Oil prices drifted Monday as traders worried about the threat to the U.S. Economy if lawmakers and President Barack Obama don't reach an agreement to avoid automatic tax hikes and spending cuts.

Benchmark crude for December delivery was down 23 cents to $85.84 a barrel at late afternoon Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 98 cents to finish at $86.07 per barrel on the Nymex on Friday.

A turtle breeding farm in the Cayman Islands has postponed plans to release 150 green sea turtles into the wild due to rough seas.

The government-owned Cayman Turtle Farm says the release planned for Sunday has been called off because of choppy waters. Officials expect to release the captive-bred creatures next weekend.

A half mile (800 meters) below the ground at Prudhoe Bay, above the vast oil field that helped trigger construction of the trans-Alaska pipeline, a drill rig has tapped what might one day be the next big energy source.

The U.S. Department of Energy and industry partners over two winters drilled into a reservoir of methane hydrate, which looks like ice but burns like a candle if a match warms its molecules. There is little need now for methane, the main ingredient of natural gas. With the boom in production from hydraulic fracturing, the United States is awash in natural gas for the near future and is considering exporting it, but the DOE wants to be ready with methane if there's a need.

The now-faded blue gingham dress Judy Garland wore in "The Wizard of Oz" has sold for $480,000.

Auction house Julien's Auctions says the pinafore fetched the highest price of any item during a two-day auction of Hollywood memorabilia that attracted bids from around the world. The auction ended Saturday in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Anne Hathaway credits her new husband Adam Schulman for helping her get through the grueling filming of the screen adaptation of "Les Miserables."

In "Les Mis," the 30-year-old actress plays Fantine, a struggling, sickly mother forced into prostitution in 1800s Paris.

A thunderous, late-night explosion destroyed at least two homes and set surrounding homes ablaze in an Indianapolis neighborhood, killing one person and causing injuries as many fled in pajamas from a blast that spread damage over several blocks, authorities said Sunday.

Fire officials told WISH-TV that one death has been confirmed but they did not immediately identify the victim. The powerful blast caught sleeping people unaware as it knocked garage doors off their hinges, shattered windows and caved in walls of homes on the south side of Indianapolis. Many awakened by the blast scooped up pets and ran from their homes.

The worst of Europe's financial crisis appears to be over.

European leaders have taken steps to ease the panic that has plagued the region for three turbulent years. Financial markets are no longer in a state of emergency over Europe's high government debts and weak banks. And this gives politicians from the 17 countries that use the euro breathing room to fix their remaining problems.

In his victory speech, President Barack Obama acknowledged millions of voters' frustration when he said that it was time to fix the long lines at voting stations that have become an Election Day blight in America.

For inspiration, Obama may want to turn to Estonia, an East European nation and staunch U.S. ally that allows its citizens to vote in the comfort of their homes — via the Internet.

Shammo Khan walks into a dusty courtyard that reeks of garbage, searching for the fingerprint of a man exhausted by HIV, drug withdrawal and the tuberculosis lesions hijacking his lungs.

She opens her laptop on his rope bed, prods the emaciated man to log in on a fingerprint reader and watches him slowly and painfully swallow a handful of TB drugs in an experimental program harnessing new technology to combat an ancient killer still ravaging India.

An American regarded as a father of computer graphics, an Indian literary critic and a Japanese molecular cell biologist have received the Kyoto Prize, Japan's highest private award for global achievement.

The Inamori Foundation awarded its advanced technology prize on Saturday to U.S. computer scientist Ivan Sutherland, who developed the graphic interface program Sketchpad in 1963.