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NEW YORK – Host Marriott Corp. (HMT) said on Monday it had agreed to pay about $4.04 billion to acquire a portfolio of 38 luxury and upscale hotels from Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. (HOT) The sale of hotels in cities from Los Angeles to Madrid is the latest …

LUCKNOW, India – This was no one-night stand. Scientists in India say they have discovered two fossils fused together in sexual union for 65 million years. The findings were published in the October edition of the Indian journal Current Science, which said it was the first time that sexual copulation …

DETROIT – General Motors Corp. (search) is offering additional cash rebates on all 2005 vehicles sold on the U.S. market except the Hummer H1, in an effort to rid itself of year-end inventory, the company said on Friday. The world’s largest automaker said the $1,000 bonus cash offers will run …

SAN FRANCISCO – There’s nothing simple about deciding when to take your Social Security benefit, and the figuring gets more complex if you’re a married couple trying to sort out which spouse should take benefits when. If both spouses have earnings from a job, they’ll both likely receive a monthly …

GENEVA – Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG (search) said Monday it will increase production of Tamiflu to make 300 million treatments of the antiviral drug annually by 2007 in order to meet government orders amid fears of a flu pandemic. Roche said the increase would mean a tenfold rise in …

KABUL, Afghanistan – A bomb exploded Tuesday near U.S. and Afghan troops as they patrolled in volatile eastern Afghanistan, killing a U.S. soldier and wounding another, the military said. The incident occurred a day after suicide bombers rammed cars filled with explosives into NATO peacekeepers in two attacks in the …

LONDON – Britain’s Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that a teenage student’s human rights were violated by her school’s ban on a form of traditional Muslim dress, a long flowing gown covering all of her body except her hands and face. The three judges agreed with 16-year-old Shabina Begum’s (search) …

MADRID, Spain – With solemn Easter processions filling many of Spain’s streets, some 5,000 people gathered for a baudy, pagan tribute to a lusty, moonshine-loving, animal-pelt vendor who was run over by a garbage truck on Holy Thursday in 1929. The northern city of Leon (search) — hometown of Spain’s …

VATICAN CITY – Even if Pope John Paul II (search) is released from hospital in time for Easter at the end of the month, the frail pontiff is unlikely to fully participate in services marking Christianity’s most solemn holiday. But the Vatican insists that the 84-year-old pope, adapting his papacy …

Tens of millions of American children are growing up in the shadow of substance abuse and tobacco use, a new study shows. For many, the problem starts at home, with a parent who drinks too much or uses illegal drugs. Tobacco — while legal for adults — is another health …