Politics
2:34 am
Wed April 3, 2013

Outrage Alone Won't Advance Gun Control Measures

Credit Susan Walsh / AP
President Obama urged Congress to take action on measures to protect children from gun violence while speaking in the East Room of the White House last week. Standing with Obama are Vice President Joe Biden and, according to the White House, law enforcement officials, victims of gun violence and others, whom the White House did not want to name.

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 6:42 am

President Obama is trying to regain some traction for federal gun control measures by visiting states that are moving forward on their own.

On Wednesday, the president speaks in Colorado, where lawmakers recently passed a series of bills requiring background checks for all gun purchases and limiting the size of ammunition magazines.

Obama would like to see similar measures adopted nationwide. But if Colorado serves as an inspiration for the president, it also provides a cautionary tale.

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Tina Brown's Must-Reads
1:06 am
Wed April 3, 2013

Tina Brown's Must Reads: Women Vs. The World

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 7:39 am

Tina Brown, editor of the Daily Beast and Newsweek, joins NPR's Steve Inskeep again for an occasional feature Morning Edition likes to call Word of Mouth. She talks about what she's been reading and offers recommendations.

This month, as Brown prepares for her annual Women in the World Summit in New York City, her reading suggestions address just that: the role of women in the developing world.

Malala And The Media

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Shots - Health News
1:04 am
Wed April 3, 2013

In South Jersey, New Options For Primary Care Are Slow To Take Hold

Credit Emma Lee
Dr. Madhumathi Gunasekaran examines John Pike at the Northgate II clinic in Camden, N.J.

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 6:19 am

Camden, N.J., has serious health problems, with too many people going to local emergency rooms unnecessarily. But progress is being made, albeit slowly.

John Pike, 53, is a Camden resident who used to be a frequent flier at the ER.

Pike has a smoker's cough, and when that cough or pain in his bad hip flared up, he'd go to the ER — maybe eight or nine times a year. But when he did, ER staffers didn't really remember him or his medical history.

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Kitchen Window
12:07 am
Wed April 3, 2013

True Grits: Getting In Touch With Your Inner Southerner

Despite growing up in Virginia, I never tasted grits until I was in college. I remember that first bite vividly, because it left me with the impression that grits were truly disgusting. My freshman roommate would make them with her hot pot, and this vile, gluey goo made me swear they would never pass my lips again.

Fast-forward a couple of years, when I was once again duped into trying instant grits — this time doctored with cheddar cheese and butter. Still horrible. Twice fooled, it's a wonder I ever tried them again.

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Planet Money
10:53 pm
Tue April 2, 2013

H1-B Visas Applications As An Economic Indicator

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 6:19 am

The demand from American companies for high-skilled immigrants seems to be up this year. And that could mean something is about to change for the overall economy.

There is a cap on the number of visas the government gives out for these kind of workers every year. Lately, that cap has been 85,000. Demand always outstrips supply, but for the past couple of years, it has taken at least a few months to hit the quota. But this year, the H-1B visas might be gone by the end of the week.

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Sports
8:03 pm
Tue April 2, 2013

Baseball Isn't Dead; It Just Takes More Work To Appreciate

Credit Rodolfo Arguedas / iStockphoto.com
Some say baseball is too slow and doesn't appeal to young people. Not Frank Deford.

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 6:19 am

It being the start of baseball season, that means we've been inundated by predictions — who'll win the divisions and the pennants and the World Series? We know two things on this subject. In every sport, at the start of the season, the experts are bound and determined to make these long-range predictions. And second, they are invariably wrong.

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Shots - Health News
5:32 pm
Tue April 2, 2013

Obama's Plan To Explore The Brain A 'Most Audacious Project'

Credit Tom Barrick, Chris Clark, SGHMS / Science Source
A colored 3-D MRI scan of the brain's white matter pathways traces connections between cells in the cerebrum and the brainstem.

Originally published on Mon April 8, 2013 12:35 pm

President Obama has announced an ambitious plan to explore the mysteries of the human brain.

In a speech Tuesday, Obama said he will ask Congress for $100 million in 2014 to "better understand how we think and how we learn and how we remember." Other goals include finding new treatments for Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy and traumatic brain injury.

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Classical
5:13 pm
Tue April 2, 2013

April 4, 2013

Conductor: Michael Tilson Thomas
Soloist: Yo-Yo Ma, cello
Beethoven: Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72a
Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in c Minor, Op. 68
Encore:
     Liszt: Lamento e Trionfo from Tasso

The Two-Way
5:12 pm
Tue April 2, 2013

Egypt Ratchets Up Case Against Satirist, Threatens To Close TV Station

Credit Amr Nabil / AP
A bodyguard secures popular satirist Bassem Youssef, who has come to be known as Egypt's Jon Stewart, as he enters Egypt's state prosecutors office on Sunday.

Originally published on Wed April 3, 2013 6:52 am

Egyptian authorities are stepping up efforts against a popular TV comedian known as the "Egyptian Jon Stewart" and are now threatening to revoke the license of the private TV station that airs his weekly program.

As we reported Sunday, satirist Bassem Youssef was questioned for five hours over accusations he insulted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and Islam.

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Shots - Health News
4:45 pm
Tue April 2, 2013

How To Get Rid Of Polio For Good? There's A $5 Billion Plan

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

Polio is on the verge of being eliminated. Last year there were just over 200 cases of polio, and they occurred in just two remote parts of the world — northern Nigeria and the rugged Afghan-Pakistan border region.

A new $5.5 billion plan being pushed by the World Health Organization strives to eliminate polio entirely, phase out vaccination campaigns and secure polio vaccine stockpiles in case the virus somehow manages to re-emerge.

If the effort is successful, polio would be just the second disease in human history, after smallpox, to be eliminated by medical science.

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