New tests could hamper food outbreak detection

WASHINGTON (AP) — It's about to get faster and easier to diagnose food poisoning, but that progress for individual patients comes with a downside: It could hurt the nation's ability to spot and solve dangerous outbreaks.Next-generation tests that promise to shave a few days off the time needed to tell whether E. coli, salmonella or other foodborne bacteria caused a patient's illness could reach medical...

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Stock futures signal early gains

PARIS (Reuters) - Stock futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.18 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.18 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.23 percent at 5:25 a.m. EDT. * European shares gained ground on Tuesday morning, helped by data showing German investor confidence unexpectedly rose in December after a sharp fall in the previous...

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Insight: Congo army debacle at Goma raises specter of betrayal

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - When Congo's government army retreated in panic from the eastern city of Goma last month, many observers blamed the poor morale and leadership, ill discipline and corruption that have sapped its fighting capacity for years. In the hours before Goma fell to M23 rebels on November 20, drunk and terrified Congolese soldiers roamed the streets...

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Bradley Cooper & Zoe Saldana Celebrate Silver Linings Playbook in West Hollywood

Caught in the Act 12/10/2012 at 06:00 AM EST Zoe Saldana and Bradley Cooper Jeff Vespa/Getty Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro were on hand to celebrate their film Silver Linings Playbook at the Weinstein Company's special event at the Chateau Marmont in West...

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Smokers celebrate as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — The crowds of happy people lighting joints under Seattle's Space Needle early Thursday morning with nary a police officer in sight bespoke the new reality: Marijuana is legal under Washington state law.Hundreds gathered at Seattle Center for a New Year's Eve-style countdown to 12 a.m., when the legalization measure passed by voters last month took effect. When the clock struck, they...

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Stock index futures signal lower Wall Street open

LONDON (Reuters) - Stock index futures pointed to a weaker open on Wall Street on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 falling 0.1 to 0.3 percent. President Barack Obama met with Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner on Sunday at the White House to negotiate ways to avoid the "fiscal cliff," according to White House officials...

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Egypt president scraps decree that sparked protests

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi has cancelled a decree that gave him sweeping powers and sparked violent unrest but did not delay this month's referendum on a new constitution that was a major demand of his opponents. Islamist supporters of Mursi have insisted the referendum should go ahead on time on December 15, saying it is needed to complete a democratic transition...

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Michelle Branch's Daughter's Dream Job Is For the Birds - Literally

Mom & Babies Celebrity Baby Blog 12/03/2012 at 02:00 PM ET Sthanlee B. Mirador/Shooting StarIt seems as if Michelle Branch‘s daughter won’t be following in her musical footsteps any time soon.While the Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter and her husband, bass player Teddy Landau, are no strangers...

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Smokers celebrate as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — The crowds of happy people lighting joints under Seattle's Space Needle early Thursday morning with nary a police officer in sight bespoke the new reality: Marijuana is legal under Washington state law.Hundreds gathered at Seattle Center for a New Year's Eve-style countdown to 12 a.m., when the legalization measure passed by voters last month took effect. When the clock struck, they...

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Wall Street Week Ahead: "Cliff" worries may drive tax selling

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors typically sell stocks to cut their losses at year end. But worries about the "fiscal cliff" - and the possibility of higher taxes in 2013 - may act as the greatest incentive to sell both winners and losers by December 31. The $600 billion of automatic tax increases and spending cuts scheduled for the beginning of next year includes higher rates for capital...

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