Bucks Blog: When Good Drivers Pay More for Insurance than Bad Ones

Some big insurance companies charge higher auto rates for lower-income drivers, even if the drivers have safe driving records, an analysis from the Consumer Federation of America finds.The federation, a nonprofit comprising 250 consumer groups, has argued that insurers often give nondriving-related factors, like occupation and education, more weight than driving-related factors, and that such practices...

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Government Appetite Growing for Twitter User Data

Twitter said Monday that just 19 percent of federal and state government requests for user data were accompanied by probable-cause search warrants during the six months ending in December 2012.In all, the San Francisco-based micro-blogging service, in its second so-called transparency report, said there were 815 demands for Twitter account-holder data. Twitter did not say what type of user...

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Singer Chris Brown to be questioned over alleged punch: police

(Reuters) – R&B singer Chris Brown will be questioned as part of an investigation into allegations that he punched a man during a fight over a parking space in West Hollywood, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said on Monday.Deputies responded to a call on Sunday about a fight involving six men on Santa Monica Boulevard, the department said. Witnesses said the Grammy-winning singer had...

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Well: Keeping Blood Pressure in Check

Since the start of the 21st century, Americans have made great progress in controlling high blood pressure, though it remains a leading cause of heart attacks, strokes, congestive heart failure and kidney disease.Now 48 percent of the more than 76 million adults with hypertension have it under control, up from 29 percent in 2000.But that means more than half, including many receiving treatment, have...

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Yahoo Earnings Beat Forecasts

SAN FRANCISCO — Yahoo reported earnings Monday that were considerably above Wall Street expectations. Yahoo reported net income in the fourth quarter of $272 million, or 23 cents a share, compared to $295.6 million, or 24 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter. But using a non-standard accounting method favored by Wall Street analysts, the net income was 32 cents a share. Analysts...

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Deadly nightclub fire in Brazil may have been started by flare

SAO PAULO, Brazil -- A fire at a nightclub in southern Brazil may have been caused by a flare lit on stage by a live band, according...

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Lace 'Em Up: 4 Running Shoes Reviewed

Hitting the streets to get fit by spring? We review four new specialty sneakers for runners.Adidas' Adizero Feather 2.0 runners are so light (barely 7 ounces) and so responsive, running in them feels more like bouncing on fluffy clouds than pounding on pavement. OK, I'm exaggerating, but I was really blown away by the light weight when I took them out on long-distance runs. So effective was the feather-weight...

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Abrams on ‘Star Wars’: ‘surreal’ and ‘exciting’

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — J.J. Abrams calls getting assigned to direct the seventh live-action “Star Wars” film “as surreal as it is exciting.”The director-producer-writer spoke with a handful of media outlets on the red carpet before darting into the Producers Guild Awards on Saturday night. Abrams was there to accept the Norman Lear Achievement Award for such television works as “Felicity” (1998-2002),...

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Brain Aging Linked to Sleep-Related Memory Decline

Scientists have known for decades that the ability to remember newly learned information declines with age, but it was not clear why. A new study may provide part of the answer. The report, posted online on Sunday by the journal Nature Neuroscience, suggests that structural brain changes occurring naturally over time interfere with sleep quality, which in turn blunts the ability to store...

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At Fed, Nascent Debate on When to Slow Asset Buying

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve has left little doubt about its plans for the next few months, and thus little mystery about the statement it will release Wednesday after the latest meeting of its policy-making committee. The economy remains weak. The Fed will keep buying bonds to hold down borrowing costs. Inside the central bank, however, debate is once again shifting from whether the...

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