A smiling Britney Spears was photographed driving on the Pacific Coast Highway with her baby on her lap. Spears later explained to People magazine that she put the baby on her lap because the paparazzi had scared her.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a faster test for diagnosing bird flu in humans. The test designed to detect the H5N1 flu provides preliminary results on suspected samples within four hours, instead of at least two to three days with previous technology.

The critically-acclaimed Wallace and Gromit - The Curse of the Were-Rabbit dominated the recent Annie awards for animated motion pictures. The British-made film won best animated film and eight other awards. The movie will be competing against Howl’s Moving Castle and Corpse Bride at this year’s Oscars for best animation film.

An Alaska woman arrested for driving under the influence three times in nine days has been sentenced to eight months in jail. Sixty-four-year-old Marcia Uhler reached a plea agreement in September with prosecutors. The woman already has one previous DUI arrest from 2004. The woman’s attorney stated that she entered an alcohol rehabilitation program after her arrests and has been undergoing outpatient treatment and counseling.

A carbon monoxide detector that was accidentally purchased instead of a smoke detector saved a California family two days later when it alerted them to a buildup of CO2. The family had their ducts cleaned and the company failed to hook the exhaust vent back up sending carbon monoxide throughout the house. The poisonous gas was measured as being three times the level in which firefighters are required to wear protective equipment.

High end catalog retailer L.L. Bean is facing consumer complaints after publishing a phone sex line number in its spring fly-fishing catalog. A company spokesman acknowledged the mistake and the company is studying wasy to resolve the problem.