Reports from Somalia say pirates holding a Ukrainian ship loaded with weapons have received a ransom and are preparing to free the vessel.
The pirates seized the Kenya-bound MV Faina and its crew in September 2008.
It is the highest profile vessel in pirate custody, and there has been controversy over its cargo.
The Kenyan government says the tanks, rocket launchers and small arms are theirs, but the manifest suggests the arms were intended for South Sudan.
‘Counting the haul’
Gunmen took control of the MV Faina and its crew of 20 on 24 September …

CHICAGO, Feb 2  - Insulin appears to shield the brain from toxic proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease, U.S. researchers said on Monday, supporting a theory that Alzheimer’s may be a third form of diabetes.
And they said GlaxoSmithKline’s diabetes drug Avandia, or rosiglitazone, which increases sensitivity to insulin, appeared to enhance this protective effect.
“Our results demonstrate that bolstering insulin signaling can protect neurons from harm,” William Klein of Northwestern University, whose study appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, said in a statement.
Klein said the findings support a new …

Al Gore spoke about the new Google Earth 5.0 on Monday at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.

The popular mapping software can also take you to the surface of Mars in its latest version.
Feb 3rd, 2009
Google finally put the world’s oceans on the map.

 
During a splashy presentation Monday at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, the Internet giant unveiled a feature in its Google Earth program that will allow users to swim through undersea canyons as deep as the Mariana Trench and encounter creatures like a …

This week features the ultimate battle in breakfast food freebies, with both Denny’s and IHOP restaurants attempting to lure in customers by offering free food.
On Tuesday, February 3, Denny’s (NASDAQ: DENN) is offering a free a Grand Slam and coupon book to all customers that show up between 6am and 2pm. If you’re not a frequent Denny’s visitor, a Grand Slam consists of 2 eggs, 2 pancakes, 2 sausages, 2 slices of bacon.
On Thursday, February 5 it’s National Pancake Day at IHOP, where from 7am to 10pm all customers …

Some of you might remember me as the (charmingly!) equivocating Jake who almost two years ago gave up the single-guy gig writing this column to get hitched to a woman known as Orange Blossoms, my longtime on-again, off-again girlfriend. I want to assure everyone that, even with a ring on my finger, I’m just as confused by love as I was when I was single. But I’m happy — and here are the reasons why:
The drama is over. And that’s a good thing. Because while we still have thorny issues …