The Army has been dismissing so many overweight applicants that its top recruiter, trying to keep troop numbers up in wartime, is considering starting a fat farm to transform chubby trainees into svelte soldiers. Maj. Gen. Thomas Bostick, head of the Army Recruiting Command, said he wants to see a …

WASHINGTON – Nature turned against one of America’s early civilizations 3,600 years ago, when researchers say earthquakes and floods, followed by blowing sand, drove away residents of an area that is now in Peru. “This maritime farming community had been successful for over 2,000 years, they had no incentive to …

YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP, Mich. – State troopers and road crews had to scramble when a tractor-trailer crashed and spilled its load of eggs on a Detroit-area freeway. Trooper Jim Smiley says eastbound Interstate 94 in Washtenaw County’s Ypsilanti Township reopened about 1 a.m. Thursday after being shut down for six hours. …

People in Duisburg, Germany, and across the world, are angry after police admitted to removing an Israeli flag that hanging in a student’s window during a pro-Palestinian protest, Spiegel Online reported. The western German city’s police chief issued an apology for using force to storm the student’s apartment Saturday to …

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Suspected U.S. missiles killed 18 people on the Pakistan side of the Afghan border Friday, security officials said, the first attacks on the Al Qaeda stronghold since President Barack Obama took office. At least five foreign militants were among those killed in the strikes by unmanned aircraft …

LOS ANGELES – Burial plot brokers are reporting an uptick in the business of reselling grave sites, as money troubles prompt a growing number of people to put their burial plots up for sale, often at a loss. Baron Chu, who owns the burial site resale business Plot Brokers, said …

Aaron Boone’s first priority is the long-term health of his heart. Later on, he’ll decide whether to resume his baseball career. The Houston Astros infielder announced Wednesday that he’ll have open heart surgery to replace an aortic valve. He said he’s known about his heart condition since college but tests …

DAYTON, Ohio – Pittsburgh powered its way to a familiar place. Sam Young, the Panthers’ poet in motion, scored 32 points and DeJuan Blair added another double-double as top-seeded Pittsburgh advanced to the round of 16 for the fifth time in eight years with an 84-76 win over Oklahoma State …

MOSCOW – An activist with a pro-Kremlin youth group said Thursday he and his friends were behind an electronic attack on Estonia two years ago that paralyzed the NATO state’s Internet network. Ex-Soviet Estonia blamed the Russian government for the attack at the time, though Moscow denied involvement. The incident …

SYDNEY – Rescuers used jet skis, backhoes and human muscle to save dozens of whales and dolphins stranded on a beach in southern Australia on Monday, officials and news reports said. The 194 pilot whales and half a dozen bottlenose dolphins became stranded on Naracoopa Beach on Tasmania state’s King …