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Vaccine advisers to the FDA recommended changes to COVID vaccines

Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration met Thursday to recommend a formula for COVID-19 vaccines for the 2025-2026 season.

Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration met Thursday to help decide which variant of the virus that causes COVID should be targeted by updated versions of the vaccines.

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OpenAI forges deal with iPhone designer Jony Ive to make AI-enabled devices

Jony Ive attends the Metropolitan Museum of Art

The $6.5 billion deal brings together the maker of ChatGPT and one of the world's most famous product designers in a venture to create new AI-enabled devices.

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MAHA Commission report paints a dark picture of U.S. children's health

U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Capitol Hill on May 14, 2025 in Washington, DC.

The Health Secretary's report blames environmental toxins, ultraprocessed foods and more for the poor state of kids' health in the U.S.

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Why 'Sell America' is trending on Wall Street

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

Investors are worried about the ongoing trade war — and rethinking the safety and soundness of U.S. government debt.

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In Mexico, Songs for Women who Kill Their Abusers

Singer Vivir Quintana perform during a showcase at Polyforum Cultural Siqueiros on May 27, 2024 in Mexico City, Mexico.

By some estimates, some 90% of murders in Mexico go unpunished. But when a woman in Mexico kills an abusive partner, many of them do end up in jail convicted of "excessive use of legitimate force". Mexican singer-songwriter Vivir Quintana started looking into the issue and found compelling, tragic tales. We speak to Quintana about her new album which tells the stories of some of these women.

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Trump administration revokes Harvard's ability to enroll international students

People walk through a gate as they exit Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University  in Cambridge, Mass.

International students make up more than a quarter of Harvard University's student body. Harvard says the government's actions, which could cut off a major revenue stream, are "unlawful."

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Congress moves to loosen toxic air pollution rules

Some industrial facilities like oil refineries and chemical plants emit toxic air pollution. Congress has voted to roll back rules that tightly limited that pollution.

The House and Senate both voted to loosen regulations on air pollutants like dioxin and mercury, which are associated with higher cancer risk.

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Forecasters predict above-average hurricane season again

Resident Anne Schneider, right, hugs her friend Eddy Sampson as they survey damage caused by Hurricane Helene in Marshall, N.C. in 2024. Hurricanes cause billions of dollars of damage each year in the U.S. Most deaths from hurricanes are related to flooding, and many occur far from the coastline when heavy rain causes dangerous flash floods.

Forecasters expect 13 to 19 storms to form in the Atlantic between June 1 and the end of November. At least 6 of those are forecast to be full-blown hurricanes.

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Here's what we know about the 2 Israeli embassy staffers killed in Washington, D.C.

A man draped in the Israeli flag, bearing a cross and the name "Jesus" at its center, gestures as Metropolitan Police officers secure the area outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. Two Israeli embassy staffers were shot dead late Wednesday by a gunman who allegedly shouted "free Palestine."

Two staff members of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. were killed in a shooting after attending an event a Jewish museum. A suspect shouted "free Palestine" before being taken into custody.

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Father of accused Ga. school shooter has been arrested. Both are to appear in court

Questions remain over this week's school shooting that killed two students and two teachers, as the father of the 14-year-old shooter is charged with manslaughter.

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Community groups say Louisiana is trying to stop them from monitoring air pollution

Wetlands are seen beyond a refinery in Norco, La.

For community groups to allege violations of environmental rules, a state law says groups have to use federally-approved testing equipment, and it sets restrictions for analyzing and sharing the data.

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Democrats seek to insulate security for judges from executive branch politics

A U.S. Marshal looks on an auction in 2009 in New York City.

Recent critiques of judges from the Trump administration have prompted fears the Marshals could be caught in the middle of a power struggle and forced to yank security for judges.

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Dear Life Kit: My neighbor's Christmas lights are still up. Should I call the HOA?

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An NPR listener writes: "We live in a nice neighborhood that has homeowner association rules, and our neighbor is violating them." Social etiquette experts weigh in.

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Jim Irsay, longtime Colts owner and music memorabilia collector, dies at 65

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, pictured in 2018, died "peacefully in his sleep" on Wednesday, according to the team.

Irsay started with the Colts as a teenage ball boy and took ownership after his father's death in 1997. The team won a Super Bowl and two AFC championships under his nearly three-decade tenure.

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No more pennies: In big change, Treasury will stop minting them

The Treasury Department has ordered its last delivery of blank pennies. Once that

In a cost-cutting move, the Treasury Department will soon stop minting new pennies. The one-cent coins will still be legal tender. There are more than 100 billion pennies in circulation but many are gathering dust in change jars and forgotten pockets.

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Judge blocks Trump administration from closing the Education Department

The headquarters of the U.S. Department of Education shown on March 12, after the Trump administration announced mass layoffs.

The federal judge also told the administration to reinstate department employees who lost their jobs during the reduction-in-force announced in March.

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Senate overrules parliamentarian and votes to undo California EV rule

A person crosses a street as smog fills the air Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Los Angeles.

The Senate parliamentarian advised lawmakers that they couldn't use the Congressional Review Act to revoke California's right to set vehicle standards. But they did it anyway. Expect a legal fight.

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A top global health expert's message to graduates: Kick the tires

Maria Van Kerkhove speaks at a World Health Organization press conference. The public face of WHO at over 250 briefings on COVID, she says she and her colleagues are now scrambling to respond to the "abrupt" halt in most U.S. foreign aid.

NPR interviews Maria Van Kherkove, the infectious disease epidemiologist who is a leader in the World Health Organization.

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Supreme Court blocks creation of religious charter school in Oklahoma

The U.S. Supreme Court

The court was deadlocked 4-4, which meant a state Supreme Court ruling that declared the school violated the constitutional separation of church and state remained in place.

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A family in Indian-administered Kashmir fears being split apart after militant attack

Women walk past a damaged house in Bandipora, India, on April 27. Following the April 22 attack that killed at least 26 people, India ordered Pakistani nationals to leave the country and Indian security forces demolished houses linked to active militants across Kashmir, according to officials.

The husband is from India. The wife is from Pakistan. Their son is Indian and daughters are Pakistani. India blames Pakistan for an April militant attack in Kashmir and ordered Pakistanis to leave.

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South Africa's president praised for staying calm during Trump's Oval Office ambush

President Trump meets South Africa

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa keeps his cool after a carefully choreographed Oval Office ambush by Trump.

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Two Israeli embassy aides killed. And, House passes Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'

A man draped in the Israeli flag, bearing a cross and the name "Jesus" at its center, gestures as Metropolitan Police officers secure the area outside the Capital Jewish Museum following a shooting that left two people dead in Washington, DC, in the early hours of May 22, 2025.

Two staff members of Israel's embassy in Washington, D.C., were shot dead last night outside of a Jewish museum. And, House Republicans passed President Trump's bill.

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Educators fear their homeless students could become a target for Trump cuts

Megan Mainzer, the McKinney-Vento liaison for Middletown Public Schools in Rhode Island, speaks with a young girl at the Island Oasis, a food and clothing pantry that

A federal program provides extra help to make sure students experiencing homelessness get an education. Amid massive cuts to the federal government, the program's future is uncertain.

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Scientists want to track the world's biodiversity using DNA in the air

Amanda Vicente Santos, a bat disease ecologist at the University of Oklahoma, inspects the base of a guanacaste tree in Belize where she intends to trap vampire bats later in the night. Scientists say they

Scientists have found a way to sample DNA out of the air on a large scale — making it possible to one day track the health and well being of all kinds of species around the world.

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Raising ethics questions, top Trump meme coin investors to dine with president tonight

Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun participates in a session during the Token 2049 crypto conference in Dubai on May 1, 2025. Sun is a top investor in Trump

President Trump is hosting an exclusive dinner tonight for the largest investors in the $TRUMP meme coin, putting the murky world of cryptocurrencies on a collision course with White House ethics.

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How Trump made a 30% tariff feel like a relief

President Trump walks out of the Oval Office to announce tariffs on what he called "Liberation Day" on April 2, 2025.

It's a pattern in President Trump's chaotic tariff policy: he first suggests a high number, only to later ratchet it down. Business schools call it the 'anchor effect.'

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A Newark air traffic controller on how it felt when systems went dark

It

An air traffic controller who works the airspace around Newark, N.J. speaks out about what it was like to lose radar and communication systems during a shift, and how the situation got to be so bad.

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Witnessing George Floyd's killing

How did the murder of George Floyd affect onlookers and online witnesses? Rev. Frenchye Magee, Professor Zinzi Bailey, and attorney Antonio Romanucci reflect on the response.

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Kermit the Frog to deliver commencement address at the University of Maryland graduation

FILE - Kermit the Frog, who was created and originally performed by Jim Henson as a main character on "The Muppet Show," is shown on display at the Maryland Center for History and Culture, on May 24, 2023, in Baltimore.

The beloved Muppet, created in 1955, will deliver the commencement address at the University of Maryland, the alma mater of his creator Jim Henson.

(Image credit: Kaitlin Newman)

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New Orleans Archdiocese agrees to pay nearly $180M to victims of clergy sexual abuse

FILE - A silhouette of a crucifix and a stained glass window is seen inside a Catholic Church in New Orleans, Dec. 1, 2012.

Lawyers for survivors said they won't support the agreement, which they say was negotiated behind closed doors.

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