Surgeon infected patients during heart procedure, Cedars-Sinai admits

A heart surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center unwittingly infected five patients during valve replacement surgeries earlier...

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New Crowdfunding Site Seeks to Protect Backers of Industrial Design

Entrepreneur Jamie Siminoff wants to build more credibility into crowdfunding — so he’s launching a new platform that takes responsibility for ensuring the viability of new projects.The crowdfunding process, pioneered by sites like Kickstarter, has had its share of huge successes, as well as failures. The problem, says Siminoff, is that when a venture fails, the funders are left holding the...

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TNT’s “Leverage” could end this month, producer warns

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – This could end up being a very un-merry Christmas for “Leverage” fans.Dean Devlin, executive producer of the TNT drama, penned an open letter to the show’s viewers on Thursday, telling them that he and fellow “Leverage” executive producer John Rogers crafted the show’s Season 5 finale – airing December 25 – as a series finale, because it just might be.TNT has not yet decided...

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Supreme Court to rule on California's Prop. 8 ban on gay marriage

Justices will rule for the first time on same-sex marriage by deciding the constitutionality of Prop. 8. The Supreme Court announced...

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Say Goodbye to Free Google Apps

I kick myself for not signing up for Google Apps earlier. I wanted a custom e-mail address using my website’s domain name and the easiest option is signing up for a free Google Apps for Business account. The 7-year-old service provides Gmail, Calendar, Docs, and file storage for businesses. Until now, you could sign up for a free account as an individual, or pay a few dollars per month for...

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Nurse who took prank call about royal Kate found dead

LONDON (Reuters) – A nurse who answered a prank call at the London hospital that was treating Prince William‘s pregnant wife Kate for morning sickness has been found dead, the hospital said on Friday, in a suspected suicide.The death comes days after the King Edward VII hospital apologized for being duped by an Australian radio station and relaying details about Kate’s condition which made headlines...

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The New Old Age Blog: A Son Lost, a Mother Found

My friend Yvonne was already at the front door when I woke, so at first I didn’t realize that my mother was missing.It was less than a week after my son Spencer died. Since that day, a constant stream of friends had been coming and going, bringing casseroles and soup, love, support and chatter. Mom hated it.My 94-year-old mother, who has vascular dementia, has been living in my home in upstate New...

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18 arrested in federal crackdown on gang that operated near USC

Federal authorities on Thursday announced a sweeping racketeering indictment against a Mexican Mafia-controlled gang that operated in an L.A. neighborhood just north of USC and was allegedly involved in at least one slaying, drug sales, extortion and robberies.Eighteen members of the Harpys gang, also known as the Harpys-Dead End gang, were arrested Thursday morning on charges in three federal indictments...

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John McAfee Hospitalized in Guatemala

John McAfee has been hospitalized in Guatemala to treat a possible heart attack, according to ABC’s Matt Gutman. McAfee was detained by Guatemala’s National Civil Police on Wednesday for entering the country illegally.John McAfee retained counsel and requested asylum, which was denied today by Guatemalan president Otto Pérez Molina. However, McAfee’s attorney, Telésforo...

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Kristen Wiig may join “Anchorman: The Legend Continues”

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Kristen Wiig is being eyed for a role in “Anchorman: The Legend Continues” for Paramount Pictures, a person familiar with the negotiations has told TheWrap.Wiig would play opposite Steve Carell, as a love interest in the sequel. The script is still being written, and no cast beyond the principals has been set.Adam McKay is directing the feature, which is being produced...

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Extended Use of Breast Cancer Drug Suggested

The widely prescribed drug tamoxifen already plays a major role in reducing the risk of death from breast cancer. But a new study suggests that women should be taking the drug for twice as long as is now customary, a finding that could upend the standard that has been in place for about 15 years. In the study, patients who continued taking tamoxifen for 10 years were less likely to have...

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Software Founder John McAfee Is Denied Asylum

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Software company founder John McAfee was hospitalized Thursday after being denied political asylum in Guatemala and his lawyers said they were making a last-ditch effort to keep him from being flown back to Belize for questioning about the killing of a fellow American expatriate. McAfee told The Associated Press that he suffered chest pains overnight but didn't believe...

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Fox News reportedly benches Karl Rove after election meltdown

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Twin Gravity-Mapping Probes Peer Into the Moon's Secrets

SAN FRANCISCO — Earth’s nearest neighbor – the moon – is rife with mysteries, but twin moon-mapping space probes are helping scientists move closer to answers. Early data from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission, which maps the moon’s gravity field, reveals some surprises.“We see a picture of the moon being far more broken up and shattered than we’ve seen before,”...

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Kathie Lee Gifford’s “Scandalous” musical to close after three weeks

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – So much for Kathie Lee Gifford‘s career as a playwright. The former “Live!” co-host’s Broadway musical “Scandalous: The Life and Times of Aimee Semple McPherson,” is shuttering a little after three weeks after it opened.The musical, which opened November 15, will have its final performance December 9 at the Neil Simon Theatre in New York.Gifford wrote the book and lyrics...

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Extended Use of Breast Cancer Drug Suggested

The widely prescribed drug tamoxifen already plays a major role in reducing the risk of death from breast cancer. But a new study suggests that women should be taking the drug for twice as long as is now customary, a finding that could upend the standard that has been in place for about 15 years. In the study, patients who continued taking tamoxifen for 10 years were less likely to have...

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Obama Tells G.O.P. Not to Tie Debt Ceiling to Fiscal Debate

Doug Mills/The New York TimesPresident Obama spoke to members of the Business Roundtable in Washington on Wednesday. WASHINGTON — President Obama warned Republicans on Wednesday not to use the debt ceiling as leverage on spending and tax decisions, saying he refused to engage again in the sort of brinkmanship that brought the country close to default last year and damaged its credit rating. ...

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Time Warner CEO says consumers benefit from cable TV bundling

Consumers may want to pick and choose what channels they pay for but Time Warner Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Jeff Bewkes...

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'The Useless Web' Catalogs Time-Wasting Greatness

Somewhere in parallel universe the web consists entirely of totally useful, boring applications and websites. Fortunately we don’t live in that universe, which is why we have The Useless Web (potentially NSFW), a collection of the web’s most useless pages.The Useless Web is the work of developer Tim Holman, who has curated a nice list of useless websites....

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Disney, Netflix sign exclusive TV distribution deal

(Reuters) – Walt Disney Co agreed to give Netflix exclusive TV distribution rights to its movies, becoming the first major studio to stream its movies to TV viewers via Netflix instead of distributing them to HBO, Showtime or other premium TV channels.The agreement begins in 2016, after Disney‘s current deal with Liberty Media’s pay-TV channel Starz expires.The deal gives Netflix streaming rights...

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Software Programs Help Doctors Diagnose, but Can’t Replace Them

SAN FRANCISCO — The man on stage had his audience of 600 mesmerized. Over the course of 45 minutes, the tension grew. Finally, the moment of truth arrived, and the room was silent with anticipation. At last he spoke. “Lymphoma with secondary hemophagocytic syndrome,” he said. The crowd erupted in applause. Professionals in every field revere their superstars, and in medicine the best...

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