Hollies Get Prickly for a Reason

With shiny evergreen leaves and bright red berries, holly trees are a naturally festive decoration seen throughout the Christmas season.They're famously sharp. But not all holly leaves are prickly, even on the same tree. And scientists now think they know how the plants are able to make sharper leaves, seemingly at will. (Watch a video about how Christmas trees are made.)A new study...

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NRA to Speak on Stopping Newtown Repeat

For the past week, leadership at the National Rifle Association has largely stayed away from the media, but this morning the group may weigh in on how to keep a deadly shooting massacre like last week's at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school from happening again.The NRA will hold a news conference in Washington, D.C., just before 11 a.m.Its leadership has held off on interviews...

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In the Loop’s presidential election contest winners

(Marlon Correa) The presidential popular vote counting is just about over — although Cook Political Report guru David Wasserman, who has President Obama at 50.97 percent of the vote now, says there are still some yet to be counted. But if we’re going to get t-shirts out to the winners of the In The Loop election contest (popular vote) in time for Christmas, we’ve got to stop...

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Singapore shares end 0.5% higher

SINGAPORE -- Singapore share prices ended 0.5% higher on Thursday, shrugging off negative cues from Wall Street.The blue-chip Straits Times Index (STI) rose 16.95 points to end at 3,175.52, supported by the announcement of fresh easing measures by the Bank of Japan.While the market opened lower amid fresh concerns over whether a US fiscal cliff deal will emerge before year-end, support...

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CWG case: Order on framing of charges against Kalmadi tomorrow

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court will pronounce tomorrow its order on framing of charges against former Commonwealth Games Organising Committee (OC) Chairman Suresh Kalmadi and 10 others in a games-related graft case. Special CBI Judge Talwant Singh had on November 21 slated for tomorrow the pronouncement of order on charges in the case also involving former CWG OC Secretary General Lalit Bhanot as an accused...

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Detecting Rabid Bats Before They Bite

A picture is worth a thousand words—or in the case of bats, a rabies diagnosis. A new study reveals that rabid bats have cooler faces compared to uninfected colony-mates. And researchers are hopeful that thermal scans of bat faces could improve rabies surveillance in wild colonies, preventing outbreaks that introduce infections into other animals—including humans.Bats are a major reservoir...

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Virginia Tech Survivor Fights Back Against Guns

Colin Goddard knows what it's like to be in a classroom when an armed man bursts through the door and starts randomly shooting people. Goddard was a student at Virginia Tech when a gunman shot him and killed 32 people in the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history."It was the most terrifying nine minutes of my life," Goddard told Terry Moran of "Nightline" Wednesday. "One moment...

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EPA administrator eyes ivory tower

(Kevin Wolf - AP) We’ve known that Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jacksonhas been planning her exit from the Cabinet, and now we hear she’s exploring that well-worn path from government officialdom to academia. Jackson is talking to some university officials, we’re told, and her name is among those being floated as possible candidates for the presidency...

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S. Korea's Park to win presidential vote: TV

  SEOUL: South Korea has elected its first woman president, TV channels said Wednesday, predicting a clear victory for conservative Park Geun-Hye, daughter of the country's former dictator.The KBS, SBS and MBC national broadcasters all declared Park "certain" to secure victory over her liberal rival Moon Jae-In with nearly 40 per cent of the nationwide vote counted.- AFP/ck !--...

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Charges framed against Malkhan Singh Bishnoi in Bhanwari murder case

JODHPUR: A local court, hearing the Bhanwari Devi murder case, today finally framed charges against one of the key accused Malkhan Singh Bishnoi. Bishnoi, who has not been appearing in the ACJM (SC/ST Cases) court on health grounds, was brought from Ajmer Central Jail this morning in an ambulance to the court. "He has been charged with murder (302), Criminal Conspiracy (120- B), abduction with...

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