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The tropical island set in turquoise water just off the Great Barrier Reef is the site of an experiment to see what will happen to coral reefs as the ocean absorbs ever more of the carbon dioxide and heat we've added to our planet's thin skin. The results weren't so pretty.

Lack of a director can leave a federal agency treading water on policy and personnel issues, and several major agencies have been leaderless for years. The Senate also needs to act before federal judgeships can be filled, and some 10 percent of those jobs are vacant.

A pretrial hearing in the Sept. 11 case was suspended briefly last week to investigate allegations of eavesdropping. The commissions' chief prosecutor launched an investigation, and said no one was "listening, monitoring, recording" the proceedings. Defense attorneys seemed to take his word, which given the history of the commissions, is a baby step toward progress.

A massive civil lawsuit over liability for the worst oil disaster in U.S. history goes to trial next week in New Orleans. The U.S. Justice Department and Gulf states say BP was grossly negligent and put profits over safety, leading to the 2010 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon. Eleven rig workers were killed. Settlement talks have continued but states say they are pushing for a trial to make sure BP is held accountable and pays to restore the Gulf Coast environment and economy.

Listening to Republicans this week, it was often hard to figure out the party's stance on the across-the-board cuts. But while they took different approaches, many made more or less the same argument: They're open to making the cuts more flexible, but they're not sorry to see spending cut.

Environmental activists organized a massive rally on the National Mall on Sunday to protest the Keystone pipeline and pressure the Obama administration to take action to counter climate change. NPR's Elizabeth Shogren talks about the rally with host Jacki Lyden.

The rules adopted by House GOP leaders in recent years are leaving Speaker John Boehner little room to maneuver. To reach an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff, he may have to break at least one of them, analysts say.

After the United Nations voted overwhelmingly to recognize the Palestinians as a non-member state, Israel announced it would expand settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. If completed, the project would effectively divide the West Bank in two, according to the Palestinians.

President Obama told a friendly audience in Las Vegas Tuesday that the prospects are bright for an overhaul of immigration laws, now that bipartisan congressional leaders are on board. The new sense of urgency comes after Latinos turned out in large numbers last fall to help re-elect the president.

Labor organizations say the Family and Medical Leave Act is too restrictive and that workers often have to choose between their family and their livelihood. Now, there are calls for Congress to expand the law and provide paid leave.