Many of the nation’s Santas want to be given priority for the vaccine and not just because of those runny-nosed kids. There’s also the not-so-little matter of that round belly. Research has suggested obesity could be a risk factor.

Swine flu has become such a concern that the Amalgamated Order of Real Bearded Santas featured a seminar on the illness at a recent conference in Philadelphia. The group also urged its members to use hand sanitizer and take vitamins to boost their immune systems.

The president of the organization said he also hopes parents will keep sick kids away.

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At WiserTogether, we are dedicated to helping you make the best decision you can for your unique situation. We do this by connecting you to extensive data and research about what people like you did when faced with similar health situations: the choices they made, the outcome of those choices, and how they felt about it afterward.

By getting information from WiserTogether, you’re also helping thousands of people similar to you. Your choices and experiences become part of the WiserTogether tool, helping others make more informed choices for themselves.

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In the comfort and security of their car, a family thought there was nothing to worry about as they drove through a South African safari park – until a lion calmly opened their back door with his teeth.

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This event reminds me of a scene in Jurassic Park.

I remember seeing a KFC in the background of the pyramids behind Obama when he went over for a visit.

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In the last year, the industry has raised the wholesale prices of brand-name prescription drugs by about 9 percent, according to industry analysts. That will add more than $10 billion to the nation’s drug bill, which is on track to exceed $300 billion this year. By at least one analysis, it is the highest annual rate of inflation for drug prices since 1992.

The drug trend is distinctly at odds with the direction of the Consumer Price Index, which has fallen by 1.3 percent in the last year.

Full NY Times Article

You have 12 minutes to guess after you click the button below.

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After seeing the answers, I knew I could have done better:

You got 58 out of 100 most commonly used words in the English language.

TOKYO -
It’s the latest in eyewear for the linguistically challenged: Japanese computer-maker NEC has created a pair of glasses that double as a translator.

The Tele Scouter integrates spectacle frames with a personal mini-computer and a head-mounted display unit, allowing two or more people with no language in common to hold a conversation.

Conversations are, with the press of a button, recorded and sent to a remote server where they are analyzed and translated.

The server then sends the translation to the receiving user who can read the words in their own language on the display unit.

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But Whyte & Mackay, the whisky giant that owns McKinlay and Co, has asked a team of New Zealand explorers heading out on a January expedition to return a sample of the drink for a series of experiments.

The team intends to utilise special drills to free the trapped crates and rescue a bottle from the wreckage, which is believed to have been discarded 97 miles from the pole.

If they cannot retrieve a full bottle, they are hoping to use a syringe to extract some of the contents.

The sample will then be brought home to Richard Paterson, Whyte & Mackay’s master blender, who intends to replicate the famous old whisky.

If the experiment is successful, original McKinlay whisky could be put back on sale.

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The IT project manager from Barnsley, south Yorkshire, almost died when an off-duty police officer pulled out in front of him in her car.

Mr Galvin suffered massive internal injuries and had to be fitted with a colostomy bag until surgeons at the Royal London Hospital could perform the complex operation to rebuild his bottom.

The medical team took a muscle from above his knee, wrapped it around his sphincter, and then attached electrodes to the nerves.

These are now operated by a palm-sized remote control that he carries in his pocket.

“It’s like a chubby little mobile phone,” he said. “You switch it on and off, just like switching on the TV.

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It would be a darn shame if some hacker was able to find the frequency of that remote.

Death of ‘Wipeout’ contestant under investigation

(CNN) — The death of Tom Sparks, a 33-year-old former TV host from California who was participating as a third-season contestant on ABC’s reality show “Wipeout,” likely was caused by a pre-existing condition, but the Los Angeles County coroner’s office is still examining all possibilities.

A source close to the production company that produces “Wipeout” for ABC said that Sparks began to complain of knee pain while running through the first part of an obstacle course challenge during taping on October 19.

Although Sparks was in good spirits, the spokesperson said, producers pulled him from the course. Medics realized he was also experiencing shortness of breath and sent Sparks to a hospital close to “Wipeout’s” set.

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“They have been inseparable for that entire time,” Donna Presutto said of her parents.

Laura Presutto died Sunday. Husband Joseph died Tuesday. Both were 86.

“It was definitely a love story,” said Brenda Orlando, their nurse at Mercy Franciscan at West Park, the nursing home where the couple died.

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The Queen, noting the mood of her many out-of-work subjects as Britain muddles through global economic malaise, has informed members of her family that this year is to be a “Credit Crunch Christmas”.

The Royals are not generally prone to extravagant Christmas gift-giving amongst themselves – often opting for “practical” items like bath soaps or a fancy face cloth for the Queen. Stocking contents have been known to include the traditional gift of fresh fruit.

For “Credit Crunch Christmas,” however, Her Majesty has made it known that she requires no gifts at all, and either does her husband, Prince Philip. Any gifts that her family may have had in mind, she asks they be donated to local charities and hospitals .

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But the casino says Seebeck’s good fortune was a mistake — a machine malfunction — and is refusing to pay.

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I would like to know how this will play out in court, off hand, I think the casino owes the man money.

For Lou, the reality television show turned out to be a lesson in brutal reality. The talent contest is called Go! Oriental Angel, and the 20-year-old made it through preliminary rounds to become one of 30 contestants.

In her two months on air, Lou was nicknamed the “Chocolate Angel” and the “Black Pearl” by the media. She wasn’t bothered by these names, she says.

But online, the poison pens were venomous. Chinese posting messages on the Web criticized her skin color as “gross” and “ugly”; they called her shameless for appearing on television. The worst insults were reserved for her mother for having had a relationship with an African-American out of wedlock. Lou and her mother are now suing one Shanghai newspaper for libel.

There were online statements of support as well, but the verbal attacks stunned Lou.

Full NPR Article

They were not meant to honor the dead, but to soothe the alleged shooter.

In an e-mail order to Marvel’s Florist in Texas, the 61-year-old asked a note to be addressed to Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the suspect who remains in intensive care at an Army hospital in Texas.

The florist didn’t complete the order, but alerted the FBI. Ross said the agency visited his home.

Why would someone do such a thing?

As a Christian, Ross said he is called to love his enemies and do good to them.

And as the reincarnated Apostle Peter, Ross said, the Holy Spirit told him to send the flowers.

“He a hero to the Muslim community,” Ross said of Hasan Tuesday night.

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Kent’s de facto mayor, First Selectman Ruth Epstein, readily agreed — until she saw the proposed wording: “James Gadiel, lifelong resident of Kent, murdered in the World Trade Center by Muslim terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001.”

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Last month, we let you know about the Wi-Fi Body Scale, the first bathroom scale equipped with a wireless connection to send your weight and body fat information directly to your Web page and iPhone.

But weight, there’s more.

Today the French company behind the scale, Withings, announced it has added Twitter capability to the scale, enabling the user to automatically tweet the weight/fat info to followers.

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