NEWS IMAGE COLLAGE / for 10-2010

Just as residents are fleeing from Mount Merapi's volcanic eruptions in central Java, Indonesia, warnings have been issued for two other volcanoes while a third one has been producing small eruptions since last week.

A 23-year-old public school teacher from the Chicago area died at a Halloween party Saturday night when she fell trying to slide down a stair rail.

In the case of Robinson v. Crown Cork and Seal, Justice Don R. Willet quoted Mr. Spock, the Vulcan and used his logic for legal precedent.

Canadian swimmer Annamay Pierse has revealed she's been battling a case of dengue fever since returning from this month's Commonwealth Games.

A new stroke prevention clinic in Ottawa is helping patients treated for mini-strokes from developing the full-blown version, doctors report.

Hurricane Tomas hit the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent on Saturday night, causing extensive damage.

An Ottawa-area businessman who was reported missing in Mexico has been found dead, his family says.

Scientists from the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in North Carolina have created functioning walnut-sized livers by combining human cells with animal livers.

Does freedom of expression include the right not to express yourself? A recent decision of the Superior Court of Ontario seems to say "No."

Scientists are urging governments around the world to invest in a ocean-based system that could provide warnings of droughts, floods and other environmental disasters.

Americans are set to vote this week in midterm elections that will likely change the course of Barack Obama's presidency and push issues such as immigration and health care back to the forefront in Congress.

A deadly volcano in Indonesia spewed another searing cloud of ash down its slopes Sunday, prompting panic and chaos among thousands of villagers who had taken advantage of a lull in activity to rush home and check on their livestock.

The West African nation of Ivory Coast held a long-awaited presidential election Sunday, the first since civil war erupted in 2002 and split the world's leading cocoa producer in half.

A suicide bomber blew himself up Sunday beside a police vehicle in a major Istanbul square near tourist hotels and a bus terminal, wounding 32 people, including 15 policemen.

Police say a small plane carrying six people went off the end of a runway in Gander, N.L., on Saturday, possibly because of weather conditions.

The lawyer for a B.C. man who spent 27 years in prison for a series of rapes he didn't commit says she doesn't think there's a need for a public inquiry.

Jonathan Franzen is the closest thing we have to a literary rock star.

One of two powerful bombs mailed from Yemen to Chicago-area synagogues travelled on two passenger planes within the Middle East, a spokesman for Qatar Airways said Sunday. The U.S. said the plot bears the hallmarks of al Qaeda's offshoot in Yemen.

Three young men are dead after they were struck by a VIA Rail train in southwest Montreal early Sunday morning.

Joe Rabesca, who was until recently a top Dene leader in the Northwest Territories, has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman.

The mother of a soldier who took his own life after serving in Afghanistan has received an apology from the minister of defence.

Bomb disposal experts say a rocket launcher discovered on a major highway north of Victoria earlier this week is the first such live explosive device ever found in B.C.

Alleged serial killer Peter Dale MacDonald grew up in an ordinary family but quickly fell into a life of increasingly violent crime, people who knew him say.

Police in southern Alberta are looking for a suspect after a pregnant woman alleged she was assaulted outside a mall by an irate motorist who claimed she'd done a poor job of parking.

A 23-year-old British man died after ingesting two spoonfuls of caffeine powder that had the same potency as 70 cans of energy drinks

Hurricane Tomas battered east Caribbean islands with winds, rain and surf Saturday, ripping off roofs and downing trees and power lines on a westward track that will put earthquake-hit Haiti at risk next week.

Gunmen opened fire on a group of people on a neighborhood sports field in northern Honduras and killed at least 14, authorities said Saturday.

Eliminating malaria, the mosquito-borne scourge that kills more than 860,000 people a year, would be a dream come true for millions -- but medical experts say right now that goal remains completely unrealistic.

It may be called LIVE! with Regis and Kelly, but new documents reveal just how tightly the Harper government scripted the announcement that the popular morning show was coming to Prince Edward Island last summer.

Mark McIntyre is used to receiving horrified looks when he greets people at the door. But he hopes that'll change soon.

YouTube CEO Chad Hurley is surrendering the reins of the popular video website that he started with two buddies as a quirky curiosity and went on to groom into a media magnet that shows more than two billion clips a day.

Total health-care spending in Canada this year is predicted to reach almost $192 billion, up almost five per cent over 2009, says a report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

With a price tag well into the billions and a timeline that could stretch to 2025, the modernization of Ottawa's Parliament Buildings isn't the average renovation project.

Whether you lean "left" or "right" in your political views might have a lot to do with your genes, intriguing new research suggests.

As Haiti enters its third week of an outbreak of cholera, health workers on the ground say they are fighting against a tide of misinformation in their fight to educate Haitians on how to combat the illness.

How's this for a Facebook status update: "About to start scaling Mount Everest."

Russian news agencies say a cargo ship has docked with the International Space Station, bringing 2.5 tons of food, water, oxygen and fuel for the orbiting laboratory and its U.S.-Russian crew.

Nova Scotia's new Tory leader promised Saturday to repeal a controversial two per cent sales tax hike and bring back a balanced budget law if elected premier.

Police have charged a Calgary man with first-degree murder after a pickup truck plowed through a group of people standing outside a bar early Friday.

Alberta is suffering an "image deficit" over criticism of the province's oilsands and provincial Conservatives called for a new campaign to minimize the damage to business and tourism.

The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs is calling for the resignation of B.C.'s minister of state for mining over what it says were "shockingly offensive" comments.

Sir Frederick Banting awoke early on the morning of Oct. 31, 1920 with an idea that some call the most important medical discovery of the 20th century -- insulin.

There is one winning ticket for the $50-million jackpot in Friday's Lotto Max draw, and it was sold somewhere in British Columbia.

Vancouver Police are warning about a true threat hiding among Halloween celebrants this weekend.

Tessa Virtue struggled with pain in her legs last season that was so overwhelming that just walking for 10 minutes at a stretch could be an excruciating endeavour.

The case of a troubled teenage inmate thought to have killed herself in an isolation cell has taken an unexpected twist as an internal report now reveals the death was likely an accident.

Thirteen years after Bjarni Tryggvason blasted into space on board the space shuttle Discovery, the veteran astronaut will travel to the U.S. to witness its final flight.

Clouds of grey ash rumbled down the slopes of Indonesia's most volatile volcano Saturday in its most powerful eruption of a deadly week, prompting soldiers to force reluctant villagers to evacuate amid fears of a larger blast.

A humble Quebecer promoted to sainthood was honoured Saturday by tens of thousands of people, who gathered at Montreal's Olympic Stadium.

The jury at Omar Khadr's war-crimes trial spent more than five hours considering a sentence for the 24-year-old Canadian before breaking for the day.

Romby Bryant had three touchdown catches Friday as the Calgary Stampeders demolished the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 55-24.

The Paris-based Eutelsat company says its latest spacecraft has failed less than 24 hours after being launched on an Ariane rocket from French Guiana.

The US and UK are investigating the extent of a terror threat after explosives were found in two packages bound for the US from Yemen.

A government purchase of F-35 fighter jets could cause "angst in Russia" and trigger an Arctic arms race, Arctic sovereignty expert Michael Byers said Thursday.

The pursuit of perfection, professionalism, and strong team spirit are virtues that Canadian Forces members strive to possess and which the iconic Snowbirds have come to symbolize with their distinctive red and blue flight suits, smoke-trailing CT-114 Tut

A new non-checking hockey league this season on Prince Edward Island isn't popular with some players who want to take part in the traditional game.

Dahrran Diedrick's moment in the sun could only happen in the Canadian Football League.

B.C. taxpayers spent close to $240,000 Wednesday evening so Premier Gordon Campbell could go on prime-time television to announce a 15-per-cent personal income tax cut.

It's been more than 40 years since Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's walk on the moon turned the world's imagination to space exploration. Predictions mankind would soon be stepping onto Mars have languished. But that may be about to change.

It could be a genuinely frightening Halloween in Vancouver as police say there is, "a high probability of an increase in gang-related violence" this weekend.

The senseless murder of a 15-year-old West Kildonan Collegiate student last fall was made even more shocking Friday when it was revealed what mundane incident sparked the killing.

An Amber Alert issued for 12-year-old Jacob Telford has been cancelled by Strathcona County RCMP.

North Korea fired two rounds toward South Korea at their tense border and South Korean troops immediately fired back, an official said Friday.

A new court martial has been granted for a Nova Scotia soldier who won an appeal and had his guilty verdict set aside in the fatal shooting of his friend and comrade in Afghanistan.

A 12-year-old boy from Sherwood Park, Alta., is believed to have been abducted by his mother, RCMP in Alberta said Friday.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers fullback Jon Oosterhuis has been fined by the CFL for wearing pink gloves in support of breast cancer awareness during a recent football game.

Palestinian sources confirmed that both sides were discussing the option that Israel would lease land in east Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley from the Palestinian state for 40-99 years.

OTTAWA - A 24-year-old man fondled a 14-year-old girl while her 11-year-old brother sucked his fingers and licked his ear in a Place d'Orleans food court, a judge concluded Thursday.

B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell has promised that within five years, every grade-four student will be reading, writing and doing math at their grade level, but teachers say the goal is unlikely to be reached.

The wait may be over for Taylor Hall, but it's not over for his Edmonton Oilers. The 18-year-old rookie scored his first career NHL goal and had an assist to help the Oilers into extra time with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, but Hall's squad was

MOUNT MERAPI, Indonesia - Volcanic ash that has fallen like heavy rain onto a 9th-century temple complex is threatening one of Indonesia's most popular tourist attractions, officials said Friday.

ADELAIDE, Australia - International rescuers were searching for a helicopter that disappeared in poor weather off Antarctica with four French people on board, rescue co-ordinators said Friday.

The former director of B'nai Brith Quebec says he's ashamed he had pornographic videos on his computer, but Bill Surkis maintains he's not a sex offender.

Canada's chief of defence staff has offered an apology to the mother of a soldier who took his own life after serving in Afghanistan.

A loaded rocket-propelled grenade launcher has been found in woods just metres from a major highway north of Victoria, police say.

A private telecom firm took high speed Internet facilities to the top of the world on Thursday when it launched Nepal's first 3G services at the base camp of Mount Everest.

More than 700 new species of ancient insect have been discovered in 50-million-year-old amber.

Scientists have described how a species of insect lures spiders by mimicking prey caught in webs.

Astronomers have discovered what they say is the mightiest neutron star yet. The super-dense object, which lies some 3,000 light-years from Earth, is about twice as massive as our Sun.

Nearly one in four stars like the Sun could have Earth-sized planets, according to a new estimate published in the journal Science.

(Reuters) - The European Union on Thursday supported calls by Germany and France for limited changes to the bloc's main treaty to help shore up Europe's defenses against any new financial crises.

Hopes are fading for 334 people still registered missing after Monday's tsunami in Indonesia, as the death toll climbs to 370.

Canadians are registering more complaints about cellphone contracts and billing information because of a flood of overly complex or confusing options and company errors, according to a new report.

Just a day after the province announced it wants to implement new rules in Alberta emergency rooms, the health minister is being vague on whether all patients should expect to be in and out of the ER in the revised time frame of four hours.

The Royal Canadian Legion's full refund on the harmonized sales tax it pays on poppies and wreaths will take effect immediately, the federal Conservatives announced Thursday.

Almost a dozen Manitoba communities were under a state of emergency Thursday after a storm brought strong winds and heavy rains to the province Wednesday.

A Brampton judge has thrown three books at an estranged couple and assigned them some homework that's due before their next court date.

Eighty-six-year-old Bob McMinn has embarked on an unprecedented social networking campaign to save a Vancouver Island lake, and he's betting $100,000 of his own money on its success.

A court ruling Thursday means Inuit will not be exempt from a European Union ban on imports of Canadian seal products.

A Nova Scotia man charged with second-degree murder in the case of a sex worker who disappeared three months ago made a brief appearance in Dartmouth provincial court Thursday.

Lobster landings in Prince Edward Island reached an all-time high this year, says the provincial fisheries minister.

New Brunswick salmon farmers have started the use of a restricted pesticide that fights sea lice on farmed Atlantic salmon

A New Westminster woman has been found guilty of obstruction of justice for repairing a vehicle that she knew was likely involved in a 2006 fatal hit and run.

Two men remain in custody after a several alleged gang members were arrested and weapons were seized in Vancouver Wednesday, police say.

VANCOUVER - A battle over the proposed Prosperity Gold and Copper Mine in B.C.'s central Interior has turned caustic as players and politicians trade barbs and threats, including a suggestion that some First Nations could bring out their shotguns.

HAJI BABA, Afghanistan - It was shaping up to be a boring summer for Capt. Pete Reintjes and his small team of mentors for the Afghan National Army. That was back in the spring.

OTTAWA - An internal Defence Department audit has raised red flags about another major aircraft purchase that's failed to get off the ground.

B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell took to the airwaves on Wednesday night to defend the HST and promise a tax cut that will leave hundreds of dollars more in taxpayers' pockets, but the NDP Opposition is calling it a desperate move.

Six Navy heroes, chosen to represent the work of Canadian sailors, were recognized in the Senate Chamber of Canada October 19 as part of Navy Appreciation Days on Parliament Hill organized by the Navy League of Canada (NLC).

The New Democrats are calling on Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Canada's chief of defence staff to meet with the mother of a soldier who took his own life after serving in Afghanistan.

The soldier in charge of coming up with a leaner Canadian Forces is signalling that the axe will fall on the defence bureaucracy and the ranks of reservists to spare a fighting force that will be deployed to war zones and natural disasters.

Even though the United Arab Emirates evicted Canada from an airbase used to supply troops in Afghanistan there will be a Camp Mirage closing ceremony to thank the U.A.E., Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Wednesday.

The Canadian government has not committed to repatriating Omar Khadr as part of the Guantanamo Bay prisoner's plea deal with U.S. authorities, Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon says

Two volcanoes erupted Thursday on Russia's far-eastern Kamchatka Peninsula, tossing massive ash clouds kilometres into the air, forcing flights to divert and blanketing one town with thick ash.

British Columbians earning up to $72,000 per year will see a 15 per cent cut in their income taxes beginning Jan. 1.

Iran, where a woman convicted of adultery has been sentenced to death by stoning, is likely to become a member of the board of the new U.N. agency to promote equality for women, prompting outrage from the U.S. and human rights groups.

At least 272 people are dead and more than 400 are missing after a tsunami swept through a string of remote Indonesian islands, a local official says.

Defence Minister Peter MacKay says "crucial work" lies ahead for the Canadian Forces in the final nine months of its military mission in Afghanistan.

OTTAWA - Michael Ignatieff stole a page from former prime minister Jean Chretien's political playbook on Wednesday, announcing that a Liberal government would scrap the multibillion-dollar, stealth-fighter contract.

Oilsands giant Syncrude says 350 birds have now died after landing on the Mildred Lake tailings pond Monday night while Suncor said the grim tally on their ponds rose to 40 ducks.