(Science & Tech) - WASHINGTON/CHICAGO - A key U.S. lawmaker threw his support behind the Federal Communications Commission's open Internet proposal, despite renewed protests from telecom companies including Verizon on Wednesday.

(Science & Tech) - WASHINGTON - The United States and China have agreed to work harder to achieve success at U.N.-led climate talks in Copenhagen in December after Presidents Barack Obama and Hu Jintao discussed the subject, the White House said on Wednesday.

(Science & Tech) - TORONTO - Canada's main telecom regulator said on Wednesday it will let Internet service providers slow or "throttle" traffic such as file-sharing that the companies say threatens to overwhelm their networks -- but only as a last resort.

(Science & Tech) - LUXEMBOURG - European environment ministers agreed on a proposal on Wednesday to curb global emissions from planes and ships by 10 percent and 20 percent over the next decade in the fight against climate change.

(Science & Tech) - NEW YORK - Google Inc is partnering with major music labels to launch a new feature to make it easier to discover, sample and buy songs on the search engine, according to two people familiar with the plan.

(Science & Tech) - JERUSALEM - The founder of online encyclopedia Wikipedia said on Wednesday he had entered into a partnership with computer company Hewlett Packard that will allow users to create and print magazines.

(Science & Tech) - TORONTO - Research In Motion has rolled out an updated version of its top-end BlackBerry Bold, aiming to reassert its dominance in the professional market at a time when its retail consumer business has come under growing pressure from Apple's iPhone.

(Science & Tech) - JERUSALEM - Internet telephony company Skype aims to open up its platform to boost access to services by the business sector, Chief Executive Josh Silverman said on Wednesday.

(Science & Tech) - SAO PAULO - Some Brazilian motorists who fuel their cars solely on cane-based ethanol are switching back to gasoline as high sugar prices now make the biofuel more costly in some states.

(Science & Tech) - BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao has told his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama that closer cooperation on fighting climate change could help improve overall ties between the world's top two greenhouse gas polluters.

(Science & Tech) - With Major League Baseball's playoffs heating up and the World Series on deck, it's a great time of year to be a baseball fan.

(Science & Tech) - LONDON - The world needs genetically modified crops both to increase food yields and minimize the environmental impact of farming, Britain's top science academy said on Wednesday.

(Science & Tech) - HONG KONG - Demand for computers from large companies is likely to pick up by as soon as mid-2010 as a result of Microsoft's launch this week of its Windows 7 operating system, a senior Dell executive said on Wednesday.

(Science & Tech) - NEW DELHI - India and China signed on Wednesday a broad agreement to cooperate in the fight against climate change and also underlined a common position on contentious talks for a tougher global climate deal.

(Science & Tech) - CANBERRA - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd warned the nation Wednesday to brace for a severe bushfire season as fire crews battled intense blazes stoking memories of infernos earlier this year which killed 173 people.

(Science & Tech) - NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO - Barnes & Noble Inc on Tuesday unveiled its electronic reader in a challenge to Amazon.com Inc's dominant Kindle, featuring a color screen and the same $259 price, ahead of the holiday shopping season.

(Science & Tech) - CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida - NASA on Tuesday carted a sleek, towering rocket out to the launch pad to test the vehicle planned to replace the retiring space shuttles and return U.S. astronauts to the moon.

(Science & Tech) - Apple revamped its desktop and laptop lines Tuesday, dramatically redesigning the iMac all-in-one and MacBook laptop and adding a few updates to its Mac Mini line of small-scale desktops. It also introduced a multitouch mouse.

(Science & Tech) - OSLO - Space agencies and Google Inc are helping an international project to monitor forests by satellite to fight global warming, the head of an international earth observation group said on Tuesday.

(Science & Tech) - SAN FRANCISCO - Apple Inc rolled out a new line of redesigned Mac computers on Tuesday, hoping to build up sales momentum for its biggest business heading into the all-important holiday season.