Technology

Google Vows To Remove Ads From Offensive YouTube Content

11:50pm March 21, 2017

by Aarti Shahani

Google says it is giving advertisers more control over where and how their ads appear. Some major advertisers in the U.K. were outraged and some pared back their spending after their ads appeared on YouTube videos created by backers of ISIS and a violent pro-fascist group. Google also says it's removing more ads from extremist content and hiring more people to deal with the problem.

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An Etihad Airways jet is parked at JFK International Airport in New York on Tuesday. Passengers traveling to the United States from 10 airports in eight Muslim-majority countries will have to check most electronics. The ban will affect flights on Royal Jo

New Device Restrictions On Some Flights: Few Facts, Many Questions

6:40pm March 21, 2017

by Camila Domonoske

Homeland Security says most personal electronics won't be allowed in carry-ons on flights from some majority-Muslim countries. The U.K. has acted similarly. Why the abrupt change? It's far from clear.

Emirates passenger planes are parked at their gates at Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates. The U.S. restrictions require most electronic devices, including laptops, tablets and cameras, to be placed in checked baggage on direct flight

U.S., Britain Restrict Electronics On Flights From Mideast Countries

3:31pm March 21, 2017

by Greg Myre

Passengers on flights from the region coming into the U.S. and Britain cannot carry any devices larger than a smartphone. Laptops, tablets and cameras must all be placed in checked baggage.

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Google says it will improve its internal systems and give advertisers more control of where their spots appear, responding to complaints about the pairing of paid ads with offensive content.

Google Promises To Keep Ads Off 'Hateful, Offensive' YouTube Content

2:52pm March 21, 2017

by Bill Chappell

On Friday, a division of a global marketing group with a digital budget of more than $200 million put its dealings with Google on "pause," citing recent controversies.

New U.S. regulations aimed at travelers coming from eight majority-Muslim countries on non-U.S. airline carriers stipulate that laptops and electronic devices must be put into checked luggage.

Trump's Electronics Restrictions Could Cause Headaches For Touring Musicians

2:23pm March 21, 2017

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Cities like Dubai, Istanbul, Abu Dhabi and Casablanca have become popular touring destinations for prominent artists. What effect might the new baggage restrictions have on their work?

Over the past few months, Black Twitter has noticed an increase in the number of white trolls creating fake Twitter accounts.

National

The Emergence Of The White Troll Behind A Black Face

12:00pm March 21, 2017

by Neha Rashid

Over the past few months, Black Twitter has noticed an increase in the number of white trolls creating fake Twitter accounts.

Christopher Milford in his apartment in East Boston, Mass. He quit abusing opioids after getting endocarditis three times.

Doctors Consider Ethics Of Costly Heart Surgery For People Addicted To Opioids

11:19am March 21, 2017

by Jack Rodolico

A troubling trend has followed the opioid epidemic: People who use intravenous drugs are getting heart infections, driving up hospital bills and stirring an ethical debate among doctors.

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The Earth Is Flat? Check Wikipedia

7:39pm March 20, 2017

by Anya Kamenetz

Wikipedia has discovered an educational mission in an age of rampant truthiness. And it's enlisting college students to help.

Shanghai pedicurist Ju-wen Zu and NPR's Aarti Shahani talk, aided by a translation app that may change the way we travel abroad forever.

World News

Finding A Pedicure In China, Using Cutting-Edge Translation Apps

4:47pm March 20, 2017

by Aarti Shahani

On a trip to China, NPR's Aarti Shahani took a detour in search of a pedicure, with help from some of the latest voice translation apps. These tools could radically change how you travel abroad.

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The Voder: The First Machine To Produce Human Speech

4:39pm March 20, 2017

A 1939 invention called the Voder produced human-like sounds. It was an early electronic voice machine.