The number of women who died from an overdose of prescription painkillers jumped almost fivefold in the past decade amid an abuse epidemic, U.S. officials said.
Almost 48,000 women died from 1999 to 2010 from overdoses of prescription painkillers such as OxyContin or Vicodin (ABT), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report today. While more men died from painkiller abuse during the period, the increase of fatal overdoses was higher among women and the CDC warned the gender gap is closing quickly.
Prescription Painkiller Overdose Deaths Rise for Women
HSBC wins approval of record $1.92 billion money-laundering settlement
A federal judge has approved HSBC Holdings Plc's (HSBA.L)(HBC.N) record $1.92 billion settlement with federal and state investigators of charges that it flouted rules designed to stop money laundering and thwart transactions with countries under U.S. sanctions.
While noting "heavy public criticism" of the settlement, which enabled HSBC to escape criminal prosecution, U.S. District Judge John Gleeson in Brooklyn, New York, called the decision to approve the accord "easy, for it accomplishes a great deal."
How the frac-sand industry escaped environmental review
Lost in the uproar over silica sand mining is a serious threat to Minnesota’s environmental-review procedures with potentially far-reaching implications. And it appears no one in state government or our congressional delegation is taking this threat seriously.
In the historic Mississippi River town of Wabasha, a clever and aggressive Canadian sand company found a way to flout Minnesota’s environmental-review measures. They leased land from a railroad and then claimed exemption from state and local review, using the railroad’s federal right of pre-emption over state and local zoning laws. This longstanding privilege basically says that state and local governments cannot restrict a railroad’s right to operate in interstate commerce.
US drone attack kills 4 militants in Pakistan
Pakistani intelligence officials say unmanned U.S. aircraft fired four missiles at a house in northwest Pakistan, killing four militants. The officials say the militants were members of the Haqqani network. Two militants were wounded.
The drone strike was early Wednesday near the Dande Darpa Khel area of the North Waziristan tribal region.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.
Officials: Bombs, clashes kill at least 54 in Iraq
Insurgents unleashed a new wave of attacks on Tuesday in Iraq, killing at least 47 people, officials said, the latest in a surge in violence across the country that has raised concerns over a return to sectarian bloodshed. Also, seven militants were killed.
There was no claim of responsibility for the attacks, mostly car bombs in Shiite areas. Al-Qaida's Iraq branch, which has been gaining strength in recent months, frequently targets Shiites, security forces and civil servants in an effort to undermine the Shiite-led government in Baghdad.
Prairie2: Facing the 'Final Resort'
The aluminum foil shelter that Wildland Firefighters carry as part of their 50 lb back-country fire kit is intended to be that last resort when the fire is not only gaining on their position but has skipped ahead, and they are trapped with fire coming from all sides.
The physics of this 'last chance' technology are real and can be easily calculated. Hotshot Firefighters drill on this like their very lives depend on it. Any fire is the equation of heat + fuel + oxygen. Heat is temperature of the the available mass either mitigated by high humidity, or greatly boosted by low humidity. Fuel in a forest is a given. Oxygen in the outdoors is a matter of wind speed.
12 Things The Tobacco Industry Doesn't Want You To Know
Over the past couple of decades, Big Tobacco has come under fire for selling products that kill people. Now, leading cigarette producers like Philip Morris and Reynolds American are moving into the rapidly growing electronic cigarette business, touting the battery-powered nicotine inhalers as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes.
As Big Tobacco attempts to clean up its image, we thought now was as good a time than ever to remind you of these 12 facts the industry would like you to forget:
'Invisibility cloak' pioneer John Pendry scoops Newton Medal
The physicist who proposed the idea of an "invisibility cloak" has received the Newton Medal, the highest honour of the UK's Institute of Physics (IoP). Imperial College London's Prof Sir John Pendry was cited "for his seminal contributions to surface science, disordered systems and photonics".
But his work on cloaking and "metamaterials" is arguably his most famous and potentially transformative. IoP president Peter Knight called the award "our most important medal".
Egyptians flood streets to force Mursi out
Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians flooded into the streets on the first anniversary of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi's inauguration on Sunday to demand that he resign in the biggest challenge so far to rule by his Muslim Brotherhood.
Waving national flags and chanting "Get out!", a crowd of more than 200,000 massed on Cairo's central Tahrir Square. It was the largest demonstration since the 2011 uprising that overthrew Mursi's predecessor, Hosni Mubarak.
Page 340 of 1154
