But after two days back in the plant, Nieto insisted that the pain in her right side was too great, causing her to lose the use of her right hand and arm. One day in December 2004, a frozen hog carcass fell off an automated rack at the Smithfield plant and crashed down on Nievos back. For six years, Teresa Nieto endured the stench of death and feces as she stood in a cold room, blow-torching the hair off hundreds of dead pigs. I tried to work with just one hand, but it felt like someone...

There's nothing wrong with drug makers publicizing their products, but the lure of lucrative government contracts can prompt them to play fast and loose. In lobbying state lawmakers to make its latest vaccine mandatory, Merck has greatly exaggerated both the threat of a disease and the ability of a drug to prevent it. The drug in question is Gardasil, a vaccine for four types of human papillomavirus, or HPV, two of which are responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancer cases. With a price...

Microsoft chairman Bill Gates has received an honourary knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II, honourary doctorates from universities in Europe and Japan, and the Order of the Aztec Eagle from Mexico. Magazines have named him to countless lists, including Time magazine s 100 people who most influenced the 20th century. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates has received an honourary knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II, honourary doctorates from universities in Europe and Japan, and the Order of the...

At worst, they're scorned and abused, exploited and discarded like trash or labeled "terrorists" in a post-9/11 world of mass witch-hunt roundups aimed at Muslims because of their faith or country of origin and Latinos coming north to survive the fallout from NAFTA's destructive effects on their lives. At worst, they're scorned and abused, exploited and discarded like trash or labeled "terrorists" in a post-9/11 world of mass witch-hunt roundups aimed at Muslims because of their faith or...

Automatic Data Processing inc. (ADP) late Friday said it has completed the spin-off of its brokerage services group by distribution of a special tax-free dividend to its shareholders, consisting of roughly 138. Merix (MERX) is expected to report third-quarter earnings of 13 cents a share, according to a survey of analysts by Thomson Financial. Cephalon (CEPH) said it has received an approvable letter, along with draft labeling, from the Food and Drug Administration for its new drug...