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The Free Software Foundation (FSF) has announced a new version of the GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) which paves the way for the Wikimedia Foundation's (WMF) projects, including the popular Wikipedia, to switch to the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike (CC-BY-SA) license. The move was announced following discussions between the Wikimedia Foundation and the FSF. Erik Möller, deputy director of the WMF, explained the reasoning behind this move. "The underlying motivation of this change is that CC-BY-SA is an easier-to-use license

A medical study has identified a previously unknown risk to children of parents who smoke tobacco: hunger. Children who live in households with at least one adult smoker are more likely to be underfed, according to Dr. Cynthia Cutler-Triggs of the New York University School of Medicine and Bellevue Hospital. Dr. Cutler-Triggs's study measured food insecurity, a concept used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture since the 1990s to measure the frequency of skipped meals and how often people go to bed hungry. Researchers examined data on 8,817

Bart Cummings wins his 12th Melbourne Cup with Viewed ridden by Blake Shin. Bauer, ridden by C W Brown, was second after the photo finish, with C’est La Guerre ridden by B Prebble coming third. Honolulu was the last placed horse. Cummings began training in 1953. His first Cup win was with Light Fingers in 1965. This win is his 250th group one win. Today's 148th Melbourne Cup field of 24 was reduced after the scratchings of Yellowstone and Zarita, withdrawn by its trainer Pat Hyland on Monday due to a respiratory infection. The English hor

According to California's Madera County Sheriff's office, DNA tests performed on bones found at the site of a plane crash in October, are confirmed to be those of adventurer Steve Fossett. The last known whereabouts of Fossett was on September 3, 2007. He had taken a small plane from a ranch in Minden, Nevada to search for a site to try and break the land-speed record. He had not been seen since and authorities feared his plane had crashed and he had died. "A California Department of Justice Forensics lab has determined that items containing

The most common type of brain tumor, glioblastoma, may be getting a new FDA-approved treatment soon. Yesterday the pharmaceutical firm Genentech announced that it is requesting accelerated approval for its drug Avastin (bevacizumab) as a glioblastoma treatment. Avastin is already approved for use on lung, colon and breast cancers. Promising results in Phase II clinical trials led the company to seek early approval before Phase III trials for glioblastoma, a condition that has high mortality rates and few treatment options. The FDA sometimes

Wayne Bent, leader of a controversial United States religious group based in New Mexico, the Lord Our Righteousness Church, failed again to accurately predict doomsday. Bent had made a prediction that Judgment Day would occur on October 31, 2008. Bent had previously made a prediction reported on in the documentary film End of a World Cult that the world would end on October 31, 2007. Sarah Montoya, a lawyer representing Bent, said in a statement to the Albuquerque Journal that members of the group were disappointed when Bent's prophecy failed

Republican John McCain has conceded the election to Democrat Barack Obama. After two years of campaigning, today United States citizens went to the polls to vote for the Presidency and for numerous Senate, House, state and local races across the country. The District of Columbia and at least 32 states had early voting before election day. By October 31, over 23 million people had voted by mail or at early voting locations. Of the approximately 6 million people of known party affiliation who voted early, 58% were Democrats and 42% were Republi

One person has been killed and dozens of boats have been severely damaged or sunk by storms on the Spanish island of Majorca. The storms hit the island frequently last week, and the weather finally calmed on Sunday. In San Telmo, a 62-year-old man died when he tried to save his sinking yacht. Winds of up to 60 mph were reported with gusts reaching 75 mph. Boats could be seen sinking into the water for several days after the storm, with people unable to rescue them due to the conditions. Local residents stated that they were the worst to hit

Cypriot prosecutors have announced that they intend to charge five people over the 2005 crash of Helios Airways Flight 522. The loss of the Boeing 737 killed all 121 people on board. Attorney General Petros Clerides announced the plans today, but did not indicate who was to be charged or exactly what the offenses were. "We came to the conclusion that, from the evidence gathered, a criminal prosecution is justified against several people whom we consider accountable for the plane crash," he said at a press conference in Nicosia. The unrespons

October on the campaign trail presented the last chances for the campaigns to present their messages to the American people. A vice-presidential and two presidential debates were held, one of which added a new political lexicon, perhaps the closest thing to an October surprise. One candidate seemed to pull way ahead as early voting began in many states near the conclusion of the month. Democrats At the beginning of the month, due to the continued economic crisis, Obama took a clear lead over McCain in opinion polling, leading by double-digit

Ferrari driver Felipe Massa won yesterday's FIA Formula One (F1) 2008 Grande Prêmio Santander Brazilian Grand Prix at Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo, Brazil. Lewis Hamilton, who drives for McLaren, was able to hold on to take the F1 Driver's Championship. He had a seven point lead in the season standings entering the Brazilian Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso came second while his Renault team mate Nelson Piquet Jr. slipped in the Senna's S-curve and broke his car's rear due to the wet track. Massa's teammate Kimi Räikkönen came third. On

The University of Alabama's football team, the Crimson Tide, has reached the top spot in the Associated Press's weekly college football rankings. Forty-six of the sixty-five sportswriters from across the country agreed Alabama's 35–0 win over Arkansas State on Saturday was the best game in the country, giving Alabama the top spot in the rankings. Once a storied football program under former coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, who led the Crimson Tide to six national championship titles, the team had slipped from its former glory in recent years. With th