After an art history professor took offense at a comment he made last month, U.S. President Barack Obama sought to make amends -- with a handwritten note of apology.

Last month, Obama -- speaking on the economy at a factory in Wisconsin -- said "folks can make a lot more, potentially, with skilled manufacturing or the trades than they might with an art history degree."

An elderly woman was rescued by firefighters Thursday after being stuck in her loft for four days, where she had climbed to check on a draught.

The woman slipped and fell while in the loft of her home at Geelong, an hour south of Melbourne, and was only found when a friend called by, worried because she was not answering her phone.

An exclusive Japanese bar is suing a foodie website, arguing that unwanted publicity from a review is damaging its operational strategy of being little-known and hard to find, reports said Thursday.

The bar in the western city of Osaka, which was not named in reports, has asked the wildly popular "Tabelog" web site to take down a client review and photos of the establishment.

Australia's Olympic bobsleigh team of Astrid Radenovic and former world athletics champion Jana Pittman admitted Tuesday they need to lose weight and lose it quickly if they are to be medal contenders.

The duo ended their opening two runs in 14th place, 2.23sec behind the leaders, Elana Meyers and Lauryn Williams of the USA-1 team.

The "Ducktona 500" in Sheboygan Falls and the "Lucky Ducky Derby" in Menomonee Falls may soon be able to operate in Wisconsin without fear of breaking the law.

The state Senate on Tuesday passed a bill legalizing rubber duck races in Wisconsin. The measure cleared the Assembly last week. It now heads to Gov. Scott Walker for his signature.

A mother upset about "indecent" T-shirts on display at a Utah mall found a quick if not especially convenient way to remove them: She bought every last one.

Judy Cox and her 18-year-old son were shopping Saturday at the University Mall in Orem, about 40 miles south of Salt Lake City, when she saw the shirts in the window of a PacSun store.

Move over, GI Joe, there's a new action figure in town: fugitive U.S. intelligence whistleblower Edward Snowden.

ThatsMyFace.com, based in the Pacific Northwest state of Oregon, is marketing a 12-inch (30-centimeter) likeness of the former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor for $99, it said Tuesday on its website.

A county sheriff's department in South Carolina said Tuesday it had no choice but to detain a 27-year-old woman overnight over a Jane Fonda movie she allegedly failed to return to a video shop nine years ago.

Kayla Finley went to the Pickens County sheriff's office last Thursday evening to lodge a complaint in connection with a domestic dispute, chief deputy Creed Hashe said.

Chinese soldiers have become so much taller and fatter in recent years that they often find themselves cramped in tanks designed three decades ago, state media reported.

A survey found that People's Liberation Army troopers were on average two centimeters (0.8 inches) taller and five centimeters (two inches) fatter around the waist than 20 years ago, the military's official PLA Daily reported Tuesday.

Three people were arrested after a brawl at a wedding apparently sparked by a pork pie, police said Monday.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police's dog section tweeted that they were en route to deal with a "large fight at a wedding" at the Harold Club in Bradford, northern England, on Saturday night.