The World

THURSDAY

“Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart.” Pope Benedict sent out his first tweet. @Pontifex is his main account. #Mayans?

Circus trainers claim two of their elephants were saved from the deadly Siberian cold by vodka. Emergency ministry spokesman Alexander Davydov said the elephants were in a trailer that caught fire outside the city of Novosibirsk, forcing trainers to take them out into the bitter cold before another truck arrived to deliver them to a warm gym at a local community col...