Search results for

The federal government's top climate scientists announced Tuesday that 2012 was really hot — among the top 10 hottest years on record and the hottest ever in the U.S., with rising sea levels, less Arctic sea ice and warmer oceans. And the American Geophysical Union called humanity "the major influence" on global climate change.

Clowns are terrifying — that's pretty much a given. Even children, to whom they're supposed to appeal, are said to dislike them instinctively. Writer Linda McRobbie says darkness has always been a part of clowning.

Chinese scientists offer the first clear evidence that the H7N9 bird flu virus can be transmitted from human to human. A father, who became sick in March, passed the virus to his daughter. But the risk of transmission is quite low, and the virus still doesn't appear to pose a global threat.

The news that billionaire Jeff Bezos has purchased The Washington Post came shortly after Red Sox owner John Henry agreed to buy The Boston Globe. That's left many scratching their heads as to why a successful businessperson would take on a paper when revenues are plummeting.

The federal immigration checkpoint in Hudspeth County rounds up a lot more illegal drugs than undocumented immigrants. The feds used to help the county prosecute the low-level drug cases, but that money is drying up and the county is going to stop bringing minor cases to court, much to the sheriff's displeasure.

The house on Seymour Avenue where three women were held captive and raped for about a decade will be demolished this morning. Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were freed May 6.

A series of threats and abusive messages aimed at prominent women in the U.K. have placed Twitter in an awkward spot. As the company gears up to go public and expand its brand around the world, it is increasingly running into cultural and legal hurdles that challenge Twitter's free speech ethos.

Will the local gallery go the way of the local bookstore or record store? In the past few years, there's been a growth in sites that sell fine art on the Internet. On Tuesday, Amazon joined that market.

Also: A new short story by Stieg Larsson; Sherman Alexie's mullet; Rebecca Mead on Jane Austen.

Just about every museum in the world has the same rule: no touching. A rule one man failed to observe on a family vacation to Florence, Italy. He was comparing his own finger to the fingers on a 600-year-old statue when he nudged its ancient pinky and it snapped right off.