Science News:

Al-Qaida group claims attack killing 12 in Baghdad (AP)  

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden (L-R), U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen stand during the U.S. national anthem during a change of command ceremony in Baghdad September 1, 2010. The U.S. Military's Outgoing commander Raymond Odierno will hand over to Lieutenant General Lloyd Austin. REUTERS/Jim Watson/Pool (IRAQ - Tags: IMAGES OF THE DAY POLITICS MILITARY)AP - An al-Qaida front group is claiming responsibility for a weekend attack in the heart of Baghdad that killed 12 people.
Report: Money can buy you happiness, to a point (AP)  AP - They say money can't buy happiness. They're wrong.
Ancient city by the sea rises amid Egypt's resorts (AP)  

With a five star hotel in the background, a man walks by restored Roman pillar tombs of the ancient city of Leukaspis a well known Greco-Roman port overlooking the Mediterranean Sea at the costal resorts of Marina, Egypt Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010. Today, it's a sprawl of luxury vacation homes where Egypt's wealthy play on the white beaches of the Mediterranean coast. But 2,000 years ago, this was a thriving Greco-Roman port city, boasting villas of merchants grown rich on the wheat and olive trade. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)AP - Today, it's a sprawl of luxury vacation homes where Egypt's wealthy play on the white beaches of the Mediterranean coast. But 2,000 years ago, this was a thriving Greco-Roman port city, boasting villas of merchants grown rich on the wheat and olive trade.
Men More Susceptible to Memory Decline (LiveScience.com)  LiveScience.com - Men are more susceptible than women to memory problems in old age, according to a new study.
Diverse water sources seen key to food security (Reuters)  

Cattle Egrets are seen as Egyptian farmers work in a field in a village near Alexandria, around 220 km (137 miles) northwest of Cairo, May 18, 2009. REUTERS/Asmaa WaguihReuters - Increasingly erratic rainfall patterns related to climate change pose a major threat to food security and economic growth, water experts said on Monday, arguing for greater investment in water storage.
The glittering Gulf states' dark labor secret (The Christian Science Monitor)  The Christian Science Monitor - The rise of the Arab states of the Persian Gulf is a now-familiar tale. Tiny societies of pearl divers, coastal merchants, and nomadic Bedouin were transformed in the last half of the 20th century by oil and natural-gas wealth. Sparkling office towers and hotels sprang into the muggy air, the monarchs that rule these tiny emirates became bywords for financial excess, and newspapers described the region's economic "miracle."
Airbag Designer Casts Eye on NASA's Escape Ship (SPACE.com)  SPACE.com - New airbag technology that mimics nature's way of protecting seed embryos could take the bumps out of spacecraft landings.
EU summons BASF over 'illegal' potatoes in Swedish field (AFP)  

The facade of German giant BASF in Paris. Europe slapped a summons on German chemical giant BASF on Monday after a AFP - Europe slapped a summons on German chemical giant BASF on Monday after a "blunder" allowed seed from a new genetically modified potato to remain in a field in Sweden.
Japan confirms its first case of new superbug gene (AP)  AP - Japan has confirmed the nation's first case of a new gene in bacteria that allows the microorganisms to become drug-resistant superbugs, detected in a man who had medical treatment in India, a Health Ministry official said Tuesday.
Greenpeace urges Japan to probe whaling graft (AFP)  

Two Greenpeace activists, aboard an inflatable boat, attach themselves to an illegally killed Minke whale, whilst it is winched aboard the Japanese ship, the AFP - Greenpeace urged Japan on Tuesday to probe graft claims in its state-funded whaling programme, a day after two of its activists received suspended jail terms for committing theft during an investigation.
Mass Extinction Threat: Earth on Verge of Huge Reset Button? (LiveScience.com)  LiveScience.com - Mass extinctions have served as huge reset buttons that dramatically changed the diversity of species found in oceans all over the world, according to a comprehensive study of fossil records. The findings suggest humans will live in a very different future if they drive animals to extinction, because the loss of each species can alter entire ecosystems.
Erratic global weather threatens food security (AFP)  

Flooded farm land of southern Punjab in Pakistan. Eight million people in Pakistan remain dependent on handouts for their survival after monsoons caused devastating floods throughout the country.(AFP/Carl de Souza)AFP - The drought in Russia and floods in Pakistan are part of a global trend of unpredictable weather patterns and rainfall that threaten food security, experts gathered in Stockholm said.
The nation's weather (AP)  

In the national weather forecast for Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2010,A vigorous storm will push across the Upper Great Lakes with significant rain and thunderstorms. Meanwhile, showers and storms will persist in southeastern Texas coast and southern Florida, while showers return to the Pacific Northwest. (AP Photo/Weather Underground)AP - Tropical Storm Hermine was forecast to continue losing strength as it moved over southern Texas and northeastern Mexico on Tuesday.
Galactic 'Supervolcano' Seen Erupting With X-Rays (SPACE.com)  SPACE.com - A galactic "supervolcano" in the massive galaxy M87 is erupting, blasting gas outwards. The cosmic volcano — driven by a giant black hole in M87's center — is preventing hundreds of millions of new stars from forming.
NGOs call for Romanian minister to be sacked for GM links (AFP)  

A vendor picks up corn at his stall in a market in 2009. Over 70 environmental NGOs including the WWF called Monday for the sacking of Romania's new agriculture minister for his links to the genetically modified crop industry.(AFP/File/Peter Parks)AFP - Over 70 environmental NGOs including the WWF called Monday for the sacking of Romania's new agriculture minister for his links to the genetically modified crop industry.
Focus of Gulf oil disaster shifts to finding the culprit (AFP)  

Pools of dispersed oil collect on a section of a public beach in Grand Isle, Louisiana, in August 2010. With a key piece of evidence raised from the depths of the Gulf of Mexico and BP's Macondo well ruled a threat no longer, the focus is shifting back to what went wrong and who is to blame.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Win McNamee)AFP - With a key piece of evidence raised from the depths of the Gulf of Mexico and BP's Macondo well ruled a threat no longer, the focus shifts to what went wrong and who is to blame.
Hermine slams northeast Mexico, swirls into US (AFP)  

Relatives of a landslide victim take the coffin to a church for a funeral in Nueva Santa Catarina Ixtahuacan, Solola, west of Guatemala City. Powerful Tropical Storm Hermine slammed into far northeastern Mexico and then barreled into US territory, threatening storm surges, flash floods and tornadoes on both sides of the border.(AFP/Johan Ordonez)AFP - Powerful Tropical Storm Hermine slammed into far northeastern Mexico and then barreled into US territory early Tuesday, threatening storm surges, flash floods and tornadoes on both sides of the border.