News

Todd Macy, a banker from Marin County, Calif., was the victim of identity theft. Nearly a year after filing his return, he's still waiting for his federal tax refund.

What Happens When Someone Else Gets Your Tax Refund

6:27pm February 18, 2013

by Dan Bobkoff

If you usually wait until April to file your taxes, you might want to hurry up — before identity thieves beat you to it. Using stolen names and Social Security numbers, these criminals file fake tax returns. This generates big, and fraudulent, refunds, before the real taxpayer gets around to filing.

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Jagdesh Trivedi believes his green card and Social Security card were stolen, along with more than $200 and two pairs of shoes.

Disabled Residents Displaced By Superstorm Sandy Back At Home

5:01pm February 18, 2013

by Fred Mogul

It's been nearly four tumultuous months since Superstorm Sandy forced the residents of Belle Harbor Manor from their adult home. Last week, the residents, who suffer mental and physical illnesses, were allowed to return home, only to find that things were not at all like they left them.

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National

Hints Of Progress After Investigation At Guantanamo Court

7:52am February 18, 2013

by Dina Temple-Raston

A pretrial hearing in the Sept. 11 case was suspended briefly last week to investigate allegations of eavesdropping. The commissions' chief prosecutor launched an investigation, and said no one was "listening, monitoring, recording" the proceedings. Defense attorneys seemed to take his word, which given the history of the commissions, is a baby step toward progress.

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Oregon State University has been growing a variety of hazelnut trees over the years to develop blight-resistant breeds.

Growing Resistance, Oregon Hazelnuts Battle Blight

6:42am February 18, 2013

by Deena Prichep

Carefully developed breeds are overpowering Eastern filbert blight, which had threatened to crush the U.S. hazelnut industry.

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STAR-certified physical therapist Jennifer Goyette works with cancer patients at South County Physical Therapy in Westborough, Mass.

Cancer Rehab Begins To Bridge A Gap To Reach Patients

6:42am February 18, 2013

by Rachel Gotbaum

Cancer patients often have to deal with side effects from their treatments. They may need speech therapy or help rebuilding their strength. The STAR program is helping break down the barriers to rehabilitation services.

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Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes, accused of masterminding a vast doping network, has refused to name his clients. The case stems from a 2006 raid in which Spanish police seized some 200 bags of blood, in the "Operation Puerto" investigation.

Doping Trial May Reach Far Beyond Spain, And Cycling

6:42am February 18, 2013

by Lauren Frayer

A famous doctor is on trial in Spain, accused of masterminding one of the world's largest sports doping rings. Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes' client list is believed to include at least one former teammate of disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong. The doctor says he treated athletes from other sports, as well.

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A Union Pacific freight train passes over a grade crossing in Elmhurst, Ill.

National

High-Speed Rail Buzz Overpowers Daily Chug Of Freight Trains

7:12pm February 16, 2013

by NPR Staff

President Obama reiterated his goal of bringing America up to speed with new high-speed rail projects nationwide. Meanwhile, the freight-rail systems are still helping farmers keep costs down and getting their crops out. Any new kind of rail expansion would have to take these long-established networks into account.

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Rami Nashashibi, fourth from left, claps as he marches with IMAN leaders during a May Day immigration rally in Chicago in 2007.

From The Inner City: Leading A New Generation Of Muslim Americans

5:03pm February 16, 2013

by NPR Staff

If Chicago is a stronghold of American Islam, then Rami Nashashibi might be considered one of its most precocious proponents. On Chicago's South Side, his group, the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, works to end violence and improve residents' living conditions.

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A protest banner in Valencia, Spain, reflects the view that the city's economic woes are a result of political corruption.

World News

Activists Offer Protest Tour Of Spain's Modern Ruins

10:05am February 16, 2013

by Lauren Frayer

A new form of alternative tourism is cropping up across Europe, with people eager to see the shattered remains of the continent's boom-and-bust economy. In Valencia, Spain, those tours take tourists past the city's many deserted construction projects.

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Wooden angels memorialize the victims of Adam Lanza's shooting spree in Newtown, Conn., last December. An upcoming Frontline documentary seeks to provide new details about Lanza and his mother, Nancy.

National

The 27th Victim: Nancy Lanza Is Subject Of 'Frontline' Documentary

8:13pm February 15, 2013

The documentary Raising Adam Lanza seeks a more complete view of Nancy Lanza and her son, a young man who was described as smart and awkward as a teen — and who later killed 27 people in Newtown, Conn. The documentary is built on the work of PBS Frontline and The Hartford Courant.

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