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January 29, 2013 Microbes can thrive in extreme environments, from inside fiery volcanoes to down on the bottom of the ocean. Now scientists have found a surprising number of them living in storm clouds tens of thousands of feet above the Earth. And those airborne microbes could play a role in global climate.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

January 28, 2013 Aficionados of cheeses made from the milk of mountain-grazing cows swear they really do taste better than those from cattle pastured on plains. Now, scientists are teasing out some of these subtle differences – in hopes of proving the mountain cheese tradition is worth preserving.

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January 28, 2013 Nathaniel, a young Berkeley biologist, met a beautiful yeast who promised opportunity and adventure, but once they got together, Nathaniel was clumsy, the yeast not what he'd hoped, and their romance? Well, it didn't work out. It's now a song. Sung by Nathaniel. The yeast, lacking vocal chords, is silent.

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January 27, 2013 Hydraulic fracturing gets the spotlight, but without another technology — horizontal drilling — natural gas drilling booms across the country would not be happening now.

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On Weekend Edition SundayPlaylist

January 26, 2013 This is the tale of one man's slobbering, very unpretty pet cat, his brave sister, his homicidal yet generous uncle, and what happened one winter night when he was a boy.

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January 25, 2013 In the story The Little Prince, a boy from a tiny planet lands on Earth. The boy is tall, the planet small, and you worry he might fall off. In real life, real Earthlings once had a hint of this experience. It was 1972, and you can go there with them.

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