Packers sign Rodgers to long term deal
CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Green Bay Packers signed quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a long-term contract extension on Friday.
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Sarah Brightman “crazy” ahead of new album, tour
DETROIT (Billboard) - Sarah Brightman says life is “completely crazy at the moment,” and with a new holiday album, a tour and her debut film role, who’s going to doubt her?
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Google may scrap Yahoo deal: sources
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Google Inc may decide to scrap its proposed partnership with Yahoo Inc rather than accept government-imposed antitrust restrictions on it, according to two sources familiar with the companies’ discussions.
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IBM sues to block executive from moving to Apple
(Reuters) - International Business Machines Corp sued a top executive on Thursday to prevent him from joining Apple Inc , court documents showed.
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Successive births, HRT hard on the joints
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Early puberty, giving birth to multiple children, and taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) all increase a woman’s risk of needing joint replacement surgery due to arthritis, according to data from a large, study of middle-aged women in the UK.
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Most adults get some exercise during the day: study
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Many adults may be meeting experts’ recommendations on exercise if all types of activity, from work and play, are counted, a study of Swedish adults hints.
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Coordinated headache management best
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - When it comes to managing chronic headache, a practical coordinated approach aimed at filling the gaps in “usual” care leads to a marked improvement in patients’ quality of life and satisfaction with treatment, researchers report in the journal Headache.
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Green gadgets aim to woo eco-aware shoppers
LONDON (Reuters) - Gadget makers showed off their green credentials at a technology show in London on Friday to try to tempt consumers worried about soaring fuel bills, climate change and the financial crisis.
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Mackenzie Phillips pleads guilty to drug charge
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former “One Day at Time” television star Mackenzie Phillips pleaded guilty to cocaine possession on Friday and was ordered into another drug rehab program.
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Radcliffe seeks another New York marathon revival
NEW YORK (Reuters) - World record holder Paula Radcliffe loves autumn in New York and said on Friday it was the perfect stage for another racing revival when she defends her New York City Marathon title on Sunday.
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Lonard, Allenby and Duke share lead at Ginn sur Mer Classic
MIAMI (Reuters) - Australians Peter Lonard and Robert Allenby and American Ken Duke charged into the early second round lead in difficult scoring conditions at the Ginn sur Mer Classic on Friday.
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Chinese resort island battles cholera outbreak
BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s southern resort island of Hainan has confirmed 30 cholera cases and nearly 300 suspected cases in the last few days, the provincial government said on Friday.
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Dollar Thrifty to cut 400 jobs amid economic turmoil
(Reuters) - Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc cut its workforce by about 6 percent to cut costs amid tough economic conditions, in a move that will affect 30 percent of the car-rental company’s senior management staff.
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Patrick Swayze says chemo was “hell on wheels”
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Patrick Swayze, filming again less than a year after being given a grim diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, described chemotherapy as “hell on wheels” but said work had kept him feeling positive.
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Illness, aging may not change end-of-life choices
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People who say they wouldn’t want life-sustaining treatments if they were brain dead tend not to change their minds over time, but the preferences of those who want more aggressive treatment are less stable, a new study of aging doctors suggests.
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China turns to fixing system as toxic milk eases
BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s health minister urged officials to focus on fixing the problem-ridden food safety system now the flood of Chinese children hospitalized for toxic milk poisoning has eased.
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Low vitamin D common in kids with cystic fibrosis
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and current treatment recommendations for correcting the deficiency are “inadequate,” conclude clinicians from The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore, Maryland.
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Phillies parade through success-starved city
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - Success-starved Philadelphia celebrated its first professional sports championship in a quarter-century on Friday, showering the Phillies World Series baseball champs with confetti, brotherly love and screaming cheers.
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Most British girls prefer Joe Bland to James Bond
LONDON (Reuters) - Job security and marriage to an accountant beat adventure and an exciting Bond-style boyfriend for most British women, a new survey said.
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U2 Tower shelved as credit crisis spooks
DUBLIN (Reuters) - A dramatic 120-meter tower planned for Dublin’s docklands to house U2’s rock studio has become the latest Irish casualty of the global financial crisis.
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Sony recalls PC batteries
SAN FRANCISCO/TOKYO (Reuters) - Sony Corp said five PC makers including Hewlett-Packard Co and Toshiba Corp will recall 100,000 computer battery packs made by the Japanese electronics maker due to a fire hazard.
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Hornets sting Suns on Posey’s hot hand
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Recent signing James Posey knocked down three crucial three-pointers in the final quarter to lift the New Orleans Hornets past the Phoenix Suns 108-95 on Thursday.
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Jimenez hopes washed away at sodden Volvo Masters
SOTOGRANDE, Spain (Reuters) - Torrential rain caused the Volvo Masters second round to be abandoned Friday, washing away Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez’s slim European order of merit hopes.
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Split-screen settlement for dueling TV viewers
HOLLYWOOD (Hollywood Reporter) - The classic dilemma: You are home for the evening. You wish to watch, say, a comedy, on TV, but a family member would rather watch something else.
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Too much weight in pregnancy can make baby fat
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Women who gain more than 40 pounds (18 kg ) during pregnancy have nearly twice the risk of delivering a heavy baby as those who gain less, U.S. researchers said on Friday.
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Federer and Nadal pull out injured from Paris
PARIS (Reuters) - Hopes of a dream final between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were dashed on Friday when the top two seeds pulled out injured from their quarter-final matches at the Paris Masters.
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Financial crisis spells business for lending sites
KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - One woman wants to pay off medical bills. An Ohio couple wants $5,000 to start a home business. An Illinois college student needs help with tuition.
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Brewers hire Macha as new manager
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Milwaukee Brewers have hired Ken Macha as their new manager on a two-deal deal, the team said on its website on Thursday.
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Pulitzer pen crafts “Spidey 4″
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire got out of a rabbit hole, only to be ensnared by a spider’s web.
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Probiotic for babies doesn’t ward off allergies
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Giving children a type of “good bacteria” during their first 6 months of life doesn’t reduce their risk of developing allergies in early childhood, researchers from Australia report.
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Michael Jackson opts out of Jackson 5 reunion
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A reunion of the Jackson 5 is not quite as easy as “ABC.”
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Gadgets still a centerpiece of holiday shopping
NEW YORK/ATLANTA (Reuters) - Shoppers who crave electronics goodies, but are increasingly short on cash, may sacrifice a gym membership or movie popcorn just to get a new gadget like the “Google phone” this holiday season.
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Small investors offer hope for Japan market gloom
TOKYO (Reuters) - Stocks in Japan fell to their lowest in decades this week, but seasoned punter Heiichiro Kase is far from discouraged.
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Lakers sign center Bynum to four-year extension
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Los Angeles Lakers have given center Andrew Bynum with a new four-year contract, keeping him with the team through 2013.
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Sharks beat Red Wings 4-2 after second period burst
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The San Jose Sharks scored three second-period goals to beat the visiting Detroit Red Wings 4-2 on Thursday and register their best ever start to a season.
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Employees favor breastfeeding-friendly policies
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Most employees have positive views of workplace policies that help women keep up breastfeeding after they return to the job, a new study suggests.
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Hollywood weighs impact of election
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Jay Leno and David Letterman are rooting for the Republicans.
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Nintendo sees overseas DSi launch by next summer
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese video game maker Nintendo Co Ltd will likely launch a new model of its top-selling handheld player, the DS, in overseas markets by the summer of 2009, President Satoru Iwata said.
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Spector killed actress in fit of rage: prosecutor
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rock producer Phil Spector murdered an actress in the same “petulant fit of rage” witnessed over the years by other women he held at gunpoint in similar circumstances, a Los Angeles prosecutor told jurors on Wednesday at the start of a retrial in the 2003 killing.
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Pzena Investment amends credit pact with lenders
(Reuters) - U.S. money manager Pzena Investment Management said it reached an agreement with lenders to amend the terms of a credit facility including the waiver of a financial covenant requiring it to maintain a minimum level of assets under management.
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Yorkville fund eyes small-cap IT solutions firms
LONDON (Reuters) - Yorkville Advisors UK, an investment fund focused on small and medium-sized companies, believes IT firms with technology that can help businesses streamline operations and cut costs are an attractive bet over the coming months.
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Motorola eyes phone weakness, job cuts
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Motorola Inc warned its fourth-quarter results would miss expectations and said its struggling mobile phone business would weaken further in 2009, forcing the company to delay its plan to spin off the unit and cut 3,000 jobs.
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MTV strikes deal to use Beatles songs in video game
NEW YORK (Reuters) - MTV Networks announced on Thursday a deal to use songs by The Beatles in a custom video game similar to its popular “Rock Band” video, marking the groundbreaking band’s first major plunge into digital music.
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Letzig grabs early lead at Ginn sur Mer
MIAMI (Reuters) - American Michael Letzig fired a bogey-free seven-under 65 to grab the early first round lead at the Ginn sur Mer Classic Thursday.
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Janet Jackson cuts racy segment from Detroit show
DETROIT (Billboard) - Four years after flashing her breast at the Super Bowl, Janet Jackson dropped a saucy segment from her concert at a largely empty Detroit arena on Tuesday to comply with a Michigan state law that prohibits simulated sex acts in a public performing space.
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Liver risk, death seen with Glaxo’s Avandia: group
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than one dozen cases of liver failure and death were reported in patients taking GlaxoSmithKline Plc’s Avandia, advocacy group Public Citizen said on Thursday in a petition calling for a ban of the diabetes drug.
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Just A Minute With: Kevin Smith on “Zack and Miri”
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Writer and director Kevin Smith cast a comedian’s eye at amateur pornography in his movie “Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” which opens on Friday.
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Hamilton expects a fair fight in Brazil
SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Lewis Hamilton has dismissed fears that his bid to become Formula One’s youngest world champion could be wrecked by underhand tactics in Sunday’s season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix.
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Balchem results miss market estimates
(Reuters) - Specialty chemicals maker, Balchem Corp posted third-quarter earnings that trailed analyst estimates, hurt by higher raw material costs.
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NY mayor offers help from financial crisis fallout
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveiled plans on Thursday to help New Yorkers cope with fallout from the global financial crisis, including counseling on debt management and creating more affordable housing.
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Banks, telcos to decide on wallet-phones
HELSINKI (Reuters) - The potentially lucrative business of mobile phone wallets is waiting for banks and telecom operators to agree on each one’s role and possible revenue flow in the future.
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Actor David Tennant to leave “Doctor Who”
LONDON (Reuters) - Actor David Tennant is to put down his sonic screwdriver and quit his role as Britain’s best-known time traveler “Doctor Who,” the BBC said on Thursday.
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Maradona expects to make coaching debut against Scotland
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Diego Maradona said on Thursday he expected his make his debut as Argentina coach in a friendly against Scotland on November 19.
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Phillies win World Series
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - The Philadelphia Phillies ended their long wait for a World Series title with a short burst of baseball on Wednesday as they clinched the crown by completing a rain-suspended 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.
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Roddick snatches Masters Cup spot
PARIS (Reuters) - Andy Roddick secured one of the three remaining spots for the Masters Cup when he overcame Frenchman Gilles Simon’s stern resistance to win 6-3 7-5 in the third round of the Paris Masters Thursday.
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Britain urges banks to access EU funds for lending
LONDON (Reuters) - Bank lending to small British businesses could be boosted by European funds worth four billion pounds ($6.6 billion), finance minister Alistair Darling said on Thursday, as Britain tries to get banks to do more to support the economy.
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