Pudding Monsters tops iPhone Games of the Week

Now that the holiday season is behind us, we get to sit in that awkward bit of time at the end of the year. That time that is so utterly devoted to reminiscence and top games of the year lists. As such, it’s hard to find out about notable new releases, and most developers avoid this time like the plague. Thankfully, last week was so utterly packed with releases that there’s enough for a second list....

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Number of e-book readers increasing in United States: survey

The popularity of electronic books is increasing in the United States, with nearly one-quarter of American bibliophiles reading e-books, according to a survey released on Thursday.The number of e-readers aged 16 years and older jumped from 16 percent in 2011 to 23 percent this year, while print readers fell from 72 to 67 percent in 2012, in a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center."The move toward...

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Marvell has options as it faces $1 billion patent verdict

 As Marvell Technology Group Ltd embarks on a legal process to void a $1.17 billion damages verdict in a patent dispute with Carnegie Mellon University, it has some reasons to be optimistic.The verdict was delivered on Wednesday by a jury in Pittsburgh, which found that Marvell had infringed two patents owned by Carnegie Mellon related to how accurately hard-drive circuits read data from high-speed...

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Working conditions begin to improve at Apple partner’s factories

It has been nearly a year since Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook addressed the unsafe working conditions in the company’s supply chain factories. Following an investigation from the Fair Labor Association that found a number of Chinese labor law violations, Apple and Foxconn (2038) agreed to improve conditions. The companies planned a series of reforms, including reduced hours and significantly higher wages....

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Lumia smartphones see deep discounts from Verizon, T-Mobile and Amazon

Lumia line of smartphones is now seeing post-holiday discounts at a variety of retailers shortly after launching in the United States. The phones, which run Microsoft’s (MSFT) Windows Phone 8 operating system, are the company’s latest gamble after a string of launches that were not well received. Verizon’s (VZ) Lumia 822 can now be had for free with a new two-year agreement, as can T-Mobile’s Lumia...

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BMW's vehicle sales reach 1.8 million in 2012: CFO

BMW , the world's largest premium carmaker, has sold about 1.8 million vehicles in 2012, its chief financial officer told a German newspaper."One of our goals was to increase vehicle sales in 2012 and to reach a new record in deliveries. With about 1.8 million vehicles, we have achieved this," the executive, Friedrich Eichiner, told Die Welt in an interview.In December, BMW said vehicle sales in the...

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Settlement reached in Toyota acceleration cases

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday it has reached a settlement worth more than $1 billion in a case involving unintended acceleration problems in its vehicles.The company said the deal will resolve hundreds of lawsuits from Toyota owners who said the value of their cars and trucks plummeted after a series of recalls stemming from claims that Toyota vehicles accelerated unintentionally.Steve...

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Large, powerful storm heads east; at least 6 dead

A powerful winter storm system pounded the nation's midsection Wednesday and headed toward the Northeast, where people braced for the high winds and heavy snow that disrupted holiday travel, knocked out power to thousands of homes and were blamed in at least six deaths.Hundreds of flights were canceled or delayed, scores of motorists got stuck on icy roads or slid into drifts, and blizzard warnings...

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Wells Fargo doesn't have to pay clients $203 million: court

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court vacated an injunction and a $203 million restitution order against Wells Fargo & Co in consumer litigation over the bank's overdraft policies, according to a ruling issued on Wednesday.But the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco also found Wells had violated part of California's unfair competition law, and sent the case back to trial...

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Toyota seeks to settle acceleration cases for $1.1 billion

DETROIT (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp plans to spend $1.1 billion to resolve sweeping U.S. class-action litigation over claims that millions of its vehicles accelerate unintentionally, as the Japanese automaker looks to turn the page on the biggest safety crisis in its history.About 16 million Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles sold in the United States spanning the model years 1998 to 2010 are covered...

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Woman’s ‘Dystextia’ Stroke Sign: ‘Some is where!’

Smartphone autocorrect is famous for scrambling messages into unintelligible gibberish but when one man received this garbled text from his 11-week-pregnant wife, it alarmed him: “every where thinging days nighing,” her text read. “Some is where!” Though that may sound like every text you’ve ever received, the woman’s husband knew her autocorrect was turned off. Fearing some medical issue, he made...

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Link between pot, psychosis goes both ways in kids

Marijuana (cannabis) use may be linked to the development of psychotic symptoms in teens - but the reverse could also be true: psychosis in adolescents may be linked to later pot use, according to a new Dutch study. "We have focused mainly on temporal order; is it the chicken or the egg? As the study shows, it is a bidirectional relationship," wrote the study's lead author Merel Griffith-Lendering,...

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Early Childhood Obesity Rates Might Be Slowing Nation-Wide

About one in three children in the U.S. are now overweight, and since the 1980s the number of children who are obese has more than tripled. But a new study of 26.7 million young children from low-income families shows that in this group of kids, the tidal wave of obesity might finally be receding. Being obese as a child not only increases the risk of early-life health problems, such as joint problems,...

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One in 12 in military has clogged heart arteries

Just over one in 12 U.S. service members who died in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars had plaque buildup in the arteries around their hearts - an early sign of heart disease, according to a new study. None of them had been diagnosed with heart disease before deployment, researchers said. "This is a young, healthy, fit group," said the study's lead author, Dr. Bryant Webber, from the Uniformed Services...

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Obesity declining in young, poorer kids: study

The number of low-income preschoolers who qualify as obese or "extremely obese" has dropped over the last decade, new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show. Although the decline was only "modest" and may not apply to all children, researchers said it was still encouraging. "It's extremely important to make sure we're monitoring obesity in this low-income group," said the CDC's...

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Oil prices lower in quiet holiday trading

The price of oil fell slightly Monday during a shortened pre-Christmas trading day. Concerns over the political stalemate in Washington continue to be the focus of traders, with the price of U.S. benchmark oil closing down 5 cents to $88.61 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Energy traders have been watching Democrats and Republicans clash over tax hikes and social service cuts. Normally,...

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Instagram furor triggers first class action lawsuit

Facebook's Instagram photo sharing service has been hit with what appears to be the first civil lawsuit to result from changed service terms that prompted howls of protest last week. In a proposed class action lawsuit filed in San Francisco federal court on Friday, a California Instagram user leveled breach of contract and other claims against the company. "We believe this complaint is without merit...

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Retailers hope late Christmas shoppers bring good cheer

CHICAGO/WHITE PLAINS, New York (Reuters) - Retailers limped into Christmas with last-minute blowout deals on everything from TVs to celebrity-branded clothing, after a disappointing few weeks of sales led many analysts to lower their expectations for the holiday season. Some industry watchers said shoppers were making smaller purchases, even though they are still visiting stores and browsing online....

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Ga. counties sue HSBC claiming loss of tax base

Three Atlanta-area counties have filed a lawsuit claiming that British bank HSBC cost them hundreds of millions of dollars in extra expenses and damage to their tax bases by aggressively signing minorities to housing loans that were likely to fail. The Georgia counties' failure or success with the relatively novel strategy could help determine whether other local governments try to hold big banks...

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New Jersey pension fund sues NYSE Euronext on ICE deal

A pension fund that holds shares of NYSE Euronext has sued the exchange operator over its proposed $8.2 billion sale to IntercontinentalExchange Inc , saying the deal undervalues the company's stock. The New Jersey Carpenters Pension Fund late on Friday filed a complaint in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan contending that NYSE Euronext breached its duty to maximize returns for shareholders....

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'Hobbit' extends No. 1 journey with $36.7 million

Tiny hobbit Bilbo Baggins is running circles around some of the biggest names in Hollywood. Peter Jackson's "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" took in $36.7 million to remain No. 1 at the box office for the second-straight weekend, easily beating a rush of top-name holiday newcomers. Part one of Jackson's prelude to his "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, the Warner Bros. release raised its domestic...

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Hillsborough charity single tops British chart

A charity single devoted to the victims of Britain's worst-ever sporting disaster has topped the U.K. singles chart to become a Christmas No. 1. The Official Charts Company said Sunday that The Justice Collective's version of "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother," sold nearly 270,000 copies, beating out a debut single by music talent show winner James Arthur. Members of the collective, who include ex-Beatle...

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Serpico: Pacino played me better than I did

New York City police whistle-blower Frank Serpico says Al Pacino played him better than he did himself. Pacino played the detective who exposed widespread police corruption in the 1973 movie "Serpico." The Daily News (http://nydn.us/RMNYcB ) interviewed the real-life Serpico in Ghent, in New York's Hudson Valley, for a story published Sunday. The 76-year-old retiree spoke weeks after the death of...

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Witch burns, audience on fire at Vienna opera show

VIENNA (AP) — At the end of the evening, the witch was toast Sunday — or more precisely a gingerbread cookie — and the audience at Vienna's Volksoper loved it. Of course, with many at the performance of "Haensel und Gretel" at Vienna's second opera house under the age of 6, one could argue that it was an easy sell. And yes, the fairy tale set to music by Engelbert Humperdinck is bound to please kids,...

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Bethenny Frankel and husband of 2 years separating

Bethenny Frankel and husband Jason Hoppy are separating. The 42-year-old TV personality, chef, author and entrepreneur told The Associated Press Sunday that the split brings her "great sadness." "This was an extremely difficult decision that as a woman and a mother, I have to accept as the best choice for our family," Frankel said. "We have love and respect for one another and will continue to amicably...

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Baseball-Ichiro reaches deal to return to Yankees

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Japanese outfielder Ichiro Suzuki has agreed a deal to return to the New York Yankees worth a reported $13 million over two years.The 39-year-old was traded to the Yankees in July after playing his first 12 Major League seasons with the Seattle Mariners. He thrived in New York, hitting .322 in 67 regular season games.A 10-times All Star and former league MVP, Suzuki has 2,606 career...

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Broach Sports Tours Announces Action-Packed 2013 Spring Training Baseball Tour

Fans will get to see eight Grapefruit League games in seven days, with the Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, Phillies and Braves among the top attractionsCharlotte, N.C. (PRWEB) December 20, 2012Broach Sports Tours has announced a sterling lineup for its 2013 Grapefruit League spring training baseball tour.The motorcoach tour will run Saturday, March 16 through Sunday, March 24, and will operate with Tampa...

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AP source: Polanco reaches agreement with Marlins

MIAMI (AP) — A person familiar with the negotiations says third baseman Placido Polanco has agreed to terms with the Miami Marlins.The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the Marlins hadn't announced a deal.Polanco, 37, battled injuries this year and hit .257 with two home runs and 19 RBIs in 90 games with Philadelphia. The 15-year veteran is a career .299...

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Placido Polanco agrees to $2.75M deal with Marlins

MIAMI (AP) — Former All-Star third baseman Placido Polanco agreed to a $2.75 million, one-year contract Thursday with the Miami Marlins, plugging the final hole in the team's projected lineup following a payroll purge.The 37-year-old, who can earn an additional $250,000 in performance bonuses, battled injuries this year and hit .257 with two home runs and 19 RBIs in 90 games with the Philadelphia...

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Nike Baseball & Softball Camps To Host Multiple Camp Weeks At Dan Duquette Sports Academy For 2013

Nike Baseball and Softball Camps return to Hindsdale, MA at the Dan Duquette Sports Academy to host multiple weeks of camp for 2013. The first camp session is April 14th-19th. Summer sessions begin the week of June 23rd.San Rafael, CA (PRWEB) December 20, 2012Nike Baseball Camps and Softball Camps return to Hindsdale, MA at the Dan Duquette Sports Academy to host multiple weeks of camp for 2013. The...

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BofA CEO: Fed wants bank to show consistent earnings

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp  needs to show the U.S. Federal Reserve  it can produce consistent earnings as part of the annual process to gain permission to return more capital to shareholders, CEO Brian Moynihan said in an interview.The second-largest U.S. bank is turning a profit in most of its main businesses, but it inherited costly legal problems when it...

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Newtown backlash prompts Bushmaster rifle maker sale

(Reuters) - The company whose AR-15 type Bushmaster rifle was used in the Newtown school massacre in Connecticut will be immediately put up for sale, its private equity owner Cerberus Capital Management LP said on Tuesday in response to investor concerns.The secretive private equity firm risked the ire of investors, which include some of the largest U.S. public pension funds, after its investment...

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