Companies aware of cement flaws before oil blast, report says
WASHINGTON — Halliburton officials knew weeks before the fatal explosion of the BP well in the Gulf of Mexico that the cement mixture they planned to use to seal the bottom of the well was unstable but still went ahead with the job, the presidential commission investigating the accident said Thursday.
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WASHINGTON — Verizon Wireless, the nation’s largest mobile phone carrier, will pay $25 million to end an investigation into complaints that it had charged 15 million cell phone customers unauthorized data fees over the last three years, the Federal Communications Commission announced Thursday.
High above India’s poverty, tower will house five of India’s most rich
MUMBAI, India — The newest and most exclusive residential tower for this city’s super rich is a cantilevered sheath of steel and glass soaring 27 floors into the sky. The parking garage fills six levels. Three helipads are on the roof. There are terraces upon terraces, airborne swimming pools and hanging gardens in a Blade Runner-meets-Babylon edifice overlooking India’s most dynamic city.
Schumer readies possible leadership bid if Reid defeated
WASHINGTON — Sen. Charles E. Schumer shipped $500,000 to Nevada in recent weeks to help Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader and Schumer’s political patron and close friend, as he fights for his political life in Nevada.
Halloween gives MIT a chi-i-i-i-illing weekend
Going out for Halloween festivities this weekend? Bring a jacket, as temperatures will dip into the low 40s (°F) each night.
Libraries replacing hard-cover books with digital technology
DENVER — A digital revolution is under way at the University of Denver’s Penrose Library, where a $30 million renovation will cut the number of bound books and journals and push the remainder into the basement to create space more friendly to tech-savvy students.
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Two new DNA-based tests, one of them described at a meeting in Philadelphia on Thursday, hold the promise of detecting early — and sharply reducing — colon cancer, a disease that afflicts 150,000 people a year in the United States and costs an estimated $14 billion to treat.
Obama administration lining up allies to pressure China
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration, facing a vexing relationship with China on exchange rates, trade and security issues, is stiffening its approach toward Beijing, seeking allies to confront a newly assertive power that officials now say has little intention of working with the United States.
Few women take top positions in New York governor’s campaign
NEW YORK — Carl Paladino has recruited his wife to hit the campaign trail and has put his daughter in a new commercial urging voters to “get to know my dad.” At the same time, Andrew Cuomo has rolled out an advertisement touching on abortion and has ferried his daughters across New York state in an RV on a political tour.
Political divide on deficit likely to grow after midterm election
WASHINGTON — A midterm campaign that has turned heavily on the issue of the mounting federal debt is likely to yield a government even more split over what to do about it, people in both parties say, with diminished Democrats and reinforced Republicans confronting internal divisions even as they dig in against the other side.
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As banks, borrowers and regulators battle over how much faulty documentation by lenders should impede foreclosures, fresh evidence came Monday that the housing market remained very wobbly.
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MAPLE HEIGHTS, Ohio — Democrats have tried improving the political climate, discrediting their Republican opponents and asking Americans for patience in tackling the nation’s challenges, but the party’s best hope of stemming deep losses on Election Day may now rest on loyalty and logistics, not persuasion.
New U.S. emissions and fuel economy standards take aim at heavy vehicles
WASHINGTON — The federal government announced the first national emissions and fuel economy standards for heavy vehicles Monday, one of a series of regulatory steps that the Obama administration is taking to increase energy efficiency and reduce atmospheric pollution in the absence of congressional action on climate change.
Midwest prepares for strong storm system
The northern Midwest states are in the direct path of a rapidly strengthening low pressure system. Winds over 50 mph, rain, and thunderstorms will be likely from the Dakotas to the Great Lakes.
Afghan president Karzai confirms that Iran gives ‘bags of money’
KABUL, Afghanistan — President Hamid Karzai acknowledged Monday that he regularly receives bags of cash from the Iranian government in payments amounting to millions of dollars, as evidence mounted of a worsening rift between his government and its U.S. and NATO supporters.
NASA locates a moon oasis that’s wetter than the Sahara
The Moon, at least at the bottom of a deep, dark cold crater near its south pole, seems to be wetter than the Sahara, scientists reported Thursday.
Toyota recalling 1.5 million cars for problems
TOKYO—The Toyota Motor Co. announced a global recall of 1.53 million vehicles Thursday because of brake and fuel pump problems, but stressed that the repairs reflected a companywide effort to be more proactive in addressing potential flaws.
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WASHINGTON <i>— </i>Sikhs in the United States expressed their frustration Thursday that President Barack Obama would skip a tentatively planned visit to their holiest site in India, while advocacy groups called on the White House to reconsider.
Democrats try to revive<br />female voters’ enthusiasm
SEATTLE—Women came out strong for Barack Obama in 2008. Now, with barely 10 days before the midterm elections that are looking increasingly perilous for his party, he is trying to win them back.
One comment leads to contract termination at NPR
NPR’s decision Wednesday to fire Juan Williams and Fox News Channel’s decision Thursday to give him a new contract put into sharp relief the two forms of journalism that compete every day for Americans’ attention.