NASA astronomers think they have identified a pair of supermassive black holes, or quasars, that look like they are teetering on the brink of huge explosions.

NASA spies bursting supermassive blackholes | The Register

In the grand narrative of World War II, the Battle of Bryansk is a minor conflict, barely deserving of a footnote. But Bryansk has another place in history. It was there that a then-unknown tank commander named Mikhail Kalashnikov decided that his Russian comrades would never again be defeated. In the years following the Great Patriotic War, as Soviet propagandists dubbed it, he was to conceive and fabricate a weapon so simple, and yet so revolutionary, that it would change the way wars were fought and won. It was the AK-47 assault rifle.

Weapon Of Mass Destruction - washingtonpost.com

In this town of 120, 000 people, one not only feels the bitter cold but also the white heat of the technological revolution. As well as the principal research and development offices of Nokia and 800 other high-tech companies, there are probably more Ph.D.s per square meter in this compact old paper-milling town than anywhere else on earth.

This astonishing intellectual creation can be laid at the feet of the Finnish educational system, considered by all who survey it, including the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, as possessing the best school system in the world. Finland is also reckoned to be in the top three of the world's most competitive countries.

Why? "Teachers are respected," says Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen. "High talent is attracted into teaching. It is considered to be one of the most important professions."
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In short, the Finns work at it. Unencumbered by a class-stratified educational system, they have shown that equality aids progress, rather than hindering it.

Magic in the classroom - Opinion - International Herald Tribune

You know what really had me terrified on Nov. 7? The all-too-real possibility of a highly suspect result. What would we have done if the Republicans had held on to the House by a narrow margin, but circumstantial evidence strongly suggested that a combination of vote suppression and defective — or rigged — electronic voting machines made the difference?

When Votes Disappear - New York Times

Former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko has died in hospital three weeks after apparently being poisoned in London.

University College Hospital, London, said Mr Litvinenko had died at 2121 GMT on Thursday and the cause of his condition was still being investigated.

Friends have said the 43-year-old was poisoned because of his criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin - Russia has denied any involvement.

Scotland Yard said they were now investigating "an unexplained death".
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Mr Litvinenko had been investigating the murder of Russian investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya.
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Before Mr Litvinenko's death, police said they suspected "deliberate poisoning".

Investigators are examining two meetings he had on 1 November - one at a London hotel with a former KGB agent and another man, and a later rendezvous with Italian security consultant Mario Scaramella at a sushi restaurant in London's West End.

BBC NEWS | UK | Ex-Russian spy dies in hospital

Over the next few months, I’m going to ask the presidential hopefuls the following question: What lessons do you draw from the Iraq experience about decision-making in the White House?

Building a Team of Rivals - New York Times

Walid Hassan, a star of a popular Iraqi television show known for its dark humor about the country's many problems, was shot to death while driving through Baghdad on Monday.
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Hassan, a Shiite in his 40's, was one of five actors in "Caricature," a 45-minute comedy satire on Al-Sharqiyah TV that did not hesitate to make fun of U.S. forces, Shiite militias, Sunni-Arab insurgent groups, and the chaotic Iraqi governments that have tried to rule this country since Saddam Hussain was overthrown in the 2003 invasion.
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Another actor on the show is Saad Khalifa, who also stars in "Hurry Up, He's Dead," a popular TV comedy that provides parody newscasts in an Iraqi version of "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart."

Fans mourn Iraqi comedian gunned down in Baghdad - iht,news,Iraq Killed Comedian - News & Features - International Herald Tribune

The genocide that started in Darfur in 2003 is now threatening to topple the governments of Chad and the Central African Republic. If these two countries collapse into chaos and civil war for years to come, then neighboring countries like Cameroon and Niger will be threatened as well — and the death toll triggered by the Darfur genocide will eventually number in the millions.

Boy’s Wish: Kill Them All - New York Times

UK police are investigating the alleged poisoning of a Russian former security agent and critic of President Vladimir Putin living in exile in Britain.

BBC NEWS | UK | Ex-KGB officer 'poisoned in UK'

Death Row Inmates on MySpace

OMG! Will U Be My Friend?

27B Stroke 6