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Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population and has drawn praise for evolving into a vibrant, pluralistic democracy. But the rise of hard-line Muslim groups and recent cases of religious persecution have led some to question whether it lives up to that reputation.

Political scientists have long noted the propensity for self-dealing among politicians in out-of-sight, out-of-mind state capitals like Albany, NY and Springfield, Ill. After comparing federal corruption convictions of state officials and the relative isolation of state capitals, two researchers found a strong correlation.

If you look at numbers, two popular assumptions take a hit in credibility.

On May 27, 1937, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge opened, connecting bustling San Francisco to sleepy Marin County to the north. The Oakland-Bay Bridge had opened six months earlier — but the Golden Gate was an engineering triumph. And on its first day, thousands of people walked across it.

Your chances of surviving a sudden heart attack may depend on where you live, in part because of the 911 dispatcher. If a dispatcher gives CPR instructions over the phone, the rate of survival goes up. There's now a push to make it universal, but some cities are slow to implement the necessary training.

Moscow's recent deals with foreign oil companies are designed to maintain Russia as the world's No. 1 oil producer. The biggest deal, with Exxon Mobil, would put billions of dollars toward exploiting vast oil and gas reserves in Russia's Arctic waters.

When the Chinese firm Wanda announced the purchase of AMC cinemas, it may not have made a lot of business sense in the short term. But it could be part of a larger strategy that will bring the company into the U.S. in a major way.

Many small-business owners have had a tough time securing credit since the start of the economic downturn. "I couldn't understand why they wouldn't be willing to give us a loan," one owner says. A new website aims to help such owners, grading banks based on the percentage of deposits that are used for small-business loans.

Voters in Arizona's 8th Congressional District will decide next month who will fill the seat vacated by Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. She resigned in January, a year after she was badly injured in a shooting. One of her former aides is taking on a Tea Party candidate in the special election.

Police in Boxtford, Mass., responded to a call about six party crashers. The Tri-Town Transcript reports the cows chased away partiers, and drank their beer.