Morning Edition

A reunion of art is taking place in Paris right now. Works that haven't been there together in almost a century are reunited once again. The art was collected by writer Gertrude Stein and her brothers starting in the early 1900s. The Steins bought paintings right out of the studios of young avant-garde artists — Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and others who would become masters as the 20th century progressed.

New slow-motion photography shows the tiny birds shed water much like dogs do: by whipping their heads back and forth. But hummingbirds do it mid-flight and really fast — reaching a G-Force of 34. That's five times faster than a Formula 1 racing car.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep. The holiday season will apparently be a good one for pets. A survey finds most pet owners plan to buy their pets a gift. We're not sure what this means for the economy, but people are spending more. They're budgeting $46 - up $5 from last year. Hopefully, a dog named Echo in Hawaii is not listening, since the owner says her dog is getting a toy for Christmas, and her husband is getting a shirt from the dog.

The Penn State Board of Trustees says it will appoint a special committee to investigate a child sex abuse scandal. This is the case that engulfed the university, its football program and coach Joe Paterno. Former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky is accused of repeatedly sexually abusing young boys over a 15-year period, sometimes in the Penn State locker room.

Regulators in Florida recently gave two utilities permission to begin charging customers for nuclear plants that won't be completed for at least a decade. To encourage development of nuclear power, Florida allows utilities to charge customers upfront for the costs. Now here's a movement there to rethink that policy.

A study by the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project reveals what teens think about the online experience. While bullying on social media sites like Facebook gets a lot of news coverage, most teens think social networks are a friendly place for them.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Counting down, it is now exactly two weeks before the clock runs out for Congress's supercommittee. If its six Democrats and six Republicans fail to reduce deficits by more than a trillion dollars, automatic spending cuts will kick in. Under this process, known as sequestration, the law would require half the cuts to come from defense spending. NPR's David Welna reports.

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain responded to accusations of sexual harassment at a news conference in Scotsdale, Ariz., Tuesday. Cain say he has "never acted inappropriately with anyone."

Mississippi voters on Tuesday rejected an amendment to their state constitution that would have declared that life begins at fertilization.

The result was somewhat unexpected: As recently as a few weeks ago, the so-called personhood amendment was considered almost certain to pass. Voters in Colorado have twice rejected similar amendments to declare that life begins legally at fertilization, in 2008 and 2010. But Mississippi, with its far more conservative bent, was considered much friendlier territory.

Renee Montagne has the Last Word in business.