NPR News

Pages

The Two-Way
11:31 am
Tue April 2, 2013

James Hansen, NASA Scientist Who Raised Climate Change Alarm, Is Retiring

Credit Christopher Furlong / Getty Images
NASA scientist and climatologist James Hansen in 2009.

"After nearly half a century of research in planetary and climate science for NASA, James E. Hansen is retiring on Wednesday to pursue his passion for climate activism without the hindrances that come with government employment," The New York Times' Dot Earth blog writes.

Read more
All Songs Considered
11:17 am
Tue April 2, 2013

A Song About Sex, Redemption For A James Brown Impersonator, And A Major Heartbreaker

Credit Courtesy of the artists
Clockwise from upper left: Olof Arnalds, Keaton Henson, Karl Bartos and Charles Bradley

Originally published on Tue April 23, 2013 7:12 pm

This week on All Songs Considered, hosts Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton go on a haphazard musical journey across the globe to share their favorite new discoveries. Manchester's The 1975 start things off with the band's punchy song called "Sex." Then we head to Brooklyn for soul singer Charles Bradley, who keeps things heated with "You Put The Flame On It," a track from his upcoming album Victim Of Love.

Read more
All Songs Considered
11:17 am
Tue April 2, 2013

First Watch: Keaton Henson, 'You'

The Keaton Henson who appears on the new album Birthdays is an avowed hermit with a profoundly broken heart. He also has one of the most beautiful voices I've heard. The 24 year-old singer from London, who says he rarely leaves his bedroom, bares his wrecked emotional remains in an arresting new video for the song "You."

Read more
The Two-Way
11:03 am
Tue April 2, 2013

U.N. Approves Treaty To Regulate Multibillion-Dollar Global Arms Trade

Credit Timothy A. Clary / AFP/Getty Images
Delegates to the United Nations General Assembly applaud the passage of the first U.N. treaty regulating the international arms trade on Tuesday.

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 11:48 am

The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly approved the first U.N. treaty to regulate the estimated $60 billion global arms trade on Tuesday.

The goal of the Arms Trade Treaty, which the U.N. has sought for over a decade, according to The Associated Press, is to keep illicit weapons out of the hands of terrorists, insurgent fighters and organized crime.

The vote on the treaty was 154-3, with 23 abstentions.

Read more
Arts & Life
10:57 am
Tue April 2, 2013

'Muses And Metaphor' Series Returns For Poetry Month

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

You might have noticed that it is April already and here at TELL ME MORE that means we are kicking off our annual tribute to National Poetry Month. For the third year in a row, we are starting our series we call Muses and Metaphor. We combine two of our passions, poetry and social media. We would like you to go on Twitter and tweet us your original poetry using fewer than 140 characters. Poet Holly Bass is going to help us once again pick out our favorites that we will air and she is with us now to tell us more.

Read more
The Two-Way
10:57 am
Tue April 2, 2013

In Spain, A Mattress That Lets Your Money Rest Easy

Credit Courtesy of Descanso Santos Suenos
My Mattress Safe retails for about $1,120.
The Two-Way
10:56 am
Tue April 2, 2013

NRA Task Force Recommends Training School Personnel Who Want To Be Armed

Credit Shawn Thew / EPA /LANDOV
Former Republican Congressman Asa Hutchinson holds up his task force's report during a news conference Tuesday in Washington, D.C.

A task force launched by the National Rifle Association after the Dec. 14 school shooting in Newtown, Conn., has come back with a report that recommends the creation of programs that give additional weapons training to school resource officers as well as "selected and designated school personnel" who could then carry arms.

Read more
The Picture Show
10:38 am
Tue April 2, 2013

How A Female Photographer Sees Her Afghanistan

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 3:44 pm

Born in Kandahar, Afghanistan, in 1984, photographer Farzana Wahidy was only a teenager when the Taliban took over the country in 1996. At age 13 she was beaten in the street for not wearing a burqa, she recalls, and she describes those years as a "very closed, very dark time." To carry a camera would have been unthinkable.

Read more
Shots - Health News
10:20 am
Tue April 2, 2013

The Hidden Limitations Of Health Savings Accounts

Credit iStockphoto.com
In order to get the tax advantages of a health savings account, the health plan it's linked to has to meet certain criteria.

Health plan deductibles keep getting higher — the proportion of workers with a deductible that topped $1,000 for single coverage nearly tripled in the past five years, to 34 percent.

Read more
Education
10:03 am
Tue April 2, 2013

For Women, No Straight Road To Success

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 10:57 am

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. Coming up, it is April, which means, along with April showers, National Poetry Month and we will be asking you once again to contribute if you would like by tweeting us your original poems in 140 characters or less. We are going to kick it off with our curator Holly Bass in just a minute.

Read more
Parenting
10:03 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Should Toddlers Own Tablets?

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 10:57 am

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

This is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. I'm Michel Martin. They say it takes a village to raise a child, but maybe you just need a few moms in your corner. Every week, we check in with a diverse group of parents for their common sense and savvy advice.

Read more
Africa
9:29 am
Tue April 2, 2013

President Koroma: Sierra Leone's Beaches Make It Place To Visit

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 10:57 am

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. We know that a lot of students are still on spring break this week but what better time to take a step back and think about higher education? Today we meet the president of Simmons College, which is a college for women in the Boston area, and we'll hear about her thoughts about women leadership and education.

Read more
The Two-Way
9:13 am
Tue April 2, 2013

New York Politicians Accused In Plot To Sell GOP Spot In NYC Mayoral Race

Credit New York State Senate / Reuters /Landov
New York State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D)

New York State Sen. Malcolm Smith, a Democrat, was led from his Queens home in handcuffs Tuesday morning after being arrested for allegedly trying to buy his way on to the Republican ticket in this year's New York City mayoral election.

Also arrested Tuesday: City Councilman Daniel Halloran, a Republican, and four other local politicians (also Republicans) from the New York metropolitan area, who stand accused of conspiring with Smith.

Read more
The Two-Way
8:25 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Obama Says $100 Million Will Be Invested In Brain-mapping Initiative

Credit Mauricio Lima / AFP/Getty Images

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 11:11 am

Adding some details to an initiative he announced during his latest State of the Union address, President Obama on Tuesday said that federal agencies plan to spend $100 million to jump start an effort to map the human brain. It's research that could lead to breakthroughs in the treatment and prevention of brain disorders.

Read more
The Two-Way
7:47 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Fannie Mae Posts Record Profit; Paid Taxpayers $11.6 Billion In 2012

Credit Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
Fannie Mae's headquarters in Washington, DC.

The government-controlled mortgage giant Fannie Mae, which needed a $116 billion federal bailout after the housing bubble burst in 2007, said Tuesday that it earned a record $7.6 billion in fourth-quarter 2012 and $17.2 billion for the year.

Read more
The Two-Way
6:46 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Top Stories: North Korea's Latest Threat; Probe Continues In Texas D.A.'s Death

Credit Tim Sharp / Reuters /Landov
A deputy sheriff walks down the street where the home of Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland is located in Forney, Texas. McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were shot dead in their home over the weekend.
NPR Jazz Live
6:22 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Chick Corea And SFJAZZ Collective: Live At SFJAZZ

Credit Scott Chernis / Courtesy of SFJAZZ
Chick Corea performs with the SFJAZZ Collective at the SFJAZZ Center opening night.

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 6:39 pm

Every year, an all-star assemblage of today's jazz musicians called the SFJAZZ Collective picks a different all-time-great jazz composer to feature. The band then applies its own arrangements to that composer's tunes.

Read more
The Two-Way
6:15 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Atlanta Educators Accused In Cheating Scandal Start Turning Themselves In

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 5:59 pm

Ongoing coverage as 35 educators from Atlanta's school system turn themselves in to face charges related to that city's cheating scandal:

Updated at 7:53 p.m. ET Atlantic Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall Surrenders.

Former Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall arrived at the Fulton County jail just after 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Read more
The Two-Way
5:40 am
Tue April 2, 2013

UConn And Cal Punch First Two Tickets To Women's Final Four

Credit Cloe Poisson/Hartford Courant / MCT /Landov
Connecticut center Stefanie Dolson hugs teammate Caroline Doty (No. 5) after the Huskies' win Monday night over Kentucky at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn.

The Connecticut women cruised into the Division I basketball championship's Final Four Monday night with an 83-53 win over Kentucky. In the evening's other matchup, California squeaked by Georgia, 65-62.

The Final Four's other two slots will be filled Tuesday night. Notre Dame faces Duke, while Tennessee takes on Louisville. (Check the brackets here. The games are being broadcast by ESPN.)

Read more
13.7: Cosmos And Culture
5:38 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Should All Women Heed Author's Advice To 'Lean In?'

Credit Gregory Bull / AP
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's chief operating officer, speaks at a luncheon for the American Society of News Editors in San Diego.

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 10:04 am

Sheryl Sandberg's controversial new book on women and leadership, Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead, currently tops Amazon's best-seller list in "Business Management and Leadership" alongside Decisive (Chip Heath and Dan Heath),

Read more
The Two-Way
5:19 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Book News: American Library Association, Barnes & Noble Called 'Facilitators Of Porn'

Credit Karen Bleier / AFP/Getty Images
A Barnes & Noble bookstore in Washington, D.C.

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 7:21 am

The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.

Read more
Around the Nation
5:05 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Surprise Party Kidnapping Lands Friends In Hot Water

Friends of a New York man planned a surprise party, but he found out. To surprise him, they threw a pillowcase over his head, threw him in a van and drove him to the party in Pennsylvania. Witnesses to the fake abduction called police, who mounted a massive search.

First Reads
5:03 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Exclusive First Read: 'Julio's Day,' By Gilbert Hernandez

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 6:16 am

Julio's Day introduction by Brian Evenson, author of Windeye.


"...one day we were born, one day we shall die, the same day, the same second, is that not enough for you?" — Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot

Read more
Book Reviews
5:03 am
Tue April 2, 2013

In 'Life After Life,' Caught In The Dangerous Machinery of History

Credit iStockphotos.com

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 7:56 pm

Flannery O'Connor said short stories need to have a beginning, a middle and an end, though not necessarily in that order. But what about novels? Kate Atkinson seems to believe there can be a beginning, a middle and an end, and then another beginning, plus several more middles ... and why not have a beginning again?

Read more
Book Reviews
5:03 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Minks, Perfume And Beastly Beauty In 'Shocked'

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 9:14 am

Beauty can be a beast. That's one message from Shocked, Patricia Volk's smart, fascinating book about her complex relationship with her beautiful, elegantly attired, hypercritical mother.

Read more
Around the Nation
4:58 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Mets Opening Day Special For Fan, Usher

In 1964, Robert Ostertag attended his first of 50 straight New York Mets home openers. That same day, Luke Gasparre began his job as an usher. The New York Times captured quite a moment Monday: Gasparre showed Ostertag to his seat in section 310.

The Two-Way
4:46 am
Tue April 2, 2013

North Korea's Latest Threat: It Will Restart Nuclear Reactor

Credit Xinhua /Landov
North Korea's KCNA news agency released this photo Monday, saying it shows leader Kim Jong Un (at left) speaking during a plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the DPRK in Pyongyang. Hanging above is the image of his father, former leader Kim Jong Il, who died in 2011.

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 2:22 pm

A vow Tuesday from North Korea that it will restart a nuclear reactor that eventually could make about one bomb's worth of plutonium a year further escalates tensions that were already high due to that nation's almost daily threats, NPR's Louisa Lim tells our Newscast Desk.

According to Louisa, who filed her report from Beijing:

Read more
Around the Nation
3:31 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Budget Cuts Silence Some Air Traffic Control Towers

David Greene talks to Yvette Aehle, director of the Southwest Georgia Regional Airport, about her plans to shut down the airport's air traffic control tower. Because of sequestration, the FAA will no longer pay for air traffic controllers at 144 smaller airports.

Around the Nation
3:28 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Cuban Blogger Wants Fidel's Cuba, Miami's Cuba To Unite

Credit Joe Skipper / Reuters /Landov
Yoani Sanchez, internationally known dissident blogger from Cuba, listens to a question as she speaks at the Freedom Tower in Miami on Monday.

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 8:33 am

For Cuban-Americans, Miami's Freedom Tower is almost a holy place — a former immigration intake center where thousands came in the 1960s after they fled the island's communist rule.

But across the street from the hall, where Cuban dissident blogger Yoani Sanchez spoke Monday, there were protests. A dozen anti-Castro activists repudiated some of Sanchez's past comments, including her support for lifting the long-standing U.S. embargo of Cuba.

Read more
Economy
3:28 am
Tue April 2, 2013

Economic Success Propels Germany Toward Europe's Political Power House

Originally published on Tue April 2, 2013 3:54 am

Steve Inskeep talks to Zanny Minton Beddoes, of The Economist, about the long-term impact of the Cyprus crisis on European economies. Beddoes offers the view from Germany. That country is now turning its attention to its own general elections in September.

Pages