Tablets in the classroom push learning, teaching

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) - At Autrey Mill Middle School in suburban Atlanta, students are using electronic tablets instead of paper and pencil to answer questions, take tests and tell their teachers whether they understand their lesson or not.

CDC: Fecal bacteria common in swimming pools

NEW YORK (AP) - Health officials say they found fecal bacteria in more than half of the water samples taken from Atlanta-area public swimming pools last summer.

Powerball jackpot quickly jumps to $550 million

Obama: No special prosecutor to investigate IRS

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama dismissed the idea of a special prosecutor to investigate the Internal Revenue Service Thursday, saying probes by Congress and the Justice Department should be able to figure out who was responsible for improperly targeting tea party groups when they applied for tax-exempt status.

Stocks flip between gains and losses; Cisco climbs

NEW YORK (AP) - Cisco Systems led the Dow Jones industrial average slightly higher Thursday after the technology company reported higher sales. Mixed corporate earnings and economic reports kept the major stock indexes flipping between slight gains and losses.

Georgia's jobless rate drops to 8.2 percent

ATLANTA (AP) - State labor officials say Georgia's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has dropped to 8.2 percent in April.

Woman using bare hands to build house with rocks

SILVER CREEK, Ga. (AP) - A woman is using her bare hands to build a house in the woods of north Georgia by stacking large rocks on top of each other, one rock at a time.

Police: Suspect arrested in La. parade shooting

Bibles reinstated in Ga. state park lodges, cabins

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has ordered the Department of Natural Resources to return Bibles that were removed from cabins and lodges at state parks.

Deal signs order addressing Common Core standards

Ga. avoids limit on reservoir use in Senate bill

Stocks keep climbing even as manufacturing softens

Ga. high school yearbook labels student a 'freak'

DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. (AP) - School administrators are trying to find out how a photo caption next to a student's photo labeled him a "freak" in a high school yearbook.

Ga. agency orders removal of Bibles at state parks

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia parks officials say they've ordered that Bibles be removed from guest rooms at state lodges and cabins across the state.

TV-over-Internet service hits Atlanta next month

Bin Laden spokesman caught in Jordan

WASHINGTON (AP) - Osama bin Laden's spokesman and son-in-law has been captured by the United States, officials said Thursday, in what a senior congressman called a "very significant victory" in the ongoing fight against al-Qaida.

Senate approves new rules for nurse discipline

ATLANTA (AP) - The Georgia Senate has approved a proposal that would require nurses to report alleged professional violations by their colleagues.

Stocks gain for fifth day on unemployment report

NEW YORK (AP) - The Dow pushed further into unchartered territory Thursday, having surpassed its previous all-time high two days ago. The catalyst was a government report on employment that gave succor to stock market bulls. Stocks started higher after the Labor Department reported that the number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell by 7,000 last week, driving the four-week average to its lowest in five years. The drop is a positive sign ...

Obama backs down

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration bowed to demands from Republicans blocking a vote on the nomination of John Brennan to head the CIA on Thursday, stating there are limits to a president's ability to order drone strikes on U.S. soil against suspected terrorists who are American citizens. The reassurances were contained in a letter from Attorney General Eric Holder to Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican who staged a filibuster across 13 hours ...

Ga. lawmakers face deadline to pass legislation

ATLANTA (AP) - The clock is ticking for Georgia state lawmakers seeking to pass legislation this year.

Georgia jobless rate holds steady at 8.7 percent

ATLANTA (AP) - State labor officials say Georgia's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 8.7 percent held steady in January, unchanged from the December rate.

Lion kills intern at Calif. Exotic animal park

DUNLAP, Calif. (AP) - Authorities are trying to determine what provoked a lion at an exotic animal park in Central California to attack and maul to death a 24-year-old woman, who had been on the job as an intern there for just a few weeks. The woman was attacked and killed Wednesday when she entered the male African lion's enclosure at Cat Haven about 45 miles east of Fresno, authorities said. Sheriff's deputies responding ...

Arkansas adopts US's most restrictive abortion law

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas lawmakers overrode a veto Wednesday and gave the state the most restrictive abortion law in the country - a near-ban on the procedure from the 12th week of pregnancy onward that is certain to end up in court. A day after the Republican-led state Senate voted to override Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe's veto, the GOP-controlled House voted 56-33 to do the same. Only a simple majority was needed ...

Ga. lawmakers debate easing gun carrying rules

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia lawmakers will debate rules Thursday that could allow more mentally ill people to carry firearms, though hasty changes may blunt some of the impact.

US stocks edge up following Dow's record day

NEW YORK (AP) - After barreling through a record the day before, the Dow Jones industrial average meandered higher on Wednesday. The Dow edged up 42.47 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 14,296.24. An encouraging job-market report helped nudge the stock market up and pushed bond prices lower. On Tuesday, the Dow blew past the previous all-time high it hit more than five years ago. The index of 30 big corporations has more ...

House votes to prevent March 27 federal shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans pushed legislation through the House on Wednesday to ease the short-term impact of $85 billion in spending cuts and prevent a government shutdown this month - at the same time previewing a longer-term plan to erase federal deficits without raising taxes. President Barack Obama pursued a different path as the GOP asserted its budget priorities. He arranged to have dinner with several Republican senators in search of bipartisan support for ...

Jeb Bush more open to a future White House bid

WASHINGTON (AP) - Jeb Bush has long resisted pressure from supporters to run for president, but now the former Florida governor is signaling that he's open to the idea.

License plate fees cause change in wildlife money

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - Money gleaned from state auto tag fees to fund Georgia wildlife conservation programs are drying up.

Family: Woman denied CPR wanted no intervention

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Relatives of an 87-year-old woman who died after a nurse at her retirement home refused a 911 dispatcher's pleas to perform CPR expressed satisfaction with the care she received, saying her wishes were to die naturally. Meanwhile, the company that owns the facility now says its worker failed to follow proper procedures.

US stocks climb following Dow's record day

NEW YORK (AP) - An encouraging look at the job market helped send the stock market higher Wednesday, a day after the Dow Jones industrial average tore through its previous record high.