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WASHINGTON – U.S. consumer spending rose 0.3 percent in November but a big drop in energy costs and scant inflation elsewhere boosted shoppers’ buying power even more sharply, the government said on Thursday. Taking into account a record 0.4 percent decline in overall prices, consumer spending rose a steep 0.7 …

VISOKO, Bosnia-Herzegovina – With eyes trained to recognize pyramids hidden in the hills of El Salvador, Mexico and Peru, Semir Osmanagic has been drawn to the mound overlooking this central Bosnian town. “It has all the elements: four perfectly shaped slopes pointing toward the cardinal points, a flat top and …

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A sulfurous steam plume, hundreds of miniature earthquakes and a new swath of ash on snowy Augustine Volcano have scientists looking for a possible eruption in the next few months. The 4,134-foot volcano hasn’t shown such signs since it last erupted in 1986, when ash from a …

NEW YORK – The “chicken and the egg” approach to mass-producing influenza vaccines may soon fly the coop. Although the tried-and-true — yet slow — process of making vaccines from flu viruses grown in fertilized chicken eggs is currently the only method approved in the United States, various drug companies …

WASHINGTON – Hoping to protect U.S. shores from being hammered by a tsunami, the White House directed federal agencies Friday to increase earthquake and volcano monitoring systems, deep ocean buoys and other high-tech means of alerting oceanside communities. The tsunami plan was requested by President Bush and Congress after an …

WASHINGTON – When the cop shop at TV’s “Law & Order: SVU” uncovered a murder plot earlier this fall surrounding a man who killed homosexuals who spread HIV through a dance club, a health message was behind the script: Meth use among gay men is on the rise, and it …

NEW YORK – Tori Spelling is engaged, just months after separating from her first husband, People and Us Weekly magazines reported Tuesday. Actor Dean McDermott, who has been dating the former “Beverly Hills, 90210” star for several months, proposed Christmas Eve in Toronto. “We’re so incredibly happy and in love. …

ATLANTA – Delta Air Lines Inc. pilots accepted a 14 percent pay cut in a deal their union negotiated with management to help the bankrupt carrier cope with an expected cash crunch. About 58 percent of the members who voted Wednesday approved the deal, which is the second double-digit pay …

Here’s what is on tap for Thursday: “FOX & Friends First” Starts at 6 a.m. ET Did the commander in chief lay down a convincing plan for winning the war in Iraq? We’ll get a fair and balanced debate from Ellis Henican, Newsday columnist and FOX News political analyst, and …

WASHINGTON – It’s been such a persistent rumor in Washington that many had begun to accept it as fact. But White House chief of staff Andy Card said Wednesday it’s not true that he is heading to the Treasury Department to take over from Secretary John Snow. “It is not …