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If the zombie apocalypse happens, scientists say you should head for the hills If - or when - the zombie apocalypse comes, those of us in big cities are in trouble, according to research presented at the American Physical Society March meeting on March 5, 2015. Starting in a big city like New York or Atlanta would mean you are basically screwed from the start if the epidemic had already hit there, according to Alex Alemi, a graduate student at Cornell University and part of the research team. You are much better off starting further away from people, they say,...

The US stock market could suffer a devastating crash with shares losing a third of their value this week if Hank Paulson’s financial bailout plan fails, US Treasury officials have warned. ---- The financial system could face a meltdown of 1929 proportions unless US politicians succeed in their efforts for a $700bn rescue scheme, experts added. The warning came as Republicans and Democrats met in Washington for a rare weekend debating session to attempt to seal agreement on the contentious plan, aimed at preventing a long-lasting recession in the US.

STEELE, N.D. (AP) -- More than 60 percent of the United States now has abnormally dry or drought conditions, stretching from Georgia to Arizona and across the north through the Dakotas, Minnesota, Montana and Wisconsin, said Mark Svoboda, a climatologist for the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. An area stretching from south central North Dakota to central South Dakota is the most drought-stricken region in the nation, Svoboda said. "It's the epicenter," he said. "It's just like a wasteland in north central South Dakota." Conditions aren't much better a little farther north. Paul Smokov...

CANCUN, Mexico — Rain and rough surf battered Cancun's (search) white-sand beaches as Hurricane Wilma (search) roared toward a rendezvous with Mexico's most famous resort area. Thousands of stranded tourists hunkered down in shelters and hotel

Hurricane Wilma, which has swelled into a dangerous Category Five storm, is the strongest hurricane ever recorded, the US National Hurricane Center says. It says the storm's barometric pressure - a measure of its strength - was the lowest on record in the Atlantic basin. Its winds of near 175mph (280km/h) and heavy rains are threatening Cuba, Mexico and the Cayman Islands. At least 11 people in have been killed in Haiti by floods and landslides associated with Wilma. Forecasters say the hurricane presents a "significant threat" to Florida, which it is expected to hit this weekend. Officials in the...

TSUNAMI BULLETIN...A TSUNAMI WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE COASTAL AREASFROM THE CALIFORNIA-MEXICO BORDER TO THE NORTH TIP OFVANCOUVER I.-BC. INCLUSIVE... ...A TSUNAMI WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE COASTAL AREAS FROM THE NORTH TIP OF VANCOUVER I.-BC. TO SITKA-AK... ...AT THIS TIME THIS BULLETIN IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY FOR OTHER AREAS OF ALASKA... EARTHQUAKE DATA PRELIMINARY MAGNITUDE - 7.4 LOCATION - 41.3N 125.7W - 90 MILES NW OF EUREKA-CA. 300 MILES NW OF SAN FRANCISCO-CA. TIME - 1851 ADT 06/14/2005 1951 PDT 06/14/2005 0251 UTC 06/15/2005

A piece of code that exploits a critical vulnerability that Microsoft issued a patch for only last week has been posted online, raising fears of an imminent MSBlast-style attack. On Feb. 10, Microsoft released a patch that fixes a networking flaw that affects all Windows XP, NT, 2000 and Server 2003 systems. The company warned people to patch their systems, because the vulnerability could be exploited by virus and worm writers. Four days after the patch was released, a piece of code was published on a French Web site that would let anyone exploit the vulnerability, meaning that unpatched customers...