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LOS ANGELES – U.S. online holiday sales are expected to hit nearly $20 billion this year and should take off on Monday, when consumers return to work and their fast Internet connections after the long Thanksgiving weekend. “Cyber Monday,” the term coined for the Monday after Thanksgiving, comes on the …

WASHINGTON – The growing populations of harbor seals and sea lions along the West Coast may be good news for California condors. While condors are now best known for eating dead deer, cattle and other animals, new research shows that carcasses of marine animals once formed a large part of …

PARIS – Authorities imposed curfews in the French Riviera cities of Nice and Cannes on Wednesday to prevent rioting, while the interior minister called for the deportation of foreigners convicted in the wave of unrest that has spread throughout France. Looters and vandals defied a state of emergency with attacks …

A research team in Hong Kong may have discovered a key reason why bird flu is so much more deadly than human flu viruses. They report that the bird flu virus H5N1 promotes much more inflammation in human lung cells than the human flu virus H1N1. In a human cell …

WASHINGTON – New orders for U.S.-made durable goods jumped a larger-than-expected 3.4 percent in October on a surge in demand for aircraft, but non-transportation orders rose a smaller-than-expected 0.3 percent, a government report showed on Tuesday. Economists had forecast orders for durable goods, expensive items intended to last three years …

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Here is an explanation of the Fujita scale for measuring the strength of tornadoes: F-0 — Light damage. Wind up to 72 mph. Some damage to chimneys; breaks branches off trees; pushes over shallow-rooted trees; damages signboards. F-1 — Moderate damage. Wind 73 to 112 mph. The …

Here’s what is on tap for Wednesday: “FOX & Friends First” Starts at 6 a.m. ET Florida teacher Debra Lafave avoids jail after pleading guilty to having sex with 14 year-old student. We’ll examine her plea deal and her punishment with Craig Mitnick, criminal defense attorney and FOX News legal …

“What’s up?” Your time on the lam, you angry, angry man. A man in Des Moines, Iowa, approached Officer Patrick Hickey and asked him “What’s up?” as the policeman was in an alley looking over license plates as part of a drug probe, according to The Associated Press. Hickey asked …

BOSTON – At 31, boy wonder Theo Epstein (search) was ready to step out on his own. The Red Sox general manager walked away from his hometown team on Monday, stunning Boston and the baseball world just one year after helping the franchise win its first World Series (search) championship …

CHICAGO – Low-income American women and women in developing countries who are tested for cervical cancer (search) could benefit from faster, more aggressive treatment, two studies suggest. Some of those women would be treated unnecessarily, but some experts believe the trade-off might save lives in impoverished countries where women often …