NEW SANCTIONS FOR NORTH KOREA, WHICH THREATENS NUCLEAR STRIKE ON U.S.: The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously on Thursday (March 7th) to impose tough new sanctions on North Korea for its latest nuclear test last month. China, which is North Korea's main benefactor, even helped draft the resolution with the U.S. in response to the North's defiance of Security Council bans on nuclear and ballistic tests. These were the fourth set of sanctions imposed on the reclusive communist nation since its first test in 2006. The vote came even as North Korea threatened a pre-emptive nuclear strike on the U.S., something experts believe the North doesn't have the ability to do. Still, White House spokesman Jay Carney said the U.S. is, quote, "fully capable" of defending itself against a North Korean ballistic missile attack. The North has also has threatened to scrap the cease-fire that ended the Korean War.

BIN LADEN'S SON-IN-LAW FACES CHARGES AFTER CAPTURED, BROUGHT TO U.S.: A son-in-law of Osama bin Laden who was a senior al-Qaida leader and member of the late terror leader's inner circle was charged Thursday (March 7th) with conspiring to kill Americans in his role as the terror network's top propagandist, after being captured in Jordan last week and brought to the U.S. Sulaiman Abu Ghaith will appear today in federal court in New York. The case marks a legal victory for the Obama administration, which has long wanted to charge senior al-Qaida suspects in U.S. federal courts instead of holding them at the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay. But it predictably led to opposition from Republicans in Congress who don't want high-threat terror suspects brought into the U.S. GOP Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told reporters that Abu Ghaith should be sent to Gitmo, saying, "If this man, the spokesman of 9/11, isn't an enemy combatant, who is?"

JOHN BRENNAN CONFIRMED AS CIA DIRECTOR: John Brennan was confirmed as CIA director on a 63-34 Senate vote yesterday (March 7th). The vote on President Obama's top counter-terrorism adviser came after GOP Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, who mounted a 13-hour filibuster on Wednesday, dropped his opposition to a vote. Paul had carried out the filibuster because he wanted an assurance that the U.S. government wouldn't target non-combatant American citizens in the U.S. with drones strikes. That came from Attorney General Eric Holder yesterday, who said in a letter, "It has come to my attention that you have now asked an additional question: 'Does the President have the authority to use a weaponized drone to kill an American not engaged in combat on American soil?' The answer to that question is no." Although he dropped his opposition to holding a vote, Paul cast his vote against Brennan's confirmation.

HUGO CHAVEZ' BODY TO BE PUT ON PERMANENT DISPLAY: The body of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who died on Tuesday (March 5th) at age 58 of a massive heart attack after a battle with cancer, will be preserved and put on permanent display inside a glass tomb at a military museum, his successor, Vice President Nicolas Maduro, announced yesterday (March 7th). This honoring of the socialist leader echoes the treatment given to Communist revolutionary leaders such as the Soviet Union's Vladimir Lenin, China's Mao Tse Tung and Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh. Maduro, who is Venezuela's acting head of state, said Chavez would first lie in state for at least seven more days, after a state funeral today.

LAST CARDINAL ARRIVES IN ROME, CLEARING WAY FOR CONCLAVE TO BEGIN: The last of the 115 cardinals who will take part in electing the next pope finally made it to Rome on Thursday (March 7th), the arrival of Cardinal Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Man of Vietnam clearing the way for the start date for the conclave to be set. Pre-conclave meetings have been going on this week as the cardinals already in Rome discussed the problems confronting the Church, the qualities they want in the next pope to address them, and assessed who among them they wanted to assume the role of head of the Catholic Church.

U.S. HOUSEHOLD WEALTH BACK TO PRE-RECESSION LEVELS: U.S. household wealth has finally returned to pre-Great Recession levels, five-and-a-half years after the financial crisis that sent the economy crashing. The Federal Reserve said Thursday (March 7th) that household wealth amounted to $66.1 trillion at the end of 2012, which was $1.2 trillion more than three months earlier and 98 percent of the pre-recession peak, and experts say we almost certainly passed 100 percent in the first quarter of this year. However, much of the $16 trillion in recovered wealth has come from higher stock prices and has been going mainly to richer Americans. By contrast, middle class wealth is mostly in the form of home equity, which has risen much less, although home prices are continuing to rise steadily.

SENATOR CARL LEVIN WON'T SEEK 2014 RE-ELECTION: Democratic Senator Carl Levin of Michigan announced Thursday (March 7th) that he won't seek re-election in 2014, ending his career of more than three decades in the Senate. The 78-year-old Levin is the six senator to announce he won't seek re-election next year, following Democrats Tom Harkin of Iowa, Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey, and Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, and Republicans Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Mike Johanns of Nebraska. Overall, 35 of the 100 Senate seats will be up for election in 2014, 21 now held by Democrats and 14 by Republicans.

GORE SUED OVER SALE OF CURRENT TV TO AL-JAZEERA: Al Gore has been sued by TV consultant John Terenzio, who claims that the former vice president and others at Current TV stole his idea to sell the network to Al-Jazeera, and he's now demanding more than $5 million. It was announced in early January that Al-Jazeera would buy Current TV for $500 million. Terenzio alleges he first brought the idea of Al-Jazeera buying the struggling network to board member Richard Blum in July, and expected to be paid if his plan was used. The lawsuit claims Blum was open to the idea, but worried that Gore would find a deal with the oil-rich government of Qatar, quote, "politically unappealing." Terenzio said he believes that Gore, who co-founded the left-leaning news and talk network in 2005 with Joel Hyatt, did turn down the deal in July and was adamant in rejecting it.

STUDY: BACON, SAUSAGE, PROCESSED MEATS CAN RAISE EARLY DEATH RISK BY 44 PERCENT: Bacon may taste delicious, but it's not good for you, and a new study shows just how bad it can be, finding that eating a lot of bacon, sausage and other processed meats can raise your risk of premature death by 44 percent, mostly from cancer and heart disease. European researchers found the risk associated with eating 5.5 ounces or more each day of processed meats such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs, salami and ham. However, they found the risk could be prevented by reducing the intake of these foods to less than three-quarters of an ounce of processed meat daily, which is about one slice of bacon. The study found processed meats are particularly unhealthy because they contain higher amounts of saturated fatty acids and cholesterol than fresh red meat, and because they are treated by salting, curing and smoking via processes that introduce carcinogens or pre-carcinogenic substances.

OLDEST KNOWN COMMON MALE ANCESTOR LIVED 340,000 YEARS AGO: New DNA evidence has found that our oldest known common male ancestor lived 340,000 years ago, more than twice as long ago as previous estimates, New Scientist reports. The key DNA sample came from a recently deceased South Carolina man, after one his relatives submitted a sample to a company called Family Tree DNA for analysis. All previously compared DNA samples pointed to a common Y chromosome traced back to man who lived between 60,000 and 140,000 years ago. But Perry's DNA didn't match that ancestor; instead the Y chromosome lined up with those of 11 men from Cameroon. University of Arizona researcher Michael Hammer says Perry's DNA suggests there may have been an earlier species of humans that went extinct, but not before interbreeding with the more modern version of man.

REPORTS: YANKEES CLOSER MARIANO RIVERA TO RETIRE AFTER 2013 SEASON: New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera plans to retire after the 2013 season, a decision he'll announce at a news conference on Saturday (March 9th), multiple reports said yesterday (March 7th). The 43-year-old Rivera, who's regarded as one of the best clutch pitchers in history, is baseball's saves leader with 608, including a record 42 postseason saves with an 0.70 ERA while helping the Yankees win five World Series. The guaranteed first-ballot future Hall of Famer was also the MVP of the 1999 World Series and the MVP of the 2003 AL championship. Rivera missed most of last season after he tore a ligament in his right knee while catching fly balls during batting practice.

SEXIST MEN LIKE BIG BOOBS? New research finds that the more sexist a man is, the more likely he likes large breasts. For the study, researchres from the University of Westminster interviewed about 360-white, heterosexual men. Each man was shown five 3-D models of woman, each with a different breast size, and then asked to record which model he found most physically attractive. Aftwards, all participants took a survey to measure their level of hostility towards women, their attitudes about relationships between men and women, benevolent sexism, and how much he objectified women. Researchers found that 32.7-percent of participants rated medium-sized breasts as "most attractive", while 24.4-percent said large and 19.1-percent said very large. Scientists found that the preference for large and very large breasts correlated with overt sexism, female objectification, hostile attitudes towards women and most notably benevolent sexism. Benevolent sexism is defined as when a man idealizes "traditional" femininity and perceives women as meek and weak. (Huffington Post)

THE FEMALE PERCEPTION OF HOOTERS IS GRADUALLY IMPROVING, SURVEY FINDS: Hooters has been making an effort to attract women to its restaurants, and a survey from YouGov BrandIndex finds that women's perception of the restaurant isn't as negative as once was. The survey asked adults over age 18, "Do you have a general positive feeling about the brand?" Measurement scores range from 100 to -100 and are complied by subtracting negative feedback from positive. Last August, the women's Impression score for Hooter's was -26, while for men it was negative three. In the latest survey women's Impression score moved to -21, and the men's score moved to two. (Huffington Post)

MODERN GROOMS JUST AS LIKELY TO WEDDING PLAN AS BRIDES: Modern grooms are very interested in planning their weddings, according to a new survey. The poll surveyed two-thousand people who got married in the last five years and found that more than half of men surveyed said they had final say on their wedding date, while 56-percent chose the venue. The study was performed by Austin Reed, a UK wedding hire-wear. One in twenty grooms had a say in the floral arrangements, and one third said they helped choose the cake. Three-quarters of newly-married couples say they do not regret the money spent on their wedding and rated it the happiest day of their lives, and nearly 60-percent of couples said grooms were much more hands-on in wedding planning than they were years ago. Additionally, 58-percent of grooms said they took much more planning due to the sheer scale and cost of their wedding. (Daily Mail)

HOW QUICKLY WILL HE SAY "I LOVE YOU"? New research finds that women actually take longer to say the three magic words than men do. The study was conducted by YouGov for eHarmony and found that men take 88-days to tell their partner they love them, while women take 134-days to do the same. The study also found that 39-percent of Men also declare their love within the first month of seeing someone, compared to just 23-percent of women. Also, 33-percent of men questioned in the study said they moved in with their partner within the first month of dating them, and 77-percent said they remember when they said "I love you" for the first time. The study also found that 37-percent of respondents who were married or engaged said they proposed within the first year of knowning their partner. Relationship advice expert for eHarmony, Jenni Trent Hughes, says that traditional perceptions of men being afraid of commitment are outdated, and that men can be softies and "mushier" than women. (Daily Mail)

MOST AMERICANS THINK THEY ARE HEALTHY: A new survey by The Atlantic in collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline finds that 90-percent of participants think they are in good health. Only 26-percent said they health declined and cited dire economic circumstances as the reason. The survey covered just over one-thousand adults, with 87-percent saying that clean air and water were the key to good health, while 82-percent said regular access to doctors and dentists was key, and 81-percent said healthy food choices were most important for health. Interestingly, 94-percent said the health or medical information they found online was important to their health, but only 12-percent of respondents have ever e-mailed or text-messaged their doctor to ask a health question. (UPI)

STUDY: TOO MUCH SALT MAY TRIGGER AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES: Researchers have linked salt consumption with rising rates of autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Researchers say high-salt diets increased levels of a type of immune cell linked with autoimmune disease, and that mice genetically engineered to develop multiple sclerosis got much worse when they ate the equivalent of a high-salt Western diet comapred to those who had a moderate salt intake. Researchers say salt may induce the activity of a particular autoimmune cell that can promote inflammation. The research was published in the journal Nature. (Fox News)

FACEBOOK'S NEWS FEED REDESIGNED _ Facebook Thursday announced changes to its News Feed. The biggest change: Facebook has completely rebuilt each story to be much more bright and colorful and highlight the content that your friends are sharing. The changes have already started rolling out to some Facebook users.

DROWNING POOL GUITARIST CALLS NEW SINGER ‘SUPER GREAT GUY’: Drowning Pool guitarist C.J. Pierce admitted in a new interview with Billboard that he went through a "little bout of depression" after the band's last singer, Ryan McCombs, left the group in 2011. Pierce called McCombs' departure after six years "frustrating . . . like 'Here we go again,'" but added, "Now I look back, and things happen for a reason. It led us on this path and now we've got our favorite musician we've ever worked with, hands down. So we had to go through all the rest of it to get to this point."

Drowning Pool's new singer -- their third since the death of original frontman Dave Williams in 2002 -- is fellow Dallas resident Jasen Moreno, and Pierce told Pulse of Radio a little about him: "Super great guy to work with, man. He's been by far the most respectful guy we've worked with since, you know, Dave's passing, and it's been nothing but awesome. We've written more songs with him in this past year than I think we've ever written in our whole career. He's a singer/songwriter as well. It's just fun to work with somebody else who's as passionate about it as you are, you know what I mean?"

• Pierce told Billboard the band has known Moreno since the late '90s, saying, "He's been that guy on the scene; he was always great but never got his shot."
• Moreno makes his debut with the group on its fifth studio album, Resilience, which is due out on April 9th. The first single is "Saturday Night."
• Pierce said the record "has the staple Drowning Pool sound . . . It's definitely more of a heavy record than we've done before, though."
• Drowning Pool is currently on the road with Flyleaf, who are also introducing a new singer named Kristen May. The tour stops in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Friday (March 8th).

SLASH TEAMS WITH ‘ANGRY BIRDS’: Slash appears in the latest update for Angry Birds Space, the fourth entry in the wildly popular Angry Birds video game series. According to Ultimate Classic Rock, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has been branded an "honorary Angry Bird" by the game's publisher, Rovio. Slash has recorded a new version of the game's theme song, which plays over the opening screens, while a button with a musical note on it summons an image of the ex-Guns N' Roses guitarist transformed into one of the game's characters, complete with a link to purchase his music.

• Slash stopped by Rovio's headquarters in Finland to finalize his appearance in the game, saying, "Angry Birds found out that I was a big fan and reached out to me. I really jumped at the chance to get involved."
• Slash just wrapped up a European tour in support of his second solo album, 2012's Apocalyptic Love.
• His next scheduled live date is on May 11th in Japan as part of that country's first-ever Ozzfest.

CHECK IT OUT: Watch Slash talk about Angry Birds in a promotional video:

NEW FOOTAGE OF DAVE GROHL, TRENT REZNOR AND JOSH HOMME RECORDING TOGETHER: A video has been posted online showing Dave Grohl, Trent Reznor and Queens Of The Stone Age's Josh Homme working at Grohl's Studio 606 on a track called "Mantra," which appears on the soundtrack to Grohl's new documentary, Sound City. Grohl kicks off the almost eight-minute instrumental on drums, with Homme joining in on bass and Reznor providing the piano flourishes. The soundtrack, titled Sound City: Real to Reel, is out March 12th and includes other collaborations with Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, Rick Nielsen, Corey Taylor and more. (Rolling Stone)

CHECK IT OUT: Watch Grohl, Reznor and Homme jam out "Mantra":

'THE HANGOVER 3' TRAILER RELEASED: The trailer for the third installment of The Hangover has been released. The film opens on May 24th. Take a look:

DEMI MOORE IS SEEKING SPOUSAL SUPPORT FROM ASHTON: The divorce between Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher has taken a dramatic turn. Demi filed her own court documents on Thursday (March 7th) seeking a divorce from Ashton and she wants him to pay her attorney fees as well as spousal support.

GRAPHIC NUDE PHOTOS OF BROOKE MUELLER BEING SHOPPED AROUND: Someone is attempting to sell photos featuring Charlie Sheen's ex, Brooke Mueller, fresh from a shower and completely naked which she had reportedly taken and sent to her boyfriend a while back. Brooke suspects the person attempting to sell the pictures is a disgruntled ex-assistant.