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The Two-Way
12:19 pm
Tue May 14, 2013

Justice Department To Open Probe Of IRS's Actions

Originally published on Wed May 15, 2013 6:17 am

Attorney Gen. Eric Holder has ordered the Justice Department to open an investigation into whether any laws were broken when the Internal Revenue Service singled out some conservative groups for extra scrutiny, he told reporters Tuesday.

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The Salt
12:14 pm
Tue May 14, 2013

Chris Hadfield: Space Chef In Chief

Credit Screenshot from YouTube
Cmdr. Chris Hadfield demonstrates how to make a sandwich, space station-style.

Originally published on Thu May 16, 2013 3:49 pm

The Two-Way
12:09 pm
Tue May 14, 2013

It's True: 'Mistakes Were Made' Is The King Of Non-Apologies

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 1:01 pm

Make no mistake, the acting commissioner of the IRS put himself in historic company Tuesday by writing in USA Today that "mistakes were made" when his agency singled out for extra scrut

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NPR Story
11:48 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Letters: New Orleans, Buzz Aldrin

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 12:00 pm

NPR's Neal Conan reads from listener comments on previous show topics, including postcards from New Orleans and our talk with astronaut Buzz Aldrin.

NPR Story
11:48 am
Tue May 14, 2013

The Promise And Limitations Of Telemedicine

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 12:07 pm

Telemedicine is nothing new, but advancements in technology have made it even more widely available. Neurologists can now treat Parkinson's patients from miles away, therapists can reach service members overseas, and general practitioners can work in rural areas without actually going there at all.

NPR Story
11:48 am
Tue May 14, 2013

The Legacy Of Gen. Ridgway And America's War In Korea

Originally published on Wed May 15, 2013 10:07 am

The ongoing conflict between North Korea and South Korea is the legacy of the Korean War, which can help explain relations between the two countries. In a new book, historian Victor Davis Hanson discusses how the strategies of U.S. Gen. Matthew Ridgway helped to turn around what appeared to be "a lost war."

Hanson, author of The Savior Generals, tells NPR's Neal Conan that although the three-year war "ended right where it began," it did allow for South Korea to flourish as a democracy.

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Movie Interviews
11:22 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Gerwig, Baumbach Poke At Post-College Pangs

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 12:33 pm

In the film Frances Ha, Greta Gerwig stars as the title character, a 27-year-old living a good but not particularly successful post-college life in New York City.

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Intelligence Squared U.S.
11:12 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Debate: Is The FDA's Caution Hazardous To Our Health?

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 12:34 pm

  • Listen To The Full Audio Of The Debate
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When it comes to approving new medical treatments, the Food and Drug Administration is balancing the need for patient safety against the urgency of making important new treatments available as quickly as possible.

Some argue the FDA sets the bar too high, requiring a process that takes too much time and money to carry out. They say that can leave patients waiting longer than necessary for promising treatments or lead to drugs not being developed at all.

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The Two-Way
10:53 am
Tue May 14, 2013

On Way To Prom, Teens Pile Out Of Limo To Aid Flipped Van

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 11:43 am

A limousine filled with students headed to prom night at Western High in Davie, Fla., stopped for a detour Saturday, after a Honda van veered into a concrete wall and flipped in front of the limo. The van's seven passengers had trouble getting out — until the limo's driver and the students came to their aid.

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Parallels
10:42 am
Tue May 14, 2013

American Doctors Reach Out To Syria

Credit Amy Ta / NPR
Dr. Zaher Sahloul, a Syrian-American physician in Chicago, heads a group of U.S. doctors providing help to those injured in Syria's civil war.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 12:34 pm

The civil war in Syria feels far away for many Americans. But it hits close to home for one Chicago doctor and has pulled him, and many of his colleagues, to the front lines.

Tell Me More host Michel Martin spoke with Dr. Zaher Sahloul, a practicing critical care specialist in Chicago and president of the Syrian American Medical Society.

Sahloul says that for safety reasons, local physicians in Syria have established an underground health care system.

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Monkey See
10:28 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Why Angelina Jolie's Op-Ed Matters

Credit Oli Scarff / Getty Images
Angelina Jolie, seen here in April, wrote in The New York Times about her double mastectomy.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 1:34 pm

Pop culture does not mean celebrity culture; I have perhaps said this more often than anyone you're going to meet. Who dates, who gets a divorce, who has a tantrum, who has surreptitious photos snapped of him by mangy, grim opportunists — these things are not culture of any kind, popular or otherwise, unless there is something else at stake. They are curiosities, and given that we are curious creatures, their pull is not surprising, nor is it new, nor was it invented by the internet, or television, or Americans.

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News
10:23 am
Tue May 14, 2013

What Ever Happened To The Economy?

Credit Paul J. Richards / AFP/Getty Images
The economy is still a big issue, but Washington isn't doing much about it.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 12:36 pm

Remember the economy?

The election year was dominated by talk about jobs and the economy, but neither the administration nor Congress seems to have any grand ideas for jump-starting a still sluggish recovery — and they're not even talking about it much.

President Obama sought to turn attention back to economic issues with a speech last week in Texas on manufacturing, but that's already long since been forgotten. A cascade of scandals has driven the issue entirely off the Washington radar.

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Music Reviews
10:07 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Dawes Knows Where It's Been And Where It's Headed

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 11:54 am

If you heard the Dawes song "Just Beneath the Surface" and said, "Somebody's been listening to their old Jackson Browne albums," you're not exactly insulting Dawes. The band has actually backed Browne on tour — and Browne has sung backup on at least one of its songs — so you could say that Dawes comes by its riffs and phrasing honestly.

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Shots - Health News
10:04 am
Tue May 14, 2013

A Sharper Abortion Debate After Gosnell Verdict

Credit Matt Rourke / AP
Jack McMahon, the defense attorney for abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, speaks outside the Philadelphia courthouse after the guilty verdicts Monday.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 10:25 am

The murder conviction in Philadelphia of abortion provider Dr. Kermit Gosnell in the deaths of three babies and one of his female patients is likely to further inflame the already heated abortion debate.

Both sides of the abortion divide have been gearing up for what comes next for some time now.

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The Two-Way
9:33 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Please Welcome The Parallels Blog: 'Many Stories, One World'

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 10:27 am

We want to note the launch of a new NPR blog — Parallels, which condenses its mission into four words: "Many stories, one world."

NPR.org international editor Greg Myre, who's hosting the blog, writes that:

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Shots - Health News
9:29 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Even After Overhaul, Gaps In Coverage For Young, Pregnant Women

Credit iStockphoto.com
The baby's going to be fine, but what about your pocketbook?

The federal health care overhaul makes some notable improvements in insurance coverage for young adults.

They can now stay on their parents' health plans until they turn 26. Next year they can also look for subsidized coverage on the state-based insurance marketplaces, also called exchanges. And they may qualify for Medicaid, if their income are less than 138 percent of the federal poverty level ($15,856 in 2013).

So far, so good.

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The Two-Way
9:18 am
Tue May 14, 2013

IRS Chief Says 'Mistakes Were Made' But Weren't Partisan

Credit Alex Wong / Getty Images
Acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller. (2009 file photo)

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 9:51 am

"Mistakes were made, but they were in no way due to any political or partisan motivation," the acting commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service writes in USA Today's op-ed pages.

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The Two-Way
9:10 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Reports: Bug Allows Gay Marriage In Video Game; Fix Likely

Credit NPR
Players found that male characters could marry one another and raise children in Nintendo's 3DS game Tomodachi Collection: New Life. The company is reportedly removing that option. An image shows Nintendo's webpage for the game.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 10:34 am

Days after the gaming world began to buzz with reports that Nintendo's new life simulation game allows men to marry other men, it now seems that Nintendo is removing that possibility, which by all reports was unintended.

Questions arose after players of the popular new game Tomodachi Collection: New Life realized that men could marry men. They could also date, and raise children. Female characters in the game could not have the same interactions with one another.

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The Salt
8:59 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Maybe It's Time To Swap Burgers For Bugs, Says U.N.

Credit NARONG SANGNAK / EPA /Landov
A vendor sells edible insects at Talad Thai market on the outskirts of Bangkok. The most popular method of preparation is to deep-fry crickets in oil and then sprinkle them with lemongrass slivers and chilis.

Originally published on Thu May 16, 2013 3:49 pm

Yes, we talk a lot about eating bugs here at The Salt. We know, because some of you have complained about it.

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Parallels
8:20 am
Tue May 14, 2013

As Gamblers Gather, Thailand's Child Boxers Slug It Out

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 2:33 pm

Under the fluorescent lights of the boxing ring, the boy can barely see out beyond the elastic ropes that surround the fighting stage. The crowd and the festival that press in around him are shadowy outlines. But the boy can hear them.

"Chai Lorlam, 9 years old, 22.9 kilograms [just under 50 pounds]," the announcer says.

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Shots - Health News
8:19 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Angelina Jolie And The Rise Of Preventive Mastectomies

Credit Carlo Allegri / AP
In sharing her decision to have a double mastectomy, Angelina Jolie has given voice to a dilemma more women are facing.

Originally published on Wed May 15, 2013 11:03 am

Angelina Jolie just became part of a medical trend: More women are deciding to have their breasts removed to reduce the risk of cancer.

Over the past decade, doctors have noticed a big increase in the number of women choosing prophylactic, or preventive, mastectomies.

Some, like Jolie, have a genetic mutation that makes it much more likely that they will have breast cancer. Her mother died of the disease at age 56. Jolie is 37. She wrote about her decision in The New York Times.

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U.S.
7:59 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Vermont Legislature Approves Assisted-Suicide Bill

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 11:19 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

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The Two-Way
7:50 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Russian Security Service Claims To Have Uncovered CIA Agent

Credit Sergei Ilnitsky / EPA /Landov
In Moscow's Red Square, people still line up to visit Lenin's tomb. Though the Cold War is over, Russia and the U.S. keep watchful eyes on each other. Tuesday, Russian officials claimed to have uncovered a CIA spy.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 5:09 pm

From Russia Today:

"Russia's counterintelligence agency has detained a CIA agent in Moscow trying to recruit an officer of the Russian secret service, the Federal Security Service (FSB) announced. The agent was operating under guise of career diplomat."

According to Reuters, the Russian foreign ministry has summoned U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul for a discussion.

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The Two-Way
7:36 am
Tue May 14, 2013

She's No Diva: Unruly Flier Sings 'I Will Always Love You'

Credit YouTube.com
As she was led off the plane the singer (with bag) was recorded by at least one passenger.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 8:46 am

The Two-Way
6:03 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Book News: Amazon Debuts Its Virtual Currency

Credit Courtesy of Amazon.com
The new Amazon Coins are making some people in the publishing world a little uncomfortable.

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

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The Two-Way
5:37 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Afghan Taxes Weigh Heavily On U.S. Contractors, Report Says

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 6:52 am

Since 2008, the Afghan government has assessed nearly $1 billion dollars in taxes — sometimes erroneously — on U.S. contractors working in the country, according to a new report from the Pentagon's Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, NPR's Tom Bowman tells our Newscast Desk.

John Sopko, the special inspector general, says the tax confusion has led to the arrest of contractors for nonpayment, increased costs to the U.S. government and interruptions to American military operations.

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Around the Nation
5:20 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Hipsters Singled Out For Being Annoying

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 11:19 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm David Greene. Hipsters: They're known for roasting their own coffee, riding vintage bicycles, listening to vinyl records from obscure bands, and now also for being unpopular. A new report from Public Policy Polling finds only 16 percent of Americans think hipsters are still hip. More than a quarter of those polled said hipsters should have to pay a special tax for being so annoying.

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Around the Nation
5:10 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Series Of Vehicle Accidents Blamed On Zombie Attack

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 11:19 am

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep.

Americans have celebrated Charles Ramsey almost every possible way and that includes Stephen Munhollon's tattoo. Ramsey saw trouble at a neighbor's house and rescued the three kidnapped women. Munhollon says he was caught up in the celebration. He's a tattoo artist. Fox 8 in Cleveland says he sat for five hours while another artist tattooed Ramsey's face on the back of his leg. Munhollon says people will ask to have their picture taken next to his calf.

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The Two-Way
4:43 am
Tue May 14, 2013

Actress Angelina Jolie Shares Story Of Her Double Masectomy

Credit Alastair Grant / PA Photos /Landov
Actress Angelina Jolie at a news conference with Secretary of State John Kerry (in background) and other foreign ministers in London last month. They held a forum on how to reduce sexual violence against women in conflict zones — an issue she has often spoken about.

Originally published on Tue May 14, 2013 6:47 am

Saying she is "writing about it now because I hope that other women can benefit from my experience," actress Angelina Jolie reveals on the op-ed pages of The New York Times that she had a double mastectomy earlier this year to substantially reduce the chances she will develop breast cancer.

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