Singer-songwriter Carole King to receive U.S. Gershwin prize

(Reuters) – American singer-songwriter Carole King will be awarded the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, the U.S. national library said on Thursday.The multiple Grammy Award winner co-wrote her first No. 1 hit at age 17 with then-husband Gerry Goffin and was the first female solo artist to sell more than 10 million copies of a single album, with her 1971 release “Tapestry.”The prize...

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Alexza agitation drug gets EU recommendation, shares jump

(Reuters) – European health regulators recommended approval of Alexza Pharmaceuticals Inc‘s experimental drug Adasuve for controlling agitation in adults with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, sending its shares up 19 percent.Adasuve, Alexza’s most advanced drug in development, will be the first treatment for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder that can be inhaled.“… The beautiful part of (the drug)...

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Google Maps Restores Order to the Universe

Well, that pretty much settles it. Everyone please go back to whatever you were doing.Today, Google (GOOG) released its free Google Maps for iPhone app in Apple’s (AAPL) App Store. Besides reestablishing galactic tranquility, the new app brings iPhone users all the features they were missing by using Apple’s new home-grown Maps app. Apple’s Maps were pretty and slick, but the service was crippled...

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Cuban lawmakers meet to consider economy, budget

HAVANA (AP) — Cuban lawmakers are holding the second of their twice-annual sessions with a year-end report expected on the state of the country’s economy.Legislators are also to approve next year’s budget.Cuban leaders have sometimes used the parliamentary gatherings to make important announcements or policy statements.Observers will be watching for word on the progress of President Raul Castro‘s...

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iPhone 5 hits China as Apple market share slips

SHANGHAI (Reuters) – The China release of its iPhone 5 on Friday should win Apple Inc some respite from a recent slide in its share of what is likely already the world’s biggest smartphone market, but its longer-term hopes may depend on new technology being tested by China‘s top telecoms carrier.Cupertino, California-based Apple has been in talks about a tie-up with China Mobile for four years. A...

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A Minute With: Director Peter Jackson on shooting “The Hobbit”

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – After bringing J.R.R. Tolkien‘s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy to life, filmmaker Peter Jackson is back in the world of Middle Earth with the author’s prequel, “The Hobbit.”The three-film series is due to open in U.S. theaters on Friday with “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.”The Oscar-winning director, 51, told Reuters about the 3D film, including the 48 frames per second...

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Researchers Find More Than 200 Genes Linked to Crohn’s Disease

British scientists have identified more than 200 gene locations associated with Crohn’s disease, an incurable digestive disorder. Their research utilized the entire human genome, the complete set of human genetic information stored in DNA.The total is larger than the number of genes located for any other disease, according to ScienceDaily. For example, there are 66 known locations for type 2 diabetes.The...

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Fed ties rate pledge to a threshold as new stimulus set

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Federal Reserve, announcing a new round of monetary stimulus, took the unprecedented step on Wednesday of indicating interest rates would remain near zero until unemployment falls to at least 6.5 percent.It was the latest in a series of unorthodox measures taken by central banks around the world as major economies face erratic, sub-par recoveries from the global financial...

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The Hobbit: Richard Armitage Talks Preparations For Playing Thorin Oakenshield

British actor Richard Armitage admitted it wasn’t a walk in the park to play a J.R.R. Tolkien character in Peter Jackson’s reimagining of “The Hobbit,” the first installment of which is on its way into theaters.Upon touching down in New Zealand, where the trilogy was shot, the cast had a lot of character preparation to do.PLAY IT NOW: Martin Freeman Discusses The Hobbit’s ‘Good Chemistry’ & Playing...

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‘The Hobbit’: Like One Bad Video Game

Perhaps the most exciting thing about Peter Jackson‘s landmark, blockbuster Lord of the Rings films was that they made fans, through a combination of stunning landscapes and intricate special effects and soaring music and dramatic spectacle, feel as though we were seeing an almost impossible elevation of the potential size and scope of movies. Here was a rich, dense, sprawling series of films that...

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