Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, was once a small part of the natural gas industry. Then the technology improved and the production rush started. Now, there's so much gas on the market that the prices are at a 10-year low and producers are scaling back.

Life in the small town of Waterbury, Vt., changed dramatically after Tropical Storm Irene. With a state office complex flooded, 1,500 workers were relocated. The exodus slowed business to a trickle for those who remain.

Americans who've been traveling abroad are all too often stunned by the size of their mobile phone bill. Even if they aren't actively using their phone, they can rack up hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars in charges as data streams to their phone over foreign networks.

For a moment, put aside how Penn State's Joe Paterno — whose credo was "Success with Honor" — acted with regard to pedophilia, and consider Coach Paterno, which is what he still was barely 11 weeks ago. Will any college coach ever again possess the power he did over his university? It doesn't seem likely.

Associate athletic director John Chadima resigned a week after the party. A university investigative panel issued a report Tuesday night, describing the incident as a sexual assault.

The economy was the main focus of the president's State of the Union address. Obama offered specific proposals for boosting manufacturing and creating more jobs. He also laid out an optimistic vision of the nation's role in the world. In the GOP response, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels said Obama had made the economy worse.

The U.S. women's soccer team barely eked out a bid to last summer's World Cup after they lost a crucial qualifying game to Mexico. And the Americans are facing crunch time — and Mexico — again this week, in the CONCACAF Olympic Women's Qualifying Tournament in Canada.

People around the globe know they should be exercising more and eating better. But food manufacturers aren't helping, with dubious health claims and confusing nutrition labels. That's the word from a global survey on nutrition information.