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Lily Padula for NPR

Gay people often have older brothers. Why? And does it matter?

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After using the Lenire device for an hour each day for 12 weeks, Victoria Banks says her tinnitus is "barely noticeable." David Petrelli/Victoria Banks hide caption

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David Petrelli/Victoria Banks

Got tinnitus? A device that tickles the tongue helps this musician find relief

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bsd studio/Getty Images

Here's how the brain experiences pleasure — even the kind that makes us feel guilty

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The author's 8-year-old daughter, Rosy, has a "kids' license," showing she has her parents' permission to ride her bike around her Texas hometown. Michaeleen Doucleff hide caption

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Michaeleen Doucleff

Sisters Sofie Elliott (left) and Simone Elliott say that reconciling their memories felt especially important as they waded into one particular period of their childhood — a darker chapter that they still hadn't fully explored but that they felt ready to confront together. Kayana Szymczak for NPR; Lena Mucha for NPR hide caption

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Kayana Szymczak for NPR; Lena Mucha for NPR

Sisters make peace with dark memories through art, science and each other

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Scientists Carly Biedul, Coordinator at The Great Salt Lake Institute, Bonnie Baxter, Director at The Great Salt Lake Institute, and Heidi Hoven, Senior Manager at the Gillmor Sanctuary and Audubon Rockies, showed us around a bird sanctuary where many species of birds and insects the the birds feed on are affected by the recession of The Great Salt Lake. Lindsay D'Addato for NPR hide caption

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Lindsay D'Addato for NPR

What biologists see from the shores of the drying Great Salt Lake

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Joel Breman trains scientists in malaria diagnosis in Côte d'Ivoire, 1986. Breman died this month at age 87. Courtesy of the Breman family. hide caption

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Courtesy of the Breman family.

Surgeon Christoph Haller and his research team from Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children are working on technology that could someday result in an artificial womb to help extremely premature babies. Chloe Ellingson for NPR hide caption

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Chloe Ellingson for NPR

An artificial womb could build a bridge to health for premature babies

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Following a new EPA rule, public water systems will have five years to address instances where there is too much PFAS in tap water – three years to sample their systems and establish the existing levels of PFAS, and an additional two years to install water treatment technologies if their levels are too high. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

In this photo illustration, a pack of Lunchables is displayed on Wednesday in San Anselmo, Calif. Consumer Reports is asking for the Department of Agriculture to eliminate Lunchables food kits from the National School Lunch Program after finding high levels of lead, sodium and cadmium in tested kits. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

While not an official holiday, National Siblings Day on April 10 has gained momentum on social media in recent years. Diana Haronis/Getty Images hide caption

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Diana Haronis/Getty Images

National Siblings Day is a celebration born of love — and grief

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Malte Mueller/Getty Images/fStop

The order your siblings were born in may play a role in identity and sexuality

It's National Siblings Day! To mark the occasion, guest host Selena Simmons-Duffin is exploring a detail very personal to her: How the number of older brothers a person has can influence their sexuality. Scientific research on sexuality has a dark history, with long-lasting harmful effects on queer communities. Much of the early research has also been debunked over time. But not this "fraternal birth order effect." The fact that a person's likelihood of being gay increases with each older brother has been found all over the world – from Turkey to North America, Brazil, the Netherlands and beyond. Today, Selena gets into all the details: What this effect is, how it's been studied and what it can (and can't) explain about sexuality.

The order your siblings were born in may play a role in identity and sexuality

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A two-spot octopus, like the type an Oklahoma family brought home as a pet. Angelina Komatovich hide caption

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Angelina Komatovich

Terrance the octopus came to live with a family. Then she laid dozens of eggs

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The University of Edinburgh says Nobel prize-winning physicist Peter Higgs, who proposed the existence of the Higgs boson particle, has died at 94. Sean Dempsey/AP hide caption

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Sean Dempsey/AP

A new lunar time zone has been pitched for the moon. John Raoux/AP hide caption

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John Raoux/AP

NASA has been asked to create a time zone for the moon. Here's how it would work

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Lily Padula for NPR

In the womb, a brother's hormones can shape a sister's future

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A long exposure photo of Firefly petunias, which are genetically modified to produce their own light through bioluminescence Sasa Woodruff/Boise State Public Radio hide caption

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Sasa Woodruff/Boise State Public Radio

Watch your garden glow with new genetically modified bioluminescent petunias

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