Month: August 2013

By Hugh Bronstein BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – China has approved its first shipment of genetically modified Argentine corn, Buenos Aires said on Tuesday, signaling that the Asian country may eventually import GMO crops from other producers like the United States. Argentine Agriculture Minister Norberto Yauhar said Chinese health authorities cleared 60,000-tonnes of genetically modified (GMO) Argentine corn. The cargo was already headed inland to be used as hog and chicken feed. Benchmark Chicago corn futures fell briefly after Reuters reported on the shipment. …

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Actor Dustin Hoffman has undergone treatment for cancer, the Oscar-winner's publicist confirmed on Tuesday. Hoffman's publicist, Jodi Gottlieb, declined to say what kind of cancer or when the "Tootsie" star was diagnosed. The news was first reported by People Magazine, where Gottlieb said the cancer had been "detected early and he has been surgically cured." The 75-year-old actor is set to undergo further preventative treatments to protect against the cancer returning, People reported. Hoffman, who won the best actor Oscar for his roles in 1979's "Kramer vs. …

CHICAGO (AP) — Combat appears to have little or no influence on suicide rates among U.S. troops and veterans, according to a military study that challenges the conventional thinking about war's effects on the psyche.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Haiti should be held accountable for introducing cholera into the Caribbean nation, a Yale University report said Tuesday.

Preschoolers Who Drink Daily Sodas Are More Likely to Be Obese by Age 5

(Reuters) – Amgen Inc is expected to sweeten its offer to acquire Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc to $130 per share after its previous bid was rejected as too low, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing a person familiar with the matter. After Amgen’s unsolicited offer of $120 per share was turned down, Onyx said in June it was seeking takeover bids from other potential buyers. The $130 offer is currently the highest bid on the table for Onyx, according the anonymous source, the report said. A spokeswoman for Amgen, the world’s largest biotechnology company, declined to comment on the report. …

Veteran sportswriter and journalism professor Justice B. Hill shared insights about the challenges of catching athletes who use performance enhancers, on August 1st at the annual meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists in Orlando. Steve Mirsky reports.

By Sharon Begley NEW YORK (Reuters) – The federal government is months behind in testing data security for the main pillar of Obamacare: allowing Americans to buy health insurance on state exchanges due to open by October 1 The missed deadlines have pushed the government’s decision on whether information technology security is up to snuff to exactly one day before that crucial date, the Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general said in a report. As a result, experts say, the exchanges might open with security flaws or, possibly but less likely, be delayed. …

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ninety birthdays maybe, but not 120: Americans hope to stretch out life expectancy another decade or so, but they're ambivalent, even skeptical, about a fountain of youth.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ninety birthdays maybe, but not 120: Americans hope to stretch life expectancy another decade or so, but they’re ambivalent about a fountain of youth.

ATLANTA (AP) — A new government report is the first evidence of a national decline in childhood obesity, health officials said Tuesday.