SCIENTISTS judge the overall health of the Gulf of Mexico as nearly back to normal one year after the BP oil spill, but with glaring blemishes that restrain their optimism about nature’s resiliency.

BP’s massive oil spill became the largest ever in the Gulf of Mexico yesterday, based on the highest of the federal government’s estimates, an ominous record that underscores the dire need to halt the gusher.

BP says it could be tomorrow or later before it knows whether its latest attempt to clog the source of America’s largest oil spill is working.

AS Americans anxiously waited for a slick in the Gulf of Mexico to wash up along the coast, globules of oil were already falling to the bottom of the sea, where they threatened virtually every link in the ocean food chain, from plankton to fish on dinner tables everywhere.

THE initial blush of President Barack Obama’s healthcare triumph immediately gives way to a sober political reality – he must sell the landmark legislation to an angry and unpredictable electorate, still reeling from the recession.

Nobel Prize-winning agricultural scientist Norman Borlaug died in Texas aged 95.

The Phoenix spacecraft has “tasted” Martian water for the first time, scientists reported.

IRISH golfer Danielle McVeigh made her mark among the best young women players in America as she scored a top-15 finish at the NCAA Women’s Golf Championship in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Scientists have begun releasing the robotic arm on Nasa’s new Mars spacecraft, one day late because of a radio problem.

Irish golfer Danielle McVeigh made her mark among the best young women players in America as she scored a top-15 finish at the NCAA Women's Golf Championship in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

New testing on the type of ammunition used in the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy raises questions about whether Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, according to a study by researchers at Texas A&M University.

There was disappointment all round for Ireland's trio of golfers at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Regional Championships this week, despite some good individual performances.

A 19-YEAR-OLD Texas A&M University student was killed by her ex-boyfriend, who then dismembered and burned her body on a patio grill, authorities said at the weekend.

Danielle McVeigh claimed her maiden victory in US Collegiate golf and steered Texas A&M University to a two-stroke team victory at the 54-hole Donnis Thompson Invitational in Hawaii.

The man lined up as the next US Defence Secretary today conceded that the US is not winning the war in Iraq and warned that if that country is not stabilised in the next year or two it could lead to a “regional conflagration”.

AFTER years of defending his secretary of defence, US President George W Bush last night announced Donald H Rumsfeld’s resignation within hours of the Democrats’ triumph in congressional elections.

It has been 2,000 years and possibly much longer since the Earth has run such a fever.

BETTER think twice before soothing those aching muscles in a whirlpool bath or hot tub. A new study shows that whirlpool bathtubs can be a breeding ground for a host of disease-causing bacteria.

US Army Private Lynndie England apologised for appearing in some of the most infamous pictures of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib prison, saying she did so at the behest of a boyfriend who took advantage of her love and trust.

Millions of people who have diseases which are currently incurable were given hope today when British scientists were granted permission to clone human embryos for medical research.

The recording industry in the US sued another 477 computer users – including dozens of college students at schools in 11 states – accusing them of illegally sharing music across the Internet.

The recording industry in the United States sued another 477 computer users today – including dozens of college students at schools in 11 states – accusing them of illegally sharing music across the Internet.

IT may be impossible to clone humans because primate cells do not divide properly, a “pothole in the process” that creates chromosomes too abnormal for a pregnancy to begin, scientists have said.

The race to produce the first birth of a human clone is nearing the finish line – if you believe the public pronouncements.

The world's first cloned kitten has been produced by scientists.

A migrant-smuggling boat on a night run from Cuba to the US capsized in rough seas, dumping more than two dozen people in the water, the US Coastguard said.