Pluto gets the boot  —  Pluto no longer a planet, say astronomers  —  PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) — Leading astronomers declared Thursday that Pluto is no longer a planet under historic new guidelines that downsize the solar system from nine planets to eight.

Some in G.O.P. Say Iran Threat Is Played Down  —  Some senior Bush administration officials and top Republican lawmakers are voicing anger that American spy agencies have not issued more ominous warnings about the threats that they say Iran presents to the United States.

In New Method for Stem Cells, Viable Embryos  —  Biologists have developed a technique for establishing colonies of human embryonic stem cells from an early human embryo without destroying it.  This method, if confirmed in other laboratories, would seem to remove the principal objection to the research.

A Matter of Appearances  —  When Judge Anna Diggs Taylor was given the job of deciding whether the Bush administration's wiretapping program was unconstitutional, she certainly understood that she would be ruling on one of the most politically charged cases in recent history.

FDA Allows OTC Sales of Plan B  —  The Food and Drug Administration approved an application today making the long-debated emergency contraceptive Plan B, commonly known as the "morning-after pill," available without a prescription to women 18 and older.  —  The FDA said Barr Laboratories …

General: Iran Training Shiite Insurgents  —  WASHINGTON — The Iranian government is training and equipping much of the Shiite insurgency in Iraq, a senior U.S. general said Wednesday, drawing one of the most direct links by the Pentagon.  —  Brig. Gen. Michael Barbero also said it was too soon …

Exclusive: Zoellick to Join McCain; Aides Eye Early '07 Campaign Launch  —  Former Deputy Secretary of State Robert B. Zoellick is planning to join the presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain next year, overseeing development of domestic and foreign policy, Republican officials tell TIME.

NWA flight disrupted; 12 arrested  —  A passenger on the India-bound plane — the man who first alerted the FBI to Zacarias Moussaoui five years ago — said the tense situation was handled well.  —  WASHINGTON - A Northwest Airlines plane flying from the Netherlands to India was escorted …

Gaza Captors of 2 Newsmen Pressure U.S.  —  An unknown Islamic group on Wednesday issued a sweeping demand for the release of all Muslim prisoners held in the United States in exchange for two Fox News television journalists seized at gunpoint last week in Gaza.

Putting a period on the macaca story  —  Twelve days after Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) kicked off quite a firestorm with his use of the word "macaca," the senator hoped to finally put the story to rest with a direct apology. … There is, however, reason to doubt that.

Careers and Marriage  —  Forbes.com published a story Aug. 22 by editor Michael Noer on two-career relationships that provoked a heated response from both outside and inside our building.  Elizabeth Corcoran, a member of our Silicon Valley bureau and principal author of the magazine's current cover story …

Relearning Lessons in the War on Terror  —  From the recent Israel-Hezbollah war in southern Lebanon to the jihadists in Iraq's Sunni Triangle to the repeated efforts by Islamists across the globe to trump Sept. 11, what old lessons about terrorism are we in the West finding ourselves having to relearn?

Israel may 'go it alone' against Iran  —  Israel is carefully watching the world's reaction to Iran's continued refusal to suspend uranium enrichment, with some high-level officials arguing it is now clear that when it comes to stopping Iran, Israel "may have to go it alone," The Jerusalem Post has learned.

Bush's New Iraq Argument: It Could Be Worse  —  Of all the words that President Bush used at his news conference this week to defend his policies in Iraq, the one that did not pass his lips was "progress."  —  For three years, the president tried to reassure Americans that more progress was being made in Iraq than they realized.

A Rave Against the Mullahs!  —  Iranian youth throw a rave party!  —  You really must play this New Nami single "Faryaad" while checking out these Iranian party pictures just to get a feel for things, HERE … Pictures from a Chaharshanbeh-Souri Celebration in Iran.