A woodcut from the 15th century depicts a scene from the Black Death plague, which killed an estimated 50 million people in Europe and the Mediterranean between 1346 and 1353. Scientists say they may have found the origin of this deadly disease. Pictures from History/Universal Images Group/Getty Images hide caption
This mosquito spreads dengue, Zika and yellow fever too. Could these diseases make a human emit an odor that draws the insect in to take a bite? Joao Paulo Burini/Getty Images hide caption
Cracking a window can help reduce your risk of infection by COVID pathogens. Tanishka R./For NPR hide caption
Actor Iman Vellani, who plays Kamala Khan in the new Disney+ TV show Ms. Marvel, attends a screening in London on May 26. Tristan Fewings/Getty Images hide caption
This 2003 electron microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows mature, oval-shaped monkeypox virions, left, and spherical immature virions, right, obtained from a sample of human skin associated with the 2003 prairie dog outbreak. Cynthia S. Goldsmith, Russell Regner/CDC via AP hide caption
Wajahat Malik, right, and a Pakistan Navy seaman navigate the Indus River. Malik organized a 40-day expedition down the 2,000-mile river to document "the peoples, the cultures, the biodiversity and just whatever comes our way," he says — including the impact of climate change and pollution. Diaa Hadid/For NPR hide caption
A patient talks with a nurse at a traveling contraception clinic in Madagascar run by MSI Reproductive Choices, an organization that provides contraception and safe abortion services in 37 countries. The group condemned the overturn of Roe v. Wade and warned that the ruling could stymie abortion access overseas. Samantha Reinders for NPR hide caption
Aerial view of the Beckton Sewage Treatment Works in London. Between February and May, U.K. scientists found several samples containing closely related versions of the polio virus in wastewater at the plant. mwmbwls/Flickr hide caption
A reactive to test suspected monkeypox samples is seen inside a fridge at the microbiology laboratory of La Paz Hospital on June 06, 2022 in Madrid, Spain. Europe is at the centre of the monkeypox virus outbreak, the World Health Organization reported 780 confirmed cases with Britain, Spain and Portugal reporting the largest numbers of patients. Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images hide caption
Freetown Elementary School students Mason Santos, left, and Mila Talbot, right, pet Huntah the dog after she finishes checking a classroom. Jodi Hilton for NPR hide caption
A medical technician shows a suspected monkeypox sample at the microbiology laboratory of La Paz Hospital on June 6 in Madrid. The World Health Organization is working with experts on changing the name of the virus. Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images hide caption
Burundian refugee Richard Samuel, 14, holds his homemade guitar as he waits to be transferred to Nyarugusu refugee camp in Tanzania in 2015. Daniel Hayduk/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Author Linda Villarosa pictured next to her book, Under the Skin. Nic Villarosa hide caption
Health-care staff in remote clinics in Ecuador have struggled to provide pandemic resources for their patients. Kata Karáth for Undark hide caption