North Korea Says it Has Conducted a Nuclear Test

North Korea says it has successfully tested a miniaturized nuclear device Tuesday, according to state media.A large tremor measured at magnitude 4.9 was detected in North Korea and governments in the region scrambled to determine whether it was a nuclear test that the North Korean regime has vowed to carry out despite international protests.Official state media said the test...

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Being first lady’s guest at speech can yield positive and sometimes unexpected results

As President Obama delivers his State of the Union address on Tuesday night, the first lady’s guests will be on their best behavior. White House staffers will have coached those sitting in the gallery with Michelle Obama that at any moment the cameras might pan from the president’s podium to where they sit in the balcony. So they will watch their posture, stifle yawns and skip the chewing...

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Tech giants summoned by Australia pricing inquiry

SYDNEY: Global technology giants Microsoft, Apple and Adobe were on Monday ordered to appear before a pricing inquiry examining the often-higher cost of tech goods in Australia compared with other economies.The lower house committee holding the probe, which was launched last May, said it had summoned the trio to appear at a public hearing next month to explain why Australian customers...

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Curfew continues in Kashmir Valley

SRINAGAR:Kashmir Valley remained under curfew for the third day today even as mobile Internet services remained suspended and newspapers failed to hit the stands following hanging of Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru. The restrictions on the movement of people in the Valley were further tightened this morning in view of apprehension of widespread protests to commemorate the 29th death...

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Year of the Snake: The Serpent Behind the Horoscope

On February 10, people all around the world will ring in the Lunar New Year with paper lanterns and firecrackers. At the heart of it all sits the snake, a slithery reptile feared for its sharp fangs and revered for its undeniable charm. (Watch videos of some of the world's deadliest snakes.)Those born in the Year of the Snake are said to be intelligent and quick thinking, but they can...

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Possible Dorner Sighting Leads to Store Evacuation

A Northridge, Calif., home improvement store was evacuated tonight because of a possible sighting of suspected cop-killer Christopher Dorner, just hours after police announced a $1 million reward for information leading to his arrest.As helicopters hovered overhead and a command center was established, police searched the Lowe's store and eventually told shoppers they could...

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Many 2011 federal budget cuts had little real-world effect

Late on the night of April 8, 2011, Washington’s leaders announced that they’d just done something extraordinary. They had agreed to cut the federal budget — and cut it big. “The largest annual spending cut in our history,” President Obama called it in a televised speech. To prevent a government shutdown, the parties had agreed to slash $37.8 billion: more than the budgets of the Labor...

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Taiwan's "King of the Trees" fights for the forests

TAICHUNG, Taiwan: With his blue stetson and thick grey jacket, Lai Pei-yuan looks like a modern-day cowboy, but rather than raising cattle, he grows trees.The 57-year-old Taiwanese entrepreneur made his fortune in transportation and property, but his real mission in life is to reinstate at least some of the forests that once covered most of the island."It was just a simple idea I had,"...

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I was detained for talking with media: SAR Geelani

NEW DELHI: A day after he was detained following the hanging of Afzal Guru, Delhi University lecturer SAR Geelani Sunday said his detention by police happened because he had spoken to the media. "They did not want me to speak to the press, so they detained me," Geelani told IANS. Geelani, who teaches at Zakir Hussain College, Delhi University, was arrested for his alleged involvement in the parliament...

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Mars Rover Curiosity Completes First Full Drill

For the first time in history, humans have drilled a hole into rock on Mars and are collecting the powdered results for analysis, NASA announced Saturday.After weeks of intensive planning, the Mars rover Curiosity undertook its first full drill on Friday, with NASA receiving images on Saturday showing that the procedure was a success.Curiosity drilled a hole that is a modest 2.5 inches...

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