Sunday, December 31, 2017

NPR News: Researchers Gather Health Data For 'All Of Us'

Researchers Gather Health Data For 'All Of Us'
Federal researchers are collecting blood samples from 1 million Americans as part of an effort called "precision medicine." But some critics worry that the path ahead is expensive and unclear.

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NPR News: Researchers Gather Health Data For 'All Of Us'

Researchers Gather Health Data For 'All Of Us'
Federal researchers are collecting blood samples from 1 million Americans as part of an effort called "precision medicine." But some critics worry that the path ahead is expensive and unclear.

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NPR News: The Year In Space Discoveries

The Year In Space Discoveries
It's been a banner year in space. We hear about 2017's biggest highlights, including the "Great American Eclipse" and NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

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Saturday, December 30, 2017

NPR News: 2017 Was The Year Of Extreme Weather

2017 Was The Year Of Extreme Weather
This year will go down in history for its extreme weather. Researchers have now definitively attributed three major extreme weather events to climate change.

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NPR News: Board Games To Fight Bias

Board Games To Fight Bias
Can a game help reduce a person's racial and ethnic biases? One researcher says yes. But how long the effect will last is an open question.

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Friday, December 29, 2017

NPR News: No 'Easy Answer' To Growing Number Of Stray Dogs In The U.S., Advocate Says

No 'Easy Answer' To Growing Number Of Stray Dogs In The U.S., Advocate Says
Author Peter Zheutlin says the number of stray dogs in the U.S. has "cascaded out of control." He makes the case for why people should adopt abandoned dogs.

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NPR News: Precision Medical Treatments Have A Quality Control Problem

Precision Medical Treatments Have A Quality Control Problem
The goal is to customize treatments for cancer and other diseases to a patient's own biology. But something as simple as failing to take care of tissue samples en route to the lab can derail that.

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NPR News: The 10 Most Popular 'Fresh Air' Interviews Of 2017

The 10 Most Popular 'Fresh Air' Interviews Of 2017
In 2017, Fresh Air marked 30 years as a nationally syndicated, daily radio program by doing what we do best: more in-depth interviews.

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NPR News: Precision Medical Treatments Have A Quality Control Problem

Precision Medical Treatments Have A Quality Control Problem
The goal is to customize treatments for cancer and other diseases to a patient's own biology. But something as simple as failing to take care of tissue samples en route to the lab can derail that.

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Thursday, December 28, 2017

NPR News: How Pirates Of The Caribbean Hijacked America's Metric System

How Pirates Of The Caribbean Hijacked America's Metric System
In 1793, French scientist Joseph Dombey boarded a ship bound for the United States carrying with him a standard kilogram weight. Thanks to pirates, he and the weight never arrived.

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NPR News: How Pirates Of The Caribbean Hijacked America's Metric System

How Pirates Of The Caribbean Hijacked America's Metric System
In 1793, French scientist Joseph Dombey boarded a ship bound for the United States carrying with him a standard kilogram weight. Thanks to pirates, he and the weight never arrived.

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NPR News: Size (And Sound) Matters When It Comes To Bubbles In Your Sparkling Wine

Size (And Sound) Matters When It Comes To Bubbles In Your Sparkling Wine
Scientists at the University of Texas listened to the bubbles in a champagne and a sparkling wine and found that the more expensive product had smaller, busier bubbles.

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Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Recycling Cassiopeia A


Massive stars in our Milky Way Galaxy live spectacular lives. Collapsing from vast cosmic clouds, their nuclear furnaces ignite and create heavy elements in their cores. After a few million years, the enriched material is blasted back into interstellar space where star formation can begin anew. The expanding debris cloud known as Cassiopeia A is an example of this final phase of the stellar life cycle. Light from the explosion which created this supernova remnant would have been first seen in planet Earth's sky about 350 years ago, although it took that light about 11,000 years to reach us. This false-color Chandra X-ray Observatory image shows the still hot filaments and knots in the Cassiopeia A remnant. High-energy emission from specific elements has been color coded, silicon in red, sulfur in yellow, calcium in green and iron in purple, to help astronomers explore the recycling of our galaxy's star stuff - Still expanding, the blast wave is seen as the blue outer ring. The sharp X-ray image, spans about 30 light-years at the estimated distance of Cassiopeia A. The bright speck near the center is a neutron star, the incredibly dense, collapsed remains of the massive stellar core. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BGOfpP

NPR News: Home For The Holidays? Get Off The Couch!

Home For The Holidays? Get Off The Couch!
If you sit too much during middle age — at work and at home — your ability to exercise or even walk in late decades is at risk, research hints. And, of course, your risk of heart disease climbs, too.

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NPR News: After Maria, One Of The World's Best Bioluminescent Bays Slowly Begins To Glow Again

After Maria, One Of The World's Best Bioluminescent Bays Slowly Begins To Glow Again
Hurricane Maria wreaked havoc on Vieques, an island eight miles off the coast of Puerto Rico. Its bioluminescent bay, a lifeline for its vital tourism industry, is starting to show signs of recovery.

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NPR News: The Haunting Effects Of Going Days Without Sleep

The Haunting Effects Of Going Days Without Sleep
Decades ago, Randy Gardner stayed awake for 11 days. He broke a record in the process, but the teenage stunt has come back to haunt him. At 71, he offers wisdom about staying up past your bedtime.

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NPR News: Home For The Holidays? Get Off The Couch!

Home For The Holidays? Get Off The Couch!
If you sit too much during middle age — at work and at home — your ability to exercise or even walk in late decades is at risk, research hints. And, of course, your risk of heart disease climbs, too.

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NPR News: The Haunting Effects Of Going Days Without Sleep

The Haunting Effects Of Going Days Without Sleep
Decades ago, Randy Gardner stayed awake for 11 days. He broke a record in the process, but the teenage stunt has come back to haunt him. At 71, he offers wisdom about staying up past your bedtime.

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Tuesday, December 26, 2017

The Horsehead Nebula


One of the most identifiable nebulae in the sky, the Horsehead Nebula in Orion, is part of a large, dark, molecular cloud. Also known as Barnard 33, the unusual shape was first discovered on a photographic plate in the late 1800s. The red glow originates from hydrogen gas predominantly behind the nebula, ionized by the nearby bright star Sigma Orionis. The darkness of the Horsehead is caused mostly by thick dust, although the lower part of the Horsehead's neck casts a shadow to the left. Streams of gas leaving the nebula are funneled by a strong magnetic field. Bright spots in the Horsehead Nebula's base are young stars just in the process of forming. Light takes about 1,500 years to reach us from the Horsehead Nebula. The featured image was taken with the large 3.6-m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in Hawaii, USA. via NASA http://ift.tt/2lcxtbl

NPR News: After Harvey, Texans Are Preparing For Future With Raised Homes, Private Flood Gates

After Harvey, Texans Are Preparing For Future With Raised Homes, Private Flood Gates
Houston, the nation's fourth largest city, is planning to remake itself into a more flood-proof metropolis after Hurricane Harvey hit the region hard. But Texas still doesn't have the money it wants to do that, let alone detailed plans on how to spend it. Some Texans simply aren't waiting; they're forging ahead on their own.

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NPR News: As Corals Wither Around The World, Scientists Try IVF

As Corals Wither Around The World, Scientists Try IVF
Battered by climate change and pollution, coral reefs are dying off. But in Guam, one group of scientists are trying to revive these tiny animals — with the coral equivalent of IVF.

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NPR News: What Does A Newly Born Pacific Island Say About Life On Mars?

What Does A Newly Born Pacific Island Say About Life On Mars?
Take five minutes of your day, watch this amazing video of the birth of a new island in Tonga, and let its story and science knock you to the floor, says astrophysicist Adam Frank.

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NPR News: Why A Creatively Wrapped Gift Could Lead To Disappointment

Why A Creatively Wrapped Gift Could Lead To Disappointment
Did you invest a lot of energy in your gift wrap this holiday? A study shows that wrapping may raise expectations, and then heighten disappointment.

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NPR News: North Korea Designed A Nuke. So Did This Truck Driver

North Korea Designed A Nuke. So Did This Truck Driver
It took decades, but John Coster-Mullen has pieced together specs for America's first nuclear bombs. Some believe his odyssey says something about North Korea's rapid nuclear progress.

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Monday, December 25, 2017

Grand Spiral Galaxy NGC 1232


Galaxies are fascinating not only for what is visible, but for what is invisible. Grand spiral galaxy NGC 1232, captured in detail by one of the Very Large Telescopes, is a good example. The visible is dominated by millions of bright stars and dark dust, caught up in a gravitational swirl of spiral arms revolving about the center. Open clusters containing bright blue stars can be seen sprinkled along these spiral arms, while dark lanes of dense interstellar dust can be seen sprinkled between them. Less visible, but detectable, are billions of dim normal stars and vast tracts of interstellar gas, together wielding such high mass that they dominate the dynamics of the inner galaxy. Leading theories indicate that even greater amounts of matter are invisible, in a form we don't yet know. This pervasive dark matter is postulated, in part, to explain the motions of the visible matter in the outer regions of galaxies. via NASA http://ift.tt/2ps5tWu

NPR News: Race To Eradicate Guinea Worm And Polio Experienced Roadblocks In 2017

Race To Eradicate Guinea Worm And Polio Experienced Roadblocks In 2017
This year, the world came tantalizingly close to wiping out two human diseases: Guinea worm and polio. But right at the finish line, both eradication projects have run into surprising roadblocks.

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Saturday, December 23, 2017

SpaceX Rocket Launch Plume over California


What's happened to the sky? On Friday, the photogenic launch plume from a SpaceX rocket launch created quite a spectacle over parts of southern California and Arizona. Looking at times like a giant space fish, the impressive rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc, California, was so bright because it was backlit by the setting Sun. Lifting off during a minuscule one-second launch window, the Falcon 9 Heavy rocket successfully delivered to low Earth orbit ten Iridium NEXT satellites that are part of a developing global communications network. The plume from the first stage is seen on the right, while the soaring upper stage rocket is seen at the apex of the plume toward the left. Several good videos of the launch were taken. The featured image was captured from Orange County, California, in a 2.5 second duration exposure. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BCAwEL

NPR News: Three Months After Irma, The State Of Barbuda

Three Months After Irma, The State Of Barbuda
In early September, Hurricane Irma cut a path of destruction across the Atlantic. Barbuda is among the string of tiny islands in the Caribbean that suffered some of the worst damage. Freelance journalist Anika Kentish provides a sense of how Barbuda is doing.

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NPR News: The New Normal? Scientists Say The Fire Season Is Getting Longer And More Destructive

The New Normal? Scientists Say The Fire Season Is Getting Longer And More Destructive
This year looks to go down as the worst year on record for wildfires in California. NPR's Ray Suarez discusses with UCLA professor Glen Macdonald about what we can expect moving forward.

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NPR News: SpaceX Rocket Launch Lights Up The California Sky, Freaks Out Some Residents

SpaceX Rocket Launch Lights Up The California Sky, Freaks Out Some Residents
The rocket carrying 10 satellites into low-earth orbit sparked alarm among some fearing a UFO. The Los Angeles Fire Department was prompted to release a statement about the "mysterious light."

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NPR News: The Christmas Of Now: A Convergence Of Pasts

The Christmas Of Now: A Convergence Of Pasts
The present moment is made of a lot of pasts — and just as Scrooge's ghosts were really messengers of hope, the deepest truths of science and the infinite night are here for us, too, says Adam Frank.

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NPR News: Gene Editing Experiments In Mice May Help People Hear Too

Gene Editing Experiments In Mice May Help People Hear Too
Scientists use a new gene-editing technique to prevent mice destined to go deaf from losing their hearing. (This piece initially aired Dec. 20, 2017 on All Things Considered).

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NPR News: Gene Editing In Mice May Help People Hear Too

Gene Editing In Mice May Help People Hear Too
Scientists use a new gene-editing technique to prevent mice destined to go deaf from losing their hearing. (This piece initially aired Dec. 20, 2017 on All Things Considered).

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Friday, December 22, 2017

Phaethon s Brood


Based on its well-measured orbit, 3200 Phaethon (sounds like FAY-eh-thon) is recognized as the source of the meteroid stream responsible for the annual Geminid meteor shower. Even though most meteor showers' parents are comets, 3200 Phaethon is a known and closely tracked near-Earth asteroid with a 1.4 year orbital period. Rocky and sun-baked, its perihelion or closest approach to the Sun is well within the orbit of innermost planet Mercury. In this telescopic field of view, the asteroid's rapid motion against faint background stars of the heroic constellation Perseus left a short trail during the two minute total exposure time. The parallel streaks of its meteoric children flashed much more quickly across the scene. The family portrait was recorded near the Geminid meteor shower's very active peak on December 13. That was just before 3200 Phaethon's historic December 16 closest approach to planet Earth. via NASA http://ift.tt/2kZD44i

NPR News: All I Want For Christmas Is A Giant Whale Eye

All I Want For Christmas Is A Giant Whale Eye
A giant whale eye spent decades on a strange journey before it finally arrived at an animal eyeball lab and gave the folks there the "best Christmas ever."

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NPR News: Nearly Dying In Childbirth: Why Preventable Complications Are Growing In U.S.

Nearly Dying In Childbirth: Why Preventable Complications Are Growing In U.S.
The rate of life-threatening complications for new mothers in the U.S. has more than doubled in two decades as a result of pre-existing conditions, medical errors and unequal access to care.

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NPR News: Siddhartha Mukherjee: Can We Reimagine Our Approach To Treating Disease?

Siddhartha Mukherjee: Can We Reimagine Our Approach To Treating Disease?
When it comes to medicine, one rule of thinking has generally prevailed: Have disease, take pill, kill something. But physician Siddhartha Mukherjee says treatment should take a broader approach.

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NPR News: Jocelyne Bloch: After An Injury, Can The Brain Heal Itself?

Jocelyne Bloch: After An Injury, Can The Brain Heal Itself?
Neurosurgeon Jocelyne Bloch and her colleague were studying brain samples of head trauma patients when they made an amazing discovery — brain cells with the ability to generate new cells.

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NPR News: Climate Change Likely To Increase Volcanic Eruptions, Scientists Say

Climate Change Likely To Increase Volcanic Eruptions, Scientists Say
A recent study in the journal Geology says glacial ice has an impact on the behavior of magma below the Earth's surface. It finds a correlation between a warmer climate and more volcanic activity.

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NPR News: Trump's Busy Year On Energy And Environment

Trump's Busy Year On Energy And Environment
President Trump and a trio of cabinet members have made headway in their campaign for American fossil fuel "energy dominance." This might slow renewable energy, but it won't bring back coal.

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NPR News: How Humans Use 'Strategic Ignorance' When Facts Get In The Way

How Humans Use 'Strategic Ignorance' When Facts Get In The Way
Social science research explores how our minds push away information that gets in the way of our feelings and desires.

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NPR News: How Humans Use 'Strategic Ignorance' When Facts Get In The Way

How Humans Use 'Strategic Ignorance' When Facts Get In The Way
Social science research explores how our minds push away information that gets in the way of our feelings and desires.

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Thursday, December 21, 2017

Gemini s Meteors


From dark skies above Heilongjiang province in northeastern China, meteors rain down on a wintry landscape in this beautiful composited night scene. The 48 meteors are part of last week's annual Geminid meteor shower. Despite temperatures of -28 degrees C, all were recorded in camera exposures made during the peak hour of the celestial spectacle. They stream away from the shower's radiant high above the horizon near the two bright stars of the zodiacal constellation of the Twins. A very active shower, this year the December 13-14 peak of the Geminids arrived just before the December 16 closest approach of asteroid 3200 Phaethon to planet Earth. Mysterious 3200 Phaethon is the Geminid shower's likely parent body. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BroLAI

NPR News: Fossil Fuel Industry Pushes For Clean Power Plan Replacement

Fossil Fuel Industry Pushes For Clean Power Plan Replacement
The industry declared victory when the Trump administration reversed President Obama's signature climate plan. Now, fearing a legal challenge, they're in the odd position of pushing for a replacement.

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NPR News: Lions, Reindeer And Sheep, Oh My! Zoo Prepares To Evacuate As Fire Burns Close

Lions, Reindeer And Sheep, Oh My! Zoo Prepares To Evacuate As Fire Burns Close
As the massive Thomas Fire burs in California, the Santa Barbara Zoo's elaborate evacuation plan involves 150 species, tranquilizers and maybe even throwing a towel over an alligator's head.

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NPR News: Latest 'Star Wars' Teaches The Value Of Failure

Latest 'Star Wars' Teaches The Value Of Failure
The Last Jedi highlights the need for failure to find success, as the ongoing dynamic of The Force — the tug-of-war between good and evil — aptly defines our humanity, says Marcelo Gleiser.

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NPR News: Mistrial Declared In Bundy Ranch Standoff Case

Mistrial Declared In Bundy Ranch Standoff Case
The government's case against Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy accuses him of leading an armed standoff over control of U.S. public lands in 2014.

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NPR News: Why Some Cities Are Better Than Others At Avoiding Gridlock

Why Some Cities Are Better Than Others At Avoiding Gridlock
Just because a city is efficient at moving traffic around doesn't mean it's "traffic resilient." Scientists examined 40 cities and ranked them in terms of how they handle disruptions.

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NPR News: Why Some Cities Are Better Than Others At Avoiding Gridlock

Why Some Cities Are Better Than Others At Avoiding Gridlock
Just because a city is efficient at moving traffic around doesn't mean it's "traffic resilient." Scientists examined 40 cities and ranked them in terms of how they handle disruptions.

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Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Solstice Sun and Milky Way


Welcome to December's solstice, first day of winter in the north and summer for the southern hemisphere. Astronomical markers of the seasons, solstice and equinox dates are based on the Sun's place in its annual journey along the ecliptic, through planet Earth's sky. At this solstice, the Sun reaches its maximum southern declination of -23.5 degrees today at 16:28 UTC, while its right ascension coordinate on the celestial sphere is 18 hours. That puts the Sun in the constellation Sagittarius in a direction near the center of our Milky Way galaxy. In fact, if you could see today's Solstice Sun against faint background stars and nebulae (that's really hard to do, especially in the daytime ...) your view might look something like this composited panorama. To make it, images of our fair galaxy were taken under dark Namibian night skies, then stitched together in a panoramic view. From a snapshot made on December 21, 2015, the Sun was digitally overlayed as a brilliant star at today's northern winter solstice position, close to the center of the Milky Way. via NASA http://ift.tt/2oZxZOG

NPR News: Scientists Use Gene Editing To Prevents A Form Of Deafness in Mice

Scientists Use Gene Editing To Prevents A Form Of Deafness in Mice
Success with a new gene-editing technique in mice prone to deafness highlights the potential for using it to prevent a form of inherited hearing loss in humans. But it has many hurdles to overcome.

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NPR News: Scientists Use Gene Editing To Prevents A Form Of Deafness in Mice

Scientists Use Gene Editing To Prevents A Form Of Deafness in Mice
Success with a new gene-editing technique in mice prone to deafness highlights the potential for using it to prevent a form of inherited hearing loss in humans. But it has many hurdles to overcome.

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NPR News: WATCH: What Happens When Two Neutron Stars Collide

WATCH: What Happens When Two Neutron Stars Collide
Turns out that Einstein was right about what happens when neutron stars collide. An international team of astronomers has confirmed his theory for the first time.

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NASA Invests in Concept Development for Missions to Comet, Saturn Moon Titan

NASA has selected two finalist concepts for a robotic mission planned to launch in the mid-2020s: a comet sample return mission and a drone-like rotorcraft that would explore potential landing sites on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.

December 20, 2017
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NPR News: Beetle Penises May Hold Clues For Better Medical Devices

Beetle Penises May Hold Clues For Better Medical Devices
Male cassidine beetles have enormously long, hooked penises that are rigid in some parts and soft in others. Scientists hope studying the beetle penises could help people design better catheters.

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NPR News: Beetle Penises May Hold Clues For Better Medical Devices

Beetle Penises May Hold Clues For Better Medical Devices
Male cassidine beetles have enormously long, hooked penises that are rigid in some parts and soft in others. Scientists hope studying the beetle penises could help people design better catheters.

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NPR News: How Racism May Cause Black Mothers To Suffer The Death Of Their Infants

How Racism May Cause Black Mothers To Suffer The Death Of Their Infants
African-American women are more likely to lose a baby in the first year of life than women of any other race. Scientists think that stress from racism makes their bodies and babies more vulnerable.

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NPR News: For Alaskan Coastal Village, Erosion Hits Home

For Alaskan Coastal Village, Erosion Hits Home
Melting permafrost and major storms are eating away at the coastal Alaskan village of Newtok. Residents are desperate to move, but the U.S. has no climate change policy that could help them.

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NPR News: How Racism May Cause Black Mothers To Suffer The Death Of Their Infants

How Racism May Cause Black Mothers To Suffer The Death Of Their Infants
African-American women are more likely to lose a baby in the first year of life than women of any other race. Scientists think that stress from racism makes their bodies and babies more vulnerable.

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Tuesday, December 19, 2017

NPR News: Sorry Folks, Climate Change Won't Make Chocolate Taste Better

Sorry Folks, Climate Change Won't Make Chocolate Taste Better
Several news stories recently celebrated a new study suggesting global warming might enhance the taste of the beloved sweet. Sadly, that's not what it found at all, says the lead researcher.

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NPR News: Facebook Expands Use Of Facial Recognition To ID Users In Photos

Facebook Expands Use Of Facial Recognition To ID Users In Photos
Currently, the site uses face recognition to prompt users to tag themselves or their friends in photos. Now users will get alerts when a photo is posted of their face, tag or no tag.

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NPR News: Sorry Folks, Climate Change Won't Make Chocolate Taste Better

Sorry Folks, Climate Change Won't Make Chocolate Taste Better
Several news stories recently celebrated a new study suggesting global warming might enhance the taste of the beloved sweet. Sadly, that's not what the researchers found at all.

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NPR News: No Eggnog, But Rescued Animals Enjoy Holiday Celebrations, Too

No Eggnog, But Rescued Animals Enjoy Holiday Celebrations, Too
If you involve your pets in holiday festivities, you'll immediately "get" why sanctuaries and nature centers fuss over their animals at this time of year, says anthropologist Barbara J. King.

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NPR News: GOP Tax Bill Leaves Health Savings Accounts Untouched

GOP Tax Bill Leaves Health Savings Accounts Untouched
Republicans tried last summer to expand the use of these tax-advantaged accounts that are linked to high-deductible health plans. But their expansion proposal didn't make it into the tax bill.

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NPR News: Being Different Helped A NASA Roboticist Achieve Her Dream

Being Different Helped A NASA Roboticist Achieve Her Dream
Ayanna Howard was 27 when she headed her first team at NASA. She talks about feeling like an outsider, and discovering that diversity drives innovation.

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NPR News: NIH Lifts Ban On Research That Could Make Deadly Viruses Even Worse

NIH Lifts Ban On Research That Could Make Deadly Viruses Even Worse
After an unusual three-year moratorium, the federal government says it will once again allow research on deadly viruses that could spark pandemics. The work has sparked concerns about bioterrorism.

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NPR News: NIH Lifts Ban On Research That Could Make Deadly Viruses Stronger

NIH Lifts Ban On Research That Could Make Deadly Viruses Stronger
After an unusual three-year moratorium, the federal government says it will once again allow research on deadly viruses that could spark pandemics. The work has sparked concerns about bioterrorism.

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Monday, December 18, 2017

The Spiral North Pole of Mars


Why is there a spiral around the North Pole of Mars? Each winter this pole develops a new outer layer about one meter thick composed of carbon dioxide frozen out of the thin Martian atmosphere. This fresh layer is deposited on a water-ice layer that exists year round. Strong winds blow down from above the cap's center and swirl due to the spin of the red planet -- contributing to Planum Boreum's spiral structure. The featured image is a perspective mosaic generated earlier this year from numerous images taken by ESA's Mars Express and elevations extracted from the laser altimeter aboard NASA's Mars Global Surveyor mission. New missions to Mars planned in the next few years include Insight with plans to drill into Mars, and ExoMars and the Mars 2020 Rover with plans to search for signs of microscopic Martian life -- past and present. via NASA http://ift.tt/2ATjFch

NASA to Name Finalists for Future Solar System Mission

NASA will announce finalist concepts for a future robotic mission to explore the solar system during a media teleconference at 2 p.m. EST Wednesday, Dec. 20.

December 18, 2017
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NASA Awards Contract for Aircraft Operations Support

NASA has awarded the Aircraft Maintenance, Logistics, Integration, Configuration Management and Engineering (ALICE) contract to Yulista Tactical Services, LLC in Huntsville, Alabama.

December 18, 2017
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NPR News: Could A Zap To The Brain Derail Destructive Impulses?

Could A Zap To The Brain Derail Destructive Impulses?
A brain implant already used to treat severe epilepsy might also help fend off impulses to abuse drugs or overeat before they happen, researchers say. But so far it's been tested mostly in mice.

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NPR News: Food And Drug Administration Plans Crackdown On Risky Homeopathic Remedies

Food And Drug Administration Plans Crackdown On Risky Homeopathic Remedies
FDA says homeopathy has grown into a $3 billion industry with treatments being sold for conditions ranging from the common cold to cancer. The agency will prioritize action against unsafe products.

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NPR News: Could A Zap To The Brain Derail Destructive Impulses?

Could A Zap To The Brain Derail Destructive Impulses?
A brain implant already used to treat severe epilepsy might also help fend off impulses to abuse drugs or overeat before they happen, researchers say. But so far it's been tested mostly in mice.

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NPR News: Food And Drug Administration Plans Crackdown On Risky Homeopathic Remedies

Food And Drug Administration Plans Crackdown On Risky Homeopathic Remedies
FDA says homeopathy has grown into a $3 billion industry with treatments being sold for conditions ranging from the common cold to cancer. The agency will prioritize action against unsafe products.

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NPR News: Kids Start To Test Surprising Claims By Early Elementary School

Kids Start To Test Surprising Claims By Early Elementary School
As many families prepare for a visit from Santa, and some face questions about the jolly old man in the red suit, a new study looks at how children react to surprising claims, says Tania Lombrozo.

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Nominations Process Opens for National Space Council Users’ Advisory Group

Public nominations now are being accepted from U.S. citizens and organizations for potential membership on an advisory group that will represent the perspectives, interests and expertise of industry and other non-federal entities to the National Space Council.

December 18, 2017
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NPR News: Older Adults' Forgetfulness Tied to Faulty Brain Rhythms In Sleep

Older Adults' Forgetfulness Tied to Faulty Brain Rhythms In Sleep
As people get older, brain waves that occur during deep sleep become less synchronized. This appears to disrupt a system that saves new memories.

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NPR News: Older Adults' Forgetfulness Tied to Faulty Brain Rhythms In Sleep

Older Adults' Forgetfulness Tied to Faulty Brain Rhythms In Sleep
As people get older, brain waves that occur during deep sleep become less synchronized. This appears to disrupt a system that saves new memories.

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Sunday, December 17, 2017

NPR News: How To Survive Climate Change? Clues Are Buried In The Arctic

How To Survive Climate Change? Clues Are Buried In The Arctic
Climate change isn't new. Scientists are studying an ancient civilization in the Arctic to figure out how they survived climate change. The clues are buried in a secret, seaside neighborhood.

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NPR News: Astronaut Trio Heads For Space Station To Continue Scientific Research

Astronaut Trio Heads For Space Station To Continue Scientific Research
The astronauts from the U.S., Russia and Japan blasted off early Sunday and are scheduled to arrive on Tuesday.

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NPR News: Secret Pentagon Program Spent Millions To Research UFOs

Secret Pentagon Program Spent Millions To Research UFOs
A Pentagon program spent $22 million researching "unidentified aerial phenomena," according to multiple reports. It was backed by former Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada.

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NPR News: Researching How To Fight Climate Change With Geoengineering

Researching How To Fight Climate Change With Geoengineering
NPR's Lulu Garcia Navarro talks with Rep. Jerry McNerney, Democrat of California, about his new bill to research the effects and risks of "geoengineering" the planet as a way to fight climate change.

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Three New Crew Members on Voyage to International Space Station

Three crew members representing the United States, Russia and Japan are on their way to the International Space Station after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 2:21 a.m. EST Sunday (1:21 p.m. Baikonur time).

December 17, 2017
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Saturday, December 16, 2017

The Einstein Cross Gravitational Lens


Most galaxies have a single nucleus -- does this galaxy have four? The strange answer leads astronomers to conclude that the nucleus of the surrounding galaxy is not even visible in this image. The central cloverleaf is rather light emitted from a background quasar. The gravitational field of the visible foreground galaxy breaks light from this distant quasar into four distinct images. The quasar must be properly aligned behind the center of a massive galaxy for a mirage like this to be evident. The general effect is known as gravitational lensing, and this specific case is known as the Einstein Cross. Stranger still, the images of the Einstein Cross vary in relative brightness, enhanced occasionally by the additional gravitational microlensing effect of specific stars in the foreground galaxy. via NASA http://ift.tt/2j8dLNf

NPR News: Hi, Robot: Adults, Children And The Uncanny Valley

Hi, Robot: Adults, Children And The Uncanny Valley
Guest bloggers Henry Wellman and Kimberly Brink reflect on their new study shedding light on how adults, older children and young children perceive human-like robots — and what the future might hold.

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NPR News: Hi, Robot: Adults, Children And The Uncanny Valley

Hi, Robot: Adults, Children And The Uncanny Valley
Guest bloggers Henry Wellman and Kimberly Brink reflect on their new study shedding light on how adults, older children and young children perceive human-like robots — and what the future might hold.

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NPR News: Black Farmers Are Sowing The Seeds Of Health And Empowerment

Black Farmers Are Sowing The Seeds Of Health And Empowerment
More than nine of 10 farm owners in the U.S. are white. A movement to change that is selling farming to people of color as a healthy lifestyle — and a way to fight discrimination.

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NPR News: Insights Into The Extinction Of The Passenger Pigeon

Insights Into The Extinction Of The Passenger Pigeon
Scientists have been searching through passenger pigeon DNA to try to explain how such a huge, abundant population of birds could go extinct so quickly.

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NPR News: The Future Of Polar Bears

The Future Of Polar Bears
NPR's Scott Simon asks Polar Bears International chief scientist Steven Amstrup if the animals can survive if sea ice continues to melt.

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NPR News: The Mystery Of The 'Oumuamua' Asteroid

The Mystery Of The 'Oumuamua' Asteroid
NPR's Scott Simon asks the SETI Institute's Seth Shostak about what scientists have learned so far about a recently detected interstellar object.

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NPR News: Harvey Dumped Up To 127 Billion Tons Of Water On Texas

Harvey Dumped Up To 127 Billion Tons Of Water On Texas
Scientists say they know the amount of rain that fell on Houston during Harvey through the pressure all that water put on the Earth's crust.

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NPR News: VIDEO: For LSD, What A Long Strange Trip It's Been

VIDEO: For LSD, What A Long Strange Trip It's Been
It's been reviled and revered, criminalized and exploited by the CIA. And now and other psychedelic drugs are being tested as legitimate medical treatments. NPR's original animation tells the tale.

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NPR News: VIDEO: For LSD, What A Long Strange Trip It's Been

VIDEO: For LSD, What A Long Strange Trip It's Been
It's been reviled and revered, criminalized and exploited by the CIA. And now and other psychedelic drugs are being tested as legitimate medical treatments. NPR's original animation tells the tale.

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NPR News: PHOTOS: Animals That Could Disappear Because Of Us

PHOTOS: Animals That Could Disappear Because Of Us
And the well-being of humans could suffer if the species go extinct. The images are from a new book, 'Endangered,' by Tim Flach.

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Friday, December 15, 2017

NPR News: Scientists Say Japanese Monkeys Are Having 'Sexual Interactions' With Deer

Scientists Say Japanese Monkeys Are Having 'Sexual Interactions' With Deer
Researchers witnessed adolescent female Japanese macaques mounting sika deer in ways that were "sexual in nature." They have several theories for why, but say more research is necessary.

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NPR News: What If Life On Earth Didn't Start On Earth?

What If Life On Earth Didn't Start On Earth?
Oumuamua marks the first time humans have seen a visitor pass through our corner of the universe — renewing discussions of the origins of life, says astrophysicist Adam Frank.

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NASA Sends New Research to Space Station Aboard SpaceX Resupply Mission

An experiment in space manufacturing and an enhanced study of solar energy are among the research currently heading to the International Space Station following Friday’s launch of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft at 10:36 a.m. EST.

December 15, 2017
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NPR News: Reinventing The Cheese Wheel: From Farmhouse To Factory And Back Again

Reinventing The Cheese Wheel: From Farmhouse To Factory And Back Again
A new book traces the transatlantic cheese wars that led to the rise of factory cheeses and loss of traditional varietals, and looks at the farmhouse cheesemakers working to restore that lost legacy.

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NPR News: Avocado Hand Injuries Are Real. Is A Seedless Fruit The Answer?

Avocado Hand Injuries Are Real. Is A Seedless Fruit The Answer?
Apparently people are showing up in the ER with nerve injuries from improperly cutting the pit out of an avocado. So now there's a cute new seedless variety.

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Geminids of the North


Earth's annual Geminid meteor shower did not disappoint as our fair planet plowed through dust from active asteroid 3200 Phaethon. Captured in this northern hemisphere nightscape, the meteors stream away from the shower's radiant in Gemini. To create the image, 37 individual frames recording meteor streaks were taken over period of 8.5 hours during the night of December 12/13. In the final composite they were selected and registered against the starry sky above a radio telescope dish of MUSER, a solar-dedicated radio telescope array at astronomically-named Mingantu Station in Inner Mongolia, China, about 400 kilometers from Beijing. Sirius, alpha star of Canis Major, shines brightly just above the radio dish and the Milky Way stretches toward the zenith. Yellowish Betelgeuse is a standout in Orion to the right of the northen Milky Way. The shower's radiant is at top left, high above the horizon near Castor and Pollux the twin stars of Gemini. The radiant effect is due to perspective as the parallel meteor tracks appear to converge in the distance. Gemini's meteors enter Earth's atmosphere traveling at about 22 kilometers per second. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BkhPVp

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Artificial Intelligence, NASA Data Used to Discover Eighth Planet Circling Distant Star

Our solar system now is tied for most number of planets around a single star, with the recent discovery of an eighth planet circling Kepler-90, a Sun-like star 2,545 light years from Earth. The planet was discovered in data from NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope.

December 14, 2017
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NPR News: Science Speed-Dating Aims To Boost Accuracy In TV And Film

Science Speed-Dating Aims To Boost Accuracy In TV And Film
When was the last time you got really excited by good science depicted in a movie? Anthropologist Barbara J. King joined scientists last week in helping producers make more accurate TV and movies.

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NPR News: Here Come The Penitent Penguins: The Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards Are Back

Here Come The Penitent Penguins: The Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards Are Back
Penitent penguins. A seal aghast. A turbocharged wigeon, a vain gnu and a kickboxing kangaroo. We have the photos.

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NASA Astronaut Bresnik and Crewmates Return to Earth From Space Station

Three crew members who have been living and working aboard the International Space Station returned to Earth on Thursday, landing in Kazakhstan after opening a new chapter in the scientific capability of humanity’s premier microgravity laboratory.

December 14, 2017
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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

NASA Television Updates Broadcast Schedule for Cargo Resupply Mission

NASA commercial cargo provider SpaceX now is targeting no earlier than 10:36 a.m. EST Friday, Dec. 15, for its 13th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station.

December 13, 2017
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NPR News: 3 Reasons Why California's Fire Risk Won't Dampen Anytime Soon

3 Reasons Why California's Fire Risk Won't Dampen Anytime Soon
The Thomas Fire, the fifth largest wildfire in California history, is a harbinger of things to come in the West.

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NPR News: Winemakers Worry Wildfires Will Leave Whiff Of Ashtray In Their Wine

Winemakers Worry Wildfires Will Leave Whiff Of Ashtray In Their Wine
Grapes exposed to smoke from wildfires can absorb compounds that carry over into wine and ruin the flavor. The problem is only expected to grow as extreme weather events become more frequent.

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NPR News: Without The U.S. Government, The World Unites To Fight Climate Change

Without The U.S. Government, The World Unites To Fight Climate Change
The One Planet Summit went on without President Trump Tuesday. But state and local leaders in attendance renewed calls for adherence to the Paris Agreement targets, says blogger Marcelo Gleiser.

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Tuesday, December 12, 2017

NPR News: Giant Prehistoric Penguins Once Swam Off The Coast Of New Zealand

Giant Prehistoric Penguins Once Swam Off The Coast Of New Zealand
Scientists have uncovered the fossil of an ancestral penguin off the east coast of New Zealand. It was one of the earliest known species of penguin and also one of the largest.

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NPR News: Astronomers Want To Know: Does This Interstellar Visitor Have A Message For Us?

Astronomers Want To Know: Does This Interstellar Visitor Have A Message For Us?
'Oumuamua is the first of its kind: an object from outside our solar system, observed by astronomers. Now, a group of researchers is trying to find out if it is transmitting any signs of life.

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NPR News: How Scientists Are Growing Mini Brains In Petri Dishes For Experiments

How Scientists Are Growing Mini Brains In Petri Dishes For Experiments
All week, All Things Considered is offering Highly Specific Superlatives in honor of the year that was. On Tuesday, we look at the weirdest leap forward in brain science. Researchers can now grow mini brains in a petri dish and then experiment on them.

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NPR News: An Asteroid Gets Its Close-Up As Gemenids Light Up The Sky

An Asteroid Gets Its Close-Up As Gemenids Light Up The Sky
The Earth's encounter with asteroid 3200 Phaethon on Saturday will be its closest since 1974 — and the closest it will be until 2093. The flyby means good gazing for amateur astronomers.

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NASA Awards Contract for Safety, Mission Assurance Support

NASA has awarded the Safety and Mission Assurance Support Services III (SMASS III) contract to A-P-T Research, Inc. of Huntsville, Alabama, for a broad range of services at the agency’s Headquarters in Washington, Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and various sites supported by Kennedy’s programs and projects.

December 12, 2017
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NPR News: Firefighters Struggle To Contain Southern California's Thomas Fire

Firefighters Struggle To Contain Southern California's Thomas Fire
Firefighters made some progress controlling the Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, which is the fifth-largest in the state's history. Other fires in the area are mostly contained.

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NPR News: Waste Not, Want Not: Drink Beer To Feed Fish And Help Save The Planet

Waste Not, Want Not: Drink Beer To Feed Fish And Help Save The Planet
Industry trailblazers are trying to lessen the energy and resource costs of aquaculture. Possible solutions include using brewery waste, algae, insects or even carbon dioxide to feed the fish we eat.

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NPR News: Arctic's Temperature Continues To Run Hot, Latest 'Report Card' Shows

Arctic's Temperature Continues To Run Hot, Latest 'Report Card' Shows
The extreme warming trend continues, and scientists fear that floating sea ice will be gone by mid-century. That will have extraordinary effects closer to home.

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NPR News: Amber-Trapped Tick Suggests Ancient Bloodsuckers Feasted On Feathered Dinosaurs

Amber-Trapped Tick Suggests Ancient Bloodsuckers Feasted On Feathered Dinosaurs
The tick was with a feather from a dinosaur that lived in the Cretaceous Period. Modern ticks love to bite mammals, and scientists have long wondered what the tiny vampires ate millions of years ago.

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NPR News: Amber-Trapped Tick Suggests Ancient Bloodsuckers Feasted On Feathered Dinosaurs

Amber-Trapped Tick Suggests Ancient Bloodsuckers Feasted On Feathered Dinosaurs
The tick was with a feather from a dinosaur that lived in the Cretaceous Period. Modern ticks love to bite mammals, and scientists have long wondered what the tiny vampires ate millions of years ago.

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NASA Establishes Advisory Group for National Space Council

NASA has established a new advisory group on behalf of the National Space Council that will represent the expertise, interests and perspectives of non-federal aerospace organizations to the National Space Council.

December 12, 2017
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Washington Students to Speak with NASA Astronaut on Space Station Today

Students from nine school districts in Port Orchard, Washington, will speak with a NASA astronaut living, working and doing research aboard the International Space Station at 1:10 p.m. EST today.

December 12, 2017
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NPR News: Lack Of Genetic Diversity May Have Doomed Tasmanian Tiger, Scientists Say

Lack Of Genetic Diversity May Have Doomed Tasmanian Tiger, Scientists Say
Although humans are blamed for the extinction of the dog-like Australian marsupial some 80 years ago, researchers say its problems may have started more than 70,000 years ago.

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NPR News: Lack Of Genetic Diversity May Have Doomed Tasmanian Tiger, Scientists Say

Lack Of Genetic Diversity May Have Doomed Tasmanian Tiger, Scientists Say
Although humans are blamed for the extinction of the dog-like Australian marsupial some 80 years ago, researchers say its problems may have started more than 70,000 years ago.

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Monday, December 11, 2017

Highlights of the Winter Sky


What's up in the sky this winter? The featured graphic gives a few highlights for Earth's northern hemisphere. Viewed as a clock face centered at the bottom, early winter sky events fan out toward the left, while late winter events are projected toward the right. Objects relatively close to Earth are illustrated, in general, as nearer to the cartoon figure with the telescope at the bottom center -- although almost everything pictured can be seen without a telescope. Highlights of this winter's sky include the Geminids meteor shower peaking this week, the constellation of Orion becoming notable in the evening sky, and many planets being visible before sunrise in February. As true in every season, the International Space Station (ISS) can be sometimes be found drifting across your sky if you know just when and where to look. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BzDWY7

NPR News: Macron Awards U.S. Climate Scientists Grants To 'Make Our Planet Great Again'

Macron Awards U.S. Climate Scientists Grants To 'Make Our Planet Great Again'
A day before an international summit on the climate, the French president offers some researchers an opportunity to make France a "second homeland."

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NPR News: Macron Awards U.S. Climate Scientists Grants To 'Make Our Planet Great Again'

Macron Awards U.S. Climate Scientists Grants To 'Make Our Planet Great Again'
A day before an international summit on the climate, the French president offers some researchers an opportunity to make France a "second homeland."

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New Space Policy Directive Calls for Human Expansion Across Solar System

President Donald Trump is sending astronauts back to the Moon.

December 11, 2017
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NPR News: How Labels Can Affect People's Personalities And Potential

How Labels Can Affect People's Personalities And Potential
What is it that makes you...you? How much of a person's personality and potential are based on the expectations of others? NPR's Shankar Vedantam explores new research that suggests the labels we use to categorize people affect not just who they are now, but who they'll become in the future.

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NPR News: President Trump Is Sending NASA Back To The Moon

President Trump Is Sending NASA Back To The Moon
"Space Policy Directive 1," which Trump signed Monday, sees Mars as the ultimate destination. But analysts wonder whether money will follow to support the plan.

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NPR News: How The Food Industry Uses Cavitation, The Ocean's Most Powerful Punch

How The Food Industry Uses Cavitation, The Ocean's Most Powerful Punch
Cavitation produces a bubble that rapidly collapses and becomes hotter than the sun's surface. The mantis shrimp uses it, and now so do food and drink firms, to improve flavors — from yogurt to beer.

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NASA Provides Coverage of Today’s Space Policy Directive Signing

NASA Television and the agency’s website will provide live coverage of the Space Policy Directive 1 signing ceremony at the White House at 3 p.m. EST today.

December 11, 2017
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NPR News: Science's Journey From Data To Truth

Science's Journey From Data To Truth
There's more to the scientific method than what you learn in high school: Scientists argue with each other, too, and the participation of nature, whose say is absolute, is key, says Adam Frank.

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NPR News: Could Probiotics Protect Kids From A Downside Of Antibiotics?

Could Probiotics Protect Kids From A Downside Of Antibiotics?
Many marketing claims about the potential benefits of probiotics have raced ahead of the science, say researchers who are now trying to catch up. One NIH study is investigating kids' gut microbes.

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NPR News: Could Probiotics Protect Kids From A Downside Of Antibiotics?

Could Probiotics Protect Kids From A Downside Of Antibiotics?
Many marketing claims about the potential benefits of probiotics have raced ahead of the science, say researchers who are now trying to catch up. One NIH study is investigating kids' gut microbes.

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NPR News: Evaluating Personality Tests

Evaluating Personality Tests
A drive to better understand ourselves and the people around us has led to the creation of a thriving industry built around personality testing.

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NPR News: Scientists Work To Stop Violence After Losing Their Child In Newtown

Scientists Work To Stop Violence After Losing Their Child In Newtown
After losing their child in the Newtown shooting five years ago, two scientists are working to identify the neurological roots of violence and antisocial behavior.

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Sunday, December 10, 2017

NPR News: How 311 Helped Understand Air Pollution After Harvey

How 311 Helped Understand Air Pollution After Harvey
NPR has obtained recordings of calls made by Houston residents fearful about putrid odors in the hours and days after Hurricane Harvey started flooding the city's petrochemical infrastructure.

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NPR News: Biologists With Drones And Peanut Butter Pellets Are On A Mission To Help Ferrets

Biologists With Drones And Peanut Butter Pellets Are On A Mission To Help Ferrets
To increase populations of the endangered black-footed ferret, scientists aim to save prairie dogs, a main food source. The biologists use drones and medicated peanut butter-flavored pellets to do it.

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Saturday, December 9, 2017

NPR News: Recycling Chaos In U.S. As China Bans 'Foreign Waste'

Recycling Chaos In U.S. As China Bans 'Foreign Waste'
The U.S. ships a big chunk of its recycled goods to China. But China doesn't want them anymore, and that's leaving the recycling industry in turmoil.

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Friday, December 8, 2017

Stardust in Aries


This composition in stardust covers over 8 degrees on the northern sky. The mosaicked field of view is west of the familiar Pleiades star cluster, toward the zodiacal constellation Aries and the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy. At right in the deep skyscape is bluish Epsilon Arietis, a star visible to the naked-eye and about 330 light-years away. Reflecting starlight in the region, dusty nebulae LBN762, LBN753, and LBN743 sprawl left to right across the field, but are likely some 1,000 light-years away. At that estimated distance, the cosmic canvas is over 140 light-years across. Near the edge of a large molecular cloud, their dark interiors can hide newly formed stars and young stellar objects or protostars from prying optical telescopes. Collapsing due to self-gravity, the protostars form around dense cores embedded in the molecular cloud. via NASA http://ift.tt/2A1Zfx4

The Moon Shines Brightly Among NASA’s 2017 Highlights

The Moon became a key focus point for NASA in 2017, whether it was blocking out the Sun during one of the most-viewed events in U.S. history, or reinvigorating the agency’s human space exploration plans.

December 07, 2017
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NPR News: In The U.S., Flu Season Could Be Unusually Harsh This Year

In The U.S., Flu Season Could Be Unusually Harsh This Year
Health officials fear the U.S. may have a nasty flu season because the main flu virus circulating this year tends to hit people hard and the flu vaccine may be weaker than normal.

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NPR News: In The U.S., Flu Season Could Be Unusually Harsh This Year

In The U.S., Flu Season Could Be Unusually Harsh This Year
Health officials fear the U.S. may have a nasty flu season because the main flu virus circulating this year tends to hit people hard and the flu vaccine may be weaker than normal.

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NASA Hosts Media Teleconference to Announce Latest Kepler Discovery

NASA will host a media teleconference at 1 p.m. EST Thursday, Dec. 14, to announce the latest discovery made by its planet-hunting Kepler space telescope.

December 08, 2017
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NPR News: Scientists Discover Grass Species With Intriguing 'Salt And Vinegar' Chip Flavor

Scientists Discover Grass Species With Intriguing 'Salt And Vinegar' Chip Flavor
Alas, you wouldn't want to eat this native of Western Australia — Spinifex grasses are often so hard and spiky that scientists say collecting samples can be painful.

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NPR News: Scientists Discover Grass Species With Intriguing 'Salt And Vinegar' Chip Flavor

Scientists Discover Grass Species With Intriguing 'Salt And Vinegar' Chip Flavor
Alas, you wouldn't want to eat this native of Western Australia — Spinifex grasses are often so hard and spiky that scientists say collecting samples can be painful.

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NPR News: Can Your Ceramic Cookware Give You Lead Poisoning?

Can Your Ceramic Cookware Give You Lead Poisoning?
Mass-produced crockpots and other ceramic food containers are probably safe, but handmade earthenware might merit a home test.

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NPR News: Adults Can Get Type 1 Diabetes, Too

Adults Can Get Type 1 Diabetes, Too
It used to be caused juvenile diabetes because the thought was it only started in childhood. But adults are as likely to be diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. No knowing that can delay treatment.

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NPR News: Adults Can Get Type 1 Diabetes, Too

Adults Can Get Type 1 Diabetes, Too
It used to be caused juvenile diabetes because the thought was it only started in childhood. But adults are as likely to be diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. No knowing that can delay treatment.

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Thursday, December 7, 2017

Alpine Superga Moonset


December's Full Moon phase occurred near perigee, the closest point in its orbit around our fair planet. Big and bright, the fully illuminated lunar disk sets over rugged mountains in this early morningscape from Turin, Italy. Captured just before sunrise on the opposite horizon, scattered sunlight near the edge of Earth's shadow provides the beautiful reddish glow of the alpine peaks. Hills in the foreground are still in shadow. But the scattered sunlight just illuminates the dome and towers of Turin's historic Basilica of Superga on a hilltop near the lower right in the telephoto frame. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BGwGG3

NPR News: Black Mothers Keep Dying After Giving Birth. Shalon Irving's Story Explains Why

Black Mothers Keep Dying After Giving Birth. Shalon Irving's Story Explains Why
Black women are three times more likely to die from complications of childbirth than white women in the U.S. Racism, and the stress it causes, can play a leading role in that disparity.

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NPR News: Watch: N.J. Dashcam Captures Brilliant Nighttime Streak

Watch: N.J. Dashcam Captures Brilliant Nighttime Streak
A police officer on patrol in the pre-dawn hours saw a meteor and managed to record it, which has lit up social media.

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NPR News: Is The Tide Of Antibiotic Use On Farms Now Turning?

Is The Tide Of Antibiotic Use On Farms Now Turning?
For the first time, government statistics show America's pigs, cattle, and poultry are getting fewer antibiotic drugs. Public health advocates call the new figures encouraging.

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NASA Selects Three Companies to Develop 'FabLab' Prototypes

NASA is taking the next step in the development of a space-based, on-demand fabrication capability by partnering with three U.S. companies, under NASA’s Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextSTEP) program, to create prototypes.

December 07, 2017
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NPR News: Why Your Brain Has Trouble Bailing Out Of A Bad Plan

Why Your Brain Has Trouble Bailing Out Of A Bad Plan
Researchers say it takes a lot of brainpower to stop an action, once it's underway. A study found that when people have to change a planned movement, 11 different brain areas have to get involved.

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NPR News: Stressed-Out Narwhals Don't Know Whether to Freeze or Flee, Scientists Find

Stressed-Out Narwhals Don't Know Whether to Freeze or Flee, Scientists Find
After being caught in a net, narwhals appear to get confused about what to do. Researchers say the whales' befuddlement could provide clues about how they will adapt to a changing Arctic.

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NASA Highlights Jupiter, Search for Life at American Geophysical Union

NASA researchers will present new findings on a wide range of Earth and space science topics at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union, Dec. 11-15 in New Orleans. NASA-related briefings will stream live on the agency’s website.

December 07, 2017
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NPR News: Researchers Look For Gun Violence Clues In Google Searches And Background Checks

Researchers Look For Gun Violence Clues In Google Searches And Background Checks
After the 2012 mass shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., there was a spike in gun sales. A study examined the spike and links increased gun exposure to more accidental firearm deaths.

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NPR News: Researchers Look For Gun Violence Clues In Google Searches And Background Checks

Researchers Look For Gun Violence Clues In Google Searches And Background Checks
After the 2012 mass shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., there was a spike in gun sales. A study examined the spike and links increased gun exposure to more accidental firearm deaths.

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NPR News: Strange Parallels: Alternative Histories In Physics And Culture

Strange Parallels: Alternative Histories In Physics And Culture
Ideas of parallel universes and alternative histories, once confined to mere rumination about lost opportunities and fictional scenarios, is now a firm part of science, says guest writer Paul Halpern.

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Wednesday, December 6, 2017

NPR News: Even Low-Dose Contraceptives Slightly Increase Breast Cancer Risk

Even Low-Dose Contraceptives Slightly Increase Breast Cancer Risk
The absolute risk is very low. But low-dose formulations of birth control pills and other hormone-releasing contraceptives pose about the same risk to breasts as older formulations, a big study finds.

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NPR News: Even Low-Dose Contraceptives Slightly Increase Breast Cancer Risk

Even Low-Dose Contraceptives Slightly Increase Breast Cancer Risk
The absolute risk is very low. But low-dose formulations of birth control pills and other hormone-releasing contraceptives pose about the same risk to breasts as older formulations, a big study finds.

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NPR News: Senior Volkswagen Executive Sentenced In Diesel-Emissions Scandal

Senior Volkswagen Executive Sentenced In Diesel-Emissions Scandal
Oliver Schmidt admitted to conspiring to defraud the United States by misleading federal regulators about the emissions of diesel cars and violating clean air laws.

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NPR News: 50+ Mayors Sign Pact To Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

50+ Mayors Sign Pact To Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Mayors from across the country say a lack of leadership in Washington on climate change is prompting them to take action themselves.

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NASA Television to Air Launch of Next Space Station Resupply Mission

NASA commercial cargo provider SpaceX is now targeting its 13th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station for no earlier than 11:46 a.m. EST Tuesday, Dec. 12.

December 06, 2017
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NPR News: Can Science Teach Us Something About How To Live?

Can Science Teach Us Something About How To Live?
In science, and in life, there is an artful balance between being cautious and adventurous; to find the balance takes experimentation, tolerance for mistakes, and humility, says Marcelo Gleiser.

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NASA Television Coverage Set for Space Station Crew Landing, Launch

Three crew members on the International Space Station are scheduled to end their mission and return to Earth on Thursday, Dec. 14, just days before another three space travelers begin their mission. Live coverage will air on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

December 06, 2017
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NPR News: Massive Black Hole Reveals When The First Stars Blinked On

Massive Black Hole Reveals When The First Stars Blinked On
Scientists have detected a black hole thought to be about 800 million times as massive as our sun that is helping to reveal when the universe filled with starlight.

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NPR News: Evaluating Smoking Bans

Evaluating Smoking Bans
A new study indicates that smoking bans, which were designed to affect adults' behavior, in fact improve children's health.

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NPR News: Evaluating Smoking Bans

Evaluating Smoking Bans
A new study indicates that smoking bans, which were designed to affect adults' behavior, in fact improve children's health.

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Tuesday, December 5, 2017

HH 666: Carina Dust Pillar with Jet


To some, it may look like a beehive harboring an evil bee. In reality, the featured Hubble image captures a cosmic pillar of dust, two-light years long, inside of which is Herbig-Haro 666 -- a young star emitting powerful jets. The structure lies within one of our galaxy's largest star forming regions, the Carina Nebula, shining in southern skies at a distance of about 7,500 light-years. The pillar's layered outline are shaped by the winds and radiation of Carina's young, hot, massive stars, some of which are still forming inside the nebula. A dust-penetrating view in infrared light better shows the two, narrow, energetic jets blasting outward from a still hidden infant star. via NASA http://ift.tt/2Bzxqww

NPR News: First Baby Born To U.S. Uterus Transplant Patient Raises Ethics Questions

First Baby Born To U.S. Uterus Transplant Patient Raises Ethics Questions
A woman who received a uterus transplant recently delivered a healthy baby boy. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with the doctors working on the experiment about its ethics, risk, and cost implications.

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NPR News: Ask The FCC

Ask The FCC
What do you want to ask an FCC commissioner?

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NPR News: What Would Enrico Fermi Think Of Science Today?

What Would Enrico Fermi Think Of Science Today?
More than 60 years after the physicist won the Nobel Prize, author David N. Schwartz considers how Fermi would react to today's science of black holes, genetic engineering and climate change.

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NASA Invites Media to Orion Spacecraft Parachute Test in Arizona

NASA is inviting media to attend a test of parachutes for the agency’s Orion spacecraft Wednesday, Dec. 13, at the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona.

December 05, 2017
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NPR News: Making Pizza In Space

Making Pizza In Space
Astronauts at the International Space Station sent down video of pizza night. Without gravity, they made pizza tossing look like a slow game of Frisbee.

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Monday, December 4, 2017

A Horizon with Blue and Red


What's happening on the horizon? The horizon itself, past a spinach field in Guatemala, shows not only trees but a large volcano: the Volcán de Fuego (Volcano of Fire). The red glow at the top of the volcano is hot lava. But your eye may also be drawn to the blue circle above the horizon on the left. This circle surrounds the Moon and, together with other colors, is called a corona. A corona is caused by diffraction of light -- here moonlight -- by small water droplets in the Earth's intervening atmosphere. A break in the clouds on the right shows stars and even the planet Saturn far beyond the volcano. Although Volcán de Fuego frequently undergoes low-level activity, the astrophotographer considered himself lucky to capture the scene just during an explosive eruption in late September. via NASA http://ift.tt/2klfuTd

NPR News: Across The World, If You Eat For Your Health, You'll Help The Planet

Across The World, If You Eat For Your Health, You'll Help The Planet
Dozens of countries have government-recommended diets. That advice differs from country to country, but according to a new study, following it generally would help the environment.

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NPR News: Across The World, If You Eat For Your Health, You'll Help The Planet

Across The World, If You Eat For Your Health, You'll Help The Planet
Dozens of countries have government-recommended diets. That advice differs from country to country, but according to a new study, following it generally would help the environment.

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NPR News: This Year's Hurricane Season Was Intense. Is It A Taste Of The Future?

This Year's Hurricane Season Was Intense. Is It A Taste Of The Future?
Scientists say they see the fingerprint of climate change in these storms, but it's too soon to say whether this is a new normal.

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NPR News: Peregrine Falcons Attack Like Missiles To Grab Prey Midair, Scientists Find

Peregrine Falcons Attack Like Missiles To Grab Prey Midair, Scientists Find
The same guidance principle that governs how missiles intercept moving targets also describes how the falcons, which are known to dive at 200 mph or more, plummet to catch their prey.

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NPR News: Peregrine Falcons Attack Like Missiles To Grab Prey Midair, Scientists Find

Peregrine Falcons Attack Like Missiles To Grab Prey Midair, Scientists Find
The same guidance principle that governs how missiles intercept moving targets also describes how the falcons, which are known to dive at 200 mph or more, plummet to catch their prey.

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NPR News: Trump Dramatically Shrinks 2 Utah National Monuments

Trump Dramatically Shrinks 2 Utah National Monuments
Reversing his predecessors' legacies, President Trump said his administration will shrink the Bears Ears National Monument by roughly 85 percent and the Grand Staircase by about half its size.

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NPR News: The Ground Beneath Our Feet

The Ground Beneath Our Feet
"Without proper care for it we can have no life."

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NPR News: Can Celebrity Scientists Change The Way People Think About Science And Religion?

Can Celebrity Scientists Change The Way People Think About Science And Religion?
Ideas on the relationship between science and religion — independence, compatibility, or conflict — have dominated popular debate. Tania Lombrozo looks at a study on the weight of big-name scientists.

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NPR News: Fishermen Fear Damage From Wind Farms Along The Eastern Seaboard

Fishermen Fear Damage From Wind Farms Along The Eastern Seaboard
Will thousands of giant turbines and underwater cables in the Atlantic disrupt the commercial fishing industry? The answer is not yet clear, and studies on the farms' possible impact are underway.

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NPR News: Trump To Take Aim At Utah's National Monuments, Reversing Predecessors' Legacies

Trump To Take Aim At Utah's National Monuments, Reversing Predecessors' Legacies
President Trump on Monday is expected to announce that his administration will dramatically shrink two large national monuments that protect hundreds of thousands of acres of public land in Utah.

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NPR News: Trump To Take Aim At Utah's National Monuments, Reversing Predecessors' Legacies

Trump To Take Aim At Utah's National Monuments, Reversing Predecessors' Legacies
President Trump on Monday is expected to announce that his administration will dramatically shrink two large national monuments that protect hundreds of thousands of acres of public land in Utah.

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NPR News: New Drugs Could Prevent Migraine Headaches For Some People

New Drugs Could Prevent Migraine Headaches For Some People
The first drugs designed specifically to prevent migraines have been found safe and effective in studies, but aren't yet FDA approved. Both drugs work by tweaking a brain system involved in pain.

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NPR News: New Drugs Could Prevent Migraine Headaches For Some People

New Drugs Could Prevent Migraine Headaches For Some People
The first drugs designed specifically to prevent migraines have been found safe and effective in studies, but aren't yet FDA approved. Both drugs work by tweaking a brain system involved in pain.

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Sunday, December 3, 2017

NPR News: The Many Eyes Of Scallops

The Many Eyes Of Scallops
Scientists have discovered that the sea scallop has an incredibly complicated eyesight system.

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NPR News: Encore: Blue Light And Sleep

Encore: Blue Light And Sleep
Lots of phone and tablet apps promise to improve sleep by filtering the blue light from device screens. But that won't help if you're not getting enough shuteye because of caffeine or stress.

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NPR News: The Call-In: DNA Testing

The Call-In: DNA Testing
NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro asks listener Maria Colon what about DNA testing kits interests her and then turns to The Gene author Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee for more information.

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Saturday, December 2, 2017

NPR News: U.N. Body Alarmed Over Mining Waste Disasters

U.N. Body Alarmed Over Mining Waste Disasters
A report by the United Nations Environmental Programme offers recommendations to stop the failure of dams holding mine waste. Will governments and industry leaders sign on?

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Friday, December 1, 2017

NPR News: The Soybean Is King, Yet Remains Invisible

The Soybean Is King, Yet Remains Invisible
For the first time in history, soybeans are about to become America's most widely grown crop. Yet compared to corn or wheat, they remain curiously invisible in American culture.

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NPR News: Complexity Of Touring With Rosewood Instruments May Soon Be Eased

Complexity Of Touring With Rosewood Instruments May Soon Be Eased
Complex regulations around the material, including a confusing permit process for musicians, may be much easier to navigate after a meeting today in Geneva.

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NASA Television to Air Launch of Next Space Station Resupply Mission

NASA commercial cargo provider SpaceX is targeting its 13th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station for no earlier than 1:20 p.m. EST Friday, Dec. 8.

December 01, 2017
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NPR News: Health Risks To Farmworkers Increase As Workforce Ages

Health Risks To Farmworkers Increase As Workforce Ages
As the number of immigrants available for farm work has dwindled in California, many who are left are older, and suffer from health problems related to decades of difficult labor.

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NPR News: A Tax That Would Hurt Science's Most Valuable — And Vulnerable

A Tax That Would Hurt Science's Most Valuable — And Vulnerable
Grad students are the engines of America's scientific and technological prowess — with an amazing return on investment, says professor Adam Frank.

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NPR News: A Tax That Would Hurt Science's Most Valuable — And Vulnerable

A Tax That Would Hurt Science's Most Valuable — And Vulnerable
Grad students are the engines of America's scientific and technological prowess — with an amazing return on investment, says professor Adam Frank.

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NPR News: How Birth Order Relates To Job Success

How Birth Order Relates To Job Success
New social science research explores the relationship between who becomes a CEO and family birth order. First-born sons are far more likely to be represented among the ranks of CEOs.

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NPR News: How Birth Order Relates To Job Success

How Birth Order Relates To Job Success
New social science research explores the relationship between who becomes a CEO and family birth order. First-born sons are far more likely to be represented among the ranks of CEOs.

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Thursday, November 30, 2017

NPR News: The Genetic Divide Between NYC's Uptown And Downtown Rats

The Genetic Divide Between NYC's Uptown And Downtown Rats
Fordham University graduate student Matthew Combs studies the DNA of New York City's rats. He found that rats living uptown are genetically distinct from rats living downtown.

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NPR News: The Genetic Divide Between NYC's Uptown And Downtown Rats

The Genetic Divide Between NYC's Uptown And Downtown Rats
Fordham University graduate student Matthew Combs studies the DNA of New York City's rats. He found that rats living uptown are genetically distinct from rats living downtown.

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North America and the Pelican


Fans of our fair planet might recognize the outlines of these cosmic clouds. On the left, bright emission outlined by dark, obscuring dust lanes seems to trace a continental shape, lending the popular name North America Nebula to the emission region cataloged as NGC 7000. To the right, just off the North America Nebula's east coast, is IC 5070, whose profile suggests the Pelican Nebula. The two bright nebulae are about 1,500 light-years away, part of the same large and complex star forming region, almost as nearby as the better-known Orion Nebula. At that distance, the 6 degree wide field of view would span 150 light-years. This careful cosmic portrait uses narrow band images to highlight the bright ionization fronts and the characteristic red glow from atomic hydrogen gas. These nebulae can be seen with binoculars from a dark location. Look northeast of bright star Deneb in the constellation of Cygnus the Swan. via NASA http://ift.tt/2jysEbh

NASA TV to Broadcast Departure of Cygnus Cargo Spacecraft from International Space Station

After delivering almost 7,400 pounds of cargo to support dozens of science experiments from around the world, the Orbital ATK Cygnus cargo spacecraft is set to leave the International Space Station on Wednesday, Dec. 6. NASA Television and the agency’s website will provide live coverage of Cygnus' departure beginning at 7:45 a.m. EST.

November 30, 2017
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NASA Statement on Nomination for Agency Chief Financial Officer

The following is a statement from acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot on Wednesday’s announcement of the intended nomination by President Donald Trump of Jeffrey DeWit to serve as the agency’s Chief Financial Officer:

November 30, 2017
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NPR News: Rare And Mysterious Vomiting Illness Linked To Heavy Marijuana Use

Rare And Mysterious Vomiting Illness Linked To Heavy Marijuana Use
For a small percentage of people who smoke marijuana, long term use can make them sick with violent vomiting.California doctors worry they'll see more cases when pot is fully legalized in January.

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NPR News: Afghan Girls Robotics Team Takes Home A Top Honor In European Contest

Afghan Girls Robotics Team Takes Home A Top Honor In European Contest
The team previously made headlines when their U.S. visa was temporarily denied. Now they've won first place in the "Entrepreneurial Challenge" in Estonia, at Europe's largest robotics festival.

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First Space Station Crew of 2018 Available for News Conference, Interviews

NASA astronauts A.J. (Drew) Feustel and Ricky Arnold, and crewmate Oleg Artemyev of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, will discuss their upcoming mission to the International Space Station in a news conference at 2 p.m. EST Thursday, Dec. 7, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

November 30, 2017
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NPR News: Hundreds Of Eggs From Ancient Flying Reptile Are Found In China

Hundreds Of Eggs From Ancient Flying Reptile Are Found In China
The fossilized pterosaur eggs and embryos shed light on the Lower Cretaceous creature's development and nesting habits. The cache was found where the reptile was once abundant, dubbed Pterosaur Eden.

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NPR News: Hundreds Of Eggs From Ancient Flying Reptile Are Found In China

Hundreds Of Eggs From Ancient Flying Reptile Are Found In China
The fossilized pterosaur eggs and embryos shed light on the Lower Cretaceous creature's development and nesting habits. The cache was found where the reptile was once abundant, dubbed Pterosaur Eden.

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NPR News: New North Korean Missile Is A 'Monster'

New North Korean Missile Is A 'Monster'
Analysts say the North's latest intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-15, is larger and more powerful than anything it has built before.

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NPR News: Silence

Silence
Shhhhh.

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NPR News: Health Insurers Are Still Skimping On Mental Health Coverage

Health Insurers Are Still Skimping On Mental Health Coverage
Behavioral care is four times more likely to be out-of-network than medical or surgical care, a nationwide study shows. That can make treatment unaffordable even for people who have health insurance.

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NPR News: Health Insurers Are Still Skimping On Mental Health Coverage

Health Insurers Are Still Skimping On Mental Health Coverage
Behavioral care is four times more likely to be out-of-network than medical or surgical care, a nationwide study shows. That can make treatment unaffordable even for people who have health insurance.

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NPR News: A Cultural Project In Polynesia Has The Power To Teach Us All

A Cultural Project In Polynesia Has The Power To Teach Us All
Polynesia was colonized by the French and, even today, Polynesians are taught more about French history than their own. A new archaeological project aims to change that, says Barbara J. King.

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NPR News: Working Moms Have Been A 'Thing' Since Ancient History

Working Moms Have Been A 'Thing' Since Ancient History
Who ruled early farming? Women! Studies of ancient bones show that women's physical labor was crucial to driving the agricultural revolution in Europe.

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NPR News: Women's Role In The European Agricultural Revolution Revealed

Women's Role In The European Agricultural Revolution Revealed
Studies of ancient bones show that women's physical labor was crucial to driving the agricultural revolution in Europe. These women's upper bodies were stronger than that of elite athletes today.

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NPR News: Women's Role In The European Agricultural Revolution Revealed

Women's Role In The European Agricultural Revolution Revealed
Studies of ancient bones show that women's physical labor was crucial to driving the agricultural revolution in Europe. These women's upper bodies were stronger than that of elite athletes today.

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NPR News: The Tree That Rocked The Music Industry

The Tree That Rocked The Music Industry
This year, new international regulations on rosewood have reverberated through the music industry, costing tens of millions in lost sales and extra administrative costs.

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Wednesday, November 29, 2017

M33: Triangulum Galaxy


The small, northern constellation Triangulum harbors this magnificent face-on spiral galaxy, M33. Its popular names include the Pinwheel Galaxy or just the Triangulum Galaxy. M33 is over 50,000 light-years in diameter, third largest in the Local Group of galaxies after the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), and our own Milky Way. About 3 million light-years from the Milky Way, M33 is itself thought to be a satellite of the Andromeda Galaxy and astronomers in these two galaxies would likely have spectacular views of each other's grand spiral star systems. As for the view from planet Earth, this sharp composite image nicely shows off M33's blue star clusters and pinkish star forming regions along the galaxy's loosely wound spiral arms. In fact, the cavernous NGC 604 is the brightest star forming region, seen here at about the 7 o'clock position from the galaxy center. Like M31, M33's population of well-measured variable stars have helped make this nearby spiral a cosmic yardstick for establishing the distance scale of the Universe. via NASA http://ift.tt/2zzRm20

NPR News: Science And The Mystery Of The Mind

Science And The Mystery Of The Mind
We are still as ignorant about the "passage from the physics of the brain to the corresponding facts of consciousness" as John Tyndall and his Victorian colleagues were, says Marcelo Gleiser.

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NPR News: Scientists Move A Step Closer To Making Synthetic Life

Scientists Move A Step Closer To Making Synthetic Life
Bacteria engineered with an expanded genetic alphabet can produce novel proteins, which could lead to the development of new drugs.

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NPR News: Scientists Move A Step Closer To Making Synthetic Life

Scientists Move A Step Closer To Making Synthetic Life
Bacteria engineered with an expanded genetic alphabet can produce novel proteins, which could lead to the development of new drugs.

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NPR News: Gene Therapy Shows Promise For A Growing List Of Diseases

Gene Therapy Shows Promise For A Growing List Of Diseases
After decades of hope and disappointment, doctors have now been able to treat several different types of genetic conditions by giving each patient a healthy version of their defective gene.

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NPR News: Gene Therapy Shows Promise For A Growing List Of Diseases

Gene Therapy Shows Promise For A Growing List Of Diseases
After decades of hope and disappointment, doctors have now been able to treat several different types of genetic conditions by giving each patient a healthy version of their defective gene.

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NPR News: North Korea Launches An Apparent ICBM

North Korea Launches An Apparent ICBM
It flew higher — and for longer — than previous tests, theoretically putting the entire continental U.S. within Pyongyang's reach — a capability that the North Korean regime has long sought.

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NPR News: Climate Scientists Watch Their Words, Hoping To Stave Off Funding Cuts

Climate Scientists Watch Their Words, Hoping To Stave Off Funding Cuts
After years of budget and political pressure, some climate scientists are changing the way they describe their research, and avoiding the term "climate change."

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NPR News: People Like People Who Ask Questions

People Like People Who Ask Questions
A new study says people who ask more questions, particularly follow-up questions, are liked better by their conversation partners.

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NPR News: The NHL And CTE

The NHL And CTE
The NFL has been more active than the NHL in addressing concerns about concussions and CTE. David Greene talks with neuroscientist Charles Tator talks about hockey's tepid response.

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NPR News: Trump Picks Businessman To Lead NOAA

Trump Picks Businessman To Lead NOAA
Senators are about to get their chance to grill the nominee for head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Critics say he has a conflict of interest.

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Tuesday, November 28, 2017

NPR News: Robot Muscles Inspired By Origami Lift 1000 Times Their Weight

Robot Muscles Inspired By Origami Lift 1000 Times Their Weight
The delicate art of paper folding is playing a crucial role in designing robotic artificial muscles that are startlingly strong. The design uses a soft material and could be safer around humans.

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NPR News: Robot Muscles Inspired By Origami Lift 1000 Times Their Weight

Robot Muscles Inspired By Origami Lift 1000 Times Their Weight
The delicate art of paper folding is playing a crucial role in designing robotic artificial muscles that are startlingly strong. The design uses a soft material and could be safer around humans.

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NPR News: Testosterone May Help Protect Men From Asthma

Testosterone May Help Protect Men From Asthma
Women are more likely to have asthma than men. One possible reason? Testosterone could block a protein that helps spark an asthma attack, a study finds, while estrogen may not.

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NPR News: Testosterone May Help Protect Men From Asthma

Testosterone May Help Protect Men From Asthma
Women are more likely to have asthma than men. One possible reason? Testosterone could block a protein that helps spark an asthma attack, a study finds, while estrogen may not.

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NPR News: 75 Years Ago, Scientists Conducted An Unprecedented Nuclear Experiment

75 Years Ago, Scientists Conducted An Unprecedented Nuclear Experiment
On Dec. 2, 1942, a group of scientists in Chicago created the first controlled, self-sustained nuclear chain reaction, which would prove essential to developing an atomic bomb a few years later.

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NPR News: The Ancient Andean Tradition of Eating Clay May Have Helped To Protect Health

The Ancient Andean Tradition of Eating Clay May Have Helped To Protect Health
Farmers in Peru's Andean highlands have been consuming clay for centuries. Scientists now think it may have allowed them to eat wild potatoes, which are rich in toxic chemicals.

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NPR News: Does This Robot Freak You Out?

Does This Robot Freak You Out?
Something like Atlas, Spot and Handle will likely inhabit the world we're now building — and their weirdness will be just commonplace, says astrophysicist Adam Frank.

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Monday, November 27, 2017

Juno Spots a Complex Storm on Jupiter


Some storms on Jupiter are quite complex. The swirling storm was captured late last month by the NASA's robotic Juno spacecraft currently orbiting the Solar System's largest planet. The featured image spans about 30,000 kilometers, making this storm system just about as wide as planet Earth. The disturbance rotates counter-clockwise and shows a cloud pattern that includes light-colored updrafts thought to be composed predominantly of ammonia ice. These light clouds are the highest up and even cast discernable shadows toward the right. Juno will continue to orbit and probe Jupiter over the next few years as it tries to return data that help us to better understand Jupiter's atmospheric water abundance and if the planet has a solid surface underneath these fascinating clouds. via NASA http://ift.tt/2BrWOVG

NPR News: Dance By The Light Of The 2017 Supermoon: The How And When

Dance By The Light Of The 2017 Supermoon: The How And When
The last and only visible such moon of 2017 will appear Dec. 3. The best time to see it is at sunset or sunrise, when the moon is near the horizon.

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NPR News: Puerto Rico's Medical Manufacturers Worry Federal Tax Plan Could Kill Storm Recovery

Puerto Rico's Medical Manufacturers Worry Federal Tax Plan Could Kill Storm Recovery
Drug companies and medical device makers in Puerto Rico are still struggling with power and staffing shortages. One device manufacturer says the future of his industry on the island in uncertain.

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NPR News: Video: A View Of A Breathing Earth

Video: A View Of A Breathing Earth
In this visualization, based on data collected by scientists, we see Earth changing — its plants, surface winds, and sea currents responding to the energy coming from the sun, says Marcelo Gleiser.

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NPR News: Apps Can Cut Blue Light From Devices, But Do They Help You Sleep?

Apps Can Cut Blue Light From Devices, But Do They Help You Sleep?
Lots of phone and tablet apps promise to improve sleep by filtering out the blue light from device screens. But that won't help if the reason you're not getting enough shuteye is caffeine or stress.

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NPR News: Light Therapy Might Help People With Bipolar Depression

Light Therapy Might Help People With Bipolar Depression
Light therapy can help treat depression that's part of seasonal affective disorder, but it hasn't worked so well for treating bipolar disorder. It may come down to when people are exposed to light.

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NPR News: Indonesia Tries To Evacuate 100,000 People Away From Erupting Volcano On Bali

Indonesia Tries To Evacuate 100,000 People Away From Erupting Volcano On Bali
Mount Agung began spewing ash last week, but over the weekend authorities raised the alert level for a possible larger eruption and expanded a danger zone around the base of the volcano.

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Sunday, November 26, 2017

NPR News: Flat-Earther Postpones Launch In His Homemade Rocket, Saying 'It's Not Easy'

Flat-Earther Postpones Launch In His Homemade Rocket, Saying 'It's Not Easy'
Mike Hughes had planned to launch himself Saturday over the Mojave Desert in a quest to prove the world is flat. But he didn't count on a federal agency's rejection — or a significant tech breakdown.

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Saturday, November 25, 2017

NPR News: Idaho Dims The Lights For One Of The Best Night Skies Anywhere

Idaho Dims The Lights For One Of The Best Night Skies Anywhere
Central Idaho hopes to land on a very short list of the best places on Earth to see the Milky Way at night.

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Friday, November 24, 2017

Crossing Horizons


Follow this vertical panoramic view from horizon to horizon and your gaze will sweep through the zenith of a dark night sky over Pic du Midi mountaintop observatory. To make the journey above a sea of clouds, 19 single exposures were taken near the end of night on October 31 and assembled in a mercator projection that renders the two horizons flat. Begin at the top and you're looking east toward the upsidedown dome of the observatory's 1 meter telescope. It's easy to follow the plane of our Milky Way galaxy as it appears to emerge from the dome and angle down toward the far horizon. Just to its right, the sky holds a remarkable diffuse glow of zodiacal light along our Solar System's ecliptic plane. Zodiacal light and Milky Way with star clusters, cosmic dust clouds and faint nebulae, cross near the zenith. Both continue down toward the airglow in the west. They disappear near the western horizon at the bottom, beyond more Pic du Midi observatory domes and a tall communications relay antenna. via NASA http://ift.tt/2iNjjwX

NPR News: Less Waste, More Taste: A Master Chef Reimagines Thanksgiving Leftovers

Less Waste, More Taste: A Master Chef Reimagines Thanksgiving Leftovers
Over this Thanksgiving week, Americans will toss almost 200 million pounds of turkey alone. Massimo Bottura helps us fight food waste by showing us how to turn leftovers into a world-class new meal.

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NPR News: To Save Water, Should You Wash Your Hands Of Hand Washing Dishes?

To Save Water, Should You Wash Your Hands Of Hand Washing Dishes?
The sustainable choice between the dishwasher and a manual scrub-down may just boil down to your washing style — but it's hard to beat today's efficient machines.

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NPR News: NASA Taps Young People To Help Develop Virtual Reality Technology

NASA Taps Young People To Help Develop Virtual Reality Technology
Scientists at NASA's Goddard Spaceflight Center are hoping to use virtual reality technology to study space, and Earth, without leaving their offices. Talented high school students are helping.

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NPR News: The Sea Level Threat To Cities Depends On Where The Ice Melts — Not Just How Fast

The Sea Level Threat To Cities Depends On Where The Ice Melts — Not Just How Fast
Identifying where ice melts can help cities in planning for a future with elevated sea levels. In New York City, the sea level would be affected more by melting ice in northern Greenland than Canada.

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NPR News: NASA Taps Young People To Help Develop Virtual Reality Technology

NASA Taps Young People To Help Develop Virtual Reality Technology
Scientists at NASA's Goddard Spaceflight Center are hoping to use virtual reality technology to study space, and Earth, without leaving their offices. Talented high school students are helping.

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Thursday, November 23, 2017

Apollo 17 at Shorty Crater


In December of 1972, Apollo 17 astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spent about 75 hours on the Moon in the Taurus-Littrow valley, while colleague Ronald Evans orbited overhead. This sharp image was taken by Cernan as he and Schmitt roamed the valley floor. The image shows Schmitt on the left with the lunar rover at the edge of Shorty Crater, near the spot where geologist Schmitt discovered orange lunar soil. The Apollo 17 crew returned with 110 kilograms of rock and soil samples, more than was returned from any of the other lunar landing sites. Forty five years later, Cernan and Schmitt are still the last to walk on the Moon. via NASA http://ift.tt/2iHLwoC

NPR News: Human Brains Have Evolved Unique 'Feel-Good' Circuits

Human Brains Have Evolved Unique 'Feel-Good' Circuits
A comparison of brain tissue from monkeys, chimps and humans suggests that our brains produce the chemical messenger dopamine, which plays a major role in pleasure and rewards, far differently.

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NPR News: Human Brains Have Evolved Unique 'Feel-Good' Circuits

Human Brains Have Evolved Unique 'Feel-Good' Circuits
A comparison of brain tissue from monkeys, chimps and humans suggests that our brains produce the chemical messenger dopamine, which plays a major role in pleasure and rewards, far differently.

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Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka


Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka, are the bright bluish stars from east to west (lower right to upper left) along the diagonal in this cosmic vista. Otherwise known as the Belt of Orion, these three blue supergiant stars are hotter and much more massive than the Sun. They lie from 800 to 1,500 light-years away, born of Orion's well-studied interstellar clouds. In fact, clouds of gas and dust adrift in this region have some surprisingly familiar shapes, including the dark Horsehead Nebula and Flame Nebula near Alnitak at the lower right. The famous Orion Nebula itself is off the right edge of this colorful starfield. This well-framed, 2-panel telescopic mosaic spans about 4 degrees on the sky. via NASA http://ift.tt/2A3km2Q

NPR News: Earth Increasingly Looks Lit-Up At Night

Earth Increasingly Looks Lit-Up At Night
Over the last five years, global light pollution has increased nearly 10 percent, a new study shows, The fastest rise occurred in developing nations.

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NPR News: Earth Increasingly Looks Lit-Up At Night

Earth Increasingly Looks Lit-Up At Night
Over the last five years, global light pollution has increased nearly 10 percent, a new study shows, The fastest rise occurred in developing nations.

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NPR News: If The Developing World Can Go Solar, Maybe Puerto Rico Can Too

If The Developing World Can Go Solar, Maybe Puerto Rico Can Too
With most of the island still without electricity, some Puerto Ricans are hoping to follow the example of developing world countries — and turn to the sun for power.

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New York Students to Speak with NASA Astronauts on Space Station

Students at U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York, will speak with NASA astronauts living, working and doing research aboard the International Space Station at 9:15 a.m. EST Monday, Nov. 27.

November 22, 2017
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NPR News: From 'Inky's Great Escape' To Singing Seahorses: Animal Books For The Holidays

From 'Inky's Great Escape' To Singing Seahorses: Animal Books For The Holidays
From real-life, seaweed-carrying dolphins to fictional singing seahorses, animals in these new books can excite the mind, says anthropologist Barbara J. King.

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Tuesday, November 21, 2017


Nothing like it has ever been seen before. The unusual space rock 'Oumuamua is so intriguing mainly because it is the first asteroid ever detected from outside our Solar System -- although likely many more are to follow given modern computer-driven sky monitoring. Therefore humanity's telescopes -- of nearly every variety -- have put 'Oumuamua into their observing schedule to help better understand this unusual interstellar visitor. Pictured is an artist's illustration of what 'Oumuamua might look like up close. 'Oumuamua is also intriguing, however, because it has unexpected parallels to Rama, a famous fictional interstellar spaceship created by the late science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke. Like Rama, 'Oumuamua is unusually elongated, should be made of strong material to avoid breaking apart, is only passing through our Solar System, and passed unusually close to the Sun for something gravitationally unbound. Unlike a visiting spaceship, though, 'Oumuamua's trajectory, speed, color, and even probability of detection are consistent with it forming naturally around a normal star many millions of years ago, being expelled after gravitationally encountering a normal planet, and subsequently orbiting in our Galaxy alone. Even given 'Oumuamua's likely conventional origin, perhaps humanity can hold hope that one day we will have the technology to engineer 'Oumuamua -- or another Solar System interloper -- into an interstellar Rama of our own. via NASA http://ift.tt/2jLMtjj

NPR News: What The Industry Knew About Sugar's Health Effects, But Didn't Tell Us

What The Industry Knew About Sugar's Health Effects, But Didn't Tell Us
The sugar industry pulled the plug on an animal study it funded in the 1960s. Initial results pointed to a link between sugar consumption and elevated triglycerides, which raises heart disease risk.

Read more on NPR

NPR News: What The Industry Knew About Sugar's Health Effects, But Didn't Tell Us

What The Industry Knew About Sugar's Health Effects, But Didn't Tell Us
The sugar industry pulled the plug on an animal study it funded in the 1960s. Initial results pointed to a link between sugar consumption and elevated triglycerides, which raises heart disease risk.

Read more on NPR