An expert on Mayan culture and prophecy at Southwestern College said today he has been "as busy as a frog on a griddle'' as the day of the supposed end of the world draws near.

San Diego's airport now has something it has never had before. International travelers will now be able to shop in a duty free store.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission authorities will meet with Southern California Edison officials next week to discuss a restart plan for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in northern San Diego County.

By the year 2030, for the first time in history, a majority of the world's population will be out of poverty. Middle classes will be the most important social and economic sector. Asia will enjoy the global power status it last had in the Middle Ages, while the 350-year rise of the West will be largely reversed. Global leadership may be shared, and the world is likely to be democratizing.

Update at 7 a.m. ET, Dec. 11. Settlement Announced:

TheWall Street Journal and The New York Times are reporting that federal and state authorities will announce a record $1.9 billion settlement with British banking firm HSBC on Tuesday.

The women's shoe department at Nordstrom's flagship store in Seattle is bustling. Shoppers are trying on everything from stilettos to rain boots -- and when they're ready to buy, they can pay up right where they are.

The first installment of 2012-13 property taxes are due today for San Diego County landowners.

Boats of all sizes were decorated in holiday lights on Saturday for the Oceanside Harbor Festival of Lights.

The South Korean rapper Psy, he of "Gangnam Style" fame, has apologized for a far-less popular song he sang back in 2004. Called "Dear America," the song supported the killing of U.S. troops in Iraq.

Cats were everywhere. Fifty or so of them. In the house. On the lawn. Sunning themselves on the wall surrounding the property.

New San Diego Mayor Bob Filner ran a neighborhoods-first campaign. At a community rally Thursday, he promised to make good on his promise to neighborhoods by helping City Heights skaters build a skate park.

If you're planning to send holiday gifts to your loved ones in the military, there are some mailing deadlines you need to keep in mind to make sure those presents arrive in time for Christmas.

Algae is being used as a biofuel and now UC San Diego researchers are using the tiny organisms to produce medicines to treat cancer.

The body of Lance Cpl. Anthony J. Denier, 26, was returned to his hometown of Mechanicville, New York today. Denier was killed in Afghanistan on December 2nd.

For one dancer in the Phoenix area, the revelation of her Jewish heritage late in life has connected to her to a musical tradition, if not a religious one.

When I think of the people who personify KPBS, who’ve given so much of themselves to make the station what it is today, two come to mind. Two powerful and remarkable women, that is.

The Department of Defense has identified the Navy SEAL killed in the rescue of a kidnapped U.S. doctor in Afghanistan as Petty Officer 1st Class Nicolas D. Checque, 28, of Monroeville, Pennsylvania.

Smartphone users have a wide range of apps to choose from if they're looking to dine ethically. There are apps that advise which supermarkets have good environmental records and apps that keep tabs on restaurants and markets offering sustainable seafood.

The commencement of Exercise Steel Knight at Camp Pendleton is taking place this morning, and you can watch a live webcast of the ship-to-shore amphibious assault exercise here.

Eugenio Velazquez is not a typical courier busted for smuggling drugs on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Cold, wet weather and mountain snow could be possible when a storm from the Gulf of Alaska reaches San Diego County Wednesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

Emergency officials are bracing for dangerous fire conditions across San Diego County today as strong Santa Ana winds blow into the region.

A Navy SEAL was killed during a weekend rescue mission in Afghanistan that freed an American doctor abducted by the Taliban outside of Kabul six days ago. The fallen SEAL was a member of SEAL Team Six - the same elite team that killed Osama bin Laden in 2011.

The Belly Up in Solana Beach is one of the more intimate venues to see music locally. KPBS arts reporter Angela Carone says that’s why it was a bit of a surprise to hear that the rap star Snoop Dogg would take its stage for two sold-out shows starting tonight.

A new study published by Amnesty International examines the situation for human rights defenders in the Americas. It concludes that criminal impunity is an ongoing challenge.

Ratepayer advocates claim San Diego Gas & Electric may be playing a numbers game as it attempts to gain regulatory approval to bill customers for uninsured costs from the 2007 wildfires, which state investigators say the company's lines started.

San Diego's economy could be in for a rough ride if the federal government can't avoid the fiscal cliff.

Recycling supporters say it’s time to stop sending wastewater out to sea.

Oscar and Emmy winner Bill Conti will take over as the San Diego Symphony’s new principal pops conductor. KPBS arts reporter Angela Carone says the veteran composer is best known for his score to a classic 70s movie.

The San Diego Unified School District will swear in its new and re-elected trustees at a special meeting today.

Details are starting to come out about President Obama's second inauguration next month. The co-chairmen include some leaders of the Democratic Party and the business world as well as actress Eva Longoria. A record crowd came to the nation's capital in 2009 to witness the country's first black president take the oath of office, but this one is expected to be less flashy.

The Orange Country Register in suburban Los Angeles is expanding its newsroom. Not only that -- the owners are emphasizing print, not digital.

Big-hearted Americans always rush to give money after a disaster. Just how much and how fast is often determined by technology. After the earthquake in Haiti, texting small donations, for example, became a new standard practice.