Washington - After an historic 20 months of rallies, debates and countless commercials in the most expensive election campaign ever, voters will finally get their chance Tuesday to pick Democrat Barack Obama or Republican John McCain as the next US president.
Across the country, state officials are preparing for record turnout and huge lines at polling stations, a testament to the massive interest that has been generated in an election widely considered the most important in recent memory.
Chicago - Strangers chat about politics on the train and buttons peer out from coats with the smiling face of Chicago's favourite son, Barack Obama, as the city is gripped with excitement about the looming election.
But Chicago, population 2.7 million, is not just waiting for Tuesday night to learn whether the US senator from Illinois, who got his political start on the city's South Side, will become the first African-American president.
Not relying on polls that show Obama ahead of Republican opponent John McCain, Chicagoans instead gathered by the thousands at phone banks across the city, where they hoped to get out the vote in key swing states that will likely decide the next president.
Beijing - The death toll has risen to at least 22 with 45 people still missing after heavy rain caused several landslides in mountainous areas of southwestern China's Yunnan province, the government said Monday.
Torrential rain caused mud and rock to flow down valleys and hillsides in at least 13 counties of Yunnan over the past few days, affecting more than 411,000 people, the provincial Civil Affairs Department reported on its website.
At least 284 homes collapsed and more than 700 others were damaged with electricity and telecommunications cut off to several areas, the report said.
State media quoted officials as saying it was still too early to confirm the exact number of landslides in remote areas.
New Delhi - India's benchmark Sensitive Index jumped more than 400 points on opening Monday, buoyed by weekend interest rate cuts announced by the country's central bank.
At noon, the 30-share Sensex of the Bombay Stock Exchange was trading at 10,236.97, about 4.59 per cent above its previous close.
The broader 50-share Nifty of the National Stock Exchange rose 4.07 per cent to 3,003.05.
London, Nov 3: Children with higher IQs are more likely to vote for Green Party or Liberal Democrats as adults, a new study has found.
The study led by the University of Edinburgh and the UK Medical Research Council has discovered a link between childhood intelligence and their voting preferences in later life.
They are also more likely to vote in general, and get involved in politics.
During the study, the IQs of more than 6,000 subjects were recorded at the age of 10, before any secondary schooling.
New Delhi - India's benchmark Sensitive Index jumped more than 400 points on opening Monday, buoyed by weekend interest rate cuts announced by the country's central bank.
