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The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday finalized a rule to end a "secret science" regulation that was imposed under former President Donald Trump that excluded certain studies that didn't make all data publicly available. The agency announced the end of the rule on Wednesday. The move allows the EPA to consider studies that don't make available all data, which is sometimes done to protect privacy. Trump's administration billed the restriction as a transparency measure, but critics argued that it might ultimately do more harm than good for an agency that values such varying scientific data like the EPA. "This action...

Having low blood levels of vitamin D may not increase a person's risk for severe COVID-19, a study published Wednesday by JAMA Network Open found. People with extremely low levels of vitamin D in their blood were not more likely to test positive for antibodies to the coronavirus, the data showed. The presence of antibodies -- cells made by the immune system -- suggests past infection. Those with moderately low levels of the vitamin also did not have a higher risk for testing positive for coronavirus antibodies, the researchers said. "We found no evidence for an independent association between low...

Gasoline prices in the United States rose in the week ended Monday to a national average of $2.62 per gallon, with some drivers paying the most, in five years for this time of the year. National averages rose a quarter from the previous month, and 2 cents from last year, the AAA motor club said in its weekly report. "On the week, every state except Florida (no change) saw gas prices increase, some as much as 16 cents, with the Great Lakes and Central region seeing the most states with double-digit jumps on the week," the report said. The biggest...

WASHINGTON Oct. 28 (UPI) -- The UPI/CVoter daily presidential tracking poll for Friday shows Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump by less than 2 percentage points. The online poll shows Clinton with 48.84 percent to Trump's 46.95 percent. The most recent data reflect a shift of almost a full percentage point toward Trump compared to data collected a day earlier. As Trump moves further away from the scandal over a video tape speaking crudely about women, the poll has shown the race tightening. Over the past week, Clinton has lost 1.43 points, while Trump has gained 1.38 points, with "others" --...

UPI/CVoter state polls: Donald Trump gains support in all but 5 states with Hillary Clinton in several states. Hillary Clinton 46.89% Donald Trump 49.38%

Shipment meant to support Egypt's fight against terrorism, U.S. officials say ___ The first shipment of U.S. Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles arrived in Egypt Thursday. The 762 armored vehicles were provided to the Egyptian military at no cost as part of the Pentagon's Excess Defense Articles program, according to a statement from the U.S. Embassy in Cairo.

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz was greeted with a standing ovation at a Milwaukee County GOP event Saturday and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who was standing in for front-runner Donald Trump, was met with steely silence three days ahead of the state's crucial primary vote. The Milwaukee County Republican Party Fish Fry proved fertile campaign ground for Cruz, who has become the vehicle for many establishment figures in their quest to deny Trump the party's nomination. Cruz used the event to make his first appearance with Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, whose endorsement he earned earlier this week.

Helen Thomas, a longtime White House journalist whose career covering ten presidents once earned the nickname the “Dean of the White House Press Corps,” died Saturday at 92, the Associated Press confirmed.

Helen Thomas, whose career covering the White House dated back to the Kennedy administration, died on Saturday at the age of 92, the Gridiron Club announced in an email to members on Saturday. Thomas was the the first woman to join the White House Correspondents' Association, and the first woman to serve as its president. She was also the first female member of the Gridiron Club, Washington's historic press group. Present at the press briefings of ten consecutive presidential administrations, Thomas's career in journalism ended in 2010 after controversial remarks she made about Israeli Jews were caught on camera. "Former...

A local government official in the Netherlands is recommending people save money and resources by peeing in the shower. Bert Wassink, a council member in the Drenthe municipality of Aa en Hunze, said residents can reduce water consumption by combining shower time with toilet time, DutchNews.nl reported Wednesday. Wassink made his comments as part of the council's 2013 sustainability initiative, which has saving water as one of its focal points. The official said peeing in the shower "saves lots of clean water and is good for the environment." "If you combine showers and peeing, you save a lot of water...

Forty-nine percent of likely voters said they would vote for Romney and 46 percent said they favored Obama, results of the UPI-CVoter poll indicated. For the first time since UPI/C-Voter began polling for the 2012 election cycle, Obama's approval and disapproval rating were the same: 48 percent. Until this latest poll, approval ratings by registered voters were higher than his disapproval ratings for Obama's performance as president. Registered voters also took Obama to task when asked to rank his performance on a scale of zero to 10, with zero being the worst and 10 the best. Voters judged Obama at...

Sarah Palin's new book, "America by Heart," has logged unimpressive sales numbers, publishing sources say. Even so, the memoir, which went on sale in November, holds second place on the New York Times bestseller list, The Washington Post reported. Palin's first book, "Going Rogue," was released one year ago and became the second-fastest selling political book in history. It went into a second printing three days after its release and went on to sell 2.2 million hardcover copies. "America by Heart" (subtitled "Reflections on Family, Faith and Flag") had an initial press run of 1 million copies, suggesting its publisher,...

Washington Times executives are negotiating to sell the newspaper, after the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's family cut off most of the annual subsidy of about $35 million that has kept the Unification Church-backed paper afloat, company officials said. Nicholas Chiaia, a member of the paper's two-man board of directors and president of the church-supported United Press International wire service, confirmed that the paper is actively on the market: "We recently entered into discussions with a number of parties interested in either purchasing or partnering with the Washington Times," he said in a statement to The Washington Post. Current and former...

As tensions with Iran rise again, the Islamic Republic is reported to be expanding its naval power in the oil-rich Gulf and the Arabian Sea to be able to command the chokepoint Strait of Hormuz, the only way in or out of the Gulf.

MOSSAD'S KILLING MACHINE COMES TO BRITAIN A killing war between Israel's Mossad and Islamic fanatics came closer this weekend in Britain. The Israeli intelligence agency has sent four members of its kidon assassination squad to this country, to join fifteen other handpicked katsas, its relentless field agents. Their brief is to "disable" any of the "close to 50" British Muslims that the extremist Islamic group, Al-Muhajiroun, last week boasted were ready to carry out suicide missions similar to the one in Tel Aviv. Al-Muhajiroun spokesman, Asif Butt, said the 50 were "primed and ready to go". The threat was sufficient...

British actress and model Lucy Gordon has been found dead of an apparent suicide in her Paris apartment, police sources in the French capital said. She was 28.

Israeli President Shimon Peres Sunday threatened to strike Iran if the Islamic republic fails to halt its nuclear program. Peres, in an interview with Kol Hai Radio, urged Iranian President Mahmoud Admadinejad to enter into talks proposed by U.S. President Barack Obama. If Admadinejad ultimately fails to soften his nuclear stance, "we'll strike him," Peres said Sunday.

PORT SUDAN, Sudan, March 26 (UPI) -- An Israeli airstrike on a weapons-laden convoy in Sudan affirms arguments Iran is secretly supplying arms for Hamas fighters in Gaza, analysts said. The January airstrike in the desert northwest of Port Sudan, which Israel refuses to comment on, reportedly killed 39 people riding in 17 trucks.

British scientists say they are looking for ways to reduce global temperatures and curb greenhouse emissions through geo-engineering. Researchers are looking into the feasibility of using artificial trees to absorb carbon dioxide or reflect sunlight away from Earth, the Times of London reported Sunday. The Royal Society, Britain's national academy of science, is preparing a report on the subject, the newspaper said.