Top Stories from NCPR

Aside from their properties as biological dynamos, electric eels have other peculiarities; they are not true eels, but are a kind of fish - and a kind of fish that needs to breathe air. The South American predator of river bottoms can reach 40 pounds in size and deliver a fatal shock to humans.They use electricity for a number of purposes other than shocking their prey, as a navigation aid, to communicate with others of its kind and to detect unmoving prey by making its muscles twitch.Martha Foley and Curt Stager discuss the life cycle of a shocking species.

A ceremony to award economic development grants to regions of the state was overshadowed by developments on the federal tax overhaul plan in Washington, as the House and Senate announced agreement on a final plan to be voted on as early as next week.

College campuses around the U.S. are struggling this year with the same fierce political divides that have rocked the rest of the country. Since the election of Donald Trump election, North Country campuses have seen marches and protests. After one rally at Middlebury College in Vermont turned violent last March, more than five dozen students were disciplined.

Wednesday, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced who will get a share of $755 million in economic development funding. It's the seventh year of the Regional Economic Development Councils, known as REDCs.

The Northern Adirondack Vocal Ensemble continues its Christmas tradition of performances this weekend of a "Festival of Lessons and Carols." Now in its seventh season, NAVE's performance follows the musical model performed annually on Christmas Eve at King's College in England. NAVE is a mixed chamber choir of professional and amateur singers that performs choral music in a variety of periods and styles. This weekend's performances are Saturday, 7:30 pm at St. Peter's Church in Plattsburgh and on Sunday, 4 pm at St. Agnes Church in Lake Placid.NAVE Director Drew Benware says the performances will include anthems, carols and hymns interspersed with narration.

There's now one official candidate running for governor of New York in 2018, and tha's the Assembly's Republican leader, Brian Kolb.He announced his plans in a video released Tuesday.

Washington has ended a temporary residency program for almost 60,000 Haitians allowed to legally enter the United States following an earthquake in 2010. The affected Haitians will have to leave the U.S. by 2019. The program has also been revoked for 2,000 Nicaraguans and it's unclear if other groups including 300,000 Salvadorans will be allowed to remain. The net result is a continued flow of people crossing the border into Canada by foot.

For decades, Frontier Town in the Adirondacks was one of those places in America people pulled off the highway and let the kids climb out of the back seat and explore.

At an event that's become increasingly rare in state politics, two politicians from opposing parties sat down together and had a civil discussion about issues facing New York.Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner, a Democrat, and Republican state Sen. John DeFrancisco spoke in Albany during a forum about state issues and politics.

Catherine "Cat" Bennett seems to know her potatoes, and just about everything else you can imagine about farming. She grew up on the family farm - Bittersweet Farm - in De Peyster. She's been digging in the dirt and taking care of animals her entire life. She says her family jokes that Brian Bennett, Cat's father and NOFA's 2014 Farmer of the Year, has 40 years of farming experience, but that Cat has a lifetime.