Top scientists say man may need to dirty skies to shield against warming
NAIROBI, Kenya — If the sun warms the Earth too dangerously, the time may come to draw the shade.
House Democrats choose Pelosi as first female speaker, rebuff her to choose Hoyer as No. 2
WASHINGTON — Democrats embraced Rep. Nancy Pelosi as the first female House speaker in history on Thursday, then quickly snubbed her, selecting Steny Hoyer of Maryland as majority leader, against her wishes.
German appeals court overturns Sept. 11 suspect’s acquittal
for accessory to murder
KARLSRUHE, Germany — A Moroccan man was convicted of being an accessory to murder in the Sept. 11 attacks, as a German appeals court ruled Thursday that evidence showed he knew the plotters planned to hijack and crash planes.
Agreement reached on Darfur peacekeepers
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — African, Arab, European and U.N. leaders agreed in principle Thursday to a joint African Union-United Nations peacekeeping force for Sudan’s Darfur region.
Elderly die from falls more often than in the past, but hip fractures among women decline
ATLANTA — The death rate from falling has risen dramatically for elderly people since the 1990s, said federal health officials, speculating that it’s because people are living longer with chronic conditions like cancer and heart disease.
Forest fires may cool, rather than warm, regional climate
WASHINGTON — Climatologists have worried for years that forest fires would worsen global warming by adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Now, there is an indication that the fires could have a regional cooling effect.
New robot can sense damage and compensate
WASHINGTON — When people hurt a leg they can often make do by limping or using a crutch until they feel better. Now, there’s a robot that can also cope with injury.
Turnover transformed governor’s administration
SACRAMENTO — Win re-election, clean house.
Spain, France and Italy push for EU peace plan for Middle East
GERONA, Spain — Spain, France and Italy offered a Mideast peace initiative Thursday, asserting that Europe must take a lead role in trying to end years of Israeli-Palestinian bloodshed they called intolerable.
Senators push to scrap precedent that cleared Enron founder
WASHINGTON — Two senators hope to end the legal precedent that let Enron founder Kenneth Lay’s fraud conviction be cleared from his record after he died.
Judge to consider halt to city’s law targeting illegal immigrants
SAN DIEGO — Last month, the American Civil Liberties Union persuaded a federal judge to temporarily block the city of Hazleton, Pa., from enforcing a crackdown on illegal immigrants. Now, it will test its argument in California.
Vatican reaffirms value of celibacy for priests
VATICAN CITY — A Vatican summit led by Pope Benedict XVI reaffirmed mandatory celibacy for priests Thursday, rebuffing a high-profile crusade by a married African archbishop who has been excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church.
Milton Friedman, Nobel Prize-winning economist, dies
SAN FRANCISCO — Milton Friedman, a Nobel Prize-winning economist who championed individual freedom, influenced the economic policies of three presidents and befriended world leaders, died Thursday. He was 94.
Warrant issued for leader of Iraq’s Sunnis; move could prompt Sunni exodus from government
BAGHDAD, Iraq — The Shiite-led Interior Ministry issued an arrest warrant Thursday for the top leader of the country’s Sunni minority — a move certain to inflame already raging sectarian violence in Iraq.
Democrats ramping up push for minimum wage increase
WASHINGTON — Democrats are readying a maximum effort to raise the minimum wage.
Immigrant groups ready push for reform amid Democrats’ ascendance
RIVERSIDE — At a recent strategy session, Hispanic political activists debated ways to characterize the 700-mile fence along the Mexican border approved last month by Congress.
Jury convicts white teen for brutal attack on Hispanic boy in Houston
HOUSTON — A teenager described by prosecutors as a neo-Nazi skinhead was convicted Thursday of savagely beating and sodomizing a Hispanic youth at a party while yelling racial epithets such as “white power!”
Hubble telescope finds ‘dark energy’ has pushed universe’s expansion for much of its history
NEW YORK — The Hubble Space Telescope has shown that a mysterious form of energy first conceived by Albert Einstein, then rejected by the famous physicist as his “greatest blunder,” appears to have been fueling the expansion of the universe for most of its history.
Harvard biologist extends an olive branch to evangelical Christians
Harvard biologist Edward O. Wilson might normally arouse suspicion among evangelicals, given his faith in science over Scripture.
Conservative Episcopal parishes, moving toward break
FAIRFAX, Va. — Two of the most historically significant parishes in the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia are moving toward breaking with the national church because of differences over the Bible and sexuality.
