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Something remarkable happened in 2012.

The improvement in the unemployment rate in the last year belies the fact that the rate would be so much higher if the number of people in the labor force didn't shrink.

Bad weather was making its way across the eastern part of the U.S. on a busy post-Christmas travel day. Hundreds of flights were canceled and roads were treacherous in many East Coast and Midwestern states.

In 2007, Prince William County, Va., voted to step up police checks aimed at driving out illegal immigrants. The move sparked local outcry and national attention, but five years on, supporters and opponents differ on whether the policy has been a success.

The short supply of a key drug to treat lymphoma forced doctors to switch to another medicine. Now researchers have documented that the fallback drug wasn't as good a choice as many doctors thought.

Now that marijuana is legal in Washington state, parents and drug counselors face the quandary of what to tell kids about the drug. Counselors, especially, say their job is harder now because of the example of adults who are openly and legally indulging in a substance that, just a few weeks ago, could still be dismissed as illegal.

A plaintiffs' attorney says Toyota Motor Corp. has reached a settlement exceeding $1 billion in a class-action lawsuit involving complaints of unintended acceleration in its vehicles. Robert Siegel talks with NPR's Sonari Glinton about the deal, which still needs a judge's approval.

Plenty of apps promise to make life easier for people with life-threatening allergies to nuts and other foods. One scientist even invented a smartphone-based lab to detect potential allergens. But asking "Does that have nuts in it?" may actually be a better and safer option than pulling out your phone.

The House Democratic caucus will include a record number of women and minorities next year. But when it comes to top statewide offices, minorities do better running as Republicans.

In past several months, Uniq Ishman has discovered something about herself.“I like to take pictures,” she says. “I like to look at things up close and…

Services like Pandora and Spotify have been trying to win over two types of customers: younger people who don't buy music at all and older people who still like physical albums. But it's been difficult to lure customers willing to pay for music they won't own or that they can find for free online.

There were 138 toothbrush-related patents filed this year in the U.S. Why so many new ideas? "Cleaning the teeth is actually a pretty complex problem, and I think that's why there's been so much invention around it," says the head of Colgate's global toothbrush division.

Connecticut has suddenly become the epicenter of America's gun control debate, in a way no one there could have foreseen. In the wake of the Newtown massacre, the state that once led the world in making modern weaponry is now the backdrop for arguments over the U.S. gun industry.

The Department of Veterans Affairs wanted to reduce a backlog in veterans' claims for disability benefits. Instead, the problem has worsened this year, in part, the VA says, because the department made it easier for more vets to file claims.

Go! Pop! Bang! is grounded in the Baltimore club sound — super-danceable, lots of bass and crazily fast rapping. Rye Rye's debut album was all set to be released in 2009, but then sweeping changes in her life got in the way.

President Obama returns to Washington Thursday as do members of the U.S. Senate. They're cutting holiday plans short in hopes of coming up with a deal to avoid the tax hikes and budget cuts set to take effect on Jan. 1.

The Mayan people in Latin America received a lot of attention when word spread their ancient calendar had predicted the world would end on Dec. 21. The tourists that came to visit Mayan sites have gone home, and the modern-day Mayas go on with their lives marked by high rates of poverty and a dependence on migration.

The storm that spread blizzards from Texas to the Great Lakes, and spawned tornadoes in the Southeast, will dump more snow before it heads off toward Canada and the Atlantic Ocean. It's been blamed for at least 15 deaths.

There were 350,000 first-time claims for unemployment benefits last week. That's the lowest level since March 2008. But because of the Christmas holiday, some states had to do more estimating than usual.

Also: U.N. envoy calls for transitional government in Syria; former President George H.W. Bush remains hospitalized; and talks to avoid an East Coast port strike resume.