After Ricky Gervais’ insult-filled Golden Globes monologue last night, the host left the stage—for nearly an hour. Twitter lit up with speculation that he’d been fired—or worse. “Hosts always get trimmed in the second half of awards shows,” wrote one. “Ricky Gervais hasn’t been killed. Or has he?”…
Continue reading …A Swiss ex-banker will give WikiLeaks data today on some 2,000 individuals with offshore bank accounts, he tells Reuters . He plans to make the handover at a London news conference that Julian Assange himself may attend. Rudolf Elmer, who headed the Cayman Islands office of Julius Baer until he…
Continue reading …Aiming for a more civil tone, a pair of senators from opposite parties will buck tradition and sit together at the State of the Union. Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn and New York Democrat Chuck Schumer’s decision follows a push for civility in politics after the Tucson shootings. Schumer said he…
Continue reading …“If music be the food of love, compute on.” Yes, Google, has a new target in its sights—poetry. Google programmers are working on computers that can understand and translate poetry, NPR reports . “It’s what we call AI complete,” said a research scientist at Google. “Which means it’s as difficult…
Continue reading …“He made me a better person. He made me know there are good men,” said 75-year-old Mavanell “Mavy” Stoddard yesterday at the memorial for her late husband, who took a bullet for her in the Arizona shootings. “He spoiled me rotten. And oh gosh, it was fun.” Mavy, who was…
Continue reading …Make room for a big shot of Starbucks. The caffeine-pushing franchise is unveiling a new 31-ounce “Trenta” cup size holding 7 ounces more than its current largest Venti cup. The new size will be only for iced drinks, including iced teas, coffees and lemonade teas. The drinks, selling for 50…
Continue reading …A diplomatic battle is brewing in the most unlikely of places: a Columbian soap opera featuring a little dog Hugo that Venezuela President Hugo Chavez is convinced is him. The Venezuelan government has ordered a private TV company to stop showing the series in the nation because it’s insulting to…
Continue reading …Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is “a fighter” who’s “improving every day,” said her hopeful astronaut husband in his first public comments since his wife was shot. Mark Kelly spoke to hundreds of mourners gathered at a memorial for Gabriel Zimmerman, the Giffords aide who was killed in the shooting. He…
Continue reading …Big Brother is watching in Britain. Scotland Yard is contacting universities for all their intelligence concerning student protests ahead of expected demonstrations against tuition hikes and education cuts. A counter-terrorism officer has already contacted 20 London universities seeking “all pertinent” information, reports the Guardian . The email advises universities to have…
Continue reading …Amid the horrors of Brazil’s flooding and mudslides that have claimed more than 630 lives, a loyal mutt’s lonely vigil at his owner’s grave stands mute testimony to the nation’s hopeless loss and confusion. Leao has been lying next to his owner’s hastily made grave at the Teresopolis cemetery since…
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