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Election 2012
11:00 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Voter ID Laws: Necessity Or Burden?

A wave of states are implementing or considering laws that would require a government photo ID to vote. Some say the laws could disenfranchise voters, others say ID is required for basic needs. Host Michel Martin talks with journalist Kristal Brent Zook and Abigail Thernstrom of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

Shots - Health Blog
10:28 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Why Is The World's Largest Foundation Buying Fake Poop?

Originally published on Fri August 10, 2012 11:31 am

Last week, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced that it's purchasing 50 pounds of fake poop.

A practical joke? No, not in the least.

Nor is this synthetic poop a plastic replica of the real thing; it's an organic version made from soybeans. The Gates Foundation will use it to test high-tech commodes at their Reinvent the Toilet Fair next week.

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The Torch
10:07 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Boxing Maths and Aftermaths: Why Similar Scores Are A Mean System

Credit Scott Heavey / Getty Images
Shiming Zou of China is declared the winner over Paddy Barnes of Ireland during their men's light flyweight boxing semifinal in London. The match was scored a 15-15 tie; Zou won on the number of punches landed.

Originally published on Fri August 10, 2012 10:16 am

Four years ago, Irish boxer Paddy Barnes lost to China's Zou Shiming by a score of 15-0 in Beijing. Today in London, Barnes fought his way back into their match to tie Zou at 15-15 — but he still lost. Barnes accepted the decision, but the result might confuse anyone who isn't familiar with boxing's scoring system.

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The Two-Way
9:45 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Consumer Bureau Moves To Make Mortgages Clearer, Foreclosures Fewer

Credit Joe Raedle / Getty Images
A "bank owned" sign in front of a home in Miami last October.

Saying it wants "to protect homeowners from surprises and costly mistakes by their mortgage servicers," the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today proposed new rules it believes would make the home loan process simpler and give struggling homeowners more of a chance to avoid foreclosures.

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The Salt
9:12 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Smoked Chocolate, For National S'More Day And More

Credit Florangela Davila / NPR
Chocolate chips, fresh out of the smoker at Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery in Seattle.

Originally published on Mon October 15, 2012 9:57 am

It's National S'more Day, so you've got a good reason to indulge in the gooey goodness.

But what if you're nowhere near a campfire? How can you replicate the taste of a chocolate-marshmallow-graham cracker s'more fired up and fashioned en plein air?

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The Torch
9:03 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Let's Catch Up: Taekwondo Setback, And A Spice Girls Sighting

Credit William West / AFP/Getty Images
Great Britain's Stuart Bithell leaps off the boat while teammate Luke Patience sails on as they win silver in the men's sailing 470 two-person dinghy medal race in Weymouth, England.

Good morning. The final weekend of the Summer Olympics is about to begin. In the medal count, the U.S. has jumped out to a 90-80 lead over China, with 39 golds to China's 37. And Russia has overtaken Great Britain, with 57 to the host nation's 54 medals.

Here's today's news that caught our interest:

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The Two-Way
8:53 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Drought Deepens In Hardest Hit Parts Of U.S.

Originally published on Fri August 10, 2012 10:36 am

The areas of the lower 48 states where this summer's drought is judged to be "severe, extreme or exceptional" (in ascending order of seriousness) increased slightly again this week, according to the experts at the federal government's National Drought Mitigation Center.

It reports that:

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Shots - Health Blog
8:28 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Yes, There's Probably A Medical App For That

Credit Benjamin Morris / NPR
With thousands of medical apps available for download, patients and physicians can instantly keep visual records of wounds and look up symptoms.

Originally published on Fri August 10, 2012 8:46 am

How many calories have I consumed this week? How well did I sleep last night?

What about this thing on my leg — is it infected? What does an ECG for ventricular tachycardia look like again?

Yes, you guessed it. There is an app for that.

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The Two-Way
7:47 am
Fri August 10, 2012

Fighting Has Forced More Than 1.5 Million Syrians To Move, U.N. Says

Credit Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images
In northwestern Syria earlier this year, this man and boys fled fighting.

The scope of the ongoing crisis in Syria is made clear yet again by two new reports from the United Nations:

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The Two-Way
7:00 am
Fri August 10, 2012

In Wisconsin, Thousands To Pay Homage To Sikh Temple Shooting Victims

Credit Mira Oberman / AFP/Getty Images
A makeshift memorial outside the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in honor of the six people who were killed there.

Originally published on Tue August 21, 2012 11:03 am

Several thousand people from across the U.S. and the world are expected in Oak Creek, Wis., today as Sikhs gather to mourn for the six people killed during Sunday's shooting rampage at a temple.

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