Health & Safety

"My agenda is very transparent and very simple: I want to save my kid, and will not let this disease take him without a fight." — Nancy Frates

How Did A Simple Challenge Become A Worldwide Phenomenon?

9:48am August 14, 2015

by NPR/TED Staff

The 2014 ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was one of the fastest fundraising efforts in history. Nancy Frates recounts how her love for her son Pete plunged her into leading a worldwide awareness campaign.

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Health & Safety

Wake Forest Baptist Funding Helps Alzheimer’s Research

9:23pm August 13, 2015

by Keri Brown

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has received nearly $3.5 million dollars to support work in aging and Alzheimer's Disease.

We all get by better with a little help from our tunes.

Sutures With A Soundtrack: Music Can Ease Pain, Anxiety Of Surgery

3:52pm August 13, 2015

by Richard Harris

Most studies of music's ability to ease pain have been small. But an analysis pooling the best research builds a strong case, doctors say, that a dose of music reduces the need for painkilling pills.

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Coca-Cola Funds Scientists Who Downplay Diet's Role In Obesity

3:30pm August 13, 2015

Coca-Cola is funding a new nonprofit that blames obesity on lack of exercise, not on bad diets. NPR's Robert Siegel talks with Anahad O'Connor of The New York Times about the group's controversial message.

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A Portland Loo in Portland, Ore. San Diego installed two of the public toilets earlier this year, but they cost more than $500,000 to install, and now residents are raising a stink.

San Diego Installed Public Loos, But Now They're Flush With Problems

3:16pm August 13, 2015

by Claire Trageser

The city installed new public toilets that are better ventilated than port-a-potties and include running water. But they turned out pricier than expected, and plans for more are circling the drain.

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Not Everybody Likes Kissing

2:29pm August 13, 2015

by Jessie Rack

A passionate kiss may make you swoon, but many cultures don't do it, anthropologists say. And some cultures find such lip locks downright disgusting.

Nurse Issa French with his wife Anita, who's holding a copy of Time magazine's issue devoted to front-line workers. He's earned that title, treating more than 420 Ebola patients.

A Doctor's Gift To The Brave Nurses Of Sierra Leone

2:15pm August 13, 2015

by Amy Maxmen

Dr. Nahid Bhadelia volunteered to help fight Ebola in the African nation. When she learned that many of the nurses there didn't always receive a salary, she sprang into action via crowdfunding.

'Defunding' Planned Parenthood Is Easier Promised Than Done

6:08pm August 12, 2015

by Julie Rovner

Some Republican candidates for president claim they have defunded Planned Parenthood in their states already. But the truth, others say, depends on how you define "defund."

Health & Safety

People With Disabilities Can Now Save More

4:42pm August 12, 2015

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Can you guess which eyes belong to what animal? Top row, from left: cuttlefish, lion, goat. Bottom row, from left: domestic cat, horse, gecko.

Eye Shapes Of The Animal World Hint At Differences In Our Lifestyles

1:52pm August 12, 2015

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Tigers have round pupils, but domestic cats have vertical slits in the center of their eyes. What gives? A census of the shapes of animals' pupils suggests size and way of life each play a big role.

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