Tool Kit: Online Shopping Tips for the Holidays

Some people may be looking forward to leaving Thanksgiving dinner before the pie is served to join the Black Friday rush, which will begin during dinnertime Thursday, earlier than ever, at stores like Sears, Walmart and Lord & Taylor. But for those who prefer to stay for the pie course, avoid the lines and freezing temperatures and shop from the comfort of their homes, there are just...

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Supreme Court to hear California raisin growers' case

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to hear an appeal from Fresno raisin growers Marvin and Laura Horne, who contend...

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3-D Printing Branches Out With New Wood-Based Filament

Printed plastics? So 2011. And high-end printers have been working with metals and ceramics for some time. But now the 3-D printing community is toying with a material more natural in origin: printed wood.The new concept has a mysterious start. A Thingiverse member going by the nom de printer ”Kaipa” recently uploaded pictures of 3D-printed parts that weren’t made of extruded plastic,...

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J.R.R. Tolkien estate sues Warner Bros. over gambling, games

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The estate of “The Lord of the Rings” author J.R.R. Tolkien and publisher HarperCollins have filed an $ 80 million lawsuit against Warner Bros. studios over the licensing of characters and plots in online and gambling games derived from the films.The lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Monday, alleges...

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The New Old Age Blog: Patience, Consciousness and White Lies

My wife and I are blessed with having three “semi-independent” parents in their mid-80s living within a few blocks of us. Our children grew up knowing their grandparents as integral parts of our nuclear family, within walking distance for most of their childhoods. But now that our nest is empty, we find ourselves reliving many of the parenting issues we faced when our children were little — now in...

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Blue Laws Curb Consumerism Where Pilgrims Gave Thanks

Charlie Mahoney for The New York TimesThe annual Thanksgiving celebration in Plymouth, Mass., is held the weekend before the holiday, so as not to interfere. PLYMOUTH, Mass. — Here in the birthplace of Thanksgiving, where the Pilgrims first gave thanks in 1621 for their harvest and their survival, some residents are giving thanks this year for something else: the Colonial-era blue laws that prevent...

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Family of man shot by sheriff's deputies calls for FBI probe

The family of an Inglewood man gunned down by L.A. County sheriff's deputies this month is requesting an FBI probe of the shooting...

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Mount Doom, Einstein Crater, and Arrakis Plains: Geekiest Place Names in the Solar System

Ancient civilizations gave us the names of planets in our solar system. But as modern scientists have zoomed in on these bodies and their moons, they have needed to find names for ever more features on their surfaces.Following the tradition of naming planets after Greek and Roman deities, most place names in the solar system are derived from mythology. Thus, mountains, craters, valleys, and other...

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Lindsay Lohan, Liz Taylor and pages of “what ifs” for TV’s “Liz & Dick”

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Making a movie about Elizabeth Taylor takes courage. Casting wayward starlet Lindsay Lohan as the Hollywood screen legend was both daring and asking for trouble.And indeed, trouble is what producers got during the shooting of Lifetime TV movie “Liz & Dick” – but they say the payoff made it all worthwhile. “Let’s...

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Responding to Illnesses Manifesting Amid Recovery From Storm

Nicole Bengiveno/The New York TimesDr. Aaron Gardener, center, attended to a patient at an ad hoc medical unit in Long Beach, N.Y. Many people have coughs, rashes and other ailments. Day and night, victims of Hurricane Sandy have been streaming into ad hoc emergency rooms and relief centers, like the MASH-type medical unit on an athletic field in Long Beach, and the warming tent in the Rockaways the...

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