PORTLAND, Ore. - Benton County, home to Oregon State University, will become the state's second county to begin issuing marriage licenses to gay couples. The county follows in the footsteps of Multnomah County, Oregon's most populous, which has issued over 2,200 licenses to gay couples since March 3. Licenses will be available in Benton County starting March 24, County Commissioner Linda Modrell said Tuesday. Benton County, about an hour's drive from Portland, is home to Corvallis, known ...

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TOKYO, March 17 (Kyodo) -- The U.S. dollar remained close to its three-week low in the upper 108 yen level Wednesday morning in Tokyo due to speculation that Japan may refrain from aggressive intervention for the time being. At noon, the dollar was quoted at 108.74-76 yen, little changed from Tuesday's 5 p.m. quote of 108.75-85 yen in New York. It stood at 109.60-63 yen late Tuesday in Tokyo. During the morning, the U.S. currency moved between 108.65 yen and 108.98 yen. It dropped to ...

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Indian Wells, CA (Sports Network) - World No. 1 Swiss Roger Federer dismantled 18th-seeded American Mardy Fish 6-4, 6-1 Tuesday to reach the quarterfinals at the Pacific Life Open -- the first of nine Tennis Masters Series events this year. The top-seeded Federer, who improved to a brilliant 19-1 this season, will meet dangerous Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela in the round of eight. The Wimbledon champion Federer has won 24 of his last 25 matches, dating back to last season, including ...

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AURORA, Colo., Feb. 19 (AScribe Newswire) -- The University of Colorado will celebrate the opening of a new brain imaging facility Friday that will be used to study drug abuse in young people and mental illnesses in people of all ages. Funded by a $4.2 million grant from the Office of National Drug Control Policy of the Executive Office of the President, the University of Colorado Center for Brain Imaging and Drug Abuse Research will house the most powerful MRI instrument in the Rocky ...

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Mar. 29--Verizon Wireless is launching an upgraded data network in St. Louis next week that will bring mobile Internet-surfing speeds closer to those available on desktop computers. In a demonstration at Verizon Wireless offices, the company downloaded a graphics-heavy Web site in 45 seconds with a laptop computer equipped for the upgrade. With a regular wireless modem, the download took slightly less than three minutes. The upgrade marks the company's transition to a third-...