Voters in Egypt Cast Ballots on Draft Constitution

Lynsey Addario for The New York TimesA polling site in Cairo on Saturday. Lines were long as a referendum on an Islamist-backed charter got off to an orderly start. More Photos »CAIRO — Egyptians voted peacefully and in large numbers on Saturday in a referendum on an Islamist-backed draft constitution, hoping that the results would end three weeks of violence, division and distrust between the Islamists...

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Huge Wave of Google App Updates Hits iOS, Android

Google just brought iPhone and Android phone users a holiday gift. Google Maps has returned to the iPhone, this time in the form of its own separate app, while Google Currents — the company’s Flipboard-style online magazine app for Android — received a substantial update as well.Besides the two big updates, about a half-dozen other apps for Android and Google TV received bug fixes and new features,...

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Connecticut Shooting: Hero Teacher Died Saving Students

By Sara Hammel and Mike Fleeman 12/15/2012 at 06:30 PM EST Out of the chaos and horror emerged an incredible act of selflessness and bravery by one teacher, who spent her final moments trying to protect her young students from harm.Victoria Soto, 27, a first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., ushered her students...

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Fewer health care options for illegal immigrants

ALAMO, Texas (AP) — For years, Sonia Limas would drag her daughters to the emergency room whenever they fell sick. As an illegal immigrant, she had no health insurance, and the only place she knew to seek treatment was the hospital — the most expensive setting for those covering the cost.The family's options improved somewhat a decade ago with the expansion of community health clinics, which offered...

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Syrian Rebel Seeks Prisoner Exchange to Free Hostages

Lebanese Captives in Syria Speak Out: C.J. Chivers, a correspondent for The New York Times, spoke with two Lebanese men held captive in Syria for seven months. Syrian rebels accuse them and seven others of being members of Hezbollah.BAB AL-SALAM, Syria — When Syrian rebels stopped two buses of Lebanese travelers in the spring and took 11 passengers hostage, they set off a cascade of fallout: riots...

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Bethenny Frankel & Jason Hoppy Step Out with Daughter Bryn Amid Relationship Rumors

TV Watch Buzz By Lesley Messer 12/14/2012 at 06:00 PM EST Bethenny Frankel and husband Jason Hoppy with daughter Bryn Jae Donnelly/INF Are Bethenny Frankel and husband Jason Hoppy experiencing another rough patch? Amidst rumors that the reality stars' two-year marriage...

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Fewer health care options for illegal immigrants

ALAMO, Texas (AP) — For years, Sonia Limas would drag her daughters to the emergency room whenever they fell sick. As an illegal immigrant, she had no health insurance, and the only place she knew to seek treatment was the hospital — the most expensive setting for those covering the cost.The family's options improved somewhat a decade ago with the expansion of community health clinics, which offered...

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Wall Street succumbs to Apple's fall, "cliff" uncertainty

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell on Friday as another slide in Apple took a toll and investors unloaded some shares because of the uncertainty surrounding the "fiscal cliff" negotiations. For the Nasdaq, this marked the second losing week in a row. All three major U.S. stock indexes ended the week slightly lower. Apple's stock slid 3.8 percent to $509.79 after UBS cut its...

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Top Russian Envoy for Syria and NATO Leader Say Assad Losing Control

Manu Brabo/Associated PressRebel fighters attacked Syrian government forces on Thursday in the village of Tal Sheer. MOSCOW — Russia’s top Middle East diplomat and the leader of NATO offered dark and strikingly similar assessments of the embattled Syrian president’s future on Thursday, asserting that he was losing control of the country after a nearly two-year conflict that has taken 40,000 lives...

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iPhone 5 hits China as Apple market share slips

SHANGHAI (Reuters) – The China release of its iPhone 5 on Friday should win Apple Inc some respite from a recent slide in its share of what is likely already the world’s biggest smartphone market, but its longer-term hopes may depend on new technology being tested by China‘s top telecoms carrier.Cupertino, California-based Apple has been in talks about a tie-up with China Mobile for four years. A...

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Hillary Clinton Doesn't Mind You Talking About Her Hair

Stylewatch Style News Now 12/13/2012 at 01:15 PM ET Kristin Callahan/ACE/INFA lot of women in politics (we’re not naming names!) have been criticized for spending too much time and money on their hair, but Hillary Clinton certainly...

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Study: People worldwide living longer, but sicker

LONDON (AP) — Nearly everywhere around the world, people are living longer and fewer children are dying. But increasingly, people are grappling with the diseases and disabilities of modern life, according to the most expansive global look so far at life expectancy and the biggest health threats.The last comprehensive study was in 1990 and the top health problem then was the death of children under...

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S&P 500 ends six-day winning streak on "cliff" anxiety

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended its six-day winning streak on Thursday, retreating as worries intensified that Washington's "fiscal cliff" negotiations were dragging on with little progress. Anxiety about the drawn-out talks between Democrats and Republicans was enough to offset encouraging data on retail sales and jobless claims on Thursday. There is concern that...

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IHT Rendezvous: Gay Marriage Fight Intensifies in Britain and France

LONDON — The pragmatic Dutch should be forgiven for wondering what all the fuss is about.A decade after the Netherlands legalized marriage for same-sex couples with a minimum of brouhaha, the issue has spurred a fierce and emotional debate in two other European countries, France and Britain.The disputes focus on plans by the Socialist government in France and the Conservative-led government in Britain...

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‘The Hobbit’: Like One Bad Video Game

Perhaps the most exciting thing about Peter Jackson‘s landmark, blockbuster Lord of the Rings films was that they made fans, through a combination of stunning landscapes and intricate special effects and soaring music and dramatic spectacle, feel as though we were seeing an almost impossible elevation of the potential size and scope of movies. Here was a rich, dense, sprawling series of films that...

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Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen, Kanye West & More Perform for Sandy Relief

By Andrea Billups 12/12/2012 at 06:30 PM EST Kanye, Bon Jovi, Alicia Keys and Bruce Springsteen Kevin Mazur/WireImage; Jamie McCarthy/Getty; WireImage; Tim Mosenfelder/Getty It's time for a concert for a great cause.On Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., musicians including...

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Congress examines science behind HGH test for NFL

WASHINGTON (AP) — A congressional committee has opened a hearing to examine the science behind a human growth hormone test the NFL wants to start using on its players.Nearly two full seasons have passed since the league and the players' union signed a labor deal that set the stage for HGH testing.The NFL Players Association won't concede the validity of a test that's used by Olympic sports and Major...

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Wall Street ends almost flat as Bernanke warns on "cliff"

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks ended nearly flat on Wednesday, giving up most of the day's gains after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke reiterated that monetary policy won't be enough to offset damage from the "fiscal cliff." His comments followed the Federal Reserve's announcement of a new stimulus plan, which briefly pushed the S&P 500 to a seven-week high. The plan, the latest...

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Seeking Allies Among Syrian Rebels, U.S. Instead Finds Hostility

Narciso Contreras/Associated PressFree Syrian Army fighters aimed their weapons during heavy clashes with government forces in Aleppo. BEIRUT, Lebanon — As the United States tries attempts to rally international support for the Syrian rebellion, trying to herd the opposition into a shadow government that it can recognize and assist, on the ground in Syria it faces an entirely different problem: Much...

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Microsoft ups Surface production, to sell in more stores

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp has stepped up manufacturing of the Surface tablet, its new device designed to counter Apple Inc‘s iPad, and will introduce it to third-party retailers this week.The moves suggest Microsoft is seeing some demand for its first own-brand computer in the crucial holiday shopping season, although it has yet to divulge any sales figures.“The public reaction to Surface...

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Hugh Hefner's Engagement Ring to Crystal Harris Revealed

By Mike Fleeman 12/11/2012 at 07:00 PM EST The wedding's back on – though it may be a good idea to save that gift receipt. Hugh Hefner, 86, officially confirms that he is once again engaged to Crystal Harris, 26, telling his Twitter followers, "I've given Crystal Harris a ring. I love the girl." And to prove...

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DA investigating Texas' troubled $3B cancer agency

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Turmoil surrounding an unprecedented $3 billion cancer-fighting effort in Texas worsened Tuesday when its executive director offered his resignation and the state's chief public corruption prosecutor announced an investigation into the beleaguered agency.No specific criminal allegations are driving the latest probe into the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, said...

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