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President Obama sought to turn an "impromptu" lunchtime stroll into a chance to neutralize a damaging shutdown quote from an administration official.

Reading literary fiction improves people's ability to recognize other people's mental states, while popular fiction and nonfiction do not, a study says. That may be because literary fiction tends to focus on the psychology and inner lives of the characters.

With the federal government partially shut down there was no September jobs report Friday, leaving some economists suffering data withdrawal. But sorting through unofficial numbers, most economists are fairly sure the labor market continued its steady, modest growth last month, adding perhaps as many as 180,000 jobs.

The White House has cancelled President Obama's trip to Asia, where he was planning to attend some major international summits. Instead, Kerry will attend these meetings while Obama deals with the government shutdown at home.

Day four of the government shutdown brings no signs of any progress in resolving the stalemate between Republicans and Democrats. It may be some small solace to know that this is by no means the first time the government has been largely closed because of disputes between Congress and the White House. In fact, by some accounts this is the 17th time that an impasse has shuttered federal agencies.

Lunching at a sandwich shop hit hard by government furloughs, President Obama said he would veto any bills designed to reopen the government piecemeal.

The two powerhouses are the most visited sites in the world, according to the U.K.'s Oxford Internet Institute.

Britain's Conservative-led government has unveiled proposals to change the social benefits system, moving ever closer to workfare. One measure under the plan requires the long-term jobless to do community work. Another plan would ax automatic housing and other benefits for unemployed Brits under 25.

The Korean-American band from California got a big boost from Honda after the musicians recorded a music video ... in their Hondas.

Acclaimed British author William Boyd was tapped last year to write the latest James Bond novel. The new book, called Solo, takes 007 on his first trip to Africa. Boyd says the Bond of the novels is quite different from the Bond on the screen — and that he sees a definite overlap between spies and novelists.