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'Another Thing': Test Your Clever Skills
5:05 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

'Another Thing': A Terrible Toy For The 21st Century

Credit iStockphoto.com

Originally published on Mon October 15, 2012 1:56 pm

Each week, All Things Considered and Lenore Skenazy, author of the book and blog Free-Range Kids, bring you "Another Thing," an on-air puzzle to test your cleverness skills. We take a trend in the news and challenge you to help us satirize it with a song title, a movie name or something else wacky.

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Latin America
5:03 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

No More 'Lying': Law Bolsters Transgender Argentines

Credit Natacha Pisarenko / AP
Transsexuals Maiamar Abrodos (right) and Maria Laura Aleman arrive at the civil registry to begin the legal process to change their genders in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in June.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 6:20 pm

Mateo Solares came to Argentina from Bolivia a few years ago. The 25-year-old was born, and grew up as, Moyra Veronica. Biologically female, Solares says he always felt like a guy.

The main reason Solares moved to Argentina is because it seemed like an easier place to transition into a life as a young man. He says having an ID card that reflects how he sees himself is huge.

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Art & Design
4:59 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

In 'Music Of Trees,' A Symphony In The Key Of Cedar

Credit Courtesy of Abby Aresty
Composer Abby Aresty recorded the sounds of a Seattle arboretum and mixed them into seven compositions that are now playing throughout the park.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 7:38 pm

There's a symphony of sound playing this month at the Washington Park Arboretum in Seattle. Composer and sound artist Abby Aresty recorded the natural sounds of the park over the course of a year — including a gurgling pond, a bicycle rolling by on a gravel path, bird song — and then mixed the recordings into seven compositions.

The pieces are played through speakers that have been installed at seven sites around the arboretum. The project is called Paths II: The Music Of Trees.

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Presidential Race
4:55 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Campaigns Beat Up On Their Own Ahead Of Debates

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 6:20 pm

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

Now, despite all that debate training, if you listen to the campaigns, you might think the candidates are preparing to fail on Wednesday night.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

That's right. Every four years in the lead-up to presidential debates, we've come to expect a game of sorts. Let's call it the expectations limbo.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LIMBO ROCK")

BLOCK: That's when campaign surrogates suddenly beat up on their own guy. So how low can they go?

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Presidential Race
4:54 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Stakes High For Romney At First Presidential Debate

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 6:20 pm

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

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Politics
4:35 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Presidential Campaigns Rock The Gamer Vote

Credit EA Games
An ad for President Obama's re-election campaign appears in Madden NFL 13.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 6:27 pm

Let's say you're pushing 115 mph on the highway, racing neck and neck with a Chevy Camaro — in an online video game, of course.

Right as you're pulling into the lead, you notice a billboard pop up on your TV screen. Early voting has begun? Voteforchange.com? Whoa, keep your eyes on the road!

This is Need for Speed: Carbon, one of 18 games that the Obama campaign advertised in during the 2008 campaign. This year, President Obama is back at it, running ads in Madden NFL 13, on the free online game site Pogo.com, and in mobile games like Tetris.

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Solve This
4:32 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Obama, Romney On Taxes: Similar Plans, Few Details

Credit Tim Boyle / Getty Images
Both President Obama and rival Mitt Romney say the tax code is too complicated. But they haven't been specific about which tax breaks they want to eliminate.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 6:20 pm

Here's something President Obama and Mitt Romney agree on: America's tax system is too complicated. Both men have outlined changes that are broadly similar, but with some important differences.

The Problem:

Today's tax code is like a department store, where the price tags are high, but there are lots of coupons, sales and weekend specials. That creates some inequities. Just as shoppers can pay different prices depending on which day they buy, taxpayers with the same income can pay very different rates depending on which deductions they qualify for.

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It's All Politics
4:10 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Pelosi Rival's New Ad Features Two Sacrificial Lambs, Including Himself

Credit Screenshot of John Dennis For Congress Ad
Actors depict Rep. Nancy Pelosi and zombies in a campaign ad by her Republican challenger.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 5:31 pm

Shots - Health Blog
4:07 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Misdeeds, Not Mistakes, Behind Most Scientific Retractions

Credit The Lancet
A study shows less than a quarter of retractions were the result of honest errors.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 5:10 pm

When there's something really wrong with a published study, the journal can retract it, much like a carmaker recalling a flawed automobile.

But are the errors that lead to retractions honest mistakes or something more problematic?

A newly published analysis finds that more than two-thirds of biomedical papers retracted over the past four decades were the result of misconduct, not error. That's much higher than previous studies of retractions had found.

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World Cafe
3:57 pm
Mon October 1, 2012

Next: The Lighthouse And The Whaler

Credit Ming Wu / Courtesy of the artist
The Lighthouse and the Whaler.

Originally published on Mon October 1, 2012 5:42 pm

  • Hear two new tracks from The Lighthouse and the Whaler

The Lighthouse and the Whaler is a band based in Cleveland, Ohio, though its name actually references the waters off the coast of Massachusetts. Originally, Michael LoPresti and Aaron Smith were its only members, and the very first song they wrote together, "The Field Song," ended up picked for a Paste sampler CD.

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