Technology

LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have found two new genetic variations that appear to increase the risk of the most common skin cancer among people of European descent.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Researchers trying to find ways to transform ordinary skin cells into powerful stem cells said on Sunday they found a shortcut by "sprinkling" a chemical onto the cells.

LOD, Israel (Reuters) - Israel has introduced a step-on scanner that spares airline travelers the nuisance of having to remove their shoes so they can be X-rayed for hidden weapons, though the new device cannot yet sniff out explosives.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A global AIDS vaccine conference this week will seek fresh strategies against the HIV virus, with experts weighing the value of basic laboratory research against large-scale human clinical trials after a string of disappointments.

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (Reuters) - U.S. video game magnate Richard Garriott blasted off into space aboard a Russian rocket on Sunday watched by his father, a NASA astronaut who went into space at the height of the Cold War.

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (Reuters) - A Russian Soyuz spacecraft carrying a U.S. space tourist blasted off on Sunday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome to the International Space Station.

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (Reuters) - U.S. video game magnate Richard Garriott will blast off into space aboard a Russian spaceship on Sunday watched by his father, a NASA astronaut who went into space at the height of the Cold War.

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Scientists have sequenced the genome of the giant panda, an achievement which may aid efforts to protect the endangered species, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday.

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (Reuters) - Google co-founder Sergey Brin, considering going into space on a private flight, made a surprise visit to Russia's Baikonur cosmodrome on Saturday to wish good luck to a fellow space tourist.

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (Reuters) - Russian space authorities said on Saturday they had improved safety measures for spaceships returning to Earth from the International Space Station after a series of rough landings.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - At the Austin City Limits (ACL) Music Festival in Texas at the end of September, sandwiched between a stage and a small recycling center stood a white dome decorated with colorful cloud patterns.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - NASA needs more money to resolve problems with its next Mars mission and keep it on track for launch next year, and is gambling that the U.S. Congress will find the extra funds, officials said on Friday.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Shares of Apple Inc. rallied more than 9 percent Friday, as investors saw a newly attractive valuation in the battered stock and anticipated new laptop computers.