Economic group says developed world in recession

The world’s developed countries, hard hit by the financial crisis, have already entered a recession that will last at least through the first half of 2009, a top international organization said Thursday in its economic outlook. The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast that economic output would shrink 1.4 percent this quarter for the [...] "eliotcobb.com"

An Israeli soldier got three weeks in the slammer for yawning during a ceremony this week to mark the assassination of prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, his mother said. The concerned woman said her son yawned “without covering his mouth” while the commander of his air force base in the north of the country was speaking during [...] "eliotcobb.com"

Thomas Beatie, the controversial “pregnant man” who gave birth to a daughter earlier this year, reveals to Barbara Walters in an exclusive interview that he is pregnant again with his second child. Thomas Beatie, a transgender, welcomed a baby girl, Susan, June 29. Since sharing the story of Susan’s birth with ABC News, he and his [...] "eliotcobb.com"

An American man who suffered from AIDS appears to have been cured of the disease 20 months after receiving a targeted bone marrow transplant normally used to fight leukemia, his doctors said. While researchers - and the doctors themselves - caution that the case might be no more than a fluke, others say it may inspire [...] "eliotcobb.com"

Britain is facing a sperm donor shortage after reversing confidentiality laws and limiting the number of women who can use sperm from one donor, fertility experts warned Wednesday. Britain in 2005 changed the law protecting anonymous sperm donors and allowed children to learn the identity of donor fathers - one reason, fertility experts say, there are [...] "eliotcobb.com"

One of Dubai’s most popular beach hotels has issued guests with an “etiquette guide” after two Britons were convicted for having sex on the beach near the hotel.The Burj Al Arab Hotel Dubai - with the moated and beachside Madinat Jumeirah hotel behind The etiquette guides, which suggest the hotel’s guests could be arrested for inappropriate [...] "eliotcobb.com"

Thick brown clouds of soot, particles and chemicals stretching from the Persian Gulf to Asia threatens health and food supplies in the world, the U.N. reported Thursday, citing what it called the newest threat to the global environment. The regional haze, known as atmospheric brown clouds, contributes to glacial melting, reduces sunlight, and helps create extreme [...] "eliotcobb.com"