AUSTRALIA

South Korea-based Samsung Electronics Co.'s hopes of launching its Galaxy range of tablet computers in Australia, for the Christmas holiday season, suffered a big blow on Tuesday, when rivals, California-based Apple Inc. refused its offer to settle the legal dispute on tablet technology.

The 2011 Nobel Prize for Physics will be shared by three scientists, for the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe through observations of exploding stars, according to the Nobel Prize Committee.

Apple Inc rejected an offer from Samsung Electronics Co to settle their tablet computer dispute in Australia, possibly killing off the commercial viability of the South Korean firm's new Galaxy tablet in that market.

California-based technology giant Apple Inc. has rejected an offer from rivals, South Korea-based Samsung Electronics Co., that would have allowed the latter to release its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in Australia, according to Appleinsider.

Anyone hoping that recent falls in commodity prices would provide a boost to powerhouse Asian economies and help lift the developed world out of recessionary danger will be disappointed. The region's focus remains firmly on inflation.

South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co denied on Tuesday that it was close to reaching a settlement with Apple over their tablet-computer patent dispute.

A few weeks ago, Australia implemented similar rules for its passports.

Growth in its consulting business helped PwC increase revenue 10 percent in fiscal 2011, allowing it to regain its position as the world's largest accounting and consulting firm.

Last year, when there were rumors of Hollywood star couple Ashton Kutcher, 33, and Demi Moore, 48, breaking up, the couple was seen making a religious trip to Israel. This time around, amid yet more rumors of a break-up, the couple was spotted attending a spiritual session at the Kabbalah Center in Los Angeles, on Friday, together, according to a report on Allvoices.com

Afghanistan was the venue for a live rock 'n' roll music festival Saturday for the first time in three long decades.

Live rock returned to Afghanistan after three long decades on Saturday as young men and women cheered and leapt into the air to the sound of heavy bass beats and punk rock.

The 2011 Ig Nobel prize for Biology has gone to Darryl Gwynne and David Rentz for discovering that a certain kind of beetle mates with a certain kind of Australian beer bottle. Research was titled Beetles on the Bottle: Male Buprestids Mistake Stubbies for Females (Coleoptera).

Every year, just before the Nobel Prizes are announced and the list is issued for the National Medals of Science and Technology, the Ig Nobels are handed out.

Hate mornings, especially on Mondays? You may be surprised to know that much of the world doesn't share that grumpy feeling.

Samsung Electronics Co has made a proposal to Apple Inc. in order to resolve their patent dispute in Australia concerning touch-screen technology, according to Sydney court.

On Wednesday, T-Mobile joined Verizon in filing an amicus brief in the most recently contested Apple vs. Samsung case over the design of the Galaxy line of tablet computers and phones. The original suit was filed in April in Northern California and covered seven utility patents, three design patents, several iOS app icons, and a number of trade dress designs for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad, as well as the packaging for the Apple products.

Stock index futures pointed to a weaker open for equities on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 down 0.6 to 0.8 percent.

European stock index futures fell Friday, putting shares there firmly on course to post their biggest quarterly decline since the months following the collapse of Lehman Brothers three years ago.

New Zealand suffered two ratings downgrades within hours on Friday when Standard & Poor's and Fitch cut the country's ranking by one notch over concerns about its growing foreign debt.

Asian stocks fell on Friday, extending the worst monthly performance since the most volatile days of the global financial crisis in October 2008, with Chinese shares racking up sharp losses.

Asian stocks steadied on Friday with big gains unlikely as investors looked to take profits after three days of gains, while the euro held its tiny increase following Germany's approval to expand the euro zone bailout fund.