* Says exchanges likely to return more capital to holders * Does not think CME Group would try to acquire NYSE * NYSE Euronext likely to make more technology acquisitions By John McCrank ORLANDO, Feb 3 (Reuters) - NYSE Euronext plans to focus on smaller deals and returning capital to its shareholders after its failed $7.4 billion merger with Deutsche Boerse, […]

By Jennipher Walters for Shape.comGearing up for the Super Bowl? Us, too! While Super Bowl parties are a blast, they can be a bit of a minefield when it comes to healthy eating. Wings, cheesy dips, nachos, pizza...the list of not-so-great for you foods goes on and on. Not to mention that you'll probably spend three or more hours sitting on the couch. Bu […]

Do you know someone with cancer? Chances are, you do. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 12.7 million people find out each year around the world that they have cancer, and 7.6 million people die from cancer. That's why we're remembering the toll cancer has on our lives, globally, today on World Cancer Day. Read More... Mor […]

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard began military exercises Saturday in the country's south, the latest show of force after threats to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for tougher Western sanctions.The latest military maneuvers got under way following stern warnings by Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Kh […]

By SHANNON MCCAFFREY, ASSOCIATED PRESSLAS VEGAS -- Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has little hope for an upset in Nevada's caucuses and instead is looking to best rival Ron Paul for second place.Trounced in Florida on Tuesday, Gingrich had just a few days to regroup in Nevada, a state that front-runner Mitt Romney won when he sought the […]

By Angeliki Koutantou and George Georgiopoulos ATHENS, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Greece's government on Saturday struggled on in talks with lenders to secure a 130 billion euro bailout before turning to the trickier task of persuading political leaders to back the unpopular reforms involved in the rescue. On the brink of bankruptcy, Athens must wrap up talks wi […]

More than 200 killed across region as temperatures plunge to new lows, while vital gas supplies curtailed due to demand. […]

Twelve killed and more than 2,500 wounded in clashes over authorities' failure to prevent Port Said football violence. […]

Security Council to vote on Syria resolution, despite threat of Russia veto and amid reports of hundreds killed in Homs. […]

Thousands defy freezing temperatures to demand fair presidential polls, but PM's supporters gather for separate rally. […]

Defence Secretary Leon Panetta says US military will maintain robust presence in Europe despite austerity drive. […]

UN mission in Afghanistan says 2011 was fifth straight year that number of dead has risen, with 3,021 civilians killed. […]

By Andrew Freedman, in a Climate Central repost Although recent rains have put a dent in the Texas drought, a day of reckoning looms for the state’s long-grain rice growers, who pump millions into the economy in Southeast Texas each year and account for about 5 percent of America’s rice production. Come March 1, if […]

Arizona’s unremitting campaign against its Hispanic communities has certainly reached an extreme, with the state GOP initiating a spate of radical anti-immigrant laws, banning Mexican-American and other ethnic studies, and ensuring that Spanish-speakers will never hold elected office. But one lawmaker is intent on turning the party’s xenophobic paranoia into […]

A cybernickel for your thoughts — yes, I want thoughts that are 5 times as valuable as usual! To inspire you, this classic Toles cartoon: […]

This feminist football fan will be hoping for a Patriots win, not least to honor the memory of Myra Kraft, who vetoed the team’s draft of a serial abuser of women, made her husband promise that buying a football team wouldn’t mean they’d cut down on their charitable work (they increased it, giving to causes […]

The Susan G. Komen Foundation announced it would no longer cut Planned Parenthood funding after intense public scrutiny, but the organization still needs a public image shakeup. So Komen’s next move? The foundation famous for marketing pink breast cancer awareness products will offer pink handguns, courtesy of Discount Gun Sales. “Discount Gun Sales is proud […]

After the Koch brothers secretly mobilized $100 million from fellow billionaires to unseat President Barack Obama last weekend, Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) wrote an op-ed in Politico today accusing the Obama administration of harassing the co-owners of Koch Industries and Pompeo’s greatest contributors. Calling Charles and David Koch “U.S. citizens, taxpayers, e […]

I blogged "Extermiknit!", a knittable Dalek, back in 2007, but it turns out that an even cooler knittable Dalek of the same name was created on Feather and Fan in 2010, with an opening hatch containing a Kaled mutant, and here it is. After completing the top of the Dalek as specified, I created an […]

If you need me to explain why you should spend 1:26 watching a man wielding an iron guitar in a Faraday suit playing Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" on MIDI-compatible Tesla coils, you are in the wrong place, pal. ArcAttack is performing a Tesla Coil version of Iron Man by Black Sabbath. The Guitar Player is […]

Derryl Murphy sez, "Drew Smith's lovely new song 'Smoke and Mirrors' needed a video, so he decided to outsource it. The result is wonderful." So I outsourced my video to Bangalore, India. Why? Well, I figured the last thing the world needed was another low-budget singer songwriter video. Fortunately, the first Virtual Assistant I fou […]

In Slate, Dahlia Lithwick examines the impact that Stephen Colbert's SuperPAC is having on public perception of the Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United, which establishes that "corporate personhood" means that corporations can make unlimited contributions to political campaigns. Dahlia implies that the Court, which has always maintained an […]

Apparently inspired by the Polish parliamentarians who showed up for work in Guy Fawkes masks for the signing of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (a US-driven secret copyright treaty), members of Bulgaria's parliament repeated the trick. The MPs say they support copyright laws, but oppose ACTA over its possible turning into an instrument to limit […]

Michael Geist sez, "I've posted a video version of a recent talk on SOPA activism and what it means for the next generation of global copyright agreements such as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement and the Trans Pacific Partnership. The talk is about an hour as it also assesses the global strategies employed by the U.S. […]

The career of a Civil War officer is hampered by his worst enemy: himself. […]

The Vassar admissions letter fiasco is just the latest in a series of ire-raising news items. […]

A fifth of the world's population lives without electricity. A few simple ideas are helping to bring light to them and others who can't afford it. […]

The Nevada caucuses are on Saturday, but you don't hear much from the candidates about what's gone wrong economically in Las Vegas. […]

A gathering of recent philosophy-related links. […]

From the Palma Boy Social Club to the Isaac Newton Middle School, Harlem's Pleasant Avenue has changed. […]