The Penn Museum is unwrapping the mystery of mummy conservation, giving the public an unusual close-up of researchers' efforts to preserve relics from ancient Egypt.
Human and animal mummies, as well as an intricately inscribed coffin, are among the items undergoing treatment and repair at the Philadelphia institution's newly installed Artifact Lab.

ABC and Tom Hanks are apologizing after the actor let slip a swear word during a live appearance on "Good Morning America."
Hanks telegraphed his "f-bomb" during an interview Friday. Anchor Elizabeth Vargas had asked him to speak in his character's British accent in the movie "Cloud Atlas." Hanks said that it was "mostly swear words," but Vargas told him to go ahead anyway.

Human rights groups in Greece are accusing the government of subjecting asylum seekers to a "degrading and illegal" application process that aims to discourage them from formally requesting state protection.
Fourteen local rights groups said Friday that refugees from war zones, including Syria, and other repressive regimes are effectively unable to file for asylum because Greece's main processing center in Athens accepts as few as 20 applications each week. They issued a 50-page report criticizing the process that they are sending to the European Union.

Former England goalkeeper Chris Kirkland was punched to the ground by a pitch invader amid violent scenes in a second-tier League Championship match between Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds on Friday, bringing further shame at the end of a difficult week for English football.
Kirkland had just conceded a 77th-minute equalizer as Leeds came back to draw 1-1 in the Yorkshire derby at Hillsborough when a man ran onto the pitch from the Leeds supporters' end and struck the 31-year-old keeper in the face. Kirkland received treatment before continuing the match.

Jake Finkbonner was so close to death after flesh-eating bacteria infected him through a cut on his lip that his parents had last rites performed and were discussing donating the 5-year-old's tiny organs.
Jake's 2006 cure from the infection was deemed medically inexplicable by the Vatican, the "miracle" needed to propel a 17th century Native American, Kateri Tekakwitha, on to sainthood. Kateri will be canonized on Sunday along with six other people, the first Native American to receive the honor.

At the time, Sylvia Kristel was worried about starring in the 1974 erotic movie "Emmanuelle," but consoled herself with the thought that few people would see her sexually charged performance.
That turned out to be wrong.

Google is dangling a low-priced laptop computer in front of consumers as rivals Microsoft and Apple prepare to release their latest gadgets.
The lightweight computer unveiled Thursday will sell for $249 and is being made in a partnership with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., which also makes smartphones and tablet computers that run on Google's Android software.

Stan Ovshinsky, the self-taught inventor who developed the nickel-metal hydride battery used in the hybrid vehicle industry, has died at his home in suburban Detroit after a fight with cancer. He was 89.
Ovshinsky, who ran Energy Conversion Devices, a car battery development company, also created a machine that produced 9-mile-long sheets of thin solar energy panels intended to bring cheaper, cleaner power to homes and businesses.

The U.S. news magazine Newsweek plans to end its print publication after 80 years and will shift to an all-digital format starting in early 2013. Job cuts are expected.
Newsweek's last U.S. print edition will be its Dec. 31 issue.

Nokia Corp. is expected to unveil more bad news when it reports its third-quarter results as the struggling cellphone maker faces increasing competition from rivals during its transition to using Microsoft's software in its devices.
Analysts say sales and profits will plunge, with a further drop in market share for the former industry leader that lost its top position to Samsung earlier this year. Strategy Analytics expects Nokia to sell 8 million smartphones in the quarter compared with Samsung's 55 million and Apple Inc.'s 27 million iPhones.
