Ridley Scott's Robin Hood to open Cannes

British director Ridley Scott's new film Robin Hood, starring Russell Crowe, has been selected to open the annual Cannes Film Festival in May.The film, about the birth of the Robin Hood legend, also stars Cate Blanchett as Maid Marian, and William...

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Russian appeal of 'weather control'

Standing by an open hatch on a Russian military plane high up in the sky is tricky.All the more so when your job is to "seed" clouds, shovelling chemicals outside to cause rain. These seeded clouds never make it to Moscow, where millions are enjoying...

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Google's rift with China is a calculated business risk

Google's move into China four years ago was billed by some people as a battle between the irresistible force and the immovable object.The inexorable expansion of the internet - epitomised by Google - would never exist happily in a command economy...

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Multiple Choice Question

Celebrities like to out-do each other in the strange-name stakes. Actor Nicholas Cage has a child named Kal-El, after the birth name of which comic book charac...

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Your pictures of the week: Lazy

Here's our weekly look at your pictures and this time we asked you for photographs on the theme of being lazy.We received more than 250 entries this week, so once again I offer my thanks to all of you who submitted work.You can see the ones I have selected...

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US schools grapple with gay rights at the school prom

When officials at a small high school in rural Mississippi cancelled the annual prom, little did they know they would trigger a passionate national debate.For many American teenagers, the high-school prom is a rite of passage on the path to adulthood....

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'Pirate' death puts spotlight on 'guns for hire'

The death of a suspected pirate off the coast of Somalia has drawn attention to the use of armed private security contractors on board merchant vessels.The incident, which involved guards aboard the Panamanian-flagged MV Almezaan, is believed to be the...

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The hospital of the future

Norman Foster, the man whose practice brought us the Gherkin, Beijing Airport, and the Great Court at the British Museum has until now had nothing to do with healthcare.That has all changed, however, as his first hospital opens amid bold claims that...

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Late blooming daffodils spark web appeal in Cumbria

Tourism chiefs in Cumbria are encouraging people to "tweet" online should they spot a blooming daffodil in the Lake District.The daffodils, made famous by William Wordsworth, are more than a month late this year following the cold winter. One of...

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US plans to give high-speed broadband to every American

US regulators have unveiled the nation's first plan to give every American super-fast broadband by 2020.The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which will now submit the plan to Congress, said broadband was the "greatest infrastructure challenge"....

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Japan aims its home fuel cells at Europe

Following the success of a half-price subsidy for CO2-busting fuel-cell heat and energy generators for homes, Japan is now poised to ship its attention to supplying the UK and Germany with this hi-tech next-generation energy source.With over 5,000...

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Hollywood plans turkey tale movie

The story of a woman who was stranded by snow for a month after she popped out to buy a Christmas turkey could be made into a Hollywood film.A company has bought the rights to the story of Kay Ure, who lives with husband John in Cape Wrath, in the...

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Divide Nigeria in two, says Muammar Gaddafi

Nigeria should be divided into two nations to avoid further bloodshed between Muslims and Christians, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has said.In a speech to students, he praised the example of India and Pakistan, where he said partition saved many...

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US sends FBI agents to investigate Mexico killings

American FBI agents have been sent to the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez to investigate the deaths of three US citizens.Three people connected to the consulate were killed in drive-by shootings on Saturday in two separate incidents. The US...

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Weymouth ridgeway skeletons 'Scandinavian Vikings'

Fifty-one decapitated skeletons found in a burial pit in Dorset were those of Scandinavian Vikings, scientists say.Mystery has surrounded the identity of the group since they were discovered at Ridgeway Hill, near Weymouth, in June. Analysis of teeth...

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Brazil entrepreneurs thrive on the web

The internet is transforming people's lives in many different ways around the world - but is it making us individually richer and, if so, how?Brazil is a country with a foot in two camps - part rich, mainly poor, so it's a good place to take the financial...

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Sebastian Pinera sees Chile plans jolted by earthquake

Sebastian Pinera will face one of the most daunting challenges ever confronted by a Chilean president when he takes office on Thursday, less than two weeks after the country was hit by a massive earthquake.He has already acknowledged that his pre-election...

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Lessons from Iraq's first-time voters

In 2006 and 2007, Osama Salim didn't miss a single day's school at Baghdad College for boys.That was quite an achievement. Baghdad College is in Adhamiya, a largely Sunni Muslim district of Baghdad which for months was occupied and menaced by al Qaeda...

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Mystery of 75 starlings falling from the sky

The deaths of 75 starlings which appeared to fall from the sky and crash land on to a driveway in Somerset has mystified the RSPCA animal charity.The birds were spotted falling onto the entrance of a house in Coxley in Somerset on Sunday 7 March....

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Afghanistan does not want 'proxy wars', says Karzai

Afghanistan does not want other countries' "proxy wars" fought on its soil, President Hamid Karzai has said.He was speaking following talks with Pakistani leaders in Islamabad, and a day after Iran and the US traded blows over their activities in...

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Sweden to extradite Auschwitz sign theft suspect

A court in Stockholm has ruled that a Swedish man can be extradited to Poland to face trial over the theft of a sign from the Auschwitz death camp.Investigators accuse Anders Hogstrom, 34, of instigating the theft of the infamous Arbeit Macht Frei...

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Bank of America sued for seizing parrot

Bank of America has apologised to a woman in Pennsylvania after one of its contractors entered her house, damaged furniture and confiscated her parrot.Angela Iannelli has filed a lawsuit alleging that the incident in October caused her so much "emotional...

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Camberley mosque plan rejected by council

Plans to build a mosque in Camberley have been thrown out by councillors.The local Bengali Association's bid to build a mosque on the site of a listed former school building was rejected by Surrey Heath Borough Council. Local historians and residents...

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Drone raid 'kills 12' in north-west Pakistan

Two missile strikes by US drone aircraft have killed at least 12 suspected militants in north-west Pakistan, security officials say.The attacks took place in the tribal area of North Waziristan. The identities of those killed in the attack, the latest...

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Pakistan cricket crackdown 'five years too late'

Pakistani cricket is at a crossroads once again.The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), headed by former Test cricketer Ijaz Butt, finally woke up from a deep slumber on Wednesday to dish out unprecedented penalties to a number of leading cricketers. In...

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