President Barack Obama and China's president Hu Jintao (AP)WASHINGTON (AP) _ When Hu Jintao makes what is likely his final trip to Washington as China's president, he will get an honor he desperately wanted but was denied during his first visit nearly five years ago: a White House state dinner.Symbolism and protocol are very important to the Chinese and the opulence of Wednesday's black-tie affair

TUCSON, Arizona (AP) ― President Barack Obama appealed for unity at a Wednesday memorial service for those attacked in the Arizona shooting rampage and implored a divided America to honor them by becoming a better country.Obama electrified the crowd by revealing that following his Wednesday hospital visit with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, she had opened her eyes for the first time since being shot poi

News of a 13th zodiac sign may be better viewed as an astronomer’s personal suggestion rather than an official change made by an internationally recognized astronomical organization. Astronomer Parke Kunkle of the Minnesota Planetarium Society has promoted the new sign, named Ophiuchus. Astronomer Parke Kunkle talks with a reporter about the changing astrological signs in his office in Minneapolis

NASHVILLE, Tennessee _ Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban have added a second daughter to their family, born through a surrogate mother.The couple announced Monday the arrival of Faith Margaret Kidman Urban, born on Dec. 28 at a Nashville, Tennessee, hospital. Nicole Kidman arrives with her husband Keith Urban for the Golden Globe Awards Sunday, Jan. 16, 2011, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (AP-Yonhap News0K

The most comprehensive view of the night sky has been released at the 217th annual meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Seattle, the BBC reported. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey has mapped the Milky Way Galaxy’s northern and southern hemispheres, represented as two big clusters in the newly-released image. The ongoing survey has already identified nearly half a billion astronomical object

The twelve zodiac signs, which have been in place for almost 3,000 years, are now different according to news reports. The Babylonians determined the dates of the zodiac, and since then the position of Earth in relation to the Sun has gradually altered, according to ABC News.The shifting of the Earth’s axis has also introduced a 13th zodiac sign -- Ophiuchus. The Huffington Post reported that astr

More than 250,000 expatriates from 166 nations are living in Seoul. (Yonhap News)One in four Southeast Asians living in South Korea has experienced discrimination, more than triple the corresponding figure for foreigners from OECD countries, according to a poll released on Tuesday.According to the survey conducted by the Seoul Development Institute (SDI) on 333 foreign nationals living in the capi

The highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease, which has forced South Korea to order the culling of nearly 2 million head of livestock, appears to have broken out in North Korea, too, according to officials.Citing recent visitors to the impoverished communist country, South Korean government officials said Tuesday that the North is believed to be stepping up its quarantine efforts after outbreaks o

Jordan Romero at 13 became the youngest person to reach the top of Mount Everest. (AP)At the age of 13, Jordan Romero became the youngest person to reach the peak of Mount Everest in 2010. Romero, now 14, is attempting another record-setting year for 2011. His goal is to reach the peak of Mount Vinson, Antarctica’s highest point. If he succeeds, Romero will be the youngest person to climb the tall

Win over India would assure place in last 8With just one match remaining in the group stage of the 2011 Asian Cup, South Korea is in the position it probably expected to be in ― just needing to defeat India on Tuesday (10:15 p.m. Korean time) to book a place in the last eight. It would be a huge shock if that didn’t happen as the team ranked 40 in the world, according to FIFA, takes on an oppositi

SEATTLE _ Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs, the charismatic frontman for the company that overturned the smart phone industry and invented a new category of tablet computers, is taking a second medical leave of absence in two years.In the last decade, Jobs, 55, has survived a rare but curable form of pancreatic cancer and undergone a liver transplant. The news that he will again step down from his day-to

(captured from Youtube)Glamorous star Scarlett Johansson has appeared in a new ad for world-famous champagne makers Moët & Chandon. The "Lost in Translation" star posed for photos in a strapless, blue gown holding a bottle of a champagne. The pictures were taken by British photographer Tim Walker at Trianon in Epernay, North East of Paris.Moët & Chandon President and CEO, Daniel Lalonde told the D

GS Caltex Co., Korea‘s second-largest refiner, said Monday that it had shut down all of its crude distillation units and its No.1 residue fluid catalytic cracker in the southern part of the country due to power failure. Power at the Yeosu complex was cut off at 4:10 p.m. local time and resumed 23 minutes later, according to the official“The affected facilities could not restart within today, thoug