News: Number crunching boffins unearth crypto flaws Cryptographic researchers have discovered weaknesses in the encryption algorithms that underpin the security and integrity of electronic signatures.\


News: DIY phishing kits hit the Net Do-it-yourself phishing kits are being made available for download free of charge from the Internet, according to anti-virus firm Sophos.\


Boxer Bowe to Launch Comeback in Sept. (AP) AP - Former heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe is coming out of retirement after a 17-month prison stint, with a scheduled return to the ring Sept. 25.


Cavaliers Sign Varejao to Three-Year Deal (AP) AP - The Cavaliers signed Brazilian rookie forward Anderson Varejao to a three-year contract Thursday.


American Amanda Beard Snatches the Gold  ATHENS (Reuters) - Amanda Beard, twice an Olympic silver  medallist back in 1996, finally won individual Olympic gold  when she snatched victory from Australia's Leisel Jones in the  200 meter breaststroke Thursday.


The Art of Controlled Aggression  ATHENS (Reuters) - The word judo means "Way of Gentleness"  in Japanese.


Conquering Man -- and Beast -- Is Crawford's Goal  ATHENS (Reuters) - Conquering man's fastest runners at the  Olympics is not the only sprint show that may await American  Shawn Crawford; his agent is talking about another go at the  animal kingdom.


Hamilton's career highlights Won 1999 Tour of Denmark Finished 10th in individual time trial in 2000 Olympics at Sydney


Wheels are spinning in Marblehead It didn't take long for word of Tyler Hamilton's Olympic gold medal to spread throughout his hometown of Marblehead.


Hungary Race Debrief: Fernando solidly best of the rest A closer look at the data from Sundays race shows Fernando full deserved his third place at the Hungaroring after a flawless drive.


Fernando Alonso: A job well done The Spaniard didnt quite repeat last years achievement, but his Hungarian podium left him satisfied all the same.


Budapest, Race: Renault on the podium Fernando Alonso finished third in the Hungarian Grand Prix, behind two unbeatable Ferraris.


Hungarian Grand Prix, Race Fernando finishes third in Hungary, and scores the team's sixth podium of the year.


Peirsol's Medal Restored American Aaron Peirsol reclaims the gold medal Thursday night in the 200-meter backstroke after his disqualification was reversed.


Owners Extend Selig Owners vote to extend Bud Selig's term as baseball commissioner for three years through 2009 in a unanimous vote Thursday.


Expansion Alters Format With the expansion of the ACC, the men's basketball schedule will not incorporate the double round robin format in which each school plays every other twice.


Hungary Ends America's Winning Run Defending Olympic champion Hungary hands the United States its first loss in water polo preliminaries Thursday, beating the Americans 7-5.


Najaf, Scarred by Urban Warfare, Prepares for More (Reuters) Reuters - If U.S. and Iraqi troops launch a\major assault on radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's militants,\they will have to pass through sniper-infested streets to root\them out of a mosque they can't afford to harm.


Annan Vows to Protect U.N. Staff from Attacks (Reuters) Reuters - U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called\at an emotional tribute on Thursday for the prosecution of\those behind the "cold-blooded murder" of 22 people at the\United Nations office in Baghdad one year ago.


Stonehenge Tunnel Faces Tough Road Ahead (Reuters) Reuters - Whoever built Stonehenge,\the 5,000-year-old circle of megaliths that towers over green\fields in southern England and lures a million visitors a year,\couldn't have planned for the automobile.


Iraq's South Oil Co. Headquarters Torched (AP) AP - Shiite militants loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr broke into the headquarters of Iraq's South Oil Co. on Thursday and set the company's warehouses and offices on fire, witnesses said.


Egypt Air and Gulf Air sign strategic alliance (AFP) AFP - Egypt Air and Gulf Air signed a strategic alliance to boost their cooperation, especially in the Middle East.


Two NCSSM students win national team science competition Two students at the Durham NC School of Science and Mathematics will split \$100,000 in scholarship money for their cancer research.


Sen. Zell Miller to Be GOP Keynote Speaker (AP) AP - Get ready for some more "Zell zingers" from the political convention in New York. But this time, a Bush will be the beneficiary, not the target.


FEC Says Corzine Can Give Unlimited Funds (AP) AP - Wealthy members of Congress can give unlimited amounts of their own money to groups for get-out-the-vote drives even though they are barred from raising big checks for their campaigns or others, election officials said Thursday.


The youth vote: Hard to tell how it will turn out (USATODAY.com) USATODAY.com - The youth vote, perhaps the most elusive quarry in U.S. politics, is being Rocked, Smacked Down, Rapped and otherwise goosed by everyone from blinged-out rappers to Harvard professors to the League of Women Voters.


Error Puts Kennedy on Airline No-Fly List (AP) AP - The Senate Judiciary Committee heard this morning from one of its own about some of the problems with airline "no fly" watch lists. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., says he had a close encounter with the lists when trying to take the U.S. Airways shuttle out of Washington to Boston. The ticket agent wouldn't let him on the plane. His name was on the list in error.


UK Police Arrest One Man Under Anti-Terror Laws  LONDON (Reuters) - Police arrested a man in central England  on Thursday under anti-terrorism laws.


Pakistan Arrests Two Al Qaeda Suspects  PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani police arrested an  Algerian and one other foreigner suspected of links with al  Qaeda on Thursday in the northern city of Peshawar after a  shoot-out, intelligence officials said.


Darfur Rebels Hold Out in Remote Camps  CORCHA CAMP, Sudan (Reuters) - Abdul Karim Abdalla pounds  the earth with a metal cane in a rebel camp in western Darfur,  passionately imploring his fellow fighters to defend the land  of their fathers from Arab invaders.


Iraq's Sistani Leaves London Hospital After Operation  LONDON (Reuters) - Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most  influential Shi'ite cleric, was discharged from a London  hospital on Thursday after heart surgery, but will stay in  Britain for the time-being, his spokesman said.


Iraq mortar fire hits US mission A mortar round hits the roof of the US embassy in Baghdad, slightly injuring two emplyees,  a spokesman says.


Dollar Slips to New Low Vs Euro  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar fell to a new record low  against the euro on Tuesday as investors, tiring of tough talk  on exchange rates by European officials, dismissed new   warnings from euro zone officials.


Kerry Calls Ad Group a 'Front for the Bush Campaign' John Kerry made the comments after weeks of standing by as a group of Vietnam veterans criticized his wartime record.


Gov't Gives Najaf Militants 'Final Call' NAJAF, Iraq - Prime Minister Ayad Allawi issued a "final call" Thursday to Shiite insurgents to disarm and withdraw from a revered shrine after his government threatened a massive onslaught by Iraqi forces. As the peace deal for Najaf unraveled, militants bombarded a police station with mortar rounds, killing seven police and injuring 31 others...


Leading Indicators, Jobless Claims Dip NEW YORK - A closely watched measure of future economic activity fell in July for the second consecutive month, reinforcing evidence that the nation's financial recovery is slackening.    The Conference Board said Thursday its Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators dropped by 0.3 percent in July to 116.0, following a revised decline of 0.1 percent in June...


Kerry: Bush Lets Groups Do 'Dirty Work' BOSTON - Sen. John Kerry accused President Bush on Thursday of relying on front groups to challenge his record of valor in Vietnam, asserting, "He wants them to do his dirty work."   Defending his record, the Democratic presidential candidate said, "Thirty years ago, official Navy reports documented my service in Vietnam and awarded me the Silver Star, the Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts."  "Thirty years ago, this was the plain truth...


Phelps Dominates 200 IM for Fourth Gold ATHENS, Greece - American Michael Phelps won his fourth gold medal of the Olympics in the 200-meter individual medley Thursday night, leading the entire race. Phelps finished in an Olympic-record time of 1 minute, 57.14 seconds, lowering his own mark of 1:58.52 set in the semifinals one night earlier...


United Likely to Terminate Pension Plans CHICAGO - Cash-strapped United Airlines said in a bankruptcy court filing Thursday that it "likely" will be necessary to terminate and replace its employee pension plans.    The carrier cited the size of further cost cuts and the need to find bankruptcy-exit financing as reasons for such a drastic move...


Jackson Lawyers Call Accuser's Stepfather SANTA MARIA, Calif. - Michael Jackson's defense lawyers aim to find out whether authorities violated his attorney-client privilege when they broke into the office of a private investigator hired by the pop star...


Dream Team Pulls Away to Beat Australia ATHENS, Greece - LeBron James eyed Shawn Marion's pass coming toward him and made a split-second decision to redirect the ball. One nifty touch pass later, Dwyane Wade converted it into a layup...


Error Puts Kennedy on Airline No-Fly List WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee heard this morning from one of its own about some of the problems with airline "no fly" watch lists. Sen...


Google Shares Surge Nearly 18 Percent NEW YORK - Shares of Google Inc. surged nearly 18 percent in their market debut Thursday, in the culmination of a unique and bumpy initial stock offering for the 6-year-old dot-com dreamed up in a college dorm room...


Kerry: Bush Lets Groups Do 'Dirty Work' BOSTON - Sen. John Kerry accused President Bush on Thursday of relying on front groups to challenge his record of valor in Vietnam, asserting, "He wants them to do his dirty work."   Fighting back, Kerry said if Bush wants to "have a debate about our service in Vietnam, here is my answer: 'Bring it on.'" Bush served stateside in the Texas Air National Guard during the war...


Price-Gouging New Worry in Charley's Wake ORLANDO, Fla. - The oak tree in Ilyse Kusnetz's back yard caused one headache when it crashed into her house during Hurricane Charley...


Court Deals Blow to Anti-Piracy Efforts (Reuters) Reuters - A federal appeals court on Thursday\delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major\movie studios and music companies, ruling that several major\online file-sharing software companies are not liable for\copyright infringement.


Google Rises in Market Debut  NEW YORK/SEATTLE (Reuters) - Shares of Google Inc. GOOG.O  made their long-awaited stock market debut on Thursday, rising  more than 20 percent to over \$100 after an initial public  offering marked by missteps and lackluster market conditions.


Court Deals Blow to Anti-Piracy Efforts  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Thursday  delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major  movie studios and music companies, ruling that several major  online file-sharing software companies are not liable for  copyright infringement.


Stocks Sag as Oil Marches Higher  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks tumbled on Thursday as oil  prices marched above \$48 a barrel, but Google Inc. GOOG.O  provided some excitement after shares of the Internet search  company surged on their debut.


Barnes   Noble a Hit in 2Q The bookseller beats core earnings estimates and raises its full-year guidance.


Web Sites Agree to Be Accessible to Blind (AP) AP - In one of the first enforcement actions of the Americans with Disabilities Act on the Internet, two major travel services have agreed to make sites more accessible to the blind and visually impaired.


European Winters Could Disappear by 2080 - Report (Reuters) Reuters - Europe is warming up\more quickly than the rest of the world, and cold winters could\disappear almost entirely by 2080 as a result of global\warming, researchers predicted Wednesday.


Charter Schools and Testing Collide The education policy of the Bush administration is founded on two pillars: standardized testing and charter schools.    However, as reported in this New York Times article (see also the audio archive at NPR or nonsubscription coverage at the Boston Globe) , the US Department of Education's own testing data show that nationwide, charter schools are, in aggregate, lagging their public counterparts.


Court Ruling Favors Music-Sharing Networks Music file-sharing companies are not legally responsible for the swapping of copyright content through their file-sharing software, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday in a blow to movie studios and record labels. -Associated Press


Can Angling Save World's Largest Salmon? Conservationists say the survival of Mongolia's fabled taimen salmon may depend on an unusual ecotourism venture involving Western anglers.


Nanotechnology Material May Supercharge Internet Scientists have manipulated carbon atoms to create a material that could be used to create light-based, versus electronic, switches. The material could lead to a supercharged Internet based entirely on light, scientists say.


Charley a Harbinger of Busy Hurricane Season? The killer storm that slammed into Florida on August 13 made two things clear: Hurricanes can still surprise forecasters, and the rest of the 2004 hurricane season probably is going to be quite active.


The start of something big? CNET News.com's Michael Kanellos says start-ups and their innovative ideas are the lifeblood of Silicon Valley.


How eight pixels cost Microsoft millions Insensitivity to cultural issues has led to some of the software giant's products being banned in some countries.


Briefly: EA to take World Cup soccer to Xbox roundup Plus: IBM chalks up two health care wins...Vonage users dial 311 for city info...Mozilla makes Japanese push...Macromedia offers Flash video tool.


Microsoft sends security update to home PCs The first Windows XP owners have started to get the SP2 patch--but it'll be a while till Microsoft can get round to everyone.


AT T strikes VoIP deals with cable Company points potential Net phone customers to cable giants for broadband--all part of Ma Bell's aggressive VoIP plans.


Tech industry split in its political donations The IT industry has two horses in the U.S. presidential race this year.


NetSuite relaunches, Oracle delays small business suite Two months after ending a licensing deal with Oracle Corp., midmarket business applications vendor NetSuite Inc. is using its entry-level software relaunch to woo customers of Intuit Inc.'s QuickBooks.


Infocus: Valuing Secure Access to Personal Information This article seeks to answer the question: is your personal data safe? Or do you give it away during almost every transaction you make with government or commercial entities?


Columnists: Infected In Twenty Minutes What normally happens within twenty minutes? That's how long your average unprotected PC running Windows XP, fresh out of the box, will last once it's connected to the Internet.


Selig Receives Three-Year Extension (Reuters) Reuters - Owners on Thursday\unanimously voted to extend the term of baseball commissioner\Bud Selig for three years through 2009.


U.S. Soccer Team Playing With Confidence (AP) AP - They play with a confident air these days, even a swagger, more befitting the Brazilians and Germans. And, for the U.S. men's soccer team, that's good  #151; very good.


3 Schools Set to Join Sun Belt Conference (AP) AP - This is the last season the Sun Belt Conference will be scattered across the country.


Amanda Beard Finally Comes of Age in Athens  ATHENS (Reuters) - Amanda Beard credited her new-found  maturity for ending an eight-year wait for a second Olympic  gold medal in Athens Thursday.


Selig Receives Three-Year Extension  PHILADELPHIA (Sports Network) - Owners on Thursday  unanimously voted to extend the term of baseball commissioner  Bud Selig for three years through 2009.


Former Champ Bowe Eyes a Return to the Ring  SHAWNEE, Oklahoma (Sports Network) - Former heavyweight  champion Riddick Bowe is eyeing a return to the ring after  hanging up the gloves in 1996.


U.S. Aircraft Pound Shi'ite Rebels in Najaf (Reuters) Reuters - U.S. aircraft, apparently AC-130\gunships, pounded positions held by Shi'ite militiamen in the\Iraqi holy city of Najaf Thursday and large orange multiple\flashes lit the night sky.


Iraq Oil Exports Unchanged After Basra Attack (Reuters) Reuters - Iraq's oil exports are still flowing at\one million barrels per day through southern terminals despite\an attack on the South Oil Company headquarters on Thursday, an\oil official at the company said.


Canada Says G7 Not Doing Enough to Help Africa (Reuters) Reuters - Leaders from the Group of Seven rich\industrialized nations need to do more to aid poor African\countries, Canadian Finance Minister Ralph Goodale said on\Thursday.


Rice Counsels Patience During Iraq War (AP) AP - Defending President Bush's foreign policies, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice counseled Americans to be "less critical of every twist and turn" in Iraq.


Kerry Says Bush Uses Surrogates to Do 'Dirty Work' (Reuters) Reuters - John Kerry accused President Bush of\using surrogates to "do his dirty work," as the Democratic\presidential challenger hit back on Thursday at a Republican\assault on his Vietnam War record.


Border Patrol Training Moves Near Mexico (AP) AP - Incoming Border Patrol agents will train closer to the U.S.-Mexican border when the federal government relocates their academy to Artesia, N.M., Customs and Border Protection announced Thursday.


S.Korea's Ruling Party Head Resigns on Father's Past  SEOUL (Reuters) - The chairman of South Korea's ruling Uri  Party resigned Thursday, an unexpected first casualty of  President Roh Moo-hyun's call for an inquiry into who benefited  from working with Korea's Japanese colonial rulers.


Jackson Accuser Kin Wanted Compensation SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The stepfather of the boy who accused Michael Jackson of molestation testified Thursday that he asked for payment from Jackson for the family's participation in a video interview intended to restore Jackson's reputation...


Stocks End Down as Oil Tops  #36;48 a Barrel (Reuters) Reuters - U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday as\oil prices climbed above  #36;48 a barrel, prompting investor worry\about the effect of high fuel costs on corporate profits and\consumer demand.


U.S. Execs Plan More Hiring - Survey (Reuters) Reuters - Most senior executives at large U.S.\companies plan to increase hiring and investments over the next\12 months amid growing optimism about the economy, according to\a survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers released on Thursday.


US Court Rejects Movie, Music Makers' Piracy Claims  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Thursday  delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major  movie studios and music companies, ruling that several online  file-sharing software companies are not liable for copyright  infringement.


Parmalat Adds CSFB to Banks Being Sued  MILAN (Reuters) - Parmalat on Thursday fired off the latest  lawsuit in its bid to recover billions of euros from banks that  did deals with the now insolvent dairy group, suing CSFB for  about 250 million euros.


Parmalat sues US bank CSFB Italian food giant Parmalat is pushing ahead with plans to sue its former auditors by taking CSFB to task over a bond deal back in 2002.


Gateway Launches PCs for Retailers (NewsFactor) NewsFactor - Gateway has introduced the first products in a new line of desktop PCs\for sale at major retailers throughout North America, following through\on plans to broaden the company's reach beyond direct-sales channels.


Cingular Seeks Amendments in AT T Wireless Merger (NewsFactor) NewsFactor - Cingular Wireless has begun soliciting AT T Wireless (NYSE: AWE) bondholders to consent to certain amendments in connection with Cingular's acquisition of AT T.


Microsoft Releases New 64-Bit Windows Preview (NewsFactor) NewsFactor - Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is offering the latest iteration of its 64-bit computing\platform, announcing the release of beta software for PCs and servers.\The release marks the next step in the software giant's efforts to\address the needs of high-end customers.


Compuware Blasts IBM's Legal Tactics (NewsFactor) NewsFactor - Compuware accused IBM (NYSE: IBM) of improperly introducing 11th hour evidence in \order to delay a ruling in a legal battle between the two firms. \Compuware is suing IBM for allegedly stealing source code and using it \in its own software products.


RealNetworks Riles Apple Diehards (NewsFactor) NewsFactor - Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) was outraged when RealNetworks (Nasdaq: RNWK) first announced its intentions to go after its iTunes and iPod market share. It should not have been: Its customers, apparently, are more than willing to go to bat for Apple.


California Condor Chick Dies Near Nest (AP) AP - A California condor chick that was part of an ambitious breeding program was found dead near its nest, the week after another was discovered with a broken wing and 35 bottle caps in its gullet.


IBM shows off new grid apps IBM on Friday is scheduled to make available early versions of three grid-based technologies intended to help corporate and third-party developers better manage grid-based resources as a way to solve large and compute-intensive problems.


US Web Shoppers #39; Holiday Spending Up Online consumers in the United States spent \$8.8 billion, excluding travel purchases, in November, a 19 percent jump over the \$7.4 billion spent online a year earlier, a report released on Monday said.


Bank of Canada leaves interest rates unchanged The Bank of Canada announced today it is keeping its trend-setting overnight rate at 2.5 per cent, amid fears that the falling US dollar could hurt Canada #39;s economic growth.


Navratilova Loses; Fish, Dent Advance (AP) AP - Martina Navratilova's long, illustrious career will end without an Olympic medal. The 47-year-old Navratilova and Lisa Raymond lost 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 on Thursday night to fifth-seeded Shinobu Asagoe and Ai Sugiyama of Japan in the quarterfinals, one step shy of the medal round.


Flu-shot maker says surplus will stay in Canada The US health secretary is expected to announce an order for five million more doses of flu vaccine, but it appears they won #39;t come from Canada.


Steelers G Simmons Out for Season (AP) AP - Pittsburgh right guard Kendall Simmons will miss the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.


Adrenaline Junkie Phelps Losing Sleep at Night  ATHENS (Reuters) - Adrenaline junkie Michael Phelps won his  fourth gold medal of the Athens Olympics Thursday and then  complained he was having trouble sleeping.


American Aaron Peirsol's Gold Restored on Appeal  ATHENS (Reuters) - Aaron Peirsol was awarded gold in the  men's 200 meters backstroke at the Athens Olympics on Thursday  after winning an appeal against his disqualification then  surviving a protest from the British and Austrian teams.


Gap Profit Off, Sees More Store Closings (Reuters) Reuters - Gap Inc. (GPS.N), the largest U.S.\specialty apparel retailer, on Thursday reported a slight\decline in quarterly profit, meeting lowered forecasts, after\summer clearance sales drew surprisingly small crowds.


Google Up in Market Debut After Bumpy IPO  NEW YORK/SEATTLE (Reuters) - Google Inc. GOOG.O shares  made their long-awaited stock market debut on Thursday, rising  sharply to \$100 after an initial public offering marked by  missteps and lackluster market conditions.


Gap Profit Off, Sees More Store Closings  CHICAGO (Reuters) - Gap Inc. GPS.N, the largest U.S.  specialty apparel retailer, on Thursday reported a slight  decline in quarterly profit, meeting lowered forecasts, after  summer clearance sales drew surprisingly small crowds.


Stocks Dip as Oil Soars; Google Shines  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks slid on Thursday, ending  four days of gains as oil prices continued their march higher,  but Google Inc. GOOG.O created a buzz as shares of the  Internet search company surged on their debut.


#39;Googlers #39; scoop up piles of cash NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- While Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin each made tens of millions of dollars selling some of their holdings in the Internet search giant, they were hardly alone.


Muni Manager Sees More Florida Bonds Ahead NEW YORK (Reuters) - As Florida attempts to recover from an estimated \$15 billion in damages left by Hurricane Charley, tax-exempt debt issuance from the state is likely to increase so Florida can replenish its Hurricane Catastrophe ...


United Airlines Likely to Terminate Pension Plans nited Airlines said today that it was likely to terminate and replace its four employee pension plans with less-generous benefits, a drastic move that the airline said was necessary to attract the financing that would allow it to ...


Qantas posts record year profit SYDNEY: Qantas Airways Ltd, Australia #39;s biggest airline, said yesterday its full-year profit doubled on cost cuts and a pick-up in passengers, but the prospect of higher fuel costs sent its shares sliding.


Israel AG Says Shift Barrier to Avoid Sanctions (Reuters) Reuters - Israel's attorney general urged the\government Thursday to swiftly reroute its barrier in the\occupied West Bank to minimize the risk of international\sanctions after the World Court deemed the project illegal.


U.S. Air, Ground Forces Pound Iraqi Militia Posts (Reuters) Reuters - U.S. aircraft and tanks pounded\Shi'ite militia positions around a holy shrine and ancient\cemetery in Najaf early on Friday, witnesses said.


DaVita ready to expand dialysis services with \$3 billion deal US dialysis company DaVita Inc., a major employer in Pierce County, is poised to buy a Swedish health care companys dialysis operations in a \$3 billion deal, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday.


Efforts underway to hold Korean crisis talks: US (AFP) AFP - Diplomatic efforts are underway to hold a preparatory meeting for the six-party talks aimed at ending the nuclear crisis in the Korean peninsula, the US State Department said.


Bank of Canada missing  #36;10,000; employee fired, charged with theft (Canadian Press) Canadian Press - OTTAWA (CP) - The Bank of Canada has fired an employee after  #36;10,000 in cash went missing from its Toronto bank-note facility -a rare breach in an institution that prides itself on tight security.


Bush Begins Weeklong Stay at Texas Ranch (AP) AP - President Bush and first lady Laura Bush are involved in a little he-said, she-said business here at the presidential ranch.


Israel AG Says Shift Barrier to Avoid Sanctions  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's attorney general urged the  government Thursday to swiftly reroute its barrier in the  occupied West Bank to minimize the risk of international  sanctions after the World Court deemed the project illegal.


U.S. Air, Ground Forces Pound Iraqi Militia Posts  NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. aircraft and tanks pounded  Shi'ite militia positions around a holy shrine and ancient  cemetery in Najaf early on Friday, witnesses said.


Iraq Oil Flows Unchanged After Basra HQ Attacked  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Shi'ite militiamen struck at the center  of Iraq's oil industry Thursday, setting the South Oil Company  headquarters in the southern port of Basra on fire and further  undermining the central government authority, police and  officials said.


A journey into the epicenter of the Sadr standoff We alerted the Iraqi government, the US military, and the Mahdi Army; we were planning to go to the shrine.


US troop shift: A tale of two cities Bush's plan this week to restructure US forces in Europe is stirring up a mix of worry, nostalgia, and hope.


Famous scofflaws hit Japan US chess legend Bobby Fischer is the latest in a string of problem migrants for Japan.


United Airlines Likely to Terminate Pension Plans The cash-strapped airline said in a bankruptcy court filing today that it "likely" will be necessary to terminate and replace its employee pension plans.


Court Rules Some File-Sharing Companies Are Not Liable Grokster and StreamCast are not liable for the swapping of copyright content through their file-sharing software, a federal appeals court ruled today.


Sunny Days for Video Games Video games were hot in July, and video game stocks should follow the trend.


Are Pests Plaguing PETsMART? Sales were lower than expected, and the quality of earnings is in question.


Manic Market? Be Like Buffett The graphs look like a nasty saw blade. The headlines are no help. What would Buffett do?


Gov't Gives Najaf Militants 'Final Call' NAJAF, Iraq - Prime Minister Ayad Allawi issued a "final call" Thursday to Shiite insurgents to disarm and withdraw from a revered shrine after his government threatened a massive onslaught by Iraqi forces. As a peace deal for Najaf unraveled, militants bombarded a police station with mortar rounds, killing seven police and injuring 31 others...


Church Says Girls' Communion Not Valid BRIELLE, N.J. - An 8-year-old girl who suffers from a rare digestive disorder and cannot eat wheat has had her first Holy Communion declared invalid because the wafer contained no wheat, violating Roman Catholic doctrine...


US Court Rejects Movie, Music Makers' Piracy Claims (Reuters) Reuters - A federal appeals court on Thursday\delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major\movie studios and music companies, ruling that several online\file-sharing software companies are not liable for copyright\infringement.


Mars Hills, Crater Yield Evidence of Flowing Water (Reuters) Reuters - The hills of Mars yielded more\tantalizing clues about how water shaped the Red Planet in\tests by NASA's robotic geologist, Spirit, while its twin,\Opportunity, observed the deep crater it climbed into two\months ago, scientists said on Wednesday.


Google rises in market debut after bumpy IPO NEW YORK/SEATTLE, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) shares made their long-awaited stock market debut on Thursday, rising sharply to \$100 after an initial public offering marked by ...


Insurance Claims Moving Quickly in Fla. PUNTA GORDA, Fla. Aug. 19, 2004  It took years for many insurance claims to be paid following Hurricane Andrew in 1992. This time, technology is helping speed along the claims process for residents hardest hit by Hurricane Charley.


New York crude smashes past 48 dollars for first time NEW YORK : New York crude oil smashed past 48 dollars a barrel for the first time, menacing the 50-dollar mark, as heavy fighting gripped the Iraqi city of Najaf.


US Airways Off Course, Again Remember the 1980s movie Wall Street, starring Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen? For those who don #39;t know, here #39;s a recap: To impress financier Gordon Gecko, played by Douglas, Sheen #39;s Bud Fox provides inside information ...


More grunt left in BHP: chief BHP Billiton chief executive Chip Goodyear yesterday insisted this week #39;s record profit  quot;isn #39;t as good as it gets quot;, as the market wrestled with how to value the stock amid speculation that its share price was near cycle peaks.


Amazon Snaps Up China #39;s Largest Web Retailer Amazon.com says it has reached an agreement to buy Joyo.com, the largest Internet retailer of books, music and videos in China, in a deal worth \$75 million. The rapid growth of broadband access in the region makes Asia a particularly ...


Credit Suisse First Boston on Parmalat #39;s lawsuit list LONDON, August 19 (New Ratings)  Parmalat Finanziaria SpA (PAF.FSE) announced today that the company has filed a lawsuit against Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB), seeking approximately 250 million in claims plus interest from the financial service ...


Wall Street Slices SPAM Food purveyor Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL) -- owner of the SPAM canned meat bonanza -- had good news this morning, or so you would think. Sales were up 15, unit volume was up 6, and earnings, excluding a positive impact from the ...


US Economy: Leading Indicators, Manufacturing Index Slow Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- The index of leading US economic indicators fell in July and Philadelphia-area manufacturing expanded at a slower pace this month, signs that record energy prices are keeping growth from accelerating.


Stock scheme sweeping nation NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Investors beware: If a wily female, apparently believing she #39;s calling someone else, leaves a message with you advising of a hot stock tip, walk away. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, it #39;s a scam.


Fleet workers get pink slips STAFF WRITER; Staff writers Alan J. Wax and Regina Marie Glick contributed to this story. As Bank of America pushes ahead with its takeover of Fleet Bank, about 1,000 jobs were cut companywide yesterday throughout the Northeast, ...


Update 1: Mylan Labs: FTC Clears Icahn Stock Buy Shares of Mylan Laboratories Inc., the largest US maker of generic drugs, surged Thursday after the company said investor Carl Icahn was given the green light by regulators to buy up to \$500 million of the company #39;s stock.


Microsoft sends security update to home PCs Microsoft has started to send out its latest major security patch to home PCs--but some people won #39;t get it for a while.


Apple Recalls Batch of PowerBook Batteries Apple, in cooperation with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, said it would voluntarily recall about 28,000 rechargeable batteries used in its 15-inch PowerBook G4 notebooks.


Martian hill shows signs of ancient water LOS ANGELES - NASA #39;s Spirit rover has found more evidence of past water on the hills of Mars, while its twin, Opportunity, has observed a field of dunes inside a crater.


Broadband Rules the Internet Broadband across America Broadband has finally superseded dialup connections to the Internet, according to the latest measurements by Nielsen NetRatings. Nielsen reports broadband is used by 63 million users, or 51 percent of the ...


Hackers revive iTunes music sharing A group of anonymous programmers has released new software that allows music to be swapped via Apple Computer #39;s popular iTunes jukebox.


IBM #39;s New Motion on Linux Aims to  #39;Call SCO #39;s Bluff #39; IBM is trying to use SCO as a punching bag this week as Big Blue fires off another motion for partial summary judgment in its legal slugfest over Linux and Unix copyright issues.


Loral files reorganization plan with court CHICAGO, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Loral Space  amp; Communications Ltd. (LRLSQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research) , a bankrupt satellite operator, on Thursday said it filed its reorganization plan and it expects to emerge from bankruptcy before year #39;s end.


UK radio to chart music downloads LONDON (Reuters) - Virgin Radio and online music service Napster, combining one of the oldest music mediums with the newest, have teamed up to create the first UK radio programme counting down the week #39;s most downloaded songs.


Cisco flaw opens networks to attacks Cisco has warned in a security advisory that some networks with its routers could be vulnerable to denial-of-service attacks.


Windows installer gains .Net authoring Wise Solutions has released Wise for Windows Installer 6.0, featuring .Net support and enhanced tools for creating installations for data-driven Web applications.


Seiko Epson puts on show world #39;s lightest flying robot Seiko Epson Corp. announced Wednesday it had developed the world #39;s lightest flying microrobot, with a weight of just 8.6 grams without its battery, or 12.3 grams with the battery installed.


AT amp;T strikes VoIP deals with cable In an attempt to spark growth in its Net phone service, AT amp;T has turned to cable companies to pitch the technology to more consumers.


Drugstore Offers New Wave of Disposable Cameras NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pharmacy chain CVS Corp. (CVS.N: Quote, Profile, Research) on Thursday said it would offer the world #39;s first disposable digital camera with a bright color viewing screen that allows consumers to instantly preview pictures.


DARPA awards robot aircraft deal Officials at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) awarded a \$1 billion contract to an industry team led by Northrop Grumman Corp. to build three robotic reconnaissance aircraft and a computer operating system to help fly them for the Air ...


Digital Angel Renews Distribution Deal Digital Angel Corp., which makes implantable microchips used to track animals, said Thursday that it renewed a contract with a unit of Schering-Plough Corp. for exclusive distribution of its US pet-identification products.


USPTO Close to Rejecting Plug-in Patent The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) moved a step closer to overturning a Web browser plug-in patent at the heart of a multi-million dollar dispute between Microsoft (Quote, Chart) and Eolas Technologies.


Linux Scales New Test Platform Testing has always been a critical part of IT and certainly has become a fundamental component of Linux adoption. One of the most critical core pieces of Linux testing got a significant upgrade this week, courtesy of the Open Source Development Lab ...


Sony Unveils New Flat TVs, Aims to Boost Share TOKYO (Reuters) - Electronics conglomerate Sony Corp. unveiled eight new flat-screen televisions on Thursday in a product push it hopes will help it secure a leading 35 percent of the domestic market in the key month of December.


Hamm Has Little Time to Savor All-Around Victory THENS, Aug. 19  It was nearly 3 am and Paul Hamm was alone on his porch at the Olympic village, sky dark, grounds quiet, gold medal hanging around his neck.


Reversal Gives Peirsol Gold; Phelps Wins 200 IM THENS, Aug. 29  Swimming #39;s technique critic came in for some criticism of his own tonight in the shark tank disguised as the Olympic pool. But all #39;s well that ends well on the medal stand and, despite being disqualified shortly ...


Gymnastics Gold Evens the US with China ATHENS (Reuters) - American swimmer Michael Phelps grabbed a fourth gold at the Athens Olympics Thursday with a clear victory in the 200 meters medley and gold for 16-year-old gymnast Carly Patterson leveled the US with China at 14 ...


Olympics-Mayo knocked out, women prosper ATHENS, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Gold medal favourite Carlos Moya joined the exodus of big name tennis players from the Olympics on Thursday, crumbling in the men #39;s quarter-finals against Chile #39;s Nicolas Massu.


SHOT PUT Bizarre turn of fortune A shot put competition unique in Olympic history -- ancient or modern -- turned into one of the strangest competitions in the Games history Wednesday evening as the sun was setting on the ancient stadium.


Greek Gov #39;t: Games Will Top \$8.5 Billion ATHENS, Greece - Costs for the Athens Olympics are climbing again, expected to top \$8.5 billion because of the massive security and overruns in the last-minute scramble to get venues ready.


Soccer: Portugal title hopes end VOLOS, Greece At least the Manchester United manager, Alex Ferguson, will be pleased that he has Cristiano Ronaldo back early from the Olympics. If only Ronaldo were happy to see him.


Team USA #39;s big-bopper is tearing it up at the Games Team USA third baseman Crystl Bustos has been called the Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa of softball, but a more apt comparison would be to Freddy and Jason.


Cleric Tells Militia to Turn Over Shrine NAJAF, Iraq (AP) - An aide to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said the militant leader instructed his followers late Thursday to turn over the keys of the revered Shiite shrine they were hiding in to top religious ...


UN Staff Marks Baghdad Bomb Anniversary with Security Demand United Nations employees marked the anniversary of the Baghdad bombing with a demand for better security. The fear of further attacks hangs heavy as the world body anticipates a greater role in Iraq, and other world hot spots.


S.Korea #39;s Ruling Party Head Resigns on Father #39;s Past SEOUL (Reuters) - The chairman of South Korea #39;s ruling Uri Party resigned Thursday, an unexpected first casualty of President Roh Moo-hyun #39;s call for an inquiry into who benefited from working with Korea #39;s Japanese colonial rulers.


Shaukat Aziz Wins By-Election, now Prime Minister-Designate LAHORE, Pakistan: August 19, 2004 (PNS) - Current Federal Finance Minister, Mr. Shaukat Aziz won by-election on his way to officially becoming Prime Minister of Pakistan. As a member of ruling Muslim League and finance minister he is credited with ...


How can Tutsi and Hutu divisions be resolved? The massacre of over 160 Congolese Banyamulenge Tutsis in Gatumba refugee camp in Burundi has once again brought to the fore the ethnic problem in Africa #39;s Great Lakes Region.


Poor nations pledge to reform UN DURBAN, South Africa (Reuters) - Developing countries have pledged to band together to force the West to help tackle their problems, ranging from poverty to reform of the United Nations.


Bird flu outbreak in Malaysia Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Aug. 19 (UPI) -- Malaysian agriculture officials confirmed Thursday bird flu has been detected in two chickens in the northern state of Kelantan.


Hungary #39;s Socialists Dump PM, Forint Falls BUDAPEST, Hungary (Reuters) - Hungary #39;s ruling Socialists dumped Prime Minister Peter Medgyessy Thursday, in an attempt to strengthen their hold on a government which has slipped despite a stronger economy and entry into ...


Rite Aid Nov. Sales Fall, Bleak Forecast Rite Aid Corp. (RAD.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , the third-largest US drugstore chain, on Tuesday warned that if current sales trends continue its fiscal 2005 results would fall below expectations it gave in September.


Microsoft Issues 2nd SQL Server 2005 Public Beta On Friday, Microsoft issued its second Community Technology Preview (CTP) release of SQL Server 2005, while providing public testers with a new beta release as well, SQL Server 2005 Express Manager, a new, free database management tool.


Amazon.com to Acquire Joyo.com for \$72M Amazon.com Inc. said Thursday it has agreed to buy Joyo.com Ltd., China's largest online retailer of books, music and videos, for \$72 million.


Nortel Networks to Eliminate 3,500 Jobs Nortel Networks said on Thursday it will slash its work force by 3,500, or 10 percent, as it struggles to recover from an accounting scandal that toppled three top executives and led to a criminal investigation and lawsuits.


CACI Shares Climb on Positive Earnings Shares of CACI International Inc. surged nearly 14 percent Thursday after the company, which provided private interrogators at Abu Ghraib prison and elsewhere in Iraq, reported a 56 percent jump in earnings.


REVIEW: Olympics Online Coverage Though NBC is blanketing seven networks with 1,210 hours of Olympics coverage, there's this pesky, bill-paying task called work that keeps me from fully enjoying the televised competition.


Wall St seen starting higher as oil price drops Wall Street futures crept higher in pre-market trading on Tuesday as the price of oil continued its slide and investors assessed the merits of possible acquisition of cardiac-stent maker Guidant by Johnson  amp; Johnson.


XBox, EA to Stage Interactive World Cup Microsoft Corp.'s XBox video game system will team up with software maker Electronic Arts Inc. to stage an online Interactive World Cup tournament later this year, the companies announced Thursday.


Nordstrom Profit Up But Shares Fall  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Upscale department store chain  Nordstrom Inc. JWN.N said on Thursday quarterly earnings rose  62 percent as it controlled inventory and reduced expenses, but  the results fell short of Wall Street's expectations.


KDE updates Linux desktop The KDE Project has released version 3.3 of its Linux desktop interface software.


Content software targets small publishers Snapbridge Software brings content management to the little guys.


Briefly: KDE updates Linux desktop roundup Plus: EA to take World Cup soccer to Xbox...IBM chalks up two health care wins...Vonage users dial 311 for city info.


Google rises in market debut The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday approved Google Inc.'s IPO plans, and the company's stock jumped 20 on its first day of trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange.


Wi-Fi emerges as emergency communications alternative in Fla. Wi-Fi hot spots emerged as a new emergency communications alternative in Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Charley, with traffic at some outlets up 50.


HP to deliver vulnerability scanning service by year's end Hewlett-Packard Co. plans to deliver by the end of the year a new vulnerability service designed to help companies proactively detect and fix flaws that could be used in a malicious attacks.


U.S. intelligence overhaul eyed amid concerns for antiterror fight Congressional hearings raised more questions than answers about impending organizational changes in the intelligence community and their impact on efforts to improve the nation's antiterror fight.


Apple Remote Desktop 2 'well worth the money' Computerworld columnist Yuval Kossovksy takes Apple Remote Desktop 2 out for a spin and finds that its new management features make it an upgrade well worth considering.


OSDL introduces improved Linux kernel development tool Open Source Development Lab has upgraded a key Linux kernel development tool, the Scalable Test Platform, with new features to improve simulations of enterprise data centers on the Linux kernel.


Nortel to lay off 10 of staff Nortel plans to cut about 3,500 jobs, most of them affecting middle managers, in a move to save \$450 million to \$500 million per year.


U.K. government to extend three-year contract with Microsoft The U.K.'s Office of Government Commerce is negotiating a renewal of a three-year agreement with Microsoft Corp. that will focus on services and support.


Apple recalls 15-in. PowerBook batteries Apple Computer Inc. has issued a recall for about 28,000 PowerBook batteries sold between January and August for use with its 15-in. PowerBook G4 computers


Job cutting worst in 2-1/2 years NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Employers announced 104,530 job cuts last month, capping the worst three months for cutbacks since early 2002, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray  amp; Christmas Inc.


EDS settles contract dispute with U.K.'s NHS The U.K. National Health Service and Electronic Data Systems reached a settlement after the NHS terminated a contract for the company to supply a secure e-mail and directory system.


Peer-to-Peer Companies Win in Court Grokster, Morpheus not liable for user's actions, appeals court says.


File-Sharing Networks Found Not Guilty By DAVID KRAVETS    SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Grokster Ltd. and StreamCast Networks Inc...


Travel Web Sites Agree to Be Accessible to Blind By MICHAEL GORMLEY    ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- In one of the first enforcement actions of the Americans with Disabilities Act on the Internet, two major travel services have agreed to make sites more accessible to the blind and visually impaired...


Oil Prices Hit New High The price of this key commodity has risen by about a third just since the beginning of July. In London, oil closed at \$43.80 a barrel, while in New York oil closed at \$48.70, up three percent.


Delta plan includes job and wage cuts The much-awaited  #39;Transformation Plan #39; for Delta Air Lines Inc., one of Tampa International Airport #39;s largest carrier, will include further job cuts, wage and benefit reductions and a new strategy that will help Delta revitalize its entire business.


Pace of Mid-Atlantic Factories Moderates NEW YORK (Reuters) - Factories in the US Mid-Atlantic region slowed a little in August but remained at solid levels, although new orders fell sharply in a warning sign for future growth, a report showed on Thursday.


Parmalat adds CSFB to list of banks being sued MILAN, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Parmalat on Thursday fired off the latest lawsuit in its bid to recover billions of euros from banks that did deals with the now insolvent dairy group, saying it had sued CSFB for ...


UPDATE: NZ #39;s Sky Network TV, INL Enter Merger Talks WELLINGTON (Dow Jones)--New Zealand #39;s monopoly pay television operator Sky Network Television Ltd. (SKY.NZ) said Thursday it is in merger talks with its majority shareholder Independent Newspapers Ltd. (INL.NZ).


Apple recalls 15-in. PowerBook batteries AUGUST 19, 2004 (COMPUTERWORLD) - Apple Computer Inc. has issued a recall for about 28,000 PowerBook batteries sold between January and August for use with its 15-in. PowerBook G4 computers. The batteries, which were made by LG Chem Ltd. of South Korea, ...


Wheel Woes For Mars Rover (AP) PASADENA, Calif. (AP)  The Mars rover Spirit has developed a problem with one of its six wheels, but NASA officials said Tuesday they believe the robot geologist can continue working.


Brazil Tribe Has Great Excuse for Poor Math Skills WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Some people have a great excuse for being bad at math -- their language lacks the words for most numbers, US-based researchers reported on Thursday.


Pieter van den Hoogenband #39;s name may be too long, but he #39;s compelling Pieter van den Hoogenband of the Netherlands missed qualifying for the semis in the 50 freestyle this morning, and the world #39;s headline writers heaved a sigh of relief. When the Flying Dutchman was beaten by Australia #39;s Ian Thorpe in the 200 freestyle on ...


Dope and Kenteris hold focus A weightlifting drugs scandal and yet another twist to the saga of disgraced Greek sprinter Kostadinos Kenteris dominated the Olympics on Thursday as China extended their lead at the top of the medal table.


Flyers #39; Kapanen gets contract extension Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - The Philadelphia Flyers Thursday agreed to a two-year contract extension with veteran forward Sami Kapanen. Financial terms were not disclosed.


USA beats Australia For three quarters the US Men #39;s Olympic Team (2-1) chased Australia (1-2) and still heading into the final 10 minutes the Americans trailed 67-65. Stepping up its defense, the US reeled off 10 consecutive points to take control of the game and went on to ...


Americans falter, while Ward faces an uphill climb Andre Ward was in the hallway waiting to fight when he got his first glimpse of the fighter standing between him and an Olympic medal.


Kobe Defense Opposes Releasing Statements (AP) AP - Defense attorneys argued that Kobe Bryant's statements to investigators after the NBA star was accused of rape last summer should be kept secret because it is not yet certain they will be used in his trial.


ACC Picks Jacksonville to Host Title Games (AP) AP - The Atlantic Coast Conference chose Jacksonville on Thursday to host its first two championship games.


Eight Wild Cards Added to U.S. Open (AP) AP - Alex Bogomolov Jr., ranked 110th, was among eight young American men given U.S. Open wild cards Thursday.


Moyo Knocked Out, Women Prosper  ATHENS (Reuters) - Gold medal favorite Carlos Moya joined  the exodus of big name tennis players from the Olympics on  Thursday, crumbling in the men's quarterfinals against Chile's  Nicolas Massu.


Two Firms Cleared of Swapping Violations (AP) AP - The makers of two leading file-sharing programs are not legally liable for the songs, movies and other copyright works swapped online by their users, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday in a stinging blow to the entertainment industry.


Salesforce.com maintains profitability and growth Salesforce.com Inc. on Thursday released its first quarterly results since going public, posting income of \$1.2 million on revenue of \$40.6 million for the three months ended July 31.


Basketball: U.S. Wins, Spain Reaches Playoffs  ATHENS (Reuters) - The United States finally showed signs  of coming together as a team but still needed a late surge to  beat Australia 89-79 in the men's Olympic basketball tournament  Thursday.


AP: Kids Left in Africa Begged for Change (AP) AP - Allegedly abandoned by their American mother in Africa as she took up military contract work in Iraq, seven children from Texas begged small change to buy food and shuttled from a neglectful stranger's care to a concrete-block orphanage, Nigerians said Thursday.


Nichols Declines to Appeal Convictions PONCA CITY, Okla. - Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols will not appeal his state murder convictions for his role in the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building, his attorney said Thursday...


Insurance Claims Moving Quickly in Fla. PUNTA GORDA, Fla. - It took years for many insurance claims to be paid following Hurricane Andrew in 1992...


Mbeki: Ivory Coast Parties Agree to Push for Peace South African President Thabo Mbeki said Monday he had reached agreement with all sides in Ivory Coast #39;s conflict on measures which should speed up implementation of a French-brokered peace accord.


Report: Mladic Gets \$520-A-Month Serb Army Pension  BELGRADE (Reuters) - Top war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic is  getting about \$520 a month in pension payments from the Serbia  and Montenegro military, the Belgrade daily Blic reported  Wednesday.


Dance, Music to Liven German Building (AP) AP - Where communist East German legislators once ruled, modern dance and club music are taking over.


Georgia Forces Announce Big Gain Over Separatists  TBILISI, Georgia (Reuters) - Georgian forces seized  strategic heights from separatist fighters in rebel South  Ossetia Thursday and President Mikhail Saakashvili promised  more such victories to fulfill a pledge to reunite his  fractious country.


Google #39;s New Stock Rises to \$100 Mark Description: In the first day of trading in shares of the Internet search engine company Google, the stock rises to above \$100. After much anticipation over the public offering, Google set its initial price at \$85 for Thursday #39;s debut. NPR #39;s Laura Sydell ...


HCC Insurance Expects \$10M Charley Losses HCC Insurance Holdings Inc. on Thursday said it expects its third-quarter losses related to Hurricane Charley after reinsurance recoveries will be less than \$10 million, or 10 cents per share.


Jetstar boosts Qantas turnover BUDGET airline Jetstar has helped propel Qantas to a record post-tax profit of \$648.4 million. Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon paid tribute to the subsidiary domestic carrier during a formal profit announcement yesterday.


Mylan shares spike on interest by Icahn PHILADELPHIA, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Shares of Mylan Laboratories Inc. (MYL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) surged more than 10 percent on Thursday after billionaire investor Carl Icahn got federal regulatory approval to buy up 11.9 percent of ...


Peer-to-Peer Companies Win in Court A US federal appeals court ruled in favor of peer-to-peer software makers this week, stating that the companies behind the Grokster and Morpheus services are not liable for copyright infringement due to the actions of their users.


Apple Recalls Batteries In G4 Laptops Apple Computer Inc. on Thursday recalled the batteries used in 15-inch PowerBook G4 computers, due to an internal short that can cause the batteries to overheat and pose a fire hazard to consumers.


American Aaron Peirsol #39;s Gold Restored on Appeal ATHENS (Reuters) - Aaron Peirsol was awarded gold in the men #39;s 200 meters backstroke at the Athens Olympics on Thursday after winning an appeal against his disqualification then surviving a protest from the British and Austrian teams.


Simmons #39; season in jeopardy Latrobe, PA (Sports Network) - Pittsburgh Steelers starting guard Kendall Simmons is expected to miss the entire 2004 season after apparently suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.


Big Indian Dream comes crashing down Two positive drug tests and Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi playing as if they were on tranquilisers. India had a nightmare day at the Olympics today.


England #39;s middle order saves the day England #39;s middle order came up trumps today after early wickets fell in the 4th and final npower test at the Oval.


The Changing Face Of Al-Qaeda In a series of apparently well-coordinated raids, British and Pakistani security forces arrested a number of terrorism suspects in early August. Some of the men arrested in the United Kingdom were charged with  quot;conspiring...to cause fear, panic, and ...


Famous scofflaws hit Japan TOKYO  For a country that shut out foreigners for hundreds of years, Japan has proved strangely attractive for problem migrants of late.


What Low-Carb Dieters May Be Missing (AP) AP - Low-carb dieters may be missing key nutrients when they eliminate or restrict certain food groups, according to health experts:


Microsoft Recommends Throttling Back SUS For SP2 Microsoft on Wednesday posted advice for enterprises relying on Software Update Services (SUS) to prevent network slowdowns and server bottlenecks as they update thousands of PCs to Windows XP Service Pack 2 ...


Apple Recalls PowerBook Batteries Apple Computer this week launched a voluntary worldwide 15-inch PowerBook G4 battery exchange program to deal with 28,000 potentially faulty units.


Browsing for secure alternative browsers AUGUST 18, 2004 (COMPUTERWORLD) - Web browsers are our windows to the Internet. They enable us to navigate about the Internet with ease and they help secure us and protect our privacy when we conduct online transactions.


BlackBerrys sync with Mac OS X Software developer Information Appliance Associates announced Thursday the release of an application synchronizing Research In Motion #39;s BlackBerry devices with Apple #39;s Mac OS X.


Men #39;s volleyball: US falls to Russia Athens, Greece (Sports Network) - The United States men #39;s volleyball team fell below .500 Thursday night with a four-set loss to Russia in Pool B action.


Selig #39;s continued reign is bad for baseball In a move that defies logic, a vision for the future and good taste, baseball owners voted unanimously to extend the contract of commissioner Bud Selig through 2009. As a baseball fan, this makes me want to lower the blinds, wear black and listen to my ...


Nepal asks Maoists for talks With the Maoist blockade of Kathmandu completing its second day, the Nepal government on Thursday asked the rebels to resume peace talks.


New Rules for 'Soft Money' Groups in 2006 (AP) AP - Non-party groups spending millions of dollars in unlimited donations on ads and get-out-the-vote drives in this year's presidential race will face some new ground rules starting with the 2006 election.


Google Shares Hit \$100.34 in Market Debut SAN JOSE, Calif. - In a debut vaguely reminiscent of the dot-com boom, shares of Internet search giant Google Inc...


Jackson Accuser's Kin Asked for Payment SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The stepfather of the boy who accused Michael Jackson of molestation testified Thursday that he asked for payment for the family's participation in a video interview intended to restore Jackson's reputation...


Church Says Girl's Communion Not Valid BRIELLE, N.J. - An 8-year-old girl who suffers from a rare digestive disorder and cannot eat wheat has had her first Holy Communion declared invalid because the wafer contained no wheat, violating Roman Catholic doctrine...


Follow-Through (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - Last year's FORBES E-Gang (see p. 144 for this year's group) featured five luminaries in the field of wireless communication. Two of our picks have left their jobs, while three are steaming ahead.


Party Crasher (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - Not long ago most corporate computer managers viewed open-source programs like MySQL as toys fit only for hobbyists. But then Linux, an open-source operating system, became a smash hit in corporate sites. Now the folks who embraced Linux are snapping up other bargain programs such as Apache, which serves up Web pages, the MySQL database and scripting languages like PHP, Perl and Python, which are used to create Web pages. So many companies use the combination of Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP (or Perl or Python) that they're described with the acronym LAMP.


Obsolete (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - AVOCENT (27, AVCT) is by far the market leader in KVM (keyboard, video, monitor) devices, which allow technicians to run multiple servers using a single computer terminal. Avocent has outsize gross margins (58) on this stuff. In the first half sales rose 23 to  #36;174 million, though it lost  #36;5 million due to an acquisitions-related charge. The stock's multiple: 73.


The Song Remains the Same (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - In an August memo typed from his hospital bed, Steve Jobs--Apple's chief executive, patriarch and media impresario--let his employees know he would be out for a month to recover from surgery to remove a rare form of pancreatic cancer. Patients with this type of cancer, called an islet cell neuroendocrine tumor, have a 90 survival rate, especially if treated early. Apple says Jobs is due back in September.


Cherry-Picking Growth (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - Rural hospitals, car insurers and furniture stores aren't exactly the first businesses that come to mind when talking about growth stocks, but fund manager Richard Aster Jr. picks through such sleepy industries to find growing companies that others have ignored.


House Call (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - It says something when the world's largest home-improvement retailer, with  #36;65 billion in sales, is willing to risk its reputation on an  #36;800 fee. Home Depot customers do 25 million transactions each week, and most are happy enough to come back. But the relationship has always ended at the store's threshold. It left to plumbers, electricians and handymen the mud tracks in the living room, the punctured pipes in the basement and the inevitable budget overruns.


Relief funds almost spent, says Soliman Stunned residents in General Nakar, Quezon, picked their way through a wasteland of mud and rubble to leave storm-ravaged areas Tuesday as the government said it has run out of money to pay for relief services.


Pilots to Pluck Space Capsule From Air (AP) AP - The Genesis space capsule carrying solar wind particles will be plucked from nearly a mile above the Utah desert by stunt helicopter pilots who've replicated the retrieval, without fumbles, in nearly a dozen practice runs.


New Genetic Link Found to Crib Deaths (Reuters) Reuters - A collection of genes involved in\early development may help explain why black babies are more at\risk of sudden infant death syndrome than other U.S. groups,\researchers said on Thursday.


Patterson Wins All-Around Gold Carly Patterson became the first American woman to win the gymnastics all-around competition since Mary Lou Retton in 1984.


Update 2: Two Firms Cleared of Swapping Violations The makers of two leading file-sharing programs are not legally liable for the songs, movies and other copyright works swapped online by their users, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday in a stinging blow to the entertainment industry.


Moscow Court Rejects Yukos Appeal A Moscow court has rejected a request to drop part of the criminal case against the jailed former chief of Yukos oil company, Mikhail Khodorkovsky.


United Airlines Says It May Terminate Pension Plans (Update3) Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- UAL Corp. #39;s United Airlines, trying to attract financing to exit bankruptcy, said it probably will terminate and replace all its pension plans.


Search industry welcomes Google IPO, sees growth SEATTLE, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) competitors large and small welcomed the Web #39;s most popular search engine into their ranks as a publicly traded company on Thursday, saying the search industry ...


Hibernia to Sell Mortgage Portfolio Hibernia Corp., the holding company for Hibernia National Bank, said Thursday that it signed a letter of intent to sell its \$10 billion, third-party residential mortgage servicing portfolio to a unit of Citigroup Inc.


One China, May Exporters (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - China beckons stock investors with the lure of brisk economic growth. Yet a school of prominent China watchers, led by Morgan Stanley strategist  Andy Xie, warns that the domestic overheating could lead to a "hard landing" in sectors ranging from steel to real estate. The Chinese government, worried about that very thing, is trying to rein in the torrid expansion.


Court Rejects Movie, Music Makers' Piracy Claims  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Thursday  delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major  movie studios and music companies, ruling that several online  file-sharing software companies are not liable for copyright  infringement.


So you want to be a cybercrook... Web villains post do-it-yourself phishing kits to help any amateur become an online con artist.\


Google has strong first day of public trading After a bumpy ride toward becoming a publicly traded company, Google Inc. finally saw its stock start trading on the Nasdaq exchange at around noon Eastern Daylight Time Thursday and with a strong opening at \$100.01, up from its \$85 initial offering price. The stock, which trades under the GOOG ticker symbol, closed at \$100.34, up 18 percent.


Embarcadero, Ixiasoft focus on data management Embarcadero is shipping Embarcadero Performance Center 1.9, a version of its multiplatform database monitoring product that adds a Web client and management functions for Linux and Unix databases.


Tibetans accuse China of meddling in film festival (AFP) AFP - Tibetan activists in India claimed that five films on Tibet have been dropped from the upcoming Asian Film Festival in Bombay under pressure from the Chinese embassy in India.


Vanguard Group Closes Int'l Explorer Fund  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Vanguard Group, the second-biggest  U.S. mutual fund firm, said on Thursday it has closed the \$1.4  billion Vanguard International Explorer Fund to thwart  speculative short-term investors and protect long-term  shareholders.


Movie, Music Makers' Piracy Claims Denied  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Thursday  delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major  movie studios and music companies, ruling that several online  file-sharing software companies are not liable for copyright  infringement.


Mets Beat Rockies 10-3 to Open Twinbill (AP) AP - Mike Cameron homered and drove in four runs, and Kris Benson pitched six solid innings to lead the New York Mets past the Colorado Rockies 10-3 Thursday in the first game of a doubleheader.


Our kids losing ground in math, science OTTAWA -- Canadian students have slipped in the rankings of an international test in reading, math and science, dropping out of the top five in math and science.


Google goes public, shares surge nearly 20 percent on first day In the most highly anticipated Wall Street debut since the heady days of the dot-com boom, shares of Google surged nearly 20 percent on their first day of public trading Thursday as the quirky Internet company completed its much-hyped initial stock ...


Update 1: US Airways Union Says Labor Deal Is Near Union leaders representing US Airways pilots said Thursday that a new labor agreement could be struck soon, telling their rank and file a new deal is  quot;our last opportunity to control the fate of our airline and our careers. quot; ...


Delta Air #39;s Revival Plan Preaches Austerity Delta Air Lines (DAL:NYSE - commentary - research) will cut employees and benefits but give a bigger-than-expected role to Song, its low-cost unit, in a widely anticipated but still unannounced overhaul, TheStreet.com has learned.


Boston Scientific Stent Gets Extension Medical-device maker Boston Scientific Corp. said Thursday that the Food and Drug Administration approved an extended shelf life of nine months for its Taxus Express2 drug-eluting coronary stent system in the United States, up from six months.


Helicopter Stunt Pilots to Snag Stardust for NASA PASADENA, Calif. (Reuters) - NASA has recruited two Hollywood helicopter stunt pilots for an especially tricky maneuver -- snagging a capsule full of stardust as it parachutes back to Earth next month, mission managers said on Thursday.


So you want to be a cyber-crook... Some Web sites are now offering surfers the chance to download free  quot;phishing kits quot; containing all the graphics, Web code and text required to construct the kind of bogus Web sites used in Internet phishing scams.


IE Drag-and-Drop Flaw Warning A security bug in Microsoft Internet Explorer #39;s drag-and-drop feature could put millions of Web surfers at risk of malicious hacker attacks, researchers warned on Thursday.


This lying, sneaky spirit of the Games THE struggle for the soul of the Olympics is still not won, not in a thousand years and more. On Wednesday, token events took place on the sacred site where the original Games took place in Ancient Olympia hundreds of years before Christ.


Too tall, too old, too artistic, Khorkina makes grand Olympic exit ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- The diva does not warm up before her performance. Not much, anyway. That is something that other gymnasts do, and Svetlana Khorkina will never be confused with one of those.


Loos? Not in Becks #39; vocab HOW fares Sven-Goran Eriksson? After all his nocturnal romping, were England just as rampant against the Ukraine? Why, certainly.


US men #39;s soccer team carries itself with a swagger They play with a confident air these days, even a swagger, more befitting the Brazilians and Germans.


15-inch PowerBook G4 Battery Exchange Apple is voluntarily recalling certain lithium ion rechargeable batteries that were sold worldwide from January 2004 through August 2004 for use with 15-inch PowerBook G4 (Aluminum) notebook computers. The affected batteries could overheat, posing a fire hazard. Aug 19


Google Up in Market Debut After Bumpy IPO  NEW YORK/SEATTLE (Reuters) - Google Inc. shares made their  long-awaited stock market debut on Thursday, rising sharply to  \$100 after an initial public offering marked by missteps and  lackluster market conditions.


Google makes market debut IN A debut vaguely reminiscent of the dot.com boom, shares of internet search giant Google surged in their first day of public trading.


Court Rejects Movie, Music Makers #39; Piracy Claims LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Thursday delivered a stinging blow to the anti-piracy efforts of major movie studios and music companies, ruling that several online file-sharing software companies are not liable for ...


Drug store offers new wave of disposable cameras NEW YORK--Pharmacy chain CVS Corp. on Thursday said it would offer the world #39;s first disposable digital camera with a bright color viewing screen that allows consumers to instantly preview pictures.


Hall upset over snub ATHENS  Gary Hall Jr. resurfaced for the first time since being left off the medal race in the 4x100-meter sprint relay last weekend, and as expected, he had an opinion.


Men #39;s Singles : Chile and USA secure medals ATHENS, 20 August - The semifinal line-up in the men #39;s singles has been settled with both contests featuring a Chile v USA match-up, so each nation is assured of at least one Singles medal.


Anno breaks Olympic jinx with judo gold ATHENS  Four-time judo world champion Noriko Anno broke her Olympic jinx by winning gold in the women #39;s 78-kilogram event Thursday at the Athens Games but defending Olympic champion Kosei Inoue was dealt shock defeats to miss out on a medal in the ...


American Patterson overcomes Russian for all-around Olympic title The 20-year wait is over. America has its new Mary Lou, and her name is Carly Patterson. The 16-year-old dynamo beat Russian superstar Svetlana Khorkina to give the United States another Olympic all-around champion Thursday night, closing with a dazzling ...


A new generation of US sprinters take their marks As track and field begins at the Games, it is up to athletes like Lauryn Williams to set right a sport seared by scandal.


Sharon #39;s leadership in crisis as Likud rejects settler plan Ariel Sharon #39;s political obituary was being written yesterday as opponents in Labour and his own Likud party turned their backs on the embattled Prime Minister, putting his plan for a staged withdrawal of settlers from the West ...


UK welcomes corncrake's comeback The rare corncrake is starting to return to England, but several other birds are still in serious trouble.


Dust 'is hidden climate problem' The amount of dust blowing around the world may have serious environmental effects, geographers say.


New worm uses IM to lure victims A new version of the worm that spread from infected Microsoft Corp. Internet Information Services (IIS) Web servers in June has been identified and is using instant messages (IMs) and infected Web sites in Russia, Uruguay and the U.S. to spread itself, according to one security company.


AMD sneaks strained silicon into chips The design twist will let the company increase the performance of its processors.


Your regularly scheduled software patch Oracle follows Microsoft and decides to roll patches out on a monthly timetable, but does that make customers more secure?


REVIEW: Olympics Web Coverage Disappoints (AP) AP - Though NBC is blanketing seven networks with 1,210 hours of Olympics coverage, there's this pesky, bill-paying task called work that keeps me from fully enjoying the televised competition.


Mission Studying Lionfish Off N.C. Coast (AP) AP - When divers first reported lionfish off the North Carolina coast four years ago, biologist Paula Whitfield thought it must be a mistake or an aberration. The poisonous, carnivorous Indo-Pacific lionfish is native to tropical waters half a world away  #151; not the seas off the Outer Banks.


Parmalat adds Credit Suisse Extraordinary commissioner Enrico Bondi has filed a claim against CSFB in a Parma court in connection with a forward sale agreement between the bank and Parmalat dating from January 2002.


Google has strong first day of public trading After a bumpy ride toward becoming a publicly traded company, Google Inc. finally saw its stock start trading on the Nasdaq exchange at around noon Eastern Daylight Time Thursday and with a strong opening at \$100.01, ...


Microsoft Gets Good Grades on SP2 Microsoft has begun sending Windows XP Service Pack 2 to home users via of its automatic update system. Despite a few flaws that already have been found in the massive patch, the update will strengthen system security for most Windows XP ...


Do-It-Yourself Phishing Kits Lead To More Scams Do-it-yourself phishing kits are freely available on the Internet, a security firm said Thursday, and they will lead to more scams sent to online consumers.


Phelps adds 200-medley to his tally of gold ATHENS  Michael Phelps certainly will not beat Mark Spitz #39;s record seven Olympic swimming gold medals in Munich in 1972, but the American youngster is still racking up the gold in Athens.


James Lawton: Khorkina the fallen tsarina loses to American princess Svetlana Khorkina was born in a poor industrial town on the Ukraine border, but not in her mind. There, she inhabited the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, surrounded by fawning courtiers and Faberg eggs. It showed here last night as the walls of her ...


In badminton, two deserving champions ATHENS As they lunged and lobbed with astonishing skill on Thursday, it was difficult to know whose personal journey had made them the worthier Olympic women #39;s badminton champion.


Beckham - played well on Tyneside (Getty Images) Sven-Goran Eriksson hailed David Beckham #39;s strength of character in recovering from his Euro 2004 woes as he said:  quot;Criticism only makes him stronger. quot; ...


Devils re-sign Brylin Brylin, entering his 11th NHL season, agreed to a multiyear deal. He appeared in all 82 regular-season games last year, and had 14 goals and 19 assists.


Lara must lead by example or face losing the captaincy The West Indian players and their supporters must be sick to death of reading comments that are highly critical of the way they have played in this series.


Balancing the risks in holy Najaf Ayad Allawi #39;s ultimatum yesterday to the rebel Shia cleric Moqtada al Sadr - who is holed up with his fighters in the holy city of Najaf - was notable for one thing: the lack of a deadline.


Opp will be taken along on all issues: Shaukat ISLAMABAD: Newly elected member of the National Assembly and prime minister-designate, Shaukat Aziz, said on Thursday that Mr Aziz said the government would make sure the opposition stayed abreast of it on all important national issues.


DPRK negative #39;over US offer on nuclear weapons HONG KONG: North Korea shows no sign of accepting US incentives to give up its nuclear weapons programmes, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in remarks released on Thursday.


Reversal Gives Peirsol Gold; Phelps Wins 200 IM Despite being disqualified shortly after his final, Aaron Peirsol was eventually reinstated as the winner of the 200-meter backstroke event.


Mets Open Doubleheader With Victory Mike Cameron homered and drove in four runs, and Kris Benson pitched six solid innings to lead the Mets past Colorado.


US stocks: Market dips as oil rises and Google shines NEW YORK - US stocks slid on Thursday, ending four days of gains as oil prices continued their march higher, but Google Inc. created a buzz as shares of the internet search company surged on their debut.


Enter your e-mail: System administrators who have been installing Windows XP Service Pack 2 on their own PCs and on test systems are reporting the results of their practice runs to the SANS Institute Web site--and the failure rate seems to be pretty high.


Your regularly scheduled software patch The database maker confirmed on Thursday that it plans to start releasing patches on a specific day each month. The move mimics Microsoft #39;s decision last October to release patches for its software on the second Tuesday of each month.


AMD sneaks strained silicon into chips Advanced Micro Devices has begun to incorporate a form of strained silicon into its chips, a design twist that will let the company increase the performance of its processors.


Precision and Pressure in a Classic Stadium THENS, Aug. 19  The two finalists in the men #39;s archery strode out this afternoon and took their positions side-by-by side between the twin columns topped with the two-faced busts of Hermes that mark the start and finish lines in the ...


Sportsview: Khorkina makes grand exit ATHENS, Greece (AP)  The diva does not warm up before her performance. Not much, anyway. That is something that other gymnasts do, and Svetlana Khorkina will never be confused with one of those.


Dodgers acquire Dessens for bullpen Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired right- handed pitcher Elmer Dessens and cash considerations from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league outfielder Jereme Milons on Thursday.


Moore, seven others advance at Amateur MAMARONECK, NY -- NCAA Division I champion Ryan Moore advanced to the quarterfinals Thursday at the US Amateur at Winged Foot Golf Club.


UN peace chief warns of more violence after Burundi massacre UNITED NATIONS : The UN #39;s peacekeeping chief warned of a surge in violence after the massacre of Congolese refugees in Burundi and called on all parties to step back from the brink of war.


AL: Paul, Guerrero, Erstad Guide Angels to Win (Reuters) Reuters - Josh Paul, Vladimir Guerrero and Darin\Erstad hit multi-run homers to lead the Anaheim Angels to a\10-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in St. Petersburg\Thursday.


U.S. Uses Lethal Aircraft to Try to Break Sadr (Reuters) Reuters - The U.S. military pounded positions\held by radical clerical Moqtada al-Sadr's lightly armed\militiamen early Friday, unleashing one of its most terrifying\aircraft in a bid to break their will to fight.


NL Wrap: Maddux, Sosa Help Cubs Beat Brewers  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Greg Maddux overcame a shaky start to  post his 301st career win while Sammy Sosa hit his 566th career  home run as the Chicago Cubs beat the Milwaukee Brewers 9-6 in  Milwaukee Thursday.


Canadian flagbearer Gill bids hasty exit from Olympic judoka event (Canadian Press) Canadian Press - ATHENS (CP) - Montreal's Nicolas Gill will now play the role of spectator at the Summer Games.


Israel's Peres Urges Election, Pressures Sharon  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's opposition Labor Party  leader pushed an already embattled prime minister to the wall  by advocating early elections a day after Ariel Sharon's Likud  party barred him from coalition negotiations.


Analysis: Doctors a Part of Iraq Abuse LONDON - Doctors working for the U.S. military in Iraq collaborated with interrogators in the abuse of detainees at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison, profoundly breaching medical ethics and human rights, a bioethicist charges in The Lancet medical journal...


Yahoo fixes two flaws in mail system Online portal says bugs could have let attackers alter appearance of pages and access a victim's data.\


Tokyo's Nikkei Average Falls  TOKYO (Reuters) - Tokyo's Nikkei average fell 0.46 percent  early morning on Friday with technology shares such as Fujitsu  Ltd. leading the way, following a retreat in their U.S. peers  and on worries over record-breaking oil prices.


Same-Day Doctor Visits Gain Steam in U.S. Life changed for Steve Lunt and his wife when they called Dr. Gordon Moore, who is among a growing number of doctors nationwide who have adopted same-day service. The idea, which experts say is gaining steam, is that scheduling patients immediately for even routine physicals will keep them healthier and happier.


Groups Weigh in on Revisions to Food Pyramid By IRA DREYFUSS     WASHINGTON (AP) -- Keep the food pyramid but make it more understandable, food industry and consumer group officials told a panel of Agriculture Department officials on Thursday.    The department is revising its nutrition graphic to reflect new eating guidelines that are due out early next year by a dietary guidance advisory committee...


Health Highlights: Aug. 19, 2004 Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:    -----    Doctor Who Was Focus of Anthrax Probe Loses Job      A doctor who has recently become the focus of federal agents investigating the unsolved 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States has lost his job at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.      Dr...


Scientist says numeracy theories don #39;t add up Language moulds our thoughts so much that we cannot conceptualise ideas for which we do not have words, according to an American researcher.


Sony brings new technology to TV line Sony said Thursday that it would begin selling eight new television models outfitted with semiconductors designed to produce sharper images, including two with a lighting system that the company says is the world #39;s first.


Napster UK teams with Virgin Radio British radio station Virgin Radio (which is not part of Virgin Group anymore) has teamed up with Napster UK to launch an online music chart called (very creative..) The Napster Online Music Chart.


Hewitt advances Lleyton Hewitt of Australia moved into the quarterfinals of the Legg Mason Tennis Classic with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Alejandro Falla of Colombia in Washington.


Patterson overcomes low vault score to win all-around gold ATHENS, Greece  In gymnastics style and personality, it was like watching an American high school cheerleader bringing down the Russian prima ballerina, a dynamo dusting off a diva. At night #39;s end, US teenager Carly Patterson simply ...


3 countries will appeal in eventing ATHENS France, Britain and the United States issued a joint challenge Thursday to Germany #39;s gold medal in equestrian team three-day eventing.


NL Wrap: Maddux, Sosa Help Cubs Beat Brewers NEW YORK (Reuters) - Greg Maddux overcame a shaky start to post his 301st career win while Sammy Sosa hit his 566th career home run as the Chicago Cubs beat the Milwaukee Brewers 9-6 in Milwaukee Thursday.


Football: US-Jamaica CONCACAF Semifinal Qualifier Ends in Draw Second-half substitute Brian Ching scored the first goal of his international career in the 89th minute to give the United States national soccer team a 1-1 come-from-behind draw against Jamaica in Kingston.


Shutdown of the Uffizi is threatened over cuts ROME Italy #39;s culture minister has threatened to shut down the Uffizi museum if the government does not scale back planned spending cuts.


Google Shares Hit  #36;100.34 in Market Debut (AP) AP - In a debut vaguely reminiscent of the dot-com boom, shares of Internet search giant Google Inc. surged in their first day of public trading Thursday as investors who avoided the company's auction-based offering readily jumped into the familiar territory of the stock market.


Olympics Internet Coverage Disappoints The Internet is good for getting results and learning the mechanics of obscure sports but it fails to capture the full glory and personalities that make the Olympics so special.


Apple's iPod a Huge Hit in Japan The iPod is proving a colossal hit on the Japanese electronics and entertainment giant's home ground. The tiny white machine is catching on as a fashion statement and turning into a cultural icon here, much the same way it won a fanatical following in the United States.


Auction Debate to Outlive Google Debut (Reuters) Reuters - Google Inc. (GOOG.O) debuted as a\public company on Thursday, but that did not stop the debate\over whether its auction-based IPO was a success or will\influence future IPOs.


Al-Sadr Tells Militia to Turn Over Shrine (AP) AP - Radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his fighters Thursday to hand control of a revered Najaf shrine to top Shiite religious authorities, hours after U.S. forces bombed militant positions and Iraq's prime minister made a "final call" for the cleric's militia to surrender.


AP: Kids Left in Africa Begged for Change (AP) AP - Allegedly abandoned by their American mother in Africa, seven children from Texas begged small change to buy food and shuttled from a neglectful stranger's care to a concrete-block orphanage, Nigerians said Thursday.


AP: Kids Left in Africa Begged for Change IBADAN, Nigeria - Allegedly abandoned by their American mother in Africa, seven children from Texas begged small change to buy food and shuttled from a neglectful stranger's care to a concrete-block orphanage, Nigerians said Thursday.    Eventually, the children proved their American citizenship to a passing missionary from Texas by singing "The Star-Spangled Banner." He notified U.S...


Baseball Gives Selig Contract Through 2009 PHILADELPHIA - Baseball commissioner Bud Selig received a contract extension through 2009 Thursday as owners praised his 12-year reign, but dissension surfaced among teams in the decision to launch a World Cup tournament.    Selig, who has presided over revolutionary changes in the most traditional of major U.S...


India fight back to beat Germany in Champions Trophy (AFP) AFP - India came from behind to defeat new-look Germany 3-1 and remain in contention for a podium finish in the men's Champions Trophy field hockey tournament here.


Baseball Gives Selig Contract Through 2009 (AP) AP - Baseball commissioner Bud Selig received a contract extension through 2009 Thursday as owners praised his 12-year reign, but dissension surfaced among teams in the decision to launch a World Cup tournament.


UConn Aide Put on Leave After Sex Bust (AP) AP - Connecticut placed assistant men's basketball coach Clyde Vaughan on paid administrative leave Thursday after his arrest in a prostitution sting.


COWBOYS 43, SEAHAWKS 39 Jones had 198 yards rushing and three touchdowns, helping Dallas erase a 10-point deficit with less than three minutes to play as the visiting Cowboys stunned the Seattle Seahawks, 43-39, last night.


Google shares top 100 on debut NEW YORK Despite voluble skepticism among investors, Google #39;s stock jumped about 18 percent to \$100.01 a share when it debuted Thursday on the Nasdaq stock market.


Update 11: Crude Oil Prices Climb Above \$48 a Barrel Crude futures climbed above \$48 a barrel Thursday as market fears of sabotage against the Iraqi oil infrastructure outweighed assurances from Baghdad that exports would increase in coming days.


StreamCast, Grokster escape suit AP - A US court says the makers of two leading file-sharing programs are not legally liable for the songs, movies and other copyright works swapped online by their users, in a stinging blow to the entertainment industry.


Wal-Mart looking at Japan #39;s Daiei TOKYO Wal-Mart Stores is considering taking a stake in the heavily indebted Japanese retailer Daiei, a move that could greatly expand the presence of the world #39;s largest retailer in the world #39;s second-largest retail market.


Hibbett 2Q Earnings Drop 6 Percent Hibbett Sporting Goods Inc. on Thursday said its second-quarter results dropped 6 percent year-over-year on weaker licensed apparel and fitness-equipment sales, missing industry estimates.


Delta faces tricky task in restructuring debt NEW YORK, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines (DAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) is taking steps toward restructuring at least some of its roughly \$20 billion of total debt in a bid to avoid bankruptcy, but it will face an uphill battle, ...


Market little changed at open THE sharemarket was virtually flat at the open today as losses in the financial sector and News Corp nullified gains in resources and gold stocks.


Michael Hill sparkles Jeweller Michael Hill International has seen its annual profit rise 30 due to increased sales, the company says.


Mars Exploration Rovers Update During the last four weeks, the Mars Exploration Rovers have braved the Martian winter to continue their geologic field work, sending home more evidence of past liquid water on the Red Planet and images of bizarre geologic formations the likes ...


RealNetworks Riles Apple Diehards RealNetworks #39; campaign to grab digital-music market share away from Apple #39;s iTunes service -- most recently, with cut-rate, 49-cent song downloads -- is raising the ire of Apple loyalists. A petition placed online by Real was swamped with ...


Casual approach, shot selection land Anthony seat on Team USA bench The question of what #39;s up between coach Larry Brown and nailed-to-the-bench young forward Carmelo Anthony is not, to be sure, the most important one facing the United States men #39;s basketball team. The team #39;s poor shooting -- after going 3-for-17 in ...


Granville crushes Czech LAURA GRANVILLE of the United States crushed fifth-seeded Denisa Chladkova of the Czech Republic 6-1 6-1 to reach the quarter-finals of the WTA event here today.


Peres Calls for Israeli Elections After Likud Rejects Talks Aug. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Shimon Peres, chairman of the opposition Labor Party, said Israel should have early elections after the ruling Likud Party voted against coalition talks.


San Diego Zoo's Panda Celebrates Birthday (AP) AP - On his first birthday Thursday, giant panda cub Mei Sheng delighted visitors by playing for the first time in snow delivered to him at the San Diego Zoo. He also sat on his ice cake, wrestled with his mom, got his coat incredibly dirty, and didn't read any of the more than 700 birthday wishes sent him via e-mail from as far away as Ireland and Argentina.


Microsoft Patches the Patch (PC World) PC World - Windows XP Service Pack 2 gets a 'hotfix' for VPNs, part of the\ never-ending process of software development.


Groups Eager to Meet With Bush, Kerry (AP) AP - Organizations representing the nation's 3 million scientists, engineers and doctors have invited the two major presidential candidates to have a word with them  #151; online.


Auction Debate to Outlive Google Debut NEW YORK (Reuters) - Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) debuted as a public company on Thursday, but that did not stop the debate over whether its auction-based IPO was a success or will influence future IPOs.


Judges rule file-sharing software legal update A federal appeals court has upheld a controversial court decision that said file-sharing software programs such as Grokster or Morpheus are legal.


US Air CEO denies liquidation talk CHICAGO (Reuters) - The chief executive of US Airways said Thursday that a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing is still a possibility for the ailing carrier but that talk of an impending liquidation was unfounded.


Investors See Only Negatives Some say indexes dropped Thursday because investors are idling until some good news comes around. Maybe so, but the trading volume of the Nasdaq-100 tracking stock, which we use to get a better feel for how individual tech shares are selling, ...


US Economy Recovery slows, leading indicators drop NEW YORK (AP) - Offering more evidence that the US economic recovery is losing steam, a closely watched gauge of future business activity has fallen for the second consecutive month.


Microsoft Patches the Patch Windows XP Service Pack 2 gets a  #39;hotfix #39; for VPNs, part of the never-ending process of software development.


Apple recalls notebook batteries Apple Computer Inc. issued a recall of about 28,000 batteries that were being used in its 15 quot; PowerBook notebook computers. The batteries in question were produced between the January and August time frame. The batters were manufacturered by a Korean firm ...


DALE McFEATTERS: Just another work sol on Mars (SH) - While we go about our days, rather amazingly 34 million or so miles away our pair of Mars Rovers are still going about their days, although theirs are 45 minutes longer and are called  quot;sols. quot; ...


Ford Shelves Oracle-Based Procurement System After nearly five years of development work, Ford Motor Co. will dismantle an Oracle-based procurement application and shift back to earlier technology, a company spokesman confirmed Thursday.


Eolas Says Browser Patent Fight Isn #39;t Over Yet Despite reports saying that Microsoft and the W3C have Eolas Technologies on the ropes in their patent battle over basic browser technology, Eolas sounded an upbeat note Thursday.


Clearly Carly in women #39;s all-around As Carly Patterson waited for her final routine Thursday night, her coach looked into her eyes and saw a fire that burned brighter than the Olympic flame.


Even in win, nasty vibes ATHENS -- As you saw yesterday, they #39;re fighting back now. Not with the world, but with themselves. When you #39;ve been humiliated at your own game, ridiculed and laughed at back home and can #39;t intimidate Australia anymore, someone #39;s bound to mope.


Second Wave for US Makes the Difference INGSTON, Jamaica, Aug. 19 - Sixty minutes into Wednesday #39;s World Cup qualifying match against Jamaica, with the United States trailing by 1-0, Brian Ching stood on the sideline, waiting to enter, more excited than nervous.


UConn assistant coach placed on administrative leave Connecticut placed assistant men #39;s basketball coach Clyde Vaughan on paid administrative leave Thursday after his arrest in a prostitution sting.


Najaf stand-off has beginnings in earlier US failures in Fallujah The battle of Najaf, in which Iraq #39;s fledgling government is being held to ransom by the occupation of Shia Islam #39;s holiest site, can be traced to American political and military failures in recent months.


Blair confined to quarters after bomb discovery Italian newspapers claimed yesterday that the Blair family had been confined to their luxury Tuscan quarters following the discovery of a time bomb in a Sardinian resort close to the villa where Silvio Berlusconi regaled Tony and Cherie Blair with ...


Global warming on the rise The European Environment Agency reported global climate change, including frequent floods, droughts and heat waves, are severe and will continue to worsen.


Natural Gas Seems Headed the Way of Oil: More Demand, Less Supply, Higher Cost At a time when the nation is chafing at its dependence on foreign oil, it is becoming clear that the United States may be headed for the same situation with natural gas.


Kmart: Rich in Cash and Real Estate but Not in Sales Kmart looks like a true retail oddity: simultaneously losing ground with the American shopper and generating cash like a slot machine.


Google jumps 18 pc on debut NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -- Google stock jumped 18 percent in its long-awaited but rocky debut Thursday.


Crude oil soar above \$48 a barrel in NY NEW YORK, Aug. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Crude oil futures jumped to new record high Thursday as market concerned that Iraqi exports might drop further because of clashes in southern Iraq between US troopsand fighters loyal to Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada ...


Vanguard closes international fund SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- Responding to a torrent of new money into its top-performing Vanguard International Explorer fund, the Vanguard Group closed the foreign stock portfolio Thursday to new investors.


Hamm Faces Future and Savors Moment THENS, Aug. 19 - It was nearly 3 am, and Paul Hamm was alone on his porch at the Olympic Village, sky dark, grounds quiet, gold medal hanging around his neck just hours after he had won it.


With Duncan Providing a Beat, the US Finds Its Rhythm THENS, Aug. 19 - Tim Duncan nearly tore the backboard from its moorings when he dunked the basketball on Thursday, hanging on the rim for emphasis, stretching out his frame for all of Helliniko Indoor Arena to see.


Notes: Ichiro CAT scan proves OK KANSAS CITY -- A precautionary CAT scan taken on Ichiro Suzuki on Thursday afternoon was  quot;completely normal quot; and the right fielder could continue his pursuit of another 50-hit month Friday night in Detroit.


Journalists journey into the center of the storm NAJAF, Iraq  What we were about to do was more than risky. It was foolish. Thursday, several journalists began organizing a delegation to enter the Imam Ali shrine in ...


ICJ ruling on Israeli fences may lead to sanctions: Attorney General JERUSALEM, Aug. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Israeli Attorney General Menachem Mazuz said Thursday that the Hague ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Israeli security fences could lead to sanctions against the country, local newspaper Ha #39;aretz ...


Japanese Stocks Edge Lower  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese stocks edged lower by  mid-morning on Friday as a retreat on Wall Street and worries  about record-high oil prices prompted profit-taking in some  technology and bank shares following the market's recent gains.


Rewards Have Risks on the Tehran Stock Exchange The Tehran Stock Exchange has performed magnificently, but the market's list of risks is outsized.