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A raccoon dog looks out of its cage in Xin Yuan wild animal market in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, 06 January 2004. PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images

Scientists say they have sequenced the genome of composer Ludwig van Beethoven. INA FASSBENDER/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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INA FASSBENDER/AFP via Getty Images

Scientists sequence Beethoven's genome for clues into his painful past

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An artist's vision of the first interstellar object discovered in the solar system, 'Oumuamua. ESA/Hubble, NASA, ESO, M. Kornmesser hide caption

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ESA/Hubble, NASA, ESO, M. Kornmesser

Scientists think they know why interstellar object 'Oumuamua moved so strangely

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Mora Leeb places some pieces into a puzzle during a local puzzle tournament. The 15-year-old has grown up without the left side of her brain after it was removed when she was very young. Seth Leeb hide caption

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Seth Leeb

Meet the 'glass-half-full girl' whose brain rewired after losing a hemisphere

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Aquatic plants and debris are exposed by the falling water levels at the Kakhovka Reservoir. Researchers say that the draining of the reservoir by Russian forces are but one example of the war's effect on Ukraine's water supply. Dmytro Smoliyenko / Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty hide caption

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Dmytro Smoliyenko / Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty

When Geoff Brumfiel asked an AI software for rocket schematics, he got interesting results. Like these Saturn V-inspired renderings. NPR staff generated imagery using Midjourney hide caption

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NPR staff generated imagery using Midjourney

GOOD Meat cultivated chicken fillet cooked in a pot, with asparagus and mushrooms. The dish was created without killing a bird. Brian L. Frank for NPR/Brian L. Frank for NPR hide caption

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Brian L. Frank for NPR/Brian L. Frank for NPR

Boat docks sit on dry cracked earth at the Great Salt Lake's Antelope Island Marina. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

What we lose if the Great Salt Lake dries up

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Colorectal cancer is rising in young people. A growing body of evidence suggests diet and lifestyle play a role in the uptick. Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fight Colorecta hide caption

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Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fight Colorecta

Colorectal cancer is rising among Gen X, Y & Z. Here are 5 ways to protect yourself

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This computer-generated 3D model of Venus' surface shows the summit of Maat Mons, the volcano that is exhibiting signs of activity. A new study found one of Maat Mons' vents became enlarged and changed shape over an eight-month period in 1991, indicating an eruptive event occurred. NASA/JPL-Caltech hide caption

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NASA/JPL-Caltech

Venus and Earth: A tale of two 'twins'

Planetary scientists announced some big news this week about our next-door neighbor, Venus. For the first time, they had found direct evidence that Venus has active, ongoing volcanic activity.

Venus and Earth: A tale of two 'twins'

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Bug Robbins

Tweeting directly from your brain (and what's next)

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These two photos, taken in 2014 by scientist Eddie Holmes, show raccoon dogs and unknown birds caged in the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market. GPS coordinates of these images confirm that the animals were housed in the southwest corner of the market, where researchers found evidence of the coronavirus in January 2020. Eddie Holmes hide caption

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Eddie Holmes

WHO calls on China to share data on raccoon dog link to pandemic. Here's what we know

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This computer-generated 3D model of Venus' surface shows the summit of Maat Mons. A new study found one of the volcano's vents became bigger and changed during 1991. NASA/JPL-Caltech hide caption

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NASA/JPL-Caltech

Volcanic activity on Venus spotted in radar images, scientists say

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IMPACTS mission researchers inside the research plane, monitoring weather data being collected by onboard instruments. Erica McNamee/NASA hide caption

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Erica McNamee/NASA

What scientists are hoping to learn by flying directly into snowstorms

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In London to address a gene-editing summit last week, Victoria Gray took a break to visit Sir John Soane's Museum. In 2019, Gray became the first patient to be treated for sickle cell disease using CRISPR, an experimental gene-editing technique. She was invited to talk about her experiences at the Third International Summit on Human Genome Editing. Orlando Gili for NPR hide caption

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Orlando Gili for NPR

Sickle cell patient's success with gene editing raises hopes and questions

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The Summers Place Dodo skeleton dates from around the 16th century. Leon Neal/Getty Images hide caption

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Leon Neal/Getty Images

Could de-extincting the dodo help struggling species?

As a leading expert on paleogenomics, Beth Shapiro has been hearing the same question ever since she started working on ancient DNA: "The only question that we consistently were asked was, how close are we to bringing a mammoth back to life?"

Could de-extincting the dodo help struggling species?

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Physicians say roughly half of all preterm births are preventable, caused by social, economic and environmental factors, as well as inadequate access to prenatal health care. ER Productions Limited/Getty Images hide caption

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ER Productions Limited/Getty Images

Dr. Beth Shapiro works with fossils, such as this late Pleistocene horse jawbone, to extract and decode ancient DNA. Duane Froese hide caption

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Duane Froese

It's boom times in ancient DNA research

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