Private equity firm Blackstone Group LP, along with Pactera's CEO and other managers, have offered to take Pactera private in a deal that values the Chinese technology consulting and outsourcing firm at $680.4 million.

A college student was taken hostage by a masked intruder when he aimed at an officer.

The rumored X Phone being developed by Google and Motorola unit is headed to AT&T later this year. A recent filing with the Federal Communication Commission revealed that the device, which carried the codename Motorola XT1058, will support AT&T’s LTE and HSPA+ networks. The smartphone didn’t include CDMA radios for Verizon and Sprint’s networks, however a new leak suggests a CDMA model is also in the works. A configuration file reportedly from a leaked Motorola USB driver that was obtained by Droid-Life revealed a device with the codename XT1060, similar to the recently leaked AT&T model. The file also confirmed that the smartphone will be equipped with a dual-core Snapdragon 4 Pro processor and support for CDMA networks, although it isn’t clear if

The price of a gallon of gas in Massachusetts is up a penny. AAA Southern New England reports Monday that self-serve, regular crept up to $3.49 per gallon in the past week. The in-state price is 16 cents ...

Gas prices have risen in New Hampshire, but they're still below the national average. The website Gasbuddy.com says the average retail price for a gallon of gas rose 1.9 cents in the last week, averaging ...

With Windows Phone, Microsoft has shown us how difficult it is to launch a new mobile product without an expansive app ecosystem available right out of the gate. Thanks to the early buzz Google is creating around Google Glass, the company’s upcoming connected eyewear likely won’t face the same challenge. We have already seen a bunch of apps emerge for Glass — some intriguing and some just creepy — but mobile application promotion company AppLaunch is looking to make Glass app development as easy as possible. AppLaunch on Monday unveiled a simple template for creating Google Glass apps. With the free tool, AppLaunch says developers can build Glass apps in just 15 minutes. The company even supplied a sample — a

AAA Michigan says gasoline prices have risen about 10 cents during the past week to a statewide average of about $3.88 per gallon. The auto club says Monday the average is about 13 cents per gallon more ...

The price of a gallon of gas in Maine is rising, but not as fast as prices are going up nationally. Price-monitoring website MaineGasPrices.com reports Monday that the average retail price of a gallon ...

By Alexei Oreskovic and Jennifer Saba (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc said it is buying blogging service Tumblr for $1.1 billion cash, giving the struggling Internet pioneer a much-needed platform in social media to reach a younger generation of users. The deal, announced on Monday, is a bold bet by Yahoo Chief Executive Marissa Mayer to revitalize the company by co-opting a Web property with strong visitor traffic but little revenue. Yahoo made clear it was sensitive to concerns that it might damage Tumblr by making it less irreverent or more corporate. ...

By Alexei Oreskovic and Jennifer Saba (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc said it is buying blogging service Tumblr for $1.1 billion cash, giving the struggling Internet pioneer a much-needed platform in social media to reach a younger generation of users. The deal, announced on Monday, is a bold bet by Yahoo Chief Executive Marissa Mayer to revitalize the company by co-opting a Web property with strong visitor traffic but little revenue. Yahoo made clear it was sensitive to concerns that it might damage Tumblr by making it less irreverent or more corporate. ...

The suburbs struggle as the nation's poor migrate out of the cities.

Gas prices have taken a big jump in Ohio and the U.S. A gallon of regular gas in Ohio was listed at an average of about $3.84 in Monday's survey from auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and ...

One of the most intriguing concepts for the future of the PC industry we’ve heard lately has been Dell’s Project Ophelia, a USB thumb drive-sized “computer-on-a-stick” that can plug into any monitor’s USB port to transform it into a makeshift computer capable of running multiple operating systems. PCWorld reports that an early version of Ophelia that will only run Android will ship out to developers starting in July and could ship out to consumers as soon as August. The first version of Ophelia “will have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities and is aimed at users who do most of their computing on the Web,” says PCWorld, which means that monitors using Ophelia will be more like Chromebooks than traditional PCs. Dell’s

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A central Idaho couple is suing the Sun Valley Co. and the Twitter Inc. social media site seeking to bar the resort from using the handle "SunValley."

Because Samsung isn’t already prepping enough new variants of the wildly popular Galaxy S4, a new “Galaxy S4 Mega” is reportedly under development as well and has been confirmed by Samsung. The Galaxy S4 mini, Galaxy S4 Active, Galaxy S4 Zoom and Galaxy S4 Google Edition with stock Android Jelly Bean are all expected to debut in the coming weeks and months, and now a phablet version of the S4 looks like it has been confirmed in a recent update to Samsung’s WatchOn TV app discovered by SamMobile. No other details have been provided, but unless this was a typo — and it doesn’t appear to be, since the update also references two other unannounced Galaxy S4 variants — we should see

NEW YORK (AP) — Rival online takeout services Seamless North America and GrubHub on Monday announced plans to combine and create a new company covering more than 20,000 restaurants in 500 cities across the U.S.

Tesoro Logistics LP said Monday that it will acquire Chevron Pipe Line Co.'s northwest products system for less than previously expected, citing a March diesel fuel spill involving the system. Tesoro said ...

A video game console’s exterior hardware is undoubtedly the least important part of the gaming experience, but fans were still angry when the PlayStation 4 event came and went with no physical console having been unveiled. As expected, however, Sony plans to debut its new console design during the annual E3 conference that kicks off next month on June 10th. In a newly released promotional video, Sony teased the PlayStation 4 console for the first time, showing blurry images of the box and zoomed-in pictures of various parts. It’s impossible to make out the PS4′s final design for the time being, but all will be revealed in under a month during Sony’s E3 press conference. In the meantime, the full

HELSINKI (Reuters) - A group of ex-Nokia software developers unveiled its first smartphone on Monday, aiming to prove their former employer wrong by making a success of a technology dropped by the Finnish mobile phone maker. Jolla was founded by Nokia's former MeeGo software team that was shut down after the company decided to switch to Microsoft's Windows Phone software in 2011. With just 70 employees and 11 million euros ($14. ...

At 12:30 PM EST, join Yahoo's Virginia Heffernan and biohackers Dave Asprey and Alisa Vitti

At 12:30 PM EST, join Yahoo's Virginia Heffernan and biohackers Dave Asprey and Alisa Vitti

By Natasha Baker TORONTO (Reuters) - A new app launched on Monday aims to bring William Shakespeare's sonnets to the masses with the help of short films starring stage actors performing them in front of New York landmarks. The Sonnet Project is a free app for the iPhone and iPad that showcases the bard's poetry through films of up to two minutes and performances by Tony-Award winning actors Joanna Gleason and Cady Huffman, among others. "Shakespeare gets a bad rap. ...

The plan gives legal status to millions without necessary interviews, says the USCIS leader.

BEIRUT (AP) — Fierce street fighting in a Syrian town near the Lebanese border has killed at least 28 elite members of Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group, activists said Monday, as Syrian government forces pushed deeper into the strategic, opposition-held town.

Biohackers are gulping down Dave Asprey's Bulletproof Coffee Breakfast. What the heck is it -- and more importantly, does it work?

With Apple’s “iWatch” likely to release this year, it’s not surprising that we’re starting to hear rumors about components being cobbled together just before the company starts ramping up production of the device. Japanese blog Macotakara points us to a new report from Taiwanese publication Economic Times claiming that Apple is testing out 1.5-inch OLED displays produced by RITEK subsidiary RiTdisplay for its upcoming smartwatch. Macotakara notes that earlier rumors claimed the iWatch would have a 1.8-inch display, so it seems that Apple may be thinking of reducing the device’s size if it’s really giving 1.5-inch panels a long look.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A suicide bomber dressed in a police uniform killed 14 people including a prominent provincial council chief outside the council headquarters in northern Afghanistan on Monday, authorities said. The Taliban insurgency quickly claimed responsibility.

Google clearly has a number of strengths, but its greatest may be the freedom to fail. Google shares are up more than 28% so far in 2013 and the company’s market capitalization recently topped $300 billion for the first time. Investors are bullish on Google’s prospects for the future and perhaps one of the reasons is that Google has shown time and time again that it is willing to take big risks in an effort to drive innovation. In a recent article, The Wall Street Journal’s Steve Rosenbush hypothesized that Google’s greatest strength may be “the luxury of failure.” He describes Google’s strategy as a “reckless, up-for-anything approach” and notes that it seems to be working quite well since Google’s stock

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has affirmed the authority of federal regulators to try to speed local government decisions on proposals to build or expand cell phone towers.

By Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) - Britain launched a research program on Monday that should eventually allow all cancer patients to have access to the kind of genetic analysis that led Hollywood star Angelina Jolie to decide to undergo a double mastectomy. The project, involving the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London, the U.S. gene sequencing firm Illumina, geneticists and cancer doctors, aims to find a way to allow more cancer genes be tested in more people. Researchers announcing the 2. ...

It’s never surprising when Apple decides to make new versions of its products lighter and thinner than earlier models but a new report from Digitimes suggests that the company could really outdo itself with the fifth-generation iPad. Digitimes‘ sources say that the next iPad will be between 25% and 33% lighter than the fourth-generation model and will go on sale starting in September. Given that the fourth-generation iPad weighed in at 652 grams, a 25% reduction in weight would mean that the fifth-generation model would weigh just 489 grams. The publication’s sources also say that Apple will start production of the new completely redesigned tablet in July and that “LG Display, Samsung Display and Sharp are expected to be the

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an Alaskan village's claim that it should be able to sue oil companies and utilities for damages attributed to climate change. Lawyers for the village of Kivalina wanted various named defendants responsible for greenhouse emissions, including Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp and Duke Energy Corp, to pay damages for greater flooding and erosion that they say have caused by a reduction in sea ice. The court's refusal to take the case means an appeals court ruling in favor of the defendants remains intact. ...

An Alaskan village wanted to sue oil companies over increased erosion.

The April 8 cover story, "Amnesty: back to the future," understates the threat that a new amnesty for illegal immigrants poses to the United States. The 1987 amnesty was a massive failure on all counts: The border is still not secure, employers hire illegal immigrants without a credible deterrent, and the previous amnesty was subject to massive fraud.

The past few months produced a sustained bout of sectarian violence.

By Chookyung Kim SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea fired two short-range missiles on Monday, making six launches in three days, and it condemned South Korea for criticizing what it said were its legitimate military drills. South Korea's Defense Ministry said North Korea had fired one missile on Monday morning and a second one in the afternoon. Both were fired into the sea off North Korea's east coast, a ministry official said. ...

The Justice Department collected James Rosen's telephone records.

The battle between BlackBerry and Microsoft for the No.3 spot in the smartphone platform war is showing no signs of slowing, but a new contender will soon come to market to challenge these struggling giants. Jolla, whose CEO spoke with us nearly a year ago about the company’s efforts, has unveiled its first smartphone. Named simply “Jolla,” the handset will feature a 4.5-inch HD display, a dual-core processor, 4G LTE, 16GB of internal storage, microSD support, an 8-megapixel camera, Android app support and the Sailfish mobile operating system. Most impressively of all, perhaps, is the price tag: just €399 before taxes and subsidies. Jolla says it hopes to begin shipping the phone by the end of 2013, and a video of

The storm system kils at least one, injures a dozen, and caused extensive damage.

The country once had several dozen cases every year. It now ranks second in Europe.

Start your day with Whisper, an anonymous network similar to website Post Secret that lets you share confessions with photos and text. Second is an update to business networking service LinkedIn, which brings a new redesign to its Android offerings. Finally, there's Kingdom Rush, a tower defense game that has a ton of challenging levels.

Sharing Science Research in the Age of Social Media

When people buy an E Ink eReader instead of one of the many affordable tablets available on the market, they’re likely looking for a somewhat pure eBook reading experience. As Barnes & Noble’s Nook business continues to flounder, however, the book seller will soon bank on new tablet features to help boost interest in its Nook Simple Touch lineup. According to a purported leaked email obtained by TechCrunch, Barnes & Noble plans to issue an update to its Simple Touch eReaders that will add a Web browser, email and a new store app to the devices. No other details were provided, though the update is expected to begin rolling out over the air (OTA) on June 1st. A copy of the leaked

(Reuters) - Dell Inc said in a letter to suitors Carl Icahn and Southeastern Asset Management that the company would not provide more information about itself unless the board determined that their proposal was "superior" to founder Michael Dell's. Earlier this month, Icahn and Southeastern offered $12 in cash per share or additional shares to existing investors as an alternative to Michael Dell's $24.4 billion bid to take the company private. ...

Connecticut's governor tells commuters to consider staying in NYC if they can get there.

By Malathi Nayak and Bill Rigby SAN FRANCISCO/SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp is set to make a splash this week with the eagerly awaited unveiling of its new Xbox game console, eight years after the last version, as it seeks a larger share of the $65 billion a year global computer gaming industry. But the small device faces some big competition from the PlayStation 4 by Sony Corp and the Wii U by Nintendo Co Ltd in a shifting market. ...

By Terril Yue Jones BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Internet is brimming with disclosures of officials collecting bribes, homes and luxury accessories as casually as they do mistresses. But while the government tolerates such anti-corruption vigilantism, it is also extremely leery of the threat the Internet can pose to Communist Party rule. The Internet is the new tool in the fight against corruption - a cornerstone policy of new President Xi Jinping, who has pledged to tackle the problem head-on. ...

Affymetrix Chief Financial Officer Tim Barabe is planning to retire from his post next month. The genetic testing instrument business said Monday that it is promoting Gavin Wood to the position. Barabe's ...

One Brazilian tourist was killed while 24 other people on board were injured.

By Charlie Zhu and Bill Powell HONG KONG (Reuters) - In a 2010 speech before a packed ballroom of university students in Sydney, Shi Zhengrong, founder of Chinese solar-panel maker Suntech Power Holdings Co Ltd, listed the people who had been important in his rise to fame and riches. Two were of particular note: Yang Weize and Wang Rong, senior Communist Party officials from the eastern Chinese city of Wuxi. A decade earlier, Shi had been research director of a solar energy firm, a spin-off from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, where he attended graduate school. ...