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United States President Barack Obama has signed a US$787 billion stimulus package, entitled the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, into law on Tuesday at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science in Denver, Colorado. He called the bill "the most sweeping recovery package in our history" at a signing ceremony. "I don't want to pretend that today marks the end of our economic problems, nor does it constitute all of what we're going to have to do to turn our economy around," Obama said at the ceremony, "but today does mark the b

The United States Congress passed a US$787 billion stimulus package late Friday night, in an effort to curb the recession and boost the faltering US economy. The bill was passed by a vote of 60&ndashp;38, barely reaching the minimum number of 60 votes needed to make the bill a law. Only three Republican senators voted for the measure. Shortly before the Senate vote, the US House of Representatives approved of the stimulus by a margin of 246–183, with all 176 Republicans and seven Democrats voting against the bill. The Senate vote was delayed

In the 1970s, she was one of the most popular female vocalists in France, and became well-known internationally. Anne Marie David, from Arles in the south of France, parlayed her initial success from playing Mary Magdalene in the French production of Jesus Christ Superstar into taking home the "grand prix" at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1973. Her winning song, "Tu te reconnaîtras" (You will recognize yourself), became a Europe-wide hit that spring. At the height of her popularity, David perfomed world tours, and even lived abroad in Turkey

Investigators have stated that Continental Connection Flight 3407, which crashed in icy weather near Buffalo, New York on February 12, was on autopilot when it went down, and that the pilot flying the aircraft might have violated the airline's policy and federal safety recommendations. The plane involved in the incident was a Bombardier Dash 8, which crashed into a home located at 6038 Long Street in Clarence Center, a suburb of Buffalo. It went down at approximately 10:17 p.m. EST (03:20 UTC), February 12. 44 passengers, an off-duty pilot, an

Official figures show that Japan's economy has shrunk by 3.3% in the last quarter of 2008—or an annualized 12.7%, the fastest decline since 1974, when the economy contracted by 3.4% in a quarter. The decline in Japan has been sharper than in either Europe or North America, mostly because global demand for the country's products, such as automobiles and electronics, has fallen. The contraction was also larger than the 3.1% decline that was predicted by economists, the worst decline of any major economic power in the same quarter. In comparison

The United States military Strategic Command (STRATCOM) has said that the 'fireballs' spotted over areas of Texas in the United States on Sunday February 15, are not related to the collision of a U.S. and Russian satellite in space. According to spaceweather.com, NASA says the object was a meteor. "There is no correlation between the debris from that collision and those reports of re-entry," said STRATCOM military spokeswoman Major Maj. Regina. "It's a natural meteor, definitely," said Bill Cooke, an astronomer at NASA's Meteoroid Environment

North Korea has denied in a statement that the nation's military is preparing to test-fire a long range ballistic missile. The country instead says that they are preparing to launch a space program. "One will come to know later what will be launched in the DPRK. Space development is the independent right of the DPRK and the requirement of the developing reality," said the statement according to the Korean Central News Agency. The statement also went on to accuse the United States and other nations of "viciously tricking [the country into putt

MV Chemstar Venus, a chemical tanker flagged in Panama and owned by a Japanese firm, has been freed by pirates in Somalia. The vessel has a crew of 23 and a cargo of chemicals that has not been identified. The ship was seized on November 15 and has a crew of five South Koreans and eighteen Filipinos. She was released Thursday, with the news announced Friday by an anonymous diplomat in Nairobi, Kenya. It is unclear if a ransom was paid. There has recently been a sharp rise in pirate attacks after a lull in January, thought to be a result of a

Thousands of people in Pastos, Colombia have been ordered to evacuate after the Galeras Volcano began to "explosively" erupt, according to reports. According to Colombia's Institute of Geology and Mines, the eruption began at about 7:10 p.m. local time (00:10 GMT). An estimated 8,000 people have been affected. "[There is a] large amount of ash" falling from the sky, said Eduardo Alvarado, Pastos's provincial governor, adding that those "who live in urban areas, remain in their homes." The government in the area has been put on red alert and th

A woman who held the Guinness World Record for having the world's longest fingernails has lost them in a four-car accident in her hometown of Salt Lake City, Utah in the United States. 66-year-old Lee Redmond was seriously injured after she was ejected from the sports utility vehicle (SUV) she had been a passenger in. It had collided with one car, causing it to collide with two other cars on Tuesday February 10. She is expected to make a full recovery. "[Her nails] were damaged beyond repair," reported the BBC, quoting Guinness World Records,

The American cartoon series "The Simpsons" will today be broadcast for the first time in high definition (HD). Today's show will also introduce a new title sequence. Today's episode, named "Take My Life, Please" (20x10), also makes references to HDTV in the Chalkboard gag when Bart Simpson writes "HDTV is worth every cent" on the chalkboard. This will be the first major permanent change to the show's introduction since its launch in 1989; previous changes have included variations in the duration of the intro, and special one-shot introductio

On Tuesday, February 10, the American civilian communications satellite Iridium 33, launched in 1997, and the defunct Russian military communications satellite Kosmos-2251, launched in 1993, collided over Siberia. Five days after the collision, reports have surfaced that burning debris from the collision has been spotted over several U.S. cities from New Mexico to Kentucky. Calls to 9-1-1 began to come in to Williamson County, Texas sheriff's office around 12:30 p.m. (CT) that burning debris and fireballs were seen falling from the sky onto pa