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Business
1:20 pm
Tue January 24, 2012

Muslim Men Rescue Bagel Shop And Keep It Kosher

Credit Margot Adler / NPR
Founded in 1920, Coney Island Bialys and Bagels claims to be the oldest bialy bakery in New York City. It's now run by two Pakistani Muslim men, who say they are keeping it kosher.

Coney Island Bialys and Bagels claims to be the oldest bialy bakery in New York City. Founded in 1920, it's faced hard economic times and changing neighborhood demographics.

Now, the shop has been rescued by two Pakistani Muslims — and they're keeping it kosher.

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Election 2012
1:15 pm
Tue January 24, 2012

A Few Questions, Answers About Mitt Romney's Taxes

Mitt Romney has filed his tax returns – to the voters. And to no one's surprise, the former Massachusetts governor, private equity firm exec and GOP presidential contender makes a tidy sum.

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Energy
1:15 pm
Tue January 24, 2012

Foreign Oil Imports Drop As U.S. Drilling Ramps Up

Credit Karen Bleier / AFP/Getty Images
Natural gas is burned off next to an oil well being drilled at a site near Tioga, N.D., in August. U.S. oil production started increasing a few years ago and is predicted to continue to rise, reducing the country's dependence on oil imports.

Originally published on Tue January 24, 2012 3:07 pm

Since President Obama took office, the U.S. has made considerable progress in overcoming a problem that has bedeviled presidents since Richard Nixon — dependence on foreign oil.

When U.S. oil dependence peaked at 60 percent in 2005, then-President George W. Bush said the country had a serious problem and was "addicted to oil."

Oil imports were down to 49 percent in 2010, and the Energy Information Agency predicted Tuesday that imports would drop to 36 percent by 2035.

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Law
1:12 pm
Tue January 24, 2012

Same-Sex Marriage May Hinge On Supreme Court

Credit Max Whittaker / Getty Images
In 2008, California voters passed Proposition 8, making same-sex marriage in the state illegal. Now, legal challenges to that initiative mean it could soon get a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court.

With New York's legalization of same-sex marriage effectively doubling the number of Americans living in states where gays can marry, gay advocates like to say 2011 was a big year.

It's hard to imagine another doubling this year, but proponents are still hoping to build on last year's success. Same-sex marriage is currently legal in six states plus Washington, D.C., and it may come up for a vote in six more. All the while, legal challenges are pushing the issue closer to getting an opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Shots - Health Blog
1:05 pm
Tue January 24, 2012

Common Chemicals Could Make Kids' Vaccines Less Effective

Originally published on Tue January 24, 2012 3:07 pm

The more exposure children have to chemicals called perfluorinated compounds, the less likely they are to have a good immune response to vaccinations, a study just published in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association shows.

The finding suggests, but doesn't prove, that these chemicals can affect the immune system enough to make some children more vulnerable to infectious diseases.

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