Rio de Janeiro Grapples With Exploding Manholes

RIO DE JANEIRO — David McLaughlin was thrilled to be in Brazil. He had arrived here from Ohio State University on a Fulbright grant to research Brazilian hip-hop music with his wife, Sarah Lowry, a scholar of Russian literature. The graduate students, newlyweds, set out one morning in June 2010 to search for an apartment in the beachfront neighborhood of Copacabana. Then, while crossing a...

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4 tips for creating a successful Twitter parody account

The guy behind @GowanusDolphin learned his lesson the hard wayA chorus of Twitter elite got really angry on Friday when an opportunistic user decided to register @GowanusDolphin, a horrible account that premised itself on a dolphin trapped in New York‘s murky Gowanus Canal. Not sure how I feel about parody account @gowanusdolphin. Poor guy. Don’t find funny at all.SEE MORE: Connecticut...

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The Surprising Style Item Adam Levine Likes to Wear

Stylewatch Style News Now 01/25/2013 at 02:00 PM ET Courtesy Men’s HealthWhile some stars are repeat Fashion Faceoff offenders (we’re looking at you, Kim Kardashian), Adam Levine is determined to never be one of them. (Though the man really never should say never.)In fact, his desire to have singular...

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CDC: Flu seems to level off except in the West

New government figures show that flu cases seem to be leveling off nationwide. Flu activity is declining in most regions although still rising in the West.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says hospitalizations and deaths spiked again last week, especially among the elderly. The CDC says quick treatment with antiviral medicines is important, in particular for the very...

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For the record

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Tens of Thousands Fill Tahrir Square on Anniversary of Egyptian Revolt

Tara Todras-Whitehill for The New York TimesA man throws rocks at Egyptian security officials in Cairo on Friday. CAIRO — Tens of thousands of Egyptians filled Tahrir Square here on Friday to observe the second anniversary of the revolt that ousted President Hosni Mubarak with a massive protest against the political ascendance of the Muslim Brotherhood. There were parallel demonstrations...

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Al Shabaab says enemies closed its Twitter account

MOGADISHU (Reuters) – Al Shabaab on Friday said its Christian enemies had closed its Twitter account, which the Somali militant group used to parade hostages, mock rivals and claim responsibility for bombings and assassinations.The group’s official Twitter account, which has thousands of followers, was offline on Friday with a message saying “Sorry, that user is suspended”.It was not immediately clear...

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Katy Perry Causes a Total Audience Freak Out at Ellen

TV Watch By Andrea Billups 01/25/2013 at 11:55 AM EST Katy Perry and Ellen DeGeneres Michael Rozman It's hard to tell who's more enthusiastic – a mustachioed Katy Perry (and more on that facial hair in a minute) or two breathless audiences members at The Ellen...

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Penalty could keep smokers out of health overhaul

WASHINGTON (AP) — Millions of smokers could be priced out of health insurance because of tobacco penalties in President Barack Obama's health care law, according to experts who are just now teasing out the potential impact of a little-noted provision in the massive legislation.The Affordable Care Act — "Obamacare" to its detractors — allows health insurers to charge smokers buying individual policies...

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Mother beats up daughter's 12-year-old friend; caught on tape, police say

A San Pedro mother has been charged with going to a fight between her 12-year-old daughter and another schoolmate and beating the girl. The incident was captured on a cellphone video.Amber Lee Gutierrez, 33, is facing a charge of felony assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury after she was arrested by Los Angeles police in connection with the Jan. 14 fight in a West Gaffey...

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India Ink: India Rape Trial Starts With Renewed Ban on Media Coverage

The trial of five men accused in the gang rape of a 23-year-old woman in a moving bus in New Delhi is being watched closely as a symbol of India’s commitment to justice for women, but information about the ongoing court proceedings may be scarce.As court proceedings began Thursday, the presiding judge said  there would be a blanket ban on reporting on the trial. The judge, Yogesh Khanna,  also...

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Samsung’s iPad mini rival, the Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet, revealed in leaked images

While Samsung (005930) has had tremendous success over the past year with its Galaxy brand of smartphones, the company hasn’t been able to generated the same amount of buzz for its Galaxy tablet line just yet. But now SamMobile points us to the first leaked pictures of Samsung’s new Galaxy Note 8.0 that the company hopes will become its flagship tablet in 2013. The pictures, posted on Italian website...

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Bethenny Frankel's Ex Wants Primary Custody of Their Daughter: Report

Buzz By Tim Nudd 01/24/2013 at 11:45 AM EST Bethenny Frankel and husband Jason Hoppy with daughter Bryn Jae Donnelly/INF Bethenny Frankel and Jason Hoppy are not seeing eye to eye as they begin divorce proceedings – most notably because both sides reportedly want...

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Burger King drops supplier linked to horsemeat

LONDON (AP) — British and Irish burger fans could face a Whopper shortage. Burger King says it has stopped buying beef from an Irish meat processor whose patties were found to contain traces of horsemeat.The fast food chain said in a statement Thursday that it had dropped Silvercrest Foods as a supplier for its U.K. and Ireland restaurants as a "voluntary and precautionary measure."Last week Silvercrest,...

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Teacher's alleged molestation of 19 students 'horrific,' officials say

The teachers union in the L.A. Unified School District spoke out on the arrest of a former elementary school instructor accused of sexually abusing 20 children and an adult, calling the alleged acts "horrific."United Teachers Los Angeles issued a statement saying union officials were "not familiar with details of the case" and that the accused ex-teacher -- identified by authorities as Robert...

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The Lede Blog: Clinton Testifies on Benghazi Attacks

The Lede followed Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s testimony Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee about the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks on the American Consulate in the eastern city of Benghazi, Libya, that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.Mrs. Clinton had been scheduled to testify before Congress last month, but an illness, a concussion and a blood...

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Google Earnings Reveal Beginnings of a Facebook Problem on Search Revenue

Google beat Wall Street expectations with its fourth-quarter revenues of $ 14.42 billion, but the value of its ads continue to decline, an especially tricky problem with the company’s new search competition from Facebook. Google’s average cost-per-click decreased 6 percent from one year ago, meaning each ad it runs on its biggest business has less value than it did a year ago, continuing a fairly...

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See Bachelor Alum Helene Eksterowicz's Engagement Ring!

Stylewatch Style News Now 01/23/2013 at 11:00 AM ET Courtesy Helene EksterowiczShe may not have found true love during her time on The Bachelor in 2002, but Helene Eksterowicz certainly has now.The winner of the second season of...

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Beverage attorney: NYC drinks limit bad for public

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City's limit on the size of sugary drinks is an "extraordinary infringement" on consumer choice, a lawyer for the American Beverage Association and other critics said in court on Wednesday."New Yorkers do not want to be told what to drink," attorney James Brandt told Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Milton Tingling.Opponents also are raising questions of racial fairness...

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Male nurse has sex with female corpse; autopsy planned

Authorities are investigating a nurse who allegedly had sex with a corpse at a Sherman Oaks hospital, police said. Alejandro Razo, 61, of Reseda, was arrested Sunday on a state Health and Safety Code violation, police said. Razo, whose last name was initially released by authorities as Lazo, is free on $20,000 bail, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department jail records.The L.A....

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The Lede Blog: Prince Harry Compares War to PlayStation and Taliban Is Not Amused

A Taliban spokesman said on Tuesday that Prince Harry must have “mental problems,” following the broadcast of remarks by the royal in which he said that killing militants from an Apache helicopter was similar to playing video games.As soon as Britain’s ministry of defense announced on Monday that Prince Harry had left Afghanistan, ending his four-month deployment there, the British news media rushed...

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Canada wants RIM organic growth, may have to review handset sale

OTTAWA (Reuters) – The Canadian government wants BlackBerry maker Research in Motion to continue to be a global leader and grow organically, and Ottawa may have to review a future sale of its handset business, Industry Minister Christian Paradis said on Tuesday.“We hope to see RIM remain a global leader and player, and make sure it grows organically,” Paradis told Reuters by phone from Germany, where...

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Kelly Clarkson & Fiancé Brandon Blackstock Attend Inaugural Ball

By Maggie Coughlan 01/22/2013 at 11:35 AM EST Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock Courtesy Kelly Clarkson After helping President Barack Obama begin his second term with a powerful rendition of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee," Kelly Clarkson celebrated in style.The...

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Flu season fuels debate over paid sick time laws

NEW YORK (AP) — Sniffling, groggy and afraid she had caught the flu, Diana Zavala dragged herself in to work anyway for a day she felt she couldn't afford to miss.A school speech therapist who works as an independent contractor, she doesn't have paid sick days. So the mother of two reported to work and hoped for the best — and was aching, shivering and coughing by the end of the day. She stayed home...

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Nurse had sex with corpse, police allege

About L.A. NowL.A. Now is the Los Angeles Times’ breaking news section for Southern California. It is produced by more than 80 reporters and editors in The Times’ Metro section, reporting from the paper’s downtown Los Angeles headquarters as well as bureaus in Costa Mesa, Long Beach, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, Riverside, Ventura and West Los Angeles.Have a story tip for L.A. Now?Can I call...

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Algerian Prime Minister Says at Least 37 Foreigners Dead in Siege

Anis Belghoul/Associated PressAlgerian Army vehicles on Sunday near a remote town in southeastern Algeria where hostages were taken in a four-day ordeal. ALGIERS — In his first official tally of the deadly scope of Algerian hostage crisis, Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal said Monday that the known death toll among the foreign captives had risen steeply from 23 to 37, and that five additional foreigners...

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An Appointment With Kim Dotcom

Paul Spain is the host of the weekly NZ Tech Podcast, one of New Zealand’s leading locally produced podcasts and often appears on TV and video as a commentator on consumer and business technology topics.AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND — It’s been said that Kim Dotcom is a villain. Many, particularly those in the film industry and law enforcement, believe it. To others, he is a hero standing up for the rights...

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James Franco Is 'Hit of the Party' at Sundance

01/21/2013 at 11:15 AM EST James Franco and Mario Lopez and Courtney Mazza Neilson Barnard/Getty; Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage The stars arrived by the dozens to Park City, Utah, for the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and PEOPLE has the details of their busy weekend.James...

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