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All Tech Considered
12:45 pm
Thu June 6, 2013

A Day In The Life Of The Relentlessly Tracked

Credit David Goldman / AP
Today, every consumer click is an opportunity for companies to gather personal information.

Controversy is raging over a court order allowing the FBI and the National Security Agency to seize aggregate information of millions of Verizon customer phone calls.

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National Security
12:30 pm
Thu June 6, 2013

The NSA, Verizon And The Future of Domestic Spying

Originally published on Thu June 6, 2013 1:40 pm

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. Later in the program, we'll continue our series of conversations and look ahead with NPR's Deborah Amos, who's been covering the war in Syria. But we begin today with a court order obtained by The Guardian's U.S. team, which authorizes the National Security Agency to collect information on billions of phone calls made by U.S. Verizon customers since late April.

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The Salt
11:32 am
Thu June 6, 2013

Feeling A Little Blue May Mask Our Ability To Taste Fat

Originally published on Thu June 6, 2013 3:00 pm

So, here's the scenario: You're feeling a little blue, then you watch an emotional movie and dig into a bowl of ice cream.

Are you aware of how fattening your comfort food is? Likely not. Especially in the moment.

A new study finds that temporary, strong emotions, like the sadness we experience from a weepy movie, can significantly decrease our ability to taste — or perceive — the amount of fat we're eating.

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Shots - Health News
11:05 am
Thu June 6, 2013

How Nature Builds A Pandemic Flu Virus

Credit Lam Yik Fei / Getty Images
A vendor weighs a live chicken at the Kowloon City Market in Hong Kong last April. After closing live poultry shops in many cities around China, the rate of new H7N9 infections sharply declined.

Originally published on Fri June 7, 2013 7:26 am

Here's a sobering thought: Wild birds — including city pigeons and ubiquitous Canada geese — carry 170 different types of bird flu. You know, all those viruses with the Hs and Ns in their names, like H1N1 and H5N1.

Only a dozen of these viruses have infected humans so far, but many of those have been deadly, and three of them have caused global flu pandemics.

Does every bird flu that leaps into people have the potential to turn into the next "big one" that spreads rapidly around the world?

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The Two-Way
9:31 am
Thu June 6, 2013

Microsoft, FBI Say They've Disrupted $500 Million Botnet

Credit Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Buttons with the Microsoft logo are seen at a Comp USA store in 2007.

Originally published on Thu June 6, 2013 11:11 am

Working jointly with the FBI, Microsoft says it has disrupted a botnet responsible for stealing more than $500 million from bank accounts worldwide.

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Shots - Health News
7:59 am
Thu June 6, 2013

NIH Chief Rejects Ethics Critique Of Preemie Study

Credit Charles Dharapak / AP
National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins contested criticism that researchers running a study of premature infants didn't adequately advise parents about the risks.

Originally published on Fri June 7, 2013 7:26 am

The chief of the National Institutes of Health is disavowing a ruling from the government office that oversees the ethics of human research.

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Business
4:19 am
Thu June 6, 2013

Lenovo Holds Grand Opening For Its N.C. Assembly Plant

Credit Leoneda Inge for NPR
Johana Guardado assembles a laptop on Lenovo's new personal computer production line in Whitsett, N.C.

Originally published on Thu June 6, 2013 7:14 am

Chinese computer maker Lenovo celebrated the opening of its first U.S. manufacturing plant in Whitsett, N.C., on Wednesday. The company is trying to boost its brand and U.S. market share. Other high-tech firms, including Motorola, have announced plans to manufacture in the U.S.

The Lenovo plant celebration was a patriotic affair. A large sign was on display featuring the American flag and the words "Assembled in the U.S."

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Research News
4:19 am
Thu June 6, 2013

Navy Studies Cicadas For Their Amplifying Sound Technique

Originally published on Thu June 6, 2013 5:40 am

From southern Virginia to New England, lots of people are being treated to a cicada serenade. If these insects sound loud to you, that's because they are. They're so loud that some Navy engineers are trying to borrow their technique.

Science
5:59 pm
Wed June 5, 2013

Tiny, Ancient Tree-Dweller Was One Of Earth's Earliest Primates

The origin of the first primates — the group that includes humans, apes and monkeys — is thought to lie in the deep past, about 55 million years ago.

Fossils from that period are rare. But now, there's an exciting new one. It's called Archicebus achilles, roughly meaning "beginning long-tailed monkey." Actually, this creature lived before the monkeys we know of today, a mere 10 million years after the dinosaurs died out.

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The Salt
4:12 pm
Wed June 5, 2013

Amazon's Grocery Delivery: A Trojan Horse To Get In Your Door

Credit Joe Nicholson / AP
Amazon has been testing its AmazonFresh delivery service in the Seattle area since 2007.

Originally published on Wed June 5, 2013 6:16 pm

Amazon already delivers everything from toothpaste to televisions to your doorstep. Now, it wants to bring your berries and beer, too.

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