Melissa Block speaks with Steve Henn about the reinvention of Samsung and Blackberry.

Senators opened hearings Wednesday on gun violence with a surprise visit from former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, herself a shooting victim. "Too many children are dying," she told senators. What they should do, however, remained contentious as lawmakers heard from panelists — the NRA, the police and a lawyer among them who disagreed on solutions.

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And I'm Melissa Block. The U.S. economy unexpectedly slammed to a halt in the last quarter of 2012. The Commerce Department said today that the nation's growth rate shrank during the last three months of the year, falling a tenth of a percentage point. That decline raises big questions about the strength of the economy going forward.

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The end of the ban on women in combat will make it tough for the military to keep any jobs off limits to women. That's what Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said today. He told NPR's Rachel Martin that physical standards for troops maybe re-evaluated.

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This week, the Senate is expected to delay a political fight over the debt limit, the kind of brawl that could hurt the slowing economy. But they're really just putting off one fight for another, a debate over whether to overt the upcoming sequester. That's the only in Washington term for across-the-board spending cuts set to hit March 1st. The cuts would be severe and have few supporters.

But as NPR congressional correspondent Tamara Keith reports, lawmakers still can't seem to find a way around them.

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In today's volunteer force, when women sign up, they may have questions about military life that are different from the ones men would ask.

NPR's Brenda Salinas has discovered one place where female recruits are turning for help. They're going to video blogs.

BRENDA SALINAS, BYLINE: If you want to be let in on a military secret, go to YouTube and search for Sock Bun.

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DOLLY MARIE SPICE: Hi, YouTube. This video is going to be a tutorial on how to create a Sock Bun.

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The U.N. estimates four million people inside Syria are in need of humanitarian assistance. Add to that up to a million more Syrian refugees who fled to neighboring countries, also in need of help. The U.S. government has pledged tens of millions of dollars in aid, but that hasn't stopped some Syrian-Americans from taking matters into their own hands.

Ben Bergman, of member station KPCC, introduces us to some sending aid from Southern California.

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Today, many in Massachusetts are asking themselves who is Mo Cowan? That's because he'll soon be the state's newest senator. William Mo Cowan is former chief of staff to Massachusetts Governor Deval, who chose him to take the seat being vacated by Senator John Kerry, the incoming secretary of State.

As NPR's Tovia Smith reports, Cowan will serve on an interim basis until a special election in June.

The halting testimony of former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, gravely injured in a mass shooting two years ago, may have provided the most gripping moments of the Senate's first gun control hearing this session.

But the star witness on Capitol Hill on Wednesday was Wayne LaPierre, the National Rifle Association's top lobbyist.