ATLANTA – Home Depot Inc. (HD), the world’s largest home improvement retailer, on Tuesday reported better-than-expected quarterly profit on increased sales and benefits from technology upgrades. Based on the results, Home Depot lifted its sales and earnings growth forecast for the full year. Profit rose to $1.5 billion, or 72 …

A resident assistant in a dormitory at the University of Wisconsin in Eau Claire has been told that he cannot hold informal Bible study sessions in the dorm because it would amount to an illegal endorsement of religion by a state employee, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Lance Steiger …

POMONA, Calif. – Two university students found a badly decomposed body when they peeked inside in a hay trailer while searching for a missing calf, officials said. “This old hay trailer was open, and thinking that the calf went in there, they went in and discovered the body,” said Ron …

HANOI, Vietnam – The mock scenario was deadly serious: a Vietnamese laboratory had confirmed the bird flu virus had mutated and was spreading from person to person. Wailing ambulances carried a team of doctors to the affected Hanoi neighborhood. Clad from head to toe in green biohazard suits, boots, goggles …

BOSTON – If some of the numbers being cited about identity theft are to be believed, it’s just a matter of time before some unseen cyberhustler steals your name, empties your bank account and wrecks your financial reputation. You can almost hear the maniacal laughter. By some measures, one in …

NEW YORK – Stocks closed higher Tuesday, boosted in part by an upgrade of the semiconductor sector and strong performance by pharmaceutical firms. The Dow Jones industrial average ended higher 63.77 points, or 0.59 percent, at 10,830. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index gained 19.53 points, or 0.95 percent, to end …

HILLAH, Iraq – In the deadliest single strike since the fall of Saddam Hussein (search), a suicide car bomber attacked mostly Shiite police and National Guard recruits lined up for physical exams at a medical clinic Monday, killing 120 and wounding more than 130 there and at a nearby market. …

Crude oil futures prices soared above $57 a barrel, a new all-time record, Thursday as OPEC’s pledge to increase output failed to assure traders who were worried about tight supply. U.S. light crude set a record of $57.60 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange (search) before easing to …

WASHINGTON – The latest intelligence-failure (search) report to land on President Bush’s desk raises serious questions about his policy of pre-emptive action against potential foes. How can he order such strikes if he doesn’t have solid information? Findings by the special presidential commission could also complicate American efforts to mend …

WASHINGTON – To the daily drumbeat of casualty reports from Iraq, young blacks and women are marching away from offers to join the Army (search). These trends, combined with the negative effects of the Army’s image as a last-resort career choice for what one study called the “average Joe,” suggests …