‘Lincoln,’ ‘Les Mis,’ ‘Playbook’ lead SAG awards

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Civil War saga “Lincoln,” the musical “Les Miserables” and the comic drama “Silver Linings Playbook” boosted their Academy Awards prospects Wednesday with four nominations apiece for the Screen Actors Guild Awards.All three films were nominated for overall performance by their casts. Also nominated for best ensemble cast were the Iran hostage-crisis thriller “Argo” and the British...

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Wall Street edges up with help from McDonald’s

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks were modestly higher on Monday, helped by stronger-than-expected sales from McDonald’s, but gains were constrained as investors awaited any sign of progress in talks to avert the so-called fiscal cliff.Developments in Europe also tempered sentiment after Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said he would resign once the 2013 budget is approved. The move added to uncertainty...

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RIM teases BlackBerry 10 launch with image of first BB10 smartphone

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Black women battle obesity with dialogue, action

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nicole Ari Parker was motivated by frustration. For Star Jones, it was a matter of life or death. Toni Carey wanted a fresh start after a bad breakup.All three have launched individual campaigns that reflect an emerging priority for African-American women: finding creative ways to combat the obesity epidemic that threatens their longevity.African-American women have the highest obesity...

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Amgen buys Icelandic gene hunter Decode for $415 million

LONDON (Reuters) – U.S. biotechnology group Amgen Inc has agreed to buy unlisted Decode Genetics, a pioneer in hunting down genes linked to disease, for $ 415 million in cash to boost its drive to develop better targeted drugs.Founded in 1996, Decode blazed a trail in personal genomics by trawling Iceland’s unique genetic heritage, which has changed little since the Vikings arrived more than 1,000...

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The Fiscal Cliff Isn’t the Problem

Early in Bill Bryson’s book A Walk in the Woods, the story of his ill-starred Appalachian Trail expedition, the author’s out-of-shape and impulsive hiking companion, Katz, decides his backpack is too heavy. So he starts throwing out the food they’d packed for the trip: rice, pepperoni, cheese, peanuts, Spam—he even discards coffee filters, which weigh next to nothing.Panic about the fiscal cliff is...

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Peru’s capital highly vulnerable to major quake

LIMA, Peru (AP) — The earthquake all but flattened colonial Lima, the shaking so violent that people tossed to the ground couldn’t get back up. Minutes later, a 50-foot (15-meter) wall of Pacific Ocean crashed into the adjacent port of Callao, killing all but 200 of its 5,000 inhabitants. Bodies washed ashore for weeks.Plenty of earthquakes have shaken Peru‘s capital in the 266 years since that fateful...

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Software guru McAfee did not have heart attack: lawyer

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) – Software pioneer John McAfee did not have a heart attack in Guatemala as originally thought, but is suffering from stress and hypertension, his lawyer Telesforo Guerra said on Thursday.“He never had a heart attack. Nothing like that,” Guerra said in Guatemala City. “I’m not a doctor. I’m just telling you what the doctors told me. He was suffering from stress, hypertension...

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Kevin Smith: “Clerks III” will be my last writing/directing effort

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – “Clerks III” will be Kevin Smith‘s last writing/directing effort, the filmmaker tweeted on Friday morning:“So with the ‘HIT SOMEBODY‘ shift, the minute Jeff Anderson signs on, my last cinematic effort as a writer/director will be ‘CLERKS III’”Referring to the ice-hockey comedy he’s writing that takes place over the course of 30 years, the “shift” means now it will be not...

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Health workers march in Spain’s capital against cuts, reforms

MADRID (Reuters) – Thousands of health workers, on strike since last month, marched on Sunday in Madrid to protest against budget cuts and plans from the Spanish capital’s regional government to privatize the management of public hospitals and medical centers.It was the third time doctors, nurses and health workers have rallied since the local authorities put forward a plan in October to place six...

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