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Just how do trees die? It seems like a simple question, but the answer still eludes scientists. And understanding forest ecology is increasingly important as the effects of climate change begin to take root.

The gun-control debate has been framed as one between those who want to ban all guns and those who want to protect the right to own them. But digging into the numbers shows a complex relationship between ownership and crime. But some studies suggest stricter gun laws have not had a significant effect on crime rates.

Iran is facing its most serious challenge since the war with Iraq in the 1980s.

When Republican Mitt Romney tapped House budget chairman Paul Ryan to be his vice presidential running mate, the decision forced both campaigns to focus on Medicare. The Ryan pick was a 180-degree turn from Romney's original premise, which was to focus exclusively on President Obama and the economy.

The Reinvent the Toilet Challenge asked engineers to dream up a replacement for the antiquated flush toilet. Michael Hoffmann and his team at Caltech responded with a solar-powered toilet that disinfects waste and reuses wastewater to flush. Better yet, it pumps out hydrogen gas for use in fuel cells.

Climate change is exaggerating the normal swings in weather. For the American Southwest, that means more intense waves of heat, drought and fire that could wipe out trees that have stood for centuries. It's already revamping the ecology of the landscape.

The legal win over Samsung, and the more than $1 billion in damages awarded, could send rival phone makers scrambling to make their products less "Apple-like."

Dancer-actor Gene Kelly would have been 100 this year, and his legacy of unparalleled athleticism and joyous, comic performance still looms large in popular culture. His versatility and his physical beauty were both part of his appeal.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney discarded his increasingly inert better-safe-than-sorry campaign strategy Saturday when he named budget hawk and Democratic bete noire Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin as his running mate. But the pick has handed Democrats a trove of material to use in an effort to weaken the GOP ticket's appeal among independent voters, women and senior citizens.

The president has been relatively mum during the campaign about what he would do if given a second term. He outlined more specific ideas this week — but he hasn't explained how he would get those ideas through Congress.