Florida strikes first, leads OU in BCS title game

In the fight for the BCS Championship, Florida landed the first real punch against Oklahoma. Tim Tebow connected with Louis Murphy for a 20-yard touchdown pass, giving Florida the game's first score and the first lead, 7-0, barely one minute into the second quarter.

Floods cut Washington highways

Floods and avalanches kept tens of thousands of people in Washington state from their homes Thursday and cut off highways that link Seattle's ports with markets around the country.

Report: Missile kills top al-Qaida men

A CIA strike in Pakistan killed two top al-Qaida terrorists long sought by the U.S., including the man believed to be behind a  deadly hotel bombing in Pakistan, U.S. officials told the Washington Post.

How many meerkats? London Zoo critter count

The annual count is a legal requirement for all British zoos, and it's also a useful tool for monitoring animal conservation efforts. Zookeepers say it makes sense to have a census.

Small retailers struggle in tough season

Like a lot of small retailers, Henry Burton depends heavily on the holiday season to ring up sales, and, like a lot of retailers, this past holiday season proved especially challenging.

Deep freeze disrupts hardy Alaskans

Ted Johnson planned on using a set of logs to a build a cabin in Alaska's interior. Instead he'll burn some of them to stay warm.

Obama assembles powerful West Wing

Barack Obama is assembling a new and influential cadre of counselors just steps from the Oval Office whose power to direct domestic policy will rival, if not exceed, the authority of his Cabinet.

Gotti neighbor allegedly dissolved in acid

It's been one of the last mysteries from John Gotti's gangland career: What happened to the neighbor who accidentally ran over and killed the mobster's 12-year-old son — and then vanished?

Palm announces 'Pre' smartphone

Palm Thursday unveiled the "Pre" smartphone, more similar to an iPhone than a Treo in looks, and a new operating system called Palm WebOS, with hopes that both will keep the venerable but struggling company in the smartphone race.