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Can leucovorin treat autism? History says, probably not

Interest in leucovorin has been on the rise among some parents of children with autism. But researchers like Dr. Paul Offit say that the drug

Parents of autistic children are clamoring for a prescription vitamin promoted by federal health officials. But there's little evidence the drug will help.

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A vaccine trial is called 'unethical' and a 'unique' opportunity. Is it on or off?

A medical worker prepares a hepatitis B vaccine.

The U.S. is giving $1.6 million to researchers to study how the hepatitis B vaccine affects newborns in Guinea-Bissau. Local officials say the trial is suspended. U.S. officials say that's inaccurate.

(Image credit: Nicholas Kajoba/Xinhua)

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5 takeaways from the 2026 Oscar nominations, where 'Sinners' made history

The 2026 Oscars nominations were announced Thursday morning. <!-- raw HTML omitted -->Sinners <!-- raw HTML omitted -->received a record number of nods. Clockwise from top left: Michael B. Jordan in <!-- raw HTML omitted -->Sinners<!-- raw HTML omitted -->, Wagner Moura in <!-- raw HTML omitted -->The Secret Agent<!-- raw HTML omitted -->, Brad Pitt in <!-- raw HTML omitted -->F1 <!-- raw HTML omitted -->and Teyana Taylor in <!-- raw HTML omitted -->One Battle After Another<!-- raw HTML omitted -->.

Sinners landed a record number of nods, while Avatar: Fire and Ash and Wicked: For Good fell short of their franchise predecessors.

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The Taiwanese president's proposal to hike defense spending faces gridlock at home

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te visits a military base in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on May 16, 2025. Lai has pushed for a major boost to defense spending, but opposition parties have slowed his plans.

Opposition parties are slamming the brakes on billions in defense funding as the China escalates military pressure.

(Image credit: Daniel Ceng)

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Watch: The 2026 Oscar nominations were announced this morning

Oscar statues on display

Danielle Brooks and Lewis Pullman presented the nominees for the 98th Academy Awards this morning.

(Image credit: Andrew H. Walker)

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World leaders to hold emergency summit on Greenland. And, SCOTUS weighs Fed case

President Trump is seen on a big screen as he delivers a special address during the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos on Jan. 21, 2026. The World Economic Forum takes place in Davos from Jan. 19 to Jan. 23, 2026.

European leaders hold an emergency summit on a possible U.S.-Greenland deal. And, the Supreme Court weighs whether the president can fire Fed governors.

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Rahm Emanuel steers a course between 'monopolists' and 'Marxists'

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with longtime Democrat Rahm Emanuel about politics in the Trump era.

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Trump vs. U.S. allies: How will this end?

President Trump speaks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. The president said he wouldn

The president has backed off his threat to take Greenland by force. But his highly inflammatory remarks in Switzerland rattled U.S. allies and threatened to tear down the pillars of the world order.

(Image credit: Evan Vucci)

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Some voters who backed Trump say ICE is going 'too far'

ICE agents approach a house before detaining two people on Jan. 13 in Minneapolis.

A new focus group of Biden-to-Trump voters weighs in on immigration operations and Trump's foreign affairs leadership on Greenland and Venezuela.

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Jack Smith to defend Trump investigations to House Republicans

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith arrives to testify during a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee on December 17, 2025 in Washington, D.C.

Jack Smith's appearance before the House Judiciary Committee marks the first open testimony about his work after presiding over two federal criminal indictments of President Trump.

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Morning news brief

European leaders to meet for emergency summit about the U.S. and Greenland, Trump's statements about Greenland threaten long-standing world order, SCOTUS weighs Trump's power to fire Fed governors.

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Trump's EEOC strikes harassment guidance amid debate over transgender protections

EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas opposed a 2024 update to the commission

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted 2-1 to roll back the agency's 2024 harassment guidance in its entirety. The document gave employers information on what makes up unlawful harassment.

(Image credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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The ICE surge is fueling fear and anxiety among Twin Cities children

A, a mother of two young daughters who are U.S. citizens, hasn

Some families aren't leaving their homes as aggressive ICE operations continue in Minnesota, leaving their children confined and stressed. Across the Twin Cities, kids are anxious and afraid.

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Israeli fire strikes journalists and children in Gaza

People carry a bag containing the bodies of the Palestinian journalists Abd Shaat and Mohamed Qeshta, who were killed in an Israeli strike on a vehicle, before their funeral at Shifa Hospital, in Gaza City, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026.

Israeli forces on Wednesday killed at least 11 Palestinians in Gaza, including two boys, three journalists and a woman, hospitals said, on one of the enclave 's deadliest days since the ceasefire took effect.

(Image credit: Jehad Alshrafi)

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Autopsy finds Cuban immigrant in ICE custody died of homicide due to asphyxia

An entrance to Fort Bliss is shown as reports indicate the military will begin to construct temporary housing for migrants on June 25, 2018 in Fort Bliss, Texas.

A Cuban migrant held in solitary confinement at an immigration detention facility in Texas died after guards held him down, according to an autopsy report released Wednesday that ruled the death a homicide.

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Confused by all the notices issued for intense winter weather? Here's your guide

A plow clears snow from a snow-covered sidewalk during a cold day in Lake Forest, Ill., Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026.

The National Weather Service issues a litany of notices before and during inclement weather events. They can be important signals on how to respond.

(Image credit: Nam Y. Huh)

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A massive winter storm will hit large parts of the U.S. through the weekend

A graphic from the National Weather Service shows areas with a chance of at least moderate snow and ice impacts from Friday through Monday. A massive winter storm will affect millions in the U.S. this weekend.

A large storm system is expected to hit this weekend, with snow and ice from Texas to the Carolinas and up the Eastern seaboard. The winter system could bring more than a foot of snow.

(Image credit: National Weather Service)

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In Davos speech, Trump ruled out using military force to acquire Greenland

During a speech in Davos, Switzerland, President Trump ruled out using military force to acquire Greenland. But he left many questions about the U.S. role in the world.

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House Oversight panel votes to hold Bill and Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky. (pictured right), and ranking member Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., confer during a hearing Wednesday on whether to hold former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress.

Republicans on the committee have been seeking to question the Clintons as part of a probe into the government's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. The vote sends the matter to the full House.

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Lindsey Halligan, Trump's former personal attorney, exits Virginia prosecutor's office

Lindsey Halligan speaks as President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, on Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington.

The move comes after a federal judge wrote in court document that the "charade of Ms. Halligan masquerading as the United States Attorney … must come to an end."

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Global buzzwords that will be buzzing in your ear in 2026

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Will it be a year of "fractured resilience"? Or "pragmatic empathy"? Will "MOUs" be the next global health strategy? Are we in a new age of "decolonization" — or of "localization"?

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Are ICE agents in Minneapolis breaking the law?

As protestors clash with some 3,000 federal immigration agents in the Twin Cities, we look at the legal issues with law professor Emmanuel Mauleón and Brennan Center for Justice's Elizabeth Goitein.

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Supreme Court appears wary of allowing Trump to fire Fed's Cook in closely watched case

The Supreme Court

The administration wants the authority to fire Lisa Cook, a Fed governor. Experts say that would undermine the independence of the central bank.

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Sundance prepares for its final Park City festival before moving to Boulder, Colo.

This is the last year the Sundance Film Festival will be held in Park City, Utah. It is moving to Boulder, Colo., in 2027. Above, the Egyptian Theatre on Main Street in Park City.

As the festival prepares to move to Colorado, filmmakers and cinephiles gather to celebrate its founder and the future of indie film.

(Image credit: Mandalit del Barco)

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Greetings from Kalk Bay, a South African fishing village where wild seals await scraps

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Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR's international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.

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What to expect from Trump's Davos speech. And, the DOJ subpoenas Minnesota officials

This photograph, taken on Jan. 20, 2026, shows the logo of the World Economic Forum in the Alpine resort of Davos. The World Economic Forum takes place in Davos from Jan. 19 to Jan. 23, 2026.

President Trump is expected to address affordability at the World Economic Forum today. And, Minnesota officials react after the Justice Department subpoenas them.

(Image credit: Ludovic Marin)

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Blinken and British counterpart signal trans-Atlantic unity with visit to Ukraine

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British counterpart, David Lammy, are raising alarms about Iranian ballistic missiles in Russia that threaten Ukraine.

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How North Carolina erased medical debt for 2.5 million people

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein (center), flanked by the state

The state partnered with a nonprofit to wipe out the debts. It also has a plan in place to prevent medical debt for people in specific income brackets.

(Image credit: Gary D. Robertson)

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How the word 'cravat' came from the battlefields of 17th century Europe

Men dressed in traditional 17th century uniform line up during a ceremony marking the "Cravat Day" in central Zagreb on October 18, 2011.

In this installment of NPR's "Word of the Week" series we trace the origins of the "cravat" (borrowed from the French "cravate") back to the battlefields of 17th century Europe.

(Image credit: Hrvoje Polan)

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