Eric Ladin Welcomes a Son

Mom & Babies Celebrity Baby Blog 12/23/2012 at 12:00 AM ET Noah Graham/Noah Graham PhotographyEric Ladin is one killer new dad.The former Killing actor and his wife Katy welcomed their first child, son Maxfield David Ladin, on Friday, Dec. 21 in Los Angeles, his rep confirms to PEOPLE exclusively.“Wow!...

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Predicting who's at risk for violence isn't easy

CHICAGO (AP) — It happened after Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colo., and now Sandy Hook: People figure there surely were signs of impending violence. But experts say predicting who will be the next mass shooter is virtually impossible — partly because as commonplace as these calamities seem, they are relatively rare crimes.Still, a combination of risk factors in troubled kids or adults including...

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Wall Street Week Ahead: A lump of coal for "Fiscal Cliff-mas"

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street traders are going to have to pack their tablets and work computers in their holiday luggage after all. A traditionally quiet week could become hellish for traders as politicians in Washington are likely to fall short of an agreement to deal with $600 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts due to kick in early next year. Many economists forecast that this...

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Russian Bill Worries Adoptees and Families in U.S.

As word spread last week that a house of the Russian Parliament had voted to prohibit adoptions of Russian children by American parents, Russian adoptees in the United States made appeals to President Vladimir V. Putin, asking Russia not to hold needy children hostage to international politics. With the proposed ban apparently rolling through Russia’s legislature, a loose network of hundreds...

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Facebook’s SnapChat-Style Sexting App Is Called Poke (Seriously)

Oh, well would you look at Facebook, trying to make a Christmas funny with its SnapChat copycat app. It’s called Poke! Get it? Because SnapChat is what the kids are all using for their sexting these days, apparently, and Poke — you know, that once kinda flirty Facebook future that’s now pretty much useless — can kind of do the same thing, and it kind of sounds like some bad sexual pun, too! Funny,...

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See If You Can Spot the One Color That Popped on the Carpet This Week

Stylewatch Style News Now 12/21/2012 at 12:00 PM ET Getty; Splash News Online; WireImageEven though we didn’t see as many stars on the red carpet this week as last — it’s quiet in Hollywood this holiday season! — we still saw some...

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AP IMPACT: Big Pharma cashes in on HGH abuse

A federal crackdown on illicit foreign supplies of human growth hormone has failed to stop rampant misuse, and instead has driven record sales of the drug by some of the world's biggest pharmaceutical companies, an Associated Press investigation shows.The crackdown, which began in 2006, reduced the illegal flow of unregulated supplies from China, India and Mexico.But since then, Big Pharma has been...

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France Suspects Islamists in a Kidnapping

PARIS — The men responsible for the kidnapping Wednesday of a French citizen in northern Nigeria are believed to be linked to Al Qaeda’s North African affiliate or other radical Islamist groups in northern Mali, French officials said Friday. The man, an engineer working for a French renewable-energy contractor, was seized by a large group of armed men on Wednesday night in the town of Rimi,...

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Google working on “X Phone”, “X” tablet to take on rivals – WSJ

(Reuters) – Google Inc is working with recently acquired Motorola on a handset codenamed “X-phone”, aimed at grabbing market share from Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.Google acquired Motorola in May for $ 12.5 billion to bolster its patent portfolio as its Android mobile operating system competes with rivals such as Apple...

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Asian shares slide as U.S. budget impasse creates anxiety

TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares slid on Friday after a Republican proposal to deal with a U.S. fiscal crunch failed to get enough support, deepening uncertainty over the U.S. can avert the "fiscal cliff" of automatic spending cuts and tax increases set to start January 1. "Markets disliked signs of further delay in talks, with the risk that a deal may not be reached by the end of the year...

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Reacting to users’ outcry, Facebook’s Instagram reverts to prior policy on advertising

SAN FRANCISCO – Instagram has abandoned wording in its new terms-of-service agreement that sparked outcry from users concerned it meant their photos could appear in advertisements.In a blog post late Thursday, the popular mobile photo-sharing service says it has reverted to language in the advertising section of its terms of service that appeared when it was launched in October 2010.Instagram is now...

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The X Factor: Finalists Sing for Votes One Last Time

TV Watch The X Factor By Aaron Parsley 12/19/2012 at 10:40 PM EST from left: Fifth Harmony, Tate Stevens and Carly Rose Sonenclar Ray Mickshaw/FOX Who's going to get a $5 million recording contract?The X Factor's season 2 finale got underway Wednesday night with...

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Experts: Kids are resilient in coping with trauma

WASHINGTON (AP) — They might not want to talk about the gunshots or the screams. But their toys might start getting into imaginary shootouts.Last week's school shooting in Connecticut raises the question: What will be the psychological fallout for the children who survived?For people of any age, regaining a sense of security after surviving violence can take a long time. They're at risk for lingering...

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Wall Street falls as "cliff" talks sour, but hopes remain

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks sold off late in the day to close at session lows on Wednesday as talks to avert a year-end fiscal crisis turned sour, even as investors still expect a deal. The S&P 500 slipped after a two-day rally that took the benchmark index to its highest close in two months. Defensive-oriented shares led the decliners, including health care and consumer staples....

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BBC Inquiry Blames Rigid Management for Mishandling Sex Abuse Scandal

The 200-page report by Nick Pollard, a veteran British broadcast executive, strongly criticized the editorial and management decisions that prompted the BBC to cancel a broadcast last year that would have exposed decades of sexual abuse by Jimmy Savile, a BBC fixture who had been one of Britain’s best-known television personalities. While the scandal led to the resignation and reassignment...

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New Online Privacy Loophole Lets Facebook Advertise to Kids

Mark Zuckerberg‘s been eager to find a way to get more kids on Facebook for years, and on Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission handed it to him on a platter. That might be overstating it a little bit. It’s more like the FTC served it to him on a platter covered in plastic wrap with a note attached that says “Do not open.” Nevertheless, should Facebook decided to see what’s inside, experts in online...

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The Voice Crowns a Winner!

TV Watch By Julia Haskins 12/18/2012 at 11:20 PM EST From left: Terry McDermott, Cassadee Pope, Nicholas David and host Carson Daly Tyler Golden/NBC The Voice has a new winner! After several powerful performances the night before, the top three singers – Nicholas...

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Experts: Kids are resilient in coping with trauma

WASHINGTON (AP) — They might not want to talk about the gunshots or the screams. But their toys might start getting into imaginary shootouts.Last week's school shooting in Connecticut raises the question: What will be the psychological fallout for the children who survived?For people of any age, regaining a sense of security after surviving violence can take a long time. They're at risk for lingering...

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Asian shares, euro rise on hopes of U.S. "cliff" deal, BOJ easing

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asian shares and the euro rose to multi-month highs on Wednesday as expectations of more aggressive monetary stimulus from the Bank of Japan and signs of progress in resolving the U.S. "fiscal cliff" budget crisis lifted demand for riskier assets. European shares were also expected to post gains. However, index futures pointed to a flat opening on Wall Street after...

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Aleppo Residents, Battered by War, Struggle to Survive

The Fight for Aleppo: In Syria’s largest city, a sustained and pitched battle between rebels and the Syrian army has left the city in ruins.ALEPPO, Syria — Inside the classrooms where they once studied, the boys darted like a pack. Their banging and clanking could be heard for a city block. The playground outside had been hit by a Syrian Air Force airstrike, which fractured the school’s walls....

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Leak reveals Polaroid’s Android-powered camera with interchangeable lenses

Samsung’s (005930) Galaxy Camera and Nikon’s (NINOY) Coolpix S800c are just the beginning of a swath of Android-powered cameras. Newly leaked images and specs point to Polaroid reviving its camera business with what could be the world’s first Android camera with interchangeable lenses. With no official name yet, the tentatively named IM1836 camera will reportedly feature...

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The Voice's Top Three Give Final Performances in the Competition

TV Watch The Voice By Julia Haskins 12/17/2012 at 10:25 PM EST From left: Judges Adam Levine, Cee Lo Green, Christina Aguilera and Blake Shelton Trae Patton/NBC Monday night's episode of The Voice gave the final three contestants three chances to earn fans' votes....

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Experts: No link between Asperger's, violence

NEW YORK (AP) — While an official has said that the 20-year-old gunman in the Connecticut school shooting had Asperger's syndrome, experts say there is no connection between the disorder and violence.Asperger's is a mild form of autism often characterized by social awkwardness."There really is no clear association between Asperger's and violent behavior," said psychologist Elizabeth Laugeson, an assistant...

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