Missoni scion on small plane missing in Venezuela

ROME (AP) — Rescue crews used boats and aircraft on Saturday to search for a small plane that disappeared in Venezuela carrying...

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Looney Gas and Lead Poisoning: A Short, Sad History

Author’s note: Most people don’t realize that we knew in the 1920s that leaded gasoline was extremely dangerous. And in light of a Mother Jones story this week that looks at the connection between leaded gasoline and crime rates in the United States, I thought it might be worth reviewing that history. The following is an updated version of an earlier post based on information from my book...

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Ex-film star Bardot may seek Russian nationality

PARIS (Reuters) – Former French screen goddess Brigitte Bardot on Friday threatened to follow Gerard Depardieu in asking for a Russian passport, in protest not at tax hikes, but at the treatment of two circus elephants.The animals, named Baby and Nepal and owned by a touring circus, are thought to be carrying tuberculosis and were ordered to be put down by a court in Lyon, southern France, on Friday...

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The New Old Age: Murray Span, 1922-2012

One consequence of our elders’ extended lifespans is that we half expect them to keep chugging along forever. My father, a busy yoga practitioner and blackjack player, celebrated his 90th birthday in September in reasonably good health.So when I had the sad task of letting people know that Murray Span died on Dec. 8, after just a few days’ illness, the primary response was disbelief. “No! I just talked...

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Greece Tax Scandal Shifts Focus From Collection Problem

The tax scandal that reignited in Greece over the holidays had all the makings of a grade-B drama. A former finance minister, George Papaconstantinou, was accused of scrubbing his relatives’ names from a CD containing the identities of thousands of possible Greek tax dodgers. Within hours, his chief political rival tossed him from their party. Thanassis Stavrakis/Associated PressGeorge...

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House approves $9.7 billion in Sandy disaster aid

WASHINGTON — Responding to the political storm over delays in disaster aid to the Northeast, the House on Friday approved a...

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Study Says Yahoo, Google Help Fund Pirate Sites

Google and Yahoo were among the top advertising networks servicing the most ads on pirate sites, according to a new study unveiled Thursday.The analysis (.pdf) by the Annenberg Innovation Lab at the University of Southern California found that Pasadena, California-based OpenX was the leader in fostering ads on pirate sites. Google ranked second and Yahoo, sixth.The report, which the lab...

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‘Lincoln,’ ‘Argo’ earn Writers Guild nominations

LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Lincoln” and “Zero Dark Thirty” are adding to their front-runner status for Hollywood’s awards season.The two dramas earned nominations from the Writers Guild on Friday for outstanding screen writing.“Lincoln” is up for adapted screenplay, along with “Argo,” ”Silver Linings Playbook,” ”Life of Pi” and “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”“Zero Dark Thirty” was nominated for original...

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Well: Vegan Recipes for Health

If one of your goals for 2013 is more healthful eating, the Recipes for Health columnist Martha Rose Shulman can get you started. She has proposed five delicious vegan meals for the New Year that may also save you some money. She writes:Here is a New Year’s project for you. Take an inventory of your pantry, freezer and refrigerator and cook for a week without buying anything except items that you...

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Europe Likely to Be Harder on Google Over Search

SAN FRANCISCO — By some accounts, the United States let Google off the hook by finding that the technology giant had not abused its dominance in the Internet search market. Few expect the European antitrust watchdog to be as lenient. The Federal Trade Commission ruled Thursday that Google had not broken antitrust laws, after a 19-month inquiry into how it operates its search engine....

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Bieber urges crackdown on paparazzi after photographer's death

Justin Bieber and his collection of exotic cars have been tantalizing targets for celebrity photographers ever since the young...

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RIM Pays Nokia $65M to Settle Patent Dispute

RIM has paid Nokia $65 million to settle what may be the saddest slap-fight of a patent war in recent memory by forking over an amount that would just cover Google’s annual budget for employee sleeping pods, yoga classes and on-campus massages.The Financial Times reported the specifics of the recent agreement, which appeared in documents RIM filed with the U.S. Securities...

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Depardieu, in tax fight, gets Russian citizenship

MOSCOW (AP) — The Kremlin has cast Gerard Depardieu in one of the most surprising roles of his life — as a new Russian citizen.The announcement Thursday that President Vladimir Putin has approved Depardieu‘s application for citizenship is almost a real-life analogue to the French actor’s 1990 comedy “Green Card,” in which his character enters into a sham marriage in order to work in the United States.But...

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Question Mark: Why Am I Getting Shorter With Age?

Sal DiMarco Jr. for The New York TimesThe upward trajectory of youth starts falling for most people after 40. In a file photo, a Macungie, Pa., middle school nurse, Linda Duffy, measures a student. Relax. You’ve been through this before. Back when you were a baby baby boomer, your doctor probably laid you down every few months and measured your height. Then came the big day: you toddled...

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DealBook: Hormel to Buy Skippy Peanut Butter

3:12 p.m. | Updated The Hormel Foods Corporation, the producer of canned and cured meats and Spam, said on Thursday that it had agreed to buy the Skippy peanut butter business from Unilever for $700 million in cash.The acquisition adds to the company’s growing stable of foods that do not contain any meats, which include Wholly Guacamole and a wide variety of Mexican foods and several of its Country...

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White House eases path to residency for some illegal immigrants

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration eased the way Wednesday for illegal immigrants who are immediate relatives of American...

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6 States Bar Employers From Demanding Facebook Passwords

California and Illinois on Tuesday joined four others in becoming the union’s only states barring employers from demanding that employees fork over their social-media passwords.Congress unsurprisingly couldn’t muster the wherewithal to approve the Password Protection Act of 2012, so a handful of states have taken it upon themselves.The new laws come amid reports nationwide...

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A Minute With: Singer Trey Songz on new movie “Texas Chainsaw 3D”

LOS ANGELES, January2 (Reuters) – R&B and hip-hop artists have appeared in horror films before, but 28-year old singer Trey Songz tackles a brand new incarnation of the “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” franchise with “Texas Chainsaw 3D.”The film, which opens in U.S. theaters on Friday, follows a young woman who inherits a lavish, isolated mansion. When she visits it for the first time with her three...

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Employers Must Offer Family Health Care, Affordable or Not, Administration Says

WASHINGTON — In a long-awaited interpretation of the new health care law, the Obama administration said Monday that employers must offer health insurance to employees and their children, but will not be subject to any penalties if family coverage is unaffordable to workers. The requirement for employers to provide health benefits to employees is a cornerstone of the new law, but the new rules...

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Markets Jump on Fiscal Deal

Global stocks kicked off the 2013 trading year with a strong start Wednesday, as investors welcomed a deal between President Obama and Congressional Republicans that ended, at least temporarily, an impasse over fiscal policy that had threatened chaos in the new year. Michael Appleton for The New York TimesPeople watch traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Global...

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Ruling over bumper-car injury supports amusement park

SAN FRANCISCO — The California Supreme Court, protecting providers of risky recreational activities from lawsuits, decided Monday...

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