Today, President Obama hosted His Majesty the Sultan of Brunei for a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office to affirm the relationship between our two countries that dates back more than 160 years. The two leaders discussed their shared interest in a strong, peaceful, and prosperous Asia-Pacific region, and continued cooperation between our nations on a range [...]

In America, “Harlem Shake” may be the top pop single. In Egypt and Tunisia, there’s some serious Harlem shaking going on. And it’s causing leaders to tremble as it becomes a potent symbol of protest, revolt and defiance. Take the kids in the video at a school in Tunisia. They danced en masse to the [...]

New York City’s planned ban on the sale of large sugary drinks won’t go into effect Tuesday after a state judge blocked the restrictions, calling them “arbitrary and capricious.” “The court finds that the regulation … is laden with exceptions based on economic and political concerns,” Justice Milton Tingling wrote. The mayor’s office quickly vowed [...]

Maple-bacon biscuits. Chocolate-dipped donuts. A lavish spread of eggs. Is there any meal more comforting than breakfast? Whatever time zone you wake up in, the best breakfasts will brighten your mood, fortify you for the day, and give you a taste of daily life in that destination. Our short list of memorable breakfasts, part of [...]

Tracking device broadcasts signal that can be tracked by computer or smartphone. As people are living longer, and more and more are suffering from dementia, medical professionals are increasingly looking to science and technology to come up with new tools to help people remain independent and keep them safe A new type of shoe with [...]

Whenever the U.S. Transportation Security Administration changes the way it screens passengers, it’s bound to cause a stir. This time is no different. The TSA’s move this week to allow small pocket knives on airplanes has generated a storm of criticism and concern among aviation professionals and passengers alike. Critics are outraged by a new [...]

Thousands jam streets of Caracas as late president’s body is moved to military academy in advance of state funeral. Venezuelans have begun seven days of national mourning after the announcement that their president, Hugo Chavez, died aged 58 after a long battle against cancer. His coffin was taken on Wednesday from the military hospital where he died to a [...]

Marissa Mayer might be a trendsetter. Just one week after the Yahoo CEO banned telecommuting at her company, Best Buy is ending its own flexible work program. Unlike Yahoo’s blanket policy, Best Buy  said some of the 4,000 non-store employees who took advantage of its work-from home program still may be able to telecommute or set flexible [...]

They built it, but the shoppers didn’t come. New South China Mall in Guangdong Province opened in 2005. With 5 million square feet of shopping area, the mall can accommodate2,350 stores, making it the largest shopping center in the world in terms of leasable space — more than twice the size of Mall of America, [...]

The Armenian Genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Empire is the most cited “other Holocaust” in modern history, but it is historically the first event to be called “genocide.” What you might have known is that the targets were their own Christian citizens. What might surprise you is that Turkey still denies it ever [...]

Politics trumped progress on Friday as President Barack Obama and Republican leaders traded blame for $85 billion in forced spending cuts after they failed to come up with a compromise to avert the harshest impacts. The president signed an order required by law that set in motion the automatic, government-wide cuts. Obama and congressional leaders [...]

Farmers in North Sulawesi failing to see the benefits despite growing global demand for coconut products There is a growing global demand for coconut products, but many farmers are not seeing the benefits. In Indonesia, which has the world’s largest plantations, this boom does not come as good news to all. Al Jazeera’s Step Vaessen went [...]

From Tuesday until Friday, Indonesia is hosting an interfaith conference of Asian Christian and Muslim leaders, jointly held by the Indonesian-based International Conference of Islamic Scholars (ICIS), the Indonesian Bishops Conference (KWI), and the Indonesian Church Association (PGI). The Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences and the Christian Conference of Asia also support the gathering. This [...]

Head of Catholic Church concludes pontificate with departure from Vatican to retreat in Italian town of Castel Gandolfo. Benedict XVI’s reign as pope has come to an end amid the ringing of church bells in Vatican City. The Swiss Guards went off duty on Thursday at 1900 GMT after closing the high doors to the papal [...]

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has decided to question former Indonesian finance minister and World Bank managing director Sri Mulyani Indrawati again in relation to the long-running Bank Century bailout scandal. However, they have yet to figure out exactly how they’re going to go about it. “It’s true, we have a problem with questioning Sri [...]

Very rarely do I ever see my family embrace the outdoor experience, and tough it out in the elements of nature. Our past trips to various national parks were more for the sake of taking some pictures and crossing the destination off of our lists, rather than for any personal interest towards nature. Even my [...]