Connecticut group wants 'common sense' solutions to gun violence

A month after a gunman invaded Sandy Hook Elementary School, killing 20 children and six adults, a group of local residents...

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Aaron Swartz, Coder and Activist, Dead at 26

We often say, upon the passing of a friend or loved one, that the world is a poorer place for the loss. But with the untimely death of programmer and activist Aaron Swartz, this isn’t just a sentiment; it’s literally true. Worthy, important causes will surface without a champion equal to their measure. Technological problems will go unsolved, or be solved a little less brilliantly than...

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“The Middle” will gladly take longevity over awards

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – ABC’s “The Middle” doesn’t get the recognition, ratings or Emmy Awards that “Modern Family” does, but the cast and creators are fine with cruising under the radar if they can continue producing more episodes.“I say slow and steady wins the race,” series star Neil Flynn rationalized at the Television Critics Association’s winter press tour.Despite averaging a middling 2.8...

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‘Bodega Clinicas’ Draw Interest of Health Officials

HUNTINGTON PARK, Calif. — The “bodega clinicas” that line the bustling commercial streets of immigrant neighborhoods around Los Angeles are wedged between money order kiosks and pawnshops. These storefront offices, staffed with Spanish-speaking medical providers, treat ailments for cash: a doctor’s visit is $20 to $40; a cardiology exam is $120; and at one bustling clinic, a colonoscopy is advertised...

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Aaron Swartz, Internet Activist, Dies at 26

Michael Francis McElroy for The New York TimesAaron Swartz in 2009. Aaron Swartz, a wizardly programmer who as a teenager helped develop code that delivered ever-changing Web content to users and later became a steadfast crusader to make that information freely available, was found dead on Friday in his New York apartment. He was 26.  An uncle, Michael Wolf, said that Mr. Swartz...

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Porn producer sues to overturn L.A. County condom requirement for actors

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Obama OKs Netflix-to-Facebook Sharing as E-mail Privacy Reform Falters

President Barack Obama signed legislation Thursday granting the public the right to automatically display on their Facebook feeds what they’re watching on Netflix.It’s great news for those wanting to flood their Facebook feeds with whatever time-suck they’re watching. But it’s bad news for privacy. Lawmakers cut from the legislative package language requiring the authorities to get a warrant...

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‘Smash’ season debut sneak peek begins Monday

LOS ANGELES (AP) — NBC is giving viewers a sneak peek at the new season of “Smash.”Starting next week, the first hour of the drama’s two-hour season debut can be seen online and in the air — where it will be screened on American Airlines flights.The “Smash” preview will be available through several outlets, including NBC.com, Hulu, iTunes, Amazon and Xbox and on demand. It will be shown on American’s...

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Doctor and Patient: When the Doctor Returns to Doctoring

Several years ago, a highly respected medical expert I had just met shared a little-known detail of his illustrious career: as a young doctor, he had stopped practicing medicine for a few years to homeschool his son.His revelation took me completely by surprise. Doctors rarely talked about taking time off for fear that colleagues would assume them incompetent or in possession of some serious personal...

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France Near Deal to Simplify Labor Regulations

PARIS — French labor unions and business leaders appeared close to striking a deal Friday to make it easier to hire and fire employees in France’s notoriously rigid labor market. An accord would tame some of the most confounding rules in the 3,200-page labor code, as the country tries to increase its competitiveness and curb unemployment. After weeks of sparring among the five major labor...

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Irvine City Council overhauls oversight, spending on Great Park

Capping a raucous eight-hour-plus meeting, the Irvine City Council early Wednesday voted to overhaul the oversight and spending...

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Pressure-Sensitive Stylus Gives Starving iPad Artists Incredible Control

Designers have been waiting for a good pressure-sensitive stylus since the debut of the iPad. The Pogo Connect, on display at CES, looks to let them draw circles around the competition with hundreds of levels of sensitivity.The Connect, roughly the size of a Sharpie marker, uses a proprietary pressure sensor in the pen’s nib to measure force and a Bluetooth 4.0 radio to convey the data to...

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Timberlake hints return to music in video

NEW YORK (AP) — Is Justin Timberlake bringing his music career back?The superstar has concentrated almost exclusively on his acting career over the last few years. But on Thursday, he posted a video on his website that showed him walking into a studio, putting on headphones and saying: “I’m ready.”Timberlake hasn’t made an album since 2006′s Grammy-winning “FutureSex/LoveSounds.” In the video, Timberlake...

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City Room: How Are You Warding Off the Flu?

Sure, you could go out and get a flu shot like everyone keeps telling you to do. It’s relatively cheap, and available just about everywhere.But the shot is not 100 percent effective. And it takes two weeks to kick in. Although influenza can be deadly, some have been making light of the virus’s symptoms.On the bright side, having the flu was a great start to my spring break diet.. eating nothing and...

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Sharp Words From European Minister for Countries in North

BRUSSELS — Jean-Claude Juncker, the departing leader of the group of ministers who oversee the euro currency, sharply criticized northern Europeans on Thursday for demanding austerity budgets from their southern neighbors. But in the same speech he seemed to endorse as his successor an official from the Netherlands, one of countries that has made the toughest demands for fiscal rigor...

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Baseball Hall of Fame: Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mike Piazza shut out

Steroid-tainted stars Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa have been denied entry to baseball's Hall of Fame with voters failing to elect any candidates for only the second time in four decades. (Jan. 9) ...

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<em>Footnotes</em>: Unicorns on Noah's Ark and the Mark of the Beast on Captain Crunch

This week on Footnotes, I accidentally prove that unicorns hitched a ride on Noah’s ark, unless they were able to ride on rainbows above the flood. So in that sense I didn’t prove anything. But I was close.Also, the mark of the beast shows up where you’d least expect it: in the freezer aisle. Could the ordinary UPC really be the mark? Like with the unicorns, I wasn’t...

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Bette Midler returning to Broadway as Super Agent Sue Mengers

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Bette Midler will return to Broadway for the first time in 30 years to play legendary agent Sue Mengers.The Divine Miss M will star in John Logan‘s new play “I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat With Sue Mengers.”For Midler, it is a chance to return to her theatrical roots at a time when her career is experiencing something of a revival. Largely absent from screens for much of the...

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Pap Test May Prove Useful at Detecting More Types of Cancer, Study Suggests

The Pap test, which has prevented countless deaths from cervical cancer, may eventually help to detect cancers of the uterus and ovaries as well, a new study suggests. For the first time, researchers have found genetic material from uterine or ovarian cancers in Pap smears, meaning that it may become possible to detect three diseases with just one routine test. But the research is...

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Wall Street Modestly Higher

Wall Street stocks traded higher on Wednesday after Alcoa got the earnings season under way with better-than-expected revenue and an encouraging outlook for the year. The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index rose 0.2 percent in late trading, the Dow Jones industrial average added 0.4 percent and the Nasdaq composite index was up 0.4 percent. European shares closed moderately higher....

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Testimony about Colorado massacre resumes in James Holmes hearing

More emotional testimony was expected at a hearing on the Aurora movie theater massacre, as prosecutors continued to lay out their case against the defendant, James Holmes. ...

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Help Wanted: Astronauts Needed for Mars Colony

Mars One, a nonprofit organization based in the Netherlands, intends to establish a human settlement on Mars in 2023.They need astronauts.Anyone on planet Earth can apply if they meet the basic requirements. But obviously, the job isn’t for just anyone.Today, Mars One released its application criteria. Among other virtues, astronaut candidates must have “a deep sense...

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