IBT Staff Reporter

Former Goldman Sachs Group Inc director Rajat Gupta and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are dropping litigation against each other stemming from the sprawling federal insider trading probe.

A hacker-turned-defense official, decrying the government's slowness to change, rolled out a new program on Thursday that would enable the Pentagon to more quickly fund hackers to tackle its tough cybersecurity challenges.

With 70 percent chance of acceptable conditions, noon (EDT) Friday will mark the launch of a NASA spacecraft on its deep probe to Jupiter, on a five-year mission dubbed Juno, with the hope of unfolding the origin and life of the largest planet in the solar system.

New York's attorney general will oppose Bank of America Corp's $8.5 billion settlement over repurchasing toxic mortgage loans, joining a growing number of unhappy mortgage bond buyers now fighting the pact reached with some of the largest institutional investors in the country.

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have taken high-resolution photographs of possible flowing water during the warmest months on Mars, when dark, finger-like lines are seen on some Martian slopes. In the middle latitudes of the Planet's southern hemisphere.

The recent discovery of possible salt water on mars could lead to extraterrestrial life on Mars. NASA's Reconnaissance Orbiter release photos of possible flowing water extending onto a rocky slope. The images show dark colored slim streaks flowing down from slopes and crevices. Brown streaks appear and disappear throughout Mars' winter spring and summer seasons. Briny water has been speculated to be flowing during those seasons.

Online travel agency Priceline.com on Thursday posted a higher quarterly profit that topped analysts' expectations as strong growth at its overseas markets boosted bookings.

Some busy Starbucks coffee shops in New York City have started blocking electrical outlets to discourage laptop users from hogging space, and to free up seats for other customers.

Executives at a concrete testing company were arraigned on Thursday on charges of falsifying thousands of reports on public and private projects, including the new Yankee Stadium and an air-traffic control tower at LaGuardia Airport.

The new U.S nutritional guidelines advise Americans to intake more potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin D and calcium.

We've talked about the rise of New York as a tech hot spot, but the challenge of attracting good engineering and technical talent remains one of the region's biggest hurdles. Now Next Jump, a New York-based rewards and offers provider, is teaming with the New York Stock Exchange to host a major engineering-only recruiting event on the floor of the NYSE.

Kraft Foods Inc Chief Executive Irene Rosenfeld is breaking up the food giant in a move that has been percolating at Kraft for several years but caught the market by surprise, coming only 18 months after the acquisition of Cadbury.

South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers said on Thursday Impala Platinum had improved its wage offer in a bid to avert a strike which could impact production at the world's second-largest producer of the precious metal.

Ivory Coast's levels of public investment will be "insignificant" over the next couple of years as the conflict-torn nation uses available funds to tackle its mounting debts, Finance Minister Charles Koffi Diby said on Thursday.

Investor confidence in South African assets eased in the second quarter of this year, pointing to overall uncertainty among fund managers, compilers ETM and Maxim said on Thursday.

South African government bonds extended a recent rally on Thursday, gaining sharply on the back of worries about the global economy that saw investors running to safer assets.

Many Egyptians struggled with torn emotions on Thursday as they reviewed images splashed over newspapers and repeated on television of their octogenarian former president, a day after he went on trial following 30 years at the helm.

Kraft Foods Inc Chief Executive Irene Rosenfeld plans to break up the food giant, just 18 months after driving through the controversial acquisition of UK chocolate maker Cadbury.

NASA announced Thursday that they've potentially discovered liquid water on the surface of Mars. Researchers are studying satellite images that appear to have the consistency of salty brine water.

Professional networking site LinkedIn's quarterly revenue more than doubled, as the company sets off to prove it can fulfill the promise of its splashy IPO and rich valuation.

Investors fled Wall Street in the worst stock-market selloff since the depths of the Great Recession in early 2009 in what has turned into a full-fledged correction.

Investors fled Wall Street in the worst stock-market selloff since the middle of the financial crisis in early 2009 in what has turned into a full-fledged correction.The Dow and the S&P tumbled more than 4 percent on Thursday and the Nasdaq lost 5 percent on fear the United States is staring at another recession and that Europe's sovereign debt crisis is swallowing two of its largest economies.

Australian super model Miranda Kerr struts her hot post baby body while walking the runway at the David Jones runway show in Sydney, Australia, on Wednesday. The model, best known for her work with Victoria's Secret, walked the runway modeling seven looks including a very revealing cutout bathing suit.

The number of Americans claiming new unemployment benefits was steady last week and heavy discounting lifted sales at retailers in July, hopeful signs for the sputtering economy.

European policymakers tried to turn a more powerful fire hose on the euro zone debt crisis on Thursday but financial markets were unimpressed with their response.

LinkedIn Corp is banking on faster-than-expected revenue growth in 2011, as the professional networking site sets off to prove it can fulfill the promise of its splashy IPO and rich valuation.

Investors fled Wall Street in the worst stock-market selloff since the middle of the financial crisis in early 2009 in what has turned into a full-fledged correction.

NASA's possible water discovery could mean there is life on the red planet. However, one prominent scientist disputes that notion.

Levi Aron, the man accused of killing and dismembering a Brooklyn boy on July 11, was found competent to stand trial and pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Thursday morning. Defense lawyer Pierre Bazille said he may still pursue an insanity defense. "We believe him to have some psychiatric disorder." After all, police records indicate Aron saying "I'm famous" after his arrest.