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For the first time on record, bicycles outsold cars in Spain. More bikes than cars were sold in Italy for the first time since World War II. Indeed, bicycle sales have outpaced new-car sales across the Continent. Is it a long-term trend or just a reflection of the recession in much of Europe?

Yale historian David Blight says Americans like to think of themselves as "the country that freed the slaves," but prefer not to dwell on the sobering history that came first. He says the new film 12 Years a Slave is a rare, effective depiction of slavery in the United States.

Known as the "affliction with little dragons," Guinea worm is a nasty parasite that can grow up to 3 feet inside a person. A decades-long campaign to eliminate the worm is starting to pay off. There were only about 500 cases worldwide in 2012, and 89 cases in the first half of 2013.

At Philadelphia's historic prison, Cellblock 12 is known for cackling and echoing voices, Cellblock 6 for shadowy figures darting along the walls, Cellblock 4 for ghostly faces. Footsteps. Wails. Whispers. For decades, people have told the same eerie stories, over and over again.

Infectious disease specialists were surprised when a retired rancher in Montana tested positive for histoplasmosis, a fungal infection common in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. The fungus can be spread in bird droppings, but how it got to Montana remains a mystery.

In last night's game one of the World Series, umpires changed an out call at second base. Instead of a possible inning-ending double play, the Boston Red Sox went on to score three runs and eventually beat the St. Louis Cardinals.

Melissa Block speaks with Dr. Jennifer G. Illuzzi, assistant professor of history at Providence College in Rhode Island, about the history of discrimination of the Romani population in Europe following two cases of children who were taken from Roma families into police custody this week in Ireland and Greece.

NPR's Melissa Block speaks with director Peter Miller about his recent documentary, A.K.A. Doc Pomus, about the obscure songwriter behind Elvis Presley's "Viva Las Vegas," The Drifters' "This Magic Moment" and many more pop hits.

For years, many police departments have dealt with child prostitutes by putting them in juvenile detention centers. But federal agencies say that minors are often sex trafficking victims in need of help — and who can, in turn, help put their pimps in jail.

Genealogy has become a massive industry, from websites like Ancestry.com to TV shows like Who Do You Think You Are? But those focus on family lineage. What about the heirlooms and stories that fill the history of a family tree? A North Carolina business is trying to help.