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A Miami police officer talks with a homeless person, prior to a cleaning of the street in 2021. Starting October 1st, a new law will ban Florida's homeless from sleeping in public spaces. Lynne Sladky/AP hide caption

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Lynne Sladky/AP

Amid record homelessness, a Texas think tank tries to upend how states tackle it

The conservative Cicero Institute is working with states to ban street camps, and shift money away from housing to addiction treatment. Homelessness advocates says such moves are counterproductive.

Amid record homelessness, a Texas think tank tries to upend how states tackle it

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Former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to members of the media before entering the courtroom with his attorney Todd Blanche (right) at Manhattan criminal court in New York City, on Monday. Dave Sanders/Pool/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Dave Sanders/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

Prosecutors rest their case against Trump in the hush money case. Now it's his turn

Trump's ex-lawyer Michael Cohen finished testifying in the New York case on Monday. The duration of Trump's own defense is not known, though they have already begun calling witnesses.

Located less than an hour outside Madison, Wisc., Columbia county has both city commuters and people in more rural, small towns. Portage, with a population of around 10,000, is the largest town in the county. Jeongyoon Han/NPR hide caption

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Jeongyoon Han/NPR

One voted Biden. One picked Trump. It's a tale of two counties in pivotal Wisconsin

Wisconsin is one of a handful of pivotal states in the 2024 presidential election. Within the swing state, there are swing counties that could decide the election — even as people remain divided.

One voted Biden. One picked Trump. It's a tale of two counties in pivotal Wisconsin

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When OpenAI announced its latest ChatGPT last week, the AI voice it used in its demo was quickly compared to Scarlett Johansson's voice in the 2013 sci-fi film "Her," but now the company says it is pulling the voice. Leon Bennett/Getty Images hide caption

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Leon Bennett/Getty Images

OpenAI pulls AI voice that was compared to Scarlett Johansson in the movie 'Her'

The AI company said the voice was not patterned after Johansson, but that it was removing the voice as an option in the wake of speculation about whether the sci-fi film inspired the voice.

The retro-pop artist Cindy Lee doesn't sit for interviews, use social media and rejects the streaming era's demands on independent artists. Photo by Meaghan Garvey/Illustration by Jackie Lay/NPR hide caption

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Photo by Meaghan Garvey/Illustration by Jackie Lay/NPR

How Cindy Lee became the music world's underground success story of 2024

One of the best albums of 2024, Diamond Jubilee, isn't on streaming services. The artist who released it, Cindy Lee, has rejected the streaming era's demands to create something entirely their own.

A Royal New Zealand Air Force Hercules C-130 takes off from Whenuapai air base near Auckland, New Zealand, bound for Noumea, New Caledonia, on a mercy mission to rescue stranded New Zealand tourists on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Michael Craig/NZ Herald via AP hide caption

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Michael Craig/NZ Herald via AP

Australia and New Zealand begin evacuating nationals from unrest in New Caledonia

At least six people have died and hundreds more have been injured since violence erupted last week in New Caledonia following controversial electoral reforms passed in Paris.

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Sperm whale families talk a lot. Researchers are trying to decode what they're saying

Scientists are testing the limits of artificial intelligence when it comes to language learning. One recent challenge? Learning whale! Researchers are using machine learning to analyze and decode whale sounds — and it's just as complicated as it seems.

Sperm whale families talk a lot. Researchers are trying to decode what they're saying

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Michael McDonald, 72, describes his voice as a "malleable" instrument: "Especially with age, it's like you're constantly renegotiating with it." Timothy White/Sacks & Co. hide caption

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Timothy White/Sacks & Co.

With age and sobriety, Michael McDonald is ready to get personal

Fresh Air

McDonald says that earlier in his career, he tended to avoid writing about himself directly in songs. He opens up about his life and career in the memoir, What a Fool Believes.

With age and sobriety, Michael McDonald is ready to get personal

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A large new study shows people who bike have less knee pain and arthritis than those who do not. PamelaJoeMcFarlane/Getty Images hide caption

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PamelaJoeMcFarlane/Getty Images

Like to bike? Your knees will thank you and you may live longer, too

New research shows lifelong bikers have healthier knees, less pain and a longer lifespan, compared to people who've never biked. This adds to the evidence that cycling promotes healthy aging.

Like to bike? Your knees will thank you and you may live longer, too

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The tiny Devils Hole pupfish has managed to adapt to very extreme conditions, and the critically endangered species is rebounding. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/O. Feuebacher hide caption

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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/O. Feuebacher

Animals

A nearly extinct fish that lives in a deep hole in Death Valley is making a comeback

LAist 89.3

The fish's entire habitat consists of a pool in Death Valley National Park with a surface area of about 10 feet by 60 feet, little oxygen and very warm water. Officials recently announced a count of 191 of the fish, up from 35 in 2013.

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