UPI NewsTrack articles from June 2009

UPI NewsTrack archives from June 2009

Biden: Jobless rate troubling but hopeful.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. jobless figures for May were troublesome yet positive because the job-loss number was the lowest since September, Vice President Joe Biden said Friday. Biden, meeting with Council of Economic Advisers...

UPI NewsTrack Entertainment News.
June 5, 2009... Carradine may have died during sex act BANGKOK, June 5 (UPI) -- Thai police said they think U.S. actor David Carradine died this week while attempting an autoerotic act involving rope. Carradine's manager Thursday confirmed the...

Human laughter likely evolved from apes.
June 5, 2009... PORTSMOUTH, England, June 5 (UPI) -- Humans likely inherited their ability to laugh from apes, British researchers studying primate evolution said. Laughter follows an evolutionary trail that could date back as far as 16 million years,...

Britain's atomic vets seeking damages.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- A High Court justice in London has given the green light to a group of former servicemen who want to sue the Ministry of Defense for their health problems. The veterans charge that exposure to radiation during...

United Airlines breaks spending logjam.
June 5, 2009... CHICAGO, June 5 (UPI) -- United Airlines' indication it will spend $10 billion on new aircraft could signify a turn in U.S. corporate spending, an industrial market analyst said. "It's very tentative, but it sounds like businesses are...

Pre-teen death may be tied to swine flu.
June 5, 2009... SAN FRANCISCO, June 5 (UPI) -- A 9-year-old Concord, Calif., girl who died last week, was the Bay Area's first death possibly linked to the swine flu, public health officials say. However, it has not been yet been proven whether it was the...

WHO supports rotovirus vaccine.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- A vaccine that could prevent more than 500,000 deaths a year among children with diarrhea remains too costly to use worldwide, British scientists said. The World Health Organization recommends the rotovirus vaccine...

Two Guinea-Bissau officials assassinated.
June 5, 2009... BISSAU, Guinea-Bissau, June 5 (UPI) -- An interim army chief in West African country of Guinea-Bissau said Friday two major political figures were killed, possibly in relation to a planned coup. Interim army chief Zamora Induta said in a...

British deaths in Afghanistan exceed Iraq.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- A 19-year-old rifleman from Reading has become the 137th British serviceman to die from hostile fire in Afghanistan, the military says. The death of Cyrus Thatcher means that Britain has suffered more casualties in...

Slain doctor's funeral to face protest.
June 5, 2009... WICHITA, Kan., June 5 (UPI) -- Members of a Kansas church will be on hand at the funeral of slain late-term abortion doctor George Tiller to offer religious warnings, a protester says. Shirley Phelps of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka,...

Jay-Z, Eminem collaborate on 'DJ' game.
June 5, 2009... SANTA MONICA, Calif., June 5 (UPI) -- Hip-hop stars Jay-Z and Eminem performed together this week in Los Angeles to celebrate their collaboration on the new video game "DJ Hero." Activision, Inc., described the game as one that will bring...

Auschwitz camp to get $5.9M restoration.
June 5, 2009... OSWIECIM, Poland, June 5 (UPI) -- The European Union is giving $5.9 million to help fund structural repairs to the former Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland, an official says. Rafal Pioro, the conservation department head for Auschwitz,...

Britain tries suspected bomb planner.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- A British convert to Islam is on trial in Winchester, England, on charges of making explosives and planning to carry out a suicide bombing, prosecutors say. Andrew Ibrahim, 20, of Bristol has pleaded guilty to...

UPI NewsTrack TopNews.
June 5, 2009... Obama, Merkel discuss Mideast, climate DRESDEN, Germany, June 5 (UPI) -- Middle East peace and Iran's nuclear program were on the agenda for U.S. President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel Friday. Obama went to Germany...

Woman questions delay in body discovery.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- A 29-year-old woman says she is shocked it took weeks for New York authorities to find her father's decomposing body inside a parked minivan. Jennifer Morales said she cannot understand how her family's minivan...

Suleman remorseful over birth of octuplets.
June 5, 2009... WHITTIER, Calif., June 5 (UPI) -- Nadya Suleman, dubbed the Octomom by members of the U.S. media, says she regrets giving birth to her octuplets. ABC News reported Friday that in a recent interview with Radar Online, Suleman expressed...

Spanish team takes women's doubles title.
June 5, 2009... PARIS, June 5 (UPI) -- Spain's Virginia Ruano Pascual and Anabel Medina Garrigues dropped just two games Friday in defending their French Open women's doubles title in Paris. Ruano Pascual and Medina Garrigues, who were seeded third, faced...

Russia not budging on arms reduction.
June 5, 2009... MOSCOW, June 5 (UPI) -- Russia won't cut its nuclear arsenal until the controversy over U.S. missile defense plans for Europe is resolved, a Russia military official said Friday. Gen. Nikolai Makarov, chief of the general staff, says there...

British blunder in slayings sparks lawsuit.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Families of two French students tortured and murdered in a sadistic home invasion say they will sue the allegedly blundering British legal system. Dano Sonnex, 23, and his accomplice Nigel Farmer, 34, were sentenced...

Doomed jet faced airspeed data problems.
June 5, 2009... RIO DE JANEIRO, June 5 (UPI) -- Aircraft manufacturer Airbus said the systems on Air France Flight 477 were providing inconsistent airspeed data before the jet disappeared over the Atlantic. Airbus said, based on automated messages from the...

Paralyzed man walks after botox treatment.
June 5, 2009... FRANKSTON, Australia, June 5 (UPI) -- An Australian man says Botox injections enabled him to walk again 20 years after he was paralyzed with a stroke. "My life has started all over again," said Russell McPhee. "I have seen people cry when...

Jolie calls for more help in Darfur.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. actress and U.N. Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie has penned an essay for Time magazine, calling for more help for those suffering in war-torn Darfur. Usmagazine.com said the Oscar-winning mother of six...

Russian leader sees recession continuing.
June 5, 2009... ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, June 5 (UPI) -- The global financial crisis is heading towards a peak rather than an end, says Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Medvedev told an economic forum in St. Petersburg Friday that the world is currently...

New Mexico boy dies of bubonic plague.
June 5, 2009... SANTA FE, N.M., June 5 (UPI) -- An 8-year-old boy from Santa Fe County, N.M., has died from the bubonic plague and his 10-year-old sister is undergoing treatment, health officials say. The New Mexico Department of Health says these are the...

Hand, foot and mouth reported in S. Korea.
June 5, 2009... SEOUL, June 5 (UPI) -- Hand, foot and mouth disease has killed one baby in South Korea and left another brain dead, health authorities said Friday. One 12-month-old baby died from the disease May 13 and a second 12-month-old has been...

NRCC calling voters ahead of Pelosi visit.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- The National Republican Congressional Committee says Iowa voters will face a "liberal agenda" during an upcoming visit by U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. The committee said in automated telephone calls to voters...

Three Michigan prisons to be closed.
June 5, 2009... LANSING, Mich., June 5 (UPI) -- Three prisons and five minimum security camps in Michigan are set to be closed in order to trim the state's budget, an official says. Department of Corrections spokesman Russ Marlan said the prisons set to...

'Colbert Report' taping shows in Iraq.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- "The Colbert Report" has deployed to Iraq on a USO tour entitled "Operation Iraqi Stephen: Going Commando," Comedy Central said Friday. The TV show is the first in USO history to produce a week of episodes in a...

Miami man discovers likely body parts.
June 5, 2009... MIAMI, June 5 (UPI) -- Police in Miami said Friday a man has found a bag floating in Biscayne Bay that may contain human body parts. Miami Police Cmdr. Delrish Moss told The Miami Herald while the man's report has yet to be verified,...

China, Russia to protect tiger habitat.
June 5, 2009... MOSCOW, June 5 (UPI) -- China and Russia say cross-border habitat unique to Siberian tigers and Far East leopards will be protected under a joint pact. The agreement signed Thursday in Moscow calls for creation of a nature reserve...

Mitchell to return to Mideast next week.
June 5, 2009... DRESDEN, Germany, June 5 (UPI) -- Special envoy George Mitchell will go to the Middle East next week to try to build momentum for Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, U.S. President Obama said. Obama on Thursday reached out to the Muslim world...

OAS decision on Cuba prompts criticism.
June 5, 2009... MIAMI, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fla., says the Organization of American States should lose U.S. funding for green-lighting Cuba's introduction to the group. The Miami Herald said Friday that Mack, who has introduced...

Man accused of damaging mailboxes.
June 5, 2009... NAPERVILLE, Ill., June 5 (UPI) -- Authorities in Will County, Ill., said they have arrested a man accused of damaging nearly two dozen mailboxes. Britt Andros, 19, of Naperville, was arrested at about 4:25 a.m. Wednesday and charged with...

Construction of Florida casino begins.
June 5, 2009... MIAMI, June 5 (UPI) -- The construction phase of a plan to bring a casino to Miami-Dade County, Fla., has begun with the ritual groundbreaking ceremony, Churchill Downs Inc. says. Churchill Downs Inc. said construction on the county's...

McAuliffe trailing Deeds in Va. gov. race.
June 5, 2009... RICHMOND, Va., June 5 (UPI) -- With the Virginia Democratic gubernatorial primary four days away, Terry McAuliffe has a big cash lead but trails in the latest poll, campaign officials say. McAuliffe, the former Democratic National Committee...

Space travelers likely to be bloated, bald.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Future generations of humans living in space are likely to be fat, short, ugly, bloated and bald, researchers at London's University College said. Traveling to earth's closest stars would require years, if not...

Efforts underway to limit satellite images.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- A California Assembly member says certain sensitive sites such as nuclear facilities and government locales should not be visible via satellite imagery. California state Sen. Joel Anderson, a Republican, proposes...

Police: Break-in led to pot bust.
June 5, 2009... MATTESON, Ill., June 5 (UPI) -- Police in Matteson, Ill., said a break-in at a couple's second home led to the discovery of nearly 500 pounds of marijuana hidden in the garage. Investigators said Evlicia Jackson-Long, 30, and Roy Long, 32,...

CBS to use new Peas song in promos.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- CBS said Friday it has partnered with The Black Eyed Peas to feature its as-yet-unreleased single "I Gotta Feeling" to promote the U.S. network's fall schedule. The song will be featured in the network's...

Power surge blamed on fire ants.
June 5, 2009... CARROLLTON, Texas, June 5 (UPI) -- A power company blamed a power surge that damaged appliances in several local homes on fire ants that built a nest inside a transformer. The company, Oncor, denied responsibility for the damaged...

Police: Conman posted as Interpol agent.
June 5, 2009... MOSCOW, June 5 (UPI) -- Authorities in Moscow said they arrested a man who allegedly posed as an Interpol agent to swindle a woman out of more than $35,000. "An unidentified man, who posed as the police major-general of the Russian...

Globovision head facing usury charges.
June 5, 2009... CARACAS, Venezuela, June 5 (UPI) -- Globovision President Guillermo Zuloaga says his being charged with usury is merely an attempt to silence his private Venezuelan TV network. Zuloaga alleged after his judicial hearing Thursday that the...

Rio Tinto breaks off $19.5B Chinalco deal.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Mining giant Rio Tinto said Friday said it had broken off a politically unpopular $19.5 billion deal with the Chinese government-owned Chinalco. Xiong Weiping, president of Chinalco, the state-owned Aluminum Corp....

Chinese photographer named 'Climate Hero'.
June 5, 2009... BEIJING, June 5 (UPI) -- A Chinese nature photographer is the first from his country to be named a "Climate Hero" by the United Nations Environment program. Luo Hong, 42, was honored Thursday as a person who has undertaken "exceptional...

Prosecutor wants Kilpatrick warrants.
June 5, 2009... DETROIT, June 5 (UPI) -- A Michigan prosecutor says authorities in Michigan and Texas should explain why they have not sought warrants for former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy sought answers in a motion...

Red Cross feeding Zimbabwe prisoners.
June 5, 2009... HARARE, Zimbabwe, June 5 (UPI) -- The International Committee of the Red Cross says it is distributing food, blankets and soap to thousands of inmates in Zimbabwean prisons. The Red Cross said it expects to be feeding 10,000 prisoners, more...

British D-Day vets watch parachute drop.
June 5, 2009... RANVILLE, France, June 5 (UPI) -- British veterans watched Friday as members of the Parachute Regiment dropped into Normandy in the area where they landed 65 years ago. The drop was one of the opening events leading up to Saturday's...

Discovered body may be missing Mich. girl.
June 5, 2009... MONROE, Mich., June 5 (UPI) -- A body discovered in a shallow grave in Monroe County, Mich., may be the remains of missing 5-year-old Neveah Buchanan, authorities said. Monroe County Sheriff Tilman Crutchfield said the body found by...

Advances to end animal experiments.
June 5, 2009... LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Advances in cell biology and computer models will end experiments on animals within a generation, a British scientist said. Animal research, primarily on mice, is being replaced by computer research on "virtual...

Woman claiming to be world's oldest dies.
June 5, 2009... LIMPOPO, South Africa, June 5 (UPI) -- A South African woman, who claimed to be the world's oldest woman at 134, has died. Moloko Temo, a grandmother of 29, died Wednesday, officials near her home in the Limpopo province where she...

Plane in near miss with military jet.
June 5, 2009... DALAMAN, Turkey, June 5 (UPI) -- Passengers on a Turkey to Belfast, Northern Ireland, flight said the plane was involved in a near miss with a military jet shortly after takeoff. One of the passengers, who asked not to be identified, said...

Chrysler, Fiat argue for sale.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- Chrysler LLC said the government-backed sale of the company to Fiat of Italy was a choice far superior to a liquidation sale, court papers show. The U.S. Court of Appeals Second Circuit was scheduled to hear...

Wind involved in airport sign costs.
June 5, 2009... MINNEAPOLIS, June 5 (UPI) -- The price tag of more than $1 million for signs to Minnesota airports is based in part on the strong winds blowing through the state, an official says. Minnesota Department of Transportation official Tom Merritt...

Rooftop farming could prove beneficial.
June 5, 2009... MILWAUKEE, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. residents like Milwaukee's Erik Lindberg who engage in rooftop farming could soon be at the forefront of a beneficial and profitable field, an expert says. Green Roofs for Healthy Cities founder Steven Peck,...

Co-pilot in Nagasaki bombing dies at 88.
June 5, 2009... ORLANDO, Fla., June 5 (UPI) -- Charles Donald Albury, co-pilot for the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, has died in Florida at the age of 88. Albury suffered from congestive heart failure, The Miami Herald reported. He died May 23 in Orlando,...

Hadron collider to run year-round.
June 5, 2009... GENEVA, Switzerland, June 5 (UPI) -- The atom-smashing Large Hadron Collider is to run year-round to make up for the year lost to a helium leak, researchers in Geneva said. The collider was activated last Sept. 10 and shut down nine days...

Wisconsin endures first swine flu death.
June 5, 2009... MILWAUKEE, June 5 (UPI) -- State and local health officials in Wisconsin say the state has confirmed its first death as a result of swine flu. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said Friday that while specific details regarding the H1N1...

Wis. museum exhibit highlights veterans.
June 5, 2009... MADISON, Wis., June 5 (UPI) -- A curator at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum in Madison, Wis., says the site's newest exhibit praises U.S. veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. Jeff Kollath, the museum's curator of programs and...

FAA: Airports ignoring bird safety studies.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- A U.S. Federal Aviation Administration review found 150 airports have not completed legally mandated studies of wildlife hazards to planes, officials said. Government and industry officials said the FAA probe...

'Slumdog' composer to score 'Retreat'.
June 5, 2009... UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., June 5 (UPI) -- Indian composer A.R. Rahman has been hired to write the score for the upcoming comedy "Couples Retreat," Universal Pictures said Friday. The announcement marks Rahman's first foray into composing...

Standoff with Wis. man ends after 7 hours.
June 5, 2009... FOX LAKE, Wis., June 5 (UPI) -- Police in Dodge County, Wis., said a tense standoff with a man barricaded in an area home ended after seven hours Friday with the man's arrest. Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls told Milwaukee's WTMJ-TV that...

'Warrior gene' linked to weapon use.
June 5, 2009... TALLAHASSEE, Fla., June 5 (UPI) -- Boys born with a variation of the so-called "Warrior Gene" are more likely to use weapons and join gangs, a researcher at Florida State University said. The study is the first confirm a link between...

Mom accused of keeping babies in hot car.
June 5, 2009... RACINE, Wis., June 5 (UPI) -- Police say a 24-year-old Wisconsin woman allegedly left her two babies inside a car whose internal temperature exceeded 100 degrees in order to go tanning. Milwaukee's WTMJ-TV, citing a report by The Kenosha...

Warm Biscuit lounge wear recalled.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of Warm Biscuit lounge wear due to a violation of federal flammability standards. The children's garments described as...

Play set gliders recalled.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of about 1,800 outdoor play set gliders due to a fall hazard. The gliders were sold as accessories to play set apparatus under brand names...

Prank leaves swing set on school roof.
June 5, 2009... BROOKFIELD, Wis., June 5 (UPI) -- Six high school seniors in Brookfield, Wis., will not be at their graduation ceremony because they built a swing set on their school's roof, an official says. Superintendent Matt Gibson said the Brookfield...

Starbucks campaign only eyeing two cities.
June 5, 2009... INDIANAPOLIS, June 5 (UPI) -- A Starbucks executive says the international coffee chain is starting a new marketing campaign designed only for Jacksonville, Fla., and Indianapolis. Starbucks Senior Vice President of Marketing Terry...

Pig skin cells made to act like stem cells.
June 5, 2009... BEIJING, June 5 (UPI) -- Scientists in China say they've "reprogrammed" skin cells from adult pigs to behave like stem cells from humans. Engineering cells in pigs provides a way to access the potential of embryonic stem cells without the...

Mid-Atlantic states form ocean council.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- Five Mid-Atlantic states from Virginia to New York have formed a Regional Council on the Ocean to deal with rising sea levels and other marine issues. Gov. Jon Corzine of New Jersey joined New York Gov. David...

Vendors hurl stink bombs at redevelopers.
June 5, 2009... BANGKOK, June 5 (UPI) -- Authorities in Bangkok said vendors at an outdoor market hurled fish-powered homemade stink bombs to ward off redevelopment workers and police. Police said the incident began Thursday when about 100 vendors from...

UPI NewsTrack Health and Science News.
June 5, 2009... Space travelers likely to be bloated, bald LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Future generations of humans living in space are likely to be fat, short, ugly, bloated and bald, researchers at London's University College said. Traveling to earth's...

Consumer credit dropped in April.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- Revolving credit among U.S. consumers fell at an annual rate of 11 percent in April, the Federal Reserve Bank said Friday. Revolving credit, most of it made up of credit card borrowing and home equity loans,...

Volunteers to check on N.J. bat numbers.
June 5, 2009... TRENTON, N.J., June 5 (UPI) -- A New Jersey wildlife group plans to check on the state's bat population, believed to be hit hard by white-nose syndrome. Volunteers for the Conserve Wildlife Foundation have been counting bats for several...

Church's gun gala shoots blanks for some.
June 5, 2009... LOUISVILLE, Ky., June 5 (UPI) -- A Louisville church's plan for a gun celebration and handgun raffle stuns ministers who say the church's actions are counter to religion's pacifist stance. New Bethel Church Pastor Ken Pagano says the...

Bill would increase truck size limits.
June 5, 2009... WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. lawmakers have proposed legislation that would increase truck size and weight limits on the nation's highways. A bill introduced by Rep. Mike Michaud, D-Maine, and Rep. Jean Schmidt, R-Ohio, would allow...

Ramsey owns Wales Open lead.
June 5, 2009... NEWPORT, Wales, June 5 (UPI) -- Richie Ramsey posted a bogey-free 4-under-par 67 Friday and jumped into the lead halfway through the Wales Open. Ramsey, who is at 7-under 135 after 36 holes, was tied for eighth after the tournament's first...

Grain futures trade lower Friday.
June 5, 2009... CHICAGO, June 5 (UPI) -- Grain futures traded consistently lower Friday on the Chicago Board of Trade as the dollar rose against the euro and the yen. Corn was off 3 1/2 to off 4 1/2, soybeans were off 4 1/2 to off 19 3/4, wheat was off 10...

Authorities: Teen cooked ex-roomie's cat.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- Authorities in New York said a self-proclaimed cat hating teenager broke into her ex-roommate's apartment and killed a cat by cooking it in the stove. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals...

MLB: Tampa Bay at N.Y. Yankees, ppd., rain.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- Steady rain through the day led officials to postpone Friday's scheduled game between the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees. No make-up date was announced. Friday was to have marked the start of a four-game...

UPI NewsTrack Sports.
June 5, 2009... Federer, Soderling make French Open finals PARIS, June 5 (UPI) -- Roger Federer and Robin Soderling each won five-set matches Friday, setting up a French Open championship showdown in Paris. Federer, No. 2 in the world, again had to...

Gehry off New York arena project.
June 5, 2009... NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- Famed architect Frank Gehry announced he is no longer involved with the planned Atlantic Yards basketball arena in New York. A spokesman for Gehry, who had created a futuristic metallic design for the proposed NBA...

New border anti-drug initiative announced.
June 5, 2009... ALBUQUERQUE, June 5 (UPI) -- The Obama administration Friday released a national strategy to reduce trafficking and the flow of cash and weapons across the U.S. Southwest border. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Homeland Security...

UPI NewsTrack Business.
June 5, 2009... Markets mixed as GM sells Saturn NEW YORK, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. markets closed mixed Friday after General Motors Corp. struck a deal to sell Saturn to Penske Automotive Group. GM said the deal would rescue 13,000 jobs and more than 350...

Same-sex penguin couple raising chick.
June 5, 2009... BREMERHAVEN, Germany, June 5 (UPI) -- A mated pair of male penguins at a German zoo have been given a chick to raise that was rejected by its biological parents. Joachim Schoene, a veterinarian at the Bremerhaven zoo, said adopted dads...