AP - The Apollo-era launch pad used to shoot space shuttle Discovery into orbit two weeks ago may have been flawed from the day it was built, and will need weeks if not months of work to fix all the liftoff damage, NASA said Thursday.

AFP - Invitrogen Corp. will buy Applera Corp.'s Applied Biosystems Group in a 6.7 billion dollar deal to create a biotechnology giant, the two California companies said Thursday.

AFP - French President Nicolas Sarkozy has asked the International Monetary Fund to look into harnessing record profits from the oil industry to fund investment in renewable energy, a junior minister said Thursday.

AFP - Madagascar and France on Wednesday signed an agreement allocating 20 million dollars (13 million euros) to preserve Madagascar's rich biodiversity, the World Wildlife Fund said.

Reuters - A tornado roared through a Boy Scout camp in Iowa and flattened a cabin where many campers had sought shelter, killing four teen-aged boys and injuring dozens of others.

AP - Discovery's astronauts talked sports and enjoyed the sweeping views of Earth more than 200 miles below Thursday as their flight wound down and the international space station was left farther and farther behind.

AP - Gasoline prices should peak at $4.15 a gallon this summer, the government says — finally an encouraging word for motorists who might be thinking the cost of a fill-up will just keep climbing.