Arts & Life

Artists Use Humans As A Canvas At World Bodypainting Festival

4:29pm August 15, 2016

by Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

As part of our series on unusual summer festivals, NPR travels to Austria for the World Bodypainting Festival, where artists use brushes, sprays and sponges on human canvases.

Trials of the Earth by Mary Mann Hamilton

Books
Arts

'Trials Of The Earth' Shows The Good, The Bad And The Ugly Of Pioneer Life

3:30pm August 15, 2016

by Maureen Corrigan

Born in Arkansas around 1866, Mary Mann Hamilton was one of the first women to homestead in the Mississippi Delta. Critic Maureen Corrigan calls her memoir a historical and literary treasure.

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Katie Couric speaks during an interview in May 2016 in Los Angeles.

Arts

Not My Job: Katie Couric Gets Quizzed On Bad Interns

10:49am August 15, 2016

Couric's impressive career in journalism started at a local radio station where she was hired as an intern by our very own Judge and Scorekeeper Emeritus Carl Kasell.

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The Lobotomy Of Patient H.M: A Personal Tragedy And Scientific Breakthrough

9:13pm August 14, 2016

by NPR Staff

Known as Patient H.M. to the medical community, Henry Molaison was lobotomized — and lost his ability to create memories in the process. His story is one of tragedy and scientific breakthrough.

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Arts

Kids' Movies Stand Out This Summer

5:52pm August 14, 2016

In a summer with not so great films, features columnist Kristen Page-Kirby with The Washington Post's Express says the standouts have all been movies for kids.

Books
Arts

Counting The Cost Of Medical Advances In 'Patient H.M.'

10:00am August 14, 2016

by Annalisa Quinn

Luke Dittrich's new book is part pop science book, part medical ethics essay and part family history: His grandfather was the surgeon who originally cut into the brain of the celebrated Patient H.M.

Culinary Superstars Take Their Top-Rated Spanish Restaurant On The Road

8:55am August 14, 2016

by Lauren Frayer

The Roca brothers are taking on a huge logistical challenge this summer: They're recreating their cuisine in five cities, including London, San Francisco, Phoenix, Hong Kong and Santiago, Chile.

Books
Arts

YA Author Wisdom: Sandra Cisneros

8:39am August 14, 2016

Sandra Cisneros is the author of "The House on Mango Street." For our series, "Next Chapter," she talks about how important it was for her as a Mexican-American woman to move into her first apartment.

Books
Arts

China Miéville Goes To War In 'New Paris.' Very, Very Weird War

7:00am August 14, 2016

by Jason Sheehan

Miéville's new novel is set in 1941 Paris, as occultists and philosophers attempt to fight the Nazi invaders with a surrealism bomb that accidentally unleashes hellish dreams onto the Paris streets.

Kenny Baker, who portrayed the R2-D2 in the first Star Wars movie, signs autographs in 2007, at a Star Wars event marking the anniversary of the release of the first film in the Star Wars saga.

Arts

'Star Wars' Actor Kenny Baker, Who Played R2-D2, Has Died

5:51pm August 13, 2016

by James Doubek

Best known for playing R2-D2 in six Star Wars films, a role where he was unseen, the actor was found Saturday morning by his nephew.