A rough, whitish block recovered from an Elizabethan shipwreck may be a sunstone, the fabled crystal believed by some to have helped Vikings and other medieval seafarers navigate the high seas, researchers say.

In a paper published earlier this week, a Franco-British group argued that the Alderney Crystal — a chunk of Icelandic calcite found amid a 16th century wreck at the bottom of the English Channel — worked as a kind of solar compass, allowing sailors to determine the position of the sun even when it was hidden by heavy cloud, masked by fog, or below the horizon.

The 17-year-old beaten to death for refusing to marry a man old enough to be her grandfather. The teen dragged by her family to be raped to force her into marrying an elderly man. They are among 39,000 girls forced into marriage every day around the world, sold like cattle to enrich their families.

More than one-third of all girls are married in 42 countries, according to the U.N. Population Fund, referring to females under the age of 18. The highest number of cases occurs in some of the poorest countries, the agency figures show, with the West African nation of Niger at the bottom of the list with 75 percent of girls married before they turn 18. In Bangladesh the figure is 66 percent and in Central African Republic and Chad it is 68 percent.

Kelly Osbourne says she had a seizure and doctors are trying to figure out why.

The 28-year-old TV personality posted a photo on Twitter late Thursday of an IV in her tattooed left arm. She thanked her fans for their "beautiful well wishes."

Clashes raged on Saturday between Syrian troops and rebels in Daraa in the south, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, adding that loud blasts were heard in Damascus province.

Meanwhile, government forces used heavy artillery against rebel positions in the eastern city of Deir Ezzor, it added.

Polish doctors say a 25-year-old man has undergone a three-hour operation to remove a screwdriver lodged about five centimeters (two inches) into his head.

Dr. Jan Kochanowicz, one of the doctors who treated the man in the Polish city of Bialystok, said the man apparently fell and lost consciousness, but does not remember that.

AC Milan warmed up for its second-leg match at Barcelona with a 2-0 win at Genoa on Friday — but lost two key players to injury just four days before the Champions League match in Spain.

Forward Giampaolo Pazzini was already limping when he scored in the 22nd minute and defender Philippe Mexes also exited at halftime with an apparent injury before Mario Balotelli doubled Milan's lead in the 60th.

The president of Brazilian club Sport announced he paid an agent to have one of his players called up to Brazil's national team for the 2001 Confederations Cup.

Luciano Bivar said Sport "hired a lobbyist to promote the image of Leomar and get him to play for the Selecao."

The Portland Trail Blazers set a record for the most points by a visiting team at San Antonio, pulling off a shock 136-106 win over the Spurs on Friday, costing the Texans top spot in the NBA standings.

Portland's Damian Lillard had 35 points and nine assists as the Blazers handed the Spurs their heaviest loss of the season.

Maria Sharapova began her pursuit of a second BNP Paribas Open title with an easy victory and Svetlana Kuznetsova came back from a first-set whitewashing to win as the second round began and the seeded players joined the action Friday at Indian Wells.

Sharapova, who won the title in 2006 and lost to top-seeded Victoria Azarenka in last year's final, was a perfect 6-for-6 on break point against No. 47 Francesca Schiavone of Italy and wrapped up the 6-2, 6-1 victory when Schiavone double faulted.

Los Angeles wants back into the Olympics, throwing its hat into the ring to bring them back to southern California on the 40th anniversary of its last turn as host — the 1984 Games that revived the flagging reputation of the brand.

The U.S. Olympic Committee received a letter from the host of the 1932 and 1984 Games, with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa expressing "enthusiastic interest" in pursuing a bid for 2024.