Video games take off as a spectator sport

Editorial: "Give video games a sporting chance" EVERY sport has its idols and superstars. Now video gaming is getting them too. Professional gaming, or e-sports, exploded in popularity in the US and Europe last year. ...

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US sailor arrested in Japan for break-in

TOKYO: Japanese police arrested a drunken 24-year-old US Navy sailor early Sunday after he allegedly broke into a house, violating a night-time curfew imposed after a rape case last year, reports said.The petty officer 2nd class is stationed in Yokosuka, a port city south of Tokyo, and wrongly believed that his friends were staying in the house, Jiji Press and Kyodo News agency said.The...

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Making job stress worth enduring

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta swears in reenlisting troops in Turkey. A survey found that military jobs tend to be the most stressful. STORY HIGHLIGHTSMarci Alboher: Annual list of most stressful jobs drew attentionShe says the right issue is whether job rewards compensate for stressPeople who take on stressful jobs that help others report satisfaction, she saysEditor's note: Marci Alboher, is a...

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Kaepernick delivers, 49ers beat Packers 45-31

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) runs for a 56-yard touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the third quarter of an NFC divisional playoff NFL football game in San Francisco, Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013. / AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez SAN FRANCISCO Colin Kaepernick ran for a quarterback playoff record 181 yards and two touchdowns and threw two scoring passes to Michael...

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Poisoned Lottery Winner's Kin Were Suspicious

Urooj Khan had just brought home his $425,000 lottery check when he unexpectedly died the following day. Now, certain members of Khan's family are speaking publicly about the mystery -- and his nephew told ABC News they knew something was not right."He was a healthy guy, you know?" said the nephew, Minhaj Khan. "He worked so hard. He was always going about his business and,...

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Today on New Scientist: 11 January 2013

Largest structure challenges Einstein's smooth cosmos One-twentieth the diameter of the observable universe, a group of galaxies dents the cherished idea that the cosmos is uniform at large scalesStraitjacket drug halts herpes virus's escape stunt Herpes infections recur as the virus is adept at evading our defences, but a new drug that suppresses enzymes exploited by the virus seems effectiveZoologger:...

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Czechs elect president in break with eurosceptic past

PRAGUE: Czechs head to the ballot box for a second day of voting Saturday, with a field of Europe-friendly candidates including an artist tattooed head-to-toe, vying to take over after a decade under eurosceptic Vaclav Klaus.While former prime ministers Milos Zeman and Jan Fischer, both ex-communists, are tipped as favourites, media pundits said Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg might...

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U.S. tells computer users to disable Java software

Updated 9:00 p.m. ETWASHINGTON The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is advising people to temporarily disable the Java software on their computers to avoid potential hacking attacks. The recommendation came in an advisory issued late Thursday, following up on concerns raised by computer security experts. Experts believe hackers have found a flaw in Java's coding that creates an opening for...

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CDC: Flu Outbreak Could Be Waning

The flu season appears to be waning in some parts of the country, but that doesn't mean it won't make a comeback in the next few weeks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Five fewer states reported high flu activity levels in the first week of January than the 29 that reported high activity levels in the last week of December, according to the CDC's...

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Muscle mimic pulls electricity from wet surface

Electricity has been squeezed from a damp surface for the first time, thanks to a polymer film that curls up and moves – a bit like an artificial muscle – when exposed to moisture. The film could be used to run small, wearable devices on nothing but sweat, or in remote locations where conventional electricity...

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Beheading exposes exploitation

(File photo) Sri Lankan women protest outside the Saudi Arabia embassy in Colombo on November 9, 2010.STORY HIGHLIGHTSSaudi authorities beheaded Rizana Nafeek, a Sri Lankan womanShe was convicted of killing a baby of the family employing her as a housemaidThis was despite Nafeek's claims that the baby died in a choking accidentBecker says her fate "should spotlight the precarious existence of domestic...

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Sheriff: Calif. teen planned attack on classmates

Updated at 9:40 p.m. ET TAFT, Calif. A 16-year-old student armed with a shotgun walked into a rural California high school on Thursday, shot one student and fired at others and missed before a teacher and another staff member talked him into surrendering, officials said. The teen victim was in critical but stable condition, and the suspect, whose pockets were stuffed with ammunition, was still...

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Judge: Holmes Can Face Trial for Aurora Shooting

Jan 10, 2013 8:45pm (Arapahoe County Sheriff/AP Photo)In a ruling that comes as little surprise, the judge overseeing the Aurora, Colo., theater massacre has ordered that there is enough evidence against James Holmes to proceed to a trial.In an order posted late Thursday, Judge William Sylvester wrote that “the People have carried their burden of proof and have established...

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Hints of new dark force seen in galactic smash-ups

Colliding clusters of galaxies may hold clues to a mysterious dark force at work in the universe. This force would act only on invisible dark matter, the enigmatic stuff that makes up 86 per cent of the mass in the universe. Dark...

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Israeli, US defence chiefs discuss Middle East issues

WASHINGTON: US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta and his Israeli counterpart Ehud Barak met to underscore a "strong US commitment to Israel's security", the Pentagon said.US Defence Department spokesman George Little said in a statement that the two men "discussed a range of issues, and expressed their commitment to ensuring continued cooperation on many important regional issues -- particularly...

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Latino should have played lead in 'Argo'

Ben Affleck plays the lead role of Tony Mendez in "Argo," which he also directed.STORY HIGHLIGHTSOscar nominations on Thursday, and Ben Affleck expected to get one for "Argo"Affleck plays real-life Latino who helped diplomats escape in Iran hostage crisisRuben Navarrette: Affleck should have used a Latino actor to play roleHe says it cheats actor out of a job, and the Latino community out of a hero's...

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Mom who shot intruder inspires gun control foes

LOGANVILLE, Ga.A Georgia mother who shot an intruder at her home has become a small part of the roaring gun control debate, with some firearms enthusiasts touting her as a textbook example of responsible gun ownership. Melinda Herman grabbed a handgun and hid in a crawl space with her two children when a man broke in last week and approached the family at their home northeast of Atlanta, police...

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Flu Kills 4 Seniors, Sickens 700 in Boston

An early and nasty flu season has prompted a public health emergency in Boston, where health officials say 700 people have been diagnosed with the cold-weather virus. Four Bostononians -- all elderly -- have died from flu."This is the worst flu season we've seen since 2009, and people should take the threat of flu seriously," Boston Mayor Thomas Menino said in a statement.This...

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Pruney fingers give us better grip underwater

WHY do our fingers do prune impressions when soaked? It could be an adaptation that gives us better grip underwater. Fingers and toes wrinkle in water after about 5 minutes due to the constriction of blood vessels. This reduction...

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Cool change aids Australia firefighters

SYDNEY: Cooler conditions helped firefighters battling blazes across Australia Wednesday but up to 30 were still out of control, destroying a handful of homes and killing thousands of livestock.After facing one of the highest-risk fire days in its history on Tuesday, residents in hard-hit New South Wales state woke to shifting winds that caused temperatures to drop significantly.While...

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Opinion: Time for tough talk with Karzai

The last time Presidents Obama and Karzai met was in May in Kabul, when they signed a pact regarding U.S. troop withdrawal.STORY HIGHLIGHTSAfghan President Karzai meeting with President Obama in Washington this weekFelbab-Brown: Afghan politics are corrupt; army not ready for 2014 troop pulloutShe says Taliban, insurgents, splintered army, corrupt officials are all jockeying for powerU.S. needs to...

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