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January 18, 2013 A big boxing match usually features two guys, thick with muscle, who know how to bob, weave and use their fists. This bout has two fighters who can't make fists because they don't have hands. What they have are necks. Long necks.

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January 18, 2013 The National Institutes of Health owns or supports almost 700 chimps. But the question of where they go when no longer needed for research is a thorny one: NIH money to support retired chimps in sanctuaries has been limited by Congress.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

January 18, 2013 More than two months after the storm, the House of Representatives passed a bill to spend $50 billion to help Eastern states struck by Hurricane Sandy. But some scientists and engineers say there's danger in rushing ahead to rebuild a coastline that's sure to get hit again.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

January 17, 2013 Flu viruses hijack the machinery inside animal cells to replicate. The theft is a complicated process that takes time. If the virus leaves the cells too early or too late, the risk of infection falls.

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January 17, 2013 A 2008 federal law is supposed to protect people from having their genes used against them. But it only applies to health insurance — not, for example, long-term-care insurance. That's exactly the type of insurance people might seek after learning they're genetically predisposed to some medical problem down the road.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

January 17, 2013 Some of the most beloved nature writers of all time, Henry David Thoreau and Aldo Leopold, are helping scientists learn how global warming will affect spring. Using historical records, the scientists are able to predict when flowers will bloom during especially hot years.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

January 17, 2013 Prawns will rub themselves when dabbed with acid. And hermit crabs show stress-related behavior after getting shocked out of their shells. Now scientists find that British shore crabs can learn to avoid an electric shock — a key sign that crustaceans really do experience pain.

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January 16, 2013 Land that isn't in good enough condition to grow crops could be used to produce substantial amounts of liquid biofuels, a new study claims. But there are many concerns about the study, and about the future of advanced biofuels in the U.S. and abroad.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

January 16, 2013 If you are up in space looking down on America west of the Mississippi, one of the brightest patches of light at night is on the Great Plains in North Dakota. It's not a city, not a town, not a military installation. What is it?

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January 15, 2013 Pollution around Beijing has been stifling for the past few days. NASA has released a pair of satellite images, showing the extent of the smog from space and how the air has changed in the past couple weeks.

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