair pose to warrior pose in surprisingly...

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Connecticut school shooting: 18 children among at least 24 dead

At least one gunman attacked a suburban Connecticut elementary school Friday, killing at least two dozen people, including 18...

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New <em>Zero Dark Thirty</em> Trailer Has More Substance, Also Metallica

So far the clips released for director Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty have been of the voiceover-and-ominous-music variety — little more than a few cuts and a bit of dialog about how “Maya” (Jessica Chastain) is such a great and confident CIA operative.Finally, we have a bit more to go on. Despite the fact that critics have been talking about Bigelow’s already critics’-award-winning...

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“X Factor” judge L.A. Reid quitting TV talent show

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – L.A. Reid, “The X Factor” judge, says he is leaving the TV talent show next season after two years on the panel.Reid, 56, chairman and chief executive of Epic Records, told “Access Hollywood,” the television program and website, he has decided to leave the Fox reality singing show to return to the record label full time.“I have decided that I will not return to ‘The X Factor’...

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Paper Links Nerve Agents in ’91 Gulf War and Ailments

Reviving a 20-year debate over illnesses of veterans of the 1991 Persian Gulf war, a new scientific paper presents evidence that nerve agents released by the bombing of Iraqi chemical weapons depots just before the ground war began could have carried downwind and fallen on American troops staged in Saudi Arabia. The paper, published in the journal Neuroepidemiology, tries to rebut the longstanding...

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European Leaders Back Banking Regulation but Delay Further Measures

BRUSSELS — E.U. leaders pledged Friday to take further steps to set up common banking rules for the bloc. But they delayed plans for a shared budget for the euro zone nations, amid signs of easing pressure on the single currency. At the end of a two-day summit meeting, the leaders fully endorsed a deal, hashed out early Thursday by E.U. finance ministers, to place the region’s biggest...

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Angels reportedly agree to deal with outfielder Josh Hamilton

One day after General Manager Jerry Dipoto said he didn’t feel like a major move was "imminent, pressing or required," the Angels...

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Companies Inch Closer to NASA Contracts for Manned Spaceflight

Three American companies continue their relentless slog forward to develop a spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to the International Space Station. And this week, NASA awarded contracts focused on working toward certification as part of its goal to once again have the capability to launch astronauts from the U.S. into low earth orbit.The latest contracts for Boeing, Sierra Nevada Corporation,...

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“Lincoln” leads Golden Globe movie nominations

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “Lincoln,” the tale of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln‘s battle to end slavery, ruled at the Golden Globe nominations on Thursday, while a very different movie take on slavery – “Django Unchained” – got a big boost in Hollywood’s crowded awards season.Steven Spielberg’s portrayal of one of America’s most revered presidents won a leading seven nominations, including best drama,...

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World’s Population Living Longer, New Report Suggests

A sharp decline in deaths from malnutrition and diseases like measles and tuberculosis has caused a shift in global mortality patterns over the past 20 years, according to a new report, with far more of the world’s population now living into old age and dying from diseases more associated with rich countries, like cancer and heart disease. The shift reflects improvements in sanitation, medical...

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Oregon shooter ID'd; he wielded AR-15, sparking chaos -- but why?

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Eric Schmidt Says Google Fiber Won't Stop With Kansas City

Kansas City is just the first stop for Google’s ultra-fast Google Fiber broadband network, Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said today. Speaking at The New York Times‘ Dealbook Conference on Wednesday, Schmidt corrected himself after initially referring to the first, and thus far only, Google Fiber network as an experiment. “It’s actually not an experiment; we’re...

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Why Netflix’s future is in “House of Cards,” “Arrested Development” – not Disney

LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – Netflix hailed as a “game-changer” its landmark deal last week to bring Disney movies to the streaming service. But while that deal may be significant, it pales in importance next to another looming development – the February debut of its original series “House of Cards.”The economic benefits of the Disney deal, which gives the company streaming rights to much...

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'Right-to-work' measure passes in Michigan Legislature

Controversial "right-to-work" legislation covering public-sector employees passed the Michigan House of Representatives on Tuesday,...

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Watch Live: Asteroid Toutatis Gives Earth a Cosmically Close Shave

Watch live as the 3-mile-wide asteroid 4179 Toutatis zips by the Earth today during a show from the Slooh Space Camera collaboration starting at noon PT (3 p.m. ET).Toutatis is a well-known asteroid because it makes a flyby of our planet roughly every four years. The passing is often very near, with the object coming within just 10 million miles of Earth — about four...

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FX orders “Tyrant” from “Homeland” producers

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – FX has ordered the Middle Eastern drama pilot “Tyrant” from “Homeland” producers Howard Gordon and Gideon Raff, as well as “Six Feet Under” and “Lost” producer Craig Wright.The pilot follows an American family drawn into the troubles of a turbulent Middle Eastern nation. The series, written and created by Raff, was developed by Gordon and Wright. The pilot comes from Gordon’s...

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News Analysis: A Debate on Coated Aspirins and Aspirin Resistance

Millions of Americans take low-dose aspirin every day to prevent heart attacks and strokes. But a study published last week challenges some cherished beliefs about the familiar remedy, leaving some consumers to wonder if they should throw out their coated pills and others concerned that they unnecessarily may be taking expensive substitutes. The study, published in the journal Circulation,...

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Michigan Legislature Approves Labor Limit

Fabrizio Costantini for The New York TimesProtesters argued on the steps of the Michigan Capitol on Tuesday as state lawmakers considered right to work legislation. LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan Legislature approved sweeping legislation on Tuesday that vastly reduces the power of organized labor in a state that has been a symbol of union dominance and served as an incubator for union activity over...

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Latin music star Jenni Rivera believed dead in plane crash

Fans of Mexican-American singing star Jenni Rivera held a vigil Sunday night in Lynwood MEXICO CITY — Mexican American singer...

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