Walls

When Pink Floyd first took its concept album "The Wall" to the concert stage more than three decades ago, even lead singer and chief songwriter Roger Waters couldn't imagine a day when rock music might get any bigger. But 32 years later, his magnum opus about the battle between individual freedoms and authoritarian oppression has magnified beyond Waters' own expectations of yore. Now the man who once excoriated the voluminous expansion of the rock concert experience has helped institutionalize it. "I famously hated playing to large numbers of people and playing in stadiums," Waters, 68, said from a tour stop in Austin, Texas, earlier this month.

NEW YORK - Facebook Inc.'s bungled stock-market debut made it clear that big money still rules Wall Street. But this time, the small money got a look at how Wall Street really works - and that could spell trouble for the financial industry. Millions of small investors have trimmed their investments in stocks after seeing their 401(k) accounts pulverized by the market plunge in 2008-09. The May 2010 flash crash - in which $1 trillion briefly vanished from the stock market - served as another flashing yellow caution sign.

In the remote northeastern corner of Guatemala, archaeologists have found what appears to be the 9th century workplace of a city scribe, an unusual dwelling adorned with magnificent pictures of the king and other royals and the oldest known Maya calendar. This year has been particularly controversial among some cultists because of the belief that the Maya calendar predicts a major cataclysm - perhaps the end of the world - on Dec. 21, 2012. Archaeologists know that is not true, but the new find, written on the plaster equivalent of a modern scientist's whiteboard, strongly reinforces the idea that the Maya calendar projects thousands of years into the future.

U.S. stocks slid in early trading following renewed concerns about Greece being forced out of the euro common currency. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 87 points, or 0.7%, to 12,416, shortly after the opening bell. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 7 points, or 0.6%, to 1,309. The technology-focused Nasdaq was down 14 points, or 0.5%, to 2,825. Major European stock markets were down about 2%.

Los Angeles officials on Friday banned tall retaining walls that dot the city's canyon communities from Woodland Hills to Mount Washington, with critics calling the massive bulkheads "the hillside strangler." City Council members said the oversized concrete walls that loom over neighboring homes are wrecking the rustic feel of the city's canyons and hillsides.

Few of the swank palaces built by movie moguls during the Golden Age of Hollywood retain their original features like this Italian Mediterranean mansion in Beverly Hills. The stately 24-room home was commissioned in 1929 by Harry Cohn, the cantankerous founder and president of Columbia Pictures. Cohn sold the house in the 1940s to A-list Hollywood agent Johnny Hyde, whose marriage did not prove an impediment to entertaining Marilyn Monroe as an extended houseguest. A quartet of sculpted lions bask on platforms above a double-arched gate at the front of the property.

Behind the walls of this gated Bel-Air estate lies a palatial compound fit for royalty. Its lavish entertainment space includes an outdoor pavilion with a kitchen between the tennis courts and swimming pool. The property was bought in 1989 by Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud, now the king of Saudi Arabia, who tore down the existing structure and built a French mansion with nine bedrooms, nine bathrooms, two half-bathrooms and a two-story guesthouse. A lot on the west side of the compound, large enough to accommodate a third house, completes the 2.38 acres of grounds.

Josh Hamilton smiled and pointed his index and middle fingers at his eyes, the universal sign for "watch closely." "Watch batting practice. Watch the game tonight," he said when asked about his readiness to play the outfield after collisions with the wall put him on the disabled list twice this season. "Actions speak louder than words." The Texas Rangers activated Hamilton from the DL for Monday's game against the Angels, his first since May 31.

In the not-too-distant future, your smartphone may be able to help you see through walls, cardboard boxes, paper and even clothing. Scientists from the University of Texas at Dallas have designed an imaging chip that measures invisible terahertz light waves that is small enough to fit on a smartphone and inexpensive enough that normal people could actually afford to buy one. Terahertz waves can be detected through opaque surfaces such as...

Question: I painted the inside of my home six months ago, and already it needs to be repainted. Portions of the walls have become visibly darkened. Strangely, this occurs wherever there are framing members behind the drywall. I can see where all the wall studs and ceiling joists are. Not only that, I can see dark spots where all the drywall nails are. What could be causing this, and what can I do about it? Answer: What you are seeing is a phenomenon commonly called "ghosting."

Facebook is having a better day on Wall Street. The social networking site's stock is up more than $1, or about 3.5%, to around $32 in early trading Wednesday on its fourth day as a public company. As of Tuesday, Facebook's stock had fallen about 26% since its debut on the Nasdaq stock market Friday. The stock briefly rose to about $42 from its initial public offering price of $38. Facebook's IPO has been tumultuous. Its first day of trading was marred by glitches with Nasdaq trading.

Congratulations to Mark Zuckerberg on his surprise wedding last Saturday. I certainly hope his marriage gets off to a better start than Friday’s initial public offering of shares in his social networking colossus, Facebook.  Wall Street analysts are now saying the opening share price of $38 was too high for investors wary of buying into a business that delivers millions of messages and photos from college drinking parties but produces a comparatively modest revenue stream.

WASHINGTON — Already grappling with regulatory reviews of its troubled initial public offering, Facebook Inc. and the Wall Street banks that shepherded the deal are now under fire from lawmakers and lawyers. Two congressional committees said Wednesday that they would conduct preliminary inquiries into the IPO. And attorneys filed two separate lawsuits alleging that average investors were misled in the days before Facebook shares began trading Friday. "Shareholders suffered billions of dollars in losses," said Darren Robbins, a partner in the San Diego law firm of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dow, which filed one of the suits.

As Facebook shares continued their slide, regulators launched inquiries into whether privileged Wall Street insiders were alerted to the company's weakening financial projections, leading them to shun the stock or dump shares just as buying was opened to the public. Morgan Stanley, which led the Wall Street effort to bring the social network public, came under fire following reports that the bank had told some favored clients that the bank was cutting its revenue estimates for Facebook.

A Disposition to Be Rich How a Small-Town Pastor's Son Ruined an American President, Brought on a Wall Street Crash, and Made Himself the Best-Hated Man in the United States Geoffrey C. Ward Alfred A. Knopf: 415 pp., $28.95. In 1863, the young Ferdinand Ward was alone with his mother in their parsonage in Geneseo, N.Y., his minister father and older brother both off to war and his older sister visiting relatives out of town. Diphtheria swept through the village, killing friends and neighbors, and each mail delivery carried the risk of disaster - would it include a notice that one of the Ward men had been killed?

When Pink Floyd first took its concept album "The Wall" to the concert stage more than three decades ago, even lead singer and chief songwriter Roger Waters couldn't imagine a day when rock music might get any bigger. But 32 years later, his magnum opus about the battle between individual freedoms and authoritarian oppression has magnified beyond Waters' own expectations of yore. Now the man who once excoriated the voluminous expansion of the rock concert experience has helped institutionalize it. "I famously hated playing to large numbers of people and playing in stadiums," Waters, 68, said from a tour stop in Austin, Texas, earlier this month.

The son of Rambo strides across the grassy field, girded for battle. He wears a T-shirt with the word "famous" all over it. Stainless-steel studs blink from his ears. Two women hawk tortas, chips and bags of pumpkin seeds to more than 100 people filling the bleachers at Bristow Park in Commerce. Ricky Ruiz steps onto the court. He takes off his shirt, revealing a gold crucifix, which he swings around to rest on his back. His father, a muscle-bound, in-your-face character known as Rambo, bulls through the crowd.

The art could have been history. Two 1930s New Deal mosaics adorning a courtyard at Newport Harbor High School were in jeopardy after inspectors determined the school's old building wouldn't withstand a major earthquake. The original structures of the Gothic Spanish-inspired Newport Beach campus and the artistic flourishes built into its walls and floors, inspectors said, would have to be demolished. An outcry by students, parents and alumni ensued. They hated the idea of their beloved bright white campus, with its 99-foot-tall spired bell tower and treasured art, being destroyed.

WASHINGTON - Aiming squarely at GOP critics of Wall Street reform, President Obama said Saturday that investment bank JPMorgan's stunning $2-billion loss serves as a reminder of the importance of Washington's role in preventing another financial crisis. The 2010 financial overhaul law counts among Obama's signature legislative achievements, but it continues to come under attack by Republicans in Congress and on the campaign trail, including likely presidential nominee Mitt Romney, as an example of government overreach.

Pocket doors slide away to connect the indoors and outdoors at this sleek contemporary. Designed for entertaining, the modern house features a massive concrete fireplace, a glass-walled loft and walls of glass looking out onto the swimming pool and deck. Location: 1060 Woodland Drive, Beverly Hills 90210 Asking price: $6.995 million Year built: 2009 House size: Four bedrooms, 41/2 bathrooms, 5,868 square feet Lot size: 20,420 square feet Features: Porcelain tile floors, walnut floors, bar, breakfast bar, office, recessed lighting, media room, service entrance, alarm system About the area: In the first quarter, 60 single-family homes sold in the 90210 ZIP Code at a median price of $2.85 million, according to DataQuick.