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Tuesday

A Teledyne G3 Slocum Glider looks for whale sounds off the coast of Georgia. UGA Skidaway Institute doctoral student Frank McQuarrie is taking it out of the water.

A Teledyne G3 Slocum Glider tries to detect whale sounds off the coast of Georgia. UGA Skidaway Institute doctoral student Frank McQuarrie is taking it out of the water. Catherine Edwards Lab/SKidaway Institute hide caption

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Catherine Edwards Lab/SKidaway Institute

New technology gives hope to save endangered right whales

WABE

Conservationists are getting better at monitoring the movement of the highly endangered right whale. They hope it will encourage ships to slow down in an effort to save the species.

RIGHT WHALE MONITORING

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Taylor Swift performs onstage for the opening night of "Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour" at State Farm Stadium on March 17, 2023, in Glendale, Arizona.

Taylor Swift performs onstage for the opening night of The Eras Tour at State Farm Stadium on March 17, 2023, in Glendale, Ariz. Kevin Winter/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management hide caption

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Kevin Winter/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management

From Taylor Swift tickets to social media bans, here are new 2025 state laws

It's almost the new year, which means states across the country will enact thousands of new laws from new tax structures to prenatal leave.

A street in Oakland, Calif. viewed through the AI-enhanced cameras from the start-up Hayden AI. Transit agencies across the country are deploying the company's systems to keep bus lanes clear of illegally parked cars.

A street in Oakland, Calif., viewed through AI-enhanced cameras from the start-up Hayden AI. Transit agencies across the U.S. are deploying the company's systems to keep bus lanes clear of illegally parked cars. Hayden AI hide caption

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Hayden AI

Transit systems turn to AI-powered cameras to catch drivers who block bus lanes

The nation's biggest transit systems are using AI-enhanced cameras to keep bus lanes clear of illegally parked cars. That's making buses move faster, but the rollout has hit a few speed bumps.

AI BUS CAMERAS

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Revelers celebrate the new year on Jan. 1, 1942 in Times Square.

Revelers celebrate the new year on Jan. 1, 1942, in Times Square. Its New Year's Eve ball drop attracts millions of viewers — at home and in the streets of New York City — every year. Matty Zimmerman/AP hide caption

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Matty Zimmerman/AP

History

Why do we drop a ball on New Year's Eve? The Times Square tradition, explained

Watching a huge ball descend down a pole in Times Square has been a beloved New Year's Eve tradition for over a century. Here's how the spectacle started and what's changed over the years.

Monday

Morgan Minick paints a sign thanking former President Jimmy Carter in his hometown after he died Sunday in Plains, Ga. President Carter lived to be 100 years old, making him the longest living U.S. president in history.

Morgan Minick paints a sign thanking former President Jimmy Carter in his hometown after he died Sunday in Plains, Ga. President Carter lived to be 100 years old, making him the longest living U.S. president in history. Megan Varner/Getty Images hide caption

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Megan Varner/Getty Images

Jimmy Carter will have funeral services in Plains, Ga., Atlanta and Washington, D.C.

Former President Jimmy Carter's state funeral services will span six days, three cities and multiple places of significance from his life.

The town square in Plains, Ga., on Dec. 30 2024.

The town square in Plains, Ga., on Monday, the day after former President Jimmy Carter died at age 100. His hometown of 550 of is preparing to say goodbye to their most famous resident. Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR hide caption

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Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR

Obituaries

In Jimmy Carter's hometown of Plains, people remember the former president

People in Plains, Ga., are remembering former President Jimmy Carter who died on Sunday at the age of 100. Carter embraced his hometown and never forgot the importance of the place.

In Jimmy Carter's hometown of Plains, people remember the former president

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May 14, 2002: Cuban President Fidel Castro watches former US President Jimmy Carter throw a baseball prior to the start of a a friendly baseball match between two Cuban teams in Havana, Cuba. At the time, Carter was the first U.S. President, in or out of office, to visit communist Cuba since the 1959 revolution that put Castro in power.

May 14, 2002: Cuban President Fidel Castro watches former US President Jimmy Carter throw a baseball prior to the start of a a friendly baseball match between two Cuban teams in Havana, Cuba. At the time, Carter was the first U.S. President, in or out of office, to visit communist Cuba since the 1959 revolution that put Castro in power. Sven Creutzmann/Getty Images hide caption

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Sven Creutzmann/Getty Images

The Picture Show

Photos: Former President Carter redefined post-presidency role

The Nobel Peace Prize winner devoted himself to improving the health of people around the world, promoting democracy and resolving global conflicts.

A federal appeals court has upheld a 2023 jury verdict that found Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed E. Jean Carroll. Carroll, right, leaves after the first day of her civil trial against the former President at Manhattan Federal Court on April 25, 2023 in New York City.

A federal appeals court has rejected an appeal by Donald Trump following a 2023 jury decision that Trump sexually abused and defamed E. Jean Carroll. Carroll, right, leaves after the first day of her civil trial against the former President at Manhattan Federal Court on April 25, 2023 in New York City. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Law

Court rejects Trump appeal in E. Jean Carroll sexual abuse and defamation case

Trump contended the trial court judge erred in several rulings — including decisions to allow the testimony of two women who alleged that Trump sexually assaulted them in the past.

President Jimmy Carter waves to the crowd while walking with his wife Rosalynn and their daughter Amy along Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol to the White House following his inauguration, Jan. 20, 1977, in Washington.

President Jimmy Carter waves to the crowd while walking with his wife Rosalynn and their daughter Amy along Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol to the White House following his inauguration, Jan. 20, 1977, in Washington. Suzanne Vlamis/AP hide caption

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Suzanne Vlamis/AP

Author Interviews

Jimmy Carter was 'a very unusual kind of politician,' biographer says

In the wake of Jimmy Carter's death, biographer Kai Bird, author of 'The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter' discusses the late president's successes and failures.

Carter, who was considered a liberal president, was also fiscally conservative

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