Global Update: A Solar Device to Help Sterilize Instruments

Solar power can steam-sterilize surgical instruments, according to a new study — but the contraption needed to do so is not pocket-size. Sterilizing instruments needed in surgical emergencies like Caesarean births or appendectomies can be a problem in rural clinics in Africa: There may be no electricity, jugs of bleach or tanks of propane. So a Rice University team recently modified...

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Square Feet: A Wounded Wall Street Is Expected to Stay Put

Emmanuel Dunand/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesA businessman made his way Monday into One New York Plaza in Manhattan's financial district, where the cleanup from Hurricane Sandy was still underway. More than two weeks after Hurricane Sandy came ashore in Manhattan, sending an 11-foot surge of seawater over much of the southern tip of the island, the financial district is still in tatters. ...

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U.S. to become world's largest oil producer before 2020, IEA says

This post has been corrected. See below for details.The U.S. will become the world’s top producer of oil within five years,...

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BlackBerry 10 Launch Date Set

At long last RIM is finally ready to battle iOS and Android. Well, not quite yet, but in about two and a half months, it will be. RIM announced a BlackBerry 10 launch event on Jan. 30, 2013 on Monday. The Canadian company hopes the next-generation mobile operating system and its accompanying smartphones will be give it a competitive edge against iOS and Android. BlackBerry...

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Elmo puppeteer accused of underage relationship

NEW YORK (AP) — The puppeteer who performs as Elmo on “Sesame Street” is taking a leave of absence from the popular kids’ show in the wake of allegations that he had a relationship with a 16-year-old boy.Sesame Workshop said puppeteer Kevin Clash denies the charges, which were first made in June by the alleged partner, who by then was 23. “We...

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Well: A Vegetarian Thanksgiving Table

Every year, Well goes vegetarian for Thanksgiving to celebrate the fall harvest and the delicious vegetable dishes that take up most of the space on holiday tables.This year, we have another terrific lineup of vegan and vegetarian recipes from some of your favorite food writers and chefs. Cooking up a meat-free celebration will inspire you to be more creative in the kitchen all year round, preparing...

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I.H.T. Special Report: Oil & Money: China Leads the Way as Demand for Coal Surges Worldwide

Gilles Sabrie for The New York TimesCoal piles behind a yurt in Gobi, Mongolia. Coal remains a critical component of the world’s energy supply, despite its bad image. RICHMOND, Va. — Last summer, nearly half of India’s sweltering population suddenly found the electricity shut off. Air-conditioners whirred to a stop. Refrigerators ceased cooling. The culprits were outmoded power generation stations...

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Times investigation: Legal drugs, deadly outcomes

Terry Smith collapsed face-down in a pool of his own vomit.Lynn Blunt snored loudly as her lungs slowly filled with fluid.Summer...

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How I Was Drawn Into the Cult of David Petraeus

When it came out that CIA Director David Petraeus had an affair with his hagiographer, I got punked. “It seems so obvious in retrospect. How could you @attackerman?” tweeted @bitteranagram, complete with a link to a florid piece I wrote for this blog when Petraeus retired from the Army last year. (“The gold standard for wartime command” is one of the harsher judgments in the piece.) I was...

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Bond bounds back to top of box office in “Skyfall”

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The new James Bond movie “Skyfall” dominated movie box offices with $ 87.8 million in ticket sales in its U.S. and Canadian debut over the weekend for the biggest Bond opening ever, according to studio estimates released on Sunday.“Skyfall,” starring Daniel Craig as the famous super-spy, finished ahead of last weekend’s winner,...

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