The bottom line

Apple's profits nearly double

Apple’s quarterly profits nearly doubled, to $5.99 billion, from $3.07 billion for the same period a year ago. The company sold 4.7 million iPads and 3.8 million Mac computers in the three months ending March 26.

ABCNews.com

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France repeals ban on absinthe

France has repealed its ban on absinthe, the bitter green liquor it barred in 1915. The now-tiny French market for the spirit, a favorite of artists such as Arthur Rimbaud and Vincent van Gogh, could reach $1 billion in five years, says George Rowley of British absinthe-maker La Fée.

Financial Times

Solid prospects for out-of-home advertising

Sales on billboards, posters, and other so-called out-of-home advertising should grow more than 8 percent this year, to $26.4 billion worldwide. And spending on digital billboards and posters is expected to double in the next five years, to $5.2 billion.

The Economist

A degradable golf ball for seagoing duffers

Since 1988, an international treaty against dumping plastic at sea has banned the practice of driving golf balls from the decks of ocean cruise ships. But seagoing duffers could get a reprieve now that University of Maine researchers have devised a golf ball made from lobster shells. They say the ball will sink and degrade within weeks in freshwater or saltwater.

Boston.com

Venture capital commitments soar

U.S. venture capitalists invested $6.4 billion in 661 startups in the first quarter of 2011, a 35 percent increase in capital commitments over the year-earlier period. The largest investments were in software, biomedical devices, and alternative energy.

Los Angeles Times