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The Two-Way
11:54 am
Fri February 1, 2013

On the Edge? Zimbabwe Briefly Had Just $217 In the Bank

Credit AP
Zimbabwean foreign currency dealers conduct a transaction from the trunk of a car using money stashed in a cooler box in Harare.

Originally published on Mon February 4, 2013 12:52 pm

"If Zimbabwe was a private company it would have closed down," Zimbabwean finance minister Tendai Biti told reporters this week. At a meeting in Harare, the capital, Biti told a group of reporters his country had just $217 in the treasury, according to the Guardian.

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The Salt
11:33 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Pig Out In The Winter Or When Money's Tight? Blame Evolution

Credit Daniel M.N. Turner / NPR
When times are tough, that prehistoric urge to splurge on high-calorie treats like M&Ms still kicks in.

Originally published on Fri February 1, 2013 4:39 pm

Has the recession made you fat?

To the long and growing list of risk factors known to increase the risk of obesity, scientists recently added a new one: scarcity.

People given subtle cues that they may have to confront harsh conditions in the near future choose to eat higher-calorie food than they might do otherwise, a response that researchers believe is shaped by the long hand of evolution.

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Economy
11:12 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Can A Housing Comeback Save Lagging Job Numbers?

The winter may not be over, but economists are looking to spring for good news when it comes to jobs. Host Michel Martin speaks with NPR Senior Business Editor Marilyn Geewax about whether a strengthening housing market could boost stalling jobs numbers.

Shots - Health News
11:02 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Are NFL Football Hits Getting Harder And More Dangerous?

Originally published on Mon February 4, 2013 6:56 am

Super Bowl XLVII will kick off Sunday with its typical bombastic fanfare: Beyonce will wow us with her live halftime show, and "space baby" commercials will overload us with cuteness.

But this year, there's a gray cloud hanging over the Super Bowl: the mounting anger about devastating injuries to players' brains and bodies.

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NPR Story
10:57 am
Fri February 1, 2013

How Owls Turn Heads

Originally published on Fri February 1, 2013 12:03 pm

Transcript

IRA FLATOW, HOST:

Up next, Flora Lichtman is here with Video Pick of the Week, fresh from being the recent winner of the Cyberscreen Film Festival. Well, congratulations, Flora.

FLORA LICHTMAN, BYLINE: Oh, thank you, Ira.

FLATOW: It was for optical illusion piece.

LICHTMAN: Yes. Step into an optical illusion was the winner. Thank you. But, really, I mean, I'm still stuck on dung beetles.

(LAUGHTER)

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NPR Story
10:57 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Dung Beetles Use Cosmic GPS to Find Their Way

Originally published on Fri February 1, 2013 12:03 pm

Transcript

IRA FLATOW, HOST:

Now for a surprising find from the insect world. The dung beetle, that insect known for sculpting little balls of animal feces that they roll around and later feast on. Well, it turns out that these beetles have a built-in cosmic GPS that helps them navigate around. Dung beetles use light - listen to this - use light from the Milky Way to orient themselves at night. It's all in a paper published earlier this month in the journal Current Biology.

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NPR Story
10:57 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Preserving Science News in an Online World

Originally published on Fri February 1, 2013 12:49 pm

Transcript

IRA FLATOW, HOST:

This is SCIENCE FRIDAY, I'm Ira Flatow. When you read a news article online, how much attention do you pay to the comments that follow at the bottom? What about how many times the story has been re-tweeted or how many Facebook likes it has? Do you pay attention to those?

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Law
10:54 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Border Mayors On Frontier Of Immigration Debate

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin, and this is TELL ME MORE, from NPR News. Coming up, unemployment is up, the GDP is down, but economists are still kind of happy - well, as happy as economists get. NPR's Marilyn Geewax is going to interpret all that for us in just a few minutes. But first, we turn to a debate that our national leaders are finally taking up again over how to fix an immigration system that just about everybody agrees is broken.

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Faith Matters
10:54 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Rockaway Residents Undergoing Faith-Testing Times

Congress passed an emergency aid package for Superstorm Sandy victims earlier this week. But three months after the storm, many hard-hit neighborhoods are still suffering. Host Michel Martin checks back with Monsignor John Brown of St. Francis de Sales in Rockaway, Queens, to discuss how the community is recovering.

Barbershop
10:54 am
Fri February 1, 2013

Is Pre-Super Bowl Drama Fair Game?

It's Super Bowl time and the Barbershop guys are serving up some dish with those wings. Host Michel Martin and the guys discuss how one 49ers player is in hot water for anti-gay comments. They also talk about why some people still hate the Ravens' Ray Lewis, more than a decade after he was cleared of murder charges.

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