False memories prime immune system for future attacks

IN A police line-up, a falsely remembered face is a big problem. But for the body's police force – the immune system – false memories could be a crucial weapon. When a new bacterium or virus invades the body, the immune system mounts...

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Tennis: Del Potro reaches second Rotterdam tennis final

ROTTERDAM: Juan Martin del Potro dispatched Bulgarian youngster Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to move into his second straight Rotterdam Open final.The Argentine winner, seeded second and now the top-ranked player left after Friday's shock elimination of Roger Federer by Julien Benneteau, will play either the Swiss star's conqueror or fifth seed Gilles Simon.Del Potro, who lost...

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Do separate components sound better than AV receivers?

The Outlaw Audio Model 975 (top) and Model 7125 (bottom)(Credit:Outlaw Audio)There's no doubt that the best of today's receivers sound great and come jam-packed with a vast range of features. Even entry-level models paired with a decent 5.1 speaker/subwoofer system can do a fine job, but some buyers aim higher. They may have invested in a 65-inch or larger display, or maybe a video projector and a...

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Vatican Raises Possibility of Early March Conclave

The Vatican raised the possibility Saturday that the conclave to elect the next pope might start sooner than March 15, the earliest date possible under current rules that require a 15-20 day waiting period after the papacy becomes vacant.Vatican spokesman The Rev. Federico Lombardi said that the Vatican rules on papal succession are open to interpretation and that "this is a question...

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A computer cosmos will never explain quantum physics

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US Q4 industrial output stronger than thought: Fed

WASHINGTON: US industrial production fell in January but the final quarter of last year was much stronger than originally thought, the Federal Reserve reported on Friday.January's production contracted 0.1 per cent, and manufacturing output fell 0.4 per cent.But industrial production as a whole expanded at a 2.6 per cent annual pace in the October-December 2012 quarter, compared to the...

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Why We Walk … and Run … And Walk Again to Get Where We're Going

You have to get to a bus stop to catch the once-an-hour express ... or to a restaurant to meet a friend ... or to a doctor's office. You've got maybe a half a mile to cover and you're worried you'll be late. You run, then you stop and walk, then run some more.But wait. Wouldn't it be better to run the whole way?Not necessarily.A new study by an assistant professor of mechanical engineering...

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Falling Meteor Causes Blast, Injures Hundreds

A massive meteor shower slammed into Earth near the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, located about 1,000 miles east of Moscow in the Ural Mountains.Dashboard cameras captured a blinding flash of light streaking across the sky. Moments later, the fragments smashed into the ground. The impact, and the sonic boom of the meteor entering the atmosphere, shattered windows around the city...

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Do get mad: The upside of anger

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Mumbai attack movie hits cinemas on Mar 1

MUMBAI: Memories of the Mumbai terror attacks of November 2008 still evoke fear among residents of the city.And those old wounds are expected to reopen now that a Bollywood movie about the incident is set to hit the big screens.India's financial capital came to a virtual standstill on 26 November 2008.The attacks which lasted for four days drew widespread global condemnation.The Pakistan-based...

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What is the 'Soap Opera Effect'?

Do movies look weird on your new TV? Does everything have a hyper-real, ultra-smooth motion to it? Are you sure something is happening with the TV's image you don't like, but you can't figure out what? Chances are, what you're seeing is called the "Soap Opera Effect," as descriptive a moniker as we get in tech, in that this feature makes everything on your TV look like a cheap soap opera. Here's what...

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Are Honeybees Losing Their Way?

A single honeybee visits hundreds, sometimes thousands, of flowers a day in search of nectar and pollen. Then it must find its way back to the hive, navigating distances up to five miles (eight kilometers), and perform a "waggle dance" to tell the other bees where the flowers are.A new study shows that long-term exposure to a combination of certain pesticides might impair the bee's ability...

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'Blade Runner' Charged With Murdering Girlfriend

Oscar Pistorius, the Olympic and Paralympic athlete known as the "blade runner," was taken into custody in South Africa today and charged with the murder of his girlfriend, who was fatally shot at his home.Police in the South African capital of Pretoria received a call around 3 a.m. today that there had been a shooting at the home of 26-year-old Pistorius, Lt. Col. Katlego Mogale...

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How to use art to help explore other minds

Kat Austen, CultureLab editorLucky Devil, 2012 (Image: Rosemarie Trockel, DACS 2013, Courtesy Sprüth Magers Berlin London)What makes a human mind? Forget all those wet biology descriptors and imagine it’s possible to walk through the forest of someone else’s neurons to see what they see, to explore their consciousness.Viewing any artwork opens a window into other minds - just a little. But the Cosmos...

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Olympics: Wrestlers vow to fight Olympic removal

PARIS: Wrestlers around the world on Wednesday vowed to fight to save the ancient sport's Olympic status, after the International Olympic Committee voted to drop it for the 2020 Games.Japan and Turkey -- whose cities Tokyo and Istanbul are bidding to host the Games in seven years' time -- led the calls for the world body to reconsider, as an online petition was organised urging a rethink...

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LG debuts Optimus G Pro ahead of Mobile World Congress

The 5.5-inch LG Optimus G Pro will take the fight directly to the Samsung Galaxy Note 2.(Credit:LG)LG, seemingly unable to keep a secret, today teased (translate) a 5.5-inch version of the Optimus G Pro. Presumably arriving at Mobile World Congress 2013, the handset aims to take on the Samsung Galaxy Note 2.A teaser image posted on an LG Facebook page provides an early glimpse of the larger, yet familiar...

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Obama Pledges U.S. Action on Climate, With or Without Congress

If there were anything in President Barack Obama's State of the Union to give hope to wistful environmentalists, it was the unprecedented promise to confront climate change with or without Congress, and to pursue new energy technology in the process.Following his strong statements in his inaugural address about the ripeness of the moment to address a changing climate, Obama outlined a...

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Charred Human Remains Found in Burned Cabin

Investigators have located charred human remains in the burned-out cabin where they believe suspected cop killer and ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner was holed up as the structure burned to the ground, police said.The human remains were found within the debris of the burned cabin and identification will be attempted through forensic means, the San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner...

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Gene therapy cures diabetic dogs

Five diabetic beagles no longer needed insulin injections after being given two extra genes, with two of them still alive more than four years later. Several attempts have been made to treat diabetes with gene therapy but this study is "the...

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Tension running high in Kashmir Valley

KASHMIR VALLEY: Tension is running high in Kashmir Valley, after India's secret execution of a Kashmiri man for his involvement in an attack on parliament in 2001.A continuous curfew has been in place for four days now, as the government attempts to prevent further outbreaks of violence.The curfew has brought life to a standstill in the valley.Three people have died and at least 50 others...

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Cell phone subsidies claimed by many who can't prove eligibility

A hefty chunk of taxpayer dollars spent by the government on mobile phone service for low-income Americans may have been wasted.A federal program called Lifeline provides hefty discounts on mobile phone service to qualifying low-income households. The goal is to ensure that they can connect with families, employers, and emergency services.How many of those households should actually have been receiving...

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What Killed Dinosaurs: New Ideas About the Wipeout

New insights about the asteroid thought to have killed off the dinosaurs suggest it may have just been the final blow, and that the reptiles were already suffering from a finicky climate prompted by volcanic eruptions long before the meteorite struck."The [asteroid] impact was the coup de grace," Paul Renne, a geologist at the University of California, Berkeley, said in a statement.The...

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Fort Hood Hero Says Obama 'Betrayed' Victims

Three years after the White House arranged a hero's welcome at the State of the Union address for the Fort Hood police sergeant and her partner who stopped the deadly shooting there, Kimberly Munley says President Obama broke the promise he made to her that the victims would be well taken care of."Betrayed is a good word," former Sgt. Munley told ABC News in a tearful interview...

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Picasso created masterworks with house paint

Nanoscale studies of chips of paint have bolstered the notion that Pablo Picasso created some of his surreal masterworks with ordinary house paint. Chemical analysis of the chips may lead to better art conservation techniques. Historians...

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US tornadoes strike southern states, 60 injured

MIAMI: Several powerful tornadoes ripped through the southern US states of Mississippi and Alabama injuring at least 60 people and destroying hundreds of homes at the weekend, emergency officials said Monday.The city of Hattiesburg in Mississippi's Forrest County bore the brunt of the storms, with heavy rain continuing to lash the region and create a risk of flooding."Two people were critically...

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'The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia' now a NYT Best Seller

The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia(Credit:Amazon)It turns out that Hyrule isn't the only place Link can dominate.The New York Times yesterday published its list of best-selling books for the week. Sitting atop the "Hardcover Advice & Misc." list is none other than "The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia," the book published last month by Dark Horse Books and Nintendo.The title, which is described...

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Year of the Snake: The Serpent Behind the Horoscope

On February 10, people all around the world will ring in the Lunar New Year with paper lanterns and firecrackers. At the heart of it all sits the snake, a slithery reptile feared for its sharp fangs and revered for its undeniable charm. (Watch videos of some of the world's deadliest snakes.)Those born in the Year of the Snake are said to be intelligent and quick thinking, but they can...

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