AFP - A US biotech company on Wednesday announced it will auction off the right for five dog owners to have their furry best friend cloned, with bidding starting at 100,000 dollars.

Reuters - Democrats in the Senate on Wednesday attempted to link record gasoline prices to cozy ties between President George. W. Bush - a former Texas oil man - and five big energy companies who logged $36 billion in profits in the first quarter of 2008.

Reuters - Scientists have discovered the tracks of a herd of 11 long-necked sauropods walking along a coastal mudflat in what is now the Republic of Yemen, the first discovery of dinosaur footprints on the Arabian peninsula.

AP - Conservation groups returned to court to challenge Bush administration efforts to help save the polar bear, saying federal officials' refusal to include steps against global warming violates the Endangered Species Act.

AFP - Scientists said Tuesday they had "resurrected" a gene from the extinct Tasmanian tiger by implanting it in a mouse, raising the future possibility of bringing animals such as dinosaurs back to life.

AP - An animal rights activist threatened "direct action" to stop the killing of 400 kangaroos because of overpopulation in Australia's capital after two protesters unsuccessfully tried to disrupt the cull Tuesday.

AFP - NASA has given the green light to launch the space shuttle Discovery on May 31 for a mission to the International Space Station, officials said.

AP - Marine scientists surveying a large undersea mountain chain were amazed to find millions of tiny starfish swirling their arms to capture food in the undersea current.

AP - Like a miner prospecting for gold, NASA hopes its latest robot to Mars hits pay dirt when it lands Sunday near the red planet's north pole to conduct a 90-day digging mission. The three-legged Phoenix Mars lander fitted with a backhoe arm is zeroing in on the unexplored arctic region where a reservoir of ice is believed to lie beneath the Martian surface.