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Monday, October 08, 2012
Sunday, October 07, 2012

Restore The California Delta! To What, Exactly?

Wetlands are returning naturally at Liberty Island in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in California. The state plans to restore more than 100,000 acres of habitat in the area.

October 7, 2012 KQEDAs a multibillion-dollar environmental effort gets underway, the state has to figure out what the landscape used to look like. Ninety-seven percent of the original wetlands in the inland delta near the San Francisco Bay are gone, so California is turning to historians for help.

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Friday, October 05, 2012
Thursday, October 04, 2012

The Salt

The Cost Of Saving Lives With Local Peanuts In Haiti

UNICEF pays more for ready-to-use therapeutic food made in Haiti, from local peanuts. That's partly because Haitian farmers plant and harvest the peanuts by hand.

October 4, 2012 Fortified peanut paste saves lives in Haiti and other places where malnutrition is a problem, but producing it locally costs more than importing it from faraway factories in Europe because of labor and other costs. Still, feeding programs are willing to pay a little more, for now.

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Tuesday, October 02, 2012
Sunday, September 30, 2012

Science

A Tiny Ocean World With A Mighty Important Future

Plankton make up 98 percent of the biomass of ocean life and provide half of the oxygen on the planet. Scientists are working to figure out how climate change may be affecting these important microorganisms.

September 30, 2012 Tiny ocean organisms known as plankton are vital to life on Earth, generating enough oxygen to account for every other breath you take. As climate change alters the temperature and acidity of our waters, these mysterious ocean creatures may be in jeopardy.

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Shots - Health News

Gold Ore Laced With Lead Poisons Children In Nigeria

Four-wheel drive is no match for the mud on the road to a gold mine in northern Nigeria.

September 30, 2012 Gold ore mined in northern Nigeria is mixed with lead. When the ore is dug up, crushed and processed, the lead escapes into the air and settles on the ground. Children are being poisoned when they swallow lead-contaminated dust and dirt.

Summary

Friday, September 28, 2012

Science

Scientist Cleared In Polar Bear Controversy

Polar bears in the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska. Scientist Charles Monnett caused a stir with a 2006 report on polar bears that were drowning, apparently owing to a lack of ice.

September 28, 2012 Charles Monnett's 2006 report on drowning polar bears became a rallying cry for environmentalists. Then he was accused of scientific misconduct. On Friday, he learned he had been cleared.

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The Picture Show

Illuminating The Underworld In A Deep, Dark French Cave

Cavers cross Lake Cadoux in a small dingy inside the Gouffre Berger cave. A 4-meter-deep (approximately 13 feet) pool of water blocks the way forward through the Starless River.

September 28, 2012 The Gouffre Berger cave in France was once dubbed the world's deadliest. Now it's a rite of passage for new cavers. Photographer Robbie Shone illuminates its dark, and cold, depths.

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Thursday, September 27, 2012

Around the Nation

Despite Record Drought, Farmers Expect Banner Year

With far less than half of their normal corn yield, the Ulrich brothers are relying in part on government-subsidized crop insurance to keep their farm afloat.

September 27, 2012 KCURAfter the Midwest's driest summer in decades, farmers are assessing their losses and gains. Despite the hit many farms took, the Agriculture Department predicts record high farm income this year, thanks to higher prices and federally subsidized crop insurance.

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Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Animals

Tourists Banned From India's Tiger Reserves

A tiger is seen in June 2008 at Sariska Tiger Reserve in the western state of Rajasthan, India, after being shifted from Ranthambore National Park. In an attempt to help revive western India's tiger population, a female tiger was airlifted to join a male at the national reserve.

September 26, 2012 India's Supreme Court has temporarily banned tourism in core areas of the country's 41 tiger reserves. The unexpected and controversial ruling is aimed at protecting the last of India's 1,700 tigers.

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