Scores of scientists who have toiled for years in obscurity now find themselves in the middle of a media frenzy, trying to explain the Gulf oil spill to the public. “I usually spend my time analyzing samples and looking at squiggly lines, which is not very sexy,” Louisiana State University’s Edward Overton said with a chuckle. “Who would have thought Letterman would invite me, a scientist, on his show?”
Bin Laden hunter arrives back in Colorado
DENVER — Gary Faulkner is back home in Colorado after his personal quest to track down al Qaida leader Osama bin Laden ended with his arrest in a northern Pakistan woods.
The Greeley, Colo., man was detained June 13 when authorities found him armed with a pistol, a sword and night-vision equipment.
Obama ousts Afghanistan commander McChrystal
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says he has accepted the resignation of Gen. Stanley McChrystal with regret, but is certain that it is the right decision for the country’s national security and the future of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan.
Donovan injury-time goal puts US in 2nd round
PRETORIA, South Africa — Landon Donovan scored a stunning goal in the first minute of injury time, advancing the United States to the second round at the World Cup with a 1-0 win over Algeria.
3 killed, dozens injured in Minn. tornadoes
WADENA, Minn. — Police and National Guard soldiers are blocking entry to tornado-damaged neighborhoods in Wadena as the northwestern Minnesota town prepares to start cleaning up after the devastating storms.
Sources: BP agrees to $20B fund for spill victims
WASHINGTON — BP will set aside $20 billion to pay the victims of the massive oil spill in the Gulf, senior administration officials said Wednesday, as President Barack Obama met with the oil giant’s top executives. BP is acting under heavy White House pressure in dealing with the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.
Hennepin County seeks out of gay marriage lawsuit
MINNEAPOLIS — Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman is asking a judge to dismiss a lawsuit that seeks gay marriage in Minnesota.
Minneapolis police investigate 2 fatal shootings
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis police are investigating the second fatal drive-by shooting of the weekend and have identified the victim as a 16-year-old boy.
New wave of US cities look at bike-sharing plans
MINNEAPOLIS — The new message to commuters in Minneapolis: hit a bicycle pedal instead of a gas pedal.
Minneapolis is joining Denver in a new wave of cities in car-crazy America trying to cut down on obesity, traffic jams and air pollution with bike-sharing programs.
Census: Multiracial US becoming even more diverse
WASHINGTON — The nation’s minority population is steadily rising and now makes up 35 percent of the U.S., boosted by a surge in Hispanic births and more Americans who describe themselves as multiracial.
Helen Thomas ends White House career amid uproar
Helen Thomas, the opinionated White House correspondent who used her seat in the front row of history to grill 10 presidents and often exasperate them, lost her storied perch Monday in a flap over calling on Israelis to get “out of Palestine.”
Thomas, 89, who made her name as a bulldog for United Press International and was a pioneer for women in journalism, abruptly retired as a columnist for Hearst News Service.
Gladiator graveyard discovered in northern England
Dozens of headless skeletons excavated from a northern English building site appear to be the remains of Roman gladiators, one of whom had bites from a lion, tiger, bear or other large animal, archaeologists said Monday.
Experts said new forensic evidence suggests the bones belong to the professional fighters, who were often killed while entertaining spectators.
Israel vows to stop aid ship as it approaches Gaza
JERUSALEM — Israel vowed Friday to keep an Irish aid ship from breaching its blockade of the Gaza Strip, setting the stage for another maritime showdown as the vessel made its way toward the impoverished Palestinian territory.
Concern about more violence loomed large as Israel stood fast by its blockade, despite rising pressure to lift it following Monday’s raid against another aid ship that left nine activists dead.
Minn. girl’s love for goats leads to business
GRANT, Minn. — Lauren Schifsky is the goat girl of Grant. She got her first goat, a pet, when she was 6. By age 11, she was raising, breeding and selling goats on her family’s 10-acre hobby farm.
Now 18, Schifsky owns so many goats — Nigerian Dwarf goats — that she doesn’t know the exact number. “I have about 60, I think,” she said. “I’ve lost track.”
Crews probe Guatemala sinkhole as neighbors flee
GUATEMALA CITY — A cavernous and almost perfectly round sinkhole swallowed an entire intersection in Guatemala City during a tropical storm, spooking people in the neighborhood but exciting geologists.