HomeBlogBusinessCrimeEntertainmentHealthIreportLivingOddPoliticsPopularRecentScienceSportsTechTopTravelUkUsVideoWorld
?Noam Chomsky?s position in the history of ideas is comparable to that of Darwin or Descartes,? University College London linguist Neil Smith declared in Nature. ?Chomsky has redefined our understanding of ourselves as humans.?
US President-elect Barack Obama names New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson to be his commerce secretary.
Franken's camp says he's ahead of Coleman by about 22 votes. See also: Could Schumer tip Minn. Recount?
In keeping with their six-monthly release cycle, the developers have now released OpenSolaris 2008.11
Man Utd host Blackburn in Wednesday's Carling Cup quarter-finals after holders Tottenham beat Watford, as Man City share a 0-0 draw with PSG in the Uefa Cup.
England will fly to Abu Dhabi tomorrow to resume their tour, with only the injured Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad missing from the original party
Hummer fans unfazed by economics, thrilled by dropping gas prices.
Ev Williams, chief executive of Twitter, explains why he rejected a buyout offer from Facebook and discusses the future of the microblogging service.
Barack Obama denied that the job was a ?consolation? prize for Gov. Bill Richardson, who had been considered a candidate to be secretary of state.
From brand new to revamped browsers and mobile platforms and apps, 2008's been good to technophiles who like their data in the cloud and accessible wherever they are. Let's take a look back at this year in software, and some of the best new and improved applications, web services, and platforms that were born in 2008.
As Britney Spears prepares to release her latest attempt to recapture America's love, Circus, TIME looks back at the most notable comeback albums of recent decades.
The government today announced plans to help borrowers who are struggling to keep up with their mortgage repayments stay in their homes.The plans, which were announced by the prime minister in a debate on this morning's Queen's speech, are aimed at middle-income borrowers and designed to slow the rising tide of repossessions as job losses and rising household costs push more and more households into mortgage arrears.By the end of September, more than 30,000 homes had been repossessed, more than in the whole of last year, and the number is expected to rise further next year.Under the scheme announced today by the prime minister households that have temporarily lost some or part of their income will be able to defer mortgage interest payments for up to two years. Borrowers would speak to their lender and arrange a payment break, and at the end of the period the unpaid interest would be added to their outstanding mortgage.If at that point they were unable to repay their loan, the government would step in to cover their missing payments.It is unclear whether the borrowers with a repayment mortgage would be expected to continue to repay the capital on their loan while the interest is deferred.Gordon Brown told the Commons: "The result will be more affordable monthly payments for homeowners who are needing a bridge through difficult times."The prime minister said eight lenders had so far signed up to the scheme, including HBOS, Nationwide, Abbey, Lloyds TSB, Northern Rock, Barclays and HSBC. Between them they represent around 70% of the mortgage market.A spokesman for the Treasury said that by guaranteeing the payments in this way the government was encouraging banks to consider requests for payment breaks.However, he added that lenders would need to take a commercial decision on each case, subject to guidelines on treating customers fairly outlined in the banking code. He refused to confirm reports that the scheme would be available to borrowers with mortgages of up to £400,000, but said it was aimed at people who were not entitled to claim benefits.Mortgage lenders welcomed the scheme, although they said there was still a lot of detail to be ironed out. A spokeswoman for Nationwide said: "The government has approached us and we are more than happy to participate in a scheme of this sort. However we are unable to commit to a scheme until we have more details."The Council of Mortgage Lenders said the scheme would not be for everyone and would not be "a charter for 'won't pay' borrowers to avoid their responsibilities". "It will need careful development with lenders and the CML to ensure it is properly targeted to those borrowers committed to sustain their home ownership through short-term periods of financial difficulty," it added.The government has been putting pressure on lenders to use repossession only as a last resort and has recently introduced a range of measures to help hard-pressed borrowers stay in their homes. In last week's pre-budget report it confirmed plans to make benefits covering mortgage interest available more quickly to those who lose their jobs, reducing the waiting period from 39 to 13 weeks. It also confirmed plans to allow borrowers entitled to benefits a similar interest deferral scheme.MortgagesQueen's speechEconomic policyguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Following Pakistan?s recently introduced ?Prevention of Electronic Crimes Ordinance 2008? according to which potential cyberterrorists would face the death penalty, a neighboring country, Iran, has recently executed an IT expert who confessed of being an Israeli spy for at least three years.
CNN's Campbell Brown rebuked Rendell for a remark he made about Napolitano. See also: Chertoff advice
The number of attacks in Iraq has dropped to the lowest level since 2003 despite a recent spate of high-profile bombings, the No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq said. Also, an Iraqi journalist was arrested for writing a story about homosexuality.
After two years of development, open-source music player Songbird has finally shipped its 1.0 release. Songbird is based on extensible Mozilla technologies and a love for what the Internet can bring to the music experience. Ars reviews version 1.0.
Obama had to defend himself against questions about whether Richardson was being given a high enough post.
John Bolton, Ellen Bork, James Jay Carafano, Cliff May and more evaluate Obama's national security team.
Rex Troxell has this dream. "I can't get my clothes off," he says. "You're trying to get them off, and you can't." For most of us, being unable to get naked in public is hardly a nightmare. But Troxell is an art model. And posing in the nude, something he has done for 30 years, is key to bringing home a paycheck.
These are the forgotten systems that deserved to be forgotten. Unless the point was to laugh at them, which we shall do now.
India will embark on a major upgrading of security facilities at its international stadiums in a desperate attempt to prevent the economic collapse of the international game in the wake of the Mumbai terrorist attacks.Emergency levels of security, perhaps unprecedented in cricket history, have been guaranteed for England's return to India for Tests in Chennai and Mohali, but there is no guarantee that the Indian government will be so amenable to special measures ? such as the provision of special security forces ? in the future.Indian cricket has therefore concluded that permanent security measures must be introduced for all major competitions to allay players' fears about their safety, guard against mass withdrawals and to protect the country's status as cricket's thriving economic powerhouse.India's greatest worry is that the country that provides roughly 70% of cricket's revenue will become the country that nobody wants to tour ? causing it to follow Pakistan towards the prospect of a depressing future playing home matches in Abu Dhabi or Dubai.For India to have to take such a step would ultimately have a disastrous effect on the finances of the game and England, and its top players, would not be immune.The driving force behind the security measures is, unsurprisingly, Lalit Modi, vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and commissioner of the Indian Premier League. Modi knows that the IPL will not receive such security support from the state, so he is now pressing for what amounts to a total modernisation of India's stadiums, with security the overwhelming priority.Modi said after the Mumbai atrocities: "Security is something we need to think about seriously because becoming sidelined like Pakistan due to security threats is something that is logical. We have to ensure that the security measures we take are the best. We shouldn't allow such attacks to disrupt our determination."His response has been swift. He has written to representatives of the eight grounds that stage IPL Twenty20 cricket ? to insist upon new security measures. He has contacted Shashank Manohar, the board's president, pressing for all cricketing associations to convene an emergency meeting at the earliest opportunity.It is intended that all these measures will be in place long before the start of the next IPL tournament in April. Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff are among the most sought-after England players ? although Flintoff is widely reported as having ruled out a return to India for the Test series when the England squad makes its expected departure at the end of the week.Measures include the installation of permanent CCTV cameras at every stadium and the provision of turnstiles ? rather than just manned gates ? at entry and exit points to allow a more controlled check on spectator entry. Security arrangements at the eight IPL grounds will be managed by a central agency answerable to the IPL and funding will be provided by the Indian board. Modi also wants disaster management teams to be appointed to devise definite plans in the event of a terrorist strike at a cricket stadium.India has always prized its rotation system, retaining its 21 grounds, including some in such outlying places as Guwahati and Visakhapatnam, despite much criticism from touring sides, but those grounds that do not enthusiastically implement the new measures may find that security concerns end their status as an international venue.The IPL's governing council had already begun to examine development needs at its eight stadiums, recognising that many of India's stadiums remain disgracefully underfunded for such a wealthy cricketing country. Security, by necessity, has now shot to the top of the agenda.England Cricket TeamIndian Premier LeagueCricketMumbai terror attacksguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
AMD is placing its hopes of regaining market share lost to Intel on its new line of processors set for launch next year. AMD is planning to launch a lot of processors, 13 of them to be exact according to the latest roadmap uncovered.
Hollywood actor Patrick Swayze says contrary to reports saying otherwise he hasn't taken a turn for the worse and started saying goodbye to his loved ones. The 56-year-old star of "The Outsiders," "Dirty Dancing," "Ghost" and "Point Break," has been battling pancreatic cancer for months.
Hollywood Reporter- Early this morning, news broke that the Sci Fi Channel has given the long-gestating "Battlestar Galactica" prequel "Caprica" a series order.The network has made a significant commitment to the project, ordering 20 hours, including a two-hour pilot.
Google's new App Engine uses Python as its primary programming language. Ars goes in search of the best Python programming resources on the web.