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“By taking a teenager’s excitement and using it to turn him into a folk hero, TED and many, many media organizations including my own have provided false hope to cancer patients.” Matthew Herper provides a much-needed antidote to the untrammelled hype around whiz kid Jack Andraka (without ever resorting to personal attack).

An incredible tale of survival at sea, by Paul Tough.

Another superb piece from Amy Harmon on the difficulty of finding accurate facts on GMOs.

There are plenty of tales of unexpected paternity after genetic tests, but none like this. Read this one all the way.

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