UNITED STATES

Although Greece is considered the ?cradle of Western Civilization,? the nation has had a vastly different history and trajectory from the dominant countries of Western Europe.

U.S. builders began work on more homes than expected in April, government figures showed on Wednesday. But the data suggested that builders might also be slowing their future construction plans.

The fertility level in western Turkey (the most economically advanced part of the country) is now about 1.5 -- roughly the same as in western Europe.

Stock index futures were little changed on Wednesday as investors continued to worry about Greece's political and financial crisis as the country prepares for its second election in just over a month.

The consumers in the United States, anticipating the release of the HTC One X and Evo 4G LTE smartphones, will have to spend some more time waiting for the devices as they have reportedly been delayed at the U.S. customs due to an import ban order by the International Trade Commission (ITC) over potentially infringing an Apple patent.

The major television networks, including ABC, FOX, CBS, NBC and the CW, announced their Fall 2012 primetime lineups this week. These networks also announced the shows that have been cancelled for 2012. Cable shows cancelled or ending this year include Breaking Bad, Damages, Teen Mom and more.

Kim Kardashian probably did not approve the bio written about her on IMDB, the world's most popular Internet movie database that compiles information related to movies, television programs, actors and more. But that did not stop author Jon C. Hopwood from typing out a snarky profile of Ms. Kardashian, revealing that he has a real talent for detailing the socio-economic patterns visible in Kardashian's talentless rise to fame in America as well as for sarcasm.

Texas, already facing flack for putting an innocent man to death in 2004, likely executed another innocent man in 1989, according to the university's Human Rights Law Review.

Alleged hacker Jeremy Hammond appeared in court on Tuesday, May 15 to plead not guilty under charges of conspiracy to commit computer hacking among other allegations, but made no bail request, according to AP. Hammond's next court date is July 23.

Carlos Fuentes, one of Latin America's most eloquent and widely read authors and a fierce critic of governments, has died after a literary career spanning more than five decades. He was 83.

In a newly released campaign ad, President Barack Obama promises that the economy is back on the mend. The only problem is: the numbers say otherwise.

Singapore was the fifth-largest arms importer in the world between 2007 and 2011.

While the rest of the world is focused on Greece?s exit from the euro zone, the news that caught my eye is Finland finally getting its first Starbucks café.

Obama addressed the graduating class of Barnard College in New York on Monday.

Out of 289 Republicans in congress, only one -- U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) -- shares the same views as Obama on gay marriage. She may be the bravest Republican in congress.

With Democrats defending nearly twice as many Senate seats as Republicans in 2012, the GOP has an excellent chance of taking the upper chamber and holding majorities in both houses of Congress.

From Usher debuting his new songs to Will Ferrell as the guest host reprising his role as George Bush, Saturday Night Live (SNL) on May 12 was memorable, namely for the Justin Bieber, Michael Bolton and Natalie Portman cameo in the 100th Digital Short with Andy Samberg. Here is a recap of some of the best sketches from the Saturday, May 12 episode along with videos.

The GOP touts itself as the party of job creation. But the party of which president - Democratic or Republican - creates more jobs per year, on average?

Take a look at the new Liverpool home kit for next season, the first to be supplied by Warrior Sports.

President Obama came out yesterday stating that he supports same-sex marriage, or as Bristol Palin put it in her blog, President Obama came out of the closet for gay marriage.

President Barack Obama declared his support for gay marriage on Wednesday in an interview with ABC News. Less than 24 hours later, online denizens have slowly started developing memes surrounding POTUS's evolution on the issue.