News
Why gold is having its best year since 1979
The price of gold hit $4,000 per ounce for the first time ever. It's a bad sign for the U.S. economy
1 in 5 high schoolers has had a romantic AI relationship, or knows someone who has
A national survey of students, teachers and parents shines a light on how the AI revolution is playing out in schools – including when it comes to bullying and a community's trust in schools.
RFK Jr.’s new dietary guidelines could be controversial. Here’s what to watch for
The Health Secretary's affinity for saturated fat and his ire over ultra-processed foods could influence federal food guidelines, expected out this fall.
A MacArthur ‘genius’ gleans surprising lessons from ancient bones, shards and trash
Kristina Douglass wanted to find out the truth about how past communities adapted to environmental change. Her revelatory work has earned her a MacArthur award.
Thinkers, dreamers, doers: Here’s who made the 2025 MacArthur Fellow list
A cartographer, a composer, a neurobiologist, and a novelist are among the recipients of this year's "Genius Grants." Each Fellow will receive a no-strings attached award of $800,000.
Scientist on front lines of overdose crisis receives MacArthur ‘genius’ award
Nabarun Dasgupta was recognized with a MacArthur "genius" award for work studying the deadly overdose crisis. He's also a front-line organizer, helping people survive.
Former FBI director Comey pleads not guilty to federal charges of lying to Congress
The former FBI director, who has long been one of President Trump's most vocal critics, was indicted last month on two counts stemming from his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2020.
Greetings from the Mediterranean, where dolphins swim alongside a migrant rescue ship
Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR's international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.
Research on metal-organic frameworks gets the chemistry Nobel Prize
Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar M. Yaghi will share the prize. Their structures can "capture carbon dioxide, store toxic gases or catalyse chemical reactions," the committee said.
Pumpkin: A favorite sign of fall, with a bit of shady history
Pumpkins are a harvest symbol and part of our nostalgia for a simpler time. But while the word "pumpkin" has been around for centuries, the plant dates back thousands of years.
Famed polar exploration ship Endurance not as strong as legend held, researcher says
Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton's crew famously survived after the Endurance became stuck in ice in 1915. A researcher says the ship was ill-equipped for the voyage and Shackleton was aware.
Hundreds of hikers rescued from Mount Everest after severe snowstorm
About 900 hikers, guides and other staff who were stranded by a weekend snowstorm on the Chinese side of Mount Everest have reached safety, state media said late Tuesday.
The costs of Israel’s longest war, for Israelis
Israelis are paying heavy costs for the longest war in their history: a mental health crisis, trauma, unprecedented division during wartime, animosity abroad and apathy for Palestinian suffering.
Democrats take legal aim at ‘the Radical Left’ language during shutdown
Democrats and a federal union argue that Trump administration language posted on federal agency websites and some emails blaming a shutdown on the "Radical Left Democrats" violates a 1939 federal law.
These numbers show how 2 years of war have devastated Palestinian lives in Gaza
It's been two years since Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. In response, Israeli leaders promised a punishing offensive. Here are some numbers showing the war's toll.
White House floats no back pay for some furloughed federal workers despite 2019 law
A new draft White House memo suggests a 2019 law signed by President Trump that guarantees federal employees get paid after a shutdown ends would not apply to furloughed workers.
The government shutdown is snarling air travel. Officials say it could get worse
A dozen facilities saw air traffic control shortages on Monday, delaying flights at several airports. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy blamed "a slight tick-up in sick calls" due to the shutdown.
Babies take a lesson from soldiers in the war against malaria
Inspired by a military strategy to ward off disease-carrying mosquitoes, researchers see if the technique will help cut malaria infections in little ones.
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen: Lawmakers must find ‘common ground’ to end the government shutdown
On the seventh day of the shutdown, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen tells NPR she's working with colleagues from both parties to find common ground and reopen the government.
Deploying troops to Chicago is not legally justified, says Illinois attorney general
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul says the only "chaos" on Chicago's streets is coming from federal immigration agents carrying our aggressive enforcement.
The Nobel Prize for physics is awarded for discoveries in quantum mechanical tunneling
The Nobel committee said that the laureates' work provides opportunities to develop "the next generation of quantum technology, including quantum cryptography, quantum computers, and quantum sensors."
With U.S. leadership in doubt, can its allies chart their own course?
U.S. allies in Europe and the Indo-Pacific are showing willingness to coordinate and cooperate across a wide range of shared interests, from trade to defense and alliance management to China.
Why Democrats are casting the government shutdown as a health care showdown
Democrats are pressuring Republicans to extend billions of dollars in federal tax credits that have dramatically lowered premiums and contributed to record-low rates of uninsured Americans.
Bondi set to give testimony to Congress at first hearing since Comey indictment
Attorney General Pam Bondi is set to testify before a Senate panel Tuesday amid mounting concerns that the DOJ under her leadership is being weaponized to go after President Trump's perceived enemies.
A tribe in Arizona planned to connect 600 homes to electricity. Then the funding was cut
The Hopi Tribe received a multimillion-dollar federal grant to install solar panels and battery storage systems for hundreds of homes. But the Trump administration has canceled the funding.
Why some federal workers aren’t scared by the threat of shutdown layoffs
Some federal workers support the government shutdown, even as President Trump threatens to use this moment to lay off employees and cut funding to programs.
As the Gaza war moves into its third year, peace talks offer some hope
On the second anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on Israel of Oct. 7, 2023, the leaders of Israel and Hamas are pushed by Arab countries and the U.S. toward a potential end to the war.
Trump’s power to deploy National Guard, explained
President Trump is bucking tradition and legal precedent in pushing to deploy the National Guard to Democratic-led cities like Portland, Oregon, and Chicago due to what he says is rampant crime and to support his crackdown on illegal immigration.
The government has long researched high school experiences. Then DOGE cut the effort
The federal government has long surveyed high schoolers to help track how their academic choices may have influenced the course of their lives. The Trump administration put an end to that effort.
Eighteen months after a fatal explosion, Alabama rolls back its commitment to monitor explosive gases above coal mines
In a letter to federal regulators, the director of the Alabama Surface Mining Commission wrote she has “indefinitely suspended” methane monitoring requirements her agency agreed to in 2024. Experts say the “astonishing and reckless” move leaves residents at risk.
Alabama governor vows action after Montgomery shooting leaves 2 dead, 12 injured
The deadly shooting unfolded Saturday night in a crowded section of the city's downtown filled with bars, hotels and restaurants. The location is less than a mile from the Alabama Capitol and near sites that pay tribute to Rosa Parks and other key figures in the city’s history.
Psychiatrists call for RFK Jr. to be replaced as health secretary
Two groups are calling for new leadership at HHS after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s actions on substance abuse treatment and mental health medications, among other issues.
