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A Kenyan senior citizen leans on his cane. As people age in parts of Africa, they report declining levels of satisfaction with their life.

A Kenyan senior citizen leans on his cane. As people age in parts of Africa, they report declining levels of satisfaction with their life. Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images

Daily Life

You're Growing Older ... Is Your Life Getting Better Or Worse?

by Susan Brink

After a middle-aged slump, most folks in the U.S. and other wealthy countries report greater happiness. But in less well-off nations, people report a sharp, never-ending decline in satisfaction.

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Members of the activist group ACT UP, which has fought for the rights of people with AIDS, held a demonstration in New York's Times Square in 1992.

Members of the activist group ACT UP, which has fought for the rights of people with AIDS, held a demonstration in New York's Times Square in 1992. Andrew Savulich/AP hide caption

itoggle caption Andrew Savulich/AP

Health

A Veteran AIDS Activist Has Déjà Vu From Ebola Panic

by Susan Brink

Activist Gregg Gonsalves issues a call to action in an essay in this week's New England Journal of Medicine: "Panic, Paranoia, and Public Health — The AIDS Epidemic's Lessons for Ebola."

Air Force personnel put up tents to house a 25-bed, U.S.-built hospital for Liberian health workers sick with Ebola in Monrovia, Liberia's capital. The hospital is scheduled to open this weekend.

Air Force personnel put up tents to house a 25-bed, U.S.-built hospital for Liberian health workers sick with Ebola in Monrovia, Liberia's capital. The hospital is scheduled to open this weekend. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption John Moore/Getty Images

Health

U.S. Military Response To Ebola Gains Momentum In Liberia

The number of U.S. troops fighting Ebola in West Africa is set to increase dramatically this month, and the first two field hospitals erected by U.S. troops in Liberia will open in the coming days.

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Students taking part in Columbia University's Ebola design challenge demonstrated for judges how to use a special chamber for decontaminating small items.

Students taking part in Columbia University's Ebola design challenge demonstrated for judges how to use a special chamber for decontaminating small items. Courtesy of Columbia Engineering hide caption

itoggle caption Courtesy of Columbia Engineering

Health

From Blue Bleach To Hazmat Hacks, Students Take On Ebola Challenges

by Linda Poon

College students excel at thinking creatively under pressure. Now they're designing tools to confront the challenges of Ebola, including friendlier-looking protective gear and diagnostic aids.

Saah Exco was found alone on a beach in Liberia's West Point slum, naked and abandoned and likely an Ebola victim.Research suggests the story of one needy individual motivates charitable donors more than statistics about millions of sufferers.

Saah Exco was found alone on a beach in Liberia's West Point slum, naked and abandoned and likely an Ebola victim.Research suggests the story of one needy individual motivates charitable donors more than statistics about millions of sufferers. David Gilkey/NPR hide caption

itoggle caption David Gilkey/NPR

Money

Why Your Brain Wants To Help One Child In Need — But Not Millions

Donations to fight Ebola are lower than expected. One psychologist thinks the reason may be the impact of hopelessness. A really big problem makes people less likely to give.

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Wilson Kipsang of Kenya hoisted his country's flag after winning the New York City Marathon on Sunday. Kipsang won in an unofficial time of 2 hours, 10 minutes, 59 seconds.

Wilson Kipsang of Kenya hoisted his country's flag after winning the New York City Marathon on Sunday. Kipsang won in an unofficial time of 2 hours, 10 minutes, 59 seconds. Craig Ruttle/AP hide caption

itoggle caption Craig Ruttle/AP

Daily Life

What Makes Kenya's Marathon Runners The World's Best?

by Mary Brophy Marcus

Kenyan distance runners won both the men's and women's divisions of Sunday's New York City Marathon. A Harvard evolutionary biologist suggests some possible reasons why.

A child receives a polio vaccine during National Immunization Days in the Nigerian city of Kano.

A child receives a polio vaccine during National Immunization Days in the Nigerian city of Kano. Diego Ibarra Sanchez /Courtesy of Rotary Foundation hide caption

itoggle caption Diego Ibarra Sanchez /Courtesy of Rotary Foundation

Health

It Turns Out That Fighting Polio Is Good Training To Fight Ebola

by Joanne Silberner

Nigeria knows how to beat back polio. And that's helped in the battle against Ebola. But other West African countries are struggling to beat the deadly virus — and neglecting anti-polio efforts.

A burial team carries the body of woman suspected to have died from the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia. Most of the organized burial teams in the country are assisted by the aid group Global Communities, which, among other things, trains workers to properly wear personal protective equipment, like the gear this team is wearing.

A burial team carries the body of woman suspected to have died from the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia. Most of the organized burial teams in the country are assisted by the aid group Global Communities, which, among other things, trains workers to properly wear personal protective equipment, like the gear this team is wearing. Abbas Dulleh/AP hide caption

itoggle caption Abbas Dulleh/AP

Health

As Epidemic In Liberia Slows, Burying Bodies Remains A Challenge

by NPR Staff

The aid group Global Communities, which has been organizing safe burial teams for the bodies of Ebola victims in Liberia, says it has seen the number of deaths flatten off.

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Decontee Davis, 23, initially thought she had malaria when she came down with a fever. It took her more than a week after she got sick to seek treatment for Ebola.

Decontee Davis, 23, initially thought she had malaria when she came down with a fever. It took her more than a week after she got sick to seek treatment for Ebola. John W. Poole/NPR hide caption

itoggle caption John W. Poole/NPR

Health

She Lost Her Fiance To Ebola But Found A New Mission

by Rebecca Hersher

Decontee Davis survived Ebola, but her fiance died of the virus. Now she is working with children whose parents have had the disease — and spreading the word that early treatment is critical.

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Man, that PPE is hot. And not in a good way. One challenge for the designers was to come up a way to give health workers more time in personal protective equipment without overheating.

Man, that PPE is hot. And not in a good way. One challenge for the designers was to come up a way to give health workers more time in personal protective equipment without overheating. Will Kirk/Jhpiego/CBID hide caption

itoggle caption Will Kirk/Jhpiego/CBID

Health

Ebola Design Challenge Says Yes To The Wedding Dress Designer

by Linda Poon

There were engineers. And virologists. And one wedding dress designer. Together, they're trying to devise a better design for protective gear worn by health workers in the Ebola ward.

Children play in the West Point neighborhood of Monrovia last week. West Point has been hit hard by Ebola. So local leaders formed their own Ebola task force, which goes door to door looking for cases.

Children play in the West Point neighborhood of Monrovia last week. West Point has been hit hard by Ebola. So local leaders formed their own Ebola task force, which goes door to door looking for cases. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption John Moore/Getty Images

Health

How Liberia Is Starting To Beat Ebola, With Fingers Crossed

There's potentially some good news about Ebola: While cases are still rising in Sierra Leone, the outbreak shows signs of slowing in Liberia. Communities are banding together to get Ebola out.

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