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Superstorm Sandy: Before, During And Beyond
2:12 pm
Wed January 23, 2013

In Lower Manhattan, Sandy Still Keeping Businesses Dark

Credit Spencer Platt / Getty Images
People walk past a closed business affected by Hurricane Sandy in the heavily damaged South Street Seaport in New York City in December.

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 5:53 pm

When compared with its neighbors Coney Island and the Rockaways, Manhattan seemed hardly touched by the waters and winds of Superstorm Sandy in late October. But almost three months later, areas of lower Manhattan are still laboring to recover.

Earlier this month, a museum devastated by Sandy finally reopened. About 800 people packed the lobby and upstairs galleries of the South Street Seaport Museum in lower Manhattan as Mayor Michael Bloomberg addressed the crowd.

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Shots - Health News
2:02 pm
Wed January 23, 2013

Ob-Gyns Told To Look for 'Reproductive Coercion'

Credit iStockphoto.com
When an intimate partner interferes with contraception, doctors should know about it.

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 3:30 pm

Womens' doctors should be on the lookout for patients whose partners are unduly pressuring them to become pregnant — or even sabotaging their efforts to use contraception.

That's the advice from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which just published recommendations for doctors about reproductive and sexual coercion.

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World
1:28 pm
Wed January 23, 2013

U.S. Military Seeks Its Role In Troubled North Africa

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 5:53 pm

The recent crises in northern Africa, from Libya to Mali to Algeria, have raised a host of questions about the role of the American military command responsible for the entire continent.

Founded in 2007, the United States Africa Command, or AFRICOM, was created to train African militaries so U.S. troops would not be called upon in times of crisis.

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The Salt
1:15 pm
Wed January 23, 2013

When Spilled Food Makes A Huge Mess (In A Tunnel Or On A Road)

Originally published on Thu January 24, 2013 6:42 am

Rarely do we consider the trucks, trains and tankers that transport our food around our cities — and around the world. It's not until an accident happens, and the food inside these vessels comes pouring out, that we remember all this food in motion around us, and how damaging it can be when it spills.

The truth is, a lot of food is extremely sticky, bulky — and sometimes, flammable. And apparently, the people who move it around are just as accident prone as the rest of us.

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Shots - Health News
12:35 pm
Wed January 23, 2013

Scientists Put An End To Moratorium On Bird Flu Research

Credit Prakash Mathema / AFP/Getty Images
Health workers in Nepal culled chickens and destroyed eggs following an outbreak of bird flu in Kathmandu in October 2012.

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 5:53 pm

Controversial experiments on bird flu could resume within weeks because leading influenza researchers around the world have finally called a halt to an unusual moratorium that has lasted more than a year.

The voluntary pause in the research started back in January 2012. Scientists had genetically altered the bird flu virus H5N1, changing it in ways that allowed it to spread through the coughs and sneezes of ferrets — the lab stand-in for people.

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The Two-Way
12:30 pm
Wed January 23, 2013

Panetta Lifts Ban On Women In Combat Roles

Credit Kristin M. Hall / AP
In a May 9, 2012 photo, Capt. Sara Rodriguez, 26, of the 101st Airborne Division, carries a litter of sandbags during the Expert Field Medical Badge training at Fort Campbell, Ky. Female soldiers are moving into new jobs in once all-male units as the U.S. Army breaks down formal barriers in recognition of what's already happened in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Originally published on Thu January 24, 2013 5:04 am

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has decided to lift a ban that prohibited women from serving in combat, a congressional source tells NPR's Tom Bowman. The move opens up thousands of front-line positions.

Panetta is expected to announce the decision along with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Thursday.

Citing "senior defense officials," the AP adds:

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The Two-Way
11:58 am
Wed January 23, 2013

Junior Seau's Family Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against NFL

Credit Otto Greule Jr. / Getty Images
Junior Seau, seen here playing for the New England Patriots toward the end of his career, suffered from a degenerative brain disease, scientists say.

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 3:40 pm

The family of former NFL linebacker Junior Seau has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the NFL, the Associated Press is reporting.

According to the wire service, Seau's family accuses the NFL of "acts or omissions" that "hid the dangers of repetitive blows to the head."

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The Two-Way
11:19 am
Wed January 23, 2013

Burning Cheese Closes Norwegian Road For Days

Credit iStockphoto.com
A truckload of brunost cheese, like the kind seen here, recently caught fire in a Norwegian tunnel.

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 5:53 pm

It was probably a first for Norway when a truck trailer full of sweet goat cheese caught fire near the town of Narvik late last week, blocking a road tunnel. it took four days for firefighters to put out the flames. No one was hurt. Norwegian Broadcasting says the tunnel was so badly damaged that geologists are checking it for safety, and any lingering toxic gases.

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Religion
11:18 am
Wed January 23, 2013

Amidst Church Scandals, Who Still Joins The Priesthood

A decade after news of the sex abuse scandal in the Boston archdiocese of the Catholic Church broke, reports of abuse continue to emerge. The number of priests in the U.S. is in rapid decline, raising questions about who still chooses the job and how the work has changed after high-profile abuse scandals.

Global Health
10:58 am
Wed January 23, 2013

In Syria, Addressing Medical Needs In An Embattled City

Originally published on Wed January 23, 2013 1:07 pm

Nearly two years after the crisis in Syria began, the humanitarian situation in the country remains dire. Shinjiro Murata, head of the Doctors Without Borders mission in northern Syria and NPR foreign correspondent Deborah Amos, discuss the efforts to address growing medical needs.

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