US loses AAA credit rating for first time

WASHINGTON: Standard & Poor's cut the US credit rating for the first time in history Friday, saying the country's politicians are increasingly unable to come to grips with its massive fiscal deficit and debt load.

S&P cut the US rating from its top-flight triple-A one notch to AA+, and added a negative outlook to it, saying there was a chance it could be downgraded again within two years if progress is not made cutting the huge government budget gap.It was the first time the US was downgraded since it received an AAA rating from Moody's in 1917; it has held the S&P rating since 1941.The rating came after a strong push back from the White House, which called S&P's analysis of the economy deeply flawed.A Treasury spokesperson alleged that there was a "two trillion dollar error" in the S&P analysis, without offering any immediate explanation.The blow came after the White House, Democratic and Republican lawmakers finally agreed on Tuesday to a deal to raise the nation's debt ceiling after months of wrangling which sent jitters rippling through the global economy still trying to recover from the 2008 recession.A debt downgrade will be a symbolic embarrassment for President Barack Obama, his administration and the United States, and could raise the cost of US government borrowing.more

Swedish Man Builds Nuclear Reactor in His Kitchen

Sweden –  Too many chefs spoil the broth -- but how many nuclear reactors?

Swedish authorities have detained a man who attempted to build a nuclear reactor in his kitchen, Helsingborgs Dagblad reported Tuesday.

"I was arrested and sent to jail when the police and the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority searched my apartment," the unnamed nuclear enthusiast wrote on a blog detailing his project. "They took all my radioactive stuff, but I was released after a hearing. But I am still suspect for crime against the radiation safety law."

Police in the western town of Angelholm were alerted when he contacted Sweden's nuclear authority and asked if it was permitted for an individual to build a nuclear reactor in his home. more

Piece of destroyed Space Shuttle Columbia found in lake

CAPE CANAVERAL: A piece of the space shuttle Columbia, which broke apart and burned on re-entry more than 8 years ago, has been found in a lake, NASA officials said.

Wreckage from shuttle Columbia was uncovered in East Texas this week, the result of a prolonged drought lowering water levels in a lake.The spherical tank, which is about four feet in diameter, is stuck in the mud alongside Lake Nacogdoches.More than 40 tons of wreckage rained down on a long swath of East Texas and Louisiana as Columbia disintegrated during its atmospheric re-entry in February 2003, killing all seven astronauts.The debris, which was found, is thought to be either a liquid hydrogen or liquid oxygen tank.The aluminum tank was part of the shuttle's electrical power distribution system. Now full of mud.About 40 percent of the shuttle has been recovered since the accident.

Hosni Mubarak denies all charges against him

CAIRO: Ousted President Hosni Mubarak has denied all charges of corruption and complicity in killing protesters during Egypt's uprising after a court detailed the allegations against him at the opening session of his trial.

An ailing, 83-year-old Hosni Mubarak, lying ashen-faced on a hospital bed inside a metal defendants cage with his two sons beside him in white prison uniforms, faced the start of his historic trial Wednesday on charges of corruption and ordering the killing of protesters during the uprising that toppled him.The spectacle, aired live on state television, was the biggest humiliation for Egypt's former president since his ouster nearly six months ago. But it went a long way to satisfy one of the key demands that has united protesters since Feb. 11, the day the regime was toppled.It was the first time Egyptians have seen Mubarak since Feb. 10, when he gave a defiant TV address refusing to resign.Mubarak, his former Interior Minister Habib el-Adly, and six top police officers are charged with murder and attempted murder in connection with the protesters killed during the uprising, according to the official charge sheet. All eight could face the death penalty if convicted.Separately, Mubarak and his two sons, one time heir apparent Gamal and wealthy businessman Alaa, face charges of corruption. The two sets of charges have been lumped together in one mass trial. (AP)

Triple 'terrorist' blasts kill at least 21 in Mumbai

MUMBAI: Three bombs rocked crowded districts of Mumbai during rush hour on Wednesday, killing at least 21 people and injuring 113 others.

India has remained jittery about the threat of militant strikes, especially since the November 2008 attacks which killed 166 people.

At least 113 people were wounded on Wednesday and preliminary reports showed the death toll had risen to 21 in the "terror attacks" centred mainly on Mumbai's jewellery trading centres, a senior government official said.

"This is another attack on the heart of India, heart of Mumbai. We will fully meet challenge, we are much better prepared than 26/11," Prithviraj Chavan, the state's chief minister, told a TV channel, referring to the 2008 attacks.

Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram also said "terrorists" were to blame.

"The blast occurred at about 6.45 pm (1315 GMT) within minutes of each other. Therefore, we infer that this was a coordinated attack by terrorists," Chidambaram told reporters.

At least one car and a motorbike were used in the coordinated attacks believed to have used improvised explosive devices, officials said.

"This tactic is much more in line with those used by more amateurish groups such as the Indian Mujahideen who have targeted crowded urban areas before," Stratfor, a strategic affair think tank, said in a statement.

Television images showed blaring ambulances carrying away the bloodied people at one of the attack sites. Other images showed bodies lying among glass and metal debris in narrow streets.

At the Dadar area in central Mumbai, one of the explosions left car windows shattered and uprooted electric poles. Police used sniffer dogs to look for clues while the public helped paramedics carry away some of the injured....more