Beginning January 2, the city of Reeves, Louisiana will no longer carry the mark of the beast. After 40 years of carrying a stigma for having the number 666 as its area code, Reeves starts 2008 with a new code; 749. Mayor Scott Walker made changing the city's area code a personal crusade after he got tired of receiving admonitions from friends and strangers to drop the number linked to the Devil. He made representations with the local phone company CenturyTel and the state Public Service Commission to amend the city's area code.

A woman managed to escape from a house fire in the nick of time, thanks to the warning from her dog. Cathy Minnig of Eagan, Minn. was exercising on the treadmill located at the basement of her home Wednesday, noticed her Labrador puppy, Riley, jumping up and down the couch, and acting in an unusual manner. Minnig, who was listening to her iPod during the time, took of her headphones to hear the sounds of fire alarms.

China has begun work on what will be the world's largest Ferris wheel at Chaoyang Park in east Beijing. The $99 million and 682 feet high Great Wheel of China is expected to have 48 fully air-conditioned compartments that can accommodate 40 people each and will hold a total of 1920 passengers at a time.

A dentist is facing lawsuit from a former patient who claims she suffered injuries when he started dancing during a tooth extraction. Brandy Fanning, 31, alleges the dentist, Dr. George Trusty based at Syracuse Community Health Center, started dancing to Rose Royce's song Car Wash playing on the radio while drilling Fanning's tooth.

A recent study revealed that swearing in the office relieves stress and is good for workers and bosses. Professor Yehuda Baruch from the University of East Anglia oversaw the survey of around 100 people in Britain and the U. S. said that foul language creates a good team spirit, allows staff to vent frustrations and cements relationships.