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Chinstrap penguins (Pygoscelis Antarctica) are pictured in Orne Harbour in the western Antarctic peninsula. Waddling over the rocks, legions of penguins hurl themselves into the icy waters of Antarctica, foraging to feed their young. Eitan Abramovich/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Eitan Abramovich/AFP via Getty Images

De Winton's golden mole, a blind mole that lives beneath the sand, has been rediscovered in Port Nolloth, South Africa. The small mammal has evaded scientists for nearly 90 years, using sensitive hearing that can detect vibrations from movement above the surface. JP Le Roux hide caption

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JP Le Roux

One of the scientists shows the petri dishes in which they grow cells at the department of Genome Biology, Graduate School of Medicine. Osaka University, Osaka, Japan, August 7th, 2003. Kosuke Okahara for NPR hide caption

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Kosuke Okahara for NPR

A look at the international race to create human eggs and sperm in the lab

In which we meet the pioneers of one of the most exciting — and controversial — fields of biomedical research: in vitro gametogenesis, or IVG. The goal of IVG is to make unlimited supplies of what Hayashi calls "artificial" eggs and sperm from any cell in the human body. That could let anyone — older, infertile, single, gay, trans — have their own genetically related babies. As such, the field opens up a slew of ethical concerns.

A look at the international race to create human eggs and sperm in the lab

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Mathematician John Urschel contains multitudes. These days, he researches linear algebra at MIT, but he also had another career: professional NFL football player. The Washington Post/The Washington Post via Getty Im hide caption

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The Washington Post/The Washington Post via Getty Im

This mathematician had another career: professional football player

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Ahn Young-joon/AP

Why are sales so hard to resist? Let's unravel this Black Friday mystery

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Karen Chin in the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History, where she is the curator of paleontology. She is also a professor of geological sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder and a leading expert on fossilized dinosaur feces. Casey A. Cass/University of Colo hide caption

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Casey A. Cass/University of Colo

Two brain circuits help determine whether there's too little salt, or too much. Aleksandr Zubkov/Getty Images hide caption

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Aleksandr Zubkov/Getty Images

Salty much? These brain cells decide when tasty becomes blech

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New research finds that a common microbe may be directly causing itchiness on the skin it colonizes. Kinga Krzeminska/Getty Images hide caption

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Kinga Krzeminska/Getty Images

What can trigger an itch? Scientists have found a new culprit

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Members of the Bengaluru Solidarity Group in Support of the Bhopal Struggle take part in a candlelight vigil to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Bhopal gas disaster in Bangalore on December 2, 2014. Manjunath Kiran/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Manjunath Kiran/AFP via Getty Images

The world's worst industrial disaster harmed people even before they were born

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English peas grow in simulated Martian dirt. Emmanuel Mendoza hide caption

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Emmanuel Mendoza

Can we grow veggies on Mars? Fly larvae and synthetic soil may hold the answer

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Kenji López-Alt says spatchcocking the turkey is the best way to overcome the common problem of light meat overcooking by the time dark meat is ready. Viktoria Agureeva/Getty Images hide caption

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Viktoria Agureeva/Getty Images

How to make the juiciest, tastiest Thanksgiving turkey, according to science

Turkey is the usual centerpiece of the Thanksgiving dinner, but it's all too easy to end up with a dry, tough, flavorless bird. For NPR science correspondent Maria Godoy, it got so bad that several years ago, her family decided to abandon the turkey tradition altogether. Can science help her make a better bird this year? That's what she hopes as she seeks expert advice from food science writers and cookbook authors Nik Sharma and Kenji López-Alt.

How to make the juiciest, tastiest Thanksgiving turkey, according to science

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2 different brain circuits influence our taste for salt, study finds

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When army ants encounter obstacles, they link together to build living bridges. Isabella Muratore hide caption

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Isabella Muratore

Army ants use collective intelligence to build bridges. Robots could learn from them

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How can gratitude help us help ourselves? Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty/Lavitt/Yale hide caption

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Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty/Lavitt/Yale

A worker in a Bangladeshi lead mill, without safety protection. A new analysis finds the death toll from lead exposure is about six times higher than the previous estimate. Jonathan Raa/Nurphoto via Getty Images hide caption

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Jonathan Raa/Nurphoto via Getty Images

Tourists walk around the base of the Washington Monument as smoke from wildfires in Canada casts a haze of the U.S. Capitol on the National Mall in June of this year. Air pollution alerts were issued across the United States due to the fires. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

3 major ways climate change affects life in the U.S.

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SpaceX's mega rocket Starship launches for a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, on Saturday. Eric Gay/AP hide caption

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Eric Gay/AP

A 'successful failure': SpaceX's Starship achieves liftoff, loses contact mid-flight

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