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The Salt
Adventurous Eating Helped Human Ancestors Boost Odds Of Survival
November 13, 2012 The discovery of new foods by chefs of the prehistoric age may have helped our human ancestors evolve, archeologists say. Hominins that lived about 3 million years ago began eating grasses and sedge, which helped them survive in different environments.
Krulwich Wonders...
Death, But Softly
November 13, 2012 The world's first essayist, Michel Montaigne, was out riding one day when he got slammed from the rear, was thrown from his horse, crashed to the ground and for a brief time was, as he puts it, "dead." He described exactly what it felt like. Here's what he learned.
Energy
Across Pa., Abandoned Wells Litter The Land
November 13, 2012 WITFThe state estimates that about 325,000 wells have been drilled since the mid-1800s, but the locations of 200,000 of them are unknown. This proves problematic when new wells occasionally intersect abandoned ones, and gas rockets up to the surface in a geyser.
Environment
Weighing The Prospects Of The Keystone XL Pipeline
November 12, 2012 Among the difficult decisions facing President Obama in his second term is whether to give the go-ahead for the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline. Environmentalists want it blocked, while advocates of the project say it will create thousands of jobs and make the country more energy independent.
Krulwich Wonders...
Finnish Underwater Ice Fishing Mystery Finally Solved
November 10, 2012 Four million people watched this video filmed beneath the surface of a frozen lake. What really happened on that cold day in Finland can now be revealed, although clever viewers may have already figured out the tricks.
The Salt
Sky-High Vegetables: Vertical Farming Sprouts In Singapore
November 9, 2012 Urban farming goes vertical, as Singapore opens a 30-feet tall greenhouse for bok choy and cabbage. The farm is already producing half a ton of veggies per day for local supermarkets. But are these vertical "farmscrapers" any more efficient than traditional, flat greenhouses?
It's All Politics
What Earthquakes Can Teach Us About Elections
November 9, 2012 Political historian Allan Lichtman says he sees elections the way geophysicists see earthquakes — as events fundamentally driven by structural factors deep beneath the surface, rather than by superficial events at the surface.
The Salt
You Can Thank A Whey Refinery For That Protein Smoothie
November 8, 2012 Milk isn't just something you drink anymore. It's become a raw material, like crude oil, that's refined into more valuable products, such as sugar for infant formula and protein powder that's used in energy bars.
Krulwich Wonders...
Mathematically Challenging Bagels
November 8, 2012 All you need is a bagel, a knife and a high score on your math SAT, and you can do this (unless you're me): You can transform a single bagel into two intertwining, connected parts, one twisted through the other. In other words, a Mobius bagel. Watch and learn.