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Science

A User's Guide To Masks: What's Best At Protecting Others (And Yourself)

Left to right: a neck gaiter (aka a buff) that slips over the head; a KN95 respirator, a version of the N95 respirator used in U.S. hospitals; a pleated surgical mask (below the KN95); a cloth mask. Photo illustration by Max Posner/NPR hide caption

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Photo illustration by Max Posner/NPR

Goats and Soda

A User's Guide To Masks: What's Best At Protecting Others (And Yourself)

They're made of cotton. Or polyester. Or paper. Or polypropylene. Here's what researchers say about the effectiveness of the different types of face masks during this pandemic.

Why Latinx People Are Hospitalized From COVID-19 At 4 Times The Rate Of Whites

A medical worker places a swab in a vial while testing for the coronavirus through the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust in Miami. Lynne Sladky/AP hide caption

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Lynne Sladky/AP

Coronavirus Live Updates

Why Latinx People Are Hospitalized From COVID-19 At 4 Times The Rate Of Whites

Dr. Joseph Betancourt of Massachusetts General Hospital says a "perfect storm" of factors is causing the coronavirus to hit the nation's Latinx population especially hard.

Why Latinx People Are Hospitalized From COVID-19 At 4 Times The Rate Of Whites

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To Be Young, A Doctor And Black: Overcoming Racial Barriers In Medical Training

Dr. Danielle Hairston, a psychiatry residency director at Howard University in Washington, D.C., trains and mentors young black doctors. Quraishia Ford hide caption

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Quraishia Ford

Shots - Health News

To Be Young, A Doctor And Black: Overcoming Racial Barriers In Medical Training

Young African American doctors say they hope to change the lack of access to medicine in underserved communities. But many say the system that trains them also alienates them.

To Be Young, A Doctor And Black: Overcoming Racial Barriers In Medical Training

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Remdesivir Priced At More Than $3,100 For A Course Of Treatment

Gilead Sciences, maker of the antiviral drug remdesivir, has come up with a price for the COVID-19 treatment that was less than some analysts expected. ULRICH PERREY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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ULRICH PERREY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Shots - Health News

Remdesivir Priced At More Than $3,100 For A Course Of Treatment

An experimental COVID-19 medicine that has been shown to shorten the time people with severe illness have to stay in the hospital finally has a price tag that's lower than some analysts expected.

Remdesivir Priced At More Than $3,100 For A Course Of Treatment

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How Snakes Fly (Hint: It's Not On A Plane)

The snake Chrysopelea paradisi is seen in Malaysia's Taman Negara National Park. To get from tree to tree, they can propel themselves in the air. David Renoult/iNaturalist hide caption

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David Renoult/iNaturalist

How Snakes Fly (Hint: It's Not On A Plane)

A snake researcher always wondered how flying snakes propelled themselves. Then, someone told him he should work with the snakes in The Cube — a vast theater space with cameras everywhere.

How Snakes Fly (Hint: It's Not On A Plane)

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Former NIH Director Calls Trump Administration's Pandemic Response 'Amateur Hour'

Then-Director of the National Institutes of Health Elias Zerhouni speaks with President George W. Bush during a round table discussion on cancer prevention at the NIH in Bethesda, Md., in 2007. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

Shots - Health News

Former NIH Director Calls Trump Administration's Pandemic Response 'Amateur Hour'

Dr. Elias Zerhouni was head of the National Institutes of Health under President George W. Bush. He says the Trump administration's response to the pandemic has not protected the American people.

National

New Research Shows People Are Not As Divided Along Political Lines As They Think

It is no secret that the U.S. citizens are deeply divided along political lines. But a new study has found that Americans are not nearly as divided as they might think.

New Research Shows People Are Not As Divided Along Political Lines As They Think

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Sarah Parcak: How Can Satellite Images Unlock Secrets To Our Hidden Past?

TED2016 TED Prize winner Sarah Parcak speaks at TED2016. Bret Hartman/Bret Hartman / TED hide caption

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Bret Hartman/Bret Hartman / TED

TED Radio Hour

Sarah Parcak: How Can Satellite Images Unlock Secrets To Our Hidden Past?

There may be hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of undiscovered ancient sites. Sarah Parcak wants to locate them — from space.

Sarah Parcak: How Can Satellite Images Unlock Secrets To Our Hidden Past?

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Denise Herzing: Do Dolphins Have A Language?

Denise Herzing, dolphin researcher, at TED2013. James Duncan Davidson/TED hide caption

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James Duncan Davidson/TED

TED Radio Hour

Denise Herzing: Do Dolphins Have A Language?

We know that dolphins make distinctive clicks and whistles, but is that a language? Researcher Denise Herzing thinks it might be, and for the past 35 years she's been working to unlock it.

Denise Herzing: Do Dolphins Have A Language?

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Suzanne Simard: How Do Trees Collaborate?
TED

TED Radio Hour

Suzanne Simard: How Do Trees Collaborate?

Ecologist Suzanne Simard shares how she discovered that trees use underground fungal networks to communicate and share resources, uprooting the idea that nature constantly competes for survival.

Suzanne Simard: How Do Trees Collaborate?

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This Coronavirus Doesn't Change Quickly, And That's Good News For Vaccine Makers

Internationally, scientists now have on file the genomes of more than 47,000 different samples of the virus that causes COVID-19 — up from just one in January. Here's a transmission electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles (orange) isolated from a patient. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases/National Institutes of Health hide caption

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National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases/National Institutes of Health

Shots - Health News

This Coronavirus Doesn't Change Quickly, And That's Good News For Vaccine Makers

A coronavirus vaccine could become ineffective if the virus were to undergo certain genetic changes. But so far, so good: Scientists see no evidence that's happening.

This Coronavirus Doesn't Change Quickly, And That's Good News For Vaccine Makers

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Saharan Dust Cloud Arrives At The U.S. Gulf Coast, Bringing Haze

A massive cloud of dust from the Sahara Desert is arriving along the U.S. Gulf Coast this week after traveling across the Atlantic Ocean. The dust will move over the Southeastern United States after reaching the U.S. shore. NOAA/NESDIS/STAR/GOES-East hide caption

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NOAA/NESDIS/STAR/GOES-East

National

Saharan Dust Cloud Arrives At The U.S. Gulf Coast, Bringing Haze

The phenomenon happens every year – but the 2020 version is especially large and imposing, experts say.

Saharan Dust Cloud Arrives At The U.S. Gulf Coast, Bringing Haze

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Health

How Mutations In The Coronavirus May Affect Development Of A Vaccine

Researchers around the world are tracking the mutations in the coronavirus as it reproduces and spreads to ensure changes in the virus do not affect the development of the vaccine.

How Mutations In The Coronavirus May Affect Development Of A Vaccine

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