Thirsty elephants get a helping hand, an old goat retires from the military, Lady Liberty prepares to show off her crown again, and more in our picks of the week's best news pictures.

From polar plunges to an urban Iditarod spoof, two photographers roam the U.S. in search of offbeat events that show "true human spirit."

Texas seventh-grader Eric Yang swept the annual competition today with a perfect score.

A "missing link" found in Germany may be a key to human evolution—a nearly intact skeleton of a 47-million-year-old lemur-like creature. Video.

A landmine-sniffing dog waits, an elephant gets hosed, and Jews remember a deadly plague in these glimpses of life from around the globe.

Scrawnier people perceive approaching sounds to be closer than fit people do—an evolutionary trait that may give weaklings more time to act, scientists say.

Priests and other elites performed smoking and drinking rituals on the lake island, home to the Tarascan Empire in the 15th and 16th centuries.

One year after a magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck the mountainous Sichuan Province, killing 90,000 and leaving 5 million homeless, residents are starting to pick up the pieces.

Balsa trees threaten, watermelons beckon, and fish dry in the sun in these glimpses of life from around the globe.

Can too much sunshine drive you over the edge? A new study shows that suicide rates peak during the summer months in Greenland.

A four-legged quake survivor gets help, police find an ancient Hebrew document, Bolivia's Indians engage in ritual fistfights, and more in this week's selection of the best news photos.

See shining plastic people, ballplayers, and empty flights to Mexico City in these glimpses of life around the globe.

After a factory had found a 40-million-year-old whale fossil in a limestone kitchen counter, researchers investigated the stone's fossil-packed quarry, which could shed light on the origins of African wildlife. Video.

Three thousand years ago, a fortified city on Egypt's border was both a warning to invaders and an awe-inspiring gateway for travelers--as evidenced by newly revealed grand temples and rare cravings.

See how a flu virus attacks, mutates, and becomes contagious—perhaps resulting in an outbreak or even pandemic. Video.