Powerball jackpot could go higher than $600 million

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The Powerball jackpot Saturday night could exceed the $600 million figure being advertised, possibly rivaling the largest lottery payoff in U.S. history, a Texas Lottery official said on Saturday.

EU finds time to tell restaurants how to serve olive oil

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Critics ridiculed European Union bureaucrats on Saturday for taking time off fighting the euro zone's debt crisis to impose strict new rules on how restaurants serve olive oil.

Canadian astronaut wrestles with gravity after spaceflight

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - Back on Earth, Canadian astronaut and cyberspace tweeter Chris Hadfield is getting a rough re-introduction to gravity after a five-month stint aboard the International Space Station, the former commander told reporters during a video webcast from Houston.

Dancer says showgirls dressed as Obama, nuns at Berlusconi party

MILAN (Reuters) - The nightclub dancer at the center of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's "bunga bunga" sex trial told a court on Friday that guests at the media tycoon's parties dressed as nuns, nurses and U.S. President Barack Obama.

Idaho man sentenced to seven years for killing zoo monkey

(Reuters) - An Idaho man who admitted to breaking into a Boise zoo last year and killing a monkey was sentenced to seven years in prison on Thursday, court records show.

Los Angeles ranked worst U.S. city for dog attacks on mail carriers

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles has earned the dubious distinction for the second year in a row as the U.S. city with the most dog attacks on mail carriers, the U.S. Postal Service said.

From "bunga bunga" to "pianists" - Italy's political slang

ROME (Reuters) - An encyclopedia of Italian political slang has shone a light on a colorful and Byzantine world where lawmakers and journalists speak a language you won't find in any ordinary dictionary.

Parking meter 'Robin Hoods' provoke New Hampshire city's ire

LITTLETON, New Hampshire (Reuters) - In December James Cleaveland made an unusual New Year's resolution: to do all he could to keep police in the city of Keene, New Hampshire, from issuing parking tickets.

Turks see art as good investment but also path to prestige

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's contemporary art scene is buzzing. Collectors pay millions for the hottest works at exclusive auctions, high-end galleries are springing up by the dozen, and more and more Turkish artists are holding exhibitions abroad.

Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil dies after being hit by car

OLYMPIA, Washington (Reuters) - A man less than two weeks into a planned journey to dribble a soccer ball from his home city of Seattle to Brazil, the host nation for the 2014 World Cup, died on Tuesday after being struck by a car in Oregon, police and the man's supporters said.

U.S. justices play Shakespeare tragedy for laughs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Supreme Court justices on Monday evening sought laughs rather than legal clarity as they weighed a tragic case concerning a despotic Roman general and his overbearing mother.

Astronaut's 'Space Oddity' music video goes viral

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - A music video shot aboard the International Space Station went viral on Monday, turning an astronaut into an overnight music sensation with his zero-gravity version of David Bowie's hit "Space Oddity."

New fitness centers cater to aging baby boomers

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Baby boomers, the generation that vowed to stay forever young, are getting older, designing senior-friendly gyms and becoming their own personal trainers.

Robbers target Bieber's South Africa concert, steal $330,000

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Robbers equipped with ropes, hammers and chisels broke into a strong-room at Johannesburg's Soccer City stadium after a Justin Bieber concert and made off with 3 million rand ($330,000) in cash, local media and police said on Monday.

Eating insects could help fight obesity, U.N. says

ROME (Reuters) - The thought of eating beetles, caterpillars and ants may give you the creeps, but the authors of a U.N. report published on Monday said the health benefits of consuming nutritious insects could help fight obesity.

Michelin for the masses: Japan's standing restaurants head for New York

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's popular standing restaurants, where patrons eat food by former Michelin restaurant chefs for a fraction of the cost at a seated-restaurant, are about to hit New York.

Netanyahu takes flak over bed on a plane

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Benjamin Netanyahu is changing his mid-air sleeping arrangements after a public flap over a $127,000 custom-built bedroom for the Israeli prime minister and his wife on a flight to London last month.

Russian boy, 7, kills brother, 4, with grandfather's rifle

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A 7-year-old Russian boy told investigators he had shot and killed his 4-year-old brother by accident with their grandfather's rifle on Sunday, law enforcement authorities said.

"Too pretty" label mars South Korean boxing starlet's win

SEOUL (Reuters) - When romantic actress Lee Si-young swapped her glamorous roles in South Korean dramas for boxing gloves in a bid to win an Olympic medal, her victories triggered a storm of protest that has marred her unexpected success in the ring.

Sophia top baby name for U.S. girls; Messiah and King on the rise for boys

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Sophia tops the list of names for American baby girls for the second year in a row, while King and Messiah are becoming increasingly popular names for boys, the U.S. Social Security Administration said on Thursday.

China probes reports of film director Zhang Yimou's seven children

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese authorities have begun investigating reports that Zhang Yimou, one of China's best-known movie directors, has seven children in violation of strict family planning rules, which could result in a fine of 160 million yuan ($26.05 million), state media said on Thursday.

Texas judge rules that cheerleaders may display Bible banners

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - A Texas judge on Wednesday ruled that the "Bible banners" waved by cheerleaders during football games in a small school district are constitutionally protected free speech and that the tradition will be allowed to continue.

Arizona climber and his dog apparently stung to death by bees

PHOENIX (Reuters) - An Arizona climber has been found dead, dangling from a rope on a cliff face south of Tucson, after apparently being stung to death by bees, police said on Wednesday.

New book teaches children ABCs of Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway

OMAHA, Nebraska (Reuters) - Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc invests in dozens of businesses, and a new book tries to explain it all to young readers, from A to Z.

Japan hopes for a lift from "Abenomics" bra

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Japanese division of lingerie maker Triumph International unveiled on Wednesday an "Abenomics" bra, a special edition it says offers a "growth strategy" and a potential lift towards Japan's elusive inflation target.

British economy claims new victim: Prince Charles' veg shop

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's weak economy has taken its toll on the nation's poshest greengrocer with Prince Charles forced to close his organic vegetable store, citing falling trade and rising prices.

Authorities visited house in 2004 where Ohio women found: police

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - The three Cleveland women found alive after vanishing in their own neighborhood for about a decade were rescued from a house that authorities tried to visit several years ago, police said on Tuesday.

U.S. returning looted Tyrannosaurus skeleton to Mongolia

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A 70-million-year-old dinosaur skeleton from the Gobi Desert that was smuggled to the United States in pieces and auctioned for more than $1 million was returned on Monday by the U.S. government to Mongolia.

Mirren, dressed as queen, reads royal riot act to noisy drummers

LONDON (Reuters) - Actress Helen Mirren has delivered another show-stopping performance as Britain's Queen Elizabeth after storming out of a London theatre dressed as the monarch to deliver an expletive-riddled tirade at a group of drummers ruining the play.

Mirren, dressed as queen, reads royal riot act to noisy drummers

LONDON (Reuters) - Actress Helen Mirren has delivered another show-stopping performance as Britain's Queen Elizabeth after storming out of a London theatre dressed as the monarch to deliver an expletive-riddled tirade at a group of drummers ruining the play.