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Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a news conference autism rates on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a news conference autism rates on Wednesday, April 16, 2025. Jose Luis Magana/AP hide caption

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Jose Luis Magana/AP

Public Health

RFK pushes to find 'environmental' cause of autism, calls growing rates an 'epidemic'

Researchers and advocates have pushed back at what they consider inaccurate and stigmatizing comments made by the health secretary, and note the causes of autism are complex.

RFK pushes to find 'environmental' cause of autism, calls rising rates an 'epidemic'

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People walk through a gate as they exit Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachussetts, on April 15, 2025. Elite US university Harvard was hit with a $2.2 billion federal funding freeze on April 14 after rejecting a list of sweeping demands that the White House said was intended to crack down on campus anti-Semitism. The call for changes to its governance, hiring practices and admissions procedures expands a list Harvard received on April 3, which ordered officials to shut diversity offices and cooperate with immigration authorities for screenings of international students. In a letter to students and faculty, Harvard president Alan Garber vowed to defy the government, insisting that the school would not "negotiate over its independence or its constitutional rights." (Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)

People walk through a gate as they exit Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachussetts, on April 15, 2025. Elite US university Harvard was hit with a $2.2 billion federal funding freeze on April 14 after rejecting a list of sweeping demands that the White House said was intended to crack down on campus anti-Semitism. The call for changes to its governance, hiring practices and admissions procedures expands a list Harvard received on April 3, which ordered officials to shut diversity offices and cooperate with immigration authorities for screenings of international students. In a letter to students and faculty, Harvard president Alan Garber vowed to defy the government, insisting that the school would not "negotiate over its independence or its constitutional rights." (Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images) JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images/AFP hide caption

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JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images/AFP

Interview highlights

A Harvard professor calls Trump's federal funding cuts appalling

What does the clash between Harvard and the Trump administration look like from the perspective of its faculty? NPR's Michel Martin asks Harvard Law School professor Nikolas Bowie.

Harvard professor gives perspective on the Trump administration clash with university

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WATCH

Brownout: Tiny Desk Concert

Brownout can change traditions or genres almost on a dime. The core members dip into soul, Latin funk, a form of Peruvian cumbia called chicha, and funk covers of both Black Sabbath and Public Enemy.
A freight ship docks at the Port of Oakland on March 6, 2025. California is once again taking the Trump administration to court — this time to halt tariffs and avert harm to its economy.

A freight ship docks at the Port of Oakland on March 6, 2025. California is once again taking the Trump administration to court — this time to halt tariffs and avert harm to its economy. Martin do Nascimento/KQED hide caption

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Martin do Nascimento/KQED

California sues Trump administration over tariffs

 KQED

The suit argues that the law the president is relying on — the International Economic Emergency Powers Act — has never been used before to justify tariffs, and that Trump needs Congressional authorization for actions with such broad economic consequences.
U.S. President Donald Trump met with President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador in the Oval Office of the White House April 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump and Bukele are exploring a proposal to send American citizens to be held in Salvadorean prisons, a move critics describe as dangerous and unconstitutional.

U.S. President Donald Trump met with President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador in the Oval Office of the White House April 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump and Bukele are exploring a proposal to send American citizens to be held in Salvadorean prisons, a move critics describe as dangerous and unconstitutional. Win McNamee/Getty Images hide caption

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Win McNamee/Getty Images

National

'Homegrowns are next': Trump hopes to deport and jail U.S. citizens abroad

Trump hopes to deport and imprison U.S. citizens abroad. Critics say the concept is unconstitutional and dangerous.

'Homegrowns are next': Trump hopes to deport and jail U.S. citizens abroad

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SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 2025 - WARM SPRINGS, GA - Senator Raphael Warnock takes a moment view the unfinished portrait of former President Franklin D. Roosevelte by artist Elizabeth Shoumatoff. Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR

SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 2025 - WARM SPRINGS, GA - Senator Raphael Warnock takes a moment view the unfinished portrait of former President Franklin D. Roosevelte by artist Elizabeth Shoumatoff. Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR Lynsey Weatherspoon/for NPR hide caption

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Lynsey Weatherspoon/for NPR

Politics

80 years after President Franklin Roosevelt's death, Trump cuts threaten his legacy

Descendants and others reflect on the legacy of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal which pulled the U.S. out of the Great Depression, as the Trump administration slashes the federal government.

80 years after President Franklin Roosevelt's death, Trump cuts threaten his legacy

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(EDITORS NOTE: Multiple exposures were combined to produce this image.) Startrails are seen during the Lyrid meteor shower over Michaelskapelle on April 21, 2020 in Niederhollabrunn, Austria.

(EDITORS NOTE: Multiple exposures were combined to produce this image.) Startrails are seen during the Lyrid meteor shower over Michaelskapelle on April 21, 2020 in Niederhollabrunn, Austria. Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images Europe hide caption

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Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images Europe

Space

The Lyrid meteor shower is expected to dazzle the night sky beginning this week

The Lyrid meteor shower will reach a peak later this month, but stargazers can catch a first glimpse beginning Wednesday night.
A man holds up a sign that reads "Save the CDC" outside the main campus of the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention on April 1 in Atlanta.

A man holds up a sign outside the main campus of the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta on April 1. The CDC's Division of Viral Hepatitis was shuttered amid federal layoffs in this month. Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images hide caption

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Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

Investigations

In the middle of a hepatitis outbreak, U.S. shutters the one CDC lab that could help

All 27 scientists at the CDC's viral hepatitis lab were told their duties were "unnecessary." Ongoing outbreak investigations have now been halted.

In the middle of a hepatitis outbreak, U.S. shutters the one CDC lab that could help

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An unhoused resident sleeps on a dimly lit porch on the steps of a school in Austin. This week, all staff at the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, which coordinates homelessness policy across the federal government, were put on leave.

An unhoused resident sleeps on a dimly lit porch on the steps of a school in Austin. This week, all staff at the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, which coordinates homelessness policy across the federal government, were put on leave. Brandon Bell/Getty Images hide caption

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Brandon Bell/Getty Images

National

Trump administration has gutted an agency that coordinates homelessness policy

All staff were put on leave at the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness. Congress created the entity in 1987 and, among other things, it helped drive down veterans homelessness.
President Donald Trump speaks during an event on combating antisemitism at Trump National Golf Club, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024, in Bedminster, N.J.

President Donald Trump speaks during an event on combating antisemitism at Trump National Golf Club, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024, in Bedminster, N.J. Julia Nikhinson/AP hide caption

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Julia Nikhinson/AP

National

Trump exploiting antisemitism fears to undermine rule of law, warns Jewish coalition

A coalition of Jewish groups warns that the Trump administration stripping international students of visas under the guise of fighting antisemitism actually makes Jews less safe and undermines the rule of law.

Jewish groups decry federal immigration actions against pro-Palestinian activists

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More than 200 people who the White House says are gang members were deported to El Salvador by the U.S. in San Salvador, El Salvador on March 16, 2025. El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele confirmed they will be sent to the country's infamous mega-prison at CECOP facility prison. San Salvador forces took heavy security measures. (Photo by El Salvador Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

More than 200 people who the White House says are gang members were deported to El Salvador by the U.S. in San Salvador, El Salvador on March 16, 2025. (Photo by El Salvador Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) El Salvador Presidency Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images hide caption

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El Salvador Presidency Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images

National

Judge: 'Probable cause' to hold U.S. in contempt over Alien Enemies Act deportations

The government sent several planeloads of alleged gang members to El Salvador, including 137 people under the act, the White House said at the time. The judge gave the U.S. until April 23 to respond.
"To know right now in the United States that my two beautiful little granddaughters will have fewer rights than I had growing up, that just doesn't make any sense to me," says Melinda French Gates. "... It makes my work all the more pressing."

"To know right now in the United States that my two beautiful little granddaughters will have fewer rights than I had growing up, that just doesn't make any sense to me," says Melinda French Gates. "... It makes my work all the more pressing." Jason Bell/Flatiron Books hide caption

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Jason Bell/Flatiron Books

Goats and Soda

Melinda French Gates on what billionaires with 'absurd' wealth owe back to society

 Fresh Air

In a new memoir, French Gates writes about the end of her marriage to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, and her ongoing philanthropic work, directing funds and attention to women's health initiatives.

Melinda French Gates on what billionaires with 'absurd' wealth owe back to society

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Elephants at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, Calif., quickly formed an "alert circle" to protect their young following Monday's 5.2 magnitude earthquake.

Elephants at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, Calif., quickly formed an "alert circle" to protect their young following Monday's 5.2 magnitude earthquake. Ken Bohn/San Diego Zoo Safari Park hide caption

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Ken Bohn/San Diego Zoo Safari Park

Animals

When an earthquake struck San Diego, these elephants formed an 'alert circle'

When a 5.2 earthquake hit near San Diego, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park caught its elephants on video taking action to protect their young, forming what experts call an "alert circle."

When an earthquake struck San Diego, these elephants formed a protective ‘circle of life’

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This is the first confirmed live observation of the colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, in its natural habitat. The team on Schmidt Ocean Institute's Research Vessel Falkor captured footage of the nearly one foot squid at a depth of 1,968 feet, using their remotely operated vehicle "SuBastian" on March 9, during an Ocean Census flagship expedition searching for new marine life.

This is the first confirmed live observation of the colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, in its natural habitat. The team on Schmidt Ocean Institute's Research Vessel Falkor captured footage of the nearly one foot squid at a depth of 1,968 feet, using their remotely operated vehicle "SuBastian" on March 9, during an Ocean Census flagship expedition searching for new marine life. ROV SuBastian/Schmidt Ocean Institute hide caption

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ROV SuBastian/Schmidt Ocean Institute

Animals

A colossal squid is filmed in its natural habitat for the first time

Colossal squid are known to be elusive and likely avoid the bright and loud research equipment used underwater.

Colossal Baby Squid

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Chicken is processed differently in the U.S. than the EU and U.K., causing Europeans to be skeptical of American "chlorinated chicken."

Chicken is processed differently in the U.S. than the EU and U.K., causing Europeans to be skeptical of American "chlorinated chicken." Krug Studios/Corbis RF Stills/Getty Images hide caption

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Krug Studios/Corbis RF Stills/Getty Images

Public Health

Europe deplores America's 'chlorinated chicken.' How safe is our poultry?

President Trump wants European countries to start buying U.S. chicken and eggs. But the U.K. and EU think American poultry is gross and chemically washed. Turns out, chlorine isn't really the issue.

European regulations on chicken processing hamper U.S. exports

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