South India's sun beats down on a long line of trucks wending to the Bay of Bengal. In the back of these open trucks, giant, brightly painted statues of the Hindu god Ganesha are waiting to be dropped in the nearby ocean. All over India Hindus recently celebrated the birthday of the elephant god and now the idols made for this festivity are being taken to India's oceans, rivers and lakes and deposited. It's part of the Hindu religious ...

It is midday and girls are flooding out of school, but Nujood Ali is not among them. We find her at the family's two-room house in an impoverished suburb of the city where Nujood is angry, combative and yelling. Tension surrounds the home like a noose. After much arguing with family members, Nujood finally grabs her veil and agrees to sit down with CNN. Her presence is grudging, although CNN had got permission in advance to see how the girl ...

Amritsar lives in many centuries at once. This holiest city of the Sikhs is home to their most revered shrine, the mystical and awe-inspiring Golden Temple, where nihangs — members of an armed Sikh order — live on in traditions dating back centuries, sporting distinctive electric blue tunics and a panoply of weapons, even speaking a unique martial dialect of the Punjabi language. Other parts of this prosperous merchant city wears Levi's, hanging out at cafes or following the ...

The former editor of the semi-official Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), who had ties with Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi, was arrested Tuesday, Iranian media reported. By examining the DNA from a simple cheek swab, scientists at Shanghai Biochip Co., one of China's largest biotechnology companies, say they can uncover a person's natural strengths and weaknesses with 99 percent accuracy. They test eleven genes that they say correspond to memory, swiftness, thinking, comprehension, emotion, adventure, braveness, focus ability, perseverance, ...

For years, doctors and patients have been using DNA analysis to diagnose anything from paternity to predisposition to inherited disease. Now, Chinese scientists say genetic testing can identify inherent "talents" as well. By examining the DNA from a simple cheek swab, scientists at Shanghai Biochip Co., one of China's largest biotechnology companies, say they can uncover a person's natural strengths and weaknesses with 99 percent accuracy. They test eleven genes that they say correspond to memory, swiftness, thinking, comprehension, emotion, ...

A British multiple sclerosis sufferer who hopes to die one day by assisted suicide will learn Thursday whether she can die with her husband by her side. Debbie Purdy, 46, has been waging a lengthy legal battle to clarify Britain's ambiguous laws on assisted suicide. Her battle reaches its end Thursday afternoon when Britain's highest court, the Law Lords, issues a ruling on her appeal. Purdy's condition is getting worse. She has primary progressive multiple sclerosis, which means her symptoms ...

Peruvians have gone mad for the boxer Kina Malpartida, an unlikely sports figure in this South American country where soccer, even if not played well, is king. You see, Malpartida is a woman but she is idolized by the traditionally macho men of Peru because there is no equivalent male athlete in the country. Malpartida, known as "Dynamite" to her fans, is the World Boxing Association's female super featherweight champion. On June 20, she successfully defended her world title ...

Couples in the African kingdom of Swaziland are being urged to get tested together as part of a HIV "love test" campaign. The nationwide initiative -- funded by the United States government and implemented by global charity 'Population Services International' (PSI) -- is aimed at couples because tests can be useless if partners are not aware of the others' HIV status. "If partners get tested separately, they may not disclose the results and not get the support they need," ...

Daniel Mungai's family keeps him locked in a room in a wooden shack that is just big enough to fit a bed, a cupboard, Daniel and his wheel-chair. His clothes and bed are soaked with his own waste -- and he's been living like this for 15 years. Daniel, 35, started having seizures at a young age. He is sometimes given medicine for epilepsy and spent time at a mental hospital but his parents say they simply cannot afford to ...

Barack Obama and his wife flew to London together. They have been staying together at Winfield House, the sprawling American ambassadorial residence in Regent's Park, and are photographed together regularly, boarding and leaving planes and helicopters, walking from cars, meeting with the Queen and assorted world leaders. But they move in completely different worlds. In the President's world, everything is collapsing — markets, housing prices, confidence. In the First Lady's world, everything is soaring — spirits, ballet dancers, ambitions. ...