"Never seen Twitter so united in sarcasm as over the Nobel announcement." With that tweet — which at a mere 59 characters is terse even by Twitter's Procrustean standards — Alex Evans aka @alexevansuk, a Non-Resident Fellow at the Center on International Cooperation at New York University, sums up the prevailing sentiment on the microblogging website. If Twitter is a kind of global watercooler, the place to go if you want to get an instant take ...

It's Nobel Prize announcement week, and if you had Carol W. Greider, Elizabeth Blackburn, or Jack Szostak in your office pool, you're off to a good start (the trio will share this year's Nobel Prize in Medicine). As we await news of the rest of the winners, here are some stories about past Nobel laureates. 1. Robert Lucas, winner of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Economics for his work on the theory of "rational expectations," split his $1 million prize ...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to approve building hundreds of new settlements in the West Bank before considering a freeze on construction in the area, a senior Israeli government official said Friday. The move comes as Israel and the United States have been increasingly at odds over President Obama's insistence that Israel's government freeze all settlement activity as a necessary step toward advancing negotiations with Palestinians. The new housing units will be in addition to about 2,500 more that ...

Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, the former Libyan intelligence officer convicted of murdering 270 people when a bomb he planted on Pan-Am Flight 103 blew up over Lockerbie, Scotland, on Dec. 21, 1988, has been released from prison after serving eight years of a life sentence. Making the announcement on Thursday, Justice Secretary of Scotland Kenny MacAskill said that Al-Megrahi was released on compassionate grounds because he has terminal prostate cancer and is unlikely to live past the next three ...

In recent seasons, "Dancing With the Stars" has given exposure to such unlikely dancers as "Cheers" and Pixar favorite John Ratzenberger, magician Penn Jillette and Oscar-winning octogenarian actress Cloris Leachman. But this year, the show is adding an even more unusual guest: A Hammer. Former Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay -- known as "the Hammer" for his tough-minded tactics -- is among the contestants for the show's ninth edition, ABC announced Monday. Host Tom Bergeron and contestant Donny Osmond appeared ...

The Tennessee man accused of selling the gun used to kill former NFL quarterback Steve McNair is in custody facing a federal charge of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, authorities said Friday. "This is another example of what can happen with a gun when a felon is selling it on the street with little to no interest other than just selling it for 100 bucks," said Nashville, Tennessee, Police Chief Ronal Serpas. Authorities said federal agents ...

English Premier League champions Manchester United have cancelled the Jakarta leg of their 2009 pre-season tour of Asia as a result of the bomb attacks in the Indonesian capital. A presidential spokesman confirmed that eight people were killed as blasts tore through two luxury hotels - the J.W. Marriott Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton Hotel - the second of which the squad were due to stay in for their time in the city. The club announced the move in a statement ...

If Sonia Sotomayor fulfills her long-held dream to sit on the Supreme Court, she would have the prestige of joining the highest court in the land, lifetime job security and a public forum as the first Hispanic on that bench. A statement released on Ensign's behalf by his lawyer, Paul Coggins, said a check totaling $96,000 from both of Ensign's parents was given to Cindy Hampton, her husband, Doug, and two of their children in April 2008. It described the ...

Donating to charity itself is a relatively new phenomenon in a society that traditionally values family units. So the announcement that South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak will be donating $26 million, the bulk of his wealth, to charity, is considered highly unusual. The president's office said the money will be used to set up a new youth scholarship program. "My fortune, which I accumulated through hard work during my life, is very precious to me," said Lee in a statement. ...

In bowing out as Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin harkened back to her high school basketball days — although there was no sign of the "Barracuda," as she was nicknamed for her ability to cut through the opposing team's offenses. In a hastily called press conference on the eve of a three-day holiday, Palin presented herself as a point guard exhausted by the "full court press from the national level." The 2008 Republican vice-presidential nominee explained how the ...