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Sunday, December 02, 2012

All Tech Considered

The Sight Of Roadkill Makes A Pretty, Data-Rich Picture

When wildlife ecologist Danielle Garneau finds roadkill, she uploads data about it onto her smartphone.

December 2, 2012 NCPRScientists and citizens are filling up a database on dead critters with their smartphones. The EpiCollect app pulls data such as location, speed limit and the carcass's condition. Wildlife ecologist Danielle Garneau says the project tracks animal movement and may help protect species in the future.

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On Weekend Edition SundayPlaylist

Saturday, December 01, 2012

Middle East

Shutdowns Counter The Idea Of A World-Wide Web

Night falls on a Syrian rebel-controlled area on Thursday, the same day an Internet blackout struck the country. The cause is still unclear, but many claim the Syrian government was responsible.

December 1, 2012 The Internet shutdowns in Syria and Egypt have shown how governments can thwart activists who mobilize and promote their cause online. Some countries claim that control is their right, but will the rest of the world agree?

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On Weekend Edition SaturdayPlaylist

Friday, November 30, 2012
Thursday, November 29, 2012

Business

A Bet Or A Prediction? Intrade's Purpose Is Debated

Ireland-based Intrade lets users bet money on all manner of predictions — like if a particular film will win an Oscar. The site is ceasing operations in the U.S.

November 29, 2012 The "prediction market" site Intrade's decision to close in the U.S. highlights how the company exists in a regulatory gray area, somewhere between trading and betting. Intrade says it hopes to operate legally in the U.S. eventually. In the meantime, American users must close their accounts by year's end.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

All Tech Considered

Yet Another Shift In Facebook Policies Raises Privacy Concerns

A magnifying glass is posed over a monitor displaying a Facebook page in Munich.

November 29, 2012 Facebook has a long history of upsetting its users by suddenly announcing a change to its privacy settings. In 2009, as a way to quiet the critics, Facebook set up a system for its customers to vote on changes. If enough of them were unhappy, the company would back down. Now, Facebook wants to get rid of the voting.

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The Salt

Key To E. Coli-Free Spinach May Be An Ultrasonic Spa Treatment

Spinach has lots of opportunities to pick up E. coli and other bugs during harvest and growing. Here, a Mexican migrant worker cuts organic spinach during the fall harvest at Grant Family Farms in Wellington, Co.

November 29, 2012 A new way to clean spinach combines an old technique and a new one to get the disease-causing bacteria. But there aren't any commercial orders for the ultrasonic spinach spa just yet.

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Asia

Facebook Arrests Ignite Free-Speech Debate In India

Shaheen Dhada (left) and Renu Srinivasan leave court in Mumbai on Nov. 19. Dhada was arrested for a Facebook post questioning the shutdown of Mumbai for the funeral of a powerful politician; Srinivasan was arrested for "liking" the post.

November 29, 2012 A 21-year-old was arrested after she questioned the shutdown of Mumbai for the funeral of a controversial political leader; her friend was arrested for simply "liking" the post. The comment angered the politician's supporters, who some say intimidated police into making the arrests.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

The Two-Way

Reports: Apple Lets Go One More Employee In Maps Fiasco

Apple's new iPhone 5 may have been criticised for its glitch-ridden new maps program, but it may have inadvertently provided a diplomatic solution to China and Japan's ongoing row over disputed islands. When a user searches for the Tokyo-controlled Senkaku islands in the East China Sea, claimed by Beijing under the name Diaoyu, two sets of the islands appear alongside each other.

November 27, 2012 Apple issued a public apology over its maps application and had already fired an executive over the bungling of the software. This time it was the manager who oversaw the project who was pushed out.

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Asia

How Ordinary Chinese Are Talking And Fighting Back

Authorities in Hunan province sentenced Tang Hui to 18 months in a re-education-through-labor camp after she repeatedly complained about the way police investigated the case of her daughter's kidnapping and forced prostitution. An uproar on Weibo, China's answer to Twitter, pushed authorities to free Tang days later.

November 27, 2012 Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, is changing the way the Chinese communicate and has become a major source of news. Its more than 300 million users are, among other things, using it to criticize government policies, stop official injustice and help ordinary people — but only up to a point.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

Monday, November 26, 2012

All Tech Considered

Spain Expands Renewables With Wave-Powered Electricity Plant

Residents of Mutriku, a fishing village on Spain's northern coast, lounge at their local beach, protected from fierce Atlantic waves by a cement breakwater that also houses Europe's first wave energy plant.

November 26, 2012 The Bay of Biscay, off Spain's northern coast, is notorious for its huge surf, which has claimed countless lives in shipwrecks over the centuries. Now Spanish engineers have found a way to harness the power of those big waves to produce electricity.

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The Two-Way

News Outlets Punk'd, Somebody Profits: Google Wi-Fi Buy Is A Hoax

Google page.

November 26, 2012 A fake press release about a $400 million purchase sent one company's penny stock up sharply. News outlets that reported the story missed some telltale signs that it might be a hoax.

Summary

Thursday, November 22, 2012

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