A short phrase New Orleans musicians use to communicate is identical to a common mockingbird call. Sven Halling/Getty Images hide caption

A rogues gallery of the viruses (left to right) that cause MERS, SARS, and influenza. Niaid; 3D4Medical; Niaid/Science Source hide caption

This encampment under the Julia Tuttle Causeway in Miami, shown in 2008, was cleared out by authorities in 2009. It was home to sex offenders who were unable to find places where they were permitted to live under Miami-Dade County's strict residency law. Although this makeshift community was broken up, homeless sex offenders continue to camp out in other areas of the county. David Adame/AP hide caption

The Fairfax County 911 Center in Virginia takes calls during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. It was relatively easy to locate callers when most people used landlines. But most 911 calls now come from cellphones, which can pinpoint a callers' location only within 100 to 300 meters. Greg E. Mathieson Sr./Mai/Landov hide caption

The phone company Vonage reported a drop in voice mail retrievals over the past year. Many of those ignoring voice mails are millennials. iStockphoto hide caption

The problem isn't just that fake cures are worthless, doctors say. Fraudulent claims also give some people the false sense that the product can protect them from getting sick. iStockphoto hide caption

Ricky's employee, George Lanes, shows off one of this year's hottest costumes, Anna, from the movie Frozen. Quoctrung Bui/NPR hide caption

The headquarters of Reynolds American in downtown Winston-Salem, N.C.. Starting in January, workers there will no longer be allowed to smoke at their desks. Chris Keane/Reuters/Landov hide caption

Lacey Williams (from left), Mary Espinosa, Jaime Villegas, Armando Cruz Martinez and Elisa Benitez talk inside the offices of the Latin American Coalition in Charlotte, N.C. According to a 2011 Pew Hispanic report, the median age of Latinos in North Carolina is 24. Andy McMillan for NPR hide caption

Jim Nepstad, superintendent of Effigy Mounds National Monument in northeast Iowa, stands at the top of a bluff looking over the Mississippi River. Clay Masters/NPR hide caption

You don't have to travel to Paris to savor Steven Raichlen's French Bistro Brisket. John Kroll/Flickr hide caption