Looking to network? Career need a lift? Here are five steps that could get you into the hottest seat in the house: a board of directors’ chair. It was the break of a lifetime, and Bruce Clay virtually stumbled into it. He was 40 at the time, just getting his …

Patients are increasingly using the web to examine their doctors. Here are 10 sites that lend a hand. Jennifer Yarbrough was 24 weeks pregnant when she moved from Oakland, Calif., to Brooklyn, N.Y. She didn’t have the luxury of time to meet with multiple obstetricians. She needed to find a …

NEW YORK – After the epic disaster of Oil for Food, one might imagine the United Nations would tread carefully before launching any new and controversial efforts. Hardly. Still reeling from scandals on many fronts, the U.N. has launched another questionable initiative, called the Alliance of Civilizations, which is due …

LONDON – Elton John says he and his partner David Furnish plan a small private ceremony to seal their civil partnership under new legislation offering gays many of the legal protections available to married heterosexuals. “It’ll be a very small family affair and then in the evening there’ll be a …

WASHINGTON – Republican leaders on Capitol Hill are vowing to revive a sweeping budget-cut bill despite an embarrassing setback this week. But they won’t have an easy time of it considering divisions within the GOP and a revolt by party moderates over cuts to social programs like food stamps, Medicaid, …

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Saddam Hussein‘s lawyer blamed U.S.-led “occupation forces” Wednesday for the slaying of a second colleague in the trial and urged Arab leaders to “shoulder their responsibility” to combat disorder here that threatens the proceeding. Khalil al-Dulaimi, head of Saddam’s legal team, spoke one day after Adel al-Zubeidi, …

BOSTON – Intel Corp. (INTC), the world’s biggest make of computer chips, on Thursday said it plans to buy back another $25 billion in stock, adding to some $15 billion it has repurchased since the beginning of last year. The company also said its board has increased its quarterly dividend …

NEW ORLEANS – Greeted by welcome signs hung over the door and in the hallways, students began returning Monday to the first regular public school to reopen since Hurricane Katrina hit three months ago. “The main thing is, the kids want to be home,” Tony Collins said as he brought …

FAIRFAX, Va. – Former national security adviser Sandy Berger pleaded guilty Tuesday to reckless driving after an officer clocked him at 88 mph in a 55-mph zone. A judge fined him $250. Berger did not speak during his brief appearance before Judge Richard Horan in Fairfax County General District Court. …

SAN FRANCISCO – Google Inc. is giving $3 million to the U.S. Library of Congress to help set up a system for creating digital copies of rare documents from around the world — the latest step in Google’s crusade to expand the amount of information that can be indexed by …