 ( ) Face-lift under way for Contra Costa's community colleges  Multimillions in construction projects under way at Los Medanos and Diablo Valley colleges; demolition work to take pace over winter break on one Contra Costa College building. |
 (Bob Larson/Staff file) Richmond leaders' China, Cuba trips under scrutiny Councilmen Nat Bates and Corky Boozé spent $36,120 of Richmond taxpayer funds on a trade trip to China, while Mayor Gayle McLaughlin and Councilman Tom Butt took a trip to Cuba for $13,000. |
 (Barry Brecheisen/Invision/AP, File) Grammy nominees 2014: What voters got right and wrong  Kanye West's and Justin Timberlake's snubs are hard to fathom, but Lorde, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis and Kendrick Lamar received well-deserved nominations. |
 (Jane Tyska/Staff file) MLB deals setback to San Jose bid to lure Oakland A's League notified Oakland A's in June that it at least temporarily rejected plan to relocate to San Jose, according to court documents in San Jose antitrust case |
BUSINESS  (Connie Zhou) Google, Facebook, Twitter bolster digital defenses in wake of NSA revelations Quietly at first, but more vocally in recent months, Google, Facebook and other leading Internet companies have been beefing up their digital defenses in response to reports that the National Security Agency has tracked online communications without the companies' knowledge or cooperation. |
SPORTS  (
Christian Petersen
) Stanford Cardinal headed back to Rose Bowl  Stanford Cardinal blow past Arizona State in Pac-12 title game to secure spot in Rose Bowl on New Year's Day against Ohio State or Michigan State. |
LOCAL NEWS  ( ) Pleasanton: Siren call for last civil defense siren in town A long-inactive siren created to summon volunteer firefighters and to warn of air raids is removed from a pole and fixed up. The future of the city-owned historic device is unknown. |
 (China Photos/Getty Images) Study suggests fear can be passed on through genes A newborn mouse pup, seemingly innocent to the workings of the world, may actually harbor generations' worth of information passed down by its ancestors. Full Story |
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) Travel top 10: World's best cities for winter vacations Some of the world's cities shine brightly in winter. And they aren't likely to be overrun with tourists between now and February. If you're looking to get away soon, check out this list from CNN Travel of the 10 best cities for a winter vacation. |
 (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images) Evangeline Lilly upset with magazine's 'butt' reference Women’s Health surprised “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” actress with her cover shot. |
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) Bay Area residents live longer; here's why Bay Area residents are among the nation's longest-lived people, surviving on average more than a decade longer than residents of rural Kentucky, West Virginia or Mississippi. |
 (HERALD FILE) Mi Pueblo files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Mi Pueblo, the festive Bay Area supermarket chain and icon of family-grown Hispanic businesses, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Monday, citing a dispute with its primary lender, Wells Fargo. |
