Avis and Hertz Expand, Raising Questions Over Future Rates

Chang W. Lee/The New York TimesHertz acquired Dollar Thrifty last November, but it was barred from controlling about 30 sites at airports. In the short term, industry analysts do not think so. They are less certain about what will happen in the long term. With the Hertz deal, the number of major car rental companies is dropping to three, from four, but there are still enough brands to keep...

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A solution to La Jolla's smell problem proves elusive

LA JOLLA — There's a political stink rising in this seaside community, blown ashore from the rocks of La Jolla Cove, where myriad...

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Looney Gas and Lead Poisoning: A Short, Sad History

Author’s note: Most people don’t realize that we knew in the 1920s that leaded gasoline was extremely dangerous. And in light of a Mother Jones story this week that looks at the connection between leaded gasoline and crime rates in the United States, I thought it might be worth reviewing that history. The following is an updated version of an earlier post based on information from my book...

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NBC says it’s not the ‘shoot-’em-up’ network

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — NBC says it is conscious about the amount of violence it airs in the wake of real-life tragedies, but it isn’t really an issue because NBC isn’t the “shoot-’em-up” network.Network entertainment President Jennifer Salke said Sunday that NBC hasn’t taken any specific steps to ask show creators to tone down violence. She said it would be different if NBC was perceived as a “shoot-’em-up”...

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Despite New Health Law, Some See Sharp Rise in Premiums

Health insurance companies across the country are seeking and winning double-digit increases in premiums for some customers, even though one of the biggest objectives of the Obama administration’s health care law was to stem the rapid rise in insurance costs for consumers. Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles TimesDave Jones, the California insurance commissioner, said some insurance companies...

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Design: Who Made That Universal Product Code?

On a Sunday afternoon in 1971, an I.B.M. engineer stepped out of his house in Raleigh, N.C., to consult his boss, who lived across the street. “I didn’t do what you asked,” George Laurer confessed. Laurer had been instructed to design a code that could be printed on food labels and that would be compatible with the scanners then in development for supermarket checkout counters. He was told...

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Four killed, including gunman, at Aurora, Colo., townhome

Four people died at an Aurora, Colo., townhome early Saturday morning, including a gunman who barricaded himself inside for...

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Analysis: Obama’s ad team used cable TV to outplay Romney

(Reuters) – As political experts assess Republican Mitt Romney‘s failed U.S. presidential bid, an analysis of how his campaign and President Barack Obama‘s winning team used cable TV to target ads at specific groups of voters may offer some valuable tips for the future.During the final weeks before the November 6 election, with polls showing a tight race, Obama’s campaign exploited cable TV’s diverse...

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The New Old Age: Murray Span, 1922-2012

One consequence of our elders’ extended lifespans is that we half expect them to keep chugging along forever. My father, a busy yoga practitioner and blackjack player, celebrated his 90th birthday in September in reasonably good health.So when I had the sad task of letting people know that Murray Span died on Dec. 8, after just a few days’ illness, the primary response was disbelief. “No! I just talked...

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Opinion: Can Social Media Sell Soap?

ONE morning in mid-December, Pope Benedict XVI gazed down on an iPad and composed his first tweet. From a marketing perspective, it was about time. While the pontiff had been issuing his traditional encyclicals online, other world leaders were venturing further, onto Facebook and Twitter. The Dalai Lama, for example, was already spreading his wisdom in 140-character packets to more than five million...

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