Syria opposition bloc elects Christian as leader

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Syria‘s main opposition group in exile has elected a Christian Paris-based former geography teacher as its new president.George Sabra said Friday that his election as head of the Syrian National Council is a sign that the opposition is not plagued by sectarian divisions. Sabra says the SNC‘s main demand...

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Frankfurt gears up for Gangnam Style at MTV awards

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The MTV Europe Music Awards will rock Frankfurt’s Festhalle concert venue on Sunday, with Barbadian R&B singer Rihanna leading the nominations and all eyes on Korean dance sensation Psy.Psy‘s hit “Gangnam Style“, which is up for the Best Video award, has been viewed more than 670 million times and received a record-breaking 4.9...

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Las guías hospitalarias no reducen las reinternaciones: estudio

NUEVA YORK (Reuters Health) – Las guías de procedimientospara garantizarles a los pacientes hospitalarios el acceso a servicios de calidad también apuntan a reducir la necesidad dereinternaciones, pero un nuevo estudio sugiere que esa relacióncasi no existiría.“La idea era que al aumentar la calidad de la atenciónmejorarían...

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Citigroup’s Pandit receives $15m

9 November 2012 Last updated at 18:51 ETFormer Citigroup chief executive Vikram Pandit, who stood down last month, will get more than $ 15m (£9.4m) as part of a settlement with the banking giant. John Havens, the chief operating officer who resigned at the same time, will receive a similar amount.The payments were disclosed...

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Myanmar says Obama to visit later this month

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — President Barack Obama will make a groundbreaking visit later this month to Myanmar, an official said Thursday, following through with his policy of rapprochement to encourage democracy in the Southeast Asian nation.The Myanmar official speaking from the capital, Naypyitaw, said Thursday that security for a visit on Nov. 18 or 19...

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Exclusive: Google Ventures beefs up fund size to $300 million a year

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Google will increase the cash it allocates to its venture-capital arm to up to $ 300 million a year from $ 200 million, catapulting Google Ventures into the top echelon of corporate venture-capital funds.Access to that sizeable checkbook means Google Ventures will be able to invest in more later-stage financing rounds, which...

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“Dancing” co-host Brooke Burke has thyroid cancer

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “Dancing with the Stars” co-host Brooke Burke said on Thursday that she has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer and will need surgery.The television presenter and model said in a three-minute video posted on the website Modernmom.com that she will need her thyroid removed. “I need to have thyroid...

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UK’s NICE rejects Novartis asthma drug in change of tack

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain‘s health cost-effectiveness watchdog NICE plans to recommend against the use of Novartis‘s severe asthma drug Xolair, or omalizumab, after earlier endorsing it for adults only.The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), which decides if medicines should be given on the state health service, said on Friday...

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AMR avoids investigation into $2.26 billion debt deals

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Hedge fund Marathon Asset Management has withdrawn a request for an independent investigator to examine the books of American Airlines, a unit of bankrupt AMR Corp, lawyers for the companies said at a hearing on Thursday.The move came after AMR agreed to preserve potential clawback claims relating to debt deals, struck between Marathon...

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Merkel says Germany, Britain must work together on EU

LONDON (Reuters) – Germany and Britain must cooperate to work round their differences on the European Union‘s long-term spending plans, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday.“Despite differences that we have it is very important for me that the UK and Germany work together,” Merkel said through a translator before a meeting in London with Prime...

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Election night TV audience down from 2008: Nielsen data

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Tuesday’s presidential election may have been too close to call for weeks, but it didn’t pull in as many TV viewers as four years ago.More than 66.8 million Americans watched coverage of the 2012 elections during prime time on Tuesday, according to final Nielsen data on Wednesday. That’s down from the 71.5 million who tuned in to...

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Death of the cassette tape much exaggerated

LONDON (Reuters) – The widening gap between the amount of data the world produces and our capacity to store it is giving a new lease of life to the humble cassette tape.Although consumers have abandoned the audio cassette in favor of the ubiquitous iPod, organizations with large amounts of data, from patient records to capacity-hungry video archives, have...

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Organ on a chip? Scientists test drugs on tiny, artificial lung

CHICAGO (Reuters) – U.S. researchers have begun testing drugs using a microchip lined with living cells that replicates many of the features of a human lung, a technology that may one day help improve drug testing and reduce researchers’ dependence on animal studies.In 2010, researchers at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering...

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Euro growth forecast hits markets

7 November 2012 Last updated at 17:31 ETContinue reading the main story The European Commission has cut sharply its growth forecast for the eurozone, warning that the “difficult process of rebalancing will last for some time”.It now projects the bloc will narrowly avoid recession next year, growing by 0.1%, compared...

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Officials: New mass graves found in Ivory Coast

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Up to 10 new mass graves have been discovered near the site of a July attack on a camp for displaced people, officials said Tuesday, amid allegations that initial casualty totals were downplayed to mask killings carried out by the national army.Rights groups claim summary executions were carried out by the Republican Forces...

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HANNITY ON TWEET

“I learned a big civics lesson today.” — Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity, who tweeted a picture of his filled-out ballot (for Mitt Romney, natch), only to learn that appeared to break the law in New York state.— David Bauder — http://twitter.com/dbauder ___EDITOR’S NOTE — Election Watch shows you Election Day 2012...

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Renowned special effects firm is “Star Wars” bonus for Disney

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “Star Wars” was the force behind Walt Disney’s $ 4 billion purchase of producer George Lucas’s Lucasfilm entertainment holdings. Not so far, far away is Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic, his award-winning special effects shop that will likely save Disney millions of dollars in costs for its big-budget movies.ILM, started by Lucas...

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Human enhancements at work pose ethical dilemmas

LONDON (Reuters) – Retinal implants to help pilots see at night, stimulant drugs to keep surgeons alert and steady handed, cognitive enhancers to focus the minds of executives for a big speech or presentation.Medical and scientific advances are bringing human enhancements into work but with them, according to a report by British experts, come not only...

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Gender pay gap ‘could worsen’

6 November 2012 Last updated at 19:04 ETThe pay gap between men and women is at risk of widening for the first time on record, a leading pay equality campaign group warns. The Fawcett Society says that women still earn 14.9% less on average than men for the same job.But it says this gap could widen as public sector cuts...

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Donated stem cells may work best for heart patients

(Reuters) – Stem cells culled from the bone marrow of healthy donors work as well or even better as cells harvested from patients themselves as a treatment for damaged hearts and are more convenient to use, according to new research.The 13-month trial was the first to compare the safety and effectiveness of so-called mesenchymal, or bone marrow-derived,...

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Wall Street rises in thin trade day before election

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks advanced modestly on Monday in light trading in one of the year’s quietest sessions on the day before the presidential election.Whatever the outcome of the race between incumbent President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney, the election’s resolution will finally end the uncertainty that has kept the market stagnant...

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Newspaper discloses new Cameron text messages

LONDON (AP) — A British lawmaker says he’s asked the country’s media ethics inquiry to consider newly disclosed text messages sent between Prime Minister David Cameron and Rebekah Brooks, the ex-chief executive of Rupert Murdoch‘s British newspaper division.The Mail on Sunday newspaper on Sunday published two previously undisclosed messages exchanged between...

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Bulgarians use Facebook to expose slipshod police

SOFIA (Reuters) – Fed up with ineffective law enforcement, thousands of Bulgarians have flocked to a Facebook page showcasing images of police breaking rules or failing to do their duty.The “Photograph a Policeman” group includes pictures of badly parked patrol cars, including one in a disabled spot and another on a pedestrian crossing, and a police motorcyclist...

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CBS making $1 million donation to Sandy, announces employee match

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – CBS is making a $ 1 million dollar donation to Hurricane Sandy recovery as part of a wider effort that includes PSAs and matching employee contributions through the end of the year, TheWrap has learned.CEO Les Moonves announced the company’s Red Cross donation in a letter to employees obtained by TheWrap, in which he thanks CBS...

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