Environmental Group Lists Best, Worst Congressional Voting Records (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - According to the Hill, the League of Conservation Voters has announced its yearly rankings of lawmakers with the best and worst voting records in terms of energy and environmental measures. The league analyzed 11 votes in the Senate and 35 in the House of Representatives.

2.1 million viewers live stream Super Bowl online (AP)

AP - The first live stream of the Super Bowl drew 2.1 million unique viewers, NBC said Thursday.

Disney 1Q revenue misses estimates but profits up (AP)

AP - The Walt Disney Co. said Tuesday that its net income rose 12 percent in the final quarter of 2011, as a slimmer movie slate and upbeat theme park results helped the company top earnings forecasts even while revenue gains were less than expected.

Yahoo chairman exits, review drags on (Reuters)

Reuters - Yahoo Inc Chairman Roy Bostock and three other directors will step down as the struggling company ploughs ahead with an internal overhaul, including discussions on dealing with its stakes in China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan.

Halliburton to abandon BlackBerry, turn to iPhone (Reuters)

Reuters - Oil field services company Halliburton plans to stop issuing BlackBerry smartphones to employees and switch over to Apple's iPhone, which it said was better suited to its needs, marking another setback for Research In Motion.

IMDB "Jane Doe" case gets a court date (Reuters)

Reuters - Junie Hoang, the actress suing the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) for revealing her age, will see her day -- and perhaps two days -- in court next year.

Michigan Lawmakers Explore Alternatives to Gas Tax Hike (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - Michigan's Senate Transportation Committee is hammering out a 30-bill package to address the state's extensive road and bridge repair issues. Included is a proposed gas tax hike to fund the $1.4 billion per year needed for the renovation. As the Detroit Free Press says, that portion is being pushed down the committee's agenda in favor of other measures that are less costly to taxpayers. Here are details about road work and gas tax increases in Michigan.

BP hikes dividend after strong fourth quarter (AP)

AP - BP PLC has raised its quarterly dividend by 14 percent after posting double-digit gains in profit and revenue in the last three months of 2011 despite further big payments to compensate for the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Path iPhone app shown to be uploading iOS address books to its servers (Appolicious)

Appolicious - One of the most popular social networking apps available for iOS and Android devices is in a bit of hot water.

Chairman, 3 others out in Yahoo board shake-up (AP)

AP - Yahoo Chairman Roy Bostock and three longtime board members are stepping down, submitting to the demands of many frustrated shareholders who blame them for not fixing the problems dragging down the Internet company's revenue and stock price.

RIM tells European developers it's "ready to compete" (Reuters)

Reuters - Next-generation software for BlackBerry's smartphones is "ready to compete", Research In Motion's new chief executive, Thorsten Heins, told more than 2,000 technical developers on Tuesday, expressing confidence in RIM's long-term future.

Amazon, Viacom close to Web video deal (Reuters)

Reuters - Amazon.com Inc is about to announce a Web video deal with Viacom Inc in what sources said was one of the last steps in a plan to launch a standalone subscription service to compete with Netflix Inc.

Google Android Mascot Merchandise -- Own Your Own Tiny Robot (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | Say what you will about the relative merits of Android smartphones vs. the iPhone, but the Android mascot wins against the iPhone's hands-down. This is largely because the iPhone doesn't have a mascot, but that's not the point. The point is that the cute little green robot seen all over Android phone commercials (and depicted in Google branding) can be yours, and can sit on your desk or even do useful things for you. And yes, he comes in more colors than just green.

Court rules that it’s legal to sell used MP3s (Yahoo! News)

Yahoo! News - What do you do when you no longer want an MP3 you paid to download fromÂ iTunes? Do you simply delete it? That may be a huge missed opportunity â a federal judge in New York ruled today that it is …

Adorable bird-shaped smoke detector saves lives by chirping (Yahoo! News)

Yahoo! News - Who says smoke detectors can't be as fun as they are functional? This adorableÂ bird-shaped product called Chick-a-Dee adds a bit of charm to your home while keeping you safe at the same time. Modeled after theÂ American black-capped chickadee, it mimics …

Radioactive element found in fish far from Vermont nuclear plant (Reuters)

Reuters - Trace amounts of a radioactive element found in fish near the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant have now been found in bass in an opposite corner of the state, apparently clearing the plant of any tie to the contamination, a state health official said.

Formspring Android app offers an easy forum for asking questions (Appolicious)

Appolicious - The free Formspring app seems to be aimed at that annoying friend or family member that asks a million questions. You know the one…where did you get that sweater? What did you eat for lunch? What do you think of my new Android phone? Should I have gotten a Blackberry? NO!

Don’t stress tax time with these helpful iPhone apps (Appolicious)

Appolicious - It’s tax time! What, it isn’t a happy time for you? Well maybe you should spend more time prepping throughout the year with your iPhone apps so you don’t get so stressed out come the beginning of next year. Tax time shouldn’t be stressful, it should be routine. Here are some helpful tax apps to get you started on a road to financial stability.

Oil prices climb as Iran threatens EU supply cut (AP)

AP - Oil prices climbed above $98 per barrel Tuesday after Iran again threatened to cut off supplies to Europe. Here's how energy prices traded.

Summary Box: Jobs flow from mobile, Facebook apps (AP)

AP - CAREER OPPORTUNITY: All those apps being made for smartphones, computer tablets and Facebook's online social network are helping the U.S. economy lower its unemployment rate. A study released Tuesday by the technology trade group TechNet estimates apps are responsible for creating about 466,000 U.S. jobs since 2007.

Oil prices rise as Iran threatens EU supply cut (AP)

AP - Oil prices climbed above $98 per barrel Tuesday after Iran again threatened to cut off supplies to Europe.

Google Chrome comes to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich devices (Appolicious)

Appolicious - Google’s entry into the desktop web browser market, Chrome, has rocketed in popularity since its release back in 2008, but it has never quite made the logical leap to Google’s Android operating system – until now, that is.

LiveScience.com - It seems the general public just can't make up its mind about the existence of man-made climate change. Rather than steadily increasing or decreasing over the last decade, the U.S. public's concern over our warming planet has jumped up and down, according to Gallup polls. But what exactly is driving this seesawing of opinions on climate change?

The World is Crazy Enough Without Scratch-N-Sniff Pants (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | It goes to show you that some people aren't worried about such weighty issues as the global economy or tensions in the Middle East. They're not even worried, it would appear, about climate change or starving children in countries far, far away. According to The Sideshow, the company Naked and Famous is making a $150 pair of men's jeans that can stand months without washing and smells, when scratched, like raspberry candy.

Green auction expected to raise millions for environment (Reuters)

Reuters - Bidders will be able to buy fine art, a vacation in the Maldives, or an internship with designer Donna Karan and help the planet at the same time in Christie's annual Green Auction, which is expected reap millions for environmental causes.

Exclusive: China buys up Saudi, Russian oil to squeeze Iran (Reuters)

Reuters - China is scouring the world for alternative oil supplies to replace a fall in its imports from Iran, as it seeks to negotiate lower prices from Tehran, and has been drawing heavily on Saudi Arabia.

Average Maine heating oil price rises 1 cent (AP)

AP - The average price for home heating oil in Maine has risen one cent from last week to $3.72 a gallon.

Judge allocates time for start of oil spill trial (AP)

AP - A federal judge has set aside nearly seven hours for opening statements in a trial over the deadly rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico that resulted in the nation's worst offshore oil spill.

BP preparing "vigorously" for oil spill lawsuits (Reuters)

Reuters - BP said it was preparing "vigorously" for lawsuits related to its Gulf of Mexico oil spill, which are due to start later this month, as it unveiled a rise in fourth-quarter earnings boosted by higher oil prices and one-off gains.

BP preparing "vigorously" for oil spill lawsuits (Reuters)

Reuters - BP said it was preparing "vigorously" for lawsuits related to its Gulf of Mexico oil spill, which are due to start later this month, as it unveiled a rise in fourth-quarter earnings boosted by higher oil prices and one-off gains.

Nepal's vulture "restaurants" for endangered birds (Reuters)

Reuters - In the village of Pithauli, surrounded by ripening mustard fields, a woman hauls a cow carcass on a trolley, drops it in an open field, then runs and hides in a nearby hut as dozens of vultures swoop down.

Could the Wind Turbines of Chile Harm Blue Whales? (Time.com)

Time.com - The energy-starved country needs wind power but environmental critics say it will not only mar the landscape but harm the wildlife

Oil hovers near $97 as traders eye US supplies (AP)

AP - Oil prices hovered near $97 a barrel Tuesday in Asia amid trader concern U.S. crude supplies will continue to rise because of weak demand.

Canada's Harper in China visit focused on energy (AP)

AP - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is visiting China to discuss oil sales and other economic ties following U.S. President Barack Obama's rejection of a pipeline carrying Canadian oil across the continental United States.

Commercial Composting a Growth Industry in Austin (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - While Austin, like most Texas cities, has a recycling program, the capital of the state is experimenting with commercial composting, using food and other organic waste to create mulch and potter's soil for commercial use, according to the Austin American Statesman.

Organization Warns of EPA 'Regulatory Avalanche' (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - The Texas Public Policy Foundation is warning of an "approaching regulatory avalanche" in a report. The foundation says new rules in the works by the Environmental Protection Agency could cost billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs. Here are the details of the report.

After U.S. oil snub, Canada focuses on China (Reuters)

Reuters - Canada will focus on exporting oil and other goods to China and other booming Asian economies even if Washington overturns its decision to block a pipeline that would have sent more Canadian crude to the United States.

Cisco seen reporting solid second quarter (Reuters)

Reuters - A year after network equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc unnerved investors with yet another weak quarterly outlook the company looks set to report a stable quarter buoyed in part by improving enterprise demand in the United States.

Italian industries see cuts in Russian gas (AP)

AP - Italy announced emergency energy measures Monday, cutting gas supplies to some industries to make sure that private homes stayed warm during a severe cold spell.

Nigeria names seven behind Eni pipeline blast (Reuters)

Reuters - Nigeria's military has named seven people it says were behind an attack on an oil pipeline belonging to Italy's Eni on Saturday, and denied a claim that a former separatist militia in the Niger Delta was responsible.

Massachusetts gas prices edge up another 2 cents (AP)

AP - Massachusetts residents are paying two more cents a gallon at the gas pump, the seventh consecutive week of increases.

With oil pipeline attack, Niger Delta rebels announce return (The Christian Science Monitor)

The Christian Science Monitor - With the destruction of a major oil pipeline in Nigeriaâs oil-rich Niger Delta region, Nigeria now has two major internal threats to deal with.

Chevron rig burns off Nigeria as damage hits shore (AP)

AP - As a fire at a Chevron Corp. gas rig off Nigeria's coast continues to burn, locals say they're seeing signs of its effects on the environment and the health of those living nearby.

Explosion rips through main Syrian oil pipeline in Homs (Reuters)

Reuters - An explosion ripped through an oil pipeline feeding a main refinery in the city of Homs on Monday and a plume of smoke was seen rising from the site, residents and activists said.

Report: Iran navy rescues tanker from pirates (AP)

AP - Iran's state TV reports that the country's navy has opened fire on pirates to foil an attack on an Iranian oil tanker near the Gulf of Aden.

China bars its airlines from paying EU carbon tax (AP)

AP - China announced Monday it will prohibit its airlines from paying European Union charges on carbon emissions, ratcheting up a global dispute over the cost of combatting climate change.

Sierra Club Received Millions from Natural Gas Industry (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - According to a blog post from Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, the environmentalist organization accepted millions of donated dollars from the natural gas industry to fight against coal-fired plants nationwide. Here are the details.

Sierra Club Received Millions from Natural Gas Industry (ContributorNetwork)

ContributorNetwork - According to a blog post from Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, the environmentalist organization accepted millions of donated dollars from the natural gas industry to fight against coal-fired plants nationwide. Here are the details.

Fire at Moscow nuclear institute, Russia says no risk (Reuters)

Reuters - There was no risk of a radiation leak after a fire broke out at a Moscow nuclear research center housing a non-operational 60-year-old atomic reactor Sunday, said officials, but Greenpeace Russia expressed serious concern about the incident.

Nigeria oil line on fire; militants claim attack (AP)

AP - An Eni SpA oil pipeline ruptured and caught fire as a militant group claimed responsibility for an attack in the region, their first alleged assault in months as its purported leader awaits trial on terrorism charges in South Africa.