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FLORA LICHTMAN, HOST:

Up next, math books get a makeover. You may remember my next guest from her acting roles on "The Wonder Years." Winnie Cooper may ring a bell or "The West Wing." But for thousands of girls today, she's the writer and personality behind a bestselling series of books that aim to teach girls about math. First, there was "Math Doesn't Suck," then "Hot X: Algebra Revealed," and now we're onto geometry.

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FLORA LICHTMAN, HOST:

This is SCIENCE FRIDAY, and I'm Flora Lichtman. On any given day, visit the website brainpickings.org, and you'll find posts on topics ranging from Charles Darwin's notes on marriage, to a birthday tribute to Julia Child, to the poetry of Patti Smith.

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FLORA LICHTMAN, HOST:

This is SCIENCE FRIDAY. I'm Flora Lichtman, filling in for Ira Flatow, who's out today. This week, the FDA approved a new influenza vaccine for this year's flu season, and soon enough summer will be over and you'll be standing in line again at your pharmacy or doctor's office, participating in that yearly ritual - your annual vaccination allocation.

The Reinvent the Toilet Challenge asked engineers to dream up a replacement for the antiquated flush toilet. Michael Hoffmann and his team at Caltech responded with a solar-powered toilet that disinfects waste and reuses wastewater to flush. Better yet, it pumps out hydrogen gas for use in fuel cells.

Officials from the Kroger grocery chain announced today the company will not reopen its North Anthony location in Fort Wayne, which was shut down due to major structural issues.

Earlier this year, several public officials lobbied to keep the store open, but the company ultimately deemed the problems beyond repair. The pharmacy adjacent to the North Anthony Scott's will also close.

In a statement, Kroger Central Division President Bob Moeder said employees at the North Anthony store were told Friday morning they could transfer to other locations.

Longtime troubleshooter Lakhdar Brahimi has, as expected, taken on the extremely difficult challenge of being the "joint special representative for Syria" who will try to broker a peace plan for that nation on behalf of the United Nations and the League of Arab States.

You may have heard that the house of the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was burglarized, back in July. Among the stolen items, was a 64 GB silver iPad.

Today, there's news from the San Jose Mercury News that the iPad was recovered from an unlikely source: It was in the hands of Kenny the Clown, who used it to entertain kids and tourists in the Bay Area.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics says Indiana’s unemployment rate increased for the second straight month in July even though the state’s private sector added jobs for the ninth consecutive month. But state officials say those numbers don’t add up.

Thirty-three hundred private sector jobs were created last month and government hiring surged, leading to an increase in total non-farm employment of more than ten thousand jobs.  But Indiana’s unemployment rate increased to 8.2%.