L.A. mayoral candidates sound off on pot dispensaries

As Los Angeles voters face the possibility of as many as three medical marijuana initiatives on the May ballot, several mayoral...

Read More..

Google reportedly ‘actively exploring’ the smartwatch market

In October, Google (GOOG) was granted a patent for a smartwatch with a flip-up display, however it was assumed that the concept, like most patents, would never move beyond the drawing board. A new report from Business Insider claims that the company is now “actively exploring” the idea of producing its own smartwatch and is even looking into ways it could market such a device. Information is slim...

Read More..

'Fruitvale,' 'Blood Brother' win Sundance Awards

PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — The dramatic film "Fruitvale" and the documentary "Blood Brother" won over audiences and Sundance Film Festival judges.Both American films won audience awards and grand jury prizes Saturday at the Sundance Awards."Fruitvale" tells the true story of Oscar Grant, who was 22 years old when he was shot and killed in a public transit station in Oakland, Calif. Twenty-six-year-old...

Read More..

Well: Ask Well: Squats for Aging Knees

You are already doing many things right, in terms of taking care of your aging knees. In particular, it sounds as if you are keeping your weight under control. Carrying extra pounds undoubtedly strains knees and contributes to pain and eventually arthritis.You mention weight training, too, which is also valuable. Sturdy leg muscles, particularly those at the front and back of the thighs, stabilize...

Read More..

Hackers take over sentencing commission website

The hacker-activist group Anonymous says it hijacked the website of the U.S. Sentencing Commission to avenge the death of Aaron...

Read More..

Bell's city clerk is first to testify in corruption case

More than two years after the Bell corruption case erupted, the prosecution called its first witness Friday in an effort to...

Read More..

Dr. Phil to interview alleged girlfriend hoaxer

NEW YORK (AP) — Dr. Phil McGraw has booked the first on-camera interview with the man who allegedly concocted the girlfriend hoax that ensnared Notre Dame football star Manti Te'o.A "Dr. Phil Show" spokesperson confirmed on Friday the interview with Ronaiah Tuiasosopo (roh-NY-ah too-ee-AH'-so-SO'-poh), the man accused of creating an online persona of a nonexistent woman who Te'o said he fell for without...

Read More..

99 Cents Only Stores' family management team departs

99 Cents Only Stores Inc. said its family management team has left the deep discounter, one year after the family-run business...

Read More..

Annual Tet parade will take place in Little Saigon after all

The nation's only Tet parade, staged in the heart of Little Saigon, will go on after all.After being told that the city of Westminster...

Read More..

Samsung puts lid on capex for first time since financial crisis

SEOUL (Reuters) – Samsung Electronics Co turned cautious on spending for the first time since the global financial crisis, keeping its annual investment plan unchanged at 2012 levels, as demand for computer chips wanes and the smartphone market slows.Samsung, one of the industry’s most aggressive spenders, has ramped up capital expenditure every year since 2004 except 2009 to meet soaring demand for...

Read More..

Voice of Te'o prankster? Couric plays voicemails

NEW YORK (AP) — The person Manti Te'o says was pretending to be his online girlfriend told the Notre Dame linebacker "I love you" in voicemails that were played during his interview with Katie Couric.Taped earlier this week and broadcast Thursday, the hour-long talk show featured three voicemails that Te'o claims were left for him last year. Te'o said they were from the person he believed to be Lennay...

Read More..

Lawmaker questions Disney's plan for wristband data

A congressman from Massachusetts raised questions Thursday about how Walt Disney Co. will use information it collects when it...

Read More..

Quitting smoking prolongs life at any age

It's never too late to quit smoking, and researchers have new data to prove it. Even at the age of 64, kicking the habit can...

Read More..

Apple’s iPhone disappointment fans doubt on growth

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc missed Wall Street’s revenue forecast for the third straight quarter after iPhone sales came in below expectations, fanning fears that its dominance of the mobile industry was slipping.Shares of the world’s largest tech company fell 10 percent to $ 463 in after-hours trade, wiping out some $ 50 billion of its market value – nearly equivalent to that of Hewlett-Packard...

Read More..

Artist Christo takes small steps on Colo. project

DENVER (AP) — Construction of the proposed "Over the River" project in Colorado is on hold pending legal challenges, but artist Christo said Wednesday his team is doing other work so he can one day suspend nearly six miles worth of silvery fabric in sections over the Arkansas River.Railroad tracks are being cleared along the project route that traces U.S. 50 between Canon City and Salida, and work...

Read More..

Well: Long Term Effects on Life Expectancy From Smoking

It is often said that smoking takes years off your life, and now a new study shows just how many: Longtime smokers can expect to lose about 10 years of life expectancy.But amid those grim findings was some good news for former smokers. Those who quit before they turn 35 can gain most if not all of that decade back, and even those who wait until middle age to kick the habit can add about five years...

Read More..

Apple shares tumble after relatively unimpressive earnings report

Apple Inc. may still make products customers love, but its latest earnings report appears to have broken investors' hearts.For...

Read More..

Mahony's efforts to hide abuse are deplorable but unsurprising

Every time we learn something new about the molestation scandal in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, it becomes more obvious why Cardinal Roger M. Mahony and his minions have fought so tenaciously to keep things under wraps.Not to protect the privacy of victims or the rights of suspected abusers, as the church hierarchy has contended. But to hide the...

Read More..

FTC study taking aim at online marketing of booze

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) plans this summer to recommend ways that the alcoholic beverage industry can better protect underage viewers from seeing its advertisements online.Distillers, brewers and wineries pour millions of dollars into brand promotion on Twitter, Facebook and other social media, and industry critics contend they are not doing enough to prevent young...

Read More..

Walhberg: Boy band union is strong for summer tour

NEW YORK (AP) — For Donnie Wahlberg it's not a matter of why now, rather "why not?"The recording artist-turned-actor was referring to the news of a major tour with his New Kids on the Block, who'll be joined this summer on "The Package Tour" by 98 Degrees and Boyz II Men."The state of the boy band union is strong," Wahlberg joked Tuesday. "Even though technically we're not really boy bands, but we're...

Read More..

Well: Have a Health Question? Ask Well

The Well section of The New York Times is starting a new online featured called Ask Well. If you have a question about fitness, nutrition, illness or family health, the staff of The New York Times Health section is ready to help you find the answer.How do you solve the problem of back pain caused by sitting in an office chair all day? Do you still need the flu shot even if you’ve had the flu? What’s...

Read More..

Japan's central bank pledges new stimulus to combat deflation

WASHINGTON — In unveiling a new stimulus plan, Japan's central bank for the first time set an ambitious inflation target aimed...

Read More..

Obama's inaugural speech gives hope to gay marriage supporters

WASHINGTON — By equating the gay rights struggle with those of African Americans and women, President Obama in his inaugural...

Read More..