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China has been building museums with abandon, opening about 100 annually in recent years. Two of the biggest opened on the same day last fall on opposite banks of Shanghai's Huangpu River. But filling these museums — with both art and visitors — is proving more challenging.

The median home price in San Francisco now exceeds $1 million. With the real estate market going crazy again, prices are going up for other goods, and even the highly paid feel squeezed out.

The number of polio cases globally sank to an all-time low in 2012. But outbreaks in Syria and Somalia this year are jeopardizing efforts to eradicate the virus. A recent visit to the Somali-Ethiopian border highlights just how easily polio can regain a foothold in rural, insecure communities.

The stage appears to be set for a renewed debate about gun control. The NRA and other proponents of gun owners' rights have been silent in the aftermath of the Newtown shootings, but many will question the benefits of possible restrictions.

In Silicon Valley and around the world there are thousands of folks toiling away on new technologies, convinced that the thing they are building will transform the way we live. NPR's Steve Henn introduces us to five techies whose research and work he'll be keeping a close eye on in the coming year.

Automatic federal budget cuts that kicked in March 1 have had little initial impact in many parts of the government. In a few programs, however, the effect has been real and painful as the government has begun cutting $85 billion from its spending through the end of September.

Drones are no longer the sole province of the U.S. military and intelligence agencies. They are starting to appear in U.S. skies. Police are employing them to fight crime. Enthusiasts are making their own at home. Rules governing their use are changing, and civil liberties groups are calling for privacy restrictions.

Some of the most interesting things on TV in 2014 weren't actually made for TV. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans lists the moments in television, viral video and social media that changed us all this year.

The Common Core State Standards are changing reading instruction in many schools. And that means new challenges for lots of students, even traditional high achievers.

Named for the original model — an employee of Kodak — the portraits were used by photo labs to calibrate printers. But until the 1970s, that model was always white.