IBT Staff Reporter

British scientists have devised a way of using graphene, the thinnest material in the world, to capture and convert more light than previously, paving the way for advances in high-speed Internet and other optical communications.

Single-family home prices dipped in June from May as the market continued to crawl along at depressed levels, a closely watched survey said on Tuesday.

Barnes & Noble Inc reported a narrower quarterly loss as strong sales of the largest bookstore chain's Nook e-reader helped mitigate declining book sales.

H J Heinz Co's recent acquisitions in Brazil and China are doing better than expected as the food maker works on boosting its business around the globe, Chairman and Chief Executive William Johnson said on Tuesday.

Bank of America Corp. was sued by the trustee of a $1.75 billion mortgage pool, which seeks to force the largest bank to buy back all of the loans in the trust because of alleged misrepresentations.

A federal appeals court Tuesday will consider whether prison officials have the authority to forcibly medicate Jared Loughner, the Arizona man accused of targeting Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in a January rampage at a Tucson supermarket, killing six and wounding 13.

Confidence among consumers plunged in August to its lowest in more than two years following the country's loss of its top credit rating and heart-wrenching drops in major stock indexes.

Miley Cyrus wowed in her Roberto Cavalli gown at the 2011 VMA on Aug. 28. Selena Gomez dressed to impress as well, but one cannot help but notice the switch of classy versus showy at the award show Sunday night.

Some rumored phones which can spoil Samsung Galaxy S2's party.

Metro-North train service was partly restored on Tuesday, but several lines remained down, and the Port Jervis Line was expected to be crippled for months because of flooding from Hurricane Irene.

An HIV scare shut down porn sets across the San Fernando Valley today after producers learned that a performer tested positive. Critics say the news will likely rekindle debate about health and safety within adult entertainment industry.

Hoping to bolster his biggest case, the trustee seeking money for Bernard Madoff's victims has proposed adding new claims and 23 defendants to his $58.8 billion lawsuit against Bank Medici AG founder Sonja Kohn and Italy's UniCredit SpA.

Apple’s music service, iTunes Match, which was announced at June’s WWDC, is being tested with Apple developer community. The iCloud service will support streaming of iTunes music library to the iOS devices.

Sprint schedules an event for October 7, which has already been rumored as the iPhone 5 release date. Is this a mere coincidence or not?

A candidate among the next iPhone killers, Samsung Galaxy S2 awaits its slightly delayed U.S. unveiling, keeping its seat as the world's second thinnest Dual-Core smartphone, only behind a Japanese smartphone, NEC Medias N-04C.

Stocks fell on Tuesday after data showed a sharp drop in consumer confidence, heightening worries about economic growth.

By Tuesday, the death toll from Irene had risen to at least 40. The sharp increase from initial reports of 25 casualties came as a number of drowned bodies were recovered and several more people electrocuted by downed power lines.

Consumer confidence crumbled in August to its lowest level in more than two years as the fallout from political wrangling over a budget deal took its toll, according to a private sector report released on Tuesday.

Demi Lovato stunned at the MTV VMA with her sparkly silver mini-dress and long wavy locks. Not only did she shine in her dress, the star was noticeably glowing in the face. Demi mingled with BFF Selena Gomez who was the VMA pre show host. She also had a chat with Justin Bieber who showed her his snake, Johnson.

Firefighters battling a forest fire near Yosemite National Park since last week have manage to encircle about a third of the blaze, but a main road into the park remained cut off, officials said on Monday.

Asking whether hookah bars are illegal may seem like a silly question given the massive proliferation of such establishments in the last decade.

The White House has offered no comment on Wednesday's drunken driving arrest of the president's uncle, Onyango Obama, according to news reports.

The red carpet is out and builders are putting the finishing touches to the Venice film festival venue ahead of Wednesday's glitzy opening, when George Clooney's political drama The Ides of March has its world premiere.

Facing threat from Apple's legal wrangling and Google's acquisition of Motorola, Samsung for a moment turned its attention from the problem child Android to focus on its in-house OS, Bada.

The 2011 Venice film festival opens on Wednesday and ends on September 10. After last year's low-key affair, this year promises A-list stars on the red carpet and several eagerly awaited productions.

Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans said on Tuesday he favored strong central bank accommodation for a substantial period of time, as the U.S. economy looks to be moving sideways.

Here's a bold prediction to feed Western worries that power is shifting inexorably to the East: China's yuan could overtake the U.S. dollar as the world's principal reserve currency as soon as next decade.

A former National Basketball Association athlete who once played for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Washington Wizards was arrested following accusations he killed a woman in Georgia, the FBI said.

HP commits itself to Touchpad support even after killing the device.