AP - Hewlett-Packard Co. is suing Mark Hurd, the chief executive it ousted last month, to stop him from taking a top job at rival Oracle Corp.

Reuters - BP Plc's internal probe of the deadly April 20 blowout that unleashed the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill will assign blame to BP as well as other companies involved in the well's operations, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

Reuters - BP Plc's internal probe of the deadly April 20 blowout that unleashed the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill will assign blame to BP as well as other companies involved in the well's operations, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

AFP - A US federal judge denied Tuesday the White House's request to drop his decision to temporarily block federal funding for embryonic stem cell research pending an appeal of the decision.

AP - Motorists should see pump prices slide again after spending a little more to fill their tanks over the Labor Day weekend.

AFP - Oil prices were mixed Tuesday as traders reacted to news of an explosion at a Mexican oil refinery.

AFP - BP has announced it will publish an eagerly awaited report on the causes of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill on Wednesday.

AFP - YouTube has begun offering glimpses into a day in life around the world.

AFP - A former State Department official credited with helping bring social networking and other Web 2.0 tools to US diplomacy has been tapped to head a new division at Google called "Google Ideas."

Reuters - The U.S. National Institutes of Health said on Tuesday it would use $10 million from BP to start a multiyear study to look at the potential health effects from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

AFP - Global efforts to improve access to drinking water have been hampered by rapid urbanisation, with the proportion of people in urban areas with access actually declining, according to UN figures presented at a conference in Stockholm this week.

AFP - Estimates of the rate of ice loss from Greenland and West Antarctica, one of the most worrying questions in the global warming debate, should be halved, according to Dutch and US scientists.

Reuters - Increasingly erratic rainfall patterns related to climate change pose a major threat to food security and economic growth, water experts said on Monday, arguing for greater investment in water storage.

AP - Oil prices fell to near $74 a barrel Tuesday in Asia as investors mull the strength of the U.S. economy and demand for crude.

AFP - The drought in Russia and floods in Pakistan are part of a global trend of unpredictable weather patterns and rainfall that threaten food security, experts gathered in Stockholm said.

AFP - Greenpeace urged Japan on Tuesday to probe graft claims in its state-funded whaling programme, a day after two of its activists received suspended jail terms for committing theft during an investigation.

AP - The Justice Department won't say if the blowout preventer that failed to stop oil from gushing from BP's undersea well into the Gulf of Mexico is on its way to shore.

AP - The Justice Department won't say if the blowout preventer that failed to stop oil from gushing from BP's undersea well into the Gulf of Mexico is on its way to shore.

AFP - Europe slapped a summons on German chemical giant BASF on Monday after a "blunder" allowed seed from a new genetically modified potato to remain in a field in Sweden.

AP - In a country of dense rain forests with few paved roads, boarding an overcrowded boat on a treacherous river is simply a way of life. This weekend, journeys on the dangerous waterways stole the lives of up to 270 people.

AFP - Eager to move past the devastating Gulf of Mexico oil spill and celebrate a local tradition, thousands of people flocked this weekend to Louisiana's annual Shrimp and Petroleum Festival.

Reuters - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was confident a law extending the lives of nuclear power reactors could be passed without backing from the upper house of parliament, setting up a clash with opposition parties.

AFP - Over 70 environmental NGOs including the WWF called Monday for the sacking of Romania's new agriculture minister for his links to the genetically modified crop industry.

Reuters - U.S. oil prices slipped below $74 per barrel on Monday as the end of the U.S. driving season and high levels of unemployment in the world's biggest oil consumer raised concerns over the outlook for demand.