Round-the-world solar plane debut

Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard has unveiled a prototype of the solar-powered plane he hopes eventually to fly around the world. The initial version, spanning 61m but weighing just 1,500kg, will undergo trials to prove it can fly at night. Dr Piccard, who made history in 1999 by circling the globe non-stop in a balloon, says […]


Wisc. database missing DNA of 12K felons

MILWAUKEE – Mandatory DNA profiles of at least 12,000 Wisconsin felons are missing from a statewide database, according to an audit released Wednesday. The audit was conducted after officials discovered no DNA was on file for a convicted felon now suspected in a string of Milwaukee killings. Investigators have since found that a sample was […]


A Shocking Return

Here’s a bit of casting news that will warm the hearts of even the most jaded of my fellow old-school Prison Break fans. Charles Westmoreland “lives.” Yes, he who would have you believe him to be the long-lost D.B. Cooper — and who last was seen left to die mid-escape from Fox River at the […]


How a Secretary Made and Gave Away $7 Million

She lived in a tiny one-bedroom cottage in Lake Forest, Ill. She bought her clothes at rummage sales, didn’t own a car and worked most of her life as a secretary for a pharmaceutical company. Yet after her death at age 100, Grace Groner left Lake Forest College a gift of $7 million to be […]


Clinton’s party tent rises

The big top is up and the big day almost here for Chelsea Clinton. A massive white tent stands behind a sprawling Rhinebeck estate as preparations for the year’s most anticipated wedding kick into high gear. The 50-acre Astor Courts estate, overlooking the Hudson River, was abuzz with activity Wednesday in the final hours before […]


Asteroid Will Fly Close by Earth Thursday

A newly discovered asteroid will zip close by Earth Thursday, but poses no threat of crashing into our planet even though it is passing within the orbit of the moon. The asteroid, called 2010 GA6, is a relatively small space rock about 71 feet (22 meters) wide and was discovered by astronomers with the Catalina […]


TV’s `Newlywed Game’ features first gay couple

NEW YORK – “The Newlywed Game” is bringing on its first gay couple. It’s a celebrity duo for the long-running game show, now on the GSN cable network. George Takei, who played Mr. Sulu on “Star Trek,” will appear with his partner, Brad Altman. They just celebrated their first anniversary after being married in Los […]


Iceland says goodbye to the Big Mac

McDonald’s closes in Iceland as currency collapse takes a bite out of Big Mac profits REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — The Big Mac, long a symbol of globalization, has become the latest victim of this tiny island nation’s overexposure to the world financial crisis. Iceland’s three McDonald’s restaurants — all in the capital Reykjavik — will […]