The 20 Most-Shared Ads of 2012

1. Kony 2012 (Invisible Children)Most Americans had never heard of Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda, before. This March video from advocacy group Invisible Children changed that.Click here to view this gallery.[More from Mashable: The 12 Most Memorable Marketing Campaigns of 2012]Is Kony 2012 an ad? If so, it was the most-viral ad of the year. If not, it was just an extremely...

Read More..

Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie's Wedding Will Be 'All About Family'

Brad Pitt recently told PEOPLE he has a "good feeling" his wedding with Angelina Jolie will happen "soon." "One thing for sure, he says it's going to be all about family: a simple affair with Angie and the kids," PEOPLE senior writer Jennifer Garcia says, adding that the official "I do" date is still being kept a secret. But a "jovial" Pitt, who was "in a great mood throughout the interview"...

Read More..

Psychiatrists OK vast changes to diagnosis manual

CHICAGO (AP) — For the first time in almost two decades the nation's psychiatrists are changing the guidebook they use to diagnose mental disorders. Among the most controversial proposed changes: Dropping certain familiar terms like Asperger's disorder and dyslexia and calling frequent, severe temper tantrums a mental illness.The board of trustees for the American Psychiatric Association voted Saturday...

Read More..

Cliff fight may knock out December rally

NEW YORK (Reuters) - In normal times, next week's slew of U.S. economic data could be a springboard for a December rally in the stock market. December is historically a strong month for markets. The S&P 500 has risen 16 times in the past 20 years during the month. But the market hasn't been operating under normal circumstances since November 7 when a day after the U.S....

Read More..

Opinion: In Brazil, Poverty Is Deadly for Police Officers

Yasuyoshi Chiba/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesBrazilian mounted military police officers patrolled the streets in a shantytown in São Paulo, Brazil, last month. SÃO PAULO, BrazilON the evening of Saturday, Nov. 3, Marta Umbelina da Silva, a military police officer here and a single mother of three, was shot in front of her 11-year-old daughter outside their house in Brasilândia, a poor community...

Read More..

Jelly Bean update for DROID RAZR HD and MAXX HD set to roll out next week

...

Read More..

Powerball Winners Want to Go to the Beach, Set Up Scholarships with $300 Million

11/30/2012 at 04:35 PM EST Cindy and Mark Hill David Eulitt/Kansas City Star/Landov Just in time for the holiday season the Hill family of Dearborn, Mo., got quite the gift: nearly $300 million, after winning half of the $587.5 million Powerball jackpot."We're...

Read More..

Kenya village pairs AIDS orphans with grandparents

NYUMBANI, Kenya (AP) — There are no middle-aged people in Nyumbani. They all died years ago, before this village of hope in Kenya began. Only the young and old live here.Nyumbani was born of the AIDS crisis. The 938 children here all saw their parents die. The 97 grandparents — eight grandfathers among them — saw their middle-aged children die. But put together, the bookend generations take care of...

Read More..

Wall Street ends flat as "fiscal cliff" focus lingers

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 wrapped up its fifth positive month in the last six on Friday, although it ended the day flat as politicians remain at odds about how to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. Trading has been choppy in the last two weeks as investors react to statements from policymakers on the state of discussions on how to avert a series of tax hikes and spending cuts...

Read More..

Demographic Shifts Redefine Society in South Korea

Woohae Cho for the International Herald TribuneAssemblywoman Jasmine Lee of South Korea attended a joint wedding for 20 multicultural couples in Seoul. SEOUL, South Korea — Jasmine Lee realizes just how Korean she’s become when she breaks out in the language, forgetting that her Filipino mother on the other end of the phone can’t understand her. But she is reminded of the limits of assimilation...

Read More..

Sony sells over half a million PlayStation 3 consoles over Black Friday week

Both Microsoft (MSFT) and Nintendo (NTDOY) had a big week of console sales during Black Friday’s week of shopping madness in the U.S. So how did Sony (SNE) do in comparison? Sony Computer Entertainment of America president and CEO Jack Tretton announced on Thursday that the company sold 525,000 PlayStation 3 consoles and 160,000 PS Vita handhelds during the Black Friday week. Overall PlayStation sales...

Read More..

Stephen Fishbach Blogs: Abi-Maria Gomes Has 'Subtlety of a Wounded Walrus' on Survivor

TV Watch Survivor By Stephen Fishbach 11/29/2012 at 04:45 PM EST Abi-Maria Gomes (left) and Lisa Whelchel Monty Brinton/CBS (2) Stephen Fishbach was the runner-up on Survivor: Tocantins and has been blogging about Survivor strategy for PEOPLE.com since 2009. Follow...

Read More..

Clinton releases road map for AIDS-free generation

WASHINGTON (AP) — In an ambitious road map for slashing the global spread of AIDS, the Obama administration says treating people sooner and more rapid expansion of other proven tools could help even the hardest-hit countries begin turning the tide of the epidemic over the next three to five years."An AIDS-free generation is not just a rallying cry — it is a goal that is within our reach," Secretary...

Read More..

Wall Street ends higher after swings on 'fiscal cliff'

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks finished higher on Thursday as investors bought on sporadic dips in a market roiled by conflicting comments from Washington about negotiations on an agreement to avoid the "fiscal cliff." Tech shares, including Research In Motion and Advanced Micro Devices , helped the Nasdaq outperform the broader market. Telecommunications and health-care stocks were the...

Read More..

U.N. Will Vote on Status for Palestinians, Defying U.S.

Chang W. Lee/The New York TimesPresident Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority spoke at the United Nations before the General Assembly voted on Palestine's status as a “nonmember observer state” on Thursday. UNITED NATIONS — An overwhelming majority of countries are expected on Thursday to vote to recognize Palestine as a “nonmember observer state” at the United Nations. Palestinian leaders say...

Read More..

Microsoft CEO defends its innovation record, financial results

BELLEVUE, Washington (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer defended his company’s record on innovation and financial performance at the annual shareholders’ meeting, but conceded that he should have moved faster to get into the booming tablet market dominated by Apple Inc‘s iPad.Bill Gates, co-founder and now chairman of the world’s largest software company, was one of the first...

Read More..

Harley Pasternak Blogs: How to Use Technology to Get You Fit

Celebrity Blog By Harley Pasternak 11/28/2012 at 04:15 PM EST Harley Pasternak Courtesy Harley Pasternak Celebrity trainer and PEOPLE.com blogger Harley Pasternak shares his favorite fitness trackers and video games for having fun while staying in shape.In this...

Read More..

Simple measures cut infections caught in hospitals

CHICAGO (AP) — Preventing surgery-linked infections is a major concern for hospitals and it turns out some simple measures can make a big difference.A project at seven big hospitals reduced infections after colorectal surgeries by nearly one-third. It prevented an estimated 135 infections, saving almost $4 million, the Joint Commission hospital regulating group and the American College of Surgeons...

Read More..

Wall Street jumps in another "fiscal cliff" swing

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rallied on Wednesday after comments from House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, on a possible compromise to avoid the "fiscal cliff" turned the market around. The S&P 500 rebounded from a 1 percent decline, gaining more than 20 points from its low after Boehner, an Ohio Republican, said he was optimistic that a budget deal to avoid...

Read More..

As Opposition Meets in Cairo, More Violence Mars Syria

The Syrian opposition pushed ahead on military and political fronts on Wednesday, as rebels shot down a government warplane in the north of Syria and a newly formed coalition started talks in Cairo on how to pick a transitional government to replace that of President Bashar al-Assad. The coalition, whose official name is the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces,...

Read More..

Welcome to the Twisted Age of the Twitter Death Threat

Never believe anyone who tells you that the Internet is all nice or all terrible. Just like real life, there are good people and bad ones here. The majority of people behave badly occasionally and decently most of the time. Yes, there are some truly horrible people lurking and behaving in ways consistent to their form, but the thing is, we’re complicated creatures, online and off. So I don’t buy into...

Read More..