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Emergency unemployment insurance expired Dec. 28 for an estimated 1.3 million Americans. That includes more than 220,000 Californians. They responded with everything from returning Christmas presents for cash to packing up and leaving the state. Congress could still renew these emergency benefits, as they have multiple times since 2008.

You've heard it a thousand times, maybe 10,000. Is there any way to make "The Star-Spangled Banner" fresh? Even fascinating? There is (Jimi Hendrix aside). Here is a new one that did it for me — the Jon Batiste version.

Last year in Massachusetts, chemist Annie Dookhan was sent to prison for falsifying drug tests. Her misconduct tainted thousands of cases, and was one of the largest crime lab scandals in U.S. history. Critics say it raises a larger question: Do forensic analysts serve the truth, or the prosecution?

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is reportedly considering allowing the use of the drug for medicinal purposes. An announcement is expected Wednesday during his annual State of the State address. Medical marijuana is already legal in 20 states and the District of Columbia.

A wave of blasts in the capital targeted Shiite areas. The attacks come as Sunni militants step up their campaign against the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Al-Qaida-linked militants have taken over parts of Ramadi and Fallujah in Anbar province.

The U.S. has long opposed an Iranian role in the so-called Geneva II talks later this month, but Secretary of State John Kerry's comments in Jerusalem may be the first sign that opposition is softening. Iran is a key ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, whose forces are battling a range of rebel groups, some of them backed by the West.

In the biggest city in Latin America, the pickings are pretty slim for local, organic food: The city has just 20 organic farmers' markets. But many Brazilian farmers rely heavily on pesticides, and health-conscious consumers are starting to seek alternatives.

The Sochi Winter Olympics are on track to being the most expensive games in Olympic history. A $265 million ski jump, 42,000 hotel rooms and a $51 billion budget. It's been called a financial fiasco, as Josh Yaffa of Bloomberg Businessweek tells NPR's Arun Rath.

Rodman is scheduled to play a friendly game against a North Korean team on Jan. 8 to celebrate the birthday of North Korea's supreme leader, Kim Jong Un.

Thomas Menino, 71, left a job he had held since 1993. And Marty Walsh was sworn in as the city's new mayor.