Jump to October 2011 archive page: 1 ... 3 4 5 6 7 ... 18
  • Dramatic rescue of two-week-old baby girl from rubble in Turkey

    Reuters

    Rescue workers carry a baby from a collapsed building in Ercis, October 25, 2011. A 14-day-old baby was rescued alive from the rubble of a collapsed building on Tuesday, 46 hours after an earthquake struck southeast Turkey.

    Tolga Bozoglu / EPA

    Rescue workers carry baby Azra, two weeks old, after they pulled her out from a collapsed building, in Ercis, October 25.

    We’re just hearing now that they were able to also rescue the baby's mother who was trapped under the debris. Full story.

    More photos from rescue efforts in Turkey in our slideshow.

  • Oli Scarff / Getty Images

    A police officer stands in front of Number 10 Downing Street which is illuminated in a pink light in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month on October 25, in London, England. Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which runs throughout October, aims to highlight that 50,000 new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in the UK each year.

    10 Downing Street goes pink

    The White House in Washington D.C. also celebrates Breast Cancer Awareness Month. See our previous post in PhotoBlog.

  • Torsten Blackwood / Pool via AFP - Getty Images

    Britain's Queen Elizabeth II is encouraged by General Peter Cosgrove to venture into the rain to see the view from the Australian War Memorial in Canberra on October 25, 2011. Loud cheers from well-wishers greeted the queen when she had finished her sombre remembrance of Australia's fallen soldiers.

    Queen Elizabeth II steps out into the rain in Australia

  • New galleries for Islamic art treasures at the MET

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Emmanuel Dunand / AFP - Getty Images

    Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

    From The New York Times:

    Despite the current trend for abbreviated titles and short, snappy messages, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is calling its majestic suite of 15 newly renovated spaces, which open on Nov. 1, the New Galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia and Later South Asia. It’s a mouthful but an intentional one. The curators there are trying to underscore the diversity, richness and interconnectedness of the arts that reflect a melting pot of different cultures.

    • Read the full story here.
    • Read more about the exhibition from here.
  • Northern lights go way, way south

    NBC's Brian Williams reports on the southern spread of the northern lights.

    A solar outburst sparked surprising displays of the northern lights as far south as Arkansas, Mississippi and North Carolina tonight, marking one of the farthest-reaching auroral shows in years.

    As word spread about the geomagnetic storm, photos streamed onto the Web from the usual places, such as Norway, Sweden and Iceland, but also from locales that are typically too far south to see the northern lights: Oklahoma ... Kansas ... Kentucky ... Tennessee ... Virginia.

    Among the websites tracking the fireworks are SpaceWeather.com, the Weather Channel and Universe Today.


    Brian Emfinger / www.realclearwx.com

    Photographer Brian Emfinger captured this view of the northern lights from a spot near Ozark, Ark.

    Arkansas photographer Brian Emfinger was alerted to the northern lights by SpaceWeather.com's aurora alert. "I ran out and put my camera out and immediately saw reddish aurora," he wrote. "I ran out into the field, and within a few minutes the aurora went crazy!"

    Randy Halverson / Dakotalapse.com

    Photographer Randy Halverson saw a beautiful green and red aurora over Wisconsin.

    Photographer Randy Halverson captured a whole string of auroral pictures from a vantage point west of Madison, Wis., with his 16-year-old son, River. Father and son were amazed to see how bright the lights were. "At one point they were so bright they lit up the ground," Randy wrote.

    Richard Miller

    Richard Miller was visiting Washington Court House, Ohio, when he snapped this picture of the reddish aurora.

    Richard Miller, a resident of London, was visiting Washington Court House, Ohio, when he snapped a picture of the red glow over the neighborhood. "Seeing the Aurora Borealis on my family visit to Ohio made the trip one to remember," Miller told me in an email. "As an amateur astronomer, I've never seen anything like it before."

    David DelaGardelle / maddwarfworkshop.com

    David DelaGardelle snapped this picture of the northern lights as he was heading home from his Indiana workshop.

    David DelaGardelle, who's a full-time blacksmith/swordmaker/artisan in Indiana, was driving home from his Mad Dwarf Workshop when he saw the spectacle. He said he was awestruck by the sight of "blood-red northern lights aflame in the night sky."

    Jeff Berkes

    Pennsylvania photographer Jeff Berkes captured a quick image of the auroral glow.

    Jeff Berkes, a Pennsylvania photographer who shared a photo of the Orionid meteor shower with us earlier today, also sent in a quick snapshot of the northern lights. "They were only out for a few minutes, and I was only able to get off five shots, two of which were blurry from the car shaking," he wrote in an email.

    The cause of the show was a coronal mass ejection from the sun that hit Earth's magnetosphere at about 2 p.m. ET, SpaceWeather.com reported.

    The impact caused a strong compression in the magnetic field, allowing electrically charged particles from the solar wind to penetrate down to geosynchronous orbit (22,000 miles or 35,000 kilometers in altitude). That means Earth-orbiting satellites could have been exposed to the solar storm, analysts said.

    Solar activity is on the upswing toward an expected peak of the sun's 11-year cycle in 2013, and the past few months have been marked by strong auroral activity. Here's a picture of an aurora as seen from the International Space Station on Sept. 29 as it flew over the midwestern United States.

    Consult NASA's Earth Observatory website to get your bearings, and watch this QuickTime video for a moving experience of the space station's flyover:

    NASA

    This greenish auroral display was seen from the International Space Station on Sept. 29 as the orbital outpost was passing over the American Midwest. The city lights of Omaha, Des Moines, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Chicago and St. Louis are visible below.

    All these pictures may be pretty, but stronger solar storms can have a significant downside: They could disrupt satellite communication as well as power grids. There were no immediate indications that tonight's bout of space weather caused significant problems.

    More auroral glories:


    Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter or adding me to your Google+ circle. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for other worlds.

  • Barbers call on banks to 'take a haircut' at Occupy Wall Street

    Kathy Willens / AP

    Jorge Santiago, left, and Joe Morales of the New England Barbers Association give free haircuts to volunteers Richard Hirsh, left, and C.J. Holm, who wear capes bearing the names of large financial institutions, in front of Occupy Wall Street headquarters at Zuccotti Park in New York, Monday, Oct. 24, 2011. The stunt involving a half-dozen barbers was designed to call attention to the banking term.

    Kathy Willens / AP

    Sporting a "99%" haircut himself, barber Steve Vilot, of Sims Barbers in Pittsfield, Mass., gives a haircut to Joe Arbini at Occupy Wall Street headquarters in front of Zuccotti Park on Monday in New York City.

    Justin Lane / EPA

    Steve Vilot and Matthew Ketchum give haircuts to two men wearing aprons with the names of banks on the front as part of an action called 'The Banks Need a Haircut' at the Occupy Wall Street encampment in New York City on Monday.

     

    AP reports:

    NEW YORK — Some barbers descended on New York's Occupy Wall Street protest — cutting hair while suggesting bankers "take a haircut."

    That's a banking term meaning adjusting a loan.

    On Monday afternoon, the half dozen barbers set up chairs on Broadway. Each wore a top with the name of a big financial institution.

    Barber Steve Vilot (vee-LOH') says he hopes the free haircuts inspire banks to ease the debts of families in danger of losing their homes.

    Michael Kink heads the Stronger Economy for All Coalition.

    He says banks are happy to "take a haircut" when it comes to the privileged 1 percent. But he says Wall Street could jump-start the economy with cuts for the other 99 percent.

  • Jeff Berkes

    Photographer Jeff Berkes' picture of an Orionid meteor streak over Elverson, Pa., also features autumn leaves.

    Catch a falling star ... and fall colors

    The Orionid meteor shower is one of the highlights of the fall season for skywatchers, generally sparking up to 15 meteor sightings an hour during its peak on Oct. 21-22. But how often is it that you experience the glories of the night sky and the glories of autumn at the same time? Photographer Jeff Berkes' picture of an Orionid meteor streak over Elverson, Pa., manages to provide exactly that sort of double autumnal delight.

    "The sky was crystal clear and a moody fog was rising off the lake when I set up my camera at 1 o'clock Saturday morning," Berkes told SpaceWeather.com. "The Orionids were streaking bright, and I counted a couple dozen during the night."

    This year turned out to be stellar for the Orionids: Reports gathered by the International Meteor Organization indicate that some observers could spot more than 25 meteors an hour during the peak. That bounty is also reflected in the photos that were sent in to SpaceWeather.com. To my mind, a picture taken by Mark Staples, looking across the fog on Little Lake Santa Fe in Florida, sets the proper mood for autumnal skywatching.

    If you missed Saturday's peak, never fear: The Orionid show will still be playing nightly, albeit at lower activity levels, from now until around mid-November. Two somewhat weaker meteor showers, the North and South Taurids, are kicking in as well, reaching peaks on Nov. 5-6 and Nov. 11-12. Then, on the night of Nov. 17-18, the Leonid meteor shower hits prime time.

    In past years, the Leonids created quite a stir, but this year the last-quarter moon will interfere with peak viewing. Fortunately, there are ways to maximize your viewing experience, even during a mediocre meteor show. To refresh your memory, here's a top-10 list of viewing tips:

    1. Pick a viewing spot far away from city lights, where the skies are likely to be clear and wide-open. Higher elevations are usually better than lower elevations.
    2. For help in site selection, you can check out the Clear Sky Chart website, which provides weather conditions for skywatching ... and links to popular viewing locations on a state-by-state basis. Your local astronomy club can also point you in the right direction.
    3. Bring a blanket or a chaise lounge to lie back on. Have layers of clothing available in case the air turns chilly at night. Bring snacks or drinks. Bring a flashlight so you can find your way through the dark.
    4. Bring a music player or radio if you need a diversion. But don't forget the earphones if you're going to be alongside other groups who may not appreciate your musical taste. Frankly, the best diversion is a deep philosophical conversation with your meteor-watching friends.
    5. Don't give up too quickly. Give your eyes plenty of time to get accustomed to the dark.
    6. Meteors associated with a particular shower (for example, the Orionids, the Taurids or the Leonids) appear to emanate from a particular point in a constellation (Orion, Taurus or Leo). But don't focus exclusively on that point. The best advice is to gaze straight up, taking in as much of the night sky as you can.
    7. The later you can stay up, the better. Generally speaking, meteor shows don't get good until after midnight, when Earth is turning into the stream of meteor debris.
    8. To get a better sense of what to expect at which time, use NASA's Fluxtimator. When you click in the right coordinates for meteor shower, date, location and viewing conditions, the Java-based calculator charts what the estimated meteor flux will be at different times.
    9. If you want to share your meteor sightings with the world via Twitter — and find out where the sightings are sizzling — the MeteorWatch website is the place for you.
    10. Even if you miss seeing the falling stars of the fall season, you can experience them vicariously by checking SpaceWeather.com. And there's always another show on the horizon, such as the Geminids (peaking Dec. 13-14).

    Update for 11:30 p.m. ET: In an email, Jeff Berkes provides further details about how he captured that amazing image:

    "I left my house in West Chester, Pa., shortly after midnight and arrived at French Creek State Park in southeastern Pennsylvania around 1 a.m. on October 22. Upon arrival, I was greeted by a crystal clear sky and a moody fog rolling off the lake. I was outside for only a couple of minutes before I saw my first Orionid meteor. I knew right then it was going to be a great night. The moon beginning its ascent around 2:15 a.m. worried me a bit, but the Orionids were flying high and bright. It was 3:27 a.m. when I captured this image, my first Orionid shot of the morning. I stayed up all night while taking over 500 photos and counted close to 30 meteors. I even had enough energy from a Wawa blueberry muffin to continue shooting through sunrise, before taking the 45-minute drive home at 9 a.m.

    "I used a technique called 'light painting' to illuminate the foreground subjects in this shot. This is where I use a high-powered flashlight to light up objects up to 1,000 feet away. I spent the first 30 minutes checking out different angles before settling on this location. I usually do not like shooting directly into the moon when shooting meteors; however, with it being very low and behind the trees, it was not a problem for this bright meteor to burn itself into my sensor. Light pollution for once actually helped me out here by adding some flavor to the horizon and separating the trees from the sky. Around 2 a.m., I anchored my tripod along the water’s edge facing out over the lake, while the constellation Orion was rising higher off my right shoulder in the southeastern sky. I fixed the exposure time for the flashlight and then started popping off shots until I eventually captured one of these majestic meteors."

    Berkes used a Nikon D3 camera with a 17mm lens. ISO: 800. Exposure: 25 seconds at f/2.8.

    More about falling stars and the fall season:


    Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page or following @b0yle on Twitter. You can also add me to your Google+ circle, and check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.

  • Wrestlers throw down at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico

    This looks painful.

    Bernardo De Niz / AP

    Cuba's Yowlys Bonne, left, wrestles with Puerto Rico's Franklin Gomez during the wrestling men's freestyle 60kg semifinals at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, Monday, Oct. 24, 2011.

    Henry Romero / Reuters

    Yowlys Bonne (blue) of Cuba pins Canada's Ryley Walker during their men's freestyle 60kg wrestling quarter-final at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara Oct. 24, 2011.

    Henry Romero / Reuters

    Mexico's Guillermo Torres (red) pins Fernando Iglesias of Argentina during their men's freestyle 60kg wrestling semi-final at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara Oct. 24, 2011.

  • What do 7 billion people look like?

    Paulo Santos / Reuters

    Roman Catholic pilgrims press together while following the image of the local saint, Our Lady of Nazareth, as it is paraded Oct. 11, 2009, during the annual Cirio de Nazare procession, the country's biggest religious festival, in Belem, at the mouth of the Amazon River. More than 1 million Catholics, many from communities along the Amazon River's tributaries, converged on Our Lady of Nazareth basilica to participate in the event.

    Reuters

    People crowd in a swimming pool to escape a summer heat wave July 4, 2010, in Suining, China.

    As the world population explodes, so does the growth of cities, especially in Asia and Africa.

    Globally, one in two people lives in an urban area, a milestone reached in 2007, says the United Nations Population Fund, the agency that predicts world population will reach 7 billion on Oct. 31.

    In about 35 years, two out of three people will live in cities and towns, the agency predicts.

    Nicky Loh / Reuters

    Motorists crowd at a junction during rush hour in Taipei on Oct. 29, 2009. There are around 8.8 million motorcycles and 4.8 million cars on Taiwan's roads. Nearly all motor vehicles and inhabitants are squeezed into a third of the island's area, resulting in high concentrations of polluting emissions in the places where people live and work, according to official reports.

    Morris Macmatzen / Reuters

    Sunbathers and roofed wicker beach chairs line up along the beach on the bay of Travemuende, a popular holiday resort at the Baltic sea near the northern German city of Luebeck, on Aug. 5, 2007.

    The fastest growth is seen in sub-Saharan Africa, which has the world's highest birthrates and deepest poverty. The regional population of nearly 900 million could reach 2 billion in 40 years.

    "Most of that growth will be in Africa's cities, and in those cities it will almost all be in slums where living conditions are horrible," said John Bongaarts of the Population Council, a New York-based research organization.

    Akintunde Akinleye / Reuters

    A man walks on a pedestrian bridge overlooking traffic in Lagos, Nigeria, on Sept. 18, 2006.

    Nigeria’s commercial capital, Lagos, with an estimated 15 million people and a 6 percent growth rate, is expected to overtake Cairo soon as Africa's largest city. Problems with traffic congestion, sanitation and water supplies are staggering; a recent article in UN-Habitat said two-thirds of the residents live in poverty.

    India is Asia’s second-largest country with 1.2 billion people, but by 2030 it may surpass No. 1 China, now with 1.34 billion people.

    Reuters

    A view of a residential building in Shanghai on March 18, 2009.

    Reuters

    Job-seekers crowd a job fair in Wuhan, China, on March 17, 2007. Unemployment could be long-term trouble for China, with the number of jobless urban residents alone exceeding 15 million, the China Information News quoted a senior official as saying, Xinhua News Agency reported.

    Across India, teeming slums, congested streets, and crowded trains and trams are testimony to the country's burgeoning population.

    At 6 p.m. on a typical evening in Mumbai, India's financial hub, 7 million commuters swarm out of their offices and head to railway stations for rides home on an overtaxed suburban rail network. Every few minutes, as a train enters the station, the crowd surges forward.

    Every ride is a scramble. Each car is jam-packed; sometimes, riders die when they lose their foothold while clinging to the doors.

    - msnbc.com editors Natalia Jimenez and Jim Gold, with wire service reports.

    For more information: Beijing's 'hubs' haven't curbed population pressures

    See more images and posts related to the seven billion population milestone

    K.K. Arora / Reuters

    Hindu devotees travel on a crowded passenger train to take part in the "Guru Purnima" festival near Mathura, India on July 24, 2010.

     

  • Fayaz Aziz / Reuters

    An internally displaced girl from Bara looks through a scarf covering her face while sitting amid other women waiting to be registered at the Jalozai camp, supported by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in Pakistan's northwest Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province on October 24. Families continue to evacuate Bara on Monday as the Pakistan army geared up for an operation against militants in the Khyber tribal region, local media reported.

    Pakistan families evacuate Bara region before operation against militants

    For more of the latest images from Pakistan click here to see the slideshow.

  • Scrambling for shelter in Turkey following the earthquake

    Mustafa Ozer / AFP - Getty Images

    Residents grab tents from Turkish Red Crescent track, one day after the 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck in the Ercis province of Van, in eastern Turkey, on October 24, 2011.

    Mustafa Ozer / AFP - Getty Images

    Turkish men sleep on a couch in the street following the earthquake in the Ercis province of Van, in eastern Turkey, on October 24, 2011.

    Aid organizations are rushing to provide temporary shelter for the earthquake survivors in Turkey. Full story.

    More photos in our slideshow.

  • Thailand residents paddle through Bangkok as flooding worsens

    Apichart Weerawong / AP

    A man pushes his boat with a passenger past a shop selling Buddha images in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, Oct. 24. Bangkok Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra issued a dramatic warning to residents of the Thai capital to prepare for floodwaters to roll deeper into the city from suburban areas already choking under the deluge.

    Bazuki Muhammad / Reuters

    A general view of highways partially submerged in the floodwaters in Bangkok Oct. 24. More districts of Thailand's capital were on high alert on Monday with floods bearing down from northern Bangkok and authorities faced a race against time to pump water towards the sea and defend the business district.

    Narong Sangnak / EPA

    Thai volunteers set the place for flood affected people residing at Sports Science Centre inside The Rajamangala National Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, Oct. 24. Some 3,500 flood affected people will be moved from Thammasat University Rangsit campus to Ratchamangkala Stadium, as the university is under water and power and tap water supplies have been cut. Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra warned people in parts of Bangkok to expect floods as water from northern provinces had reached the capital.

    The governor of Bangkok issued a dramatic warning to residents of the Thai capital to prepare for floodwaters to roll deeper into the city from suburban areas already choking under the deluge. In live televised remarks late Sunday, Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra said a massive amount of water has moved faster than anticipated. Full story.

  • Rescued! Survivors pulled from earthquake rubble in Turkey

    Reuters

    A rescue worker carries a boy to an ambulance after his team found him alive in a collapsed building in Ercis, Turkey, Oct.24, 2011.

    Tolga Bozoglu / EPA

    Rescue workers carry a wounded man from a collapsed building after a powerful earthquake rocked eastern Turkey, in the city of Ercis, Turkey, Oct. 24.

    Reuters

    A rescue worker carrying a girl runs to an ambulance after his team found her alive in a collapsed building in Ercis, Oct. 24.

    Umit Bektas / Reuters

    A man searches for his relatives in a collapsed building after an earthquake in Ercis, Turkey, early Octo. 24. Rescue teams worked through the night to try to free survivors crying for help from under rubble.

    Today hope is alive in Ercis as survivors are pulled from underneath collapsed buildings, though they expect the death toll to be in the hundreds.

    Full story.

    Updated 9:01am ET: New story of survival, 'Fiance saves woman from beneath quake's rubble'

    More images in our slideshow.

  • Darrin Zammit Lupi / Reuters

    A cavalryman of the British historical re-enactment team of the 17th Lancers reacts as his horse gets too close to spectators during the Fort Rinella Military Festival at Fort Rinella coastal battery in Kalkara Malta, Oct. 23. Fort Rinella was built by the British Royal Engineers in 1878 as part of a set of four equally designed coastal batteries in Gibraltar and Malta. Each fort was armed with a single 100-ton gun, none of which were ever fired in anger.

    Horse and rider get too close for comfort during festival in Malta

    I'm not sure who looks more surprised.

  • John Kolesidis / Reuters

    A man fishes in front of immobilized ships during the seventh day of seamen strike at the port of Piraeus near Athens, Greece, Oct. 23. Greek seamen will extend their strike protesting against government austerity measures to Tuesday, a move which could keep most passenger ferries docked at ports.

    Fisherman takes advantage of quiet port as Greek seamen extend strike

    Read more about the austerity measures in Greece here.

  • Armando Franca / AP

    Grape pickers dance while treading grapes in a traditional stone tank at Quinta do Vesuvio vineyard, Sept. 19, near the village of Foz Coa, northern Portugal. After spending the day picking grapes on the slopes of the Douro Valley, in the evening the workers tread the grapes to be used in the production of Port wine. Port wine sales have been falling steadily since the turn of the century, jeopardizing the livelihoods and way of life of thousands of people along the Douro Valley. Picture received Oct. 23.

    Grape pickers dance while treading grapes in Portugal

    .

  • Ali Ihsan Ozturk / Anadolu Agency via Reuters

    Rescue workers try to save people trapped under debris after an earthquake in a village near the eastern Turkish city of Van Oct. 23. Turkey's Kandilli Observatory estimates that some 500 to 1,000 people were killed in a powerful earthquake in southeast Turkey's Van province on Sunday. Separately, Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay told reporters some 10 buildings had collapsed in Van city and around 25-30 buildings collapsed in the nearby district of Ercis.

    'Many dead' as powerful earthquake rocks Turkey

    According to NBC, msnbc.com and news services:

    A powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Turkey Sunday, collapsing about 45 buildings according to the deputy prime minister.

    Only one death was immediately confirmed, but scientists estimated that up to 1,000 people could have been killed.

    The worst damage was caused to the town of Ercis, in the mountainous eastern province of Van, close to the Iranian border. The city of Van also suffered substantial damage.

    "Around 10 buildings have collapsed in the city of Van and around 25 or 30 have collapsed in Ercis, including a dormitory," Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay said.

    Read the full story here.

  • Tim Sharp / Reuters

    St. Louis Cardinals' Albert Pujols hits a solo home run, his third home run of the game, in front of Texas Rangers catcher Yorvit Torrealba during the ninth Inning of Game 3 of the World Series in Arlington, Texas, Oct. 22.

    Pujols' historic 3-homer night carries Cardinals in Game 3

    AP reports:

    Albert Pujols joined Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson as the only players to hit three home runs in a World Series game, tying records with five hits and six RBIs that led the Cardinals to a 16-7 rout of the Texas Rangers on Saturday night that gave St. Louis a 2-1 Series lead.

    Read the full story here.

  • Mark Cunningham / Getty Images

    B.J. Cunningham #3 and Keith Nichol #7 of the Michigan State Spartans celebrate Nichol catching a game-winning 44 yard touchdown pass from Kirk Cousins as time ran out to defeat the Wisconsin Badgers 37-31 at Spartan Stadium on Oct. 22, in East Lansing, Michigan.

    No. 4 Wisconsin stunned by Michigan State on last-second Hail Mary

    AP reports:

    With 4 seconds left, Cousins rolled out to his right and threw it about as far as he could. The ball went into the end zone but caromed off Michigan State receiver B.J. Cunningham's facemask back to Nichol, who caught it just outside the end zone and struggled for the goal line, fighting two Wisconsin defenders and just barely breaking the plane.

    The former backup quarterback was initially ruled short of the end zone, but officials overturned the call after a review, giving the Spartans (6-1, 3-0 Big Ten) the win and knocking the Badgers (6-1, 2-1) from the ranks of the unbeaten.

    Read the full story here.

  • Chris O'meara/AP

    IndyCar drivers Tony Kanaan, left, of Brazil, Scott Dixon, of New Zealand, third from left, and Dario Franchitti, of Scotland, right, carry the coffin of fellow driver Dan Wheldon after funeral services Saturday, Oct 22, in St. Petersburg, Fla. Wheldon was killed Oct. 16, in a fiery 15-car crash at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    Dan Wheldon's memorial service held in Florida

    AP reports:

    Of all the indelible moments from Dan Wheldon's public memorial service — fellow IndyCar drivers Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan serving as pallbearers, his father carrying his racing helmet and country music star Wynonna Judd singing two gripping songs — the heart-wrenching letter from his wife cut deepest.

    Susie Wheldon's letter to Dan left few eyes dry in the First Presbyterian Church of St. Petersburg.

    Read the full story here.

  • John Brecher / msnbc.com

    People walk atop the Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle on Saturday, October 22.

    Seattle allows pedestrians on elevated highway before demolition

    Following years of debate, Seattle is doing away with its elevated highway structure - the Alaskan Way Viaduct - and replacing it with a tunnel. The earthquake-vulnerable section of State Route 99 runs north-south, sitting between downtown Seattle and the waterfront.

    As the project began on a rainy Saturday morning, the city allowed people three hours to walk atop the old highway.

    More coverage from the Seattle Times and seattlepi.com.

  • AFP - Getty Images

    Indian girls hold up their name change certificates during a ceremony in Satara, some 250kms from Mumbai, on Oct. 22. More than 100 Indian girls named "Unwanted" by their parents are to get new names this weekend as part of a campaign to tackle bias against women that has led to the country's huge gender imbalance. The girls named "Nakusa", which means "unwanted" in the local Marathi language of western Maharashtra state, got rid of their first name for good under an initiative in the district of Satara.

    285 girls make fresh start in India by changing their names from 'Unwanted'

    Names are such a powerful thing. So many people who name a child stew over the decision since there are so many things to consider: Does the name lend itself to teasing in school? Is it a strong name? How does it sound with the last name? Will the name age well? How sad that a couple would permanently label a person with what they were feeling about her arrival if the child was unwanted.

    On a more personal note, my father and his brother felt so strongly about the last name that they carried from their stepfather who adopted them and who was later quite abusive, that they changed their last name when they entered college. They did not wish to offend either set of grandparents who was related by blood by not choosing their last name, so they chose something that wasn't even listed in their local phone book and that sounded strong to them, so Cannon it was. I have to say I think they did a good job, as when I married, I decided to keep it, not because it was some great feminist statement, but I just because I like my name.

    Liking your name is important for your self-confidence, so good for these young ladies.

    According to AP:

    In shedding names like "Nakusa" or "Nakushi," which mean "unwanted" in Hindi, some girls chose to name themselves after Bollywood stars like "Aishwarya" or Hindu goddesses like "Savitri." Some just wanted traditional names with happier meanings, such as "Vaishali" or "prosperous, beautiful and good."

    "Now in school, my classmates and friends will be calling me this new name, and that makes me very happy," said a 15-year-old girl who had been named Nakusa by a grandfather disappointed by her birth. She chose the new name "Ashmita," which means "very tough" or "rock hard" in Hindi.

    Read the full story here.

  • Competition heats up at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico

    Andy Clark / Reuters

    Colombia's Yesid Meneses, bottom throws Venezuela's Luis Liendo during their Men's 60 kg wrestling match at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Oct. 21, 2011. The Games run through Oct. 30.

    The U.S. team leads the medal count at the Pan Am Games even though, as AP reports, many of the country’s best athletes aren’t competing.

    "At the end of the day, I think the scheduling of these games was a little bit more challenging than normal just because it was October instead of the summer," United States Olympic Committee secretary general Scott Blackmun said a day before the opening ceremony in Guadalajara.

    "Much of our team historically is comprised of collegiate athletes who are in their college seasons or otherwise in school right now," Blackmun added. "In other cases we had some scheduling challenges. The best example of that I think is the gymnastics championships in Tokyo. We had athletes competing there up until a couple of days ago. It is not safe for them to go straight from one competition to another." Read more…

    Nathan Denette / AP

    Canada's Samantha Cornett, left, plays against Colombia's Catalina Pelaez for the gold medal in the Women's team squash event on Oct. 21. Canada won gold.

    Jorge Silva / Reuters

    Colombia's synchronized swimming team performs during the free routine finals on Friday.

    Raul Arboleda / AFP - Getty Images

    Panamanin Eliecer Navarro pitches during his team's game against the U.S. on Friday. The U.S. won 9-5.

    Related stories

  • Steve Helber / AP

    Members of the Virginia Supreme Court applaud new Justice, Cleo Elaine Powell, right, after her remarks during investiture ceremonies in the court chambers in Richmond, Va., Friday, Oct. 21. Members of the court are from left, Justice Elizabeth McClanahan, Justice LeRoy Millette, Jr., Justice Donald Lemons, Chief Justice Cynthia Kinser, Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn, Justice William Mims.

    Virginia Supreme Court swears in first African-American woman justice

    Virginia Lawyers Weekly reports:

    Justice Cleo Elaine Powell was invested earlier today as the 102nd justice and the first African-American woman to serve on the Supreme Court of Virginia.

    Powell, who first took the bench in the general district court of Chesterfield County and Colonial Heights 18 years ago, also joins the elite group of justices who have served at every level of Virginia’s state court system.

Jump to October 2011 archive page: 1 ... 3 4 5 6 7 ... 18