News

In the current New Yorker, Michael Specter explores the conflict among some people who suffer from Lyme disease, and the doctors who study it.

'The Lyme Wars' That Tiny Ticks Have Wrought

4:50pm June 26, 2013

Since Lyme disease was first identified in the late 1970s, it has become the most commonly reported tick-borne illness in the country. Journalist Michael Specter talks about his New Yorker article on the disease and its controversial history.

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President Obama unveils his plan on climate change Tuesday at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The president laid out his plan to reduce carbon pollution and to prepare the country for the impacts of climate change.

Obama's Climate Strategy Doesn't Require Congressional Approval

7:06pm June 25, 2013

by Richard Harris

The sweeping plan calls for the Environmental Protection Agency to tighten carbon dioxide emissions on power plants and is designed to foster cleaner forms of electricity. The initiative also aims to help the nation cope with droughts and other weather related changes that are already happening.

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National

What Whitey Bulger Means To Boston

3:55pm June 25, 2013

The infamous Boston mobster Whitey Bulger is on trial after decades of alleged crimes, including 19 murders. Weekend Edition Saturday Host Scott Simon talks with Dick Lehr, co-author of "Whitey: The Life of America's Most Notorious Mobster," about the trial.

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A soldier from the 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, Manchus, looks toward the tree line through his rifle scope while on a foot patrol to visit Afghan Local Police in the Panjwai District of Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan. Panjwai is one o

World News

Friction Among Afghans A Threat To Post-U.S. Mission

3:48pm June 25, 2013

by Tom Bowman

By this time next year, there will be roughly half as many U.S. troops in Afghanistan as there are today. And for U.S. strategy in the country to work, Afghan security forces will have to hold off the Taliban after the Americans leave. But it's unclear if the Afghans will all stand together.

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For octopus flesh to be tender enough to grill, it must be dried in the sun at least one full day.

Mastering A Sea Monster: From Greece, A Lesson In Grilling Octopus

3:09pm June 25, 2013

by Joanna Kakissis

The Greeks have been eating octopus since ancient times, but there's an art to grilling these tentacled sea creatures. An octopus has to be dried in the sun for at least a day first. Otherwise, the flesh just steams and turns into "a rubbery mass."

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Another Republican Hopes For Upset In Mass. Senate Race

7:09pm June 24, 2013

by Tovia Smith

Businessman and former Navy SEAL Gabriel Gomez is trying to pull off a win in Tuesday's special election to fill John Kerry's Senate seat — like Republican Scott Brown's surprising special election victory in 2010. But polls show Gomez trailing veteran Democratic Rep. Ed Markey.

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More courts are asking jurors to avoid social media services and tools that have become an integral part of modern life, like Twitter, Facebook, email, texting, instant messaging and Internet research.

National

For Modern Jurors, Being On A Case Means Being Offline

6:10pm June 24, 2013

by NPR Staff

In simpler times, jurors were told not to discuss their cases with others. But with the proliferation of mobile devices, courts must now contend with Facebook, tweets, texts, instant messaging and Google — all tools that can compromise a juror's impartiality.

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Tea Party members protest Common Core in Ocala, Fla., in April. The new educational standards, adopted by almost all the states, are the object of a growing conservative backlash.

Among Conservatives, Concerns Grow Over New School Standards

6:10pm June 24, 2013

by Cory Turner

Forty-six states and Washington, D.C., have signed on to the Common Core State Standards, a set of K-12 standards meant to ensure that students are reaching the same learning benchmarks nationwide. But as states begin implementing the standards, many conservatives have come out against them.

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Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick joined state officials, clean energy advocates and union representatives to break ground for the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal.

Can An Old Massachusetts Fishing Port Light The World Again?

4:21pm June 24, 2013

by Asma Khalid

Once known as the City That Lit the World, New Beford's whale oil powered candles and lamps around the country. Now, the Massachusetts city wants to become an energy capital again, but this time with offshore wind.

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Nathan Whittaker harvests produce at City Farm in Chicago, in 2011.

National

In Chicago, Public Housing Experiment Enters New Phase

12:25pm June 24, 2013

by Cheryl Corley

The city has torn down all of its high rises and says it's close to completing its plans to transform public housing. Chicago leaders want to use public housing funds to build not just homes for poor families, but stores as well. However, some say that breaks a promise to provide affordable housing.

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